Primary News

Welcome to another wonderful term at ACC Southlands, and a warm welcome to our new students and families as well. I have enjoyed seeing all the students back and I love hearing all the stories from their holidays - from travel tales to relationship-growing stories, this time has been valuable to recharge ready for a big and fun term. I love how even in Winter, Albany has moments of lovely weather. We should definitely make the most of it, just like Miss Baker’s class did in the final week of Term 2 with their trip down to our local beach!

This term, our students are diving into a fantastic and highly visual theme -  The Armour of God, based on the Apostle Paul’s letter in Ephesians 6:10–18.

Primary schoolers naturally love the imagery of knights, heroes, and soldiers. Paul used the familiar picture of a Roman soldier’s armour to teach a timeless lesson: how we can protect our hearts and minds, make good choices, and stand strong when we face challenges.

We are teaching the students that we don't wear physical armour, but rather character armour. Here is how we are breaking it down for them:

• The Belt of Truth: We know that God loves us and he has given us the Bible to help us. We must question what we hear and see - is it truth or is it a trap of sin?

• The Breastplate of Righteousness: This protects our hearts. For our students, this means simply choosing to do the right thing, even when no one is watching.

• The Shoes of Peace: We are challenging our students to be "peacemakers" on the playground, bringing calm and kindness to their friendships.

• The Shield of Faith: Just like a shield blocks arrows, faith helps block our worries. We are learning to trust God when we feel anxious or scared.

• The Helmet of Salvation: This protects our minds. We want every child to know they are completely loved and safe in God's family, helping them keep their thoughts positive and secure.

• The Sword of the Spirit: This is the Bible! We are learning to remember good, encouraging verses to help us when we need a reminder of God's promises.

NAIDOC Week

We kicked off the term by celebrating NAIDOC Week! Across the Primary School, students created message sticks and learned the Noongar names for our local wildlife.

We were especially excited to celebrate Lakita Ugle in Year 5, who was selected for the Albany NAIDOC Netball Team! Lakita traveled to Perth to represent our region, playing six fantastic games at the Matthews Netball Centre.

Reflecting on the trip, Lakita shared: "It was great to spend time with my friends and make new ones. I loved learning about where everyone's mobs are from, and I even discovered more about my own family history!"

Lakita hopes to be selected again in the years to come. We are so proud of you—well done, Lakita!

Disco Disco Disco

Our Year 6 Leaders recently decided to organise a school disco to raise funds for a vital local charity. After much discussion, they chose Breakfast in the Park—an incredible volunteer initiative that serves over 300 hot breakfasts every Tuesday and Thursday in Spencer Park and the Albany Town Square.

They also distribute essential food packages to those doing it tough. For some in our community, these are the only regular meals they receive each week. Through this initiative, our students are living out the call to love our neighbours as we love our own families.

Tickets will go on sale in the coming weeks.

Children’s University

The Children’s University students were busy during the holidays racking up hours of self-directed learning. It was great to see that some of our students went to the many events hosted by UWA in the Albany area. 

Swimming Lessons

Swimming lessons are coming up in Week 5 and 6 for all students in Pre-Primary - Year 6. Forms will be sent home to families shortly; please return these as soon as possible so that swim coaches can plan staffing and timetables accordingly.

In preparation for swimming lessons, please coach your child to get out of wet bathers and back into sports wear, independently. At ACC we take off our shoes and leave them at school, and children have the option of wearing either thongs or slides on the bus. This helps speed up the change room process and ensures we can run on time.

Book Club

Keep an eye out—a new Scholastic Book Club catalogue is heading home with your child this week!

Thanks to your amazing support last term, we earned over $300 in rewards, which we used to stock our library with a fresh new box of books!

Important Dates & Ordering:

• Paper Order Forms Due: Tuesday, August 4th

• Online Orders: Prefer ordering online? You can order anytime through the LOOP platform, and our library will still receive all the credit rewards.

Thank you for helping us grow our library and cultivate a love of reading!