Newsletter Number 2 • Wednesday 17th February 2021

From the Principal

We were very excited to assist with the launch of an art exhibition open to school students across the state, which will coincide with the ban on single-use plastic in South Australia. From March 1, single-use plastic straws, cutlery, cups, bowls and stirrers will be prohibited from sale, supply or distribution in South Australia. The school art exhibition 'What can we do about single-use plastics', aims to stimulate discussion and creative responses to taking action on single-use plastics and give students the opportunity to channel their thoughts into a creative call for action. Thanks to Sid, Charlotte and Micah who assisted with the unveiling of the REPLACE THE WASTE art exhibition and were featured in The Courier. 

Cycle 3 and 4 students will be visiting The Plastic Bag Store in Rundle Mall, which is a quirky installation created from hundreds of upcycled plastic bags and plastic rubbish and is part of the Adelaide Festival.

A number of our classes are creating art work to submit to the 'Replace the Waste' exhibition to help promote the single-use plastic ban in a creative and innovative way. .

Preschool classes have been looking into the impact of plastics that make their way into the oceans. Working as a whole class, they are creating an octopus sculpture from single-use plastics and including information on why plastics are bad for the ocean.

Cycle 1 Primary classes are working on individual posters. They have been looking at different types of plastic and how to recycle it.

Cycle 2 classes have been reading a book called The Seagull by Danny Snell, a simple, heart- warming story about the rescue of a seagull caught up in a tangle of beach litter. Students in Cycle 2 are making posters that have positive messages about the conservation of our environment and the preservation of our wildlife.

Suzie/Sam's Cycle 3 class are creating media advertisements that talk about the ban on single-use plastics and why it's necessary for the planet. They're hoping other states in Australia also come on board with the ban on single-use plastics.

The environment is a key concern for children and young people and their desire to adopt affordable, scalable solutions that will enable us all to move to a cleaner world is evident every day in the classroom.  Students of this generation have been saying no to single-use plastics for some time, they know the effects that plastics can have in our oceans and across the environment. The art exhibition is a wonderful way for students to not only raise awareness, but also feel a part of the initiative to ban the sale of single-use plastics in South Australia.

If you would like to visit the Replace the Waste exhibition, it will take place at the Adelaide City Library in Rundle Place, and will run from February 23 until March 26. 

Cathy France

Principal

Grab a copy of The Courier to see their coverage of our involvement in the Replace the Waste exhibition

Parent Education

An Education and Information Session is being presented for parents, particularly new parents, who are interested in learning more about the Montessori Philosophy.

“The Montessori Philosophy - An Introductory Talk”

will be held on Wednesday, 3rd March,

6.30 – 8.30pm at Yultiwirra Campus.

This session will highlight key aspects of the Philosophy & Methodology and how the Montessori approach to learning differs from mainstream schooling.  Participants will have the opportunity to learn more about how the Montessori Philosophy is applied at our school.  Knowledge gained may assist you to further support the Montessori Philosophy at home.  By knowing the values and basis of the Montessori Philosophy you will be able to further capitalise on opportunities for consistency of approaches presented to your child between home and school. 

We urge all new families to attend this informative session and any existing families who have not attended one of these sessions. 

A crèche will be available for any child/ren over 3 years of age – prior bookings are essential and can be made at the office.

We hope that you are able to join us for this important session.

An invitation will be sent to new families, however anyone interested in attending should notify the office or RSVP via the eForm on Skoolbag.

Life Membership

It is at this time of the year that we ask our school community if there are any nominations for Life Membership of our school.  Our school Constitution and Regulations state that… “a person shall be made a Life Member of the School as a recognition of consistent, long standing and excellent service rendered to the School by that person and such person shall be of good standing in the community and held in high regard by other members of the school”.

If you would like to nominate anyone who you believe is worthy of this recognition, please submit a written nomination to the Board.  The nomination needs to be supported and signed by four school members setting out the details of the nominee’s service and reasons for the nomination.  Nominations need to be displayed for 14 days calling for any further written submissions supporting these nominations prior to the Board voting on the appointment.  We currently have seventeen Life Members of our school who have been bestowed this honour over the years.  Life Members are usually presented with this tribute at our Annual General Meeting. 

Written submissions need to be forwarded to the Board by Friday 5th March.   

Term 1 chats

Wairoa parents will be emailed a link this week that will take them to the “Interview Schedule Portal” for booking a Term 1 Chat and details of how to make this on-line booking.

Wairoa Term 1 Chats – parent/teacher/student interviews are being held next week (Monday 22nd February - Wednesday 24th February)

Yultiwirra Term 1 Chats – parent/teacher interviews will be held in Week 8 (Monday 15th March – Thursday 18th March). An email will be sent to Yultiwirra parents in a couple of weeks' time providing them with the link to enable them to access the interview portal.

Parents who do not have access to a computer can phone or come into the office to make a booking.


Student wellbeing appointments

If parents would like to make an appointment to meet with Libby Roberts, our Student Wellbeing worker she is available to do this on Thursday afternoons and Fridays at Yultiwirra.  Please phone or come into the office to book an appointment at reception.

