Welcome to the new school year at the Junior School, it is hard to believe we are already coming to the end of Week 2. I have enjoyed being able to visit classrooms over the past week to see the boys settling into new environments and routines.
Thank you to all the parents who offered to volunteer in our canteen for Term 1. It is very much appreciated as we rely so heavily on our families to continue this service. If you haven’t signed up and would like to volunteer please follow this link: https://signup.com/go/jxSZAXz
Diary Dates
Please find below some reminders about upcoming events. For all of Term 1 events please refer to the College Calendar
- 14 February | Swimming Carnival – Waverley College Swimming Pool
- 17 February | Year 5 & 6 Parent Information and Welcome evening 6:00-8:00pm
- 20 March | Cocktail Function Parent Association
- 16 – 18 March | Year 5 Camp – Vision Valley
Other Important Dates
- 18 – 20 May | Year 6 Canberra Excursion
Junior School Communication
All communication regarding news, updates, events and social information will be delivered through the fortnightly newsletter Nurrunga under and SkoolBag app.
Nurrunga Newsletter
Nurrunga is the fortnightly College newsletter. It provides information and dates for important events around the school, a weekly update from the Principal and College Leadership Team, including myself. Parents are recommended to check Nurrunga when the link is emailed to them on Thursdays, fortnightly, during term time. The link will also be shared via the Skoolbag app.
SkoolBag App
SkoolBag is a school mobile app that communicates directly with iPhone and Android devices. It provides all school users with instant “push” notifications and alerts to their mobile devices. The SkoolBag app is free to download and can easily be installed from the Apple Apps store or Google Play by searching for ‘Waverley College’ and installing. For information about SkoolBag and how to download the app visit: moqproducts.com.au/skoolbag/installation-instructions/. We use SkoolBag app in the Junior School on a regular basis to inform you of:
- Upcoming events
- Changes to the regular school day
- Canteen rosters
- Sport changes
Parents are requested to provide an email address upon enrolment and to always keep this up to date by informing the Junior School Reception whenever there is a change. Email is an important means of communicating with teachers and administration. Most email addresses you will need can be found on the College website on the tab ‘Contact Us’. Class teachers will use email regularly to contact you and it is also used for the College newsletter and for alerts and notices.
College Website
The College website provides a great deal of information about the school such as news, events, contacts, subject information, policy documents, cyber safety, sports fixtures and the college calendar. Please visit: waverley.nsw.edu.au
Parent/Teacher Interviews
Formal Parent/Teacher interviews will be held on Monday 27th July after you have received your son’s Semester One school report. Next week, you will receive a parent questionnaire via email. Please fill this out in order to inform the classroom teacher on how to best support your son this year. If you have information you feel would be beneficial to discuss with your teacher in person please do not hesitate to contact them to arrange a meeting. You will find all Junior school contacts in the link below:
Please follow this link to see Junior School Staff.
Junior School Learning Hub
Learning spaces should spark imaginations; nurture and develop creativity; support a diverse range of learning activities; and above all, support a diverse range of learners.
The NEW learning hub aims to guide the boys with lifelong transversal skills – critical thinkers, collaborators, innovators, and problem solvers. This will be achieved through a myriad of activities, including the maker space, mentors, guest speakers, competitions, inquiry-based learning, and debating.
Each class receives two lessons per cycle in the Learning Hub. The Learning Hub is open to the boys every morning from 8:15, as well as every lunchtime. Homework Club also operates out of this space.
Throughout the year there are a number of events students can be involved with through the Learning Hub:
- Waverley’s Reading Challenge
- Lunchtime Talks
- Author visits
- Illustrator visits
- Chess
- Pop-up Book Shop
- Book Character Parade
- Board games
The purpose of this two-period course is to teach students literature and innovation skills, a love of reading as well as teaching students how to locate and analyse resources in a safe and concise manner.
Throughout the year the boys will learn how to:
- Locate all sections in, and the layout of, the Learning Hub
- Borrow and return resources in a consistent manner at an appropriate level
- Operate the online catalogue to locate a resource
- Use a range of information literacy skills to define, locate, select, organise, present and assess work
- Access and use resources in a variety of formats
- Connect, build confidence, exchange ideas and learn from each other.
- Understand and use effective and efficient research strategies
- Develop future-ready skills of the digital revolution, activities comprise of research, inquiry, critical & creative thinking and public speaking.
I encourage the boys to become familiar with this wonderful space.
Homework Club
Homework Club will begin in Week 3 and runs Monday – Thursday afternoons from 3:00pm – 4:00pm. You will receive a SkoolBag notification allowing you to sign up. Please note, you are only able to sign up 2 weeks in advance.
