Dear GIPS Families,

As we settle into the rhythm of Term 2 and as we approach our camp season, I’ve been reflecting on one of the most important parts of a child’s development—emotional intelligence and resilience. At Glen Iris Primary School, we know that academic learning is just one piece of the puzzle. Equally vital is our commitment to nurturing kind, confident, and resilient learners who can navigate life’s challenges with empathy and courage.

Every day, our staff are intentionally weaving social-emotional learning into the fabric of school life. Through programs like Respectful Relationships, The Resilience Project, and The Berry Street Education Model, we help students develop a strong sense of self, learn that all emotions are welcome, and see mistakes as opportunities.

Here are some of the key strategies we’re using at school—and some ways you can support them at home:

1. Celebrating Mistakes as Learning Opportunities

At GIPS, we help students understand that mistakes aren’t something to be embarrassed about—they’re an important part of how we learn and grow. Whether it’s a spelling error, a maths problem solved the wrong way, or a tricky friendship moment, each misstep is a chance to reflect and try again with new insight.

Try this at home:

• Lael Stone this week suggested families could share "What was your biggest fail today?" at dinner, offering the change to see mistakes as opportunities that help us learn.

• Share your own learning moments from the day, like misreading a recipe or forgetting something at work, to show that everyone makes mistakes—even adults. Children love to know we’re all still learning! In fact, modelling "mistakes" as a teacher in the classroom is one of the most effective ways to explicitly teach.

2. Emotional Check-Ins and 'Name It to Tame It'
In classrooms, students are learning to identify and name their emotions using tools like the Zones of Regulation. We help them understand that all feelings are okay and welcome in our school.

Try this at home:

• Use simple emotion cards or ask at dinner: “What colour zone were you in today?”

• Model naming your own feelings: “I felt frustrated when the traffic was bad, so I took a deep breath.”

3. Building Resilience Through Problem-Solving
We are teaching students to work through challenges independently —using questions like, “What strategies have you tried so far?” and “Who could you ask for help if you need it?”

Try this at home:

• Before stepping in to solve a problem, ask: “What do you think you could do?"

4. Gratitude and Positivity Practices
At the end of each day, students participate in simple gratitude reflections. Focusing on small positives helps shift the brain toward optimism and builds emotional strength.

Try this at home:

• Create a family gratitude jar, or go around the table each night saying one thing you’re grateful for.

• Ask: “What was something kind you did or saw today?”

As always, we value the strong partnership we have with our GIPS families. Together, we’re not just teaching curriculum—we’re nurturing humans who can thrive in the world with heart, resilience, and a sense of belonging.

Warmest wishes,

Maddie Witter

Inclusive School Playground Now Open

We are thrilled to announce the grand opening of our brand-new Inclusive School Playground—a space thoughtfully designed to be so much more than just a place to play. This playground is a therapeutic haven created to support the development of our children’s proprioceptive and interoception systems, vital for their sensory health and overall wellbeing.

What makes this playground truly special? Every element—from the balance beams to the digging stations—has been carefully chosen to encourage activities that promote deep sensory input. Here, children will engage in heavy digging and pulling, rhythmic and patterned repetitive movements, and playful social games that naturally enhance their body awareness and internal sensing.

This is a place where balance is more than just standing still—it’s about growing confidence and physical coordination. It’s a place where every child can experience the joy of moving their body in ways that support self-regulation, focus, and emotional resilience.

We warmly invite all students to explore, play, and grow in this nurturing environment over the weekend. Together, we’re creating a community that celebrates diversity, encourages connection, and champions the unique strengths of every child.

In our classrooms

Prep Classrooms

Prep Grandparent's Day

What a truly special day we had celebrating Prep Grandparent’s Day! It was wonderful to see our vision come alive in such a beautiful way—“Growth through belonging, a community where every child thrives.” The joy and warmth shared between grandparents and special carers, students, and staff filled the school with a sense of belonging and connection that perfectly reflects who we are as a community.

Watching our little ones proudly share their stories, laughter, and special moments with their grandparents and carers was a touching reminder of the powerful role family and connection play in every child’s growth and happiness. It was a morning full of smiles, hugs, and memories that will be cherished for years to come.

