The past two weeks in our ELC have been exciting, engaging and thought provoking as the girls have been immersed in Science Week and Book Week. This engagement has been ignited with picture books, science experiments and our community.

Upon reflection, it was clear that picture books were the inspirational hook for much of the learning over both weeks. The girls read, enjoyed and unpacked the learning in a wide range of books, including Uno’s Garden (Graeme Base), Ada Twist Scientist (Andrea Beaty), The Water Hole (Graeme Base), Water Can Be… (Laura Purdie Salas), The Gruffalo (Julia Donaldson), Mr Brown (Thomasina Williams), Lionel and Me (Corinne Fenton), Stickman (Julia Donaldson) and Superworm (Julia Donaldson), to name just a few. It serves as a brilliant reminder of the importance of reading and how books feature in every part of our learning (but are especially celebrated through Book Week).

The girls were also captivated by the daily experiments they conducted over Science Week. They hypothesised, summarised and experimented with volcanos, celery, jelly, walking water and bouncy eggs. Our Mamie chickens were the best highlight of all, as right on cue, the first egg was laid in the beginning of Science Week! All of the above is exciting for adults, but seeing it through the eyes of the girls is very special. Such learning ignites the girls’ curiosity and encourages them to continually discover the science in the world around them.

Finally, outstanding learning came from our community. Of course, it goes without saying that the teaching was exemplary, but once again we were visited by several of our parents who demonstrated how literacy and science can evolve into career opportunities. Mrs Tommie Williams, Dr Summaya Balouch and Mr William Tieu were some of our special guests and we are incredibly grateful for their time and inspiring teaching.

We cannot conclude without a special mention of our Book Week parade. Thank you to everyone for your effort in making this such a success! As a parent, I completely understand the stress and forward planning that this day brings, but Mrs Wendy Menzies reminded me of exactly why we do it in the Gym, when she pointed out just how much joy was on the faces of the girls. Your efforts were appreciated and together they made for a brilliant parade of book characters.

All of the above is absolutely continued and enriched through the girls’ play. This is shown especially in the Gruffalo Annie Cubby House and in the Mamie Base Camp. As Albert Einstein said, ‘Imagination is more important than knowledge. Knowledge is limited. Imagination encircles the world.’ Our girls certainly have wonderful imaginations that continue to grow every day!