W.A. NAPLAN TOP 20 SCHOOLS – 2024
Centre School for Excellence 2023-2026
Great Students, Great Staff, Great Parents, Building Greater Communities
Dear Parents and Carers,
Thank you so much for the warm welcome I received from students, staff and parents following my return from Long Service Leave. It made me feel very special! I’d like to wish Paula Asplin a restful break on her Long Service Leave. She will be back in Term Four.
I hope all our families enjoyed Father’s Day and were able to spend some time together over the weekend. I was very spoiled on the day by my wife and daughters! Thank you again to the members of the P and C for giving up their time to run the Father’s Day Stall during the week. I imagine all the Dads enjoyed their gifts!
During the last two weeks, students across Pre-Primary to Year Six have been taking part in online PAT Testing. This testing is designed to give teachers additional data in Reading and Mathematics to help them differentiate and tailor their teaching programs according to the individual levels within each of the classrooms. We also analyse this data at cohort and school level to monitor student achievement and progress. All teachers are involved in this analysis and gives us a very clear picture of how we are tracking as a school, and modifications we need to make to improve further. Thank you to Victoria Avery for all your work in ensuring this has been successfully implemented.
Last week was STEM Week at Caladenia. The students from Year Four to Six took part in the ‘Engineers Without Borders’ incursions. On Friday, the students from Pre-Primary to Year Three had their ‘Science Alive!’ Incursion. There was also a Paper Plane Competition that took place during lunchtimes during the Undercover Area. Thanks to Phil Chandler, Cody Lam and the Science/Technologies Team for ensuring great ‘hands-on’ experiences for our students.
We have had our Kindy information sessions for those children starting with us in 2026. These sessions give parents vital information on what to expect and how they can support their children in their first year of schooling. These will be followed later in the year with the Kindy ‘Come and Try’ sessions. Thanks to Angela O’Malley and Siobhan Ellis for running these sessions. We also thank those outside agencies who attend these sessions to support the school and our families.
Last week we had the ‘Old McDonald’s Farm’ incursion for the Kindy classes. It was great to see the students engaging and interacting with the animals and hearing the rich language the students were using to describe the animals was amazing! Thank you to the Kindy Team!
On Friday 12th September we supported R U OK? Day. R U OK? Day is Australia’s National Day of Action to encourage Australians to connect with people around them and initiate conversations about mental health. The goal is to promote open dialogue and build supportive networks, as a conversation can make a difference in the life of someone who is struggling, and you don’t need to be a mental health expert to help. We encouraged everyone to wear yellow to raise awareness about this important issue. Thanks to Lachlan Bailey and the Health Team for promoting this across our school.
We are currently in the middle of our Student Elections for 2026. I wish all the students who have nominated for Student Executive, Music Captain, Faction Captain and Faction Vice-Captain all the best in the process.
We have lots of exciting events coming up, including ‘Dress Like a Superhero’ Day this Thursday 18th September), P and C Pyjama Day and Massed Choir (both Friday 26th September). Remember to use School Stream to find out all the information about these events.
Our school App is called School Stream and you can download it for free. It is an essential resource for parents to have as we use the app for all communication. It is also advised to keep your notifications setting turned on as, at times, it may be the only way the school can communicate.
Scan the barcode or Download the APP.
PARKING REMINDER
This is our last newsletter issue before the school holidays commence.
We would like to wish all our Caladenia families, a restful, fun and safe break.
Term 4 commences Monday 13th October
Thanks to all our Caladenia families for continuing to support the school each and every day. I wish a great rest of term to all members of the Caladenia Community.
Kind regards,
Craig McIlwraith
Acting Principal
School News
Dress Like a Superhero Day! – Tomorrow!
Tomorrow students and staff are asked to dress like a Superhero. We are raising funds for Telethon 2025 to support sick, vulnerable and disadvantaged children and their families. Students are invited to wear their finest superhero costume for the day in exchange for a gold coin donation.
Every donation helps fund vital services, medical research, and support programs for WA children and their families.
Thank you for supporting this important event.
Kindy B groups are invited to wear their Superhero outfits on Friday the 19th September.
Caladenia Celebrates STEM Week
Week 8 of this term saw Caladenia come alive with creativity, problem-solving and innovation as we celebrated STEM Week across the school. Students from Pre-Primary through to Year 6 engaged in exciting workshops, competitions and showcases, all designed to highlight the importance of Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics in our world. Each morning, classes also took part in STEM-related morning work tasks to kick-start the day with curiosity and critical thinking.
Engineers Without Borders Workshops
Our Year 4, 5 and 6 students were lucky to participate in workshops run by Engineers Without Borders. The challenge was to design an effective, low-cost housing solution that could float on water while supporting as much “weight” as possible. Working in teams, students combined their creativity, design thinking and problem-solving skills to engineer some remarkable structures. Some groups even created floating houses that could support the equivalent of over 100 “people” before sinking! The excitement was palpable and it was wonderful to see students put their STEM knowledge into action in such a hands-on way.
