FPS Newsletter

2025 Term 2 Issue #5

From the Principal

 Dear families & friends, 

What a fantastic afternoon tea last week! Thanks to everyone that attended and supported our efforts to raise funds for the Cancer Council's biggest morning tea fundraiser. Together our small and mighty school raised $1062! Thanks to all our volunteers and contributors for making the day happen. 

Mid-Year Learning Summaries and Conferences

Teachers are currently writing student Learning Summary reports, which will come home to families at the end of week 9. Teachers spend a lot of time analysing student data to ensure parents receive a clear description of their child's learning progress so far this year. I encourage you to take the time to read these with your child and attend conferences with your child's teacher. These will be early in term 3 where teachers and family members can talk with their child about their next steps in learning. 

Learning Expo

This term's Learning Expo will be on Tuesday 1st July from 2.15pm. We will be starting with a sharing of the music program and our Auslan choir, this will be followed by an opportunity for students to share their Inquiry learning about being a 'good' human. Students are in the final stages of designing and creating their final sharing of the learning they have been doing about being human over the last term. We hope to see lots of families join us for Learning Expo! 

End of term events

As we move towards the end of term a reminder to keep an eye on communications coming home about events. In the last week of term we have our Learning Expo, Morialta Day and PJ day! Lots of fun to come!

Cheers Skye ðŸ˜Š

Felixstow Notices

Felixstow Playgroup

Join Karissa and other families at Playgroup each Thursday 9.00am - 10.30am. 

Sensory play and fun at Playgroup :)

KickStart Breakfast Club

Please come along to Breakfast Club and enjoy some warm toast or a treat if it is one of our special breakfast theme days, such as Fairy Bread Friday!

Breakfast Club is open from 8.30am to 8.50amMonday to Friday in the OSHC kitchen. All students and their families are welcome, just drop on by (there is no need to book a place). 

Breakfast may include:

  • Toast and various spreads
  • Fruit
  • Cereal
  • Yoghurt
  • Milk
  • Tea/Coffee (for adults)


It's a great opportunity to have a bite to eat and socialise with other students/families. 

Thank you to Claire and Adelaide for their help. If anyone is interested in volunteering at Breakfast Club, please let Kelly know.

Piano Lessons

If you are interested in your child attending piano lessons at school, please contact the tutor Kat Mustanow, her details are;

Email: kmustanow@gmail.com

Ph: 0422754947

Felixstow Highlights

Cancer Council Big Afternoon Tea

What a wonderful afternoon we all had, enjoying the culinary delights on offer and in the process raising  $1062 for the Cancer Council. Thank you to everyone who attended and contributed. Special thanks goes to Dernancourt Bakehouse and the Governing Council and staff for donating the food. Plus  Julianne , Steve and Monique for helping clean the yard while our groundsman is on leave.

Juniors with Sharni & Sarah

On the 21st May was National Simultaneous Storytime - an annual event in Australia where a picture book is read simultaneously in libraries, schools, and other locations across the country.  This year was its 25th year, and the book was ‘The Truck Cat’ by Deborah Frenkel. The Juniors gathered in the Library with some middle primary friends, to listen to the story.  To enrich our understanding of the book we engaged in an art and craft activity to make Tinka the cat from the book, and wrote about Tinka’s adventures in the truck.

In Math, the Juniors have been exploring the world of shapes around us. Through interactive activities we are learning to identify, sort and describe shapes. We have embarked on some ‘shape hunts’ around the school and have noticed that there are an abundance of 2D and 3D shapes in our environment. From rectangular doors, circular tables, cylindrical poles and logs to the sphere shaped basketballs – Shapes really are everywhere!

Juniors Writer's Workshop

Laura and Leigh's Class (P1)

This week we finished our learning in multiplication and division and moved onto measurement. We placed the piping on the green and using a circle of inquiry asked each person what do you see? What do you know? What questions do you have? We began by describing the piping and the similarities/differences, then the conversation turned to size, length, width, small, big, bigger and biggest. We then decided to have a go organising the piping based on length. Students showed some collaboration and communication skills when ordering the pipe.

Steve's Class (P2) News

P2 has been buzzing with excitement as we dive into a variety of engaging learning experiences! Our focus on information reports has us honing our research and writing skills. A highlight was our visit to the Payneham Library, where we explored how to find information using books, enhancing our understanding of research methods. In STEM, we've embarked on a creative challenge inspired by the classic tale of Goldilocks and the Three Bears. Our task is to design and build a chair that's "just right" for Goldilocks, encouraging us to think like engineers and apply the design process to solve real-world problems. It's been a fantastic journey of discovery and innovation in P2!

