Junior School

This week I’ve been reflecting on ‘student voice’. Primary schools are typically noisy places but this doesn’t always mean that children’s voices are truly heard. At Blue Mountains Grammar School, hearing what children have to say is really important and something that the staff strive to make time for.

This week I had a cup of tea and a chat with the Year 5 girls who represented our School at PLC’s “Kids Kindness Convention”, at the end of last term. The girls have some really great ideas about how they would like to affect change in our School to enhance our culture of kindness. I look forward to more tea and more chats to help them unfold their plans.

I spoke with some Kinder boys who had great questions about bugs this week. Specifically, they wanted to know which bug was the biggest and what spiders are, as they can’t be insects as they don’t have eight legs. Kindergarten students at Wentworth Falls campus are fascinated by animals and undertake many inquiry projects in this area, often driven by the curiosity of the students themselves.

Last week I received letters from the Stage 2 Goldfish at Springwood campus. The letters were all persuasive texts on why we should get a therapy dog. There were some convincing points made but I have more questions to consider, as they saw when they received their letters from me on Tuesday! In the meantime, we don’t allow dogs on our premises, so parents who bring them at drop off and pick up, please leave them in your cars! We’ll let you know if this policy changes (as Stage 2 hopes it does!).

I also wanted to share that on Friday of Week 4, our Kids Lit Quiz team went to the National Finals at the State Final. This competition was mostly against High School students and they did an amazing job. Dr Drew was so proud of them taking risks and confidently having a go at all the questions. We are so proud of you too Simeon, Clare, Elise and Rosie!

It really is a blessing to work with our young students and watch them develop confidence and communication skills.

Mrs Rachael J Newton

Head of Junior School

JSW Pre-K and Kindergarten Excursion

This week our Pre-Kindergarten and Kindergarten students ventured to Bunnings as an extension to  an interest in building. The Staff at Bunnings introduced the children screw drivers and screws. They learnt the difference between a Philips head and a flat head screw driver and used then to screw knobs into wood to create a coat rack. 

The children had a wonderful time and we thank the Staff at Bunnings for hosting such a thoroughly enjoyable outing for the children.

Mrs Laura Fox

JSW Pre-Kindergarten Teacher

Stage 3 Performing Arts Class Visit the Kedumba Gallery

On Tuesday, 2nd August, the Performing Arts class visited our very own Kedumba Gallery, to undertake some art appreciation, explore graphic drawing and undertake some graphic drawing of their own. The students were captivated by the range of artworks present in the gallery and loved sharing with each other the artworks that really stood out to them. The students then used these artworks to inspire their own sketches that they completed during the afternoon and shared with the class. 

As our focus this semester is on landscape sketching we had an enriching discussion with curator and school archivist Mrs Marleen Plummer, unpacking the landscape artworks in the gallery, identifying the key features of landscapes and the range of artworks that constitute as landscapes. This was such a rewarding experience for the students and inspired their upcoming landscape artworks.

We are so grateful to Mrs Plummer for spending the time to work with us in the gallery on building our understanding of graphic drawing and offering our students this artmaking opportunity. 

Mr John Forbes

Year 5/6 Performing Arts Teacher

Stage 3 Visit NIDA and Museum of Contemporary Art

On Tuesday, 9th August, Stage 3 travelled to Sydney for a day of enrichment in their Creative Arts programs, focusing on building the students skills not only in Creative Arts, but also in communication, collaboration, imagining and crafting. 

The Stage 3 Performing Arts class attended the National Institute of Dramatic Arts (NIDA) to work with industry professional Timothy Walker, to explore the heightened performance style of the Commedia Dell ’Arte. Students developed physical, vocal and improvisation skills for practical application within Commedia to enhance what we have begun to explore in class. The workshop included an introduction to Commedia Dell’Arte stock characters through movement, voice and improvisation and learning fundamental physical comedy skills to create heightened performances. The students loved the experience, exploring how they could communicate with voice and gesture, building their characters from the ground up. 

Meanwhile, the Stage 3 Discovery class attended the Museum of Contemporary Art to further develop their creative and collaborative skills. This excursion enabled the students to work alongside an artist and expand their ideas in a practical art-making to inspire new ways of looking, thinking and creating. The purpose of this was driven by the project-based learning pedagogical approach that the Discovery class use to encourage and nurture self-directed learning. The students engaged in a range of art-making activities that allowed them to redefine their understanding of what constitutes as art, and allowed them to explore their skills in a range of art forms. 

During these experiences, facilitated by a team of artist educators, practising artists modelled for our Stage 3 students the essential ingredients for creative learning: imagination, experimentation, collaboration, risk taking, creative and critical thinking. It was an extremely rewarding and fun experience for all the students, who came away with new skills and many incredible memories. 

Mr John Forbes and Mrs Amy Spohr 

Stage 3 Teachers

Junior School Sport

Basketball - Term 3, Week 5

On Monday, 16th August, the BMGS Swish came back from a two game break and we were out of practice. Initially a close game, we fell behind only because our shots wouldn’t go in. The half time score was 6-2. But in the second half our opponents' defence stepped up and their shots kept going in. The game finished a convincing loss. But with two games remaining we still have room to improve and lots to be excited about.

Mr Dillon Hunter, Coach

On Tuesday, 17th August, the BMGS Stars had six players and were really put through their paces in both of their games. In the first game, Sebastian Nicholls and Claire Rutherford and Robert Sommerville were our two goal scorers and there were a lot of attempts but the pressure was just too great. The first game ended in a loss for the team, despite lots of attempts at goals, they just weren’t going in. For the second game, the team showed great determination. They chased down their players and really put the pressure on in defence. The team had a number of attempts at goals but unfortunately, they just wouldn’t go in. They never gave up and were determined to score. Unfortunately we had another loss, which was a first for our season. Hopefully next week, we can turn it around.

Mrs Lori Gerrard

My School Lunchbox - Temporary Change to Service

Parents are advised that My School Lunch Box will be temporarily reducing their menu and days of service for a period of six weeks, whilst they attend an overseas wedding. My School Lunch Box have been forced to make this decision due to a lack of staff remaining with the business throughout this period.

Therefore, from August 15 to September 30, My School Lunch Box will open for orders on FRIDAYS only, with significantly reduced menu choices.

My School Lunch Box apologises for any inconvenience caused and appreciates your understanding. Full service will resume from Monday, 3rd October.

Warm Regards

Rae and the MSLB team

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