FROM OUR PRINCIPAL MRS LEANNE SMITH

As we head in to the last 4 weeks of 2020 every day is getting busier.  Please check our calendar as end of year events are getting added each week.

Today we had school photos and the photographers passed on how polite and respectful all our students are here. The photos will be back in the next few weeks.  Lots of beautiful smiles and gorgeous hair dos.

Last night at School Association we discussed the last day for children (Thursday 17^th December).  We will be organising some fun activities at school. The School Association are also organising a special lunch for the children as we are still not able to have food brought from home.  All the details will be in the next newsletter. 

Thank you to all the families that have registered for the parent session with Lisa Ford this evening from 6:00 pm to 7:30 pm.  If you are wanting to come and have not yet let the office know we are still able to accommodate a few more parents so please ring the office to add your name.  For all those attending I can guarantee you will leave feeling reenergised and supported as a parent with children of any age.  Last Thursday Lisa ran a session for the staff and everyone connected not just as a teacher but as a parent to all that she had to share. 

At the end of this year we will be farewelling Mr Rodney Brown who has been Molesworth’s groundsman (EFA) since 1997.  Our school is as amazing as it is because of the contribution of each individual staff member during their time here.  Rodney has certainly made a huge contribution to our school for the past 24 years.  If you see Rodney in the next 4 weeks wish him all the best for his retirement and we will be making a special presentation at our end of year assembly on Wednesday 16^th December. 

Next Thursday is our Prep to 2 Athletics Carnival (8:50 am– 10:50 am) and Friday is the years 3–6 Swimming Carnival (12:30 pm - 2:00 pm).  Please make contact with your child’s teacher if you have any questions about these events.

Just a reminder for those students who are intending to participate in our rescheduled Swimming Trials on Friday 27th November at New Norfolk Swimming Pool from 12:30 pm - 2:00 pm.  Please return your permission slips as soon as possible. Thank You.

On Thursday 5^th November we were lucky to have Shane from the Bicycle Network Ride2School program visit us again to be apart of our Outdoor Classroom Day. We took two groups over to the Molesworth Recreation Grounds and had an absolute blast back on the bikes! We revisited how to ride safely with helmets and how to check our bike is safe to ride. We practiced riding around cones and giving way on a course. Shane also bought along his smoothie bike! We were able to mix our own smoothies by pedal power! A huge thank you to Shane and the Ride2School program for supplying the helmets, smoothie ingredients, bikes and for sharing bike tips and tricks with us!

Earlier this term over two weeks our Year 3, 4 and 5 students were very busy learning some very important swimming and water safety skills at the New Norfolk Pool. Students learned various types of water safety skills – if you spot a Year 3, 4 or 5 student you should ask them about the AQUA Code and the different skills they learned over the two weeks! It has been so great to see all the students’ progress in the pool. Thank you to our swimming and water safety instructors Michelle, Fran, Deb, Babs, Nicole, from UTAS, Emily and Elise, and to Molly and Tai, the New Norfolk Pool lifeguards!

On Thursday 12^th November our upper primary classes were visited by Michael from MAST. We learnt many important boating skills; what you need to think about before and during any boating activity, how to use inflatable jackets, how to check life jackets to make sure they work and the new standard life jacket, what is required to take with you when boating and what these look like and how to use them, how to check fire extinguishers, how to use flares and how an Emergency Position-Indicating Radio Beacon (EPIRB) works. During lunch time we also had a flare demonstration! We were able to see what an orange hand smoke signal flare and red hand held flare look like in action!  We want to pass on a massive thank you to Michael for visiting our school and sharing his stories and knowledge with us! If you are interested in further information and stories check out the MAST website: https://www.mast.tas.gov.au/

Kinder Unicorns have had a wonderful start to Term 4 and are looking forward to another action packed term of learning, laughs and fun.  We have been enjoying the warmer weather and getting outside in our fabulous ever changing play space.  Activities constantly changing depending on our imagination – campsites, potions, habitats for slaters and millipedes or water production lines in full swing.  Our kitchen proves to continue to be popular – especially with spring blossoms adding an extra touch to our cake decorating skills.

We recently had our second Molesworth Environment Centre excursion.  We enjoyed making our own paper – once we overcame the concern of what the paper pulp felt like!  We were lucky to have water in the creek at Possum’s Playground.  We discovered the joys of mixing water with dirt and conquered the mud slide.  Damper was a favourite, as was discovering moss, native orchids and of course, wallaby scats.  We took on the challenge of the tyre bridge with confidence – encouraging our classmates and parent helpers to cross the creek.

Inside our classroom, we have been busy talking about our bodies – how tall we are, what amazing things we can do with them and keeping them healthy and in tip top shape.  Fitness fun is a huge hit and the children are moving their bodies with great control and strength.  We are looking forward to test out our skills on the ‘big kid equipment’ in the larger school ground over the upcoming weeks in preparation for our transition into Prep.  Keep an eye out for us!