A Message from the Head of Lindfield

The Future

I recently read an article by Gary Marx where he lists ten realities faced by educators and wider society. They are set out below and I have commented on where I see this impacting our boys, our community and the school.

• Every institution is going through a reset.

What is the new normal? I spoke last Monday night at the P and F meeting about the PYP, flexible learning environments and the movement by universities away from the simple use of the ATAR score to judge university entry in the future. There are certain elements of education that will always remain fundamental to what we do at Lindfield, namely a strong focus on literacy and numeracy, a values based education and a focus on inclusivity and social justice. The teaching and modelling of soft skills, technology integration and new ways of doing is essential to develop the problem solving, the creativity and the collaborative skills needed for our boys to participate successfully in the world around us.

• Lifelong learning is available any time, any place, any way, and at any pace.

We are no longer reliant on traditional sources of information and on others for our learning. Getting information is not the issue, being able to filter, discern quality information and use information to make informed decisions is the goal for our boys. In a time of ‘alternative facts’, we need to equip our boys with the attributes to think critically for themselves.  As adults you are all life-long learners and this will continue throughout the lives of our boys as well.

• Everything that happens in the world has implications for education.

Education is changing to match the changes in the world around us. It is the most exciting time to be an educator. The learning and teaching direction at Lindfield is based on the vision and values of the school, coupled within the strategic priorities as identified by the various stakeholder groups in the strategic priorities. Our methodology is backed by research, and our learning and teaching evolves as we understand what is possible.

• The future is in school today.

Kindergarteners who entered school this year will turn 65 in 2077 and 88 in 2100.

• People entering the workforce today can expect to hold up to eleven jobs and go through several career changes during their working lives.

• If we don’t constantly take the initiative to create the education system we need, someone else will.

Unfortunately, education is a political football. ‘Getting back to basics’ is the often repeated catch phrase of politicians. The basic education foundations are clear and we have a very strong emphasis on working with all our boys to achieve their potential in these areas. We also strongly believe in a values based education and an education that will enable our boys to be able to negotiate the many new social, work and environmental paradigms of our time. We work to develop attitudes and skills to allow them to be responsive to the many different contexts they may encounter. Educationally we cannot keep doing the same thing we have been doing and expect to equip our boys for tomorrow.

• If we manage our diversity well, it will enrich us. If we handle it poorly, it will divide us.

The richness of our community is defined by the sum of the experiences, cultures, religions and beliefs of the families within it. We are a Uniting Church school that welcomes boys from all types of families, from all faiths, and from many different backgrounds. We hold strong beliefs that all our lives are enriched by the diversity of families in our school. We believe in unity in diversity.

• Inequity will increasingly be seen as unfair, unconscionable, and unsustainable.

We have a moral responsibility to help others less fortunate than ourselves. Equity is not about giving everyone the same, it is about giving all people what they need in order for them to be productive and engaged members of the community.  This is why we have a focus on differentiation and we teach our boys in different ways in order to meet their different needs.

• Polarization is standing in the way of progress.

Part of the stated aims of the IB Mission is to encourage ‘life-long learners who understand that other people, with their differences, can also be right’. We want our boys to realise that bombastic rhetoric which garners much media attention and the us/them, win/lose mentality is not effective in a functioning global society. At Lindfield there is a focus on empathy, respect, listening to others and looking for ways to understand that there are multiple perspectives on issues that we face in the world around us today.

• Future-focused thinking is essential if we hope to prepare students for life in a fast-changing world.

Educators and boys need to be creative, imaginative, curious, optimistic, visionary, active listeners, conceptual, and problem-solvers. We cannot educate the way we as parents and adults were educated and expect our boys to thrive in the wider world.

It takes courage to do things differently and parents and schools often default to the traditional ways of learning, as this is what a standardised test is designed to measure.

