Dear Parents and Carers,

As we come to the close of a particularly busy term, I would like to congratulate the children on their development. Our Yr. 6 Leaders have taken on a range of tasks and completed these with considerable flair. The Yr. 5’s have also begun to take on leadership roles and it is hoped that they can continue to with these responsivities for the coming terms.

Our younger students have also been busy during this term, and their efforts have not gone unnoticed!

Learning new skills is not always easy and there have been many “lightbulb moments”, as well as many challenges with our learning that have reminded us that at times learning new skills is hard work and there is a fabulous sense of achievement when we know that we have mastered or embedded new learning. 

Thank you to those parents who have been keeping in contact with class teachers so as to support the activities that children are working on at school and to keep us up to date with any concerns that your children may be dealing with. Your support is appreciated.

I would also like to thank all members of our school community and the wider Grenfell community who have provided continued support during this term. Our children have had the opportunity to participate in a variety of different academic and sporting activities, and have competed well and have completed many tasks and activities that display what they have been learning in class.

Festival of Small Halls – congratulations to our hard working P & F, organising this event has been a huge task, and the show this is shaping up to be a terrific family night for the Grenfell community.

Good luck to Axl and Jesse from THLHS as the opening act for the night.

Remember to go online and purchase your tickets if you have not already done so.

Thank you to those families who have already indicated where and how they can help with the preparations. A copy of the roster will be sent home separately.

Writing success – congratulations to William Wilson whose piece ANZACs coming Home has received a Highly Commended award in this year’s ANZAC Day writing competition run by Michael McCormack MP.

ANZACs Coming Home

William Wilson

The ANZACS fought well,

some of them died and a lot of them cried.

Those family and friends fought for us.

They fought for our country, Australia.

Some ANZACs they fell, like a bullet shell, they dropped to the ground, with a very sad sound.

Some came home to the Central West and celebrated.

They fought for us on ANZAC Day. And we think to ourselves what brave things they have done for us and our country.

My great uncle George, he fought in the light horse team. George came home, but many of his friends did not. George is my hero. He served and survived in the great war, but he came home very sore.

George did not talk very much about the war, but I understand why.

His friends were his family, and most of them died. When he tells us this story we all feel sorry for him.

I am writing this story because I want everyone to know my hero - my great uncle George. When George came home I was not alive but my relatives were. They handed this story down to me. It is so special to me so that is why I listened.

Not that long ago, my poor great uncle George died. Sadly, he was getting old, but he will always be my hero as he fought in the war.

So I will remember him for as long as I live.

Lest we forget.

School Board – thank you to everyone who made inquiries about the vacancies on our School Board. Thank you to Paula Briggs and Rob McLelland who have accepted nominations to this role.

Registration renewal process - This term staff have also been preparing for our Registration Review Process. This review process takes place every five years and allows us to review processes and procedures to ensure that we are compliant with current regulations and practices. The review team comprising staff from our head office and principals/assistant principals/RECs will be visiting us in May (20-22). We are looking forward to working with the team during their visit.

Professional Learning for Staff - Term two will commence on Tuesday April 30 for all children. The whole school staff professional learning day will take place on Monday April 29.

Congratulations to everyone who participated in the school cross country last Thursday. It was a lovely morning. Thank you to all parents and family who were able to join us at the Country Club, your support was appreciated. Special thanks to Caitlin and Patrick King for acting as marshals on the course. Good luck to those children who will be participating in the Western Region carnival at Murrumburrah on May 3. Thank you to Mrs Best for your efforts to organise the carnival.

Winners on the morning were:

8 Year Girls: Camilla Metcalfe

8 Year Boys: Baxter Donnelly

9 Year Girls: Ruby Norrie

9 Year Boys: William Best

10 Year Girls: Genevieve McLelland

10 Year Boys: Hamish Gibson

11 Year Girls: Alyssa Heathcote

11 Year Boys: Hugh Knight

12 Year Girls: Skye McLelland

12 Year Boys: William Wilson

Schoolzine - We have continued working with the Schoolzine program and have uncovered several new features that allow us to get information out to you via email, newsfeed, SZapp and SMS, each of which can be actioned simultaneously. It is hoped that you have not been overly bombarded with repeated messages from our information service.

Changes to routine - Thank you to those families who are keeping us informed when children are absent from school, or there are changes to the regular routine. Please be aware that we are required to keep the rolls up to date and that thorough explanations for absences enable us to do so.

Thursday April 25 – ANZAC Day – this year, Anzac Day falls during the school holiday period. Those families who are able to join us for the annual ANZAC March are requested to meet at the Chinese restaurant at 10:30am. The children should wear their winter uniform, if it is hot, we will not wear jumpers during the march. I understand that the march will commence at 10:45am so that everyone can be in place at the cenotaph for the beginning of the service at 11:00am. We have also been invited to participate in the Dawn Service. For those interested, the service begins at 5:30am on Anzac Day.

Holy Week Services

Palm Sunday 14/04 - 9am

Good Friday – 19/04 - Passion/Veneration - 3.00pm

Easter Sunday – 21/04 - 9.00am

The holiday break will provide a good opportunity to rest and recharge in preparation for Term 2!

Enjoy the time with your families.

Sincerely,