As our School Review will take place next term, we are asking parents to provide us with important feedback through the upcoming 2026 Parent/Caregiver/Guardian Opinion Survey. The survey results assist schools in gaining an understanding of families’ perceptions of school climate, student behaviour, and student engagement. 

In 2023, 2024 and 2025, we had very low response rates from this survey. This year, we hope more families will complete the survey, to help inform directions for our school in the new four-year Strategic Plan. 

The survey will be conducted online until 18 September 2026. It only takes 20 minutes to complete, and can be accessed at any convenient time on desktop computers, laptops, tablets or smartphones.

We encourage all families to complete the survey, which is available in English and ten other  languages (and apologies if one of these isn't yours): English, Arabic, Greek, Hakha Chin, Hindi, Japanese, Punjabi, Simplified Chinese, Somali, Turkish, and Vietnamese.

Resources are also available in additional languages to assist parents / caregivers / guardians who speak a language other than English at home. Please reach out to our school office for survey guides if needed, available in thirty-nine languages.

An email with a Personal Pin to access the survey will be distributed to 'Parent A' in all families in the next few days.

Finally, School Council met this week and discussed the upcoming School Review. The Review examines students' learning and wellbeing outcomes to determine our next focus areas. To gain a complete perspective, the Review process seeks feedback from students, staff and parents. 

Whilst all families have the option to complete the survey above, we are also keen to have conversations about the school's next four years with parents. Please fill in the form below if you are interested in this option.

Our Vision:    Learn   •   Thrive  •   Contribute

Our Vision:    Learn   •   Thrive  •   Contribute

Friday 31 July saw our Prep students mark an important milestone: 100 days of school.
Our youngest learners spent the day participating in a variety of celebratory activities. The children arrived dressed up as 100-year-olds or wearing t-shirts featuring 100 items. They presented a parade for their families and friends, before returning to the classroom for activities centred around the number 100.
                                   

Throughout the day, the students completed several tasks. We made glasses shaped like the number 100, counted the 100 items brought from home, and wrote about things we would, and would not, like 100 of. The children also went on a scavenger hunt during Prep Sport to find 100 photos of their teachers.

Over these past 100 days, it has been a pleasure to watch these children develop into confident, curious members of our school community. They have grown through building friendships, learning to read and write, and exploring the world around them.

The learning continued the following week, when the students wrote about their celebrations. This task focused on applying their knowledge of nouns, verbs, and time openers to recount the event.

We are incredibly proud of every single Prep student for their hard work and dedication.  A very big thank you to our supportive families, who have partnered with us to make these first 100 days such a success.

Curiosity  •   Respect  •  Integrity  •  Resilience

Inquiry Term 3

This term, all year levels are investigating 'Sustainability', involving multiple curriculum areas. As well as these Inquiry units, all students will study Science concepts.

Parents are warmly invited to attend our Expo events, listed below.

Preps – Where We Live: Sustainably

Students will learn about different places and how we can care for and sustain them. They will investigate and create maps and build an understanding of the importance of 'Place/Country' to First Nations Australians. Students will explore the features of animals and their habitats and use their understanding to create a diorama of a habitat for an imaginary animal.

EXPO Date: Tuesday 8^th September 2:45pm

Grades 1 & 2 – Raw To Ready

Students will learn about where their food comes from and the processes involved in different foods getting from the farm to the shops. They will explore living and non-living things, seasons and seasonal produce. Students will learn about the Australian Guide to Healthy Eating and consider which foods are best for sustaining their health. They will explore ways to sustain the environment by conducting a packaging experiment and learning about the recycling and waste symbols on food packaging. Students will work in small groups to investigate the production of a food and design new packaging.

Year 1 EXPO Date: Tuesday 15^th September 2:45pm

Year 2 EXPO Date: Monday 14^th September 2:45pm

Grades 3 & 4 – Harmony With H2O

Students will learn about Earth's natural resources and the importance of using them sustainably. They will conduct simple experiments related to the water cycle, desalination, and filtration. Students will explore the issue of plastic pollution in our oceans and consider actions they can take to reduce their use of single-use plastics. They will investigate the importance of rainforests and the unique animals that call the Amazon rainforest home.  Students will learn about the processes involved in the water cycle and use this knowledge to create a three-dimensional model to share with visitors at the Harmony with H2O Exhibition.

