The Messenger T3 Wk 7

THE MESSENGER Term 3 Week 7 Wednesday 3 September 2025

Dear Dear School School Community, Community, Our students Our students have have been been very very busy over the past 3 weeks, busy over the past 3 weeks, and and there there is is a a multitude multitude of of activities and achievements activities and achievements to to celebrate. celebrate.

Our students have travelled far and Our travelled and widestudents in recenthave weeks.

Nine offar our wide in recent weeks.

Nine of our Year 10 students have departed Year 10 students for France, wherehave theydeparted will spend for France, where they will spend between 6 and 12 weeks with a between 6 and 12 weeksthemselves with a host family, immersing host family, immersing themselves in French culture and hopefully in French culture and hopefully sharpening their French skills. sharpening French skills.

Meanwhile, their the remaining students Meanwhile, remaining students are engagedthe in travel and work are engaged in travel and work experience around Australia. Our experience around Australia.

Year 11 & 12 students traveled Our to Year 11 & 12 Students to Melbourne, partakingtraveled in several Melbourne, several creative andpartaking culturally in immersive creative and culturally immersive experiences.

Jazz performances, experiences. performances, gallery visits, Jazz dance classes, gallery visits, classes, navigating thedance city, and a study navigating the city, and a study session at Melbourne University session at Melbourne University Library were experiences aimed at Library weretheir experiences aimed broadening experience baseatfor broadening their experience base for the work to be done back at school. the tostudents be done have back snow at school.

Ourwork Year 9 Our Yearand 9 students have camped explored thesnow Bogong camped andand explored the Bogong High Plains, most recently have High most recently have spentPlains, a weekand at the Murray-Sunset spent a week the Murray-Sunset National Park,atwhere they spent National Park, where spent time solo and enjoyedthey the company time solo and enjoyed the company of their increasingly connected of theirYear increasingly connected group.

8 students have recently group.

Year 8 students have recently returned from Central Australia.

They returned from Central Australia.

They had an amazing 7 days experiencing had an amazing 7 days experiencing the landscape (including Uluru, Olgas, the landscape Uluru, Kings Canyon),(including the culture, and Olgas, the

And jolly Spring, with love and laughter gay Full fountaining, lets loose her tide of bees Upon the waking ember-flame of bloom New kindled in the honey-scented trees.

Hugh McCrae

reports Kings Canyon), about their the culture, engagement and the and reports about conduct were excellent. their engagement and conduct were excellent.

We have had many students busy We have with theirhad sporting many pursuits, studentsboth busyin without and their ofsporting school. Interschool pursuits, both skiing, in and out of school.

Secondary RoundInterschool Robin, Southern skiing, Secondary Ranges Athletics, Roundlocal Robin, football, Southern Ranges Athletics, basketball, netball,local and football, soccer have all basketball, been well-attended netball, and by our soccer students. have all beenlocation Our well-attended means by these ouractivities students.

Our location often involve means a lot of these travel.activities Thank you often to theinvolve parentsa and lot of staff travel. whoThank makeyou to the opportunities these parents and staff possible who make for our these opportunities possible for our students. students.

Our primary students continued to Our primary develop theirstudents competence continued and ability to develop to manage their themselves competence andand enjoy ability the to manage themselves challenging alpine environment and enjoy onthe challenging their ski daysalpine at Mount environment Stirling. For on their ski Class 6’s,days this at experience Mount Stirling. culminated For Class in their 6’s, overnight this experience camp atculminated the ‘Cricket in theirAovernight Pitch.’ huge thanks camp again at the to the ‘Cricket Pitch.’ Avolunteers parent huge thanks who again make tothe theski parent volunteers program possible by who attending make theasski program possible by attending as helpers.

helpers. thanks to the Parents and Further Friends who attended and ran Further to the Parents and the triviathanks night. Amber and Bernie Friends attended and ran were so who pleased with the support the night.and Amber andtoBernie theytrivia received wished thank were so pleased with theThe support everyone for their work. night they received and which, wishedalong to thank raised over $2.5K, with everyone for their work.atThe night your upcoming efforts Spring Fair, raised $2.5K, along with will go over towards thewhich, next P&F school your upcoming efforts at Spring Fair, project. will go towards the next P&F school project.

