This week has provided us with many opportunities to reflect on one of key school values.  Aspiration is about having dreams, hopes or ambitions and then developing goals to help you achieve these.  Being aspirational and having high standards of ourselves and others is something that was evident in a range of settings this week at PDS.

Thursday’s primary assembly was a fantastic opportunity to celebrate some of our most aspirational student achievements.  Our Aspiration Award recipients, Aussies of the month, Science Investigation and Australian Maths Competition winners were all on showcase.  Congratulations to all these award and certificate recipients.

Thankyou once again to the families that took the time to celebrate their child’s learning achievements at the Communicating Learning with Family meetings.    This opportunity was another great chance to support our students as they work towards their personal learning goals. 

Examples of aspirational goals I have witnessed this week have included Hannah and Chad aspiring to demonstrate the Olympic values, our Secondary students writing a book in a day, Clementine aspiring to play happy birthday on the Saxophone and Elijah dreaming of becoming an AFL footballer.  Our Secondary netballers have competed in the North West School Championships this week with all teams in the top 3.  We would also like to congratulate Willow as she will compete in Victoria at the National U/14 Club Championships.

As the end of term nears and the days get longer and warmer, I invite you to have a conversation with your child about their aspirational hopes and dreams for the future.

Staffing update

It is with mixed emotions that we'd like to let our school community know that Mrs Moira Paterson will be joining Riana Primary School beginning in Term 4, into 2024 and beyond. Mrs Deb French and Mrs Sharine Johnstone will be continuing to provide quality learning opportunities for 1/2 B throughout the remainder of 2023. 

Moira has been given the opportunity to assist in the development of their nature curriculum and this is an area she is deeply passionate about. Moira has been at Penguin District School for over 10 years and has had a profound impact on many students since that time. Her skills and knowledge in the areas of sustainability and biodiversity, coupled with an inquiry approach, has seen children being visible in our community during 'Wonder Walks' and creating many partnerships along the way. We wish her all the best in her new adventures up the hill and look forward to utilising her skill set in the future as our partnership with Riana grows. 

Yours in partnership

Adrian Beard