Principal’s Report

Dear Fortians, Parents and Carers,

It is already week 5 and there has been so much happening at the Fort. This term along with the school cross country at Petersham Park, and the athletics carnival we have held a study skills evening for Years 10 and 11 students and their parents, Year 7 participated in an Elephant Ed incursion and Year 12 Geography students visited the Great Barrier reef just to name a few.

Duke of Edinburgh Award

Last week, our dedicated Duke of Edinburgh participants embarked on an unforgettable adventure to the Central Coast, accompanied by Ms. Thompson and Ms. Dooley. Over four days, the group hiked an impressive 68 kilometers, showcasing remarkable resilience and teamwork. They embraced the challenge of cooking their own meals and sleeping under the stars, gaining valuable life skills such as self-sufficiency, leadership, and perseverance. We extend our heartfelt thanks to Ms. Thompson and Ms. Dooley for their organisation and unwavering support and guidance throughout this journey. Congratulations to our students for being one step closer to achieving their Gold Award. I strongly encourage all students to seize the opportunity to participate in the Duke of Ed program, as it fosters essential skills and lifelong memories.

Shave for a Cure

On Friday of last week, our school community came together for the Shave for a Cure charity event, raising an incredible $24,000 to support cancer research. A special thank you goes to Ms. Ryan and the Year 12 Charity Committee for their outstanding organisation and dedication to this important cause. Congratulations to all the brave students who participated and helped make a significant impact. Special mention to Mr Moon who raised over $5,000 and the following students who all raised over $1000 each – Brandon Djamhur, Carissa Lam, Kalanie Prabhakar, Michael Rodriguez, Jake Earls, Alex Hischhorn, Jasper Vincent, and Sofie Andersen. I would like to also extend my gratitude to the entire school community for their unwavering support and generosity. Your collective efforts truly embody the spirit of our school and show the power of coming together for a meaningful cause. It is not too late to donate to the Fort Street High School page at the World’s Greatest Shave website.

Sport at the Fort

Fortians continue to demonstrate remarkable success in sport, showcasing their talents and sportsmanship across various disciplines. Congratulations to Terence Kang and Haorui Zhang who will compete next week in the NSW All Schools Swimming Championships, please join me in wishing them luck. I would like to wish Daisy and Pia Martin the best of luck as they represent Sydney North Hockey in the NSW CHS Hockey Champions held in Wyong in June.

Heritage works

We are delighted to announce that the stonework for the Wilkins Building has been completed after more than two years of meticulous work. Our heartfelt thanks go to Heritage Stoneworks for their exceptional craftsmanship and to Ms. Davies for expertly managing the project at our school. The original school sign has been beautifully repaired, and it is wonderful to have the front of the school restored and accessible for students to use the overpass once again. Parents will have the opportunity to view the repaired facade at the upcoming Fort Fest on the 20th of September. We look forward to celebrating this achievement with our entire school community.

Metro Network Uplift Project

I am pleased to announce that the upcoming Wi-Fi Metro Uplift Project has started at Fort Street. This project will significantly enhance our school’s internet capabilities. Over the next few weeks, cabling and Wi-Fi will be updated throughout the school, promising a faster and more reliable internet service for both staff and students. This upgrade is a crucial step towards improving our digital infrastructure and ensuring a seamless online experience for our school community. This is part of the School Metro uplift project in which our school Wi-Fi is being upgraded. During week 7 there will be a day when the school will have no internet access whilst the cutover is being complete, but we look forward to having stronger and faster Wi-Fi service throughout the school.

Future Leaders Conference

I’m excited to share that the SRC executive has been working diligently to organise the upcoming Future Leaders Conference, which will take place on Wednesday. We will be welcoming over 300 student leaders from 36 NSW public schools. Fortians from Year 11 will join the conference during period 1 & 2 to hear from our distinguished keynote speakers: the Honorable Michael Kirby, Neurosurgeon Dr. Brindha Shivalingam, and the ABC’s David Anderson. Following recess, the student leaders will participate in a panel with esteemed guests from various fields including finance, performing arts, journalism, science, the environment, and education. Last year’s conference was a tremendous success, and it is encouraging to see so many schools returning for this important event. I would like to acknowledge the SRC executive for the hard work they have done in getting the conference organised.

Year 9 ANZAC Memorial excursion

At the start of term 2 Year 9 history students participated in an excursion designed to give them a greater understanding of the experiences of those who served in World War One and how Australians have commemorated the war. The excursion involved a visit to the ANZAC Memorial in Hyde Park where the students watched a play, were given a guided tour and participated in a letter writing activity. They also watched the movie Gallipoli to see a dramatic representation of the problems that beset the Gallipoli campaign. This is what some of the students thought about their excursion: 

The most interesting thing I saw was the role play of the nurse inside the new memorial building. I thought that the nurses paying their own fee to help in the war effort was outrageous and the fact that they were abandoned overseas after the war was over was also outrageous.

