ASCOT VALE PRIMARY SCHOOL Website: … · ASCOT VALE PRIMARY SCHOOL ... 25th March, 2015 Volume 1,...
Transcript of ASCOT VALE PRIMARY SCHOOL Website: … · ASCOT VALE PRIMARY SCHOOL ... 25th March, 2015 Volume 1,...
ASCOT VALE PRIMARY SCHOOL No. 2608
25th March, 2015 Volume 1, Issue 4
Website: www.avps.vic.edu.au Newsletters are available online
Ph: 9370 6507 Fax: 9370 5150
www.twitter.com/AscotValePS
We value: Multi-age learning, High Expectations for all, Diversity, Creativity & developing positive Relationships
2015 – Term 1 / 2 Key Dates DATE (& TIME) ACTIVITY (& LOCATION)
Thur 28/03 Cyber Safety for Parents – Hall 7:00pm
Fri 27/3 Last day of Term 1 – 2.30pm early dismissal Fri 01/05 Pupil Free Day
Mon 13/04 1st
Day Term 2 Whole School Assembly 3:00- 3:30 Hall
Mon 13/04 Unit 4/5 – Senior Swimming (until 24/4)
Mon 20/4 Unit 1 Assembly 3:00- 3:30 Hall
Mon 27/4 Unit 2 Assembly 3:00- 3:30 Hall
Fri 01/05 Pupil Free Day – Please make alternative arrangements for the care of your children
Wed 06/05 Prep 2016 Information Evening – Unit 4, 7:00pm
Fri 08/05 5/6 Interschool Sport Begins
Cultural Diversity Week - Enjoy these lovely snapshots on P 1, 2 & 9
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Meet the Staff
Joanna Wilkinson – Unit 3 – Year 2/3 Teacher Joanna has worked at Ascot Vale Primary since 2009, prior
to this she was working at a school in the Eastern suburbs.
At AVPS, Joanna has spent most of her time teaching with
Julie in Unit 1 across all grade levels. She values her
colleagues, multi-age learning and the strong school
community at AVPS.
This year Joanna returned to full-time work and has moved
to Unit 3 with Assunta and Marg, as she has completed
building a strawbale house with her husband Craig. Her
philosophy for teaching is, ‘Every student should have the
opportunity to learn to their full potential.’ Joanna is the
team leader for the Year 2/3/4 teachers.
Fiona Stewart – P/1 Teacher Unit 2 Fiona is one of the Prep One teachers and works in partnership with Amanda. She has been part of
the Ascot Vale team since the conclusion of her Master of Teaching degree in 2010. Fiona moved to
Australia from Scotland in 2006, after choosing to leave her former life as a belly dancer and
archaeologist. She completed her Masters of Archaeology at Edinburgh University, a city she dearly
misses.
Fiona organises the Peer Mediation and Pod Squad programs and is intensely passionate about all
things Science, Literary and Historical. She often complains about the excessive Australian heat,
especially that found in Unit 2!
Fiona also likes the colour purple, even numbers, cats, black pens and has a particular fondness for the number 8. Jude Wigley – Art Teacher
Jude Wigley is the Art teacher at Ascot Vale Primary School this year
and after a few years away from teaching art she is thoroughly
enjoying being back with paint, clay, glue and the general creative
“mess” that the art room brings.
As a practising artist, Jude brings a wealth of experience and
knowledge to this position. Her love of colour is reflected in the
works of the students at Ascot Vale P.S.
Jude lives in Coburg with her partner Tim, and two very bossy
Burmese cats. Her studio is her haven after school hours but
between tutoring students in Literacy and Numeracy in the evenings and a few piano students, at the
moment time in the studio is a luxury and quite often a dream.
Jude enjoys reading, cooking and attending music concerts, especially when Angela Hewitt is in town. She is often seen at the local pool on her non-teaching days and then afterwards enjoying a very long leisurely breakfast with a few friends. A trip to Europe is in her sights! So is a new car! I wonder what will come first?
