Photo Of The Week

Posted on December 10, 2020 by Newsletter Editor

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From Julianna and Mikee Term 4 Week 9

Posted on December 10, 2020 by mikee

Let’s party and bid farewell to Charles and our Year 6s! Wednesday, 16th Dec, from 5pm to 8pm. Please find the flyer about our end-of-year social in this week’s newsletter, with detailed information on what to bring and how we can help Currambena to remain COVID safe. To avoid congregating at the entrance, please have the Service NSW app already downloaded on your phones, so you’re all set to check in before entering the premises. COVID Safe posters with the QR code and steps to check in will be posted at the gate. (What to do: open the app, select ‘COVID Safe Check In’ and follow the prompts.)

Class photos. Thank-you to Jackie Chan who has been coming into the school this week to take our 2020 class photos. These will be available to buy in digital format before the end of the term.

Maintenance. Many thanks to Chris McLean and those who came to tidy up the school grounds last weekend.

50th Anniversary Merchandise. We still have items in stock at further reduced prices. If you are looking for a gift like an original art silk scarf, oatmeal linen tea towels, a cap for sun protection or another shopping bag, please drop us an email with your order.

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Preschool News Term 4 Week 9

Posted on December 10, 2020 by katrinaa

Well, here we are all at the tail end of the year and what a year everyone has had! It’s always such a bitter sweet time  for preschool as we say goodbye to many gorgeous children and their families as they spread their wings and depart preschool, as they either glide down the hill to Jess’s class or soar off to the wider Lane Cove community, to attend one of our local primary schools.

Hopefully this year’s pandemic is a once in a life time experience for our preschool children! On reflection however, as a school and a preschool we’ve learnt so much! If someone would have told me this time last year, that this year, we would have been holding preschool classes via Zoom I wouldn’t have believed them, but here we are and we have! We did however really miss the face to face connections with families this year, Having parents and younger siblings attend morning meetings and spend time in the preschool was sorely missed, fingers crossed that it returns next year!

It’s been such a tumultuous year, as a community we’ve been so deeply saddened by the loss of Kate Meakin, and our love and thoughts continue to be sent to Luc, Alex, Eva, Sienna, and Zara

On another bitter sweet note. Cee won’t be returning to preschool next year to cover our lunch breaks or work casually as she was successful in achieving a school counsellor position with CatholicCare. A huge thank you to Cee for all the work, love and care she has provided to everyone in preschool over the years We’ll really miss her!

Despite everything the amazing preschool children have shown how resilient, caring and astute they are. I continue to be amazed and profoundly moved by how inclusive and caring the youngest people of our school community are. My heart is filled with joy each time a little person raises their hand in morning meeting and announces that they have brought in a special treasure from home and are happy to let everyone share it if they wish, or that they are planning to play a certain game and anyone that wants to join in can, which is almost every morning!

A huge thank you to everyone that has contributed to preschool this year, even though for most of the year they didn’t need to due to the  waiving of school maintenance. Special thanks to Olivia and Alex for cleaning the preschool during the school holidays and for Olivia’s contribution on the selection committee for the new temporary contract preschool assistant.

To all the families in preschool, thank you for entrusting your most loved and treasured children to us throughout their preschool days. For those families ending their journey at Currambena with preschool we wish you all the best and know you’ll always carry a piece of Currambena in your heart. For those families with children making their transition into primary at Currambena we are thrilled to be able to continue to be part of your child’s journey in education. It has been our absolute joy and privilege to be part of your lives this year. Your children are amazing! Wishing everyone a restful and relaxing Christmas break.

Love

Katrina, Michael, Cee (for the last time, sniff , sniff) and Krysta

 

 

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From Jess Term 4 Week 9

Posted on December 10, 2020 by Jess

Dear Parents,

Wow, what a year that we’ve had apart, together. In 2020 I’ve had the incredible privilege of watching your children blossom in the most beautiful ways, under the most extraordinary of global circumstances.

Thank you for trusting me to help guide your children through these crazy times. A trust that I know has been tested more deeply than in most years. As parents, you’ve not been able to pop in and see me to clarify a comment, to riffle through the lost property for that missing shoe or to simply just observe your child in the playground as they navigate their way through friendships and learning. In some ways, I think this pandemic has been more difficult for the Currambena parents than it has been for the children. So, well done to you for holding your nerve and remaining supportive and positive.

2020 is a year in which it is easy to find negatives, but I would instead like to look at some of the positives. For your children, this year has provided the opportunity for extraordinary growth – they’ve learnt to be independent, resilient and flexible. This quote is from the last class book we read together, “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory” by Roald Dahl and it reminds me that there is always something positive to see, it’s just a matter of where you look:

“Above all, watch with glittering eyes the world around you – because the greatest secrets are always hidden in the most unlikely places”

In our class discussions this week, one of the children asked me why I had chosen “Turtles” and “Bull ants” as our class totems. It became a fun opportunity to remember the time when we found a turtle outside the craft room which we decided to return to the bushland near the golf course. We also remembered the hidden bull ant nest and the sudden attack, and the running, and the screaming… and the painful stings (again, thank you for the trust!) In addition to a great story, perhaps these animal totems can now provide a final message to the children as they move on to their next adventure.

