“And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.” – 1 Corinthians 13:13 (NIV)

Love is at the heart of everything God calls us to be. It is not just a feeling—it is a choice, an action, a reflection of God's very nature. When we love others with patience, kindness, and humility, we become mirrors of the love Christ showed us. His love was sacrificial, unwavering, and unconditional.

In a world that often values self over service, love stands apart. It heals wounds, bridges divides, and brings light into darkness. Whether it’s a word of encouragement, a forgiving heart, or simply showing up for someone, every act of love echoes God’s presence.

Today, let us choose to love deeply—not just when it’s easy, but especially when it’s hard. Let us be known by our love, just as Christ is known by His love for us.

If your child will be absent from school, please remember to notify us as soon as possible. You can easily report absences by calling the school directly or using our convenient school app. Keeping us informed helps ensure your child’s absence is properly recorded and allows us to support their learning.

Students who are absent without parental notification will be escalated to Heads of House

Thank you for your cooperation!

Dear Primary School Families,

Welcome back to Term 2. I trust the Easter break was a time of rest and celebration with family and friends. Term 2 is the term where we consolidate and scaffold much of the learning that has taken place in term 1, whether this be academic, social-emotional or related to our theme of ‘Work Hard. Be Kind’.

Navigating Friendships:

Mrs. North and I were able to listen to Michelle Mitchell at the Grade 6 Leader’s conference in February. She communicated well with Primary students regarding friendships. Michelle now has a ‘Navigating Friendships’ webinar that parents may be interested in attending, along with their children: “This Q and A webinar is designed to help parents and their tweens or teens (ages 8–16) make sense of the often tricky world of friendships. You’ll hear real, anonymous questions answered with warmth and wisdom – covering both the common and the unexpected”.

Information is here Navigating Friendships Webinar | Michelle Mitchell and the website has other resources worth exploring.

Parent Teacher Interviews commence next week. PT Interviews are one of the events we conduct online (via Teams), to cater for working families and complex family arrangements. Other events that occur during the school year (Reading Afternoons, Meet & Greet; Open Days; Tours; Picnics; Special Person Days; SSGs; Information Evenings etc) open classrooms for parents/ carers to see the school 'in action'. Please take note of the day and time, as rescheduling PSTI becomes problematic after the week that we set aside.

Reading afternoons for Prep to Grade 2
classes begin in Week 4 this term (after PSTI). Please see the notice on the Flinders app for more details. If you have not yet completed our short onboarding module, submitted a ‘Working with Children Check’ and would like to participate, please see our Primary Office. These items are mandatory, and ensure we are meeting Child Safe requirements. These items are also required for Grade 3 to 6 parents looking to volunteer or attend an excursion in the future.

Warm Regards

Adam Swain, Head of Primary

The Flinders values award is presented at each Primary chapel to students that exemplify one or more of our Flinders values. Congratulations to Maddi and Elina for receiving the award during this week’s Primary Chapel Service.

Maddi displays Perseverance and Humility in consistently striving to do her best and being a quiet achiever who encourages others.

Elina exemplifies Perseverance and Integrity values by working hard and showing grace, love and humility daily.

We ask that the Grade 3 – 6 students DO NOT order a canteen lunch next Monday as they will be participating in their Cross Country Carnival.

On Monday 12 May, Prep - Grade 6 students will take part in the Primary House Cross Country competition. This will be held at the Carrum Downs Campus and the Pines Flora and Fauna Park adjacent to the school.

Prep – 2 students will run inside the school, while grade 3-6 will venture into the reserve. A team will be selected from the Gr 3 - 6 students, for the District Cross Country Competition that will be held on Tuesday 20 May, once again on the same course. Students will walk the course with staff prior to the event.

If you can assist on the day with course marshalling or recording, could you please email veronica.howlett@flinders.vic.edu.au. You will need a current Working with Children Check and to complete our volunteer onboarding induction. Any time volunteered for sporting events will count towards your Flinders Community Program fees.

Students are to come to school in their PE uniforms for Cross Country and parents are more than welcome to come to cheer the runners.

Please make note of the following events and times:

9am – 9.30am Prep (800m)

9.30am – 10.00am Grade 1 (1.2km run)

10.00am - 10.30am Grade 2 (1.6km run)

12.15pm - 12.30pm Grades 3-6 Welcome

12.30pm - 1.15pm U12/13 Boys & Girls (3km run)

1.15pm - 2.00pm U 11 Boys & Girls (3km run)

2.00pm – 2.45pm U9/10 Boys & Girls (2km run)

2.45pm - 3.00pm Presentation of medals to 1st, 2nd
& 3rd in each age group.

The P & F will be holding a Mother’s Day stall on Friday 9 May.

We have items ranging in price from $3.00 to $10.00

Each primary class has been allocated 15 minutes shopping time to allow them to make their purchase, accompanied by their class teacher.

Secondary students are welcome to visit the stall at the beginning of lunch at 12.50pm until 1.15pm.

Helpers are needed to set up the stall on Thursday 8 May in the Rotunda from 1.30 pm and also to serve the students as they purchase gifts for their mum on Friday morning. If you hold a current Working with Children’s Card and would like to assist, please contact Marianne at Marianne.morgan@flinders.vic.edu.au

The next P&F meeting for will be held on Thursday 29 May in the Rotunda at 8.30am.

Come along and grab a coffee. New members are always welcome.

If you would like to be part of the team, but can’t make the meeting or you would like further information please contact Marianne at Marianne.morgan@flinders.vic.edu.au

We look forward to meeting you.

Dear Flinders Families

As we move into Term 2, thank you for your ongoing support in upholding the high standards we set at Flinders.

