Primary School Update - 23 May 2025

HEAD OF SCHOOL UPDATE Melanie Woods

Parent / Visitor Sign In To support us in providing a safe and orderly environment for our students:

• Please note that all parents and visitors are to sign in at the Main Reception in the Tech Centre when coming onsite, even if the visit's purpose is to briefly visit Primary Hub, Care Centre, Secondary Hub or other areas on campus.

• Please do not walk to any other areas of the College without first signing in. You will then be escorted to the relevant area of the campus.

• We also ask that you sign out when leaving.

• Please note that Primary Hub and Secondary Hub no longer have the facility to sign parents onto the site.

Primary Encounter Afternoon Our next Primary Encounter Afternoon is happening next week on Wednesday 28 May. This event is for our students from Kindergarten to Year 6 who would like to spend time praising the God of the Bible and is a terrific opportunity for our students to spend time with fellow students, share food and worship together! These activities begin with a delicious afternoon tea together, followed by lots of dancing and singing as students praise God through song! 

Each year students eagerly await this afternoon; the excitement they are feeling is tangible! Students attending will also get to hear a short Bible talk and respond to Jesus in prayer. Please feel free to fill out the Registration Form to RSVP your child. We are looking forward to an afternoon of fun and praise!

National Simultaneous Storytime at ACC On Thursday, our students gathered to celebrate and enjoy the National Simultaneous Storytime. The National Simultaneous Storytime (NSS) is held annually by the Australian Library. Every year a picture book, written and illustrated by an Australian author and illustrator, is read simultaneously in libraries, schools, pre-schools, childcare centres, family homes, bookshops and many other places around the country. In its 25th year of running, it is a colourful, vibrant, fun event that aims to promote the value of reading and literacy, using a book that explores age-appropriate themes and addresses key learning areas of the National Curriculum for Foundation to Year 6. This year's book is called The Truck Cat and was read beautifully by Mr Corr to all K-6 students. Students then had various games and reading treasure hunts to enjoy to end the event. Thank you to Mr Corr and to our librarians Miss Reichardt and Mrs Jones for keeping our joy and love of reading alive.

Private Music Lessons One of the extracurricular activities we provide at ACC for all our K-12 students is the opportunity to learn musical instruments. There is so much value in learning a musical instrument! Some of the highlights are learning a new skill, enjoying a new craft and building discipline.

Studies in neuroscience also show that music can enhance brain function in children. Musical activities stimulate the brain; a brain workout that leads to improved brain structure with the formation of new neural connections.

If you would like to get involved, please visit our Community Portal and send an inquiry. 

‘I See You, Star’ Morning Tea Every Face has a Place at ACC! We continue to encourage students that we know them and that we see them. We want the students to know that we see when they are kind, showing respect, being willing to learn, make Christ-like decisions and when they make wise and safe choices. To celebrate their hard work and efforts, select students are invited to attend an I See You, Star Morning Tea each week, hosted by Mr Parsonage, the Stage Coordinators and myself (Mrs Woods). This is an opportunity to spend quality time with them, thank them, and congratulate them for their good work!

The following students have been given an I See You, Star Award and attended the Morning Tea over the last two weeks: 

Aarin D, Aaron B, Ada V, Aiden G, Alexandria O, Amelie D, Anaya A, Arha V, Arlo De V, Asher G, Asher G, Asher P, Brianna J, Carter L, Claire A, David A, David A, Denethi L, Devaansh P, Dorothy T, Eden Z, Emanuel B, Emmelyn L, Eva O, Isaac R, Jake W, Janelle L, Janhavi J, Janvi P, Jazmyne G, Jiyana J, John A, John K, Kaaya P, Kalel B, Lucas C, Luke M, Lyla-Rae A, Mayukha K, Nicholas M, Oliver K, Pawel D, River A, Sahaj G, Sai Aniketh K, Samuel D, Savi K, Shiloah S, Shiloh A, Shiloh C, Shimron B, Shlok P, Shreyas J, Simeon K, Taylar C, Timothy W, Viraj S, Yohan C, Zachary D, Zara W.