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Ian Lumb – Unit 2 & PE Teacher
Ian started his teaching career here at AVPS three years ago. His two mains roles are sharing the Unit 2 year 3/4 class with Bev and running the Health and PE department. He really enjoys the split role as it allows him to spend time inside with his class but also getting to know every student in the school as he introduces them to new skills and sports out on the oval. When he is not organising the next sports carnival, you’ll find him and his new fiancé Erin driving down the beach to find waves. Much of his school holidays and weekends are spent in the surf or looking for surf. He has a passion for the outdoors, environment, living a healthy lifestyle and the Hawks, must be why Michael and Ian get along so well.
Jo Haar – Integration Aide
Jo has been at AVPS for around 9 months as an Integration Aide providing support to students funded under the Program for Students with a Disability. Prior to this, she was working in children's retail and often helped out in the classroom at her children’s school (Monique grade 5 & Alara grade 2). She enjoyed the parent helping and other roles at the school so much; she decided to enrol in a Student Support Course. Jo has always loved working with children and often finds herself being the king of the kids at most parties or gatherings. Jo is passionate about working with students to help them reach their goals, encouraging them to try their best and just have a go. With her family, Jo loves the outdoors (bike riding, playing tennis, picnics and playing in the park, swimming and running laps down at the Aberfeldie track) that's when she’s not doing the household chores of course. Another passion of Jo’s is craft, she loves creating children's decor from paper cuttings in 3D frames or on canvas boards to using wooden appliqués and creating name blocks, you name it. Jo enjoys her time at AVPS and looks forward to meeting more parents and members of the local community.
Student Birthdays (March 25-April 14)
Happy Birthday to: Mubarak U2, Oscar U5, Mikael U2, Julius U4, Olivia U3, Zoe U3,
Cara U3, Hamza U3, Kam U2, Sanyam U2, Lydia U1, Jackson U1, Isla U5, Junes U1,
Rebecca U1 & Christian U4.
From The Principal Team
Cultural Diversity Week It was indeed a great day for the Irish as well as the Indian (and sub-continent region) last Tuesday 17th March when a touch of ‘Bollywood’ came to AVPS. Staff, students and at least one parent got into the swing of the Bollywood theme in their dress and dance movements throughout the day. It certainly was an enjoyable way to celebrate culture in our school and to set the scene for a week of learning about the different cultures that contribute to our diverse community. Thank you to Amanda McClure for leading the team of staff who co-ordinated the Cultural Diversity Week activities. We hope you enjoy the photos capturing the colour and fun of the week’s activities on the previous pages. 2015 School Council Our new school council met for the first time on Monday night during which time seven new members were welcomed and office bearers elected. Congratulations to Martin Grubb, father of Callum Unit 2, who was elected to the very important role of School Council President. He will be supported by Kathy Hassan, mother of Aliyah Unit 5, elected to the Vice President position and Phil Empey, father of Leah Unit 5 and Cara Unit 3, our new Treasurer. The school is indeed fortunate to be led by such a supportive and diligent group of parents who are committed to making Ascot Vale PS the best it can possibly be. We look forward to a busy and productive year.
School Strategic Plan One of the most important tasks for our new school council on Monday night was to approve the AVPS 2015-2018 Strategic Plan. This is an important document that was developed following our self-evaluation and peer review process undertaken in 2014. It outlines our strategic direction for the next four years and is a culmination of much hard work and input from school community members and beyond. This document will be posted on our website in the coming days.
Staffing
Poppy White, classroom teacher in unit 1, is
planning on commencing her family leave on
Thursday 23rd April 2015. Frank Patti, who many of
you know as a past pre service teacher at Ascot
Vale Primary School will be replacing Poppy in
Unit 1 for the remainder of 2015. We wish Poppy
and Steve well as they await the arrival of their
first child.
Cross Country team Congratulations to our 17 students, pictured
below with Ian Lumb, who represented AVPS last
week at the district cross country carnival. Ian and
Sarah commented on how well they represented
their school on and off the track. Congratulations
to them all! A special mention to Riley (finished
8th), Banjo (2nd), Milla (4th), Luke (3rd), Andre (4th)
and Kara (2nd) who all finished within the top ten
in their respective events.
