Principal’s Report

Dear Fortians, Parents, Carers,

Congratulations to Year 12 on the completion of their Trial HSC Examinations, the final round of school-based assessments. As a year group, I was proud of the way in which Year 12 conducted themselves throughout the two-week period. No doubt, many of them felt stressed or under pressure at times, but they showed commendable calm and maturity throughout. On Monday 12 August, to mark the successful completion of their assessments, Year 12 participated in a series of seminars, including a panel of returning Fortians William Li (2018) and Helena Ke (2016), a stretch and relaxation class from Mr Randev Uppal, and a session on managing finances presented by representatives from the ATO. Following these sessions, students enjoyed a BBQ picnic (cooked by Mr Theo Leondios) at Homebush for the rest of the afternoon. Thank you to Year 12 Adviser Mr Tim Hasenbein and Assistant Year Adviser Ms Liz Propsting for their efforts in organising this special day for Year 12.

Although their school-based assessments are complete, many Year 12 students are currently working hard on their performance and practical tasks. Languages students have already begun their HSC Speaking Exams, and major works are due for Drama, English Extension 2, Music and Visual Arts. We wish all students the best as they put the finishing touches on their works, and invite all parents and to come and see what they have been working on at our showcase evenings on Thursday 22 August (Drama and Music) and Monday 2 September (Visual Arts).

Education and Science Weeks

Over the past two weeks, we have celebrated both Education Week and Science Week. The school has been proud to have some of our students and buildings as part of the public campaign for public education. If you haven’t yet seen the video you can view it here: https://twitter.com/NSWEducation/status/1158139296861130752/video/1.

The culmination of Education Week was our Open Evening on Thursday 15 August. The school was proud to display what NSW Public Education has to offer, from the excellent performances on the Vocal Ensemble, Philharmonic Orchestra and Year 12 student Luca Tropea to the delicious food produced by the Year 11 Hospitality students; from the diverse talents of the Robotics students and the Year 12 Drama class, to the confidence, warmth and pride shown by our tour guides, and the unselfconscious enthusiasm of our student speakers. Special thanks must go to Samuel Alexander-Prideaux (Fortian 2017) who reflected on his time at the Fort in a very eloquent and insightful manner.

On Monday 12 August we also hosted our annual Science Fair, displaying student research projects from Year 9 and 10 students. I was impressed by the breadth of topics investigated, the creativity of students in designing their projects and the rigour they showed in analysing and presenting their results. The projects were judged by staff alongside parents and community members working in scientific fields. Congratulations to the students involved on the high quality of projects presented, and thank you to all who gave up their time to assist with the judging.

Maths Challenge

Congratulations to the students below who received outstanding results in the Australian Maths Trust Maths Challenge.

For the competition, Year 7 and 8 students signed up to work on a series of six challenging problems in their own time over a four week period, and showed sophisticated logical-thinking, problem-solving and creativity skills in submitting their solutions.

Staff Member of the Week

Fiona Schubert (English) and Rod Carritt (Social Sciences) were the holders of our trophy in weeks 3 and 4 respectively, in recognition of both their excellence in the classroom and their outstanding contributions to the school’s Wellbeing Team. Congratulations to both staff.

Joel Morrison (Deputy Principal)

FSHS welcomes visiting Chinese students

During early August Chinese classes had the opportunity to interact with students from Guangdong Garden School and DEPU Foreign Language School Chongqing.  Thank You to Mr Dong and Ms Tian for organising study buddies and activities in which to socialise. Our Chinese guests were impressed with the free time of Australian youth and the number of computer related lessons.

Mark Backhouse (Head Teacher Languages)

Year 9 Sweet Lily Excursion

On the 2nd of August, Year 9 students got the chance to meet “Sweet Lily” at the Italian Forum for a combined Commerce and Business Studies excursion. After recess, we walked with Mr. Van De Hoek, Ms. Xu, Ms. Jerrems and Mr. Lambert through the streets of Leichhardt to our destination.

Immediately after we were seated at our eight-person tables, Lily talked to us about her experiences as a small business owner in a once busy and populated area. She explained to us that a business owner must always consult a lawyer or legal adviser before signing a lease, however desirable, and spending all of their budget. She told us about how other small business owners reacted to her business opening in terms of product and supplier mimicking, and ways to react. She also gave us wise tips about finding good employees, and how she dealt with business crises such as employee theft.

Following Lily’s story, we were treated to some delicious food that we got to make ourselves. After appointing a waiter/waitress from each of our tables, we were given three pizza bases, accompanied with the appropriate toppings. Each table ended up making 4 pizzas – garlic cheese, pepperoni, ham, and tomato. The waiters/waitresses then gave our pizzas to Lily, who baked them. A few minutes later, everyone was gorging on their pizzas and chugging their drinks. We were even given dessert after – 2 scoops of ice cream, with 15 flavours to choose from.

