Junior School Reminders
Dear Parents and Guardians,
We ask that you please take note of some important information regarding up-coming activities in the Junior School.
Junior School Assembly: With the easing of some of the government COVIDSafe guidelines, we are excited to be able to welcome parents back into the school to join us for our Junior School assemblies, starting this coming Monday, May 23rd. It will be wonderful to be able to once again share these special times with our parents in person. Parent Classroom Helpers session: As we are also able to welcome adults back into our classrooms, we are looking for parents and guardians who are prepared to be helpers in the Prep to Year 4 classrooms during the morning sessions. Parents who wish to be involved are welcome to join us for an information session in the Auditorium on Monday the 23rd of May at 9.30am, immediately after the Junior School Assembly. Entrance to the Auditorium will be via the North gate leading to the Music Foyer. Parents are asked to complete the sign-in book before entering the Auditorium. Please continue to practice safe social distancing whilst on site. We also respectfully ask that if you are exhibiting COVID-19 like symptoms leading up to the event that you do not attend. We thank all visitors in advance for supporting the College in these measures, enabling us to safely share in this event.
Junior School Classroom Visits
With Term 2 now well underway we are taking the opportunity to organise an evening to welcome parents into the Junior School classrooms. The visits will take place on Wednesday June 1st, 4.30pm – 5.30pm, in the Prep – Year 4 classrooms.
Please note details on the attached information sheet.
Year 6 Excursion to the Immigration Museum
This term, Year 6 students have been learning about democracy and Australia’s three branches of government. Exploring the Immigration Museum gave students the opportunity to see firsthand how the Federal Government supports immigration.
They saw some of the processes it takes to migrate to this country. In addition, this excursion provided students with insight into their learning for Term 3, where they will explore the Humanities unit ‘Belonging to the World’. This unit dives into topics about immigration, migration, refugees, and asylum seekers. Some highlights included seeing a variety of artifacts that immigrants brought with them to Australia. We learned about the founder of Myer and his journey to Australia from Russia. Sean in 6S commented, “I liked learning about the different struggles the immigrates faced and how their journey to Australia was not easy.” After exploring the museum, students wandered around Enterprise Park which commemorates the spot where the first settlers aboard the ship Enterprise went ashore on 30 August 1835. Afterwards, we observed the ‘Travellers’ art installation around the Sandridge Bridge. Each sculpture corresponds with a period of migration in Australia. It was a wonderful day full of discovery, discussion, observation, and learning.
2022 House Cross Country
It wouldn’t be cross country without the cold weather and rain. Not to be discouraged, our Year 3 – 9 students displayed enthusiasm and house spirit through their participation in the 2km event.
In a tightly contested race for house points with the leaderboard fluctuating across the day, Taylor House was able to take home the win, followed closely by Burrows, Flynn and Penman.
Susanna Mavromihalis took out the fasted female on campus with an amazing time of 8.06. Taylor house captain Noah Jones took out the fastest on campus with an outstanding time of 7.04. Below is the list of all year level champions and their times. Well done again to all students for their efforts. Year level Female Male Year 3 Arabella Wescott- 11.06 Harvey Stefanovski- 8.53 Year 4 Lexie Strachan- 10.28 Patrick Clark- 9.11 Year 5 Tayte McKenzie- 9.50 Harry Judge- 9.07 Year 6 Olivia Clark- 8.54 Thomas Stefanovski- 8.01 Year 7 Jessica Phelan- 9.30 Ryan Tolley- 7.56 Year 8 Jasmine King- 8.53 Keegan Johnson- 7.49 Year 9 Susanna Mavromihalis- 8.06 Noah Jones- 7.04
Ayo makan! Let’s eat!
“Hmmmm, it tastes like garlic… and the texture is mushy,”said Lacey Byrne, one of our Year 8 Indonesian students, when tasting a durian for her first time. The Year 8s are trying various Indonesian food/drinks throughout the term as they are learning the topic of “Makanan-food”.
Through this unit of work, students learn how to express likes and dislikes, describe the taste of food, have a conversation about eating in the restaurant, and broaden their understanding of the eating culture in Indonesia. Students will be introduced to distinctive fruits such as durian, snacks, sweet dessert, and classic meals such as the mie goreng – fried noodles and nasi goreng – fried rice).
Did you know…that rice is the staple food for Indonesian people and Indonesia grows more rice than any other agricultural product. A meal is considered incomplete without rice. The culture of eating rice has been around since ancient times and only a few people do not like rice.
Every week, food tasting is embedded in the cultural activity to bring an immersive experience as students learn the language. Last week, students tasted durian, commonly known as the “king of fruits”, and palm sugar, one ingredient widely used in Indonesian desserts. Why not try cooking afamous Indonesian dessert using the following recipe!
Klepon (Pandan Glutinous Rice Balls with Palm Sugar Filling) – Jaja Bakes
Semoga berhasil – good luck!
Chess Tournament
Geelong Library Excursion
This term in Integrated Studies the Year 1s and Year 2s have been learning all about ‘Communication’, with the start of this unit primarily focusing on the different forms of communication used by Indigenous Australians. The children have enthusiastically explored Aboriginal dance, music, art, language, symbols and dreamtime stories.
To further extend their understanding, we visited the Geelong Library where we participated in many valuable experiences such as learning how to say an Acknowledgement of Country using Auslan and using Wuddawurrung language to name Indigenous animals and foods. We also went on a tour of the library and discussed all the different services the library offers and how it acts as a communication hub in the community. The children were amazed at how huge the library was, spanning over five levels. Many wanted to know how they could get a library card to borrow books and stated that they were going to ‘ask mum’ if they could come back to the library. When asked by library staff how much they though a library card cost, answers ranged from $1 to $200. They were quite amazed and excited to find out they could get a library card for free!
