As is tradition, our Class 8 students this year, dazzled their families with their coordinated, rhythmic fire dance as the precursor to the bonfire lighting and winter solstice celebrations. Due to the change in circumstances this year, only the Class 8 and their families participated at the small gathering, however it was magical for those in attendance.  

Our Morning Star students made the most of a cold, damp day to celebrate the winter solstice within their cohort, with a puppet play, a fire pit, a song and of course soup to warm them during the day. Many children also celebrated with their families in the evening on the Sunday with lantern walks.

Here, at Chrysalis, we work with biodynamic principles in our gardens and for our seasonal celebrations. If you don't know a lot about biodynamics, or would like to be reminded, below are some links to four beautifully filmed youtube videos from the Biodynamic Association in the UK. Presented by Claire Hattersley, a Weleda gardener, and recorded at Weleda's UK gardens. The aim of these films is to engage and empower everyone to garden. Total viewing time is around 25 minutes, quite divine viewing. Video One: What is biodynamic gardening? 5mins https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4a2tycXTGJo Video Two: Planting calendars 5:29mins https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dqTAdk_t114 Video Three: Biodynamic…

The Winter Solstice falls on the shortest day of the year and, even though from this point forward the sun is now turning back, the hardest part of winter is yet to come. The days will grow colder in the valley, all of the rich colours of autumn have faded and the growth and fires of summer are long gone. As the physical world sleeps, the spiritual world bids us to reflect on our life and the choices we make. In a moment the light of a new idea can help us to see a new way forward, giving us…

Yarnam, our Class 5 teacher, shared the recent achievements of his students with their first comprehensive written research project - Ancient Eygpt. This was a project that started during the remote learning time of COVID, with Yarnam listing their project requirements in Google Classroom and providing the students with how-to videos to assist them. The children got hard to work at home, before bringing their partially finished projects into the classroom when school opened up again. Yarnam described this project as an opportunity for the students to show their individualised knowledge, with two key topics "Who were the Egyptians?" and…

Emma, Camps Coordinator and Class relief teacher, worked with Classes 2 and 8 to design a new Australian flag honouring Reconciliation Week last week. Emma explained to the students that the current Australian flag was conceived through a design competition and that now it was their turn! This week the two classes came together to showcase their designs.