1. education
2. school

MEPS Newsletter
PO Box 305, Mt Eliza 3930 – Phone 9787 1385
Newsletter is available on the web site address :
www.mtelizaps.vic.edu.au
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16 April, 2015
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DIARY
April
15th to 17th
Mon
20th
Tue
Wed
Thu
21st
22nd
23rd
Fri
Sat
Mon
Wed
24th
25th
27th
29th
Thu
30th
Grade 4 Camp - Phillip Island Adventure Resort
(Returning to school at 2.30pm)
Second-hand Uniform Sale – 2.15pm Hall Foyer
Building & Grounds Committee Meeting – 5pm
Education Committee Meeting – 7pm
School Tour for 2016 Prep Parents – 9.30 am
CURRICULUM DAY – PUPIL FREE DAY
Jogging Club – 8.20am on the school oval
ANZAC Day Assembly
District Golf at Devilbend Golf Club
School Tour for 2016 Prep Parents – 11.30am
ANZAC Day
School Council Meeting – 7.15 pm in Staffroom
Last day for Book Club orders
School Tour for 2016 Prep Parents – 9.30 am
Jogging Club – 8.20am on the school oval
May
Fri
1st
Mon 4th
Tue 5th
6th, 7th, 8th
Thu 7th
Mon
Tue
18th
19th
Wed
Thu
June
Fri
Mon
Fri
20th
21st
Grade 1 – McCrae Homestead Excursion
School Tour for 2016 Prep Parents – 11.30am
Mothers’ Day Lunch at Three Wild Ducks
Mothers’ Day Stall
Jogging Club – 8.20am on the school oval
House Cross Country – 9.30am to 1.00pm
School Tour for 2016 Prep Parents – 9.30 am
Second-hand Uniform Sale – 2.15pm Hall Foyer
School Tour for 2016 Prep Parents – 9.30 am
PTA Meeting – 1.30pm in the BER
2016 Prep Parents’ Information Night – 7.00pm
Jogging Club – 8.20am on the school oval
5th
15th
26th
Preps – Werribee Open Range Zoo Excursion
Second-hand Uniform Sale – 2.15pm Hall Foyer
Last Day of Term 2
Principal’s Report
Welcome back to Term 2! I am really excited to be joining such a wonderful school community and look forward to
meeting so many new people. I really enjoyed visiting each class on my first day and meeting all of the students. My first
impression of Mt Eliza Primary School is that it is full of happy, positive and friendly students. My first major job here is
going to be getting to know as much as I can about this great school through meeting with staff, students and parents. I
look forward to learning all I can so we can continue to build and develop our school further in the future – a school that
maximises the learning opportunities for all students.
I thought I should take this first Newsletter to inform the community a little about myself. Those who attended the
assembly on Monday will know a little about me from the insightful questions asked by the Manyung School Captains.
But for those who missed it, here is a little about me:
I began my teaching career at Langwarrin Park Primary School before moving to Devon Meadows Primary School as a
classroom teacher. Devon Meadows is a semi-rural community 10 minutes south of Cranbourne. The school is wellhidden, located away from major roads, shops and other infrastructure amongst acreages (lots of wild rabbits eating the
oval and vegetable patch and the occasional snake in summer). I worked at Devon Meadows for just over 11 years. I
was substantive Principal for the past 4 years and was Acting Principal, Assistant Principal, Acting Assistant Principal,
etc. for the 2 years prior to that. The school currently has 220 students. I have worked to develop a clear vision and
common approach to education at the school and thoroughly enjoyed the chance to work with a great team, wonderful
parents and awesome children.
My personal beliefs in education centre around:
1. Children need to feel safe when they come to school – this means the school grounds need to be safe, the
classrooms need to be a safe place to learn and attend and students who have issues at home that make them feel
unhappy, anxious or concerned need to be supported wherever possible.
2. Children need to be engaged at school – this means school should have many fun and interesting things for
students to participate in both inside and outside the classroom.
3. Children need to be taught at their developmental level – this can also be termed ‘challenged to learn’. All
students need to be taught and given the opportunity to learn new and more difficult concepts at a pace that they can
handle. Children also need time to ‘practice’ new concepts so they can gain proficiency but the common term I use
with children is that I want their ‘brain to hurt’ at least once a day. Some children go through school finding almost
every concept difficult and need support to ensure they continue to learn and achieve success. Other children find
most concepts extremely easy to grasp and rarely get challenged. Research shows that those children who rarely
get challenged early in their school career because they are ‘naturally talented’ often don’t develop the important
skills of persistence when difficult learning tasks are explored later in life. I am passionate about ensuring all children
are progressing and learning throughout their school career.
