From the Middle School
It has been another busy week in Middle School with our girls heading off in all directions to challenge themselves and have some fun along the way. Below I have asked a selection of students to share their firsthand experiences in order to give you a window into the life of a Middle Schooler at Pymble.
We are currently getting ready to celebrate International Women’s Day during our Middle School assembly in Week 8. It promises to be an engaging event with alumni guest speakers from the world of Sport, Music and the Arts and Robotics/ Engineering joining us to share their achievements. The girls are busily composing questions for the panel, creating a video showcasing other inspirational women and working to construct a dynamic mural for the colonnade to mark the occasion. This is such an important event for all of us.
On Tuesday Year 7 headed out to Vision Valley for their annual Mind Body Spirit Day.
“On Mind Body Spirit Day we had a chance to have fun and have a day to relax and connect. One of my favourite activities was when we got to play in the waterslide since it was so hot. However, the other activities were also fun such as the teamwork activity course and building a mascot where we had to bring in recycling from the past week and create a mascot for our house Compass group. During MBS we learnt how to be a team and work together and listen and not shout over each other.” – Geena Cheng (Year 7)
“Yesterday was really fun! I enjoyed it very much. I had never been to Vision Valley before and it amazed me. When I got of the bus I thought I should have been here for my Year 6 camp. I spent most of my time with Lang because it is my house but we also got to interact with most of the other houses. I found our team building skill activities very fun. Making our house mascot got very messy, but it was extremely fun.” Savannah Lorimer (Year 7)
Currently our Year 12 Middle School Liaison Leaders are facilitating Leadership workshops. This is a timely delivery as Year 7 are about to embark on their leadership journey with the launch of our 7-12 Leadership Continuum Program.
“The Middle School Leadership Program will provide a platform for Year 7 and 8 students to become more comfortable and confident with their leadership journey. The program will offer students a greater understanding of writing engaging and strong application letters, interview preparation and practice, and key skills that make a strong and supportive leadership team. As a lunchtime program open to all in Middle School, it aims to provide everyone with an equal opportunity when applying for leadership at the beginning of high school.” – Olivia Eichmann (Year 12)
Girls from across Secondary School attended the Uniting Church Climate Affirmative Action Rally held at Sydney Town Hall. They were protesting the lack of urgent action on climate change. Middle School was represented by Ariana Azizmohammad (Year 7), Hargun Dhaliwal (Year 7) and Isis Li (Year 8).
Speed Cubing Day
“Over the weekend I attended a Speed Cubing Day that was amazing! It was held at Knox Grammar School and started at 8.00am and finished at around 3pm. There were approximately 600 participants – I did really well, my best time for 3×3 was 36.82 seconds and for 2×2 was 11.91 second, which placed me 366 and 317 in each competition. To give some perspective from 100th place to 300th place is only 2 seconds. I will definitely keep working to improve for next time but was super excited about my results.
I also volunteered for other roles running (taking scambled cubes to participants), judging and scrambling. I was really surprised that I was part of only a handful of girls/women participating. I would love to set up a Rubik’s Cube Club at Pymble and hope that I can encourage more girls to join my club and get involved in fun competitions.” – Bella Legge-Hughes (Year 7)
Last Thursday, Year 8 First Nations Cultures and Histories (FNCH) elective students travelled to Ku-ring-gai Chase National Park to learn more about Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultures and identities.
In the morning, we drove up to Resolute picnic area where we were met by local Elder, Uncle Laurie. Laurie generously shared his knowledge of his people and Country with us, including Indigenous technologies and tools, hunting techniques, bush foods and initiation ceremonies. He also showed us some important cultural sites including the Red Hands cave and the rock engravings at West Head.
Students listened intently to personal stories about the diversity of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultures and their deep connection to Country. We are grateful to Uncle Laurie for his openness and passion in sharing his culture with us.
“My two highlights from the excursion were learning about the meanings of the engravings and paintings and about the initiation ceremonies of both women and men. I also learnt about new bush food that I didn’t know about already which was really interesting. I think the excursion benefited our class to learn more about what Australia was like before colonisation and how culture is still strong today. I would recommend doing FNCH as you learn so many new and different things about the past which are all very intriguing and it helps you stay connected to the land and Country whatever nationality you may be, especially for First Nations people.” – Evie Farr (Year 8)
“Some of the activities that we got to take part in were learning how to throw a boomerang, make and put on ochre, eat bush foods, see the rock carvings that are thousands of years old and visit a ceremonial woman’s area. Uncle Laurie also taught us about the importance of Country to First Nations peoples and about cool burning and how essential it is for Australia’s flora. My personal favourite part of the day was visiting the woman’s area and trying to make fire with the fire sticks. I would recommend FNCH as an elective because you get the chance to learn about both sides of Australian history, connect to Country, and gain an understanding of how important the land we live on is.” – Katie Boyce (Year 8)
From the Middle School Parent Group
Secondary School Parent Group (SSPG) Middle School Breakfast (Years 7 and 8):
This is a final reminder to buy tickets for the SSPG Middle School Breakfast for Years 7 and 8. The breakfast will be held on Monday 13 March from 7.30am to 9.00am in the Gillian Moore Centre for Performing Arts (GMCPA). The cost is $22 plus a booking fee. This is your last chance to RSVP!
Click here to purchase your ticket.
PPA New Parents’ High Tea
The high tea will be held on Thursday 23 March at 10.00am in the Jeanette Buckham Gymnasium Centre and is a truly special event for new families at Pymble. As well as being able to meet new families, you can also have a chat with our Principal, Dr Kate Hadwen, and key College staff. All Year 7 parents are welcome. The event is FREE. Please register for this event by Friday 17 March.
Click here to register.
Kai Jones (kai_look@yahoo.com) and May Tai (yeemaytai@gmail.com)
PPA Year 7 Co-ordinators
Term 1 Key Dates
Monday 3 April – Year 8 Mind Body Spirit Day
Jenny O’Donnell
Head of Middle School