Issue 5 - 2025

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Issue 5 - 2025

From the Principal

Primary

Secondary

School Notices

From the Principal

EASTER SERVICE AND COMPASSION CERTIFICATES

Our Easter Celebration Service was an important opportunity for us to gather together as a school to remember that one of the central messages of Easter is love. Jesus loved the world so much that He laid down His life for us. We welcomed The Right Reverend Kate Wilmot, Assistant Bishop of the Diocese of Perth, who led us in our service.

We also took the opportunity towards the end of our service to recognise our Students and Staff who were awarded COMPASSION Certificates for Term 1. Congratulations to everyone who was presented with a COMPASSION award for embracing our 2025 whole school theme: Be kind to others; Care about people who are suffering; Find ways to help them.

CONFIRMATION SERVICE

We were absolutely delighted to hold our school’s first ever Confirmation Service and privileged to again welcome The Right Reverend Kate Wilmot, Assistant Bishop of the Diocese of Perth, to lead us.

Confirmation is the Anglican way of completing Christian initiation, so is thus a natural, integral part of our Anglican identity. It is a sacramental service in the Anglican Church, during which the Bishop prays that the person will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. The person confirms the promises made at their Baptism (Christening). For those who were baptised as infants or young children, it is a chance to make the Christian promises for themselves. It is both confirming our faith to God and being confirmed by God with the Holy Spirit. For all people it is a sign of belonging to the wider Church, represented by the Bishop. It is a symbol of growing in the Christian faith.

We are hopeful that from now on, we are able to hold a School Confirmation Service every year.

MOTHER’S DAY VIDEO

To celebrate Mother’s Day, we took the opportunity to recognise the special Mothers and Carers in our school community by making a unique video.

We asked our staff and students what they love about their mums - or what they love about being a mum. You might like to take a look here.

FRIENDS OF SVACS MOTHER’S DAY BREAKFAST

This year, we welcomed over 300 people to our annual Friends of SVACS Mother’s Day Breakfast.

It provided a wonderful opportunity to celebrate with and thank our amazing Mothers and Carers. It was wonderful to see so many smiling faces enjoying a really delicious breakfast and listening to an excellent piano recital played by one of our very talented Music students.

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ANZAC DAY SERVICE

Staff and students from Years 3-12 joined together for our annual Anzac Day Service.

This was an important opportunity for us to take the time to reflect on those who made the ultimate sacrifices for others through war. Early Years students also gathered for their own service, wearing poppies that they had made as a symbol of remembrance.

HARMONY DAY

Harmony Day is when we recognise our diversity and celebrate the important message that "Everyone Belongs".

Our school celebrated Harmony Day with a whole school buddy activity, when students from the Secondary School met with their Primary School buddies for the first occasion this year. Together, the buddies enjoyed taking part in “Getting to know you” conversations, while listening to music. Students were encouraged to wear orange and/or something that is traditionally worn in their home country or where they feel their heritage lies. It was a fantastic occasion that celebrated the wonderful diversity and inclusivity of our school community.

WACSSA SWIMMING CARNIVAL

Junior Years swimmers enjoyed a very successful day out at the Division 2 WACSSA Interschool Swimming Carnival at the Perth HPC pool (formally HBF Stadium).

Our students performed so exceptionally that SVACS won the Division 2 WACSSA Swimming Carnival Shield and will be promoted into Division 1 next year! Congratulations to Paige Jones who won Year 3 Champion Girl, Kain Jones who won Year 6 Champion Boy, Leila Hansen who won Year 6 Runner-up Champion Girl, and Liling Bampton who won Year 3 Third Place Champion Girl.

OUR INSPIRING ALUMNI - WHERE ARE THEY NOW?

Seven of Swan Valley Anglican Community School’s Alumni were accepted to study Performing Arts at tertiary institutions in 2025. This is an outstanding achievement! Six students are at WAAPA, the Western Australian Academy of Performing Arts.

Jason Grobbelaar is pursuing a Bachelor of Music (majoring in Jazz Performance) with the electric bass as his chosen instrument. He absolutely loves being at WAAPA and feels it is the perfect place for him to grow as a musician. Jason continued his lessons with his instrument tutor at SVACS after finishing school and credits his tutor with helping him prepare for his audition and maintaining his skills.