Paper Plane Competition
At lunchtime, the school was buzzing with energy as over 300 students participated in our paper plane competitions run by the Student Executive across three days. Students designed, tested and refined their creations, aiming for the longest flight distance. Congratulations to our winners:
· Year 1/2: Jason (Room 16) – 9.7 metres
· Year 3/4: Ahmed (Room 34) – 12.7 metres
· Year 5/6: Jax (Room 23) – 22 metres
The Year 5/6 competition was particularly exciting with three students reaching the maximum distance in the Undercover Area, leading to a dramatic “throw-down” on the basketball courts. Jax’s incredible 22-metre flight sealed the victory. A huge well done to the Student Executive for running such an engaging and fun event and to every student who participated with enthusiasm.
Science Alive Shows
Caladenia favourite Mick from Science Alive returned to captivate our younger students with two exciting showcases:
· Pre-Primary to Year 2: Energy and Movement – Students explored the forces and energy that move things in our world. They had hands-on fun with fruit power, mighty magnets, sound tubes and even hovering drones.
· Year 3: Energy and Electricity – Students discovered how energy from the sun is harnessed in different ways. Highlights included human circuits, strong magnets, musical heat, light-bending experiments and some exciting explosions with cornflour and water balloons.
From floating houses to soaring paper planes and dazzling science demonstrations, STEM Week was a resounding success at Caladenia. A big thank you to all staff, students and guests who made this week such a memorable celebration of curiosity, teamwork and innovation.
Old MacDonalds Farm Incursion
Our Kindergarten students were blessed with a visit from Old MacDonald’s farm. We were ecstatic to see two baby piglets, no more than a few weeks old. The farm’s resident turkey, put on a display by fluffing his feathers and dancing to the delight of everyone. The students learnt how to feed and care for the farm animals, as well as listening to the crack of the farmer’s stock whip. It was a wonderful morning, filled with student stories, and a day for creating lasting memories.
Class News
Pre-Primary Room 2 – Mrs Dalbock
What have Pre-Primary, Room 2 been up to?
Last week, we celebrated our real-life superheroes—our dads! We visited the Father’s Day stalls and picked out special surprises just for them. In class, we got creative with collaging, painting, and drawing! We created colourful portraits of our dad’s, made fun superhero cards and personalised magnets and keyrings to show our love. We also shared stories and wrote about why our dads are amazing.
For news time, we brought in photos of our dads and proudly talked about what makes them our heroes.
We hope all our wonderful dads had a fantastic Father’s Day on Sunday. You’re our superheroes every day!
Year 2 Room 12 – Mrs Bartlett
What an exciting term it has been so far! Term 3 started with me back in the classroom with my lovely students in Room 12, and I could not be happier. Their hard work and dedication to their learning has truly shone through in the incredible work they have produced this term.
In Science, we have been exploring the water cycle, and in HASS, we have been learning all about our local community. In Mathematics, we have worked on mental strategies, explored 2D shapes and their properties, and investigated chance and data. The students have shown fantastic focus and curiosity across all areas of learning.
One of the highlights of this term was reading ‘The Lorax’ by Dr Seuss, and using the text as inspiration to craft persuasive texts aimed at saving the trees in the Jarrah Forest. Students were encouraged to explain their reasoning clearly, and the results were impressive. Each piece of writing showcased emotive language, accurate sentence structure, powerful Tier 2 vocabulary, and strong, well-developed arguments. To accompany their writing, the students also created beautiful artistic impressions of the Jarrah Forest. It is true what the Lorax once said: “Unless someone like you cares a whole awful lot, nothing is going to get better. It is not.” This sentiment was not only reflected in their writing but in the thoughtful and determined way each student has approached their learning this year. I would like to leave you with one of my favourite quotes by Nelson Mandela:
“Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world.”
I am incredibly proud of each and every student in Room 12 for their enthusiasm, creativity, and persistence. They should be very proud of themselves, too!
We are now eagerly looking forward to Open Night, where we will have the opportunity to showcase all our amazing work and share our learning journey with our loved ones.
Have a look at some of our marvellous work!
Year 5 Room 39 – Miss Manuel
This week Caladenia children were looking forward to the most exciting.. drum roll please.. STEM Week!
STEM Week, a week full of Science, Technology, Engineering and Math. Paper plane competitions, incursions and a class food truck project. My favourite thing was definitely the Engineers without Boarders incursion. It was very fun. First we talked about the different types of engineers, then we were instructed on our task. We were taught how people in Cambodia live in floating houses and our task was to design a flotation device in our groups. We would test these houses out in the water, putting marbles in them. Our task was simple, our house had to float, holding as many marbles as possible without sinking.
It was so much fun and we look forward to doing it next year and thank the students from UWA for coming to our school.
Our in class STEM project was to design a food truck, incorporating our learning from HASS, English, Technologies and Math. We fitted our food truck with the necessary equipment, making sure to include the GST and later in Math plotting the route we would take through Canning Vale. Within English, we designed persuasive advertisements to encourage our consumers to purchase our goods. Within Technologies, we used the design process to create a layout for our truck and design a menu. Our menu was based on our learning of scarcity in HASS and how this relates to goods and services.
Needless to say, it has been a very fun and educational week in Room 39.
-Eva Avasthi
P&C and Community News
All art classes are taught by qualified and experienced specialist art teachers. For more information, please visit our website www.creativekidsartclub.com.au
