Principal's Message
Sitting among hundreds of educators from a diverse range of independent schools around NSW at a curriculum leadership conference, I am inspired by the opportunities that upcoming education reforms will create for our students and teachers.
Professor Masters, Chief Executive Office of the Australian Council for Educational Research led a review of NSW Curriculum on behalf of the NSW Education Standards Authority (NESA). This research found that:
- Parents and carers want education to meet the needs of their children.
- Students want authentic learning with real-world application.
- Teachers want flexibility to use their professional judgement and have more time to teach.
- Employers want young workers to have strong foundations in literacy and numeracy and also social and emotional skills, like teamwork and communication.
Based on this research NESA has established the following Curriculum Reform priorities:
- Building strong foundations for future learning including knowledge, capabilities and values to be lifelong learners.
- De-cluttering the curriculum so that it allows teachers to focus on the main knowledge and skills that all students should have.
- Strengthening post-school pathways.
- Designing and delivering new curriculum with new syllabuses.
Over the next three years new curriculum will be delivered for Kindy to Year 12. Next year Kindergarten to Year 2 students will be learning from new English and Mathematics syllabuses. We have already started this journey having implemented much of the new English focus on literacy this year and our teachers are actively preparing for the new syllabus delivery.
In Senior School, there will be an elimination of Category A and B subjects for the future HSC, opening up the range of subjects that will contribute to an ATAR. The implementation of Personal Interest Projects and Learner Profiles are also being considered.
If you are interested in reading more about curriculum reform follow this link. As a school we are currently engaged in rethinking about opportunities to strengthen the preparation of our students in a changing world. You will be invited to have a say in our strategic direction through focus groups over the coming weeks and I value your perspective.
Finally, I look forward to seeing you at Monday evening’s parent masterclass on anti-bullying. The Home and School has sponsored this event and are very active in providing opportunities for connection among our school families. I would like to particularly thank Michelle Roberts, the Home and School President for her leadership.
Mrs Julia Heise - Principal
Chaplains' Message
A Perfect Storm
Pr Daron and I travelled to Brisbane to farewell a friend and colleague of many years this week. As we drove and reflected, the next day sat and listened, cried and laughed, we couldn’t help notice a theme that was spoken of again and again - laughter and service. Our friends’ name was Pr Mel Lembke. His life’s work was to “love on” people, as was mentioned quite a lot, with a big smile and many hugs he did all he could to encourage people. He was a natural people magnet, but the outstanding feature of his life was that of service. In this regard so many people saw Jesus at work in him.
Pr Mel and another Pr Jerry Unser (if you like American car racing his name is familiar and yes they are Pr Jerry’s family), teamed up with a bunch of students (your’s truly included) to make a ministry called swamp which later became know as StormCo - Service To Others Really Matters Company. StormCo was a hit from the outset! Many groups of young people and mentor leaders went through the towns of the west in Australia to share service, care and connect with the hope that their service would uplift others. The values of respect, compassion, integrity and responsibility could easily be seen in the actions and resulting community development in places such as Cobar, Goodoga, Bourke, Dubbo, Condobolin, Dalby, Brewarrina… to name just a few. When I was operating as Youth Director for South NSW in Canberra, there were 26 groups running across Australia in any given year!
Our Students in the senior years of Secondary will have an opportunity to be part of a StormCo soon, keep an eye out for it. It is a legacy of an amazing God shaped heart at work in a friend, colleague, mentor and encourager of many people who are now teachers, chaplains and leaders at WAS. Jesus said, “For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.” Mark 10:45 We hope that students will be part of carrying forth a legacy of a servant hearted leader who created the perfect storm of goodness through serving others!
Pr Andy and Pr Daron - School Chaplains
Whole School News
Wahroonga Adventist School Alumni
A reminder of our recently formed Wahroonga Adventist School Alumni! If you are a past student, parent, teacher or volunteer of Wahroonga Adventist School click on the link below to register your details, and also like/follow the Alumni Facebook Page to keep up to date with school news, projects and events. If you look closely... you might even see some familiar faces from many years ago...
SAVE THE DATE - Wahroonga Reunion and Homecoming Service
Scholarships Available in 2023
Seventh-day Adventist Schools (Greater Sydney) Ltd operates a Deductible Gift Fund for its Scholarship Program. Generous funds are received from Seventh-day Adventist churches, school communities and individuals for the purpose of supporting students in Adventist schools in Sydney. Scholarships are awarded annually to students who face financial hardship in coming to our schools, by paying their tuition fees. Please see the school website for further details. Applications close 31 August 2022.
