In our classrooms

If you've happened to walk past the performing arts room after school recently, you may have heard music, laughter and perhaps even a few groans! Staff have officially begun rehearsing for this year's staff dance, and it's fair to say there have been plenty of mistakes, missed steps and moments where we've all ended up in fits of laughter.

While we hope our performance will bring plenty of smiles, the rehearsals themselves have been a wonderful reminder of what learning really looks like. None of us began knowing the routine. We've had to concentrate, practise, make mistakes, encourage one another and try again. We know that each rehearsal is a little easier than the last because we're willing to step outside our comfort zone together.

At GIPS, we often talk with students about finding their "just right challenge", tasks that stretch us enough to help us grow without feeling impossible. Learning a dance has certainly been that for many of us! (Sorry Miss Jansen for going the wrong way yesterday in the grapevine!) It has reminded us that growth rarely happens without a little discomfort, and that mistakes are an important part of learning something new.

It has also highlighted the power of belonging. It is much easier to have a go, laugh at yourself and keep trying when you know you are surrounded by people who will support and encourage you. That sense of belonging gives us the confidence to persevere, celebrate progress and enjoy the journey together.

As a school community, we want our students to see that resilience isn't about getting things right the first time. It is about having the courage to try, learning from mistakes, and continuing even when something feels challenging. Whether we are learning to read, solving a maths problem, making a new friend or mastering a dance routine, the same message applies: growth comes from doing hard things together.

We can't wait to share the finished performance with you. Until then, we'll keep practising, laughing and reminding ourselves that every missed step is simply another step towards learning. Thanks to Miss Chapman for choreographing our routine! It'll be a fun one.

Maddie Witter
Principal

In prep

Celebrating 100 Days of Prep!

Yesterday we celebrated 100 Days of Prep, marking 100 wonderful days of learning, growing and having fun together!

Our classroom was filled with excitement as everyone dressed up as if they were 100 years old. It was fantastic to see the creative costumes and the children enjoyed showing off their walking sticks and grey hair!

Throughout the day, we completed a range of fun activities centred around the number 100. We:

• Counted collections using groups of 10 to make 100.
• Completed 100 exercises to keep our bodies active.
• Wrote 100 words together.
• Built towers using 100 blocks

It was a wonderful day celebrating how much we have learned in our first 100 days of school. We are so proud of all the progress the children have made and look forward to many more exciting learning adventures together.

What You Can Do at Home

Keep the learning going by encouraging your child to count objects in groups of 10, practise counting to 100, or build and create using 100 everyday items.

In grade one

This week in Grade 1, we have been learning about homophones, words that sound the same but have different meanings and spelling. Students enjoyed creating their own little homophone books to explore these tricky words and then practised using them by completing and making sentences. It has been wonderful to see their growing confidence in choosing the correct homophone to match the meaning of their writing.

How you can help at home: Encourage your child to spot homophones while reading together or play simple word games by saying a word and asking them to think or write down its homophone (e.g. see/sea, there/their, one/won). While chatting at home, say a homophone in a sentence and ask them to tell you its meaning, for example, “The house down the street is for sale.” This is a great way to reinforce their learning and support their writing development.

In grade two

This week in Maths, our Grade 2 students have been exploring division by learning how to halve collections and share objects into 2 equal groups. Through hands on activities and problem solving tasks, students made their own discoveries and worked on connecting these sharing situations to division facts. It has been terrific to see students building their confidence as they explain their thinking, use mathematical language and recognise the connection between sharing equally and division.

Parents can support this learning at home by encouraging their child to practise halving everyday collections. Try sharing grapes, biscuits, toys or coins into 2 equal groups and ask questions such as "How many are in each group?" and "What division fact matches your sharing?" These simple, real-life opportunities help strengthen children's understanding of division and equal sharing.

In grade three

Our integrated topic for term 3 is, My Story, Your Story, Our Story. We have been exploring Australia’s migrant history and learning about the different reasons people move to Australia. To support this, we have been making posters about Australia’s six states and two territories. It’s been wonderful getting to know more about our own backyard. Some students are eagerly planning some extra stops on their next holiday!

