End of Term Celebration

From the Principal’s Desk – James Milne

As we wrap up another successful term at Franklin Primary, I want to take a moment to reflect on the incredible achievements, joyful experiences, and community spirit that have defined the past ten weeks.                                                      

NAPLAN Success – Growth in Student Achievement!                                    

We are thrilled to share that our students have shown an improvement in NAPLAN results from Grade 3 to Grade 5 in 2025 greater than similar schools! This growth is a testament to the dedication of our students, the expertise of our teaching staff, and the support of our families. Congratulations to everyone involved – your hard work is paying off!

This term has been packed with engaging excursions that brought learning to life. From exploring local ecosystems to visiting cultural institutions, our students have had rich, hands-on experiences that deepened their understanding and sparked curiosity.

Our Grade 5/6 students had an unforgettable time at camp! From high ropes to campfire stories, the experience was filled with laughter, resilience, and new friendships. A huge thank you to the staff and volunteers who made this possible.

The Final Fortnight – A Celebration of Creativity and Community

The last two weeks of term have been a whirlwind of colour, creativity, and connection:

• Franklin Art Exhibition - Dogs – Our student-created dog portraits were a hit! Thank you to everyone who visited and supported our young artists.
• Sports Colours Day – A fun and energetic celebration of team spirit and healthy competition. Well done to our competition winners and good luck to our Cats and Lions supporters.
• Open Classrooms – It was wonderful to welcome families into our learning spaces and share the amazing work happening every day.
• Science Club Rocket Tests – Our budding scientists launched their handmade rockets with impressive results! Thank you to Jedd for such a wonderful idea and Sam and Sam for running the club as volunteers.
• Chess Club Domination – Franklin’s chess team continues to impress with strategic thinking and sportsmanship. Good luck at the state finals.
• Skipping Club Kick-Off – A new club created by student agency has launched with great enthusiasm – we can’t wait to see the tricks and teamwork develop next term.
• Children’s University Club – Many amazing activities and so many hours of extracurricular learning. Thank you to Sachie and the team at the University.

 Staying Safe These Holidays

As we head into the break, please take time to rest, recharge, and stay safe. Whether you're travelling or enjoying time at home, we encourage all families to look after one another and return refreshed for another exciting term ahead.

Thank you for your continued support and partnership. Franklin Primary is a special place because of our students, staff, and families working together. Have a wonderful holiday!

“Embracing community, Growing Together”
James Milne
Principal – Franklin Primary School

Dear Families,

One of the foundational documents we employ at Franklin Primary School is known as our School Improvement Plan (SIP). This plan is central to our shared ambition and vision for our students to be known, safe, well and learning. Improvement planning helps establish an explicit improvement agenda and a prioritised approach to delivering it.

Our SIP provides the framework for us to:

• Plan and focus work for the coming year/s
• Set targets to monitor progress and growth
• Ensure targeted use of resources in priority areas
• Celebrate progress and success.

The two domains that our current SIP focuses on are around Reading and Attendance. The complete SIP document outlines the various approaches that we employ to facilitate growth in these areas, the numerous assessment strategies we use and the ways in which we monitor and celebrate our successes.

Please see attached a summary document of our current SIP for 2025. Our plan is to move towards providing an overview of our 2026 SIP document early in the new year and we would invite and welcome any feedback or questions relating to this document.

Neil Holmstrom

FPS School Improvement Plan 2025

Our Goals:

1. Reading: All learners will have the skills and confidence in reading to successfully participate in learning, life and work.
2. Attendance: All students and families will understand the value of full school attendance for optimum social, physical and cognitive development.

How we will do it:

• Reading:
• Teachers will spend 60 minutes teaching reading every day.
• We will help students who need extra support with reading.
• Teachers will learn new ways to teach reading, to give students more opportunities to learn.
• Attendance:
• We will check every day to see if students are at school.
• We will help students who have trouble coming to school.
• We will make school a fun and safe place to be.

Our Targets:

• Reading: By the end of 2025, reading will have improved across the school.
• Attendance: By the end of 2025, more students will be attending school more often.

Giant Pumpkins!

The 2/3 have been working hard all term preparing a pumpkin patch, researching varieties to grow and planning and preparing for ‘The Great Giant Pumpkin Grow’. Archer really wanted us to grow a giant pumpkin which we all thought was a fun idea. We wanted to give families the opportunity to grow a giant pumpkin at home. Sourcing seed wasn’t that easy but luckily, I had some saved after our family grew them for a giant pumpkin competition with some friends. The children have made posters and written growing notes and made envelopes for the seed. You might notice that your child may have brought one home today!

Please only attempt to grow if you have the water and the space – they need a lot of both. If you don’t think that’s something your family can manage then we ask you to kindly return the seed for another family to have a go, if your child brought one home.

We’d love regular photos and updates during the growing season with the hope of having a day next year where we bring the pumpkins in to show.

The last two weeks in Kinder have been a bit of a whirlwind to be honest. Just as we are settling into a new normal the term is ending. Next term we will start off fresh and hit the ground running with our new routines and expectations.

