Head of Early Childhood

Welcome to Term 2

The beginning of a new term is a chance for students, staff and families to start fresh with enthusiasm and vitality after a restful break. I would like to extend a welcome to the families joining Redlands Preparatory School this term and trust that your school journey will provide fulfillment and happiness as you explore our wonderful community. I enjoyed a lovely few days in the Pacific Islands, visiting local schools and enjoying the beautiful scenery and surrounds. Throughout my stay, I was continually reminded of how fortunate we are to live in Australia with fresh water to drink and a vast variety of healthy foods and medication at our finger tips.

The day before we welcomed the students back to school, staff came together and had the opportunity to learn once again from Dr Judith Locke as she delivered the second part of her Confident and Capable Children session. Dr Locke’s key message reinforced the notion that if caregivers take away the opportunity for children to face a world without some challenges and disappointment, they may not learn to develop resilience and the confidence to face difficulties throughout life. Continually paving a smooth path, without hurdles and road blocks for children eliminates key opportunities to learn to recover quickly from misfortune or problems. If you missed Dr Locke’s session earlier in the year 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

Easter Hat Parade

It was beautiful weather to mark the annual Easter Hat Parade on the last day of Term 1. The students enjoyed parading on the refurbished oval with so many interesting and innovative hats this year. We trust families enjoyed the opportunity to view the classrooms during walk-throughs before the Parade.

Thank You From the Chaplain

A special thank you to the Preparatory School for their support of our recent Easter Egg drive that provided chocolate eggs for Wesley Missions Edward Edgar Lodge – a homeless shelter in Sydney. The eggs were delivered on Sunday morning much to the delight of the recipients. It was a joy to see how a simple token provided such warm and touching moments. The residents and visitors to the Centre enjoyed reading the cards from the students to each other. The children’s beautiful messages genuinely touched many, who often have forgotten the sweeter side of life. We still had enough eggs to deliver to people sleeping out around the city. Our Prep Assembly charity money from Term 1 will go towards purchasing toiletries as a more practical gift for the men and women of the Lodge. The effort the students went to in class and volunteering at lunch and recess times to organise the packages certainly gives me great confidence that kindness is alive and well at Redlands.

Staff News

Congratulations to Sylvia Merlot and her husband Steve who welcomed their baby daughter, Savana Rae, on Wednesday 24 April. Savana Rae’s big sister, 4 year old Samiya, is proving to be a wonderful help already offering to babysit for them!

Get Caught Reading Month

Did you know that May is Get Caught Reading Month? It’s such a fun concept! This is a campaign to promote the excitement of reading books for all ages. As a Prep School, we will be celebrating this in some small ways in the classroom.

Parking Reminder

For families new to the School, please be aware that there is no parking on Allister Street adjacent to the Junior Campus buildings between 7.30-9.00am and 2.30-4.00pm. This zone must be kept clear to allow both car lines to operate efficiently. There will be teachers on duty from 2.45pm daily to assist with the car line process. North Sydney Council rangers patrol these areas vigilantly and will issue fines to cars who are in no parking zones. Thank you for adhering to the correct parking and car line procedures which are put in place to keep all Redlands families and members of the community safe.

Term 2 Charity

Last term, the Prep School charity raised funds to buy toiletries for people experiencing homelessness in Sydney. In Term 2, the charity focus is the Indigenous Literacy Foundation (ILF). The ILF is a national not-for-profit charity focussed on improving literacy levels in very remote Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities. “Being able to read opens so many doors. In very remote Indigenous communities, books are all too scarce and literacy levels are so much lower than anywhere else in Australia. The Indigenous Literacy Foundation’s mission is to make a difference to the lives of Indigenous families by not only gifting thousands of new culturally appropriate books – with a focus on early literacy and first language – but also by running programs to inspire the communities to tell and publish their own stories”. You can read more about this organisation and what they do here

If you would like to contribute, we collect charity every Monday.

Prep Clubs

Clubs begin for Term 2 on Wednesday 8 May and finish on Wednesday 19 June. Clubs run between 3.00- 4.00pm each week and are for Yrs 1 and 2 students only. If your child’s schedule has changed and you are not going to be able to commit to your enrolled Club, please notify Mrs Hunt earlychildhood@redlands.nsw.edu.au as we have students on a wait list who would like to be considered if any vacancies arise. Thank you.

Mother’s Day Breakfast

The Junior Campus will be holding a Mother’s Day Celebration on Friday 10 May, beginning at 7.45am. This year our mothers will be spoiled with breakfast treats followed by an exciting morning of activities in the Kindergarten, Yr 1 and 2 classrooms. We look forward to sharing this special day with you.

Mother’s Day Classic

Interested Redlands families are encouraged to register for the Redlands team on the Mother’s Day Classic website, to participate in the Mother’s Day Classic on Sunday 12 May. This is a wonderful family-oriented event with categories for serious runners through to fun runners of all ages. All proceeds from this event are donated to Breast Cancer Research.

Don’t forget to purchase your Redlands pink caps and a new pink Team Redlands t-shirt from the Uniform Shop, with all profits going to the Mother’s Day Classic charity.

To register your interest in joining the Redlands team, click here. Please note that you will need to complete the registration process, nearly all the way to the payment stage before you can select to join the Redlands team and the password is ‘Shine’.

Thank you to the Redlands Parents and Friends Association who will again have a tent at the event as a meeting point.

Redlands Konica Minolta Art Prize Collection and Artist in Residence Program

The Redlands Konica Minolta Art Prize Collection will be on display at the School at a special event on Thursday 16 May.

Tickets available here. Drinks and canapés will be served during the evening. This is a parent only event.

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