Term 3 Update

Welcome back to all families for Term 3. It has been terrific to hear from students and teachers about how they spent their holidays – enjoying time with family and friends and for some, a brief escape to warmer weather.

Students have quickly settled into the Term, and we commence Term 3 with an enrolment of 405 students and warmly welcome all new families to Fyans Park.

In-zone enrolments are still coming in for Foundation for 2026. The larger school tours for 2026 have now concluded and I am taking smaller tours for families moving into our local neighbourhood area. In speaking with new families, the highlight of the tours has been hearing directly from our School Captains – Ned, Willow, Mara and Harry about all the wonderful things on offer at FPPS, from a student perspective.

I recently received confirmation from the Department that our enrolment management plan and enrolment restrictions will remain in place for the 2026 school year to ensure we maintain an enrolment figure that meets in-zone demand.

Planning for 2025

It is that time of year again when schools begin planning class structures and staffing for the following school year. We have a lovely group of children already enrolled and ready to commence school for next year with a comprehensive transition planned that begins later this term.

If you child is leaving Fyans Park at the end of the school year from any other year level outside of Grade 6, please contact Jane or Alison at the school office to notify us as soon as possible.

Mobile Phones and Wearable Device Policy

A reminder to all families of our school’s implementation and commitment to the Mobile Phones and Wearable Device Policy.

This policy is a Ministerial policy formally issued by the Minister for Education.

I am very pleased with the responsibility shown by our students who are regularly handing in their mobile phones each morning and these are being placed into locked boxes until the end of the school day.

We are currently monitoring students' use of wearable devices as these can only be worn at school when in ‘school mode’ and not used by students for communication during the school day. Should your child communicate via their personal device, please refrain from responding and instead call the school office on 5221 3772, to ensure we are all complying with the Ministerial order.

In addition for families, please see the link below to resources for schools, parents and students via the e-safety commissioners’ website. A highly valuable resource. https://www.esafety.gov.au/parents

2025 School Swimming Program

Mr Scade is currently putting the finishing touches to our annual swimming program, and I know it is something that many students are looking forward to this term.

Students in Years 3-6 will be attending in Week 6 of this term (25th – 29th August) and students in Years F-2 will be attending in Week 7 (1st – 5th September).

Students will all participate in 5 x 40 minutes lessons over the course of the week.

As you would understand, child safety is our number one priority with regards to the swimming program, including the safety of students in the water and on the pool deck. In addition, ensuring adequate supervision and safety of students in changerooms. Our school has a close partnership with the pool staff ensuring we undertake the appropriate risk management procedures to ensure the safety of all involved.

Swimming is an incredibly important life skill and even for those who already swim confidently, our swimming program offers an extra opportunity for students to refine their skills in the pool with expert support.

National NAIDOC Week celebrations were held across Australia in the first week of July to celebrate and recognise the history, culture and achievements of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples. NAIDOC Week is an opportunity for all Australians to learn about First Nations cultures and histories and participate in celebrations of the oldest, continuous living cultures on earth.

NAIDOC week typically falls in the school holidays; however, it is still important to acknowledge the significance of this week with students.

You might remember last year that Zoe T (now in 34G) was awarded one of the prestigious NAIDOC medals of Excellence for her entry in the 2024 NAIDOC week colouring competition.

During Term 2, students had the opportunity via our lunchtime clubs’ program to enter the competition once again and I have sent off a group of entries for this year’s competition, who would all be worthy winners. Best of luck to those students in Years F-2 who have entered the competition this year.

National Art Gallery of Victoria Visit

Earlier this week, selected students from Years 3-6 were chosen to participate in a special Art incursion facilitated by the National Gallery of Victoria (NGV).

This opportunity was offered to a select group of students who have demonstrated exceptional creativity, skill, and enthusiasm in visual arts.

The focus of the incursion was ‘Magical Masks’ and included the exploration of international cultures and art making traditions. Students compared masks from different historical and cultural contexts and saw how ideas and techniques are similar or different. They explored how the use of materials enhances meaning and expression in works of and created and presented a mask design inspired by art and objects from different cultures.

A big thanks to Mrs Ladgrove and Mrs McLean for their organisation and support of this Student Excellence incursion and the terrific NGV Educators and Program Assistant who attended on the day.

Below are the magical masks created by our students.

Teaching Excellence Program 2025

I would like to show my continued support for Miss Lucy O’Connor and Mr Daniel Breen and their participation in the Teaching Excellence Program this year by providing the school community with an update on their learnings.

Both Lucy and Daniel have attended two Literacy discipline days and two Teaching Excellence Learning Community days during the first half of the school year. Their involvement in the program has enhanced their knowledge and skills in all aspects of literacy and leadership development. They have learned collaboratively alongside colleagues from across the State and have brought back new understandings of contemporary teaching approaches and strategies to our school.

The staff and I are proud to have Lucy and Daniel represent our school and support the Victorian Academy of Teaching and Leadership in raising the status of this amazing profession and we look forward to their continued success in Term 3.

