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Pupil Free Day
Year 3 Drama
The past term has been an exciting journey for our Year 3 students as they delved into the world of Drama. With enthusiasm and dedication, they learned the essential elements of drama, including voice, character, space, and movement.
Last Friday, the hard work and creativity of our young actors came to life on stage as they showcased their newfound skills through an engaging Reader's Theatre performance. The Year 3 stars didn't stop at acting alone. They displayed their resourcefulness and ingenuity by crafting their own props, adding an extra layer of authenticity to their performances. The stage came alive with their efforts, and it was a true testament to their dedication.
We extend our heartfelt gratitude to the parents who joined us on this special day to support our young actors. We understand that not everyone could make it, but your spirit and encouragement are always appreciated.
Congratulations to our Year 3 students for a fantastic drama showcase! We look forward to more exciting performances in the future. Keep up the great work!
Outdoor Classroom Day
Planning an outdoor event in Spring is always stressful – will it be sunny or rainy, will the wind chill us to the bone or will the sun send us searching for shade. Well, we were truly blessed with perfect weather for Outdoor Classroom Day last Thursday. Along with our special outdoor chapel (see Pr Toby’s thoughts in this newsletter about that), our students spent even more time outside learning and connecting with nature. Outdoor Classroom Day is a global movement to inspire and celebrate outdoor learning and play. Why? Because outdoor learning improves children’s health, engages them with learning and leads to a great connection with, and care for nature. We are lucky to have such great outdoor facilities here at PPN, and teachers that love taking our learning outdoors too.
Year 1 Sustainable Gardens
There’s been both green- and gluey-thumbs in Year 1 over the last week. As part of their Visual Arts for Technology studies, students designed and constructed their sustainable gardens using recycled materials. Together, they explored ways we can look after our man-made and natural environments. Don’t they look great?!
Sabbath Art Winners
Rest, restoration, connection, worship. These are words many of us associate with the word ‘Sabbath’. PPN students, along with students from all Adventist schools across Australia, were given the opportunity t sto unleash their imagination and come up with a creative work highlighting what they love about the Sabbath. There were some amazing entries our students. Congratulations to Layla, Chaela, Ryan and Shayla for taking out prizes in this national competition!
Nature Play
Welcome to Week 4, Prescott Primary Northern family. As I write this, I am watching our Year 3 students excitedly walk through the Front Office on their way to their excursion at Grange Beach Surf Life Saving Centre. The chatter is enthusiastic and the energy levels high. I know there were some students who were a little nervous about this excursion, and some ready to face it with boldness and courage.
I smiled as I watched them leave and pondered on the opportunities we are able to provide for our students, inside and outside of the classroom, and in-turn, the joy these things bring our students.
Last week, our school celebrated Outdoor Classroom Day, which involved our Chapel program being held outdoors with lots of fun activities, as well as further classroom activities happening outside. It was wonderful to see our students’ involvement, and the sense of both calm and joy created by these lessons outdoors.
Thinking about these two events, and the way our students have responded, led me to think about the reactions and behaviours that result from the different scenarios we all find ourselves in. And how, often, it’s not what’s going on around us, but rather inside of us, that determines our response.
I would like to draw your attention to a statement quoted in the following article: “There is usually an “inside” story to every “outside” behaviour.” – Mr Rogers.
“Today, I want to share 2 stories.
Firstly, a story about me.
I had a tough moment a few weeks ago. I wasn’t getting quality sleep, I had a lot of pressure with my work and volunteering commitments, I was just getting over yet another cold (hasn’t this cold and flu season been just the worst?).
For two whole days, I was a raging ball of irritability. I was snappy with everyone. I got angry over tiny little things. I almost cried when my husband gave me a compliment because I didn’t think he was being genuine.
In short, my outside behaviour was atrocious. I didn’t want to be cranky with everyone, but I really couldn’t help it. I tried to exercise to stimulate endorphins… nothing. I tried going to bed early… didn’t help. I tried taking deep, calming breaths… which gave me about two seconds of calm. I tried eating too much chocolate… yeah, that didn’t work either.
Luckily for me, my husband was incredibly tolerant. When I snapped at him, or was short with the kids, or stormed off for a break, he never once made me feel worse because of the way I was behaving. He didn’t insist that I say sorry, or go to my room for a time out, and he didn’t push me to talk about my feelings if I wasn’t ready. Instead, he gave me what I needed – space to regulate myself, a hug when I was ready, and soft words.
“There’s usually an “inside” story to every “outside” behaviour. Though we may not be able to know that “inside story”, there’s generally some inner reason for what children do.” – Mr Rogers
Now for the second story.
I took my eldest shopping for some new clothes, and we decided that because his younger brother mostly gets hand-me-downs, we should buy him something too. Together, we spent a long time browsing the aisles, trying to find something that we thought he would love. Eventually, we settled on a warm, red Spiderman hoodie. I was sure that we were on to a winner, given that he was just reminding me that very morning that he wants a spiderman suit for his birthday (which is in 102 days and counting… he’s very excited to turn 5).
Well, we picked him up from kinder, excitedly showed him his new jumper… and he lost it.
He yelled at me that he didn’t want a jumper! He wanted a t-shirt!
