Head of Preparatory School

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Mother’s Day

There is nothing better than bringing mothers and carers together to enjoy a coffee, a pastry and a good chat with friends, that is exactly what we did on Monday to celebrate our wonderful Redlands mums. The rain held off just long enough for us to stop the busyness of life and appreciate everything that our Redlands mum do for their families and for us!

Classroom were a buzz with activity as I walked around. It was lovely to see mum shoulder massages happening, arts and craft, singing, storytelling, building activities and learning shared on ipads.

A big thank you to all the mums and carers who came on Monday, I hope that the small snippet in time made you feel very loved, valued and spoilt.

Prep Students Out and About!

Kindergarten’s visit to Golden Ridge Farm

On Tuesday, our Kindergarten classes went on an exciting excursion to Golden Ridge Animal Farm. The students had a wonderful time exploring the farm and meeting various animals. One of the highlights was milking Betty the Cow, where we learned the difference between dairy cows and beef cows. Farmer Charlie helped us to recognise all the different products that come from the milk of a cow. Another fascinating fact we learnt was that llamas spit to protect sheep, giving them enough time to escape from predators. The children had the chance to hold chicks and ducklings and they fed lambs as well. We also discovered that a baby rabbit is called a kitten. The entire excursion, including the bus trip, was an enjoyable experience for all.

Year 1 Visit to the Big Dig

Year 1 learners were digging into the past on their excursion to The Big Dig last week. There was much awe and wonder as the students learnt about the Foy and Byrne families who lived in The Rocks in the 1800s. 

Each class took turns to work as archaeologists, excavating artefacts from the simulated archaeological dig. Students used an interactive map mat and artefacts found at the site to examine and discuss how these families lived. They couldn’t believe that all seven children shared a bedroom!

The excursion has really provoked curiosity in the Year 1 students. They came back to school with so many questions and perhaps feeling a little more grateful for the things they can enjoy today – like a hot shower!

OOSH Reminder

Parents and carers are reminded that children attending OOSH must be picked up by 6pm. In the instance when you are running late, please call OOSH to let them know your expected time of arrival and they will organise a staff member to stay past 6pm.

Please be aware that late picks charges $10 for first 5 mins and $5 for every minute after that (See OOSH Pulse page for full OOSH details).

Thank you for your support with this.

Parents picking up their children from OOSH after 4pm MUST enter and exit via the Junior School Reception only. The emergency exit next to the Prep Reception is not to be used for exiting the building at any time for OOSH students and their families.

Prep School Playground Reminders for Families

Our Prep students are so very lucky with the variety of activities that are on offer after school, and we love seeing them active and happy. With such variation comes a logistical structure that needs to be understood and followed by staff, students and families.

Can I please remind our Prep families that the playground equipment is only to be used for children who are registered at OOSH after school hours. If you are waiting for a Junior School sibling, we ask parents to supervise their Prep child in an area that is close to where you are waiting.

Food that is offered by OOSH staff in the playground is for OOSH students only, thank you for supporting us to keep all our children safe after school.

Parents Circles: Responsive Parenting and Raising Healthy Children

A message from our Junior Campus Counsellor, Silvia Roberts

Being a responsive parent sounds simple enough, but living high stress lives, often in isolation, lots of us know how nearly impossible it can be. Recognising that the essential condition for a healthy child’s development is the child’s relationship with nurturing adults, we invite you to join us for regular Parents’ Circles facilitated by the school counsellor, Silvia Roberts. 

The Parents Circles will draw on specific topics and will be centred on providing a space for open discussions and questions. The sessions will also equip parents with a wide range of essential practical and emotional regulation skills, and guide parents through the art of fulfilling their children’s needs which are the essence of healthy positive parenting.

The topic for the session, in Week 4 (Wednesday 22 May 8.30 am – 9.30 am in Lucy Hill Library) is:

Family Systems – Boundary Systems: Boundaries Must Be Taught

• Small children have no boundaries and develop whatever the boundary system parents have.
• What happens when parents either wall up or lack boundaries? Or what happens when each parent has a different boundary system? 
• Exploring different possibilities of families’ boundary systems and family roles. Guiding parents to help children set up functional healthy boundaries, which in turn will help children to create healthy friendships. 

In Week 7, we will be exploring the topic of Negative Core Beliefs in Children – Positive Parenting

• Negative core beliefs in children can lead to them developing depression, anxiety, codependency, relationship issues or addictions later in life.
• How can parents prevent the onset of negative core beliefs?
• Exploring five core natural attributes of children and guiding parents to attend to those in a functional and effective way.

This will help their children develop each separate characteristic properly, which will lead to functional teens and adults who feel good about themselves rather than develop dysfunctional survival traits.

We extend a welcome to our Prep and Junior parents to attend. You are welcome to bring your own coffee or tea. As this is a parenting circle of support, numbers are limited to 20 to keep it small enough for interactive discussion so please book your space here.

Mrs Ainslie Breckenridge
Head of Preparatory School
abreckenridge@redlands.nsw.edu.au
9968 9848