Chewton Primary School
Newsletter 19/02/2026
Newsletter 19/02/2026
Chewton Primary School is situated on Djaara Country!
We acknowledge the Dja Dja Wurrung people, the custodians and caretakers of the land. We thank them for the care they have taken and continue to take of Country: the rivers, mountains, trees and animals. We pay our respects to Elders past, present and emerging.
We follow Bunjil's teachings: Care for self , Care for others, Care for Country
We commit to Be Brave and Make Change.
We will be a voice for generations.
Now, more than ever.
Barramal (emu) and MilakukTime (January- March) Djaara seasons
20th February Meeting Place
24 February Volunteer Inductions 9am, 3pm
2nd March Volunteer Inductions 9am, 3pm
6th March- Meeting Place
9th March: Labour Day public Holiday
20th March Castlemaine State Festival opens (Schools are partnering with Nalderun for an amazing opening performance- stay tuned!)
23rd March Harmony Day
25th March Castlemaine State Festival excursion grade 1-6
27th February Sushi
27th March Sushi
2nd April- Easter Hat parade 9am
One of the highlights of our year is always the picnic to welcome in our new families and celebrate the beginning of another year together.
We were privileged to have Uncle Jason Kerr, come and hold a Welcome to Country and Smoking ceremony for us.
His words were heartfelt and made us reflect on both Country and how we need to care for each other and to walk together.
We really are so lucky to be living and learning on Djaara Country. Thanks Uncle Jason.
Jason Kerr is a direct descendant of the great Leonard Kerr who was born at Mt Hope on Dja Dja Wurrung Country around 1854. Jason is an extremely passionate Dja Dja Wurrung man and lives and works on Djandak. Jason has worked for the Dja Dja Wurrung Corporation for over 15 years and is an integral member of the Cultural Heritage Team. He is an appointed Aboriginal Heritage Officer and also holds a Certificate IV in Cultural Heritage Management. Jason has a passion for sharing Dja Dja Wurrung Culture and ensuring the protection of Cultural Heritage on Country.
Jason is also a very talented artist who has designed artwork for local Council projects and numerous artwork pieces when commissioned.
Our students and families all signed a thankyou poster to show our appreciation of the wonderful Chewton CFA crew which was presented to James at our picnic.
From James:
On behalf of the Chewton CFA, I wanted to say thank-you to the school community for all the support over the last couple of months.
The brigade members have all mentioned how appreciative they are of the people of Chewton, and the wider community, and how they have rallied together. They especially liked the poster we received at the picnic!
It's not just us in yellow who have sacrificed time and energy but families, friends and colleagues across the school have all been affected.
We're around on Sundays or Paddy and I are around the school often enough so if anyone wants to come and talk about recent events or how to be better prepared next time, we'd be happy to chat.
Thanks!
James Godwin
Captain
Chewton Fire Brigade
wurru mouth of river yaluk flowing creek baring bend in the river yarram yarram chain of waterholes
We had a fantastic celebration of our swimming lessons with the carnival on Friday. Lots of cheering, everyone giving it their best and encouraging each other.
The banners for our houses looked fantastic (Thanks Kate and the 5-6 class)
Special thanks to Kahu for the wonderful swimming instruction this year. The growth in skills over the 2 week program was amazing to see!
We are noticing lots of children with increased appetites as we transition back to school after swimming!
Don't forget to pack some extra food!
We have a healthy eating policy.
We encourage fresh foods, no plastic waste and no products with added sugar. Sometimes food (chocolate, lollies, soft drinks are not for school)
We ask all our families to ensure that no nuts or nut spreads are included in your child's lunchbox. Please check the contents of your child's muesli bars to ensure they do not contain nuts.
We ask all families to ensure hands are washed prior to leaving home to minimise the risk of cross contamination. (eg for children when they brush their teeth following breakfast and for adults after food preparation)
If you volunteer in the Brekkie club, please follow the safe food handling guidelines.
You can find more information in our Anaphylaxis policy
Our Prep students have been busy, enthusiastic learners and it has been wonderful to see their confidence continuing to grow!
In Literacy, we have had lots of fun meeting Milo Monkey’s friends — Milo, Sally, Felix and Ally. As part of our learning, students have been exploring the initial sounds that match each character (m, s, f, a). The children have loved making connections between the characters and the sounds, and it has been fantastic to see them beginning to identify these sounds in words around them.
In Mathematics, we have been learning about the days of the week and thinking carefully about sequencing events. Students have been ordering activities based on the time of day — what happens in the morning, afternoon and evening — and sharing their own daily routines. This has been a wonderful way to build both mathematical understanding and real-life connections.
We also proudly survived our very first visit to Winters Flat Primary School! The students showed great resilience and enthusiasm as they explored a brand new playground environment. It was exciting to try something different and build confidence in a new setting.
To top it all off, we had a fantastic time participating in a Footy Skills Clinic. The students practised important skills such as handballing, kicking and catching — and especially enjoyed the game of “steal the treasure”! It was wonderful to see teamwork, encouragement and big smiles all around.
