From the Upper School
A message from Victoria Harrison, Head of Upper School
It was fantastic to see our Year 11 and 12 Vision Valley Alumni mentors spending time with our next group of Year 9 Vision Valley adventurers earlier this week. Watching the mentors and adventurers connect, share stories about their Vision Valley experiences and answer questions has been a wonderful addition to our preparation activities for Year 9. This opportunity for our younger students to hear firsthand from those who have gone before them is proving invaluable, helping to build excitement and confidence as they get ready for their own Vision Valley journey.
It will be great to have all our Year 9 students back on campus next week with the Term 2 program wrapping up this week. We are so proud of the girls and their Churchie peers on the wonderful way they have embraced the program, despite the wet and soggy conditions of last week.
Term 2 parents, we look forward to seeing you reunited with your beautiful girls at Vision Valley tomorrow, Friday 30 May at the Residential program Honouring Ceremony.
We are delighted to welcome our students from Colmar, France, this week! We hope the girls are settling in well, overcoming any jet lag, and enjoying the many wonderful opportunities Pymble has to offer. A sincere thank you to our Pymble families and the Marden Boarding House for warmly hosting and supporting our visitors. This year, our partnership with Colmar has developed into a combined language and cultural exchange, and we are excited to have strengthened this meaningful relationship.
Dr Hadwen, Mrs Olsen and I have also been busy visiting and connecting online with potential new partner schools in Dublin, Amsterdam, Yorkshire, Norfolk, Edinburgh and California. Year 9 families, please keep an eye out for information on how to apply for an exchange with our existing, and hopefully expanded range of schools in 2026. We are also pleased to welcome back Amber and Lily, who have just returned from a month-long exchange at Wrekin College in Shropshire. Thank you to Amber for sharing your thoughtful reflection on this wonderful experience.
My name is Amber Eisenhauer and I’m in Year 10. I recently went on an exchange to England for five weeks, and it was honestly one of the best experiences of my life. I went to a school called Wrekin College, which is about an hour and a half from Birmingham in a beautiful area called Shropshire.
Before I left, I was super excited but also nervous. I was going to a new place without my family or friends, and I did not know what to expect. But it turned out to be such an amazing time, and I’m so glad I did it. We started the trip with five days in London because it was still a school holiday.
London was so pretty, especially in the spring. We saw all the famous landmarks, did heaps of shopping, and got to watch the first people cross the finish line of the London Marathon. Once we got to Wrekin, it was time to start school. I was a bit nervous again, but I was also really looking forward to it. We stayed in the boarding house at the school which ended up being so much fun.
Boarding helped us make way more friends and really feel like part of the school. Our first weekend was a long weekend so my exchange family took me to Wales. We stayed in a place called Barmouth and it was so pretty, especially with all the spring flowers.
Back at school, we joined after-school sports like tennis and cricket, and everyone at the school was so nice and welcoming. It only rained twice while we were there, which is pretty good for England. The school days were longer than I’m used to. They went from 8.15am to 5.30pm and we had hot lunches in the dining hall instead of packed ones, which was different but kind of fun.
It took a few days to get used to the new routine, but after that, it felt just like a normal school day at Pymble. One of my favourite parts of the trip was visiting Oxford. The buildings looked like they were out of a movie. On the way home from Oxford, we went past Clarkson’s Diddly Squat Farm Shop, which was a highlight because I love the show.
Overall, I’m so grateful I had this experience. I learned so much about English culture, and a lot about myself. The students and teachers at Wrekin were so kind and made it easy to settle in. I’ll never forget this trip and I’m so thankful to Pymble for giving me this opportunity.
Year 10 Subject Selection Launch
This Friday, Natasha Stanfield, our Director of Studies, will launch the Year 10 Subject Selection process. Over the coming weeks, the girls will be supported by their teachers, Heads of Learning Areas, and the curriculum team to make informed choices for Year 11 and 12. Choosing subjects that interest you, spark your curiosity, and suit your strengths is key to staying motivated and achieving your best.