On a personal level, I am married with 2 wonderful boys who are currently in grade 2 and 4. Sport is an important part of
our household with swimming, tennis, football and basketball all being played by at least one member of the family. I still
play basketball once a week. I follow the Brisbane Lions, being a Fitzroy fan as a child. My favourite food is donuts but I
don’t eat these as often as I’d like!
I am really excited about working with the Mt Eliza Primary School community and look forward to meeting you shortly.
Thank you!
It is clear that the recent history here at MEPS has been a time of instability and with that comes an increased
responsibility for many staff. I would like to take the opportunity to publicly thank the staff who have worked together to
ensure a quality education program has continued throughout this time. I would especially like to thank Bev Harvey for her
leadership of the school in Term 1, her hard work last year and her support in my transition period. A thank you also to
Raelene Harvey and Richard Barren in the role as Acting Assistant Principals for Term 1, ensuring the school continued
to run smoothly. I would like to thank Sharyn Wanstall for her administration of the lengthy Principal selection process.
Finally I would like to thank the many parents and students who have welcomed me to the school. I look forward to a
wonderful year ahead.
Brett Bell
Principal
Assistant Principal’s Report
Welcome back. I hope you all had a great holiday. It has been a busy start to the term and we are pleased to welcome
Brett Bell to the school. His knowledge, experience and expertise will be of great benefit to our school.
Tree Removal
Over the holidays the local Council removed a dead tree next to the car park. As there is always a risk of limbs falling
from dead trees this will make it safer for our children.
ANZAC Day Service next Thursday
This will be a highlight of next week. I would like to thank Raelene Harvey in advance for all the extra work she is doing to
make this 100 year anniversary a significant event for our students and the community.
Grade 4 Camp
The Grade 4s are currently enjoying themselves on the Phillip Island Adventure Camp. Please take the time to thank the
staff who have given up their own time with their families to make this wonderful learning and social opportunity possible
for the children in Grade 4.
School Council Morning Tea
Tomorrow morning at 10:45 am there will be a special morning tea for the School Councillors to meet Brett, our new
Principal. The new School Councillors are welcome to stay behind afterwards for a tour of the school.
Bev Harvey
Assistant Principal
KidsMatter Survey
Dear Parents and Caregivers,
As many of you would be aware, we at Mt Eliza Primary School are engaged in the Australian Primary Schools Mental
Health Initiative; KidsMatter.
In an effort to collaboratively improve the working relationships between school and home we invite you to participate in a
survey for your perspectives on Mt Eliza Primary School and what you think is important for schools to consider to better
support children’s mental health and wellbeing. The answers provided by you are completely anonymous and are stored
securely by KidsMatter and Mt Eliza Primary School. Results from the survey may be used by us for the purposes of
informing school planning.
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The survey is open until Friday, 8 May. Follow the link below to participate in the survey: Please register our school as
Mount Eliza Primary School, (not Mt Eliza).
www.kidsmatter.edu.au/primary/parentsurvey
You may also like to follow the link to the School Surveys section on the KidsMatter website, which provides background
information:
www.kidsmatter.edu.au/primary/resources-your-journey/other-resources/school-surveys
PTA
Jogging Club 2015
Mothers’ Day Lunch!
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Lunch will be held on Tuesday, 5 May at Three Wild
Ducks in Mt Eliza. $40 per head will give you a glass of
champagne, a main meal and a dessert. There will also
be raffles and door prizes. Come and enjoy a lunch to
socialise with other MEPS Mums!! For information or to
put your name down please email Jodie Prendergast at
[email protected] or phone/message 0409 199 788.
Jogging Club will begin on Thursday, 23 April. It will be
held every Thursday morning from 8.20 am – 8.45 am. A
special card will be given to students when they arrive for
Jogging Club and laps will be recorded on the card. Five
laps of the school oval equals one kilometre. Students will
receive certificates as they pass certain milestones with
their running. They will have the option to walk, jog or run.
Any parents who would like to help tick off cards, we
would really appreciate it. I look forward to seeing lots of
enthusiastic kids.
Mothers’ Day Stall
Dads get your wallets out….. We will have some fantastic
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goodies for the kids to purchase on the 6 , 7 and 8
May, 2015. Gifts will start at $1 and go to just over $10.
