Shearwater, the Mullumbimby Steiner School
Ph (02) 6684 3223
349 Left Bank Road, Mullumbimby, NSW 2482
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Class 6 speaks

24/9/2020

 
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Our Class 6 students recently completed the Yellow Lantern public speaking program, culminating in the presentation of their speeches last week - a wonderful display of courage, insight and humour. Yellow Lantern is a national provider of public speaking school programs and speaking clubs for kids, with an emphasis on positive self talk, empowered speech and celebrating personality.

There was a good variety of topics, from animal rights, climate change, bullying and the empowerment of women to model trains, making tiramisu, wave pools, and why we should not fear sharks. There were philosophical speeches about the power of friendship, the bridge between astronomy and astrology and why money can’t buy happiness.

This year, because of crowd restrictions, parents were unable to attend the speeches at school, but the event still carried enough excitement and anticipation to test the nerves of most of the students. They certainly rose to the occasion and presented beautifully written speeches. With thanks to Gemma West from Yellow Lantern who was the facilitator this year.

William Keyte
Class 6 Teacher

Preschool

24/9/2020

 
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Spring is here now, spring is here now
birdies build your nest.
weave together straw and feather
doing each your best.
Spring is here now, spring is here now
flowers are waking, too.
daisies, lilies, daffodillies
now are coming through.
Spring is here now, spring is here now
all around is fair.
shimmer, glimmer on the river,
joy is everywhere.


Spring is definitely here. Birds are singing, the sun is shining, joy is in the air. We've been lapping up this amazing weather with more outside play, drinking up the sun forces, watching the flower blossoms burst out of their buds with Lady Spring's warm kisses. Watering our garden, planting, weeding, and taking a deep breath in as we smell the jasmine and all the other sweet smells of spring.

This term, the children at Preschool have been taking great pride in making their very own clapping sticks. We started off with a story of a little friend just the same age, who was sitting underneath the Coolamon Tree, wondering what he could do, when a great idea came to him. First, he found just the right sticks which needed sawing to just the right size. Then he whittled the bark off and sanded his sticks, and sanded his sticks, and sanded his sticks. When, finally, they were nice and smooth, he was able to paint them and make a very special rainbow serpent bag to put them in to keep safe. 

The Preschool children loved this story so much, they were eager to make their own set of clapping sticks. We went for a walk down to the Coolamon Tree to find just the right stick, not just any stick. Then we sawed the stick to size and measured to make sure both sticks were even. We whittled the sticks, taking great care with our safety gear on (silk cloths and muslin of course). Next, we sanded, and sanded and sanded until no more sanding could be had. Then we were finally able to paint them, with so much care and dedication and enthusiasm, ready for our Spring Festival. 

Meanwhile, in the garden, Mother Mulberry Tree was spreading out her branches out after a long winter's nap, bursting with juicy green leaves for our silkworms to munch on and juicy mulberries for us to eat (and for the birds as well). Yum! Yum! Our silkworms hatched from their eggs very hungry and needed lots of care and fresh mulberry leaves every day. 

The children loved the story of Silky Wiggly, who hatched from her teenie tiny egg very hungry, wanting something to munchity crunch on. Soon she grew big and plump and was too big to move around, so she made herself a silky yellow bed to sleep in. When she awoke from her slumbers she peeked out of her cocoon to find that she had grown to be a silk moth. She was so happy that she flittered and she fluttered her silk moth wings and found that she was able to lay eggs! When Silky Wiggly finished laying her eggs, we put her eggs in a warm dry place, safe until next year, when Mother Mulberry stretches her branches out after a long Winter's nap.

The mulberries have been so delicious that we just had to make an apple and mulberry pie to enjoy at our Spring Festival! Yum! Yum! The children made flower garlands, decorated the Coolamon Tree, sang songs using our clapping sticks and finished our festival with a slice of warm pie. What a way to welcome Spring!

Susan Denney
Preschool Group Leader

Sports News

23/9/2020

 
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​Spaghetti Circus has been at the School this term for some fun skills-building workshops with our Primary classes. We also had Nash Campbell, from Byron Beez, providing basketball sessions which inspired lots of lunch-time ball play.