At home, you might like to discuss with your child some of the things they have learnt about their chosen state or territory. They can tell you about:

• Some tourist attractions they might like to visit,
• The names of key mountains, lakes or rivers,
• The traditional indigenous place names for different towns and cities.

In grade four

Year 4 have been putting their research skills to the test for an upcoming biography on a First Nations person. During class time we have been understanding the factual and structural flow of a Biography, also referring to timelines, key dates, and specific subheadings.

Also, this week we had a visit from the Melbourne Demons. Some players came in to do a Q and A with the students. We were impressed by our kids' ability to think of specific questions to ask about how they manage their lifestyle and challenges in the industry. It was also interesting to learn about Marn Grook, from the language of the Gunditjmara people, translating to ‘game ball’. Historically, Marngrook is played between two teams – 50-100 men and women per side – and a possum skin ball.

How you can help at home:

• As part of our Decimal Fractions unit over the past couple of weeks, we learnt a memory game to help us connect decimals with hundredths to their matching fraction. This is something easy and quick you could create and play at home.
• Research is a tricky skill! It's important for our Year 4s to understand how to find relevant information and check multiple sources. If you ever complete any research at home, it's a good idea to practise key search questions and online safety.

In grade six

Grade 6 have been leaning into writing narratives beginning with a focus on character descriptions. We designed and wrote a police suspect report about a villain we created. We are aiming to improve the use of literacy devices such as similes, metaphors, idioms, personification and others when we begin narrative writing after camp. We have also been looking at the ways in which narratives start and how we can draw the reader in through our story opening.

You can support student learning at home by asking them to identify "super sentences" from their reading which use literacy devices to describe characters.

Also, Cultural Connections SALT team are working their way around the school teaching a lesson to each class on the importance of identify. Students are designing their own family shield which represents culture, heritage and lifestyle.

In Spanish Class

Year 5/6 students are continuing to build their Spanish vocabulary while developing their literacy skills through reading a class novel. As they read, they are strengthening their comprehension, recognising familiar language, and growing their confidence in using Spanish.

In PE

Our annual Years 3–6 House Athletics Carnival will be held on Friday 14 August at Bill Sewart Athletics Track. In the lead-up to the carnival, students across all year levels have been developing and refining their athletics skills, including sprinting, middle-distance running, relays, long jump, triple jump, shot put and discus. It has been fantastic to see students building their confidence, improving their techniques and showing great sportsmanship during lessons.

We are also seeking parent volunteers to help make the day a success. If you are available to assist, please complete the questions attached to the Compass alert sent home earlier this week. Your support is greatly appreciated and helps ensure the carnival runs smoothly for all students.

As we prepare to begin our kicking unit in P.E., we'd also like to remind families about the after-school AFL Clinic, running on Fridays for four weeks, commencing 11 August. The clinic is open to students of all ages and is a great opportunity to further develop kicking skills in a fun and engaging environment. If you would like to register, please contact Tayla or scan one of the QR codes displayed on posters around the school.

In the art room

Year 5/6 students have studied the artwork of Australian artist Mirka Mora, to honour her amazing career as a visual artist (1928-2018). The students designed their own imaginative soft sculpture inspired by Mora’s works. They painted the fabric with a focus on creating the distinctive “Mora eyes” and finally sewed the pieces together with the challenge of shaping their work to their unique design. This has constituted a large area of art study with many skills and techniques developed to complete the project. The results are very beautiful and are on display outside the Art room.

In other Art news the Visual Art SALT students have been working hard behind the scenes preparing items for the upcoming school production. Exciting times at GIPS!

In Performing Arts

Our Grade 1 and 2 students have continued exploring special places through Drama. They have used tableaux to show what they look like, and created soundscapes to share what they sound like.

In Grades 3 and 4, students have been carefully considering how they treat duration, tone colour and pitch to express their thoughts, feelings and ideas using music.

Lastly, the Grade 5 and 6 students have been practicing and performing chords using ukulele, glockenspiel and piano/keyboard. They have used the major chords C, F and G to rehearse a 12-Bar Blues.

In our staffroom

Building Great Learning Together

One of the wonderful things about being a teacher is that learning never stops. Just as we encourage our students to strive for growth every day, our staff are continually refining their practice to ensure every child receives the highest quality teaching possible.

