- A Full Semester at School!
- Hatchings in Foundation!
- What have we been up to in Years 1 and 2?
- Engaging in Reconciliation – Year 3 Reflect and Grow
- What have we been learning about in Year 4
- Year 5 Business Bomb
- Term 2 is Whizzing by in Year 6
- Code Camp School Holidays Program
- Discover the Senior Campus
- Minimbah Space Disco
- Minimbah Christmas in July
- Almost, Maine – Tickets on Sale
A Full Semester at School!
As we draw closer to the end of the term, we can reflect with positivity on seeing out our first full semester of school, uninterrupted by lockdowns. It seems surreal to look back on the past few years, to try and make sense of the experience but to also grow from the challenges we faced as individuals, families and a community, locally and globally. We are certainly not out of the woods yet, and as winter arrives, we are reminded of the need to look after our health, rest and recover when we need to, and continue to thrive.
The joy of leading Minimbah is seeing our community engaged and enthusiastically embracing opportunity. From conversations and a welcome smile at drop-off to supporting the literacy development of our youngest students, my heart is filled.
Staff work collaboratively to plan rich and creative learning opportunities across all classrooms and specialist areas.
Our resilience has certainly been tested these past few years, but the focus on building social skills and connections across this first semester has been so beneficial. We are reminded as members of the International Baccalaureate that we are all becoming more open-minded, better risk-takers and more caring.
Compassion in a learning community is so important. None of us is perfect; we will make mistakes; the journey should challenge and make us question, but we should do so with an open heart, open mind and compassion for others.
Part of our role as educators and as a school community is to support our children to make sense of the world and cope with complexity.
This involves teaching them how to be reflective, to deeply understand, and respond mindfully and compassionately to the challenges in their own lives and beyond, their connections to one another and their impact as individuals and as a part of a community.
I was recently fortunate to engage in professional learning at the Woodleigh Institute. The Woodleigh Institute is our innovative professional learning centre located at the rear of the Penbank Campus. Staff from our school and educators from other progressive institutions were invited to come together in a hub of shared learning, educational growth, and collegiality to begin a series of workshops focused on 'the Compassionate Systems Framework'.
Based on research from the International Baccalaureate (IB) and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), the Compassionate Systems Framework aims to grow "compassionate integrity" in students and teachers. To foster relationships and align how we think, feel and act by an ever-unfolding awareness of inter-connectedness.
Now more than ever, I feel this work is inextricably linked to our mission and values here at Woodleigh. Our strong belief in nurturing creative, compassionate and resilient young people who we ultimately want to thrive in an ever-changing world is an over-arching goal. We cannot achieve this without cultivating skills and dispositions which support growth in "compassionate integrity" where there is alignment between how we think, feel and act by virtue of an ever-unfolding awareness of interconnectedness, sense of belonging and networking.
I look forward to sharing further reflections in this area and the ongoing development of 'compassionate integrity' here at Woodleigh.
Staffing News
Sadly we will say farewell to two Minimbah staff members at the end of term. Samantha Dominichi, our Visual Art Teacher, will leave us. Sam leaves us to spend more focused and supportive time with her young family. Sam has been with us covering Anita Harris' maternity leave and provided the students with a colourful and ever-changing array of ideas for self-expression. I am currently working on a replacement teacher for the remainder of 2022.
Our Enrolments Officer, Melissa Cranwell, leaves us to explore expanding opportunities. Melissa joined the Minimbah team many years ago as a relief receptionist before relocating to the Senior Campus and taking up a more substantial role in enrolments. Melissa has recently been working back at Minimbah, supporting the Enrolments Department and working with Kerrie as a relief receptionist. All of Minimbah will miss Melissa's welcoming smile and calm and capable manner.
I thank Melissa and Sam for their significant contribution to the life of the Minimbah Campus and Woodleigh School – more broadly and wish them well for the future.
Finally, I take this opportunity to thank you for your continued support of all that we do. Seeing more of you back on campus at assemblies and volunteering in our programs has been so rewarding. Term 3 is shaping up to be extra special as we work toward bringing you our first whole school production since 2018. Year 6 students have already begun rehearsals, and all classes will start learning their roles as the new term commences.
Disney's – 'The Little Mermaid' promises to be a sure-fire pleaser, and ticket details will be made available next term.
In closing, Semester 1 reports are being finalised and will be made available at the end of the term. Parent-Teacher Interviews will be conducted in week 1 and 2 of next term.
Have a safe and relaxing holiday, and I look forward to welcoming you back for Term 3.
ROD DAVIES
Deputy Principal – Head of Minimbah Campus\
The Resilience Project
Here's a special presentation from The Resilience Project all about Mindfulness.
Mindfulness is our ability to be calm and present at any given moment. We practise this by slowing down and concentrating on one thing at a time.
Thousands of studies have proven benefits include reduced stress, reduced rumination, increased memory, increased cognitive function and physical health benefits through improved immunity.
View Part 4 of the series here - Mindulness https://theresilienceproject.com.au/parent-and-carer-hub-hugh/
Mindfulness can be practised through meditation, yoga, flow-states and daily activities such as cooking.
Source: UC Berkeley, Greater Good Science, American Psychological Association
For mental health resources and support information, visit The Resilience Project's Support Page.
Hatchings in Foundation!
Term 2 has been busy and productive in Foundation, and there is much for us to celebrate! We are making fantastic progress with our literacy and maths, and the children have loved continuing to find out more about living things. As many of you saw at Assembly last Thursday, the Foundation children are now very knowledgable junior scientists! They are also very articulate, so I thought I would ask the children to tell you what they have enjoyed learning about for our final update this term.
