Redlands House/Transition Gold

Dr Judith Locke Presentation

This week we were fortunate to have Dr Judith Locke, clinical psychologist, former teacher and workplace trainer present workshops to staff and families of the School. Her advice to support children in a friendly and relatable way as well as providing specific strategies around how to help them become independent and make the most of their opportunities whilst at school was invaluable. Dr Locke reminded parents that by allowing children to face a world with some challenge and disappointment it can lead to opportunities that develop resilience and confidence. If you missed this wonderful learning opportunity and would like more information, please visit this website where Dr Locke’s book The Bonsai Child is available, or refer to the Facebook page – Confident and Capable. The five essential skills for long term success in children, which she challenges is more important than academic scores are outlined below:

Resilience – the ability to cope with difficulty
Self-Regulation – foregoing current pleasure for future gain
Resourcefulness – the ability to take the initiative to improve your situation
Respect – for others and authority
Responsibility – contributing to the community

We are very keen for feedback about this event to help us inform our planning for future events. We would appreciate it if you would take a few minutes to answer some simple questions by clicking here (even if you were unable to attend).

Community

The warmth of the Redlands community was certainly felt at the Twilight Cocktails held last Friday night, with many families from Early Childhood in attendance. Dr Lennox warmly welcomed new families to the School and reminded everyone about the upcoming social events in the School calendar. I enjoyed chatting with many parents and although I didn’t have the opportunity to speak to all Redlands House and Preparatory families, it was heart-warming to see so many in attendance this year. It was lovely to hear families enthusiastically sharing stories with me of their children’s positive start to the school year. Events such as these take many weeks of planning and I would like to thank Melanie Hendra, the School’s Event Manager, the Facilities and Maintenance teams for their behind the scenes preparation, the Redlands Parents and Friends Association (RPFA) committee members, in particular, President Michelle Tea, Anna Maria Stillone and Jean Martin who were closely involved with the organisation of the evening. This week also held the first Early Childhood Parent Coordinator Group meeting for the year. Thank you to Jennie Cadman and Bree Stevens for their coordination of this Group and to the parents who have given their time to organise various social functions for their cohort for the year ahead.

Insect Discoveries

Transition Gold have had an exciting beginning to their year as they were introduced to stick insects in the classroom. These stick insects hatched last year from eggs Mrs Maré collected on a visit to The Australian Museum. There are three different species: the Crowned, Spiny Leaf and Goliath stick insect. Each stick insect lays different eggs and the children have been using magnifying glasses to observe and classify. The class are eagerly expecting hatchlings in the next month or so. The children have enjoyed completing observational drawings and paintings, and writing stories about the stick insects. Projects such as this provide an important foundation of experiences and assists children in making sense of their world. In order to develop an appreciation of nature, children need to engage in many repeated and varied opportunities over periods of time. These experiences, explorations, and processing of information gives students the chance to go beyond surface-level understanding.

Community Garden

Redlands House has a wonderful community garden at the top of the playground. The children have an interesting time caring for this space, learning a variety of skills whilst sharing in the fun of growing plants and vegetables. Gardening assists children learn how to care for their environment, as well as develop mathematics and science concepts, in a way that builds both self-confidence and responsibility. To enable this project to be successful, we are seeking parent helpers. If you are able to assist in any way, please contact your child’s teacher. One of the teachers and the children usually tend the garden between 8.30 and 9.00am once or twice a week. Thank you.

Redlands Inaugural Sports Luncheon

The Redlands Inaugural Sports Luncheon, celebrating 120 years of Redlands Sport, will be held towards the end of this term on Friday 5 April between 12.00 – 4.00pm at the Royal Sydney Yacht Squadron, Kirribilli.

This Luncheon is open to all Redlands parents and alumni and provides a great opportunity to celebrate the integral value of sport to the Redlands community and its students of the past, present and future. We are delighted to announce our guest speakers, all past Redlands students, who will share their very inspiring journey during this luncheon:

Karyn Gojnich (née Davis), Class of 1978 (Olympic sailor, Redlander and former Redlands parent)
Janusz Hooker, Class of 1987 (Olympic Rower)
Lachlan Mackay, Class of 2000 (Rugby: Australian Wallaby)
Holly Crawford, Class of 2001 (Olympic Snowboarder)

Tickets are $130 per person and include a gourmet two course meal and beverages. Limited spaces are available and bookings can be made here. I hope to see many of you there as we recognise this milestone in the history of Redlands Sport.

Clean Up Australia Day

Clean Up Australia Day is a wonderful opportunity for all Redlands students and their families to make a positive contribution to our local community. This year the location has changed from Balmoral and the focus is on cleaning up the Spit Reserve. Many Redlands students have spent time in this area for various sports including training sessions in the park and our older students row on the harbour. I encourage you to come along on Sunday and help the School make a difference and see if we can remove as much rubbish as possible from the park and the harbour foreshore.

Date:                           Sunday 3 March
Arrive:                        1.00pm for a short briefing
Clean up:                   1.15 – 2.30pm
Afternoon tea:         2.30pm, BYO some snacks to share

Easter Working Bee

Mrs Audrey Fellowes
Head of Early Childhood
afellowes@redlands.nsw.edu.au
9968 9848