Principal’s Report

Dear Fortians, Parents and Carers,

It has been an exciting couple of weeks of Sport at the Fort. Unfortunately, our CHS 15s boys basketball team were knocked out by Ashfield Boys, but the CHS 15s girls basketball team have progressed to the finals. The CHS volleyball team are also on their way to the finals after defeating Narara Valley High School and Normanhurst Boys High school and we are awaiting the results today from the CHS open baseball knockout games.

At last week’s assembly medals were distributed to our Age Champions form the athletics carnival. Congratulations to the following age champions: 12 years – Aoibhe Carty and Leon Liu, 13 years – Grace Zarb and Henry Wakeling, 14 years – Ashley Huang and Lachlan McIntyre, 15 years – Anika Sinha and Loic Chiang, 16 years – Alyssa Khaw and Calan O’Dwyer, 17 years Abbie Sen and Leonard Kelly, 18 years – Carla Miers and William Randall.

A special mention should be made to Diyon Flavel who ran the fastest time on the day with 11.77 seconds in the 100m final.

Congratulations to the Fort Street Mock Trial team which has had one win and one loss in the competition so far this year. On 19 May our team won their trial against St Maroun’s College. The team representing the Fort includes Brendan Posener, Shreya Acharya, Aria Kanhukamwe, Sebastian Lenehan Choo, Aslesha Nepal, Aden Nguyen, Michelle Tieu, Emma Zhao, Ethan Lin and Niamh Hannan-Spinks. At this last trial Sebastian Lenehan-Choo’s debating experience shone through and the magistrate complimented him on his performance as a barrister.

Congratulations also to Phoebe Lim Fortian 2021 – Ms Cameron and I had the pleasure of attending the Virtual Exhibition of Art Express 2022 at the National Art School in Darlinghurst last week where we were able to see Phoebe’s major work Grossery Store along with the other selected art pieces from the 2021 HSC.

Vinnies CEO Sleepout

Every night, thousands of Australians experience homelessness. But it doesn’t have to be that way. This year I’m taking part in the Vinnies CEO Sleepout to raise money for the St Vincent de Paul Society to support Australians in need. For one night, I’ll be sleeping outside as part of an eye-opening experience to raise awareness and bring home the realities of homelessness. Later this year Fortians in year 8 will be participating in a connected curriculum two day and overnight experience on the school oval, I thought it important to be a role model to them for this inaugural program.

I would like to send my gratitude to the staff and families who have contributed so far to my fundraising effort. My goal is to reach $5000 in the next three weeks. At this stage we have raised $1,532 which will go towards 4 individual Vinnies’s support programs, 12 beds and 51 meals.

To help break the devastating cycle of homelessness, I need your support. Will you help me to reach my target? Donating 50 dollars can make a huge difference to people who need it most.

If you would like to help out and can afford to do so please visit my webpabe:

https://www.ceosleepout.org.au/s/13458/53667/e

Upcoming events in Term 2:

• Year 10 HSC Subject Selection information evening Monday June 6
• Year 11 Camp Wednesday June 8 – Friday June 10
• P&C Meeting via zoom Wednesday 8 June
• Long Weekend Queens Birthday Monday 13 June
• Years 7 and 10 Parent Teacher Night in the school hall Thursday June 23
• Years 8 and 9 Parent Teacher Night in the school hall Wednesday June 29
• IMP Mid-Year Concert Friday 24 June

Year 10 Commerce stalls

Year 10 Commerce students put theory into practice and tried out their entrepreneurial skills with the planning of a commerce stall. The students were required to decide on a product and develop marketing strategies and operations plans as part of running their stalls. Students learned the importance of differentiating products towards their target markets, having a strong marketing plan and workplace health and safety issues.

Important skills such as working together, problem solving and contingency planning were all evident on the day, with a wide variety of stalls supplying everything from Ramen and lemonade, crepes with various toppings, cupcakes and fairy floss, to  tteokbokki. Most stalls were fortunate enough to sell out.

What some of the students said

“I really enjoyed this task. It was really engaging for me due to the practical nature and the amount of planning needed to complete it.”

“Although I was stressed about the water issues, I managed to come up with quick solutions to solve it.”

“At the start of the recess, people just rushed in and I was in a bit of shock at how many people wanted to buy our product.”

“I was expecting to be sitting down, doing nothing on the day, but was surprised by how many drinks Erina and I made. I was surprised that I did not sit down whatsoever during the day.”

