From the Upper School
A message from Victoria Harrison, Head of Upper School
This week’s newsletter contributions come from our wonderful Upper School students. Year 10 ventured into the Sydney CBD and surrounding areas as part of our annual Urban Challenge Excursion, and the Upper School leaders have shared reflections from last week’s United Nations IWD luncheon. It’s been a busy week for our girls off campus, and it’s exciting to hear about the fantastic achievements of the Robotics and Rowing teams over the weekend. Well done to everyone involved.
Best wishes to our talented swimmers and divers who compete at the igsa Swimming and Diving Championships on Friday.
UN Women International Women’s Day Lunch Student Reflections
Akshara Bhattacharya
On Friday, I had the opportunity to attend the United Nations International Women’s Day Lunch at the International Convention Centre. It was an incredible and eye-opening experience – one that I will carry with me for a long time. The discussions were both inspiring and confronting, highlighting the progress made towards gender equality while also acknowledging the challenges that still exist.
One of the most impactful moments was hearing from Senator Katy Gallagher, who shared some devastating statistics. She spoke about how, in Australia last year, a woman died every eight days at the hands of a current or former partner. She also highlighted the continued imbalance in unpaid labour, with women still doing nine more hours per week than men. At the same time, there have been signs of progress. Women working full-time are now earning, on average, $217 more per week than they were three years ago, and half a million more women have joined the workforce since 2022. The gender pay gap has narrowed by more than two percentage points in three years, and for the first time, Australia has a federal government with a majority of women and a cabinet with equal representation of men and women.
I was particularly moved by the speech delivered by the Governor-General, Sam Mostyn. She spoke with such conviction about the strength, resilience and generosity of women from all walks of life. Her words were a powerful reminder of the importance of acknowledging and uplifting women’s contributions, not just on International Women’s Day, but every day. The Governor General’s statement, “When women march forward, our whole nation makes progress,” deeply resonated with me and reinforced how vital it is to continue advocating for change.
This was an incredible opportunity and one I will remember for a long time.
Isabelle Port
Attending the UN International Women’s Day Conference last Friday was an incredibly enriching experience, and I am deeply grateful for the opportunity to reflect on the significance of this day in the company of so many inspiring women. Listening to three admirable speakers – Her Honourable Sam Mostyn AC, Mary Robinson, and Celeste Barber – was both inspiring and motivating.
The conference offered me a chance to gain a deeper understanding of the pressing issues women face today and to reflect on how I can contribute to making a positive impact now and in the future. This experience not only enhanced my understanding of gender-based challenges but also reinforced the importance of empowering women.
As a young woman, the messages about staying true to myself and the startling statistics around women in leadership worldwide stood out to me. As a leader, advice from remarkable figures like the Governor-General and Mary Robinson, the former President of Ireland, about turning promises into progress and empowering others to take action resonated deeply with me.
Their words have inspired me to grow my mindset and refine my goals as a leader. This conference has inspired me to carry these lessons with me to continue empowering women around me.
Year 10 Urban Challenge
Hayley Browne
The Urban Challenge was an amazing experience I’m sure for all the Year 10s, especially my compass class. Dressing up with an Alice in Wonderland theme and walking round the city definitely took a lot of courage but added to the fun and excitement of our day. From catching the train out of the school in the morning, which was definitely an odd feeling, to catching trams, more trains and a ferry, my class successfully navigated around what felt like the whole city finding clues to work out were to go next.
It was really funny to see our peers from other classes dressed up in costumes in passing around the city, and at the end of our day after completing an Alice in Wonderland-themed escape room, I have to add that our Maccas ice cream run (even though it was raining) was definitely a highlight for me and added to all the entertaining memories I will have from our super fun and exciting day out in the city.
Sitian Chen
The Urban Challenge was an exciting day of teamwork and group bonding. My team, Thomas A, dressed in the theme of the wild west, and with our cowgirl attire we went to the city where we completed a multitude of tasks such as buying a coffee for our Compass teacher, buying flowers for a stranger, completing an escape room, finding a lunch spot and catching a ferry.
Throughout our journey, we travelled all around the Sydney CBD, from Wynyard, to Barangaroo, to Circular Quay, and finally to Milsons Point. The day wasn’t easy, as we required navigation skills, communication skills with the elusive game master, money management and time management, but with teamwork we managed to complete most of our tasks and even gain some bonus points! Overall, the Urban Challenge was very fun, and I recommend the experience to all.
Eloise Fisher
The Urban Challenge was an exciting scavenger hunt that the Year 10 cohort participated in. Each Compass class had different costume themes that we dressed up as which made the day even more fun as everyone embraced the experience. For example, my Compass class all dressed up as gangster rappers and we even had our own rapper name.
Every girl had a specific role within the group, such as the treasurers who had to keep hold of the money and make sure when buying lunch everyone didn’t go over the allocated budget. The navigator also had a big role, which was leading the way around the city making sure we got to every clue. Working together as a team was the most important key to success throughout the day.
