From the Junior School
From the Deputy Head of Junior School – Academic
Learning to take risks – mistakes in learning
Following on from Mrs Brown’s newsletter last week on “learning to take risks – the power of play”, I wanted to write about learning to take risks – mistakes in learning. Our Junior School teachers play a pivotal role in this process. By cultivating trust and establishing rapport, the girls are encouraged to venture into unfamiliar territories which enables them to grow and evolve. By taking risks in learning, students are equipped with invaluable skills such as problem solving, critical and creative thinking and creativity. As students grapple with a challenge and learn to navigate through the process of finding a solution or answer, they develop resilience and perseverance. From mistakes our girls are provided an opportunity to reflect, improve and develop a deeper understanding of concepts. The sense of pride and accomplishment after overcoming challenges fuels the girls’ motivation and drive to tackle complex tasks with confidence.
By fostering an environment in the Junior School where our girls feel supported in taking risks, it not only builds academic success but also nurtures students as lifelong learners to be adaptable and resilient when faced with a challenge. Speaking at our weekly assembly about mistakes in learning and being brave, our Junior School girls readily share when they’ve had a “fabulous failure”, they share with their peers the path they went down to find the correct solution, whether it was trying something different, asking questions or working with their peers and teachers. When sharing their feelings the girls confidently expressed how proud they felt. This is a powerful dialogue shared amongst our student community; hearing from peers that errors happen in their learning helps all students in the Junior School see mistakes as part of everyone’s journey. As adults it is important that we model mistakes and the strategies we use to overcome them.
It is wonderful to also walk into classrooms across the Junior School observing girls having a go even when the task is challenging. Whether working independently or collaboratively, our girls are viewing mistakes as opportunities for growth. We are very Pymble proud of our girls having a go in their learning.
“If you take lots of risks and do the tricky things, sometimes you end up having the most fun!” Mira Samy
“When I am doing Maths, sometimes if it is easy, so we can take some more risks and do amazing things!” Elizabeth Lim
“Life is a boardgame of change. If you never roll the dice, you can’t win. This is what I keep in mind when approaching new challenges – when you take a chance there is an opportunity to succeed.” – Loriah Zhang
“Life is a storm, constantly throwing challenges at you. Some people have adapted to fit in and stay safe. Others have grown strong and stretched high, they have learnt from the challenges and taken risks and come out successful. We need to be like those people who are daring to challenge, improve and succeed.” – Ellie Zhang
“Risks are how you learn; they are not dangers that stay in your way forever.” – Scarlett Qui
“If you find an opportunity, grasp it at once – for it may never come again.” Sarah Lu
“Opportunity only comes from risks.” – Elaine Liu
“It is okay to make mistakes because that is how we learn.” -Dakota Gu
“Taking risks when we are writing is important and making mistakes is even more important because they help me learn.” Neve Sadananda
“Taking risks are crucial because mistakes are part of your learning process. If you never have taken a risk in learning, you wouldn’t be who you are or as brave. Risk taking is crucial.” Alex Xiao
“Making mistakes is a way to learn. Taking risks helps build your confidence with your work.” Gisele Whitehead
“Making mistakes in your learning is a big part of life. It is how you learn.” Ellie Rose Ruiz Del Portal Greene
“Mistakes represent taking risk and although you may not have succeeded the first time there’s nothing worse than not having a try in the first place. You feel more satisfied when you’ve had another go and succeed than if you got it right the first time.” Emma Popli
“Mistakes are the first step in learning and help you move towards success but without perseverance, you will never know how close to succeeding you really came. I feel triumphant when I overcome a challenge and try something new.” Chelsea Wang
Thank you to our parents who attended our Academic Series on “Supporting Reading at Home” and “Being a Junior Mathematician”. Please click here to view the resource provided to parents on questions to ask your daughter after reading to help develop reading comprehension.
A message from Mr Stephen Robinson – Acting Deputy Head of Junior School – Operations
National Ride Safely to School Day
Thank you to all parents who supported the National Ride Safely to School initiative that took place last Friday. We had 288 students either ride, scoot or bring their bike or scooter to school as part of the day, filling the turning circle and internal road with a sea of colours.
Our extended lunchtime was a fantastic opportunity for students to ride with their friends. Some girls participated in speed trials with Mrs Brown on the tennis court, while others embraced their inner dare-devil and rode down the internal road. I am very proud of the girls who showed great resilience and courage and overcame nerves and the odd crash!
We extend our thanks to our wonderful families that labelled bags and bikes to make the day so much easier. We also wish to thank Harris Farm at St Ives for their donation of fresh apples, bananas and oranges for students.
A reminder that students are welcome to bring their bike or scooter to school everyday, with students able to ride at lunch under the supervision of teachers.
