In our classrooms

100 Days of Prep

To celebrate a huge milestone, the Preps came in costumes today to celebrate their hundredth day of prep. Throughout this year, preps have been learning how to count to 100 (far beyond the national standards). Thank you to all our children, students and families who were involved in this special day.

Olympics

In Year 4, we kicked off our Olympics topic! In 4WB, students dove into the history of the torch relay and crafted their own stunning stained-glass torches, all in preparation for last week's exciting opening ceremony.

Cyber safety

On Monday, students in grades prep to four had a visit from Melbourne Puppet Kerfuffle. The show focused on Cybersafety and encouraged students to think about being safe when using computers and the internet. Topics such as passwords, keeping personal information private and sharing what is happening online with an adult were explored, with help from students and teachers! There was singing, jokes, and lots of fun and silliness.

In our art room

Olympic Fever

In Art all students have been inspired by the incredible efforts of the athletes of the Olympic games. Whether celebrating the opening ceremony highlighting Paris or cheering on the Green and Gold. The students have created some fun artwork which is popping up around the school.

Book Week

The Children's Book Council of Australia (CBCA) Book Week is fast approaching. Shortlisted Books in several categories, including Picture Book, Early Childhood, and Younger Readers book of the year will be on display in our library very soon. Winners from each category will be announced on Friday 16th August.

Book Week: 17th - 23rd August 2024

Theme: Reading is Magic!

Shortlisted books: Shortlist 2024 – The Children’s Book Council of Australia (cbca.org.au)

Book Week Dress up and Parade : Thursday 22^nd August > Dress up as your favourite book character, or a costume inspired from the Book Week theme.

On this morning students will parade their costumes on the oval - weather permitting!

Authors Adam Wallace and Amelia Mellor will also visit us during Book week.

Students will celebrate Book Week in the class room, the art room, and during library sessions where they will have an opportunity to read all the shortlisted and winning books.

On the oval

During the first few weeks of Term 3, Prep, Grade 1 and Grade 2 students have been revisiting variations of catching and throwing and analysing the different techniques. This week students have begun their ‘Mini Olympics’, participating in a range of Olympic events including Long Jump, Hurdles and Relay Races. It has been great to see students support each other, cheer for one another and earn house points.

Grade 3-6 have begun training for this term’s upcoming Athletics Carnival in Week 7. Last week, students revisited Long Jump and Triple Jump, while this week focused on Discus and take off positions and running techniques for sprinting events such as 100m and 200m.

Upcoming Events

Thursday 29th August – Athletics Carnival @ East Burwood Reserve, Nunawading

Wednesday 11th September – District Athletics @ Bill Stewart Athletics Track

Senior choir

NEW REHEARSAL TIME – GIPS SENIOR CHOIR FOR GRADES 3-6:

Wednesday 14^th AUGUST 8.15 – 8.50am Performing Arts Room

All existing choir members will be sent a Permission Form via email Week 4. Please contact Eleanor.Hardie@education.vic.gov.au for all enquiries. I will provide a hard copy of the permission slip to new members at the Tryouts on Wednesday 7^th August.

TRYOUTS for SENIOR CHOIR – Wednesday 7^th August 1.00pm

FIVE REASONS TO JOIN THE GIPS SENIOR CHOIR

1. To sing in a group that performs in afternoon concerts, school and community events.
2. To have the opportunity to explore choral music – singing in parts – as sung by key Australian community choirs such as Gondwana Voices, Young Voices of Melbourne and The Australian Children’s Choir
3. To extend my vocal skill in collaboration with other singers and develop not only in sound but in problem solving and teamwork with extension for expression through choreography, percussion and performances.
4. To build new GIPS friendships, self-reliance, public speaking, tolerance, self-confidence and a sense of accomplishment.
5. To have fun and develop musical proficiency within a supportive environment that brings out the best in everyone.

What are we singing now?

Safe YouTube links:

Sessere Eeye – Traditional Torres Strait Island song https://www.astrosafe.co/video/6641b79e64dd6f965cbb4836

Migaloo – Annie Kwok (Adelaide Composer)

https://www.astrosafe.co/lesson/66a847833dabd0aa71ea98d3

Just Sing! – Choral arrangement by Mark Brymer

https://www.astrosafe.co/video/6641b88464dd6f965cbb483f

When is it on?

As of Wednesday 14^th August we will rehearse on a Wednesday 8.15am – 8.50am in the Library-Performing Arts Room.

How do I sign up?

1. Come along to our ‘TRY OUTS’ Wednesday 7^th August Lunchtime in the Library. Everyone is encouraged to bring a friend to tryout also.
2. Take a permission slip home. Talk to your Parents about the new rehearsal time Wednesday 8.15 – 8.50am Library-Performing Arts Room.
3. Return your permission slip directly to me, Eleanor Hardie, or to the Front Office.

In our staffroom

Thank you to all families who met with our teaching staff during Parent Teacher Conferences, and a special thank you to our grade 5/6 students who engaged in three-way conferences. Last week classroom teachers participated in professional learning with writing consultant, Lisa Keskinen. Lisa has been a regular visitor to our school over the years. In small groups, teachers went on a ‘learning walk’ with Lisa to observe the Writer’s Workshop in action from Prep to Year 6.

In our community

Safe use of parking around GIPS

Please ensure that you are parking safely and considerately around the school at pickup times. The five minutes drop off zones need to be observed, and please do not double park near them as this poses a child safety risk. We have been alerted by our neighbours that there have been instances where they been unable to exit their drives or their streets due to cars blocking the road. We would also like to remind you that the church and kindergarten car parks are not to be used for school pickups. We thank you for your consideration, and for your promotion of GIPS as a good neighbour in the community.

Online auction

As you will all be aware the Silent Auction is one of our key fundraising events and we are delighted to open bidding on all the generously donated items.

To view all auction items please visit the following link, fill in your details, and get bidding!

Click to bid

Parent/Carer Survey

Please see the recent Compass post regarding the Parent/Carer survey. As a school team, we use your feedback to help form strategic decisions. We aren't able to include the links outside of Compass for security reasons, so please see Compass for how to respond to the survey. Thank you to the six percent of parents that have already responded.

A message from School Council

Dear School Community,

We have recently seen an increase in incidents of teenagers and children, including current students, climbing onto the school roof out of school hours. This has resulted in significant damage to the school buildings and this behaviour is dangerous and poses serious safety risks.

The roof is not a safe area for climbing on and can lead to accidents and injuries. Additionally, any damage to the roof is costly and disruptive to our school's operations.

We kindly ask all parents, guardians, and students to help us maintain a safe environment by reporting any instances unauthorised people climbing on the roof. If you witness such behaviour, please contact the school office (glen.iris.ps@education.vic.gov.au) as quickly as possible so we can address the situation promptly.

Your cooperation and vigilance are greatly appreciated as we work together to keep our school a safe and welcoming place for everyone.

Thank you for your attention to this important matter.

GIPS Council

Happy Principal Day

Happy Principal Day to Maddie and Debbie!