It’s Science Week this week and I am really enjoying the joy and wonder I am seeing among our children as they explore things to do with the Deep Blue. Thanks to Mr Harris and helpers for transforming the Discovery Centre into an undersea wonder. I have been watching with interest as children bring a plastic bottle to school and are introduced an experiment involving water and air and pressure. It is a great little activity and something I am sure your child would love to share with you. That simple experiment got me thinking about times in my childhood where I discovered things as I used bits and pieces from around the house as I played. One I particularly enjoyed as a 7 or 8 year old, was making aeroplanes out of cardboard, tying one of the wings to our clothesline and spinning it round and round, adjusting weight (using pegs) and aerodynamics (using tape and scissors) to be able to get the plane to fly as the rotary clothesline spun around. It was something I spent hours doing. (It was a nice break for my mum from me collecting tadpoles, cane toads and snakes up in the tropics). As I reflect on this time and activity, I began to realise the importance of these times and how much more difficult it is now for our children to dive into something like this when there are more visually exciting and engaging technologies vying for their attention. I found this article recently about helping our kids avoid the, “I’m bored” mantra, so many jump to, so quickly. It has some very practical suggestions and I hope you find them helpful.

“A child’s ability to fill in their own time and cope with moments of boredom are important independence skills to develop. Children have less practise at keeping themselves occupied than those of past generations. You have many jobs as a parent, but constantly entertaining your child, should not be one of them. These ideas will help:

Invite them to keep themselves busy

When your child tells you that he or she is bored they are bringing you a problem to solve. Boredom is your child’s problem, not yours. If this happens, encourage your child to keep themselves busy by asking questions such as “How can you keep yourself amused?”

Make a list

If your child is stuck for ideas make a list of activities that they can refer to when they’re bored. Include a variety of activities such as creative tasks, performance tasks, crafts, sports, indoor and outdoor games, music activities, reading and helping. Place the list in a convenient place with easy access and visibility.

Make a boredom buster jar

Cut up a list of boredom busting activities and place them in a jar. When your child is stuck for an idea to keep him or herself amused invite them to select an activity from the boredom buster jar. Ask your child to add enjoyable activities to the jar over time.

Encourage plenty of green-time

Today’s children spend more time in front of screens, and less time outdoors than those of previous generations. Not only is time spent in natural environments refreshing, relaxing and rejuvenating, but It’s also a wonderful way for kids to relieve boredom. Encourage your child to spend some of their free time outside in natural environments to promote good mental health and develop their confidence.

Help find their interests 

If your child struggles to keep him or herself occupied, consider helping them identify a hobby or interest that they enjoy. Often finding that one activity a child loves or excels in makes a huge difference to their self-esteem and wellbeing, and can become the driver for future career choice.

Build in downtime

A trait common among healthy families is the propensity for everyone to enjoy spending downtime or unstructured time together. It’s during downtime that parents and children share activities together, which promotes better relationships and helps children’s informal learning.

Most children when given unstructured time will rise to the occasion (even after some complaining) and will find interesting things to do. By encouraging them to find something “to do”, other than filling their time with screen-based activities, you are promoting a fabulous life-skill in your kids.” (Grose, 2020)

Have a great week with your kids,

Mark B

Psalm 146 : 6 “He is the Maker of heaven and earth, the sea, and everything in them— He remains faithful forever.”

The Paralysed Man

Have you ever waited so long for something that you really wanted, but in the end, you gave up hope that you would ever receive it?

In the Bible, we read a story of a man who desperately wanted something and waited in hope for 38 years.

A cacophony of sounds filled the atmosphere. People were crying and moaning in misery. A multitude of sick, blind, lame, and paralysed men and women gathered at the pool of Bethesda waiting in vain for a chance to have their lives turned around. They believed that when the water rippled, they could be healed if they were the first to enter the water.

Then, when it happened, there would be a great rush to get into the water. Of course, the one who got in first was bound to be the most active – the very one who was least in need of healing! The worst cases would never get into the water in time.

