Dear Kingsmead Parents and Guardians,
Term 1 – Full of Possibility
There are so many reasons to celebrate as we look to the close of our first term. I am reminded of the welcome and information evening at the start of term, where our focus was to come together as a community to work together during 2024.
Our Social, Emotional Learning (SEL) programme highlights the need to develop the skills our students need for life. SEL promotes the development of lifelong skills, attitudes, and behaviours that enable people to identify and manage emotions, regulate behaviour and make responsible decisions, build and maintain healthy relationships, set and achieve individual and collective goals, express empathy and tolerance, identify and solve problems, and so many more.
Through the dedication of our staff and the enthusiasm of our students, we have established new connections, immersed ourselves in opportunities and worked through challenges. It is at this point that I want to thank our teachers and coaches for creating a safe and stimulating environment for our girls in every way possible this term. It is rewarding to see how many girls have already found their place to ‘shine’. Our talented musicians have played their hearts out during many performances and our sports season is approaching netball with gusto, ending this week on a high note, as we close the term with our annual inter house netball games. I look forward to the excitement alongside the courts on Thursday. We certainly have so much to celebrate!
Term 1 2024 has offered us many opportunities together. The greatest example of this time cherished was the time we spent together as a community at Kingstock on Friday, despite being rained out. I was completely overcome with gratitude and love to see our school community and musicians coming together. This very event left me with a deep feeling of JOY. Joy is a word I celebrate/feel often. So, how can we define joy? Joy is an attitude of the heart and spirit present inside us. It is an intense momentary experience of emotion, which triggers our emotions and satisfies our soul. Joy is exhilarating and it fills you with a feeling of warmth and often makes us smile. While joy may come from our surroundings, it most often comes from our connection with others, our family, friends, colleagues etc. We rarely find joy in possessions, or if we do, it is fleeting.
Trusting you have found JOY too this term at Kingsmead.
The dedication of our students, staff, and families has been the driving force behind the success of this term, proving that together, we can achieve remarkable things. As we look forward to the next term, we carry with us the lessons learned, the joys shared, and the bonds formed, ready to continue our journey of growth, leadership, and service.
I do hope that all our families and staff take time this holiday to rest and be ‘still’ as we prepare for our winter term. We wish those families who will be celebrating Eid continued peaceful blessings and to our Jewish families celebrating Passover later this month, a time of peace and joy. Happy Chag Pesach Sameach.
Our term closes at 10h00 on Thursday, 11 April. I would like to take this opportunity to wish you all a peaceful, joyful school holiday. Enjoy the gift of time with your families and friends.
The students arrive back at school on Tuesday, 7 May in their full winter uniform.
Resources for Parents – Connecting with your Daughter
We trust that you have enjoyed our bi-weekly parent slot… This week, I’d like to share a web resource for the development of girls, in line with the feeling of JOY, and how as the adults in their lives we can foster this feeling more often.
Click on this link to access this article (https://santamaria.wa.edu.au/science-of-joy/)
Staffing
We thank Charlene Basnett and Elaine von Hoesslin for their time spent as our academic support locum teachers during the term within the Senior Primary. We will continue to work with both ladies in different capacities as the year continues.
It is with regret that I announce the resignation of Ms. Agnes Mkhuzangwe, our Sesotho teacher. She will continue to serve her notice during Term 2. Her wealth of knowledge and experience will serve her well in her future endeavours. We have benefitted from her care and expertise during her time with us, for which we are most grateful. We wish Ms. Mkhuzangwe support as she follows this new chapter in her career. We are in the process of recruiting a suitable candidate for her position.
#Thriving in Possibility
Tarryn McLaren
Junior School Head
Arts & Music
🎻 Kingsmead Junior School Ensemble Festival
We were delighted to host seven schools at Rosebank Union Church for the two evenings of our annual Kingsmead Junior School Ensemble Festival last week. The air was buzzing with excitement and joy, and the schools delivered outstanding performances. Our Wind and Brass bands, along with the Junior School Orchestra, showcased their dedication, stealing the show. We are immensely proud of our ensembles and grateful to our community for showing up in full force to support this fantastic event.
💚 THANK YOU!
The Music Department has had a busy first term and we cannot be more proud of our students who performed at numerous music concerts, festivals, and other events. Last Friday, we eagerly anticipated Kingstock with our community, the excitement palpable in the air. Although the weather prevented us from continuing the evening, we choose to remember the beautiful moments of everyone coming together; the joy on our students’ faces, our community members helping to move instruments when the heavens opened, messages of support, and the unwavering strength of our Kingsmead family. We are incredibly grateful to be part of a community that celebrates together regardless of the circumstances.
A heartfelt thank you to management, staff, parents and our exceptional students for keeping Music thriving in our beautiful school. We wish everyone a relaxing and restorative April holiday.
If you have any questions about Arts & Music at Kingsmead, get in touch, we would love to chat.
