Dear Kingsmead Community
Spring has Sprung at Kingsmead
Our third term has started with such JOY! The warmer weather helps, of course, but the true essence of happiness is captured in the hearts of our children and staff. We are incredibly excited to join our students again on their path to discovery and learning as 2024 starts to close on us. May this final term bring with it every opportunity to grow and bloom. Soon the rains will clear the dust and continue to invite the green sprouting of new growth; may this also be an opportunity for us as a community to pour our hearts and minds into continuing to build our beautiful school.
It was good to start the term with the Grade 3-7 inter-house athletics on Friday, 6 September. Well, it was done to all our athletes and staff for this successful morning.
We are now well on our way to the fast-approaching end of school year excitement and festivities; however, with this comes the realization of needing to meet goals one has set for themselves. Thus, the habit of mind-managing impulsivity is a predictor of success through self-discipline. This behaviour plays out in the various facets of a school day, not only academically and within the classroom but also on the playground and sports field. How to manage your impulsivity – to refrain from hasty action, to calm yourself when angry, and to carefully choose your words—is something that we can teach and that children readily learn.
Research has shown that students who can delay gratification tend to develop into successful adults. When we are aware of our emotions and manage them deliberately, we can train ourselves to be less impulsive. When a person can manage their impulsivity better, it has been found to positively impact children’s enjoyment of school, their classroom performance, and the positivity of their interactions with peers and teachers. Self-control is a mental muscle that children strengthen through exercise.
Managing impulsivity is the Habit of Mind that we are encouraging our students to explore and develop this term by developing a range of strategies to become hasty. Instead, they should be mindful and deliberate in achieving success in their respective areas. One of these is the ‘Star Strategy’:
Stop
Think
Act
Reflection
At Kingsmead, we encourage students to progress from being unconsciously incompetent at managing impulsivity to becoming unconsciously competent, where they can carefully evaluate situations and gather appropriate information before taking goal-directed actions.
“Great things are not done by impulse, but by a series of small things brought together.” Vincent Van Gogh
Please click here for an excellent resource for additional strategies you can bring into your home.
I am wishing you a JOY-full term ahead.
Mrs. Tarryn McLaren
Junior School Head
Parent Insert
As I engage with you as parents and guardians, I am realizing how the future world of raising your daughter is a mixture of exciting and daunting emotions. Particularly around information systems and technology that face ‘us’ and await ‘us’, let alone the device and social media platform upgrades.
Thus, I thought I would share this resource with you as parents to assist you with understanding your role and responsibility as future smart parents. Enjoy this resource.
Click here to access.
Arts & Music
Dear Kingsmead Community,
We look forward to an exciting and eventful term filled with music concerts, external performances, the annual JP showcases, and many more opportunities for our students to shine. With our teachers’ dedication and our students’ passion, this term promises to be a memorable one, celebrating their hard work and commitment.
Congratulations
Some of our students participated in the Rockschool Voice Examinations at the end of Term 2 and achieved outstanding results. Congratulations to Bella Walker, Caitlyn Jewell, Malaika Sibanda, and Georgie Dalling for their dedication and perseverance in preparation for this endeavour.
Michaela Stephano recently played the ABRSM Grade 2 Flute examination and received outstanding results. Well done, Michaela, we are so proud of you!
📆 SAVE THE DATE
Kingsmead Music Department
Elsabé Fourie
Director of Arts & Music
efourie@kingsmead.co.za
Mia Loock
Head of Junior School Music
mloock@kingsmead.co.za
Sports
We are excited to return after the break and kick off our season in the last week of the holidays with various pre-season offerings. A big thank you to all the students who attended these sessions. This term, our focus will be on Athletics, Tennis, Diving, and Water Polo. While Soccer matches will only begin in term 3B, we encourage students to attend the pre-season sessions as we gear up for the upcoming season. Trials will be held before the half-term; we want all students to be fully prepared.
If your daughter has a scheduling conflict with practice sessions, please inform the teacher in charge of the sport. They will assist in accommodating her participation so she can engage in her selected sports and remain eligible for team selection. Please be aware that this arrangement will only be considered if there is a conflict with other ongoing school sports.
Additionally, please remember to notify the teacher if your daughter cannot attend a training session before the session, as a minimum of two weekly sessions is required for weekly team selection. For more details, please refer to the Kingsmead App for our Sports policy.
We are looking forward to a successful term!
Inter-House Athletics
What an incredible day at the Junior School Inter-House Athletics event! Our students, staff and parents showcased their talent and determination on the track, and the atmosphere was electric!
Congratulations to Thanes for bringing home the overall trophy and the Spirit Cup!
Thank you to everyone who participated, assisted and cheered – we created an unforgettable experience together! Well done, everyone!
Athletics
We are thrilled to kick off another athletics season, which began on Friday, September 13, with our first fixture at St Andrew’s. Our students gave their all in both track and field events. Congratulations to all the athletes who participated and showcased their hard work and dedication!
Equestrian
Congratulations to our talented riders for being selected to represent the SANESA Gauteng teams at Nationals later this term. We are incredibly proud of your accomplishments and wish you the best of luck in the upcoming competition. May you continue to excel and make us all proud at Nationals.
