A Message from the Head of Lindfield Campus

The Hidden Curriculum – What does it mean to be a Newington boy?

Whilst much is written about the new Australian Curriculum, one of the areas that is often overlooked is a school’s ‘hidden curriculum’.  The hidden curriculum is the often unspoken, yet commonly understood messages that are communicated to students through the action, structures and relationships that exist within a school.  Interestingly, the hidden curriculum can often be a stronger voice to young students than the organised and obvious learning of the classroom.

To address the ‘hidden curriculum’ we have continued to refine and develop our PALS (Positive Attitudes and Life Skills) program to ensure the unspoken, becomes spoken and made clear to our boys.  In the last edition of Prep Talk I unpacked the importance of character for Newington boys, one that we have already begun incorporating into daily conversations with our boys.

Another such area is ‘masculinity’ or put in another way, ‘What does it mean to be a man?”  Clearly this is a question that all of our boys will face as they mature and one that is crucial for them to address sooner than later to prepare them for the experiences they will face in the world outside school.

With some of the words from our recent Parent Information Seminar (that focused on Boys’ Education) still ringing in my head, the concept of masculinity was brought to life for me on the weekend with my own eight-year-old son.  At the seminar Mr Weekes shared some research conducted by Ian Lillico, an expert in the field of Boys’ Education, about common stereotypes about what it means to be a man.  Lillico speaks of four unhelpful stereotypes:

The ‘Boy Code’

 The Sturdy Oak – no public grieving, no weakness, no complaining

 Boys will be Boys Myth – bravado, strength, violence

 The Big Wheel – status, dominance, mask of coolness, avoid shame at all costs

 No Sissy Stuff – prohibit feminine feelings, dependence, warmth and empathy

On the weekend our family guinea pig died.  My three children reacted in completely different ways, but interestingly it was one of my boys who took it most to heart. For the next hour or so he sobbed and was quite upset. Was this my son being a sissy?  Should I have told him to man up and get over it?  Absolutely not!  He was being a young man, just as my younger son, who responded very differently, was also doing.

As we consider masculinity it is crucial that we provide our boys with a realistic view of life and what it means to be a man.  All men are different and difference should be respected and celebrated.  What we need to focus on is attributes of character that should be shared by all men.  These attributes include, but are not limited to, honesty, fairness, responsibility, acceptance of differences, respect, friendliness and inclusion.  We need to engage our boys in conversations about how they treat one another, their parents, other adults and girls so that they realise the importance of character and relationships above themselves or any stereotypical images that might come to mind.

Chris Wyatt

Head of Lindfield Campus

Year 2 Instrumental Program

Boys in Year 2 have begun their journey of playing instruments at Newington College. The instrumental program begins in Year 2 with all boys playing an orchestral string instruments – violin, viola, cello or double bass. The boys are split into various groups to learn how to hold instruments and read the music.

Boys continue to play their string instrument in Year 3.

The instrumental program continues in Year 4 with a change to the Wind and Brass instruments.  Having learnt to read music notation as part of the string program, this does progress a little faster.  The wind and brass program continues into Year 5.

All boys are encouraged to play their instruments every day.  It helps them to remember what was covered in class that day as well as working on the techniques they need to improve.

Vanessa South

Music Teacher

[Show as slideshow]

The Gardening Club News

Gardening Club has become a very popular Wednesday lunchtime activity.  Boys have been busy

weeding, digging and nurturing young plants since the beginning of the school year.  This week has

seen the first harvest of fresh produce, crisp tender lettuce, fragrant mixed herbs and vine ripened

tomatoes.  Mrs Nordstrom was very excited to serve the produce in the Tuckshop.  Her sushi tasted

amazing.  The boys are now patiently watching and waiting for their beetroot, carrots and peas to

grow!

Mrs Ball

[Show as slideshow]

Faith Matters

Knowing the Unknowable

Trying to explain God is like trying to explain a kiss.

