Head of Junior School

Head of Junior School

UPCOMING EVENTS

Please note that all Upcoming Events for the Junior School are now on their own Note Day article/page. 

This Head of Junior School page will consist of general information from the Head of Junior School. 

Academic Achievers’ Assembly

On Monday, I was privileged to attend the annual Academic Achievers’ Assembly for our top graduates from the Class of 2019. Having been at Redlands for some time, one of the joys of this occasion for me is seeing many students who I remember well from their time in the Junior School.

There were some poignant messages for our Alumni as well as the Yr 11 and 12 cohorts who were present at this celebration from Mr Corcoran, Head of Secondary School, and Mr Webber, Principal, but I also found great inspiration in the reflective addresses of graduating students, Lindsay McNeil and Siddhant Saha. Lindsay started her Redlands journey in Preschool as did Isabel Binnekamp who was recognised for achieving the rare perfect full marks in the IB Diploma examinations. As Mr Corcoran pointed out, whilst their ATAR score was why they were at this special acknowledgment, this was only a very small part of their contributions to Redlands and of the young, life-ready women and men that they have become.

Safer Internet Day

In our assembly this week, our Junior School student leaders raised awareness of Tuesday’s Safer Internet Day, encouraging their peers to play their part to practise and promote online safety. The four key messages delivered to the students were:

  1. Think of others’ feelings before you make a comment on Google Classroom, send a message or email, like or share content.
  2. Ask for permission before you share or airdrop a photo or video with someone else in it. Respectful online relationships start with consent.
  3. Be an ‘upstander’ – Speak up if you see someone cyberbullying or sharing inappropriate content online through emails or messages- let them know it’s not okay. Report and delete it.
  4. Privacy and safe searches – Make sure you have a passcode for your devices. Did you know there are special places just for kids to search information online to keep you safe? Instead of Google and Wikipedia, try Kidrex, Unsplash and Pixabay for safe images.

I encourage parents to speak with your children about these principles which teachers will also be following up on through our ICT Responsible User Guidelines, which I know the vast majority of students and parents have already signed.

The eSafety Commissioner also provides resources for parents on specific eSafety topics link here.

Class Parents Representatives Needed

Thank you to parents who have sent their names through to Mrs Fairfax in the Junior School office offering to be a Class Parent this year. We are currently seeking at least one parent representative from the following classes: 3 White (Mrs Snooks), 4 Red (Mr Morrison), 5 Blue (Mrs Benneyworth), 5 Green (Mr Watkins), 6 Yellow (Mr Price), 6 White (Ms Tobiansky) and 6 Green (Ms Cosolito).

Please contact wither the class teacher or Mrs Fairfax in the Junior School Office if you are able to take up this important community role for 2020.

Jack Heath – Author-in-Residence (Week 5)

We are very excited to welcome back award-winning author, Jack Heath to Redlands as an author-in-residence during Week 5. Jack will spend the week in the Junior School working with all students and teachers in the area of creative writing and, having thoroughly enjoyed his engaging and energetic presentations with Yrs 5 and 6 last year, I know that this special opportunity for us to have him here with us  will make a lasting impression on many.

Representative Sport

Last Saturday saw eight of our representative Basketball teams survive the weather and play their first games of the year against Newington College and The King’s School. As Mr Dunne pointed out in our assembly on Monday, the result of a game is always secondary to our teams’ sportsmanship, competitiveness, improvements and enjoyment of playing team sport for Redlands. As it happens last week, all eight teams won, which is a great start and I enjoyed cheering six of the teams on. We were also delighted to have avid Basketball fan, Mr Webber, support some our girls and boys before he headed out to support the Secondary School rowers at the NSW Championships.

Twilight in the Piazza

I look forward to joining many in our Redlands community at next Friday’s welcome cocktail event on the Junior Campus. I know that there has been a team of Redlands staff and parents busily working behind the scenes in setting the stage for what will, I am sure, be another memorable event and I acknowledge and thank them in advance.

Mr Ari Guha
Head of Junior School
aguha@redlands.nsw.edu.au
9953 6022