In This Together – How to Thrive Online

There’s no denying that we are all tethered to technology for significant amounts of time each day. Likely more than ever at the moment! While technology is a vital part of the lives of children and adults, our consistently increasing usage is having a lasting impact on our physical and mental health.

Last week, we “virtually welcomed” Dr Kristy Goodwin, tech expert, researcher, author and parent to speak with the girls in Years 4 to 6, to give them strategies of how to “thrive online”. While the sessions were designed for Primary School girls, the information and science-backed strategies shared are relevant for people of all ages. Particularly in these times as we endeavour to find the right balance between using our devices to learn, work and connect and time doing other important things off screen. Therefore, I wanted to take the opportunity to share some of Dr Kristy Goodwin’s gems with you in hopes of them being of some help for your family or maybe even yourself to learn how to thrive online!  

For the majority of adults in the SCEGGS community, we grew up at a time where if we wanted to contact a friend after school, we had to ask permission to use the landline and hope that the cord would stretch far enough so we’d feel some sort of privacy tucked away in the corner of whatever room of the house we were bound to. To find out a new fact or conduct research for an assignment, we needed to refer to books, a favourite of mine being the prestigious looking Encyclopedia Britannica sets that for some odd reason always looked too good to open! We would not have imagined that in time to come, we could use one device to telephone, text, email, listen to music, pay for things, track our physical activity, tell us directions and more! However, this is the world that your daughters were born into. They are digital natives and their technology usage will likely continue to increase as they get older and further advancements are made.

In my experience I have regularly seen experts use scare tactics when educating young people about device usage and time online, but Dr Goodwin takes a different approach. She openly shares her love for technology, describing just how fabulous it is and what it allows us to do. And she’s right! I’m sure many adults today would seriously struggle to go back to the time when we couldn’t control a large part of our day to day lives from the device held in our hand. Taking this positive approach with young people certainly wins them over and encourages them to listen up and discover how they can use technology to its advantage rather than become a slave to it.

In order to learn how to engage with technology effectively, it’s important to understand how the misuse or overuse of technology can negatively impact our physical and mental health and how to minimise this impact. An effective way of communicating this with young people is to teach them about what is going on inside our brain when we use technology. One way to do this is to use your hand to make a model of the brain. This model can help to explain what happens when the limbic system fires up from seeing or receiving something online that has shocked, angered or excited the user (see image below left).
When this happens, the part of the brain that controls rational decision making and thinking, the pre-frontal cortex, can’t do its job properly, therefore the emotional part of the brain (limbic system) responds. Sometimes referred to as “flipping our lid”, this reaction in the brain can result in poor decision making and lead to users sharing a photo, sending a message or replying to a friend in a way that they wouldn’t normally do. These impulsive, emotional decisions often lead to regret and have a lasting impact on the mental health and relationships of young people. This is why it is so important that your daughters are taught the importance of stopping and thinking before acting or reacting online.

When exploring the negative impacts of technology usage on physical health, we need to keep in mind the seven basic needs for humans to live healthily: relationships, language, sleep, play, movement, nutrition and executive functioning (Goodwin, K., 2021). It may come as no surprise that the needs most severely impacted by the misuse of technology are sleep, movement and relationships. Whilst we can connect with other people through digital devices, we all know that the connection online does not fulfill the human spirit in the same way physical, face-to-face connection does. Something we’re all feeling at the moment!