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Last day of Term A reminder that students will be dismissed at 2.30pm this Friday 27th March Term 2 begins on Monday 13th April at 9am
Term 2 Excursion Levy
Thank you to the many parents who have paid
their child’s excursion levy, either in full for the
year, or term 2 in advance. If you have yet to pay
term 2, please do so as soon as possible. You
cannot pay for activities or excursions individually.
As always, if you are having difficulty making
payments or you would like to discuss a payment
plan, please contact Sue or Michael.
Prep for Parents – Who said Science can’t be fun?
Main points:
Science builds investigation and observation skills.
Most children love science because it's fun for them to look at the world differently.
There are many activities you can do at home to utilise and develop your child's curiosity.
Children are born scientists Children are naturally curious. They look at the
world around them and develop their own ideas
based on what they see and hear every day.
Keeping that sense of amazement, curiosity and
discovery is what we want every child – and every
adult – to experience throughout their life.
What’s happening at school?
Encouraging your child to come up with ideas
about why things happen, testing these ideas and
looking for answers to questions from a variety of
sources – experts, teachers, other adults, books or
online – is what this first year of school is all
about.
And that curiosity is essential when it comes to
science. It also helps your child in many other
areas – it gives them skills in observation, problem
solving, and independent research. All of these
skills go hand in hand with other subjects, like
maths, English, art, and helps your child to learn.
Your child’s teacher will assist your child to
observe, identify and describe things that are
similar using things like size, shape, colour and
weight. They’ll ask them to sort things into
categories. Your child’s teacher will also explain
that things don’t always work out the way we
expect them to and that often science generates
even more questions than it answers. Conducting
simple experiments to test theories also forms
part of the learning your child will do in school.
So what more can you do?
Most children embrace science because it’s
practical and it’s fun. You don’t need to know a lot
about science to help your child discover, explore
and expand their imagination.
Here are some tips and activities you can do with
your child at home:
The seasons
Science investigates the world around us. With all
the autumn leaves lying on the ground, now is a
good time to discuss the seasons. Who doesn’t
love collecting different coloured leaves or
romping through huge piles of leaves scattering
them everywhere!
Ask your child to collect different types of leaves
and then sort them according to their shape. Are
they all the same? What is different? How are
they the same? Are they all the same colour? Are
they the same size?
While your child is having fun sorting and
describing what they’ve found you can explain
that we have four seasons during the year –
autumn, winter, spring and summer. Talk about
the changes that happen during each season –
winter is usually cold, summer is warm and when
we swim, spring has lots of rain and that’s when
flowers grow.
What’s alive? What’s not?
Science divides the world into living and the non-
living things.
Ask your child to collect three living things and
three non-living things from your backyard or
nearby park. Your child may not immediately
recognise the difference between a living and a
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non-living thing. Some characteristics of living
things are growth, movement, the need for air,
food and water, reproduction. But what about
talking and breathing? It might seem they are
essential for living things, but are they?
Ask your child questions about the things around
them. Are rocks alive? Do pebbles live? What
about shells? Pots? Bricks? How about the family
pet? Reward your child for their collecting efforts.
Help them to sort their stash into either category
‘living’ or ‘non-living’. Be warned, your child may
come back with insects or even spiders, so
depending on your ability to cope with these you
may need to give this activity some thought.
Sorting and classifying:
Science builds up knowledge of the world by
classifying things.
Ask your child to help you sort your groceries into
things that are the same colour, size, shape or
weight. Make this fun and discuss how things can
be described differently depending on the
category you choose. Items that are the same
weight may have different colours, size and or
shape. Items that are the same size may have
different shapes or weight.
Ask your child to collect five soft or five hard
things from around your home. Encourage them
to use all their senses to find these –to see, hear
and feel them to work out if they are soft or hard.
Once they’ve collected their five things get them
to sort them according to size, colour or weight.
Talk to them about how the things they collected
were in one category – hard or soft – but also
belong in other categories like their size or colour
or weight. Then help them to stick their objects
onto a large card or draw the objects according to
how they have ‘classified’ them.
Measuring:
Science is based on careful and accurate
measurement.
Make a space in your home where your child can
make as much mess as they like.