I have got really good at spelling words. Luca
I have learned so much about living things. Lewis
I am proud because I can build high towers. Fletcher
When I first came to school, I was nervous, but now I am brave, and I love coming to school. Arthur
I just want to get in the car on Saturdays and Sundays and still come to school. Kai
I really like going to school because school is a bit of my happy place. Eli
I love making concrete in the sandpit at lunchtime. James
I feel happy when I come to school, and I love playing and making things. Christopher
I have gotten way better at reading and spelling in Foundation. Sophie
I love playing with my friends. Jordyn
I’ve got really good at writing all the letters. Jack Sk
I love my teachers and my friends at school. Harriet
I like playing with my friends, digging, and going down the slide at school. Jack St
On the first day of school, I was a little bit nervous, but now I love it. I especially love doing science experiments. Penelope
I love learning letters and being at school. Connie
This term, a real highlight has been watching our chickens hatch and taking care of them. Please let me know if you are interested in adopting some of our chicks on Friday, 17 June. The chicks must be adopted in pairs (or more), and at this stage, we do not know if they are hens or roosters. At the end of our program, any chicks that aren’t adopted will be raised on a free-range farm.
Wishing you all a wonderful final two weeks of term. I look forward to catching up with you during our Parent Teacher Interviews next term.
Kind regards,
JACQUI WISHART
Foundation Teacher
What have we been up to in Years 1 and 2?
The Year 1s and 2s have just started their unit on 'Where we are in place and time', with a central idea of 'People's daily life is connected to the place in which they live'They are discovering and discussing the different types of environments that people live in worldwide and how that influences the way they live through the lines of inquiry
- Location and features of places
- Connections between place and the way people live
- How people create spaces for daily life in our community
We started this unit by looking at a range of different schools worldwide and why communities would build them in specific ways. There was some great questioning, especially when it came to schools being built on buses, boats and underground!
They then looked at our school and the location and features of Minimbah, why our school is created the way it is and made connections to why we wouldn't want the music room next to the classroom and why the oval is down near the bottom of our school. They then used technology to create and edit their own 'welcome videos' to explain to any visitors the unique features of Minimbah.
Then we started to look more specifically at weather and climates around the world and different parts of Australia. They showed some of their prior understandings by working in groups to figure out where children from various pictures lived and what sort of things they did. They had to make claims and prove why they thought that, but it also raised many questions that they are curious to now explore.
Next, they will be using their research skills to find out facts about specific places that they are interested in, including the types of homes there and the needs of the community.
LIANE and LEXI
Year 1 and 2 Teachers
Engaging in Reconciliation – Year 3 Reflect and Grow
The Year 3 students have been so interested and engaged throughout our Reconciliation Week celebrations. We are so lucky to have had the opportunity to listen to the stories of our First Peoples, and Reconciliation Week provides us with the chance to reflect and learn. AJ, Monica, Eva-Jo & Lionel have inspired and challenged us to keep our minds open and an important conversation alive in our classroom.
Reconciliation Week
Visit from Lionel – Photographs and article by Billy S.
"Today, Lionel came and spoke to us. We learnt about woomeras and how they help throw spears really far. Lionel can throw a spear across the oval. We say thank you to Lionel and his daughter for helping us learn about their weapons and culture. He said that we have the best-smelling plant! It's crazy but cool. We even got to eat a really sweet plant that grows at our school – how amazing!"
Inquiry
Year 3 have been completely captured by our current unit of inquiry centred around 'Living Things & their Environment'. The students have identified how living things have an interdependent relationship with other flora & fauna. As part of our investigations, we have examined all the biomes, a variety of ecosystems and relationships between pairs of symbiotic animals.
We also discussed how humans are connected to animals, and there has been some surprise and dismay that in almost all cases, humans have a negative impact. In the quest for some positivity, we are looking for solutions and methods for changing this pattern and reflecting on what we can do in our day to day lives to make a difference.
CRAIG KENNER Year 3 Teacher
What have we been learning about in Year 4
Unit of Inquiry
Our current unit of inquiry, Sharing the Planet, sees the Year 4 students inquiring into the central idea: Living things are connected to the places they live. As part of this inquiry, students have inquired into environments and their features, the interconnectedness of living things and the places they live, human impacts on the environment and solutions and actions that can help conserve and restore environments.
To connect with this inquiry, students have worked with Year 3 students to use scientific methods to assess the biodiversity of our campus. They looked at different areas of our school and scored the habitat according to the different environmental features they could notice. They then compared this to how much biodiversity (in the form of minibeasts) they could then observe in the space. Students were amazed to notice the difference in biodiversity between complex environments, such as our frog bog area and the oval. Through this process, students developed their research skills: the ability to gather and record data and interpret it.
As part of our unit of inquiry, we have also explored the connection between First Nations people and the environment. Reconciliation Week also happened to fall during this time, enabling us to connect with several experts and Indigenous people who could share their experiences and wisdom with us. We are incredibly grateful for the privilege of listening to their stories and learn from them.
Language
Our current language unit centres around the idea that authors make choices to engage, excite and move their audience. As part of this inquiry, students have been engaging in student-led book clubs, taking on different roles each session, running their own meetings, formulating questions, and having rigorous discussions. A student-led book club not only enables students to develop their understanding of literature, but to develop collaborative skills, self-management skills and a sense of agency. They decide what to read, how much to read and hold each other accountable to be principled group members.
Alongside this, our students have been encouraged to explore narratives linked with our inquiry unit. They have been challenged to write narratives in which the character and the setting are intimately linked, helping deepen their understanding of the concepts of interdependence and causation. Check out this snippet from Asha's amazing story, in which we find our main character (a koala), observing something interesting from above.
"These tall, slender like children had a box with a honeycomb pattern on the side. They opened the box and they pulled a little stick and stroked it across the box. A flame rose out of thin air. They put the lit stick on the tree…"
This descriptive passage shows us the link between character and environment, and we can clearly see how the problem is evolving. We are also Asha taking on the perspective of another creature, inhabiting their voice and using descriptive language to imagine what it might be like to see novel things from a koala's perspective. Our class is filled with magnificent writers – please come and have a look at your child's narrative sometime, or ask them about how they are creating a vivid character and setting.