Here are some ways, shared by Dr Goodwin, of how your family can work to minimise the negative impact of technology usage on physical and mental health:

• Reflect on what it is you are doing when online. For example, are you having quality conversations connecting with friends and loved ones or rather, responding to a series of meaningless messages?
• Remember the 7 basic needs to live healthily and think about how to fit all of these into a 24-hour day. If 8-10 hours are taken for sleep and 1 hour taken for physical activity, that leaves only around half of the time to fit in the other 5 needs. If screen time takes up a large chunk of this time, what basic needs are thrown out in its place?
• Think about what you are missing out on during the time spent online. Is it really worth it?
• Plan smart yet effective movement breaks into your day. Perhaps this involves 5 minutes of stair runs or have a skipping rope nearby to use when possible.
• Ensure your family is getting enough natural sunlight each day. For children this is at least 90 minutes per day so encourage your daughter to get outside during break times. This helps with eye health as well as sleep patterns.
• Practice the “20-20-20 rule”. For every 20 minutes spent on a device, take a 20 second break by looking at something 20 ft in front of you and blink 20 times. This will help maintain good eye health.
• Begin and end your day in a tech free way. It’s particularly important to allow 60 minutes of screen free time before bed to prepare the body for sleep.
• Use blue light blocking glasses to minimise the negative effects of screen time on eye health.
• Have a “landing station” for phones and/or devices in your home where they go to charge each night. Remember, phones are not the only alarm clock, old fashioned ones are still for sale and do the trick!

With at least 1 in 5 Australian young people reporting being socially excluded, threatened or abused online (eSafety Commissioner, 2017) it is also important to discuss what your daughter would do if they were to receive any unkind, unwanted or inappropriate material online. They should learn how to be an upstander rather than a bystander, what this involves and to follow this sequence of steps:

1. Stop: resist the urge to respond. Screen shot evidence
2. Support: speak to a trusted adult
3. Report: send evidence to the application used or to the eSafety Commissioner
4. Block the user from contacting you again

For more information on these steps visit the eSafety Commissioner website.

Getting the support of a trusted adult is one of the most important things for your daughter to do when faced with challenges online. She may not be developmentally ready to handle these by herself even though she may think she is! So if you say that you’ll take away her phone or device if she gets caught up in unwanted communication online she may not come to you if she’s in trouble. But rather, you could listen without judgement, offer support to successfully gather evidence, report and block the user. Please also contact the school for any further guidance or support.

It is critical that we work together to embed strategies into our daily family routines so we can embrace technology with all its might while ensuring we remain in control, and not allow the technology to control us!

Sarah Johnstone
Deputy Head of Primary (Student Wellbeing)

Information for Primary Parents

A reminder to Primary parents that the online booking portal for the Parent Teacher interviews is now open.  The closing date has been extended and bookings can be made until 3pm on Friday 13 August.

Careers Corner Newsletter

As COVID-19 restrictions remain in NSW and around the country, universities continue to offer virtual Open Days and webinars to keep current students informed and updated about their options post Year 12. Take a look at this issue of the Careers Corner Newsletter and make sure you mark in your diaries any of the sessions outlined in this issue that are of interest to you.

Light Her Path

Classrooms for our Future

Imagine walking into a large, airy History classroom and seeing groups of students so engaged in their work that they don’t even notice you arrive! As you walk around, you see one group is in the middle of a giant Google Virtual Walking Tour around ancient Cyprus. It is projected onto one wall and the students are currently arguing over whether the town appears more Hellenistic or Roman at the time. The next group is using a universal translator to read original reports sent from Cyprus back to Rome about the politics of the time and the economic impact of the discoveries of copper on the island and the production of bronze. You move along to the next group … at first, they seem completely off on a tangent – viewing simulations of moving tectonic plates and looking at the devastating effect of earthquakes. Isn’t this a History class, you think to yourself? But as you listen a little closer you realise that they are uncovering the influence of the geographical and environmental features of Cyprus – and what this meant for the development of the towns on the island 1800 years ago. And throughout this time, you observe the teacher moving quietly from one group to another – prompting, guiding, answering questions, pointing to the instructions written on the wall and reminding the girls that they only have 25 minutes left until they need to come back and report their findings to the whole group.