The day was filled with finding and solving clues and working collaboratively with the entire class to complete as many clues and extra activities as possible. One of the highlights of the day was taking on an escape room where we had to work as a team and solve clues before the timer went out. After a full day of adventure and problem-solving with friends, we finished the day with a ferry ride to Milsons Point where the day concluded.
Jemma Huang
On 11 March, Year 10 took upon the much-awaited Urban Challenge. Although the weather did not look particularly promising, that did not stop anyone from having the greatest fun with their themed costumes and an ambition to outrace all the other teams to win the most points.
The day functioned primarily as a clue chase and included the element of side quests. We started off our day in the foyer of the Gillian Moore Centre for Performing Arts where we met our leaders, obtained our equipment and received an envelope containing our first clue. From there we were left to decipher our first location. Our team, Lang A, dressed as Care Bears and were the first group to leave the school to embark on our journey.
Each team had their own personalised adventure with different locations and challenges. Care Bears started at Town hall, made their way through a dance challenge at a nearby studio, visited parks, played ping pong and then ended with their final stop at UTS. A big highlight was stopping to eat lunch together after having chased clues all throughout the city in the rain. Throughout the entirety of the day, we were texted bonus challenges from our game master. This ranged from things to poem writing, solving rebus puzzles and doing physical challenges with our teammates.
Overall, the Urban Challenge was a memorable experience and a good team-bonding experience for our compass classes. Year 9 has much to look forward to next year!
Phoebe Pockley
On Tuesday all of the Year 10s endeavoured to take a trip around the city for the annual Urban Challenge. And it sure was challenging, yet very exciting. Each of our Compass groups dressed up in our own themes (ours was Barbie). Each of the clues and challenges that we were given led us to places that we had never been to and almost every step was a new one. My group went on the ferry, to lolly shops and did tenpin bowling, just to name a few. I thoroughly enjoyed this experience – as I’m sure everyone else did, too – and wish we could do it again. The day was filled with laughter, smiles, teamwork, tasty treats and some sore legs, but it was definitely worth it.
Sophie Beveridge
Today we had lots of fun! The Goodlet group started the day off leaving Pymble in crazy costumes, going to Circular Quay where we searched for clues and completed activities, and took a hit to our budget getting Mr Fathers a coffee.
We then took the ferry to Barangaroo and went bowling, which was super fun. We then finished off the day handing flowers out to people and getting slushies. Overall, we all had a great time, and everyone thoroughly enjoyed running around the city.
Georgie Stanley
The Urban Challenge was a very fun and exciting day full of teamwork and adventure. My group started off by going into the city and trying our luck at an escape room, which was my highlight of the day.
We then made our way around the city doing our challenges and getting some weird looks from the public (we were dressed as gangster grannies). Some of the challenges we did were playing ping pong, posing as mannequins and completing word puzzles, along with searching for clues throughout the day. Overall, I think this was an amazing experience and I would definitely do it again!
Save the Date: Vision Valley Residential Program – Parent Workshop with Dr. Arne Rubinstein
Parents of students attending the Term 2, 3, and 4 Residential Program are invited to an important event on Monday 28 April, from 6.00pm to 8.00pm.
During this interactive evening, Dr Arne Rubinstein will explore how you can best prepare for, embrace and support your daughter’s experience on the Residential Program. The session will share valuable insights and practical tips on parenting a young adult – rather than a child – and provide useful strategies to guide her through these pivotal years.
We will send out a notice on MyPymble and kindly ask you to RSVP.
Nourish and Flourish – Poké Bowl Event
On Tuesday 18 March, Year 9 and 10 students have the chance to enjoy a delicious and nutritious poké bowl. This is a wonderful opportunity for them to explore a variety of flavours and “eat the rainbow” in celebration of International School Meals Day. Poké bowls can be ordered by clicking here.
Key Dates – Term 1
Thursday 13 March – Year 10 History Incursion
Friday 14 March – Year 10 Geography Excursion
Friday 14 March at SOPAC – igsa Swimming and Diving Carnival
Thursday 13 and Friday 14 March – Year 9 Naplan
Tuesday 18 March – Poke Bowl Lunch event
Saturday 5 April – Pymble Foundation Ball
Thursday 10 (evening) and Friday 11 (day) April – Year 8-10 Learning Discussions
Friday 11 April – Boarder’s Travel Day
Friday 11 April – Pupil-Free Day
Key Dates – Term 2
Monday 28 April – Boarders’ Travel Day
Tuesday 29 April – First Day of Term 2
From the Year 9 Parent Co-ordinators
We are excited to invite all Year 9 parents to our first social gathering on Friday 4 April! This will be a great opportunity to connect with other parents and enjoy a social night together.
The gathering will either be a morning tea or a dinner at a local restaurant/café. A poll has been posted on our Year 9 WhatsApp group earlier, so if you are available to join, please indicate your preference by the end of this week.
More details will be shared next week. We look forward to seeing you there!
For any inquiries, please feel free to contact us – Ira (0415 112 575) or Jenny 0422716808.
Victoria Harrison
Head of Upper School