You can check the dictionary definition: “A caress with the lips; a gentle touch or contact.” But does that really capture the essence of what a kiss is?  Does that describe what a mother does when she tenderly places her lips on the forehead of her newborn?  Is that what the young lover does when he says good-night to his girl, with a first kiss?  Does it grasp the passion and intimacy of long term lovers?

Just as words cannot completely capture all that is involved in describing a “kiss”, we also cannot fully comprehend, explain, or define “God”. That’s where we enter the realm of faith.

In Isaiah 55 God says, “My thoughts and my ways are not like yours.  Just as the heavens are higher than the earth, my thoughts and my ways are higher than yours.”  Which makes sense because how could the finite fully comprehend the infinite?

Yet we can know God intimately if not completely through experiencing His revelation of Himself in His Word, the bible and in the person of Jesus. Hence Paul prays in the letter to the church in Ephesus “May we have power to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge.

Peter Morphew

College Chaplain

Year 2 – Who We Are

For the past six weeks Year 2 have been inquiring into the transdiciplinary theme “Who We Are”.  We have been exploring the central idea “Relationships are maintained and enhanced by the way we communicate and act.” The lines of inquiry include: Types of relationships and the need for them; Ways we can communicate and act to maintain relationships, and Our responsibility towards others.

Throughout our discussions we’ve talked about what positive and negative relationships look like and how we can treat other people even when they are being negative towards us.

Throughout the unit the boys were able to compare themselves with people they have relationships with, which allowed them to see the similarities and differences between each other.  The boys came to the conclusion that even though they have differences between themselves and their friends, their relationship still remains a positive and healthy one.

Many books were often referred to in this unit and as the boys noticed, there is always a relationship depicted in stories, whether it is a positive or negative one.

One of the books we explored was the ‘Rainbow Fish’.  This book was a fabulous way of showing that although you can be beautiful on the outside you still need to be beautiful on the inside by being kind to others and sharing.

For our assembly item this term Year 2 had the opportunity to present the Rainbow Fish to the school.  The boys had a wonderful time practicing and preparing for their performance which was showed at assembly because all boys did a wonderful job.

Ted Walker as Rainbow Fish (left) and Nishantha Abbey as Blue Fish (right)

Ashley Barg

Year 2 Teacher

Newington Snowsports

Dear Parents

Have your son(s) been watching the recent Winter Olympics in Sochi and said, ‘I wish I could do that!’

Do you have a son who is keen to give competitive skiing/boarding a try?

If the answer is yes, I encourage you to be a part of the Newington Snowsports program. It is a team that encourages boys of all ages and skill levels from all three Newington campuses to compete in the Sydney Interschools Championships in Perisher from the 9th-12th of July (3rd week of winter holidays)

If this sounds like something your son(s) may be interested in, please join the Newington Snowsports ‘Space’ on the Spaces websites or contact Mr Justin Verco, MIC of Snowsports for more information; jverco@newington.nsw.edu.au

See you on the slopes!

Justin Verco

[Show as slideshow]

Stage 2 Science and The Human Body

With just a bottle, a rubber band, a piece of plastic and a balloon the boys were set the challenge to make a lung.

After a little trial and error they collaborated to work out that the bottle represented the rib cage, the plastic on the bottom of the bottle was the diaphragm and the balloon was the lung.  The boys have really enjoyed learning about the Human Body in our first Unit of Inquiry with the transdisciplinary theme of Who We Are.

Leonie Corbett-Russell

Teacher – Lindfield

[Show as slideshow]

The Exhibition in Year 6

The Exhibition is an important aspect of the International Baccalaureate Primary Years Programme (PYP). It is an opportunity for Year 6 students to showcase their knowledge, skills, attitudes and growth as learners and to share what they have learned and how they have learned, with the school community. It is seen as a rite of passage for students as they move from Prep School (PYP) to High School.

