Dear Queenscliff Parents and Carers,
Welcome back to Term 2 at Queenscliff Primary School. We hope all our families enjoyed a relaxing and refreshing Easter break surrounded by loved ones. It has been wonderful to see our students return with such enthusiasm, curiosity, and readiness for the rich learning ahead. This term promises a vibrant mix of quality learning experiences in classrooms, exciting camps and excursions, special days and fundraising events. We look forward to building on the strong foundations of Term 1 and working in partnership with families to make Term 2 a rewarding and engaging chapter for every student at our school.
ANZAC Day March and Service
On Saturday 25 April, our School Student Leaders were honoured to join the Queenscliff RSL in the ANZAC Day march and service. They represented Queenscliff Primary School with genuine enthusiasm, pride, and deep respect. Following the march to Fort Queenscliff, our School Leaders, Amelia Miller and Jude Spencer, delivered a thoughtful reading of the poem Sons and Daughters, while our Deputy School Leaders, Eve Le Page and Ella Clifford, laid a beautiful wreath on behalf of our school community. Each of them carried out their role with dignity and honour, embodying the values of leadership and service that we are so proud to foster at QPS.
Year 5/6 Camp
From Monday 27 April to Wednesday 29 April, our Year 5/6 students and staff attended Camp Adekate near Ballarat. Throughout the three days, students embraced a wide range of outdoor activities—including the Leap of Faith, zipline, hut building, initiatives, archery, the ropes course and orienteering. Evenings were filled with trivia challenges and time around the campfire, complete with marshmallows, damper and bush tea. Students worked in teams across the camp, proudly caring for their team mascots and supporting one another along the way.
By the time the buses returned on Wednesday afternoon, everyone arrived home tired but filled with joy, connection and a wonderful sense of achievement. The camp offered valuable opportunities for students to strengthen their resilience, independence and teamwork, while also building new friendships and deepening connections with their teachers.
I would like to extend my sincere gratitude to Mrs Ebony Tannouri, Mrs Hannah Petrie, Mr Leigh Churchill, Miss Mackenzie Woodman, Mrs Kirby Young and Mrs Zoee Marsden for their exceptional organisation, leadership and support throughout the camp. Their dedication ensured our students experienced a memorable and meaningful camp that will stay with them for years to come.
Prep-Year 2 Swimming Program
Over the past two weeks, our Prep to Year 2 students have taken part in the Intensive Swimming Program at the Bellarine Aquatic Centre. Each day, students participated in 30‑minute small‑group lessons designed to build their confidence in the water and strengthen key swimming skills. Throughout the program, students developed water safety awareness, floating and gliding techniques, kicking and arm actions, breath control, and early stroke development. It has been wonderful to see their confidence grow as they became more capable and comfortable in the water.
A heartfelt thank you to our wonderful parent volunteers who supported the program, particularly with supervision and assistance in the changerooms. We are incredibly grateful to Louise Ames, Brooke Burgess, Eliza‑Jane McVitty, Paige Baker, Richard Fewster, Tarryn Pettigrove, Yolanda Wosny, Heidi Boyd and Kiara Atkinson for their time, care and generosity. Their support helped ensure a smooth and positive experience for all students.
Nherrin Boor Woork Strides and Stories Challenge
Our Student Representative Council will be leading the ‘Nherrin Boor Woork Strides and Stories’ Challenge commencing in Week 5. ‘Nherrin Boor Woork’ is Wadawurrung language for ‘Queenscliff’. The challenge involves students selecting to either undertake a reading challenge or exercise challenge (involving running, walking, riding or scootering). Students record points for their efforts on their chosen challenge, and seek sponsorship to fundraise for our school to purchase a bronze bird bath to feature at the front of our school. The SRC have discussed in meetings how they wish to bring more birdlife to our school grounds and provide a more welcoming space at our school entrance. The bird bath will look similar to the photograph below. Further information will be provided to students and families in Week 4.
