We have had a busy start to the term and a very exciting first day as the children walked through the door with their amazing house models, a traditional task which stems from the Building and Shelters main lesson. We had a wonderful response from children and parents who played the trades assistant role. Over the last few weeks, we have heard from each child as they have presented their model describing the area, climate, and resources that influenced the type of dwelling. The children then explained how they built their model. It was a lovely opportunity to share and for us all to learn the difference between a comment and a question as audience members. We were also fortunate to visit the new high school built along with architects David and Mel this week to see an actual build and the sequence and trades involved. It was lovely to think that the children will be part of our new high school journey and use the classrooms and space we previewed.

Gardening and Farming are a central theme of the Class 3 curriculum. Children become more capable of a more sustained interest in plants and animals, and it lays the foundations for an active caring of our planet Earth. Farming and gardening prepare the students to understand the pertinence of the seasons as they approach their main lesson, and the early farming practices work in with the Old Testament stories. We have covered many farming practices and have heard from each other about our backyard gardens, to Delilah’s sheep and spelt farm at Mt Barker.

Bees were another topic we learnt about and how important they are to our ecosystem. A trip to meet the resident Beekeeper at Bartholomew’s Meadery was met with much excitement, some great questions, and, of course, some honey tasting and an ice cream to top off a great morning out.

To consolidate our Farming main lesson, we headed off in the bus last Thursday to the Grove's Family farm at Mount Barker, home of Kate, Jeremy, Delilah, Jake, Brady, Daisy, and Will. We were shown around the various machines to prepare and mill the spelt and the final product of spelt flour in delicious banana spelt muffins prepared by Kate. Off to the sheep yards with Jeremy was next on our agenda, along with working dogs to corral sheep and a little herding ourselves. Plus, some fun facts and a demonstration of ‘ball binding’ to create a few ‘ew’s and aah’s. We then ventured up the hill to collect sticks to build a fire to sit and have lunch with a stunning view of the Porongurups. An introduction to seeding to follow, and then we were back on the bus, homeward bound. A fabulous day and a big thank you to the Groves family and to Kylie Cook and Lesley Wybenga for joining us.