These additional sports experiences were funded by the federal government's Sporting Schools grant, which will be spent on swimming lessons in Term 4.

The Athletics Carnival results have now been finalised and I am pleased to announce that more than 30 records were broken from classes 4 to 11. Well done Shearwaters! Thanks also to the cheerleading group for their energetic opening of the event and to Year 12 student Bodhi Hallas, for gracefully sharing her experience and enthusiam with the Class 6 student cheerleaders.

In Term 4, Shearwater will participate in two regional sports activities, with tennis in Grafton in October and basketball in Coffs Harbour at the start of November.

Watch this space for more exciting news on the inaugural Shearwater Olympics 2021!

Wishing all our students, families and staff a happy and active school holidays.

Magnum Brotto
PDHPE Teacher

Spring Festival

23/9/2020

 
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Class 3J with their horn harvest and one of the mass plantings of chamomile that were part of this week's Spring Festival.


Our Primary School celebrated the 2020 spring equinox this week with a mass planting of chamomile matricaria. A total of 239 seedlings were planted on the School grounds, by classes 1 to 6.

The equinox on September 22 marks a point of equilibrium, in which day and night are of equal length, and from which the days begin to lengthen as the sun moves towards the southern hemisphere. Spring Festivals in many cultures are symbolically celebrated with images of growth and new life (such as the northern hemisphere Easter, where the risen Christ is a majestic picture of new life being reborn from the ravages of winter). 


As part of the festival activities, the students made flower garlands, enjoyed 'spring string' recitals and made sunflower compost and clay balls to take home or place on the school grounds. These will provide a bit of spring cheekiness as sunflowers begin to pop up here and there.

Another important aspect of the Spring Festival is the lifting of the horn manure (biodynamic preparation 500) which took place before the equinox. Our Class 3 farmers were willing helpers as the horns, which were stuffed with cow manure and buried in the earth over the winter, were harvested, and the horn manure was dissolved in water and sprayed over the School grounds to enrich the soil.

Why Chamomile? 

The chamomile planted by the students was grown from seed, at the School nursery, by our Class 3 students, as part of their studies on biodynamic agriculture, which included building a lasagna compostela compost heap to which they applied biodynamic compost preparation (Yarrow 502, Nettle 504, Oak Bark 505, Dandelion 506 and Valerian 507).

The function of this preparation in a compost heap is to do with digestion of the organic matter. “The preparations promote a good breakdown of the proteins in the compost to humid plant nutrients, and prevent the protein breaking down to ammonia which would be lost to the atmosphere," explain Peter Proctor and Gillian Cole in their biodynamic gardening book Grasp the Nettle.

We are hoping that by the beginning of Term 4, the students will be surrounded by the gesture that the chamomile plant presents in its delicate form. The vision is that this plant enters the children's learning process, while at the same time becoming a resource for free play, in the form of potions, lotions, teas and medicines. It says so much about our School that this is a natural part of early Primary play! There should also be an abundance of flowers for staff and student tea parties, and for Biodynamic Northern Rivers' 503 Chamomile preparation. 

It is interesting to note, in terms of the current pandemic, that during the First World War, this species was used for the treatment of diarrhea and was also a common home remedy for digestive issues and as a steam bath for lung problems, as well as being a preservative for meat. We still use it for its wonderful calming qualities. In nature, chamomile grows in compacted clay soils that can be turned to mud, so it is a wonderful pioneer garden plant which fits the profile of the majority of the soil in the School grounds. We are hoping that we can use this generous, healing plant in the future and there is a good chance that it will adapt to our soil conditions and become a natural part of our garden.  An interesting experiment!

Deep gratitude goes to biodynamic great grandmother, Uta Wight, and farmer and writer, Kaye Groves, from  Biodynamic Northern Rivers, for witnessing the lifting of the horns. Also many thanks to Primary School Coordinator Cathy Jones and staff Renata Oshoa, Judy Patterson and Libby McQueen for their assistance during the festival.
​

Nadia de Souza Pietramale

Class 5 Greek Olympics

22/9/2020

 
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​On Friday 4th September, weapons clanged on the floor.  It was 9 o’clock and the time of peace had begun. We took the sun chariot to the location of the Gods - Mount Brunswick - where Class 5 of Ancient Shearwater would join its rival Ancient Cape Byron.