Lightning Premiership Soccer
This Friday 15 May, a group of our Year 5/6 students will proudly represent Queenscliff Primary School at the Lightning Premiership Soccer competition at Shell Road Reserve in Ocean Grove. We are excited to have two teams competing against schools from across the Bellarine Peninsula. Over the past few weeks, students have been training enthusiastically during lunchtimes with Mr Leigh Churchill and Mrs Bec Durran, building their skills, teamwork and confidence. We wish our Year 5/6 soccer superstars all the very best for Friday. We know they will represent our school with pride, determination and outstanding sportsmanship.
IDAHOBIT Day - Friday 15 May
On Friday 15 May, our school will recognise IDAHOBIT Day—an important day that promotes inclusion, respect and safety for all people, regardless of gender identity or sexual orientation. The official national day is Sunday 17 May this year, however, our school will be recognising the day on Friday 15 May. In a primary school context, IDAHOBIT is not about teaching complex concepts; rather, it is about reinforcing the values we already uphold at Queenscliff Primary School: kindness, respect, belonging and ensuring every child feels safe to be themselves. Throughout the day, students will engage in age‑appropriate activities that focus on friendship, celebrating differences, and standing up for others. Families will receive further information about the day’s events and activities via Compass.
Year 1/2 Melbourne Museum and IMAX Excursion
Next Monday 11 May, our Year 1 and Year 2 classes will be venturing to Melbourne as part of their Integrated Studies unit on ‘Mini-beasts’. Students will visit Melbourne Museum to explore the ‘Bugs Alive’ exhibit where they will learn about beetles, butterflies, spiders, snails, insects and other invertebrates. Also students will visit IMAX to watch ‘Bugs: Might Micro Monsters 3D’ that will take our students on an adventure around the world to Kenyan savannahs to the tropical rainforests of North East Australia to discover and learn more about mini-beats that exist in these habitats.
Term 2 Class Reps Catch Up and Class Fundraising
The Term 2 Class Reps Catch‑Up has been scheduled for Friday 22 May. Parents and carers are encouraged to connect with their child’s Class Representative prior to the meeting if there is anything you would like raised or discussed on behalf of your class community.
Many classes have already begun engaging in thoughtful conversations and planning for their fundraising event or activity for the year. It has been wonderful to see such strong enthusiasm and initiative from our parent community as they work together to support school projects, programs and improvements that enrich the learning and wellbeing of all QPS students. Your involvement truly strengthens our school community and makes a meaningful difference.
Queenscliff Literary Festival
Over the coming weeks, our students will have the opportunity to participate in Author Workshops as part of the Queenscliff Literary Festival.
This is a wonderful opportunity for our students to meet real authors, to further develop their creative skills and inspiration for writing. They will have the opportunity to meet:
Dr. Mark Carthew - Mark is an award winning Australian children’s author, poet, musician and educator whose work celebrates language, humour, and wordplay.
Claire Saxby - Claire writes award-winning fiction, non-fiction and poetry for young people. Her work is published in Australia and internationally. Recent books include Tree and Secrets of the Saltmarsh.
Emilie Zoey Baker - Emilie is an award-winning Australian poet, educator, slam nerd and spoken-word performer. She is also a co-founder of Out Loud, Victoria’s first-ever teen team slam, as part of the Melbourne Writers Festival.
As part of the Literary Festival, Dr. Shona Innes is also hosting a session for parents. Little Moments, Mighty Conversations explores how children communicate through behaviour and emotion, and how adults can safeguard through building shared understanding and boundaries in developmentally appropriate ways.
This session is scheduled for Tuesday 12 May from 7-8pm at Point Lonsdale Primary School, and tickets are just $5. Book your ticket using the link below or visit Home - Queenscliffe Literary Festival.
Little Moments, Mighty Conversations - Dr. Shona Innes Tickets
Maths Olympiad and Explorer Contest
On Tuesday 5 May and Wednesday 6 May, our Maths Explorer and Maths Olympiad students took part in their first contests for the year. Both teams were challenged with complex problems and demonstrated impressive perseverance, creative thinking and strong problem‑solving skills. We are incredibly proud of their efforts and the positive mindset they brought to each task. We look forward to following their growth and achievements as they continue to participate in these enriching numeracy programs throughout the year.