Mathematics
How would you solve the following equation 36 + 89 =? If like many adults, your mind goes straight for the vertical addition algorithm, you are not alone! But our fabulous students have spent years honing their mental addition strategies and can approach it from many different angles with many different strategies. One student added 30 and 80, then 6 and 9. Another rounded 89 to 90, then took one away at the end. Another gave one from the 36 to the 89, then added 35 and 90. Each of these strategies shows a different but deep understanding of our place value system and how numbers can be partitioned and regrouped to solve problems. We engage in number talks, where students share these strategies with each other, helping their peers develop fluency and reasoning skills.
This term, our students have been learning more formal ways of adding numbers, such as the algorithm, but have done so using the lens: What is the most efficient strategy for this problem? How could you check it? Does it match your estimation? With this grounding, students are developing remarkable accuracy, their reasoning skills and a really deep understanding of how our number system works, when different strategies are appropriate, and the mathematics that underpins them. Please encourage your children to continue to use their amazing mental strategies alongside these more formal methods, as both are vital in their growth as mathematicians.
JAMES CLAPHAM
Year 4 Teacher
Year 5 Business Bomb
Last week, the Year 5's set off their Business Bombs in true Minimbah fashion. There was a real buzz and excitement amongst the Homestead as the customers exploded through the doors.
Throughout the unit 'How we Organise Ourselves', students investigated three lines of inquiry:
- The role of supply and demand in the marketplace
- Factors that contribute to the success of a business
- Developing a business plan to produce goods or services
We listened to the experience of small business owners and operators within our local school community and analysed big corporations' successes and how they have maintained longevity in the market. We also created demand for an elusive piece of lego that replicated the madness of boxing day sales and analysed the effects that changes in supply and demand have on businesses and their sales trends.
The students then developed their initial business plans, with their sights set on marketing and selling food products. With a quick change of tack and flexible thinking, the students reimagined their businesses and began planning for what became the Year 5 Business Bomb. We had heat packs, scrunchies, tie-dye, bath bombs, woolly scarves, paintings, garden jars, bookmarks, perfume, playdoh and more. It was a roaring success, with a portion of the profits made being donated to the Indigenous Literacy Foundation. With the money raised, we have been able to help indigenous children access books in their first language.
Reconciliation Week
We were fortunate to have two guest speakers visit us during Reconciliation Week to share their insightful stories and encourage us to be brave and make change. Eva Jo Edwards and AJ Williams challenged us on our knowledge of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander histories and bravely shared their own personal journeys. Through their stories, we learned about how each of us can contribute to achieving reconciliation in Australia to ensure that we are actively closing the gap of inequality between Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people and non-indigenous Australians.
The Wonders of Senior Campus
This week, along with the Year 5 students from Penbank, we headed to Senior Campus to immerse ourselves in science, art and other activities. This was a great way to start developing familiarity with the Senior Campus environment and the students from Penbank we will learn with in Year 7.
Body Safe
With apprehensive yet curious minds, we have begun our 'Unique You' Body Safety Australia sessions. The students are being educated and empowered with practical information and building confidence as they embark on a period of great physical and emotional change. It has been fantastic to see the students continue to develop respect for one another and support each other in asking questions in a safe space.
ZARA LOVE-DAVEY and ANDY HICKS Year 5 Teachers
Term 2 is Whizzing by in Year 6
The term is whizzing by, and Year 6 students have had full hearts and even fuller minds with all the action across the Homestead.
Our inquiry unit 'How we organise ourselves' has almost wrapped up with the students presenting their Canberra reflections and findings on self-developed questions such as:
What systems do the places we're going to (in Canberra) have in place, and how do they operate?
If this place (in Canberra) didn't exist, would our lives be different?
How is the Crown represented in Canberra?
The final line of inquiry for the unit is, 'An inquiry into our role as leaders and citizens'. So, we are asking, 'What are our rights and responsibilities as Year 6 leaders and citizens?' and 'How can we take action on issues that we care about?'.
We started the year with an inquiry into 'Who we are' and a focus on building a sense of belonging within our community. And so, we cycle back to this unit over the next few weeks, cycle back to our rights and responsibilities within our community and how we can make a difference or how we can make the world a better place.
In the last week of term, students will be presenting their TEP Talks to an audience of peers, family and teachers in our 'studio' at school. It is a fantastic opportunity for the children to share their own stories, to share who they are. They will be speaking about one of their personal passions and how that might be used to make the world a better place. Despite some pre-game nerves, we are all looking forward to hearing many insightful and inspiring speeches.
In English:
- During Reading Groups, we have investigated what different types of visual literacy are trying to tell us – using visual and language clues to decipher inferred meanings.
- We have enjoyed stopping and getting lost in a book during personal reading time.
- We have focused on learning the protocols for punctuation dialogue, including setting out conversation correctly and using speaker tags appropriately.
- Our writing has been linked to inquiries, writing and editing reports for the Canberra reflections and drafting, writing and editing speeches for TEP Talks. We have also considered how images might help or hinder a speech.
- We have been examining what makes a good speech. How can we use body language, humour, questioning, and visual aids to help connect with our audience?
- As rehearsals for TEP Talks ramp up, we will be thinking about tone, volume, pace and expression. We will be seeking feedback from peers, family members, pets, and anyone who will listen!
In Maths:
- Our focus has been on the order of operations, and we have investigated why we follow the convention of BODMAS. What happens if we don't follow the rule? Students have challenged themselves and others by creating and proving number sentences with 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 or more operations. The exploration of BODMAS has highlighted the need for mathematicians to set out their work neatly and record every step of their thinking to explain and revise their work.
