RPS Chatter March (2) 2025

Welcome to the Week 8 edition of RPS  Chatter.  The term is flying and with only 2 weeks to go it doesn’t seem to be slowing down!

 

Harmony Day

 

If you walked past the school today, you would have seen a sea of orange. No, it wasn’t due to an influx of staff or tradespeople in hi-vis vests; it was our way of celebrating Harmony Day. Harmony Day celebrates Australia’s rich cultural diversity, fostering respect and inclusion for all Australians. It also aligns with the United Nations’ International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination. At RPS, we strive every day to be respectful and inclusive of everyone.

 

 

Pizza Day

 

Not only an action-packed Harmony Day, but adding that with Pizza Day and you have a great combination.  For those new to our community, once a term, our Year 6 students host a Pizza Day.  Pizza is made onsite by our Year 6s in our wood-fired pizza ovens (with the help of staff and some fabulous parent volunteers, and the continued support of the Royal Saxon for the pizza bases).  My personal favourite is the Margarita…the sweet one (although apparently “healthy” now that it has strawberries on top) just looks a bit too sweet for me.  All money raised from Pizza Days goes toward the Year 6 Graduation at the end of the year.

 

Swimming Stars

 

Yesterday, we were proudly represented at the Regional Swimming Carnival by five of our talented students: Alaia A, Anna A, Harper H, Lotsie P, and Otto P. Reaching the Regional level is no small feat….it requires a lot of dedication, consistent training, and hard work. For a school of our size to have five students competing at this level is truly impressive. According to all the feedback we received, each student gave their best effort and had a fantastic time throughout the event. We are incredibly proud of their achievements and the determination they showed. Well done, everyone!

 

Allergies

 

As you know, we are not a nut-free school, as it is not always a practical expectation. However, if a student in the class has a nut allergy (or any other allergy), all families will be notified so we can take the appropriate precautions. Please keep this in mind if you decide to bring something to share with the class for your child’s birthday. Additionally, when celebrating your child’s birthday, all items should be individually packaged, and a convenient time for you and your child to distribute them at the end of the school day will be arranged with your child’s teacher.

 

The Resilience Project

 

The TRP parent webinar (Authentic Connection for Parents and Carers with Hugh vanCylenburg) was a great opportunity to connect and share parenting experiences! It’s always reassuring to know you’re not alone in the challenges of raising our next generation. Sometimes just hearing other people’s strategies or realising you’re facing the same struggles can make a big difference.

In case you missed it or want to watch it again, here is the link to the session: Authentic Connection for Parents and Carers Recording

We will be having another parent session later in the year, so watch this space for more information closer to the date.

 

Speaking of Dates:

 

Term 2 is an 11-week term and the calendar is filling fast.  Make sure you add these dates to your diary:

• Friday, April 4th: Term 1 finishes.  Students are dismissed at 2 pm from their learning space.
• Tuesday April 22nd:  Term 2 begins
• Friday, April 25th:  ANZAC Day public holiday
• Friday, May 2nd:    School Cross Country Carnival
• Friday, May 9th:     District Cross Country Carnival
• Tuesday, May 13th: 5/6s at Camp Rumbug
• Friday, May 16th:    5/6s return from camp
• Wednesday, May 21st – Friday, May 23rd: School Photos
• Friday, May 30th:   Celebration of NF Day
• Monday, June 9th: Kings Birthday Public Holiday
• Friday, July 4th:  Last day of Term 2.  Students dismissed at 2 pm from their learning spaces

Also fitted in there will be excursions, incursions, reports, learning, building, fun and laughter…. another big term to look forward to.

 

Building Update

 

Earlier today you would have received the latest update from the VSBA.  If you haven’t seen it yet, remember to check your COMPASS newsfeed.

 

Wedding Season

 

2025 is becoming the season of weddings here at RPS! As we wrap up this week’s newsletter, we want to take a moment to celebrate two of our fabulous staff members.

First, we send our heartfelt congratulations to Hayley, who is getting ready to walk down the aisle to marry her fiancé, Brendan, later this afternoon. From everyone in the RPS community, we wish them a joyous wedding day and a lifetime of happiness together.

Also, a big congratulations to Olivia, who, though currently on family leave, will be marrying her partner, Johnny, tomorrow. We send them our warmest wishes for a beautiful wedding day and an incredible future together.

 

That’s it from me this week.

Stay safe.  Stay healthy.  Stay happy.  Don’t forget to be kind and respectful to yourself and others.

Megan

Have you ever heard your child talk about “filling their bucket”? This simple but powerful concept is about teaching kindness, positivity, and emotional well-being. Inspired by the book Have You Filled a Bucket Today? by Carol McCloud, bucket-filling is based on the idea that each person has an invisible bucket that holds their feelings of self-worth and happiness. When we do kind things or say positive words, we “fill” each other’s buckets, making everyone feel good. On the flip side, negative actions or words “dip” from a person’s bucket, leaving them feeling upset or sad.