Our musicians and music staff, as always, have been busy, and we Our musicians and musicthank staff, as would like to particularly always, have been busy, and we Danielle and the students who are would to particularly part oflike Snowgum Stringsthank (Scarlett, Danielle and Hanna the students who are Thea, Lexie, and Minseo.

The part ofrecently Snowgum Strings (Scarlett, group played at the opening Thea, andand Minseo,. of the Lexie, IB Art Hanna Exhibition at theThe group recently played atAwards the opening Community Bank Grant of the IB Art the afternoon onExhibition Sunday atand theat Goughs Community Bank Grant Awards Bay Boat Club. afternoon on Sunday at the Goughs Bay Boat Club.

Glenn Hood | PRINCIPAL Glenn Hood | PRINCIPAL

ALL SCHOOL EVENTS AND DATES: WWW. MANSFIELDSTEINER.VIC.EDU.AU/CALENDAR

GRAPEVINE GRAPEVINE

MORNING STAR Sandi Valerio

Last week the Morning Star children farewelled Winter with a special gnome afternoon tea. The Honeybee children were surprised as they arrived on their last day of Winter to see little gnomes waiting to share some pancakes and tea with them. Many conversations were had, games were played and then the little gnomes joined morning circle for a last time singing songs of frosty cold days.

The Echidna children have been busy sewing gnomes to be ready for their end of Winter afternoon tea. Although we had a lovely afternoon sipping on chocolate chai and enjoying honey biscuits, we will do it all over again this week as some of our friends were not well and could not join us.

Ourstories storieshave havebeen beentelling telling us.Our us tales of the beginnings of Spring. ‘Pussy Willow’ with her little fluffy kittens blooming as Lady Spring arrived, and a Norwegian Folktale, ‘How the snow became White’. The children could not believe their eyes when they looked closely at the snowdrop and saw that it had shared some of its white with the snow. The ROSA MUNDI JACK little green dots were leftFINEGAN where the white was wiped away and given to the snow.

Rosa Mundi have been spending time out in the yard watching the Princess of ROSA MUNDI JACKonFINEGAN Spring work her magic the flowers and trees as they seemingly spring back to life.

The seeds we planted garden are also springing life with the kids The start of Term 3 has beenin allthe about listening to our bodies,to keeping warm and excited to mornings see what is to come.

Our morning circle has changed dry in the and ensuring we head back outside to movewith and the playseason, as we prepare the yard for our Spring Festival and upcoming Spring Fair. Father Sun is returning from his holiday as the children enjoy singing songs of blossoms and warmer weather.

CLASS 1 Samantha Charlotte

Fairy Fae recently delivered Class One’s recorders, much to the excitement of the children. We have been working very hard on how we hold, play and take care of our recorders, have heard stories about the birds who took residence in Fairy Fae’s tower, and are rejoicing in being able to use our recorder bags that hang beautifully in the classroom window. This week, we began to hear stories of The Dreaming, compose short sentences and draw beautiful images of what we recall in our Main Lesson books. The children were very happy to welcome spring, and are anticipating all that comes with the blossoming of trees and the warmer days.

CLASS 2 Liz Morrell

Class 2 will finish the Layout of Sums main lesson this week and so far we have worked deeply into addition and subtraction in a number of ways from quick mental calculations to written vertical algorithms. We have used concrete materials, drawn representations and learned how to use bar models to work out word problems. Getting into the garden and exploring the work of the worms was a highlight this week. Naming all the plants in the garden, weeding and having a little taste along the way was great fun.

CLASS 3 Amy Burns

Class 3 spent the last three weeks working incredibly hard to learn lines, movements, songs and dances for their play, ‘Esther, Star of Persia’. I was very impressed by their enthusiasm and energy for bringing the story to life as a group, and their joyfulness the whole way through rehearsals. Each of the students pushed themselves in new ways and overcame many challenges to perform two wonderful shows for the rest of the school and for their families, despite rain and very muddy backstage areas!

