On November 7th we are having our school fete and I think it should be fantastic. The fete committee has worked extremely hard organising and preparing for this event. Our Parents and Friends Group and our School Council are great supporters of the school and are always willing to assist as we need. Without our community working with us we would not be able to achieve the wonderful things we do.

The teachers at Tongala Primary School work hard to make learning enjoyable, interesting and motivating. As we head towards the end of the year I know we can all look back and see the difference we have made and celebrate all the great milestones along the way.

Preps, ones and twos  celebrated their special day in mixed age groups cooking 100 chocolate balls, making 100’s and 1000’s bread and biscuits, creating crowns, participating in a variety of literacy and maths ‘100’ activities and 100 physical exercises. The morning concluded with a lunch party eating the food  and the ‘100’ shaped cake with the children taking home one of the 100 helium balloons that decorated our rooms.

The school leaders have been wonderful role models both in the school and in the wider community as was shown during their attendance at the ANZAC dawn ceremony – we are very proud of them. School leaders have also run lunchtime sports activities and the Junior School Council have been involved in several fundraising activities. We celebrated Volunteer Week with a beautiful morning tea to thank all the volunteers we have coming in and supporting our school. The volunteers included our RE teachers, Old Mates and the parents who give up so much of thir time to listen to reading, cook with the students and help in many other ways.

We are finishing the term with a Snag ‘n’ Art night with Murray Ross (local artist). As a new school is on its way we are setting up a museum to reflect on all the history around Tongala Primary School. It will be a fun night with displays, question time for some of the community who have been in the area for a while and  fun art activities for all.

There is always something exciting happening at Tongala Primary School!

The Prep / 1 / 2 students enjoyed their BBQ last week taking part in games, Scavenger Hunt and dancing. It was great fun and a wonderful way to build social and cooperative skills.

Our grade 6 students are certainly enjoying their learning on their Netbooks and are able to incorporate ICT skills into a range of learning throughout the curriculum. I have learnt so much from them already and get a real buzz watching how engaged they are in all their learning.

The Jigsaw and Bluearth programs have enabled students to develop their resilience and social skills to a new level in a safe and supportive environment. The Active After School Program runs two afternoons a week and is free for all Primary aged students. Getting fit, cooperating and having fun are all part of this great program.

Term 2 is already shaping up as a fantastic term so stay posted to find out more of the great things that are happening at Tongala Primary School.

Established in 2004 by the Strzelecki Lions Club, the Cows Create Careers, a Dairy Australia project,  promotes career and education opportunities in the dairy industry.

The project involves secondary students from years 7-11 who take an active part in learning about the industry while caring for dairy calves. Local farmers and a local dairy industry professional, such as a vet, a dairy company field officer, an agronomist or a cheesemaker, work with the students to teach them about different aspects of the dairy industry. Tongala Primary School has been fortunate to be able to participate in this program now for several years, competing against secondary students.

Students get to experience caring for heifer calves, which are on loan from the farmers. A very big thank you this year to Lyndal and Tim Humphris for supplying the calves. Educational activities are structured around science, literacy and technology along with feeding and monitoring the calves as they grow.

In teams, students present a datashow  that showcases their experiences and what they have learned. They also write a thank you letter to their farmer and industry representatives and create a newsletter as part of the school curriculum. A final presentation and awards ceremony concludes the Cows Create Careers experience in school.

Tongala Primary School is proud to announce that for the third year in a row they have received the Junior School award of $500.  This is a fantastic achievement.  Congratulations to Euroa Secondary School for their first place in the individual awards.  Tongala students were placed 2^nd, 3^rd, 4^th and 5^th! thus winning the overall school award.  Congratulations to all on a wonderful effort.