Australia's Science Forum

Welcome back everyone, we do hope you enjoyed your break, in nice warm weather. Always interested in how every one enjoyed their time away from school, etc.

Thanks Labbie! It's great to be back

We went on a cruise up to the Great Barrier Reef for 7 nights with our girls, it was wonderful! Then a week getting jobs done around the place.

Hope everyone else had a good break!

Hi all, I'm not ready for this yet......is it just me????? Had a good break, went to Tassie for the first week, enjoyed it very much!
Not ready for this reality tho

Hi Remlap12, I agree I think 3 weeks would be better, but then I always want more. That cruise sounds lovely, sailed from Sydney? On my to do list is Tassie, is it nice this time of year?

Back facing the daunting task of sorting my crap as I have resigned Have a very relaxing, uneventful holiday with the kids at home.

Oh Linotas, have you really????????????????????????? So very sad, why

We had a week at home, during which we went to Canberra to the History of the World in 100 Objects exhibition at the National Museum. Fantastic! Worthwhile going. Second week we went to Melbourne. Had a great time there, although we all came down with head colds - not fun.

Why is it, while you're on holidays it feels like you've been away from work for ages, but on the Sunday night it feels like you've just had a weekend off?

Hi everyone!
Welcome back to the LONGEST term ever. LOL - it always feels 20 weeks long.

Labbie, i drove passed your school twice in the holidays

I spent the time at home - after Tassie last holidays. My girls and I explored Cockatoo Island last week which was lovely. Just even ebing on the harbour is relaxing.

See you in week 7 at conference

Labbie,

Tassie was beautiful!
I packed so much cold weather gear and we really only needed 'tween seasons gear! The weather was glorious, and we only got rain on the last day.
It is so picturesque!

Thanks Labbie!

Welcome back to the treadmill everyone! Downhill run....

Hi all, I had a busy time - minding grandsons then getting the flu from them.. arggg I need another two weeks to get over it

Sounds like everyone had a great break, just waaaaay too short!

The cruise went from Brisbane, just as easy for us to get there as Sydney & cut off a couple of days at sea.

Labbie wrote:Hi Remlap12, I agree I think 3 weeks would be better, but then I always want more. That cruise sounds lovely, sailed from Sydney? On my to do list is Tassie, is it nice this time of year?

Tassie is nice all year round Labbie!!!

Hello from England!!!

The countdown is on for the end of the year for you all.

I've been at my new schools (working across two sites) for almost a month and it's good working with another labbie. I feel that the things the students learn are further ahead than what I'm use to in NSW (or maybe the schools I've worked at personally). Here, the teachers need to put their pracs in for the week, which is so new for me haha but a nice change.

I'm about to prepare for the winter! Not looking forward to it!

I do think you have seen what has happened here MissKat, I am afraid that this country has 'dumbed' it all down.. students are not learning even what I did at school. I notice that particularly in Maths.. it is time that Australia pulled itself back up , stop playing around with education and get serious..
Each time they change something and add in an extra 'soft' subject, they are playing with kids lives.. students deserve better than to be a social experiment for some desk bound 'expert'...

Hi Miss Kat, which part of England are you? I agree sunray 100%.

I see our education system differently. My son is in Year 11 and I've found the expectation on him has been much greater than my school days. He was being taught the basics of essay writing from Year 6. Certainly by Year 7, they were expected to submit assessments in essay and then later, report formats. I never learnt to write a report until uni. Essays weren't introduced until about Year 9 or 10 (and I went to a selective high school). My son has recently dropped to General Maths as the Mathematics course was too complex for what he needed. My husband and I had both done 2 Unit maths at school but could not remember doing what he was doing.

You have to remember that a number of students are staying on to Year 11 who previously would have left school at the end of Year 10. We need to offer them something substantial. I think these are the students we are letting down - forcing them to stay on at school but then only offering them academic subjects where they just become disinterested and disruptive to the rest of the class. My son complains more about these students than about not being challenged enough (he is getting As and Bs in his science subjects).

Of course, individual schools have individual expectations. I may have just experienced the positive ones.

I'm living in Cambridge. Oh the grey clouds are coming in! Definitely jealous of the warming months of Sydney.

I have a week break for half term. I'm looking forward to it very much already!

Don't get too jealous of the weather. This last weekend was more like winter. Spring seems a long time coming. It will probably be one of those years where it goes from cold to stinking hot and we get nothing in between! Enjoy your break.

Hi Miss Kat, I use to live in Stevenage in Herts just down the road from Cambridge. Its a lovely place very remote in parts of Cambridgeshire, enjoy and keep warm.