The tour of the memorial was another one of my favourite parts of the excursion. There was lots of symbolism all over the place representing different war perspectives. I love how the sculpture made us look down towards the dead soldier and how the stars on the roof made us look up

Another interesting part of the excursion that stuck with me was the soil from places all around New South Wales and from across the world. I feel this made the memorial more personal and showed the stark variation of homelands. 

The activity that I found the most interesting was the nurse’s play as it revealed a lot of information about the journey and experiences of the nurses that helped out during the war. I found this interesting as we tend to learn and focus more on the experiences of the soldiers who fought in the war rather than the medics who also played a crucial role in saving the injured soldiers. 

The most interesting thing that happened during this excursion was to see the war memorial itself. I did not expect it to be that big and the interior was very interesting. The room with the hollow ceiling with all the soil from warzones and soil from where soldiers enlisted in one room was quite cool to see. In the museum part there were many artefacts regarding WW1 like letters and uniforms. It was fascinating to see the raw items left behind and the context behind it.

I learnt things from the movie, which showed what life was like at Gallipoli, and problems the soldiers faced.

Excursion to the Australian Museum

On Friday 10 May, Yr 12 Earth and Environmental Science students participated in a self-guided excursion to the Australian Museum. Students explored each exhibit of the museum, which enriched their modules on palaeontology, natural hazards, climate science and resource management.  

Highlights included the Wild Planet, Minerals, Surviving Australia and, of course, the Dinosaurs exhibitions.  

Field studies are an important component of the earth and environmental sciences. Fortians who take this subject in Year 11 and 12 use these rich experiences to gather, process and analyse firsthand data to understand the future impact humans can have on the Earth. 

The students represented their school with excellent and respectful behaviour to the museum and the exhibitions. Thank you for making this experience a success! 

Gabriel Guy 

Fort Street World’s Greatest Shave

Theatre Sport Schools Challenge

Since 2005, Impro Australia has been running the TheatreSports™ Schools Challenge (TSC) – the only schools drama competition of its kind in NSW! It brings together students from over 150 government, systemic and independent schools across Sydney, Wollongong, Newcastle, Bowral and Nowra to perform comic and dramatic scenes made up entirely on the spot.

Fort Street has a proud tradition of participation in this competition and 2024 is no exception. Both our intermediate and senior theatre sports teams have competed in their first round heats. This requires students to perform 1-, 2- and 3-minute improvised scenes live on stage, judged by our team of improvisation professionals. 

Our senior theatre Sports team, comprised of; Teresa Lay, Keith Huang, Edain Davis-Barnier, Charlie McQueen and Min Park will now go on to represent FSHS in the semi-finals which will be held St Patricks College on Thursday 23rd May 5:30pm. If you would like to support our fabulous performers or are just curious about the world of improvised theatre you can buy tickets to attend this performance at the below link:

https://improaustralia.com.au/theatresports-schools-challenge-tsc/  

A big thanks must also go out to our dedicated team of Drama teachers who have supported these students in their performances; Kate Coats, Chelsea Zeller & Anni Finister.

German Film Festival Excursions

As the German Film Festival is currently running in cinemas, many German classes have had the opportunity to view German films recently. Last week, Years 10 and 11 watched the film “Get Up” about four young school leavers finding their way in life and following their dreams. Classes 7K and 7S are also looking forward to seeing a German remake of the story “Lassie” on Tuesday, 4th June.

Last Thursday, 9th May, Years 9 and 12 German classes visited Palace Cinemas on Norton St for the German Film Festival. We watched “Das Fliegende Klassenzimmer” (The Flying Classroom), an entertaining movie about a battle between the ‘Internen’ (borders) and the ‘Externen’ (day students) at a beautiful school in the Bavarian Alps, Germany. It even included a dramatic fight scene, as well as some corny but loveable singing and class performances. 

The movie was based on a book written by Erich Kästner, a famous early 20th century German author, who wrote other well-known books such as Emil and the Detectives and Lottie and Lisa (which became the movie the Parent Trap). 

We loved listening to the German spoken in the film, especially when we recognised words or phrases from German class, like “Ich habe keinen Bock”, a German idiom for “I don’t care!”. It was an extremely enjoyable experience for all of us, and a great opportunity to learn more about German culture and language. 

Vielen Dank to Frau Reynolds for organising this excursion, and Frau Hünger, our student teacher from Germany, for coming along with us as well! 

Kalanie Prabhakar Year 12

Jazz Opportunities for IMP Students

There are some exciting opportunities that may be of interest to Fortians interested in honing their jazz skills and knowledge.