Great work, Grade Preps — keep up the fantastic learning!
This week in Grade 3/4, students have been building their Writer’s Notebooks, exploring pre-writing strategies and collecting ideas to support their writing journeys. We’ve been focusing on generating and organising thoughts, helping students develop confidence and creativity as writers. In Mathematics, we have been working with graphs and data, interpreting information and discussing what different representations can tell us. Students have also been reflecting on their learning goals for the term, identifying personal strengths and areas for growth as part of our ongoing learning conversations.
Today we were excited to welcome an AFL Victoria incursion, where students practised handballing and kicking skills through a range of fun games and activities. It was wonderful to see teamwork, persistence and lots of enthusiasm on display!
In grade 5/6, there have been many students feeling eager to get into some deeper learning in numeracy and literacy... and this week we dove right in! In maths we are looking at decimal numbers and place value and will be considering all the ways20260219_164911.jpg that decimals help us to understand concepts such as finance and data. In reading we are focusing on selecting books that are 'just right' for us and are soon launching into a narrative unit on short stories. In writing, we have been writing individual acknowledgments of Country (please see Sully's and Arlo's heartfelt acknowledgements).
Our current inquiry topic is Civics and Citizenships, and as part of this topic, students have been writing letters to individuals or organisations about something they are passionate about. We are aiming to enter these letters into the ABC competition 'News in My Neighbourhood', where students will have the opportunity to have their letter published by the ABC.
A special mention to Miro and Orlo this week, who are stepping up to lead our whole school picnic! Well, done!
Monday- Friday 7am-9am
Monday- Friday 3:30pm-6pm
contact Kerrie 0410 734 733
Available for our Curriculum Days
This is a fantastic service and we need to make sure we use it in order to keep it!
Read more here!
2025 Winner History Council of Victoria
Register for Sushi https://schoollunchonline.com.au/
We have sushi 3 times each term.
Next Friday is our first one for the year.
Orders must be placed by Thursday 5pm.
Songlines and Seasons Exhibition
Dumawul, Hargreaves Mall, Bendigo
You can find out more about Yoorrook here
https://yoorrookjusticecommission.org.au/ and Four Corners have an excellent program on Yoorrook.
https://iview.abc.net.au/show/four-corners/series/2025/video/NC2503H008S00
You may have heard that Djaara have begun Treaty negotiations with the Victorian government.
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2025-05-28/djaara-treaty-first-nations-state-australia-victoria/105337078First Nations Days of Significance:
Term 1
February 13th: Anniversary of Apology to Stolen Generations
February 13-26 Anniversary of the 1967 Freedom Ride
March 21 National Close the Gap day
April 5th: Anniversary of Bringing them home report
April 15th anniversary of the Royal commission into Aboriginal Deaths in custody
April 25th ANZAC Day
Term 2
May 26th: Sorry Day
May 27th - June 3rd: Reconciliation Week
May 29th: Reconciliation Walk
July 7th -14th: NAIDOC Week
Term 3
August 4th: National Aboriginal and Islander Children's Day
August 9th: International Day of the World's Indigenous People
August 13th: Anniversary of the Yirrkala bark petitions
august 23: Anniversary of the Gurindji Wave Hill Walk off
September 7: Indigenous Literacy Day
Term 4
October 26: Anniversary of the Uluru handback
December 10: Human rights day
Meeting Place Dates 2025
TERM 1 - 20 February
06 March
20 March
January-mid-March. The warmest and driest time of year, many plants become dormant but animal activity is still high, as the young of many species disperse. This is peak bushfire season. Occasional La Nina years bring heavy summer rains.
The bark of Biyal (River Red Gum) is used to make canoes, shields and other tools, the leaves have medicinal properties, while the seeds can be eaten.
Berries of Dhurunguk Gurrka (Flax Lily), Kangaroo Apple and Apple Berry are ready to be eaten.
As the water recedes, Old Man Sneezeweed grows with other small herbs on the mudflats of Bells Swamp and other local wetlands. Tiger Snakes hunt for frogs along the Loddon River.
• Cicada calls can be heard throughout the bush
• Old Man Sneezeweed grows with other small herbs on the floors of drying wetlands
• Tiger Snakes hunt for frogs along creeks, rivers and wetlands
• Geckoes and Blind-snakes hunt on warm humid nights
• White-striped Freetail Bats can be heard in the sky on warm nights
• Jewel Spiders spin their webs between shrubs and trees
• Biyal (River Red Gum) and Lightwood flower
• Yabbies dig deep tunnels as waterholes dry
• Nomadic, dry-country birds such as Black Honeyeater and Yellow-plumed Honeyeater can appear in some years
• Male butterflies congregate at high points in the landscape – this is called ‘hill-topping’
• Red-browed Finches feed on fallen grass seeds
• Wasps feed on nectar produced by mealy bugs on Wattles
• Furry caterpillar trains march across the forest floor in search of new feeding sites
• Dodder Laurels fruit.
• Lorikeets arrive to feed on flowering eucalypts.