From Tuesday 6 May, students are expected to wear full winter uniform. (Monday, 5 May is Cross Country – PE uniform is permitted.)

We will be focusing on blazers as a key part of our uniform policy. To simplify expectations:

- Blazers must be worn from the school gate until the end of Homegroup, and again from end of Period 6 until exiting the gate.
- During Periods 1–6, students may remove blazers and wear soft shell jackets if needed.

Exemptions for not wearing a blazer to and from school include:
- PE or Sport in Period 1,2 or 5,6
- Riding a bike to/from school

- Year 12’s may wear their year 12 jumper
- Specific days communicated by the Principal or myself

Students not meeting this expectation without a valid reason will receive a 30-minute lunchtime detention.

We believe clear expectations and consistent routines create a disciplined environment where students thrive. Now that our Positive Behaviour Support (PBS) framework is nearly complete, we’re seeing strong results:

- 30 extra minutes of learning daily due to improved punctuality and readiness
- Over 450 positive acknowledgements issued to students
- Stronger, more orderly classroom environments

This next step—blazers worn properly—is about students taking pride in representing their school and maintaining consistency across the day.

In my next newsletter, I’ll share the final element of our PBS framework: how we’re encouraging every student to work hard and grow through high expectations and support.

Warm regards,

Matthew Bodley
Head of Secondary

If your child is involved in the gala (such as the primary choir, or one of the musical theatre ensemble pieces), please make sure you remind them to attend their rehearsals.

Schedule found here via the Production Moodle Page: HERE

The Flinders Gala: A Musical Celebration
Cast and Crew Merchandise: On sale now, limited time offer - please check Flinders Connect notices for details and payment.
Gala Tickets selling fast: HERE
Production Moodle Page: Parents and students, please regularly check THIS MOODLE PAGE for rehearsal schedules and all other information for the event: HERE

Secondary Dance: Wakakirri
Wakakirri is Australia’s largest performing arts event for schools, and we are delighted to announce that Secondary Students are invited to participate in our schools entry this year! A date between August 11-14 will be set once we have cast our entry, and the performance of our entry will be at Frankston Arts Centre.

As we would need a minimum of 20 participants, parents of students in years 7-12 have received an EOI form to complete (registration is due 9 May) - please email sarah.cosseyglaubert@flinders.vic.edu.au for any questions.

VCE VET Dance - new in 2026!
Students in years 10 and 11 are invited to consider VCE VET Dance as a subject in 2026. Please check out this brochure for more information: HERE or see/email Mrs. Sarah Cossey Glaubert.

Private Performing Arts Tuition
Private lessons are at capacity in the primary school and prospective students can be placed on a waiting list, however limited availability remains for secondary school students to study with Ms. Cossey. More information can be found HERE

As announced last term, the primary production for 2025 is Finding Nemo Kids!

Auditions for lead roles took place this week and we can’t wait to share the casting with you soon.

We are also excited to announce that Finding Nemo Kids will be performed at the George Jenkins Theater, Frankston!

Please put THURSDAY 28 AUGUST in your calendars for this exciting production - tickets available soon.

It’s been a great start to Term 2 in Waymaker!

We started the term by recapping and celebrating our recent excursion to a local animal sanctuary. Students had the opportunity to meet and learn about a wide range of animals, including snakes, parrots and even some dingos! We then moved on to learning about the ANZACs and how they helped shape Australian culture. As we head towards the middle of the term we are studying ‘believing’ and the practices of ancient civilisations before rounding out the term with teamwork and Escape Rooms!

Congratulations to Harsamar S and Gursehaj S, who were recently selected to represent Victoria in jumps and races at a prestigious competition held over the weekend in Adelaide.

Both boys showcased outstanding skill and determination:

Harsamar Singh earned a bronze medal in the Triple Jump

Gursehaj Singh secured a bronze medal in the 1500m race

This is an incredible achievement, and we are so proud of their hard work, perseverance, and the way they represented our school and state on the national stage.

Well done, Harsamar and Gursehaj — we look forward to seeing all you accomplish in the future!

It’s been a huge week of 3x3 Cup finals for Flinders, with outstanding performances across all age divisions.

In the U20s division, our girls showed incredible determination, pushing hard to qualify for the quarter finals in a tough competition.

The U17s competition day saw Flinders represented by three teams — two in the boys' divisions and one in the girls' division. All teams gave it their all, with our Division 1 boys team finishing as champions!

In the U15s division, Flinders fielded four teams — two boys and two girls teams. Every team fought hard throughout the day, and we’re proud to share that our Division 1 girls team were crowned champions, while our Division 1 boys finished as runners-up.

We are incredibly proud of all our Flinders students for their effort, sportsmanship, and achievements. Well done to all involved!

Congratulations to the following students who have been selected to represent the Southern Independent Schools (SIS) at the upcoming VSAC competition on Monday 12 May:

Hunter B

Lilly Mae S-E

Oscar B

Karen J

Darcy L

Harry C

This is an incredible achievement, and we wish them all the best as they compete at this prestigious event.

Congratulations to all Tyabb and Carrum Downs students who represented Flinders Christian Community College at the SIS Division A Swimming Carnival! We were incredibly impressed by your determination, effort, and positive spirit throughout the day. Your hard work and commitment paid off, with Flinders proudly finishing as overall runners-up for the day — a fantastic achievement! A special congratulations goes to the students who contributed to winning the U14 and Open Male flags.

Well done to everyone involved — we are so proud of you!

The FDNA After School Netball season will commence from Friday 8 May.

Any families/students involved in this program MUST check their emails regarding more information about teams, dates, uniform etc.

Just a reminder that Secondary House Cross Country will be held this Monday 5 May during periods 3 &4. Secondary students are welcome to wear their P.E uniform all day.