Year 7/8 Girls Soccer
It’s been wonderful to finally have inter-school sport back after a couple of years!
The Year 7/8 Soccer Girls have had an amazing first three games. So far this term the girls have played Clonard College (away), St. Ignatius College (home) and Clonard College again (home). Although the first two games seemed a bit one-sided on the scoreboard that was not really the case as the girls fought hard and were in possession for a fair portion of the games.
Even though the girls haven’t had a win on the scoreboard yet, the experience so far has been a win because they really love playing as a team, relishing the opportunity to work, improve and have fun together! It has been great seeing all the Year 7/8 Soccer Girls giving their all and we are all looking forward to seeing what unfolds during the remainder of the season!
How Does your Garden Grow?
Last Friday the “How Does your Garden Grow” students went on an excursion to visit the Yarrabee Native Garden with the aim of broadening their gardening understanding. The gardens are located in Lara and extend for a fully landscaped 5-acre property including three ponds, a waterfall, and a dam. Students were able to observe a wide range of ecosystems.
They looked at a large range of native and other exotic plants taking into consideration the importance of suitability and impact on the environment. The group also visited the large eco-friendly vegetable garden and discussed the physical benefits of gardening, the production of healthy and sustainable food, the minimisation of waste and the economic benefits of having a vegetable garden. Overall, this experience demonstrated the importance of outdoor spaces in progressive modern learning by exposing students to the joy of gardening.
Marty’s Moments
It has been a big week for Marty both at puppy school and at real school.
On Saturday Marty graduated from puppy school and as you can see from his photo it was with full Honors. We now move into a time of maintaining what he has learned until he starts further training.
During the week, as well as taking part in different classes throughout the school, Marty joined the Prep – Year 2 students as they moved through the different events at their House Athletics Carnival on the College oval. He too enjoyed welcoming the parents and grandparents back, as they watched their children participate.
Prep- Year 2 House Athletics
The House colours were on full display for our Prep- Year 2 House Athletics carnival on Tuesday this week. It was fabulous to see so many parents and friends on campus to support the students.
Despite the cold conditions, the students gave all events their best effort and represented their House with pride and big smiles.
A huge thank you goes to the Year 9 House Captains for their support on the day running the events. It was amazing to see the way they led and interacted with the Junior School students.
Timor Leste Restoration of Independence
Today we came together as a Campus to celebrate the 20th Anniversary of the restoration of independence for one of our closest neighbours Timor Leste.
Our service, led by School Captains Koby Millar-Burton and Jas Bevacqua-Hall and supported by fellow students Caitlin Bell and Noah Jones, celebrated 20 years of restored independence for our closest neighbour. The raising of the flag, listening to the national anthem and the tying of traditional tais to the flagpole, were all significant moments within our service.
Building a Bridge Using Paper and Glue
In Year 3 Investigations over the last couple of weeks, we have been investigating how we could construct a paper bridge, that could support weight, without collapsing. We looked at different shapes, spans and fixings to ensure that our bridge held up to the pressure that it was put under.
This week, the challenge was to use what we had learned to build a more complex bridge, but this time only using paper and glue to hold it together. Everyone worked collaboratively to discuss, build and in some cases, refine their design and rebuild, to ensure that the creation lived up to expectations.
It was fantastic to see the level of engagement, resilience and encouragement displayed during the task and it is fair to say that everyone was very pleased with their work.
Year 6 Art – Fun With Painting
This term in Visual Art, Year 6 students have been picking up a paint brush and learning all about Impressionism, brush techniques and colour.
The students have been enthusiastically experimenting to create different aesthetic effects through the impasto painting approach. Students were particularly interested in learning about the value of warm and cool colours and how they can be used to capture the feeling of an environment.
‘Plein air’ painting was a major feature of the Impressionists’ art movement. The effects of sunlight on colour fascinated them and so these techniques have inspired us to take to the outdoors and practise capturing the reflected light on different colours and surfaces within the school landscape. Our students are really looking forward to the chance to explore ‘plein air’ painting and the experiences involved in transporting painting equipment, setting up in the open air and trying to capture the colours and essence of landscape around them.
We’re Hiring!
As is currently the case in many workplaces Australia-wide, there have been staffing challenges for our College. We currently have a number of vacancies, including for casual Bus Drivers, an Assistant Café Manager at Back Creek Café (full or part-time), Basketball/Netball Coaches and various teaching roles.
While we regularly advertise positions on Seek, our social media platforms and in a range of other outlets, we also want to spread the word among the many connections within our College community. If you are suitably qualified/experienced for one of our vacant roles and are interested in the possibility of working with us or feel that someone you know may fit that description, please visit the Employment page on our website – or encourage friends/neighbours/other acquaintances to do so (Homepage > Join > Employment). A link to it is here. Thank you
Golf Tournament
The Foundation Golf Tournament is set for Thursday, 27 October 2022. Join us at 13th Beach Golf Links from 8:00am for a shotgun start. Tickets are $190 each ($150 for members) or $750 for a group of four. RSVPs close on Thursday, 6 October 2022 at 5:00pm.
Funds raised from this event will be allocated to our Foundation Scholarship Fund, supporting current students who are in need of financial assistance.
Book online at: The Foundation Golf Tournament
A MYTERN Thought for This Week
No matter what road you are travelling down, there is one decision that only you can make....to either take control or to blame others. Your perspective has the power to change your life. Your wheel, your choice 👍👏
Discover more about MYTERN here