As parents, you can play a key role in helping your child fill their own bucket and the buckets of others. Here are a few simple ways to support your child in this:

 

• Model Kindness: Show your child how to fill others’ buckets with actions like offering compliments, showing empathy, or helping a friend.
• Encourage Positive Language: Teach your child the importance of using kind words—both to others and to themselves.
• Create a Bucket-Filling Routine: Set aside time each day for your child to reflect on kind things they’ve done or experienced. This could be part of a bedtime ritual, where your child shares moments when they filled someone else’s bucket.
• Celebrate Acts of Kindness: Praise your child for their efforts to fill buckets, whether it’s sharing with a sibling or standing up for a friend.

 

By nurturing a bucket-filling mindset, you’ll help your child build self-confidence, empathy, and a positive outlook. Together, we can create a world full of kindness—one bucket at a time!

On February 27th, a group of Joey Scouts and Cub Scouts from RPS participated in Clean Up Australia Day 2025. The students chose to clean up the RPS school grounds and Barkley Gardens. They wore gloves while picking up a substantial amount of rubbish and placing it into large garbage bags, resulting in a cleaner environment for everyone to enjoy.

 

Items that should have been disposed of properly, such as apple cores, drink straws, bottle tops, and soy sauce packets, were safely collected from both RPS and the park. This effort helps prevent these items from ending up in drains or causing harm to animals, birds, marine life, or young children.

 

The Joeys and Cubs had smiles on their faces while also enjoying time to play with their friends. A huge thank you to Ava, Jasper, Zoe, Summer, and Curtis for their hard work in cleaning up our school grounds and Barkley Gardens!

We are a Happy Swim Team at RPS

We are the Medley Relay Divisional Champion

We love our School and we swim to win!

All the way to Regional Finals!

 

The Results BANYULE AND INM DIVISION SWIMMING CHAMPIONSHIPS:

Medley Relay 2nd Place  INM Medley 4 x50 Open Girls  -12/13 with a team best of 3:16 Harper, Lotsie, Alaia, Anna Congratulations!

• Otto P 1st Place Backstroke INM  x50 Open Boys  -12/13
• Otto P 1st Place Butterfly  INM  x50 Open Boys  -12/13
• Elliot A 3rd Place Backstroke INM  x50 Open Girls  – 9/10

Well done to all competitors, Melika, Annabelle Flynn, Evie W.

Foundation

• Jack M – For having a positive attitude and trying his best in Foundation. Keep up the great work, Jack!
• Scarlett O – For such a positive start to the school year. For contributing to classroom discussions, trying your best and including others.

 

Year 1/2

• Hamish L – For doing an incredible job in writing this week, your narratives have been amazing!
• Teddy A – For being a diligent, thoughtful and insightful student and a kind, fun friend. You’re a star, Teddy!
• Phoebe T – For all you do to make the class a kind and welcoming class. You take care of others when they need it and you help your classmates make good choices! You also challenge yourself every day, and I love seeing the pride you have in your work. Keep it up, SUPERSTAR!
• Sheriff S – For being a fantastic example to our class. You have a positive attitude, care for others and try your best! Well done!
• Tommy R – For always displaying a positive attitude within PE sessions! Well done Tommy 😊
• Sammy J – For her “can-do” attitude towards all learning areas! You approach every challenge with curiosity and determination, adding a special spark to our class. Keep up the amazing work superstar!

 

Year 3/4

• Ingrid M –For demonstrating exceptional listening skills, always giving full attention to speakers, and responding thoughtfully. Your ability to listen carefully and engage meaningfully makes you a wonderful classmate and learner. Well done!
• Adam C – This legend is always trying his best in everything he does. His school work, his friendships, his positive choices, and his actions. You’re a shining light of inspiration in the classroom, Adam, well done!
• George M – His enthusiasm and engagement when writing his fractured fairy tale script in PA – terrific work!

 

Year 5/6

•  Jacob L – Congratulations on your incredible progress. Your increased focus and the positive learning choices you’ve been making are impressive. Keep up the good work
• Alex C – Her wonderful start to the year. You’ve come back and fit into our class culture so well, and are making such excellent choices for your learning.
• Samika A – For her wonderful effort towards all activities and trying her best to learn from her mistakes. Great job Mika!!
• Lotsie P – For wonderful application of your understanding of animal adaptations and attention to detail in your animal design
• Harper H – Your wonderful narrative writing piece called, ‘Act of Kindness’. You delved into significant themes, included emotive language and an important moral. Well done, Harper!
• Jack M – For great learning about warm and cool colours
• Hunter S – His noticeable improvement in effort and having a positive attitude towards learning. Keep up the fantastic work!
• Aanav G – For showing exceptional initiative. He demonstrated a strong ability to focus, avoid distractions and has shown great respect to his peers. Keep up the determination and fantastic positive attitude!

Chess Club – Fridays, 8:00 – 8:50 AM

Hot Shot Tennis – Fridays, 8:00 – 8:40 AM

• Chess Club
• Hot Shot Tennis