Principal's Message
There is a sense of excitement in the air as holidays and Christmas approach. Not to mention the win of the socceroos. Australian’s love their sport and they love celebrations. So do we. We have a number of celebrations of learning coming up in the next week along with rites of passage as Year 6 and Prep students graduate.
Today we honoured our Year 6 students in a special graduation chapel. Year 6 was one of my first classes as an early career teacher and I have fond memories of their curiosity and eagerness to make a difference. Our current Year 6 are no different – from their energy at the Year 6 Dinner to their curiosity as they look ahead to Year 7, they are ready to transition to secondary school. Thank you to Miss Kohama, Mrs Deppeler and Year 6 parents who made the dinner a night to remember and the graduation special.
Year 6K also won the Adventist Primary Schools Health Resource Competition, receiving $1000. ACA Health sponsors health resources which are of a high quality including the Live More Happy Kid’s Journal, and we are grateful for their support.
Celebrations continue in other areas of school life. Daniel P, Year 9, and Jimmy T, Year 8, will be competing in pole vault at the upcoming Australian All Schools Track and Field Championships in Adelaide. Year 10 students have enjoyed 5 days of camping at Kosciuszko with hiking, mountain biking and kayaking allowing them to challenge themselves.
Nathan L, Year 5, returned from the World Robot Olympiad in Germany where 365 teams for 73 countries participated. Nathan was a member of the Australian Junior team and placed 26 overall. With 2000 participants, Nathan really enjoyed talking to students all over the world and gained a reputation as a diplomat that was enhanced by handing out the famous Aussie treat, TimTams.
It is with sadness that we farewell Carmen Wynstra who has been our registrar and marketing coordinator. Carmen started with our first Year 7 class in 2016 as an office administrator. Carmen’s professionalism and wealth of experience in the office over the past seven years has been a large part of the growth of the school. The school website, newsletter and facebook reflect the quality of her work. We wish her all the best and God’s blessing as she moves to work that is closer to home.
Next week, students and Beyond our School volunteers will be packing the Christmas Hampers for Hornsby Fusion. Thank you to families who have already sent in food and pre-loved toys, you can continue to donate items until Tuesday, 6 Dec.
I look forward to seeing you at the Primary and Secondary Presentation events next week where we have the opportunity to celebrate excellence in a variety of aspects of school life and affirm students for the growth they have made over the past year. We have much to thank God for.
Mrs Julia Heise - Principal
Chaplains' Message
One of the new release books currently in our book stores is “Live life in the Crescendo” by Steven and Cynthia Covey. In this book the Coveys say that we can live our best life no matter our age. They say that we can continue to grow like music, building on previous notes, in learning, influence and contribution. This crescendo mentality urges you to use whatever you have - your time, talents, resources, gifts, passion, money and influence - to enrich the lives of people around you, including your family, neighbourhood, community and the world.
This is a bit like what we experience at school as students continue to build on the foundations laid down each year of their school life. We build crescendo through our school motto "Nurture for Today, Learning for Tomorrow, Character for Eternity", we provide a Christ centred environment with a holistic approach to learning, focusing on children’s mental, physical, social and spiritual needs, which will ensure they are equipped with an education that prepares them for living a life in crescendo.
Of course crescendo is best achieved when we immerse ourselves in the Lord Jesus Christ (Romans 13:14) Jesus lived his life in crescendo showing us what God looks like through his time, talents, resources and influence. He healed the sick, raised the dead, gave good news to the poor and made a difference wherever he went He chose to immerse himself in our world and show us what true humility and service looks like.
At Christmas time we celebrate his birth into our world as a baby. We celebrate that he is Immanuel (God with us). We also celebrate His life, His death, his resurrection and his soon return. (Crescendo) As chaplains we pray that you will truly experience with your family the greatest gift of all - Jesus, and as you give gifts and receive them, as you serve others and receive service from them, as you travel or stay at home, as you experience all that Christmas is with those you love, we pray that you will also gain a new understanding of who Jesus is and continue to live life in crescendo, immersed in Him.
May you have a blessed and safe Christmas season.
Pastor Andy and Pastor Daron (Chaplains 2022)
Whole School News
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
Year 6 Dinner
Last week our Year 6 students celebrated their end of Primary School journey at the Hornsby RSL Club. It was a lovely night where students were able to dress up, eat together and enjoy each other’s company through some games. Thank you to Miss Kohama, Mr Eastwood and our amazing parent helpers who made this event possible.
After-School CodeCamp Program - Commencing Term 1 2023
Reminder of Upcoming Events
• Prep Graduation – 9:30-10:30am – 6 December, Wahroonga Adventist Church
• K-6 Presentation Morning – 9-10:30am - 9 December, Wahroonga Adventist Church
• P-6 Activity Day – (all day) – 12 December
Primary School Sport
Infant Swimming: Kindy - Year 2
We have come to the final stages of the Infant Swimming (Kindy-Year 2) program and what a blast the students have had. We have been blessed with beautiful sunshine over the last 2 weeks and all the students have improved their swimming skills and most importantly had a lot of fun! Thanks to the coaches, parents and teachers for supporting this very important life skill.
