1. education
2. school

TH
16
December 2014
FROM THE PRINCIPAL
FINAL ASSEMBLY THURSDAY AT 1.45PM
The final assembly for the year will be held this coming
Thursday at 1.45pm in the stadium. The purpose of the
assembly is to farewell the Year 6 students and staff
members who are moving on in 2015. We encourage
parents to join us for this celebration which will include Year
6 performance items. Bring a hanky – it is always a mixture
of happy memories and sad goodbyes.
FRIDAY DISMISSAL 1.30pm
School will dismiss for the year on Friday at 1.30pm and
the children will then eat lunch at home. The only food
required for the day will be a snack to have a recess.
GRADUATION CEREMONY
On Thursday evening the Year 6 students will experience
their formal graduation ceremony at Karalyka Theatre in
Ringwood. The evening will include addresses by the
School Captains, Principal, School Council President and
Class Teachers as well as student performances and the
presentation of graduation certificates.
I would like to thank the Year 6 children for their
exceptionally positive contribution to Serpell over the past
seven years and particularly for their leadership in 2014.
They have been hard working, caring, thoughtful and
innovative heads of the school who have enriched our
school life and culture. In particular, I wish to thank the
school captains, Kayla Koumadias, Lily Matousis, Philip
Alex and Alexander Kyriakopoulos who have represented
our school in a wide variety of contexts and led assemblies
so professionally!
To the Year 6 students and their
wonderful families, we wish you adventures and success in
your futures and please know that you are always welcome
here to share your stories and memories.
AUSTRALIAN MATHEMATICS COMPETITION
Congratulations to the following top award winners in the
2014 Australian Mathematics Competition.
Year 3
High Distinction
Reiner Sin Hong Ng
Marven Wijesiriwardena
Distinction
Patrick Zhou
Jessica Soo
Ming Hou Zhou
Alyssa Wong
Kristian Pinto
William Morrison
Ayan Mohammad
Akshita Gupta
Sairan Sukumar
Aria Yazdi
Year 4
Prudence Award
Winston Leonard
High Distinction
Aaron Do
Alexandra Zhang
Distinction
Jack Gittins
Ryan Storey
Gabriel Loh
Tyler Ike
Sophie May
Anthony Joy
Anna Chan
Kai Sapolu
Chloe Tran
Year 5
Prudence Award
James Lam
High Distinction
Ethan Jayamanna
Le-Ann Lim
Distinction
Dylan Cantone
Hui Jenn Thoo
Darren Choi
Angela Rong
Ryan Ong
Joe Lam
Shani Zou
Chloe Chaung
Michael David
Siqi Tan
Aiden Dan
Eloise Thompson
Liyara Weerasinghe
Nusaybah Syed
Eugene Goh
Charles Kuang
Annie Liu
Rachel Lin
Jordan Divitcos
Claire Picone
Gianluca Fazio
Jessica Tran
Jessica Dam
Aidan Chan
Angus Chung
Kristian Colangelo
Lucy Wang
Ashwini Somasundram
Ryan Lee
Elisha Cox
Daniel Mifsud
Max Luo
Darius Winata
Ana Helena Pereira
Gino Xu
Year 6
High Distinction
Gordon Li
Distinction
Lloyd Lok
John Chan
Justine Lee
Clarissa Ong
Grace Lu
Joel Henry
Michael Batt
Ingrid Winata
Vivian Lu
Philip Alex
Helena Bassett
Nathan Miao
TAKING LEAVE
Year 1 teacher Vicky Petsinis will take long service leave
next year. We wish her a relaxing time to share with her
family and to spend on her interests.
STARTING ARRANGEMENTS FOR 2015
The school will be open on Wednesday 28th of January
between 8am and 5pm for the payment of fees, the
collection of books and the sale of uniforms. School will
th
recommence on Thursday 29 January 2015 at 9am for
Year 1 to 6 and the students are to go straight to their new
classes, where their teachers will be waiting to welcome
them. They need to bring their books, labelled with their
names and classes.
HAPPY HOLIDAY!
I wish everyone a very happy holiday break and a great
start to the 2015 year. Thank you to the Serpell staff for
their amazing dedicated and skilled teaching throughout the
year, which has made a vast difference to student learning.
They certainly deserve a restful break! Thank you also to
the School Council, PA and parent support groups who
have contributed so much to our school throughout 2014. I
would particularly like to acknowledge the School Council
President, Hellene Nicolaides, who has been such a very
professional and supportive partner in our school
leadership and PA President Natalie Lauder, who has led
the group so happily and energetically. Special thanks go
to the children, who are so generous in spirit, aspiring for
the future, willing to help others and bring joy to us all every
single day. We will probably see you at the beach, the
airport or in some remote location around the globe – enjoy
and we will see you in January!
