We excitedly await this evening’s performance of our JS Production of ‘Fantastic Mr Fox’. The first evening performance on Tuesday night and yesterday’s matinee performance were warmly received by the K-6 students and families attending, so we are eager to share our final performance tonight.
Our Year 5 students, under the expert guidance from our Drama Teacher, Miss Sophie Boniface, have put in many hours of dedicated preparation and we have been thrilled to share the show with our live audiences. A big thank you to so many of our staff who supported the play through prop and costume creation, supervision and assisting the performance in a plethora of ways.
Tomorrow, on Friday 2 September, from 7.45am, we are very much looking forward to welcoming important males in our students’ lives to our Fathers’ Day Activities morning. Please see the invitation here and remember that there is NO carline or optional co-curricular activities being held on Friday morning.
Kind wishes
Michele Marquet
From the Deputies
Notice from the Deputy Head of Curriculum
Last week, all parents in Kindergarten to Year 5 would have received a notification on Operoo regarding the upcoming Student-led Conferences, being held in the last week of Term, Tuesday 13 September – Thursday 15 September. We are so excited to welcome parents and carers back into the classrooms for this significant event.
Student-led Conferences are one component of our formal reporting of student progress to parents, in addition to Semester Reports, parent-teacher interviews and the sharing of student workbooks. We have been unable to hold Student-led Conferences onsite for the last two years, so this year is especially exciting for us, as we prepare with the students for this special day. The responses from previous Student-led Conferences have been overwhelmingly positive, with parents noting how valuable this experience is to share with their son. It has been flagged in past years as one of the most important days in the year, with almost 100% attendance.
Students in the Junior School are empowered to share their work, talk about their achievements, explain their learning, answer questions and receive feedback on their efforts. This ‘one-on-one’ time between parents and children in the classroom is an extremely powerful opportunity. Parents and guardians are encouraged to provide support for their child, to be active listeners, to ask questions, to help students share their learning and to facilitate self-reflection and goal setting throughout the conference.
Over the next few weeks, we will continue to share with you what to expect and how you can get the most out of the Student-led Conferences.
Please pencil in these important dates in your calendar:
Tuesday 13 September
Kindergarten 8:30 – 10:30am
Year 3 11:15 – 1:15
Wednesday 14 September
Year 1 8:30 – 10:30am
Year 4 11:15 – 1:15
Thursday 15 September
Year 2 8:30 – 10:30am
Year 5 11:15 – 1:15
Pre-Schools’ News – Week 7
It was great to see so many dads and significant males at our Pre-schools this week celebrating Father’s Day. We hope they enjoyed their visit and it created a special memory to help celebrate. Have an awesome weekend!
Another highlight of the week was the visit from Fizzics Education, sharing many interesting and mind-blowing scientific experiments. To support our unit of inquiry ‘Through exploration we uncover new ideas.’ To find out more about the learning experiences that have taken place this week, please refer to our day books.
Our CC Committee is keen to let you know about their next event, taking place this term:
Supporting Hope Bereavement Care
Our Head of Sport-JS, Tom Hart, has organised a charity event in September, which is very close to his heart. Starting on Friday 9 September at 11pm, Tom will commence a Concept2 Marathon Row, Concept2 Marathon Ski, Concept2 Double Marathon Bike and finish with a Marathon road run. Tom’s aim is to finish all these marathons by 4pm on Saturday 10 September.
The charity event will run from Befit in Double Bay. Tom would love as many people as possible to get involved. This could be through booking a spot in one of the Saturday classes or jumping in and joining him for as much or a little as they would like on one of the legs. Or some families, may wish to donate by following the link below. Hope Bereavement Care is a great charity and this event is a wonderful opportunity to increase the awareness around sudden loss and bereavement and the support available to people.
The Cranbrook Community Service representatives would like to thank everyone who donated to the ‘Boots for One and All’ fundraiser, including the boys who spread the word to their local football teams for donations. We collected 204 pairs of boots in total, alongside 210kg of clothing that will be distributed to remote Indigenous communities across Australia. This initiative helps to support Indigenous families, adults and kids, access clothing and items that are not available to them because of their remote locations and supports them to play the sports that they love. What a way to contribute through service!
Well done to all involved.
Thank you from The Community Service Representatives
CSPA Committee 2023
The CSPA is advertising to parents across the whole School community for volunteers to support their Year Groups as parent representatives on the CSPA Committee.
We would like to hear from any parents who are interested in helping out with all years but specifically we need parents of boys going into Years 2, 3, 4, 7, 8, 10 and 11 for 2023. Some of our wonderful parents are staying on as year reps but we encourage parents to share these roles to better support parents.
The primary role of the CSPA is to support Cranbrook School, particularly the parent community, fostering goodwill and creating a community that is inclusive and welcoming to all.
