Dear parents and carers,

It has been wonderful to see so many of you at school over the past few weeks, meeting with teachers to prepare your child's learning goals for the year. Thank you for making the time for this collaborative meeting. I encourage every family to take advantage of this opportunity to work with us to maximise your child's learning.

With Covid-19 restrictions easing, we are pleased to finally host a community event on-site too. Our primary and middle school parents are invited to join us for the Easter Hat Parade from 11.30am this Friday. 

Looking forward to term two, we will be launching an exciting initiative in partnership with Woolworths. A fully-functional mini supermarket will be installed in the senior school to provide a hands-on learning experience for all students.

With a real scanner, register, shelving, baskets and Woolworths-branded uniforms, the supermarket will provide new and practical learning experiences. It will enable our students to grow in confidence and independence, as well as improve literacy, numeracy, language, communication and problem-solving skills. I have no doubt our students will reap the benefits of this initative for years to come.

Enjoy the holidays! I look forward to welcoming students back to school on Wednesday 27 April for another successful term of learning.

Until next time,

Kylee Thorson

Principal (relieving)

Dear parents and carers,

In wonderful news, the P&C can now return on-site for our monthly meetings. The next meeting will be held early in Term 2 - 9.30am, Wednesday 4 May - in the school's Community Hub. All parents and carers are welcome and encouraged to attend. These meetings are an invaluable opportunity to discover what is happening within the school and also to connect with fellow parents. 

I also look forward to seeing you and all your wonderful creative efforts at the Easter Hat Parade this Friday, 8 April (last day of term). As we are allowed back on school grounds, the committee is also looking forward to our upcoming Mother's and Father's Day stalls, and fingers crossed the much-loved school concert later in the year. If you are interested in supporting these events, a helping hand is always appreciated. Just send me an email at liz.brannon@yahoo.com.au.

Take care and keep safe,

Liz Brannon

President

How long have you worked at Holroyd School?

15 Years.

What is your all-time favourite TV Show?

Masterchef on Network Ten.

If you won the lottery, what is the first thing you would buy?

A mansion.

If you could meet anyone from history, who would it be?

Princess Diana.

If you won a dream holiday to anywhere in the world, where would you go?

Italy.

If you had to eat one meal everyday for the rest of your life, what would it be?

Fried rice.

What is the last movie you saw?

Wonder Woman.

Do you keep your tomato sauce in the fridge or pantry?

Fridge.

What is your favourite song to sing along to?

Rivers of Babylon by Boney M.

How long have you worked for Holroyd School?

8 Years.

What is your all-time favourtie TV show?

I'm a Celebrity Get Me Out of Here, Masterchef and The Block.

If you won the lottery, what is the first thing you would buy?

A first class ticket for a world trip.

If you could witness any event from history, what would you want to see?

A walk through the Ancient Empires.

If you could meet anyone from history, who would it be?

My Grandfather. I have heard some wonderful stories about him.

If you won a dream holiday to anywhere in the world, where would you go?

Santorini in Greece followed by Almafi Coast in Italy.

If you had one meal every day for the rest of your life, what would it be?

Fruit salad and yoghurt.

What is the last movie you saw?

Spiderman No Way Home.

Do you keep your tomato sauce in the fridge or Pantry?

Once opened, in the fridge.

What is your favourite song to sing along to?

Anything George Michael.

A highlight this term for many of our students has been the four-week Hookin2Hockey clinic with coaches Alan, Cody and Tabitha.

Students have particularly enjoyed the program's fun skill-based games, which included balancing the ball on the flat striking edge of the hockey stick.

Through the course of the program, offered by Sporting Schools, students learnt new hockey skills and worked on fundamental motor development.

Many families will soon receive a permission note for your child to work with the School Counsellor.

The School Counsellor at Holroyd School is Melissa Stranges, who is supported by Sarah Cooper and Simon Percy. The School Counsellor visits our school regularly to provide advice and support to students, teachers and parents.

If you have any questions or concerns about this process, please feel free to reach out to the school to ask for more information.

The School Counsellors will likely be at upcoming P&C Events and will be available for informal discussion for those who are interested.

J4 is an active class that enjoys spending time outdoors. Extending our gross motor skills in the playground by walking, kicking balls and navigating the obstacle course always brings a smile to our faces! 

We are also delighted to be back in the hydrotherapy pool. Although a few of us were unsure about the water after such a long hiatus, we quickly found ourselves comfortable in the pool again.

