Welcome back to Term 3! We hope all of our students and families had a wonderful holiday break and were able to enjoy some well-deserved time together. It is hard to believe that we are already halfway through the school year. We are looking forward to a busy, productive and rewarding Semester 2, with many exciting learning opportunities and special events planned for our students.

Parent-Teacher Interviews are taking place this week and next, and we thank all of the families who have taken the opportunity to book an interview with their child's teacher. These meetings provide a valuable opportunity to celebrate your child's achievements, discuss their progress and set goals for the remainder of the year. We greatly value the strong partnership between home and school and appreciate the opportunity to work together to support every child's learning, wellbeing and success.

There is certainly plenty to look forward to throughout the term, including:

• 100 Days of Prep celebrations on Tuesday 28th July
• Years 3–6 Footsteps Dance Program and our end-of-term concert
• ICAS Assessment Challenges for participating students
• Years 3/4 Swimming Program
• Father's Day Celebrations
• Prep Excursion to The Big Goose
• Years 5/6 Design Lab Program
• Years 1/2 Farm Excursion

These experiences enrich our curriculum and provide students with opportunities to challenge themselves, develop new skills and create lasting memories alongside their classmates.

Welcoming Our 2027 Prep Families

This term also marks the beginning of our 2027 Prep Transition Program, and we are excited to welcome our future Prep students and their families to Bonbeach Primary School as they begin preparing for this important milestone.

A reminder that Prep enrolment applications for 2027 close on Friday 31st July. If you are yet to submit an application for your child, or if you have friends, neighbours or family members who are planning to enrol, please ensure applications are lodged before this date to secure a place at our wonderful school. We look forward to welcoming the newest members of our Bonbeach Primary community.

Keeping Our School Community Healthy

During the cooler months, illness is unfortunately more prevalent within our community. While we encourage students to attend school every day to maximise their learning opportunities, we appreciate your support in keeping your child at home if they are unwell. This simple step helps prevent the spread of illness and supports the health and wellbeing of both students and staff. Thank you for working with us to keep our school community healthy.

Industrial Action Update

As many families are aware, industrial action will continue this term. A planned strike day is scheduled for Thursday 23rd July. We understand that this may impact family arrangements and appreciate your patience and understanding. Further information regarding the school's arrangements will be communicated to families via Compass on Tuesday 21st July.

Thank you, as always, for your ongoing support and partnership. We are excited for another wonderful term of learning, growth and celebration at Bonbeach Primary School and look forward to sharing Semester 2 with you all.

Regards
Ken and Jayne

Dear Parents/Carers,

Within our school community there are students who shine brightly, displaying exemplary dedication and academic talent. They deserve to be recognised and this year we are again giving them the opportunity to showcase and celebrate their talents in the world-renowned ICAS competition.

What is ICAS?

ICAS is an online academic competition that gives students the opportunity to challenge

their higher order thinking and problem-solving skills in English, Mathematics, Science, Writing, Spelling Bee, and Digital Technologies.

ICAS results are in-depth and meaningful, and ICAS evaluates student performance against other competition entrants across the state and nation. The data reveals student strengths and weaknesses and can help you recognise and support your child's academic journey.

Learn more about ICAS here: (icasassessments.com/products-icas/).

ICAS results and certificate

Every student who participates is celebrated and recognised with a printed certificate in each subject area, and an online results report to track development each year. Top performers are eligible for one of the highly coveted ICAS medals.

How to participate in ICAS

This year, Bonbeach Primary School is offering ICAS assessments for students in years 3-6 in the subjects of Writing, English, Spelling Bee and Mathematics. If you wish for your child to participate in ICAS this year, please go to the Parent Portal to register for your chosen subjects.

