From the Middle School
It has been great to see the girls settling into routines for Term 4. Our Year 8 students will be sitting their two-day assessment block next week on Tuesday and Wednesday. This will be an opportunity for them to demonstrate their learning and hone their time management skills. I have been impressed by the way the girls have used their time to study and plan to ensure they are well prepared.
On Tuesday, during Mind Body Spirit time, Year 8 enjoyed the sunshine and each other’s company whilst playing games on Gloucester Lawn. The time to interact across Compass groups and have some fun was well deserved.
The 2025 Leadership process is in full swing with interviews currently being held to confirm positions of responsibility. The girls have been outstanding in the way they have represented themselves with confidence and passion and all deserve congratulations. We hope to confirm successful candidates shortly.
Our Year 7 families will have received information about the Year 7 Mind Body Spirit Day on Monday 4 November. This will be a fabulous day for the girls down at Long Reef Beach. Let’s hope the weather is on our side.
Our Year 7 Christmas Service will be held on Friday 22 November at 1.30pm. Invitations for parents to join us will be sent shortly. This will be a celebration of all that the girls have achieved across their first year of high school. We are so proud of our Year 7 students who have stepped up to new levels of independence and navigated so many changes across 2024.
This Friday we will be holding our traditional Links Day for the incoming Year 7 2025 cohort. I would like to thank our Middle School Leaders and Transition Leaders in advance for their investment across the day to ensure the Year 6 students feel welcome.
Aaira Khan (Year 7) attended the Girls Programming Network held at the University of Technology Sydney last weekend. Here is here reflection of the event:
Hello, I’m Aaira and I am in Year 7.
Last weekend I was given an amazing opportunity to go to Girls Programming Network (GPN) at The University of Technology Sydney (UTS) in Ultimo. GPN is an opportunity for girls to build new friendships and learn how to code! The network also allows all girls to connect using a talent of coding or simply just to be there to learn a have fun.
It was my very first time walking into the doors of a university and the space was mesmerising and immediately I was warmly welcomed with smiles of other students and the staff. The day was packed with engaging activities all revolving around coding.
The network provided everyone with laptops, food and snacks! Each girl was helped individually in classes to improve their coding skills. I would like to encourage girls in our school to try new things by experiencing them for themselves!
Emma Oyang, Meji You, Adele Jiang and Sarah Zia competed in the VRC Robotics competition in September. Emma has shared her reflection:
On Saturday 14 September, my team (65100F) and I competed at the Barker MS Robotics Competition. It was an amazing day and an experience full of excitement and surprises. In the qualification matches, it just felt amazing to be able to watch our ranking climb from seventh, to second and to first at one point, and it was just amazing to be able to head into the alliance selection in third place, where we got to choose the best alliance partner for our team.
After a tense quarterfinals, two semifinals matches due to a tie the first time and a nail-biting victory in the finals, we emerged as tournament champions. As soon as we left the silence of the main field, the hallway burst out into cheers. It was a surreal feeling to just see all the Pymble teams standing outside, cheering, laughing and hugging us as we passed. Being the driver in the team, I especially felt a mixture of happiness and relief that the nerves didn’t get to me and that I performed my best. It felt like we were all one loud and extremely elated family in that hallway, and knowing that we were all there for each other was just amazing.
While my team won the tournament, we also had many learning experiences and made new friends, which I think is even more important than winning the tournament. Overall, it was an amazing and unforgettable day for me, and it will be something that I cherish forever.
I would like to thank Felicity Dyet who has been Acting Head of Year 7 for the last four weeks in Gina Ventura’s absence. Gina returns on Monday in her capacity as Head of Year 7: Goodlet, Ingleholme, Marden and Thomas.
Get your tickets now to The Government Inspector!
Don’t forget to book tickets for this week’s Year 7, 8 and 9 production in the GMCPA! It’s farce, and it’s famous – The Government Inspector. Click here to purchase your tickets. Don’t miss it!
Jenny O’Donnell
Head of Middle School