PE and Health with Leigh

We are well underway into several Physical Education programs across the school. Our juniors are working on some dribbling games in soccer and basketball over the next few weeks, as well as practising their frisbee skills in our Sporting Schools sessions. Our primary students have assessed a partner's technique in tennis, and are now playing some competitive games. They are also learning and playing ultimate frisbee. In health, safety in school and at home has been a continued focus for the juniors, whereas the primary students have moved on with positive ways to cope with challenging situations.

Resource Pod - Library News

The Premier's Reading Challenge

The Premiers Reading Challenge is a literacy engagement program that was introduced by the Premier in 2004. Its aims to encourage children to read more books, to improve literacy skills and to just enjoy reading. The challenge requires children to read 12 books from the start of the school year until early September. Children who complete the challenge are then awarded a certificate or medal depending on the number of years they have participated. For more information see the attached brochure or go to the Premier’s Reading Challenge website: https://premiersreadingchallenge.sa.edu.au/

PRC at FPS

The Primary class students can begin the Challenge from Day 1. Forms can be downloaded from the above link. If you have a problem accessing the form then paper copies are available from school. The Juniors class will receive their forms in Term 2. The final day of the Challenge is in Term 3, week 7. Record sheets must be handed in to Kelly, Gillian or your child's class teacher no later than this date and can be handed in any time before if the student has completed the Challenge. Awards are given to students who have completed the Challenge (once the school has received them) at a Ban Ba Ban Bayla in Term 4.

Breaktime Activities

The Resource Pod is now open for one breaktime a day, offering students a variety of activities to participate in or just a safe space to relax and read a book. We will be holding some themed sessions in the near future and welcome any suggestions the students may have. 

Borrowing/Returning Books

Students have the opportunity to borrow books from the Resource Pod during scheduled class times and when the Pod is open at break times. All books are on loan for two weeks and the due date can be found on a slip attached to the inside back cover of the book or on a book mark. Please return the books by the due date or before if finished, as other students may be waiting to borrow them. 

Resource Pod Breaktime

National Simultaneous Storytime 2025

The Juniors class and year 3s came to the Library to watch this year's National Simultaneous Storytime showcasing of the Picture book 'The Truck Cat' by Deborah Frenkel. They followed this by creating their own truck cat and bookmarks in class.

National Simultaneous Storytime is held annually by the Australian Library and Information Association (ALIA). Every year a picture book, written and illustrated by an Australian author and illustrator, is read simultaneously in libraries, schools, pre-schools, childcare centres, family homes, bookshops and many other places around the country. Now in its 25th successful year, it is a colourful, vibrant, fun event that aims to promote the value of reading and literacy, using an Australian children's book that explores age-appropriate themes.

This year we were one of 2,204,658 participants to take part in reading The Truck Cat .

The Truck Cat is a story about cats and humans, immigration and identity, and homes lost and found. With illustrations by multi-award-winning artist Danny Snell and words by award-winning new voice Deborah Frenkel, The Truck Cat is the perfect book to inspire kindness and compassion in young children everywhere.

'Some cats are house cats. Some are apartment cats.

But Tinka is a truck cat. Tinka lives everywhere'.

Along with his human, Yacoub, Tinka travels roads wide and narrow, near and distant. But no matter how much they travel, home feels very far away – for both of them.

Yacoub drives his truck to make a living, learning the landscape of a new country along the way, and longing for connection. When Tinka and Yacoub are unexpectedly separated, they are determined to find their way back to each other – and, in doing so, might find more than they expected …

Scholastic Book Club

Students have received Book Club Issue 4, which has a great offer. Every student who orders will receive a $5 promotional credit to spend in issue 5. In addition, every purchase you make on Book Club earns our school 15% off the order value in Scholastic Rewards which we use to purchase more books for the library. 

Student book orders can be placed online at;

https://mybookclubs.scholastic.com.au/Parent/Login.aspx

The closing date for orders is by 3pm Friday 20th June.

Important Dates

Updated: May 2025

    

Term2 Week 

Day & DateEvent
8Friday 20th JuneBan Ba Ban Balya (Juniors Sharni/Sarah's Class)
10Tuesday 1st JulyLearning Expo
10Thursday 3rd JulyMorialta Day (Whole school)
10Friday 4th JulyLast Day of Term (EARLY DISMISSAL at 2.10pm) and Pajama Day

Community Notices

Contact Information

Out of School Hours Care (OSHC)

A reminder that OSHC is available for families for after school care (ASC).

ASC is open 3:10-6:00pm

Bookings are essential.

Hannah Gustard is our OSHC director and can be contacted on

FPS

Felixstow Primary School is truly an extraordinary place of learning. Our talented and dedicated staff provides each student with rigorous care, challenge and support academically, socially and emotionally.

Respect | Responsibility | Compassion