Issue 8, Friday 24th March 2023
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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
Our Parent Teacher Interviews on Tuesday and Wednesday were very successful; it was lovely to hear about how students are progressing in the class, how they are interacting with one another and also how they are apparently saving their best behaviour for home (or maybe not!). Thank you to all families that took the time to book and come to the interviews. It’s a great way to keep communication open between school and home. Thanks also to teachers for their amazing dedication staying late for a very long Wednesday. I encourage you to contact your child’s class teacher if you have not yet been able to meet.
Camps – I have had a few enquiries about our camp dates this year. Our Y3/4 Camp will be at Camp Weekaway, our annual site, from Monday 5-7th June, and our Y5/6 Camp will be at Sovereign Hill (Costumed!) from Wednesday 14-16th June. Both are three days and two nights. Information will be out shortly; we are just finalising details.
Transition – we will be holding a Foundation information session for prospective families looking to enrol a Foundation student in 2024. The session is on Wednesday 29th March and begins at 5:30pm. We’ll have a short tour, discuss some expectations in a Foundation classroom and then answer questions. Please encourage any friends that may be interested in Parkhill to come along. Current families are of course also welcome.
Time in Lieu for Parent Teacher Interviews – Last week I mentioned that class teachers will have a delayed start to their day and arrive at 10:30am on Wednesday 29th March to pay back the time. Specialist teachers, with support, will run a special STEAM catapult challenge in Care Groups during this time, so there is no change for families. The best built catapults will face off at our second-last assembly. I am assured they are catapulting foam balls and parents will be safe up in the gallery at the back!
Building update – the hall sports flooring has been laid this week, I am told there are four or so layers to it. We are still assured of an end of March release. The handrail for the Foundation playground continues to be delayed. We are some weeks off installation of the handrail.
Have a lovely weekend.
Michelle Smith
Acting Principal
Calendar of Curriculum Events
term 1 ends on Thursday 6th April at 2:30pm
Student of the Week
The Term 1, Week 7 recipients were:
Foundation: Ardasveer H
1/2A: Isaac I
1/2B: Enzo P
Y3: James F
4/5A: Callum D
4/5B: Quin C
Y6: Poli K & Hamzeh S
Leadership Assembly - Next Week
The Leadership Assembly will take place on Monday 27th March at 3:00pm in the library. At the assembly our school leaders will receive their badges and our Y6 class will receive their Y6 hoodies. Parents and carers are more than welcome to attend!
Walk for Water
On Thursday the 30th of March, Parkhill students are raising awareness and appreciation for all the people in the world who need to walk long distances for their drinking water. Students will do this by carrying 2 kilogram buckets of water in Care Group teams as far as they can in 20 minutes. Teachers will record the distances travelled to see if our Care Groups can walk the 10,000 steps that many individuals walk daily simply out of necessity. Best of luck to all students!
If you would like to take part for the exercise or come to support our students, we will kick off at the oval soon after 3:00pm.
Hope to see you there!
Alex Davies
SRC Coordinator
Y1/2 Procedural Writing
The Y1/2 students have been learning about Procedural Writing. To practise this skill, the students first made Fairy Bread. They then wrote their own procedural text, listing the ingredients, equipment and steps needed to make the Fairy Bread. They sure enjoyed eating their treats at the end of the session!
Bianca Bevilacqua
Y1/2 Teacher
STEAM on the road
This week I had the fabulous opportunity to take a little STEAM out on the road to Ashwood Memorial Kindergarten and Ashwood Children’s Centre. Spending time with four-year-old budding scientists was a blast, as was listening to their insights about magnets and their ability to attract and repel. During the session students experienced the wonders of magnets by testing a range of materials for their magnetic properties, going fishing and using magnetic force to push and pull our wonderful magnetic cars. Many thanks to the welcoming educators at both facilities for their time and assistance.