The day ended on a really fun note with the students leaving 30 minutes before the bell with heads full of knowledge and bellies full of food. To sum up what we learned:

• don’t let feelings and emotions about a small business cloud your judgement, because it could result in serious debt;
• listen to what your legal advisers have to say about your monetary and legal decisions because in some cases, the reward is not worth the risk and cost;
• always lead the pack of small business owners, let them copy from you, not vice versa, because by being the first to an idea, customers will be more inclined to you instead of the copiers.

Thank you so much to Mr. Van De Hoek, Ms. Xu, Ms. Jerrems and Mr. Lambert for running this excursion for the Business Studies and Commerce students.

Caleb Mayo and Marcus Wu

HSC Music & Drama Showcase – 22 August

Sports Update

Pictured are two sporting groups who have been meeting and training every Tuesday morning this term. Our Ultimate Frisbee Club meets at 7:45am every Tuesday this term and train under the guidance of Edmund Feng (Class of 2018) who has represented Australia in the increasingly popular sport.

Our other group is the Y7/8 Boys Football team who will represent the school on Thursday, 22 August at the Wanderers Schools Cup in Gladesville next week.

Our Y7/8 Girls Football team have also just begun training and both teams will be participating in a trial match against The Conservatorium High School this Friday at school in preparation for their tournament next week.

Randev Uppal

Instrumental Music Program

Last week Jazz Orchestra performed at the Essentially Ellington festival at the Sydney Conservatorium of Music. They were given feedback on their performance and a workshop with members of the world-renowned Lincoln Centre Jazz Orchestra, New York. These are some of the finest jazz players and educators in the world. The players found it incredibly inspiring to be a part of the festival and the group, who already sounded great, made huge leaps forward in their playing.

Chamber Choir and Vocal Ensemble in Concert
Chamber Choir and Vocal Ensemble, directed by Alex Pringle, will be appearing along with the Sydney Male Choir, at the Sydney Town Hall on Sunday 8th September at 2 pm. Please come and support the Vocal Ensemble and award winning Chamber Choir. Bookings can be made at www.sydneymalechoir.com. Enter ‘fortstreet’ as the promotional code in order to get the discounted price of $40 per ticket. Under 15s free.

Applications are now open for Arts Unit Ensembles and Sydney Youth Orchestra:

2019 Schools Spectacular Orchestra and Stage Band
Visit the Arts Unit website for more information and to apply online:
https://www.artsunit.nsw.edu.au/2019-schools-spectacular-instrumental-music-ensembles-application-form

Arts Unit 2020 Weekly Instrumental Ensembles
Applications for the 2020 weekly instrumental ensembles are open until 23 September.  All Weekly Instrumental Ensembles rehearse at the The Arts Unit, in the grounds of Lewisham Public School, The Boulevarde, Lewisham. Membership is by audition and successful students will be charged an annual fee of $420 in 2019.

Wind Ensembles:
NSW Public Schools Symphonic Wind Ensemble (SWE) – Advanced wind ensemble.
NSW Public Schools Symphonic Wind Orchestra (SWO) – Intermediate wind ensemble.
Rehearsals: Monday afternoons 4:30pm – 7pm at The Arts Unit, Lewisham.

More information about The Arts Unit weekly wind ensembles can be found here.

APPLY HERE

Orchestras:
NSW Public Schools Symphony Orchestra – Advanced ensemble.
NSW Public Schools String Sinfonia – Intermediate ensemble.
Rehearsals: Thursday afternoons 4:30pm – 7pm at The Arts Unit, Lewisham.

More information about The Arts Unit orchestras can be found here.

APPLY HERE

Jazz Ensembles:
NSW Public Schools Jazz Orchestra – Advanced ensemble.
NSW Public Schools Stage Band – Intermediate ensemble.
Rehearsals: Tuesday afternoons 4:30pm – 6:30pm at The Arts Unit, Lewisham.
More information about The Arts Unit jazz ensembles can be found here.

APPLY HERE

Sydney Youth Orchestra 2020
Sydney Youth Orchestras is the leading orchestral training and music education provider in New South Wales, comprising:

14 orchestras & ensembles
A comprehensive orchestral training program
Weekly music theory program
Esteemed artistic staff
Experienced tutors from professional ensembles such as the Sydney Symphony, Australian Chamber Orchestra & Opera Australia Orchestra
Opportunities for public performances and events
Regional & international (2021) touring opportunities

For more information on the SYO programs, and how to apply click here.

Open Day at the Sydney Conservatorium of Music
Open Day is on Saturday 31 August 9am to 3pm and is a great opportunity for prospective students to ask staff and student ambassadors questions about music degrees, auditions and application processes. The day includes masterclasses, concerts, talks and activities. Open Day is aimed at  Year 12 students, and also Year 10 and 11 students considering music studies at a tertiary level. The schedule for the day can be found here –SCM Open Day Schedule.

