After School Sports Training, Ball and Boy and Bat and Boy have finished for the Term. They will recommence in Term 2.

Just a reminder that if you would like your son to participate in the ICAS English and Maths Competition please click here to register. This link will only be open till 6.00pm this evening.

The Cushion Concert noted in the School Calendar for this Term is NOT on. The first Cushion Concert for the year will be in Term 2.

Parent Teacher Interviews

Parent Teacher interviews will be held in the coming weeks. 

These interviews are valuable opportunities to share relevant and important information which helps us getto know your son and develop an understanding of his academic, social and emotional needs. The time spent together also opens up the lines of communication between school and home and gives parents a better understanding of the appropriate expectations of the School.

Camps

Next week the boys in Year 4 and 6 will be travelling to Lake Macquarie for their annual outdoor education camp. These experiences are always a highlight and can be one of their most lasting memories of their primary school days.

Why do we include an outdoor education experience in our programme? The camp provides the boys with many opportunities to be taken out of their comfort zone and challenged in a variety of ways; physically, socially and mentally - all with the support and encouragement of their teachers and peers.

Watching boys overcome their fear on the giant swing, persevere through the muddy ‘wombat hole’, complete a long and exhausting canoe trip or carefully navigate a high-ropes course encourages them to build strength, inner confidence and resilience that can transfer to all areas of their lives. They also learn to support their mates as they share these experiences.

The boys certainly return from camp stronger, more connected, dirtier and in need of a thorough wash and the teachers have gained a better insight into what makes them tick.

 Mr I Stephens

This week we’ll look at another Comprehension Strategy – Determining Importance (also called Main Idea or, in some schemes, Summarising).

If you were asked what this picture is about most people would likely come up with something along the lines of:

• It’s a family having a meal together

We wouldn’t say

• It’s about forks and pouring water into glasses and blue shirts and blue walls and peas and yellow serviettes and … you get the idea!

Determining Importance in reading means focusing on what is important in the text. We decide, from among everything on the page, what is most important to attend to and remember. As proficient readers, we engage in that process continually while reading. We filter information and organise our thinking around the big ideas. Determining importance allows us to move through a text coherently, developing a line of thinking that helps our reading make sense.” https://readingrecovery.clemson.edu/introduction-to-determining-importance/ 

Readers need to attend closely (be it instructions, written text, video clips or daily tasks/events) and decide what information gets to the essence of text. What key message or messages does the author want the reader to walk away with?

To ‘Determine Importance’ we need to identify and consider the Purpose of the text as well as the Audience. What is important for a tourist reading a history of Australia will be different than a long time resident and both may be different to what a family of immigrants deems important.

We teach ‘Determining Importance’ by understanding and identifying ‘key words’, looking for repetition in terms of words and phrases and locating the ‘Main Idea’ of each section. Determining Importance is a lifelong comprehension skill and flows directly over into note taking and the summarisation of research, company initiatives and processes for high school, university and their careers beyond.

Have a go at this (adult level) passage below:

“That night, land was sighted after sundown, and the schooner hove to. Montgomery intimated that was his destination. It was too far to see any details; it seemed to me then simply a low-lying patch of dim blue in the uncertain blue-grey sea. An almost vertical streak of smoke went up from it into the sky.

The captain was not on deck when it was sighted. After he had vented his wrath on me he had gone below. The mate practically assumed the command. He was the gaunt, taciturn individual we had seen at the wheel. He took not the slightest notice of either of us.” The Time Machine by HG Wells

What images/ideas does HG Wells want to plant in our head? What’s the main idea here?

And while we’re on H G Wells …here’s the Quote of the Week 8

“We all have our time machines, don't we? Those that take us back are memories...And those that carry us forward, are dreams.” 

― H.G. Wells, The Time Machine

Year 1 gulp

Year 2 imitate

Year 3 exclaimed

Year 5 civil

Mrs C Greenup

Combined Orchestra Tour to Singapore

A reminder that our first rehearsal will be 2:00-5:00pm on Saturday 30 March at Edgecliff Prep.

Ensembles Week 8

Groups cancelled due to camps:

Monday: St Ives Brass, Beat Buster Percussion, Flute Group

Tuesday: Saxophone Ensemble, Trumpet Ensemble 

Wednesday: Stevens Wind Ensemble

Thursday: Alhambra Guitar Ensemble, Blues Group, Kenyon Concert Band 

NB Year 5 rehearse as usual in Week 8:  Taiko, Senior & Maffey Strings (with Mr Lee in the Ensemble Room), School Orchestra.

End Term 1 Concert - 6:30pm Thursday 28 March (Week 9)

Groups playing:

Alhambra & Barrios Guitar Ensembles

Amati, Bergonzi, Sartory and Senior Strings

Maffey Strings

School Choir & RJ Lee Singers

Taiko HONOH Group 4

Trumpet Ensemble

Diary Dates

Cushion Concert  - this event will now be held during Term 2

End Term 1 Concert – 6:30pm Thursday 28 March (Week 9) in the Hall

Music Timetable for Term 1 Week 8

Click here for the Week 8 Music Timetable. Parents please note this is subject to change.

Mr M Smith OAM

A growing number of families are currently requesting leave through the Sports Fixtures website. This process is only to be used for absences on the Friday night prior to the round of sport or Saturday morning if your son has fallen ill.

Please request for leave at least a week in advance via email and attention it to the Sportsmaster for confirmation.