In the classroom, music is a highlight. J4 students love interacting with musical instruments and listening to songs.

This semester we are studying Geography, with a focus on Places we Live. We have been learning about eels from an indiginenous perspective and why they are a significant totem in the Parramatta (Burramatta) area in which we live. Every student designed their own eel for an art project. Our masterpieces now hang proudly in our classroom. We are also learning about the varying climates on the Australian continent. Firstly we explored the textures of common leaves and plants found in the rainforest. Next we will be looking more closely at desserts, beaches and cities.

In the mornings we enjoy coming together to participate in Morning Circle. Every student has the chance to engage by selecting a song; discussing the day of the week and weather; and communicating our mood. After Morning Circle we participate in a daily interactive PBL lesson as a group. We really enjoy our time together in the mornings, as we spend much of the rest of the day enagaged in pair or individual learning activities with class staff.

We really enjoyed the extra time with our families during lockdown ... but nothing beats being back at school! We love being a part of our school community again, engaging with our peers and welcoming new students! We are excited to take part in communal activities again too, such as this week's Easter Hat Parade.

Each week J17 participates in a variety of activities that give the boys an opportunity to learn and grow. Some of these activities have included cooking, swimming, bike riding, art and our daily literacy and maths lessons. Through these exciting activities, the boys have demonstrated an enthusiasm for learning and an increased comfortability with one another's unique, vibrant personalities.

During cooking lessons, the boys have made (and eaten) some delicious foods such as chicken wraps, blueberry pancakes, fried rice and easily the biggest crowd pleaser ... beef nachos. As much as J17 has enjoyed cooking these foods and the opportunity to learn about accurately measuring ingredient quantities, the eating portion of the lesson was normally undertaken with a more pronounced level of enthusiasm!

The boys haven't let the constant rain deter them from looking forward to our regular Tuesday swimming lessons (but maybe the school's warm indoor swimming pool has helped in this regard). The boys intently listen to instructions and have been very safe in the pool. Some students have even braved the deep end of the pool - under teacher supervision of course. Great job, J17!

The boys' participation in the Reading Eggs and Getting Reading Right programs have provided an opportunity to develop literacy skills. It has been great to see how much the boys' concentration during these lessons have improved as repetitions have made expectations clearer to them.

We are all looking forward to the rest of the year!

The highlight of S24's week is certainly our workskills rotation. Every Friday morning our classroom is transformed into a new, fun retail environment. One week our class is sorting envelopes and parcels, identifying postcodes and handling fragile packages in the S24 branch of Australia Post. The next week we are cooking chips and nuggets, filling sauce containers, folding happy meal boxes and maintaining the cleanliness of the 'McDonald's store' after some very messy customers! Thank you McDonalds for supporting our kids! It is wonderful to see our students learning important life and work skills in a fun and creative way.

An important part of our 'independence' unit of work this year is running the school snack shop for staff.  For staff in the junior school, we correctly pack and deliver weekly orders. Our students also take on the role of 'sales representatives' by visiting the school office and classes in the senior school to sell chips, chocolates, lollies and drinks. Students are responsible for maintaining stock levels, ensuring IOUs are written, accepting money, and providing change when required. Students are encouraged to work both independently and as a team. By encouraging communication, students have clearly identified roles in the purchasing and delivery process.

Thank you parents for the transition to full-time, at-school learning. It is great to have our classrooms filled with learning and laughter once again! We are looking forward to a fun and safe year.

An important part of S28's week is the implementation of the Life Skills program. This involves fine motor skills development, sorting cutlery, matching similar objects, pairing socks, cleaning windows and doing laundry. Another important focus in S28 is literacy (reading and writing) and numeracy (matching, ordering, sorting and sequencing).

One of S28's favourite weekly activities is spending time in the school's indoor pool, where we work on swimming and water safety. Our students have also enjoyed participating in the four-week hockey skills clinic in the school hall.

This term we also had a fun class party to share in Zhiming's 17th birthday celebrations.

Well done to all the students in S28  - Asmaa, Shubhan, Murtaza, Thomas, Neebir and Zhiming - for their wonderful term one achievements.

Wishing all our staff, students and families a safe and happy holiday.

The last day for Term 1 is this Friday, 8 April, 2022.

Term 2 begins on Wednesday 27 April, 2022.