- Problem-solving has seen students use various strategies such as 'make a list' and 'trial and error' to solve worded and complex problems. The sessions' discussions allow students to share their thinking and talk through options for more efficient strategies.
- During Maths Goals, students have revised some of the topics from the term and undergone assessments on place value, prime & composite numbers, factors, order of operations, conversions of length and time, timetables, elapsed time, and data displays.
- Personal Maths Goals are derived from both interest and need. As such, students are all working toward a target of understanding and skill in an area identified by and for them. Some goals include converting analogue and digital times, investigating powers and indices, and working with scale and maps.
Year 6 Reporters have had their ears to the ground and followed the many varied activities over the past few weeks. Please see below for their reports.
Canberra Reflections
Before we went to Canberra, we made a question to answer about all the unique places we went to in Canberra. We also had a PowerPoint to track what we learned in reflections, and each day had its own reflection to write down things we learned about and things that could help answer our questions. Some people's questions changed during and after our Canberra trip; some questions evolved to be more complicated. When we got back, we had to answer our questions and show how we answered them in a PowerPoint, poster, video or Popplet. And now we have our Canberra assembly coming up, where we will share all our experiences with the school.
Charlie
IDAHOBIT Day
This is Gigi (They/Them), Joey (She/They) and Lenny (He/They) reporting to you about IDAHOBIT week/day at our school…
At Minimbah, we recently celebrated IDAHOBIT day, the international day against Homophobia, Biphobia, Inter-phobia and Transphobia. We put together an IDAHOBIT day assembly and all dressed up in rainbow to represent and support the LGBTQ+ community. We came together as allies and Queer community members to be ourselves and accept who we are. We did several activities related to pride or LGBTQ+ throughout the week, including meeting a real-life drag queen! She read us all story books about people who identified as part of the queer community and educated us more on this subject. Three teens also came from the senior campus who were all in the LGBTQ+ community. They came to share their stories and teach us about pronouns. At the IDAHOBIT day assembly, Gigi made a speech about their pronouns, Joey made a speech about spreading love, and Lenny asked questions to interact with the audience.
Reconciliation Week
This Reconciliation Week, we had multiple different people and events to celebrate it. One of which was the special Reconciliation Assembly. We had numerous guests, one of them – Brian Walker - focusing on the Stolen Generation, a time between 1910 and 1970. It is still going on today but in less frequent numbers. It was fascinating and was a good way to celebrate Reconciliation.
The next event was a visit from a man named AJ, who taught us through a game show-like activity about different aboriginal facts and questions. I was the scorer, but even though my team came 3rd (out of 4), it was loads of fun, and we even got to hold some ancient aboriginal artefacts!
The last activity involved a woman called Eva Jo, who told us about the Stolen Generations. She was really funny and taught us how to preserve our culture and language. She also told us how she was part of the Stolen Generation; she taught us what it was like to be raised in white households. The Stolen Generations were horrible, and I'm glad I know about the horrors that happened. It was very interesting and, overall, a great experience.
James
Interschool Sport
Soccer
The soccer girls are doing very well this Winter. In the first game, we won with a score of 8-0. Poppy R also did an amazing kick all the way up the oval! The next game was a lot more, even with the scores. The score was 0-0, but we played amazingly. Inter school soccer is a fun way to keep active during the Winter at school.
Gabby
For Inter-school Sports, some of the boys in 5/6 have been playing soccer. We have had two games against other schools. Before each game, the three team captains had to decide where people had to go on the field. This was important so that the team could pass to people, and so the goalie had help defending. The first game we had was against Frankston Primary school. We had no information on what positions people would be most effective in, so we had to make an educated guess. It was a close match, but in the end, it was a tie with the scores being one all. During the match, we learnt about where people would be most effective. As an example, in the first match, we thought Ethan B would be good in defence, but he was an outstanding shooter in reality. We learnt this and were prepared for the next match. However, one of our best shooters had to fill in for footy on the day of the second match. This match was where we had to work together more effectively. We lost the game; however, we have learnt from the experience and hope that we might win the next game.
Lenny and Jo
AFL
School footy is excellent! It is so much fun to have the opportunity to do school footy. The experience has been great. So far, we are 0-2 but really making progress. We lost our first game by 2 points. It was so close the whole game, and they got us in the last quarter. I took lots of positives out of the game and went into the next game with a really positive attitude, and then we started really well and just couldn't keep the effort up, and, in the end, we lost 28-50.
Cooper
Netball
In Netball, everyone has been playing super well. In the first game, the mixed team and the other team won… The second time, both teams won again… Everyone has learnt so much from each other. We have been working as a team, listening to each other, and being very cooperative. We are so lucky to have this great opportunity and have had so much fun!!!
Ruby and Ruby
TEP Talks
This year in Year 6, we have been working on TEP talks. They are a version of TED talks but not copyrighted. The first stage of our TEP talks was the idea stage, where we brainstormed what we are passionate about; the only catch was that it had to change the world, big or small; it didn't matter, as long as it made a difference. The next step was planning, where we would make a draft and plan out which statement would go where and which facts were relevant. Then came scripting. This was the hard part and probably the most time-consuming. Next was the slides where we found pictures, graphs and other relevant images to our TEP talks for the screen behind us when we were presenting. We found out about writers' notes, where we can see small notes for our TEP talks where the audience can't. This is all we have completed or started for our TEP talks. We have not presented them yet, but all of them sound amazing so far.
Claudia
Please note that some exciting things are coming up, with our Canberra Reflections Assembly on Thursday, 16 June, TEP Talks beginning on Monday, 20 June, and our excursion to see Cinderella at the Regent Theatre on Wednesday, 23 June. Events are outlined in the weekly schedule, which appears on SeeSaw.
