Boneo Buzz: 31st March

Dear Parents and Carers,

It is difficult to believe that we are heading into the final week of Term 1. Staff welcome the opportunity to meet and share student progress at Parent Teacher Interviews next week. Interviews are at school on Monday and Tuesday.

Parent-teacher interviews give you a great opportunity to:

  • learn more about your child’s academic, emotional and social development
  • meet and get to know your child’s teachers
  • help your child’s teachers understand more about your child
  • make plans with the teacher about how you can both support your child/ren.

If you don’t have any particular concerns, you might wonder whether it’s worth going to parent-teacher interviews. But going along is one way to show your child that you’re interested in their learning and what’s happening for them at school.

If you are unable to attend please contact your child/ren’s teacher and schedule an alternate time.

We held our Annual General School Council Meeting last week and I would like to thank our members for their commitment, dedication and passion for our school. I can confirm the following composition of Council for 2023/2024:

President: Owen Goodwin

Vice President: Davey Smith

Treasurer: Vanessa Smedley

Secretary: Marija Pandza

Parent Representatives: Owen Goodwin, Davey Smith, Vanessa Smedley, Jessica Hennessey, Jo Twentyman, Melissa Ham, Brielle O’Neil, Trudi Wooley, Martina Franjic, Alex Presutti.

DET Representatives: Mandy Whitworth, Marija Pandza, Tom Pollett, Liz Demaj and Tim Robertson (Buildings and Grounds employee).

We want to acknowledge and thank our retiring Council members:

Andrew Frost

Rhys Edmund

Please join me in thanking these parents for their outstanding contribution to support the decision making at Boneo Primary School.

ANZAC Day and Grandparents and Special Persons Day

On Friday 28 April, we invite all of our grandparents to attend our assembly to acknowledge both ANZAC Day and our wonderful grandparents. Grandparents and Special Friends will then join the students in class where they will be interviewed to find out more about their lives and connection to Boneo. 

ANZAC Day March and Service – Tuesday 25th April

Students are invited to join Mrs Whitworth, Mrs Pandza and our School Captains for the Rosebud RSL ANZAC Day Service. 

Please meet at the corner of Point Nepean Road and Ninth Avenue, Rosebud at 9.30am. Our school group will march to the Cenotaph for the official service and wreath laying.

Students should be in full school uniform.

Intention to Enrol – Prep 2024

If you have a child due to commence Prep in 2024, please complete an ‘Intention to Enrol’ form, available from the office.

Dental Packs

All students received a free water bottle, toothbrush and tube of toothpaste from Smile Squad this week. Smile Squad is a Victorian Government program that offers free dental care to all Victorian government school students. This is a wonderful initiative to help us all practise great dental hygiene.

Introducing our new STEM Wizard – Kieran Nolan

My partner Natasha and I moved to Mornington in 2020 and have loved it ever since! We run a free monthly program with a group of growing local technologists called Peninsula Bitcoin.

Based on my experience, I’ve found that financial literacy is an essential skill that is often overlooked in traditional education. As the Director of the Digital Playhouse Foundation Ltd, my focus is on creating didactic programs that teach financial and digital literacy, as well as coding and networks. In 2018, I co-founded RocketShoes, an educational platform that uses blockchain and IPFS technology to help students keep track of their learning materials and digital assets. 

Previously, I served as the Chief Technology Officer at Hendersons, where I helped young students prepare for entrance exams at various schools. I was also an Educational Technologist at Wooranna Park Primary School, Australia’s first “School on the Blockchain,” where I spearheaded innovative initiatives such as a 24/7 International Virtual Learning Environment in Minecraft, Victoria’s first CoderDojo, and Australia’s first Immersive Education Club.

In addition to my professional work, I am also passionate about Bitcoin and its potential to disrupt traditional financial systems. I host two Bitcoin podcasts, BitcoinAggregated and #getoffzero, and have spoken at a number of prominent conferences around the world, including Immersive Education in Paris, Wall Street in NYC, and EduTech in Sydney.

My qualifications include a Computer Science Degree from Swinburne University, as well as certifications in Higher-Ed Teaching, Google Apps for Education (GAFE), Advanced Diploma in Cyber Security, and a Google 360º photography certification. My work has been featured in various media outlets, including The George Lucas Foundation, Bitcoin.com, The Age, and Australian Teacher Magazine. I was also named on the educator hotlist in both 2019 and 2020.

I am thrilled to be working with Boneo Primary, and hope to bring some great initiatives to the learning community!

Family, Food & Fun Night

Thank you Boneo Community for your tremendous support of our Family Food & Fun night. This event is a celebration of our very special school community.

To all who attended the event, our wonderful volunteers and generous business community, we are so incredibly grateful. 

We are thrilled to announce that we achieved our goal, raising $13,000 to assist with the development of our new ‘Ninja’ Obstacle Playground. Construction is due to commence in May…very exciting!

Keep checking the Buzz for updates on upcoming events we have planned for our school community.

Snapshot of Learning

Prep – Enchanted Adventure Garden

This week, Prep students extended their sense of curiosity by exploring different activities within the Enchanted Adventure Garden in Arthur’s Seat. 

“I felt lost in the maze” – Margo

“I had so much fun in the mazes” – Miller

“It was fun finding the Buddha statues” – Cohen

STEM

Welcome to Kieran our engineer and ‘STEM Wizard’.  The classroom was buzzing with excitement today as Kieran shared his wealth of experience and the possibilities of technology we can build at school. The students began by creating and customising a Web3 Avatar of which they have digital ownership to use on Virtual Reality platforms such as Mozilla Hubs. Thank you Kieran!  

Reminders

Parent Teacher Interviews

Monday 3rd & Tuesday 4th April

Bookings will open via Compass on Tuesday 14th March

Boneo House Athletics Event

Wednesday 5th – Thursday 6th April

Last Day of Term

Thursday 6th April

Early dismissal at 2.15pm

Boneo Community Market

Saturday 15th April

School Returns for Term 2

Monday 24th April

ANZAC Day Public Holiday

Tuesday 25th April

Grandparents & Special Person Day & ANZAC Assembly

Friday 28th April

Boneo House Cross Country

Monday 15th May

School Council Meeting

Tuesday 16th May

Boneo Community Market

Saturday 20th May

Community News