Pimpala Primary School eNewsletter

We would like to welcome you all back to Term 3, what an exciting and busy start it has been to the Term.

Students have been participating in amazing learning tasks in class and have also had many extra curricula opportunities and experiences.

While the weather has been cold and a bit wet it is always heart-warming to chat to our students who make this school a wonderful and warm place to be. Students are consistently following our school values of respect, responsibility and resilience.

We had our site visit with the Education Director, Heather Makris, last week and she was overwhelmed by the learning the students were achieving and the welcoming and happy feeling that she always has when she visits. The students loved sharing their learning journeys with her.

There are many big events happening this term that take a lot of time and effort to set up, one of the biggest events for the year is Book Week. I would like to acknowledge all of the many, many hours that Karen has spent getting the Library, STEM room and Hall ready for book week and all of the fantastic activities that are planned for this week. Book week would not be as sensational without the work that Karen puts into it, but as with all large events it takes more than one person to get it all organised, the Library Leaders and Ms Power have been instrumental in helping Karen get everything ready for this week.

I look forward to the next few weeks of school and especially the Book Week Parade on Friday, 26 August. I hope to see you all there!

Classes that have participated in the Stephanie Alexander Kitchen Garden Program so far this year have been extremely productive completing tasks such as harvesting, mulching, weeding, seed saving, seed sowing, planting out seedlings, preparing garden beds, building structures for climbing plants, making signs, exploring, looking at seasonal changes and being garden detectives.

Our MasterChef’s have been cooking up a storm in the kitchen using beautiful fresh seasonal produce from the garden. Some of the student’s favourite dishes so far have been, leek, lemon, pea and herb risotto, tomato and basil bruschetta, basil pesto and pasta, zucchini risoni salad, salt bush chips, coconut and lime cupcakes, lavender lemonade and mint limeade. Students are looking forward to making apple and cinnamon pinwheels, DIY pizzas, kale and parsley dip and pasta with sage and burnt butter sauce (just to name a few) over the coming weeks.

Many changes have been happening in the garden such as new varieties of bush tucker plants planted in the Indigenous Garden one of those is Karkalla, an edible variety of pig face also known as sea fig or beach banana. I am very excited to research and trial some recipes using this edible Indigenous ingredient!

The garden has had many successful crops so far with enough produce to continually sustain our cooking lessons throughout the year as well as having enough produce to stew/prepare and freeze for the cooler months. Our most success crop has been this seasons apple harvest of 14 kilograms of Granny Smith, Pink Lady and Royal Gala apples!!

Earlier this year we also had an abundance of limes, apricots, chillies, tomatoes, eggplants, silver beet, warrigal greens and green beans as well as many varieties of lovely fresh herbs and our very first oranges. On an unfortunate note the garden was vandalised on two separate occasions earlier in the year therefore, sadly no pumpkins made it to the kitchen. Apples, chillies, peaches and eggplant crops were also affected by the vandalism.

A big thank you to all the students, staff and volunteers who have assisted so far this year to help make our garden such a beautiful yet productive space. I would also like to thank all of the wonderful volunteers who have given up their time to assist us with our cooking lessons.

We are always looking for helpers in both the kitchen and the garden. If you have completed the new RRHAN-EC Training for volunteers, have been double vaccinated against COVID-19 and have a current DHS Working with Children Check we would love your help!

We cannot run the program without the valuable assistance of volunteers. You do not need to have a green thumb or be a master chef, just enjoy working with children.

If you would like to obtain a DHS Working with Children Check or check your validity please see the Administration Office staff. Department for Education is now offering the new online RRHAN-EC training for volunteers, please see the Department for Education website for the link or speak to the Administration Office staff for more information.

If you are able to help with our cooking or gardening lessons please ring or message me your availability. If you have any questions at all regarding the program please don’t hesitate to contact me or pop in and see me in either the Stephanie Alexander kitchen or school vegetable garden.

Michele Smith

Stephanie Alexander Kitchen Garden Program Coordinator

Volunteer Mobile 0408637850

It's time to celebrate children's literature with the Children's Book Council of Australia (CBCA) Book Week. The theme for Book Week - 2022 is "Dreaming with eyes open...". The CBCA Book Week promotes the joy reading can bring to young minds!

At Pimpala we celebrate Book Week each year and this year our celebration will include Author visits, Scholastic Book Fair, Student Art Gallery, Competitions and culminates in a Book Week parade

Each year the Children’s Book Council of Australia selects books written or illustrated by Australian authors to be shortlisted in a book competition. These books can be recognised by the bronze circle on them. All classes have been exposed to some of these books and their parade mask/costume is based on the one the class has chosen. Here is the list of short listed books of the year per category.

Congratulations to all CBCA Shortlist Authors, Illustrators and Publishers

Download the Shortlist - 2022 in PDF

Download the Judge's shortlisted books critiques in PDF

Watch the special 2022 Shortlist announcement on YouTube

BOOK OF THE YEAR: OLDER READERS

Entries in this category may be fiction, drama or poetry and should be appropriate in style and content for readers in their secondary years of schooling. Ages 13-18 years.

Note: Books in this category are for mature readers and some may deal with particularly challenging themes including violence and suicide. Parental guidance is recommended

Girls in Boys' Cars

Felicity Castagna

Pan Macmillan Australia

ISBN: 9781760982980

22 Nov	Aquatics and Water Safety Year 5/6 All day

4 Dec	End of Year Celebration All day

9 Dec	Colour Fun Run All day

12 Dec	Year 6 Graduation All day

13 Dec	Assembly All day