Issue 28, Friday 16 September 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 and carers,
Today closes perhaps one of the busiest terms in the last three years! I hope that you and your family have been able to participate in some of the activities that have happened over the last few months: Concert (I have to start with that one!), Stargazing, Family Science night, Diversity Day, Y5/6 Camp, Parkhill’s Preschool Program, Book Week, working bees (aplenty!), Trivia Night, Three Way Conferences, cupcake stalls, tree planting, Crazy Hair Day, excursions… and I’m sure I’m forgetting some of them. Students and staff alike have well and truly earned their holidays. I am sure you’ll join me in congratulating the staff (and our fantastic community members) for all the many tasks they do to make a term like this happen.
Interim Reports
Interim Reports are available now for families to access via Compass. Students completed a maths task and a writing task earlier in the term. Teachers then provided feedback and a curriculum judgement, which is now viewable in Compass.
As mentioned previously, it’s important to keep in mind that this should be read differently to semester reports, where teachers have multiple sources of information. A mark for a single piece of work may reflect differently than expected. Students may not have a mark for the task if they were absent. Finally, the work sample can be viewed upon request from your child’s class teacher.
Staffing Update
We have previously notified that Bella Crowe will be leaving us in Term 4 to head overseas but further to that, she will be staying for 2023, with the intention of returning to Parkhill in 2024. We wish her all the best in her new adventure overseas. I am pleased to announce that Stephanie Zambuni, who was previously on placement in 5/6A, will be teaching F/1B in Term 4. I’m sure you’ll join me in welcoming her to the Parkhill community.
School Council
Our most recent school council meeting was last night. We discussed the upcoming School Council Parent Forum (on Tuesday 11 October), our brand new arrangement with Rowan Street Kinder, ongoing building works as well as parent payments. Council is busy putting together a proposal for new projects.
We welcome four new hirers to the Parkhill community who will be using our new hall facility after school hours: Timberwolves (basketball), Ashy Basketball Club (basketball), Hawthorn Football Club (wheelchair football), and Raiders (basketball). It is inspiring to work in a school council that is so dedicated to making a difference at Parkhill. I thank councillors for their time and efforts.
Ashburton Artisan Markets
We host the second Ashburton Artisan Markets at Parkhill tomorrow. We’ll be taking full advantage of the hall this time around, with stalls on the asphalt and on the basketball courts. Come along and join us between 10:00am and 2:00pm. Thanks to the PFA for their support of this event, and their amazing grill skills.
Works over the holidays
We have quite a few contractors working over the holidays to improve our buildings and grounds. We have a light fittings upgrade in the office building, arborist works across the school, and some of the decking will be replaced. Please be careful if you are on school grounds during this time.
Have a safe and restful break.
Michelle Smith
Assistant Principal
Calendar of Curriculum Events
Odd Socks Day
Parkhill is celebrating Odd Socks Day on Friday 7th October, the first Friday of Term 4! In Care Groups, children will learn about the importance of a balanced approach to wellbeing and strong mental health, then we’ll all say “sock it” to blending in, instead celebrating all our wonderful quirks and differences loudly and proudly! Help us to raise awareness of mental health by wearing odd socks on Friday 7th October!
SRC
SAVE THE DATE - School Forum
Following the success of our school forum in Term 1, the School Council is most excited to be hosting, with the support of the Parkhill staff, a school forum in early Term 4 on Tuesday 11 October.
This is very much in listening and taking on board parent feedback and we look forward to seeing you there.
More details will be coming out around the content for the event as it approaches.
Warm regards,
Parkhill School Council
Walk to School Month
October is Walk to School Month. Next term in October, students will be tracking how often they walk, ride or scoot to school. It would be terrific if you could help your children to get active and involved by:
- Doing some practise walks during the holidays;
- Coming up with some fun routes, including picking up friends along the way or visiting a park or playground on the way home;
- Having relevant road safety discussions.
Walking to school helps to build independence and confidence and is a healthy alternative to driving. We hope that you can help your child to participate in Walk to School Month!
SRC
Science Week
What a buzz was around the school last week as students engaged in space learning in their classrooms. This coincided with our Stargazing evening, which I hear was a huge success. Students across the school explored concepts such as the phases of the moon, the relative sizes and rotation of the sun, moon and earth and planets in our solar system. Great to see students exploring yet another aspect of STEAM learning.
