Assistant Principal Report

Dear Highvale Families,

It is hard to believe that there are now only a few weeks remaining in Term 3. It has been an incredibly busy and exciting term, filled with many special events and learning opportunities for our students.

Throughout the term, students have enthusiastically participated in a wide range of experiences, including Book Week, Science Week, the Years 3-6 Athletics Day, exciting excursions, our wonderful 100 Days of Prep celebrations, and the SWPBS whole-school reward. Of course, we also cannot forget our amazing school production earlier this week, which showcased the incredible talent, dedication and teamwork of our students and staff.

There has certainly been something for everyone, and our students have embraced each opportunity with enthusiasm and pride.

As you read through this edition of the newsletter, we encourage you to explore the different pages to learn more about each of these events. Be sure to also visit the Student Voice section on this page, where students share their thoughts, experiences and highlights from some of the wonderful events that have taken place across the school this term.

Celebrating Student Success

Congratulations to Zara from 3C on her outstanding achievements at the Australian Taekwondo Victoria State Competition.

Zara demonstrated incredible skill, focus and determination, earning a Gold Medal for her Individual Pattern performance, which was judged by a panel of six judges. She also competed in the Team Pattern event alongside two teammates, where they achieved a fantastic Silver Medal, again performing in front of six judges.

What an amazing accomplishment! We are very proud of Zara's dedication and success and congratulate her on representing herself so brilliantly. 

Congratulations to Vivaan, Vimal and Shawn (4W), Akith (4C), Yuvi and Swanik (4P), and Max and Vishruth (2L), who proudly represented our school at the Term 3 Melbourne School Downball Competition.

The team competed against students from 13 schools in a highly competitive event, demonstrating excellent skill, teamwork and sportsmanship throughout the day. We are incredibly proud to share that our students achieved an outstanding result, finishing in second place overall!

The competition provided a wonderful opportunity for students to challenge themselves, showcase their downball talents, and connect with students from other schools. The positive atmosphere and encouragement from parents, supporters and participants made the day a memorable experience for everyone involved.

Congratulations to all of our competitors on this fantastic achievement and for representing our school with such enthusiasm, determination and respect. 

Congratulations to Austen, Swanik and  Yuvi (4P), Bob (3L), (4P) and Vishruth (2L), who have been invited to compete in the Northern Star Chess Semi Final after their excellent performances this year.

The students will represent our school at the Semi Final event on Friday 30 October. This is a fantastic achievement and a testament to their strategic thinking, dedication and chess skills.

We are incredibly proud of these students for earning the opportunity to compete at this level and wish them the very best of luck in the Semi Finals. We look forward to hearing about their experiences and achievements. Congratulations and good luck, chess champions!

Hats Back On for Spring

As we move into the warmer months, this is a friendly reminder that school hats must be worn from 1 September. This date aligns with the need for increased sun protection as we enter spring and spend more time outdoors.

Victorian Government guidance recommends sun protection measures when UV levels reach 3 or higher, which typically occurs in Victoria from mid-August through to the end of April. Wearing a hat is an important way to protect students from harmful UV exposure and to develop positive lifelong sun-safe habits.

Please ensure that your child comes to school with their named school hat. 

We appreciate your support in helping us keep our students safe while they learn and play outdoors.

Please remember: from Monday, it will be "No Hat, No Play"! 

SWPBS Whole School Reward

The fabulous students of HPS have once again worked together to demonstrate our school expectations of Be Respectful, Be Safe and Be Your Best, consistently earning stars to fill our whole-school rewards jar.

Students were especially focused this term and quickly filled the jar through their positive behaviour, teamwork and commitment to making our school a great place to learn. Once the jar was full, students were invited to have their say by brainstorming different ways the school could celebrate this achievement. After sharing their ideas, students across the school voted on their preferred reward.

The winning choice was a whole-school movie afternoon along with a special visit from the ice cream van! There were plenty of smiles last Friday as students enjoyed a movie of their choice and a delicious frozen treat with their friends.

This wonderful celebration recognised the collective effort of our students and has certainly motivated them to keep striving towards their next reward. In fact, the whole-school rewards jar is already almost half full again!

