The Anchor

Primary School

Exploring Learning Beyond the Classroom 

Current trends in Australian education continue to emphasise hands-on, experiential learning, encouraging students to connect with the world around them. Recent experiences at Great Southern Grammar reflect this beautifully. Our Year Five students demonstrated independence, teamwork and resilience during their camp at Woodman Point in Fremantle − an experience that brought the curriculum to life in an outdoor setting. Meanwhile, our Interschool Cross Country event will celebrate not only physical fitness, but also perseverance and school spirit, aligning with the growing national focus on student wellbeing. Our youngest learners in Year One also stepped beyond the classroom on their playground excursion, engaging in imaginative play, taking risks and developing social skills − key pillars of early childhood learning. These experiences demonstrate how schools are crafting well-rounded educational journeys that promote both academic growth and personal development, fostering connections and joy.

Wilson Day – Friday 27 June (Term Two, Week Nine) 

Wilson Day will be held on Friday 27 June (Term Two, Week Nine) and will include a whole-school Dress-Up Day with the theme ‘Wear Your Colours’. Students are encouraged to wear their favourite colour, a sports team jersey or their House colours, ensuring all clothing and footwear are school-appropriate. A gold coin donation is requested, with all proceeds goingto support the Albany Youth Support Centre. 

Classroom News 

We hope you enjoy reading the news from our Early Childhood and Primary classes.  

 

Kindergarten 

Both Kindergarten classes are having so much fun exploring their unit of inquiry about farms and where food comes from! Yesterday, we got hands-on by making our very own butter from fresh cream; it was amazing to see how it transformed right before our eyes. While making the butter, we saw the curds and whey, which reminded us of the nursery rhyme Little Miss Muffet, so we learned that together, too! Then, instead of throwing away the leftover buttermilk, we got creative and whipped up some tasty buttermilk pancakes to enjoy. We are super excited to bake bread next week, just like in the story Little Red Hen. We cannot wait to spread our homemade butter on the warm, fresh bread! 

 

Pre-Primary 

In Mathematics, we have been investigating measurement. We have been looking at length and height. Did you know we can order from longest to shortest, but also from tallest to shortest? That’s crazy! We measured ourselves against our big kid helpers, and we also measured lots of different classroom objects. We always made sure to start measuring the objects from the same point. 

 

Year One 

Last week, the Year One students were lucky enough to miss the rain and enjoyed a beautiful sunny day on an excursion to the parks and playgrounds of Albany. The first place they visited was Peace Park, which they decided was a good place to have a picnic, walk a dog and learn about the Anzac soldiers who left from Albany to fight in the First World War. Eyre Park provided much excitement as the children agreed that this was more of a park for families, playing, BBQs and fun. Much Science discussion on different materials, and push and pull forces of playground equipment happened here. The final place was Emu Point. Another good playground and a great place for swimming, eating and family activities. 

 

Year Two 

The Year Two class was excited to make fairy bread last week! We were working on our procedural writing topic and enjoyed watching a video on how procedures can go wrong if they are not written correctly. We have been talking about bossy (imperative) verbs and how these are used in these text types. The students then ate their fairy bread and wrote the instructions for making it. This week, we also logged on to the laptops using our new emoji logins and travelled to the continent of Europe (via Google Earth). We visited places such as Paris to see the Eiffel Tower and London to see the London Eye. We were excited to see that the frogs had jumped out of our George’s Marvellous Medicine Mixture and onto the edge of the cauldron. EEEK! 

 

Year Four 

The Year Four students have continued to investigate forces in Science, differentiating between contact and non-contact forces, such as pushing/pulling and gravity. In Mathematics, they have explored probability and chance, describing possible outcomes and determining whether events are dependent or independent. They have also been writing a book review to showcase their impressive reading skills and comprehension. 

 

Year Five 

The Year Five students had an absolute blast at camp! Woodman Point hosted both classes for an action-packed three days. Activities included both Fremantle Prison and the Maritime Museum on day one. Students learned about the escapades of ‘Moonshine Joe’, Freo’s very own Houdini. We also enjoyed a day of public transport around Perth, visiting both Parliament House and SciTech. A definite highlight was a few select students taking to State Premier Roger Cook’s seat in the state parliament. We practised a mock debate on the four-day working week and treaded the hallowed halls of power. Finally, the students finished their experience with three amazing hours of hands-on experiments at SciTech. If you want to know more, feel free to pop along to the Year Five D assembly this Friday, where our theme will be ... Camp Shenanigans.  

 

Year Six 

The two Year Six classes have been collaborating closely to plan their Anchor Programme, a student-led initiative designed to enrich the Great Southern Grammar community. Focused on creating meaningful experiences and programmes for younger students in Primary School, the Year Six students have been working diligently in pairs to brainstorm and develop their unique initiatives. These projects, set to launch in Semester Two, reflect the creativity, leadership and teamwork of our senior Primary students. Keep an eye out for the Year Six sign-up sheets appearing in the coming weeks; there will be something exciting for everyone to get involved in! 

 

Languages 

This week, all students completed a French test to showcase their learning so far. Unlike regular lessons, they worked with minimal guidance and without visual prompts, encouraging them to rely on their memory. This recall process is a powerful step in learning a new language, helping to strengthen long-term understanding. Their results clearly show how hard they have been working, and the progress is brilliant. It has also been a confidence boost, as many students realised, they are beginning to remember how to say things and can start holding simple conversations in French. 

ECC Briefing  

The following superstars have worked beautifully and received a Star Award for their efforts.  

 

Kindergarten H: William Kittow 

Kindergarten M: Aurelia Davison 

Pre-Primary: Rosie Paton 

Year One: Oakley Pyle  

Year Two: Rory De Groot 

 

The following students have stood out for their ability to show integrity. 

Kindergarten H: Ajit Grewal 

Kindergarten M: Tom Hicks 

Pre-Primary: Connor Robson 

Year One: Elleanor-Grace Danso 

Year Two: Cooper Glendinning 

 

Upcoming events 

Week Seven 

  • Friday 13 June, Year Five, Davison Assembly, 9.00am in the Hall. All welcome to attend.
  • Friday 13 June, Discover GSG day, 9.00am-1.00pm.

Week Eight 

  • Friday 20 June, Primary GSSSSA Interschool Cross Country, selected Year Three to Year Six students, ovals beside the new tennis courts, at the bottom of North Road, 9.15am to 1.20pm.

Week Nine 

  • Thursday 26 June, Twilight Concert, Hall, 6.00pm.
  • Friday 27 June, Wilson Day - Wear your Colours dress-up (gold coin donation.) 
  • Friday 27 June, Music Assembly, Hall, 9.00am. All welcome to attend.

Week Ten 

  • Friday 4 July, Year Three Assembly, Hall, 9.00am. All are welcome to attend.

Have a lovely weekend!

 

Ms Leah Field | Head of Primary and

Mrs Hayley Ranger | Head of Early Childhood