In the almost 100 years since Wilkinson House was completed, the former apartment building has served the school well as a boarding house and most recently as classrooms, but its small spaces, some in obscure shapes are extremely limiting and its ability to accommodate future technology even more so. A lesson like the one described above just doesn’t quite work … there is no room to separate groups, there is no flat wall to project onto, the technology has been added in afterwards … and even moving around the small classrooms when every desk is occupied is tricky! The re-development of Wilkinson House allows us to keep the beautiful streetscape of Forbes Street while transforming the interior of this much-loved building – generous learning spaces, the infrastructure to support an evolving curriculum and the opportunity to provide contemporary and creative lessons and the most efficient and effective tools that educational technology has to offer.

The past 18 months have reinforced the importance of technology in our society, and in education too. During the pandemic, the School has worked hard to ensure learning is uninterrupted.  But the tools which allow teachers to convey ideas and concepts from screens and enable work to be submitted, marked and returned, remarkable though they are,  were developed to supplement rather than replace in-person learning. 

Post-pandemic, technology can return to its rightful place – as just one of the tools that a teacher may use as they design and build engaging, creative and inspiring lessons. There is no doubt that relationships are at the heart of a great teaching and learning experience – between teachers and students and between the students themselves. Face-to-face instruction and attention from dedicated and committed teachers is paramount. While learning has been delivered in our homes, we have also seen the longing in our children for the classroom interaction with teachers and for the jostling, robust company of friends. The redevelopment of Wilkinson House positions the school to capture the best of both worlds: the personalised engagement of in-person teaching, the activities that allow the girls to work together and the benefit of all the tools – technological and otherwise – that allow each girl to strive to achieve her best.  

The Light Her Path Capital Campaign is about equipping the school with the tools and resources to meet the future demands of education and to capture the full benefits of these new and exciting educational facilities.

The Light Her Path Capital Campaign is seeking to raise $20 million:

• $12 million this year to ensure we can bring the new designs for Wilkinson House, melding heritage and function, to life; and
• a further $8 million to expand SCEGGS’ scholarship program from the 35 girls currently supported by means-tested scholarships.

We invite every person in our community to give as generously as they can.

See the proposed plans for Wilkinson House on our website.  You may also pledge to the Light Her Path Capital Campaign or call the SCEGGS Development Office on (02) 9332 1133.

The Light Her Path Committee

Resources for Parents

There are a number of resources and upcoming webinars which we wanted to share with you. We know that there are days where the girls are lacking in motivation, or experiencing feelings of despondency, tiredness or overwhelm. And whilst we know that these are normal responses to the current situation we are in, these resources will provide you with different strategies to support your daughter if she is experiencing these things, as well as provide information about some of the signs and behaviours to take note of which may signal that extra support is needed. We hope that these may help you navigate the next little while of lockdown and uncertainty. Please also view the most recent Special Report released by SchoolTV which can also be accessed through this week’s Behind the Green Gate on “Instilling Hope”.

Chatstarter

You may have seen in the news this week that the #chatstarter initiative has been released. Developed by the National Mental Health Commission and a number of leading  Australian mental health organisations, the website offers a range of activities and conversation starters to help you connect as a family, especially important during this period of lockdown and increased screen use. You can find ideas and resources at their website.

PPP Parenting Program

Triple P is an evidence based, self-paced program to help parents reduce stress and support their child’s coping skills. Currently this program is available to parents and carers in Central and Eastern Sydney for free during this time. There is a primary program (for parents of children aged 0-12 years) and a teen program (for parents of children aged 10-16 years). To find out more. The programs provide strategies for:

• Encouraging behavioural regulation
• Building a stronger relationship
• Agreeing on rules
• Dealing calmly with conflict
• Navigating emotional ups and downs

Black Dog Institute

This webinar is for parents and carers, and “aims to educate the adults in a young person’s life to help increase mental health literacy, reduce stigma and promote help seeking”. This is a 45 minute presentation and is free of charge. You can discover more and sign up here.

Headspace

Headspace are providing parent and carer online sessions to help you through COVID-19. The free sessions provide parents and carers with information and strategies to proactively support their children aged between 12-25 during these uncertain times.