Elsabé Fourie
Director of Arts & Music
efourie@kingsmead.co.za
Mia Loock
Head of Junior School Music
mloock@kingsmead.co.za
Sports
Term 2A Extra-Curricular Schedule
Please be advised that the term 2A extra-curricular schedule will undergo minor adjustments in preparation for the upcoming hockey season. We will be incorporating an additional weekly hockey session during the pre-season. It is crucial for the hockey players to participate in this session to ensure that our teams are adequately prepared. Participants are required to have shin pads and a gum guard for these sessions, as safety remains our top priority. While we do have spare hockey sticks available for students who do not have their own yet, it is recommended that students have their own stick for fixtures. Once the netball season concludes, hockey sessions will be shifted to the current netball sessions for term 2B. Thank you for your understanding and cooperation as we make these necessary arrangements.
Netball
On Saturday, 6 April, the Grade 4-7 netball teams competed in thrilling matches against St Stithians and Brescia. The games were filled with excitement and determination as the players showcased their skills and teamwork on the court. It was a day of intense competition and sportsmanship, with each team giving their best.
Outside Sport
Diving
Congratulations to Olona Mbele & Mikayla Rono for their selection to take part in The Bergen Open Diving Competition scheduled to take place in Norway from 1-5 May 2024. We extend our best wishes to these divers for a successful competition
Gymnastics
Congratulations to Sophia Roos for achieving the highest score in gymnastics for level 1 at the Northstars Gymnastics Club competition on Saturday, 6 April!
Upcoming Events
11 April: Grade 4 – 7 Inter House Netball (Kingsmead)
The matches will commence at 08h00 and conclude at 09h45. Students are required to wear their house shirts along with the school tracksuit/skort. Please make sure that your daughter applies sunscreen and wears a hat.
16 May: Grade 3 Netball Matches vs St Peters @ St Peter’s
Please note that all players are to travel on the bus to St Peter’s for this fixture. The bus will depart straight after school and students are requested to meet the coaches at the gym. Players may be collected from St Peter’s at the end of the fixture (the bus will return to Kingsmead after the fixture) – All players are expected to stay and support until the end of the last match.
17 May: Grade 4 – 7 Netball Matches vs St Teresa’s
(Grade 4 & 5 – St Teresa’s, Grade 6 & 7 – Kingsmead)
Please note that all players are to travel on the bus to St Teresa’s for this fixture. Players may be collected at the end of the fixture (the bus will return to Kingsmead after the fixture) – All players are expected to stay and support until the end of the last match.
A few reminders for parents & guardians:
- Please send any sports achievements (school & non-school) to Mrs Hanekom.
- A reminder to please download the Kingsmead App as this will be the direct method of communication to parents on sports fixture days.
- All team lists will be published on the App by no later than Tuesday for a Thursday fixture and the Wednesday before the Friday/Saturday fixture. Please ensure that you let the coaches know if your daughter is not able to attend a fixture.
Yours in sport
Shavaun Hanekom
Head of Junior School Sport
Service
The Junior School has been busy with many fun Service outings over the past two weeks. A class in each Grade had the opportunity to visit their Service Partner and interact with the organisation, learning about what they do and how we can further assist them.
The Grade 0s had an exciting visit from PAWS 4U. Each girl had the opportunity to cuddle and snuggle with a therapy dog. The excitement of the girls could not be contained as they got to feed the dogs little doggy treats and walk the dogs around campus.
The Grade 4X class traveled to Fight with Insight, a boxing gym in Braamfontein, where they learnt how to box and made sandwiches as part of the gym’s feeding scheme.
The Grade 5X class will visited Sunshine Association in Craighall, where they interacted and made biscuits with the children at the centre.
All of the Grade 6s visited ForAfrika where they had a tour of the headquarters and got to taste the delicious porridge that gets made for the feeding programme. The girls will continue to support the feeding programme by raising funds next term.
Grade 7X went on an adventure to the Wildlife Vet where they had the opportunity to interact with the animals as well as donate vegetables to assist with feeding the animals.
Junior School Easter Egg Collection
We would like to express our sincere gratitude to each and every one of you who donated Easter eggs for the Johannesburg Mini Council initiative. Kingsmead Junior School collected over 6,600 eggs and more than 200,000 eggs in total were donated by the Johannesburg Mini Councillors across the city. Last Wednesday, these eggs were given to numerous charities across Gauteng which included, Save the Children, One Cross Ministry, the Teddy Bear Clinic and Feed SA. Our Grade 7 councillors, Lamiah Bux and Leah Schoeman, worked tirelessly at Holy Rosary School on this day sorting out and distributing all of these eggs. Well done to everyone and Happy Easter!
Converstion Starter
We hope that you enjoyed the last conversation starter…as we know, one of the signs of a healthy family is open and meaningful conversation/communication. But often finding the time or the points to speak to, don’t always come easily. We thought we would share some prompts to facilitate this process, which are ideal to share around the table, on a trip – anytime, anywhere.
