PRINCIPAL UPDATE 

Oh what a night!!!

Chilwell Fair 2026, done for another year, and what can I say…. It was sensational.

With 2 additional food stalls for dinner; we still sold out.

With a large increase in the number of showbags and glow products; we still sold out.

Queues for Team Kids face painting and crazy hair, along with the addition of Paisley Park Early Learning Centre and their toddler sensory play area were very popular.

The additional ride was a hit, and saw less time in queues for the rides, along with the Lob-o-Choc challenges, as per usual being the most popular arcade game of the night.

Thank you to the stall coordinators, along with Calida and Sarah D who coordinated all food and stock ordering for all stalls, without this support and commitment the Fair would not be possible.

To our team of volunteers who set up and packed up, such champion efforts by all.  We got out on Saturday at a record time of midday, due to the number of people assisting us.

To Sarah J, Jacquie, Amber and the team behind the scenes.  This was seamless.  What many don’t understand is what goes on behind the scenes, and this includes all things finance etc. not leaving school until close to midnight on Friday, returning at 8am on Saturday.

To Junior School Council for some fun videos, along with the tireless work of my awesome Grade 6 Fundraising Committee. They helped so much this year and I could not have done this without them… even if they became distracted a little with hamper items and chocolate!!!!

Thank you to all parents and student volunteers on the night.  We had such large numbers, and all appeared to run so smoothly.  

The entertainment yet again was outstanding.  We had great talent on show and finished with All Barre One bringing it home again.

We will communicate figures in the coming days but look forward to finishing off the front of the school with new lawn, revitalising the sandpits and getting some engaging line marking complete for students to enjoy.

Thanks everyone for contributing to another successful Chilwell Fair. If you have any photos, please send through to us as we would love to see them.

It was lovely to see the Missbach and Downing family grandparents visit yesterday to share information about their countries of residence.  They are visiting from Germany and The Netherlands respectively at the moment, so fitting for them to visit during Cultural Diversity Week at Chilwell.

I loved hearing them talk so passionately about these countries and showing some artefacts that they brought along to share.

We have other special guests this week coming in to talk about their own cultures and we are excited to welcome them to Chilwell.

Our Grade 1/2 students are off on a Cultural Diversity excursion tomorrow to learn about Indigenous artefacts and use of natural resources.

It was fun seeing the crazy socks worn by our Grade 5 and 6 students Monday in recognition of World Down Syndrome Day.  Students created posters and placed these around the school to acknowledge this day.

Grade 4 went on their Barwon River Ride yesterday concluding their 6-week Bike Education program.  Thank you to staff and parent volunteers for their organisation and coordination of this vital program.  Great to see students’ confidence grow as the weeks progressed.

We had Prep grandparents and special friends visit this morning, and engage in phonics lessons, drawing and morning tea.  Such a fun time had by all.

Can we please remind all families that students are not to bring toys in from home to use in the classroom.  This also includes sporting equipment.  We are happy to purchase extra equipment for sports in the yard but ask that personal items where possible remain at home.  A lot go missing or get damaged, and it is not the responsibility of school to manage this.  Keeping items at home reduces these challenges and we ask parents to support us in this.

Can we please also ensure all tupperware is labelled, as we have far too much left in the yard, or learning spaces with no way of identifying the owner.  Whilst labelling these at home, please check jumpers, hats and jackets to ensure they are clearly labelled also.

NAPLAN 2026 is now complete.  Thank you to Sarah Jeffreys for her amazing coordination of this, and time spent behind the scenes in preparation. 

We have Cross Country for Grade 3-6 students next Wednesday 1st April at Fyansford Common and then Junior (P-2) Cross Country here on Thursday 2nd April, 9am until 11am. Last day of Term 1 is on Thursday 2nd April and Assembly will be held at 2pm.

Thanks and have a great week.

Kind regards,

Meg