Assistant Principal Update

Hello APS families and welcome to week 4 of Term 3. 

It is hard to believe we are almost halfway through this term already. Term 3 has been jam packed with many events and we still have lots more ahead. Today’s 3-Way conferences have been a great success, with lots of amazing student learning being shared with families. Congratulations to all the students for their efforts in preparing and sharing at their conferences.

There have been several incursions and excursions happening in the past week with Year 2 heading down the Yarra on a river cruise, Year 6 spent time last week exploring the Immigration Museum and Queen Victoria Markets. There are also excursions coming up for Year 1 and Year 5 heading to the Melbourne Museum, Year 3 to the Botanic Gardens as well as the STEM Race Car challenge being held at Quantum. We are so fortunate that we can offer such opportunities to supplement our curriculum learning. 

In the coming weeks we have Book Week Celebrations, interschool sports, concert practice for all students and students in Year 3 and Year 4 will be heading off on camp. 

Junior and Senior Athletics Carnival 

Over the past week APS students have participated in our annual athletics carnivals. The senior athletics was held at Collingwood Harrier athletics track last Thursday. We had a wonderful group of parent volunteers who helped with the timing of running events and supporting with measuring and marshalling through field events. While fun, participation and engagement were the goals of the day; there was also some friendly competition between the houses. 

Our junior students participated in several fun track and field style activities yesterday. There were lots of fun and colour as students participated in their house groups.

A massive thank you to all the families who attended both events. We love having you there to join in, help and celebrate our students.

Students in Years 3-6 who have been successful in securing a position in the district team will receive information via Compass.

A reminder that students who wish to trial for the 1500m at district level will need to meet Nat in the Quadrangle tomorrow, Thursday 14 August, at 1:30pm. Students will complete the trial at Alphington Park.

Year 2-6 STOMP Dance Production – From Page to Stage and Back Again! 

Paige loved reading so much that when it came time for APS to put on their annual concert, the show director asked Paige if she could pick the book they based the concert on. Paige couldn’t believe her luck! She locked herself in the library all day trying to decide which book to pick. 

She stared at the brave, strong characters in all her favourite books, wishing they could just tell her which one to pick. She stared and stared for so long that Paige didn’t realise that the characters had begun to stare back at her. No, Paige was too lost in her thoughts to see the furry hand that reached out from the depths of the pages, and she didn’t even have time to scream before it pulled her into a land she could have never imagined!

Next week Kira and the team from STOMP will commence the dance program for our 2025 APS Year 2-6 Concert. All classes from Year 2 to 6 will have a 45-minute session with the choreographers to learn their individual class dance and the finale dance. 

Teachers will also support students with both dances (class and finale), with practice outside of the STOMP sessions.

The concert will be held at Ivanhoe Girls Grammar on Monday 15 September from 6:30-8:30pm.

We will have a full rehearsal at school in the gym the week prior and a stage rehearsal at IGG Performing Arts centre on Monday 15/9 from 10-2pm.

Details about costumes will be coming out in the next couple of weeks. 

Book Week Celebrations 

Dress Up Parade: Our annual, and very popular book character parade will be held next Wednesday 20 August in the gymnasium from 9:00am. We invite all families to attend this great event. We encourage families to visit the classrooms following the parade for special book week celebrations.

Meerkat Performances: To celebrate Book Week we have again booked Meerkat Productions to provide our students with a dramatic representation of the book The Garden of Broken Things by Freya Blackwood, which has been nominated for an award as part of book week. The production team have put the final touches to this year's adaptations and are excited to start performing.

The APS production will be performed on Friday 29 August at 9:30am for students in Prep, Year 1, Year 2, Year 3 and Year 4. 

The Garden of Broken Things by Freya Blackwood

From award-winning creator Freya Blackwood comes a beautifully tender story about curiosity and the joy of listening.

One day, curious Sadie follows a cat into the tangled vines behind the lonely house at Number 9, Ardent Street.  Deep in the undergrowth, past all the twisted, rusted things, Sadie finds the cat sitting on the lap of a woman, bent with time and weariness. Sadie has found the Garden of Broken Things.

Have a great week everyone!

Shane Wilkie

Assistant Principal

2025 Parent / Caregiver / Guardian Opinion Survey

WE WANT OUR PARENTS / CAREGIVERS / GUARDIANS TO TELL US WHAT THEY THINK! 

Our school is conducting the annual Parent / Caregiver / Guardian Opinion Survey offered by the Department of Education and is seeking your feedback. The survey is designed to assist schools in gaining an understanding of families’ perceptions of school climate, student behavior, and student engagement. The survey is optional, but we encourage and appreciate your participation.

Our school will use the survey results to assist in identifying areas for improvement and professional development needs in the school, to target school planning and improvement strategies. 

The Parent / Caregiver / Guardian Opinion Survey will be open online from Monday 18 August to Friday 19 September 2025.

All families are invited to participate in the survey.

The survey will be conducted online, only takes 20 minutes to complete, and can be accessed at any convenient time on desktop computers, laptops, tablets or smartphones.

The online survey will be available in English and 10 other languages including Arabic, Greek, Hakha Chin, Hindi, Japanese, Punjabi, Simplified Chinese, Somali, Turkish, and Vietnamese. Resources are also available in additional languages to assist parents / caregivers / guardians who speak a language other than English at home. Please reach out to your child’s teacher, or the school directly for survey guides in your language. Please speak to your child’s teacher if you would like more information.