Term 3 | The Way Newsletter | Friday 16 September 2022

Latest UpdatesBack to Top

From the Principal
Principal Ross Whelan

We’ve had such an enjoyable day at the College to conclude this the second last week of term.

There were 3 special events – the Prep to Year 2 Tabloid Athletics carnival with a large parent audience, and assisted by our Year 9 PASS and Year 10 PD/H PE classes; the Year 5 Design Projects with a display and conversation with parents, teachers and junior students, and over 100 Year 9 students are taking part in the overnight Bronze Duke of Edinburgh hike in the Mt Ku-ring-gai National Park.

Year 5 students invited their parents into the classroom to view their passion project. They have been working on this for several months and presented their research and hard work in a visual presentation. Some of these projects included cooking books, Innovations in portable soccer goals and table tennis and go-karts, animation and stop-motion videos and songs, an online retail outlet for jewellery, just to name a few.

Last week we held the ‘Hassall Gift’, the special annual all-age relay event. Four students in every grade from Prep to Year 12 ran to represent their grade and house in a 100m relay event.  All students from Prep to Year 12 gathered on the oval to cheer on their house groups. This is perhaps the only special occasion where we come together as a whole College to support teammates. There was such talent across the grades and Carmichael was the winner of both races!

Hassall Gift

Our Year 12 students graduate next week and we look forward to celebrating their achievements in a Graduation Assembly on Friday, many of whom have been students at the College since Prep. We will be praying for them during this time as they prepare for their HSC exams.

Thank you once again for your support across the term. Please enjoy the break.

“But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, purifies us from all sin”. 1 John 1:7

Mr Ross Whelan
Principal
From the Deputy Principal - Head of Junior School
Sandy Wheeler

Boosting wellbeing

When I’m outside enjoying the natural world, it simply feels good for the soul. Dr Kristy Goodwin spoke at our latest Junior School Wellbeing Matters Session and she shared that 90 minutes of outdoor time is necessary for child (and adult!) wellbeing. The great outdoors is a natural fascination for children. It is an endless playground of critters, creativity and curiosity, with the added bonus of being an easy way to build up their wellbeing!

At College, there have been some wonderful experiences where outdoor learning has been happening. The P-2 Tabloid Carnivals were a great highlight this week and with stunning weather too! Every parent I spoke with enjoyed the outdoor Tabloid as they watched the children participate in the engaging and fun activity stations. It was a great chance to catch up with other families and make new connections within the community, while enjoying the fresh air and joyous sports carnival spirit.

So why not leave those four walls in the house or office and give yourself and the whole family a wellbeing boost?! All it takes is 90 minutes of outdoor time over the day. I’ve been setting this goal with my own family and I surprised myself with the effect it had on me as well as the children. I encourage you to share your favourite local outdoor places with one another and thank you to all the families who attended the P-2 Tabloid on the College Oval this week. 

Mrs Sandy Wheeler
Deputy Principal & Head of Junior School
From the Deputy Principal - Senior School Learning
David Butler

When this edition of the Way becomes available, I will be out in God’s beautiful wilderness somewhere in Galston with a large enthusiastic group of Year 9's on the Bronze hike for the Duke of Edinburgh program.

What a wonderful way to come together as a team through some adversity and adventure! Students will learn many valuable lessons throughout the journey about resilience, self-belief, teamwork, navigation, food preparation and countless more. We are praying for good weather and safe travels!

More of our Year 12 classes were put through their paces this week with external HSC markers reviewing the Music 1 and 2 and the Design and Technology classes performances and major works. We would do well to consider the confronting nature of being judged whilst performing or handing over your work for the final time to have it inspected and judged. Countless hours have gone into these major works and we are so proud of our Year 12s and what they have been able to achieve. It was exciting this week to receive word that one of our Drama students, Caleb T has received an ‘On Stage’ nomination for performing one of the best Individual Performances in the state. Congratulations to Caleb on this fine achievement!