Honourable Mentions
Gymnastics
Tiffany L (6K) attended the Women's Gymnastics Junior State Championship 2022 on Sunday 27 November, which was her first big competition. She achieved a Silver medal. Well done!! Great job Tiffany!!
Fencing
On 20 November, Victor K (5M) took part in the 2022 NSW Fencing State Championship. Victor won the Silver Medal in a close final of the U12 Boys Sabre. Well done Victor!! What an amazing effort!!
Please return your washed WAS Sports singlet to Mrs Gilbert ASAP if you have borrowed one during last term.
At Wahroonga, we are very proud of our students’ achievements across the sporting fields. So, we encourage you to share any sporting achievements that your child accomplishes with us.
Mrs Chloe Gilbert - Primary Sports Coordinator
Secondary School News
Science Discovery Stars and Pizza Night
The clouds parted just in time for our Science Discovery students, who spent Saturday night star gazing using our newly donated telescope. They saw some spectacular celestial bodies including Saturn with it’s rings and a few moons, Jupiter, and Mars. They also visited the international space station with an Oculus Virtual Reality headset via the Space Explorers app. It was such a wonderful opportunity to be able to spend time outside together whilst learning about Science and God’s creation. Thank you to all the Science teachers involved and Mr Jose for volunteering and bringing along his digital telescope.
Mrs Leisly White - Head of Science
United Nations Voice Competition
Katie M (Year 10) recently competed in the semi-finals of the United Nations Voice competition, a public speaking competition for high school students. We are so excited to announce that Katie has won the opportunity to speak in the State Finals to be held at NSW Parliament House on 2 December. Congratulations Katie on this fabulous achievement!
Business and Economics Classes - Year 12
Studying operations strategies in action, Year 12 Business and Economics students visited IKEA, REX Airlines and Krispy Kreme last week. It was an eye opener to see the complexity of behind the scenes operations to ensure customers have a great experience in IKEA stores and on REX Airlines. Krispy Kreme was the icing on the donut with everyone enjoying a variety of mouth watering Christmas edition donuts alongside the traditional favourites. Special thank you to Peter Moody from REX Airlines (current parent).
Secondary School Sport
CSSA Nepean Zone Touch Football Competition
Wahroonga competed in the final week of the Nepean Zone – Touch Football Competition. Last week, Junior Boys and Junior Girls qualified to compete in the grand final which was held this week. Our Junior Boys team played well with plenty of energy but unfortunately fell short 2-1. Our Junior Girls team have been playing extremely well throughout the season, and this also continued into the grand final with our girls taking out the competition! Our Senior Boys team had played 2 games this week. The first game they were able to win comfortably 6-0 which resulted in qualifying for the grand final against Penrith Christian School! The game was highly competitive with it ending in a draw. Unfortunately, due to point differential throughout the competition, Penrith Christian School was awarded the victory.
A fantastic result for our 3 touch football teams with all of them qualifying for the grand final!
Adventist Schools Friendly – Hills vs Wahroonga
On Tuesday for sport, our sister school Hills Adventist School’s boys’ basketball teams participated in a friendly match against Wahroonga’s boys’ basketball teams. Hills visited our school and competed in two games; a senior boys’ game and a junior boys’ game. Our senior boys continued to show their experience and camaraderie as they secured a 57-34 win. Our Junior boys also competed to a high standard and resulted in a comfortable win 34-22. Congratulations to our Junior and Senior boys basketball teams!
Honourable Mentions
Swimming - Salani S (Year 8)
Our superb swimmer Salani recently competed at the 2022 Swimming Metro North East Summer Championships 12-13 November.
- Girls 14 Years 50 Backstroke – 1st Place
- Girls 14 Years 100 Backstroke – 1st Place
- Girls 14 Years 100 Butterfly – 1st Place
- Girls 14 & Over 200 Backstroke – 2nd Place
- Girls 13-14 Years 200 Medley Relay – 1st Place
Congratulations Salani! She will also be attending the Swimming NSW Youth Leadership Camp in January 2023.
Sailing - Lachlan W (Year 10)
Lachlan competed in the 2022 Harken International Youth Match Racing Championship held on 16-20th November at the Royal Prince Alfred Yacht Club, Newport. It was four days of match racing against youth teams (23 year old and under) from Australia, New Zealand, New Caledonia and USA. The teams raced on Elliot 7 performance keelboats with a crew of 4 or 5.
