This week we have once again celebrated Book Week.  This year’s theme of “Book at Adventure” has allowed us to highlight the adventures that fiction and non-fiction texts allow us to go on, and the adventurous places we sometimes get to read.  Our students, staff and community members have embraced the week with typical Penguin enthusiasm, taking part in a wide range of activities designed to inspire a lifelong love of reading. Classroom based book investigations, our “Book and Brekkie,” “Dress Up Day” and our Photography Competition have all helped us celebrate the adventures that books can take us on.

At PDS, we know that the power of sharing a good book is sometimes immeasurable.  In this digital day and age where our children’s spare time is often dominated by screen time, having the time and space to sit down and share a good book is something we must continue to foster.  Everyone’s reading journey is quite different.  I know for me my love of reading started in primary school by reading the Hardy Boys Adventures and has evolved into a lifelong love of adventure sport/music biographies and crime novels.  We all just need to find the right book to start our own reading adventure.

One of the highlights of the week is always our Book Week dress up day.  Thankyou to all our students, staff and parents who embraced the day with such creativity and enthusiasm.  It is such a great way for students to share and discuss their favourite books. I just hope someone found the Green Sheep by the end of the day, rumour has it he was last seen still sound asleep in assembly! 

Finally, community involvement continues to be something we value highly at PDS.  We would like to say thankyou to our all our parents that joined us for our “Book and Brekkie” and major assemblies this week.

Shout Out’s:

• To our classroom teachers and support staff who have help create their own class book adventures this week.
• To Mrs Hubbard (Our LIFT Coordinator) for her work in organising/coordinating multiple Book Week events.
• Thanks Alaynah Hensons, our visiting author, for sharing your book “The Whale and the Astronaut” with a number of primary classes on Tuesday.
• To Fire Fighter Craig Machen for the work he is doing in educating our young ones about the importance of fire safety.
• Best of luck to our 40 plus students who are participating in football Grand Finals this weekend.  We know you will do yourselves and PDS proud.
• Congratulations to Harper for winning the girls league goal kicking award and winning the U/14 North-West Devil of the Year award. 
• Congratulations to Hudson and Mitchell on their joint U/16 boys B@F awards.
• To our students who were randomly selected to participate in the PISA assessments this week.  Thanks for embracing the opportunity with such enthusiasm.
• Congratulations to Zander who has received the following accolades at the Young Archies Art Awards.  He has received the Yr.5/6 highly commended awards as well as the Commissiner for Children and Young People Award.
• Well Done to Dalton Stretton on his recent NWFL Juniors Volunteer of the Year Award Nomination.

Yours in partnership.