Weaving together different areas of the curriculum and seeing meaningful learning connections for students are some of the most exciting moments of my day. This year, we’ve had the unique opportunity to reimagine Reception teaching and learning by exploring Version 9 of the Australian Curriculum.
In Term 3, we focused on blending creativity and imagination through bookmaking in English, alongside exploring position and location in Maths, and understanding significant places in HASS. In practice, this involved Reception students examining our school grounds to identify and understand significant places within the campus.
One of our early activities was a visit to the Big School Room, where Mrs Elisabeth Bramford, School Archivist, explained how both Old and New Palm House have changed over time. This allowed the boys to connect the history of our School with their own personal experiences. A particularly intriguing part of the visit was the mystery behind Old School House—specifically, Mr Browning’s office—which sparked great curiosity among the students.
As part of our project, the boys recorded their predictions in a book, imagining what Mr Browning’s office might look like and contain. Many consistently guessed that it would have a desk and chair, while some envisioned that Mr Browning might do his work with a quill, or even that he had a bed and pillow in his office. Inspired by these predictions, the idea of a visit to Mr Browning’s office took shape, and we created maps and recorded directions to guide us there.
This learning journey culminated in a visit to Mr Browning, where we all gathered as he read aloud from our book titled “All About Mr Browning’s Office.” The boys’ ideas, read back to them in Mr Browning’s voice, sparked gleeful laughter. And of course, no visit would have been complete without a tie-tying competition to cap off the fun!
Stephanie Cabot
Reception Teacher
