It has been a busy term, once again filled with fabulous learning opportunities for our students. I would like to thank the staff and our community for always going above and beyond to provide our students with these wonderful experiences . I am excited to be staying at Menzies Creek PS next term, and wish everyone a happy and safe Term break.

School Production

What a performance!! I want to acknowledge the amazing effort by students and staff in last week’s school production of Neptune’s Displeasure. It was such an entertaining show, and just watching the students’ beaming faces on stage is enough to know how valuable these opportunities are. The children worked incredibly hard over the past few months learning their lines, practising their dances, and creating the props. Their dedication truly paid off, and the performances were full of energy and joy.

A big thank you is extended to all the staff, parents, and carers who supported the students, whether it was helping with costumes, learning lines at home, or cheering from the audience. And of course, thank you to our amazing students for showing such confidence and teamwork. You really did shine like stars on stage! A special thanks is also extended to Anne for creating and coordinating the show, putting in many hours to ensure it was a wonderful experience for all.

School Swimming Program

Next term we will begin our swimming program. This is an exciting time for the students and a great opportunity to learn the lifesaving skills that are a part of the curriculum. Thanks to the funding the government provides, we are able to subsidise our swimming program and provide 6, 45-minute lessons for just $85.00 (including bus transport) for our Foundation to Year 4 students. The year 5/6 students will be attending a water safety program later in the year.

Why are school-run Survival Swimming, Water Safety and Lifesaving programs so important?

Every Victorian child should have the opportunity to learn vital survival swimming and water safety skills regardless of location, physical capability, cultural background and socio-economic circumstances. The school setting is the ideal environment for the provision of vital lifesaving skills, so that no child misses out.

Drowning is a leading cause of death among children aged 0-14 years. Globally, there are over 140,000 child-drowning deaths annually. School swimming and water safety programs will increase children’s awareness of the risks associated with swimming and recreational activities at both coastal and inland waterways to ultimately reduce drowning deaths throughout Victoria.

Knowledge of survival swimming and basic water safety skills can significantly reduce the risk of drowning, enhance community safety and build resilient children. The aims of school-run swimming, water safety and lifesaving programs should be that:

Children will learn the core survival swimming skills as a minimum, preparing them for unexpected entry into (open) water.
Children will learn personal safety when it comes to assisting someone in trouble.
Children will learn a valuable skill for life.
Children will increase their self-awareness, good decision making and leadership capabilities.
Children will be empowered to take personal responsibility for their actions.
Children will become the influencers to keep family and friends safe.

Swimming and water safety skills have also been found to provide health benefits for children, including social, psychological and physical wellbeing.

As the swimming program is a part of the Victorian Curriculum, it is an expectation that students will attend. If there is any reason why this may be challenging, please do not hesitate to contact me. Students who are not attending will be completing water safety activities back at school.

Parent Opinion Survey

You will be happy to know this is the last time you will see me asking for your assistance in completing the survey!! 🎉Our parent survey closes tomorrow, and we’re currently at 34% completion. To reach our 50% goal, we need just 8 more parents to take part. If you haven’t had the chance yet, we’d love for you to spend just 20 minutes completing the survey. Your feedback gives us an honest picture of how we’re doing and helps shape the future direction of our school.:

1. Click on the link or copy and paste the text into your browser. This link will take you directly to the survey: https://research.orima.com/parent

2. Select the School and Campus name below.

School Name: Menzies Creek Primary School

Campus Name: Menzies Creek Primary School

3. Enter the School PIN: 756462

4. When complete, please click on the ‘Submit’ button at the end of the survey to submit your answers. Please note that the survey will time out after 60 minutes of inactivity.

School Values

Drum roll please…

We are excited to share with you our new school values, as voted by the members of our school community:

Resilience
Kindness
Respect
Integrity
Personal Best

These values will play a vital role in shaping the future of our school and will guide the way we learn, teach, and interact with one another every day. They will provide a clear foundation for building a positive school culture, nurturing respectful relationships, and supporting every child to grow not only academically, but also socially and emotionally. Together, these values will help us create a strong sense of community and ensure that our school continues to be a place where every student can thrive.

We look forward to sharing with you more details as we begin to weave these values into all that we undertake at Menzies Creek Primary School.

Division Athletics

We are so proud of Issy and Eilidh, who represented Menzies Creek at the Divisional Athletics Championships yesterday. Both athletes gave outstanding performances in their events and have now qualified for the Regional Athletics Championships held next term! Well done and good luck!👏👏👏

Working Bee Attendance

- Daniel Lonard, Roz Wilson, Rowan Coxhead, Jo Oldland, Sarah Wicking, Daniel Hesketh, Anna Benjamin, Donna Markham, Sarah Homans, Beth Coy, Jessie Evans,

A huge thank you to those listed above, who came along to help at our recent working bee. I know there were many hands involved, so apologies if I’ve missed mentioning anyone, but your efforts are truly appreciated! It was fantastic to give our school grounds some much-needed care and attention, and even better to wrap up the afternoon with some well-earned burgers and sausages.

We’re already looking forward to our next working bee, which will take place midway through Term 4, so stay tuned for details!

Assembly

Our final assembly for Term 3 will be held tomorrow at 2:00pm (school finishes at 2:30pm).

Wellbeing