Newsletters
Annesley News Issue 249

Teaching children the work of peace

Parents, Grandparents and Friends of Annesley

The Annesley Parents Association (APA) would like to thank our community for their wonderful contributions throughout 2025. We’ve enjoyed an incredible year of events — from our Term 1 Welcome Drinks to Sports Day, Mother’s and Father’s & Special Friends’ Days and of course, Musical Bingo! None of these events would have been possible without your participation and support — thank you.

Last term, the APA team conducted a survey to get to know our community a little better. We wanted to understand what types of events, fundraising initiatives, and ideas you’d like to see from your APA.  We were thrilled to receive so much positive and thoughtful feedback — thank you to everyone who took the time to participate!

If you didn’t have a chance to share your thoughts or would simply like to learn more about the survey results and what the APA does, please join us for our APA Annual General Meeting on Wednesday the 19th November.

At the meeting, we’ll be:

• Sharing the results of the community survey
• Discussing how we can run even better events and fundraisers
• Talking about the role of the APA and how you can get involved

Whether you’d like to join as a member, volunteer at events, or simply share your ideas, your input is valuable to us. The APA exists to make a positive difference in our school community — and we’d love for you to be part of it.

Please come along, enjoy some light refreshments, and take part in what promises to be a positive and engaging discussion.

14 of our students celebrated their Children’s University Graduation on Wednesday this week at Bonython Hall.

Each child’s Children’s University journey. Is unique, as they can select from a vast range of engaging experiences and activities according to their passions, strengths and skills. Children have to complete more than 30 hours of learning outside of school hours throughout the year to reach their next level of graduation. Congratulations to our 2025 graduates!

As part of our Sharing the Planet Unit of Inquiry, Base 5 enjoyed a wonderful walking excursion to the Himeji Gardens. Located in the heart of Adelaide, this peaceful space was the perfect setting to explore how people and places are connected around the world. The gardens celebrate the sister city relationship between Adelaide and Himeji, Japan, symbolising friendship and cultural understanding between the two cities.

During the visit, Base 5 took time to observe the garden’s traditional Japanese features, including the serene pond, stone lanterns, and beautifully designed landscapes. They learned about the history of the gardens, when they were opened, and how each element reflects harmony with nature.

Back at school, Base 5 became gardeners themselves, designing and mapping their own Japanese-inspired gardens. This linked directly with their Mathematics topic on location and coordinates, where students used grid references, compass directions, and mapping skills to plan and describe their garden layouts. They also created walking tours and location questions to help others navigate their maps—just like a real visit to the Himeji Gardens!

The excursion and follow-up task allowed Base 5 to make meaningful connections between geography, culture, and mathematics, while deepening their appreciation for how cities like Adelaide and Himeji share ideas, traditions, and friendships across the globe.

Early this term we introduced that we would start going to visit Miss Sophie in her room for Performing Arts. “But how will we get there? How will we know where to go?” the children asked. This sparked conversations between the educators on how many of our children will not connect with our school community until they leave to reception and for those going elsewhere – maybe not at all!

“Well what are we going to do?” we asked

“We need a map!” they replied!

Thus came our “Walk About” inquiry! An inquiry intended to look deeply at and connect with the community around us. Exploring this through the different IB lenses and documenting our learning through mark making and the Reggio Emilia 100 languages.

We have started with a familiar space and have started documenting the Grevillea learning space and ELC gardens. We have been focusing on our observational skills and the different ways we can document the things we see, smell, feel and hear!

Over the last term we have been exploring, observing and creating. We have been visiting new places, noticing and recording the things around us. We have been exploring different mediums such as water colours and oil pastels and discovering how different influences affect our artwork. For example, like painting outdoors! We have created many different maps of our community and are currently working on putting together a book of all our adventures!

Katy (Year 3 Teacher) and Lachie (Year 4 Teacher) have announced their engagement this week after an exciting weekend they shared! We are so pleased for you Katy and Lachie, and wish you every best wish for your future!

Pastor Pete is hosting a special Chapel service on Wednesday 12 November at 9am in Gillingham Hall, which is also open to Old Scholars and community members.

U-Turns:
We kindly ask families to avoid making U-turns on Rose Terrace when dropping off or picking up children. Performing a U-turn over the yellow road barriers is not only unlawful but also poses a safety risk during peak times.

Permit Zones:
As a courtesy to our neighbours, please also ensure you are not parking in any designated permit zones along Rose Terrace.

Thank you for your cooperation and commitment to road safety.

A reminder to all families that if you have younger children that you have not yet submitted an application form for, that it can be done via this link: https://enrol.annesley.sa.edu.au/application-for-admission/start

An application must be submitted in order for a child to be considered for a place.

If you are not sure if you have submitted an application and wish to check, or for any other questions, please contact Laura in the Student Enrolments Office on 8422 2211 or email enrolments@annesley.sa.edu.au

Through recent engagement with the Unley Council, they have confirmed guidelines for our community to follow when using the Kiss & Drop zone. Drivers must remain within 3 metres of their car in this zone and can only remain stopped for 2 minutes. If a driver moves further than 3 metres away, the 2-minute period no longer applies. We have had regular inspections from Unley Council of this zone recently. We ask our community members to adhere to these guidelines to avoid getting fined, and to keep our Kiss & Drop zone functioning effectively.

A reminder to Primary families that supervision for our students is provided from 8.30am on school grounds. Prior to this time, students are not to be left onsite without an adult family member. Our Before School OSHC Service is available to families requiring early supervision from 7.30am to 8.30am. Similarly, staff supervision is provided after school until 3.45pm. OSHC is available to families needing care after school until 6pm.

From 4.30pm each day, OSHC requires exclusive access to the eastern playspace (including the soccer field and Adventure playground). After this time, families are asked to move to the western end, utilising the Court and Daphne Gum playground.

Calling all families to donate gently used Annesley uniforms to Unify, our student-led pop-up shop for second-hand uniforms. Your contribution not only promotes sustainability but also helps support many of the school’s initiatives. Your ongoing participation is greatly appreciated and contributes to the continued success of our school community. Donations can be left in the Unify tub located in the Front Office.

Our Bouncing Bean Café and Unify Second-Hand store are open at the following times each week:

Before School: 8.15am – 9am, Everyday
Morning Break: 11.05am – 11.45am, Everyday
Monday & Wednesday Afternoons: 3pm – 4pm

Tuesday 11 November: Remembrance Day
Wednesday 12 November: Old Scholars’ Chapel
Friday 14 November: Olympia House Breakfast
Friday 14 November: Base 4 – Camp Out
Friday 14 November: Reception Grandparents Day and Special Friends’ Day
Thursday 20 November: Year 1 Celebration of Learning – Art Gallery at School
Friday 21 November: Local Buy Annesley Market
Friday 21 November: 2025 Annesley Christmas Concert
Wednesday 26 November: Year 6 Graduation Assembly
Monday 1 December: Year 6 Pool Day
Tuesday 2 December: Year 4-6 Pétanques Incursion
Wednesday 3 December: ELC Orientation Day
Thursday 4 December: Year 6 Graduation Celebration
Friday 5 December: End of Term 4

If you need further information about upcoming events at Annesley, please contact enquiries@annesley.sa.edu.au.

Our website now has a volunteering page under the Community Tab that outlines clearly the process we require our family members to follow to volunteer at Annesley. This process meets legislative requirements in order to keep our children and volunteers safe at Annesley. See more here.