News from the Waratah Room

Throughout the year the children have developed a strong sense of belonging and community. They regularly discuss how they can help each other and maintain a warm and positive environment in the Waratah Room.

As this sense of belonging continues to develop we are encouraging them to think about the broader community and the world in general.

“Children are the world’s most valuable resource and its best hope for the future.” John F. Kennedy

Our children are strong and creative individuals. It is important to honour their thoughts and ideas. They have recently enjoyed reading the book, Somewhere Today, which depicts children acting through simple gestures in kind, and peaceful, ways to help others.

During several Morning Meetings the children have been reflecting on these gestures and suggesting other ways children help make our world a more peaceful and happy place. Our young learners provided the following responses to the statement: Somewhere today someone is….

Samara: “giving someone a hug.”

Charlie: “playing with a friend.”

Scarlett: “sharing a book.”

Eva: “saying sorry.”

Arabella:“is sitting quietly listening.”

Reuben: “saying thank you.”

Emilia: “helping pack away.”

Casper: “sharing and taking turns.”

Respecting and following these simple ideas will help the children feel valued and encourage them to expand their ideas.

Great ideas often begin from the simplest ideas.

Mrs Penny Campbell
Waratah Room Teacher

Campbell House End of Year Concerts

Learners in Campbell House are busily engaged in preparations for the end of year concerts scheduled for the following dates and time:

Thursday 17 November Waratah Room 9.30am

Tuesday 22 November Wattle Room 9.30am

Wednesday 23 November Banksia Room 9.30am

Thursday 24 November Blue Gum Room 9.30am

These concerts, as always, will be a delightful experience for our performers and audience members.

Performance experience is built into every Year level program at St Catherine’s School. In the knowledge that children love to perform we, as professional educators, appreciate fully the ways in which confidence and self-respect, as well as sheer pride and enjoyment, are achieved through each opportunity to perform.

So much learning will be enjoyed during the preparations and in the final performances.

The concerts in Campbell House are embedded in the construction of our Early Learning program, and in many cases devised by the learners themselves. The Reggio Emilia approach reminds us of the importance of student engagement in their learning.

Young learners drive the process of program planning for each concert, from beginning to end, and it is amazing to observe and hear the planning emanating out of all of our Campbell House classrooms. Shared discussions, ideas sought from all, costumes, scenery, scripts, songs and activities are all thoroughly explored through respectful conversation and collaboration.