Ladies Lunch – While for me, the lunch was such a lovely opportunity to get to know our families better and to make connections to students.   For the organising committee it was a driving passion to get the highest amounts of funds raised.  And they tripled the previous high score with $ 21 000.    I appreciated being so very welcomed by everyone.  Many thanks to our many sponsors and Stephanie and her team who did the hard work of organising a magnificent event.

Stationery Lists – these are now active for your ordering for 2026. You will have received an email from our admin staff.   

Student Resource Scheme – We are just in the final throes of reviewing this and will send to P&C for their approval next week for discussion and confirmation at the last meeting in Nov.

Centralising resources – we have just begun the process of centralising resources from the “PL” room to the library.  With students bringing their own devices, we will spread the computer lab computers around the school, in particular for Prep-One classes. This space will become the professional library space for curriculum resources and teacher reference.  The middle STEAM room will become our specialists office. And STEAM will live long in classrooms and other spaces closer to classrooms around the school.

This means that the current PL room can reframe its use so that it is both the offices for our Learning Enhancement Team (HODd Trish and team) as well as visiting staff and our learning enhancement teaching assistants, and student learning spaces.

Yr 6 Legacy Project – thank you to Cindy and Kristian who have stepped in to ensure that the yr 6 Legacy grand plan for 2025 becomes a reality, and to Mark and Karen for their practical assistance.  Watch this space.   Lights, greenery, new paint, new seating, whiteboards .. a combined effort!!!   Before ….

Hobbiton Update. - Pottery Glazing – All of our students have now made a type of flower for the Visual Arts Cottage Garden installation.   We are now at the very exciting stage of the students being able to glaze their creations. I can’t wait to see them come back full of colour and then be installed. See your teacher if you can come and assist with the glazing-painting process.  We are most fortunate to have teacher and talented artist Chrissy leading us in this work.

Hobbiton Update. – More Mens’ shed woodwork – the guys have been busy creating more wooden items for our Hobbiton Themed area which we will be installing sometime soon.

I have been meeting with some local knitters groups to engage our community in creating more flowers for our fences. The supply is gradually building. More are welcome.

Day for Daniel – We certainly know how to do things well and full on at Ascot.  Well done for the red turnout. Have a look at this lovely video with the kids about feeling safe ... a great stimulus for discussion.

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=fN0tKOEbHgM

We have been working with children on the key messages of this day

The central safety message of Day for Daniel is to empower children to Recognise, React and Report when they feel unsafe.  Building students accurate vocabulary to express their emotions and describe their body signals is key to settling their limbic brain.

• Children own their bodies — meaning they have the right to feel safe, say no, and speak up for help. 
• Body clues: kids need to understand the signals their bodies give when something doesn’t feel right (e.g., “sick” tummy, sweaty palms, racing heart).
• Safety matters online and offline: that includes in real-life places, social media, chats, apps
• Everyone has a role: parents, carers, educators, the community. It is not just up to the child. 
• Wearing red on Day for Daniel symbolises remembering the legacy of Daniel Morcombe (who was wearing a red t-shirt when he went missing) and a shared commitment to child safety.

World Teacher’s Day – We appreciate your appreciation.  It is rewarding for our staff that you can can see and feel just how much of their time, energy, heart and soul goes into improving the lives, skills and opportunities of your children.  Thank you to our P&C and parents for noticing and valuing our staff.   Thank you to our P&C for their meaningful words and amazing spread.

iPad information evening – thank you to the parents who attending the information evening. Many thanks to HODc Kristine Atkins for her thorough research and planning, and clear messages; to DP Kristian Crisp for his examples; to Ms Leisa Proctor for her reassuring input and Mr John Manning for his best practice examples of digital technologies use.

A reminder to Yr 3 and Yr 5 parents to please respond to the email indicating that your child is bringing along their own iPad as we wish to organise the custom stickers we are getting printed for each child’s device. We will be clearly labelling all devices with a sticker to indicate if BYOD or school owned.  Have a look at these great designs by our own Mel Mc.   

A reading to ponder –

 

https://www.switch4schools.com.au/post/square-eyes-selfies-the-real-story-behind-screens-and-mental-health?utm_campaign=&utm_medium=email&utm_source=newsletter

 

I really like this article from the Switch for Schools Team (an app about naming emotions and choosing a behaviour-activity to dial it up or down).  I think it speaks to us as educators in how we need to use and teach the use of digital devices carefully. – Square Eyes, Selfies and the Real story behind screens and mental health.  A few quotes to here ponder but I encourage you to read the article – it is short and engaging:

 

“Jonathan Haidt’s book, The Anxious Generation, takes a dive into the actual data. While the book has its limitations (as all books do), it makes one compelling observation very clear: the problem isn’t screen time—it’s social comparison, selfie culture, and the always-on feedback loop of likes, comments, and followers”

 

“Instead, it’s a reminder to zoom in—not on the amount of tech, but on the type of tech experiences we’re giving young people. 

• Are they creating or just consuming? 
• Are they connecting meaningfully or comparing endlessly? 
• Are they being empowered to understand their emotions—or being passively shaped by them? “

 

“Moral panics around technology are nothing new. But if we’re going to truly support young    people, we need to resist the urge to oversimplify. Instead, let’s be precise. Let’s use the research to guide thoughtful, evidence-based decisions. And let’s remember technology itself isn’t the villain, it’s how, why, and when we use it that makes the difference. 

 It’s time to stop blaming the screen and start focusing on the story playing out behind it.”