Below are some photos from one of the lovely Buddy Reading sessions that we have enjoyed across the term and Reconciliation Week Assembly. Thank you to Mrs Murdoch for taking such great shots.
Thank you for your continued support of us and the children.
JACQUI and JONNO
Year 6 Teachers
Code Camp School Holidays Program
During these school holidays Woodleigh School is pleased to be hosting Code Camp, the holiday program where kids design, code, problem solve and become storytellers and creators of technology, by creating games, websites, music and videos or flying drones - in just 2-3 days!
Discover the Senior Campus
The Head of Senior Campus, Nat McLennan, invites you to join her and the Principal, David Baker, for an introduction to Senior Campus life and a student-led tour of the Campus.
The transition from Minimbah and Penbank to the Senior Campus is a significant step in the lives of Woodleigh students and their families – one we hope to ease by building a sense of comfort and belonging prior to the start of Year 7.
Morning tea will be served before the tours, and while this event is intended for parents, not students, young children are more than welcome to attend with you.
If you cannot attend this event, we will be running a second session in Term 3.
We hope to see you at Senior Campus on June 16!
BOOK NOWMinimbah Space Disco
Minimbah's PFG Student Disco is Back!
Join the fun in the Minimbah Hall on Friday 17 June!
- 3YO ECC–Y2 Disco 5.15-6.45pm
- Year 3-6 Disco 7.00-8.30pm
A light dinner is included in the entry price.
- BYO drink bottle and support this zero-waste event
There will be a 'Parents Lounge' in the 5/6 Homestead – tea and coffee available
And of course, DON’T FORGET TO DRESS UP in our SPACE theme!
All profits go to Edgar's Mission.
BOOK NOWMinimbah Christmas in July
Rod and Kerrie invite all Minimbah Parents to celebrate Christmas in July.
Ho! Ho! Ho!
Join us in the Minimbah Hall for an evening of fun and games in a wintry Christmas wonderland.
Have a boogie to the tunes of our fabulous DJ, Father Christmix, and enjoy a drink on arrival, further drinks at bar prices, and delicious food!
Bad Christmas jumpers are encouraged… warm Christmas spirit is essential!
BOOK NOWAlmost, Maine – Tickets on Sale
Almost, Maine (PG)-is a series of loosely connected stories about the residents of a fictional remote town in Maine called “Almost.” Each scene happens at exactly 9:00PM in the middle of winter, as the northern lights hover in the sky.
Relationships end, begin, or change beyond recognition, as strangers become friends, friends become lovers, and lovers turn into strangers.
“Well, I can’t help it. It just came over me…I’ve fallen in love with you…”
At times realistic and at times absurd, Almost, Maine is mostly very funny with an element of sentimental “magic.”
Experience the life-altering power of the human heart and have your heart touched and warmed in the process.
Note: Almost, Maine will be streamed to ticket holders in the event that a live performance is unable to go ahead due to Covid.
BOOK NOWTerm 2 has been busy and productive in Foundation, and there is much for us to celebrate! We are making fantastic progress with our literacy and maths, and the children have loved continuing to find out more about living things. As many of you saw at Assembly last Thursday, the Foundation children are now very knowledgable junior scientists! They are also very articulate, so I thought I would ask the children to tell you what they have enjoyed learning about for our final update this term.
I have got really good at spelling words. Luca
I have learned so much about living things. Lewis
I am proud because I can build high towers. Fletcher
When I first came to school, I was nervous, but now I am brave, and I love coming to school. Arthur
I just want to get in the car on Saturdays and Sundays and still come to school. Kai
I really like going to school because school is a bit of my happy place. Eli
I love making concrete in the sandpit at lunchtime. James
I feel happy when I come to school, and I love playing and making things. Christopher
I have gotten way better at reading and spelling in Foundation. Sophie
I love playing with my friends. Jordyn
I’ve got really good at writing all the letters. Jack Sk
I love my teachers and my friends at school. Harriet
I like playing with my friends, digging, and going down the slide at school. Jack St
On the first day of school, I was a little bit nervous, but now I love it. I especially love doing science experiments. Penelope
I love learning letters and being at school. Connie
This term, a real highlight has been watching our chickens hatch and taking care of them. Please let me know if you are interested in adopting some of our chicks on Friday, 17 June. The chicks must be adopted in pairs (or more), and at this stage, we do not know if they are hens or roosters. At the end of our program, any chicks that aren’t adopted will be raised on a free-range farm.
Wishing you all a wonderful final two weeks of term. I look forward to catching up with you during our Parent Teacher Interviews next term.
Kind regards,
JACQUI WISHART
Foundation Teacher
The Year 1s and 2s have just started their unit on 'Where we are in place and time', with a central idea of 'People's daily life is connected to the place in which they live'They are discovering and discussing the different types of environments that people live in worldwide and how that influences the way they live through the lines of inquiry
- Location and features of places
- Connections between place and the way people live
- How people create spaces for daily life in our community
We started this unit by looking at a range of different schools worldwide and why communities would build them in specific ways. There was some great questioning, especially when it came to schools being built on buses, boats and underground!
They then looked at our school and the location and features of Minimbah, why our school is created the way it is and made connections to why we wouldn't want the music room next to the classroom and why the oval is down near the bottom of our school. They then used technology to create and edit their own 'welcome videos' to explain to any visitors the unique features of Minimbah.
Then we started to look more specifically at weather and climates around the world and different parts of Australia. They showed some of their prior understandings by working in groups to figure out where children from various pictures lived and what sort of things they did. They had to make claims and prove why they thought that, but it also raised many questions that they are curious to now explore.
Next, they will be using their research skills to find out facts about specific places that they are interested in, including the types of homes there and the needs of the community.