With Graduation on Friday of next week, Year 12s will find themselves on Study Vacation to prepare for the HSC examinations. The College is supporting the group by providing a Study Camp each day of the first week of the holidays on campus. This has been a really valuable resource for Year 12 students each year in establishing excellent study habits that can be carried through right up to and during their final exams. Many staff will also visit during the week to answer questions which is greatly appreciated and just another wonderful example of the willingness our staff have to assist their students in so many ways. Can I please encourage all Year 12s to sign up and make the most of this incredible opportunity!

Enjoy the last of the Term.

Mr David Butler
Deputy Principal - Senior School Learning
From the Chaplain
Denis Oliver

Queen Elizabeth II passed away on 8th September 2022.

When I found out about the Queen's death I was shocked.  I was shocked not because I knew her or because I am a Monarchist – I was shocked because it was a big change.

Being naturally curious I googled what other changes occurred on the 8th September. In 1855 British & French forces ended the Crimean War. In 1689 China and Russia signed a treaty that opened trade between them. In 1141 the battle of Samarkand lead to the death of over 10,000 soldiers.  All of these events changed the lives of many.  Why the history lesson? Because change is the only constant in life.

Change, whether good or bad, large or small, brings stress which makes us ask all sorts of questions. What will things be like when Charles is King? How will I go in my HSC? Is my child ready for high school? How will this sickness effect my family?  We want some control in life but we know we do not have it.

What people really need in times of change is a constant. In my opinion, God is that constant in an ever-changing world and life.

“I am the LORD, and I do not change. That is why you descendants of Jacob are not already destroyed.” - Malachi 3:6

God reminds his people that he is changeless, firm in his commitment to his people even when they are changeable - finnicky. God sticks to his word even when his followers do not. I have a God who has life in control and that brings peace even in unhappiness.

The Bible calls us to be changeless, faithful, like our God.

Keep on loving one another as brothers and sisters... Keep your lives free from the love of money and be content with what you have, because God has said, “Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you.” So we say with confidence, “The Lord is my helper; I will not be afraid. What can mere mortals do to me?”

Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever. - Hebrews 13

In an everchanging world, I am not in control, but I know the one who is.

Reverend Denis Oliver
College Chaplain

Upcoming dates

Date Event
Monday 19 September CIS Primary Boys Cricket Trials
Tuesday 20 September CIS Primary Boys Cricket Trials
Wednesday 21 September Year 12 Prayer Breakfast 7am
Thursday 22 September Public Holiday
Friday 23 September Year 12 Graduation
Last day of Term
Tuesday 11 October First Day of Term 4
Parent Cafe

Due to Year 12 Graduation on Friday 23 September, there will be no Parent Cafe that morning.

Thank you all for your support this Term.

We hope you have a safe and enjoyable break. We look forward to seeing you in Term 4.
Primary ICAS Competition

PRIMARY ICAS Competition 2022

Some students from Years 3 – 6 recently elected to sit the ICAS assessments for English, Science and Mathematics. “ICAS Assessments are designed to recognise academic excellence, students are assessed on their ability to apply classroom learning to new contexts using higher-order thinking and problem-solving skills.” www.unswglobal.unsw.edu.au. We are delighted with the level of participation this year and with the many excellent results.

The students who achieved awards for these assessments are listed below. Congratulations to them

  Science English Maths
Year 3 Ozzy A – Credit
Orlando C– Credit
Ronin C - Merit

Orlando C– Credit
Calvin C – Credit
Marcus R – Merit

 Ozzy A – Distinction
Orlando C– Credit
Ronin C - Credit
Violet O - Merit
Year 4 Mitchell H – Credit
Ezekiel R – Credit
Jack C – Merit
Jonathan S – Merit 		 Jack C – Credit
Thiana H – Merit
Jonathan S – Merit		 Noah B – Distinction
Thiana H - Credit
Jack C – Credit
Andreas G – Merit
Jonathan S – Merit
Paige H – Merit
Year 5 Sarah B – Credit
Daniel B – Credit
Arin S – Credit
Elizabeth S – Credit

