Issue 21, Friday 29 July 2022
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The Parkhill Community touch the land and think of the Wurundjeri People and surrounding Clans of the Kulin Nation who cared for the land before us.
We share our gratitude to their Elders past, present and emerging.
As we touch this land we promise to treasure it; taking care of all its people, animals, plants and waterways.
We at Parkhill appreciate this land.
Thank you.
Principal's Message
Dear Parents/Carers
Good afternoon – what a super exciting week at Parkhill.
Camp:
Our Y5/6 children have enjoyed a fun-packed adventure-filled week away at camp. They went to Cave Hill Creek, out towards Ballarat, and spent time at Sovereign Hill learning about the Gold Rush and Eureka Stockade.
Bush cooking, hut building, bushwalking, climbing, Sovereign Hill and heaps more. I have heard stories of apple crumble, camp fires and a movie night too… I am certain they will all be exhausted!
Parkhill Preschool Program:
We hosted our third Parkhill Preschool Program this week with a focus on Performing Arts – thanks to Carlie Eriksen for leading this session. The kinder kids were just gorgeous, engaged and having fun. The parents chatted over a cup of tea. Next week we have a Mandarin session, so if you know anyone with 3 or 4 year old kinder-aged children, please point them in our direction or to the website to find out more.
Parkhill Primary School – United through learning (parkhillps.vic.edu.au)
Swimming:
Our swimming program is well underway with our lower school students swimming Monday, Wednesday and today. This will continue into next week. The school is a hive of activity from 12:30 when the first group leaves. Thank you to all of the parents who have been able to help support the program.
CoVID:
We have seen an increase in CoVID cases across the school this week. Please be mindful to test twice a week, be vigilant of hygiene practices and DO NOT send your child to school if they show any symptoms. This includes coughs, sneezes, runny nose, sore stomachs, headaches, etc. I understand the list is extensive, however we need to work together to keep each other safe and healthy. If you need more RAT tests, please contact the office.
Should your child test positive please let us know ASAP and record the positive result with the Department of Health. It is good to note that the Department of Education has some home learning tasks available should you be in isolation with your child and looking for work to do.
The Department has prepared online learning activities that may be useful in instances where families are seeking additional activities and support for your child’s learning while isolating.
Social Emotional Learning:
Spending time chatting and listening to our children is one of the most beneficial ways we can connect with their young and developing minds. But how often do you get a ‘fine’ or ‘nothing’ kind of answer?
Check out the link below for some great ideas and questions to help generate productive and thought provoking conversation with your little ones…
https://happyyouhappyfamily.com/questions-for-kids/
Have a great weekend.
Best wishes,
Elaine Brady
Principal
Calendar of Curriculum Events
CRAZY HAIR DAY
Parkhill is celebrating Crazy Hair Day on Thursday August 4th.
Crazy Hair Day is a fundraiser for Cystic Fibrosis, the most common, inherited condition affecting young Australians and all funds will go towards providing support for these people. Our Crazy Hair Day will also be a great way to reinforce Diversity Day that week, so make sure that your hair stands out!
*Y4/5/6 students have swimming in the afternoon, so dyed hair isn’t recommended for those students!
Alex Davies
SRC Coordinator
ICAS assessments will begin soon!
ICAS assessments will start very soon in August. There is still time to book a place for your child in the assessments. The tests will begin Friday 12 August. All tests will be held in the morning.
Friday 12 August ICAS Writing
Friday 19 August ICAS English
Friday 26 August ICAS Science
Friday 2 September ICAS Maths
For further information, please read the following (including privacy statement).
Signup is a straightforward process using the Parent Payment System. If you’d like to enrol your child/ren to participate in the ICAS assessments, head to
https://shop.icasassessments.com/pages/pps and enter the code DUS456
Note: there is a charge for students to participate. Entries are extended until 11:59pm Monday 1 August.