OUR NEW SVACS MOBILE APP

Don’t forget that our new SVACS Mobile App is now live, free and ready to download on both iPhones and Android phones.

The App is designed to streamline communication between the School and Parents/Carers. Features include push notifications to your phone, so you never miss any important news or an upcoming event. Please follow the User Guide Instructions for details on how to download the App onto your phone. We look forward to sharing important school updates, events and notifications with you on this new medium!

Apple: https://apps.apple.com/us/app/swan-valley/id6738373306

Google: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=au.edu.wa.svacs.schoolapp

SVACS STARS

Noah Brown (Year 11) recently travelled to Taiwan to compete in the Gymefit Ninja Games. He chose to participate in two divisions, his U/15 Age Division and the Open Adults Division. After two long days and three gruelling stages for each division, Noah won both divisions, coming away with two first places! Congratulations Noah on this amazing achievement! Click here for the link to the video of his Open Stage Three Final to see the level of skill and poise Noah displayed.

Congratulations to Savannah Standish (Year 7) who recently competed at the WA Karate Federation State Championships and won a silver medal. As a result, Savannah has been selected to represent Western Australia in the upcoming National Championships in Adelaide!

Carpe diem! Seize the day!

Melissa Powell
Principal

Primary

TERM 2 IS IN FULL SWING!

So much has happened in the first few weeks of Term 2!

The Primary Leaders, Service Leaders and Chapel Leaders played essential roles in the formal Year 3 to Year 12 ANZAC Service. Congratulations to those student leaders involved. The students prepared diligently for the event and spoke exceptionally well in front of a large audience. ANZAC Day was also observed at the Early Years Assembly, and some Year 2 Leaders assisted Mrs Crawshaw in running this event. Congratulations to all the students involved!

Celebrating the special people in the lives of the children is important, and recently, there have been a lot of learning activities around the topic of Mother’s Day. We acknowledge the contributions of mums, grandparents, extended family and special friends, and thank them for partnering with us at SVACS.

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It is lovely to see so many exciting activities occurring across the classrooms, with a good range of inquiry and investigation projects balanced with explicit teaching of literacy and numeracy. The Around the Classrooms section of this newsletter showcases many examples.

Mrs Shirley Steel
Head of Primary School

AROUND THE CLASSROOMS

A lot has been happening around the classrooms in recent weeks.

Pre-Kindergarten students have had a wonderful start to the term. They have enjoyed playing outside with their friends in the beautiful sunshine and exploring new learning areas in the classroom. We welcomed some new students who were very excited to start their Pre-Kindy adventure with us!

Kindergarten – This term the Kindergarten children are investigating all the amazing parts of our community. So far, they have been sharing their thoughts about our wonderful school and discussing the emergency services in the wider community. They have transformed their dramatic play area into a hospital and have been enjoying exploring all the different roles in a medical centre. Some children have roleplayed being patients, paramedics, nurses, and doctors! Luckily, they even have some people who thought to use the walkie talkie to call for help from the police and fire brigade – we definitely have some budding everyday heroes here in Kindy!

Pre-Primary - Our Pre-Primary students had a wonderful time celebrating Mother’s Day alongside the incredible female role models in their lives. The afternoon began with a special Mother's Day movie, followed by a delightful afternoon tea shared with loved ones. It was a heartwarming event filled with smiles, laughter, and appreciation for all the amazing women who nurture and inspire us every day.

Year 1 students have had a busy and fun start to the term. In Mathematics, they learned all about how to collect and record data by asking questions, sorting data, and using tally charts and picture graphs to display the information. They applied their learning in a hands-on experience by organising coloured Smarties and graphing them. The hardest part was waiting until the Mathematics was complete so they could eat the yummy Smarties!

Year 2 - This term, our Year 2 students are diving into an exciting Geography unit as they explore the seven continents and five oceans of the world. Using maps and globes, they are developing their understanding of the Earth’s geography and learning to describe different places using geographical language.

As part of their learning, students are in the process of planning an ‘Around the World Cruise’, making sure their journey visits every continent and travels through each ocean. With each new destination, they are uncovering fascinating facts and building a strong awareness of the diverse world we live in. We can’t wait to see where their adventures take them next!