The following sessions are scheduled virtually over the next 5 weeks:

• 10 August, 2021, 6:30pm – 7:45pm, Georges River
• 11 August, 2021, 6:30pm – 7:45pm, South Eastern Sydney
• 17 August, 2021, 6:30 – 7:45pm, Western Sydney
• 19 August, 2021, 6:30pm – 7:45pm, Randwick

Sessions can be booked here.

Additional information on these sessions, as well as a range of resources, can also be accessed through the Headpsace website:

Coronavirus (COVID-19) (headspace.org.au)

Parent and Carer Events (headspace.org.au)

Bethany Lord
Director of Pastoral Care

Kindergarten Celebrates 100 Days at School

98, 99, 100! Not even lockdown was going to stop Kindergarten celebrating their 100^th day at school and that is exactly what they did last Friday 6 August. Although it was not the day and party they had originally planned (and possibly discussed every single day leading up to our 100^th Day!!) the kindergarten community celebrated and partied “Zoom style.”

From their very first day at school, Kindergarten have counted their days at school using a special counting chart. The have been extremely patient, filling in tens frames, crossing off the number of the day on a 100s chart and completing a tally table. Throughout this process they have learnt to count by 1s and skip count by fives and tens and have consistently built their mathematical knowledge and understanding of numbers.  

Whilst the 100^th Day celebration is based on the foundation of our number system; the day also acknowledges so much more. It is on this day we celebrate and praise our newest SCEGGS members for being 100 days braver. They reflect on 100 days of new friendships and 100 days of new learning. Over the last 100 days the girls have become readers, writers, mathematicians, scientists, artists, explorers, musicians, creators, and problem solvers. They have been exposed to new languages and been flexible in their learning, adapting to whatever has been thrown their way. Our youngest SCEGGS girls are already displaying exemplary grit and determination, especially in the current situation they find themselves in.

The day started with lovely messages of congratulations from many of the Kindergarten teachers. Then the girls showed off their 100-day outfits in a breakout room fashion parade. After that, they designed and made the traditional 100^th day crown whilst partying to some classic kindergarten tunes. What would you want 100 of? What would you not want 100 of? If you could eat 100 of something, what would it be? These are just a few of the questions Kindergarten explored and responded to on the day. They foreshadowed what they might look like when they are 100 years old and even created a “100 monster.” The day continued with a special science lesson, naming 100 living things, they sang their 100-day song with Mrs Cleworth and were acknowledged and celebrated by their peers and teachers at the K-2 Assembly. The day concluded with a fun-filled Golden Time where the girls got the chance to dance and create, all in the space of their own homes.

It was a delightful day filled with much joy and laughter. Congratulations Kindergarten, we are so very proud of all you have achieved thus far. What a great start to your learning journey here at SCEGGS.

Miss Heidi Anderson
Kindergarten Teacher

SchoolTV: Instilling hope in uncertain times

SPECIAL REPORT: Instilling Hope In Uncertain Times

Although life is always filled with uncertainty, the levels we are currently experiencing are unprecedented and it is becoming evident that this is taking a toll on our young people. The most recent research from Mission Australia makes clear the breadth and depth of the effect the pandemic is having on our youth across the nation. Therefore, as it appears that lockdowns and tighter restrictions will be with us for some time, it is important in such times of uncertainty to instill hope and remain optimistic.

Parents and carers can play a vital role in helping young people reframe their worries, encouraging them to see life as it is and getting them to focus more on the things they can control, rather than those they can’t. With the continued disruptions, mental health concerns are on the rise and it is evident that many students may need some extra support to achieve their goals. Parents can help their kids focus more on the good things in their life, rather than fill in the blanks with catastrophic narratives. Encouraging young people to remain connected with their social networks during these times is another way to help young people remain optimistic as often their natural response to uncertainty is to exhibit varying degrees of fear and anxiety. Connecting with friends buoys young people, and can assist them to navigate the more challenging feelings.