In preparation we have begun talking about the Zones of Regulation and noticing how our bodies feel in different zones. It’s not always easy to identify how we feel, and the signs our bodies show but we are practicing.

We have also been enjoying a song called The Boundary Song – you may have heard your child singing it. It is on YouTube and is by Hopscotch. This song is about people have boundaries and things they like or don’t like, and things that make them feel safe or unsafe; and everyone is different. It encourages children to share in a respectful way what their boundary is, so others are aware and understand how they can be a good friend by not crossing that boundary. This is helping us to be clear about what we need from others so we can all feel safe and be happy at school.

Over two weeks we have been on a journey of inquiry about birds. It began with noticing a bird nest outside our classroom window. Through this journey we have had a speedy look at local native birds, types of nests (and which one we think is best), and what birds need to survive. We have made our own nests, clay birds, eggs and bird feeders and been painting and drawing birds, feathers and wings.

Violet has been sending us photo updates of her travel adventures which we have been documenting using her photos and travel itinerary.

Enjoy the rest of the holidays, and we look forward to starting a busy term 4 together!

In the final fortnight of Term 3, our 2/3 class enjoyed a visit to the South Hobart Tip and Resource Recovery Centre. We were lucky enough to have a tour of the Tip Shop to understand how the recycling and reselling process work before going hunting for our own second-hand treasures. All students found an item to bring back to school to upcycling the item. Students also reflected on the role of the Tip Shop and upcycling processes play in helping our environment. It was an excellent day out and a great project for students to round out the term.

We have also dedicated lots of time to experimenting with fractions in a practical way. We have grown our understanding of how equal parts make a whole and the role of the denominator in a fraction. Check out the images below of us tackling some of these ideas and constructing our understandings alongside our peers.

Finally, this week we welcomed families to our classrooms for our Open Classroom evening. It was wonderful to see many students sharing their work with the people they love.

2/3 have done a phenomenal job this term and are looking forward to the holiday break!

Excursion to the South Hobart Tip Shop and Huonville Recycle Rewards

This week our class had an exciting excursion exploring recycling, reusing and reducing waste.

At the South Hobart Tip Shop, we learned how donations are processed and how the team collects goods from the tip face. We discovered that they have a research team who identify valuable items—sometimes returning mistaken donations to families, selling collectables, or placing items in the shop. We were amazed to see how building supplies are sorted for reuse and how electronics are processed. Did you know there is more gold found in old electronics than in the ground waiting to be mined?

We also discovered the ‘free’ items out the front – regularly topped up by the staff to keep goods out of landfill. With a little cleaning and imagination they are useable again.

We also enjoyed a treasure hunt, where each student had $3 to spend on an item they could reuse, recycle, or upcycle. Back at school, we have been value-adding to these items in creative ways.

Our visit continued at the Huonville Recycle Rewards scheme, where we had a go at recycling bottles and cans—and made $11.10! Tom also collected new bins, ready to be introduced next term as we become a school committed to recycling and separating our rubbish.

It was a fun and eye-opening day that inspired us to think more carefully about waste, recycling and sustainability.

We had the wonderful opportunity to visit Huonville High School, where students were introduced to a range of new and engaging sports. Everyone enjoyed learning fresh games and experiencing activities that challenged both teamwork and individual skills. The day gave us a great taste of high school life and left us buzzing with energy.

Back at school, our class proudly presented our Sustainable City Project at assembly. Each student contributed to designing a feature for our city – from rooftop gardens and solar farms to desalination plants and sustainable housing. Together, we showcased our ideas about how cities of the future could work fairly and sustainably for everyone. The presentation highlighted our creativity, problem solving, and teamwork, and we were very proud to share our hard work with the whole school.

To top it off, we even squeezed in some fun with a “fake” maths test. Every question had the answer of either 6 or 7 – much to the amusement of the students, who quickly caught on and joined in the joke.

As we wrap up another fantastic term, we’d like to wish everyone a safe and happy holiday break. We look forward to seeing you all refreshed and ready for more learning adventures in Term 4!

SUSTAINABLE CITY PROJECT

The 2/3 and 4/5 classes had a great time visiting the Resource Work Cooperative and South Hobart Tip shop. They had a behind the scenes guided tour about how they prevent landfill waste by salvaging materials and old goods and selling them second hand. After a treasure hunt, they all had the chance to spend $3 on a tip shop item that they can further up-cycle at school. Thanks to the teachers and TA’s who helped to make the day possible.

Tom Davidson

Monday Craft Session

We continued the excitement from our Launch into Learning session with Ms Bec by making more pirate hats! Students practiced folding and decorating their hats with vibrant, multi-coloured feathers, sparking creativity and fine motor skills.

A huge thanks to everyone who joined us this term to master a variety of hands-on skills including cutting, folding, gluing, colouring, and assembling. These activities have helped develop fine motor coordination, hand-eye coordination, concentration, and creativity.

A heartfelt thank you to everyone who participated this term! We’re excited to carry on with our craft sessions next term, continuing to develop these skills and explore new creative projects together including some festive crafts to help get us into the Christmas spirit.

Have a fantastic break everyone!!

Issy and Michelle