We want to extend a heartfelt thank you to all the parent volunteers who generously helped prepare and serve the delicious morning tea. Your support truly made the event even more welcoming and enjoyable for everyone involved.

Together, we continue to build a community where every child can thrive—rooted in care, support, and a sense of belonging.

Grade One Classrooms

Grade 1 Excursion to Como House
As part of our Learning from the Past Topic unit, the Grade 1 students visited Como House - a historical house in South Yarra to explore what life was like in the olden days. Students stepped back in time, dressing up in historical clothing, exploring the grand mansion, and participating in fun games from the past! It was a wonderful day and gave the students a hands on opportunity to compare life then and now!

Grade Two Classrooms

Our Year 2 students have been learning all about money through fun, hands-on activities like playing shop, using coins, and practicing giving change. These interactive games are helping them build real-world maths skills in an engaging and practical way!

Grade Three Classrooms

Last week, Glen Iris Primary School was honoured to welcome Uncle Glenn who led a powerful smoking ceremony as part of our Reconciliation Week activities. The ceremony offered students and staff a chance to connect with Aboriginal culture and reflect on the importance of reconciliation.

Uncle Glenn explained the significance of the smoking ceremony, which uses native plants to cleanse and protect, while creating a space of respect and healing. The school community gathered outdoors, watching and learning.

This special event helped deepen everyone’s understanding of Aboriginal culture and reinforced our commitment to respect, unity, and reconciliation. We thank Uncle Glenn for his guidance and for sharing this meaningful experience with us all.

Grade Four Classrooms

Students in Year 4 have been learning about the Zones of Regulation. In 4W, we used an emotion wheel to brainstorm different feelings and discussed which zone each emotion fits into. We created a class display where students can check in with how they’re feeling during the day. Students are able to move their name to the emotion they are experiencing, which helps them recognise and talk about their feelings. This approach is supporting students in understanding their emotions and encouraging self-awareness in the classroom.

What’s Going On in This Photo? Encouraging Critical Thinking in 4th Grade

Fourth-grade students often display a unique blend of curiosity and growing independence. At this stage, they are developing important cognitive abilities, including logical reasoning and critical analysis. As they begin transitioning from concrete to more abstract thinking, it becomes an ideal time to introduce more complex ideas and encourage deeper exploration.

One engaging way to foster these skills is through a weekly activity inspired by The New York Times feature: “What’s Going on in this Picture?” Every Monday, the Times releases an intriguing photo without a caption, prompting students from around the world to analyse it and infer what might be happening. Using only visual clues, students apply their problem-solving and inferencing skills to craft thoughtful responses. On Thursday, the actual context of the photo is revealed.

Each Friday, I bring this activity to life with 4LS. Together, we examine the photo of the week, and students use their critical and creative thinking skills to try to infer what is going on. Below is an example: “What is happening in this photo”

The answer was that the London Zoo, which has more than 14,000 animals, conducted its annual weigh-in, an event that helps keep records on their health and other data up-to-date and measures the animals’ wellbeing. - Deborah McDermott

Grade Five/Six Classrooms

Integrated Studies Eureka- Gold Rush!

Grade 5/6 visited Sovereign Hill as part of our integrated topic, eureka- Gold Rush! We panned for gold, learned about the minorities on the goldfields, explored the recreated mineshaft and tasted the delicious raspberry drops. Definitely a recommendation! We are continuing our Eureka learning back at school writing a formal review of Sovereign Hill.

Spanish Day

Grade 5/6 worked in groups to discover more about a Spanish language country. They confidently presented their posters to the school.

News from the Art Room

Year 2 students were inspired by the colourful paintings of Australian artist Anna Blatman whilst exploring colour theory. Students learnt the difference between warm and cool colours and how they can be used in artwork to convey meaning. Students then painted their own bird in the colour palette of their choice. These colourful artworks are on display in the Art room.

In Performing Arts

In Performing Arts, the students have continued to hone their terrific Drama skills. They’re exploring ways of creating tension in their performances, as well as refining their expressive skills. The students have also been standout audience members – they continue to support and respect their classmates during performances.