Using things like sand, rice, pebbles, pegs, sugar,
water – anything really – ask your child to
measure quantities into different shaped
containers.
Help them observe how the same amount looks
different in a variety of shapes and sizes. This
activity goes hand in hand with their developing
mathematical skills.
Observation
Science is based on observing things and making
guesses about what is happening. This also
develops your child’s patience as they’ll have to
wait for things to happen – sometimes for a long
time.
Ask your child to sit quietly, to look around them,
to listen and observe where they are.
Talk about the number of things you can see or
hear. Can you hear many different bird calls? Can
you see different trees, leaves or plants? Does one
tree trunk or leaf feel the same as the other?
You could even conduct a light-hearted
competition that your whole family enters,
awarding prizes for the most items heard or seen.
You can also contribute your discoveries to the
knowledge bank of things in our environment by
recording what you’ve found in the Atlas of Living
Australia. This allows you to see the plants and
animals that are in your area; it also allows you to
record your own sightings and this adds to
Australia’s biodiversity knowledge.
Related links
CSIRO’s Do-it-yourself science – Mix some slime,
build a rocket, make sultanas dance and more,
using everyday equipment from around the house
in these exciting experiments and activities from
CSIRO's Double Helix Science Club
http://www.csiro.au/Portals/Education/Programs
/Do-it-yourself-science.aspx
Kid’s Spot’s Fun Zone Experiments to Do At Home
- Science experiments that you can do at home
are a fun way of introducing your kids to the world
they live in. Wow them with easy science
experiments they can learn from
http://www.kidspot.com.au/omofunzone/subsect
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ion+570+OMO-fun-zone-
Experiment.htm?gclid=CLzenaPzg7ACFYY3pAodgC
nnjw
Scienceworks – virtual visit to Victoria's interactive
museum of science and technology
http://museumvictoria.com.au/scienceworks/
Melbourne Museum – Museum Victoria cares for
the state's scientific and cultural collection
http://museumvictoria.com.au/melbournemuseu
m/
Melbourne Zoo – See our animals and find out
more about them
http://www.zoo.org.au/MelbourneZoo
ABC Science – ask an expert, kids science, photos,
star stuff podcasts and the latest science news
http://www.abc.net.au/science/
Cool science – sharing the facts and fun about
science for all ages http://hhmi.org./coolscience
How stuff works – the award-winning source of
credible, unbiased, and easy-to-understand
explanations of how the world actually works
http://howstuffworks.com/
Please note, AVPS is holding a FREE parenting course in May – see Page 12 for details. We suggest you book your place ASAP as these typically book out quickly. Have a safe and enjoyable break Sue & Michael Principal Team
Uniform Shop Our uniform is supplied by PSW Quality Apparel. The uniform Shop will be open next month on Tuesday 5th May, 2015 in the School Hall between 3pm and 4pm. Alternatively, to order online, use the PSW website, www.psw.com.au and follow the prompts. The PSW shop in Deer Park is located at 58 Westwood Drive, Deer Park. Telephone: 9363 8458. Opening Hours are 8.30am – 5.00pm Monday to Friday and 9.00am – 5.00pm Saturday. Closed on Sunday
Second Hand Uniform Second hand uniform is available through the school. Carolyn Martin (mother of Lochie U 5 & Ashley U1) co-ordinates this. Please inquire at the office if you are interested in second hand uniform and our staff will put you in contact with Carolyn.
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Ascot Vale Primary School
Out of School Hours Care (OSHC)
OSHC phone: 0423 795 247 Coordinator: Dee Seneviratne REMINDERS
How to get started before using our programs you must register online for an account. Registering is quick and easy. Visit our website to begin www.campaustralia.com.au. Once registered you can make bookings and cancellations, view your statements and manage your details anytime of the day online. Keep in mind we are able to take bookings at short notice to help busy families. Save on Care You can save 50% or more on Before and After School Care fees with the non-means tested Child Care Rebate. Almost all families are eligible. To find out more call our Customer Service Team on 1300 105 343 Monday to Friday.
AVPS -Cultural Diversity Week cont.