The Exhibition requires the boys to investigate a local issue using primary sources (real people, places and things) and to propose a possible solution or solutions. The boys are guided through the process of working collaboratively to design and implement a Unit of Inquiry (similar to each of the other regular Units) that focuses on a real world issue, preferably from the local area. Throughout the process, students take ownership of their learning by selecting the focus, direction and presentation of their understanding, with guidance from their teacher and mentor.

In preparation for the Exhibition, which will start at the end of Term 3 and conclude with the Exhibition evening in Term 4, the boys have been introduced to the purpose of the Exhibition and the roles that the various participants will have (teachers, mentors, students, principal, parents, community) throughout the process. Together, an Essential Agreement has been developed on how we, individually and as a class, will operate and treat each other during this Unit Of Inquiry.

As a provocation, the boys shared with the class what they are positive and passionate about so that they can see that, as inquirers, we are keen to find out more about those things that interest us in life so having an interesting focus for an inquiry will drive the inquiry further and more naturally lead to the next stage of action, which can take a variety of forms. Following on from this the boys explored some of the issues facing our world and Australia, in particular. There was a lot of collaboration and some great issues raised.

The boys are now working on deciding upon a transdisciplinary theme (one of the six studied each year) for the Exhibition Unit Of Inquiry. This preliminary work will give the boys a taste of what is to come and ensure that they are prepared and setup for success during the Exhibition.

Please visit the Year 6 Class Blog for regular updates on the Exhibition as well as all the other fantastic learning that is occurring in Year 6!

Pascal Czerwenka

Year 6 Teacher

Boys Can Write!

Research is very clear when it tells us that our boys often fall through the gaps when it comes to writing. Now obviously this is just a generalisation, as we have some wonderful writers in our school. But, data such as NAPLAN, supports this overall generalisation that ‘boys don’t write as well as their female counterparts’.

We know many things about our boys that can help rewire their perceptions of themselves as writers. We know our boys:

• Have some wonderful stories to tell – verbally this is done very well

• With proper encouragement and instruction, boys can write effectively

• Can learn to write well and view writing positively when it is shared with them in a positive light.

Boys are often drawn to alternative forms of writing. Research and practice tells us that ‘boys love things that you can kill’. Writing about high interest areas makes writing much more engaging for boys – thinking spiders not turtles, tornadoes not clouds, and sharks not whales, adds to this interest. The process of writing for our boys needs to be more about writing skills than it is about the content, fostering this love of writing.

Boys tend to fear failure and many find writing to be a challenge. Having an environment where they are free to make mistakes and learn through failure is an environment where they will be able to achieve success.

Boys need to see writing as a part of their everyday lives and in a positive light. Technology and visual literacy are very important to boys. Telling a story through multimedia is so engaging for boys, using pictures, diagrams and video clips helps to focus their imaginations and foster an idea that will build into a story. I had a boy in my class a few years ago who found it much more beneficial to tell the story through a voice recording app prior to writing. This consolidated his thoughts and he could then refer back to his original ideas.

Our boys in Years 3-6 are exposed to a range of writing skills techniques on a regular basis to help them write. Teachers are achieving this by planning together, creating assessments together, sharing their writing successes and failures with the boys, developing acronyms that help boys structure their writing, using both group and individual writing to promote skill development and written reflections of learning. This is also done in fun and exciting ways both inside and outside the classroom. Writing in the bush, at Swain Gardens, in the corridors, on the grass, on the basketball court – these experiences are not a rare occurrence at Lindfield – our teachers make it exciting!

Ways to help our boys write:

• Help boys respect writing as a ‘guy’ thing

• Model writing for the boys

• Time – boys require this to form a detailed plan in their heads about what to write about. The start is always the hardest.

• Make writing capture their interests

• Use technology or visual aids to help the writing process

• Encourage your son to share his writing with you

(ASAD, Vol 56:1, Jan 2014).

Joel Weekes

Teaching & Learning Team leader