Heights Happenings – 2025 – Term 1, Week 6

NAPLAN

The grade 3 and 5 students will be sitting NAPLAN testing beginning Wednesday next week. The teachers in these year levels have been working with the students to help them be as prepared as possible. All we can ask is that the kids give it their very best, and we will be proud of them regardless of the results.

Grade 4 Camp to Phillip Island

I had the great pleasure of attending the Grade 4 Camp to Phillip Island along with the kids, teachers and parents this week. I want to give a huge shoutout to all the students for pushing themselves outside their comfort zones during our three days at camp. For many, this was their first time away from home, which makes their efforts even more impressive. Camp is such a great opportunity to build independence, strengthen friendships, and take on new challenges that we don’t typically experience in the classroom.

The first night was full of excitement as we went to the Penguin Parade. It was a still, calm night which gave everyone a chance to spot the penguins as they made their way up the beach. Getting out of the city lights also gives the kids a chance to star-gaze and see the planets, stars and milky way light up the night sky. The first night on camp is always a bit challenging – let’s just say that some of the kids needed a few reminders to get some rest. By Tuesday night, though, things were much quieter, with lots of tired but happy campers after two full days of adventure.

The weather was perfect for a beach camp! On Tuesday, we headed down to the beach at Erehwon Point in Cowes so the kids could have a splash in the water. We were also lucky enough to use the swimming pool at the camp. Not a bad way to spend time away from school I reckon.

Before heading back to school on Wednesday, we stopped at the Koala Conservation Reserve and saw a few very sleepy koalas hanging out in the tree tops.

A huge thank you to Ms Blonik, Mrs Ascenzo, Ms O’Neill, Mrs Ohia, Ms Hunt and our wonderful parent helpers Kerrie Bibby, James Burrows, Geoff Lee and Greg Matthews. Your support and enthusiasm made this camp such a memorable experience for everyone.

Enjoy the Labour Day long weekend. I look forward to seeing everyone next Tuesday.

Mat Anderton
Principal

New Staff Profile

Name: Felicia Choo

Grade: 1B

Birthday (NOT year!): 1 February

Family: Father, mother and 2 older brothers

Pets: No pets!

Hobbies: Playing puzzles, sudoku, colouring in, yoga and hiking

AFL Footy team:  the WINNING Team!!

Favourite Food: Malaysian, Chinese and Korean

Favourite Book or Movie: The Lord of the Rings

Favourite Colour: Pink & Blue

Name: Caleb Bergamo

Grade: Education Support in 1B

Family: I have an older sister, a mum and a dad

Pets: 2 dogs and three chickens

Hobbies: Sport and travelling

AFL Footy team: Carlton

Favourite Food: Thai Beef Salad

Favourite Book or Movie: Instant Family

Favourite Colour: Blue

Stickybeaks Order

Year 1 – Pointillism Autumn Leaves

Year 1 artists have been learning about the painting technique of pointillism, exploring the work of French Post-Impressionist Georges Seurat. Students created pointillism autumn leaves by layering lots of little dots. They blended colours through layering and used tints and shades to add depth and detail to their artworks.

Year 2 – Symmetrical Butterflies

The Year 2 artists explored symmetry through butterflies and bugs. They designed their own symmetrical butterfly using oil pastels and paints, focusing on creating unique wing shapes and patterns. Warm and cool colours were used to bring the wings to life.

Tara Henstock
Visual Arts Co-ordinator

The Five Love Languages

Have you heard of the Five Love Languages? Physical touch, Quality time, Receiving gifts, Acts of service, and Words of affirmation? Which ones are you?

Words of Affirmation: This language uses words to affirm other people.

Acts of Service: For these people, actions speak louder than words.

Receiving gifts: For some people, what makes them feel most loved is to receive a gift.

Quality time: This language is all about giving the other person your undivided attention.

Physical Touch: To this person, nothing speaks more deeply than appropriate touch.

All of us have a primary love language, and usually another one, or even two. As Gary Chapman, the man behind the love languages, says ‘I believe that our deepest emotional need is the need to feel loved. If we are married, the person we would most like to love us is our spouse. If we feel loved by our spouse, the whole world is bright and life is wonderful. On the other hand, if we feel rejected or ignored, the world begins to look dark’. The same goes for our kids.  As Chapman says, ‘I like to visualize that inside every child there is an emotional love tank. If the child feels loved by the parents, the child grows up normally. But if the love tank is empty and the child does not feel loved, he/she will grow up with many internal struggles and during the teenage years will go looking for love, often in the wrong places. It is extremely important that parents learn how to love children effectively’.