We are looking for donations of any kind for this
fundraiser. Paper, ribbon, gift cards, gifts, plants, etc. We
will have a box in the school foyer for your donations. We
are also looking for helpers to sell goods and gift wrap on
each of these days. If you are available to assist, please
text your details to 0417 354 392 or email
[email protected].
Big Night Out
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Book the baby sitters – Saturday, 18 July, 2015. "MEPS
BALL", your take on this!
You can come dressed as Bogan Ball, Masquerade Ball,
80s Ball…….even a tennis ball or if you don’t want to
dress up simply wear an after 5 dress. Tickets go on sale
soon!
Last year was fantastic we all had so much fun and this
year will be even better.
Book Club
Scholastic book catalogues have gone home this week.
Don't forget you can now order your books online directly
with Scholastic (see order form) which means you don't
have to return anything to the school. Payments made by
cash or cheque will still need to be returned to the school
along with your order form. The cut-off date for orders is
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Wednesday, 29 April.
Second Hand Uniform Sales
The next Second-hand Uniform Sale will be held next
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Monday, 20 April at 2.15 pm in the old school hall during
assembly. We will be holding a 'buy one pair of pants for
$3, get one pair free' sale!
Thanks to all the PTA team…. Many hands make light
work 
If you would like to get involved with this fantastic group
our next meeting will be held on
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Tuesday, 19 May at 1.30 pm in the
BER.
Thanking you,
PTA
We would like to thank Janine York (mother of Bella and
Maisie) who has been doing a fantastic job of running the
PTA’s second-hand uniform stall over recent years.
Janine has volunteered many hours of her time to provide
the school community with the opportunity to purchase
second-hand uniforms at very reasonable prices. Janine
will finish after the next sale and then hand over the role to
Jessica Rosewarne. A big thank you to Janine and
welcome to Jessica!
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Brent Schuster
School Band & Guitar Lessons
Well done to all the students who tried out for the School
Band. It is unfortunate there are not enough spaces for all
of you. Congratulations to Freya V, Sebastian W, James
T, Marlowe T, Ellie S, Oliver Mc, Jess Mc and Mason S for
being successful. Band rehearsals will be held every
Tuesday at recess. We are still looking for a drummer so if
any senior students are interested please see Steph Born
in the old LOTE room on Tuesday, Wednesday or
Thursdays.
There are still a couple of positions for guitar lessons in
Term 2. If you are interested, please collect a form from
the front office and return it as soon as possible. For
details contact Steph Born on 0418 140 742.
Outside School Hours Care
For more details on After School Care, Before
School Care and School Holiday Program
please phone Camp Australia on 1300 105 343.
Registration
is
available
online
at
www.campaustralia.com.au.
Uniform Shop – Fashion Clubwear
Open:
Mondays from 8.30 to 9.00 am
Thursdays from 3.00 to 3.30 pm
and
Please note that the Uniform Shop no longer accepts
cheques. Please make payments by cash or credit card.
Thank you,
Sam Stephenson, Uniform Shop
tiqbiz Instructions
Have you logged onto tiqbiz
yet? MEPS is now using an
app to send out messages,
newsletters and notices.
See the details on how to download the tiqbiz app to your
phone, tablet or computer on the last page of the
electronic copy of our Newsletter.
MARKET DAY BASKETBALL RINGS
Many thanks to our school community for supporting our Grade 6 Market Day
last year. The money raised has gone towards putting some new basketball
rings on our asphalt area at the back of the school. Tom, Heath G and Cooper
G helped model our rings – thanks boys!
PARLIAMENT AND CIVICS EDUCATION REBATE (PACER)
Our Grade 6 students have recently undertaken an educational tour of the national capital. Students were given the
opportunity to participate in a variety of educational programs with a focus on Australia’s history, culture, heritage and
democracy. Their behaviour, questioning skills and knowledge were exemplary all throughout the camp and they should
be congratulated. Many thanks to Sam Cunnington, Alistair Heavey, Wes Mann and Maddie Harvey who came along to
help with camp.
The Australian Government recognises the importance of all young Australians being able to visit the national capital as
part of their Civics and Citizenship education. To assist families in meeting the cost of the camp the Australian
Government contributed funding of $30.00 per student under the Parliament and Civics Education Rebate program. The
rebate was taken off the cost of the camp and will be paid directly to the school now the camp has been completed.
GRADE 6 COOKING IN TERM 2
The Grade 6 students are very excited to have started their cooking for
the last time, this being the fourth year of them cooking and gardening
in this program. There are still a couple of gaps with helpers so if you
are available please contact your grade 6 teacher or Sally (even if it is
for one session).