WILMA CULTON
FROM THE ASSISTANT PRINCIPAL
Walk and enjoy the school holidays!
Thank you to all of our
community for the support you
have given to the Walk to
School program this year.
We had a fantastic ‘Walk Safely
in Summer’ walk to school last
Thursday with 820 students
walking from a Checkpoint to
school! Yellow balloons donated by the Commonwealth
Bank brightened up the checkpoints and emphasised the
safety of each point.
We had fantastic support for our walk from the
Manningham Neighbourhood Watch team. Nine volunteers
walked to a checkpoint and then walked to the school with
a group of students and parents. We are really grateful for
their support.
Fabulous prizes were
donated by Manningham
Council, The Bank of
Melbourne
and
Officeworks Nunawading.
The students on the
Values Committee drew
the raffle and gave out the
prizes to excited students
at lunch time last Friday.
For our dedicated ‘Black Checkpoint Challenge’ walkers,
our last walk for 2014 will be this Thursday. Make sure you
join us for the fun on our final walk. ..But…we will be back
walking from Black in 2015!
Sue Young.
Sue YOUNG
CANTEEN
The canteen will be closed on the last day of school,
Friday 19th December.
The canteen will re-open on the first day of school in 2015,
Thursday 29th January.
FROM THE SCHOOL COUNCIL PRESIDENT
As we come to the end of another successful year at
Serpell PS I congratulate and thank the staff and parents
for the contribution they have made to ensure the students
achieve wonderful academic results. The school council
has been actively involved in reviewing the school policies,
maintaining the school facilities, reviewing the strategic
plan and negotiating the separation of the joint schools
agreement for the CCM building in addition to other things.
The opinion survey results from parents, students and staff
have been very favourable and these results provide the
source of information to assist the leadership team and
school council to look at further improvements.
NAPLAN and other external test results have been
outstanding, confirming Serpell’s strong level of academic
achievement. We have continued our partnerships with our
sister schools in China, and New Zealand and we will
continue to conduct academic student exchanges, joint
research projects, and ICT communication.
Congratulations to the Parent’s Association President
Natalie Lauder, and the committee for not only their
wonderful fundraising efforts but for the opportunities they
have created for Serpell families to become involved and
contribute in their children’s education. The P.A has held
many events throughout the year including the Mother’s
Day stall, Father’s Day breakfast, school disco’s and
numerous walk to school days, which have eased the traffic
flow during the building of the BUPA centre.
I would like to thank our Principal, Wilma Culton, Assistant
Principals, Sue Young, Rhys Coulson, Dan Smith and all
the teachers for their dedication to offering the best
educational programs to our children. Serpell teachers are
among the nation’s best and I congratulate them for their
efforts in nurturing and assisting our children develop into
independent learners, global citizens and fabulous sports
people. Their tireless efforts have ensured that Serpell
maintains its excellence.
I am fortunate to have qualified and experienced councillors
and I thank them for their dedication and commitment
throughout 2014. Councillor, and Assistant Principal Dan
Smith will be retiring from his role this week, and we thank
him for the remarkable contribution he has made in the last
three years. We wish him all the best on his new journey in
NSW. The administration staff work hard to ensure the
school’s daily operation runs smoothly and I thank them for
their efficiency.
We farewell the Year 6 students on Thursday. I
congratulate them on their graduation and wish them all the
very best on their adventure through Secondary School and
beyond. These students have made an outstanding
contribution to Serpell and they will be missed. On behalf of
the School Council I wish the Serpell community a
wonderful Christmas and may 2015 bring happiness to you
all.
Best Wishes
Hellene Nicolaides - School Council President
DIARY
Wed 17
Thu 18
Thu 18
Fri 19
Wed 28
Dec
Dec
Dec
Dec
Jan
Thu 29
th
Thu 5
Jan
Feb
Class Parties – 11:30 to 1:30
Year 6 Assembly – 1:45pm to 2:30pm
Year 6 Graduation 7pm
Last Day of Term – 1.30pm Finish
2015 Booksales & Uniform Shop
8am – 5pm
First Day of 2015 – Year 1 to 6
First Day of 2015 – Foundation (Prep)
PARENT’S ASSOCIATION
THANK YOU
Thank you to all families that have contributed to the PA
raising almost $35,000 for the school this year. Apple TV’s
were put into each classroom and other new computer
equipment was purchased. What a fantastic effort.