Be sure to read the Student Voice section below to hear what students enjoyed most about the day and why they think School Wide Positive Behaviour Support is so important at Highvale.

Student Voice

This Student Voice section highlights what students have learned, discovered and enjoyed during these special events. Their reflections provide a wonderful insight into the experiences that have made this term so memorable and showcase the enthusiasm, creativity and curiosity of our students across all year levels. Over the past few weeks, there has been so much happening across our school that there has been plenty of student voice and chatter to share!

Science Week

Juliet (4W) - "I liked making the sycamore helicopter because it was fun learning about how seeds fall. Learning about Science is great because we learn about real-life things."

Atharva (1P) - "Science Week was amazing and fun. It was great to watch our cress heads grow."

Rhys (2L) - "We used cotton wool to help us plant our seed. I had tried using tissue paper before, so I liked experimenting with something different."

Clark (4W) - "I enjoyed learning about how seeds travel from place to place. We made a sycamore helicopter and watched it spin to the ground. I think learning about Science helps us in everyday life."

Rovin (1P) - "My favourite part of Science Week was decorating my seedling pot."

Kanisha (2L) - "I liked planting seeds and watching the cress plant grow. I also enjoyed making a hypothesis at the beginning of the activity."

Zerah (1P) - "I was really excited to plant my seed."

Vivaan (4W) - "I liked learning about different seeds, their properties and how they travel from one place to another. My favourite activity was making the sycamore helicopter. Science Week is amazing because it helps us understand things we see in nature."

Ethan (2L) - "I enjoyed planting the seeds and watching them grow."

Book Week

Grace (6D) - "I dressed up as an ostrich from the book Why Can't I Fly? I made a beak out of my hand and bent my arm to make it look like a real ostrich neck."

Leo (2M) - "Book Week was fun because we got to dress up as our favourite character from a book and show it to the whole school."

Ian (3A) - "I love that everyone dresses up differently. My favourite book is WeirDo because it's funny and I can relate to him."

Shamika (2M) - "I loved dressing up for Book Week and doing the parade with the whole school. It was so much fun!"

Mia (Prep A) - "I liked the parade. Janna and Aalya spoke on the microphone."

Jack (6D) - "We drew a cool whale from The Snail and the Whale. We followed the steps to make the whale look realistic."

Kaylee (3A) - "I enjoyed dressing up as a character from my own book, Happy Bee. It's a story about what makes Happy Bee happy."

Manduul (2M) - "Many people complimented my Book Week costume, which made me feel special. I love Book Week!"

Sam (6D) - "We made a skeleton hand that could move without folding the paper. We used string and cut-up straws to make it look like moving bones."

Jaanu (2M) - "I loved reading Arnie the Doughnut and making my own Arnie in class during Book Week."

Jayshen (Prep A) - "The costumes were really good!"

SWPBS Reward

Sara (5M) - "SWPBS is about working together to display positive behaviours as a school and earning a reward together."

Parinaaz (6S) - "The ice cream was delicious, and the movie Wonder was both good and sad."

Hailey (Prep FY) - "SWPBS is important because it's fun to earn rewards."

Gretel (3C) - "I loved that we got to watch a movie! SWPBS is important because it helps us remember the school expectations."

Nikan (1GC) - "I loved the movie. I watched Angry Birds 2 and my favourite part was when they saved the day!"

Krishaan (5M) - "SWPBS encourages students to be safe, respectful and their best by rewarding everyone together for their efforts."

Maya (6S) - "It was a great whole-school reward for all of our hard work with SWPBS."

Ollie (Prep FY) - "My favourite part of the reward was the ice cream."

Sebastian (3C) - "I liked eating the strawberry and lemon sorbet. SWPBS helps us make good choices."

Harnur (Prep FY) - "We earn an SWPBS reward when the Star Jar is full."

Fiora (1GC) - "My favourite part of today was the movie. I went to see Toy Story 4."

Navya (5M) - "We all worked really hard to earn this reward."

Shanaya (5M) - "I loved that we all got to watch our preferred movie. It was lots of fun."

Thank you to our staff, students and families for their ongoing support in making Term 3 such a successful and memorable one.

Enjoy the rest of your week.

Kelly Soccio