School History
School traditions
Stuart Park Primary, like most other schools, has many traditions which have been with us since we first opened. These include the school motif, the house system and the school colours.
School Motif
The school motif is used on the school uniform and school publications. The seeds at the base of the plant represent the seeds of learning and the development of the plant represents the continuing process of the growth of the individual, education and Darwin.
School Colours
The colours of Stuart Park School are sky blue and royal blue. These appear on our uniforms and many of the buildings around the school. These colours were chosen because of the area the school is in. The city schools (Larrakeyah, Ludmilla and Parap) all have similar colours, so at interschool competitions it was easy to identify city area schools.
House System
The Houses
The school population is divided into four houses named after ships that are historically significant in Australia’s exploration and settlement. House placement is determined on a family basis.
Below is a brief explanation of the significance of the House names.
- Alligator (yellow). The “Alligator” was Bremer’s ship when he set up Victoria, Pt. Essington in 1837;
- Beagle (blue). The “Beagle” a survey ship under the command of Captain Stokes (1838 - 41) surveyed the North West Coast;
- Moonta (green). The “Moonta”, a ship Goyder and the surveyors came up on from Adelaide in 1869;
- Sirius (red). The “Sirius” was a supply ship for the First Fleet.
Until the year 2002 the school only had two houses, Alligator and Beagle, but with the growth of the school two more houses were added. These two houses were part of the school house system originally, but disappeared as the school became smaller. Former students can again support their old house team.
House Leaders
At the beginning of each school year students in years 6 and 7 have the opportunity to become a House Leader. All Middle and Upper Primary students vote in their houses for a Leader.
House Points
Points are allocated to a student’s house for:
- Academic achievement
- Citizenship
- Good manners
- Sportsmanship, etc. within school ,and
- Class activities.
These points are tallied every fortnight and the winning house’s leader is presented with a perpetual trophy.
Sports Carnival
An athletics carnival is held during the year where students compete in their houses. Points are given to the houses during the carnival to place-getters as well as for participation in events.
Uniforms
The current uniforms of our school are a sky blue t-shirt with a royal blue collar and emblem.
Until about ten years ago two uniforms were available:
- one was the same as described above and
- the other was yellow and royal blue.
The students in Alligator house wore the yellow t-shirts while Beagles wore the blue. This was changed by the School Council to generate a cohesive feel to the school.
Student Leadership
Before 2000, the roles of School Captains and House Leaders were combined into a role called House Captains. Two girls and two boys from each of the two houses (Alligator and Beagle) were elected by year 6 and 7 students in their house.
In the year 2000 the jobs were split and four School Captains were elected. The number of House Leaders elected each year has changed, from two to four and then one for each house.
