CamNews

Junior School

February 21, 2025

Induction of Year 6 Leaders Assembly

The Induction of Year 6 Leaders is a significant event and was held last week in the Barbara Sutton Hall. Parents and teaching staff witnessed myself and Deputy Principal Davina McClure present leadership badges to all the Year 6 Leaders, marking the second year they hold positions for a full year.

Mrs McClure encouraged them to lead by example and uphold our school values and school motto – Utilis in Ministerium – Useful in Service. She also shared a story about the impact of words, reminding leaders to use positive language and serve as role models for other students at Ormiston.

Thank you to our Year 5 & 6 teachers, Fiorella Soci, Craig Goodwin, Jasvindar Gill, and Margaret Hall for preparing our Leaders and organising the Induction Assembly. The event was made more special by sharing morning tea with parents at the Figtree Café.

We look forward to the students’ contributions in fostering a close-knit Junior School community in 2025.

Here are the 2025 Year 6 school leaders and positions:

Art Leaders
Janice P & Mahva M

Assembly Leaders
Olivia H, Olivia V & Alessandra R

Classroom Leaders
Alis C, Jaslene N, Ellie L, Aanya C, Emma Z & Emma A

Digital Leaders
Mila L & Rachel D

Events Leaders
Angela W & Elina L

House Leaders
Lawrence: Claire Z & Cecilia Y
Schofield: Cathy G & Aarza B
Singleton: Caitlyn L & Lucy W
Taylor: Kenolee H & Aurelia P

Library Leaders
Elva W, Isabella X & Remilia L

Music Leaders
Annabelle Z & Aadhya T G

School Captains
Audrey C & Neesha N

Social Service Leaders
Faye L & Wendy Z

Sustainability Leaders
Sienna T & Annie S

Leadership Prayer

I’d like to share Deputy Head Emma Hinchliffe’s leadership prayer from the Year 6 assembly. Our leadership program celebrates every Year 6 student’s potential to lead. The prayer below was a fitting end to the event.

Dear God,

Thank you for providing our students with a safe and caring environment to learn, connect and play, when we know that not all children are so lucky.

Thank you also for allowing our Year 6 students to have the opportunity to share their gratitude, enthusiasm, and skills with the whole school community through their new leadership roles.

We know that true leadership is not about receiving accolades but acting in the service of others. Grant that through the receiving of theses badges, each student is reminded of the importance of enacting our school motto “Utilis in Ministerium” useful in service.

Regardless of our roles in the school community, please support each of us to show leadership to one another through embodying our school values of integrity, commitment, respect, hope, and courage. Help us to overcome any challenges in our paths by remaining humble, trying our best and not being afraid to ask for support when needed.

We ask that you give our Year 6 leaders the confidence to share their ideas and opinions, and to use their voices to make each role their own. Watch over each of them as they strive to support others and challenge themselves to step out of their comfort zones.

In Jesus’ name,

Amen

Paul Donohue
Head of Junior School

Early Learning 4 Full Time

Sharing our stories help us learn about ourselves and others.

The story Family, written by Aunty Fay Muir and Sue Lawson, was used as a provocation to initiate discussion about our own families. Through words and illustrations in the book, Aunty Fay, a Boonwurrung Elder, shared how family can be and mean many different things. We discovered the important role that kinship plays in First Nations culture and our own cultures, and how family teaches us the importance of belonging and identity. As creative communicators and thinkers, the children used photographs, dialogue, and drawing to share aspects of their own families, and how they ‘be’ with their family. The children were provided with time and opportunity to share these during our gathering time, and they were used as provocations for discussion and appreciation for the similarities and differences between families.

Family means your parents. In my family there’s me, my dad, my mum and my baby brother. – Tashi

I go to the beach with my family. I go to the beach with my mummy and daddy, and I squirt daddy. – Noria

My mum and me and my sister and my grandpa and my dad are in my family. Families do things together and they can make things for each other. My dad built a tree house for me and somebody else helped him. – Jeslyn

You love your family. – Charlotte

I’ve got everybody in my family. – Elakiya

Freya, mummy, daddy and grandpa and my auntie are in my family. – Freya

To further explore identity, individual photographs and mirrors were used as provocations, and spaces were curated for the children to express their thinking and observations about themselves through drawing and dialogue. During this exploration, the children demonstrated their ability to be researchers and curious learners.