For more information on all Open Day activities happening across the University of Sydney campuses go to openday.sydney.edu.au

P & C

August General Meeting 13th August 2019

The August general meeting of the P&C was preceded by a presentation by Sharon Lam, Head Teacher Mathematics. Sharon gave a very interesting and informative talk about maths at Fort Street including the acceleration process, changes to the curriculum and assessment from NESA and a great video by Year 9 students solving the “murder” of Mr Scobell through mathematics. It was another great example of the creativity of students and also the actual fun that can be had with maths.

The major outcome from the August meeting was to clarify funds that we had promised the school and a cheque for around $162 000 was drawn by the P&C and given to Juliette McMurray  – an exciting moment!

Next P&C Meeting for 2019 – Wednesday 11 September 

6:30pm – 7:30pm Focus Item:Student Well-being (including technology management) – by Joel Morrison
7:30pm – 8:30pm General Meeting

The meeting will be held in the School Library

The final focus item this year will be English and will be presented by N Melser, Head Teacher English, on Wednesday 11 December

Fort Street P&C 2020

We are calling for expressions of interest for positions on the P&C for 2020. A number of our office bearers are leaving this year as their child at the school completes the HSC. We are inviting any and all parents who are interested to take this opportunity to have a guiding role in the P&C. We are in particular need of people with skills in communication and administration and/or who just really want to be involved. We also really want to encourage parents who may not want a role but would like to be a general member to come along to the next meeting and see what happens.

Second hand uniforms

A second hand uniform stall runs once each term before school in front of the office from 7.45-8.45 am, usually on the second Wednesday of each term.
Watch Mercurius, the P&C newsletter  and the school calendar to confirm dates. This is a P&C run volunteer initiative to recycle school uniforms.
Please note that stock is limited and depends on what has been donated, so it is recommended to use the second hand uniform stall to obtain spare items only, after you have purchased your new uniform items from the Uniform Shop.
The second hand uniform stall is CASH ONLY. No refunds, condition as found, no returns, no change rooms.
If you have second hand uniforms to donate, please bring your clean washed donations to the school library front desk.
All proceeds go to the P&C.

Entertainment Book

Support Fort Street High School with the purchase of The Entertainment Book, and the Entertainment Digital Membership. are your guide to the most popular restaurants, attractions, shopping, travel and more.

• Discover over $20,000 worth of valuable up to 50% off and 2-for-1 offers
• Exclusive Member rates at thousands of hotels and resorts around the world
• Member-only priced cinema tickets, theme park tickets, flights, gift cards and more
• Access to valuable rental car offers you can book online with ease
• Easy online search, mapping and reviews of participating businesses

Join Now

If you are interested in further information on any of the work of the P&C at FSHS but can’t make it to P&C meetings please subscribe to our Member/Supporter Update here:  http://eepurl.com/cXWaEX.or email us at fortstreethighschool@pandcaffiliate.org.au.
To aid our volunteers please include the following in the subject heading: ‘Please subscribe me to the FSHS P&C Updates’.

From the Archives

Who is Meleager?

Quietly supervising Fort Street High School students and staff as they journey through the Fountain Quad is the sculpture of Meleager.
Meleager is a hero from Greek mythology who famously led an expedition to kill the Calydonian boar which was terrorizing the kingdom of Oeneus in Aetolia in central-western Greece. Appearing in Homer’s Iliad and the later epics the Ehoiai and Minyas, the story was a popular subject in Greek and later art from pottery decoration to sculpted sarcophagi.

The sculpture of Meleager at Fort Street High School is in white Carrara marble with a boar’s head and a hunting hound. It was one of twelve modern statues created by sculptor Charles F. Summers modelled on an ancient Roman interpretation of the Greek original statue (attributed to Skopas) in The Vatican Museum.

The collection of statues were said to have been created for the Garden Palace of the great Sydney International Exhibition in 1879. When the Garden Palace was damaged by a great fire in 1882 the group of sculptures were moved to line the walk from Shakespeare Place down to the lower Garden areas of the Royal Botanic Gardens.

When Japan entered the war, the statues were moved for safety reasons in 1941 and stored in the Mitchell Library. No account is to be found in the archival correspondence held at the State’s national herbarium to inform how the statue of Meleager was ‘spirited’ away at the war’s end. Apparently there was a card index that states on Meleager’s card – “Removed to Fort Street Boys High School, 1945.”
The school is currently liaising with other government agencies to investigate conservation options for Meleager.

Iain Wallace – School Archivist

University Open Days

UNSW Open Day 2019 is on Saturday 7 September from 9am – 4pm.

Students can register HERE to receive the latest updates and download the Open Day Uni-Verse app, to help you make the most out of your day.

Sydney University Open Day is on Saturday 31 August.  Register HERE

Sydney Conservatorium Open Day is on Saturday 31 August.  Register HERE

UTS Open Day is on Saturday 31 August.  Register HERE