Primary Life

Year 4 Camp

Mariah Reed - Year 4 Team Leader

What an amazing adventure we had on our Year 4 camp to Adanac! From the moment we arrived, excitement filled the fresh, Yarra Valley air as students eagerly anticipated the experiences ahead. Blessed with perfect weather, we couldn't have asked for better conditions to explore and enjoy time with friends in the great outdoors. 

Our students showed such bravery and resilience throughout the camp. From paddling canoes to soaring on the flying fox and trying their hand at archery, they faced each challenge with courage and a positive mindset. It was wonderful to see them work together and cheer each other on.

A huge thank you goes out to our amazing parent helpers. Their support and enthusiasm were essential in making sure everything ran smoothly. We couldn't have done it without them!

We are truly thankful to God for His protection over our camp. Everyone returned safely with many stories and happy memories to share.

Year 5/Prep Buddies

Peter Evans - Year 5 Teacher

A few times each term, the Year 5s have the pleasure of partnering up with a ‘Prep Buddy’. We have delightful get togethers which show wonderful aspects of all students, young and ‘old’! 

We have read stories together, where it is wonderful to see our little Prep legends so engrossed in creative worlds, adventures and characters. The Year 5s also got to show off their colourful, creative camp posters and talk their buddies through all their amazing experiences at Forest Edge. 

More recently, they partnered up and used the ‘Puppet Pals’ program to create innovative, fun stories, loaded with fun imagery and photos of each other and even some teachers! They also played an innovative activity with ‘BeeBots’, where buddies program a floor robot to move about in specific directions. Much fun was had! 

Our times always end with having lunch together. It is so encouraging to see these budding (I know…) relationships flourishing so quickly and the joy that our Preps and Year 5s get from spending time together, connecting over shared experiences and meals. It is a highlight of our years! 

Spotlight On Science

Carmen Wong and Kirsti Le Page - Science Teachers

The Primary Science program is always a fun and happening hub of learning, full of opportunities for hands-on learning at different levels. One of the highlights in Junior Primary has been hunting for worms in the schoolground.  After investigating the differences between worms and snails we applied our learning by selecting places we thought were suitable habitats and set about completing a worm stock take. 

One of the highlights in Senior Primary has been the awarding of a grant from the Australian Science Teachers Association (ASTA) in support of National Science Week (10-18 August). This grant is part of ASTA’s broader initiative to encourage innovative science projects and enhance science literacy across Australia. 

We aim to use the funding to go toward the school-wide series of workshops and week-long event held in Science Week. Students will learn about the biodiversity of the Ecological Vegetation Class (EVC) that is present on our unique school grounds. To replenish the biodiversity of the grasslands, students will be involved in potential activities such as, planting yam daisies which are an important cultural food source for our local indigenous people, building an exclusion fence for rabbits, improving the dense vegetation to hinder pesky noisy mynah population growth, which will encourage blue wren and other native birds to return to the area. 

The funding will also go toward the purchase of microbat nests which students will have the opportunity to construct as part of this week. With the support of our maintenance and horticultural team to install the boxes, we aim to attract microbats back to this grassland assisting with biodiversity renewal. Students will have the opportunity to showcase their research to the school community along with the other workshop presentations. 

We are grateful for the many opportunities to discover and explore the blessings God provides us through our unique and beautiful environment!