From the Acting Principal…
Food, fun, fashion and a friendly atmosphere were all part of the mix at the Spring Fair. The weather held up and provided the final ingredient for a near perfect day. In his final year as Fair Coordinator, Adam Hartnett and the team built on the winning formula from previous years. A final tally is not quite ready but is expected to eclipse the record set last year. Thank you to Adam and the many contributors who gave generously of their time, products and energy for this very successful event.
The school has an opportunity to lend support to the relief effort for the families affected by the Samoan tsunami. Children’s clothing from the Fair has already been provided but there is a need for adult clothing and tinned food. Those who wish to support this worthy appeal can bring items to the office over the next 2 weeks.
Narooma, without a downpour of rain, was a welcome experience for many families who remember previous years. Bikes and skateboards dominated the landscape. Morning noon and night the places to be were either the pool or the BBQ’s. Some were spotted at the supermarket in town and others sampling cheese and coffee at Central Tilba. When booking for next year keep in mind that the pupil free day is Friday 5th November as the ACT Government has moved the Family and Community holiday to Monday 27/09/10.
As a result of the response from families to the shoe box appeal there will be some happy children in third world countries who will not go empty handed this Christmas.
Carolyn and Tomomi will be joining Sajee in Dryandra Monday of week 5. A vote of thanks to Sajee and Suki for the wonderful settled and stable classroom they have provided for the children.
It will not be long before the new building has a roof. Material has arrived on site. With a roof providing protection it should be full steam ahead on the internal fit out.
Grant funds have provided an opportunity for the school to upgrade computer hardware to give us a more stable network capable of expanding with our future needs.
It was great to be able to gain an insight into what has been the background and experience of our newly appointed Principal, Jack Rice. We look forward to his leadership and direction in the life of the school. Plans are in the making to provide the school community with chances to welcome Jack and his family.
Thanks, Bob
Upcoming Dates
TERM 4 2009
Nov 9 Open Sessions
Dec 9 Canteen Day
Dec 16 Disco & Graduation
Last day of Term 4
TERM 1 2010
Feb 1&2 Pupil Free Days
Feb 4 Children return to school
Feb 5 BBQ – Meet the New Principal
Feb 10 Meet & Greet 7pm
Feb 20 Working Bee 9am – 3pm
Feb 24 Parent Education Evening 7pm
Feb 25 New Parents’ Morning Tea 9.15am Holder
Mar 3 Canteen Day
Mar 5 Schools Clean Up Day
Mar 8 Canberra Day – Public Holiday
Mar 16 Annual General Meeting 7pm
Mar 25 Cycle 2/3 reports due
Apr 2 Public Holiday – Good Friday
Apr 5 Public Hoilday – Easter Monday
Apr 7 Canteen Day
Apr 9 Last day of Term 1
Please check the Bulletin regularly for changes to published events.
Term Dates for 2009
Term 4: 12 October – 16 December
Term Dates for 2010
Term 1: 3 February – 9 April
Term 2: 27 April – 2 July
Term 3: 21 July – 24 September
Term 4: 11 October – 15 December
Afternoon Programme Term 1 2010
Please let the office know your intended Gumnut bookings for next year. We will need to know whether you will be discontinuing, changing or maintaining your current bookings or making a new booking. The office has forms for this purpose available which need to be returned by November 3
Parent Library
All books should be returned by November 30th to allow an inventory to be taken. Loans will not be available over the Christmas holidays. Thank you.
to allow an inventory to be taken. Loans will not be available over the Christmas holidays. Thank you.
Four Keys to Raising a Self-Disciplined Child
Do you dream of having a child who is self-composed, articulate and respectful of others, young or old? In our children's pre-verbal days it seems like those attributes may be impossible, but there are some teaching tools you can use to help your child have the self-discipline to live a peaceful life as a toddler and beyond.
Respect. If we expect to get our children's respect, we must first give it, and then expect respect in return. Respect has a boomerang effect. When we understand and respect the immense effort the young child expends to learn and perform daily living skills, perhaps we can be more patient with our child's frustrations. We need to set clear and realistic expectations for behavior, remembering to remind our children of those behaviors. ''When we sit down for dinner, we don't get up. We put our napkins on our laps.''
We need to catch our children doing something right, and thank them for their efforts. ''I see you put your napkin on your lap. Thank you.''
Problem-solving skills. We need to help our children learn to solve the frustrations that pop up in life. We begin by allowing our children simple choices. ''Do you want to wear your blue shirt or the green one?''
When a problem does occur, we can step through a thinking process:
Stop. I think we have a problem. I think the problem is...
Do you want to work on the problem?
What can we do to fix the problem?
What choice is the best way?
Later, we need to check back, and ask if the choice is working. If not, go back to square one for problem solving. Sort of like Chutes and Ladders.
Patience. Self-discipline requires patience and learning to wait. Instant gratification is 180 degrees from self-discipline on the behavior scale. The old adage of learning to count to 10 works here. Learning to refocus on something else while you wait is a big help. Using the problem solving technique from above, we might say: We have to wait for 10 minutes. What should we do? Count to 300? Read? Sing a song? Walk around the block? What do you think is best? Is this helping you wait?
Acknowledge feelings. We can help our children put words to their emotions. Having to wait in line for the promised ice cream cone? A friend took your toy? Your sister ate your cookie? Help your child put words to the emotions of impatience, anger, frustration and more. Assist your child in understanding that everyone has feelings and that we can learn to recognize those feelings and put names to those feelings.
Learning to interpret non-verbal cues will also help our children in their quest for self-discipline. ''Did you see what her face looked like when you gave her your present? She was happy.'' Or perhaps, ''Did you see his face when you took his ball. He was upset.''
Giving our children respect along with helping them learn to solve problems, being patient and acknowledging feelings aid our children on their paths toward internal discipline.
Written by Maren Stark Schmidt. Mrs. Schmidt founded a Montessori school and holds a Masters of Education from Loyola College in Maryland.
Please be sure to collect from the office the items you left at the Spring Fair (we have various bits of tupperware here still).
Toy Catalogue Fundraising
Thank you to everyone who ordered from the Educational Experience Toy Catalogue. The orders have been delivered, so hopefully the children are either enjoying their toys or parents are feeling a little more organised for Christmas! We are thrilled that we had $3,500 worth of orders which rose just over $700 of product vouchers to redeem for our children’s classrooms.
Thank you also to those of you who have already ordered from our new online fundraising website Tree Frog Toys. We have had great feedback from parents, including that they have a great range of products, and their service is reliable, fast and friendly. We have already raised $125 of product vouchers to redeem for our children’s classrooms.
We can of course place orders at any time during the year, but don’t forget when you place your orders at www.treefrogtoys.com.au to fill in the unique code for our school “Canberra Montessori” in the additional comments box at checkout.
They are adding new products all the time and I have been notified that they are about to add to their range over the next 2 weeks, including a range of books, games for school aged children, eco-themed science kits, puzzles for preschool and school aged children (up to 100 pieces), soft toys and more. If you register for their free newsletter on their website you will automatically be sent updates when new products are added. They would also welcome suggestions on their product range, as long as they are eco-friendly and fit with their business ethos.
If you are planning to order for Christmas, it is fast approaching, and orders should be placed by December 17th to ensure delivery before Christmas.
For any enquires please contact Deana Vilkaitis:
Ph: 0409 083 960
email: deanavilkaitis@yahoo.com.au
or use the ‘Vilkaitis’ pocket outside Casuarina
Deana Vilkaitis
on behalf of the Fundraising and Social Events Committee