Thank you also to everyone that helped at our various
events. Running events can sometimes take a lot of
organisation and we sincerely appreciate any help that is
provided.
A very special thank you to the core PA team who have
worked hard and been a brilliant support all year.
On behalf of the PA, Merry Christmas to everyone and we
hope you have a wonderful holiday period. We look
forward to working with you in 2015.
Natalie Lauder
President, Parents’ Association
BEFORE & AFTER SCHOOL CARE
As we draw to the end of the school year, I would like to
thank everybody for a wonderful 2014.
On Friday, the last day of school, our service will be open
from 1.30pm to 6.30pm. Please note that if you have not
signed the permission forms, the children will not be able to
participate in ALL activities that have been offered for this
day. Please be sure to indicate your consent, or otherwise,
for these activities.
If your child will be attending our program in the new year,
please be sure to collect any relevant medical forms that
require Doctor's signature (e.g if your child suffers Asthma
or any other kind of medical condition).
A reminder that all current permanent bookings will roll over
to 2015 unless indicated otherwise.
Camp Australia Holiday Club bookings are now available
online. Please visit our website:
www.campaustralia.com.au
Have a Happy Holiday - Christine and Educators
SERPELL BASKETBALL CLUB
RESULTS of Games W/E 13 Dec
Leeds Street
Grand final
U11 Girls
Starlets 16
Open Girls
Sapphires 14
U9 Boys
Challengers 19
U9 Boys
Coyotes 14
Open Boys
Cyclones 25
Milgate Sparks 19
OLOP Ladybirds 51
Donvale Dolphins 23
Donvale Demons 21
Milgate Fire 45
Presentation Night – Wednesday 17 December 2014 at
6pm
This year’s presentation night will be held this Wednesday
at the Serpell Stadium from 6pm. Please all come in your
uniforms for photos with your trophies. We look forward to
seeing you there.
Uniform Orders due prior to end of term
Could anyone requiring a new uniform for next year please
have your form returned to Irene Gong, Uniform
Coordinator, prior to the end of term so that your uniform
will be ready for the start of the season? Irene will have a
range of uniforms at the stadium on the presentation night
from 5pm if anyone wants to try one on for size.
Girls U9 players wanted for Leeds St (Saturday)
competition
We are still looking for players for our U9 girls team (Those
born 2007 & 2008). If you are interested please contact Kim
Voulanas, Coordinator Serpell Community Basketball
Association (Leeds St), kvoulanas@bigpond.com, 0400
546 855.
Congratulations on a great year!
Finally, we would like to congratulate all of our teams on a
wonderful year of basketball. We have had 18 teams
representing Serpell in either the Bulleen or Leeds St
competitions this year and they have all had some amazing
achievements and a lot of fun playing basketball with their
school friends. We would also like to thank all of our
Coaches and Team Managers who spend so much of their
time nurturing our young players and looking after the
teams. We hope that you all have a wonderful break over
Christmas and look forward to another fantastic year of
basketball in 2015
The Serpell Community Basketball Association Committee
Contacts
Gordana Duvnjak
Co-ordinator – Serpell Community Basketball Association
(Bulleen)
gordana.duvnjak@proark.com.au
Mob: 0418 147 817)
Kim Voulanas
Co-ordinator – Serpell Community Basketball Association
(Leeds St)
kvoulanas@bigpond.com
Mob: 0400 546 855
SCHOOL BANKING
Last week was the final week of Student Banking for the
year. For those who have not received your rewards, you
will receive them next year. We will pass your rewards to
your sibling if you're in Grade 6 this year otherwise you can
pick them up from the office when school reopens next
year. Apologies for any disappointment & inconveniences
caused. The stock availability is out of our control. Thank
you for your understanding & patience.
COMMUNITY NOTICES
NEW STAR ART CLASS 2015 ENROLMENTS NOW
OPEN
The New Star Art after school art classes this
term have been very successful with many of
the students achieving outstanding results.
They are now taking enrollments for
term1,2015 and welcome all those that wish to develop
their creative skills further.
Term1,art classes will start on Tuesday 3rd Feb 2015
Tuesday 3:45pm – 5:15pm (during school term) Library,
Serpell Primary School
For more information please check the school website :
newstarart.com. (online enrollment is available)
Contact Ms Jiang: 0417104975 or John 0411491201Email:
yaping.jiang@gmail.com
The Department of Education does not endorse the products or
services of any private advertiser. No responsibility is accepted
by the Department of Education for the accuracy of information
contained in advertisements or claims made by them.