Wandju - Welcome to Term 4

Kaya WCSS Community

Administration Matters

Shining Light On...

Group Messaging Guidelines

In order to ensure our policies and procedures are highly visible to parents/carers, we highlight a policy or important procedure in each newsletter. If you are interested in a specific policy check the Key Info Tab on the school website or email Reception to receive a copy. 

All WCSS policies are reviewed periodically and updated and/or amended guided by compliance and best practice and ratified by the School Council.

In this edition we highlight our Group Messaging Guidelines.

Parent Education

In order to support our parents and caregivers on their Steiner journey we continue to partner with ‘The Steiner Parent Education Initiative’. Our school and Steiner schools across Australia are paying for their communities to be able to join and learn from these leading practitioners in Steiner Education. And you can join from the comfort of your home, and at a time that suits you as our guest!

Although these windows into Steiner education are live on a certain date and time, this doesn’t always work out with the time difference for us here in WA so we have arranged, that if you book for the courses, you will receive the recording to listen to at time that suits you, BUT you must book before the day of the course.

See the rich offerings for Term 4 below. To book go to the link at the bottom of each poster and follow the prompts. When your booking is complete choose the calendar option of your choice at the top of your booking confirmation. Here you can change the time from AEST to AWST and set your reminder. You can then choose to watch live or receive the recording link.

We urge you to book your tickets, join a group of friends or just set aside time when it is quiet, make a cuppa, pop on your pyjamas, and come on a journey; a journey through the Steiner curriculum and much more. Family Commitment Hours are claimable for attendance at these talks.

WCSS Parent Education Team

Further booking details to come closer to date.

Early Childhood

One potato, two potato, three potato, four,

Five potato, six potato, seven potato, more!

Now thanks to the work of  rain and  sun,

 All the growing work is done.

Potatoes in the winter sown,

Are by Springtime, fully grown!

GUMNUT KINDERGARTEN

On the last day of Term 2, the Gumnut children planted little potato seeds.

In Term 3 we have watched them grow through the earth, mulched them with straw, watered them with our little watering cans when it hasn’t rained and are now eagerly awaiting the new school term when we shall harvest them.

Whilst working in our garden we have also been very excited to see caterpillars, snails, ladybirds, butterflies and other insects, as well as watching the birds that visit our garden and listening to their birdsong. When we were teasing woollen fleece, we threw some to the wind – as a gift to the birds. Perhaps they will find some to line their nests with.

Our love of the little creatures in our garden has been taken up in our inside play too, where felted ladybirds, bird and dragonfly finger puppets have gone on adventures in puppet stories and out to sea!

We enjoyed a delightful Spring Festival on the last Thursday of Term 3 and we look forward to seeing you for Term 4!

Janet Happe

Gumnut Kindergarten Teacher

Music News

On September 8 our boys had a remarkable new experience. They performed as part of the WCSS Orchestra at the WA Junior Orchestra Festival. This is an annual event run by the Australian Band and Orchestra Directors Association (ABODA). The event was supremely well organised and ran like clockwork. We dropped the boys off in the allocated green room where WCSS Strings Specialist, Cristina was seeing to the tuning of instruments. We then took our seats and watched a performance and the subsequent mini-workshop, before the WCSS orchestra filed on to the stage to take their places. They found themselves on a large stage in a concert hall that seats 800 people, with a sizeable audience. To our delight, Cristina had rehearsed the orchestra to the point where they all rose to the occasion with absolute aplomb and performed beautifully. We could not have been more proud. The mini-workshop that followed was tailored to suit a string orchestra and it was wonderful to see the children quickly picking up the changes in bowing that were asked of them and creating alterations in the way one of their pieces of music sounded. The children were then led off stage to allocated seating so they could listen to the next group of students. Their experience was wrapped up with a group photo which will be a treasured momento of the event.

All up, it was a wonderful introduction to the wider world of music making and a priceless opportunity to learn directly from a hugely experienced musician. We are enormously grateful to Cristina for making it possible.

Sonya Fitzmaurice

Class 4 Parent

Handwork

Class 5  worked so hard to finish their projects before end of Term 3 and brought their own unique twists to their items. Whilst knitting a beanie one student decided she would like a beret and after some investigation we worked out how to do it with great results! Another student finished her beanie quickly and then used her left over wool to make matching hand warmers, and some opted for a rolled edge on their beanies.

Woodwork

Class 6 Projects

Alumni Focus

Class 12 Projects ~ Georgia

WCSS Class of 2018

Hi, my name is Georgia and for my year 12 Project I have been looking into the Australian legal system in relation to domestic violence (DV) and I have developed the question:

What are the limitations within the Australian legal process in relation to domestic violence and how do they influence court proceedings and the aggrieved?

At the start of the year there was a major shift in my interest, and I saw my project change and develop into something completely different. Originally, I wanted to investigate serial killers and psychopaths, such as Jeffery Dahmer and Richard Ramirez, and how their brain function is different to the average person. However, after coming across a statistic that showed one woman a week is murdered by her current or former partner in Australia, I started to question if domestic violence perpetrators are just as evil as these famous killers.

