Welcome to the Richard Gill School Blog for the month of August. In this post we will share some of our recent sporting opportunities, community engagements and celebrate our Kindergarten students reaching 100 days of school.
Sporting Schools
We have secured another fantastic grant from the Sporting Schools program for Term 3 which we plan to use for Basketball coaching sessions. Later this term, coaches from Fit4Kids will travel to Richard Gill school and deliver basketball skill sessions with our students. To prepare for this, we are painting a basketball court on the cemented area of our playground. Our students have shown lots of interest in basketball and some participate after school in local teams. We are pleased to have the opportunity to continue providing sporting opportunities for our students.
National Tree Day
Established in 1996, Planet Ark's National Tree Day has grown into Australia's largest community tree planting and nature care event. The program is a call to action for all Australians to get their hands dirty and give back to their community. Richard Gill School participated by planting native trees and shrubs in the playground. Michael Brady, who is the Sustainability Officer at Muswellbrook Shire Council, came to school and spoke to the students about the benefits of planting native trees and how they contribute to the sustainability of the community. Another great opportunity to connect with our community and make conscious choices to care for our environment.
Learning Benefits of Music
Scientific research has shown the remarkable impact of music on our brains. When we engage with music, it activates multiple areas of our brain, igniting neural connections and boosting cognitive function. Like a symphony, our brains come alive, fostering creativity, improving memory, and sharpening focus. Please see the link below to read the full article.
Delivering the Gift of Music to Local Early Childhood Centres
Ms Ellis and Mrs Goodhew recently toured local preschools and early childhood centres to share a music lesson and encourage children and staff to integrate music into their learning. They received warm welcomes and were very pleased with the interest and engagement of children during their lessons. What a wonderful way for Richard Gill School to share our vision within the local community. Thank you to the centres, staff and children for embracing such a positive program. We look forward to offering this again soon.
Ms Ellis at local Preschool.
100 Days of School!
For a Kindergarten student, reaching the milestone of 100 days is a significant event. Ms Ellis invited parents to join in on the celebrations by coming into classrooms and participating in games with their children. We are so proud of the effort, growth and achievement we have seen already from our Kindergarten students and can’t wait to celebrate the next 100!
Enrolment
An additional Kindy for a Day session will take place on Friday 9th August. If you or someone you know is looking at enrolling their child in Kindergarten for 2025, please feel free to contact us and ask about the program.
We also provide free Early Childhood Music Lessons on Wednesday afternoons during the school term. Feel free to contact the school or make an inquiry online to attend.
The school is currently teaching Kindergarten to Year 4 in 2024 and is now taking enrolment enquiries for Kindergarten - Year 5 for 2025.
To request an enrolment interview, please contact the school.
On a personal note, my family and I are excited to share that we are expecting another daughter in January 2025. Our new baby will be very loved by her big sister Ella and surrounded by support from our family and community. Thank you for the well wishes, they are very appreciated.
Thank you,
Tara Stanford