Our School in Focus – No. 25 – 2026

Last week was a huge week of many of our students with opportunities to take part in a variety of extra curricular activities within The Arts.  

• Forty eight of our Primary students sang their hearts out as part of the 4000 strong choir at RAC Arena. A big thank you to Mrs Morris and Ms Ludwig for all their work in preparing the students. It was a wonderful experience for them and it was very exciting to be part of. 

• A small but mighty group of Secondary students who have been rehearsing for many weeks, performed four shows of their short play called ‘The Clearing’. This contained wonderful singing, engaging acting and some fantastic stage direction from Mrs Parker. It was lovely for our students to showcase their talents in such a purposeful way. 

• Our many school bands, under the skillful direction of Mr Kitt Byfield have once again shown how talented they are as they performed last Friday night at the Catholic School Performing Arts Festival Band Showcase at Sacred Heart College in Sorrento. All performers were outstanding but the word on the street is that our students absolutely shone. We have learned today that the following awards were received by the bands: EXCELLENCE – The Ear-Resistibles; EXCELLENCE -Tuned Out; MERIT – Amplify-Her & The Chiko Rolls. Congratulations to everyone involved. 

• Our School Captain, Emily Street, spoke at the annual Speak for Faith Competition on Monday evening. With nine people in her group spread over two nights, Emily is still waiting to see whether she will proceed to the next round. We congratulate her on her drive and passion to speak on issues she is passionate about. 

On Sunday, we have a team of seven students who will be representing the school in the Wheatbelt round of Tournament of Minds. These students have been practicing with Mrs Sargeant for many weeks and we wish them all the best.  

As we end our short week, just a reminder to families that Thursday and Friday are pupil free days with staff working on site on Thursday and no one one site on Friday – Enjoy the long weekend!

We were blessed with beautiful weather for the Interhouse Athletics Carnival in Week 4. Thank you very much to all of our student and parent helpers who assisted to make the day run so smoothly. We would like to congratulate all students who participated to gain points for their House and towards Champions. This year, our Year 4-6s had a Jumps and Throws day on the Tuesday of week 4, as well as doing running, relays, team and novelty races on carnival day. Secondary students completed javelin, 800m and 400m prior to the day, and then competed in all other running, jumps and throws on the day. Many records were broken and the participation, effort, sportsmanship and behaviour of our Year 4-12 students was excellent. Secondary ACC is next week, and our team are looking forward to the challenge of competing and representing our school.

Sarah Lynch & Georgia Haddrill
Carnival Organisers 

Year 2 Blue has had a very busy and exciting few weeks! We enjoyed a wonderful excursion to the Perth Mint, although the weather had other ideas and it rained for most of the day! Despite the rain, we had a fantastic time learning about gold and its history. One of the highlights was watching the gold pouring demonstration, and we were excited to see how valuable we were when we weighed ourselves in gold! We were amazed to discover that, based on our weight in gold, the average Year 2 Blue student was worth around $6 million. Parents, please don’t get any ideas!

We also performed our class assembly item, which we are very proud of. Year 2 Blue took the audience on the journey of a chip packet as it travelled from the school corridor, through the drains and all the way to the ocean. Along the way, they shared an important message about picking up rubbish to help protect our wildlife and marine life, with a play, rap and even some beatboxing! Who knew we had so many talented rappers and beatboxers in Year 2 Blue?! The students did an amazing job sharing such an important message with the school community. To finish off our exciting few weeks, we also celebrated Book Week with a fun dress-up day. It was wonderful to see all the creative costumes and favourite book characters come to life!

Well done, Year 2 Blue, on another busy and memorable few weeks of learning and fun!

Shell Read
Year 2 Blue

How are we already in the second half of Term 3? Wow, this term is flying by! We have certainly hit the ground running with what we thought would be a quieter term. It has been wonderful to see the students working hard, showing enthusiasm for their learning, and making the most of the many opportunities this term has provided.

Excursion to the Perth Mint: One of the highlights of the term was our excursion to the Perth Mint. Students enjoyed learning about money, gold, and the role gold has played in Western Australia’s history. It was a great opportunity to connect our classroom learning to the real world, and the children represented our school beautifully throughout the day.

Mathematics: In Mathematics, we are continuing our learning about money. Students have been recognising coins and notes, counting money, and solving simple money problems. It has been fantastic to see their confidence grow as they put their number skills into practice.

Science: During Science we have been exploring how sound produces waves and, even though we can’t see the waves, we can see the impact they have on other things. We have even made rice ‘dance by just using sound waves! 

Religious Education: We have recently finished learning about the Eucharist. Students learned that Jesus is always with us. We talked about the role of the priest, when people gather to celebrate the Eucharist, and ways we can show love and kindness to others. The students enjoyed sharing their ideas and learning how to follow Jesus in their everyday lives.