We had a special guest along for the first day to taste test our end
result. Our new Principal, Mr Bell, loved sitting down and eating with
the students and hearing all about their love of cooking.
Community Notices

RSPCA Million Paws Walk – Hasting’s Foreshore, Sun 18th May, 2015. Seeking vendors, sponsors and donations from local
businesses. Please contact Kate on [email protected].
ANZAC DAY COMMEMORATIVE SERVICE
Mt Eliza PS – Thursday 23rd April
9.00 am to 10.30 am
A reminder to our school community that we are holding an Anzac Day Service
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on Thursday, 23 April and everyone is invited. If you have any connections to
a veteran or current serving member we will be honouring them on the day.
Please email me details of your veterans or send back the form that was sent
home last term. If your child has medals from veterans they could wear on the
day and be part of our parade please email me and let me know at
[email protected]. If you have any other names to add to
our list below please email me.
Raelene Harvey
Jason Ross, Jason Eagles,
Billy, Taylah, Tom and Sophie.
Mt Eliza Primary School celebrates 100 years of ANZAC by thanking our community members that served for us…..
Veteran or Current
Serving Member
MEPS student and related to:
Service
Theatre of Service
Jason Ross
John Ross
Duncan Stamp
Norm Peatling
Stephen Wood
Michael Mead
Lawrence Waters
Ben White
Father of Bella 4C & Billy 2N
Grandfather of Bella 4C & Billy 2N
Cousin of Charlie 4P
Pa of Thomas 3C & Sophie 1D
Father of Emma 4C & Jaimie 3F
Pa of Grace 5J & Eliza 2C
Grandfather of Emma 6G
Father of Makenzie 3B
Army
Army
Army
Army
Army
Air Force
Navy
Navy
Donald Mathews
Merv Paton
Jason Eagles
Allen Jeanes
Harry Muir
George White
David Henry Sinclair
Andy Martin
Leonard Chapman
Great Grandfather to Taylor 3BR & Payton 1T
Grandfather of Ainsley 6G & Meg 4T
Father of Molly 4T & Taylah 2D
Grandfather of Isabel 1T
Great Grandfather of Maison 2C and Aiden 5L
Grandfather of Thomas 4T & Henry 1D
Great Grandfather of Thomas 4T & Henry 1D
Great Grandfather to Sophia Pertile 2N
Grandfather to Lachlan 6G, Harrison 3B, Ashton
1PM & Isla 1G
Great Grandmother of Holly 3B
Great Grandfather of Holly 3B
Great Grandfather of Holly 3B
Great Uncle of Holly 3B
Grandfather of Finlay 1C
Grandfather of Finlay 1C
Grandfather of Finlay 1C
Stepfather of Finlay 1C
Grandfather of Sophie 2N & Sam PB
Great Grandfather to Hywel 1C & Griff 2C
Great Grandad of Luke 1PM
Great Great Uncle to Skye 1T
Great Grandfather to Marlon 4P & Hunter 1G
Great Great Uncle to Duncan 6S
Great Grandfather to Flynn 5J, Zoe 4S& Kaitlin 4C
Great Grandfather to Flynn 5J , Zoe 4S & Kaitlin 4C
Grandfather to Orlando 1D
Great Great Grandfather to Jarvis 3F & Kian PM
Great Grandfather to Jarvis 3F & Kian PM
Great Great Grandfather to Amelia 4T & Eliza 1G
Great Grandfather to Amelia 4T & Eliza 1G
Great Grandfather to Flynn 2C
Great Grandfather to Jordan PD
Grandfather to May 6G
Father of Phoebe Way 3BR
Father of Sarah 6S, Nathanael 4S, Shiloh 3B
Army
Army
Army
Navy
Air Force
Army
Army
Army
Army
Iraq, East Timor, Peacekeeping
Vietnam War
Afghanistan
Vietnam War
East Timor, Peacekeeping
Malayan Emergency
Vietnam War, Borneo
East Timor, Afghanistan,
Peacekeeping
Second World War
Vietnam War
East Timor
Korean War – Royal British Navy
Second World War
Second World War
First World War
Second World War
Second World War
Air Force
Air Force
Army
Army
Army
Army
Army
Navy
Army
Army
Navy
Army
Army
Army
Army
Army
Navy
Army
Air Force
Army
Army
Air force
Army
Army
Army
Navy
Second World War
Second World War
Second World War
Vietnam War
Second World War
Second World War
Korean War
Second World War – U.S. Navy
Vietnam War
Second World War
Second World War
First World War
Second World War
First World War
Second World War
Second World War
Second World War
First World War
Second World War
First World War
Second World War
Second World War
Second World War
Second World War
Afghanistan