More information about what the CSPA does can be found on Cranbrook Connect here:
If you are interested in joining our Committee, please fill out a nomination form and send it to the CSPA secretary. Nominations for positions close on 12 October 2022 ahead of the CSPA AGM on 16 November at which the 2023 Committee will be elected.
I will be stepping down at the end of this year after three years as President of the CSPA. In accordance with the School and CSPA Constitutions, nominations for the role of President are considered in consultation with the School Council.
If you would like more information about any of the roles and what is involved, please get in touch with either Sam, Nonie or myself. Our details are on the CSPA page of Cranbrookconnect.
Many thanks
Susie Fuller
CSPA President
Reuse and Recycle Uniform Sale
The CSPA is excited to announce that we will be holding another Reuse and Recycle Uniform Sale at the Cranbrook Boat Shed on Thursday 20 and Friday 21 October. All funds raised will be donated to a charity chosen by Senior School Leaders.
Please bring all your pre-loved uniforms in good condition to:
Junior School – Junior School Reception
Senior School – by students in bins located in Houses
The sale in Term 1 was a huge success, with $5792 raised and donated to the Red Cross. The Year 6 Leaders selected the Red Cross due to the wonderful flood relief work they do. We hope to see as many of you there as possible!
All funds raised will be donated to a registered ACNC charity chosen by Senior School Leaders.
IMPORTANT: UPDATING FAMILIES ON COVID-19 CASE NUMBERS IN EACH COHORT We update the number of positive Covid-19 cases reported for each cohort regularly on the homepage of Cranbrook Connect, click here to view.
Science Week
Our sincerest apologies to the Hansimikali family whose name we misspelt in last week’s newsletter.
After our recent Parent Engagement Session on how children learn Mathematics, our parents and their sons enjoyed the opportunity to share some Maths or Science experiences. Sometimes, it was ‘like father, like son’!
Emmanuel Hansimikali (above left) in 5B seems to be as scientifically minded as his father, Evan Hansimikali (above right), was back in his day at Cranbrook Junior School (above right).
Music News – Week 7
Year 3-6 Music Eisteddfod – photos and results
What an incredible afternoon! After the excitement of the Book Week Parade and Spelling Bee Final, the performances in the Music Eisteddfod were sensational! Our young musicians prepared themselves well and displayed amazing skill and polish in their performances. We were so proud of them! Our four external adjudicators were impressed not only by the number of boys that performed, but the extraordinary quality of their playing, repertoire selection and musical maturity.
Thank you to the boys and their teachers for their hard work and to the parents who supported the afternoon. Please view photos below:
Book Week 2022
‘Dreaming with eyes open’…what a fantastic theme to celebrate the imagination of readers and writers. Throughout the week, students and staff engaged in an array of activities and events that connected us to the theme and stories collectively. Here is a snapshot:
For the first time since 2018, the whole Junior School physically came together to bring characters to life in our Book Character Parade and House Celebration. Albeit a chilly morning, the sun prevailed, and students, staff and parents embraced the event with much enjoyment and appreciation. The Houses then gathered to meet their buddies’ book characters up close. They shared a sweet story, ‘Most Marshmallows’, that inspired us to believe that by being true to ourselves, each of us has the power to be extraordinary; encouraging us to dream big. Buddy groups then brought their characters to life by stepping into role and capturing them with group action photographs. Each student’s departing gift…a yummy marshmallow!
Our inaugural Book at Bedtime event for Kindergarten and Year 1 was a magical and memorable evening of fairy lights, PJs, cuddly toys, and stories. Larry the Library Lobster even made a larger-than-life guest appearance, ‘escaping’ from the iCentre to join this special event.
Years K-2 and Years 5-6 were treated to online theatrical book adaptations of two of the CBCA Awards shortlisted titles, ‘Stellarphant’ by James Foley and ‘The Detective’s Guide to Ocean Travel’ by Nicki Greenberg, respectively. Produced by Meerkat Productions, students and teachers responded with praise to this opportunity to view actors unravel a story through performance including songs and puppetry.
Local author, Nathan Luff, visited our Years 3 and 4 students for a rollicking journey through his storytelling career since childhood. He reminded us that stories are everywhere – from books to podcasts, from the stage to games. Nathan’s use of wordplay and exaggeration appealed; motivating many students to pursue reading his books. Nathan’s books are available to purchase online here and they will be sent to the School for distribution and signing. Please place orders by Monday, 5th September.
To conclude celebrations, classes have participated in the annual Book Week Kahoot Quiz in recent Library sessions. Which House will be awarded Literary Legends for 2022?
Finally, a heartfelt thank you to families and staff for their support, creativity, and enthusiasm in making Book Week 2022 a wonderful promotion of reading and literature for our school community.