Pedal Your Own Smoothie
Thank you to all our wonderful JSPG volunteers who made our Smoothie event such a success. Students loved riding the bikes to blend their smoothies. Pedal your own Smoothie is always a highlight for our girls in the Junior School.
A message from Mrs Kate Giles – Head of Wellbeing K-6
Today the girls have enjoyed our inaugural whole Junior School Wellbeing Day. Starting with an Assembly to launch the day, the girls were reminded of the importance of looking after their wellbeing and caring for themselves through things like getting enough sleep, moving their bodies and being kind to themselves through positive self-talk.
The girls then rotated through various activities to focus on their Mind, Body and Spirit. The activities included some of our youngest girls exploring sensory play, being creative and learning different techniques to calm their emotions and our older girls learning new skills such as knitting and sewing as well as engaging in dance, team sports, learning positive self-care habits and spending time in nature. Some of the activities across the rotations were designed and co-led by students, including paper making, drama, book club and cooking. Thank you to Mia Farthing in Year 5, Jasmine Smith in Year 4, Riya Samy in Year 4, Aarthi Rao in Year 4 and Maisie Borg in Year 4 for your wonderful ideas.
Following these rotations, the girls all came together in their House groups to learn some more skipping techniques, enthusiastically led by the Year 6 House leaders. The girls enjoyed sharing their new skipping skills and the teachers enjoyed learning these too!
The day ended with all girls spending time reflecting on the day, both personally and as a class. I encourage you to talk to your daughter about what she enjoyed today and how she felt taking time to focus on her wellbeing.
Parent Wellbeing Series
Due to added interest, we are holding a second session on ‘How to help your daughter with her emotions’. The session will be the same as the one held earlier this term and will focus on emotional regulation and how to help your daughter manage her emotions.
You will also hear from Heidi Lynch, Kindergarten Co-ordinator and Tracy Reid, Year 3 Co-ordinator about the programs used in the classroom. The session will be held on 9 May at 8.30am in the 3-6 Library. Please sign up using this link. https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1Am5Desq5aYVR0NGNYbkws3ggVNM0cB6_8hnuxlSvly0/edit
Junior School Digital News
Junior School Digital News
Term 1 2024 Key Dates
Friday 29 March Good Friday (Public Holiday)
Monday 1 April Easter Monday (Public Holiday)
Wednesday 3 April Year 2 Illustrator (11.20am to 12.00pm, 12.00pm to 12.40pm)
Saturday 6 April IPSHA Cross Country
Saturday 6 April JSPG Family Movie Night (ticketed event) 4.00pm-8.00pm
Tuesday 9 April Years 5 to 12 End of Term Assembly, 1.20pm to 2.00 pm
Friday 12 April K-2 Decorate a Cookie and Easter Hat Parade
Friday 12 April Years 3 to 6 Skip Off
Friday 12 April Last day of Term 1
Tuesday 30 April First day of Term 2
From the Junior School Parent Group (JSPG)
JSPG Family Movie Night – Saturday 6 April
Our Junior School families are warmly invited to the JSPG Family Movie Night on Saturday 6 April from 4.00pm to 8.00pm on Main Oval. The evening will feature a BBQ dinner, a big screen movie screening of Migration, popcorn and an inflatable obstacle course.
This is our only full Junior School family event together – come along and enjoy the beautiful backdrop of the College as the sun sets. We’ve moved the date forward this year while the weather is still warm, and put your clocks back an hour when you go to bed for an extra hour of sleep!
Funds raised from this event will be donated to the Junior School to help purchase additional learning resources for our girls. Please register here by Wednesday 27 March.
JSPG Easter Cookie Decorating for Kindergarten to Year 2 – Friday 12 April
The JSPG is pleased to hold the Easter Cookie Decorating activity for Kindergarten to Year 2 this year. Each girl will receive two Easter cookies to decorate in class during the morning. The cookies are nut-free and made from natural ingredients. Icing, sprinkles and a small selection of lollies will be used to decorate each cookie. Gluten-free and vegan cookies are available on request.
Please register here by Friday 5 April for this fun activity on the last day of term!
PPA Year 4 Mother and Daughter Camp
Year 4 Mums, please save the date – Saturday 1 June to Sunday 2 June, overnight at Vision Valley. Look out for the invite on MyPymble soon!
Upcoming Events
- Year 5 Park Date – Monday 1 April
Meet at the playground from 10.00am to 12.00pm. Come and meet girls across all Year 5 classes. Please see the flyer for more details.
Wishing our Junior School families a “Hoppy” Easter – we hope you all enjoy lots of chocolate over the long weekend break.
Please contact us with any questions or feedback at pymblelcjspg@gmail.com
Kate Brown
Head of Junior School