Dear Parents, Families, Students, and Community Members,

We are incredibly proud of our strong local community connections, and this past week has been a wonderful opportunity to nurture and celebrate these relationships. Community is one of our core school values, and it’s great to see our students engaging so positively; with their peers, families, and local businesses.

Last week, we travelled to Bicheno Primary School for the East Coast Gala Day. Students participated in a variety of sports alongside peers from St Helens District School, Bicheno Primary School, and Orford Primary School. Activities included AFL, touch football, tennis, netball, and gymnastics. Our students demonstrated excellent sportsmanship, and we extend our thanks to Bicheno Primary School for hosting this fantastic event.

Our connections with local schools were further strengthened on Wednesday 24th September at the East Coast Cluster Dance Event. Although originally planned for Orford Primary School, the event was relocated to Triabunna District School to accommodate the poor weather and make use of their larger gymnasium. It was a joy to see students from all schools dancing together and enjoying time in the playground.

We also continued building relationships with local businesses through the Talk Like a Pirate Day event held at the Swansea Motor Inn. A big thank you to Christina for the invitation, our students had a fantastic time dressing as pirates, participating in a scavenger hunt, and competing in a “Talk Like a Pirate” contest. The competition was judged by residents from May Shaw, and it was lovely to reconnect with them.

Thank you to everyone attending today’s Term 3 Assembly and Art Exhibition. A special thanks to Mrs Gadd for preparing the Art Room for the exhibition. At this time of term, we celebrate student learning with families through Evidences of Learning (EOL). Art EOLs will be shared at the exhibition, and other subject EOLs have been compiled into envelopes that will be either handed out at the exhibition or posted home. We encourage families to read through these with their children and talk about their learning journey.

You may have noticed scarecrows appearing along the coast from Buckland to Bicheno. These scarecrows symbolise protection and resilience, perfectly aligning with the theme of Mental Health Week (4th–12th October 2025). Thank you to Jo Raspin for providing our school with its own scarecrow. We’re proud to be part of this meaningful initiative.

Congratulations to Holly, Max, Daisy, Lachlan, and Lucas for receiving last week’s Brekky and a Book awards, and to Ella and Lucas for earning Kindness Certificates.

Tomorrow, on the final day of Term 3, our Student Leaders will be raising funds for the Fight Cancer Foundation through Footy Colours Day. Students are encouraged to wear the colours of their favourite sports team (not limited to football) and bring a gold coin donation.

I would like to wish everyone a happy and restful school holiday break. At the start of Term 4, students will be attending swimming activities at the Oatlands Aquatic Centre:

• Monday 13th October – Grade 3–6 students for the Swimming Carnival
• Tuesday 14th October – Prep–Grade 2 students for Learn to Swim

Families are warmly invited to attend the Grade 3–6 Swimming Carnival. We understand it’s a long journey, but if you’re able to make it, we’d love to see you there.

Kind regards, 

Anna Knowles

Principal

East Coast Cluster Gala Day

Daisy: My favourite thing was playing with my friends.

Wyatt: The best part was getting to go on the bus.

Eowyn: I liked doing the dance and making a new friend called Claire.

Indi: My favourite thing was getting to eat a sausage.

Caleb: I liked seeing my friend Toby.

Ellie: Having the BBQ even though I didn’t eat any.

Amelia: I liked hanging out with friends.

Jaxon: The best part was playing footy.

Llewyn: I liked the really big climbing thing and I wish we could have one.

Lucy: My favourite was doing the hay baling dance.

We have had some wonderful learning experiences outside our classroom this fortnight.

Grade 3 were very excited to be invited by Bicheno Primary School to attend an East Coast Gala Sports Day last week. Students participated in a variety of sports, including gymnastics, touch footy, AFL, tennis, netball and softball. It was very exciting to be participating in these activities with our East Coast friends from other schools.

Andrew from MAST visited us this week. He shared with us the different types of life jackets and when to wear them. We learnt about safety equipment that is necessary when we are on a boat.  Max even got a first hand account of what it's like to have an inflatable life jacket be ready to save a life! Thank you to Andrew from MAST for this wonderful show, including the very exciting flare display.

The Orford Dance Day was a huge success! Students have been practising their dance steps in PE and were delighted to be able to showcase and collaborate with their Orford and Triabunna friends. It was a fantastic day!

Susan, Tanisha, Chris and I would like to wish all of our Grade 2/3 families a wonderful school holidays. Rest up and strap in, ready for an exciting and busy Term 4!

Sunshine and Smiles, 

Mrs Sparshott

Term 3 has been sensational for Grade 456! Going to Canberra was just BRILLIANT and it will be a special memory for all of us forever! There were so many other amazing adventures and learnings too!

Some highlights were our Book Week Parade, Talk Like a Pirate Day and going weekly to Jubilee Beach for our Wool Art and flexible learning Literacy lessons. 456 thoroughly enjoyed our ‘Waste’ incursion, playing Touch Footy, going to Triabunna for the Young Tasmanian Honour Awards, participating in the b kinder Summit in Hobart and preparing for our Animal Adaptation oral presentations.

During our English lessons we focussed on inferential questioning, partner reading and writing using figurative language techniques. Students often learn best when they can help each other, so many of our Mathematics lessons revolved around using manipulative hands-on materials. This engaged the students as they guided and assisted each other to learn new concepts together.

It's hard to believe that Term 3 has already come to an end!

Have a safe and fabulous holiday!

Stu Fox's recent tragedy has left him and his three young boys in a heartbreaking situation. Coming home to find his house engulfed in flames, they have lost everything but the clothes on their backs. With no insurance and limited resources, Stu is faced with the daunting task of starting over from scratch. As a devoted single dad, he has always been there for his children, building a life in Swansea while contributing to the community through his landscaping business.

Now, he needs our support more than ever. The costs of temporary housing, replacing belongings, and rebuilding their home are overwhelming. Every dollar contributed will make a difference in their journey to recovery. Let’s come together to show that the community cares and that they are not alone in this tough time. Please consider donating to help Stu and his boys rebuild their lives.

Thank you for your kindness.

https://aus01.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fgofund.me%2Fbe9147dfd&data=05%7C02%7Cmelissa.quinn%40decyp.tas.gov.au%7Cc11319ac4b984fc658d708ddfbd42a94%7Ca9be3ac70c60491e8b3ba32f8f46aec8%7C0%7C0%7C638943610875139194%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJFbXB0eU1hcGkiOnRydWUsIlYiOiIwLjAuMDAwMCIsIlAiOiJXaW4zMiIsIkFOIjoiTWFpbCIsIldUIjoyfQ%3D%3D%7C0%7C%7C%7C&sdata=FrkxUaecKomMZOZlg6%2BUWSco51X3A%2Fna1Zgmqj9A7Nw%3D&reserved=0

Lilibet is fast approaching 7 months and loving her time with all her paw friends at Swansea Primary School. 

Lilibet is very excited to go on holiday to her paw cousin Banjo's house in Margate for two weeks at the start of Term 4.  All her paw friends will see her for the first three days of term 4, and then she will be on holiday.

Lilibet will be out and about over the school holidays. If you see her, don't forget to say hi; she would love to see you all.

Remember footy colours day tomorrow, last day of school, have you got your colouring in back with guess Lilibet's footy team?