He quickly escalated into hitting, and kicking, and trying to knock over tables. He was completely disappointed and angry, and boy was he was showing it.
Some other parent, or even me in some other moment, might have snapped back at him. Might have told him that his behaviour wasn’t ok and if he didn’t calm down, he wouldn’t get a new t-shirt or even keep his new jumper.
But I didn’t do that. Because I knew that there was something deeper going on than just not liking the jumper. So, while I didn’t know all the moments that led to this meltdown, this I did know.
It was the end of the week and he’s tired. He was just getting over being sick. He’s been dealing with the constant disappointment that his birthday is still 102 days away. Then his reality didn’t meet his expectation, and he was disappointed.
And I remembered… I remembered how my outside behaviour wasn’t good the other day. And I remembered how much better I felt by knowing that no matter how angry and cranky and irrational I was, I had someone in my corner who loved me unconditionally.
So I gave that to my son.
I did restrain him from him hitting and throwing things around. But I didn’t scold him, or yell at him, or make him feel worse. Instead, I did my best to hold space for his disappointment. I let him get his angry out, and once he moved past the anger to the underlying sadness, we cuddled.
There is always an inner story.
We just won’t always know what it is.
But we’ll never find out if we go straight to scolding and focus on ‘correcting’ the behaviour. Kids (and grown-ups!) act right when they feel right.
To improve behaviour, we need to work from the inside out.”
(Delahoy, 2023)
Have a great week with our kids,
Mark B
Dear PPN Community,
On a beautiful Thursday, November 2nd, Prescott Primary Northern (PPN) joined the global movement of "Outdoor Classroom Day," a day dedicated to celebrating outdoor play and learning. It was a day of connecting with nature, promoting health, well-being, and personal development for our students. To make the most of this opportunity, we decided to hold our chapel service outdoors, offering a unique and engaging way for our students to interact with the Exodus event and learn about Moses leading the children of Israel out of oppression in Egypt.
Our journey began with Mr. Ackland, one of our school chaplains, sharing the Exodus story, explaining the significance and the key events that took place.
Our students then eagerly embarked on a series of activities that brought the Exodus story to life. They first participated in running races, symbolizing the readiness and urgency emphasized in the Bible. Just as God had instructed the Israelites to be prepared for their journey, our students felt the importance of being ready, set, and going. Soon after they reenacted the plague of frogs by racing each other in a giant game of leapfrog!
The next challenge was crossing the Red Sea, a powerful visual representation of one of the most iconic moments in the Exodus story. Walking on big blue tarps, they reenacted the miraculous parting of the Red Sea by God though Moses.
The students then tackled a team-building puzzle together, highlighting the need for unity and cooperation, qualities that the Israelites had to learn during their journey. Our young learners experienced firsthand the value of working together to overcome obstacles.
As part of the activities, students were given different coloured armbands, each representing the various tribes of Israel. The purpose was to embrace diversity and acknowledge the unique characteristics of each tribe. This diversity was celebrated in group-based games that incorporated the coloured bands, emphasizing how unity can be achieved through appreciating our differences.
To wrap up, Pr. Roland, another one of our school chaplains, addressed the students and teachers, expressing how awesome it was to see their enthusiastic participation in this unique chapel service. The service concluded with a special moment where a handful of our student chaplains had the privilege to pray over their fellow students, seeking blessings and guidance for their educational journey.
In celebrating Outdoor Classroom Day, we hope to impart the values and life lessons found within the Bible to our students. These experiences are not merely activities; they are opportunities for our students to grow spiritually and personally.
Thank you for your continued support in making PPN a place of holistic education and growth for our students.
With warm regards
Toby Ackland
APPropriate or not?
Are you aware of the apps or websites your child is accessing? Do you wonder, what exactly they are up to, who they are engaging with, and whether they should be using it in the first place?
It is difficult to keep up with the ever changing app landscape, but ensuring we understand what each app does, who and what your child might be exposed to, and what legal requirements may or may not be in place is important.
The eSafety Commissioner regularly updates The eSafety Guide, to provide families with up-to-date information about the apps our children may use or come across. A screen shot of the page is included below.
By clicking on the apps listed you can find out things including:
- What the app is
- How people use it
- Age restrictions (recommended and legal)
- How you can report abuse or ask for help
- How you can protect personal information
- Key safety links
Visit The eSafety Guide now – and make sure you save it to your bookmarks for easy access in the future.
AMC and ICAS
This Thursday in Chapel the AMC and ICAS certificates will be given out in the Upper's Chapel from 10am for those that participated. Please look out for your child's certificates and results in their bags this week.
No Right Turn at Pick-up and Drop-off
If you drop your child off or pick them up at the front of the school you may have noticed a new sign installed this week (pictured below). Following feedback from members of the community, Salisbury Council have now made it a legally-enforceable requirement that vehicles must turn left out of the DAG zone during the times specified. Thank you for noting this and keeping our community safe.
Colour Explosion Fun Run
Colour Explosion Run 4 Fun is in Week 5 - Friday 17th November.
Art Competition
Position Vacant - School Bus Driver
Christmas Carols
Soccer Success for Rosie