At times I have struggled with such a heavy topic as I have read and heard of some horrible cases, which are simply unimaginable. As a result, and to try to manage this content I was motivated to delve further into the actual legal system that was supposedly in place to support victims of these crimes.

I read an article about a case in NSW in which the husband burnt his house down with his partner inside and it was made clear that this was a case of murder. When brought to court the husband only received 27 years imprisonment, however, if the victim was unknown to him, he would have received a longer sentence. This had me confused and infuriated, shifting my interest to the current issue, domestic violence. I found a theme throughout my research which was the lack of support, justice and safety offered by the legal system designed to protect victims of domestic violence. A current example of this would be the Floreat shooting in May, in which 2 women were killed. It is now known that the daughter of the killer made it clear that she and her mother were not safe and yet she was repeatedly ignored.

“My mother and I made it clear that our lives were at risk – we were repeatedly ignored, repeatedly failed. These failures have cost the lives of two incredible women” - Ariel Bombara.

This issue caused me to focus particularly on the process of obtaining justice when dealing with a domestic violence case and the limitations preventing the aggrieved from securing justice and safety. I have chosen 3 prevalent limitations to investigate, these include coercive control, legal system abuse and secondary victimisation.

I am currently working on the practical component for this project, and I am creating an art piece using domestic violence cases from the start of this year to the present day. Through this practical I am hoping to show the enormity of the domestic violence issue in Australia by having all cases on display in one art piece, as well as including a few positive changes I have found within my research – including the recognition of coercive control within legal proceedings. Throughout the holidays, I have been immersing myself in understanding real life situations and I have done this through listening to the stories of those affected by domestic violence, sitting in on DV court trials, collecting articles in which cover domestic violence and I also went and saw PRIMA FACIE at the Black Swan State Theatre. PRIMA FACIE was amazing to see as it showed how Tessa's perspective on sexual assault shifted from a lawyer's point of view to a victim of sexual assault point of view. The production also showed how when a victim reports a case of sexual assault, they are the one to be on trial, rather that the perpetrator, who essentially is barely questioned. I already understood this, however, seeing it in person allowed me to see the interaction between the court and the aggrieved and the impact these trials have on the aggrieved.

I visited the Family Court of Western Australia and observed several cases primarily focused on finances and child custody. Despite initial apprehension, the judge invited me to observe a domestic violence (DV) case later that day. The case involved a grandmother seeking visitation rights with her grandchildren, complicated by her son's criminal record, which included domestic abuse. Ultimately, the grandmother was granted supervised visitation rights with strict confidentiality measures. This experience revealed the broader impact of DV cases and was surprising due to the respectful conduct of everyone involved, including the lawyers, associates, and judge, contrary to my expectations.

I know I cannot completely shift my understanding of the domestic violence legal system through one experience as it is riddled with so many issues that need to be acknowledged, however, through my research I have found a few small positive changes coming through and I deeply hope that this will lead to a rise of reform and justice for domestic violence cases.

CRA awards 2024 Brian White Scholarship to Grace Barlow

WCSS Class of 2015

Grace Barlow, a student at Perth’s University of Notre Dame Australia and WCSS Alumni, has been named the 2024 Brian White Scholarship winner, Commercial Radio & Audio (CRA). This esteemed award grants Grace a unique opportunity to embark on a four-week paid placement, gaining invaluable experience across the newsrooms of ARN, SCA, NOVA Entertainment, and Nine Radio.
 
“This year’s competition set a new benchmark with the highest number of applicants in four years. Our finalists represent the future of radio news, and we are thrilled to see such remarkable talent emerging in our industry,” said CRA chief executive officer Lizzie Young.
 
The scholarship recipient was selected after an intensive workshop at ARN’s offices, where ten finalists were mentored by the industry’s top commercial radio news leaders. Led by Fiona Ellis-Jones (ARN), Michelle Stephenson (NOVA Entertainment), Erin Maher (2GB, Nine Radio), and Amy Goggins (SCA), each sharing their personal experiences and expertise on succeeding in radio.
 
“The level of skill and passion in the room is outstanding, it’s exciting to see the next generation eager to contribute to radio’s unique ability to reach audiences in a meaningful way,” said Fiona Ellis-Jones, ARN Head of News and Information.

Congratulations to Grace and best wishes as she makes her way to St Mary's University in the UK as part of a University Exchange Program.
 

WCSS Community Association

Dear School Community,

We hope you have enjoyed the school holidays and are returning full of energy and ready for our upcoming Kambarang Fair! Preparations are in full swing for this wonderful celebration of our school - our  biggest event and fundraiser of the year. We really need everyone to help make this day a beautiful and enjoyable one for all by each family donating just a few hours of their time. Very soon you will receive information about ways that you can help out on your class stall and various other jobs. Please sign up to the rosters and help where ever you can. 

