Weekly eNews

Ross Featherston

Headmaster, Brighton Grammar School

One of the most rewarding aspects of education is seeing young people discover their passion and sense of purpose.

A key role as a school is to create an environment that encourages curiosity, enabling boys the freedom to explore widely and without judgment, and helping them discover areas where they can excel.

The replica of Old Boy John Duigan’s biplane, suspended in the Duigan Centre, serves as a daily incentive for our students to dream boldly and aim high.

Over the weekend, a group of Secondary School boys did just that, achieving outstanding results at the STEM Racing National Finals. Team Lunar was crowned National Champion for the second year in a row (a first for the competition) and will now compete at the World Finals in Singapore in late September. Team Ad Astra also earned an individual award and finished a close fourth, a testament to their innovation and hard work.

You can read more here about their achievements. A shared thread in both teams’ success in their commitment to collaboration, accountability, resilience and learning by doing.

These qualities are echoed across many areas of the school, from exceptional performances of our musicians to the inspiring efforts of our Junior and Secondary Cross Country and Golf teams, and the positive display of talent and spirit at last week’s House Choral.

Finally, enjoy the long weekend, and I hope you find some time to explore your interests.

Peter Tellefson

Deputy Headmaster, Head of Junior School

Last Thursday, our Year 5 boys and staff travelled to the goldfields of Sovereign Hill. As you can imagine, there was a chill in the air but it didn’t slow the boys down at all.

The boys participated in a number of tours, explored the streets and shops, attended a ‘school’ session, Blood on the Southern Cross light show and panning for gold that enabled them to bring their classroom theory and research alive as they were immersed into life in the 1850s.

Today and tomorrow our Year 4/5/6 musicians, who are members of Borwick House Choir, Wilson House Strings and Wilson House Concert Band, are participating in intensive music rehearsals whilst at Music Camp at Rutherford Park, Blampied.

The boys will have the opportunity to perform in the Junior School Instrumental and Choral Concert next Thursday 12 June, 7.00pm at St Andrew’s Church.

Our second Year 6 Cultural Exchange visit to Pormpuraaw School located on the west coast of Cape York Peninsula commences next week. These immersion experiences enable our boys to foster and develop relationships, communication, understanding and respect for each other’s way of life and culture.

Best wishes to Thomas a’Beckett, Ted Grant, Olly Heath, Robbie Jane, Jack Keogh, Thomas Leaman, Ethan Lewski and Ben Scales.

A reminder that the School will be closed for the King’s Birthday holiday on Monday 9 June, enjoy the long weekend!

Wilson House Happenings & Reminders

• Our Junior School Instrumental and Choral Concert will be held on Thursday 12 June, 7.00pm at St Andrew’s Church. Wilson House String Orchestra, Wilson House Concert Band, Training Strings, Beginner Strings, Junior Percussion Ensemble, Junior Guitar Ensemble, Junior Voices, Junior Chamber String Ensemble, Borwick House Choir and selected Year 6 Soloists will be performing. Boys are to wear their full winter uniform and need to be seated in St Andrew’s by 6.30pm. Further details will be available via the BGS App.

• Our Prep – Year 2 boys look forward to hosting their Grandparents and Special Friends on the following dates from 9.45am to 10.40am:

Year 2 – Thursday 19 June

Year 1 – Friday 20 June

Prep – Thursday 26 June

Student Achievements

Celebrating Musical Excellence!

We are thrilled to share the fantastic achievements of our Junior School boys in the recent AMEB Violin and Viola Exams, held last Monday at Brighton Grammar.

The AMEB (Australian Music Examinations Board) Certification is the gold standard for setting and achieving musical goals—and our students rose to the challenge with passion and dedication.

Congratulations to the following boys for their wonderful performances and results:

AMEB Preliminary

Nathan He

Jason Li

William McPherson

Leo Hu

AMEB Grade 1

Henry Angus

Osborn Wang

A very special shout-out to Jack Liu (Year 4) for his exceptional accomplishment in earning an A+ High Distinction in AMEB Grade 7 Violin. What an extraordinary milestone at such a young age.

Well done to all our talented musicians — your hard work, dedication, and love for music continue to inspire us all.

Harry Tsai
Head of Strings

Amelia Barrow

Director of the Early Learning Centre

In the ELC we aspire to inspire our creative little beings. This is captured in our Creative Arts curriculum where the use of the boys’ imagination and original thoughts can lead us in a variety of directions.

With the arts, we emphasise the process in a product-driven world, teaching the boys that the method to the product is their own important journey which develops a range of skills and builds self-confidence and pride. This is displayed and celebrated across all of the four classrooms, and we strongly encourage parents at drop off or pick up times to take a walk through the classroom to see the boys’ current creative work.

We also recommend the National Gallery of Victoria Kids section where you can book free experiences online or on-site as well as child-appropriate exhibitions. Celebrating a young child’s creativity is such an exciting aspect of our daily teaching with these boys.

This week we have certainly felt the change in the weather and seasons; however, it hasn’t dampened the boy’s enthusiasm for learning. We do ask that families pack raincoats and ensure they have gumboots kept in the ELC. Although as adults we feel the cold, our boys certainly keep moving to stay warm no matter the weather.

A friendly reminder that this weekend is a long weekend with the King’s Birthday public holiday on Monday. We wish you a wonderful long weekend and can’t wait for an action packed short week ahead!

Parenting Tips

Teaching Kids Self-Control

Self-control is one of the most important life skills our kids can develop. Whether it’s a toddler throwing a tantrum, a tween interrupting in class, or a teen glued to their phone instead of doing homework, self-control (or the lack of it) shows up in every stage of parenting.

Here’s some encouraging news: self-control is a learned skill. And just like learning to read, ride a bike, or play an instrument, our kids can improve their self-control with practice, guidance, and the right tools, no matter their age or temperament (and so can we.) 

Read below for Dr Justin Coulson’s self-control strategies.

Olivia Tims
Junior School Psychologist

JPG News

End of Term Lunch

The JPG will again be offering an end of term lunch for the ELC and Junior School boys on Friday 27 June 2025. Lunch will include two slices of margherita pizza, apple juice and a chocolate treat. The cost will be $10.00 (extra 2 pizza slices $5.00).  Online ordering is available through Flexischools online ordering system.  

Orders must be placed by no later than Friday 20 June 2025 at 5.00pm – no late orders will be accepted. Please note that normal canteen ordering will not be available on this day.

BGS Business Breakfast

Our next BGS Business Breakfast on Monday 16 June features guest speaker Joshua Ball (OB 2013), co-founder of Farmers Pick.

Joshua will outline the journey of this subscription-based service that delivers unconventional yet fresh produce directly to consumers, promoting sustainability and reducing food waste. Since inception, Farmers Pick has saved over 10 million kilograms of produce and expanded to a team of 120 employees. 

Join us at the Royal Brighton Yacht Club to hear how Joshua and Farmers Pick continues to have a positive impact on both the environment and the economy.

Free Heart Checks at BGS

During the month of June, we are offering free heart health checks to all staff, parents and the wider community. This initiative aims to raise awareness about heart health within the BGS community.

From Thursday 12 June (after 3.00pm) – Wednesday 25 June, BGS will host a SiSU Health Station on-site at the Annandale Pavilion, providing convenient access for everyone to monitor their heart health.

The SiSU Health Stations offer quick, non-invasive checks that include measurements of blood pressure, heart rate, and other critical indicators of cardiovascular health.

Please share this with friends and family – we want everyone in the community to be involved and part of it.