25 September 2025

Principal’s Report

Welcome to the final Bush Telegraph for this term. Once again, it seems like the year is racing by!

Pleasingly, it’s been another great term at our school, and I want to congratulate our students, staff, P&C and all our community helpers for everything they have achieved – successes in sports, dance, music, debating and public speaking show the wide variety of opportunities available to our students beyond the purely academic subjects which, naturally, are the foundation of every school.

Be sure to lock in the first day of Term 4 into your calendars, Tuesday 14 October. Students resume on Tuesday as there is a staff development day on Monday 13 October.

Parliament House Bear Pit

Incredible achievements by Elsie Sciascia and Willow McDonald, who represented Manly Vale Public School at the Bear Pit Public Speaking event on Monday this week. We are so proud of you both!

Thank you to Mrs Mauger for taking the students on Monday and to Ms Fisk and Mrs Banham for coordinating the On Your Soap Box initiative at our school.

Please see further details below.

Sydney North Regional Athletics Carnival

Amazing day on the track last Monday with incredible achievements from many of our students. We are so proud of them! Please see the results in the sports section below. Thank you to our parents for supporting these HPGE initiatives.

Hip Hop Dance Concert- Stage 2

This Tuesday we had our annual Hip Hop dance concert to complete our stage 2 dance program for the year. The talented Miss Vanessa choreographed all the dances and all the students in years 3 & 4 enjoyed performing in front of their parents. It was a wonderful concert. Thanks to all the stage 2 teachers for their support of the concert and in particular Mrs Mauger and Mrs Warnock for decorating the hall, assisting backstage and controlling the lighting. The concert was a great display of our talented dance students!

Thank you to James and Teddy for hosting the show! Photos of the dance groups will be sent home via the class coordinators from the teachers.

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Banner Assembly tomorrow- Friday 26 September

Tomorrow morning, we will have our banner assembly in the hall commencing at 9:00am. Any outstanding principal awards will also be presented to all students. The special assembly will be opened by our Junior Band and Senior Choir.

Congratulations to the following Banner recipients:

Sport and Canteen- Friday 26 September

There is no PSSA training or games tomorrow.  Summer PSSA will resume next term. Tomorrow there will be a normal recess and lunchtime break however the canteen is closed tomorrow Friday 26 September.

Thank you to Becky McGowan for her commitment to our canteen this term and navigating the many changes to routine we have had. We look forward to the canteen reopening on Tuesday 14 October.

Band Tour

We wish our senior band all the best as they embark on their inaugural band tour during the first week of next term. They will be heading to the Blue Mountains and Bathurst. Thank you to Miss Tamone, Mrs Taylor, Mrs Lee, and band conductor Ben Dickson for coordinating and supporting this important program. We also extend our gratitude to our amazing band parents for their ongoing support. We look forward to hearing all about the tour upon your return.

School Planning 2026

As you would be aware, our planning for the 2026 school year is well under way and this will become all the more real early next term, when we meet our 2026 Kindergarten cohort, who will be involved in the Orientation program. With our need to establish a clear picture of our student numbers for next year in mind, we are asking that you let us know in writing if your child is not returning to Manly Vale Public School in 2026.

Skip-A-Thon

Thank you to Amy Hansen & the P&C for organising pizza, cupcakes and quelch sticks for the winning classes

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P&C Meeting

Our next P&C meeting will be held in Week 1 Term 4 on Tuesday 14 October at 7.00pm in the staffroom. All are welcome.

Wishing all of our families a relaxing and safe break.

Sharon Oscroft – Relieving Principal

Dates for your Diary

Bear Pit Public Speaking Competition

On Monday, Elsie Sciascia and Willow McDonald attended the 16th Annual Bear Pit Public Speaking Competition at NSW Parliament House, representing Manly Vale Public School, accompanied by their families and Mrs Mauger. The aim of the competition is to promote the public speaking skills of all students, develop effective listening skills and encourage confidence. 

The girls represented our school against 12 other local schools, presenting their speeches with great confidence and enthusiasm. They both took to the podium with maturity and represented the school with great passion for the topics they had chosen. 

The panel of 4 judges were highly engaged during both speeches. The competition was very fierce for this year, as mentioned by James Griffin, our local Manly member of parliament. 

After the 26 speeches had been given, the judges provided some feedback to the students, stating that there were two main fundamentals they were judging the students on: Matter - what you say, and Manner - how you say it. 

Matter: The ability to take your audience on a journey. The speech must follow a logical arch of what you want them to hear and give the audience key take-away information. It must be engaging, include relatable content and make points that the audience will remember or be impacted by in some way.