Daniel B – Distinction
Elizabeth S - Distinction
Sarah B - Credit
John B – Credit
Abigail H – Credit
Alexander L – Credit
Kian T – Credit
Igor I – Merit

 Arin S – Distinction
Elizabeth S – Credit
Justyn L – Credit
Kian T – Credit
Sarah B – Credit
Igor I – Credit
Alexander L -Credit
Jacob S – Credit
John B - Merit
Abigail H – Merit
Anthony K – Merit
Noah M – Merit
Year 6 Owen E – Distinction
Nicholas G – Credit
Ryaan K – Credit
Devansh S – Credit		 Devansh S - Distinction
Owen E – Credit
Amelia S – Credit		 Owen E - Distinction
Vansh M – Credit
Christina C– Credit
Devansh S – Merit
Amelia S - Merit

Mrs Alex Saville 
Gifted and Talented Liaison for the Junior School

Uniform Shop Trading

Uniform shop trading hours

If you need to purchase items, the Regular Trading Hours are:

Monday 7.30am – 3.30pm
Wednesday 12.00pm – 6.00pm
Friday 7.30am – 3.30pm

Senior school students will be able to go to the shop before and after school, as well as during lunch and recess to make purchases.

 

Holiday trading hours

The uniform shop has amended trading hours for the upcoming holidays.

Friday 7 October 7am - 3pm
Monday 10 October 7am – 3pm

Please note online orders remain open during this time by visiting the website.
Year 6 Parent Dinner

The Parent Community Network invites parents of Year 6 Students to a parent dinner.

Saturday 15 October
From 7pm
at Lilys Cafe Presons - Unit 2, 28 Bernera Road Prestons

View the flyer

RSVP by October 4 2022 to Nicola Peters 0412 060 426

EventsBack to Top

Holiday Program

Join Motiv8sports during the Sept/Oct school holidays and experience Australia’s greatest multi-sports event designed for Primary school children. 

The Mega Camp is held every September/October with our campers being split into our 4 x battle teams who will compete for points over 2 days to be crowned champions of the MEGA CAMP CUP. The scene will be set for our campers as they are taken to a future sports dreamland where the worlds best sports stars are split into 4 x incredible All Star Nations. 

8:30am-3:30pm daily

For ages Kindy to Year 6

Book online
motiv8 sports

 

Code Camp

27-29 September

Spark: New to Spark, code and create your own Minions game! Choose your Minions characters, themed backgrounds and collectibles, and then bring your game to life via drag and drop coding or JavaScript. 

Ignite: If you’re ready to take your child’s coding skills to the next level after completing Spark, Ignite is the perfect place to level-up! Ignite introduces JavaScript where students will build an awesome new game with advanced features using a mixture of drag & drop and JavaScript coding.

New to Ignite, code and create your own Minions game! Choose your Minions characters, themed backgrounds and collectibles, and then bring your game to life via drag and drop coding or JavaScript.

FInd out more and book online

code camp
Football Holiday Program

Join us for four days of fun and development at the College.

Running from October 4 - 7 from 8.30 - 2.30pm, this is an all-weather program that will take place at the College.

It is open to boys and girls aged 5-13 of all skill levels.

Students will participate in fun activities, game development and learn soccer skills from accredited coaches.

$65 per day or $240 for the week.

Book online now

WellbeingBack to Top

Peer Support

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Dodgeball

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Dodgeball

Year 11 Peer Support Leaders organised a fun game of dodgeball during lunch with the Year 7’s last week before their Final Examination.

A big thank you to all for facilitating the event and who participated in the activity.


 
Craft Club

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Card Club

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Card Club

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Card Club

Year 11 Duke of Ed and Year 12 Student Leaders involved in creating cards for the elderly in our community.

Both the Year 11 and Year 12 students enjoyed being creative and found the activity very relaxing and rewarding at the same time. The idea of giving back to the community was so satisfying. Each card had a personal hand written message to the recipient of each card.

