Up to the age of 10, teachers should strive to make everything live for the child. Let them make the plants speak, and the animals act as moral beings. Let them turn the whole world into imaginative stories and fables.
 
Stories are the medium through which the world, and all the things in it, are communicated to Primary School children, and the art of story creation and storytelling is something that teachers are encouraged to develop. Rudolf Steiner also encouraged teachers to make up their own stories, particularly in circumstances where everyday issues are causing concern, such as social disharmony, family break-up or serious illness.

Steiner described a vivid picture of the teacher hurrying off to school with a new story to tell the children and how their faces radiated in the listening of it, as if they were themselves part of the story.
 
There are three types of stories told to the children in Primary School: age and development-appropriate stories, lesson stories inspired by lesson content, and curative stories. All good stories will contain all three of these elements. They may manifest as episodic narratives, fables, legends, myths, poetry and verse, plays, songs or fantasy. Fundamental to locating the content of stories is a thorough understanding of the Primary School learning program, based as it is on child development.
 
This learning program or curriculum was initially developed at the Waldorf School in Stuttgart and subsequently built on by Steiner schools throughout the world. As Steiner schools spread to other continents, the Euro-centric curriculum has often followed. In 1971, Lorien Novalis was established as Australia's second Steiner school. Part of its charter was to take into account its regional and local geography and culture. Shearwater has continued this lively process, developing its own program to include an appreciation of this time and place. This creative approach has provided a source of inspiration to teachers who look to local geography, flora and fauna in their story-telling.

Winter is well and truly here - a time to turn inwards to find our own inner light and warmth. We hope all of our Preschool families are enjoying this time of candlelight and warm fires at night, with gentle, nourishing stories for the children. Eating delicious warming foods as we rug up and keep our feet snuggled into woolly socks and slippers.
 
At Preschool, all of our children have celebrated the longest night – with each group holding their own Winter Festival. In readiness for our festivals, the children have been involved in preparing apple crumbles and pumpkin soups to share. We have been busy making gnome hats, lanterns and candles and practising our songs and our 'Lantern Spiral’, a symbol of the inward reflection that is marked by the longest night and an opportunity to help create a rhythm of quiet inwardness in the children.
 
As well as the lantern walk, another important part of our winter festivals are the special songs that we practise and sing at this time of year. The following are two of our favourites:

This term, the Year 11 Visual Design students have taken on the role of specialist teacher, choosing a design-making activity they are interested in and then teaching it to the class. This role saw them do research, prepare an example, create an informative and aesthetically pleasing handout, organise the materials, consider and address relevant Work Health & Safety issues, instruct the class and reflect on the feedback given to them by their peers. This experience provided the students with a unique learning opportunity and one that they really enjoyed, despite being nervous to begin with.

Anna Delzoppo
Visual Art & Design Teacher

Over the last six weeks, our Year 10 students have been on a journey through time, beginning with a study of humanity’s oldest surviving written story, Gilgamesh, (which they learned, was a lot more interesting than the version they read in Class 4) to the literature of the Baroque period. This was a time where Man was looking out at the stars for the first time, with the aid of newly invented telescopes, as well as at the less visible world through microscopes, where they were greatly inspired. Through each text, we inquired into the development of human consciousness and asked ourselves, ‘What does the story reveal about the human condition at this time?’
 
In Lynne’s class, students were immersed in epic poetry; reading an abridged version of The Iliad, where ancient battles for Troy washed over us, and we wondered about a time when the collective consciousness of the group outweighed that of the individual, and where the gods manipulated the human beings for their own pleasure. We pondered on what causes we might willingly devote 10 years of our lives to.
 
We dipped back into The Canterbury Tales where the satirical characters offered stories that surprised us in their forward thinking. We revisited Camelot, with King Arthur’s knights, and enjoyed the powerful female characters. We inquired into the values of each period, as represented through the stories, in order to understand how human identity and society have changed over time.
 
We explored the origins of writing in cuneiform and Egyptian hieroglyphics. Rei instructed us on the art of writing simple Japanese kanji and Shiri explained the basics of Hebrew, both of which are read from right to left. We created timelines in groups, which reviewed all the significant periods and events studied since the beginning of Primary School, building a picture of major events shaping human evolution up to today.
 
Under the microscopes last week, we examined a number of prepared slides - from a drop of human blood to a rat’s tail and a bumblebee, and wrote inspired poetry to express our wonder at the natural world. We attempted to view the natural world from a religious perspective, as most during Baroque times did, and then narrowed our focus as an exercise, to look at a natural object from other perspectives, including aesthetic, legal, ethical, emotional, artistic and mathematical.
 