Here is the link to your special report. This Special Report outlines how adult carers can help instill hope and offer support in such times of uncertainty. We hope you take time to reflect on the information offered in this Special Report, and as always, we welcome your feedback.

If this Special Report raises any concerns for you, a loved one or the wellbeing of your child, please seek medical or professional help.

Bethany Lord
Director of Pastoral Care

From the Chaplain

Greetings again from a distance. As the weeks creep along I know that there are a variety of responses to what we are going through at the moment. Some people are angry, some bored, some confused, some anxious and some lonely. In the conversations that I have been having over the last month I have been picking up a certain sense of loneliness across the community. Not only for those that live alone but also for those that have parents, siblings or partners with them. The lack of true presence of the other is missing and some people are quite surprised how much they are noticing the impact of not being in the presence of those that they may feel safe or secure with, those that give them joy, those that understand them and of course those that they feel they truly connect too. In chapel this week we have been thinking about the presence of God using Romans 8:35-39 as our reference. It talks about nothing being able to separate us from the love of God. I often use this passage at funerals because I know that when we suffer loss or grief it can be a very isolating place to be in. Nobody really understands what it’s like for us and even when people in all of their kindness and compassion come close to us, it can still feel very alone. Knowing that something greater than us and who loves us beyond anything we have done or thought or felt or believe is there for us can give comfort to those who seek that strength. Maybe it’s about recognising that we aren’t alone in our aloneness. Rather than seeing it as something that is wrong with us or can be remedied by having more company we can connect with each other in understanding that loneliness as very human condition where we are drawn to consider who we are in this world, that we still matter even in moments of isolation and our purpose is far more than how we might interpret our current state. I hope you know of the presence of the one who loves you. Call out if you need to connect. It’s a brave step but its important for each and every one of us.

Episode 12: The Difficulties of Long Distance Relationships

This weeks’ episode is a discussion with our relatively new Head of the Primary School, Helen Dempsey. Helen speaks of what it was like thrown into the deep end of trying to run a Primary School in the midst of a pandemic and the subsequent impact that it has had on those with loved ones overseas, including herself. I hope you get something out of it.

 In other news, this week we went public and we are now published on Spotify, Apple and Google Podcast and Deezer. So you can now access it easier if you have these platforms. We have already had a few listeners from Germany and France!!

A big thanks to our Publications Co-ordinator Tina Mavritsakis for being the engine room behind getting the podcast to this stage. Her enthusiasm has been relentless. You will find each podcast as they are produced in this newsletter and on the other platforms as well as our website.

I continue to welcome your feedback and let me know if you would like to join me on the podcast. 

Take care everyone and call out if you need a hand. Much love to you all.

Garry Lee-Lindsay
School Chaplain

Sport News

Olympic Games Wrap Up

Over the past fortnight the Olympics have kept us entertained and glued to our televisions and computers at a level not seen throughout Australia since the Sydney Olympics. SCEGGS staff and parents will remember this time fondly even though none of our students were born then. There was so much debate in the leadup as to whether the Olympics should have gone ahead during a pandemic and whether they were dated and still relevant. I think so many were very grateful they did as it was what many in the world needed right now.

The athletes and their support team of coaching staff and family have all made so many sacrifices. They have had to endure the postponement of the original games, train in unusual circumstances, remain in isolation through lockdowns and have had limited international competition in the lead up. Some athletes were denied the opportunity to qualify due to border lockdowns and safety concerns.

We have new household names and so many personal stories that were shared over the past fortnight. As well as new sports that Australia proved to be very good at such as Freestyle BMX and Park Skateboarding.

In July the Session of the International Olympic Committee approved a change in the Olympic motto that recognises the unifying power of sport and the importance of solidarity – “Faster, Stronger, Higher – Together“. “Together” truly did sum up the Olympics in one word.  

I loved the constant display of sportsmanship and camaraderie amongst the Australian athletes. The medal presentation for the 200m backstroke in the swimming was very memorable to watch as Emily Seebohm presented Kaylee McKeown with her Gold Medal, and then Kaylee in return invite Emily onto the podium beside her for the anthem.