LIANE and LEXI
Year 1 and 2 Teachers
The Year 3 students have been so interested and engaged throughout our Reconciliation Week celebrations. We are so lucky to have had the opportunity to listen to the stories of our First Peoples, and Reconciliation Week provides us with the chance to reflect and learn. AJ, Monica, Eva-Jo & Lionel have inspired and challenged us to keep our minds open and an important conversation alive in our classroom.
Reconciliation Week
Visit from Lionel – Photographs and article by Billy S.
"Today, Lionel came and spoke to us. We learnt about woomeras and how they help throw spears really far. Lionel can throw a spear across the oval. We say thank you to Lionel and his daughter for helping us learn about their weapons and culture. He said that we have the best-smelling plant! It's crazy but cool. We even got to eat a really sweet plant that grows at our school – how amazing!"
Inquiry
Year 3 have been completely captured by our current unit of inquiry centred around 'Living Things & their Environment'. The students have identified how living things have an interdependent relationship with other flora & fauna. As part of our investigations, we have examined all the biomes, a variety of ecosystems and relationships between pairs of symbiotic animals.
We also discussed how humans are connected to animals, and there has been some surprise and dismay that in almost all cases, humans have a negative impact. In the quest for some positivity, we are looking for solutions and methods for changing this pattern and reflecting on what we can do in our day to day lives to make a difference.
CRAIG KENNER Year 3 Teacher
Unit of Inquiry
Our current unit of inquiry, Sharing the Planet, sees the Year 4 students inquiring into the central idea: Living things are connected to the places they live. As part of this inquiry, students have inquired into environments and their features, the interconnectedness of living things and the places they live, human impacts on the environment and solutions and actions that can help conserve and restore environments.
To connect with this inquiry, students have worked with Year 3 students to use scientific methods to assess the biodiversity of our campus. They looked at different areas of our school and scored the habitat according to the different environmental features they could notice. They then compared this to how much biodiversity (in the form of minibeasts) they could then observe in the space. Students were amazed to notice the difference in biodiversity between complex environments, such as our frog bog area and the oval. Through this process, students developed their research skills: the ability to gather and record data and interpret it.
As part of our unit of inquiry, we have also explored the connection between First Nations people and the environment. Reconciliation Week also happened to fall during this time, enabling us to connect with several experts and Indigenous people who could share their experiences and wisdom with us. We are incredibly grateful for the privilege of listening to their stories and learn from them.
Language
Our current language unit centres around the idea that authors make choices to engage, excite and move their audience. As part of this inquiry, students have been engaging in student-led book clubs, taking on different roles each session, running their own meetings, formulating questions, and having rigorous discussions. A student-led book club not only enables students to develop their understanding of literature, but to develop collaborative skills, self-management skills and a sense of agency. They decide what to read, how much to read and hold each other accountable to be principled group members.
Alongside this, our students have been encouraged to explore narratives linked with our inquiry unit. They have been challenged to write narratives in which the character and the setting are intimately linked, helping deepen their understanding of the concepts of interdependence and causation. Check out this snippet from Asha's amazing story, in which we find our main character (a koala), observing something interesting from above.
"These tall, slender like children had a box with a honeycomb pattern on the side. They opened the box and they pulled a little stick and stroked it across the box. A flame rose out of thin air. They put the lit stick on the tree…"
This descriptive passage shows us the link between character and environment, and we can clearly see how the problem is evolving. We are also Asha taking on the perspective of another creature, inhabiting their voice and using descriptive language to imagine what it might be like to see novel things from a koala's perspective. Our class is filled with magnificent writers – please come and have a look at your child's narrative sometime, or ask them about how they are creating a vivid character and setting.
Mathematics
How would you solve the following equation 36 + 89 =? If like many adults, your mind goes straight for the vertical addition algorithm, you are not alone! But our fabulous students have spent years honing their mental addition strategies and can approach it from many different angles with many different strategies. One student added 30 and 80, then 6 and 9. Another rounded 89 to 90, then took one away at the end. Another gave one from the 36 to the 89, then added 35 and 90. Each of these strategies shows a different but deep understanding of our place value system and how numbers can be partitioned and regrouped to solve problems. We engage in number talks, where students share these strategies with each other, helping their peers develop fluency and reasoning skills.
This term, our students have been learning more formal ways of adding numbers, such as the algorithm, but have done so using the lens: What is the most efficient strategy for this problem? How could you check it? Does it match your estimation? With this grounding, students are developing remarkable accuracy, their reasoning skills and a really deep understanding of how our number system works, when different strategies are appropriate, and the mathematics that underpins them. Please encourage your children to continue to use their amazing mental strategies alongside these more formal methods, as both are vital in their growth as mathematicians.
JAMES CLAPHAM
Year 4 Teacher
Last week, the Year 5's set off their Business Bombs in true Minimbah fashion. There was a real buzz and excitement amongst the Homestead as the customers exploded through the doors.
Throughout the unit 'How we Organise Ourselves', students investigated three lines of inquiry:
- The role of supply and demand in the marketplace
- Factors that contribute to the success of a business
- Developing a business plan to produce goods or services
We listened to the experience of small business owners and operators within our local school community and analysed big corporations' successes and how they have maintained longevity in the market. We also created demand for an elusive piece of lego that replicated the madness of boxing day sales and analysed the effects that changes in supply and demand have on businesses and their sales trends.
The students then developed their initial business plans, with their sights set on marketing and selling food products. With a quick change of tack and flexible thinking, the students reimagined their businesses and began planning for what became the Year 5 Business Bomb. We had heat packs, scrunchies, tie-dye, bath bombs, woolly scarves, paintings, garden jars, bookmarks, perfume, playdoh and more. It was a roaring success, with a portion of the profits made being donated to the Indigenous Literacy Foundation. With the money raised, we have been able to help indigenous children access books in their first language.