This was the scene that confronted the disciples as Jesus took them through one of the most miserable places possible, in Jerusalem. The Bible says that Jesus singled out a paralysed man that had been living at the pool and waiting in hope for 38 years. This man was the most miserable of all and had been waiting the longest with little hope of a cure and had no one to help him into the pool.

Jesus asks him “Do you want to get well?” The man is at first dismissive of yet another nosey passer-by, not realising that standing in front of him was the only man that can truly heal him. All his failed attempts had caused him to nearly give up hope and miss the opportunity of true healing that Jesus was offerings.

“Stand up, carry your mat and walk.” Jesus says and then He melts into the crowd.

The paralysed man has a choice. Follow this stranger’s direction or continue in his self-pitying thoughts. Power surges through the man’s body. He stands, pain free and walks for the first time in 38 years!

There are many times in our lives that we may feel helpless or lose hope in situations. We often rely on human efforts, to no avail. The great thing is, Jesus sees our needs. All we have to do is listen to Jesus and have enough faith, like the paralysed man to ‘get up and walk’. God’s wonderful grace can heal our hearts, minds and bodies. We don’t always deserve it; we can’t earn it or buy it; but God showers us with love anyway.

If you have any prayer requests please send them to me at: phillillehagen@ppn.sa.edu.au

Have a great week,

Chaplain Phil

Canteen - Mozzarella Mondays

Father's Day Stall

Daily Health Check

Book of the Week

The Thing About Oliver, Author: Deborah Kelly

Tilly lives with her severely autistic brother Oliver and her work-weary mother. Her passion for marine science is signaled early on but her world is turned upside-down when the family moves from a dry rural town to live with an aunt on the tropical coast of Far North Queensland. The setting is vividly evoked through effective description. The change of circumstances creates new tensions for the already challenged family. Tilly is a plausible protagonist whose first-person narration does not slip from reflecting her age and emotion. Young readers will empathize when her mother is unable to take her to swimming lessons, undermining her goal of becoming a marine scientist, and when Oliver destroys her precious ‘aqua journal’. Tilly’s love for her brother never wavers, and the depiction of Oliver’s autistic behavior is realistic. The story generates significant emotional response while keeping the writing age appropriate. The plot builds to a suspenseful climax when Oliver goes missing. The characteristics of autism are explored skillfully and sensitively, as are the themes of disability, parenting, and family relationships.

Premier's Reading Challenge

Premier’s Reading Challenge closes on Friday 18^th September – only 4 weeks to go!

A reminder about our Library Borrowing Rules:

• each class has a regular, scheduled weekly Library time;
• all books are due back to the Library one week after they were borrowed.

We will send a courtesy reminder email to parents/caregivers when your child/s books are overdue.  Kindly return borrowed books on time to the Library so that they are available for other students to borrow and enjoy the pleasure of reading them.

PPN Sports Day 2020 

2020 has been a year of change for us all and due to Covid our annual Sports Day was rescheduled for Term 4. We have an exciting new change to the way our Sports Day will be structured this year. The Lower Primary Sports Day will be held on school grounds and therefore students in Years F-2 will no longer need to travel. The Upper Sports Day will continue to be held at SA Athletics Stadium and, as in previous years, students will need to travel on the school bus or with their parents. 

Please check Consent2Go for more information in regards to transport, volunteering and student permissions. Thank you for completing the online forms to help us plan a successful Sports Day.  

OSHC - Pupil Free Day

Pupil Free Day

Pupil Free Day 406.28 KB

Free Desk

A generous donor has three desks that would be suitable for students to set up at home that they would like to give away.  Below is a picture. The stool is not included. Please email markborresen@ppn.sa.edu.au if you are interested.

Junior Baseball

JnrBaseball_InfoFlyer.pdf

JnrBaseball_InfoFlyer _pdf 3.22 MB

Tball_InfoFlyer.pdf

Tball_InfoFlyer _pdf 1.06 MB