In our staffroom

During our staff meeting this week, classroom teachers worked collaboratively to complete writing moderation. This followed a whole-school writing task where students from Prep to Year 6 planned, wrote, and edited a narrative on the topic The Rescue within a timed session. These tasks help build writing stamina and support students in developing their ideas from start to finish. Moderation gives teachers the opportunity to make evidence-based decisions and align their judgements across all year levels. It’s one of the many ways we work together to support strong learning outcomes for all our students. - Meagan CofieldWe

Wellbeing Professional Learning

🌈 Building Emotional Intelligence in Young Minds

At GIPS for the past few weeks we have continued to collaboratively look at and align our approach to wellbeing. At our school, we know that learning isn’t just about reading and maths — it’s also about understanding ourselves and how we feel. That’s where emotional intelligence comes in — the ability to recognise, understand, and manage our emotions, as well as relate to the feelings of others.

Research shows that children who develop strong emotional intelligence skills are better able to manage stress, form healthy relationships, and succeed both academically and socially (Goleman, 1995). One powerful way to support this growth is through naming emotions. When children can say “I feel frustrated” instead of just acting out, they begin to build the vocabulary and self-awareness to regulate their reactions.

We also use the Zones of Regulation — a supportive framework that helps children notice and talk about how they’re feeling. The Zones use four colours to represent different states of alertness and emotion:

• Blue Zone (sad, tired, bored)
• Green Zone (calm, focused, ready to learn)
• Yellow Zone (excited, anxious, silly)
• Red Zone (angry, overwhelmed, out of control)

All zones are okay — they’re part of being human! The goal isn’t to “get back to green,” but to help children recognise which zone they’re in, understand why, and use strategies to regulate themselves in a way that feels safe and helpful. This might mean calming down, asking for help, taking a movement break, or simply naming the emotion out loud.

By giving emotions colour, name, and purpose, the Zones help children feel seen, understood, and more in control of their emotional world.

You can support your child at home by:

• Asking them to name their feelings during different situations.
• Using phrases like “What zone do you think you're in right now?”
• Modelling emotional language yourself: “I’m in the yellow zone — I feel a bit anxious about being late.”

Together, by building emotional intelligence step-by-step, we empower children to thrive — both in school and in life. - Shaye Bradbury

In our community

School Council Update to the Community

Your School Council held our 3rd meeting of the year.

The school is in a sound financial position, thanks to recent deliberate fiscal conservatism and parent payments improving again this year, after a couple of abnormally low years.

The school will invest in renewing our maths resources and will carry some funds into 2026 to start a deliberate program of renewing classroom furniture (in some cases 40 years old!). Relief teaching costs remain high, especially as we enter flu season. We also discussed options for renewing our ageing iPad fleet as this represents a significant cost.

On the revenue side, we discussed potential sponsorships, income from our OSHC partnership (Team Kids), and fundraising. We celebrated the success of the Mothers' Day event raising at least $8,000 for the school - sincere thanks again to Georgie, Charlotte, Carly and Eliza for such a beautiful lunch and amazing raffle. Each year level is responsible for organising one fundraiser, so we have more joyful events to look forward to over the rest of the year. Thanks to the class reps and those who've offered to coordinate your year-level event - fundraising is a community effort at GIPS. The school leaders are also planning an event for November to celebrate GIPS' 160 years... stay tuned!

How you can help:

• Please keep your children home if they are unwell- this helps keep students and teachers healthy through winter - and keeps our relief teaching costs down.

• Make your parent payments via Compass: remember, some contributions may be tax-deductible, so support our school and keep your receipts for tax time.

• Chat to a School Council member if you have ideas, questions or can help with any of the above.

GIPS 2026 Prep Information Evening

We are excited to warmly welcome you to Glen Iris Primary School’s upcoming Information Night on Monday, 10 June. This event is a wonderful opportunity to learn more about our vibrant school community, curriculum, and wellbeing programs.

