Dear Franklin Primary School Community,

Welcome to Term 3!

As we step into the second half of the year, it’s a wonderful time to reflect on how far we’ve come—and to look forward with purpose and excitement. Our journey this year has been guided by our vision: embracing community, growing together. This vision continues to shape everything we do, from the classroom to the playground, and beyond.

At Franklin Primary School, we believe that learning thrives in a connected, caring environment. Our students flourish when they feel known, supported, and well—and that’s only possible when we work together as a united community. Whether it’s through family engagement, local partnerships, or student-led initiatives, we’re committed to building strong, meaningful connections that enrich every child’s experience.

This term, we’ll be focusing on deepening those connections. You’ll see opportunities for families to be involved in learning, for students to take greater ownership of their growth, and for our staff to continue fostering inclusive, high leverage practices. Together, we’ll celebrate progress, navigate challenges, and keep growing—side by side.

Your support, enthusiasm, and belief in our shared vision make Franklin PS a truly special place for your children to learn and grow.

I look forward to catching up and chatting about your child’s continual growth.

James Milne
Principal – Franklin Primary School

Dear Franklin PS Community,

Welcome back to Term 3. I trust that you all had a fantastic and relaxing break over the holidays.

While it may be a new term, our focus on providing the best possible learning experience for all students continues as per normal.

In regard to our reading priority; we continue to explicitly teach reading to every student using the UFLI (Prep – 3) and Word Origins (4 – 6) programs. We are also excited to announce that our Kinder has been accepted into a department-wide trial to use the Heggerty reading program for early years students. This is an exciting opportunity and we look forward to communicating student learning as the term progresses.

This term, teachers will also be further implementing the explicit teaching of Fluency across all grades, working collaboratively in Professional Learning Teams (PLTs) to improve the reading skills of students. We will also continue to provide intervention for students that require additional reading support using the MiniLit and Macqlit intervention programs.

Teachers are also very busy continuing to implement aspects of the DECYP Pedagogical Framework. This document (based on the latest research) provides teachers and school leaders with a lesson “road map” on how to use the most effective teaching strategies to foster student learning. This term, teachers are focussing on the Preview stage of the lesson, and are ensuring that Learning Intentions (what the students are going to learn) and Success Criteria (how the students will show their learning) are clearly communicated throughout lessons and visible for all students to understand and refer back to.

All Year 1 students will also undertake a Phonics Check later in the term. This is a department-wide assessment that acts as a screener to identify any students who are at risk in their learning of Phonics. The results will be communicated later in the term.

I look forward to seeing all of the wonderful learning this term. If you’d like to meet to discuss the learning needs of your child, please contact their teacher or contact me via the front office or email at nick.de.tarczynski@decyp.tas.gov.au.

Warm Regards,

Nick de Tarczynski (AST/Instructional Specialist).

Kitchen Garden News

What a busy but great start to term 3. We jumped straight into the kitchen with the 5/6s making Swiss chard (from the kinder veg patch), chickpea and pumpkin (from Mrs Stagg’s Garden) rolls. The children even made their own pastry. I’m grateful that the timetable this term allows for a little extra cooking time, which means we can take on recipes that require a little longer to make. The children were so keen that they even offered to make the rolls in their lunch break so that we had enough time to cook them. I must admit, I was worried that some children wouldn’t try them, given the amount of veg we had put in, but they inhaled them!

The 2/3s are embarking on their own project this term. Operation pumpkin patch has begun. They are clearing up the bed behind the teacher’s carpark in preparation for pumpkin planting come spring. They’ll also be researching which varieties they wish to grow and starting them from seed. They LOVED the weeding (I should bring them to my house!) with the boys even finding a rogue parsnip!

Speaking of pumpkins, the 1/2s and P/1s made roasted pumpkin hummus last week. Again, I had some sceptics, but most children gave it a try and some even found that they LOVED it!

In Prep/1 we have begun the term by slotting easily back into the routines we have set during the year. UFLI is part of our morning routine, and we can see the huge progress we have made over the year. The Preps have now completed each letter of the alphabet and will now move on to consonant diagraphs such as /sh/ /th/ /ch/ and /ng/. The grade 1’s have completed consonant diagraphs, the silent (bossy) e, exceptions, and the endings -es and -ed. These are more complicated than you may realise and let me just say I have learnt rules I didn’t know existed!

In class we have been enjoying our Wednesday sessions with Sharyn our early years AEW. The questions that the kids have are just so wonderful, and Sharyn is so amazing at answering them. One question that was asked was “Well where are all the aboriginals? Where are they? (as in dark complexion aboriginals)” – which is a fair and innocent question. We discussed that here in Tasmania a lot of indigenous people have lighter coloured skin so you may not be able to tell they are aboriginal. This also led to “Well aren’t aboriginal people meant to have dark skin?” – again, a fair and innocent question. Sharyn had a wonderful book she read to us that explained the skin colour question in an age appropriate but also truthful way.  We have an imaginative play space with a river, animals, wood, a campfire and clap sticks. We also have a hut that we are beginning to decorate with natural shelter materials.