Primary Athletics Carnival Exciting news - our Primary Athletics Carnival is coming soon! On Thursday 3 July, we will be heading to Blacktown International Sports Park for a day of action-packed athletics activities and events. Please save the date in your calendars. More information will be sent to parents over the following weeks as this exciting day approaches. 

Library for K-6 In our Tech Centre building is our beautiful Library, where our students consistently enjoy their library classes. All students from K-6 have been rotating through the Library with their peers, teachers and our beloved librarians, Miss Reichardt and Mrs Jones. 

Students have all received an ACC library bag which they use to borrow available books. I am encouraged to think about all of the memories being made in our library classes, and the ones that are to come, as our students continue to grow their love of knowledge, reading and learning. 

Socials We love hosting families at ACC during assemblies, chapels, carnivals and many other showcases. In order to protect our students and honour families we do ask that no images of ACC children or ACC staff are posted on any social media platform. Please ensure there are also no images of students and staff placed on Whatsapp Parent Groups. We love sharing stories and images from our official newsletters and social media pages, which is where you can find images of these events. Thank you for helping us continue to keep our students safe. 

Kinder Enrolments for 2026 and 2027 Our 2026 Kinder enrolments are nearly finalised! What a blessing it is that our College will be welcoming many new and existing families to Kindergarten next year. If you are an existing family and have not yet completed an enrolment application on the ACC Website, please do so urgently and reach out to our Enrolments team via email. Excitingly, our Kinder Orientations begin in Term 3 and 4. Our new Kinder students enjoy a number of mornings at the campus and get a taste of what ‘big school’ will be like. Please feel free to reach out to our Enrolments team if you have any further questions.

PRIMARY SPORTING UPDATES Shawn Parsonage

It has certainly been a busy start to the term already. We have had a number of students recently attend representative sports trials and other sporting events, with even more coming just around the corner!

Christian Schools Sports Association (CSSA) Football Trials Three of our talented students Isabel, Rebekah and Adelaide attended the CSSA Girls Football trials. They each performed really well on the day against some skilled competition, embracing the challenge ahead!

Combined Independent Schools (CIS) Rugby League We celebrate with Samuel in Year 5 (depicted), who recently attended the CIS Rugby League trials. His goal was to gain selection in CIS Under 11’s Rep Team. After some changes to his trial, Samuel was offered the opportunity to instead try out for the Under 12’s Team. He performed extremely well, and was selected by the CIS U12 Rugby League. Congratulations Samuel!

CSSA Gymnastics We have a number of talented gymnasts in our Primary school, who spend many hours training with their coaches before and after school. A number of them will represent the College on 18 June, at the CSSA State Gymnastics Championships. We wish all our athletes well, and look forward to hearing all about it very soon.

Cross Country & State Cross Country  Our Primary Cross Country Carnival has been successfully completed for another year. As was mentioned in our last newsletter, it is a tremendous blessing to be able to run a true cross country course here on campus. The wet weather leading up to the day certainly gave the students a real sense of what cross country running is all about.

From our Carnival, we will be sending 32 student representatives to the CSSA State Cross Country Carnival on 30 May, at The Sydney International Equestrian Centre. Well done to these athletes for qualifying.

Inter-School Sport Each year, along with three other local Christian schools, ACC participates in Inter-School sport. This provides an excellent opportunity for our students to experience competitive team sport against other schools. It provides opportunities for students to develop a number of our student attributes in different settings including resilience, humility, reflectiveness and self-control.

Each Wednesday this term, our teams will participate in the following sports as a part of the Inter-School Sport program: 

• Junior and Senior Netball

• Junior and Senior Boys Football

• Junior and Senior Girls Oztag

• Junior and Senior Mixed T-Ball 

Primary Athletics Carnival The next sports event on the calendar for Primary will be our K-6 Athletics Carnival, which will be held at Blacktown International Sports Park on 3 July (Term 2, Week 10).

This is always a real highlight on our sporting calendar. More information regarding this Carnival will be sent to families soon. 