What can you do now to help?

• Pot up cuttings and plants for the plant stall, especially vegetable seedlings;
• Put your skills and energy towards raffle prizes, BBQs and other yummy food, art or craft, setting up and packing down, baking cakes…there is something for everyone.
• And of course, spread the word! Tell your friends and family to come along, there will be student performances, talks, activities and open classrooms.

A roster will be available for each class and emailed in the next few days. 

Please reach out to wcssca@wcss.wa.edu.au or via your class carer with any questions, suggestions or offerings.

Craft Group

Craft Group is held each Thursday at 12:30pm at the Hub or the Cottage. This term we continue sewing felt animals for the Kambarang Fair. If you can’t make it but would still like to help, there are sewing packs available to take home from Sarah at Playgroup. A lovely way to claim Family Commitment Hours.

With kindness in community,

WCSSCA

wcssca@wcss.wa.edu.au

Community News

News items listed in our Community Noticeboard are not school endorsed but are included here for the information and benefit of our wider community. We welcome submissions to appear in this section of our newsletter and inclusion is at the discretion of WCSS. 

This workshop will bring some BALANCE, CLARITY AND SUPPORT to a really muddy and complicated area of parenting, all in the name of connecting you and your kids.

WHAT TO EXPECT 
* A framework to ASSESS YOUR CHILD'S READINESS for their technology requests.

* A suggested list of NON NEGOTIABLE BOUNDARIES to safeguard them as they grow.

* STRATEGIES to establish TECH AGREEMENTS with those under 13.

* CONVERSATION STARTERS re Snapchat, Tiktok and Instagram where kids are most active.

* DOWNLOADABLE RESOURCE PACK to remember all the nuggets of wisdom

THIS IS A ONE OFF FACE TO FACE WITH ONE OF AUSTRALIA'S MOST CUTTING EDGE TWEEN EDUCATORS. 

Empower yourselves as parents! Don't miss out!

Michelle is author of the acclaimed The Resilience Journal and Tweens what kids need NOW before the teen years.

Parent Business Directory

Welcome to the section where we share information on WCSS family owned businesses. If you are an enrolled WCSS family, run a business and would like to promote this to our school community please send your details (a few sentences describing your business, contact details and a logo or image) to marketing@wcss.wa.edu.au

Biodynamic Craniosacral Therapy (BCST) is a soft therapy with no pressure, manipulation or force. Virginie will use light touch while bringing a safe space to calm your nervous system which will bring the whole system into a state of balance. In that state, healing and change will take place in your body. BCST is like a big hug to the nervous system. It can help with releasing emotional or physical restrictions throughout the body, stress, anxiety, depression, trauma, aches and pain, improve sleep, energy, wellbeing and so much more.

With love

Virginie Barker - WCSS Parent
Biodynamic Craniosacral Therapy
08 93413020
vi.craniosacraltherapy@gmail.com

To learn more visit www.vicraniosacraltherapy.com.au

Cheesebuddy is an Australian made Brazilian cheese bread which is gluten free, versatile, delicious... and owned and operated by a WCSS family! Cheesebuddy’s products are available at Woolworths, Costco, IGA, Farmer Jack’s and others. Or chat with Yuri - M:0402730490

Yol Creative

Run by our very own Woodwork Specialist, Yolanda Millar, Yol Creative provides creative workshops for anyone who would like to explore their artistic side. These workshops are great for team building activities, get togethers, birthdays or just if you owuld like to learn some skills and have creative fun!

                                                              Explore the Facebook Page for more info.

Author - Nicole Watts

WCSS parent and author, Nicole Watts has a Bachelor of Psychology and a Bachelor of Arts. She has been on both sides of the mental health divide, having worked on projects in the mental health sector and having a history of depression and anxiety herself. She spent fifteen years in the public service in a statistical role, writing around her work commitments. Nicole has published a book called Little Bundle of Sorrow, a collection of womens' stories of postnatal depression. You can find out more at her website https://nicolewatts.ampbk.com/ . Copies of the book can be ordered from Amazon or from the publisher, Austin McCauley.

Coming Events

October

Saturday 05: School Busy Bee

Monday 07: Pupil Free Day

Tuesday 08: First Day of Term 4

Thursday 10: WCSSCA Welcome Morning Tea 8.45am

Monday 14: WCSSCA Meeting

Tuesday 15: School Tour 9.15am

SAVE THE DATE: Kambarang Fair Saturday October 26, 10-3pm

For further Term Dates check the school website calendar

WEEKLY

Market Day: Tuesdays 3.05pm

Craft Group: Thursdays 12.45pm at The Hub

Parent Study Group: Thursdays 9.00am at The Hub or Library

Yarning Circle: Wednesdays 8.40am at The Hub

WA Anthroposophical Study Group: Mondays 7.30pm in the Staff Room

Golden Threads
Monday-Friday 8.00am-10.30am
Mon, Weds, Fri 2.30pm-3.30pm
Thursday 1.30pm - 3.00pm