Lachlan competed in one of two teams from the RPAYC's Youth Development Squad. They finished strong in the 1st round robin coming in 5th. The winds dropped on day 2 and 3 and they finished 7th in the 2nd round robin. Unfortunately, all racing was abandoned on the final day of the regatta due to constant, strong and gusting winds.
It was a great opportunity for Lachlan racing against highly competitive national and international teams where they were able to continue to develop their team match racing and sailing skills. Well done Lachlan!
Stacking - Justin R (Year 8)
Justin competed in the Australian National Sport Stacking Championships held in Adelaide on 19-20 November 2022. He placed first overall in the Male 13-16 age division, and first in the 'cycle' event for the same age division. Congratulations Justin on your fantastic achievement!
Mr Ignatius Ah-You - Secondary Sports Coordinator
Library News
Book Returns
All library books were due back last week, so if your child still has library books at home please assist them in getting the books found and returned to the library – you can access your child’s borrowing records on the Library WebApp (bit.ly/waslibrary). If books are lost or not returned a $25 per book replacement fee will be applied to your school account, or alternatively please buy a replacement copy of the lost book for the library. Thanking you.
High School Textbook Sign-Out
High School textbook sign-out is scheduled for next Tuesday (Year 10) and Thursday (Year 7-9). Each student from Years 7-10 has been given a list of the books they need to return to ensure that they are all found and cleaned before sign-out day. A replacement fee of $35 for each textbook, or $25 for each novel/library book will be applied to the school accounts of all those who fail to return their books. Current loans and a list of instructions for cleaning can be accessed on the Library WebApp (bit.ly/waslibrary).
Library Bag
Our Year 5 and 6 ‘Library Bag’ podcasts are continuing to be loaded onto the Library WebApp (bit.ly/waslibrary). There are 10 podcasts available to listen to on the library WebApp homepage or click on the link to be directed to the ‘Library Bag’ website where all the podcasts that have been broadcast so far are available.
Premier’s Reading Challenge Certificates
Congratulations Tilly C (9A), who has achieved her Premier’s Reading Challenge Medallion for completing the Premier’s Reading Challenge every year from Year 3 to Year 9.
Well done also to the following students who will be receiving special certificates this year:
Gold (Completed the PRC 4 times): Ariya B (3L), Nicole D (3K), Madison E (3K), Caleb L (3K), Iris L (3K), Josephine L (3K), Charlotte L (3K), Shourya M (3K), Sean P (3K), Lilly S (3K), Yijie S (3K), Sophia W (3K), Emeline G (4R), Laura O (4R), Sophia T (4R), Sophia F (5M), Holly F (5M), Ashton K (5M), Aiden P (5M), Bobby Z (5C), Hayley R (6K) and Amellia D (7A).
Platinum (Completed the PRC 7 times): Oliver B (6K), Jaz B (6K), Shivon C (6K), Olivia C (6J), Tiffany L (6K), Callum P (6K), Samarth P (6K), Ishaan S (6K) and Derek W (6K).
The Gold and Platinum Premier’s Reading Challenge certificates are yet to arrive but will be presented to the students once we receive them. All Primary School Certificates have been given to the teachers to be placed in the students’ report envelopes, High School students can collect their certificates from the Library.
Mrs Leonie Savage - Librarian
Uniform Shop
Orders Now Closed for 2022
Please note that Flexischools orders for 2022 closed on Wednesday 30 November. Those orders have been delivered to the Primary classrooms this week and will be available for High School students to collect from the School Office if they haven't done so already.
The uniform shop is now closed for stocktake and the school holiday period, it will re open again on Thursday 2 February 2023.
New Uniform Item
There are now Girls Sports Shorts available to purchase for girls in Years 3 to Year 12. The shorts are the same design as the current unisex shorts however the girls shorts have a lycra bike short insert.
Girls are able to choose to wear either the Unisex Sports Short or the Girls Sports Shorts. The cost is $40 and they are now available to order on Flexischools.
Mrs Meagan Sullivan - Uniform Shop Manager
Home and School
Members of the Home and School Committee (we had a few missing) and guests were able to come together for a meal this week to dare to dream ideas for 2023 and to thank our volunteers. Without people contributing their time, ideas, passion and vision for our school community we would not be able to do what we do to try and build community.
If you want to be more involved in our Home and School, big or small send us an email homeandschool@wahroonga.adventist.edu.au or chat with one of our members. We are always looking to expand our WAS community.
Christmas Hampers - To everyone who has been sending in pantry and hygiene items it is very much appreciated. A massive thank you for your contributions. The SRC's will be busy creating hampers next week to be delivered to Fusions for our homeless and vulnerable community members.
The Great Wall of Gingerbread Houses is up outside the front office. We have some amazing Gingerbread Houses on display so make sure you check them out. We will accept late entries until Monday 5 December 22, as the plan is to judge them this coming week.
Mrs Michelle Roberts - Home and School President (homeandschool@wahroonga.adventist.edu)