Dear Parents
“The test of a good teacher is not how many questions he can ask his pupils that they will answer readily, but how many questions he inspires them to ask him which he finds it hard to answer” Alice Rollins
Dr Kathie Nunley has inspired us all. We were thrilled when she accepted our invitation to come out from the United States and spend some time with our teachers. We successfully hosted three events from Thursday through to Saturday. Dr Nunley addressed over 250 parents, both from our community as well as from other schools. Her focus was on the development of the brain from birth to death. Not only was her presentation humorous and insightful for us as parents, it was also enlightening with regard to the development of our own adult brain! On Friday morning we hosted 70 educators as well as support professionals, including Psychologists, Occupational, Speech and Remedial Therapists. Teachers from both our Junior and Senior School collaborated with Pridwin teachers as well as a few from St Johns. Dr Nunley ran a comprehensive workshop for us on the Friday afternoon and most of Saturday. This was an opportunity for as to apply the latest research in brain development to practical classroom teaching strategies, in particular, the Layered Curriculum. These strategies ensure that we continue to focus on the strengths of each child as we build curriculum which is differentiated and meaningful.
On Friday 5 October, we celebrate World Teachers’ Day. As indicated by UNESCO “ World Teachers Day speaks to the massive token of mindfulness, comprehension and thankfulness showed for the fundamental commitment that educators make in advancement, by teaching”.
Teaching is a gift, one which requires us to invest time in the whole child. To teach does not require only academic dissemination of knowledge; in fact that would be a disappointing expectation. Teachers reach the social, emotional, physical and cognitive needs of each child in her care, daily. I am truly grateful for the exceptional teaching teams I work with on a daily basis. We are all committed to lifelong learning and always with the child as the center of our motivation. My hope, is that we are able to encourage more children to aspire to be teachers one day. It is one of the most noble professions in the world, and yet so often under-rated. Join me in celebrating the teaching profession this week as we acknowledge the time, energy and love that is invested in raising our daughters. At Kingsmead, we do not teach curriculum, we teach girls.
Kim Lowman – Head: Junior School
WEEK AHEAD
Tuesday, 2 October
- 18:00 Speech Evening (Compulsory for Grade 7 – 12)
Thursday, 4 October
- JS Diving competition
- JS Tennis fixtures
- Grade 3 Choir Festival – “Sound of Music” at Linder Auditorium
Friday, 5 October
- Junior School closed for staff development
- Grade 6 & 7 Flipped Classroom
- JS Inter schools Athletics
Saturday, 6 October
- Goodwill Day
SPORTS NEWS:
This weekend was spent on the side of the cricket field watching the Gauteng Cricket Board trials. As you can imagine this game is only riveting when your actual son is either bowling or batting which means one has to find many ways to entertain themselves in between. I took out my camping chair and Kingsmead umbrella (always a conversation starter) and opened my brand new book “A school where I belong” co-written by Dylan Wray, Roy Hellenberg and the “distinguished professor of education” Professor Jonathan Jansen. This book is about the creation of inclusive and transformed South African schools.
I proceeded to read as I moved from venue to venue following my sons just like the (barmy army would for England minus the copious amount of lagers) and it was so evident the disparity that still exist to this very day. Some venues had manicured fields and perfectly laid cricket pitches. There was evidence that top dressing had obviously been applied during the off season, whilst in other venues schools fields we decent but would have definitely welcomed such special treatment.
Over time the boys have come to understand that such trials do try and select the boys that seem to show or have potential to represent the various areas. They have also come to realise that the quota system does also play a significant role. Whilst debates about such systems continue to rage on the side of the fields one cannot deny that not all players have had the same access to facilities, good coaches and basic equipment. “The 10 000 hour” rule discussed in Malcom Gladwell’s book called “Outliers” proposes that the more you practice a skill the more likely you are to become an expert at that skill. However; it also makes note that those that did make it to the top were afforded opportunities that allowed them to hone in their skills to become better. A child born in a family with less resources will struggle to compete against a child who has access to private coaching, top of the range equipment and does not have to rely on public transport to get to and fro from school. The only way we can begin to transform our sport in our country is to provide access and opportunities.
So here is to the different sporting boards who are taking on this very difficult challenge. We commend you and with your commitment I have no doubt sport in South Africa will eventually become totally inclusive in time to come.
RESULTS
Athletics:
We competed in our second athletics meeting on Friday 28th September at St Andrew’s. The athletes ran extremely well. Unfortunately, the meeting was cancelled due to rain.
The following athletes ended in the first 3 positions:
Grade 3:
Long Jump:
- Hannah Cooke 2nd
- Uma Banchetti 2nd
- Mia Gordon 2nd
- Laurinda Vitungayala 1st
60m:
- B-race: Isabella Abbate 2nd
- D-race: Ella de Goede 3rd
Grade 4:
Long Jump:
- Jade Anderson 2nd
80m:
- A-race: Kaitlyn Brown 3rd
- B-race: Priyanka Geness 1st
- C-race: Hannah Schwegmann 2nd
- D-race: Mila Smolicz van Breda 1st
- D-race: Erin van Dyk 2nd
Grade 5:
Long Jump:
- Erin Hill 1st
- Rethabile Ramaphakela 3rd
- Zintle Papiyana 1st
Grade 6:
Long Jump:
- Tessa Gutierrez-Garcia 2nd
Hurdles:
- A-race: Zintle Papiyana 2nd
- B-race: Erin Hill 2nd
- C-race: Gabriela Dodd 2nd
- D-race: Zahra Khan 1st
Grade 7:
Long Jump:
- Paula Prinsloo 2nd
Hurdles:
- A-race: Paula Prinsloo 1st
- B-race: Gabriella Potgieter 3rd
- D-race: Tessa Gutierrez-Garcia 1st
Our next meeting will be at St Peter’s on Friday 5th October. Please keep on attending ALL practices — WHAT WE PUT IN; WE WILL GET OUT!!!!!
Tennis
Kingsmead A/B Team APPS on Thursday 27th September 2018. Congratulations to our A team for winning. Well done to all our young and budding tennis players.
Special Achievements
As a school community we would like to celebrate the special achievements that take place beyond our school of our young sports persons. However; in order to ensure that we have the correct information we rely on communication from our parental body. We urge you to share with us any such achievements.
Sheillah Denenga
ARTS AND MUSIC NEWS
Upcoming event in September & October:
All dates, letters, invitations and updates will be posted on the app under Arts & Music.
Grade 3 Choir Performance at ‘The Sound of Children’
As per the calendar, the Grade 3 girls will be performing at the annual ‘The Sound of Children’ Choir Festival at the Linder Auditorium on Thursday 4 October. Girls must wear their summer uniform: school dress, white socks, black school shoes and blazer.
- 16:15 Bus departs from Kingsmead
- 16:45 All girls to arrive at the Linder Auditorium (The GPS coordinates for the Linder Auditorium are 26.1781° S, 28.0420° E. The main entrance is on Saint Andrews Road, Parktown)
- 17:00 Mass choir rehearsal with Richard Cock and the Orchestra
- 18:00 Refreshment break: girls will be given juice and a sandwich. Parents can purchase refreshments from the cafeteria at the auditorium.
- 18:30 Concert starts
- 19:45 Concert finishes
There will be no bus transport back to Kingsmead after the concert.
Tickets can be purchased online at: https://online.computicket.com/web/event/sound_of_children/1250101782/
DRAMA Club
See details below of our NEW Drama teacher! Classes started on the 20th of September. Please contact Gera directly should you be interested in enrolling your daughter.