Message from Michele Marquet

Dear Parents and Carers,

It is hard to believe that we have come to the end of the first term! Thank you to all our Pre-school and Junior School families who have taken the time to thank the staff for the things we do and show their support – it has been a huge encouragement to us all, and we love working in partnership with you as your children navigate their learning journeys. We would like to thank our staff too – teachers, educators, educational assistants and our administrative team for their amazing flexibility, their unstinting and gracious support and their tireless efforts throughout the term.

Y5 – Y6 da Vinci Day with Ascham
Yesterday, we held another highly successful da Vinci Day with Y5 and Y6 students from Ascham. We were delighted to welcome some Y10 students from the Senior School and Mr Adams, High Potential Coordinator, who accompanied them. They assisted with the running of the different sections of the competition and provided support for the students.

If we are going to develop the right mindset to help our students to be ready to enter the global world, they must have opportunities to practise collaborative and creative problem-solving skills in broader contexts. Experiences like da Vinci are one of many ways the Junior School is looking to embed these skills and to help our students be ‘new world-ready’.

I thank the staff from both schools, particularly Mrs Cellini, Mrs Brodie, Miss Boniface, Mr Botto, Mr Cohen, Mrs Erickson-Adam, Ms Light, Ms Tedeschi and the Year 5 and Year 6 Teaching Teams who worked with passion to ensure the day was a success for all involved.

Staff News
After three years of dedicated and excellent work, Janine Delport, our Kindergarten Case Manager is leaving Cranbrook as she makes a move to the outskirts of Sydney with her family. We have been blessed to have Janine work with our youngest students in the Junior School, bringing early childhood development expertise and great wisdom and care to her role. We wish her and her family the very best as she starts a new adventure.

We are delighted to welcome Georgie Grant to the Kindergarten Team as our new Case Manager. Georgie comes from the UK having taught Reception at Norland Place School, the Merlin School and Garden House School in London. She is passionate about ensuring we are catering for the individual needs.

After 8 years of outstanding contribution to the Junior School, Fiona Donnelly has returned to Ireland with her family. We are so grateful for the benefits our students and families, as well as staff, have all gained from having her teach with us in a number of roles. We wish Fiona and her family the very best as they return home.

We are delighted that Ashleigh McCann has moved into the Case Manager role in Year 1. Coming to us from Victoria, Ashleigh is a highly experienced teacher with a wealth of knowledge about child development in the area of learning in the early years. Ashleigh is familiar to many, as she has worked with us in a variety of relief roles over the last year.

We know our families will welcome Georgie and Ashleigh warmly. We also look forward to welcoming back Rosie Heckes after a period of maternity leave. Rosie will mainly be working with the Year 1 and Year 2 teaching teams as an Educational Development Teacher.

The staff and I wish all our families a safe and relaxing holiday and we look forward to seeing everyone back at school at the end of April.

Kind wishes,

Michele Marquet