But now it was a time of peace and we had to work together. We would be competing in the one and only Greek Olympics where we would attempt to win glory and fame from our almighty king, Zeus.  We would be competing within the great city-states of Greece. I am a citizen of Athens. The other competitors were Corinth, Delphi, Thebes and Sparta.

At the end of the day, Zeus blessed us all with good fortune medals for our hard work. It was a day I’ll never forget - in a bad way, too, because I was really sore the next morning!

Tai Farrell
Class 5P

Year 8 Personal Interest Projects

22/9/2020

 


​​The Year 8 Personal Interest Project (PIP) is a six-month journey, providing students with the opportunity to delve into an area of interest, a passion or something they would simply like to learn. Students are encouraged to seek a mentor in the community to support them along the way, to provide feedback and to discuss ways of overcoming problems. In addition, students are required to journal their experience through writing, drawing or photography and to document their process, thoughts, feelings and struggles.
 
A significant part of the Personal Interest Project is the development of time management skills and creating realistic and achievable goals. For many students, their projects stimulate ideas and choices for future creative direction and career opportunities. This year, our students had additional barriers to overcome due to COVID-19 and the lockdown period, just when the PIPs were well underway. Many had to change course or redirect their topic to suit the ensuing restrictions. Another challenging concept for the students was the fact that parents, mentors and friends were not able to attend their presentations.
 
Regardless of these obstacles, the class put together an incredibly diverse, unique and artistic array of displays and their speeches were just as impressive. Projects ranged from documentaries to fishing lures, coding to fitting out a boat. Please take the time to look through the photos and congratulate Class 8 on their projects.

Lindel Gass & Rhys Edwards
Year 8 Guardians

Class 3

21/9/2020

 
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​As the nine-year-old child begins to develop an awareness of the wider world and forms opinions and ideas on the way they see the world, we bring them into the development of mankind through farming, creation stories, deeds and misdeeds, human values and more.
 
In their third year of Primary School, the children work by using their hands to mould and form that which is within reach. Working with the elements to nurture seeds; watching them unfold into shoots and moving forward into blossoming and fruiting is fulfilling in their yearly cycle. Using the fruits to turn the harvest into a meal completes this and the children have made turmeric powder, planted wheat, cared for chickens and ducks, weeded and planted gardens, and enjoyed the citrus that grows around the School.

The use of wool, fleece, fabrics, clay, wood and wax allows the children to experience the development of home industry. The beautiful reality of creating something helps develop their sense of will and, with encouragement, they achieve to the best of their ability.

Stories of creation from around the world have allowed the children to see the world from different perspectives whilst noting the connections we all share in our history.

The children are currently writing their own newspaper called Dreams and Scenes, using their English skills to present an insight into their weekends and other events in their lives. This was inspired by our sister class who have been writing for some time, and we hope to move into other areas of classic newspaper writing soon, including a sports section and some advertising.

Class 3 have also been learning about the history of measurement, punctuation, times tables, Indonesian, Eurythmy, painting, form drawing, crochet, choir, the science of air and have begun their strings ensemble lessons.  Our days are full. They are busy with industry and as each day closes, we stand together in completion knowing there is always a new adventure beginning tomorrow.

Julie Marx
Class 3 Teacher

Class 4

9/9/2020

 
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It is now our fourth year together. We have recently stepped over an important line that signifies less time together than what we have already spent. What an incredible moment in our journey to take stock and, indeed, look forward to what is to come. It is a reminder to keep readjusting the way we look at each other. The children in our class are very different from who they were last year and the year before that. In that respect, we must treat each other in a different way and learn to grow with each other.

We have recently started having regular ‘class meetings’ - an important milestone in our schooling life where the children are able to express issues that arise in the class, that need discussion and action. Examples of these include: items going missing from bags; how we treat classroom equipment; and the language we use between class members. We are modelling a way to resolve simple issues with the intention to extend these skills over the next few years. It has been so impressive to witness the children’s level of engagement and willingness to discuss some difficult topics.

