Calling for bookings! So far we have not made the minimum number of enrollments necessary to run this course. If you are interested in booking your child/ren in, now is the time! Also, if you have booked but not yet paid please ensure you pay by the cut off date – 4th of February. In the event of the program not running due to insufficient numbers all fees will be refunded promptly.

Come and join us in a 4 week journey in art exploring a variety of medium and mix media applications. We’ll be exploring the imagination and storytelling in art, Each week the children will be invited to participate in an imaginative exercise that they can then choose to use as a jump of point for their art explorations that week, Bev will help us delve into an exploration of a different medium each week exploring its techniques and application and also how the medium interacts with previous weeks works. Participants will be given plenty of time for creating new works each week and/ or building on previous weeks works to create multi-layered pieces. Mediums to be explored include watercolour, pastel, ink and collage. Carers are welcome to share their chidren’s art materials and join in art experiences themselves

WHEN: Feburary 8th thru to March 1st.

WHERE: Mid mountains community centre

COST:  $44 HEA members, $52 for non HEA members

Fee includes an art kit for each participant to use in class and keep as their own afterwards (Kit comes complete with: pastels,watercolours, brush, pad of watercolour paper). If you are enrolling a second or subsequent child/ren and they are happy to share the one art kit, deduct $15 from the fee of each subsequent child. For example, first child is $44, second child happy to share the art kit pays only $29 for the program.

BOOKINGS: Email the Hub at bookings@bmlearninghub.org

Payment due by 4th of February

The Annual NOT Back to School Picnic!
This is an annual Blue Mountains Home Education Network initiative.

The Hub invites you to attend the BMHEN annual Not! Back to School Picnic.
Come and celebrate the home education choice!
This is a great opportunity to start the year reconnecting with friends, make some new ones, mingle and find out what is going on in all the local homeschool groups in 2011. Bring a rug and a picnic and join with the local homeschooling community to celebrate our lifestyle choices. Invite any friends you have that may be interested in exploring home education as well.

WHEN: Tuesday February 1st @ 10:30 am
COST:FREE
WHERE: Wentworth Falls Lake
BOOKINGS: Not required.

Hi everyone,
Last year a homeschooler’s pottery class ran down at Glenbrook (Blue Mountains Creative Arts Centre). We are looking for expressions of interest so that it can run again this year. It is open to all homeschoolers. It is Fridays @ 1:30-3:00pm. It is a lovely class with gentle guidance from the teacher and the kids work at their own pace and create the things they want to make. Last year the kids explored various techniques – coil, pinch pot, slip joining and even had a go on the pottery wheel. If you are interested please contact me and I will get you in touch with the school to register.
Kiri

email: contact@idyll.com.au

phone: 0414 063 017

Event Title    JAPANESE
Event Date    4/3/2011 – 8/4/2011
Event Time    Fridays, 12-1:30pm
Event Location    Mid Mountains Community Centre, Lawson
Event Contact Name    Nikki Lee Martin
Event Contact Email/Phone    nikkileemartin@yahoo.com.au/ 0418694698
Event Description    Come along to this friendly class and enjoy learning about the Japanese way of life and this interesting, diverse language.

Jaime Elms, our enthusiastic tutor, makes regular visits to Japan and sources some great teaching aids there. This six week course introduces the basics of Japanese, with students covering introductory phrases and Japanese manner. You will touch on basic grammar, numbers and learn to recognise Japanese lettering. After only a few lessons you will be remembering phrases, catching on to pronunciation, and making conversation!

As well as equipping students with information on a culture so different from our own, studying Japanese opens many doors for those interested in pursuing a dream of travel, or a desire to work in a foreign country.

Cost: $120 or $102 if paid in full prior to commencement of course.

