The Anchor

Primary School

An Exciting Term Ahead at GSG!

We’re back, refreshed and ready for a jam-packed term full of fun, connection and unforgettable experiences! From the very first week, we hit the ground running with exciting events that bring our school community together in the best way. We had the pleasure of opening the new Primary School playground and thank the P&F for their generous support. We know the students will thoroughly enjoy the new space and it has already been very well used. 

 

Next week we will celebrate our wonderful mums and carers with a heartfelt Mother’s Day celebration, filled with smiles and special treats. Then it’s time to lace up those sneakers – the Athletics Carnival is just around the corner, promising plenty of House spirit and friendly competition.

 

Year Five Camp is another highlight, as students head off on an adventure of teamwork, resilience and a whole lot of fun to Woodman Point in Perth. We’ll also be taking part in Reconciliation Week, with the special opportunity to contribute to the Great Southern Acknowledgment Song – a powerful project celebrating culture and connection.

 

Plus, we’re recognising National Boarding Week, giving a big shoutout to our incredible boarding students, and joining in on Simultaneous Story Time, where the whole school will stop and read together.

 

And that’s just the beginning. Stay tuned for even more amazing activities this term. Let’s make it one to remember!

 

Mother’s Day Celebration at Great Southern Grammar

Early Childhood families, we are delighted to invite you to our upcoming Mother’s Day celebration at the Early Childhood Centre at Great Southern Grammar. This special event is a wonderful opportunity to honour the amazing mothers, grandmothers, aunts, or special friends who play such a vital role in the lives of our students.

 

We warmly welcome mothers (or a special guest) of children in Kindergarten to Year Two to join us on Wednesday 7 May for a heartwarming morning of shared experiences, connection and celebration. A morning tea will be held in the Library from 8.45am, where guests are invited to enjoy tea, coffee and light refreshments either before or after classroom activities.

 

Classroom activity times are as follows:

  • Kindergarten and Pre-Primary: 8.45am to 9.30am

  • Year One and Year Two: 9.15am to10.00am

These times have been carefully scheduled to allow families with children in multiple year groups to spend meaningful time with each child.

We hope you can join us for this joyful occasion as we come together to celebrate the love, care and support of the remarkable women in our children’s lives.

Classroom News

We hope you enjoy reading about our class inquiries for Term Two. 

 

Kindergarten

This term in Kindergarten, our inquiry is centered around our beginning Talk for Writing text, The Little Red Hen. This classic tale follows a hardworking hen who grows a crop and bakes bread, helping children to explore important themes of effort, working together and where food comes from. Using this story as a starting point, we’ll investigate what happens on a farm and how different foods are made. Through play, stories and discussions, students will learn about farms and how food gets from the farm to our plates.

 

Pre-Primary

The Pre-Primary children will engage in an inquiry into ‘place’ this term. We will inquire into ‘places that are special to us and how we can care for them’. We will investigate the features of familiar places, why and how places are cared for and explore what makes a place special. The concepts of connection, perspective and responsibility will be explored while the children develop a further sense of belonging and identity.

 

Year One

This term, the Year One inquiry will focus on ‘What are the different features of playgrounds and parks?’ In particular, the class will develop their understanding of the differences between natural, managed, and constructed features of parks and playgrounds. Through an in-depth look at playground equipment, they will also learn about different materials and push and pull forces. Design technology skills will progress while designing and creating their own 3D playgrounds.

Year Two

The Year Two class will examine ‘How materials can be combined for different purposes’, focusing on the differences between mixtures and solutions. This topic fits well into our Talk for Writing Instructional Text programme, as we will use mixing ingredients to create different recipes and complete scientific experiments. 

We look forward to heading to the Science labs in Secondary School, watching Dr Mitrovski show us some exciting mixtures and how they interact with each other, and designing and planning our own marvellous mixtures. 

 

Year Three

Term Two is a big one for Year Three. As autumn cools into winter, our inquiry focuses on climates and cultures worldwide, allowing us to live vicariously through the lives of people living in the weather we wish we had. We will investigate how climates are formed and how those climates affect the cultures of the people who live there. As we learn more about how heat is transferred during our Science lessons, we can make design choices that would make our hypothetical travels more comfortable. Hopefully, none of us would ever consider wearing jeans in a Taiwanese summer. 

And then there’s English, learning how to write poems like Haiku and such.

 

Year Four

The Year Four students are looking forward to an exciting term learning about Indigenous perspectives on European settlement, government, and society (later in Term Two and early Term Three), as well as how living things depend on each other, and food and fibre production. In Term Two, the Year Four class will be investigating how physical forces can be exerted by one object on another through direct contact or from a distance. Their inquiry will focus on ‘What makes things move, how can we change or control it, and what can we do with this knowledge?’

 

Year Five

In Year Five, students will engage in an inquiry exploring the central question: What are our roles and responsibilities as a citizen? This unit, aligned with the transdisciplinary theme ‘How the world works’, encourages students to examine how individuals contribute to communities and the systems that support society. Through investigations into government, laws, environmental stewardship, and community participation, students will learn how their actions can make a difference. They will explore concepts such as fairness, responsibility, and active citizenship, developing a deeper understanding of how society functions and their role within it. This inquiry fosters critical thinking and a sense of social responsibility.

 

Year Six

This term, the Year Six inquiry statement is: The Grass is Always Greener … People leave familiar places in search of change, safety, and opportunity. We are delving into the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and how they impact migration and immigration on a local and global scale.

Upcoming events

Week Two

  • Wednesday 7 May, ECC Mother’s Day, Library, 8.45am to 10.30am
  • Friday 9 May, Primary School Orienteering Carnival (selected students), Centennial Park Ovals, 9.00am to 12.00pm
  • Friday 9 May, Foundation Day Assembly (Presentation Uniform for Years Three to Twelve), 1.45pm to 2.30pm, followed by Running of the Flags at 2.45pm (House uniform for selected students)

Week Three

  • Monday 12 May to Friday 16 May, National Boarding Week
  • Wednesday 14 May, Walk to School Day, Coraki Park at 8.00am
  • Friday 16 May, Mount Barker Regional Roadshow Sundowner, Galafrey Wines 5.00pm to 7.00pm 
  • Horizons will start (details will be sent to families in Week Two)

Week Four

  • Tuesday 20 May, Mokare Day
  • Wednesday 21 May, Kindergarten to Year Six National Event Simultaneous Storytime Library 9.00am to 10.00am
  • Friday 23 May, Tour Afternoon 2.00pm to 4.00pm for families who are interested in their children attending GSG

Have a lovely weekend!

Ms Leah Field | Head of Primary and

Mrs Hayley Ranger | Head of Early Childhood