From the Middle School
It was great to see so many families represented at our Middle School Knowing People, Knowing Pymble event on Tuesday night. Hopefully this provided you with an opportunity to touch base with your daughter’s Compass teacher and mingle with other families from your daughter’s year group.
Thank you to all who presented the valuable content about all things Year 7 and Year 8. The presentations were recorded and I have shared the links below for anyone who was unable to join us.
Year 7 Knowing People, Knowing Pymble recording
Year 8 Knowing People, Knowing Pymble recording
Last Friday, the Middle School team held our welcome morning tea for our 18 new Year 7 Boarders. This was a chance for us all to check in and make sure that the girls were starting to feel settled within their new home and school environments. They are such a beautiful group of girls who will bring much to our Middle School community.
Last Thursday’s Year 8 Mind-Body-Spirit Day was a great success. We tried something completely different to previous years and the feedback from both staff and students has been so positive. Please enjoy the reflections included below:
Year 8 MBS Day Student Reflections
Last Thursday, Year 8 had the opportunity to go on an excursion and visit exhibits for our Mind-Body-Spirit Day. It was an absolute blast of a time where we got to go to museums or galleries to get our thinking caps on (Mind), walk through the city and across the Sydney Harbour Bridge (Body) and explore the natural wonders of our amazing city (Spirit).
Personally, my favourite part was walking on the Sydney Harbour Bridge with my friends while talking and taking wonderful pictures of the views. I also enjoyed having a picnic lunch in the Botanic Gardens where we got to spend quality time with friends. Overall, it was a wonderful experience for Year 8 and I would love to do it again!
Written by Kaylene Chiu
Last Week on Thursday, all Year 8s went on a trip around the city for our Mind-Body-Spirit Day. We were split into four groups going to different locations: Thomas and Wylie were chosen to visit NSW Parliament House. At first mostly everyone thought that we got the worst location out of the four and we were all reluctant to go but things changed when we entered the House of Representatives, and we patiently waited for the debate to start.
At the beginning of Question Time both parties were introduced and welcomed, everyone was laughing and getting prepared but as soon as the Speaker introduced both parties and special guests (Year 8 from Pymble Ladies’ College) the tension began to build.
As the Liberal Party asked questions about the problems around Sydney (for example, a lady having to give birth to a baby on the side of the road in a rural area because not one, but three hospitals turned her away) there was a recurring pattern of our current premier (Chris Minns) answering questions.
Premier Chris Minns came up with answers that he had researched before and things became very hectic. While the Labor Party spoke, the Liberal Party kept disrupting which resulted in three people being kicked out of Question Time by the Speaker after they had been given three warnings each.
For the last 10 minutes, we entered the library with many books from past debates that have been kept, including debates from 1700s in England that were gifted to Australia. This experience was so enjoyable as the tension got so high with the two parties yelling at each other, but the explanations were also interesting to know as were the current Government plans that were outlined.
Initially, we may have thought that Parliament House was the worst place to visit but after experiencing it we think it was the best option.
Written by Sophia Guo
On Thursday 13 February, Year 8 went to the city for our Mind-Body-Spirt Day, and needless to say, we had a blast! My Compass group, Goodlet A, went with Goodlet B and Bennett A to the Museum of Contemporary Art near the Botanical Gardens, which was such an interesting and educational experience.
We were able to learn about the history behind all of the different paintings and understand the interpretations of some of the abstract artworks. One of my favourite moments was having a picnic in the Botanical Gardens, and enjoying the fabulous view that Sydney has to offer! I had such an amazing time with my friends on this excursion and it was one of the best Mind-Body-Spirit days ever!
Written by Dionne Jacobs
Last Thursday, we had the amazing opportunity to go to the city for Mind-Body-Spirt Day. My house group, Goodlet B, got to see the Art Gallery of New South Wales. When we first arrived, we were greeted by our tour guide, Fiona.
She took us through so many amazing abstract and realistic artworks, stopping to explain each of them in detail. One of my personal favourites was an artwork with five spices, filled in various stockings strung around the room. This artwork engages three of your senses: smell, sight and touch. It was truly amazing to experience, and we could smell it throughout the whole gallery!
I’m so lucky to have gone on this excursion, and I’m so excited for Mind-Body-Spirt Day next year.
Written by Grace Jacobs
Parent Survey on Student Phone Use
The College is currently asking parents to complete this survey in an attempt to better understand how students and parents in Years 4 to 8 are using their phones: Wise, smart, brick and none!
Parents are encouraged to share their insights. Thank you to the Years 7 and 8 parents who have completed it already. We want to ensure as many voices as possible are included as survey feedback is helping our team to understand student and parent perspectives and develop our approach accordingly.
Early responses are helping us to understand students’ phone and social media use, and issues parents may be experiencing. Did you know, according to data so far:
- parents mostly get a phone for their daughter to “communicate with her” and “track her movements”;
- the main reason parents opted-in for a Wise Phone is to “support the College’s direction” and “limit their daughter’s use of social media”; and
- parents report their daughters with smart phones are spending longer hours on these phones than students with a Wise Phone, both during school days and at weekends?
You can complete the survey by clicking here.
It takes five to ten minutes to complete and will be open until Wednesday 26 March.
Congratulations to Dani Hu (Year 8) who won the prestigious Concerto Competition held last Thursday at the College. We were privileged to have Claire Edwardes OAM and Simon Tedeschi as our judges this year.
The piece Dani played so beautifully was Saint-Saen’s violin concerto 3. Please enjoy the video of her amazing performance.
Congratulations to Adele Cassidy, Georgia Blue and Georgina Lewis who competed in the Proctor Park Challenge in Bathurst over the weekend as part of the Northern Tigers representative team. This annual Football NSW pre-season tournament brings together teams from across the state, and the girls played exceptionally well. Over two days, they competed in seven matches, remained undefeated, and were crowned grand final winners!
From the Year 7 Parent Co-ordinators
Dear Year 7 parents, we hope your daughters are settling in well to Term 1. If you have any questions or need any help please feel free to reach out to us, your Year 7 parent Co-ordinators: Edwina Burns (0419 580 580) and Maria Guo (0414 379 688).
You are invited to join other parents from Year 7 for drinks on Thursday 20 March at Killara Golf Club. This will most likely be the only social event we organise for this year so it would be wonderful if you could join us. There is plenty of parking on site. Please see the invitation below, and click here to purchase your tickets.
Jenny O’Donnell
Head of Middle School