Articles

Class 8 project

Since 2003, Chrysalis has offered the Class 8 Project. During the course of the year the Class 8 students are asked to prepare an independent learning project for presentation to the school community. This project is traditional in many Steiner schools world-wide and involves many facets of learning appropriate for this age. Students are encouraged to venture into a “new” area of discovery, or take something they are already interested in and investigate it in greater detail. The project involves working with a mentor. The mentor is a resource person that has a great deal of expertise in the field…

National Reconciliation Week and The Imagination Declaration…

In 2020 Reconciliation Australia marks twenty years of shaping Australia’s journey towards a more just, equitable and reconciled nation. 2020 also marks the twentieth anniversary of the reconciliation walks of 2000, when people came together to walk on bridges and roads across the nation and show their support for a more reconciled Australia. Reconciliation is a journey for all Australians – as individuals, families, communities, organisations and importantly as a nation. At the heart of this journey are relationships between the broader Australian community and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples. We strive towards a more just, equitable nation by…

In My Blood It Runs…

At Chrysalis this week we will be imagining in to National Reconciliation Week (Wednesday 27th May to Tuesday 2nd June) in each of our classes. In addition, our Class 7 and 8 students will be watching the recently released movie - In My Blood It Runs. In My Blood It Runs was shot in Mparntwe (Alice Springs), Sandy Bore Homeland and Borroloola Community, Northern Territory, Australia over three years. However Maya, the director, has been making films alongside Arrernte Elders and families at an NGO called Akeyulerrre for a decade. This film arose organically from those relationships. The intimacy of the…

Suicide prevention courses within the Bellingen Shire

Lifeline has been asked by the Bellingen Neighbourhood Centre to present a couple suicide prevention courses within the Bellingen Shire. Thankfully these courses are at no cost. safeTALK: is a half-day alertness workshop that prepares anyone over the age of 15, regardless of prior experience or training, to become a suicide-alert helper. Most people with thoughts of suicide don’t truly want to die, but are struggling with the pain in their lives. Through their words and actions, they invite help to stay alive. safeTALK-trained helpers can recognize these invitations and take action by connecting them with life-saving intervention resources, such…

Class Plays Deepen Learning

By Ben Linstrom Every year, there is a time when each class in grades 1 through 8 stops the regular routine of main lesson blocks and immerses in preparation for a class play. It is an essential part of Waldorf education that we call pedagogical drama, because the plays specifically relate to the content of the Waldorf curriculum through the grades. For students, this is when what they’re learning truly comes to life for them. It may be historical or cultural, and it relates to what they have been learning in the classroom during main lesson. Routine and rhythm are important for our main…

Chrysalis Scholarships available for 2020

With over 35 years of providing Steiner education to families in the Bellinger Valley, Chrysalis Steiner School is opening up its doors further by offering scholarships to those families who have previously been unable to consider Steiner education due to financial or community disadvantage. The School is committed to providing access to Steiner education for as broad a group as possible within the community and appreciates that a diverse school community adds to the richness of the children’s education. Where class sizes and resources permit, the School will seek to offer a fully paid scholarship for children from families with…

Bushfire Support Information

The current bushfire situation is causing the Community a considerable amount of disruption and anxiety. Whilst our attention is drawn to the ferocity of the fires, there can be a number of cascading impacts that we should be aware of. Firstly, there is the impact of smoke which extends well beyond the immediate interface with the fire. The NSW Department of Health has information on this, which can be sourced from the following link: https://www.health.nsw.gov.au/environment/factsheets/Pages/bushfire-smoke.aspx The factsheet contains information in respect to health precautions you can take to help you and your children. We also seek to protect the well-being…

Great family games to play for the holidays and beyond…

Just a reminder there are many great board games and card games that develop your child's numeracy abilities, strategic thinking and are also great fun to play together. Some suggestions include: Younger Primary years Snakes and Ladders Chinese Checkers Bingo Dominoes Yahtzee RushHour Jenga Uno Draughts Cluedo Battleships Card games - Friends of 10, Friends of 20, Snap, Go Fish, Memory Middle Primary years Chinese Checkers RushHour Yahtzee Card Games - Canasta, Snap Jack, Cribbage, 21, Hearts, 500 etc If anyone would like to discuss how to play, please feel free to contact alison.s@chrysalis.nsw.edu.au or via the office. Alison Scheef -…

Dorrigo Donations

The school has been advised that the Dorrigo Evacuation Centre now has sufficient clothing donations to help out those affected by the fires, and as the disaster has now been classified as a section 44 emergency there is a lot more support from the government who will be financially supporting the costs of food bills. If people want to donate, a new account has been set up at BCU. This will be a fund that will help the community when they are no longer covered by emergency funding. Beaumont’s Produce and Norco in Bellingen are still taking bales of hay and…

Research into supporting students with Autism

Steiner Education Australia (SEA) would like to support research initiatives which provide practical outcomes for teachers and schools in supporting students with disability. To that effect they have been in conversation with researchers at QUT who are investigating effective ways of supporting middle years learners (aged 9-16 years) on the autism spectrum (ASD) in rural, remote, Indigenous and alternate settings (including distance education and home education). A focus of Cycle 1 of the project is to capture data from educators, parents and students attending a Steiner school to address the following:  Why do parents whose children have autism, or suspected…