Who can forget images of the entire Australian surfing team in a circle around Owen Wright doing an “Aussie, Aussie, Aussie”, after he won the bronze medal in the Men’s Surfing?  Everyone sensed the significance of the occasion after he had overcome a serious head injury to return to the top of world surfing.

The support and encouragement amongst our three female javelin throwers, who all made the final, was incredible to watch, with Kelsey-Lee Barber eventually winning the Bronze Medal. One can only imagine the reaction and celebration if it had been Australia winning the Gold, Silver and Bronze in the 100m sprint instead of Jamaica!

Sport can change lives in so many ways we cannot appreciate. The background stories of many of the refugee team and athletes who grew up in poverty is very humbling. Weightlifter Hidilyn Diaz became the first gold medal winner for the Philippines. She is the daughter of a tricycle driver who grew up with barely enough food to survive. She overcame all the obstacles life had dealt her family to join the military and have a successful sporting career.  After her win a friend summed up the significance saying “Little girls now have the opportunity to dream and reach for the stars in ways beyond what all the past generations of Filipino girls never had”.

The perseverance and grit displayed by many of our athletes is also a lesson in life that we can all learn from. It took Melissa Wu four Olympics to finally win her first Individual Medal in Diving.  How About Jian Fang Lay, the Australian Number 1 Table Tennis player who at 48 yrs old was competing in her sixth Olympics?

Watching Jessica Fox at her third Olympics miss the gold in the K1 Kayak but bounce back and win her first Gold Medal in the C1 Canoe class was another highlight. This is particularly special since this was the first time that women have been allowed to compete in this event. Who could forget the calm and matter of fact way in which her dad commentated both events for Channel 7?

A special shout out to Marina Carrier (class of 2014) who fulfilled a childhood dream after more than 10 years of training and competition to compete at an Olympic Games. She thrilled us all with a clear round to finish 3^rd in the Showjumping component of the Modern Pentathlon, before finishing in 27^th position overall at her first Olympic Games.

In her own words: “I had the absolute best time …. achieved my goal of competing with a smile on my face, enjoying the moment of competing at the Olympic Games”. Marina is currently enjoying 14 days of sleep and study for university exams as she quarantines in the Northern Territory. She shared this lovely photo of herself with High Jump Silver Medallist and good friend, Nicola McDermott from the closing ceremony.

It was a gold medal performance from Japan in hosting a truly memorable and unique Olympics. Now we wait for the Paralympics to commence on August 24!

Share Your Lockdown Activities

If families have any news or photos to share please email to alisongowan@sceggs.nsw.edu.au. We love hearing and seeing about our students.

Alison Gowan
Director of Sport

From the Primary School

I hope that you all enjoyed the mid-term break on Monday and that the girls were able to spend time away from their screens, perhaps outside engaged in some quality play. We talk so often about how important it is that children of all ages are able to be creative and be engaged in imaginative play. However, studies do tell us that over the years, children are engaging less and less in this type of play and the impact on children is being felt across the globe.

While the lockdown situation is being felt by us all, one thing I have been heartened by is the amount of play I am seeing in our children. My own daughter is out in our street after school climbing in the trees, and we’ve spent hours playing board games together as a family. Kids are out riding bikes before and after school and the delivery boxes arriving in homes from online shopping are being used as shops, rockets, cubby houses and pizza restaurant signs! Active play should be a part of all children’s daily lives and let’s hope that post-lockdown and when busy schedules resume, we can still find time in our lives to remember how important it is that children should play.

