Year level updates

Every fortnight, each of the Year levels share what's been happening in their little corner of the school. Usually it will talk about the areas of literacy and numeracy they have been focussed on, highlights from excursion, incursions and special events, and everything else that has been of note. It's a really good way for you to keep up to date with the goings on in the classrooms. Currently, they will usually appear in a term week matching their level - so even term weeks will feature Years 2,4 and 6, while odd weeks will be Prep, Yr 1, 3 and 5. 

Cross Country

What amazing efforts from our cross country runners at this week's Division event! For more info and photos, check out Mr Worlley's report here. We wish Callan and Hudson the best as they head off to the next level of competition, the Regional Finals, next week. 

Junior Playground Ceremony

We will be conducting a ceremony to thank the people that made the Junior Playground redevelopment finally happen. From 3pm on Friday, June 19th, the school will convene in front of the Junior Playground where we will get a chance to say thanks! If you are in the area, drop on by!

Chess and Robotics

We are once again opening up spots for families to sign up to two lunch time clubs. Chess and Robotics will both be offered in Term 3 (numbers permitting) at lunchtimes. These sessions are user pays and run by Kids Unlimited, and feature a visiting instructor who brings all the required materials and technology. Robotics is currently running on Fridays and has seen a big increase in enrolments this year. We'd love to see chess get back to running again as it was a few years when we had over 30 students taking part. For more information please read through the flyer below or book directly with this link.

Friday Bread

Some of you may have noticed that on Fridays after school there is a collection of breads and rolls that are given away. Donated by the Ashburton Baptist Church, the bread has all been baked on Wednesday but is free to a good home on Friday. To keep things fair, we ask that you limit yourself to one choice and that it is only adults who are collecting. 

JSC Fundraiser

Kids Under Cover is an organisation that helps children and young people who are experiencing homelessness, or who do not have a safe place to stay. They work to help young people find secure housing and support them in building a brighter future.The fundraiser will be split in two ways. Firstly, half will go towards helping Kids Under Cover support homeless children. The other half will go towards a JSC project - replacing the basketball nets around the school. 

On June 12, we encourage everyone to bring a gold coin donation, wear free dress, and bring in a Lego house that fits within 15 cm by 15 cm.Every person who brings in a Lego house will go into the draw to win a Lego prize. The winners will be announced on June 26, at the final assembly of the term. 

We will spin a barrel and randomly select three winners.

We will set up tables in the hall where you can bring your Lego house, either on the morning of the fundraiser or the day before. You will also need to fill in a sheet of paper with your name and class. By taking part and supporting our fundraiser, you will be helping young people in need through Kids Under Cover.

Every donation makes a difference.

Dates upcoming

Here's some long range dates for next term to put in your diary - 

Parent Trivia Night - Saturday August 15th

Space Jammin' - Junior Concert (P/1/2) - Wednesday September 9th

King's Birthday

A reminder that this coming Monday, June 8th is a public holiday to mark the King's Birthday. The school, and Team Kids, will both be closed for the day. Enjoy the long weekend!

Over the past two weeks, students have continued developing their reading comprehension skills by learning how to identify the main idea of both fiction and nonfiction texts and summarise important information. They practised looking for clues such as repeated ideas, key details and text features to help them understand what a text is mostly about.

In Writing, students completed their biography unit before beginning a new Historical Fiction unit. They explored the difference between fact and fiction, researched what life was like in the past, and started planning stories that combine accurate historical details with imaginative ideas. Students are enjoying learning about how people lived, worked and played in different time periods and are beginning to use this knowledge in their own writing.

In Mathematics, students continued building their multiplicative thinking by exploring the relationship between multiplication and division and solving real-world problems involving money and equal groups. They also investigated the features of 2D and 3D shapes, created models of 3D objects, and worked with data displays and graphs. Throughout these lessons, students have been encouraged to explain their thinking and use mathematical language to justify their answers.

As part of Connected Learning, students have been exploring stories from the past and continued learning about First Nations histories and cultures. They investigated historical artefacts, considered different perspectives and developed their research and interviewing skills. Thank you for your support at home to conduct their interviews about an object from the past. Students will now be working on preparing to present what they found to their class in Week 10.

Year 5 Newsletter

The Year 5 students have been busy with a range of exciting learning experiences over the past few weeks.

Prep Pals
The Year 5 students have been exploring probability, while our Prep students have been learning about the days of the week. During a Prep Pals session, the Year 5s modelled probability vocabulary and supported the Preps in matching probability scenarios and terms through a fun game. It was wonderful to see the patience, teamwork, and problem-solving skills on display as students worked together.

Jump Rope for Heart
Students have been enthusiastically practising their skipping skills in preparation for Jump Rope for Heart. They demonstrated perseverance and resilience as they challenged themselves to improve. We also enjoyed a special visit from the Jump Rope for Heart team, where students were introduced to the prizes on offer. A highlight of the visit was watching both students and teachers showcase their best skipping skills!

Camp Manyung
A major highlight of the term was our Year 5 Camp at Camp Manyung. Students spent three action packed days participating in adventure activities, trivia challenges, team games, and enjoying delicious meals. They also took responsibility by assisting with breakfast, lunch, and dinner duties. Camp provided many opportunities for students to build independence, strengthen friendships, and create lasting memories. It was an incredible experience that will be remembered by both students and staff.