Calendar of Upcoming School Events
You can access the list of upcoming School events via the link below. The School Calendar is also available under the Parent Information tab on the School website.
Term Dates for 2022 and 2023
Please click on the link below to view the school term dates and public holiday information for 2022 and 2023.
Primary School News
ICAS Testing
Students who have registered to participate in the ICAS testing completed the Digital Technologies and the Writing tests this week. The other components will follow in the coming weeks. If your child will be absent on the day of testing, please email the office so we can arrange a catch-up session.
Year 2 - Health
This term in Health Year 2 are learning all about growing up! We were lucky enough to have some very special people visit us to teach us all about our body! A big thank you to our wonderful WAS parents Sharona who is a registered nurse and Mary, a physiotherapist for their interesting talks and information!
Piano Practice Challenge
Students were buzzing with excitement in Mrs Millers piano lessons. They all had a practice challenge noting their times daily. Parents signed practice charts and students all made really wonderful progress throughout semester one. It was wonderful to see all of the students leaving their piano lesson with medals noting their hard work and dedication to their piano playing journey. We would like to congratulate these students on their hard work and dedication to music!
Mrs Kristina Vuceski - Head of Creative and Performing Arts
Primary School Sport
Primary School Athletics Carnival
Well done to all students from Years 2-6 who took part in our Athletics Carnival last week. We were lucky with the weather and although the track was a bit muddy, the overall results were amazing. Thank you to our lovely parent volunteers and the Year 10 PASS students who helped make the events run smoothly. Everyone should be very proud of themselves.
A big congratulation to our winning House this year HUNTER!!!
2022 Girl Champions
- Age 12 - Shivon C
- Age 11- Olive G
- Age 10- Harper W
- Age 9- Nicole D
- Age 8- Leighton E
2022 Boy Champions
- Age 12 - Logan L
- Age 11- Joel R
- Age 10- Charlie B
- Age 9- Sean P
- Age 8- Liam C
House Basketball Competition
On Friday 29 July we held our first House Basketball Competition for the Year 5 students organised and facilitated by our House Captains. Congratulations goes to Hunter 😊 for being victorious this time…
Stay tuned for the Year 6 competition starting soon…
At Wahroonga, we are very proud of our students’ achievements across the sporting fields. So, we encourage you to share any sporting achievements that you child accomplishes with us.
Upcoming Dates
- CIS Girls Cricket - 17 August
- ASISSA Athletics Carnival – 18 August
- Infant Sports Day - 31 August
- SDA Touch Gala Day (Years 5 & 6) - 8 September
- CIS Primary Boys Cricket - 12 and 13 September
- CIS Athletics - 20 September
Mrs Chloe Gilbert - Primary Sports Coordinator
Secondary School News
Year 7 Chinese Excursion
Year 7 Chinese students travelled to the city on 3 August to see the delights of Chinatown, the beauty of the Chinese Garden of Friendship, and the cuisine of Yumcha. We took the train to Chinatown, saw many shops, Chinese shop signs and Chinese restaurants.
At Yumcha, we used chopsticks and tried Moling (Chinese tea) and a variety of delicious Chinese food. We welcomed waiters and waitresses and complimented on the cuisine in Chinese. We saw it as an excellent chance to practise our spoken Chinese.
Then we visited the Chinese Garden. We observed several pavilions, a rushing waterfall, a dragon wall, and goldfish in the lake, all of which added to our understanding of Chinese culture.
Miss Wu - Chinese Teacher
Australian Maths Trust Competition
Students in Years 7 to 10 were challenged with the Australian Maths Trust Competition yesterday. The competition consists of 30 problems the students had to solve without a calculator, demonstrating the importance and relevance of mathematics in students’ everyday lives.
CAPA Creative Evening
Following on from our CAPA evening we would like to let you know that our awards have been decided upon! A wonderful array of artworks were shown including multimedia artworks, sculptures, paintings and drawings all displaying our students creative abilities which they had been working on throughout semester one. It was lovely to observe the different ideas and creativeness in all of the artworks. Three awards were given out the Principal Choice Award was given to India B, People’s Choice Award was presented to Charlotte H and the Packer Prize was given to Aditya K and Joshua B. Honourable mentions go to Angelica Y, Annabelle M, Audrey K and Nina F. Congratulations to these students.