Year 3—During Mathematics lessons, students explored a measurement investigation called ‘How Do I Measure Up?’ They enjoyed recording various body measurements, such as height and arm span, and then used graphs to compare data. This hands-on activity helped students apply real-life mathematical skills while having fun and learning about themselves and each other.

Year 4 students designed and built their own irrigation systems using simple materials, applying their knowledge of water transportation and sustainability. They worked collaboratively to test, refine, and reflect on their models, showing creativity and problem-solving throughout. Their impressive designs highlighted a strong understanding of real-world engineering concepts.

Year 5 students embarked on an exciting journey, discovering different countries and the natural wonders of the world in their Geography lessons. Working in groups, they delved further into the diverse regions of North and South America, researching everything from climate and major landforms to vegetation and animals. Each group shared their fascinating findings with the class through engaging presentations. To wrap up their project, the students created a comprehensive fact file jigsaw, piecing together all the knowledge they had gathered. Well done, Year 5, for your hard work and teamwork!

Year 6 students were ‘all smiles’ as they received their celebration shirts! Marking a special milestone in their final year of primary school, the shirts represent the memories and achievements they've collected along the way. The excitement spread quickly as students proudly wore their shirts, ready to celebrate the journey so far and the adventures ahead!

Visual Art – James Rizzi is the focus artist for the wonderful Year 2 students this semester. They have been learning all about his bright and dreamy artworks that are filled with vivid bold colours, playful graphics and cheerful symbols reflecting his optimistic outlook on life. The year 2 students have created their very own James Rizzi inspired city scape paintings and are now onto making James Rizzi inspired ceramic slab birds.

Physical Education – Our Early Years students are learning how to play kickball and are beginning to piece together different fundamental movement skills they’ve learned to participate in a game as a class. For Junior Years students, this term is all about invasion sports! Students are going to develop their cooperation, skills and game sense to learn and play games of netball, basketball, AFL or soccer!

This term has many carnivals coming up, including WACSSA AFL, netball, soccer, and cross country at the end of the term. Our students are well and truly up for the challenge, with all the teams now selected and training sessions happening at lunchtime!

Italian -There has been a lot of excitement for the Yr 4 students recently, when the winners of the 2025 Italian Mathematics Championship were announced. The students really enjoyed using their Italian language and mathematics skills, trying to win the highly coveted SVACS Café vouchers! The winners of the Café voucher are:

4B – Miguel , Abhikaran and Ragnar

4C – Rene, Sahaj, Jovan and Fateh

4S – William, Aarav and Nimar

Key Dates – What’s Coming Up?

Many exciting events are coming up in Term 2.

The Parent-Teacher Interviews in Week 5, held on Tuesday, 27 May, and Thursday, 29 May, provide a significant opportunity for families to partner with the school. Be sure to sign up to meet with your child’s teacher. An email with information about signing up for Parent-Teacher Interviews has been issued to kindergarten to Year 6 families.

Primary Parent-Teacher Meetings: Tuesday 27 May and Thursday 29 May

Chapel Assembly Hosted by 3A: Tuesday 27 May, 8.50am

Chapel Assembly Hosted by 1B: Thursday 29 May, 8.50am

WA Day Public Holiday: Monday 2 June

Chapel Assembly Hosted by 4C: Tuesday 10 June, 8.50am

Chapel Assembly Hosted by 1Br: Thursday 12 June, 8.50am

WACSSA Netball (selected students): Friday 13 June

Discos: Friday 20 June (ticket purchase is required)

Chapel Assembly Hosted by 5J: Tuesday 24 June, 8.50am

Primary Years Open Morning: Thursday 26 June, 8.45am

Primary Cross Country: Friday 27 June, 11am to 3pm

End of Semester 1 Assembly: Thursday 3 July (formal uniform is required)

Last Day of Term 2: Friday 4 July

Thank you to everyone for supporting our Primary School. Enjoy the weeks ahead!

Secondary

SECONDARY REMINDERS

New date for Year 10 Immunisations

The Department of Health is offering a free Meningococcal ACWY vaccine for all Year 10s on Thursday 14th August. Please note this is a change in the previously advertised date.

