Boneo Buzz: 6th March

Dear Parents and Guardians,

As we head into the long weekend, I hope you are able to take some time to slow down and be with your family. I was reminded this week of the importance of the ‘Slow philosophy’ and the work of Steve Biddulph.

 ‘The high value put upon every minute of time, the idea of hurry-hurry as the most important objective of living, is unquestionably the most dangerous enemy of joy.’ Hermann Hesse

 In the modern world where there is a constant need to be busy (and/or act like you are), the slow movement stems from a need to take back the power to own our lives rather than let ourselves be owned by the need for more. From fashion and food right up to travel and education, the ‘slow philosophy’ has attracted many with its counter intuitive ideas about how to experience life, perpetuating a shift in priorities and values.

 ‘Time is everything in parenting, and ‘hurry and rush’ are the enemies of our families. We have to slow down.’ Steve Biddulph

Steve Biddulph espouses that spending quality time with children and teenagers is crucial for them to feel valued, loved, and heard. More important than this, however, is quantity time, particularly when our children are between the ages of 6-14. This can be the most difficult ask for busy families. However, making time each day to talk, sit, play, cook, do activities or chores together will result in more trust, healthy communication, building memories and growing positive relationships for years to come.

 To build resilience

We must allow our children to take risks in order for them to make discoveries about their world and themselves. Biddulph says that having the opportunity to fail and be disappointed is not something we should shelter our children from, but rather direct and support them towards so they learn to have confidence in themselves when faced with future disappointments. Instead of solving their problems, fighting their fights, or jumping in too quickly, Biddulph suggests we encourage our children to get outside their comfort zone and learn to get comfortable with being uncomfortable. 

Wristbands

We have received our ride tickets from Wittingslow and they are now available to purchase from the office. After investigating prices, the most economical option is to continue offering an unlimited wristband at $25 each and individual ride tickets at $5 and $6.

Community support for our event continues to grow, with donations arriving daily for auctions, raffles and food stalls. We wish to acknowledge the generosity of the following businesses for their support of our 2020 Family Food & Fun Night.

Year 5 ‘VSSEC Excursion’

Earlier this term, all of Grade 5 travelled to the VSSEC (Victorian Space Science Centre) in Melbourne. We learned about the Solar System and experienced what it is like to be an astronaut on Mars and to work in Mission Control.

To prepare for our excursion we learned about Earth and Mars, including differences such as the length of 1 year, which is 365.25 days on Earth, but 687 days on Mars.

Our first activity at VSSEC was to study the size of the solar system. We discovered that while it takes one year for Earth to orbit the sun, it takes other planets much longer. For example it takes Neptune about 165 years to orbit the sun once. Next, we sat in Mission Control, where we assisted and monitored the scientists working on Mars. Our third activity was to be a scientist conducting experiments on Mars. We also experienced an emergency where we were at threat of being exposed to a virus and had to evacuate.

The best part was definitely the emergency!