Concert costume & prop Request
With the School Concert fast approaching we are keen to call on our wonderful community to help provide costumes, rather than buying or hiring if possible. If you are willing and able to loan or donate any of the following items for the school concert, please label them with your family’s name, place in a named plastic bag and take them to the school office. If you would like to donate an item rather than have it returned please mark the bag with the word ‘donation’. Angelita Williams has kindly offered to coordinate all items on loan to ensure they are well cared for and returned to you after the concert. We kindly ask that items are taken to the office by next Friday 5th August.
If you have any questions please email Angelita.williams@education.vic.gov.au
Costumes:
- Where’s Wally costumes in children or adult sizes
- Clown costumes for Y5/6
- Rainbow clown wigs
- Pirate costumes for F/Y1
- Skeleton costumes for Y6
- Lion costumes for Y4/5/6
- Jungle animal costume for Y5/6
- Dinosaur tails (think Dorothy the dinosaur)
- Black sunglasses
Additional items:
- 26 sticks of dowel
- Toy snakes
- 3 hay bales (sitting on tarps)
Thank you in advance for your assistance,
Marinda Tanner & Carlie Eriksen
Concert Set and Prop Making Working Bee
Parkhill families are warmly invited to a School Concert Set and Prop Making Working Bee on Saturday 30 July at 1pm in the STEAM room. We will be painting backdrops and cutting out and painting props in preparation for the concert on 5, 6 and 7 September. All parents and children are welcome and afternoon tea will be provided.
Please sign up using the following form: https://forms.gle/7fS96qPmt1iBtyi89
Writer’s Workshop in 4/5B
In 4/5B, students have been learning how to ‘tighten the tension’ and engage the audience when writing a narrative. One of the ways you could do this is by plotting a twist in the story and making the hero fail until s/he manages to win. They also learnt not to give away the solution to the problem to the reader or make it too obvious. To engage the reader and transport him/her to the setting of the story, the students used ‘show don’t tell’. ‘Show don’t tell’ also helps to make the readers feel what the character is going through, making them part of the story.
The writers in 4/5B enjoyed these sessions and wrote short paragraphs based on picture prompts. They came up with amazing plots and gave feedback to their peers. Below are a few examples:
As Christine got out of her house, she saw the navy-blue sky shine right at her and that gave her a huge smile. She slowly walked down to the river acknowledging how the beauty of the colourful sky lifted her spirits.
She counted the stars twinkling when a sudden gust of breeze stroke her. The chill in the air started to make her shiver so she quickly got back inside the cabin, looking forward to the next night to see the magical beauty of nature.
Eshelle – Y4
The emerald green grass surrounded me as I looked at it in amazement. I spot a miniature hole in the hedge with a beaming light coming through it. Curious, I stare at the hole, wanting to go through to explore the world beyond. I step an inch closer to look carefully. It was getting darker and I was hoping the night wouldn’t come upon me. I couldn’t afford to lose any more light, if I wanted to venture to the other side.
Rebecca – Y4
I woke up and had a strange feeling as there was no sound around me. The orphanage was pitch black. I looked around and saw weird shadows and it felt as if they were moving towards me. I turn around and see Owen right there behind me. “Ahh! Owen what are you doing here?”. He turns around shaking and points at a creature with purple tentacles.
Harley – Y4
Library News
Working Bee - Save the Date!
Saturday August 6th 12pm onwards with afternoon tea provided. Come and join us as we invest further in the amazing grounds that we have here at Parkhill. Mulch, mulch and more mulch! You may have noticed that the Koori garden has transformed over the past fortnight as we have laid 20 cubic metres of mulch on it. We are now receiving regular deliveries of mulch from arborists who work locally in the neighbourhood and we are planning to work our way around the various garden areas throughout the school.