Craft Club

Mrs Tania van der Schyff
Coordinator of Student Growth and Welfare - Senior School

LearningBack to Top

Learning in Year 1

This term Year 1 have been studying ‘Living Things’ in Science & Technology. 

To support their understanding of how people can help animals find food and shelter, students had to design and produce a bird feeder.  With some support from our parent helpers and Mr B, the children came up with some wonderful bird feeders to take home and place in their garden.  We look forward to seeing some photos of their creations at home.

Year 1 learning
Year 1 Teachers
Year 5 Passion Projects

On Friday morning, Year Five had an opportunity to present their “passion projects”  to a very appreciative audience of parents and students.

Passion projects provide an opportunity to explore and learn something new – perhaps creating a physical object, learning a new skill or designing something original. It was wonderful to see the wide range of talents and interests on display. From ping pong tables to tasty treats, musical performances to artistic creations, there was something for everyone to enjoy and appreciate.

Of course, these presentations were a long time in the making. Students began formulating ideas and plans at the beginning of the term and spent many hours at home creating, adapting and refining. Not everything went according to plan, but many challenges were faced and overcome along the journey.

Thank you to the many parents, friends and family members that have supported, encouraged, guided and assisted the children during this process. And finally, congratulations to all our amazing Year Five students! We hope that you will continue to follow your ‘passions’ in the years ahead.

Mr Peter Butchatsky
Junior School Teacher - Stage 3

Year 5

Year 7 Medieval day

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Year 7 Medieval day

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Year 7 medieval day

Year 7 students participated in Medieval Day as part of their studies into the Medieval World on Friday.

Students had the opportunity to dress up and try on various pieces of armour while learning about the warfare, weaponry and everyday life of the period.

Year 7 also created their own family Heraldry for display in their History classrooms, picking out visual elements, symbols and colours to reflect their family history.

Medieval Day
Premier's Reading Challenge

Celebrating the Premier’s Reading Challenge in Year 3

The Premier’s Reading Challenge aims to encourage a love of reading for leisure and pleasure in students, and to enable them to experience quality literature. It is not a competition but a challenge to each student to read, to read more and to read more widely.

This year in Year 3, we had an incredible 57 students persevere and finish the Premier’s Reading Challenge. What a wonderful achievement! This is what some Year 3 students have to say about the experience:

- I think everyone should do the Premier’s Reading Challenge because it is good for your reading. Phoebe & Jade, 3F.
- I set a goal, persisted and finished the PRC! My top tip for doing this is read a lot every week! Ariella, 3F.
- The PRC has helped me find lots of new and interesting series. Calvin, 3F.
- My favourite author is Anh Do because he is very funny! Noah, 3F.
- I think everyone should do the PRC because it improves your reading so you can learn new words and get better at writing. Claudia, 3W.
- My favourite author is David Walliams because his books are interesting and they have a twist at the end, which I love. Aouie, 3W.
- My favourite author is David Pilkey because he writes hilarious books that make you laugh from start to the end. Adrian, 3W.

In recognition of their enthusiasm, effort and engagement in reaching this milestone, the students celebrated with delicious ice blocks. Well done everyone!

Premiers Reading Challenge

Mrs Bronwyn Ferguson 
Assistant Coordinator Stage 2- 3F
Year 9 Visual Arts

Year 9 Visual Arts students have been developing a storyline, characters, a costume, and a makeup look for their characters as part of their learning this Term.

Recently they had a special visit from makeup artist Casey Latino. Casey shared tips on how to create these looks and demonstrated them on our students.

Year 12 visual arts

 
Year 12 Food Technology Excursion

Recently, Year 12 Food Technology students had the wonderful opportunity of visiting a working dairy farm.

Gavin from Gavana Holsteins Dairy, Glenmore kindly welcomed us to his farm. The Australian Food Industry is the first unit studied as part of the HSC Food Technology course. Visiting Gavana Holsteins gave students an insight into the content they have learned about this year. Students were able to see mechanisation in action and how the dairy industry has evolved with the introduction of new technology. They heard about quality control measures and gained an understanding of how legislation and environmental concerns have impacted farming in Australia. This experience will be invaluable as the students prepare for their upcoming HSC examination which takes place on November 4. It has been a privilege teaching this class over the years. I wish them all the best for their HSC exams.

