The Grapevine
Term 1, Weeks 8 & 9 Edition
The Newsletter of Glendore Public School
We acknowledge the Traditional Custodians of this land.
We pay our respect to Elders past, present and future.
We recognise the strength, resilience and capacity of the Awabakal People.
We celebrate with and respect members of all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Nations.
Where Everyone Can Succeed
Computer based test pilot for selective high school and opportunity class placement tests
You may have heard that the selective high school and opportunity class placement tests will become computer-based tests in 2025.
The Department of Education is calling for students to participate in a pilot of the computer-based placement tests to help them prepare for this change.
It’s free and open to students in Year 3 to sit the pilot opportunity class placement test and students in Year 5 to sit the pilot selective high school placement test.
The pilot will be held on Saturday 22 June 2024 at test centres in Sydney, Newcastle and Bathurst. Parents of eligible students are invited to submit an expression of interest for their child to participate in the pilot at the University of Newcastle, Callaghan.
Expressions of interest are open between 26 March – 12 April 2024.
This is a good opportunity for students to take a practice test ahead of the computer-based placement tests in 2025.
Computers will be provided at the pilot test venues for all participating students. Students cannot use their own personal computers.
As this is a pilot of the computer-based tests participating will not result in placement in a selective high school or opportunity class.
For more information contact the department’s Selective Education team by email to SEpilotsupport@det.nsw.edu.au
A flyer with additional information can be found below
Easter Celebrations
Thanks to all family members, friends, students and staff for participating in our annual Easter celebrations. We really enjoy being able to share these events with you all.
Our P&C raffle was well supported, and we thank our community for kindly donating eggs and gifts to assist the fundraising efforts. Thank you to our P&C members for coordinating this in support of our school.
Congratulations to our students for their wonderful creativity with Easter hats, worn proudly during the parade today. Thanks also to our families for donations of craft items shared among our students so that everyone could participate.
A big thanks to Ms McDowell and Mrs Walsh for coordinating today’s events and thanks to all staff for their support.
To our students, we wish you a safe and healthy long weekend. Happy Easter everyone!
Annette Van Egmond
(Principal)
3A Madeleine, Dontae, Jenson, Lillian
3BD Lexi, Hudson, Mason, Alex
3C Tahlia, Samuel, Arcadia, Eliza
3N Zoey, Annabelle, Boaz, Jake
4C Cassandra, Mason, Jaden, Paige
4E Dakota, Edie, Harrison, Wyatt
4W Mia, Oliver, Hudson, Tatiana
5D Samuel, Lucas, Manaahil, Luca
5KG Liam, Kllab, Kayleigh, Hannah
5L Brayden, Nicholas, Madison, Amy
6B Lachlan, Sienna, Damon, Abby
6L Lily, Alex, Zara, Miller
6TB Phoenix, Tyce, Georgia, Kaylee
6Q Jack, Charlie, Henry, Kaleb
Moving to High School
It is an exciting time for our Year 6 students and families. Enrolment for students attending a NSW Government High School opened, Wednesday, March 6, 2024.
Information can be found here:
Moving to high school (nsw.gov.au)
Alternatively, the link is also available on our School Website in the Enrolment section, under Moving to High School.
We strongly recommend enrolling online or you will be required to go to the High School in person to complete the paperwork. Please contact Jo in the Office if you require any additional information.
ASPIRE and CAPA Classes
Callaghan College was established to provide new horizons and new opportunities for our students. In this spirit, Callaghan College Wallsend Campus (CCWC) aims to build upon its programs for talented students by offering enrolment in a High Potential and Gifted Education class (Aspire Program) and Creative and Performing Arts Enrichment Program (CAPA Program).
Please click on the links below for application information and dates.
Aspire Program
High Potential and Gifted Education - Applications open now. Applications close 27th May
CAPA Program
Creative and Performing Arts - Applications open now. Applications close 27th May
KB – Celebrating Learning at Glendore PS
KB have had an enjoyable start to Kindergarten for 2024. We are enjoying learning our new sounds and making new words with them. We are counting and making groups of numbers and even doing really hard things like take away! One of our favourite things to do in the classroom is to go on a sound hunt – Oh and of course there’s always the Lego box that we’ve used to make patterns with in maths. Sometimes we pretend that we are Mr Booth and run the reading station ourselves! We hope everyone has a really great weekend break over Easter.
3A - Celebrating Learning at Glendore PS
In Science 3A have been investigating how and why natural processes and human actions change the Earth’s surface over time. To support learning in science, we are reading an amazing book called Old Blue about how humanmade elements change the natural world. As well as learning new things in Stage 2 the class have settled into routine and made connections with their peers. We celebrated Harmony Week in Week 8 and discovered we have 10 students who fluently speak another language.