We have also been fortunate enough to receive a new teacher into our class group. Bonnie teaches in our class every Thursday and brings amazing content to the group in new and exciting ways. For me, as the original class teacher, it feels like we have welcomed an auntie into the fold. The children love what Bonnie brings and it is turning out to be a really good example of how we can build a team to support a class group.

We are a lucky group of individuals that get to call ourselves class 4N.

Nick Vuorinen
Class 4 Teacher 

Year 11 Drama

9/9/2020

 

Last week, our Year 11 Drama and Entertainment Industry students, performed their production of The Woman in the Window by Alma De Groen to appreciative audiences of students from Years 9 to 11. Unfortunately we were unable to invite parents and the wider community to this year's event. But a film was made for parents, capturing the wonderful performances and stagecraft.

"We were very impressed by the students' interpretation of what is quite a complex play," said parent of one of the performers, Catherine Bartlett. "The staging, lighting and music were quite spectacular and Charlie and Flynn did an exceptional job on the lighting design.”
 
Kumari Ellis was another parent who wrote to express her delight at what she described as an “amazing performance". "I honestly was so impressed with the production, the set, the design, the lighting, the professional standard of the experience, and then the play itself. What a fabulous play! It really was profound. And all the more so for these times we find ourselves in.

“Everyone was exceptional. That they managed to learn and remember so many lines was incredible. It was a treat to go out and see great theatre so well done [and] also a timely reminder of how fortunate we are to live with free speech, to be able to write what we feel to, and all the rest.”
 
The production was an absolute pleasure to direct. I want to thank these talented students for their hard work and perseverance, and for their dedication to making the production a success. I also want to thank Flynn for being there after school so many times, and being so committed to making our technical dreams a reality.

I particularly want to thank Charlie Gill for all his work: designing the lights and vision and calling the show as stage manager, as well as the hours of work he put in after school and on weekends in order to make the show beautiful. Charlie is passionate about this work and has purchased his own lighting and vision equipment which he generously lent to the School for the performances. His participation in The Woman in the Window was invaluable.
 
April Galetti
Drama Coordinator

Playgroup

9/9/2020

 

Sadly, Rosewood Cottage has had to shut its doors this term, due to COVID-19 restrictions. We were so lucky to have the first five weeks of the term to come together and deepen our connections. It was wonderful to see the children bonding and engaging more with each other in their play. I noticed parents seeking each other’s company more than ever, sharing support, warmth and laughter. We also enjoyed crafting whales, dolphins, kangaroos and brumbies out of the beautiful felt we made.

First thing in the morning, as the children arrive at Playgroup they head straight for the shelves and baskets. Here we see self-initiated play at its best, with its quality of attentiveness and the absence of premeditated purpose or set goals.

Self-initiated play is how the young child makes sense of, and processes experiences from, everyday life. It activates an inner mobility, particularly if we are using ‘open-ended’ toys such as cloth, rocks and sticks. It is deeply satisfying and empowering. Allowing children the time and space to experience the sense of wonder and deep nurturing that quality play can bring, is one of the keys to healthy childhood development, and something that is being lost amid the busyness of modern family life.

In Term 3, the children have been full of spring energy and enjoying exploring their physical strength. Gardener Renate had many helping hands with the mulching (pictured above) and the children had fun with the garden trolley, transporting their friends around the yard. When the billy cart got stuck as it was driving over the bridge, the children discussed how they were going to solve the problem and soon had it back on the road.

We hope to be able to welcome our Playgroup families back to Rosewood Cottage soon.

Carina Halliday
Playgroup Coordinator

Athletics Carnival 2020

9/9/2020

 
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Last week saw students from Class 4 to 11 "breaking-in" our new sports oval, with the School's annual athletics carnival held on campus for the first time. Like most events in this pandemic year, the carnival looked quite different. The Primary School and High School events were held on consecutive days, creating a quieter atmosphere. But there was plenty of grace, speed, strength and sportsmanship on display, as well as lots of smiling faces.

According to PDHPE teacher Magnum Brotto, participation levels were record-breaking and so were the athletes. "Quite a few records were broken, especially in Years 8 and 9," said Magnum, with more details to come in the Week 10 newsletter - watch this space. 

"Many thanks to all the staff and students for a great and fun couple of days."

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