Manner: This is just as important. How your speech is presented is memorable. People who speak from the heart, people who are authentic engage their audience. You need to communicate directly with the audience. It is not a dramatic performance; you are communicating a message. Some things to consider are the pace, slowing down for effect, using volume - not only loud, but moments of softer tones to draw the audience in, using pause effectively to engage the audience and make them want to know what is coming next, and including the use of both humour and devastation to create emotional impact. 

The speeches presented by all the finalists hit these points in different ways.

Both Elsie and Willow are to be commended for their effort and for getting to this stage. As James Griffin said - if you can speak in the Bear Pit, in Australia’s oldest Parliament House with as much confidence as they did, you can do anything. 

When the awards were presented - we were thrilled that Elsie Sciascia was awarded as the Stage 2 winner of the competition. 

Congratulations to both Elise & Willow for this brilliant accomplishment. We look forward to hearing the next speeches you present at school.

Mrs Rebekah Mauger  

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Regional Athletics Success

On Monday 22 September, a team of outstanding athletes represented both our school and the Manly PSSA Zone at the Sydney North Regional Athletics Carnival. To say they did us proud is an understatement – their effort, determination, and sportsmanship shone through on the big stage.

Our results were incredible:

• Ally C – 5th in her heat for the 100m (8yrs)
• Emma G – 11th out of 35 in the 100m (9yrs)
• Charli G – 5th out of 25 in the Shot Put
• James L – 5th in the Long Jump and 4th in the Shot Put
• Nick L – 1st in the 800m and 3rd in the 200m
• Josie H – 1st in the 1500m (broke the record), 1st in the 800m (broke the record), and 1st in the 200m

Special congratulations go to Josie and Nick, who will now go on to represent Sydney North at the NSW State Athletics Championships. What an amazing achievement!

We are so proud of every one of our athletes for their hard work and commitment – you have represented our school community with distinction.

Mrs Birrell

Kindergarten Science

Did you know that animals are some of the world’s best builders? From cocoons and anthills to burrows, spider webs, frog ponds and snow caves, we’ve been exploring the incredible ways animals make their homes. Our young scientists even recreated these habitats in class before putting on their “engineer hats” to design shelters that humans can build to support animals, such as bee hotels, seahorse sanctuaries, chicken coops, kennels and aviaries. Along the way, students discovered how to design and build a simple product that meets a need or opportunity—just like real scientists and engineers!

Mrs Sorensen - Early Stage 1 Science

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Stage 2 Science Term 3: Digital Technologies

This term, Stage 2 students explored the world of Digital Technologies through a series of hands-on lessons designed to build their understanding of how data is represented, transmitted, and used in coding and robotics.

We explored how digital platforms like Google Earth, Google Maps, and Google My Map represent data in different ways, from satellite images to icons and symbols on maps. Building on this, students worked with Google Sheets, learning to record data in spreadsheets and transform it into graphs and charts to make information easier to understand. We even ventured into our local bushland to observe animals and record real world data.

The second half of the term focused on algorithms and coding. Students used Rapid Router block coding to explore sequencing, repetition, and decision-making in algorithms. They then applied these skills to programming our Sphero robots, creating intentional shapes, experimenting with light changes, and even designing movements to mimic animals.

Through these engaging activities, students strengthened their skills in problem-solving, logical thinking, and digital literacy—essential foundations for working with technology in the future.

I encourage children to continue to build on these new found skills when using digital technology at home. They are also encouraged to share their photos or reflections with their peers on the Stage 2 Google classroom.

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Tanya Coleman - Stage 2 Science Teacher

Lost Property

Lost property will be on display outside school hall Thursday 25 September & Friday 26 September.

Canteen

End Of Term

The canteen will be closed for lunch orders on the last day or term (26/09/25) but we will still be open for purchases over the counter. If you have received an email from the canteen for an IOU this term please make a payment before the end of term.

Sign up to help at the canteen

Volunteering at the canteen is a great opportunity to see your children. Please sign up for a shift to help out. 

Please consider completing this short food safety course if you will be making sandwiches and toasties with us. Once you have completed the course don't forget to send us a copy of your certificate. 

Flexischools Ordering

If you are having trouble ordering or need help with your account you can call flexischools on 1300 361 769 or submit a question online https://flexischools..com/hc/en-au/

Got a question? or need to get in touch

Feel free to contact the canteen on email manlyvalepscanteen@gmail.com

Becky McGowan Canteen Manager, Manly Vale Public School

Community Notices