We would also like to make a special mention to our Year 12 students who performed their HSC music performances which were in a variety of styles. They were accompanied by our tutors Mrs Amanda Miller, Mrs Caroline Sweeney and Mrs Sarah Jameson which was a real treat for the audience showing our school growing and forming professional partnerships within the music program.
We would like to acknowledge the Year 10 backstage team who ran lights, sound and movement on and off stage namely Katie M, Ella G, William K, Caleb K, Lachlan W, Jack B and Jasper S who worked tirelessly on the evening showing great skills in technical elements of putting on a school production.
We are looking forward to our next event and would like to thank all parents and families for their continued support of the music and visual arts programs at our school.
Mrs Kristina Vuceski - Head of Creative and Performing Arts
Years 10 and 11 Bstreetsmart Excursion
Year 10 and 11 Students attended bstreetsmart at Qudos Bank Arena last week. An initiative of the Trauma Service at Westmead Hospital, students saw a re-enactment of a car crash, learnt about different roles of the emergency services, as well as the effects of speeding, drugs and drink driving.
The purpose of bstreetsmart is to reduce the fatality and injury rates of young people by promoting safe behaviour as drivers, riders and passengers.
Secondary School Sport
CSSA Zone Athletics
On Thursday 11 August, the high school athletics team represented Wahroonga proudly out at the Warm-up Arena in Sydney Olympic Park. We had 70 students attend and compete in a variety of track and field events, with many of our athletes qualifying for CSSA State Athletics next Thursday. Congratulations Wahroonga athletes and good luck next week!
House Competition
At the start of Week 3 of the House Competition, the scores are tied at 1-1. The Volleyball game on Monday was highly competitive, but it was Phillip who came away with the win two sets to zero. Congratulations to the students of Phillip for taking out the third game!
Weekly Representative Sport
The Under 15’s Wahroonga Mixed Volleyball Team has been competing in the Nepean Zone – Volleyball competition. In their first game last week, the mixed volleyball team was able to win 2 sets to 0 against the Lakes. In their second game this week, they competed against Penrith Christian. The team fought hard but unfortunately fell short. The competition continues next Tuesday during sport out at Penrith Valley Basketball Stadium.
Upcoming Events
- CSSA State High School Athletics Carnival - Thursday 18 August - Warm Up Arena, Sydney Olympic Park
- CSSA State Oztag 15&U - Wednesday 31 August - The Kingsway Playing Fields, The Kingsway, Werrington
- CSSA State Oztag Opens - Thursday 1 September - The Kingsway Playing Fields, The Kingsway, Werrington
- CSSA Zone Basketball GD - Friday 2 September - Hills Sports Stadium
Mr Ignatius Ah-You - Secondary Sports Coordinator
Library News
Premier’s Reading Challenge
Congratulations to Zoey C (KA), Ruth E (KA), Evan L (KA), Jax R (2H), Bethan C (2R), Charlotte L (3K), Jackson R (3K), Lukas W (5C), Dylan B (5M), Ernest C (5M), Christopher D (5M), Olive G (5M), Kathleen L (5M), Olivia M (5M), Oliver L (6J), Katrina N (6J), Isaac F (6K) and Samantha M (8W) who have all finished the Premier’s Reading Challenge. Great effort!
PLEASE NOTE: Student access to the Premier’s Reading Challenge website ends on August 19, so if you haven’t entered your books online there is only 1 week left to do so!! As PRC coordinator Mrs Savage has an extra two weeks of access, so if you miss this deadline please send her a list of the books your child has read, and she can enter them for you (library@wahroonga.adventist.edu.au).
Book Week 2022- ‘Dreaming with Eyes Open’
Term Three is an exciting time in the Library due to Book Week which runs from August 22 – August 26 (Week 6). This term we will be delving into the Children’s Book Council of Australia (CBCA) Shortlisted books during our library classes, but our main Book Week events will occur during Weeks 5 and 6. Please note the dates below:
Friday, August 19 (Week 5)
- ‘Story Quest’ Book Week Performance – 9am, Fox Valley Community Centre (Prep to Year 4)
- End of student access to the Premier’s Reading Challenge website
- CBCA Shortlist winners announced
Friday, August 26 (Week 6)
- Book Week dress-up parade - 8.50am, Level 3 Rooftop
- Class PRC participation winners announced
‘Library Bag’ (Stage 3)
- Years 5 and 6 will be participating in a special project called ‘Library Bag’ to celebrate Book Week. Students will be working with Brenden and Suzanne Lovett to create podcasts interviewing a friend about what they are reading. Look out for these podcasts on the Library WebAPP homepage.