Isabel Munro
Dressage (A team)
Lucy Berry
Show Jumping (A team)
Dressage (A team)
Water Polo
The Junior School Water Polo season was officially kicked off on Wednesday, September 11, as our Grade 6 and 7 students faced off against the U14 team from Reddam Bedfordview. It was a challenging match; however, our girls showcased determination and gained valuable experience that will serve them well in the season ahead.
Congratulations to the following students for being selected for the Gauteng Water Polo Training Squads:
U13
Lucy Berry
Georgie Dalling
Madison Botha
Jemma Cederwall
U12
Grace Burman
Vera Collocott
Georgie Kennedy
Keodirelang Maqubela
Outside Sport
Gymnastics
Congratulations to Amari Africa, Keodirelang Maqubela, and Nala Moletsane on their selection to participate in the Nationals in Cape Town! We are thrilled about this incredible opportunity and wish them all the best in their upcoming training and competition.
Upcoming Events
18 September: Grade 6/7 Water Polo Fixture vs St Stithians (Venue: St Stithians)
All students are required to travel by bus to the venue. There will be a bus returning to Kingsmead after the fixture. Students may also be collected from the venue at the end of the fixture.
19 September: Grade 4 – 7 Tennis Matches vs St Mary’s (Venue: A/B – Kingsmead, C/D – Internal matches at Kingsmead)
26 September: Grade 4 – 7 Tennis Matches vs St Peter’s (Venue: A/B – St Peter’s, C/D – Kingsmead)
All students are required to travel by bus to the venue. There will be a bus returning to Kingsmead after the fixture. Students may also be collected from the venue at the end of the fixture.
26 September: Grade 3 – 7 Diving Trials (Venue: Kingsmead)
The list of students who need to attend these trials will be posted by the Tuesday of the trial week.
27 September: Grade 4 – 7 Athletics Fixture (Venue: St Peter’s Prep)
All students are required to travel by bus to the venue. There will be a bus returning to Kingsmead after the fixture. Students may also be collected from the venue at the end of the fixture.
All athletes are expected to stay and support until the end when scores are announced. (Register will be taken at the end)
Here are a few reminders for parents & guardians:
1. Please send any sports achievements (school & non-school) to Mrs Hanekom.
2. A reminder to please download the Kingsmead app as this will be the direct method of communication to parents on sports fixture days.
3. All team lists will be published on the app by Tuesday for a Thursday fixture and the Wednesday before the Friday/Saturday fixture. Please inform the coaches in advance if your daughter is unable to attend a fixture.
Yours in sport
Shavaun Hanekom
Head of Junior School Sport
Library News
With this in mind, students are encouraged, this term, to come and sit under our tree, even IN the tree trunk, and read their favourite book. Along with September being Arbour Month, the library message is ‘watering’ your mind by reading a book and then watching your mind and brain ‘BLOOM’.
A healthy competition is unfolding as to which grade will bloom the most! Students in Grades 4-7 (and teachers) are encouraged to write their name on a flower as they complete their novel and stick it onto our garden wall. Grade 5s and 7s, we want to see you in our garden…
The Junior Primary, Grades 0s -3, are rapidly filling up our READ boxes—I already have had to buy more counters. Avid readers are excitedly adding their counters to the letterbox as they complete a book.
Our Adopt-a-Shelf project has proven extremely popular, and all our shelves have been booked through to October! Thank you to those students for their time and effort preparing their displays.
New books have come in and disappeared before I could even take a photo. Students are encouraged to pop into this beautiful space, find a book to ‘water’ their minds, and then… BLOOM.
Mrs Glenda Cressy
Media Specialist
Joburg Mini Council Sock Drive – Junior School
The Joburg Mini Council invites you to please donate a pair of warm socks (size 4 – 7 preferably) to their ‘Bucket of Comfort’ initiative. The socks you donate will be included in packs with other items. These packs will be distributed to young girls across Gauteng who are not fortunate enough to have basic items for their own comfort and health.
Please hand in your socks to the Junior School reception or to your class teacher by Friday 4th October.
Ms Carolyn Grainger
Parental Controls for Devices
Managing our children’s devices can be a daunting task. Even though we have the best intentions, ensuring we have set up their devices to mitigate risk, we can sometimes forget or overlook something. Having a checklist is always helpful.
“You can use parental controls to manage screen time, block inappropriate content, prevent accidental spending and keep strangers away. Research shows they improve digital wellbeing when used alongside regular conversations about online activities.” Internet Matters is a website where you can find a wealth of information and resources to help you manage the digital world your daughter is growing up in.
They have created an ABC checklist for you to use to ensure the settings you have in place help to keep your child safe online. These guides are curated for settings needed for children under five and up to fourteen years of age and over. Please click on the button below to access the age-appropriate guide.
Roxy Harman-Leak
DigiTech and Media Specialist
Family Time – Time to THUNK in Term 3
A Thunk is a simple question about everyday things designed to stop you in your tracks and help you look at the world entirely differently. Thunks help individuals develop philosophical thinking, confidence in their opinions, and the ability to listen to others through open-ended questions with no right or wrong answers.
This week’s THUNK: If there was a magic pill that meant that you could never fail, would you take it? Give a reason for your answer.