Mount Macedon Primary Newsletter

Tuesday 29th November 2022

Hello Everyone,

What a busy time of year. Last weekend the school was used as a polling site. I believe that almost 700 voters visited our lovely school. Many, many, thanks to the members of FOS who turned up to run the election BBQ. Everyone is exhausted after the fete and to have these parents put their hands up to come back and work for us again is wonderful.

From now until the end of the school year, we have something on almost every day. Today we have the annual guitar concert, performed by our students who have been learning with Aaron Moar this year. This afternoon there will be instrumental music from Macedon Ranges Music (who also provide music lessons at the school) on the deck of the STEAM room.

This afternoon and this evening, our Grade 6 students will be presenting their Exhibition. This is their final step in the International Baccalaureate Primary Years Programme. Students will be presenting their research projects on a variety of quite complex topics. The school hall will be open from 2.30-3.30pm today and Grade 6 parents will be attending at 6.30-7.30pm tonight.

Tomorrow morning (early) I will be heading to the annual Scholastic Book Sale to buy more books for the school library. I am hoping to buy well over one hundred new books, so next year, if you have a spare moment, we will be looking for help to contact and catalogue these books.

On Thursday and Friday, our Grade 3 and 4 students will be heading off to Boomerang Ranch for their camp. The weather looks like it is going to be fine – no rain!! I know that they are all very excited.

Next Wednesday night, 7th December is Carols By Candlelight at the Tony Clark reserve in Macedon. We would love to see you all there. It is such a nice evening.

Can I remind you that we have a Pupil Free Day on Thursday 8th December? I have mentioned this before and it has been in the Calendar of Events for a few weeks now, but I have had some parents ask me about it this week. All staff will be at school planning the IB Primary Years Programme for 2023 on this day. The Pupil Free Day is part of the DET requirements for professional development for staff each year.

I’d like to finish today by wishing Ro Glenister a happy birthday. For her birthday she made every child a cupcake (or a gluten, vegan option for those who need it).  You will see some photos in the newsletter today.

Have a lovely week everyone.

Kind Regards,

Trish

As the excitement of finishing primary school and transitioning to secondary school draws nearer for our senior students, we understand that this can also be an overwhelming and challenging time for them. With this in mind, we have been working with our students in class to prepare and support them through this period of change. Below are some great resources on how you can help students cope with big life changes in order to support their mental and emotional well being.

During our current Inquiry into how motion impacts our lives the Grade 2s have been looking at all the things around us that move. We have explored movement in the playground, movement in transport, movement in our classroom and have begun to appreciate just how much we rely on motion in our everyday lives. We have identified many different types of motion and forces including, pushing and pulling, magnetism and gravity. Currently we are all working on research projects into things that move and how we use them. Some examples include helicopters, bicycles, robots and scissors. During Art the students learnt to use a variety of movement  techniques to create some very interesting pieces of work. They used their arms to create smears of colour, an apparatus such as a swinging pendulum to splash paint onto paper, and moving paint around in a container to create colourful patterns.  See below for some photos of their art in action.

Christmas is just around the corner and the students are really getting into the spirit during Art classes. This week they have been making Ginger Bread Houses, Christmas Wreaths and Christmas Signs to take home as decorations or to give as gifts. Have a look below, we are sure some of these will make lovely Christmas Gifts for friends and family.

Congratulations to all of our star guitar students, what a fantastic performance we were all treated to this morning! The students played a handful of their favourite songs for the whole school and their parents to enjoy. All their hard work and effort over the last year has allowed them to showcase their playing skills and talent. The students had fun playing to an audience and enjoyed showing what they learnt throughout the year. Below are some great photos of the performance.

We have some very talented artists at our school, and they have decided to take some great initiative and sell their art to help raise funds for the Reef Restoration Foundation. The Reef Restoration Foundation helps to repair and restore bleached and damaged reefs on our coastlines. The students chose this charity because they are concerned for and passionate about climate change and protecting the environment. What a great cause. The students have been setting up a stall in front of the school to showcase their artwork so they can raise some money, as well as educating some of our younger students about our reefs and why we need to protect them. Thank you to all the parents who have already purchased some of their art. Take a look below, their pieces are amazing. 

Just a reminder to ensure that students have their hats to wear at school during recess and lunchtimes, as well as any other outdoor activities they may be participating in. It is important that we are all being sun smart and ensuring our children are protected from the harmful UV light that is at it's highest peak during the months of August to April, where UV index levels regularly reach 3 or above. Please also remember to name your children's hats as they quite often are lost, misplaced or left in the playground and it is handy to know who the hat belongs to! Spotted on the grounds were some of our students wearing their hats today.

This Saturday, December 3rd at 2.00pm, fabulous authors Corinne Fenton and Mark Wilson will be presenting ‘Little Dog and the Christmas Wish’ and ‘One Christmas Eve’ and then teaching the children to draw polar bears, penguins and other Christmassy things. RSVP bernadette@dromkeen.com.au 

A week later on Saturday, December 10th at 10.30am we also have a beautiful Christmas Puppet Show in the gallery. This is a ticketed event. Bookings: https://www.trybooking.com/CDZED

The details for both events are on the flyers below.

Tuesday 29th November - Grade 6 Exhibition

Thursday 1st & Friday 2nd December - Grade 3 & 4 Boomerang Ranch

Wednesday 7th December - Carols

Thursday 8th December - Professional Practice Day -no students at school

Tuesday 13th December - Foundation 2023 Transition Day 4 9am - 11am

Wednesday 14th December - Hanging Rock Picnic

Thursday 15th December - Grade 6 Graduation 

Term 1 - Monday 31st January to Friday 8th April

Term 2 - Tuesday 26th April to Friday 24th June

Term 3 - Monday 11th July to Friday 16th September

Term 4 - Monday 3rd October to Tuesday 20th December

2023

Term 1 starts Tuesday 31st January.