This week, our Primary teachers made a video for the Primary girls to remind them just how important it was to get away from their computer screens and to spend time outside playing. We thought you might enjoy watching it too! https://vimeo.com/583279032/bb9268220e

As At Home Learning will continue for at least another 4 weeks, we organised another resource pick up for Primary parents of Friday of last week. It was lovely to see so many smiling faces drive down St Peters Street and to connect momentarily in a socially distanced way with some of our families and girls. The packs contained resources that will help to balance the on screen and off-screen time for the girls as well as a few special gifts to help keep them active over the coming weeks. The girls were thrilled to receive a skipping rope from the PDHPE team and a Hula Hoop ready for the SCEGGS Primary Hula Hoop Challenge! Over the next few weeks, we are challenging the girls to see who can Hula Hoop for the longest and who can also Hula Hoop in the most unusual (but safe!) location or doing the most unusual task. We look forward to seeing what the Primary girls have to offer.

Finally, as the Olympics come to a close, I thought I would share some of the wonderful writing that the Year 1 girls completed in their English lesson last week. They were tasked with using their imagination to consider which of the Olympic sports they would participate in if they could and why.

I thoroughly enjoyed reading their writing and was inspired to see how much they had learnt about the strength, passion and determination needed to become an Olympian. Well done Year 1!

Helen Dempsey
Head of Primary

Music Matters

SCEGGS Choral Program Online! 

The secondary school choral program is making the most of the shift to online singing by focusing on skill building in our weekly rehearsal sessions.  Our time together includes a focus on developing vocal technique.  We help the students to identify what good singing physically feels like and what they should be listening for in order to improve the quality of their sound.  This online time to listen to and tweak their own voice is very valuable. Our choristers then move through a series of music reading exercises to help them to hear what they see.  It is also important for our singers to see what they hear so we enjoy weekly aural dictations.  Over the past couple of weeks the students in the choral program have been enjoying listening to the recordings we made at the end of last term to enter into Sydney Eisteddfod.  

Miss Allison Harrigan
Choral Director

Year 11 Music 1 – Composition Arrangement

As part of their development of composition skills, Year 11 Music 1 students were assigned a task to reimagine Kate Miller-Heidke’s “Where?” from the Australian opera “The Rabbits”.  This task formed as part of the students’ assessment for composition. Students took elements of the original source material and manipulated the music to make it their own. They changed the style, instrumentation, and sometimes even the tonality of the piece – from something that is bright (major) to something quite sombre (minor).  Through this activity, students learnt the techniques that composers use to manipulate musical ideas in creative ways.  You can sample some of the students’ works here: https://vimeo.com/585600357

Mr Michael Tierney
Year 11 Music 1 Class teacher

Primary Virtual Music Concert

Primary Music Teachers would like to invite all students to share video recordings of their music performances at home to be collated as a “Virtual Music Concert”!  Over the past weeks we have shared some beautiful performances here and thought that it would be lovely to have a collection of these for you to enjoy as a virtual concert.

Instructions for you to participate in the virtual concert can be found here.

We look forward to receiving all submissions by Monday 6 September.

If you have further questions, please email Ms Stephanie Holmes (Music Administrator).

Are YOU A Musical Legend?

This week we have started a Music activities challenge!  The instructions are simple – record your musical activities for the week.  The activities could include your regular practice, participation in an online rehearsal or performing to members of your family online!  Get the Instructions and Record Sheet.  Email your record by Sunday night each week to Ms Holmes – Music Administrator. The top results will be published in Music Matters. 

We encourage ALL students who are learning an instrument at school or learning externally to flex their musical muscles and take part. Participate, have fun and enjoy your musical activities!

This week we would like to congratulate the following girls with their achievement of Gold, Silver and Bronze:

Primary

GOLD – Caitlin Cameron (6N)
SILVER – Hana Yao (Kindergarten)
BRONZE – Angelina Wang (4W)

Secondary

GOLD – Sophia Barry (8ET)
SILVER – Jess Weatherall (7Ce)
BRONZE – Lila Eversgerd (8ET)

The following girls are also acknowledged for their excellent efforts:

Thank you girls for sharing your musical achievements for the past week.  We look forward to sharing the results for next week!

