Principals Report

Education Week Celebrations!

Today we welcomed parents and grandparents to school to celebrate Education Week. The theme for this year was Spotlight on STEM. STEM is an acronym for Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics. All students in their classrooms were fully engaged working on a STEM activity based on a mentor text. Some classes also took this opportunity to share their published writing with their captive audience. It was fabulous to see so many parents and grandparents in attendance.

Cross Country

Congratulations to the members of the Cross-Country Team (Nayanka, Adria, Rebecca, Scarlett, Oliver, Lucas, Eddie, Charley, Imogen and Lily) who competed yesterday in the Divisional Cross County all achieving their personal best. Sheer fitness and resilience have seen Lucas, Imogen and Eddie move through to the Eastern Metropolitan Regional Cross Country at the Yarra Valley Racecourse on the 13th June. Congratulations and all the best to these super stars!

Working Bee 

A huge thank you to all the families who attended our recent Working Bee. We had a clear list of jobs to be done which made the morning run smoothly. An amazing amount of work was completed.

Capital Works Update 

We are getting very close now, the new building is almost complete with just a few electrical tasks to be completed and cleaning to be done. The outside is the focus now, completing the concrete paths and steps and the planting of garden around the perimeter. The move planned for the 28th June is still looking achievable.

Victorian Premiers’ Reading Challenge

The Victorian Premiers’ Reading Challenge is now open and Syndal South Primary School is excited to be participating. The PRC application offers a range of exciting features including:

• access to a library catalogue (including book images and blurbs)
• a modern user-friendly interface
• rewarding students with badges as challenge milestones are achieved
• the option for students to mark books as a favourite, give them a star rating or complete a book review

The Challenge is open to all Victorian children from birth to Year 10 in recognition of the importance of reading for literacy development. It is not a competition; but a personal challenge for children to read a set number of books by 6th September 2024.

Children from Prep to Year 2 are encouraged to read or ‘experience’ 30 books with their parents and teachers. Children from Year 3 to Year 6 are challenged to read 15 books. All children who meet the Challenge will receive a certificate of achievement signed by the Victorian Premier and former Premiers.

To read the Premier’s letter to parents, view the booklist and for more information about the Victorian Premiers’ Reading Challenge, visit: https://www.vic.gov.au/premiers-reading-challenge.

Please keep an eye out for your child’s individual log in which will be sent out soon. This will enable you to log the books that have been read at home, teachers will be logging in the books read in the classroom.

School Saving Bonus

You may have seen the recent announcement of the School Saving Bonus, as part of the Victorian Budget 2024/25. We are sharing more information about how families will be able to access and use this support. 

This one-off support will include $400 for each eligible student to help families cover the costs of school uniforms and activities in 2025. It will be available to parents and carers of every child enrolled in a Victorian government school in 2025. 

Cash will not be paid directly to individuals or families. Instead, families will receive the bonus as credits on their school accounts that will help meet the costs of your children’s activities and uniforms. The School Saving Bonus support will be in addition to existing and continuing means-tested supports for camps, sports, excursions and uniforms. 

There will be more information and guidance about the School Saving Bonus in Term 3, 2024, ahead of its implementation in 2025.

Have a fabulous fortnight everyone.

Helen