Andrea Crane
STEAM Teacher
School Council Update
Dear Parents & Carers,
This week I’ve been in communication with the Department of Education (DET), and I’m pleased to announce that the preliminary process for finding Elaine’s long-term replacement has officially begun. I would also like to assure everyone that during the appointment process, Michelle Smith will remain in the role of Acting Principal until a substantive Principal has been appointed. We are grateful to Michelle for agreeing to continue in this position as this will minimise any disruptions for students and staff and will provide a high degree of continuity for the community.
With the aim to provide as much transparency as possible, the school council is meeting with the DET next Thursday 30th March in order to gain an insight into how we might be able to involve the broader school community throughout the journey. We will provide everyone with a summary of the meeting, clarity on the process, and offer a further update next Friday. What we are currently aware of is that the position will be advertised through the standard DET channels with a closing date at the end of the upcoming school holidays, with the new appointment ideally commencing at the start of Term 3.
As a school council we are fully committed to:
– Engaging with the school community regarding the new principal, and wish to seek genuine input to help guide the selection process;
– Seeking applicants who will lead with inclusiveness, compassion and resilience, while driving the school forward in a direction that will see Parkhill thrive in the years to come;
– Engaging with applicants who are enthusiastic about continuing the positive growth of the school and believe that Parkhill can become a leader in primary education.
In the coming weeks we will begin officially seeking input and feedback into the principal appointment process, but we will always welcome parents and caregivers who have other suggestions, input or questions around the school as a whole. Please feel free to reach out to me on mconti@delasalle.vic.edu.au or speak with any other of the other school council members.
Melo Conti
School Council President
Library News
Dear Parkhill Families,
The library is back in full swing with students coming through for their weekly sessions and borrowing books from our wonderful collection.
We have moved to a new library system (Oliver) this year and we have been busy with getting set up on the new platform.
Students have different borrowing limits according to their year level:
Please look after our library books and return them in a timely manner. Students are allowed 1 renewal on their books.
Orders for Issue 2 close today! Here is the online link if you wish to browse. You can place an order at scholastic.com.au/LOOP or by using the LOOP app.
Kindly note that orders will only be distributed after the term holidays (in Term 2). Please keep this in mind when placing your order.
Thank you for your continued support with book orders as every Book Club order earns Scholastic Rewards for the school to purchase additional resources.
Angelita Williams
Bread Bag Collection
Hi Parkhill, it’s that time of the year again when I am looking for lots of bread bags. Wonder has once again teamed up with 1500 Aussie schools to help collect bread bags and reduce soft plastic waste. As a registered school the more bread bags we collect the more points we accrue. We can then redeem these points on new sports equipment. Last year we filled 2 large boxes and Mr Sciacca received 6 soft balls to boost his dodgeball ball collection. This year lets aim for 3! So collect away, the more bread or wrap packets we collect the more equipment available to our students!
Andrea Crane
STEAM Teacher
Parkhill Dads' Bowling Night!
A warm invitation to all Parkhill dads to come to the Lawn Bowls Night at Burwood Bowls Club.
(Burwood Reserve, Warrigal Road, near top of Highbury Rd, Burwood VIC 3125)
When – Friday, March 24th
Time – 5.30pm onwards
Why – A great way to meet other Parkhill dads over a friendly game of bowls!
What – Bowls, Pizza & Drinks
Cost – $10 per person includes dinner and bowls (drinks can be purchased from the Bowl’s Club Bar)
Please RSVP via the Parkhill Dads’ Whatsapp chat (see below).
A big thanks to Zero Plumbing who has subsidised the cost of the night.
It would be great to see many new faces amongst some of the older ones as well!
Contact us on WhatsApp – https://chat.whatsapp.com/DtYmFR9RjrZ7ayDpYAVy6L or email parkhillpiranhas@gmail.com
PFA News
President: Zoë Littlewood
Treasurer: Chris Fagan
General Members: Adam Keens, Emma Gullan, Lih-Shan Yam, Marinda Tanner, Sarah Bakri, Trish King, Vanessa Cowley
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
Lunch Orders
You can find the links to the lunch orders on the website under Quick Links.
FLEXISCHOOLS LUNCH ORDERS