CCTV
Over the Term 1 Easter holiday break, our school had CCTV security cameras installed on the exterior of buildings and in the playground. This measure has been undertaken due to incidents of vandalism that have occurred over holiday breaks and weekends. Parents and carers are encouraged to review our CCTV Privacy Policy to learn more about its purpose, use and storage. CCTV security footage will be monitored regularly by school staff and alerts provided when individuals access the school grounds outside of school hours, weekends and holiday periods. We hope that this measure will reduce the incidence of vandalism that our school has experienced over the past year.
Winter Uniform
As the cooler weather settles in, we’re pleased to share that Noone Uniforms now has a range of winter uniform options available for QPS students, including warmer layers to help keep everyone comfortable throughout the day. We encourage families to visit the Noone store or website to explore the updated range.
As we move into the season of jumpers, jackets and extra layers, we kindly remind parents and carers to clearly label every uniform item with your child’s name. This small step makes a big difference in helping us return misplaced items quickly and reducing the amount of lost property across the school.
Pre-Service Teachers
For the first four weeks of Term 2, we are delighted to welcome Mrs Zoee Marsden and Miss Ronnie Lipshut to Queenscliff Primary School as Pre‑Service Teachers. Zoee will be completing her placement in the Year 5/6C classroom, while Ronnie will be working alongside Ms Teyha Robertson in Year 2. We are pleased to support their development as emerging educators and look forward to the contributions they will make during their time with us. When you are visiting the school grounds, please take a moment to say hello and help us make Zoee and Ronnie feel part of our school community.
Photographing, Filming and Recording Students Policy
A reminder to all families to be mindful of photographing, filming and recording students at school. Parents and carers are only permitted to take photographs, film or recording of their child only. This is particularly relevant for families when attending assemblies and whole school events. If a photograph or film of your child has captured an image of another student, it is not permitted to be posted online or to social media accounts. We kindly ask that all parents and carers respect the privacy of our students and adhere to the Photography, Filming and Recording Students Policy. We thank you for your support.
Prep Enrolment for 2027
Queenscliff Community Market
On Sunday 26 April, the Queenscliff Community Market was hosted at Princess Park. The Queenscliff Community Market is a key fundraiser for our school. Thank you to the DeGoey, Demead, Milne, Gartland, Grainger and Green families who volunteered their time to support the market and stallholders. Thank you to Richard, Lisa and Fred for your outstanding organisation and planning for another successful market.
A special thank you to Sophia and Margot Green, and Charlize Grainger who volunteered their time to assist at our April Market. The girls were extremely helpful in assisting stallholders, picking up rubbish to look after Princes Park whilst looking fabulous in high visibility gear. Well done Sophia, Margot and Charlize! What outstanding community leadership.
Our final Queenscliff Community Market for the 2025/2026 season will be held on Sunday 31st May. We are grateful to the Arrieta, Atkinson, Lloyd, Bridges, Fitzpatrick, Murphy, Pettigrove and Blythe families who will be volunteering to support the operations of the market on this day.
Assembly
Our first assembly for Term 2 will be hosted on Friday 15 May (IDAHOBIT Day). We will have special class showcases from 5/6T, 3/4H, Prep and our Science specialist program. Parents, carers and community members are invited to attend our first celebration for Term 2.
School Council
On Monday 4 May, our School Council met to discuss school operation, finances and strategic priorities. Key priorities that were discussed included:
Fundraising and Volunteers
Winter School Uniform
NAPLAN
Nature Play Space development - proposed for construction to commence in August 2026
School Photos
Queenscliff Market
CCTV Camera Installation
Our next School Council meeting will be held on Monday 1 June 2026. If you have correspondence or feedback you would like to provide to the School Council, parents and carers are invited to email our School Council President, Daniela Sayegh at daniela.sayegh@education.vic.gov.au .
Nyatne baa Gobata
(Thank you and take care)
Mat McRae
Principal
