Kids Corner
In the final Kid’s Corner for the 2024 school year, I would like to share some speeches form the Year 6 Graduation.
- School Captain’s - thank you, Swanya and Ranuga, for being outstanding captains and I trust everyone enjoys their speeches as much as the people who attended the evening did and
- Izzy – every year the Year 6’s conduct a competition for one of the children to have the opportunity to present a speech. This year, Izzy’s speech was selected and this is also featured. Well done and congratulations Izzy as your speech was amazing too!
School Captaincy Speech – Swanya
Swanya - Graduation Speech
Graduation a time to celebrate our learning and to thank those who have helped us on our journey. We all started the same, hatching out of our comfortable egg. Coming into the real world. Walking into the huge school, towering buildings. New words, colours, numbers, friends, and a new adventure. Ready to start our most memorable educational adventure. I would like to thank our amazing principal Mr. Catalano, teachers, parents, and my fellow peers that were with me on this journey. Some of your faces I’ve seen and greeted for seven years of my school journey and others I have met along the way. I would like to thank you; the fact you are all here today is phenomenal. If you don’t already know who I am, I am Swanya Perera the 2024 school captain.
The first day of school. There we all were, in our prep classes excited, nervous, shy ready for what awaited us. This is where it all started. Prep was one of my core memories and a lot of yours. Remember coming to class day after day. Learning letters, numbers, colours, the importance of washing our hands. It felt like only yesterday I was learning how to write hello. The amount of opportunities that the school gave us, lunch time sport, innovation classes, productions, we all got to share those wonderful moments with each other. That’s something incredible that will be locked into our memories forever.
Time flew past so fast. I wish I could stand here and tell you that my journey was perfect I didn’t have any challenges, and I was always cheerful. But aren’t the mistakes and challenges what makes the journey special and memorable? I still remember thinking that the learning pit was a real place. Even though it isn’t, sometimes it feels like it is a real place. Slowly climbing step by step. One of my favourite things about this spectacular school is the things we learnt, and I am sure many of you can relate. My favourite subject is maths, and this is because we learnt things that challenged our thinking. It made us open our minds to all possibilities, solution, strategies, and different reasoning. They only thing I hate about maths is when they use Greek letters. Do you want to teach Greek, English or Maths make up your mind.
This school has taught us hundreds of things, but I think the main take away is when we were taught to think about the process not the end result. Our mistakes were our tickets to our learning journey. The learning pit full of productive struggle. A world full of productive minds, open minds, innovative minds. Where dreams come reality. This world was GWPS. I think I have a right when I say GWPS was a home away from home.
Graduation is a time to thank these of you who have given, helped, and supported. I can’t express how grateful I am for each and every one of you, but I will try my very best. I first would like to thank my peers. Playing those games of tag and basketball and those lunch time clubs, we enjoyed together. Without all of you I would feel incomplete, lost. So, I thank you for being there for me through my ups and downs.
Now what is a school without teachers? I thank all my teachers for teaching me the fundamentals and the topics that Year nine’s learn. Teachers are the individuals that shape young minds to become doctors, engineers, lawyers, and the people that will always be remembered.
Now without these two people I wouldn’t be here. The confident, loving, funny people that made me the person I present myself to you today. My parents. Our parents taught us to fly into the world with a huge smile and are the hands keeping me out of trouble. Now I want you to turn to your parents and thank them because we don’t give them enough credit.
Now the last person I would like to thank is Mr. Catalano. He has been here for 14 years, and I think it’s safe to say those 14 years were the best this school has ever had. Without Mr. Catalano we wouldn’t be here, so I thank you from the bottom of my heart.
Now we’re off flying to a far, far land. Happy, scared, nervous. All I know if that a chapter of my book will be filled with golden years. Again, thank you, to my peers, Mr. Catalano, assistant principals, teachers, and everyone standing in front of me. If I told my prep self, I was here she would be very proud, happy, excited for the life she had in front of her however, my year six self is thankful. Anyone can talk in the parliament house, buildings like this or at a park. However, someone brave and kind can listen and some even braver uses message the speaker gives. So, what I’m saying is that my message is being imperfect is what makes you normal. Making mistakes are what make you human, take everything as a learning opportunity and when you get tired of learning have fun and live a little. And remember this, ending one adventure is the start to another.
Thank you.
Year 6 Graduation Speech – Ranuga
Good evening Mr Catalano, parents, guardians, teachers and fellow graduates. If you don’t know already, I am Ranuga Withana and I am the 2024 School Captain.
First and foremost, thank you all who helped us, mould us and shape us into becoming the people we are today. Your encouragement, wisdom, and unwavering presence have made an immense difference in our lives. Words cannot express my depth of gratitude to all of you who stood by our side during the thick and thin. Each of you has played a vital role in our journey, helping us navigate challenges and celebrating our successes. Thank you for believing in us and for being such an important part of our story. Your impact will always be remembered and cherished.
Firstly, I need to thank all the teachers at our school. You all are the heart of everything you do and make the best learning. Each year, when you ask someone who is your favourite teacher, they say something different every year. You make each and every student's lives special, and we can’t thank you enough.
The way you care for the students is way more than what we deserve. You help all students with so much care it becomes impossible to choose your favourite teacher. Even when we mess around or we are behaving in class, you pay attention to each student. On behalf of the students here today, I would like to thank you for everything you have taught us.
There is one special person that has known me for probably my whole life and has taught me how to grow up. That special person is Mr Catalano. Who has taught me so much. Not only taught me so much, but everyone at this school. He has been a principal here for the past 14 years and he probably is the best principal to step foot in this school. This school would be terrible if Mr Catalano wasn’t here. So thank you for everything you have done for me and my peers for the past 7 years.