Year 3 EXPO Date: Tuesday 8^th September 9:15am

Year 4 EXPO Date: Thursday 17^th September 2:45pm

Grades 5 & 6 – Wildlife Warriors

Students will learn about animal adaptations that enable them to survive in their habitats. They will explore different environmental and human impacts that threaten an animal's ability to survive and that lead to the endangerment of some species. Students will act as wildlife warriors, considering ways to support the survival of different animals through sustainable actions. They will learn about the importance of different animals to First Nations Australians and consider how cultural burning can support the life of animals and their habitats. Students will research an endangered animal and present their findings at the Conservation Conference to raise awareness about their selected animal's plight.

Year 5 EXPO Date: Wednesday 9^th September 2:45pm

Year 6 EXPO Date: Friday 28^th August 1:30pm

Our Vision:    Learn   •   Thrive  •   Contribute

Grade 5
Our Inquiry unit, Wildlife Warriors, has taught us so much about the amazing adaptations animals have developed to best suit their environments.

As Wildlife Warriors, we patrolled through Blacks Walk on the hunt for local birds in their native habitat. We spotted rainbow lorikeets and wood ducks and were lucky enough to hear kookaburra calls. Can you spot the wood duck high up in the tree?

We furthered our learning through our writing lessons, writing information reports on an animal of our choosing. We learnt how animals use their physical and behavioural adaptations to survive, find food, protect themselves and raise their young. We created posters or computer presentations to share our learning with the cohort.

Through discussions about how we can protect and preserve animals and their habitats, we designed and constructed bird nesting using everyday materials. We considered the needs of different birds and how our designs could help support their survival.

We are looking forward to our excursion to Melbourne Museum, where we will further explore animal adaptations and discover more about the incredible ways animals have adapted to survive in our changing world.

This term, the Year 6 students have become Wildlife Warriors as part of our Inquiry learning! Students have chosen an animal that is at risk of becoming extinct and are researching the threats facing their chosen species. They are learning to locate reliable information, take notes, paraphrase and organise their research into an informative information report. Students will explore their animal’s habitat, diet, adaptations, threats and the ways people can help protect and conserve these incredible species.

To enhance their learning, students will also have the exciting opportunity to visit Melbourne Zoo, where they will see a range of animals up close and learn about conservation, endangered species and the important work being done to protect wildlife. This hands-on experience will allow students to connect their classroom learning with the real world, deepen their understanding of animal conservation and gather valuable information and observations to support their research.

Through this project and their experience at the zoo, students are developing their research, critical thinking and writing skills while building an understanding of the important role we all play in protecting wildlife and our environment.

Curiosity  •   Respect  •  Integrity  •  Resilience

 
BOOK WEEK IS ALMOST HERE!!!!
One of the most heartwarming aspects of Book Week is the sense of community it fosters
It has been a pleasure listening to students discuss their favourite book from the Children’s Book Council of Australia shortlists, and to feel the excitement building about their book character costume that they will be wearing on our dress up day.
Book Week is a special time for all students to be immersed in rich literature and engage in fun learning tasks that promote enjoyment and instil a lifelong appreciation for reading.

This year, Book Week will be celebrated from the 24-28 August, with our Book Week dress up day being held on Friday 28 August.

In anticipation of this exciting event, we are asking everyone to put their thinking caps on and start thinking about which book character you would like to be.

Perhaps you could dress up as a book character related to the CBCA 2026 theme ‘Symphony of Stories.’ Please remember that costumes do not need to be expensive or store-bought; homemade and recycled outfits are celebrated.     




What we are learning
This term in Library we are studying the Children’s Book Council of Australia 2026 shortlisted books. All books on the shortlist are chosen for many reasons including literary merit, originality, book design and illustrations. 

CBCA’s main goal has always been to encourage Australian writers, illustrators and publishers to produce children’s literature to an exceptional standard and to highlight the importance of reading.

The shortlisted categories we focus on at Laburnum are Younger Readers (Grade 5 and 6), Picture Book (Grade 3 and 4), Early Childhood (Prep, Grade 1 and 2), the Eve Pownall award for information books and the new illustrator category.

