Natanya Milner – Head of Primary

It has been wonderful to welcome new teachers and families to the Emanuel School community and see the children settling in so quickly. It can take some time to adjust to the pace of the year and I hope you are taking it slowly and that the early mornings and busy days are not too exhausting.

I have spoken to the children about my wishes for them for 2017. Each class will have its own culture and expectations and the teachers will develop their own special bonds with their classes and the individuals within them. This is such an exciting process.

Personally, I have always considered that there are two overarching ‘expectations’ to be guided by and whilst there will always be rules to keep people safe, my two guiding principles are:

• Try your best
• Be kind.

When our children are guided by these ideas, they are often able to reflect and the choices they are making become simple and clear. It is at this time that the wisdom of Albert Einstein rings in my ears. Einstein stated that, ‘A person who never made a mistake, never tried anything new’. In 2017, we look forward to encouraging our children to try new ideas, to be brave enough to share their thoughts, test their theories and create new products. There is a Years P-12 focus on innovation at Emanuel this year and we look forward to sharing this journey with the children. My recent research suggests that the most wonderful innovations began with the meeting of a need – a person who noticed an opportunity to improve something, to make it more efficient or to satisfy a new or emerging idea or space. This way of thinking encourages us to not only ‘solve problems’ but also to be alert to ‘noticing’ or ‘finding problems’. I am looking so forward to learning more about this journey as the year progresses.

Meet the Teacher

We look forward to welcoming you to our Meet the Teacher evening on Monday 13 February. This will be an opportunity for you to talk to your children’s teachers and hear about some of the initiatives at Emanuel for 2017. Please see the timing and venues below:

6.00-6.45 pm: Years K-2 meetings in classrooms

6.45-7.30 pm: All parents to hear about whole school initiatives in the Lehrer Family Multi-Purpose Hall (MPH)

7.30-8.15 pm: Years 3-6 meetings in classrooms

8.15-8.45 pm: Northern Territory Information Evening for Year 6 parents in Year 6 classrooms.

Emanuel and Kornmehl Pick Up

There have been some supervision issues relating to Primary School students in Kornmehl. Children in Years K-2 are asked to be accompanied by an adult on the walk down to Kornmehl. They can be met by parents at Go With The Flow. Children in Years 3-6 can go down on their own, but a parent or carer needs to be waiting at Kornmehl to receive them. They cannot go into the Pre-school unsupervised and without an adult waiting to pick them up. Please make sure siblings of all ages are supervised when in the Pre-school. We ask Emanuel School children not to climb on any equipment outside nor play with things set up inside.

If your Kornmehl child is enrolled in extended hours care in the Pre-school, unfortunately Primary School students cannot be in the Pre-school at this time. After school care is an option you are able to use at this time as it is not the responsibility of the Pre-school to look after Emanuel siblings.

Please DO NOT leave your car in the Kornmehl car park in Chepstow Street if you are heading up the hill to collect your Emanuel School child. The car park is to be used exclusively for families with children only in the Pre-school. If you do have children at Emanuel School to collect as well, please park your car in the street during drop-offs and pick-up times. We appreciate your co-operation which ensures the safety of all the children and families in the Pre-school, as well as opening up car spaces in the car park during peak times. 

Go With The Flow (GWTF)

If you would like to collect your child/ren using the GWTF system along Avoca Street in the afternoons, you will need name tags for your car. In order to generate these, please click on this link GWTF Tag and complete your details by 8 February. The tags will be handed out in class in the week commencing 13 February.