Head of Preparatory School - Edition 4 - 2021

The first of our Sports Days

The sun was shining and the Reception to Year 2 students were excited for a fun-filled day of running races and tabloid activities last Friday. The Parents’ Club had very kindly given up their morning to cater for an eager crowd of parents, grandparents and friends. The children were beyond excited!

We started the day with Health Hustle, a regular Friday fitness activity where all students follow Mrs Job with a warm-up and stretch.

Following their warm-up, the students were ready and raring for the first running race, a 60m sprint down the straight. The Year 6 leaders were eagerly anticipating the arrival of students at their station. From bucket relay, kicking and vortex throwing, there were also screams of excitement that came from the good old tug-of-war. We are not sure if there was more excitement from the children or the parents at the other end of the rope.

The ELC children came out for their running race and enjoyed the opportunity to run in their lanes. The day finished with the House event obstacle course and baton relay, always a favourite. Thank you to the PE staff for a fabulous day and also the Year 6 leaders who showed great leadership skills and kindness towards our Junior Primary students.

Kristy Moody
JP Deputy (Term 1)

Year 6 Camp Update

In the last edition of eNews, I shared the unfortunate news that the trip to Canberra for our Year 6 cohort could not proceed this term, in a positive turn of events, we are back on, albeit at a later time of the year. We have new dates scheduled for the trip.

The group will now depart Adelaide on Sunday 19 September, returning on the evening of Thursday 23 September. In an added bonus, the change of dates has enabled us to secure a booking at Canberra Park which is a purpose-built accommodation facility that we were previously unable to get in to. We are also hopeful that the delay of a few months will enable more of the options in Canberra to become available to our group. Hopefully the changed date allows COVID implications to diminish, the vaccine to take hold and no other postponements or interruptions will be required.

The Resilience Project: Parent and Carer Information Series

For a number of years now at Westminster, we have worked closely with The Resilience Project across our whole school in order to provide opportunities for our students to develop high levels of wellbeing and understand ways of keeping mentally healthy. As part of this, we recognise the importance of supporting parents and caregivers to equip your children in these areas of their lives.

Programs offered by The Resilience Project are based on the following strategies:

Gratitude - Appreciating what you have, not begrudging what you don’t have.

Empathy - Thinking of the needs of others/kindness.

Mindfulness - Being present in the moment, not becoming distracted by unhelpful or negative thoughts. In 2021, we are pleased to be continuing our partnership with The Resilience Project. The Resilience Project delivers emotionally engaging programs and provides evidence-based, practical strategies to build resilience through their online wellbeing curriculum.

The Digital Program consists of online presentations and lessons for students, professional development for staff, and a video series for our parent and carer community.

Over the coming term, we will be sharing the Parent and Carer Program with you. The videos are 5-10 minutes long and will walk through the key pillars of Resilience: Gratitude, Empathy and Mindfulness. You will hear stories and be introduced to activities to show how these strategies can support our kids' learning and development, and also support you as parents and carers. We highly recommend you set aside just a few minutes of your day to engage with this resource.

This program is an important part of Westminster’s effort to look after the mental health of our community. View the first presentation of the series here: Part 1: Meet Martin and learn about The Resilience Project.

We will share the remainder of the program, including research and wellbeing activities to integrate into day-to-day life, over the course of the semester.

But that is not all…

In addition to the online program above, on Monday 22 March you will have the opportunity to participate in a webinar hosted by Hugh van Cuylenburg. Hugh spoke to our School community about six years ago and was widely regarded as one of the best speakers we have had. I therefore strongly encourage you to set aside the time to join this zoom meeting at 6.30 pm on Monday 22 March.

During this presentation, Hugh will share his experiences and combine them with practical strategies that can be implemented every day to improve our overall wellbeing.

The link you will need to be part of the presentation is The Resilience Project Parent Webinar.

Code Camp

Get creative with technology at Westminster these Autumn school holidays.

On top of five coding classes to suit all skill levels, Code Camp have launched a range of new camps, where students can learn to DJ, produce YouTube style videos and create stop-motion animation short films. Westminster will be hosting Code Camp on Monday 12 to Wednesday 14 April. For more information and to find out what is on offer head to the Code Camp website.

Mr Walker Exhibiting

Any parents interested in Art and wine may like to venture to McLaren Vale to view the works of Mr Walker which are on display at Fox Creek Cellar Door.

Diary Dates

• Parent/Teacher Interviews - Week 8, commencing Monday 15 March
  
• WestFest Community Event - Sunday 21 March, commencing at 4.00 pm
• Resilience Project: Parent Webinar - Monday 22 March, 6.30 pm
• Year 3-6 Field Events - Tuesday 23 March
  
• Year 3-6 Sports Day - Wednesday 24 March
• Year 3 Excursion - Friday 26 March
• School Musical - Monday 29 March, 7.00 pm (limited set seating tickets available: www.trybooking.com/BOXHX)
• School Musical - Tuesday 30 March, 7.00 pm (limited set seating tickets available: www.trybooking.com/BOXHX)
• Year 4 Playground Excursion - Tuesday 30 March
• School Musical - Wednesday 31 March, 7.00 pm (general seating, this performance is for students and staff only): www.trybooking.com/BPDBH
• End of Term 1 - Thursday 1 April, finishing at 1.00 pm

Grant Bock
Head of Preparatory School