This term, our teaching team and leadership team have been working with educational consultant Bronwyn Ryrie Jones, further developing our understanding of Checking for Understanding and Opportunities to Respond, two evidence-informed teaching practices that have a significant impact on student learning. This week our teachers focussed in on checking for understanding whilst our leadership team spent a whole day with Brownyn learning about opportunities to respond.

Checking for understanding involves teachers continually gathering information throughout a lesson to determine whether every student has understood the learning before moving on. Rather than waiting until the end of a lesson or a test, teachers use carefully planned questions and quick checks to identify misconceptions, provide immediate feedback and adjust their teaching in the moment. We have been focussing on these quick cycle checks for understanding through the use of white boards.

Opportunities to respond ensures that every student is actively thinking, participating and engaging throughout a lesson. Research tells us that the more opportunities students have to respond, explain their thinking and practise new learning, the stronger their understanding and confidence become. You'll often see students responding together, using gestures, discussing ideas with a partner, using mini whiteboards, or explaining their reasoning as part of everyday learning.

These approaches align strongly with our commitment to explicit teaching and our school vision of Growth through belonging, a community where every child thrives. They help create classrooms where every student is an active learner, every voice is valued, and teachers have a clear understanding of how each child is progressing.

We are grateful for the opportunity to continue learning alongside Bronwyn Ryrie Jones and look forward to embedding these practices even further across GIPS. By continually strengthening our teaching, we are ensuring the very best learning outcomes for every student.

Maddie Witter

Principal

Supporting safe online cyber safety

As our students become increasingly connected through technology, many are participating in online group chats to communicate with friends whilst at home. While these can be a positive way to stay connected, they can also present challenges for young people who are still developing the skills to navigate online relationships.

Group chats can quickly become overwhelming, particularly when large numbers of children are involved. Messages can be misunderstood, inappropriate comments can escalate rapidly, and students may feel pressured to join in, respond or remain in conversations that make them uncomfortable. It is also important to remember that anything shared online can be copied, screenshot or forwarded, often without the sender's knowledge or permission.

As a GIPS staff team, we regularly communicate about child safety, and we discuss ways we can continue to explicitly teach students how to safely use the internet at home.

We encourage all families to have regular conversations with their children about using technology safely and respectfully. Some helpful reminders include:

• Be kind and respectful in all online communication.
• Think before sending a message, photo or video.
• If a conversation becomes unkind or inappropriate, leave the group and tell a trusted adult.
• Never share personal information, passwords or images that you would not be comfortable with others seeing.
• Remember that digital actions can have real-life consequences and can impact friendships and wellbeing.

As parents and carers, you may wish to:

• Know which apps and group chats your child is using.
• Discuss expectations for respectful online behaviour.
• Regularly check in with your child about their online experiences.
• Set appropriate boundaries around device and social media use.

By working together, we can help our students become responsible, respectful and safe digital citizens.

Debbie McDermott
Assistant Principal

In our community

Glen Iris Road Safety

Dear Parents and Carers,

As you may be aware, our students have spent the first part of this year participating in sessions at GIPS focused on road safety and how to stay safe in and around traffic.

Supporting children to make good decisions is an important part of keeping them safe. Equally, it is essential that we, as a school community, model safe and responsible behaviour when driving near the school.

We have observed that a number of parents and carers are performing U-turns on Glen Iris Road during drop-off and pick-up times. While this may be legally permitted, it presents a significant safety risk. Glen Iris Road is a busy area, with many primary and kindergarten-aged children present. Even with the greatest care, children can act unpredictably, and sudden movements near traffic can have serious consequences.

We ask that you avoid performing U-turns on Glen Iris Road and instead allow a little extra time in your morning or afternoon routine to ensure the safety of all members of our community.

Thank you for your cooperation and ongoing support in keeping our students safe.

Kind regards,
Gareth Darlow
On behalf of the School Council

Melbourne Demons visit GIPS: Learning Through Culture and Connection

This week, we were delighted to welcome representatives from the Melbourne Football Club to GIPS to share the rich history and significance of Marngrook, the traditional Aboriginal game that is widely recognised as one of the influences on Australian Rules Football.