Peripatetic Zoom Lesson Guidelines

Peripatetic lessons via Zoom are being offered to families to maintain continuity with learning.  If you decide to proceed with online lessons for your daughter, please note the following:

1. There must be an agreement between you and your daughter’s tutor, detailing date, time and platform for lessons (Zoom is preferable to Skype).
2. For the protection of both parties, a parent/guardian should be nearby to assist during the lesson if necessary. This is to protect both parties.
3. Students must let their class teachers know well beforehand if they have a music lesson during a timetabled class.
4. If your daughter is unwell, please let the music tutor know.

Practical considerations:

• Ensure that appropriate device and setup is confirmed well before the lesson.
• Ensure that the tutor has necessary contact details.
• Instruments should be tuned before the start of the lesson. Your daughter’s tutor can recommend a suitable app to assist in tuning instruments.
• Consult with tutor to determine the best camera angle for the lesson.
• Quality of connection may be improved if other family members remain offline during the lesson.
• Establish a dedicated space for music lessons is useful to eliminate distractions and extraneous noise where possible.
• Student should be appropriately dressed for the lesson.

We would love to see pictures of your daughter’s Zoom music lessons at home.  If you would like to share these with our school community, please email them to paulinechow@sceggs.nsw.edu.au.

Pauline Chow
Head of Music

Visual Arts

Youth Photographic Award

The deadline has been extended for  Woollahra Council’s Youth Photographic Award and Short Film Prize competition and exhibition.

The new dates for the exhibition and submission deadlines are:

• Friday 17 September – New deadline for entry submissions 
• Wednesday 17 November – Sunday 28 November – Awards presentation and exhibition

We really hope that some of you enter photographs or short films to this competition this year.

There is also a special category this year, “Inclusivity”, for photographic observations relating to what inclusion might mean and look like.

All entry information, and how to enter online can be found here.

Creative Kids Voucher

If you haven’t already, don’t forget to redeem your creative kids voucher here.

This site provides extensive and generous packages! Hours of fun…

This week’s banner is an excerpt from Liza Smith’s Body of Work “A composition of glut”.

Liza writes:

“Composition of Glut” encapsulates ideas surrounding gluttony, greed, and excess consumption.  It critiques the overabundant nature of consumer behaviours within the contemporary world through a series of paintings, laser cuttings, and collage.  Items including egg cartons, nail polish, shoes, bottles, and tools become the central motif, repeated in a reflection of consumer greed in the same way they might be repeated in the aisles of a shop.

Heidi Jackson
Head of Visual Arts

Go Greener

Toasty Tuesday

We hoped you all stayed warm yesterday and saved some energy in turning off your heating and lights for Toasty Tuesday. This is how some girls celebrated Form time!

A series of podcasts about Sustainability

Do you want an interesting podcast series to listen to in lockdown? Need some prompting to work on making your lifestyle more environmentally achievable? Willoughby City council have just produced a series of podcasts called Live well sustainability. It is packed full of handy hints on sustainable living.

The Live well sustainability series consists of five podcasts of approximately 20 minutes in length. Each one is presented by a passionate sustainable champion from the local area. They are:

• Episode 1: Living a sustainable lifestyle by Sarah Millar who talks about creating a garden full of produce to eat
• Episode 2: Cooking with local and seasonal produce with chef Jo Powling. She gives shopping and cooking tips as well as advice on pickling food during a glut in your garden
• Episode 3: If you ever wanted to buy an E-bike, go no further for information than listening to this podcast by Alison Pryor and Carolyn New.
• Episode 4: Alex Van Os is an eco-fashion stylist who gives you advice on sustainable fashion. She gives great tips on being fashionable with minimal impact on the environment
• Episode 5: This podcast gives advice about joining a Bushcare group including the benefits of making community connections and being outside.

You can listen to these podcasts via the Willoughby Council website or on major podcast platforms.

Maailma Environment Committee

P&F Events

Due to current COVID-19 regulations all events have been postponed until further notice.