Year 12 excursion

Ms Kelie Munro
Year 12 Food Technology class.

The Hassall Gift

The annual Hassall Gift relay race

The Hassall Gift is a running relay event, where each House is represented by Boy and a Girl from each grade from Prep – Year 12. 

The relay starts with a Prep student from each House running and handing the baton to a Kinder student, then Year One and onto Year Two etc, to symbolize the journey across the schooling years at College, with the final runner from Year 12 reaching the finish line.

It was wonderful to see all students in the College cheering on their teammates and our Senior House leaders encouraging the younger students in their House.

Congratulations to Carmichael who was the winner of both races!

Hassall Cup

Mrs Sharon Evans
P-6 Sports & TAP Coordinator
Prep to Year 2 Tabloid Carnival

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Prep Tabloid Carnival

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Prep Tabloid Carnival

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Prep Tabloid Carnival

There were lots of smiles this week at our Prep to Year 2 tabloid carnivals that were on this week.

They had fun participating in various activities run by our Year 9 and 10 Physical Activity and Sport Studies (PASS) classes. They especially enjoyed being able to try and get their parents out in dodgeball!

tabloid carnival

CommunityBack to Top

Senior Library Book Snap

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'The Healer's Apprentice' - Melanie Dickerson

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Ebooks in the IRC!

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Anime and Manga Club

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Page Turners Book Club

 

Taking the Library on holidays with you

Want to take lots of great books on holiday with you but don’t know how to pack them all? The Library has the answer for you! Try borrowing some e-books! Students at Thomas Hassall have access to digital books through the Overdrive student app Sora. The Sora app is available on Window and Mac computers, iPhone and iPad, a wide range of mobile and android devices as well as Google Chromebooks. Setting up an account is quick and easy, and there is a wide range of great books available for borrowing. ‘How to create an account’ handouts are available in the Library, and a detailed help guide that covers every aspect of the Sora app is available on the Library’s canvas page. For more information please speak to Library staff who will be happy to help.

 

Media & Duke of Edinburgh equipment

Students who still have Media and Duke of Edinburgh equipment need to return them to the Library before the end of the term.

 

Upcoming activities in the Library

Anime and Manga Club – Tuesday 18th October (Week 2), lunchtime in N2

Page Turners Book Club – Wednesday 19th October (Week 2), lunchtime in N2

 

Book Bites

Take a book bite to see if it is to your taste

‘The Healer’s Apprentice’ – Melanie Dickerson

“Two Hearts. One Hope. Rose has been appointed as a healer’s apprentice at Hagenheim Castle, a rare opportunity for a woodcutter’s daughter like her. While she often feels uneasy at the sight of blood, Rose is determined to prove herself capable. Failure will mean returning home to marry the aging bachelor her mother has chosen for her a bloated, disgusting merchant who makes Rose feel ill. When Lord Hamlin, the future duke, is injured, it is Rose who must tend to him. As she works to heal his wound, she begins to understand emotions she’s never felt before and wonders if he feels the same. But falling in love is forbidden, as Lord Hamlin is betrothed to a mysterious young woman in hiding. As Rose’s life spins toward confusion, she must take the first steps on a journey to discover her own destiny.”

‘The Healer’s Apprentice’ is a beautifully written story of young love, duty and honour. With an almost fairy tale style of storytelling, author Melanie Dickerson has woven together a tale that is both enjoyable and memorable. Main protagonist Rose is a compelling and believable character, her choosing to follow her heart all while living a life that is true to her beliefs will resonate with many readers. A great book that is suitable for students in Year 7 and above. Lots more books by Melanie Dickerson are available to borrow from the IRC.

 

Happy Holidays

Mrs Comiskey and Mr Smith would like to wish all students and their families a happy and safe holiday break.

 

Mrs Annette Comiskey & Mr Michael Smith

Senior IRC Library Team