Term 2 | Friday 30 April 2021

From the Principal
Principal Ross Whelan

Term 2 is well underway with a number of important events already held in the first two weeks. 

On Thursday night of Week 1 we held a Parent ‘Wellbeing Matters’ Seminar on Respectful Relationships.  The session was attended by over 350 people, both onsite and with a majority watching online.  The presentation was well received and with positive feedback.  We will continue to offer both live and online experiences now for such events, providing parents flexibility and options.  Watch out for the next Wellbeing Matters seminar in the future. 

Last weekend five Senior girls completed their Gold Duke of Edinburgh Practice Journey accompanied by three teachers.  The group travelled to the Budewang Range in the Southern Highlands where they completed their hike.  This is a significant trial towards the Gold award and we wish them well. 

Anzac Day was commemorated by staff and all students from Years 1-12 last Monday, on the Rawdon Middleton VC Oval.  In a moving service, we were able to reflect and pay our respects to the men and women who served our country across all wars and theatres of conflict.  Mr Andrew Wilkinson, is a College parent and was our special guest for the occasion.  Andrew has served in the Royal Australian Navy and is a current member of the Australian Invictus sporting team.  It was fitting to have him represent the College community.  Junior and Senior School leaders laid wreaths, along with Mr Wilkinson and myself to honour the occasion.  We did broadcast this event and you are still able to view the assembly via this link tv.thac.online (password: hassalltv). 

The Senior School Athletics Carnival occurs next Monday 3 May with the Junior School Carnival in the coming weeks.  Our Mother’s Day Stalls and the annual Mother’s Day Breakfast take place next week. Please register your name for the breakfast next Friday 7 May, as places are limited. This year we will be having 2 sessions at 7 - 7.50am and 8.20 - 9am.  You can find more information about the event here in this week’s edition of The Way.  We look forward to sharing this occasion with you and wish all our Mums and special women in our lives a lovely Mother’s Day next Sunday.

There is certainly a lot happening and it’s great to be able to see more of you onsite again.  We hope you will take the opportunity to enjoy a coffee at Café MRK each Friday too, from 7.30am.

Thank you for your continued support of the College and our programs.  We look forward to seeing you soon.

“I will give thanks to you, Lord, with all my heart; I will tell of all your wonderful deeds. I will be glad and rejoice in you; I will sing the praises of your name, O Most High.” Psalm 9:1-2

Mr Ross Whelan
Principal
From the Deputy Principal & Head of Junior School
Luke Sale

I firstly wanted to welcome everyone back to Term 2 which is often a busy, but rewarding term.

Some of the events for Term 2 include NAPLAN for Years 3 and 5, the Mother’s Day Stall and Breakfast, not to mention Years 5 and 6 camps happening in the last week of term. Along with all these things, we will also be handing out Semester One reports at the end of the term as well.

Recognising student achievement is very important at Thomas Hassall.

Today I wanted to bring before you a change that we are making to merits in the Junior School. Up until now, we have used two different methods of recognising student achievement. Good Work Cards in Years P-4 and the use of a diary stamp in Years 5 and 6. We are now using one method throughout Junior School. This is called an Achievement Award.

For the next period, it will still be acceptable to hand in a mixture of both Good Work Cards, Diary Stamps and the new Achievement award.

We encourage feedback regarding this new system and hope that you start to see the new awards in the coming days and weeks.

Mr Luke Sale
Deputy Principal & Head of Junior School
From the College Chaplain
Denis Oliver

This week we celebrated ANZAC day and some staff wore Rosemary and Poppies.

But why wear these plants on ANZAC day?   Rosemary is a plant that grows wildly on the Gallipoli peninsula – to wear Rosemary is to remember a location.  The Flanders poppy were the first plants to spring up in the devastated battlefields of France and Belgium.  Some soldiers feel that the red of the poppy came from the blood of their comrades that soaked the ground. To wear a poppy is to remember a sacrifice.

These simple plants, these symbols, help us remember our history. Both plants grow where the battles were fought - they are anchors to historical realities. The colour of the poppy and the smell of rosemary are invocative of our history – and the price of peace.

Christians also have symbols. We have an empty cross that reminds us of Jesus' death and resurrection, the historical event of forgiveness available to all.  We have the Lord’s Supper; the broken bread reminds us of his broken body; the poured out wine reminds us of his poured out blood - the price of peace.  When Christians take them as a community, we are reminded that Jesus died to make a community.