KJ CLASS UPDATES Bianca Jenner

In KJ, Maths time is one of the most exciting parts of our day! KJ loves to participate in maths rotations, where they get to explore a range of engaging activities and games that help consolidate the concepts they’ve been learning in class.

Each rotation is thoughtfully designed to give students the chance to practise important skills through fun, hands-on activities. Whether it's counting, sorting, adding or recognising patterns, KJ builds their understanding in a way that’s playful and meaningful.

Working together in small groups, KJ students enjoy using a variety of math manipulatives such as dice, counters, number cards, playdough, cubes, pattern blocks, and dominoes. These tools help bring maths to life and make learning concrete and interactive. You might see KJ students rolling dice to add numbers, using playdough to form numerals or building patterns with colourful shapes.

These rotations not only support learning but also build important social skills such as sharing, turn-taking and working as a team. The laughter and quiet chatter you hear during maths rotations are signs of students who are engaged, challenged and most importantly, having fun while learning.

Each activity is carefully planned to reinforce our current learning goals, and it’s wonderful to see the students applying their knowledge in different and creative ways. Watching KJ collaborate, experiment and celebrate their achievements makes maths a joyful part of our classroom.

Maths in KJ is all about making connections, building confidence and celebrating every step forward. I am so proud of how our little mathematicians are growing every day. 

5G CLASS UPDATES Daniel Gough

As Term 2 began, the students of 5G returned from their holidays feeling energised and ready to dive back into learning. It has been a wonderful start to the term, full of meaningful experiences and exciting opportunities.

The class respectfully participated in the ANZAC Day ceremony, where they honoured the service and sacrifice of those who have served our country. This was a special moment to reflect on the values of courage, loyalty, and sacrifice. It reminded everyone how important it is to show gratitude and remember our history.

One of the highlights of the term has been meeting our Year 12 buddies, Dhanvitha and Aaron. The class had a lovely time getting to know them, encouraging them during their final year, and praying for their studies and wellbeing. It’s been a great opportunity to show care and support across Year levels.

The students also took part in the College’s Cross Country event, which was a fantastic day of fun, fitness, and perseverance. Everyone gave it their best effort and enjoyed cheering on their classmates.

In morning devotions, the class has been learning from the book of Exodus, focusing on the stories of Joseph and Moses. These stories have helped us see how important it is to trust in God’s plan, even when things don’t seem to be going our way.

Through the Peacewise program, the students have continued learning how to build and maintain positive relationships that honour God. These lessons are helping them grow in kindness, understanding, and peacemaking in their daily lives.

During library time, we've been enjoying the classic Australian story The Magic Pudding, which never fails to make everyone laugh. In class, they have been thoroughly engaged with the novel study of Wonder by R. J. Palacio. This powerful book has helped them understand the importance of kindness, empathy, and looking beyond appearances. It has sparked many thoughtful discussions and encouraged greater inclusivity and compassion.

Overall, it has been a rich and rewarding start to the term in 5G. The students are growing not just as learners, but as a class that works together in unity and love, seeking to honour God in all they do.

5A CLASS UPDATES George Aydin

This week in Year 5 has been eventful! Our lovely class worked tirelessly on their Assembly item where they got to showcase their digital skills by animating a short clip of how they are creative in everyday life. It was a great way for the students to learn that we are all wonderfully made by God, who shows His creativity through the amazing creation we are surrounded by. Since we are created in His image, creativity is part of who we are. 

During Year 5 literacy lessons we have been focusing on debating and how to write a persuasive argument. The students came up with convincing reasons and strengthened their argument by supporting it with facts, statistics or expert opinions. A great foundation for essay writing. We also looked at how to effectively use rhetorical questions and repetition. Year 5 have enjoyed reading Wonder to continually develop their comprehension, vocabulary, and reading fluency. 

Mathematics lessons challenged students with the concept of factors and comparing highest common factors and lowest common factors between whole numbers. We also worked with division problems and different strategies to help us solve them.

Lastly, the students have been enjoying our morning devotions as we have been looking through the Old Testament and the story of the Israelites and how everything points back to Jesus.