Wantirna College Newsletter

News from the 

Library

Looking back at 2021

 

It’s been a big year in the Library, with renovations, expanded programs and developing new ways to engage over Teams:

 

  • The Summer Reading Challenge entered it’s second year, with Rees House taking the shield
  • The Premiers Reading Challenge was again taken up by an enthusiastic cohort of readers
  • We continued with Artisan of the Month and expanded it to include a Family and Friends category (get creating over the holidays to enter next year!)
  • A new writing competition called Resident Writers was started and ran on a once per term basis
  • The genrefied fiction came into its own this year, with many more students finding new ways to engage with reading
  • The Library Teams page expended its channels to include Competitions, Resident Writers, and Things we like, providing greater access to content and activities during the various study from home periods
  • Renovations occurred – new paint and lighting, the foyer wall came down to make more space within the Library, and the Discussion Room was remodelled to create a specialist film editing suite and a new meeting/podcast/greenscreen room. New carpet is being installed over the summer break
  • A series of artist incursions for our Indigenous students were held in Term 4 culminating in a mural painted inside the Library. The featured owl is Boobook, the Library mascot

 

Looking forward to 2022

 

We have several exciting things planned for 2022, including:

 

  • The arrival of new comfortable reading chairs and ottomans
  • Genrefying the nonfiction to increase the user-friendliness of the reading collection
  • New reading programs
  • A new look Library catalogue, providing greater functionality including the opportunity to submit book reviews and an easy-to-use way for students to check their current loans
  • New student leadership opportunities
  • A great many more fun facts, trivia and memory lane songs on the Things we like Teams channel. If you missed this year’s offerings, ask your child to log in and take a look

 

2022 Summer Reading Challenge

 

The Summer Reading House Challenge is back. Students and staff are invited to read a book over the summer break, then talk to a member of the Library Team about it in the first two weeks back. By doing this you will earn your House one point. Only one book per person, so everyone can contribute equally towards their House points. Byrne won in 2020, Rees 2021, which House name will be added to it in 2022?

 

Premiers Reading Challenge

 

We have recently been able to finalise the 2021 Premiers Reading Challenge by presenting students with their Certificates of Achievement. Congratulations again to everyone who completed the challenge and contributed points to their Houses

 

 

 

 

 

Artisan of the Month – People’s Choice Awards 2021

 

At the end of this year, we threw open all 2021 Artisan of the Month entries to the school community to vote for The People’s Choice Award 2021. Congratulations to the following winners:

 

  • Student – Zoe Holznagel for the work entitled God of a New World (June/July AotM). Zoe had finished school before the votes were tallied, so the trophy will be awarded at the start of next year
  • Family and Friends – Karlee Barnes and family for their Lumiere costume (September/October AotM). The trophy was accepted by Reagan Barnes on behalf of the family

 

To see all Artisan of the Month entries, go to the Library Teams page -> Artisan of the Month channel, and click on the AotM Gallery tab at the top of the window

 

Library Mural

 

As we mentioned in the last newsletter, Wantirna College Library partnered with Knox Council and EACH to bring an artist into the school to workshop with students to create a mural reflecting their Indigenous heritage. Painting has now finished, and we are thrilled with the result. Our thanks to the artist, Amanda Wright, for the amazing work, and to Angela Thurbon from Knox City Council and Vanessa Murdoch from EACH for running the workshops and assisting with sourcing funding for the project.

 

The wavy blue and purple background echoes the Dandenongs that can be seen in the windows below the mural. The five circles are the five tribes of the Kulin Nation joined by a river. 

 

 

The owl is our own Library mascot – a boobook, or mopoke, owl. The students who participated in the workshops all talked about the importance of community and people, so the owl is out at night looking over the people dancing and the yidaki player. Owls are shadows in nature, a spirit ancestor watching over the people and the environment. Above the owl is the word Wominjeka, a Wurundjeri word which means both welcome, and ‘to come with purpose’. The leaves on the branch are decorated with designs made by the students in one of the workshops.

 

 

Library Staff