It’s back by popular demand! Your opportunity to reconnect with the home education communities of the Blue Mountains and surrounds. Perhaps it is your opportunity to touch base and meet some local home educating families for the first time. Perhaps you are thinking about home schooling and just want to drop in to check if home schoolers really do have two heads … or not. Whatever your reason… you are welcome! We promise there will be lots of adults to chat to and lots of kids to hang out with. There will also be people representing various groups in and around the mountains ready and willing to fill you in on what they are planning for this year – should you ask. So, bring a picnic, a rug, sun protection and … a change of clothes for your kids?…. (well… we are meeting at the lake!) and come and celebrate the JOY! of NOT! going back to school!

Feb 1st from 10:30am @ Wentworth Falls Lake!

More info? Kiri – 0414063017

Join in on some fun and rewarding creative writing workshops with Margo Daly.
In this small and relaxed group you can kick start your creativity with a variety of in-class writing exercises. Developing your craft and building creative structures step-by-step, you can begin to find your natural writing voice. Margo will encourage you to gather your ideas and inspiration outside of the workshop, “collect” characters, dialogue, detail and atmosphere to help create both real and imagined worlds.

Margo has published short stories, creative nonfiction, poetry, travel writing, essays and reviews and edited three anthologies of creative writing.
She has taught creative writing and nonfiction writing for many years at UTS, NSW Writer’s Centre and Sydney University Continuing Education as well as in schools and community centres. She is midway through study for a Bachelor of Teaching (Secondary) at Charles Sturt University ,has a BA (Communications) from UTS majoring in Writing and Literary Theory and an MA (Writing) from Sheffield Hallam University (UK).
Margo recommends this class for ages 10+. She has experience working with literacy issues and is happy to talk with parents prior to enrolment.

Cost: $120 for 5x two hour sessions
Exact location and times to be arranged with interested participants.
For more info on BM Teen Homeschool Group events go to www.myhomeschool.com.au

Event Date    Early February
Event Time    To be advised
Event Location    Mid to upper Mountains
Event Contact Name    Jane Shellshear
Event Contact Email/Phone    4784 2337  or jane@hrlearning.com.au

A reminder for those interested in the course but that have not booked yet. Four more participants are needed for this course to run so if you were thinking about booking please get in touch directly with the facilitator on the email below.

ART ADVENTURES Term workshops

Exploring Literature Through Drama

To launch our program for the new year we are very fortunate to have Georgia Adamson present this innovative workshop over 4 weeks.
Georgia is an actor with the Sydney Theatre Company’s school drama program, working in schools using drama approaches to encourage investigation within literature. She has developed this class specifically for the teen group.

With Georgia you can come on an exploration of the book ‘Boy Overboard’ by Morris Gleitzman.
A story of adventure and hope, Boy Overboard is the first novel in the Boy and Girl series featuring the fictional character Jamal Houssini, a young refugee from Afghanistan. It tells the story of young Jamal, his sister Bibi and their parents’ long journey to Australia.

For more detail on this workshop and the Blue Mountains Teen Homeschool Group see our website at www.myhomeschool.com.au

Bookings: Jane on 4784 2337 or jane@hrlearning.com.au
Cost: $85 HEA members / $93 non HEA member

Event Date    Commencing February 8th for 4 weeks
Event Time    Tuesdays 1-2:30pm
Event Location    Mid Mountains Community Centre

Forensic Frenzy: a CSIRO Educational Student Workshop.

Come along to this hands on workshop where you assume to role of a forensic scientist and solve a crime!

For this case – The Kidnap and Ransom of Nathan Bloom- you will be supplied with a police report which describes the crime that has been commited including photographs and details of the four suspects. On the day, you work through 15 different activities in groups of three.
By the end of the workshop you will have collected a variety of`different clues and had a chance to try out techniques used by forensic scientists.

Recommended for ages 11+

Cost: $20

Bookings by Feb 22nd. Contact Jane on 4784 2337 or jane@hrlearning.com.au
Event Date    Tuesday, March 8th, 2011.
Event Time    1-2:30pm
Event Location    Mid Mountains Community Centre