Keep up-to-date with your child’s learning with these short weekly updates from their teachers. Click on the buttons below to go straight to your child’s class, or find out what others are up to!
Kindergarten/Boronia Room
The french knitted seat covers are almost complete! This is outstanding work by the Kindergarten children. So much french knitting so quickly. Soon the children will move on to create the 4-Finger Knitted straps that are needed to tie the seat cover onto their Class One chairs.
The children made “dango” this week with Sayoko in their language lesson. This is a Japanese sweet treat made in the home from rice flour and eaten on the Festival of the Full Moon in Autumn. The week before, Sayoko told the children the tradition story of the rabbit in the moon that links to the full moon festival, where the dango is traditionally eaten with the family as part of an Autumn Harvest Festival held at this time in Japan.
We also had the beautiful tale of the “Fairy Weaver”, told by Jasmine as a small puppet play this week in the Kindergarten. It was such a gentle and loving story, perfect for the rainy and cold days we experienced this week.
Have a happy and relaxing weekend.
Francine
Class 1/2
We began our week gardening with Annie and going for a walk to the Pine Forest, just what Class 1/2 needed to settle back into friendships and school routine after the busy week of swimming lessons. The weather cooled and we’ve enjoyed cool, misty mountain days. What a beautiful place we have here in Hazelbrook.
During our Main Lesson children have been listening to the adventures of Marcel, stall holders and market goers. They surveyed each other and graphed their results, hefting and using scales to determine whether objects are heavier, lighter or about the same.
Later in the week children practiced counting large numbers of objects, keeping track using a variety of strategies. Well done my little mathematicians!
During our Dharug language lesson, Amy shared a story with the children and introduced “Maan” which means to gather. We heard how and why Dharug people gather and she tied this back to our own circle discussions which we use to discuss and resolve communal issues.
Class 1/2 returned to our cooking adventures for the first time this term – we made mini pizzas! Kneading the dough, forming the bases, squishing the tomatoes and choosing delicious toppings before devouring each crumb!
In our Restorative Practice lessons, the children have been giving build-ups to each other and exploring how different emotions look and feel. Courageous, bewildered, calm, cheerful, bored, annoyed and enthusiastic are all valid feelings but how we manage those feelings is a worthy challenge for adults and children alike.
Enjoy a restful weekend!
Warmly,
Kath & Class 1/2 Assistants
Class 3/4
This week in gardening/permaculture we discussed the importance of healthy soil as the basis of good plant growth.
I sit here after a poor night’s sleep, reflecting on what healthy soil needs to look like for individuals and communities. For me personally it is enough time to be creative, make art and write poems. Enough time to notice the beauty of nature around me. Enough time to connect with friends and family, hopefully with enough energy left at the end of the day to listen well and have a laugh.
In the classroom “good soil” comes in the richness of the curriculum, the time it allows for creativity, for deeper learnings layered with beautiful stories and thoughtful drawings that are held up in Steiner schools as important as the written word. It is also fundamentally taking the time to develop and practice social and emotional skills. The chance to learn to see others, practice our skills of patience and kindness. This is companion planting in a human sense. Difference grows alongside making the garden all the more interesting and fruitful.
I am trying to think of practical things that might need to be said.
Maybe it is worth mentioning that Meredith is in a staged return to work. This means I am often making 21 toasties alone while teaching Main Lesson, or an assistant who isn’t as “accomplished at toastie-making” is doing so. Some children get angry or upset, if the cheese isn’t melted “enough”, even refusing to eat it. A chat about varying toastie standards, would be helpful. Otherwise, we may need to stop toasties for a time for some perspective to settle. Alternatively, if you are ever free at 12.45-1pm to call in and help make toasties, I will write you a poem or sing you a song of deep gratitude.
Kind regards for a sunny weekend and some restorative chances to be creative, notice nature and connect with loved ones.
Jeneva
Class 5/6
This week we went to Evan’s Crown, near Tarana. Martin and I were very impressed with the children’s efforts: climbing up granite rocks, walking in the ice-cold air and enjoying the natural surroundings of beautiful granite Wiradjuri Country. It’s got such a different feel to the Eastern sandstone Country of Hazelbrook, that’s for sure!
We saw big cute feral rabbits and lovely endemic wallabies, sheep that looked woolly and well fed, as well as a lot of moss, lichen and algae growing on the amazing HUGE granite Tors. I spotted a lovely yellow orchid, which Hannah named, ‘Yellow faced bunny’ orchid. I love how single orchids often just pop up in amongst the rocks and other plants in the bush. Everyone seemed relaxed and happy after such an amazing walk.
We’ve been working on our play. Please remind your child to practice their lines this weekend and to think about the transitions and cues.
Tuesday: Greek Olympics for Class 5. We depart at 7 am, back at 5:30pm.
Class 6 will stay at school and be split amongst the other classes.
Lee is back next week.
Have a lovely weekend,
Julie