The new basketball uniform that was purchased for boys this year has shorts that are too long. The clothing manufacturer is going to fix this issue and has requested that we collect all the Basketball shorts the week after the last round of Term 1 sport which is the week commencing 18 March.

Boys should bring their Basketball shorts to the Office in a plastic bag with your son's name and class noted on the bag, no later than Friday 23 March.

If you haven’t already ordered your son's Basketball uniform, please do so in time for Term 4.

On Tuesday this week, 19 boys across Years 3-6 represented our School at the IPSHA Swimming Carnival. All boys made an outstanding effort! The boys swam amongst fierce competition, improved upon their times from our School Carnival and achieved Personal Best results.

The team showed an impressive display of sportsmanship and they represented our School with pride. A special congratulations is extended to Noah Kazal, Brian Lee, and Lucas Lin who have gained selection in the IPSHA team for the CIS Carnival on Wednesday 20 March. Noah Kazal will compete in the U9 Freestyle, Lucas Lin in the U10 Breaststroke and Freestyle and Freestyle relay and Brian Lee will represent IPSHA in the U12/13 Breaststroke. Our Junior Relay team of Felix Carrasco, Adam Nguyen, Lucas Lin and Emerson Siroky will also compete at CIS.

All boys who have involved themselves in the Swimming programme throughout this term are to be congratulated on their outstanding efforts and achievements. Well done!

This weekend marks the last round of Summer Sport for Term 1. Summer Sport teams and competition will resume in Term 4. Thank you for supporting your sons’ involvement this term, I wish all the boys the best of luck this weekend and I hope that all games go ahead!

After School training, Ball and Boy and Bat and Ball sessions will also be finishing this week. These sessions have been most popular this term. Ball and Boy training sessions for Fitness, Football and Rugby will take place from the beginning of Term 2. 

An up-to-date Fixture List is on the Sports Fixtures website and can be viewed by clicking here. 

A printable version of the Fixtures can be found by clicking here. Please note the printable version will not automatically update if there are changes during the season. Any changes will be notified through team sheets.

Please access team sheets, posted on the Sports Fixtures website on Thursday, by clicking here. The password to view the team sheets is Sport2019

The Year 3-6 Cross Country was run today. Boys have been preparing in PE lessons and during the Friday morning ‘Barefoot Bandit’ training sessions. 

From today’s run the first 5 runners from each age group will be selected to attend the IPSHA Cross Country Carnival to be held at the Kings School on Saturday 6 April. I look forward to reporting on the day in next week’s Newsletter.

The efforts of all boys will be acknowledged in the Cross Country presentation at the next Year 3-6 Assembly in Week 8.

To help plan ahead, these will be the Winter Sport training afternoons for 2019.  All sessions are 3:00-4:00pm;

Winter Fixtures will be finalised before the end of Term 1 and these will be published on the Sports Fixtures website. Matches begin in the first week of Term 2, the dates for Saturday Winter fixtures are;

Term 2 on 4, 11, 18 and 25 May, 1, 15 and 22 June, Term 3 on 27 July and 3 and 10 August.

At the conclusion of the winter season, the Athletic team will compete at a couple of Saturday morning Athletics Carnivals.

All Rugby boys are encouraged to attend Rugby training the next two Wednesdays (Week 8 and 9), from 3:00-4:00pm on Cowper Field.

For Weeks 10 and 11, we will be holding Rugby training sessions on Tuesdays from 3:00-4:00pm on Cowper Field for all Rugby boys who are not already participating in another activity. 

All boys are encouraged to use this session to help prepare for next season and help prepare the Year 6 boys heading to Armidale for their preseason tour.

Boys must wear boots and mouthguard. Headgear is encouraged for all boys.

College Street is holding a Holiday Tennis Camp that boys from the St Ives Preparatory School are welcome to attend. For more information click here.

A Rugby Camp is being run for boys from both the St Ives and Edgecliff Preparatory Schools on Friday 26 April. Please click here for more information.

Mr B Townley-Jones

This week a model giraffe joined the Library. Standing 1.3 metres tall, the giraffe represents the animal kingdom and also serves as a measure against which boys can check their height. The giraffe is as yet unnamed, so boys are welcome to make suggestions, and the name will be chosen by popular vote.

On Wednesday at the Lunchtime in the Library session, Signora Matheson introduced the Italian festival of Carnevale and boys enjoyed making colourful masks. Next week, the topic is Geography and Mrs Flaks will talk about travelling in Africa.

As the weather becomes a little cooler, it is the perfect time for families to enjoy reading together. New books are continually being added to the Library collection and families are welcome to borrow before and after school.

A reminder to families and friends of Preschool and Kindergarten boys, everyone is welcome to join me for Stories, Song and Rhymes on Fridays 22, 29 March and 5 April, from 3:15 pm.

Happy reading!

Mrs R Lee

The boys return to school in Term 2 wearing the full winter uniform.

This is the Grammar Grey shorts/ trousers and the Grammar blue long sleeve shirt.

For all boys in Year 3-6 a blazer is compulsory.

Please visit the shop to purchase the winter uniform. Blazers are in stock and you will need to bring your son in to have it fitted.

Opening Hours

Monday afternoons 2.00-4.15pm,

Wednesday mornings 7.30-9.30am

Thursday mornings 7.30-9.30am

However, the shop will be closed on Monday April 8.

Mrs W Stephens