NAIDOC Week
July was the month for celebrating NAIDOC. NAIDOC means National Aborigines and Islanders Day Observance Committee. This year’s NAIDOC theme was Voice, Treaty, Truth. More information about NAIDOC Week 2019 can be found at www.naidoc.org.au
Did you know… there are approximately 120 Indigenous languages that are currently spoken around Australia. The local language spoken in the south west of W.A. is called Noongar.
NAIDOC Week is about celebrating Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, their culture, their histories and achievements. This year, Wattle Grove Primary School celebrated NAIDOC Week collaboratively with the Tucker Bush Schools Program and a variety of buddy class activities.
Two students represented each class and participated in replanting our school garden beds with native, edible plants such as; Native River Mint, Bush Mint, Warrigal Greens and Chocolate Lily to name a few.
River Mint Sorbet (from River Mint Dining)
Ingredients
Makes 1 ltr
1/2 cup castor sugar
600ml water
100ml lime juice
100g picked river mint leaves
1/2 tsp vanilla paste
3 egg whites
1 tbsp Xanthum gum (optional)
Method:
· Combine the water and sugar and stir over low heat, without boiling, until dissolved. Simmer for 5 minutes.
· Add mint leaves and lime juice and vanilla, and simmer further 2 minutes.
· Let steep and infuse for 1 hour.
· Once cooled, blitz with stick blender adding xanthum gum until it thickens slightly (optional)
· Beat egg whites until soft peaks form, fold completely into sugar mix.
· Allow to cool in refrigerator.
· Put in ice cream churner until it reaches desired consistency.
We listened to Dreamtime stories throughout the week and wrote about Tiddalick the Frog. The Aboriginal culture greatly values storytelling as a way to pass on their customs.
We are very proud to celebrate our country’s history, the local culture and the people who were Australia’s first inhabitants.
Book Week
The Book Week dress-up parade will be on Friday 30th August. Our school has adopted a strong focus on poetry this term and we encourage the student’s to dress as a character from a poem or nursery rhyme.
Sports Carnival 2019
The K/PP Sports Tabloid Event will be held on Wednesday 4th September, with the weather permitting. This event will begin after lunch at 1.30pm and conclude at 3.05pm.
The children will need to wear their faction t-shirt, school hat and suitable sports shoes. It is very important that they are well hydrated so please remember their drink bottles.
We would love to see you there supporting us as we participate in a variety of tabloid games.
At the end of the event all students will return to their classroom where parents can collect them as per normal.
On Friday 6th September, again weather permitting, the K/PP students will participate in the School March Past and the flat running races. This will commence at 8.45am and conclude by 10.30am. Our day proceeds as normal learning time from recess onwards. Student will need their faction t-shirt, school hat and suitable sports shoes.
A note will be sent home with further information closer to the event. We hope you can come and cheer us on!
No Trash Tuesday
In accordance with our school’s Sustainability plan, our goal is to significantly reduce our school’s waste.
No Trash Tuesday is an initiative which encourages students and families to take a mindful approach to reducing the waste we produce. Packing a lunchbox with no waste is both environmentally friendly and responsible.
Tip: Try to use re-usable containers rather than bringing pre-packaged items.
National Quality Standard
Introduction
The National Quality
Standard (NQS) has been formulated by the Australian government. It is used to
guide all staff working with children in the early childhood sector.
The K-2 team at Wattle Grove
Primary School will be exploring and reflecting upon the NQS throughout the
year. Each class blog within K-2 will contain a feature article about the NQS.
If you would like to find
out more information about the NQS, please have a look at the website:
Article
As
stipulated in the National Quality Standard, all staff focus on the quality of
each child’s learning experience. To engage in each lesson and reach their full
potential, children must be well rested. I know many children have
extracurricular activities they complete, however, some are coming to school
tired. Below are some guided mindfulness videos that are beneficial to
assisting children to relax and rest.
Cosmic Kids Zen Den
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www.youtube.com
A fun series about mindfulness for kids aged 5+.
Jaime makes mindfulness relevant for kids, helping them develop awareness of
their emotions and sharing techniques for self-regulation.
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Guided Imagery
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www.youtube.com
Here you will find Guided Meditations/Guided
Imagery/Guided Visualizations for kids. These are designed to aid with
relaxation, sleep, stress/anxiety/worry and for general wellbeing.
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