You can read more about the five love languages from the books The Five Love Languages or The Five Love Languages of Children both by Gary Chapman (feel free to borrow them from me). You can also look online. https://5lovelanguages.com/learn

This link will tell you what your love language is, and those of your children! https://5lovelanguages.com/quizzes

Some useful resources:

I’m always finding new and useful resources for parents. I went through my emails this week and found these ones that you might be interested in:

Big Life Journal: https://biglifejournal.com.au/?srsltid=AfmBOorWZvfJHn-EVvh4aGaZyLMRg8iWsRtfnLyleaJX93eIOyKSAwAd

An online free course for parents to do with their kids to help them manage their anxiety: http://brave.psy.uq.edu.au

Or for you to do with your older children (12+): https://headspace.org.au/online-and-phone-support/partners-in-parenting

The Fathering Project. Check out their resources for Dads and join up with an online men’s group: https://thefatheringproject.org/

Esafety Commissioner for all things online:

https://www.esafety.gov.au/?gad_source=1&gclid=Cj0KCQiAwtu9BhC8ARIsAI9JHaktMlXwtnBSetLOW-Ev7-n8hmx1nqwICPEdi4ebV-_lKuQ61ckBjv4aAjP-EALw_wcB

Sarah McIntosh
Student Welfare

Character Strengths

Over the next few weeks, I will be working with students in Grade 5 & 6 to help them identify character strengths within themselves and others. Encouraging primary school-aged children to recognise their character strengths is a wonderful way to support their mental health and well-being. When children identify qualities like kindness, creativity, or perseverance, it boosts their confidence and helps them feel positive about themselves. Understanding their strengths also helps them handle challenges more effectively and bounce back from setbacks or “speed bumps”. It builds resilience and a growth mindset, motivating them to continue learning and improving. By nurturing these qualities early on, we’re giving them the tools they need to manage stress, build strong relationships, and maintain a positive outlook on life.

As your child begins to explore these strengths at school, it’s a great opportunity to continue these conversations at home! Whether it’s on the way home from school, around the dinner table, or while getting ready for the day, these discussions can reinforce their learning and create a positive, supportive environment both at school and at home.

If you have any questions or need support, please don’t hesitate to reach out.

Sarah Weichert

sarah.weichert@education.vic.gov.au

AFL Clinics

This past week, all of our grades and students (apart from our Year 4 students on Camp) have been lucky enough to attend a free AFL clinic run by AFL Schools Victoria. Here, they got to learn about positions and practise teamwork as well as their handball, kicking, marking, and goal kicking skills. Anyone interested in joining an Auskick group can find more information at play.afl/Auskick or join a local club like Boronia Hawks. Flyers for both options are available from myself.

Ride to School events

This year we are joining the National celebration of Ride to School Day; but spreading our event out over two days. Our Prep, Year 1, and Year 2 students are encouraged to ride to school on Friday 21^st March. Bikes, scooters, and skateboards are all included as long as helmets are worn. For families that don’t live close to the school, you could drive part of the way and then ride the rest, or you can drive your children the whole way but have them participate in our bonus before school activity – as an extra incentive, the Prep-2 students will be allowed to ride their bikes, scooters and skateboards on our oval where a course will be set up between 8:15-8:45am. The course will be available for all options including students that may still have training wheels on their bike.

The Year 3-6 students will have their opportunity to ride on the ovals between 8:15-8:45am on Friday 28^th March. They can of course ride to school on the 21^st like any other day, but the 28^th will be the only day that a course will be set up and they’ll be allowed to ride on the oval before school.

Our main focus is safety and being active, so please accompany your children on their ride or ensure they have a safe and familiar route if travelling alone. Hopefully the weather is kind to us and we have a wonderful couple of mornings.

Please make sure that you are able to take your child’s bike with you on the Friday after school so that they are not left at school over the weekend.

Dates to remember in Sports 2025

Shae Warren
Physical Education Teacher and Sport Co-ordinator

Prep Playground Update

This week our Prep Playground was demolished making way for our exciting new Prep Playground!!!

Works are expected to be completed in three weeks (weather dependant).

Buildings & Grounds Meeting

Our next Buildings & Grounds meeting is 6pm Wednesday 12th March at the Acorn.

Leah Hodgson

Assistant Principal

CARE Ticket Winners

Care Award Winners – Term 1 – Community

Specialist Award Winners

Term 1 Week 4

School Saving Bonus

Thank you to everyone who has informed us how they would like to allocate their School Saving Bonus. For those who have not used any of their School Saving Bonus, please feel free to contact us at the office on 9729-2614.

2025 CSEF

The Camps, Sports and Excursions Fund (CSEF) helps eligible families to cover the costs of school trips, camps and sporting activities.

If you have a valid means-tested concession card, such as a Veterans Affairs Gold Card, Centrelink Health Care Card or Pensioner Concession Card, or are a temporary foster parent, you may be eligible. There is also a special consideration category for asylum seeker and refugee families.

Payment amounts this year are $154 for eligible primary school. Payments are made direct to the school to use towards expenses relating to camps, excursions and sporting activities for the benefit of your child.

You can download the form here.

Check with the school office if you are unsure, and please return completed forms to the school office as soon as possible.

Name Your Belongings

We know you treasure your uniform and books. Please remember to label all uniform, books and belongings coming to school. Like most years, we have had an incredible amount of lost property through the year. The majority was unnamed, along with illegible tags. We would love lost items to boomerang back to your kids.

Easter Raffle

Tickets will be coming home soon for our Easter Raffle

Mother’s Day Stall in Term 2

Leah Hodgson