Reconciliation Week
We were fortunate to have two guest speakers visit us during Reconciliation Week to share their insightful stories and encourage us to be brave and make change. Eva Jo Edwards and AJ Williams challenged us on our knowledge of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander histories and bravely shared their own personal journeys. Through their stories, we learned about how each of us can contribute to achieving reconciliation in Australia to ensure that we are actively closing the gap of inequality between Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people and non-indigenous Australians.
The Wonders of Senior Campus
This week, along with the Year 5 students from Penbank, we headed to Senior Campus to immerse ourselves in science, art and other activities. This was a great way to start developing familiarity with the Senior Campus environment and the students from Penbank we will learn with in Year 7.
Body Safe
With apprehensive yet curious minds, we have begun our 'Unique You' Body Safety Australia sessions. The students are being educated and empowered with practical information and building confidence as they embark on a period of great physical and emotional change. It has been fantastic to see the students continue to develop respect for one another and support each other in asking questions in a safe space.
ZARA LOVE-DAVEY and ANDY HICKS Year 5 Teachers
The term is whizzing by, and Year 6 students have had full hearts and even fuller minds with all the action across the Homestead.
Our inquiry unit 'How we organise ourselves' has almost wrapped up with the students presenting their Canberra reflections and findings on self-developed questions such as:
What systems do the places we're going to (in Canberra) have in place, and how do they operate?
If this place (in Canberra) didn't exist, would our lives be different?
How is the Crown represented in Canberra?
The final line of inquiry for the unit is, 'An inquiry into our role as leaders and citizens'. So, we are asking, 'What are our rights and responsibilities as Year 6 leaders and citizens?' and 'How can we take action on issues that we care about?'.
We started the year with an inquiry into 'Who we are' and a focus on building a sense of belonging within our community. And so, we cycle back to this unit over the next few weeks, cycle back to our rights and responsibilities within our community and how we can make a difference or how we can make the world a better place.
In the last week of term, students will be presenting their TEP Talks to an audience of peers, family and teachers in our 'studio' at school. It is a fantastic opportunity for the children to share their own stories, to share who they are. They will be speaking about one of their personal passions and how that might be used to make the world a better place. Despite some pre-game nerves, we are all looking forward to hearing many insightful and inspiring speeches.
In English:
- During Reading Groups, we have investigated what different types of visual literacy are trying to tell us – using visual and language clues to decipher inferred meanings.
- We have enjoyed stopping and getting lost in a book during personal reading time.
- We have focused on learning the protocols for punctuation dialogue, including setting out conversation correctly and using speaker tags appropriately.
- Our writing has been linked to inquiries, writing and editing reports for the Canberra reflections and drafting, writing and editing speeches for TEP Talks. We have also considered how images might help or hinder a speech.
- We have been examining what makes a good speech. How can we use body language, humour, questioning, and visual aids to help connect with our audience?
- As rehearsals for TEP Talks ramp up, we will be thinking about tone, volume, pace and expression. We will be seeking feedback from peers, family members, pets, and anyone who will listen!
In Maths:
- Our focus has been on the order of operations, and we have investigated why we follow the convention of BODMAS. What happens if we don't follow the rule? Students have challenged themselves and others by creating and proving number sentences with 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 or more operations. The exploration of BODMAS has highlighted the need for mathematicians to set out their work neatly and record every step of their thinking to explain and revise their work.
- Problem-solving has seen students use various strategies such as 'make a list' and 'trial and error' to solve worded and complex problems. The sessions' discussions allow students to share their thinking and talk through options for more efficient strategies.
- During Maths Goals, students have revised some of the topics from the term and undergone assessments on place value, prime & composite numbers, factors, order of operations, conversions of length and time, timetables, elapsed time, and data displays.
- Personal Maths Goals are derived from both interest and need. As such, students are all working toward a target of understanding and skill in an area identified by and for them. Some goals include converting analogue and digital times, investigating powers and indices, and working with scale and maps.
Year 6 Reporters have had their ears to the ground and followed the many varied activities over the past few weeks. Please see below for their reports.
Canberra Reflections
Before we went to Canberra, we made a question to answer about all the unique places we went to in Canberra. We also had a PowerPoint to track what we learned in reflections, and each day had its own reflection to write down things we learned about and things that could help answer our questions. Some people's questions changed during and after our Canberra trip; some questions evolved to be more complicated. When we got back, we had to answer our questions and show how we answered them in a PowerPoint, poster, video or Popplet. And now we have our Canberra assembly coming up, where we will share all our experiences with the school.
Charlie
IDAHOBIT Day
This is Gigi (They/Them), Joey (She/They) and Lenny (He/They) reporting to you about IDAHOBIT week/day at our school…
At Minimbah, we recently celebrated IDAHOBIT day, the international day against Homophobia, Biphobia, Inter-phobia and Transphobia. We put together an IDAHOBIT day assembly and all dressed up in rainbow to represent and support the LGBTQ+ community. We came together as allies and Queer community members to be ourselves and accept who we are. We did several activities related to pride or LGBTQ+ throughout the week, including meeting a real-life drag queen! She read us all story books about people who identified as part of the queer community and educated us more on this subject. Three teens also came from the senior campus who were all in the LGBTQ+ community. They came to share their stories and teach us about pronouns. At the IDAHOBIT day assembly, Gigi made a speech about their pronouns, Joey made a speech about spreading love, and Lenny asked questions to interact with the audience.
Reconciliation Week
This Reconciliation Week, we had multiple different people and events to celebrate it. One of which was the special Reconciliation Assembly. We had numerous guests, one of them – Brian Walker - focusing on the Stolen Generation, a time between 1910 and 1970. It is still going on today but in less frequent numbers. It was fascinating and was a good way to celebrate Reconciliation.
The next event was a visit from a man named AJ, who taught us through a game show-like activity about different aboriginal facts and questions. I was the scorer, but even though my team came 3rd (out of 4), it was loads of fun, and we even got to hold some ancient aboriginal artefacts!