At Lindfield, if we only did this, we would be doing our boys and our families a great disservice. Our role is to provide an outstanding values based education that enables our boys to develop their passions, fulfil their potential and have the confidence, skill set and dispositions necessary to thrive in an exciting and constantly changing world.

“The Future Is Now: Ten Realities for Educators and Communities” by Gary Marx in Principal, January/February 2017 (Vol. 96, #3, p. 32-35), no e-link available

Ben Barrington-Higgs

Pastoral Care at Lindfield

Pastoral Care at Lindfield

Pastoral care is not merely a complementary practice; it is policy and practices fully integrated throughout the teaching and learning and structural organisation of a school to effectively meet the personal, social (wellbeing) and academic needs of students and staff.

The School’s Philosophy of Pastoral Care

Newington College’s overall aim is to provide a well-balanced liberal education, nurturing the physical, emotional, social, moral, academic and spiritual needs of the students, and assisting them to grow towards the full stature of responsible citizenship. As a central component of this aim, the school seeks to provide a supportive environment for boys, where individual needs are recognised and the pursuit of excellence is valued. This is done with the recognition that we have a sound understanding of the needs of boys and what works best for them.

Pastoral care at Newington focuses on the total development of each student and enhancement of the dignity of each person. It nurtures success and has a commitment to forgiveness, tolerance and reconciliation. As teachers, we seek to motivate young people to be socially responsible and committed to building a better world through a partnership of the school community, teachers and parents.

To assist in facilitating a supportive, positive and affirming environment, it is important that expectations, both academic and behavioural are clear, and rules and limits are set. Every member of the community has responsibility to contribute to achieving such an environment; therefore, an effective Behavioural Management Policy must be viewed as an essential component of a genuine approach to Pastoral Care. This works in conjunction with the School’s Anti-bullying Policy.

Valuing Individuals

At Lindfield, we acknowledge that people respond to genuine praise and positive recognition. We also recognise that learning best takes place in an environment that is supportive and caring, is encouraging of risk taking and where all are valued and individual needs are met. This positive approach greatly contributes to the enhancement of each child’s self-esteem. Children who have a positive self-concept and sense of self-esteem feel worthy, valued and resilient and are ready to succeed.

All children should be actively encouraged to participate in the many opportunities that are provided both within the classroom and through the rich co-curricular program. The talents and capacities of each child should be nurtured and their efforts and achievements recognised. As students develop and mature, they should be guided towards becoming self-motivated and life-long learners. From this perspective, pastoral care can assist students to develop positive self-esteem, healthy risk taking, goal setting and negotiation, thus enhancing their strengths and other protective factors contributing to their resiliency as well as developing a sense of social cohesion that together can improve their overall health and wellbeing.

Students are encouraged to understand and value others (Mark 12:30-31), work cooperatively and be guided towards stable and satisfying interpersonal relationships. As all children are unique they should be encouraged to be individuals and their uniqueness should be viewed as an asset.

Valuing Each Other

As a teaching community at Lindfield, we feel it is important to build positive relationships with our students based upon mutual respect and trust. We endeavour to provide students with a stimulating, challenging, enjoyable and supportive learning environment. As teachers, we believe that all students can learn and as such we have appropriately high expectations of students. We aim to support each individual within the classroom, academically and behaviourally, and encourage each student to take responsibility for his actions. The relationship between each teacher and each student is of great importance in achieving this aim. This is supported by recent research that suggests that one of the most significant aspects influencing students’ learning is this relationship. The health and wellbeing of students is increasingly being attributed to school conditions, school relationships, means of fulfilment, and health status.

Communication

To encourage mutual respect, we believe it is essential to treat all members of our community with integrity. This includes talking to others in an appropriate manner, listening to their concerns and dealing with them appropriately, be they students, staff or parents. At Lindfield K-6, there is a strong understanding that parents know their children best and have the right to be involved in their child’s education. The development of a strong partnership between parents and teachers is an important aspect of the educational and pastoral process at Lindfield.

