On Thursday the 13th of February, Nursery and Kindergarten went on an adventure to see the show “The Way Back Home” at the Victoria Theatre. Our current units of inquiry explore how we express ourselves and the theatre is a wonderful way to experience expression in many forms. A huge thank you to our parent volunteers that supported us on the day.

Year 2 celebrated International Home Language Day on 21st February, embracing a sustainable and inclusive future. Aligned with the Global Sustainable Development Goal of Quality Education, we recognised the importance of home languages within our diverse NEXUS community.

We invited Year 2 parents to share stories in their native tongues, and our learners were delighted to listen to two different tales in their home languages or languages they were eager to explore. The afternoon was a vibrant tapestry of storytelling from around the world. Learners picked up new phrases, enjoyed the unique rhythms of different languages, and simply relished the warm, inclusive atmosphere.

We hope this celebration has strengthened our Year 2 learners' sense of belonging and reinforced the understanding that everyone contributes to our school's rich and inclusive culture.

Building on the success of this event, we are excited to announce that next year, International Home Language Day will be a whole primary event, further celebrating the linguistic diversity within our school. A huge thank you to Ms Katharina for coordinating the event and to the parents for enthusiastically sharing a love of reading in all languages. 

(Background: UNESCO established International Mother Language Day in 1999 to honour the language movement in Bangladesh. This day highlights the vital role of linguistic diversity and multilingualism in sustainable development. At NEXUS, we believe celebrating home languages is crucial for fostering cultural identity, education, and social cohesion. 

For more information, please visit: https://www.un.org/en/observances/mother-language-day)

Our recent trip to the Science Centre was an exciting and thought-provoking experience for our learners, sparking curiosity and engagement with the world of simple machines. The workshop served as a fantastic provocation by following the story of 'The Bicycle Race',  allowing learners to explore how forces are used to make simple machines work and how we can create our own using recyclable materials.

Through hands-on experiences, they discovered how levers, pulleys, wheels and axles, inclined planes, screws, and wedges help us in everyday life. Whether lifting a heavy object with a lever, using a pulley to raise a flag, or rolling objects effortlessly with wheels and axles, learners gained a deeper understanding of how these machines make work easier. They also discussed how simple machines are found all around us—from scissors and door handles to ramps and bottle openers—and how they contribute to efficiency in our daily lives.

Bringing this newfound knowledge back to school, our learners embarked on their own investigations, searching for simple machines within our classroom spaces. This research-based unit has been a fantastic opportunity to immerse ourselves in books and digital resources, further enhancing our understanding of forces.