Andrea Crane
STEAM Teacher
STEAM Careers - Programmer
Learning about careers in STEAM is a valuable aspect of the STEAM curriculum. On Monday we were lucky enough to hear about a role in the IT industry from a Roblox programmer, Andrew Lacey. Andrew presented to the Y2/3 and Y4/5/6 students about his role at Roblox, coding and his career progression to date. It was fabulous to see how engaged the students were with the content, particularly when it came to questions and they wowed with a full array: “What can I do to get started in programming?” “What do you do to stop hackers?” “Why did the ‘Ooof’ sound change on Roblox?”
Many thanks to Andrew for his time and our Parkhill students who impressed with their engagement and sharing of their own coding experiences.
Andrea Crane
STEAM Teacher
Sandpit Fun
There is a lot of chatter around volcanoes in the F/Y1 sandpit area, with teams working collaboratively together to build volcanoes and lava channels, and water being carried from the taps. I love seeing them at play during my yard duty times. Who knows what their project will be next term?! Or if the volcano interest continues….
Happy holidays to you all!
Kerry D’Arcy
Integration Aide
Hats!
A reminder that hats need to be worn outside by students during Term 4. Please make sure you send your child to school with a hat. Hats can be purchased from the school office.
Buildings & Grounds Update
As we wrap up Term 3 our Buildings and Grounds team want to say a huge thank you to all of our staff, parents and students who have played a part in our various initiatives.
Koorie Garden
If you have a chance, check out the Koorie Garden out the front of the school. Bella Crowe and her family, supported by Kerry Darcy and our grounds keeper Roger, have been doing an amazing job of maintaining it and adding to it. It is looking so good!
Football Goal Posts
We are really pleased to advise that money raised by our PFA has been approved to be used to replace our goal posts on the oval. Installation will likely not happen until the end of the year but we are so excited that we just wanted to let you know that they are coming!
Parkhill River
Andrea Crane has been working with all of our classroom teachers to provide an opportunity for students who haven’t yet painted a rock for the riverbed to do so. We plan to cement these new additions into the riverbed early in Term 4. It has been so great seeing the excitement of the children as they contribute to this unique project.
Mulch Sales
If you need mulch for your garden, feel free to contact the office to arrange payment and collection of a trailer load of mulch for the bargain price of $15.
Term 4 Working Bee
Save the date now for our Term 4 Working Bee which will be on Saturday November 12th. More details to come closer to the time.
Canteen Closure Dates
Please note that Flexischools lunch orders will be unavailable on the following dates due to events at Ashwood High School:
Tuesday 11th October – Athletics Sports Day
Wonder Recycling Rewards
Many thanks to the families who collected and delivered their bread bags to school over the last two terms. The collection phase is now complete and we sent in two full boxes of soft plastics for recycling. A great effort Parkhill! We now await notification regarding the number of credit points we have accrued, and then the fun bit of choosing some sporting equipment for the school. Once again many thanks for your support, please keep recycling your soft plastics, – there are now soft plastic disposal bins at most supermarkets. In addition, keep an eye out for the program again next year. Maybe we can do even better and get three full boxes next year!
Andrea Crane
STEAM teacher
PFA News
Executive Committee:
Treasurer: Chris Fagan
Secretary/Communications: Vacant
General Members: Elle Delmee, Sumi Sundram, Vanessa Cowley, Jo Argaet, Iona Tsykalo, Lih-Shan Yam, Emma Gullan, Trish King, Marinda Tanner, Alex Cilsby, Emily Meagher, Nadine Philips
ASHBURTON ARTISAN MARKET
Parkhill Primary is hosting the Artisan Market on Saturday 17th September. PFA will be running a Sausage Sizzle and Bake Stall to raise funds for the school.
WE NEED YOUR HELP! Still a few times that need filling. Please help if you can.
- Volunteers on the day to set-up, cook, serve sausage & pack away https://signup.com/go/YQVQaLA
- Volunteers to man the bake stall. https://signup.com/go/aGfMGhU
COMEDY NIGHT
Comedy Night is back! Bring your family and friends. Show starts at 8pm. Drinks and snacks will be available for purchase before the show and during the intermission. www.comedyforacause.net/PH
COLOUR RUN
It’s the day all Parkhill Primary children look forward to every year – Colour Run!! Thursday 27th October will see all the kids with smiling faces covered in the colour. Let’s raise money to improve the playground & equipment.
Sign-up at the following link – https://chuffed.org/project/parkhill-colour-fun-run
Sign up instruction: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1RfB_Z8flV5JCLMfGXf7lSM5qE-UepGeE/view?usp=sharing
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.