Developing a positive view of oneself is fundamental to every child’s wellbeing, and their ability to learn and engage effectively with their world. A critical part of children developing their identity comes from having an understanding of both themselves, and the people around them. Families and teachers play a significant role in empowering children to embrace their individuality and supporting them to form positive views of themselves, as well as contributing to their sense of belonging.

Angela Follacchio
Early Learning 4 Full Time Teacher

Year 3 School Values

As part of our Quality Beginnings program, Year 3 have enjoyed taking a deep dive into our CGGS School Values. We used the acronym RICH – with an extra C = RICCH to help us recall the values – Respect, Integrity, Courage, Commitment and Hope. Year 3 believed it was fitting to add the additional ‘C’ because it reminds us that we have an extra ‘RICCH’ school culture. We have been exploring what the values mean to us and how we can think about them, and demonstrate them, in everyday situations. A lot of our discussions have been linked to picture story books that have given us examples to refer to. We have also created a classroom display to remind everyone what our values mean to us as individuals, to our class and to our CGGS community.

Selena Reedman
Year 3 Teacher

Year 4 Mayor Visit

As part of our Inquiry Civics and Citizenship unit, ‘What Makes a Responsible Citizen?’, our Year 4 students had a fantastic opportunity to engage with our local government when the Mayor of Boroondara, Sophie Torney, visited Ormiston on Wednesday 19 February. This enriching session provided insight into the responsibilities of a mayor and councillors, helping students understand how local decisions impact the community.

Mayor Torney shared details about her role and the democratic process. The highlight of the visit was a mock council meeting, where students took on roles such as CEO, councillors, and members of the public. They debated whether a local park should install swings or a slippery dip, presenting arguments and persuading councillors before reaching a decision.

This hands-on experience helped students develop public speaking and reasoning skills while gaining a deeper appreciation for community decision-making. We sincerely thank Mayor Sophie Torney for inspiring our students—perhaps we have future councillors or even a future mayor among us!

Anjali De Quadros
Year 4 Teacher

Language Program Session 1

For tens of thousands of years, hundreds of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander languages have been spoken across Australia. At the time of European colonisation, there were at least 250 Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander languages spoken across the continent. In 2014, the National Indigenous Languages Survey report estimated that only 120 of Australia’s First Languages were still being spoken, with just 13 of these being considered ‘strong’.

This week we welcomed Pallyan into the Early Learning and Foundation to Year 2 classrooms for the Wurundjeri Language Program. Pallyan engaged the students in stories, videos and song, teaching them traditional Wurundjeri vocabulary for greetings and native animal names. He was thrilled that so many students made connections to their previous learning experience with Murrundindi.

Here are some of our student’s reflections:

Foundation

Mary – I like the way Pallyan was talking. I learnt the word Wominjeka.

Estelle – I love the eagle it is called Bunjil. I remember meeting Wurundjeri people in Early Learning. Pallyan said Wominjeka everyone.

Year 1

Olivia – I liked singing a new Aboriginal song. It was fun and it ended with a whoop!

Abigail & Luna – We enjoyed him teaching us the Wurundjeri words for animals. They are called inga linga, woterang, bebejan and pallyan. We have used these words for our reading group names.

Year 2

Sarika – I liked that Pallyan taught us a different language and I liked how he showed us a video of Murrundindi telling a story about Bunjil and the mountain that grew over him.

Tiffany – I enjoyed learning about the animals and seeing the woterang swimming in the water with its eyes closed.

Students are practising using Wurundjeri greetings as they interact with their peers and adults throughout the day. We encourage you to also use these Wurundjeri words at home.

Wominjeka- (Womin-dji-ka) Welcome

Gudjinna (Good-gin-na)- Hello

Noon-gudjin (Noon-good-gin) -Thank you

Triganin (Trig-a-nin)- See you later

This immersive experience has provided our students with invaluable opportunities to connect with the rich cultural heritage of the Wurundjeri people while fostering respect and appreciation for the linguistic diversity that shapes our society. Engaging with the traditional language has ignited curiosity and empathy in our young learners, encouraging them to understand and appreciate how language influences our identity, connection to place, and sense of belonging.

Nancy Robottom
Deputy Head of Junior School