Our students judge the shortlisted books in their category using similar criteria to the CBCA judges. After we have read and judged all six shortlisted books, we vote.  It is always exciting to see how our votes compare to the CBCA judges for Book of the Year in each category. 

An announcement about the CBCA winning books in each category will be announced at the Book Week assembly which is presented by our fabulous library captains. The Book Week assembly begins at 2.45pm on Friday August 28 in the hall.

The books nominated for the 2026 CBCA shortlist are:

Curiosity  •   Respect  •  Integrity  •  Resilience

Details of our Extracurricular Activities for Term 3 are listed below, with a weekly schedule further down this page. 

As teachers will organise the school-based activities and remind students about these, there is no need for parents to register, unless there is a cost for the activity.

Please note that Chess Club requires registration. Chess Club is led by external providers, with a cost involved, if you would like your child to participate. Please see the Contribute page for further information.

Choir (Grades 3 - 5)
An opportunity for a weekly choir experience with our Performing Arts teacher.

Joggers Club
Joggers Club is supervised by our House Captains. Students from Grades 1 - 6 can run, walk or jog laps of the athletics track. 

Chess Club*
The Chess Club at Laburnum P.S. is run by “Chess Ideas”. There is always a free trial session at the beginning of each term. The children are instructed in two small groups, where a new skill or strategy is introduced, followed by a game and is supervised at all times by a teacher from the school.
Please see the Contribute page for further information.

Junior School Council
The Junior School Council provides an avenue for 'student voice' and to contribute positively to the school community. It allows students the opportunity to experience leadership at Laburnum Primary School and consists of two student representatives from each class in Grades 1 to 6. Through active involvement, the Junior School Council encourages student participation within the decision making processes for fundraising, presentations, school events, charity focuses and school recommendations. 

Library
The library is open for students to return and borrow books. They also have the opportunity to read quietly, share a story, choose an activity including craft, chess, puzzles, construction blocks and board games. Our friendly Grade 6 library captains are always on hand to assist students.

Green Team
Green Team leaders work with students across the school to promote sustainability at Laburnum Primary School. During Term 2 students have an opportunity to join Green Team. Activities around school include keeping Laburnum PS free of rubbish, working in the kitchen garden (pulling out weeds, planting new seeds and watching and taking care of our produce) and also thinking of ways our school can be environmentally friendly.

Instrumental Music lessons
If you would like to register an Expression of Interest for private instrumental lessons at LPS, external instrumental tutors are available to teach the following instruments - violin, viola, percussion, guitar, piano, drums.

Instrumental Music lessons at LPS are only available for students in Grades 1-6. Please see the Forms page to register. Instrumental Tutors invoice parents directly for these lessons at school.


Extracurricular Timetable - Term 3 2026

Curiosity  •   Respect  •  Integrity  •  Resilience

See below information about this term's Fathering Project event.



It's never too late to join The Fathering Project! If you would like to join, use the QR code below.

Our Vision:    Learn   •   Thrive  •   Contribute

Father’s Day
Father’s Day is just around the corner and this year LPS is holding a Father’s Day Stall on Thursday 3rd September 2026. Items will range from $2.00 to $10.00. If your child would like to purchase an item or three, please place their cash in a zip lock bag.

We will also need a lot of volunteers on the day. Please follow the link to sign up, if you are able to help for an hour or so https://signup.com/go/XkKeLtf. Any and all help is very much appreciated!

Parents Group
Calling all mums, dads and carers to join the Parents Group and help with Laburnum PS Parents Group Activities.

Curiosity  •   Respect  •  Integrity  •  Resilience

TeamKids Out of School Hours Care  Please register your child here - it's free to register and you'll always have that option for childcare, even in unexpected circumstances.  More information is on our website here. We’re bursting with excitement to let you know that bookings for our Spring Holiday Program are now officially OPEN for Laburnum Primary! See what’s happening at our school → Please click here for Flyer

Please click on the Chess Club image for Term 3 registration.

Please click on the logo for information for Term 3 classes.

Our Vision:    Learn   •   Thrive  •   Contribute