We acknowledge the traditional Aboriginal custodians of the lands, waterways and skies of the Bunurong Peoples of the Kulin Nation where we gather, learn and grow at Aspendale Primary School.

We pay our respects to past and present Traditional Custodians and Elders of all nations,  and their ongoing cultural, spiritual and educational practices.  

We extend this respect to all Torres Strait Islanders and any First Nations peoples who learn or visit these grounds. We thank you for sharing and caring for the land we are learning on.

New version of the Acknowedgement of Country
Above is an updated Acknowledgment of Country that has been written in consultation with staff, students and members of our community. We recieved positive feedback and approval from our friends at the Bunurong Land Council in 2023. 



Aspendale Primary School commemorated Reconciliation Week.
We understand that for many members of the APS community, this is a challenging time.

Reconciliation Week is a time for all Australians to learn about our shared histories, cultures, and achievements, and to explore how each of us can contribute to achieving reconciliation in Australia.

Now more than ever, these conversations are important to be having. 

As a school, we commemorated the week by focusing on developing our sense of community and connections with a whole school event. 

Our School Captains made a video during camp to commemorate the week. It starts with our school's Acknowledgement of Country. You can watch the video here. 


Thank you to Gus, Surina, Warren & Edie for helping create the video. You all did an amazing job understanding the purpose of the week. 

Hello everyone,

It’s been terrific this week to reflect on the increase in 2024 of our community events, typified by our fantastic Art Show on Monday and Tuesday. I would like to thank Sarah Cornell for her work across the year in organising, coordinating and supporting the suite of events.

Art Show

Our Art Show was well attended and showcased a piece of each students work. The Art Show demonstrated the breadth of mediums that our students are exposed to through our Visual Arts program. We also had students take the opportunity to display their musical talents, with many singing and playing their chosen instrument. 

Our Art Show was made possible by our Visual Arts teaching team, Natalie Tideman, Jude Hale and Ebony Meier, and we would like to say a heartfelt thank you. It also highlighted the strong community support we benefit from at Aspendale Primary School, with the team of parents & carers, staff and students who supported the Art Show with their time and effort.

100th Year Celebrations

Next year marks the 100th year of Aspendale Primary School. It is an exciting time for our community and we have been working hard behind the scenes to design several ways to mark this important milestone. In future newsletters we will share our community events but today I would like to share two of our celebrations.

In 2025, we will have a special 100th year school polo. This will be available through our uniform shop in the near future. It will have our 100th year celebratory logo on our standard red polo. Students will be able to wear the polo in 2025 and in subsequent years as part of our uniform.

The other action to mark our 100th year celebration involves the establishment of a Tiny Forest, which will be known as our 1,000 Year Forest. The tiny forest initiative draws on the Miyawaki method, which involves cultivating the soil and then planting indigenous flora in a concentrated manner to improve the time it takes to establish each plant and increase the viability. Students will engage with the forest across the curriculum and we have the opportunity to work with several universities. We are looking forward to partnering with two of our community members, Robyn Craig and Olivia Sackett, to establish our forest to commemorate our 100 years. We will keep the community updated regularly through the newsletter.

2025 Curriculum Days

At our recent School Council meeting we passed four student-free days for 2025. These days are:

-28th January - Staff return to school/Professional Learning to prepare for the school year

-7th March - Staff Professional Learning: Instructional Model Development

-30th June - Student-Led Conferences

-8th December - Professional Practice Day (2026 Planning)

TheirCare will again provide care for students who need it on these days.

This leaves us one curriculum day remaining which we will decide when to best utilise once 2025 commences.

Teacher Movement

In 2025, we have four teaching staff members heading off on different adventures. 

Emily Bourke is moving to teach at Keysborough Gardens PS and Jess Wood is moving to teach at Caulfield Grammar. I would like to thank both Emily and Jess for their contributions to our school community and their care shown towards our students and staff. We wish them well as they move to their next school community. I’d like to thank Dave the Dog for looking after us all too.

Corey Grindley and Caitlin Beer are taking a year’s leave in 2025. I’d like to thank them for their dedication and care shown towards our student and staff in their time so far at Aspendale PS and we look forward to hearing of their various adventures in 2025.

Thanks everyone for being mindful of each other with the unpredictable weather we are currently having. Please be extra careful at pick up and drop off times.

Enjoy the rest of the week,

Tom