We feel it is essential that staff and parents work together to foster each child’s development so that he may grow towards an appreciation both of himself and of his place amongst his peers.

Our Pastoral Care Policy for Lindfield together with the school’s overarching Anti-Bullying Policy can be found on the Policies Page on our Lindfield SPACES site.

Mr Pascal Czerwenka – Deputy Head of Campus

Faith Matters

Last Saturday I performed a wedding for a boy who I first taught in Year 5 at Wyvern in 2002. I’m feeling old and getting old! The wedding like all weddings spoke of a love that never gets old.

Love never gives up.

Love cares more for others than for self.

Love doesn’t want what it doesn’t have.

Love doesn’t strut,

Doesn’t have a swelled head,

Doesn’t force itself on others,

Isn’t always “me first,”

Doesn’t fly off the handle,

Doesn’t keep score of the sins of others,

Doesn’t revel when others grovel,

Takes pleasure in the flowering of truth,

Puts up with anything,

Trusts God always,

Always looks for the best,

Never looks back,

But keeps going to the end.                                            (1 Corinthians 13: 4-7 The Message)

Rev Peter Morphew – Chaplain

PYP Frequently Asked Questions

PYP FAQs

Over the next several issues of Prep Talk questions about the Primary Years Programme (PYP) will be addressed to provide general information to enable a better understanding of the Programme and how it works in our school. This issue’s focus aims to provide a general understanding about the IBO and the PYP.

What is the IBO?

The IBO (International Baccalaureate Organisation) is a non-profit educational and non-governmental organisation of UNESCO. This alliance encourages the integration of its educational goals into the curriculum. The IBO was established in 1968 in Geneva, Switzerland.

What programmes of education does the IBO offer?

The IBO offers 4 programmes of international education for students aged 3-19 years:

• PYP (Primary Years Programme) students Preschool to Year 6
• MYP (Middle Years Programme) students Year 7 to Year 10
• DP (Diploma Programme) students Years 11 to 12
• CP (Career-related Programme) students Years 11 to 12

What is the PYP?

The PYP is a curriculum framework for young learners aged 3–12 designed by the International Baccalaureate (IB). Founded on a philosophy that recognizes a child’s natural curiosity, creativity and ability to reflect, the PYP generates a stimulating, challenging learning environment to nurture those assets and foster a lifelong love of learning in every child. The PYP, like all IB programmes, is transdisciplinary, meaning students learn across subject areas while investigating big ideas.

The IBO’s mission talks about being Internationally-minded. How does the PYP teach students to be Internationally-minded?

We encourage International-mindedness through explicitly teaching and modelling the Learner Profile. The attributes of the Learner Profile are foundational to the PYP. Being internationally-minded applies to what we are and the way we do things. It includes how we communicate, cultural understanding, diversity, global awareness of issues around the world and reflecting on how knowledge is constructed and applied. Our students and teachers at Newington College Lindfield reflect on the attributes of the Learner Profile throughout their learning.

Does the PYP have a set of standards that they adhere to?

In the PYP, students learn about significant concepts through units of inquiry. The six transdisciplinary themes that guide units of inquiry and compose a year of study are:

• Who we are
• Where we are in place and time
• How we express ourselves
• How the world works
• How we organize ourselves
• Sharing the planet

The school outlines its specific knowledge content and academic curriculum through the Programme of Inquiry. This includes:

• The knowledge content which is organised under the transdisciplinary themes;
• The learning skills which aim to help students become independent, well-functioning, self-motivated learners;
• The learning attitudes which aim to develop a lifelong love of learning and nurture a child’s curiosity and confidence, and
• The action component that emphasizes the need to connect the student with his own potential and responsibility for using what was learned.

Does implementing the PYP mean that the school will not teach NSW curriculum outcomes?

The IB is committed to making sure that students in IB programmes meet and exceed our NSW curriculum outcomes. With the implementation of any IB programme, schools are required to examine their curriculum carefully to ensure that there is alignment with the outcomes.