As we remember the fallen on ANZAC day, do not forget the one who fell and rose again – Jesus Christ.

Reverend Denis Oliver
College Chaplain
Term 2 Important Dates

 
Anzac Day 2021

On Monday, the College gathered on the Rawdon Middleton VC Oval for an Anzac Day Service.

With deep gratitude we acknowledged the brave service men and women, past and present, for their service and sacrifice for our nation.

It was a lovely service and it was great to have most of the College together, both staff and students, for this very special occasion.

Thank you to all the students and staff involved in making the event happen.

You can view the Assembly at tv.thac.online (password hassalltv)
THACTV - Live & Free

We have been building THAC TV over the past year into an excellent platform that enables us to connect and communicate with our students even when they are not able to be physically with us.

As the next step to this process, we have developed an all-inclusive website that now houses our livestreams, and will also have a library of previous events and videos.

This new platform will be accessible to our whole College community, allowing further connection with families who may not be able to access the College site to see their child during an Assembly or Chapel.

You are now able to log on and watch live streamed events,  as well as access previous events. Please go to the familiar link tv.thac.online and use the password hassalltv and click the link at the top of the page to the Live TV section.

As with anything new we are developing, please let us know if you have any issues so we can address them. We will continue uploading historical media from THAC TV over the coming weeks.

A special thank you to all the people that have worked behind the scenes particularly over the past year for all their efforts to advance so much in this area. We have appreciated the hard work and developments that have been made to enable us to watch and enjoy the livestreams.
 
A New Baby Girl

Congratulations to Rachel (Junior School Teacher) and Joey Stockinger as they welcomed their little girl, Vienna Lalitha-Marie just before Easter.

Mum and bub are doing very well! 

We wish them well and God’s blessings as they navigate this new chapter of parenthood with Vienna.

Praise God from whom all blessings flow!
Winter Uniform

All students will be required to wear winter uniforms from Monday 10 May.

Please book an appointment at the uniform shop to purchase any winter uniform items you may need.

The Uniform Shop will be open 

Monday                               7.00am – 3.30pm

Wednesday                        12.00pm – 6.00pm

Friday                                  7.00am – 3.30pm

To make a booking or purchase online, please visit our website.

EventsBack to Top

Mother's Day Stall

The Mother’s Day Stall gives children the opportunity to shop for a special gift for their mothers, grandmothers and special women in their life.

They really enjoy choosing something themselves and trying to keep it secret until Mother’s Day.

Children will be able to choose a gift priced at $5, $10, $15 and can buy more than one gift. The stall will be held in the Junior School Library.

WEDNESDAY 5 MAY: Prep Red & White, Years K-2 & 5W

THURSDAY 6 MAY Prep Blue & Purple, Years 3 - 6

Senior School students can purchase at lunch time either day

The stall is run by our Parent Community Network. If you are able to assist on any of these days please email community@thac.nsw.edu.au
Mother's Day Breakfast

Mothers, Grandmothers and Guardians, you’re invited to come along and enjoy breakfast with your child at the John Lambert Auditorium to celebrate Mother’s Day.

There are two sessions available to choose from:
7 - 7.50am and 8.20 - 9am.

Parents with students in Senior School are encouraged to attend the 7am session. You can come anytime during the session time. Students may only attend if accompanied by a parent/guardian.

This is a free event for the College Community, however due to the current NSW Government guidelines, bookings are essential and places are limited.

Please RSVP by Tuesday 4 May online www.thac.nsw.edu.au/book

WellbeingBack to Top

Raising Girls

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Raising Girls
Raising Girls

Raising girls in today’s modern world can be a difficult path for parents and carers to navigate.

These days, girls are transitioning to puberty a lot earlier than they used to and the physical, psychological and emotional changes they experience are challenging. As a result, by mid-adolescence, girls are twice as likely to develop mood disorders more so than boys.

Some parents and carers may feel uncertain about how best to support their daughter through the ups and downs of adolescence and how to keep the lines of communication open. With the rise of social media and technology, mental health difficulties in girls are increasing as often they are faced with online images that make it difficult to see themselves as acceptable. Ensuring a daughter’s opinions are heard and her views listened to, will go a long way towards making her feel loved and supported as she tries to establish her own identity.

In this edition of SchoolTV, adult carers will attain a clearer picture of what girls are wanting from their adult carers and how best to support them through adolescence. We hope you take time to reflect on the information offered in this month’s edition, and we always welcome your feedback.