Students learned that Marngrook was much more than a game. It was a way of bringing communities together, building relationships, developing skill and celebrating culture. Through storytelling and interactive activities, our students explored the importance of recognising and respecting the world's oldest continuing culture and gained a deeper appreciation of the history that has shaped the game so many Australians love today.

The visit provided a wonderful opportunity to connect our learning to the Victorian Curriculum, deepening students' understanding of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander histories and cultures while celebrating the values of teamwork, respect and inclusion.

A sincere thank you to the Melbourne Football Club for sharing their knowledge, enthusiasm and passion with our students. Experiences like these enrich learning, inspire curiosity and help our students develop a greater understanding of Australia's rich cultural heritage.

School gates closed over weekends- a message from School Council

Dear Parents, Carers and Members of our School Community,

A month ago, the School Council made the decision to begin locking the gates at GIPS over the weekends. We communicated the decision without fully explaining our reasons, and are aware of the distress that our actions have caused some families. Apologies.

Over recent months, we have experienced repeated incidents of vandalism on our school grounds over weekends. Unfortunately, this has resulted in broken glass being left around and damage to the playground surface, making the area unsafe for our students.

The cost of continually repairing this damage is not something the school can sustain. We have worked with local police, a security company and neighbouring residents to try to address the issue, but these interventions have not been successful. We see ourselves as a community school and have genuinely loved our playground being in use during non-school hours. However, all our neighbouring schools tell us that they lock their gates in order to dissuade vandals.

After careful consideration, last month the School Council decided that the school gates would be locked each weekend until the end of this year. Since we began trialling this approach, there have been no further incidents of vandalism on the school grounds.

We are disappointed to be taking these measures but we believe they’re necessary to ensure that our students can safely enjoy their playground during school hours without the risk of injury from broken glass, damaged equipment, or damage to the oval.

What this means

• Most of the school gates will be locked at approximately 4.00 pm each Friday.
• The TeamKids gates (on Gladstone Street near the kindergarten and the main gate on Glen Iris Road) will remain open until 6.30 pm, allowing families to continue using the oval until that time.
• If you are on the school grounds after 4.00 pm, please leave via one of the TeamKids gates before they are locked at 6.30 pm. Please note that TeamKids will not be able to do a sweep of school grounds at the time to ensure no one is on the school’s property.
• Clear signage will be placed on the gates to help guide visitors.

The gates will remain locked over the weekend and will be reopened before school begins on Monday morning.

We appreciate that this change may be disappointing for some members of our community. However, we believe it is the most effective way to protect our facilities and, most importantly, ensure that our children have a safe, clean playground to enjoy each school day.

Thank you for your understanding and ongoing support.

Gareth Darlow
Glen Iris Primary School Council President
On behalf of the School Council

2027 Planning

Dear families,

As part of future planning and our census, the Department of Education is requesting schools to provide information regarding enrolments for 2027.

If your circumstance has changed and you know that your child or children will not be attending next year, could you please email or contact the office to notify us prior to 4.00pm Tuesday 4th August 2026.

Youth Myki Design Competition 2026

To all the budding artists and designers out there, here are the details for entering the Youth MYKI Design 2026 competition. Please find the details, template and ways to enter on the website below, get drawing quick because it closes on August 2, 2026!

https://engage.vic.gov.au/yout...

Good luck!

Cyber safety workshop for parents

Dear families,

If you’re feeling burned out from the constant "put the iPad away" arguments, this one is for you. We’ll share stress-free strategies to manage screen time, reduce conflict, and find a healthy balance between online and offline life.

When: August 3, 2026 @ 7:30pm AEST

Can’t attend live? Register to receive the recording and resources to watch at a time that suits you.

👉 Register here: see link school provided in Compass newsfeed

(do not share this link as each family has been paid for by the school)

Jelly cups and icy poles

The student voice and agency team have worked hard last semester on our canteen based on student feedback. Starting this Friday for this semester we will be selling the following on Fridays:

• Jelly Cups $2
• Icy Poles $1

The canteen only accepts coins. We understand there is a price increase of the icy poles. Rumour has it that prices haven’t increased in the past 16 years, so the student team after crunching numbers felt it was time.