“The whole art of teaching is only the awakening of the natural curiosity of young minds.”

(Anatole France, French poet, journalist, and novelist)

Sue Gough – PYP Co-ordinator

A Service Learning Experience

The Krazy Kosci Klimb 2017

Our Service Learning Program at Newington College Lindfield (NCL) has been set up so that our community can actively contribute to resolving social and environmental problems, both locally and globally. We want our boys to deepen their understanding of not only, why these problems exist, but also to realise that everyone can play a part in shaping a better world. We expect our boys to be compassionate and responsible. Service allows boys to put these values into action while also offering them an experiential learning opportunity that is rewarding in terms of personal growth.

Service Learning is relevant to all of us. It is an enriching learning opportunity to experience and strengthens its communities. In the past we have seen many different ways the students, families and staff at NCL have been involved in giving back – Pink Stumps Day at the cricket, helping in overseas communities, and helping out at homeless shelters. Often we are able to share how we have been involved in Service Learning. They are the stories we tell. This article is written from the perspective of someone who has been very fortunate to have received the support of a community in a very special way.

On 18 February my family participated in the Krazy Kosci Klimb where people living with Cerebral Palsy (CP), or other disabilities, are supported in the challenge of walking to the summit of Mt Kosciusko. My son, Tim, who has CP, was the recipient of the support of many people as he participated in this event – his family, volunteers from the Cerebral Palsy Alliance (CPA) and our designated corporate sponsors.  As a family we have had been associated with CPA for many years and Tim currently is involved in the Accessible Gym and Sports Program to strengthen his muscles. When his exercise physiologist challenged him to complete this walk, there was no turning back. We had to be involved.

The Krazy Kosci Klimb is a major fundraising event for CPA’s Accessible Gym and Sports Program and, as well as supporting each other on the walk, we also worked together to raise money to provide essential funding for this program so that they are able to continue to provide specialised exercise equipment and exercise personnel for people with Cerebral Palsy. We also built lasting relationships within the team as we supported Tim and each other to be successful in this challenge.

There was no shortage of helpers as we started the trek to the top of Kosciusko. It was a long day which began at 7:00am and as we dressed to suit our superhuman efforts, Team Tim began walking the 18.6km up and down the dirt fire trail which was often uneven, sometimes very rocky, sometimes very steep, and sometimes very windy and cold. There were times when we weren’t sure we would finish the entire walk – the weather made walking difficult, the rain threatened and we walked in the clouds. But with constant encouragement for and from each other, an arm to lean on as a crutch, the comfort stops along the way which provided much-needed refreshments, and a lot of laughs and jokes along the way, we reached the summit. Then the realisation set in that we were only halfway. We were yet to get back down the mountain!

Support along the walk came in many forms but the most memorable was the encouragement for each other from all the other 19 teams that were also participating in the Krazy Kosci Klimb. It was truly an empowering and emotional experience – to see people in wheelchairs being carried, pushed, and pulled over the rocky trail and some being helped to cross those critical milestones – the summit and the finish line – on their feet rather than in their wheelchairs. The tears and cheers that flowed as each of the Krazy Kosci Krews reached the summit and crossed the finish line were unceasing.

This experience has not only formed new friendships, a bond with our team members, a hugely successful fundraising effort (over $200,000 raised for the Accessible Gym and Sports Program of the Cerebral Palsy Alliance), but a realisation that in difficult times, whatever they may be, we will never be alone.

Sue Gough (and family)

Kindergarten

‘You’re off to great places! Today is your day! Your mountain is waiting. So… get on your way.’ Dr Seuss

Kindergarten are off and racing and have had a wonderful start to their school learning journey. They have settled in extremely well to class routines and expectations and have been approaching learning tasks with great excitement and gusto!

They have enjoyed playing fun ‘get to know you’ games and have worked on developing friendships through developmental play opportunities. These learning experiences have formed part of their first unit of inquiry into ‘Belonging’.