“I struggled with ratios and timing, with a larger volume of food being prepared at once at the beginning of the task. I would try to get experience with all of the equipment that would be used on the day.”

Garth Champman

Head Teacher Social Science

Athletics Carnival

We were lucky enough to have fine weather for the Athletics Carnival and the students had a great day.

At last week’s assembly medals were distributed to our age champions form the athletics carnival. Congratulations to the following age champions: 12 years – Aoibhe Carty and Leon Liu, 13 years – Grace Zarb and Henry Wakeling, 14 years – Ashley Huang and Lachlan McIntyre, 15 years – Anika Sinha and Loic Chiang, 16 years – Alyssa Khaw and Calan O’Dwyer, 17 years Abbie Sen and Leonard Kelly, 18 years – Carla Miers and William Randall.

A special mention should be made to Diyon Flavel who ran the fastest time on the day with 11.77 seconds in the 100m final.

Thank you to all the staff who attended and assisted on the day.

Thanks also to student Hayden Li for sharing photos of the day. The photos are all on the school website here

Year 11 Earth and Environmental Science Excursion 2022

In 2022, Year 11 Earth and Environmental Science took a trip to the Blue Mountains and Central West NSW for 2 nights. We bordered the train in Sydney and made our way out to Blackheath to tour the community’s environmental protection work and the Blue Mountains National Park. Students froze as they witnessed the edge of the Sydney Basin while standing on Govett’s Leap Lookout. We then met our coach and made our way to chili Oberon for our first night.

In the morning, we made our way into the heart of Wiradjuri Country. In Bathurst we visited the only full Tyrannosaurs Rex skeleton in the country at the Australian Fossil and Mineral Museum. Students discovered the formation and use of various precious minerals and explored fossils from around the world.

Next, we left the townships and explored soil and water management on farms in the Mid-Lachlan region. In particular, we saw first-hand how the latest scientific methods of reducing salinity in agricultural land are successfully applied.

Another fossil visit at the Canowindra Age of Fishes Museum was a must. The local fossil formation, which included many specimens of placoderms and the unique Canowinrda grossi, from a time when vertebrates were first moving onto land. This find has high importance to both science and to the local community. After this we headed up to Wellington for the evening, where we explored much more recent, but no less important, fossil beds from the Australian Megafauna, including the massive Diprotodon.

In the morning, we headed underground into the Cathedral Cave – a 400-million-year-old limestone cave with a massive stalagmite towering above our little class. This was a humbling experience, looking into deep time as we contemplated the unimaginably slow process that built this grand structure before us.

This was a fantastic trip, not without its crises, which took our city kids out of their familiar classroom to experience the land from which their food and water comes from, the land that has been built by tectonic forces for billions of years, and the land that has been occupied by fantastic creatures in eons past.

Thanks to all students for their fantastic engagement and behaviour and thank you to Ms Thompson for accompanying our little group on this adventure.

Please see Mr Guy for more information about Earth and Environmental Science in 2023 and beyond.

Open Boys Volleyball winners!

Our open boys volleyball team have beat Narara Valley H.S this week and also Normanhurst Boys yesterday!

The team is through to the quarter finals of the CHS knockout – Amazing result! Well done to all the team members:

– William Yoo

– Ben Shadily

– Minh Quang-Chung

– Daniel Im

– Kai Chen

– Austen Koit

– Ian Jung

– Isaac Nie

– Joshua Evangelista

– Oscar Truong

– Edward Hu

– Ray Chen

– Kimi Shao

– Jun Hui Quan

– Jayden Quach

– Jack Sun

– Calvin Yap

Year 12 French Study Skills at the University of Sydney

On Saturday 21 May, students in Year 12 French attended a Study Skills Day. Alongside learners of French from schools all over NSW, Fort St students enjoyed a university lecture experience in the impressive surroundings of the University of Sydney. They listened attentively and took thorough notes while hearing from senior HSC examiners who shared examination tips and preparation advice. Students also had the opportunity to learn about post-school study of French, including hearing directly from a first-year student at the University of Sydney.

Another successful competition for Riva

Fort Street student Riva  Burkett has returned from a successful competition in the Gold Coast.

The NSW WAG Level 9 Squad placed 2nd overall.  Riva placed 8th overall for Senior Level 9.

Well done Riva on such great results!

