From the Head of Junior School

Welcome back to our fourth and final term for 2023. I hope your holidays were a mixture of relaxation and happy times shared with family.

Late last term, CGS student representatives from Years 4–6 competed at the Divisional Athletics Carnival. Congratulations to the following students who will now compete at Regionals. All the very best to Zara, Erlyn, Allanah and Pranshi in their relay, Vrinda in the long jump and 200 metre race and Kobi in the 800 metre race.

Our final Term 3 assembly was hosted by Mr Byrne-Nelson’s talented 6B assembly. The audience were captivated as Dr Seuss’s Cat in the Hat came to life. The acting was exemplary and the fact that the students wrote the script themselves while incorporating many other infamous Dr Seuss characters was a credit to them. Congratulations to our 6B students on their final Junior School assembly. I hope you cherish the memories of your CGS assemblies for many years to come.

Huge congratulations to Mrs Searles and all her brilliant Junior School art students on our superb first ever CGS Junior School Art Show. Each of our 500 Junior School students had three pieces of art on display. The way in which Mrs Searles set up the sections of the Jungle Art Show was truly outstanding. The remarkable Glow Room was definitely a crowd favourite with the many families who flocked in their hundreds to be a part of our special event. I can’t thank Mrs Searles enough for the lengths she went to in order to ensure our Art Show was such a success. We are indeed fortunate that she has become a staff member as she is such an asset to CGS.

The Art Show feedback has been nothing short of sensational and it was a pleasure to receive the following email from one of our very appreciative CGS parents, which is a fitting tribute to Mrs Searles:-

“Oh my goodness! I just attended the Art Show and it was the most incredible collection of work I have ever seen. I could not get back in my car without sending this email of appreciation. I understand that the children have worked hard to present art of such high calibre, but the true hero here is Ms Searles! What an incredible job you’ve done! You have gone above and beyond for the students, parents and our community. Someone needs to notify the local newspaper about this. I am so incredibly proud to send my daughters to Casey Grammar School! I will be talking about this amazing display for years to come.

Thank you from the bottom of my heart Ms Searles — your hard work, dedication, time away from your family and commitment to our children has not gone unnoticed. We appreciate you!”

Here’s to a wonderful, action packed term full of exciting learning experiences, end of year celebrations and opportunities for friendships to be strengthened.

Melissa Roberton

Head of Junior School

Divisional Athletics

Well done to the 14 students from Years 3–6 who competed in Divisional Athletics at Casey Fields on 13 September. Reaching this level is a fantastic achievement, and all students competed exceptionally well and supported one another throughout the day. Special congratulations to a number of students who placed in the top two in their events and will now be progressing to the Regional Athletics Carnival in Term 3.

9/10 Girls 4 x 100m Relay Team – Zara M, Erlyn S, Alannah B, Pranshi R – 2nd place.

Vrinda S – 200m – 2nd place and long jump – 2nd place.

Kobi M – 800m – 2nd place.

Outside of school, Vrinda S also performed amazingly at the Team Vic trials, missing out on qualifying for nationals by just 10 centimetres in long jump and coming 4th overall out of 35 school students who participated.

Jump Rope for Heart

Our Jump Rope for Heart fundraiser is well underway. We currently have 39 students registered and have raised $1,853 for the Heart Foundation. Well done to all who have been involved so far. There is still plenty of time, so if you would like to sign your child up for fundraising, as well as gain access to plenty of resources, please visit https://www.jumprope.org.au/parents.

Our top five fundraisers so far are:

Jada H – Year 3: $315

Charlie S – Year 5: $300

Charlotte K – Foundation: $281

Cooper S – Year 4: $267

Maya S – Foundation: $159

Jeff Batey

Junior School P.E. Teacher

House Talent Show

This term we are having a House Talent Show! Students in Years 3 to 6 will have a chance to audition for three different categories: Vocal, Instrumental and Dance. Each House will have two entries per category. Each act has a time limit of 1½ minutes and it is up to each act to rehearse and prepare, as well as bring along any costumes or props they require.

If you are in Years 3 to 6 and wish to audition, your Head of House will give you all the details. If you are auditioning for the Instrumental category, please record your act and bring it in to show your Head of House.

The House Talent Show will take place on Tuesday 31 October in Periods 5 and 6. It will be held in the PAC and the Years 3 to 6 students will be coming along to watch.

We are very much looking forward to celebrating the many talents we have at Casey Grammar School!

Junior School Heads of House