Cycle News

Infant Program

Over the past couple of weeks in the Infant Program we have been exploring the sense of touch and the colour yellow. We have busy children happy to be back at school and eager for all the activities on offer. Harry, Finn and Walter are having fun with popping the bubble wrap and working well together.

Preschool

As a part of our learning about the five senses children have enjoyed exploring a range of the sensorial materials. Sensorial materials provide an excellent opportunity for children to fine-tune their sensory perception. They also help children to learn the precise vocabulary used to talk about the sensory qualities of an object. So far, we have  focused on our sense of sight and touch. Indiana explored her sense of touch with the mystery object bag. She said, “I love feeling things with my hands. Ooh a rock! It feels smooth!”.

Cycle 1

As a component of our Cultural Studies in Geography, the Cycle 1 students are discovering components of our Earth through models and maps. We are focusing on how different landforms are comprised such as an island and lake, or cape and bay.

Emilio suggested that a lake is water surrounded by land and Indigo said that an island is land that is surrounded by water.

Harry shared, “I liked cutting out the brown and blue paper to make my own island and lake".

Kai thought about a map and said, “A map can be a picture of a place but is a mini version so that it is easy to see and to carry around”.

Cycle 2

Lisa's Cycle 2 class has enjoyed the first Great Story - 'The Beginning of the Universe'. Together the class explored how the universe and the Earth may have come into being. 

The children have enthusiastically undertaken volcano and solar system exploration and research, including a very long solar system walk from the bottom of the bush all the way up to the top gate. 

‘It was all black and then there was a Big Bang, little things started to stick together and that’s how the sun was made. Exploding lava made the lumps on Earth called mountains’. Hattie

‘Particles called atoms started to stick together to make Earth’. Tabby

‘The first planets are close and the next ones are a long way apart’. Mossy 

‘Some planets are close together and some are far apart’. Bella

‘Uranus has 5 large moons’. Ashlee G 

Lisa presenting a Great Story to Cycle 2 students

Cycle 3

Suzie and Sam's class has been enjoying reconnecting with past classmates, as well as welcoming and getting to know new ones. This year's graduates have already started being mentors to the younger students in the school as part of the Big Brother/ Big Sister program. Groups have been working with the Million equipment (pictured) while another group has been working with the squaring and cubing equipment (also pictured).

As last year saw many outings and field trips grounded, this year we aim to seize opportunities to get out into the wider community, which is a big part of the Cycle 3 program. Next week we will be heading to the city to see the exhibition, 'The Plastic Bag Store' which is part of the Adelaide Festival. Cycle 3 students will also be participating in a Bike Education program. Later in the term our twenty six Cycle 3 leaders (students in their final year of Cycle 3) will be participating in a leadership and team building session centred around building a billycart. Watch this space!

Cycle 3 Maths

Cycle 4

The adolescent community has hit the ground running this year - literally! On the second day back we headed off on our Big Day Out - a community-building race around the city full of quirky tasks, creative problem solving, and delicious food. Highlights included a Rick Astley inspired flash mob, some treacherous human pyramids, and running into many wonderful Wairoa old scholars. Back on campus, everyone has adjusted well to the constraints of having less space due to part of the main building being closed for renovations. Ever resilient and adaptable, all are rising to the challenge, with many enjoying using the beautiful Wairoa 'barn space' for a number of classes. With a full term ahead we are looking forward to working with this wonderful group of enthusiastic young people.

Indonesian with Ellis

Preschoolers and Cycle 1 students develop their social skills by participating in structured play and guided class activities using movement, gesture and pictures to convey meaning. This includes following instructions in Indonesian, singing and playing games requiring taking-turns such as ‘lompat tali’ (skipping rope). Students begin developing their understanding of letters of the alphabet and respective sounds by modelling simple words and sentences from an Indonesian reader, titled ‘Anjingku’ (My Dog). Comprehension is assessed through their responses to questions in English about types of animals/pets, quantifiers and physical attributes such as colours and body parts. Cycle 2 students further develop their vocabulary around ‘animals’ and practise pronunciation skills by completing a word search,  reading their answers aloud and playing ‘word Bingo’.  

Congratulations

Congratulations to our Preschool teachers; Tristen Turner and Huda Alshamari, who have both recently completed several years of study to achieve the Montessori Diploma (ages 3-6).  We are very proud of you both!

Infant Program Changes

In 2021 we have changed our Infant Program offerings to three mornings a week.  Sessions are now held on: 

·         Monday               9.30am – 11.00am.

·         Tuesday               9.30am – 11.00am.

·         Friday                    9.30am – 11.00am.

To streamline registration and payments, as of 2021, we ask that families complete their term payment for Infant Program by phone or in person at the school office, prior to their first session of each term.  

We encourage families to “Come and Try” one session in the Infant Program free of charge. This enables families to determine if the Infant Program will suit their child’s needs.   If you know a family who would like to come and try or you would like to, please phone the school on

8339 6842 for more details and to book a free session.

Nude Food

Our school aims to achieve “Nude Food” day at least once a week and encourages families to use minimal packaging in lunch boxes.  We acknowledge that trying to do every day of the week can be difficult, but we feel that asking for one day a week is probably achievable! 