Kindergarten have been busy little bees learning how to work collaboratively and independently in literacy and numeracy activities. They have been learning how to read books independently, focusing on the reading strategies; ‘Eagle Eye’ (looking at the pictures) and ‘Stretchy Snake’ (stretching out sounds and then blending them together). After reading their ‘just right’ book, the boys have been practising their retell of the story with a ‘talking partner’. In literacy sessions they have also been practising breaking words into syllables and developing rhyming skills.

In numeracy lessons the boys have had great fun making patterns and developing their counting skills using a variety of counting strategies, such as ‘line up and count’ and ‘move and count’. They have also participated in data collection activities, graphing their hair colour and favourite ice cream flavour.

We are looking forward to seeing the Kindergarten boys take off this year in great leaps and bounds and develop a love of learning. They are certainly on their way!

Miss Smallhorn – Kindergarten Teacher

Stage 2

“That is part of the beauty of all literature. You discover that your longings are universal longings, that you’re not lonely and isolated from anyone. You belong.”
F. Scott Fitzgerald.

Before someone shared this quote with me when I was nearing 30, I embarrassingly admit that I hadn’t realised that quality literature was more than just entertainment. Perhaps it was because no-one had shared with me the simple idea that we as people have similar experiences and that literature is a medium through which to find them.  After my realisation my attitude to literature ignited and teaching boys to become great readers, readers who find themselves inside stories, became even more important.

In Year 3 we are exploring the Readers’ Workshop (aka The Reading Zone), a teaching method in which the goal is to teach students strategies for reading and comprehension.  The boys choose their own ‘just right books’ and confer with the teacher one-to-one about what they are reading.  The workshop model allows teachers to differentiate and meet the needs of all their students. Reading Workshop helps to foster an engagement with reading and gives students chances to practice reading strategies independently and with guidance.  

The structure of a Readers’ Workshop is deliberately predictable.  This allows the boys’ attention to be focused on what they are reading and the strategies they are practicing to understand the text.

The Reader’s Workshops looks like:

Mini-Lesson: Teacher introduces and demonstrates a reading skill or strategy.  As a whole class we practice the skill and discuss it.  They will then practice the skill on their own during independent reading.

Independent Reading: During independent reading time, all students are engaged in silently reading a book of their choice.  The teacher moves around conferring with individual students about their book, checking for the use of comprehension strategies and their progress in decoding the literary features of the book.  During this time small groups may be taken to develop a specific skill. Each encounter should help students understand themselves as readers, focus on improving a skill or strategy, and set goals for their reading.

Closing chat: Whole class, paired or individual reflection we close the workshop by sharing something the students learnt as readers.

We are currently at the beginning of our Reading Workshop journey and are exploring choosing ‘just right books’, reading for a sustained period of time, and practicing the workshop routine.  The boys have started strong with focused attention and participation.  I am excited to see where the reading workshop takes us and the development in the boys’ attitudes towards reading.

You may like to reread Mr Ben Barrington-Higgs previous prep talk article “How to get boys to read”
https://newsletter.newington.nsw.edu.au/preptalk/article/how-to-get-boys-to-read/ 

Carol Peterson – Year 3 Teacher

Stage 3

Learning About Culture, with a Writing Focus

Stage 3 have continued to work on their first Unit of Inquiry, with the central idea – ‘A recognition and appreciation of beliefs and cultures can lead to greater understanding and respect’, with a literacy focus on informative writing.

As part of their writing focus, the boys in Years 5 and 6 were tasked with writing several information reports on various cultures, both from an Australian Aboriginal perspective and a culture of their own choosing, with the end goal of being able to compare and contrast a variety of cultures.

This involved teaching the boys some key research skills, in order to identify the information that was necessary for a good information report on a range of cultures of the boys’ choosing – Maori, Sami, French Polynesian, Native American, Scottish, Scandinavian, Greek, to name but a few. The boys focused their research on what were considered to be four of the ‘key elements’ that make up a culture – languages, norms, values and symbols.