It has been a rich journey for most students, and one that we hope has planted seeds of wonder about the human condition, that will continue to germinate for years to come.

Lynne Holian
English Teacher

Theatrical production is a collaborative, creative form of fine art. It is simultaneously individuality and collectivity working in unison. Theatrical art demands the collaboration of the actors with one another, with a director, with the various technical support people upon whom they depend for scenery and lighting, and with people who advertise and sell the show. In addition, the theatre depends more than most art forms upon audience response.

Our Year 11 production of The Peach Season, by the contemporary Australian playwright Debra Oswald, was a fine example of the team effort that is at the heart of theatre. The cast and crew worked tirelessly to bring the words on the page to life. They created a memorable cautionary tale, leading the audience through a range of authentic human emotions to arrive at a place of redemption for their characters.

The cast and crew experienced the electricity that is live performance. It is the presence of the audience that creates the final ingredient to make the performance live. Everything that has been learnt must be brought into the now – into ‘the moment’ for the audience.

I am very grateful to the many people who contributed their time and energy to the show and particularly to our audiences who braved the challenging weather to come and complete the circle.

Patrea Mourtzakis
Director

An enthusiastic team of 25 of our Year 10 students recently participated in the Northern Rivers Science and Engineering Challenge, held at the Southern Cross University Lismore campus. Pitting their skills against other bright young people from the region, the Year 10 Science students came away with the second highest marks at the annual challenge, and a well-deserved award for best team spirit. The trophy can be admired in the High School office, along with trophies from previous years.

For the Challenge, each of the participating eight schools had teams of three to four members competing in different competitive activities involving science and engineering concepts, which were presented to the judges at the end of the day. Activities included developing rail networks that convey trains in the most efficient way possible; constructing a bionic hand using straws and PVC piping; building a tall earthquake-proof tower using only basic materials; and designing a Mars Rover to carry a precariously balanced load over a rough surface.

The students worked together as a team and tackled the activities with revolutionary fervor. The bridge was the final challenge and although Hugh, Dylan, Saxon and Tashi worked tirelessly against time to ensure its success, unfortunately it could not hold the final mass. It was a fantastic day out also providing a snapshot of possible career paths for the students.

Marie Perry
Science Teacher

Our Year 12 HSC Modern History, Physics and Chemistry  students recently took part in a three-day excursion to Sydney. While the Science students visited the Australian Nuclear Science and Technology Organisation at Lucas Heights (ANSTO), home to Australia’s only research reactor and one of the country’s premier research institutions, the History class attended the annual HSC History study days, held by the History Teachers’ Association of NSW at the University of Sydney.
 
HSC Physics and Chemistry Teacher Gerard Braithwaite said the visit to ANSTO was a wonderful opportunity to bring to life the more theoretical aspects of the HSC Science course, on nuclear science. "The tour enabled the students to more deeply understand the role that ANSTO plays in the production of nuclear medicines for the Asia/Pacific region, irradiated silicon for the electronics industry, and a host of projects, from all areas of scientific research, involving neutron scattering and particle acceleration."

According to Year 12 Physics student Scott Lerch, the visit was not only a great learning experience but also a lot of fun. "You can study and research a lot about ANSTO online but it doesn’t compare to going and visiting the facility and having a guide that works there telling you everything they know about the science and engineering behind the fission reactor and particle accelerator,” said Scott.

Ravi Newman-Pache, also from the Year 12 Physics class, agreed. “The ANSTO excursion was a great experience," said Ravi. "It was inspiring, educational and eye-opening. Getting to see, in person, what we’ve been learning about helped with our understanding. But it was also really cool to see all the machinery and high tech equipment.”

The Modern History students who attended two of the university study days, also described their experience as useful, educational and fun.

"It was such an insightful and inspiring experience to go from our little Shearwater to the big city, and be able to gain a sneak peak into life as a university student," said Tiane Alexander. "We attended lectures on the Rise of Nazism, study tips for the exam and the Nuclear Age, among other things. It was amazing to be in a place filled with people as invested in, and inspired by, the subject as you are. I also felt especially honoured to have the chance to be lectured by the professors who write the very text books we learn from! It really gave me a motivating push to get through the rest of the year."

Emile Scheffers agreed. "The lectures brought a sense of simplicity, clarity and understanding to complex course concepts, the exam, and the overall HSC Modern History course," he said.

"The whole trip was an exceptional experience: walking through the unfamiliar city, and the Chinese and botanic gardens; admiring the curious ingenuity of Vivid festival and the subtle vastness of the State Library and experiencing the emotional stories of the Holocaust museum."

A final note from Gerard: "It was such a pleasure to be able to spend this time with some of our graduating class, and we thank the School administration for making such a trip possible."