From the Upper School
A message from Mr Tom Riley, Head of Upper School
Our Upper School students have had their heads down this week as they prepare for their examinations beginning next Wednesday. I will write a little more about this in my article next week, but really encourage parents to help their daughters with both their preparation (we spoke today of the 5Ps – ‘proper planning prevents poor performance’) and importantly keeping things in perspective. I also encourage parents to read the portal notice about leave arrangements during the examination block to ensure that they are aware of the options available to them.
There was time for our Year 10s to enjoy themselves though, with our annual social event with Shore occurring last Friday. This year we held focus groups to help modernise the occasion and it was great to see the student-led activities to begin the night and the increased conversation that occurred throughout the event as a result.
This week we enjoyed celebrating co-curricular awards in our Year Assemblies. Congratulations to all of our worthy recipients.
We also held our second collaboration with St Edmund’s College, helping them to coordinate their swimming carnival in the Pymble pool. Anais and Maddie share their reflection of the day below:
Today along with a selected group of Year 10 Pymble students, we were given the incredible opportunity to be part of the St Edmunds swimming carnival, having the pleasure of assisting to run the day. Today was a genuine gift, starting with getting to meet the St Edmunds students who were all so enthusiastic and kind. We absolutely loved getting to know the students to the point none of us could stop smiling as we were all filled with so much joy at the warmth and authenticity which was demonstrated towards all of us. Our day involved being allocated jobs which included swimming alongside students in the pool, timing races, judging, handing out ribbons, providing morning tea for the teachers, and to be house assistants whose role was be with the students in that house area and ensure everyone was having a good time. We made sure that each student was safe in the water and felt comfortable throughout the carnival. We helped students prepare for races safeguarding a seamless event and creating an enjoyable day for everyone. Overall, the experience was truly lifechanging and we can all agree it was one of the most wonderful things we have had the pleasure of being a part of. We will miss all our new friends and hope to do more activities with St Edmunds in the future, we are beyond grateful for this opportunity.
Written by Anais Rodwell-Burnicle and Madeline Arrange (Year 10)
Sincere congratulations to Emily Kim in Year 9 who has been awarded a bronze award in the prestigious Queen’s Commonwealth Essay Competition. Please ensure Emily’s synopsis below:
For the Queen’s Commonwealth Essay Competition, I wrote about the different perceptions of laziness by the young and old generation. My essay was about a figure from the old generation who always blamed the young generation for ‘scrolling through Tiktok’ or ‘not working hard enough’. However, this figure was proven to be wrong as the reason why the young generation has become this state is in fact because of these addictive platforms that were created by the older generation. Through my essay, I debunked the fact that the young generation is lazy by choice but contrastingly have been lured from the compelling social media platforms created by the older generation.
We would also like to celebrate Aine Oo’s success at the Sydney Eisteddfod. Please enjoy her reflection below:
On Tuesday 10 October, I was privileged enough to receive first place in the Sydney Eisteddfod’s 2023 Alf and Pearl Pollard Memorial Instrumental Award for Performance Excellence (13-15 years) on my instrument, the clarinet. This competition is more of a mixed instrumental showcase by invitation of the year’s individual instrumental winners of their section. For example, I was invited to perform because I was a prizewinner of the under 15 Clarinet solo section. As you can imagine, every entrant ranging from tuba to guitar showed incredible talent, prowess and pride in their craft. The event was an incredible opportunity for me to represent Pymble and showcase my skills to a diverse audience, many of which were not very familiar to the realm of classical music. I’d like to give credit to and thank my teacher Frank, my parents, the music staff, and all my friends and family who supported me on the night and through the many hours of practice in the months leading up to it.
From the Upper School Parent Group
Volunteers Needed
Could you help your year group by organising social events? Both year groups in Upper School are looking for 2024 SSPG year coordinators (for Years 10 and 11 next year). This can be a solo role, or if preferred you can share with a friend. You would be supported by the experienced volunteers of the Secondary school parent group with lots of guidance available, so new volunteers are most welcome. If you would like to get involved, please contact any of your current year coordinators below prior to 30 October to discuss.
Year 10 Zoe Green bzgreen@bigpond.net.au
Pamela McPherson bruceandpam@bigpond.com
Year 9 Kate Hart kate@countyconstruction.com.au
Christel Vigne vignechristel@gmail.com
Social media community groups:
PymbleLC Parents Class of 2025 (Facebook for year 10)
PymbleLC Parents Class of 2026 (Facebook for year 9)
PymbleLC USPG 2023 (Facebook for all Upper School parents)
Or please contact us for an invite to a WeChat group or Dads WhatsApp group.
Key Term 4 Dates
Wednesday 25 October to Wednesday 1 November – Year 9 and 10 Examination Week
Thursday 2 November – Year 10 Allwell Testing
Friday 3 November – Year 10 into 11 Transition Afternoon
Friday 3 November – Sportswomen Awards Night at Miramare Gardens
Saturday 11 to Tuesday 21 November – Year 10 Namadji Outdoor Education Program (OEP)
Sunday 12 to Tuesday 21 November – Year 10 Snowy Mountains OEP
Monday 13 to Friday 17 November – Year 10 Blue Mountains and Murramarang OEPs
Wednesday 22 November – Secondary School Ensemble Concert
Monday 27 November to Friday 1 December – Year 10 Future You/Service Week
Wednesday 6 December – Year 7-11 Speech Day in Gym
Tom Riley
Head of Upper School