Principal's Message
There is a film called Pay It Forward about a young boy who decides that instead of returning a favour, he will pay it forward by doing good deeds for three people. This idea changes many lives, not just the three immediate recipients. Last week we were the beneficiaries of a retired businessman who is a passionate believer in the power of music and paying it forward. Because of someone showing him compassion when he was sick and penniless as a young man, he chose throughout his career to honour God and pass on the gifts that he had been blessed with in his very successful business career. Because of that attitude of paying it forward, we now have a range of outstanding quality orchestral instruments for our students to play and learn.
Last night a secondary teacher walked into my office between student, teacher and parent interviews and asked, “How do I thank the parent representative body for the kindness shown in interviews?” He had been the recipient of many comments of gratefulness from parents for his teaching and authentic connection with their child.
Paying it forward! How important are both the little and big gestures of compassion that we can show others in our daily lives. As Matthew 7:12 says, “Whatever you wish that others would do to you, do also to them.” May we treat each other with kindness and pay it forward in both our school and home.
Over the past two weeks we have had opportunities to connect in person again and it was a joy to see so many at the Mother’s Day Morning Tea. School continues to be a vibrant and busy place of learning with a variety of opportunities to participate in – thank you for partnering with us in your child’s learning.
May God bless you.
Mrs Julia Heise
Whole School News
Musical Instrument Donation
Our school community has been blessed with the donation of outstanding musical instruments to enhance the music learning opportunities of our students. The Music Department is excited to be introducing these instruments into our new symphonic orchestra which will see many more students involved in our flourishing music program.
Celebratory Morning Tea - Wednesday 11 May 2022
We celebrated our mums and the significant women in our lives on Wednesday 11th May with a special morning tea hosted by the Home & School Committee. It was wonderful to have everyone on campus for this special event. Thank you to our Home & School Committee for putting this together, and Wahroonga Seventh-day Adventist Church for the special gifts which they gave to all our mums.
Chess Competition!
Wahroonga has entered two primary and four secondary teams into the Metropolitan School Chess Competition this year, a large interschool competition which has attracted 308 teams from 75 secondary schools in the Sydney metropolitan area. Matches are held on Friday afternoons on an alternating home-and-away basis, with a home game to kick things off on 6 May.
The teams played well, especially in the primary rookie division, where our players achieved an outstanding 4-0 victory against Lindfield. In the high school, both Junior A and B teams secured respective two-all draws against Abbotsleigh and Holy Cross, and the Junior C and Intermediate high school teams scored 1.5-2.5 against Marist Eastwood and Abbotsleigh, respectively. The intermediate primary team had a bye.
Well done to all our players and best of luck in the weeks ahead!
Mr David Cordiner - Mathematics Teacher
School Photos - 1 and 2 June 2022
A quick reminder School Photo's are taking place on the 1st and 2nd of June. Please refer to the email sent on Monday, 16th May which contains all the details. If you have any questions please contact the ladies in the School Office.
Connect Group - 1 June 2022 - CANCELLED
Please note our Connect Group for school families held at Fox Valley Community Centre on Wednesday morning 1st June has been cancelled due to school photo's taking place that day.
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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
Please click on the link below to view the school term dates and public holiday information for 2022.
Primary School News
NAPLAN
As children progress through their school years, it is important that checks are made along the way to track their learning in essential skills of reading, writing and mathematics.
NAPLAN is one way in which we provide these checks. It is a point-in-time assessment that allows parents and carers to see how their child is progressing in literacy and numeracy against the national standard and compared with their peers throughout Australia. At the classroom level, NAPLAN also provides additional information to support teachers’ professional judgement about student progress. Schools generally receive student NAPLAN reports from mid-August to mid-September, depending on their state or territory test administration authority. We will notify you when the reports are being sent to your home.
Over the past 2 weeks our Year 3 and 5 students have been completing NAPLAN assessments. There were mixed emotions towards these assessments where some wished they could do more assessments and others who were glad that they were over.
Things To Note...
• Bell Times - Just a reminder that the bell for Primary goes at 8:40 am. If students arrive after this time they will need to go to the office to sign in.