OSHC NEWS It seems like just yesterday that the new school
year started and we met all our preps and their
parents and all our other OSHC children were back
from holidays, and now we’ve reached the end of
the first term and ready for Easter Holidays. We’ve
had a wonderful Term indulging in great many
activities, making many new friends, having heaps
of fun and above all we have been very safe with
minimal injuries and so on. I thank all the OSHC
staff for their constant dedication and hard work,
as without their combined effort OSHC wouldn’t
be what it is.
We are going to celebrate Easter and our end of
Term party is going to be held on Thursday. There
is going to be many party games, party food and
of course an Easter Egg Hunt. So it would be great
if you could donate a few eggs to OSHC for our
massive Egg Hunt. We have decided to have our
party on Thursday as it gives us staff some time to
clean up the room and the kitchen and have it
neat and tidy for Term 2. So if your child is
attending on Thursday, we would be grateful for
any eggs you could donate. It does not matter if
they are big or small or just a few or many.
The children have been doing some simple Easter
craft activities so far and this week we would be
doing some more interesting Easter craft which
they could take home and we would encourage all
the children to do these activities.
This Friday, the last day of Term 1 will be an early
start for OSHC as school finishes early. We will
start 2:30 PM and go on until 6:00 PM. There will
no changes to the before school care times.
Finally OSHC wishes everyone happy and safe
holidays.
Dee and the OSHC Team
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Writing @ AVPS Janda & Gilby from unit 3 are our authors this week. The new writing bible followed by teachers at AVPS, 'The Six Traits of Writing' is a fabulous resource which offers many interesting and effective ways of eliciting memorable writing from our students. The 'trait' being explored in these pieces is IDEAS. Poppy provided her students with a variety of unusual pictures, then asked them to respond in writing. Here are two of the end products.
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SECONDARY SCHOOL EXPO Once again Moonee Ponds West Primary School will be hosting the annual Secondary
School Expo. The Expo is an opportunity for you, along with your child, to meet and hear
from representatives from our neighbouring schools.
The invited schools are:
Mt. Alexander College -9376 1622 - http://www.mountalexandercollege.vic.edu.au/
Marybyrnong College - 9091 8100 - http://www.maribsc.vic.edu.au/ Princess Hill SC - 9389 0600 - http://www.phsc.vic.edu.au/ Footscray City College - 8387 1500 - http://www.footscray.vic.edu.au/ Pasco Vale Girls College - 9306 2544 - http://www.pvgc.vic.edu.au/ Buckley Park SC - 9331 9999 - http://www.buckleyparkco.vic.edu.au/ Rosehill SC - 9337 2488 - http://www.rosehillsc.vic.edu.au/ Strathmore SC - 9379 7999 - http://www.strathmore.vic.edu.au/ Essendon Keilor College - 8331 0100 http://www.ekc.vic.edu.au/
The Expo will be held on the 30 April from 4.00 – 7.00 p.m. in the Moonee Ponds West PS gym which is located on the right hand side as you enter the gate at 150 Athol Street, Moonee Ponds. If you have any questions prior to the afternoon don’t hesitate to contact me.
We look forward to you attending the Expo.