Glendore Public School celebrated Harmony Week all of last week. Every day, some of our students from all over the world made whole school announcements about their lives in their first country and in Australia. On Friday we celebrated in out-of-uniform clothes. Some wore orange and some even wore traditional dress from their countries of origin!
Anzac Service
Glendore Public School will be holding our school ANZAC service on Wednesday 10th of April (Week 11) at 10am. We welcome parents and carers to attend the service. Students are invited to bring a flower, that may be labelled with the name of a family member who has served for our country. They will be given time with their class during the day to lay these beneath the Lone Pine. Visitors are welcome to lay a flower at the Lone Pine as they enter the school for our service.
60 GPS Students have enrolled for Children’s University 2024.
Passport/enrolment packs will be distributed at the end of Term 1. The pack will include a brochure for parents and carers explaining a bit about the program and answering our most frequently asked questions.
Students can start collecting hours now. If students already have a passport, they can continue to fill it out. If students are new and waiting on a passport, they can use these blank pages or a plain sheet of paper and stick or copy into their passport when it arrives.
For those parents who are on Facebook, Mrs Queenan suggests following Children's University Australasia (Newcastle). The site provides links to learning destinations in the Newcastle area and activities that can be completed.
Congratulations to our newest student leaders – The 2024 Library Monitors.
Hannah, Erica, Khloe, Alexis, Sophie, Alana, Amna, Kenzie, Olivia and Rohina.
On Wednesday the 27th of March. Students of Glendore Public School laced up their running shoes for the annual cross-country carnival. It was fantastic to see so many smiling faces as students got to running the new running track for this year which incorporated the new oval. Information about students selected to represent Glendore Public School at the Zone carnival will be notified shortly. Well done runners!
Kindergarten to Year 2 Assembly
Week 10, Tuesday 2nd April at 11.30am.
Group item from 2H
Congratulations to all the students who participated at the Hunter PSSA Swimming Carnival. Everyone showcased remarkable skills and dedication to their individual and team events, resulting in an impressive performance across various swimming events.
A special congratulations to Blake who was lucky enough to progress to the PSSA Swimming Championships, which will take place at Sydney Olympic Park.
Zone Basketball Trials
Harper and Ava were successful at the Zone Netball Trials. They have been selected to be part of the Zone Crossroads Netball team which will compete at the Hunter PSSA Trial in May.
Western Suburbs Junior Cricket Club
On Saturday 23rd March the Western Suburbs Junior Cricket Club won the Master Blaster Grand Final. The team is coached by our new bilingual SLSO, Safi. Ameer and Maseer gave amazing performances in the match, both taking several wickets. Safi’s son, Mujtuba from Jesmond Public School also starred in the team’s winning final. Shabeer, Hashmat and Mr Masoom Khil all helped with practice and encouraging the boys throughout the game. Maseer won man-of-the-match.
Thank you GPS community for supporting our 2nd Hand Uniform Sale!!
All funds raised go directly back to our school.
If you have any old school uniforms you would like to donate, please leave them at the office.
Hunter Drama School Holiday Playground
Ever wondered if drama was for you? Why not try Hunter Drama's Musical in a Day or Play in a Day these April school holidays?
Learn from all-time favourite musicals and plays including Shrek, Seussical, Wild West, Time Travellers and Beauty & the Beast.
At just $60 per workshop spots will fill fast. Book now at https://hunterdrama.com.au/school-holidays/
Glendore Public School provides excellent educational programs for nearly 630 students in the western foothills of Newcastle, catering for its rapidly increasing in-zone population having grown by 175 since 2016. The school has close links with Callaghan College Wallsend Campus, the Callaghan Educational Pathways and the Callaghan-West Pre-Sch Links Network. Glendore Public School's staff are passionate about supporting student achievement and wellbeing. They are fully Explicit Instruction and Choice Theory trained and have access to an array of technology to support Futures learning. K-2 staff are L3 and TEN trained. Year 3-6 staff utilise additive and mutiplicative strategies; and MBB4N and TOWN strategies in their teaching practices. Glendore’s staff have an explicit focus on Assessment for Learning over 2020-2021. The school conducts several programs to promote excellence and creativity through opportunities to participate in enrichment and extension programs, including: Aboriginal Dance, Choir, Coding, Junior/Senior Dance, Drama and Musical Theatre Groups, lunchtime interest groups, PlayHub, PSSA, Robotics, Solar and Wind Challenges, STEM and a School Parliament. Glendore Public School celebrates and acknowledges student successes, and values supportive, cooperative and communicative relationships with its learning community. The school has a large Aboriginal student community (90+) and strong links with the Muloobinbah Local Aboriginal Education Consultative Group. Glendore Public School staff work in partnership with a diverse school community, explicitly partnering with healthcare providers, NDIS, NGO’s, LAECG and Storylines to co–design learning, to plan for success and to enable students to exceed State Priorities.