The evening will begin promptly at 6:30 pm in the Prep Building at Glen Iris Primary School. You are welcome to enter through any of the school gates. To help guide you, look out for the Glen Iris Primary School flags outside the Prep building. We have had many RSVPs, which is wonderful. So, if you can't get street parking on Glen Iris Road, there's a carpark off Glen Iris Road just south of the school.

Our dedicated Prep teachers will be presenting details about our engaging curriculum and supportive wellbeing program. You will also hear from our Head of the Wellbeing Program, who will share insights into how we nurture each student’s growth and happiness.

Additionally, two current Prep parents will join us to offer their firsthand experiences, along with three Grade Six students who will share their perspectives on life at Glen Iris Primary.

We look forward to meeting you and sharing what makes GIPS such a special place for learning and community.

To help us prepare for the event, can you please kindly confirm your RSVP by clicking this link. If you have any access requirements, please kindly contact our front office at 9885 3624.

If you have any questions before the evening, please don’t hesitate to get in touch.

Spanish Day

¡What a wonderful day it was at Glen Iris Primary School as we came together to celebrate our very first Spanish Day! The entire school buzzed with excitement as students from all year levels immersed themselves in the rich and vibrant cultures of the Spanish-speaking world.

Throughout the day, our students explored traditions, music, dance, and cuisine from countries across Spain, Latin America, and beyond. From lively flamenco rhythms to colourful art, every corner of the school was filled with creativity and curiosity. Our young learners enjoyed engaging activities that helped them understand the diversity and beauty of Spanish cultures, discovering how language connects communities worldwide.

The joy of sharing stories and learning simple Spanish phrases created an atmosphere of friendship and global awareness. It was inspiring to see our students embrace new ideas with open hearts and eager minds, fostering respect and appreciation for cultures different from their own.

We are incredibly proud of how Glen Iris Primary has embraced this celebration, marking a meaningful step in our journey toward cultural understanding and inclusivity. Spanish Day was not only fun and educational, but also a wonderful reminder of the power of language and culture to bring people together.

Thank you to all the teachers, families, and students who made this day so special — we can’t wait to celebrate again next year. ¡Hasta luego!

Connected Parenting: Lael Stone Inspires Our Community

Last night, the Glen Iris Primary School community had the privilege of welcoming renowned educator, speaker, and parenting expert Lael Stone for an engaging session on Connected Parenting.

The evening was both inspiring and deeply thought-provoking, offering practical tools and heartfelt reflections for parents navigating the challenges of raising emotionally resilient children.

Lael's message was clear: parenting isn’t just about managing behaviour—it's about connection, understanding, and emotional safety. Drawing on her years of experience in schools, therapeutic settings, and her own parenting journey, Lael shared how connection lies at the heart of raising well-adjusted, confident kids.

🌱 Key Takeaways from the Night

Connection before Correction: Children behave best when they feel seen, heard, and valued. Lael reminded us that behaviour is communication—and behind every meltdown is an unmet need or a big feeling that hasn’t found a way out yet.

Emotions are Welcome Here: Whether it's tears, anger, or frustration, Lael emphasized the importance of allowing space for children’s emotions. “When we hold the space for their feelings, we teach them emotional intelligence,” she said.

Don’t Fix, Just Feel: One of the most powerful parts of the evening was Lael’s reminder that uncomfortable emotions are not problems to be solved. When children feel sad, anxious, or angry, our instinct as parents is often to “make it better” or "try to fix it" quickly. But Lael encouraged us to resist that urge, and instead just be with our children in those feelings. “Sitting with discomfort teaches children that their emotions are safe, and that they are not alone in them,” she explained. "This is a skill that our children need for successful adulthood," she reminded us.

Loving Limits: Boundaries are still vital, but they can be set with empathy. “You can say ‘no’ and still be kind,” Lael explained, encouraging parents to maintain boundaries while still validating their child’s feelings.

Healing Our Own Stories: A powerful theme of the night was how our own childhood experiences shape the way we parent. Lael gently encouraged parents to reflect on their own upbringing and consider how it influences their reactions.

💬 What Parents Said

“It’s rare to attend a talk that’s both practical and emotionally moving.”

