From the Middle School
It is always so exciting to see the energy and enthusiasm of our girls as they step up to embrace the myriad of opportunities on offer at Pymble. Whether that be in the classroom, during co-curricular activities or in the playground during breaks, each day we witness new connections and developing relationships. Last Friday’s house games – facilitated by the Year 12 House Captains – and the afternoon spent in the Aquatic Centre, were a welcome conclusion to Year 7s first week on campus.
Years 7 and 8 students are continuing to settle into school routines and are becoming more familiar with their new classes and subject teachers. Despite the very hot weather our Gloucester Gatherings during lunchtimes on Tuesdays have attracted lots of girls who have joined in a variety of craft and physical activities. Below, is the schedule for the term and I would like to invite you to encourage your daughters to get involved. From next week we will also be running activities throughout lunch on Thursdays on the Gloucester Lawn with the help of our Year 12 Middle School Liaison Leaders. This is a wonderful way for the girls to establish connections with older students and foster mentoring relationships.
Next week we have a lot going on starting with the Year 8 Mind Body Spirit Day on Tuesday at Collaroy where the girls will enjoy a Learn to Surf lesson, free time in the water, beach games and a beautiful coastal walk along the headland. On Wednesday we will all be down at the pool for the Year 7-9 Swimming Carnival where House spirit will be loud and colourful! Another very important initiative being introduced next week is our whole College commitment to a week of individual Sleep Tracking.
Templates will be shared during Compass time on Thursday of Week 3. By focusing on personal habits and acknowledging through education and discussion the importance and impact of sleep habits we are hoping to empower the girls to reflect on their current sleep patterns and explore how they can consolidate healthy routines. We will continue to track sleep once a term across the year to ensure a sustained priority and to keep the conversation alive.
Click here to view the template.
Happy Chinese New Year for Saturday! 吉祥如意 (Wishing you good luck and happiness)
From the Middle School Parent Groups
Year 7
Welcome to all our Year 7 families! A very special welcome to our returning Junior School and brand new Pymble families joining this year!
We really hope you have settled in well over the last two weeks. The start of Year 7 can certainly be an adjustment period and quite daunting for families, but hopefully you and your daughter have now found your bearings and are settling into somewhat of a routine. Please reach out to us though if you need any help.
At Pymble, we really try to foster parent connections however we can and create a supportive parent network. Although our daughters are hopefully stepping up into more independent shoes this year, as parents, we do benefit from positive communication and friendships with other parents.
Our Middle School Parents Group (MSPG) consists of Year 7 and Year 8 representatives, and is a subgroup of the Pymble Parents’ Association (PPA). The main objective of the MSPG is promote social connections across the parent community and to support the various events and activities across Pymble.
Our Year 7 Year Coordinators are:
Stephanie Pickford stephaniepickford@gmail.com
Leigh Chan leighha@gmail.com
Briar James-Taylor briar.taylor@ymail.com
We also have a Year 7 admin team who will help answer queries in our social media groups (see details below), consisting of very helpful parents including Vu Kwan, Aimy Hoang, Annabel Blaiklock and Mark Chan. We also have a wealth of knowledge amongst our existing parent cohort who are very happy answering queries, particularly of our new parents.
In terms of parent events, there are several events coming up in Term 1.
On Monday 12 February from 6pm, the PPA meeting for Semester 1 is being held at the David Macfarlane Centre (this is towards the back of the school, behind the Main Hall and Chapel). Light refreshments will be served from 5:30pm. Please come along and hear Dr Hadwen and PPA President, Sunny Hres, speak about latest school developments and plans for 2024.
On Tuesday 20 February, a “Knowing People, Knowing Pymble” Evening will be held for parents to attend. Parents will have the opportunity to meet their daughter’s Compass teacher and other parents. More details will be posted on the portal shortly.
One of the biggest and best Pymble events is coming up on Friday 1March! This is a fabulous event for new and existing parents and a great way to start the new school year. Held on Gloucester Lawn under the stars, the Icebreaker is a Pymble tradition of 50 years. It is a cocktail function with dinner and drinks, and hosts all school years from Kindergarten to Year 12. This year’s theme is “Florals” if you would like to dress in theme (not essential).
Please book your tickets by Friday 22February here
We would like to organise a Year 7 coffee morning coming up so please keep an eye out for this.
We hope you have a wonderful term.
Social Media in Year 7
We run several social media groups in Year 7.
These groups are independent of the school and are restricted access groups. Being a member of these groups provides opportunities to ask questions and to connect with other parents. Please note that joining these groups is entirely optional.
We have a Year 7 Community group on WhatsApp to hopefully provide all the connections and answers that you need:
- Year 7 Parent Community – This group is only used communicate important messages, announcements and reminders. Only the administrators can post messages in this group. The WhatsApp group link is here
- Year 7 Pymble 2029 – Questions – This general chat used by parents to ask questions. The WhatsApp group link is here
Please reach out to us with any questions or if we can help.
Kind regards
Stephanie, Leigh and Briar
Year 8
Social Media for Year 8 Parents
All parents from year 8 are welcome to join the parent led chat groups. The chat groups are independent of the school and are restricted access groups. Being a member of these groups provides opportunities to ask questions and to connect with other parents. Please note that joining these groups is entirely optional.
WhatsApp is primarily used by our year group. It is a community WhatsApp group containing two private groups.
- PLC Year 8 Announcements and Important Messages – This group is only used communicate important messages, announcements and reminders. Only the administrators can post messages in this group.
- Yr 8 Parents Class of 2028. This general chat used by parents to ask questions.
Please join these groups by clicking here or please ask Cindy or I to add you to the group;
There is also a Year 8 WeChat group PLC Year 8 2024. Please join this group by scanning the QR code below or please ask Cindy to add you to this group.
- PymbleLC Parents Class of 2028 is the FB group for our year. Selected messages from WhatsApp will be posted here.
- PymbleLC MSPG 2024. Messages about various activities will be posted here.
- Parents are also encouraged to join PymbleLC PPA and PymbleLC SSPG Facebook groups.
Please do not hesitate to get in touch with either Cindy or myself if you have any questions or need help with anything.
Ms Cindy Tian 0400 980 181 and cindy.tian@gmail.com
Ms Kai Jones 0431 725 948 and kai_look@yahoo.com
Jenny O’Donnell
Head of Middle School