Parents are reminded to save Tuesday 10 June for the Subject Selection Information Evening. This important event will provide valuable information to help guide your daughter’s decisions.
| Term | Date | Event |
| 2 | Friday 30 May | Subject Selection Launch Assembly including the Subject Selection Website with the Director of Studies |
| 2 | Friday 6 June | Subject Selection Assembly in Mind-Body-Spirit with Heads of Learning Areas |
Year 10 Commerce Market Day
Last week, the Year 10 Commerce students ran our Market Day stalls at lunchtime on Wednesday and Friday. It was a chance for us to show off the businesses we’d been working on and put into practice what we learnt in Term 1 about entrepreneurship.
My group had seven people, so we split up the roles. I was in charge of finance, which meant working out our costs, completing a cash flow statement, figuring out our break-even point, and estimating how much profit we could make. Other roles included operations, marketing, and CEO. Our business was called Slice’d, and we sold five different flavours of slice, such as Biscoff and Oreo brownie. One of the parts I enjoyed most was making video ads and posters to put up around the school. It was really helpful for getting people to check out our stall and know what we were selling before Week 4.
On the day, we set everything up before lunch and made sure we followed hygiene rules, including wearing gloves and using a tablecloth. It got really busy during lunch, and we ended up selling out, which was a great feeling after all the effort we put in. We did face a few challenges, such as our receipts not printing during sales, which made things a bit stressful, but we adapted and found a solution.
Overall, it was a fun experience and definitely something different from our usual classwork.
Written by Varada V (Year 10)
We Encourage You to Watch: Pre PPEP Talk® Video – Women’s Health
Next week, our Year 10 students will participate in the PPEP Talk® – a one-hour session delivered by trained educators from the Pelvic Pain Foundation of Australia. This important program empowers young women with knowledge about periods, pelvic pain, and endometriosis, helping them understand what’s normal, how to manage pain, and when to seek help.
We encourage students and parents to watch the optional 13-minute Pre PPEP Talk® Video beforehand. This video offers a helpful refresher on periods and pelvic anatomy, ensuring everyone feels prepared for the session on Monday 2 June. Building health literacy and being empowered to seek help are vital skills for young women. By understanding their bodies and recognising when to ask for support, our students can take charge of their health and wellbeing.
Reminder to Parents
An Athletics Carnival notice was sent earlier today. Please make sure that you give your consent via the MyPymble parent portal for your daughter to attend this compulsory school event.
The Year 9 Residential Program Term 2 Honouring Ceremony starts promptly at 2.00pm tomorrow, Friday 30 May at Vision Valley. The gates will be open from 1.30pm and parking is available on site.
The Year 10 into 11 Subject Selection Evening starts at 6.45pm on Tuesday 10 June in the Gillian Moore Centre for Performing Arts.
Please share your stories of diversity and inclusion
Sharing stories is an engaging way to educate others about different ways of life, celebrate diversity and encourage inclusivity within our Pymble family and the communities we support. If you have a story you’d like to share about culture, religion, neurodiversity or physical diversity, we’d love to hear about your idea via our online form here.
Senior Academic Scholarship registrations open to Year 9 students
Pymble offers a number of scholarships each year to girls who are currently in Year 9 at Pymble or external to Pymble who will be in Year 11 in 2027. Registrations for Year 11 2027 Senior Academic Scholarships are currently open.
Visit the Scholarship webpage for more information and to register for the Academic Test in August.
Registrations close on 30 July 2025. The examination will be held at the College on Sunday 10 August 2025.
Key Dates – Term 2
Friday 30 May – Vision Valley Honouring Ceremony
Saturday 31 May – PPA Parent Trivia Night
Tuesday 10 June – Year 11 Subject Selection Information Evening
Thursday 12 June – Pymble Year 2-12 Athletics Carnival
Tuesday 24 June – Secondary School Ensemble Concert
Friday 27 June – Boarders’ Travel Day
Friday 27 June – Last day of Term 2
Victoria Harrison
Head of Upper School