Parkhill River
At our last 2 Open Days, Parkhill families have been invited to paint rocks. Yesterday our team were hard at work cementing the first instalment of them into the riverbed near the big red slide. There is still more work to be done but come and check them out. We will be progressively laying more of them over the coming weeks. As new families join our school community they too will be invited to paint a rock that will be added to the Parkhill River. If your family is yet to paint a rock please let someone at the office know so that we can organise it for you – our hope is that every Parkhill family can be represented. A huge thanks to our amazing Buildings & Grounds team for all the work they are doing. If you would like to get involved beyond joining our working bees, please reach out to Wendy Douglas or simply let someone at the office know and we will be in contact with you.
Wendy Douglas
Buildings & Grounds Convenor
Canteen closure dates
Please note that Flexischools lunch orders will be unavailable on the following dates due to events at Ashwood High School:
Friday 5th August – Curriculum Day
Thursday 11th August – Curriculum Day
Wednesday 24th August – Student Conference Day
Friday 26th August – Student Conference Day
Tuesday 30th August – Athletics Sports Day
Just a quick thank you to those families who have collected their bread bags and deposited them in the box near the front office. For every 5kg of bread bags we collect we gain 500 reward points to go toward sports and play equipment. Let’s try and maximise our rewards by collecting the capped amount of 2,500 points. Collection will continue until September, so we have plenty of time to achieve this goal. Keep up the good work for both the environment and our fabulous school.
Andrea Crane
STEAM Teacher
PFA News
TRIVIA NIGHT IS IN TWO WEEKS!
Time to dust off those clothes that have been hiding in a box in the garage or raid the local op shop and get ready for some fun – Trivia Night is back in 2022!
WHEN: Saturday 13th August 2022 at 7:00 PM until late (7:30pm kick off)
WHERE: School library
TICKETS: $25. You can purchase a table of 10 or individual tickets.
THEME: Op Shop Glam – There are individual and group prizes so get your table together and start planning now!
Book your tickets here – https://www.trybooking.com/BZJQI or scan the QR code
Silent Auction Donations
Parkhill PFA will be running a silent auction as part of Trivia Night in August.
If you have anything to donate or know a business that would like to help, please email PFA.
REMEMBER TO SAY ‘PARKHILL PRIMARY SCHOOL’ WHEN SHOPPING!
Rebel Community Kickbacks Program.
Under this program, Parkhill Primary School can earn 5% of your purchases at Rebel Sports as an in-store credit to spend on our school sports programs.
You can sign up in store or log into your rebel Active Member account when shopping online at www.rebelsport.com.au to attribute the expense to the school.
ENTERTAINMENT BOOK
They cost $70 and provide over $20,000 in discounts to all the things you love to do…dining, attractions, shopping, travel and more! They are filled with up to 50% off or 2-for-1 style offers, they are a great way to discover new favourites and enjoy the value at the same time. The proceeds of the books sold goes to Parkhill Primary School. Please order one now via this link
RITCHIES COMMUNITY BENEFITS
$52 Million is up for grabs!!
It’s quick, simple and easy to: Download, Register and Activate.
Scan QR code below
Nominate ‘Parkhill Primary’ as your chosen school.
Don’t forget to share the news with family and friends.
Need more?? Visit a store within 14 days of activating your card, spend $100 or more in a single transaction and scan your Ritchies card or app.
Get $10 off instantly. (Valid for one transaction).
DON’T MISS A THING!
Join our Facebook page.
Search for us using the name “Parkhill Primary School Community Page”.
Then click the “join group” icon.
A group administrator will confirm your association with the school and approve your request.
If you would like to be on our email distribution list and receive communication and minutes from our meetings please email parents.friends.secretary@gmail.com
Contact us on WhatsApp – https://chat.whatsapp.com/DtYmFR9RjrZ7ayDpYAVy6L or email parkhillpiranhas@gmail.com
Lunch Orders
You can find the links to the lunch orders on the website under Quick Links.
FLEXISCHOOLS LUNCH ORDERS
community notices