The boys also spent time dissecting what a ‘good’ information report actually looks like, examining the key features and trying to incorporate them into their own writing. This was initially done collaboratively as the boys worked together to draft and publish an information report on Australian Aboriginal culture, before moving onto writing their own reports, each time going through a researching, drafting and final publishing stage.

It has been a great first unit for the boys, as they have explored their own cultural backgrounds, the backgrounds of their peers and continued to learn about appreciating the diversity of the world around them.

Sam Watson – Year 5 Teacher

Instrumental Programs

Newington College has a very strong instrumental music program at Lindfield.

The String program is run in Years 2 and 3. The choice of instruments are violin, viola, cello and double bass. These are the instruments found in an orchestra. The boys try all the instruments before making a choice. The insstruments they choose in Year 2 they then continue with in Year 3. In Year 2 they learn in small groups to consolidate the skills that they need to play their chosen instrument. In Year 3 the boys play as a group, starting to learn to play more ensemble pieces. Those boys who have private lessons also eventually are invited to play in the School String Ensemble.

In Years 4 and 5 the boys play Wind instruments. At the beginning of Year 4 all the boys try a flute, clarinet, saxophone, trumpet, french horn, euphonium, and trombone. Some of these instruments take a while to conquer – the flute in particular can take a few weeks to get out a good sound. Training the mouth and in particular the muscles around the mouth needs constant work. Lots of little practices work best at the start.

Again at, beginning of Year 4, the boys are divided into instrument groups to learn particular skills. As the year progresses the boys are combined to form a Junior Band.

In Year 5, the new boys who come to Newington and have not already learnt an instrument are given the opportunity to choose an instrument. They are then given help in learning the basic skills. The boys who have been learning, as part of the Year 4 program and those who have been learning before they came to Newington, create a Year 5 Band.

These programs are the basis for our School Ensembles, not just in the Prep School but also as the boys move into the senior school.

Vanessa South – Music Teacher

Picture books for older children

It is no secret that I adore picture books. One of my favourite times of the day is sharing picture books with children. As we read to them they construct meaning through words and illustrations, they start to visualise stories and begin to appreciate our language. It is interesting that during free time in the library many of the older boys delve into the good old picture book, for me a relief that they are still valued. Parents don’t usually see highly illustrated books as a good enough “challenge” for their developing readers, however, the idea that older readers could and should read and enjoy picture books is a well established educational tradition.

Picture books for mature readers –

• deals with realistic issues and concepts beyond the comprehension of younger readers
• uses illustrations to portray information not provided by the text
• uses challenging or complex artwork and varied design layouts
• integrates text and visual features
• develops non traditional structures (plot, characters and settings) to challenge the reader’s expectations
• is multilayered, with several levels of meaning or multiple narratives
• contains subtlety of meaning that may be lost with younger readers
• challenges the reader to go beyond the story
• challenges and engages the reader in new and different ways to construct meaning
• uses powerful, rich, creative text and literary devices such as metaphor or satire
• makes inter-textual references requiring readers to make connections to other books or knowledge to enhance understanding of the book

I have complied a list of wonderful books that you may like to share with older children, these books will create discussion, wonder and give you many hours of enjoyment.

Anthony Brown’s The Tunnel or Into the Forest

Satoshi Kitamura’s Angry Arthur

Michael Foreman’s Dinosaurs and All that Rubbish

David Mc Kee’s The Conquerors

David Almond’s My Dad’s a Birdman or The Boy Who Climbed Into the Moon

Shaun Tan’s The Arrival

Aleca Bradshaw – Learning Enhancement

References: Benedict, S., & Carlisle, L. Beyond words: picture books for older readers. Heinemann, 1992.

Anstey, M. (March 2002). Its not all black and white: post modern books and new literacies. Journal of adolescent & adult literacy, 45:6.