We ask that all students at both Yultiwirra & Wairoa bring a lunch box with minimal packaging on MONDAYS.

Staff revisit this concept regularly with their classes encouraging thoughtful environmental practices.  We seek parental support with this initiative.

Classes also recycle soft plastic through the REDcycle program.  Any empty bread bags, biscuit packets, frozen food bags, rice and pasta bags, confectionary packets, zip lock bags & plastic shopping bags etc can be recycled.  Each class has a container and this plastic is then recycled into outdoor furniture for schools.

Footwear & Sun Hat Protection

Please ensure that your child wears appropriate footwear & clothing to school particularly on the days they participate in PE or fitness activities. Check with your child’s teacher as to which days these sessions occur. Thongs are not appropriate footwear for school as they provide little protection for children whilst they are playing in the bush.

Please remember that we are a Sun Smart School and all students are required to wear a broad brimmed hat and appropriate clothing to protect their skin when going outside for any activity. Sun block is provided by the school and students are taught by the school adults to apply it before leaving the classroom. Please ensure that your child has a named sunhat that can be kept in his/her bag or on the hat stand in the classroom.

School sunhats with the school logo are available for sale from the school office for $15 each.

Snippets with Susan

'Snippets' sessions with Susan has recommenced this term.  'Snippets with Susan' is held fortnightly on Tuesday mornings at 9.15am.   

On Tuesday 23rd February we will explore 'Supporting your child to read- tips for helping young learners'. Please ensure that you RSVP as it is essential for COVID planning /spacing purposes.

If you have any suggestions of any ideas / topics  to explore as part of our 'Snippets' program, please email Susan at: susan@montessori.sa.edu.au

SKOOLBAG

If your child has moved cycles/classes in 2021 you will need to make slight changes to your Skoolbag preferences and re-select the new class in 'Groups' on the Skoolbag app. The Skoolbag app is our main form of communication with parents. Most consent and permission forms will not be sent home as paper notes. You will need to access these and all other school communications via the Skoolbag app.

PRIVATE MUSIC TUITION

The school has arrangements with specialist music teachers to provide private music lessons for Primary/Middle school students during school hours for Piano, Guitar, Ukulele or Drums. If your child would like to commence learning an instrument, please collect a form from the school office. 

Please contact the teachers directly for bookings, costs and times.

Piano - Lisa Taverna 0423 173 383

Guitar/ukulele/drums - Sanjay Taverna 0417 080 325

Voice - Katie Moore 0417 641 464

Please note specialist music lessons will not be taught at Wairoa in Term 1 due to the building work.

Community News

TRAFFIC SURVEY

The Hon Josh Teague MP, Member for Heysen is conducting a survey into congestion hotspots, intersections and road upgrades in the Adelaide Hills area. 

One such area which has been a  safety concern for our school community is the Anderson Rd - Mount Barker Rd - Kain Avenue intersection. If you would like to have your say about this particular intersection or other congestion hotspots in the Adelaide Hills area, visit the link the below: 

https://bit.ly/HeysenRoadSurvey

Diary Dates


Term 1 2021

Wednesday 17 February - Friday 19 February 

Cycle 4 Orientation Camp

Wednesday 17 February

Policy Meeting 4.00pm

Thursday 18 February

Wairoa Open Day

WHS meeting 4.00pm

Monday 22nd February - Wednesday 24th February

Wairoa term 1 chats

Tuesday 23rd February

Snippets with Susan 9.15am

Wednesday 24th February

Year 8 & 10 Immunisations

Thursday 25th February

Parent Rep meeting 2.30pm

Tuesday 2nd March

I & PC meeting @ Wairoa 8.00am

Combined Marketing & SPTG meeting 4.00pm

Wednesday 3rd March

Way2Go Bike Education for Cycle 3

Parent Education - Introduction to Montessori Philosophy 6.00pm

Thursday 4th March

Games Day - Cycles 2, 3 & 4

SPTG meeting 9.00am

Friday 5th March

Fundraising meeting 9.00am

Parent Discussion Group with Libby 9.15am

Monday 8th March

Adelaide Cup Public Holiday

Tuesday 9th March

Snippets with Susan 9.15am

Finance meeting 6.00pm

Wednesday 10th March

Way2Go Bike Education for Cycle 3

Policy meeting 4.00pm

2021 School term dates

The 2021 School term dates are listed below. 

Term 1 - Wed 27th Jan - Fri 9th April

(Term 1 Pupil free day = Monday 25th Jan)

Term 2 - Wed 28th April - Fri 2nd July

(Term 2 Pupil free day = Tuesday 27th April)

Term 3 - Tues 27th July - Fri 24th September

(Term 3 Pupil Free Day = Monday 26th July)

Term 4 - Tues 12th October - Wed 8th December

(Term 4 Pupil free day = Monday 11th October)

 

“The first essential for the child’s development is concentration. 

The child who concentrates is immensely happy.”

Maria Montessori

2021 TERM DATES

Term 1:  27 January – 9 April
Term 2: 28 April – 2 July
Term 3: 27 July – 24 September
Term 4: 12 October – 8 December