We have been discussing the length of time that indigenous people have been here in Tasmania, and how they got to be here, on an island. Alongside this we have been exploring the story “The Creation of Trowenna (Tasmania)”, which is a dreamtime story from the Nuenonne people of Bruny Island. The engagement of the kids in this very broad topic is something truly special, and I feel lucky to be able to facilitate their journey of wondering and inquiry.

Literacy sessions in 1/2.

1/2 learned a new Traditional Indigenous game during NAIDOC week. The game Gorri is common throughout Western Australia, and we added our own Franklin Primary twist by playing with pinecones from our 'big tree'! 

Music club started last week with Tom & Felicity.

We started Term 3 celebrating NAIDOC Week. We dedicated lots of time to exploring and honouring the histories and cultures of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples. We made damper in the fire pit and reenacted dream time stories alongside the Year 5/6 students. These hands-on activities really helped us to deepen our understanding and appreciation of Indigenous cultures. 

Earlier this week, we also had the opportunity to make some scones, working together to measure ingredients and follow a procedure.

We have started this Term with a focus on reading comprehension and fluency. We have discussed that reading fluently means pausing appropriately and reading with expression. We have even been giving feedback to each other about how we can improve our reading fluency. In maths, we have just started exploring the concept of time. We spoke about the importance of time and how we might be able to track time without clocks or watches. Many of us realised the sun would be a great tool, so we headed outside to investigate how the shadows cast by the sun might help us to tell the time by creating some sundial-like creations! 

hat a fantastic start we’ve had to Term 3! The classroom was buzzing with energy as we reunited after the break. We kicked off the term by celebrating NAIDOC Week, diving into activities that honoured First Nations cultures, histories, and knowledge systems.

True to Mrs Cherry’s style (who may occasionally get sidetracked for the sake of curiosity and big ideas!), we took a detour from our Maths unit on fractions, decimals, and percentages to explore the Fibonacci sequence—but with a powerful purpose. Our learning was inspired by Dr Chris Matthews, a proud Noonuccal man and Aboriginal mathematician. Dr Matthews advocates for connecting mathematics to culture and community, showing how patterns in nature—like the Fibonacci spiral found in shells, flowers, and pinecones—have long been observed and understood by First Nations peoples.

We used this as a springboard to explore how Aboriginal Australians have used mathematical thinking for thousands of years, particularly through sustainable practices, land management, and artwork. A huge thank you to the families who sent in native flora to enrich our hands-on exploration. Students physically examined patterns in leaves and flowers and were genuinely amazed by the natural world’s symmetry.

Our week concluded with the co-construction of a class Acknowledgement to Country, which reflects our deepening understanding and growing respect for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultures.

One of the most powerful moments came during our viewing of the Adam Goodes documentary. I was blown away by the level of empathy and maturity in our class discussion. One student said they were confused by the documentary—they couldn't understand why such things had happened. This sparked a thoughtful conversation about how far we’ve come as a society in terms of acknowledgement, acceptance, and inclusion, and also what more we can do to ensure that racism and discrimination have no place in our future.

This inspired our classroom display, titled:
“Learning from the Past, Listening in the Present, and Leading for the Future.”
Each student created a symbolic footprint that now marches across our classroom wall. Inside, they wrote their pledges, reflections, or personal responses—messages that show we walk forward in solidarity, with understanding and purpose. This display will continue to grow as we embed these values and understandings across our learning.

This week we’ve returned to our regular routines. In English, students have been wrapping up their information reports and presenting them in creative and professional formats, ready to share with the class. The focus is on planning, drafting, and publishing informative texts with accurate, topic-specific language and logical structure. Students have chosen historical topics to connect with our Term 2 and 3 HASS units, including Elizabeth Hayward, child chimney sweeps, and the First Fleet.

In Mathematics, we’ve returned to our unit on fractions, decimals, and percentages. Students are beginning to build a deeper understanding of how these representations are different ways of expressing the same value. Through hands-on activities, real-world connections (such as money, food sharing, and discounts), and collaborative discussion, they’re learning how to confidently convert between forms and explain equivalent values using correct mathematical language.

Keep an eye on our classroom walls—they’re filled with the voices and vision of our young changemakers!

Monday Craft Session at Recess 

Mondays are anything but boring when craft time rolls around! This week, our creative crew got snipping and folding to make their very own lanterns.  The room lights up with imagination.  We can't wait to see what crafty adventures next Monday brings!

Craft sessions are open to all students - everyone's welcome to join the fun and get creative!

Issy and Michelle

LEGO Club - Tuesday at lunchtime 

LEGO Club is a place to let your imagination soar! Come join me every week to build fun creations and explore new ideas.  If you are interested in entering a creation to Brixhibition you are welcome to use this time to get creative.  I can't wait to see what you come up with!

Check out the details below - any questions please email

issy.muir-kelly@decyp.tas.gov.au or come and have a chat!

Hi all,

It's that time again to dust off the dress-up box and get those costumes ready for our Book Week Parade on Wednesday 27th August, 9.30.

All welcome to come along and join in the fun at our parade and then browse the books available to purchase from the Book Fair.

We are also running our Scholastic Book Fair, great start to the Chrissy shopping, starting Wednesday 20 - Friday 22, Wednesday 27 - Friday 29.

The fair will be open from 8am - 8:45am each morning and run through 1st lunch break and also Friday afternoon till 4pm.