What’s happening in your P&F and the Committees

Welcome from the P&F

On behalf of the P&F, Committee members and Class Parents, we would like to welcome everybody, especially our new families.

The Parents and Friends Association (or P&F) work closely with Ben and the school staff to provide a parent perspective on school related matters.  The P&F is the equivalent of a P&C.

The P&F’s role is to assist in improving facilities and resources for our boys and to build our school community by providing opportunities for parents to connect with each other and the school.  We oversee the Canteen/Tuckshop, Prep Shop (uniform shop), Sports Committee, Social and Fundraising Committee, Creative Arts Support and Casserole Crisis.

We work on behalf of all our families, therefore, we encourage you to communicate with us, provide feedback and let us know if there are any areas you would like us to work on or see funds used to benefit our boys.

Once or twice a term we will post articles in Prep Talk to let everyone know what has been happening, what might be coming up and updates from each of our committees.

As with any P&F, we can’t run without volunteers.  I would like to thank all our families who have already committed to volunteering in any capacity already.  We can’t provide the services and support to our boys, families and the school without your help, so thank you so much.

If anyone would like to help on our Social Committee or be on the list to cook a meal for the Casserole Crisis we would love to hear from you, as we are short of volunteers. If you’d like to know more about what is involved, please take a look at our volunteers page on SPACES.

We are incredibly lucky to have such a wonderful school community at Lindfield and look forward to another fantastic year in 2017.

Julianne Ashworth
P&F President

Committee Members Contact Details

The P&F Executive Committee welcomes your involvement. Please contact us if you have questions or suggestions for our Lindfield campus or would like to get more involved.

Julianne Ashworth – President

M: 0411 047 816 – E: jcashworth@vbmglobal.com

Susie Martin – Vice President

M: 0404 303 877 – E: preston_susie@hotmail.com

Vicky Sharp – Secretary

M: 0414 946 134  – E: vixsharp29@gmail.com

Sylvia Chen – Treasurer

M: 0406 558 332 – E: joy_syl@hotmail.com

How will the P&F contribute to our school community this year?

This year, the P&F are pleased to be able to contribute the following to assist our boys:

1. The iPad keyboards for the touch-typing program being implemented for Years 2-6.

2. An additional paid volunteer for approximately 3 hours a week in the Tuckshop.
3. Furniture and equipment as part of the flexible learning spaces initiative for our classrooms.
4. Two Ball throwing stands.

5. The co-curricular programs where applicable, such as chess and drama.

In terms of Community Events and Fund Raising for our campus we, along with our committees, will be:

• Holding our Easter Raffle on Friday 7 April with a basket of eggs donated to the Royal Far West Foundation. Royal Far West is a non-government organisation that has been providing health services to children living in rural and remote NSW since 1924. 

• Running our Mini Olympics on Monday 19 June to assist Special Olympics Australia (SOA). SOA provide sport programs and pathways for children and adults with intellectual disabilities.  All funds will be donated to SOA as part of our Service Learning Program.

• Taking a stall at Back to Newington Day on Saturday 29 July, the market day at Stanmore for all our campuses

• Running our Sports BBQs at Koola Park, our sports home ground in Killara in terms 2 and 3.

• Holding our end of year social function for all parents on Saturday 28 October.

Upcoming Events 

Grandparents and Special Friends Day – Tuesday 14 March 2017 

Grandparents and Special Friends Day usually takes place mid year, however this year due to a scheduling clash, the event has been brought forward and will now take place in March.

Please pass on the event details to grandparents, special friends and other family who you would like to attend. This is a very enjoyable morning for the boys and their families.

Date: Tuesday 14 March

Location: Don Brown Hall

Time: 8:30am – 11:00am

Morning Tea will be provided by P&F volunteers in Year 4 and Kindy.

To help with catering numbers we ask that you RSVP using the following link:

http://bit.ly/nclseniors2017 

Vicky Sharp – P&F Secretary