Head of Preparatory School

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UPCOMING EVENTS

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

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

Book Week

The Prep School made a special effort to promote the joy of books this week as they enjoyed activities related to Book Week. It was wonderful to see students and staff embracing this year’s theme of Reading is My Secret Power as they focused on the powerful ability books have to transport us to another place in the real and make-believe world. The delight on the children’s faces was palpable when the teachers paraded out in their coloured crayons from the book The Day the Crayons Quit. We are looking forward to author Frances Watts visiting the students on Monday 2 September who will share her stories. Thank you to Mrs Roberts who reminded everyone about the importance of sharing a book a day, modelling how to read and how to be an enthusiastic problem-solving, book-searching reader who is open to all the possibilities reading brings.

Gala Ball

Plenty of glamour, laughter and dancing was the order of the night last Saturday at the Redlands Gala Ball. The event was well represented by Preparatory and Redlands House families and I thank everyone most sincerely for their support of the School. Dana Casimaty and the Foundation team, the RPFA and parent volunteers gave so much of their time to make the evening so memorable. Redlands Alumni Greta Argyropoulos (Class of 2017), Embla Bishop (Class of 2013) and Luke Haberecht (Class of 2014) entertained the crowd and Abe Mitchell (Arts Captain, Class of 2005) was an outstanding Master of Ceremonies. Greta Argyropoulos shared her journey of being a scholarship recipient and how this enabled her to complete Yr 12 and pursue a career in Music. The enormous generosity of the Redlands community helped raise a substantial amount for the endowment means-tested Redlands Scholarship Fund to help a talented and deserving student who would otherwise not have the opportunity to receive a Redlands education.

Junior Campus Open Morning

On Tuesday Redlands hosted an Open Day for prospective families. Yr 2 students Emma Shoosmith and Arlo Wainberg, together with Yr 6 students Betti Butcher and Angus McInnes, ably assisted families with their questions. A challenge for anyone to answer impromptu questions, Emma and Arlo confidently and enthusiastically addressed the large audience on a number of different topics, including their experiences with our Positive Behaviour for Learning framework and the extra curricular activities they enjoy the most. Yr 11 students, Armen Shiraz-Dilanchian and Anna Saunders, spoke fondly of their time on the Junior Campus and particularly made mention of the teachers who inspired them and the friendships they made. Thank you to the following Yr 2 students who were wonderful ambassadors for their School, leading tours for families through the Prep and Junior Schools. 

2A – William Whitelaw, Luca Cowlishaw, Eliza Withana, Tara Clark
2C – Isabelle Garde, Emma Shoosmith, Charlie Hutchings, Aidan Schlederer
2E – Zara Lo, Arlo Wainberg, Cara Sheeran, Kyler Simpson
2P – Molly Crompton, Enrico Viese Vivaldi, Austin Robinson, Sophie Coolen

Yr 1 Vaucluse House

Yr 1 students attended Vaucluse House as part of their Inquiry Unit on The History of Toys. The children learnt about the Wentworth family which included Mr and Mrs Wentworth, their 10 children and 40 servants. They had fun pretending to be servants in the kitchen polishing silverware, sweeping the floor, folding tea towels, churning butter and grinding the spices. The students also participated in outdoor games enjoying learning about croquet, bowling, tug-of-war, hoops and cup and ball. They then had to wander through the garden trying to identify some fruits and vegetables that they knew. The comparison between the life of the Wentworth family and the life of a Redlands students drew many interesting comments such as “I’m glad my mum doesn’t make me share a room with my all of my brothers and sisters” (Charlie Halliday) and “the toys the Wentworth children play with are like some of the ones I have at home” (Leo Popovic).

Sustainability

Linked to the School’s Strategic action of Sustainability, the Preparatory School will be collecting bottle tops for Envision. Bottle tops are one of the top polluters found in our oceans our environment. Bottle tops are recyclable but are sadly often not recycled or fall through machinery, ending up in landfill or our oceans, turning into microplastic that is then introduced to our food chain. Envision are working towards creating a better future by collecting bottle tops to help children in need. Once collected, these bottle tops will be transformed into 3D filament, where they will be turned into prosthetic hands or bespoke items, such as ramps. The Prep School are supporting this endeavour and will be collecting bottle tops to create a brighter future for children in need. Please drop off your cleaned bottle tops at either Prep Reception or Redlands House. Thank you to Kimberlee Chipper, Yr 1 teacher, who brought this wonderful initiative to our attention.

Kindergarten Woodwork

Kindergarten are undertaking woodwork this term as part of the Kindergarten Science Unit Let’s Build, derived from the Australian Curriculum Early Stage One section, What’s it Made of?. Woodwork provides the students with a hands-on, shared experience discovering the properties of materials. The woodwork unit also builds all important learning dispositions, Responsible Risk Taking, Persistence and Creating, Imagining and Innovating. Thank you to the parents who are volunteering with this experience and donating materials, without whom valuable activities such as these wouldn’t be possible.

Mrs Audrey Fellowes
Head of Preparatory School
afellowes@redlands.nsw.edu.au
9968 9848