Year 4 Term 2, Week 7

It’s hard to believe we’re already in Week 7 of Term 2! Year 4 students have continued to show a positive attitude towards their learning and have maintained strong focus throughout the term. It has been wonderful to see students embracing challenges, building confidence, and showing enthusiasm across all learning areas.

We have…

 Begun our novel study of The Tale of Despereaux, developing comprehension skills and exploring themes, characters, and important events in the story.

 Explored Historical Fiction by researching different time periods, creating characters and settings, and planning and drafting our own stories.

Continued building writing skills through descriptive language, planning story beginnings, joining simple sentences into compound sentences, and using commas in lists.

 Practised spelling patterns, prefixes, and suffixes while developing our understanding of different sounds and word structures.

Strengthened our understanding of Place Value (additive thinking) by revisiting place value concepts and solving addition and subtraction problems using efficient strategies and money examples.

 Investigated Statistics by creating, interpreting, comparing, and analysing different graphs and data displays.

In Connected Learning, students have been exploring Stories about the Past: Preparing Presentations, building their understanding of historical perspectives while developing their presentation skills. 

It has been a fantastic term so far, and we look forward to continuing our learning journey throughout the remainder of Term 2.

Mr Baker, Miss Dooley and Shivani.

Every Minute Matters – Arriving at School on Time

At Ashburton Primary School, learning begins promptly at 9:00am. While we understand that occasionally being late is unavoidable, our attendance data shows that an increasing number of students are arriving after the school day has begun.

Even arriving a few minutes late can have an impact. Between 8:45am and 9:00am, students are settling into their classrooms, organising themselves for the day, connecting with their teacher and classmates, and preparing for learning. This allows teachers to begin instruction promptly at 9:00am.

When students arrive late, they can miss important information, instructions and learning opportunities. Late arrivals can also disrupt the learning of others, as teachers often need to pause instruction to assist students who have entered after the lesson has commenced.

While a few minutes may not seem significant, these minutes add up over time. For example, arriving just five minutes late each day equates to more than three full days of learning lost across the school year.

We recognise that some families face genuine challenges that can make getting to school on time difficult. If this is the case for your family, please know that we are here to help. We encourage you to reach out to the school so we can work together to identify any supports that may assist.

Thank you for your ongoing support in helping all students start their day calmly, confidently and ready to learn.

Commitment to Child Safety: Annual Policy Review

At Ashburton Primary School, the safety, wellbeing, and empowerment of all children and young people are our highest priorities. In line with the Victorian Child Safe Standards, we are currently undertaking our annual review of our Child Safety and Wellbeing Policies. 
To ensure our approach is effective and up-to-date, we regularly evaluate our child safety procedures, risk assessments, and Codes of Conduct. 

We Value Your Input
Keeping children safe is a shared responsibility. We highly encourage parents, carers, and community members to have a voice in shaping our child safety practices. 

• View our current policies: All of our Child Safe policies, procedures, and Codes of Conduct are available to view here.
• Provide feedback: If you have any feedback, questions, or ideas for improving our child safety measures, please reach out.

SMILE Booster Sessions focus

Each month, staff utilise a Staff Meeting to review whole school behaviour data and then drill down into their own cohort and class's behaviour data. After completeing a Problem Solving Data Analysis template and brainstoring supports and interventions, they design a Booster session that speciifically targets their year levels needs. Based on the last month's data, here's a snapshot of what each year level is focusiing on:

Rachel Roberts

Assistant Principal

PMP- Week 7

Junior students have been having a fantastic time during their PMP sessions this term! They have been developing their coordination, balance and confidence through a range of fun activities including leaping, balancing challenges, skipping with ropes and practising standing jumps. It has been wonderful to see students building their movement skills while encouraging one another and enjoying being active together.

Appropriate Footwear Reminder: 

Please ensure your child wears suitable footwear for PE, Sport and PMP days, such as runners/sneakers. School dress shoes are not appropriate for these activities. 

Boroondara Division Cross Country

Congratulations to all of our Ashburton PS runners who represented the school at the Boroondara Division Cross Country Championships held at Ruffey Park on Monday 1st June. Our boys and girls demonstrated outstanding determination, resilience and sportsmanship throughout the event, and we are incredibly proud of their fantastic efforts in reaching this stage of competition.

A special congratulations to Callan and Hudson, who have qualified to progress to the next level and will represent Ashburton PS at the Regional Cross Country Championships at Yarra Glen Racecourse on Thursday 11th June.

We wish them the very best of luck as they compete against the region’s strongest runners.

Go Ashy!

Our Grade Ones continue to be busy with their learning, having lots of fun along the way!

Some of the things we have been doing include:

• Learning about the suffix “ing” in phonics and about the different jobs of silent e
• Exploring non-fiction texts and their features in reading  
• Writing an information report about an imaginary animal
• Investigating capacity through hands on activities
• Consolidating our knowledge of subtraction using concrete materials
• Diorama building for Connected Learning in preparation for our Expo
• Butter making as part of our Connected Learning activities where we explore life in the past; it was delicious!
• Learning about Reconciliation Week

Parent Event

Saturday August 15th

Mor info to come!