Turtles: Sometimes you’ve got to be brave and just stick your neck out.

Bullants: You might be little, but you are strong!

I’m sad that I won’t have any of your children with me as elders next year, but I know that they won’t miss me as much as they think because they will be far too busy learning new and exciting things (although I will be just next door if anyone needs a cuddle or a familiar place to hang out).

A special goodbye to Mackenna whom I’ve had the absolute pleasure of teaching for two years and to whom I wish the best of luck in her new school. Currambena will certainly miss the Male/Prior family.

These last few days of school will be filled with project presentations, a giant classroom clean up, more writing, counting, talking, singing, dancing and play. We will have our final afternoon of swimming on Tuesday and on the last day of school we will walk down to Jack and Co. where I will treat the children to an ice-cream of their choice to be enjoyed in the park across the road.

Wishing you all a restful and peaceful Christmas break.

See you at the social.
Love Jess

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Charles’ Class Term 4 Week 9

Posted on December 10, 2020 by Newsletter Editor

Hello everyone, I hope you have all had a great week.

What a year! As we near closer to the end of the term, I want to extend my gratitude to the Currambena community for making my first teaching job one of many memories and learning experiences. I have learnt so much and it has been a wonderful experience to teach in such a unique environment. It has been a wild ride with many great and challenging experiences which I will keep with me for the rest of my career such as possums finding their way into the class, build week, online learning, Summerhill day, the concert and many more!

This week we have continued with our Tuesday afternoon walks to the swimming pool, which has become increasingly welcomed as the days become hotter and hotter.

We are winding down all our topics this week leading into the final days of the year. All the children have started presenting their fantastic interest projects and have shown off their great presenting skills.

This week we have completed our maths topic on 2D shapes and 3D objects and in science we are finishing up our Earth and Space unit with a final look at what we can do to look after the Earth’s resources. We will be reflecting back on the 3 R’s and the importance of freshwater in our lives.

That’s all for this week, have a wonderful weekend and a Happy Holidays!

Charles

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Sarah’s Class Week 9 Term 4

Posted on December 10, 2020 by sarahm

Hi everyone,

Exciting News!!!!! Jana (from Leesa’s class) delivered our class book to us this week. Jana’s dad, Jackie, took all of the children’s Heroes and Villains stories to be printed and bound into a beautiful, glossy, hard back book which will remain in this class for everyone to enjoy for years to come. In the front cover of the book is an intro written and composed by Skye, it explains how the book came to be and is a very fitting way to sum up the year 2020! Each child will come home with the original copy of their story which appears in the book. I felt quite emotional in the unveiling because of the year it has been and what the book represents. Those children who wish to will have the opportunity to read their story aloud to the rest of the class, at the end of each day until our last, next Wednesday. Thankyou Jackie Chan for enabling this to happen!!

The elders had a wonderful albeit exhausting time at Mowbray Park camp last week. And from all accounts those who were here with Vinnie and Anika had fun too. Thankyou so much to all the drivers who ferried the children there and back. I am hoping your child regaled you with stories, highlights and happenings and you enjoy some of the photos included in this newsletter.

We started our project presentations this week and it has been so gorgeous to see how far the children have come, in their ability to research and present their findings. There have been some seriously impressive projects presented and I hope you have a chance to view your child’s effort through their Prezi. Equally impressive is their knowledge on all the Maths topics we have covered this year. This week, we have been doing revision of all concepts  and the majority are whizzing their way through.

We had a discussion about what we would like to do to celebrate the end of term/year on Wednesday next week and apart from Kris Kringle – of course – the majority voted they would like to go up the street and buy lunch or gelato and watch a movie. A note will come home for you to sign, giving your permission. There will be a $15 limit on what they can buy and may visit 1 shop only and masks will be needed. They also voted to watch a PG movie and for this to happen we will also need your permission. So the title of the movie will be included in the note with a couple of options to choose from. A reminder for the children to bring in their Kris Kringle by Wednesday of next week when we will have the gifting ceremony towards the end of the day.

Next Tuesday will be our last swimming session at Lane Cove Pool. The children have asked if they could buy an ice block or an ice cream which Leesa and I said was fine but there is a $5 limit.

Farewells and Thankyous: Very sadly, we will be saying ‘goodbye’ to 2 families from my class and the school next week: Piper and Ira will be flying from the Currambena coup to spread their wings elsewhere in the world. We wish both children and their families all the very best for their future. Thank you for everything you have done and contributed to the community in the years you have been here. You will ALL be missed you soooooooooo much!

This being the last Hoorah and newsletter for the YEAR I would like to take the opportunity to say “thankyou” to all the staff and teachers but especially to Charles. You stepped into an incredible situation this year and did an amazing job at keeping your brand new class together during lockdown and head on your shoulders throughout preparation for concert. All this in your first year of teaching! Good luck Charles with your next adventure we wish you all the best.

Thankyou also to you parents… for your ongoing support of the teachers throughout this very extreme and unusual year. I hope we have all learnt a little something about ourselves and others and will take this into a new year – whatever it may bring.