• Uniforms - Please ensure that your child has the correct uniform items for Primary. It is expected that students are wearing their full winter uniform unless it is their sport or PE day where sport uniform is required. Please contact the Uniform shop to obtain any missing items.
Mrs Anne-Marie Deppeler - Head of Primary School
Sydney Academy of Chess - Interschool Chess Competition
Congratulations to Elijah T, Sam T, Benjamin T, Jeremy W, Ian W and Ryan L (Year 4) who competed in Sydney Academy of Chess' Interschool Chess Competition last week at Canley Vale. The students all played well! Special mention goes to Benji who is the only student to win 7 out of 7 games, taking home the trophy! Great effort everyone!
Primary School Sport
Sporting Achievements
During Monday’s assembly we proudly presented our Cross-Country school champions with their medals. A big congratulations to all competitors.
We are also proud to announce we are taking over 50 students (the top 8 in each age group) to the ASISSA Cross Country on the 26th of May at Queens Park. Wish us luck….
Jump Rope for Heart
Jump Rope for Heart is well underway and it’s great to see so many children out in the playground skipping with smiles on their faces. Wahroonga Adventist School has already raised over $1200 so far.
It’s not long until our final session so keep on practicing those tricks! And don’t forget to share your online fundraising page with friends and family to raise money for a great cause!
Still need to sign up online? It’s easy just follow this link and enter your details.
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 Rugby Union - 25th/26th May
- SDA Soccer Gala Day Years 3 & 4 - 26th May
- ASISSA Cross Country - 26th May
- SDA Basketball Gala Day Years 3 & 4 - 1st June
- Netball Schools Cup - 8th June
If your son or daughter plays any of these sports at a high level please email chloe.gilbert@wahroonga.adventist.edu.au
Mrs Chloe Gilbert - Primary Sports Coordinator
Secondary School News
Year 12 Study Camp
Taking some time out to prepare for their HSC exams, our Year 12 Students enjoyed their time with teachers, mentors and each other at study camp last week.
"On our study retreat we had lot of fun. Our first day consisted of arrival/registration, set up/intro/worship. We had work booklets for each class that comprised of a range of practice questions for our exams. Our teachers could give us assistance and marking if necessary. The study was very focused and directed and we had food breaks and activities scattered amongst the study throughout the day. It was a great way to start our preparations for our HSC exams as well as connect with our classmates over the few days away."
Written by Renee L and Arna T - Year 12 Students
Year 8 History
Year 8 History has been learning about Cambodia this term. They had the opportunity to carve some artworks in clay, just like the ancient Khmer people did. Each student designed their scene to show an aspect of Cambodian daily life and religion – like on the real temple walls of Angkor Wat.
Year 10 Textiles Technology
Year 10 Textiles Technology is busy sewing their major project. This semester they have been perfecting their skills in sewing evening wear. They have been carefully following pattern instructions, as well as creating their own patterns to produce their work. Earlier last term, the class went on an excursion to Spotlight to purchase their materials in preparation. We look forward to seeing their finished garments later in the term.
Mrs Karina Jones - Head of Department - HSIE
Year 8 Cafe
A reminder Year 8 Café is open and we would love our school community to pop in and say hi! We are proud to offer a range of tasty snacks and drinks prepared and served by our Year 8 students. Over the last term, we have worked hard to refine our skills, and are looking forward to having you join us soon!
If you are joining us, please sign in at the front office before making your way up to the Textiles room on Level 3.
Café will be open between 2-3pm on the following dates:
- Week 5 – Friday, May 27
- Week 6 – Thursday, June 2
- Week 7 – Pupil Free Day
- Week 8 – Thursday, June 16
- Week 9 – Friday, June 24
- Week 10 – Thursday, June 30
Special Mention...
Charlotte D (Year 10) has just donated her hair to the Kids with Cancer Foundation, who make wigs for children with cancer. After spending a couple of years growing her hair, Charlotte cut off 25 cm to donate to this very worthwhile cause. Well done Charlotte!
