Brookside P-9 College Newsletter

Principal News

2023 Wrap Up

With only days to go, we have so much to celebrate! We would like to acknowledge and congratulate each and every one of our students for all of the learning they have achieved this year. We commend them all for not only their academic development, but also their own personal growth as individuals. We would like to thank our students for doing their best in all they do, our staff for their dedication and passion, and our parents for your support and assistance throughout the year. 

It is with great sadness that we say thank you and farewell to some incredible staff at the end of this year: 

  • Linda Britton
  • Sharmilee Lele
  • Sandra Pham 
  • Alice Tottle 
  • Tugba Erkocu 
  • Courtney Benson 
  • Roseanne Ghali 

These staff have been important members of the Brookside community for a various number of years, and have supported both students and staff throughout this time. We hope that they enjoy working at their new schools, and thank them all for the contributions they have made throughout their time at Brookside. 

 

Claire Volpe, Eleanor Kratz and Daniel Howard will also both be taking a year of leave from Brookside in 2024 to try new experiences. We hope they both enjoy this time and we look forward to seeing you back in 2025. 

 

We would also like to take this opportunity to say goodbye to the students (including our amazing Year 9 graduates!) who will be leaving us at the end of this year. We wish them all the best in the future and hope that they take with them many fond memories of their time at Brookside.

 

College Captains 2024

Congratulations to our 2024 Brookside College School Captains: Tina P and Mikaela S. We know that both of these students will represent Brookside College with pride, and we look forward to working with them in their new roles in the coming year.

 

A huge thank you to our fabulous 2023 Captains Jackson P and Jessica R for all of their hard work this year. Jackson and Jessica put in an amazing amount of effort throughout the year and we are incredibly proud of their leadership and achievements. They have been wonderful role models for all students across the College, and we wish them both the best of luck in their future years. 

 

Specialist Expo Festival

Thank you to everyone who assisted at or attended the Specialist Expo Festival. It was fabulous to see all of the wonderful student work, and we hope that all of our families enjoyed the opportunity. A special thank you to Liza Hoang, who put in numerous hours to ensure the festival was a success. 

 

Year 1 Stay Late

Year 1 students were invited to stay late at the end of the school day, as part of the Brookside College camping program. Students stayed at the College from 3:15pm-6:00pm and enjoyed a healthy snack for afternoon tea, watched a magic show and participated in teacher led activities with their peers. To conclude the night, students enjoyed pizza for dinner. The students had a great time with their teachers and peers and now look forward to staying at school even longer when they have the Year 2 Sleepover next year.

 

Year 3 Camp

Our Year 3 students attended camp at Log Cabin Camp, Creswick. The camp was set in a rustic bush location in a unique setting and nearly all the activities were led by friendly and happy camp leaders. The students had an amazing experience, and participated in activities such as Frisbee Golf, Zip Line, Giant Swing and much more. The camp provided the Year 3 students with a camping program that allowed them the opportunity to demonstrate their resilience, leadership skills, and build relationships with peers and teachers. Thank you to staff who attended the camp along with our students.                                  

Year 4 Camp

Our Year 4 students attended camp at The Summit, Trafalgar. They had a wonderful time participating in many outdoor activities which included Bush Adventure, Rock Climbing, Monster Course and Flying Fox. Students thoroughly enjoyed their time with their friends and were very well behaved. Thank you to staff who attended the camp and shared in the fun with our students.

                                                       

Swimming Program

Students in Prep, Year 1, 3, 5, 6 & 7 had the opportunity to participate in a swimming program at the Caroline Springs State Swim Centre. Students participated in 5 swimming lessons across the week with a qualified swim instructor and all seemed to enjoy their time. 

                                               

Prep Transition

We have welcomed our 2024 Prep students to the College over the past few Fridays, during which they have had the opportunity to participate in the Prep Transition program. This is a very exciting time for our new students and their families and it has been nice to see so many smiling faces both at the beginning and end of each transition session.

 

Meet the Teacher & Year 7 Orientation Day

On Tuesday 12 December students in Years 1-9 (2023) participated in a ‘Meet the Teacher’ session. During this time students met their classroom/home group teachers and their class members for 2024. This is an exciting time for students and we are sure they came home full of information about the event. We kindly ask that parents are mindful that a lot of consideration has gone into the planning and development of class groupings, and we thank you for being understanding about where your child/ren are placed.

 

All 2024 Year 7 students also participated in the State-wide Orientation on this same day. Throughout the course of this day students engaged in various lessons, met their classmates and their home group teacher. 

 

Brookside End of Year Concert

We thank all of the teachers and students for the effort they put into preparing for the end of year concert. The concert is an annual tradition that we love being a part of and we hope that everyone enjoyed the evening!

 

Year 6 Graduation

A huge congratulations to all of our Year 6 students who will soon complete their ‘Primary School’ journey, and we hope they enjoyed the Graduation celebration that was held at the college on Thursday 7 December! We are honoured that most of these students will continue on with their Year 7-9 education at Brookside, and we look forward to supporting them as they transition to Year 7. 

Year 9 Graduation

It is a very exciting time of year, but a sad time as well as we say goodbye to our Year 9 cohort of students. We congratulate all graduating students and thank them for all of their efforts throughout their time at Brookside. We wish them every bit of success as they move onto the next stage of their education. 

 

Important Reminders for the commencement of 2024

  • A reminder that the school will be operating with new finishing times next year. Students are expected to be in attendance from 8:50am – 3:00pm. Please ensure that arrangements are made for students to be picked up/cared for from 3pm every day. 
  • Staff commence Term 1 2024 on Monday 29 January.
  • Students in Years 1-9 are expected to return on Tuesday 30 January. 
  • Prep students will be participating in individual assessment conferences from Tuesday 30 January – Monday 5 February, and do not attend school during this time. The first official day of school for Prep students will be Tuesday 6 February. 

We wish all of our families and staff a safe and happy break and we look forward to seeing you all at the beginning of 2024!

 

Warmest regards, 

The Executive Team