Have a great summer break!

Love, Sarah xx

 

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Leesa’s Class Term 4 Week 9

Posted on December 10, 2020 by leesaj

Hi Everyone,

We’re now in the home stretch with concert and camp completed for the year. Camp was lots of fun and packed with activities. On the Wednesday we had a demonstration on natural horsemanship, horse riding, archery, field activities, free time – with most children swimming in the pool and then to end the night we watched a movie. Thursday we fed the farm animals as we walked to the nursery. In the nursery there was lots of baby rabbits and guinea pigs which we could hold and then the children had the opportunity to milk a cow. Next was boomerang throwing and whip cracking, a hay ride, damper cooking, canoeing, free time, toasting marshmallows on a fire and then another movie to end the day. Our final day at Mowbray Park Farm had us watching a sheep shearing demonstration, free time, shopping at the souvenir shop and then departing after lunch. Again thank you to everyone who drove to/from or both ways to camp!

This week we’ve been presenting our final personal interest projects for 2020. A range of topics from water, Cleopatra, helicopters, the brain, Ninja Warrior and many more. The children have done a wonderful job at presenting these and engaging their audience.

During Mathematics we’ve looked at Chance, Mass, Volume and Capacity and Data. The children completed a range of activities with these concepts throughout the week.

The children voted to go to the Lane Cove shops to get their lunch on the last day of the year which is Wednesday 16th December. School Council have given us permission to do this with the condition that all children wear a face mask for the duration of this activity. The children will need to bring their own mask to school for this and I will be sending home a permission note for you to sign to allow your child to participate. We’ll be organising small groups for different food stores to limit the number of children in one space and to allow us to socially distance from the public. The maximum amount of money that the children can spend will be $15.

The children have also voted to watch a movie on the last day of the year. Please keep an eye out for the permission note for this PG movie.

On Tuesday 15th December is our last swimming session for the year. The children are allowed to bring maximum $5 to buy an ice cream or ice block if they wish.

Kris Kringle gifts will be handed out on Wednesday 16th December, could all children please bring these presents to school wrapped by Tuesday 15th December, so no gift is forgotten.

Sadly, we farewell Gabe who is off to a new school in 2021. We wish you all the best with this new adventure.

Farewell also to Charles, thank you for stepping in at the start of the year and navigating your class through 2020. We wish you all the best for your future teaching career.

Important Information:

  • Wednesday 16th December – Picnic Social from 5pm. Please refer to the flyer for more information.

Thank you for a wonderful year and all the support you’ve given to the children and myself throughout an unusual year. Have a wonderful and happy Christmas break. See you in 2021.

Leesa x

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MY TIME AT CURRAMBENA by Laurence

Posted on December 10, 2020 by wendyp

My time at Currambena was a very eventful one including a new teacher every single year for me and a new bottom playground. At first I had Sue, then Marius, a very good ukulele player, Sarah the first class I did PIPs in and my first taste of real hard work, Louises’s class, a lot of fun games and fun work, Leesa’s class, then Wendy’s class,being prepared for high school and you know how that works. Wendy’s magic teaching works… when I went to high school orientation it was easy.

So overall, I have had a great time at Currambena and made some really great friends. Thank you everyone.
Laurence

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Photo of the Week

Posted on December 3, 2020 by Newsletter Editor

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Preschool News Term 4 Week 8

Posted on December 3, 2020 by katrinaa

Hello everyone,

How great was the concert on Friday evening! We thought the production in its entirety was fantastic! We were also very proud of our gorgeous and very talented preschool children’s pre-recorded performances. They did an amazing job. The prerecording allowed us to ensure that all performers were able to be seen! Which is probably the first time in a long time this has happened as usually we’re trying to get around 35 to 40 preschool children on a stage and performing in a few short minutes.

On Monday morning those children that will be making the transition to Jess’s class next year had their orientation. It was great to see them come back buzzing from the experience. Many of the children decided that it was so great and that they were so ready they actually didn’t want to come back. We’ll continue to encourage these children to spend time in Jess’s class throughout the week.

We’ve been revisiting prior learning regarding conflict resolution skills in preschool this week. What do you do if someone is hurt? How can you help them? Is there something you can do before you get a teacher? We’ve been thrilled to see that many children know exactly what to do.

As some of the children in Sarah’s class and all of the children in Lessa’s class are currently on camp we spent some time exploring the school and class rooms this week. We made sure we were respectful of other spaces and property ensuring we didn’t touch things that weren’t ours. We also had the opportunity to join in with primary craft lessons on Wednesday. This meant that children who previously didn’t have the opportunity to do craft on a Thursday got to experience it.

Thank you to Jackie Chan and Greg Andresen for coming in and assisting with the production. Jackie also took our preschool class photos last week. Thank you also to the parents that have been taking home the washing. A big thank you also to Michael who ended up taking home the washing this week.

Thank you to everyone that has been bringing in boxes for our making table. There’s been some gorgeous creativity in this area because of the addition.

That’s it for this week.

Love

Katrina, Michael, Cee and Krysta

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