Term 3, Week 6, 19 August 2021
Principal's Message
Well since our last newsletter, things have certainly changed! Last week on Moday evening Regional NSW was placed in lockdown. Quickly and swiftly families and staff took up the call to respond and transition to blended learning.
I undertsand how challenging that can be when you are either trying to work or navigate learning with a couple of different year levels. You have done a phenominal job taking on all these changes. Please remember that if it starts to get too challenging please don't continue on with the struggle and take a break. You are their first teachers and you know when enough is enough. So go gently and take care of yourselves and your families. We could not be prouder of what our families have done!
So we move to another week of lockdown, please note if any issues arise regarding the blended learning please contact your child's teacher for help with the learning.
I have had the delight of joining Stage 3 in a zoom meeting. I really enjoyed seeing the kids catch up with one another but was most impressed with the questions they were asking about their learning. Keep up the hard work Stage 3.
We would usually have assembly this week so I have created a video of our award recipients and they include snippets of their learning. Congratulations to these students!
Please note Bookweek has been postponed to Wk 4 in Term 4.
Stay safe and best strong as we enter another week of lockdown,
Renay
Assistant Principal's Message
Supporting Wellbeing during Lockdown
During this current lockdown period I’ve been deeply impressed with the way everyone has responded; our teachers have transitioned over to blended learning in a seamless fashion, building on the skills and experience garnered from last year. The children have adapted quickly to the new learning structures, connecting into their zoom meetings and tackling the home learning tasks. Our parents have been incredible, juggling their working from home demands as well as ensuring that the children continue as best they can with their learning. I’d like to say a HUGE thank you to everyone for your continued efforts in the face of the many and varied stresses and strains we are faced with on a daily basis during the lockdown.
We all, however, face different challenges in this space. Please do not hesitate to reach out to your child’s teacher or myself if you or your child requires assistance with the learning.
Below is a link to a Wellbeing package for families and primary school students from the Growing Strong Minds website, you may find some of the activities and/or information helpful.
My Wellbeing Plan is a school based personal wellbeing plan designed for our students. You may like to work alongside your child to complete this plan for them. If the lockdown is extended into next week our Stage 2 and 3 teachers will include this activity into the week’s learning.
Best regards, Greg
TEACHING AND LEARNING
Blended Learning K-2
During Blended Learning my role is to support ES 1 and S1 teachers, students and families. It has been a pleasure to watch students engaging with their learning in a different format. Students and families are doing a wonderful job using the Seesaw platform to access the variety of learning opportunities organised by their dedicated teachers. This, of course, is occurring across all stages and I thank the teacher's for their wonderful efforts in keeping learning going with our students. It was hard to contain the excitement of students yesterday as they caught up with their friends via zoom. Kindergarten shared some very unique jokes which were very funny- clearly some were writing their own material! What was inspiring was the creativity they displayed and the confidence in delivering their shared jokes. Obviously a lot of time and effort has gone into building a wonderful relationship between students, their teachers and families.
In Stage 1, the excitement at being able to see each other was just as high. Students were able to share aspects of themselves, their family life and the things they treasure to a very creative treasure hunt. We got to see an aspect of their world that we don’t normally get to share. This is special and it is also evident in the work the students are uploading.
I know there are many challenges for all concerned but remember to see the silver lining because it certainly has been a joy to read the feedback from teachers and witness the interaction between home and school. Keep up the great efforts everyone.
Around the Stages!
Kinder
During blended learning, the students of Stage 2 have been putting in an amazing amount of effort. They have produced some engaging writing using adjectives and tier two words and I am very proud of them all. It has been a challenging couple of weeks with technical issues and trying to navigate Seesaw, however, I have been blown away by the resilience and persistence that all students have shown. Our daily zoom sessions have been a highlight and I have loved seeing all the students faces each day. Keep up the amazing work!
Stage 2
SCHOOL NEWS
HAPPY BIRTHDAY
Our birthday people
Quinn, Shanti-Rose, Elliott & Harley
Book Fair 2021
The book fair has been post poned until later this year.