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.
Event | Date |
Last Day - early dismissal | 20th December Year 6 Final Assembly starts at 12pm Early finish at 1pm |
Event | Date |
Student Free Day | 28th January |
Student's first Day | 29th January 2025 |
The winter sun has warmed our first week of Term Three and it’s with pleasure that I shine a light on a few of the happenings across the week.
Our school has celebrated NAIDOC Week this week. Each morning has begun with pairs of students acknowledging country over our speakers. These acknowledgements have been developed with their class and it has been terrific to hear them shared with the community. Our Respectful Relationships Leaders have prepared short videos highlighting Indigenous Australians and their achievements. Thanks to our Global Awareness team for leading our school’s celebration of NAIDOC Week.
This week we have welcomed several new and returning staff to our school. Michelle Thompson and Lina Pietrasik are teaching in Year Two and Emily Bourke is teaching in Year Four. Liliana Bocanegra joins our Education Support staff team as an Intergration Aide. On behalf of the school, I’d like to welcome you all to our community.
Our Year Five students are having an excellent time at Coonawarra Farm Resort. It was great to visit them yesterday and join in the activities. The archery, canoeing and labyrinth were highlights for me. We’re looking forward to hearing of their adventures when they return on Friday. Thanks to our staff and parents who have organised and attended camp for facilitating this extra-curricular opportunity for our students.
Over the next five weeks, we are excited to welcome international students to our school. Most of these students will be visiting our school from China and will be in classes from Year One to Year Five. The students will learn alongside our students in class and it is an excellent opportunity for the students to share their language, culture and individual personalities. We have been fortunate enough to host students in the past and we are looking forward to them learning with us again. Thanks to Hong Ma, Cait Fletcher and Amber Demmler for coordinating this program.
Next week NAPLAN results will be distributed to families of students in Year Three and Year Five. Please see the article later in the newsletter for a reminder of the changes in NAPLAN reporting this year.
Over the next two terms, I am the Acting Principal whilst Coby Larrieu is on long service leave. I am excited for this opportunity and look forward to continuing to work with the school community to support our students as they learn and grow with us.
Ahead of NAPLAN results for students being released from Monday 17 July 2023, I’m writing to inform you of some changes to this year’s reporting. These are changes being introduced nationally by the Australian Curriculum Assessment and Reporting Authority (ACARA).
NAPLAN will continue to measure student achievement in numeracy, reading, writing, spelling, and grammar and punctuation but the results will now be presented in 4 proficiency levels:
These are:
This change will give schools, parents and carers clearer information that details student achievement against new proficiency levels.
Students’ NAPLAN reports will continue to show how they are tracking against their peers and provide an indication of their skill levels against national averages and where we would expect them to be in order to get the most out of schooling. This provides valuable information to teachers about how we can continue to support your child.
Each set of NAPLAN results is an important milestone but it’s also important that students know that one result does not define them – these results are about making sure every student gets the support they need so they can continue to get the best from their learning.
When we provide you with your results, you will also receive information about what the new proficiency levels mean.
As ever, you’re welcome to speak to me, or your child’s teacher with any questions about these changes.
Tom Pearce
Acting Principal
This week, Year 2 began investigating How the World Works with the idea that Forces affect how an object moves and changes.
Chris from PrimeSci came along to lead some investigations into forces, friction, tension and torque! Students experimented with yo-yos, toy cars and spinning tops to better understand friction and forces.This week our lessons were based around celebrating songs and dances performed by our indigenous Australians.
Students in Foundation to Year 6, listened to indigenous songs from across Australia and expressed their knowledge and understanding about what they could hear and see. They learnt a variety of traditional and more modern songs by indigenous musical artists and they learnt which area of Australia these artists originated.
Following this, students were then presented with a video of indigenous dancing and students discussed their thoughts and feelings about what they saw. Students witnessed traditional men’s and women’s dance groups, such as the Bangarra Dance Theatre and other more modern artists such as Baker Boy.
Our students loved experiencing indigenous music and dance in their performing arts sessions and have new understanding and appreciation for their music and culture.