This week we have started our Shelters and Building Main Lesson, as well as completing planting native species in our yarning circle project. Students have also been busy working at home to make treasures that they will sell at our Class 3 market during the final week of this term.

CLASS 4 Michael Britton

Class 4 has been diving into their Number Processes main lesson over the past couple of weeks. Students have been strengthening their understanding of times tables, place value, and developing strategies for working with numbers.

They have worked with prime numbers, and heard of Eratosthenes, the brilliant Ancient Greek polymath who devised a clever method for identifying prime numbers. The class has also been investigating factors and greatest common factors, building a strong foundation for future mathematical concepts. In English, we’ve begun reading Matilda as our class novel. Each student is practising reading aloud, building confidence and fluency. The students have been creating more intricate Viking patterns and Celtic knots, where they are focusing on the ‘weaving’ of lines to create beautiful, interconnected designs. And in the mornings, the class has been practising juggling. Most students are now able to get three beanbags started, and will hopefully be able to start properly juggling by the end of the term.

CLASS 5 Lou Pullar

We had a wonderful four weeks of skiing this year with plenty of snow up high and we are grateful to all the parent helpers who made our trips possible. Class 5 have launched into our Ancient Greece Main Lesson hearing tales of tremendous Titans and glorious Gods. We will be writing creatively about the stories, learning Greek dancing and practicing our sporting technique for the Greek Olympics next term. Last Thursday, Carol also began teaching the Botany Main Lesson, starting with the four elements and tying it in with our gardening and cooking day. This will continue for the rest of the year. Next week, we have district athletics and solo concerts, and we wish everyone well as they strive to do their best.

CLASS 6 Clare Bennetts

We have been learning about what it means to borrow money in order to set up a business, how to calculate profit and understanding that bank loans are paid back at a particular interest rate. We are all crafting, growing or creating some items to sell at our stall on Thursday lunchtime 9th October. Students have debated, tallied and graphed where the profits should go and discussed the benefits of philanthropy for our society. Now that the concept of percentages is consolidated, students are working out the new price of discounted items in catalogues.

YEAR 7 Dion Hall

Being Indigenous means belonging to the original peoples of a land, carrying deep ancestral connections to its landscapes, waters, and life. It reflects a living continuity of culture, language, and traditions that have been passed down for countless generations, often rooted in a profound respect for the natural world and an understanding of its cycles. Students explored this way of knowing, researching their own cultures of interest from around the world and some of the challenges inherent in displacement and change that can envelop cultures.

YEAR 8 Amy McMahon

The Year 8s have recently returned from their week-long Northern Territory camp, which formed an important part of our current Main Lesson, Earth: Origins, Processes and Landforms. Students had the opportunity to experience the vast and ever-changing landscapes of Central Australia, making meaningful connections between their classroom learning of the Earth’s development and the formation of Uluṟru and Kata Tjuṯa. Throughout the camp, students embraced a wide variety of experiences—from eating damper and kangaroo tail to sleeping beneath the stars. They visited historical and sacred sites, admired the desert wildflowers, and even held native reptiles, including the Rainbow Serpent and a white-skinned blue tongue lizard. The group conducted themselves with respect and resilience, pushing their physical limits while adapting to the extremes of the outback climate—from strong winds and freezing nights to hot, sun-filled days. We were very fortunate to be accompanied by Bella Moore (Year 9 OED teacher) and Jack Finegan (Prep teacher), and we thank you both for your energy and valuable contributions. It was a truly memorable experience, and I know many of the lessons and moments will stay with us for years to come.

Looking ahead, Year 8 are preparing to embark on their next Main Lesson: The Age of Revolutions.