You may remember that in 2024, Mrs Ladgrove also participated in the program in Numeracy and her work is being felt across the school this year in her role as Learning Specialist and supporting capacity building of our teachers’ instructional practices.

Building Update

We eagerly anticipate the opening of our amphitheatre and new and improved green surface which have both been funded through Christmas Fair fundraising and the Inclusive Schools Grant. The dedicated team behind the Christmas Fair and our School Council are the driving forces behind our schools’ fundraising success, allowing us to dedicate these specific funds towards projects that benefit all students, not only now but far into the future.

Tomorrow morning at 7am we are expecting an arrival of steel ready to commence work on our green surface this weekend with building works set to conclude by end of Term 3.

On Friday, to celebrate National Tree Planting Day we had Arlo, Lenny, Frankie, Jude, Alex, Matilda, Emily, Archer, Nate and Arya assist Miss Burgess and Greg to plant out the new space next to the new amphitheatre. Our students did a fabulous job and got their hands dirty!

A big thanks to Barwon Water for their generous contribution of plants to assist with the completion of this project.

Staffing Update

We welcomed new staff to the team this term in Ms Meg Neal (in 3/4S) replacing Miss Speirs for part of Term 3 along with Ms Dykes (in 3/4V) and Ms Del Bianco (in 1/2K) for the remainder of the school year.

We also warmly welcome Assistant Principal, Mrs Alison Esdaile who is working at our school each Monday for Term 3. Alison comes to us from the Geelong English Language School and brings with her a wealth of knowledge in best supporting our EAL learners.

With Mr Hambrook on long service leave this term, Miss Bryce has made a terrific start in 5/6H, quickly learning all about her students. Early next week, we welcome Miss Courtney Trigg to Fyans Park. Miss Trigg has already had a visit this week to meet students and looks forward to starting with 5/6T.

A big thank you to Mr Scade and Mrs Van for their care of students and stepping in to support 5/6T over the last couple of weeks. We are so very fortunate at Fyans Park to have a highly skilled and flexible teaching staff, and it really does make all the difference.

Next week we look forward to having Miss O’Connor back from leave and I wish to thank Miss Auburn Youla for her teaching and care of all students in Prep O over the last two weeks. Auburn is a regular CRT at our school and works beautifully across all year levels with an understanding of our agreed instructional practices and wellbeing approach for students.

Beginning in Week Four and until the end of Term, we have Mrs Nawrocki taking long service leave and she will be replaced by Mrs Cummings (Mon – Thur) and Mrs Barnewall (Fridays). We look forward to having Lucinda back in Term 4 but know that 1/2N are in very good hands.

The CRT shortage is continuing to impact all schools in Geelong and so far, we have been very fortunate in obtaining teaching staff to cover leave vacancies and staff illness. We often receive reports from our regular relief staff that they enjoy their days at Fyans Park and will often prioritise working at our beautiful school. I will continue to keep parents informed of any changes via Compass and appreciate the support and understanding of our families.

Unlocking Potential – Principal Internship Program

In Week 5, beginning on 18th August, we welcome Tsering Sherpa to Fyans Park. Tsering is currently Assistant Principal at Truganina College and is undertaking a Principal internship alongside me for four weeks. This program aims to build the skills and prepare aspiring leaders for the responsibilities of Principalship and Tsering will also bring with her a great deal of skills and knowledge that will positively impact Fyans Park.

Welcome to Fyans Park Tsering!

Volunteer Induction – Complete ONLINE

A reminder to all families that we have a process for Volunteer Induction for all school activities, excursions and camps. Our Induction process is valid for 12 months and is now available to complete online via our new FPPS Volunteers Portal

https://sites.google.com/education.vic.gov.au/fpps-visitors-portal/home

Please use the link at your convenience and head to the OHS Induction for Volunteers tab where you can review all policies and complete induction.

We encourage all families who wish to volunteer in any capacity this year, to complete the online form and this information will be recorded at our front office.

** Please note the Christmas Fair has a separate induction as this is a large-scale school event.

We continue to value the partnership in education with families and appreciate and value the ongoing support to ensure our students have every opportunity.

School Wide Positive Behaviour Update

With our expected behaviours now familiar to students and visible in all classrooms. Our SWPBS team of teachers and our Student Wellbeing Leaders – Max and Gracie have been using all the available data to determine a fortnightly behaviour focus for the whole school and an area we can target our attention to increase expected behaviour.

This fortnight the focus is:

Be kind and think of others

For more information about School Wide Positive Behaviour Support please head to our website at: https://fyansparkps.vic.edu.au/teaching-and-learning/swpbs/

State Championships Cross Country

Congratulations to Charles N, who represented Fyans Park earlier this week at the State Championships Cross Country in Yarra Glen.

Charles came home with a fantastic result of 36th out of 88!

Congratulations Charles

Have a great week everyone

Mrs Cameron

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