If you do have any concerns about the wellbeing of your child, please contact the school for further information or seek medical or professional help.

You may also want to explore the resources in this edition:

Here is the link to this month's edition https://thac.nsw.schooltv.me/newsletter/raising-girls and you may also benefit from checking out the resources linked to this edition: https://thac.nsw.schooltv.me/newsletter-resources/9479/4639

Mrs Jacoline Petersen
Director of Student Counselling

Source: SchoolTV

LearningBack to Top

Naplan 2021

Across the country, NAPLAN will begin on Tuesday 11 May.  

Our Year 3 students are excited to be able to participate in NAPLAN online with Year 5, 7 & 9 students. With students participating in NAPLAN online, it is necessary that all students in Junior and Senior School remember to bring in a pair of headphones with a 3.5mm audio jack. Please check with your child that they have a pair in their bag or in their classroom.

On the day, if a student does not bring a functioning pair of 3.5mm headphones, the College will have some available for purchase for $5. This cost will be added to Term 3 fees.

If you would like to read further, you can access an information flyer here

For enquiries, please contact:

Lisa Hansford – Director of Teaching & Learning (Junior School) - lhansford@thac.nsw.edu.au
Millie Pettett – Coordinator of Learning Innovation (Middle Years) and Gifted Education - mpettett@thac.nsw.edu.au
3…2…1…Blastoff!!

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year 5

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year 5

5G have blasted off into space for Term 2.

Our SCIL* topic for this semester is Space. We are researching, investigating, asking big questions, evaluating and reporting back on our findings. So far we have researched different countries on our own planet to compare things such as time zones and seasons; looked closer at the relationship between the Earth, Sun and Moon and constructed a fact file about the different planets in our Solar System.

There are still so many exciting things we are going to investigate, such as: the space race and space exploration, debunking different myths about outer space and can other planets sustain life? One of the main things we are learning to do in SCIL this term is to ask inquiry questions, big questions that interest us. These questions guide our research and what in particular we want to learn about Space. It is set to be a fun an exciting term as we continue to explore our Solar System.

*SCIL – Student Cantered Independent Learning

Miss Courtney Garard
Junior School Teacher - Year 5G
Year 2 Learns About Australian Artists

Year 2R have been studying Australian artists and they wanted to show their Ken Done inspired art work to the man himself.

So they wrote him a letter and sent pictures of their work. They invited him to come and see their work and they even got a response, that he’s a little busy at the moment.  However, the gallery sent the class a beautiful poster, addressed to 2R and signed by Ken Done himself.

They were all very excited!  

Mrs Christine Ross
Junior School Teacher - Year 2R

 

Performing ArtsBack to Top

Junior Drum Circle

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Our Junior Drum Circle rehearses each Monday lunchtime, and is currently working on a new piece called ‘PINEAPPLE PIE”. 

This piece explores triplet rhythms in a fun way, and the students are very much looking forward to performing this at an assembly soon. Well done to all those students involved!

Mr Byron Mark
Director of Ensembles - Creative Arts
Junior Concert Band

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Following on from our successful Year 4 Band Program, our Junior Concert Band is born.

Last year, this ensemble formed the College’s very first Marching Band! Now, the students are looking forward to their first live performance since COVID, and will be performing at the P-6 assembly in Week 3 this term. The Junior Concert Band rehearse every Tuesday morning and is made up of students in Years 5 & 6. Stay tuned for an update on their performance soon!

Mr Byron Mark
Director of Ensembles - Creative Arts
Senior String Ensemble

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This week we had for the first time some of our advanced Junior violinists from Year 6 join the senior ensemble.

It was great to hear more strings in rehearsal, and it was an excellent first rehearsal for the term. Many of these students have been playing violin since Year 2, and learning a string instrument is a huge commitment.

Well done to all of these students, and we look forward to performing at a College event for you soon.

Mr Byron Mark
Director of Ensembles - Creative Arts

Year 3 - 6 Athletics Carnival

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Junior School, Athletics Carnival, ribbons, winners

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Junior School, Athletics Carnival

Year 3 - 6 Athletics Carnival - Wednesday 19 May

Students in Year 3 - 6 will participate in the Year 3 - 6 Athletics Carnival in Week 5 this term.  A permission note with more information will be sent home soon.