Randal Symons, Assistant Principal, Moonee Ponds West Primary School
OPEN DAY 19 April 11 am – 1 pm
Principal’s Address 11 am
Tours every Wednesday 9 am ph: 9376 1622
www.mountalexandercollege.vic.edu.au
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2015 AVPS STAFF & PROGRAM ARRANGEMENTS CLASSROOM UNIT TEACHER/S DAYS YEAR LEVEL
Unit 1 Poppy Thorrowgood Mon-Fri 2/3/4
Julie Clarke Mon-Fri 2/3/4
Unit 2 Amanda McClure Mon-Fri Prep /1
Fiona Stewart Mon-Fri Prep /1
Bev Loft
Ian Lumb
Every 2nd
Wed, Thur & Fri 3/4 Mon, Tue & Every 2
nd
Wed
Unit 3 Assunta Righi
Marg Blair Gannon
Mon, Wed, Thurs, Fri Prep / 1
Tuesday
Joanna Wilkinson Mon-Fri 2/3
Unit 4 Sarah Bergin Mon-Fri 5/6
Annie Cuthbert Mon-Fri P/1
Unit 5 Ellen Waters Mon-Fri 4/5/6
Rebecca Green
Marg Blair-Gannon
Mon, Tue, Wed, Fri Prep/1
Thursday
SPECIALIST SUBJECTS SUBJECT TEACHER DAYS YEAR LEVELS
Italian Assunta Righi Tuesdays P-6
Physical Education Ian Lumb Every 2nd
Wednesday,
Thursdays & Fridays
P-6
Art Jude Wigley Wednesdays, Thursdays
& every 2nd
Friday
P-6
Literacy Support &
Coaching
Marg Blair-Gannon Mon, Wed, Fri Various
Music Katherine Anderson Friday P-1
SCHOOL SUPPORT STAFF STAFF MEMBER ROLE DAYS
Tina Kountouri Library/Literacy Support Mon, Tue, Wed & Thu
Susie Charlton Integration Aide Every 2nd Wed, Thu & Fri
Kerry Kinniburgh Integration Aide Tue, every 2nd Wed & Thu
Joanne Haar Integration Aide Mon, Tue & Wed
Jackson Clarke Integration Aide Mon, Thu & Fri
ADMINISTRATION Sue Osborne Principal Mon-Fri
Michael Downing Assistant Principal Mon-Fri
Janet Coward Business Manager Mon-Fri
Christina Micucci Administration Monday, Wednesday, Friday
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2015 AVPS STAFF & PROGRAM ARRANGEMENTS – cont.
MAINTENANCE / TECHNICAL SUPPORT STAFF MEMBER ROLE DAYS
Steve Evangelou ICT Technician Friday afternoons
Alan McCarthy Maintenance Thursday mornings
Robert Odisho School Cleaner Mon-Fri afternoons
OPTIONAL PROGRAMS / EXTRA CURRICULAR The following programs incur an additional fee:
SUBJECT TEACHER DAYS YEAR LEVEL /
ARRANGEMENTS
MVIMP Moonee Vale
Instrumental Music
Program
This program has been
operating for 30+ years
and is managed in
conjunction with:
Ascot Vale PS
Ascot Vale West PS
Moonee Ponds PS
Moonee Ponds West PS
Anthony Baker - Percussion Monday Year 3-6 fee paying students
only
By arrangement with AVPS
MVIMP co-ordinator Bev Loft
Katherine Anderson –
Woodwind (flute) Tuesday
Simon Fisenden - Bass Tuesday
Katherine Anderson - Woodwind (saxophone & clarinet)
Wednesday
Les Gyori -Violin and Viola Wednesday Caitlin Taylor - Brass Wednesday Lex Tier - Band Thursday Janet Butler - Cello Thursday
Guitar Linden Lester Thursday 1:30-2:30
By arrangement with Linden Lester : 0409 320 435 [email protected]
Piano *
*Currently full –
accepting names for
waiting list
Belinda Sun Michelle Lam
Tuesday
Thursday
Friday
P-6 by arrangement with Joshua Cowie: 0413 884 067 [email protected]
Mini Moves John Tate Jodi Fitzgerald –Tate
Tuesday
3:35-4:35
P-6 by arrangement with: John- 0409 466 822 Jodi – 0408 082 353 [email protected]
Dance Theatre Raelene Brady
Tuesday: 5-8pm
Saturday:
9am- 12midday
P-6 by arrangement with: Raelene or Bruno: 0423 089 981 or 0421 859 540 [email protected]
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PLEASE SUPPORT OUR SPONSORS AND LOCAL COMMUNITY
ORGANISATIONS:
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NORTH MELBOURNE AUSKICK
Conducted at Arden St by Flemington Junior Football Club NTH MELB AUSKICK STARTS SOON – REGISTER NOW
HOW TO REGISTER: On line now at http://www.aflauskick.com.au/ enter post code 3051 START UP DATE: Saturday 18th April 9:00am -10:15am MORE INFO: Rob Green 0404 602 604 FEATURES: All GIRLS GROUP – run by female PE teacher Children grouped by grade prep - grade6
Arden St -Best Auskick ground in Melbourne Visits by North Melb Players Canteen with real coffee & muffins
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