Room 1 Years 3 -6
Hello everyone!
Before I give a recap of the week that has been, I'd just like to say thanks! Firstly, to you the reader! We really appreciate our community engaging with our newsletter as we put in time and effort to ensure our content reflects all the amazing aspects of Cowwarr! Next, I'd like to show some appreciation to Amy Armstrong and Lianne Bassett for the incredible amount of work they have done behind the scenes to ensure our Cluster Athletics Day ran smoothly. Even though we are a small team, everyone puts in 110% each week to ensure our children have the best experiences at school.
This week in Social and Emotional Learning we have focused on ways to solve problems. Room 1 have been using the analogy of a roundabout- when you are faced with a problem, there are many roads you can take in order to solve it. However, not all roads are the correct choice. Some roads are;
A red light choice:
- Does not solve the problem
- Makes you and the other people involved feel uncomfortable or hurt
A yellow light choice:
- Can fix the problem in the short term, but it will mostly likely occur again
- Might make you feel better for a little while
- Other people may forgive you but how they think of you from now on may change in a negative way
A green light choice:
- Fixes the problem for GOOD
- Everyone involved feels like they have expressed their thoughts and feelings and are able to move on
- People learn how to behave differently next time
- Makes friendships stronger
We are all human beings and sometimes it can be hard to always make a green light choice but as long as we can reflect and acknowledge what we can change next time- that's growth!
I have been super excited during our Writing sessions this week because the children chose their own topics which increased our engagement levels dramatically! In our meetings this week, the staff have discussed how we can enhance structure and organisation, and through our research we discovered that it actually starts with being engaged first. Children need to have a 'buy in' to feel they are capable of structuring an authentic piece. That makes sense right? We can't get better at organising our ideas if they aren't interesting to us! We are adapting our writing sessions to implement Jennifer Serravallo's Writing Hierarchy.
On Friday, we had our Cluster Athletics Day (my first one- woo!) The children showed enthusiasm and sportsmanship during the day, throwing themselves into every event with smiles and determination. Whether they finished first or last, their focus remained on having fun, trying their best, and supporting each other. It was inspiring to see how they didn’t let the pressure of winning or placing hold them back.
Next week, Lianne and I are taking six students to Bairnsdale West Primary School for their annual Reconciliation Day Assembly. The six students will be selected this week based on how often they show our school values, we would have loved to take the whole school but our invite had a seat limit. At Cowwarr, it can be difficult to find experiences that help us recognise, understand and appreciate Gunaikurnai culture so I thought this would be a perfect opportunity for us. Students who attend are expected to take away information to bring back to school so that we can all learn more about First Nations People! For more information about the day, please see the pamphlet below:
It is everyone's responsibility to treat others with respect and kindness regardless of the idea of 'race.' We should all have a basic understanding of what that term means, even at a young age. 'Our Skin' is an age- appropriate book that introduces the reason why our skin colours may differ.