WHEN:               WEDNESDAY 19 MAY 2021                      (Term 2 – Week 5)

WHERE:             Campbelltown Athletics Stadium, Pembroke Rd &, Rose Payten Dr, Leumeah

UNIFORM:         Shirt:    College HOUSE shirt (available at the College Uniform Shop)  or College Sport shirt

                            Shorts:  THAC Athletics shorts or College sport shorts.  THAC skins may be worn underneath shorts.

THAC Athletic shorts and skins are available for purchase from the College Office.

PREP, Kinder, Year One and Year Two will have their own Tabloid Sports Carnivals at College in Term 3.

Mrs Sharon Evans
P-6 Sports Coordinator
NSW CIS Primary Boys Soccer Gala Day

On Friday 23 April, Leon M, Orlando M, Ryder W, Lorenzo V, Danijel R and Daniel B represented NASSA at the NSW CIS Primary Boys Football Championships.

The NASSA team, coached by our very own Football Director Mr Sonny Makko, played excellently throughout the day, showing great teamwork and skill.

At the end of the rounds, about twenty boys were selected to trial for a position in the NSW CIS Primary Boys team. 

Congratulations to Ryder W who was selected to represent NSW CIS at the NSW PSSA Boys Football Championships later this term.

Coach Sonny was very proud of the efforts of all boys from our College at the State trials.

Congratulations boys!

Mrs Sharon Evans
P-6 Sport Coordinator / TAP Coordinator
NSW CIS Primary Hockey Trials

On Tuesday 28 April, Harley P, Jasper W and Elizabeth B represented the College at the NSW CIS Primary Hockey trials.

Our students performed well and showcased their skills throughout the day.

Although unsuccesful in gaining a position in the NSWCIS team, we are proud of their representation  at this event.

Mrs Sharon Evans
P-6 Sport Coordinator / TAP Coordinator
Junior School Cross Country

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Cross Country

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Cross Country

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Cross Country

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JUNIOR CROSS COUNTRY

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JUNIOR CROSS COUNTRY

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JUNIOR CROSS COUNTRY

The Junior School Cross Country was held on Wednesday 31 March.  Students ran the 2km or 3km track, using both the top and bottom ovals at College.

Our Year 3 - 6 students had a wonderful day participating and doing their best. 

A special thank you to the Secondary students, led by Mr Fox, who assisted and encouraged us while we ran.

Well done to Carmichael on winning the House competition. 

Results were:

1st  - Carmichael       787 points                                             2nd - Lewis              724 points

3rd  - Wilberforce      561 points                                             4th - Liddell             488 points

 

Congratulations to the students who finished in the top 8 of each age group, who will represent the College at the NASSA Cross Country Carnival on Friday 14 May at Horsley Park Equestrian Centre.

In preparation for the carnival, we travelled to the Secondary Cross Country and did a training session on the NASSA track, which was a fantastic experinces for our representatives.

Well done to all students who participated in the Cross Country Carnival this year.

 

Mrs Sharon Evans
P-6 Sports Coordinator
NASSA Netball Gala Day

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Yesterday the THAC Senior Primary Netball team attended the NASSA Gala Day, held at Netball Central, Homebush.

The girls all played exceptionally well, representing THAC with great sportsmanship and a positive team spirit. 

We played competitively in every game and I was very proud of the way they conducted themselves. Thank you to Miss Tikeri, our new College sports assistant, and to the secondary PASS students who assisted at the gala day with umpiring and scoring. Congratulations team!

Special mention to Ella W to was selected to represent NASSA at the NSW CIS trials next week. 

Mrs Bronwyn Ferguson.
Coach
NSW Primary Basketball Championships

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Basketball

This week Max V  in Year 6, represented NSW Combined Independent Schools (CIS) at the NSW PSSA Basketball Championships in Terrigal.

After 3 days of games against teams from all over NSW, the CIS team placed 3rd overall in the State.

Congratulations to Max on being selected in the NSW PSSA team.  The NSW team usually compete at the School Sport Australia National Championships, but unfortunately, they have been cancelled this year.

An amazing performance Max, we are very proud of you!

Mrs S Evans
P-6 Sports & TAP Coordinator

CommunityBack to Top

Feature on the College Website

We are asking students to fill in the Questionnaire answering a few questions about what they enjoy at the College. 

There will be a few quotes taken from this questionnaire.  If your child's quote is chosen they will be asked to take part in a photo shoot and featured on the website.

If you would like your child to get involved please ask them to fill out the following form