You can do this in one of two ways:

1. Direct login link – faster!

Use this link to log directly into the shop and start registering:

https://shop.icasassessments.com/pages/parent-payment/MKE427

2. Log in using the PPS code

Visit our shop and use our PPS code to log in:

Shop link: https://shop.icasassessments.com/pages/pps

PPS code: MKE427

Registration for all subject areas closes on Monday 27 July 2026. LATE ENTRIES WILL NOT BE ACCEPTED.

The 2026 ICAS Assessments will be held in Term 3 at Bonbeach Primary School for the following assessments:

IMPORTANT: The Grade 3/4 students will have swimming lessons during the testing period for the English and Spelling assessments. We will try our best to accommodate this, but it may not be possible for all students.

Please note, we cannot facilitate refunds or make alterations as all money is paid directly to ICAS Assessments.

Read the terms and conditions here: (https://www.icasassessments.com/icasa-terms-and-conditions/#icas-parents).

Privacy collection statement

The following information is a privacy notification about how your child’s data is kept private and secure.

ICAS Assessment is owned by Janison Solutions Pty Ltd (We, Us, Our).

 To deliver assessment products, Janison will require your child’s School to obtain your consent to provide Janison with certain personal information of students. Janison will collect, store, use, disclose and otherwise deal with such personal information in accordance with its privacy policy (below). We are aware of our responsibility to protect personal information related to children and students from being disclosed when we deliver an ICAS Assessments product. Unless you, as the child’s legal guardian consents, we will not:

• collect any personal information or data of children other than the information we need for the successful completion of an assessment, test, or
• transfer any personal information we obtain from a child in the delivery of assessments and tests to any jurisdiction outside of
• share any personal information relating to children with any third parties (except for those third parties necessary for us to carry out our Services or provide our Products e.g., medal engraving).
• use any personal information or data relating to children for marketing

 You can view our full privacy policy at https://www.janison.com/privacy-policy/.

We may retain personal information and data relevant to a child for their future purposes or for research purposes by Janison for the duration of the school life cycle of the child. However, if you or your child at any time wish to have their personal information or data removed from our systems, they or you may opt out by simply contacting our Privacy Officer at privacy@janison.com or by contacting icasassessments@janison.com.

We are proud to be offering ICAS to our students this year and encourage you to consider entering your child. Please do not hesitate to contact the school office if you have any questions.

Kind regards,

Jacqui Turner (ICAS Coordinator)

The Victorian Department of Education advise that a national test of the new AusAlert emergency warning system will take place on Monday 27 July at 2:00 pm.

AusAlert is Australia's new national emergency warning system, designed to send emergency alerts directly to compatible mobile devices during significant emergencies. The Australian Government plans to officially launch the system in October 2026. As part of the rollout, a nationwide test will occur on 27 July.

At 2:00 pm, all compatible mobile devices—including mobile phones, tablets, smart watches, safety watches and some vehicle devices—will receive a Critical Alert. Devices will vibrate and emit a loud, siren-like sound for approximately 10 seconds, even if they are set to silent or "Do Not Disturb". The alert will clearly indicate that it is only a test, and no action is required.

To minimise disruption during the school day, we remind families that, in line with our school policy, student mobile phones and smart devices should be switched off and stored securely in school bags or lockers throughout the day. Students who have an approved exemption to use a mobile phone during school hours may continue to do so. Where appropriate, these students may choose to switch their device off during the test.

You may wish to let your child know about the test beforehand so they understand that the alert is expected and that school staff will be available to reassure and support students should they hear or see the notification. You can learn more at AusAlert: children and teens. Information is also available in other languages. 

For some members of the community, particularly those experiencing family violence or using a hidden safety device, this alert may present additional safety concerns. Anyone with a concealed device is encouraged to switch it off or place it in aeroplane mode before the test and leave it that way for up to 24 hours. Please note that silent mode and "Do Not Disturb" settings will not prevent the alert from sounding.

Further information, including resources for children and families, information in community languages and advice about staying safe with AusAlert, is available on the Australian Government's AusAlert website: Staying safe with AusAlert page.