Mount Macedon Primary Newsletter

Tuesday 22nd November 2022

Hello Everyone,

It has been another busy week at school. We have had several groups of Grade 6 students undertaking excursions to the city to look at the area they are researching for their Exhibition presentation (sustainability, sea life and the issues facing it, architectural sustainability, transport and its future). It has been a lovely opportunity for them to work together in a small group with a teacher, to further develop their learning skills.

On Wednesday night we held the Parent Information Night for 2023 Foundation parents. We have quite a few new families joining us next year and we look forward to welcoming them into our school family.

On Thursday night we had the Grade F/1/2 BBQ dinner and the Grade 1/2 sleepover. The children were fantastic. They were excited and full of energy but were all asleep by 10.15pm and then all awake by 6am the next morning. I think that they had a lovely time, practising sleeping away from home. We were very proud of their manners, behaviour, and bravery. I am grateful for the teachers who give up their time to sleep on the floor and to get up with the children in the middle of the night if they need to.

Yesterday our Foundation and Grade 1 students went to the Melbourne Aquarium to learn more about life under the sea. They told me that they had a lovely day, and that the penguins and Tubby the shark were “awesome”. There are some pictures in this newsletter.

I currently have a few positions at the school advertised (replacement position for Simon Dohler, French teacher, and PE teacher) and so will be letting you know about staffing 2023 in the coming weeks. I know that you will be keen to know next years class teacher structure – I just need to complete the required recruitment processes first. My goal always when I am recruiting teachers, is to get the best quality teachers that I can. At the moment I have had no applications for the French teacher position, and I will be discussing this with School Council tonight, to look at other options. Sadly, because it is only a one day per week position, it appears to be hard to fill.

Next week our Grade 3/4 students head off to Boomerang Ranch. This is an adventure camp that includes horse riding, archery, bushwalks etc. I hope that we get a break from this rainy, cold weather, but if not, we will work around it to make sure that the students get the best possible experience.

We still have some marquees, an esky and several plates left from the fete. If you are missing anything, please drop into the school and we will try to locate it for you.

This Saturday, the school will be used as a polling place. After school closes on Friday the electoral commission representatives will come in and do the set-up process.

Have a lovely week everyone.

Kind Regards,

Trish

As the excitement of finishing primary school and transitioning to secondary school draws nearer for our senior students, we understand that this can also be an overwhelming and challenging time for them. With this in mind, we have been working with our students in class to prepare and support them through this period of change. Below are some great resources on how you can help students cope with big life changes in order to support their mental and emotional well being.

Hello everyone,

It was a very exciting week last week. The Grade 1 / 2 sleepover was a very fun night.  To kick it off they had a BBQ and invited their prep friends along. They had sausages and other delicious food. After, they had icy poles, cookies and hot chocolate, then said goodbye to the Foundation students.

Afterwards, they went inside and watched the ‘Bee Movie.’  They read some books and played games like hula hut and other various games. Then, they set up their beds and slowly fell asleep at around 10. When everyone woke up, they were a little tired, so they had some breakfast.  There was a choice of cereal or toast and different drinks. 

“We enjoyed eating supper then going to sleep.” Ashton & William (Grade 2). 

 But I'm not sure if they slept too much from all the excitement!

The Foundation and Grade Ones went to the aquarium yesterday. They learnt about sea creatures and other interesting things about the ocean - like jelly fishes' closest relative is coral, and if crocodiles eat too much they get quite fat, and other facts like octopuses have 3 hearts and jelly fish have no brain. There are three main families underwater like fish, sharks and rays. They had fun crawling through tunnels and picking up sea creatures. Overall, it was an exciting, but very tiring day for them. There are some great photos of the day below.

Our school has also been practising Christmas Carols for the Carols at Macedon.  We are singing different songs, and enthusiastically getting into the Christmas spirit. 

Overall it has been a very fun week, and we are looking forward to an exciting end of year ahead. 

Eliza 

This week's theme was about (dramatic music here) The Internet!

Yes, that thing all the students use for schoolwork, communicating with family, expanding their horizons, learning about the world.... or just watching puppy videos (I'm sure it's at least one of those things)

But have you thought about where the Internet actually comes from? - Well, the Grade 2 students did, so we went on an impromptu excursion to see if we could find it.

It started in our classroom where we followed the radio frequency from my laptop to the wireless router, then we traced the ethernet cord connected to that to the school server room, followed that outside via the phone line, and then followed that all the way up Mount Macedon road (stopping every now and then to find one of the many 'Telstra Pits' our phone lines are accessed from) until we got to one of Mount Macedon's phone network hubs (it's on the corner of Mount Macedon Rd and Douglas Rd), all the while, talking about how we are all connected (with some pretty old copper wire) to a massive cable under the ocean... and back again.

It was a very informative (and cold) walk, that was both a Digital Tech and P.E. class combined.

A special thanks to Catherine for me dragging her out as the resident adult to look after all the kids (that includes me)

Mr. Garcia

This week in music the students were practising the songs they have chosen to play at their Guitar Concert. They have been busy all year learning new songs, notes and chords to improve their guitar skills and help them progress to the next level. 

Next Tuesday the 29th of November, they will perform their songs at the Guitar Concert in the Hall at 10am. Parents and carers are welcome, it will be an exciting concert where you will hear the students showcase what they have learnt, and get to hear some great new tunes as well as some classics. The Grade 2's have been learning Spooky Scary Skeletons, I've got a Feeling, The Final Countdown and Smoke on the Water. The Grade 3's have been learning Harry Potter, Come as You Are  and Living on a Prayer. The Grade 6's have been learning the James Bond theme, Heatwaves, I Ain't Worried and Never Ending Story. Below are some great pics of their final practise before the concert, and they are sounding fantastic!

Just a reminder to ensure that students have their hats to wear at school during recess and lunchtimes, as well as any other outdoor activities they may be participating in. It is important that we are all being sun smart and ensuring our children are protected from the harmful UV light that is at it's highest peak during the months of August to April, where UV index levels regularly reach 3 or above. Please also remember to name your children's hats as they quite often are lost, misplaced or left in the playground and it is handy to know who the hat belongs to! Spotted on the grounds were some of our students wearing their hats today.

Monday 28th November - Foundation 2023 Transition Day 3 9am - 10am

Tuesday 29th November - Grade 6 Exhibition

Thursday 1st & Friday 2nd December - Grade 3 & 4 Boomerang Ranch

Wednesday 7th December - Carols

Thursday 8th December - Professional Practice Day -no students at school

Tuesday 13th December - Foundation 2023 Transition Day 4 9am - 11am

Wednesday 14th December - Hanging Rock Picnic

Thursday 15th December - Grade 6 Graduation 

Term 1 - Monday 31st January to Friday 8th April

Term 2 - Tuesday 26th April to Friday 24th June

Term 3 - Monday 11th July to Friday 16th September

Term 4 - Monday 3rd October to Tuesday 20th December

2023

Term 1 starts Tuesday 31st January.