We hope you all had a fantastic Easter holiday with your families – welcome back. We would like to congratulate Kirsty (Year 3 Teacher) and her husband Ben on their very own Quintilian wedding, and our Deputy Principal Rebecca and Chris on their wedding too.
Term 2 started with some bespoke professional learning for the Quintilian staff. The staff also spent time preparing superb learning environments with interesting and engaging resources to bring learning to life. The multi-sensory learning areas in many of the classrooms encompass themes based on the children’s interests that encourage discovery and exploration from the moment they arrive at school. This approach provides collaborative learning with peers and parents to harness those all-important partnerships.
Mel Rayment, our Early Years Coordinator is currently in Reggio Emilia (Italy), learning about Reggio’s famous educational philosophy and pedagogy. We look forward to welcoming Mel back to our WA shores in a couple of weeks’ time with all her innovative ideas.
Last week’s special ANZAC Day excursions to King’s Park for Pre-Primary and Year 2 and 3 gave the children a true sense of remembrance for this important national event. The knowledge acquired from the excursions encouraged the children to reflect and empathize in a real-life context, which is a key aspect of Quintilian’s integrated curriculum. Many of the children also shared their own firsthand experiences of family members that served in the armed forces for Australia and other parts of the world.
Last week was topped off with a superb theatrical performance from ‘Lingo La La’ an indigenous production that captivated and inspired the children from the get-go. The children could participate in the show throughout and could ask a few questions at the end. There was an abundance of excitement and energy on and off the stage.
We hope the children, staff and families are all looking forward to the annual Rottnest Family Camp in a couple of weeks. The costume-themed Quokka Treasure Hunt remains top secret, but we can confirm that we are determined to make this year’s camp another memorable experience. We look forward to the Early Learning Open Morning, the legendary Parent Floorball Night, the Open Classroom Evening, the Canning River excursion and 3C’s Assembly on Friday. Pre-Kindy is also hosting a special ‘Mothers and Others’ morning to celebrate Mother’s Day.
Extra-curricular clubs are well attended this term. The newly established sustainability club met for the first time at the beginning of April. The club comprises 20 students from Years 3-6 who were personally invested in joining the club and were happy to be ambassadors who would spread ideas throughout all classes and develop ideas that would make the school more sustainable.
With so much to celebrate in a short space of time, I would like to thank all the staff and parents for their ongoing commitment to making Quintilian such an exceptional school for children to learn. On a personal note, I would like to thank you for the incredibly warm welcome I have received, and I look forward to getting to know everyone.
Elliott Hateley, Principal
