Hello, and welcome to the twenty fifth of my monthly Principal's blogs. In this post I will discuss the Biggest Morning Tea, Adventures in Antarctica, our NESA inspection and why every child should have access to a musical instrument.
Update
The commencement of Term 2 has seen some challenges with staffing in our school, as Covid and general absence has made the availability of casual staff unbelievably slim. The nationwide teacher shortage is certainly real and being felt in schools everywhere. We are grateful for the support of our Board of Directors, who have endorsed the recruitment of an additional part-time teacher for Term 3 and 4 to provide additional support to our staff.
Biggest Morning Tea and Family BBQ
On Thursday, May 19, Richard Gill School hosted a Biggest Morning Tea to raise money for cancer. Our generous parent body all provided a plate of sweet, savoury, or fruit items, and we invited our neighbours at ‘Little Kindy’ to join us. Together with Little Kindy, we were able to raise $138 for cancer.
Later that afternoon we also hosted a Parent/Carer BBQ where families were invited to the school to view student work and speak with staff in a less formal setting. It’s the first time we have let families into the school this year with Covid restrictions now eased. $157.95 was raised for our P&F from the sausage sizzle and a further $70 was received in donations from Mrs Lee Curran, Mrs Judy Anshaw and Mrs Gail Greedy. It was great to see everyone face to face once again. And thanks to all who participated.
Musica Viva – Adventures in the Antarctic
On Thursday, May 26, all students at Richard Gill School visited Muswellbrook Public School (MPS) to attend a Musica Viva concert titled “Adventures in Antarctica”. The harp was a featured instrument at this performance, and our students enjoyed engaging with the lesson materials in the lead up to the excursion. Students were also able to enjoy recess at MPS which is a much larger school than ours! Thank you to Mrs Suzie Troon (Music Teacher) and Mr Clive Kerrigan (Principal) for allowing us again to visit their school and participate in the performance. The students had a wonderful time.
NESA Inspection
On Friday May 27, Richard Gill School were involved in an annual inspection from governing body, the NSW Education Standards Authority (NESA). As a new school adding new years of schooling each year, this will be an ongoing process for RGS until we are fully established. The inspection provides a good opportunity for staff and administration to review our policies and processes to ensure we are following best practice and constantly improving how our school operates. We are pleased to report that the inspection went extremely well, and I thank our staff for their work preparing for the inspection.
Donor appeal
As the end of the financial year approaches, we hope some of our supporters may consider making a tax-deductible donation to Richard Gill School. As a new school in its very early stages, we have a strong vision for the types of activities and resources we would like to conduct in our school. Please contact the school at admin@rgs.nsw.edu.au if you might be in a position to make a donation to our school and students.
Donations can be considered for our scholarship fund, building fund, or library fund.
Enrolment
In 2023, enrolment is open to Kindergarten, Year 1, Year 2, and Year 3 students. With numerous siblings joining Kindergarten next year, don’t delay, contact the school on 02 6543 1900 to secure your enrolment.
Enrolments for Richard Gill School are always open, and in 2022 are open to Kindergarten, Year 1, and Year 2. Our prospectus, enrolment form, parent info and fee information can be found here.
Our “Kindy for a Day” program scheduled for Friday, June 24 is now full! We are so excited to now have so much interest that we have required a wait list for this program, suggesting we may reach maximum kindergarten enrolments in 2023, which we hope will be a trend moving forward as our reputation in the community grows. We will be holding another Kindy for a Day next Term on the 19th of August. If you would like more information or to be added to the waitlist visit this info page.
Media
There have been some excellent articles this month promoting the importance of music education, both of which Richard Gill School is tackling in our own unique context:
Children In Wales To Receive Free Access To Musical Instruments
Schools of rock: why music education should be mandatory for kids
Yours in Music,
Chris English – Principal, Richard Gill School