On the page of principals, we can’t forget to thank the wonderful assistant principals at this school. Mr Lewis, Mr Addison, Ms Seach who are some of the best assistant principals I have experienced in my short life. They help each student's problems when they need them, have a fun chat with the students or they just help them with a simple task. We cannot thank you enough for your support.
I must thank my peers and friends for all the help we have given each other. From prep through to year 6, we find new friends and peers. But the special thing is that we always help each other out. From help with a learning task, a problem to even taking them to the bathroom (yes, in primary school we have to go to the bathrooms in pairs), everything counts, and I would thank everyone for everything that you have done.
Sometimes we will have fights and squabbles and get angry at each other. But only a real friend will always be there for you. A real friend will protect you. A real friend is always by your side. A real friend feels like family.
Speaking about family, thank you to all the families here today. Words cannot express how much we thank you for everything you have done for us. Taking us to school, feeding us, and helping us grow to who we are today, and the people we become tomorrow. Walking into the school gates ready to take on the world of work. I was anxious to be alone for the first time in my life with complete strangers. But there were some people by my side to comfort me. My loving family. They held me by my hand and gave me the courage to go learn.
So my class of 2024. Only 15 more days left of being the big people in primary school. This has been an amazing experience growing up at Glen Waverley Primary School. It has been a wild ride with lots of memories. Before I end, I would like to share an analogy:
Our journey through school is like a chocolate bar. We start the chocolate bar without knowing what it’s like and we don’t know if we will enjoy it. As we eat the chocolate, piece by piece, we will make memories along the way. When we get to the end of the chocolate bar, our memories will flourish because we have enjoyed the chocolate bar.
I really hope your primary school chocolate bar has been delicious just has mine has! Thank you.
Year 6 Graduation Speech: by Izzy
I’ve had a dream for the past 7 years, and it’s to be here today and say goodbye to you. Primary school has been a unique journey. I realised that these pages of my story were added but they were better than I could've ever imagined looking back, shaping this journey into ways I would have never anticipated. We’ve been here for 7 years, more or less and these years have filled pages, all full of memories and tonight we’re tying them up in our hearts.
Good evening, everyone, Mr Catalano, Teachers, Families and fellow GWPS 2024 graduates. I’m Izabella or most of you know me as Izzy, I’ve been at the school for 7 years, prep to year 6 and I’m here to tell you the story of our begging to our end.
Primary school has been like writing my own story, and these past 7 years or you could say 7 chapters really have been incredible, full of memories that we’ll all cherish and love forever. We’ve held onto something special, the start of our beginning. Our first day of school was on the 31st of January 2018 and it was the first day we embarked on our journey.
My first day, well I still remember I walked into the school through a gate that was this high (high hand up gesture) and no I’m still not as tall however (laugh) I think I was this tall at the time (height hand up gesture) and it was intimidating but it didn’t stop me. Then I immediately met my best friend, who I still am in touch with today.
My parents told me I was super bubbly and bright, and I remember too until I found out that my mum and dad couldn’t stay but what do you expect I was this many years old (show four fingers) and I was still trying to find out if I could fit underwear on my head (point at head). However, one of the characters in my story made the chapter spectacular, Miss Gilbert.
She helped me settle in and played with beads and animals. It was already time for our next activity. But before a little snack and I think we all remember our banana phones (sassy phone gesture). Throughout the rest of prep, it was stunning. But there were some turns taken in my story.
I still remember those days when things weren’t fantastic and I would start bawling my eyes out (exaggerate) when my parents dropped me off, but Mr Catalano would bring me to his office make me comfortable and give me things to do in the morning and it became a place where I was really happy.
So let’s go through the next six years, or you could say the next 6 chapters.
In year 1, we could finally write sentences the right way, left to right not right to left. I remember when I tried I got in trouble by my prep and Year 1 teacher, I didn’t know how some of you did it. A little later was Year 2 and Covid made itself a barrier and my pages became blank, words stated to separate and so did friendships.
Do you remember when your siblings would scream or not realise you were in a meeting, and they would ask if you wanted a pretend cup of tea? No one? Oh, um well mine did (giggle and hide gesture) I also remember from Year 2 I didn’t go back to school with the rest of you and I felt so isolated. But when I came back from Covid we all changed a bit. From what we thought were hideous haircuts and of course we can't forget all the people who had their PJs under their school uniform. And yes, I'm looking at you.
Then writing a new page in Year 3 we all tried to move on however Covid kept us back. We were still together from a distance, and we were still learning how to adapt but then we didn’t need to anymore because Covid said bye to us from a 1.5 meter distance and things sort of went back to normal, I guess (pause and breath).
Year 4, yay finally a senior in primary, one of my best years yet and our first camp in Ballarat, and then the unexpected and yes that means things like iPads, pen licences and crushes were there in writing to and we really could be difficult and that’s just the truth (hands up like I got caught).
Then Year 5, which was only last year and the best year of my life for me because I grew as a person. It was also full of memories - Beechworth camp, new friendships, even unexpected ones, captaincies and interrelate.
We can’t forget the last few pages in the chapter, Year 6 - inter-school sports, or forgetting to hand in homework, camp ADANAC and we can't forget the times when we try to create mini movies and your best friend just wouldn't stop pretending to be a Zara model. I think my iCloud storage is pretty full, I mean half of the time she was just on the floor laughing her lungs out. Then tonight Year 6 graduation however, there’s still our last day together in 15 days on the 20th of December 2024.
Find where your pages take you, even if you have to write a million pages, you’ll one day achieve your dreams.
And at the start of tonight I said “goodbye” but it’s not a goodbye it’s just an, I’ll see you later.
Thank you.