YEAR 9 Briony Davenport

Year 9 students have been investigating the branch of mathematics called Conic Sections and the family of shapes that comes from slicing a cone on various angle (circle, ellipse, parabola and hyperbola). Students explored how the equation of a circle describes its size and position, experimenting with how the radius, and the values h and k, shift and reshape the circle. Then, we turned our attention to parabolas and learnt important stills in expansion of binomial brackets and factorisation of quadratics. We also connected the topic to history by learning about Apollonius, the ancient Greek mathematician (200 BC) who first studied conic sections. Students finished the main lesson by creating some parabolic artwork, wielding their compasses and rulers to make some stunning shapes.

YEAR 10 Nicholas Koschitze

Shortly before they all left for exciting and enticing new experiences, Year 10 took a crash course into the depths of poetry writing, looking inward into themselves in the process. The Art and Craft of Poetry travelled students through some of the most significant periods of poetry of our time, beginning with the classics such as The Canterbury Tales and Shakespearean sonnets, and building towards modern free and blank verse poetry. Their work has now been presented beautifully in their own anthology booklets.

MUSIC MUSIC Celeste Celeste Cleason Cleason The The music music faculty faculty is busy is busy atat work work preparing preparing allall our our students students forfor the the upcoming upcoming solo solo concerts. concerts.

This This special special time time is often is often filled filled with with excited excited anticipation anticipation and and some some feelings feelings ofof trepidation trepidation forfor many many students. students.

These These concerts concerts form form aa critical critical part part ofof our our music music curriculum curriculum asas well well asas honouring honouring the the individual individual growth growth ofof each each individual individual child child in in front front ofof our our school school community. community.

We We look look forward forward toto listening listening toto much much music music over over the the next next two two weeks! weeks!

SOLO SOLO CONCERT CONCERT DATES DATES (ALL (ALL CONCERTS CONCERTS COMMENCE COMMENCE ATAT 6PM): 6PM): Wednesday Wednesday 10/9: 10/9: Class Class 3 &3 4 &4 Thursday Thursday 11/9: 11/9: Class Class 5 &5 6& 6 Wednesday Wednesday 17/9: 17/9: Year Year 7 &7 8 &8 Thursday Thursday 18/9: 18/9: Year Year 9, 9, 11 11 & 12 & 12

COMMUNITY NOTICES

IB YEAR 12 ART Charlote Dayman On Monday evening, we gathered to celebrate the opening of the IB Visual Art exhibition.

Students each presented a body of work, spanning across 2D, 3D and screen or lens-based mediums. Ideas of nostalgia, introspection and the line between reality and fiction were communicated through the works and curatorial rationales on display. The exhibition was a wonderful showcase of the student’s resolved works, technical skills, conceptual understanding and their overall journey of the IB Visual Art course from the past 18 months.

VICTORIAN SNOW INTERSCHOOLS Serena Vivash Five students represented MRSSK at the recent Victorian Interschool Snowsports Championships held at Mt Buller. Well done to Jarrah Bateup, Penny & Spencer Scarborough, Lola McLeish and Angus Speirs.

They all competed in the Skier Cross, Giant Slalom Ski and Spencer also competed in Snowboard Cross and Giant Slalom.

IB DIPLOMA YEAR 11&12 Saskia Schultz Recently, the Year 11s and 12s had a trip to Melbourne. Saskia has given a summary of our myriad activities below: Sunday: We visited the Australian Centre for Contemporary Art, which provided links to our ethnography for Anthropology, as well as direct engagement for the art students. Afterwards, we took a beginners Salsa class with dozens of other members the public. In the evening, we attended a concert of the jazz group Enki, especially for the music students.

Monday: We walked to the State Library for study and to experience the temporary exhibits, before attending the Immigration Museum and their “Joy” Exhibition. Theory of Knowledge was a focus here. Prior to dinner, we visited the Ian Potter National Gallery at Fed Square, and after our pizza/pasta enjoyed a Melbourne Theatre Company production of “Destiny” and the Q&A following (a play about the South African apartheid). This was an introduction to a different South African play from this era that that Year 11s will study in Term 4.

Tuesday: We visited a Melbourne University campus library, before attending their Ian Potter museum’s “65,000 Years: A Short History of Australian Art”.

While different activities were directed at particular subjects, students were able to experience the links between several different areas of the studies out in the world.