Dear families,

The Celebration of Learning was a very special event in Week 9. I was so proud of our students, and to share that pride with the wider school community. Some students received P&C funded shirts to recognize the transition to Y6 or Y12, but we also used data to deliver Principal Awards based on achievements throughout the year, and staff voted on the qualities for recognizing achievements in particular categories.

We also announced the new leadership team of Brendan being Primary School Leader, and William L being School Captain in 2024.

We took the opportunity to conclude the celebration with the official opening of the traffic crossing system installed recently with the financial support of our major sponsor: The Epping Club. This new provision enhances the learning opportunities we offer at Karonga School.

The response from the 50+ visitors who later met for refreshments was really positive. This is all down to the partnership we have established between families/ carers, the school, and the broader community.

We also enjoyed the Carlingford High School Music Extravaganza last week. Around 50 high school students came to Karonga to share their love of music, their enthusiasm, and their sense of humour with our students. They played a variety of instruments to tunes from ‘Frozen’ and ‘Toy Story’ as well as classical pieces. If students found it overwhelming, we opened the doors and prompted students to sit on the deck, or on the canteen seating. It was a great event.

We have concluded meetings with Woolworths to launch our prospective Mini Woolies on February 13^th 2024. Please do come along and support our school as we officially open this joint venture.

We say a sad farewell to 3 Y12 students, a student leaving to go to a support unit, and a student moving to the south side of Sydney (as well as a teacher and an SLSO); we say ‘welcome’ to 8 new students, 2 teachers and a part-time teacher in 2024. We also have a teacher vacancy which we will advertise when we return, which should help to have further stability at Karonga.

It has been my joy to witness water fights, games and seasonal singing across the school this past week- so on this ‘high’ I wish you all the best for the holidays, and I look forward to seeing new haircuts, and how much students have grown when they return on Thursday February 1^st 2024.

Room 3 had a great last term of the year with all students engaging in many activities and welcoming Charlotte to the classroom for her transition to school. Charlotte happily joined class activities such as sensory play, colouring and the communication program with Analise.

For our unit of work around the solar system, we went on a journey through space. Elijah and Yeting entered a space station, went to Mars and the moon and reached for the stars. They were fascinated by the projections in the immersive classroom. All students created a solar system artwork by using a dishwashing brush and white paint and by putting the planets in the correct order. 

In literacy we read a lovely book called ‘Three’. Three is a three-legged dog who skips and hops happily from the city through the countryside to find a new friend in a beautiful garden. The students in Room 3 followed three on his adventure and experienced the city, the countryside and the garden in the immersive classroom. They enjoyed smelling scents from a garden such as roses and lavender and feeling flowers and grass. Brendan particularly enjoyed touching the grass. Based on the story of Three, everyone created a unique garden artwork featuring some creatures from the book. You can see those on display in our windows.

One highlight of the year is always the Carlingford High School Music Extravaganza. All students thoroughly enjoyed the concert. They listened, danced and played some interesting instruments. There were even some special guests visiting. Yeting loved watching Olaf and Anna from Frozen.

Of course, Room 3 turned into a little Christmas workshop during those last weeks of the year. All students were busy elves creating lots of little Christmas surprises for their special people.

Room 3 is wishing everyone a lovely Christmas break and a happy new year.

The students and staff in Room 3

The weather's warming up, the jacarandas are blooming, and Mariah Carey is taking over the supermarket playlists. It can only mean one thing; Summer has arrived and the school year is drawing to a close.

Room 14 has had a fun, challenging and exciting 2023. Everyone has taken steps to challenge themselves, achieve their goals and engage with all sorts of activities across the school.

In the garden, we are taking some steps to make sure our plants stay happy and healthy over the holidays. The students have done an amazing job to turn a once-messy space, full of rubbish and unkempt plants, into a brighter, cleaner and more accessible area. Many plants are growing happily and flowering daily. Hopefully the work continues into the new year!

We were very sad to say goodbye to Jack, our wonderful music therapist, two weeks ago, but are so grateful for the music and fun he brought to our class.

Room 14 has tried hard to maintain an active lifestyle in our classroom with swimming sessions, regular walks, bike-riding and trampolining all being part of our daily set-up and we hope that all our students maintain this over the holidays and into next year.

Michelle and I have been so lucky to have such a wonderful group of students in 2023 and now we are all looking forward to what the future brings.

See you in 2024!