Please note that students in Years 10 should wear PE uniform on the day of their immunisation

All students require parent/carer consent before they receive any vaccinations at school.

Please find attached the link for students to register, preferred method.

For further information on the vaccines please visit the following website:

School-based immunisation program healthywa.wa.gov.au

Elevate’s Parent Webinars this term

Elevate is an Australian wide provider of study skills programs designed to equip students with the tools they need for academic success. This year Elevate will be at Swan Valley Anglican Community School to speak to our Year 7s and 9s.

During Term 2, you are invited to join the following parent webinar series:

How You Can Help Your Child Prepare for Exams – 21st May 6:30pm (AEST)
How You Can Support Your Child During Exams - 4th June 6:30pm (AEST)
How to Help Your Child Alleviate Stress – 2nd July 6:30pm (AEST)

You can register for the series by clicking the link below:

Paul Litherland Presentation

On Wednesday 11 June Paul Litherland will be spending the day at Swan Valley Anglican Community School. He will present to students from Year 5 to Year 9.

Paul Litherland is the 2022 State Recipient of the Australian of the Year and a former West Australian Police Officer who served for over 20 years. He is the owner of Surf Online Safe, https://www.surfonlinesafe.com.au/ a Perth-based Internet Awareness consultancy and widely regarded as one of Australia’s leading keynote speakers on Cyber Safety and Internet Awareness.

During the day he will present to students in Primary and Secondary about the risks of the online world and how students can stay safe in this online playground.

We are delighted to announce that Paul will be presenting to parents/carers in the evening in our Performing Arts Theatre. Commencing at 5.30pm and concluding at 7.00pm, Paul will outline key points surrounding the online behaviours of our children and offer an insight into where they are going online. Paul’s presentations are both engaging and informative. This essential session will include information on:

Cyber Bullying – Legislation surrounding this and how it is affecting our children.
Digital Citizenship – Where our children are going online, the Apps they are using and the information they are sharing.
Online Footprint – How easy it is to find children online and what they can do to minimise their risk.
Social Networking & Networking in general – How the systems work and how to overcome their reach.
Online Gaming and Website Use - Risks and uses.
Tips & Tricks – How to keep an eye on your children through software and hardware. Easy instructions on what we can do to keep them safe.

We urge all parents/carers to attend this free event.

Please RSVP for this event at: https://www.trybooking.com/DBVD

Save the Date: Middle Years (Years 7 to 9) Social

Date: Friday June 20th (week 8)
Time: 6.30 – 9.00pm
Venue: MPH
More details to follow.

Debbie Davies
Head of Secondary (Student Wellbeing)

SECONDARY NEWS

Year 7 Camp – A Week to Remember!

Our Year 7 students recently returned from an action-packed, fun-filled camp that will surely be one of the highlights of their year. From the moment we arrived, the excitement was non-stop.

Even though it was a very hot week, each day was packed with adventurous activities designed to challenge, inspire, and bring everyone together. Students took aim in archery, tackled the high ropes with confidence, and scaled the rock climbing wall like pros. Orienteering tested our navigation skills, and our colour war brought out everyone’s team spirit and creative energy – let’s just say, there was a lot of colour everywhere!

The absolute highlight for many was the fantastic day at Outback Splash – a thrilling day of waterslides, laughter, and cooling off in the pool under the hot sun.

Throughout the week, students showed courage, teamwork, and a whole lot of enthusiasm. It was a wonderful opportunity to make new friends, build resilience, and create memories that will last for years to come.

Clare Lowndes
Head of Year 7

School Notices

SCHOOL PHOTO ORDERS

We have been informed by Kapture Photography that orders are still open for this year’s class and individual photos.

Please place your order before the closing date, Wednesday 21st May, to avoid a $30 custom service fee.

You will be notified when the special group photos become available for viewing and purchase.

To order photos please visit via https://www.kapture.com.au/Order-Online and enter the school code 229H8Z and the student’s unique ID code found on the Kapture Photography envelope that has been handed out to students.

If you have lost the flyer and don’t have the child’s unique code, you can use your child’s student ID number, which can be found on their SmartRider card or through the Student’s SEQTA Learn portal.