Instrumental Music Program

Instrumental Music Program

IMP Mid-Year Concert

Our ensembles are busy preparing for the Mid-Year Concert, which is always an exciting event in the IMP calendar. The concert will showcase the work of all our incredible IMP ensembles and farewell the outgoing Year 12 cohort. More information will be coming soon. Put the evening of Friday 24 June in your diary for this much anticipated event.

Applications are now open for the Talent Development Project

TDP offers a unique training program for diverse, talented young artists to explore and develop their musical abilities through monthly workshops in a creative and collaborative environment. All singers, singer songwriters, musical theatre performers, instrumentalists and bands at NSW Government High Schools are eligible. The annual program runs for students in years 9-12 and incurs no fee to students who are accepted into the program.

Due to popular demand, the application submission deadline for the TDP 2022/23 program has been extended. The new submission deadline is Friday 17 June at 5pm. More information can be found here:

Talent Development Project School Program

Apply now for the Young Women’s Jazz Workshops

This is an award-winning program for young women, trans, and nonbinary people who want to take that solo!

The eight-week program by SIMA – Sydney Improvised Music Association – accommodates players of all skill levels, from beginner to advanced, regardless of their prior knowledge of jazz, and has been crafted to inspire young instrumentalists to play jazz and pursue a future in music.

Applications close on Friday 17 June. Follow this link for more information:

SIMA Young Women’s Jazz Workshops

Department of Education Opportunity – Apply to become a Student Support Officer

Do you know someone who would make a fantastic Student Support Officer (SSO)? The NSW Department of Education is currently recruiting SSOs to support the mental health and wellbeing of students in NSW public schools.

Apply to become a Student Support Officer. Hurry, submit your application by Friday, 3 June 2022.

Apply via tinyurl.com/ssonsw

Navigating your teen’s mental health – 9 June at 12 noon OR 28 June at 7 pm

This 45 minute Black Dog Institute presentation is for parents and carers of young people. Parents and carers will learn how to spot early warning signs of mental health issues, when and where to seek help and how to support a young person they care about.

Normal mood swings or clinically depressed –can you tell the difference? Understanding mental health is a minefield for many of us, but that’s where we can help. Our presentation developed by experts has been designed to help you answer questions like this and gives you the knowledge and practical advice to:

• Identify depression from normal mood swings
• Understand the types of mental health concerns
• Recognise the symptoms of depression and anxiety
• Know when professional help is needed
• Understand the range of treatment options
• Have open, meaningful conversations
• Spot and monitor the warning signs

Our free, 45 minute sessions are presented by community members with lived experience of mental illness. The presenters speak from the heart, sharing their personal story as well as our expert knowledge.

• This presentation is held completely online.
• We will provide a link to the webinar upon registration, 24 hours and 1 hour before the start time.
• This webinar requires a computer and stable internet connection.

Time: 9 June at 12 noon or 28 June at 7 pm

To register: https://www.blackdoginstitute.org.au/education-services/webinars/upcoming-community-webinars/

Special offer for Fort Street students – Karate

Fort Street High School Offer – any three students signing up together will receive a month of training free

Kuro Obi dojo is a full time kyokushin karate dojo that has been in operation for over ten years and is part of the International Federation of Karate Australia. We run a term program for schools that gives students a comprehensive grounding in karate and self-defence. We tailor these programs specifically for the needs of the school so please don’t hesitate to contact me if this is something you may be interested in and we can get you a more detailed individualised program and cost.

Karate provides students with a wide range of skills and we have found that parents report improvement in all sorts of areas: behaviour, discipline, focus, respect for others, self esteem, capacity to control emotions as well as the more obvious fitness and self-defence.

Our classes are taught by Shihan Shah, fifth dan black belt and president of the IFKA, an exceptionally high level of tuition not offered by most other martial arts schools. Students also have the opportunity to be involved in IFKA tournaments and to grade through our affiliated dojos in Sydney, meaning that they receive the highest level accreditation and instruction.

You can see more information at www.kuro-obi.com.au

Girls in Engineering Club | Engineering- UNSW Sydney

The UNSW Girls of Engineering Club is a fun and inspiring community for high school girls who are interested in engineering and want to pursue a STEM career. Join us on campus to find out more.

https://www.unsw.edu.au/engineering/study-with-us/girls-engineering-club

UNSW Student programs for the July holidays

UNSW have student programs running for gifted students during the July school holidays. Scan the QR code below for more information