From the Acting Head of Junior School

A Clean Sweep for Gordon

School sports are crucial for promoting physical health and teamwork skills among students, fostering lifelong habits of exercise and cooperation. They also provide a platform for enhancing students' self-esteem, teamwork and personal growth. Recently, at assembly, we celebrated the many fabulous sporting achievements that our students have been involved in so far this year. Congratulations to Gordon House for achieving the trifecta in sport by winning the 2024 Athletics Carnival, Cross-Country and Swimming Carnival! An outstanding effort. Mr Campbell and Ms Caro work together to ensure that all students from P-6 can participate in a variety of sporting activities. I would like to thank them both for their coordinated efforts in building the Sporting profile of the Junior School and especially the efficient running of major sporting events throughout the year. Pictures from the Athletics Carnival can be seen here.   

Canberra Excursion

Last week, I had the fortunate opportunity to join Year 6 in Canberra and was accompanied by the two International Exchange Students from South Africa; Ava and Leila. Visiting Parliament House offers a unique insight into the workings of the nation's government, providing an educational experience on our democratic processes. Whilst at Parliament House we had a visit from the Hon Andrew Gee MP who spent time talking to the students about his role and responding to their inquisitive questions.  

We also visited the Australian War Memorial which provided our students with insights into the nation's military history, the sacrifices of service members, and supported our students in fostering a deeper understanding of the impacts of war on society. The solemn atmosphere and detailed exhibits offer a powerful reminder of the cost of conflict and the importance of peace.  

Attending excursions with our students is a joy and a lovely opportunity to connect with them outside of the school environment.  

Join us for Breakfast

This term we are hosting Breakfast with the Principal for families with students from the Junior School. If you have students in Years 2 to 5, please consider coming along to our final two events. Click on the links below for details.

Year 2 and 3 | Tuesday 28 May

Year 4 and 5 | Tuesday 4 June 

Pre-Kinder Hillside Harvest Visit

Pre-Kinder were so very lucky to visit The Hillside Harvest, Apple Orchard in week 3. The weather had a quick and welcomed change with the sun shining and clear skies. We met Paula who runs Hillside Harvest and she gave us a tour. Paula took us over to the cool room where the children could pick an apple to enjoy as we walked through the orchard. Our Pre-Kinders were filled to the brim with curious questions and Paula was so patient with answering them all. We examined the different fruit trees, tractors, protective netting measures and our eagle-eyed students noticed paint on some trees where they had been cut, Paula explained that the paint has a type of antibiotic medicine to make sure it doesn't get sick with diseases.  

Even though it was an earlier season this year we still came home with lots of apples! We continued the joy on the following Monday, when Pre-kinder delivered the apples to the hospitality room where our Year 12 students conducted a demonstration. The pre-kinder children watched on eagerly as they washed, peeled and cut the apples before stewing them. At the end of the day we were joined by some Year 10 students that worked in small groups to finished the process of making apple turnovers. Our Pre-kinder students helped cut the pastry, spoon the mixture, fold the pastry and apply an egg wash. After playing outside with their new friends they had hot apple turnovers served with ice cream.