1.Sydney Conservatorium Jazz Festival – Sunday June 2 2024

A unique all-ages opportunity to see live jazz and world class performers at Sydney Con’s Biannual Jazz Festival. Student tickets start from $25 for an afternoon pass and can be purchased Here

2.SIMA Young Women’s Jazz Workshops – July to September 2024

An eight-week program supported by The Open Academy, Sydney Conservatorium of Music, the Young Women’s Jazz workshops accommodate players of all skill levels, from beginner to advanced, regardless of their prior knowledge of jazz. Developed in partnership with Dr. Sandy Evans OAM in 2002, the Young Women’s Jazz Workshops have been crafted to inspire young instrumentalists to play jazz and pursue a future in music and have played a transformative role for countless musicians aged 12 and up around Australia.

Audition Day: Saturday 29 June 2024

Program: Saturdays 10.00am-1.00pm, 27 July – 14 September (Final Concert: Tuesday 17 September 2024)

Venue: Sydney Conservatorium of Music (NSW)

Ages: 12 years and up

Course Fee: $485

Application deadline: Friday 21st June 2024

For more information or to register Here

3.Tertiary Jazz Pre-Audition Workshop – Sat Aug 3 2024

Are you planning to audition for a Conservatorium tertiary degree in jazz? Be well informed about the audition requirements and process so you can achieve your best result in this highly competitive field. This three-hour workshop includes discussion and demonstration of the process, a mock Jazz aptitude test and the opportunity for some students to have their mock audition critiqued by members of the Tertiary Jazz staff in front of your peers (this is optional). This is an invaluable opportunity to ensure your optimum preparation for a future audition.

Date: Saturday, 3 August 2024

Time: 2.00-5.00pm

Venue: Sydney Conservatorium of Music (NSW)

Course Fee: $85

For more information or register : Here

4. International Jazz Day Recordings

International Jazz Day is held on 30 April every year. You can watch the All-Star Global Concert that was held in Morocco in 2024: https://jazzday.com/videos/  or at http://www.youtube.com/@Jazzday

“Fort Fest 2024”

 Fort Fest 2024 will be held on Friday 20th September, 3:15pm – 8.00pm.  

Fort Fest is a wonderful event under the stars at Fort Street High School for all the school and local community. There are delicious international food stalls to feed the whole family. Take a seat on the steps as you eat and enjoy the uplifting performances of our very talented IMP students. There are also games and stalls for everyone to enjoy, try your luck and see if you can win a prize or maybe even take home a bargain! 

The event is jointly run by the SRC and P&C and like all great events at school it is brought to life by wonderful volunteers. We would like to invite all families to be a part of the event and are now calling for parents, carers, students and staff to get involved as we prepare for this event. This is a great way to get to know other families at Fort Street and to further contribute to our wonderful school community as well as celebrate the 175th Anniversary of Fort Street High School. 

All funds raised at the event go to the Fort Street High School P&C who generously fund many valuable items at the school that benefit all of the students. Some of their recent funding went towards – sound upgrades in the hall; yarning circle; outdoor gym equipment; picnic tables and sporting equipment; Lego Education kits, Robotics equipment; Sports shirts for school teams; new texts for the new syllabus requirements and much more. 

There are many ways that you can help.

Join the P&C Fort Fest Committee! 

We have roles of all sizes to suit all interests, so please email us at events@fortstreetpandc.org if keen. We are currently looking for – 

Finance Coordinator: 

Responsible for planning the token sales with the SRC, arranging square readers, assisting with square set up and issues on the night, managing floats, and looking after cash and money on the night. 

Donations and Prizes Coordinator: 

Manages call-outs for donations, organises the donation week at school, arranges storage with school admin, and purchases stall prizes. Works with the Volunteer coordinator to assign prizes to stalls. 

Sponsors Coordinator: 

Finds local businesses willing to sponsor the event with cash or goods donations in return for presence or publicity. 

Alumni Coordinator: 

Promotes the event amongst Fort Street alumni, encouraging attendance and/or financial support.

Run a Food Stall at the Fest 

Great food, makes a great Fest! 

Can you organise and run a food stall? We are looking for a range of cuisines, sweet or savoury, drinks, BBQ, international food – just let us know your idea via our Expression of Interest Form https://forms.gle/pJykbSd3KuseAPoU7

All your expenses will be reimbursed after the event. All profits go to the Fort Street SRC/P&C for school improvements and resources.

Volunteer 

Keep an eye out early in Term 3 for the call for volunteers to help with the set up/pack up, decorations, stall assistants etc! 

Year 10 Subject Selection Webinar – Repeat for Fort Street Students

Hello Year 10,

The University received a number of enquiries from Fort Street parents expressing that their year 10 students were unable to attend our subject selection webinar as they were on a school program. Due to this, we have decided to run a repeat of this webinar and directly invite your year 10 students and parents to attend. The webinar will run on the 3 June between 6.00pm and 7:30pm. We will have staff available to answer questions. The link to the webinar registration is Here

We are very privileged that USyd has decided to run this event specifically for Fort Street students and parents. Please take advantage of this opportunity by registering and attending this event. I am confident it will be very helpful for you.

Kylie Salisbury