The last activity involved a woman called Eva Jo, who told us about the Stolen Generations. She was really funny and taught us how to preserve our culture and language. She also told us how she was part of the Stolen Generation; she taught us what it was like to be raised in white households. The Stolen Generations were horrible, and I'm glad I know about the horrors that happened. It was very interesting and, overall, a great experience.
James
Interschool Sport
Soccer
The soccer girls are doing very well this Winter. In the first game, we won with a score of 8-0. Poppy R also did an amazing kick all the way up the oval! The next game was a lot more, even with the scores. The score was 0-0, but we played amazingly. Inter school soccer is a fun way to keep active during the Winter at school.
Gabby
For Inter-school Sports, some of the boys in 5/6 have been playing soccer. We have had two games against other schools. Before each game, the three team captains had to decide where people had to go on the field. This was important so that the team could pass to people, and so the goalie had help defending. The first game we had was against Frankston Primary school. We had no information on what positions people would be most effective in, so we had to make an educated guess. It was a close match, but in the end, it was a tie with the scores being one all. During the match, we learnt about where people would be most effective. As an example, in the first match, we thought Ethan B would be good in defence, but he was an outstanding shooter in reality. We learnt this and were prepared for the next match. However, one of our best shooters had to fill in for footy on the day of the second match. This match was where we had to work together more effectively. We lost the game; however, we have learnt from the experience and hope that we might win the next game.
Lenny and Jo
AFL
School footy is excellent! It is so much fun to have the opportunity to do school footy. The experience has been great. So far, we are 0-2 but really making progress. We lost our first game by 2 points. It was so close the whole game, and they got us in the last quarter. I took lots of positives out of the game and went into the next game with a really positive attitude, and then we started really well and just couldn't keep the effort up, and, in the end, we lost 28-50.
Cooper
Netball
In Netball, everyone has been playing super well. In the first game, the mixed team and the other team won… The second time, both teams won again… Everyone has learnt so much from each other. We have been working as a team, listening to each other, and being very cooperative. We are so lucky to have this great opportunity and have had so much fun!!!
Ruby and Ruby
TEP Talks
This year in Year 6, we have been working on TEP talks. They are a version of TED talks but not copyrighted. The first stage of our TEP talks was the idea stage, where we brainstormed what we are passionate about; the only catch was that it had to change the world, big or small; it didn't matter, as long as it made a difference. The next step was planning, where we would make a draft and plan out which statement would go where and which facts were relevant. Then came scripting. This was the hard part and probably the most time-consuming. Next was the slides where we found pictures, graphs and other relevant images to our TEP talks for the screen behind us when we were presenting. We found out about writers' notes, where we can see small notes for our TEP talks where the audience can't. This is all we have completed or started for our TEP talks. We have not presented them yet, but all of them sound amazing so far.
Claudia
Please note that some exciting things are coming up, with our Canberra Reflections Assembly on Thursday, 16 June, TEP Talks beginning on Monday, 20 June, and our excursion to see Cinderella at the Regent Theatre on Wednesday, 23 June. Events are outlined in the weekly schedule, which appears on SeeSaw.
Below are some photos from one of the lovely Buddy Reading sessions that we have enjoyed across the term and Reconciliation Week Assembly. Thank you to Mrs Murdoch for taking such great shots.
Thank you for your continued support of us and the children.
JACQUI and JONNO
Year 6 Teachers
During these school holidays Woodleigh School is pleased to be hosting Code Camp, the holiday program where kids design, code, problem solve and become storytellers and creators of technology, by creating games, websites, music and videos or flying drones - in just 2-3 days!
The Head of Senior Campus, Nat McLennan, invites you to join her and the Principal, David Baker, for an introduction to Senior Campus life and a student-led tour of the Campus.
The transition from Minimbah and Penbank to the Senior Campus is a significant step in the lives of Woodleigh students and their families – one we hope to ease by building a sense of comfort and belonging prior to the start of Year 7.
Morning tea will be served before the tours, and while this event is intended for parents, not students, young children are more than welcome to attend with you.
If you cannot attend this event, we will be running a second session in Term 3.
We hope to see you at Senior Campus on June 16!
BOOK NOWMinimbah's PFG Student Disco is Back!
Join the fun in the Minimbah Hall on Friday 17 June!
- 3YO ECC–Y2 Disco 5.15-6.45pm
- Year 3-6 Disco 7.00-8.30pm
A light dinner is included in the entry price.
- BYO drink bottle and support this zero-waste event
There will be a 'Parents Lounge' in the 5/6 Homestead – tea and coffee available
And of course, DON’T FORGET TO DRESS UP in our SPACE theme!
All profits go to Edgar's Mission.
BOOK NOWRod and Kerrie invite all Minimbah Parents to celebrate Christmas in July.
Ho! Ho! Ho!
Join us in the Minimbah Hall for an evening of fun and games in a wintry Christmas wonderland.
Have a boogie to the tunes of our fabulous DJ, Father Christmix, and enjoy a drink on arrival, further drinks at bar prices, and delicious food!
Bad Christmas jumpers are encouraged… warm Christmas spirit is essential!
BOOK NOWAlmost, Maine (PG)-is a series of loosely connected stories about the residents of a fictional remote town in Maine called “Almost.” Each scene happens at exactly 9:00PM in the middle of winter, as the northern lights hover in the sky.
Relationships end, begin, or change beyond recognition, as strangers become friends, friends become lovers, and lovers turn into strangers.
“Well, I can’t help it. It just came over me…I’ve fallen in love with you…”
At times realistic and at times absurd, Almost, Maine is mostly very funny with an element of sentimental “magic.”
Experience the life-altering power of the human heart and have your heart touched and warmed in the process.