“I have been wanting to cut my hair for a while but I didn’t just want to waste it so I was looking around and decided to donate it so they could make wigs and donate them to kids who have cancer as wigs can get expensive, if anyone was thinking about doing it I couldn’t recommended it enough.”
Written by Charlotte D - Year 10
Secondary School Sport
Weekly Interschool Netball Competition
Going into the first game with no minimal training was definitely nerve-racking for all, but as we stepped foot on the court everyone worked very well as a team. With the advice and encouragement from our teammates, we were able to come out on top with the final score being 33-4.
Written by Caitlin H - Year 8
Representative Sport
The U15s Boys Football team began their weekly competition, participating in the Nepean Zone Football competition this week. The fields were closed so the team had to compete in futsal. The team competed well for their first game but unfortunately fell short of the victory.
Upcoming Sporting Events
- Secondary School Athletics Carnival - Monday 23rd May (Venue: Warm-up Arena SOPAC)
Mr Ignatius Ah-You - Secondary Sports Coordinator
Library News
Premier’s Reading Challenge
Congratulations to Isabelle R (1C), Chloe C (1K), Harvey B (2H), Adam A (2R), Ariya B (3L), Iris L (3L), Imran A (5M), Holly F (5M), Ryan Z (5M), Simarjeet G (6K) and Hayley R (6J), who have completed the Premier’s Reading Challenge. Keep up the great reading! The Premier’s Reading Challenge finishes at the end of August, so there is still plenty of time to get on board – it’s fun!
Book Fair Winners
There were happy faces all around on Monday morning when the winner of the book fair guessing competition was announced and names were selected from the lucky draw for lots of fun prizes. Congratulations go to Caleb L (3K) whose guess of 163 sour scuba lollies was only one off the correct amount (164)!
Upcoming Library Events
Kids’ Lit Quiz (May 23) – 12 students in Years 5 to 8 will be representing our School at the Sydney Heat of the Kids’ Lit Quiz at Loreto Kirribilli on May 23! We look forward to seeing our students shine during this fun and fast paced literature-based trivia quiz.
National Simultaneous Storytime (May 25) – On Wednesday, May 25 our school is participating in the National Simultaneous Storytime. At 11am we will be tuning in online with other schools from all around Australia and New Zealand to listen to the reading of the book ‘Family Tree’ by Josh Pyke and Ronojoy Ghosh.
Mrs Leonie Savage - Librarian
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Home and School
It was so WONDERFUL and FULFILLING to be back on WAS campus last week for our Mother’s Day Morning Tea.
To see so many mothers and carers coming together and connecting with each other and the children was a real blessing. There was a real buzz in the air and it was just so what we needed. One could hear the excitement in the students having mothers/carers back on campus, the chatter between the adults, the taste of amazing food, our student leaders providing a service and beautiful music being performed by our talented students. Check out the school Facebook page, some gorgeous photos of our school community members, the smiles say it all.
I want to express a big thank you to the Committee members and other volunteers who brought this event together, but also to all the people who attended this event to make it a success. Events are more successful if people engage in the opportunity provided. Thank you to you all.
Our next school event is the Movie Date – Pil’s Adventure on the 5th of June at 2.00pm. Please ensure you book your tickets before the 30th of May. Don’t leave it to the last minute as the ticket numbers are limited.
As the Home and School President the School Principal reached out to advise that some of the school teachers wanted to express their appreciation to the parent community of WAS. I just wanted to take this opportunity to let you know – “the teachers really appreciated the kindness and affirmation that they have received from parents” during the recent parent teacher interviews.
The next Home and School meeting will be held via zoom – Tuesday 31st May at 7.30pm.
Meals With Love
Do you know of a school family that has just welcomed a new baby, has a sick family member, or a family that just needs a little TLC? We would love to be able to support them on behalf of the school community with a Meals with Love meal. Please send us an email and we'll arrange for a meal to be sent home. Meals are prepared by the Canteen and the MWL team, however if you would like to contribute, we would gratefully accept any dry ingredients such as pasta or microwave rice to accompany our dishes.
If you have received a MWL meal, please return the blue cooler bag to the Canteen.
Many thanks for your support.
Mealswithlove@wahroonga.adventist.edu.au
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