“Parenting is hard, and I'm looking forward to trying these strategies at home.”

📚 Want to Learn More? If you’re interested in diving deeper into Lael’s approach, visit www.laelstone.com.au for resources, online programs, and upcoming workshops.

A big thank you to our parents Tyla and Jacqui for helping to organise this special event. We hope everyone left feeling a little more connected—to their children and to themselves.

Sleep – Essential Homework for Learning to Flourish

While homework is often considered important for reinforcing what children learn at school, mounting research shows that quality sleep is even more critical for learning and development—especially in primary-aged children.

A comprehensive meta-analysis published in Neurobiology of Learning and Memory (2021) found that sleep deprivation—both before and after learning—significantly reduces memory retention. This is because sleep plays a vital role in processing and consolidating new information. It’s during rest that the brain strengthens memory, supports emotional regulation, and prepares for the cognitive demands of the following day. Without enough sleep, children may struggle to concentrate, retain knowledge, and manage their emotions—all of which are essential for academic and social success.

How Much Sleep Do Primary School Students Need?

The American Academy of Paediatrics recommends that children aged 6 to 12 years get between 9 and 12 hours of sleep every 24 hours. Here in Australia, the Raising Children Network echoes this advice, recommending 9 to 11 hours per night for school-aged children to support their wellbeing and development.

What the Research Shows

If you find your child isn't quite getting those recommended hours, you’re not alone. Australian data, such as that from the Australian Institute of Family Studies, shows that while most Prep-aged children meet sleep guidelines, sleep duration tends to decrease as children grow older. By adolescence, a significant number of young people are not getting enough rest. This decline can impact focus, mood, and academic performance.

Tips for Promoting Healthy Sleep Habits at Home

Helping your child develop strong sleep habits is one of the most powerful things you can do to support their learning. Here are some tips that may help:

1. Establish a Consistent Bedtime Routine: Going to bed and waking up at the same time each day helps regulate your child’s body clock.
2. Limit Screen Time Before Bed: Blue light from tablets, phones and TVs can interfere with the body’s production of melatonin—a hormone that signals it’s time to sleep. Try switching off screens at least an hour before bedtime.
3. Create a Calm Sleep Environment: A quiet, dark, and cool bedroom can support more restful sleep. Comfortable bedding and reduced noise also make a big difference.
4. Encourage Daily Physical Activity: Active children tend to sleep better. Just make sure any vigorous activity is completed earlier in the evening, rather than right before bed.

If your child consistently struggles with sleep, it may be helpful to speak with your GP. Sleep issues can sometimes be linked to underlying factors like anxiety, stress, or medical conditions. Your GP may suggest further support, including a referral to a paediatrician or sleep specialist.

A Final Thought

Getting enough sleep isn’t a luxury—it’s essential "homework" for the brain. By prioritising healthy sleep habits, families can help children arrive at school ready to learn, engage, and grow. Supporting good sleep now sets the foundation for lifelong learning and emotional wellbeing.

Warm Regards,

Lisa Gough

Free Parenting Webinar: Unplug Childhood

In today's digital age, our children face unprecedented challenges from social media and digital devices. Join Dr Justin Coulson as he explores the urgent need to address these issues head-on. Social media companies have come under scrutiny for their failure to protect children, despite knowing the harm their platforms can cause. Dangerous algorithms push harmful content to vulnerable youth, impacting mental health and well-being. Screens not only disrupt academic performance but also displace crucial real-world experiences essential for healthy development.

While some advocate for legislative measures to restrict social media access for under-16s - a crucial step Dr Coulson fully supports - implementing such laws takes time and faces significant technological and legislative hurdles. Parents cannot afford to wait. The majority of primary school-aged children already have social media accounts and smartphones, often violating existing age restrictions.

In this presentation, Dr Coulson discusses actionable strategies for parents and caregivers to navigate the digital landscape safely and effectively. From setting healthy screen-time limits to fostering open communication about online risks, empowering our children to navigate the digital world responsibly is more critical than ever. Together, we can take proactive steps to safeguard our children's well-being in an increasingly digital world.