Iraq, Afghanistan
Marjory Ashton
Graham Tamblyn
Arch Hamilton
Phillip Tamblyn
John Atkinson
Barry Scott
Ian Kerr
Lawrence Melin
Robin Moreton
Ernest Ramsey
Frank Roberts
Leo Stack
Bernie Prain
Fen McDonald
Donald Yates
Danny McGregor
E.H. Clark
John Butterworth
Gordon Butterworth
W Hanton
A Bodell
Vernon O’Day
Leith Masterton
George Seddon
Matthew Way
Duncan Becsi
Veteran or Current
Serving Member
Raymond Stafford
Raymond McMahon
Bill Cross
James Thompson
Fred Winterlon
Frederick Bourke
Matthew Hogan
Keith Enno
Roy Whelan
W R Looker & F K
Looker
Lloyd George Kerferd
Alan Hugh Kelly
Jack Stanley
Womersley
Andrew Keys Smith
Joseph John Lanyon
Stanley Thomas Walker
Richard Matthews
John M Coles
David S Files
Alexander Bell
Kevin Felmingham
George Field
Lindsay Burton
Robert Bell
Thomas Field
Arthur Field
Norman Field
Charlie Robinson
Henry Robinson
Roy Robinson
Dudley Robinson
Noel Robinson
Tom Warren
MEPS student related to
Service
Theatre of Service
Great Grandpa of Ellie 6S, Holly 4S and Ben 2S
Father of Chelsea 6S
Grandpa of Sienna PP
Great Grandfather of Harry 2D
Great Grandfather of Georgie T 5J
Great Grandfather of Sam & Annabelle 3B
Army
Army
Army
Army
Army
Army
Great Grandfather of Ella 2S
Great Uncle of Blake 1T
Great Grandfather of Jack PP
Great Great Great Uncles of Jack 3F
Army
Army
Air Force
Army
Second World War
East Timor
Vietnam War
Second World War
Second World War
Second World War/Malayan
Emergency
Second World War
Vietnam War
Second World War
First World War
Great Great Uncle of Jack 3F
Great Grandfather to Jack 3F
Great Grandfather to Jack 3F
Army
Air Force
Air Force
Second World War
Airforce
Second World War
Great Uncle to Jack 3F
Great Great Grandfather to Seth 1C
Great Grandfather of Will 5J
Grandfather of Charlotte PP
Great Grandfather of Oliver 1G
Great Grandfather to Oliver 1G
Great Great Grandpa to Zahli C 2C
Great Grandpa to Zahli C 2C
Great Grandpa to Zahli C 2C
Great Uncle to Zahli C 2C
Great Great Uncle to Zahli C 2C
Great Great Uncles to Zahli C 2C
Army
Air Force
Army
Army
Army
Army
Army
Army
Army
Air Force
Army
Vietnam War
First World War
Second World War
Vietnam War
Second World War
Second world War
First World War
Second World War
Second World War
Vietnam War
Second World War
Second World War
It’s not too late to change smoke alarm batteries
CFA is reminding families that it’s not too late to change the batteries in their smoke alarms. Operations Officer, Cliff O’Connor said
with the end of Daylight Savings falling on Easter this year a lot of families might have missed their usual routine to replace batteries
when they changed their clocks.
“If one piece of equipment in your home is going to save your life it is your smoke alarm,” said Operations Officer O’Connor.
“That is because you can’t smell smoke when you are sleeping – all your senses are reduced and without a smoke alarm there is a
very good chance you will not wake up until it is too late.”
“So if you haven’t changed your batteries this year then do it now,” he said.
Operations Office O’Connor said last year the CFA attended 1650 house fires, which resulted in 16 deaths.
“Firefighters see far too many preventable house fires every year and they can be heartbreaking,” OO O’Connor said.
“Changing the batteries in your smoke alarm only takes five minutes but could be the difference between you keeping your family safe,
or a devastating outcome.”
OO O’Connor said anyone who thought their smoke alarm might be more than ten years old should have it
replaced.
“Past that ten-year mark the electronics in a smoke alarm can’t be relied on,” he said.
CFA recommends:
 Monthly: test smoke alarms by pressing the test button with a broom handle
 Annually: gently dust around the outside cover of your smoke alarm
 Annually: replace your 9-volt battery at the end of daylight saving
 Every 10 years: replace your smoke alarm units and when you do, consider installing 10-year sealed smoke alarms.
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