Mrs Leonie Savage - Librarian
Co-Curricular Program - Sports Update
WAS Men's A Grade Team
The WAS Men's A Grade basketball team had a successful first season in the Hornsby Ku Ring Gai Basketball Association competition. The team, consisting of a mix of current Year 11 and 12 students, recent graduates, staff and parents, spent most of the season sitting in second on the ladder. A tough semi-final match up saw the team go down by 4 points against experienced opponents. The season was an excellent learning experience and our young players have grown and developed in confidence and ability. The team will look to continue to build in the second season of 2022.
WAS Year 9 boys basketball "Conquerors"
The Wahroonga Year 9 boys basketball team, named the "Conquerors", made it to the under 16's division 2 Grand Final in the Hornsby Ku Ring Gai Basketball Association competition to begin 2022. The boys were down by 12 in the first half but came back in the second half to lead the game by 1 point with minutes to go. The lead was back and forth in the final minutes of the game. The boys ended up losing by a narrow margin after an excellent effort to push their opposition all the way to final buzzer. Well done Conquerors and good luck for season 2!
WAS MTB Ride #1 2022
After a record amount of rain to start the year, which led to multiple WAS mountain bike ride cancellations, we finally had our first school mountain bike ride of the year on Sunday 31 July. A group of 25 students and parents took to the trails of "Old Man's Valley" in Hornsby. The group split into two beginner and intermediate groups and set out to complete approximately 10 kilometres in the valley. It was great to see the skills of our young riders who have been riding consistently, and those who are just learning how to ride off road. We look forward to another ride before the end of the term - weather permitting!
Monday Basketball Training
Monday basketball training is back for Term 3. The Hornsby Ku Ring Gai Basketball Association have been engaged to coach the Primary School age group from 3.30pm-4.30pm - they have already been having a great time learning skills and playing games with coach Nick and our Year 9/10 Duke of Ed student coaches!
Years 7-9 are working on skill development and gameplay with Mr Starrett from 3.30pm-4.30pm. If you are a Year 7-9 student looking to learn the game of basketball, or continue to hone your skills, come along on a Monday afternoon! Years 10-12 are also continuing to train on a Monday afternoon from 4.30pm-5.30pm.
Canteen
The Canteen currently offers a full menu every day of the week, please see attached menu. For more information or to order please log into www.flexischools.com.au.
We are looking for Canteen Volunteers. Mums, Dads and Grandparents are all welcome. Anything from 30 minutes to a couple of hours any morning of the week, we would love to see you. No experience is needed, just the willingness to help, chop, pack bags and serve our lovely students. If you are interested or have any spare time please click here and complete the form.
Home and School
We would love to see you at these up coming events:
Parent Masterclass - Anti-Bullying – Monday 15 August 2022 - 6.15pm
WAS Gardening Working Bee – Sunday 21 August 2022 - 8.30-12.00pm
Fathers Day Big Breakfast - Friday 2nd September 2022
Gingerbread House - Orders Close Friday 14 October 2022
Dad’s Campout – Save the Date - 22-23 October 2022
Ice Skating - Saturday 29 October 2022
Next Home and School Meeting - 13 September 2022 at 7.30pm (via Zoom)
It was voted that Home and School Meetings will alternate between face-to-face and Zoom. So please note that the next one is ZOOM.
Mrs Michelle Roberts - Home and School President (homeandschool@wahroonga.adventist.edu)
Meals With Love
We are excited to be able to accept meals and lunchbox snack donations, such as muffins, from the school community again. These meals and snacks are packaged up with fresh salads kindly prepared by our Canteen staff. Please attach a list of ingredients and the date the meal was made to assist with distribution. We do request no pork or shellfish ingredients and please be mindful of good hygiene practices given the current climate. If you would like food containers, please see the Canteen.
If you have any questions or would like us to arrange a meal for a family you know, then please send us an email. We thank you for your support.
mealswithlove@wahroonga.adventist.edu.au