At the end of last week, we also farewelled Mrs Fernihough, who is leaving us to have her baby very soon! Mrs Fernihough has been our Year 2 EA on Thursdays and Fridays this year and, while we are sad to see her go, we are very excited to see the baby photos! The students farewelled Mrs Fernihough with some very sage advice by creating their own advice book to help her navigate the start of parenthood. On the plus side, we have also been very excited to welcome Miss Hayley Wirth to the classroom to replace Mrs Fernihough and look forward to getting to work with her on Thursdays and Fridays for the rest of the year.

Kayla Hyde
Year 2 Gold

The Year 9/10 Basketball elective class have been lucky enough to participate in some extra skill and fitness sessions with Phil Croot from Basketball Western Australia. Phil is the new Wheatbelt Basketball Regional Development Officer who has been sharing his expertise and knowledge with the class. Students have been working on their form shooting technique and transition down the court. Last week, the Year 9/10 Basketball students were put through their paces with 10m & 20m Sprints and the Beep Test.

Congratulations to William Elliott with the highest Beep Test result of 14.9 and Cara Woodgate and Will Elliiott with the fastest 10m and 20m times in the class.

Miss Stone
Basketball teacher

On Wednesday, 19 August, the Year 11 and 12 Outdoor Education students embarked on their final expedition of the year, taking on the challenges of the Bibbulmun Track around Mount Cooke and a canoe journey on the Murray River in Dwellingup.

Throughout the expedition, students were required to demonstrate independence and self-sufficiency, with only limited check-ins from the emergency support team. The first day saw students hike 14.2 kilometres carrying packs weighing between 10 and 20 kilograms. After a demanding day on the trail, including two challenging hill climbs, students established camp, prepared their evening meals, and enjoyed a well-earned opportunity to relax and reflect around the campfire.

Day two featured the expedition’s most demanding challenge: the ascent of Mount Cooke. Students tackled approximately 300 metres of elevation gain while covering a total distance of 14.8 kilometres. Reaching the summit was a rewarding experience, providing spectacular views and a strong sense of achievement. The group showed remarkable perseverance throughout the day before completing the trek and travelling to their next campsite, where they were rewarded with a refreshing swim after two strenuous days of hiking.

The final day focused on canoeing skills and water safety. Students paddled from Island Pool to Baden Powell on the Murray River, gaining valuable experience in river safety and developing an understanding of the power and dynamics of moving water. They participated in capsize and rescue drills, as well as rope rescue activities at small rapids, further refining their practical outdoor education skills. Students found this component of the expedition particularly enjoyable and rewarding. Before beginning the journey home, the group stopped in Dwellingup for a well-deserved shower and the opportunity to reflect on their accomplishments.

A special thank you goes to Mr Hargrave for stepping in at short notice to attend the camp. We also extend our appreciation to Miss Parker and Miss Emery for accompanying the Senior School students, and to Miss Lynch for her guidance and support as part of the emergency support team.

The expedition was a wonderful opportunity for students to challenge themselves, develop resilience, strengthen teamwork skills, and apply the knowledge they have gained throughout the Outdoor Education program.

Mr Wilson
Outdoor Education Teacher

The students spent the day considering what they would like our community and environment to look like in the future, particularly as we look towards 2071. They worked together to discuss what changes could be made now to help create a more sustainable future.

A key part of the day involved a democratic voting process, where students shared their ideas and voted on the environmental topics they felt were most important.

The main topics identified by the students included:

• Native animals
• Climate and weather
• Restoration
• Community
• Cleared land
• Water
• Agriculture and soil
• Feral animals

The students then worked in groups to develop their vision for 2071 and discuss possible solutions and actions that could help achieve it.

The proposed actions and solutions will be compiled into a report by Millennial Kids and sent to the students for their review and sign-off before being presented to the relevant ministers.

The students also had the opportunity to share their ideas with Lachlan Hunter MP and Jackie Jarvis, Minister for Agriculture and Food in Western Australia.

It was a really positive and interactive day, and a great opportunity for the students to have their voices heard and contribute ideas about the future of the Wheatbelt.

Sally Clements (who accompanied the students)

This term, every Tuesday, the Yr 11 Children, Family and Community Students have been going to visit the residents at Juniper  The Residency in Burgoyne ST, Northam.

The task they are working on is entitled ‘Helping OUT’ where they find a community group and work on ideas to help them. They have thoroughly enjoyed visiting the residents and have made some great friends. They sit and talk, take activities and share a meal with their friends. The smiles on the residents face when we arrive is evidence that they are so happy to see us and staff say they really look forward to our visits. The students are learning so much about life in the 1920s-1960s in the wheatbelt and how life has changed. This week one of the residents told us they walked 10miles each way every day to school, while ours were complaining about an 800m walk!!

We will be hosting the residents for a morning tea at the Secondary Campus in week 9.  Look out for some photos of this event.

Carol Farson
Subject Teacher

The Primary Canteen is open on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Thursdays and Fridays.

Both the school and P&F Facebook pages are updated regularly and I encourage everyone to check both pages for up to date information.