From Ms Allum

Before being appointed the Head of SCEGGS Darlinghurst, my dream had always been to be able to shape a school that valued compassion, where students and teachers had good relationships and felt it was okay to be vulnerable. I wanted to be able to influence a learning environment where maths, science and sport were just as important as helping young people become good humans, to be people of integrity who care about others as well as themselves. And, as the Class of 2023 mark their end of their formal school journey today, I could not be prouder of the young adults they have become. They are indeed brimming with a strong sense of social justice and grit, as well as respect for themselves and others too. Their teachers and I have enjoyed watching them grow as individuals and develop their skills and knowledge, while standing up for what they believe in and being unafraid to show their vulnerability.

Year 12, as you prepare for your final exams, be confident in the work that you have done to get you there and be assured that your teachers will continue to support you all the way through and that we are all so proud of you!

As we conclude another engaging term, I hope the spring holidays provide everyone an opportunity to rejuvenate, renew and re-energise.

Best wishes
Jenny Allum

SRC in the Primary School

On Thursday 14 September, the Primary School celebrated R U OK? Day. The Student Representatives enjoyed leading a variety of activities to support the initiative in their Form Classes over the week, and loved having the Year 9 SRC leaders from the Secondary School visit to support the classes.

In our weekly meetings, we discussed the best ways to support, encourage and promote kindness and empathy to remind the girls of the importance of checking in with friends regularly.

We loved handing out yellow ribbons at the front gate in the morning and seeing our displays around the school that we completed in our Form classes, including poems, letters, and artworks.

The Primary School had a wonderful time on “Thrilling Thursday”, with activities, games and a photobooth on the playground.

Kate Jordan-Watt and the Primary SRC Team

Science News

Farewell Year 12 Science Leaders

It is with a heavy heart that we say a very fond farewell to our Year 12 Science Leaders.  They have worked very hard in the past year, thinking up exciting new experiences, organising activities and leading the various experiments. They have done a wonderful job! In their farewell letter, one student wrote:

Dear Milly, Mietta, Tilda and Sally,

Thank you so much for brainstorming and putting into action such fun activities. My personal favourites were the slime, carving out oranges, and crystal making. You all led the group so well and made clear demonstrations. I am so grateful to have joined in on some science fun as I don’t study science.

Love you all! I hope you all become raging STEMinists.

We wish all our Science Leaders a very big Good Luck for the HSC and their wonderful new adventures after school.

Science Club Experiments

What do you do with expired COVID tests? Experiment on them!

Unfortunately, a number of COVID tests have started expiring, and it seemed wasteful to just throw them out. So, Science Club took care of the problem! We opened up the tests and took a peak inside to learn more about how they work. We also investigated the effects of various pHs on the accuracy of the tests. Students created acidic solutions of various concentrations and tested them. This demonstrated the importance of dipping the swab into the buffer solution to ensure the correct pH for the test.

We’ve also been enjoying some fun problem-solving using liquids of different densities. Students needed to test various combinations of the liquids to determine which was denser, then make a rainbow density column that required the densest at the bottom and the least dense at the top. Students practiced using their “hands of a surgeon” skills, where they had to pour the liquids extremely carefully without their hands shaking or jiggling.

Science Teacher
Mia Sharma 

What Matters? Writing Competition

Inspired by Gough Whitlam’s dedication to engaging young minds in shaping Australia’s future, the What Matters? writing competition provides a platform for students across the nation, from Years 5 to 12, to share their perspectives on any topic close to their hearts. This year, a total of 4,991 thought-provoking works were submitted, with participation from 691 schools.

We are delighted to extend our congratulations to Anna Slack in Year 6, whose outstanding entry was named winner in the Year 5/6 category (which makes up the largest amount of entries received). Anna attended the awards ceremony at the Whitlam Institute within Western Sydney University on Friday, 15 September to receive her prize. Her winning entry is shared below.

Kristy Williams
Year 5 Teacher

What Matters?

I will always be around, in one form or another. At least, I hope so. Traditionally, I’ve been very visible. Special rooms have housed me. I have sat on the shelves and observed you, your comings, and your goings. Great buildings were constructed in my honour, quiet places of contemplation and learning. I have been remarked upon, quoted, queried and debated. Revered and loved.

That’s not to say I’ve always been popular. People have disagreed with me. Nor have I always been right. Some people, however, have sought to rid the world of me completely. I’ve been called dangerous and manipulative. Largely, though, I’ve survived and grown because what I am, and what I do, matters.

Time and technology change everything. Nothing stays the same. I evolve, as I always have and as I need to and as I should. There was a time when only monks took an interest in me. The industrial revolution shook things up and suddenly, I was everywhere. Papyrus to cloth to vellum. I was consumed by people from all different societies and no topic was off limits. Religion. Politics. Economics.

Knowledge spread and the people who devoured me embraced different views and perspectives. More people had access to more knowledge. As knowledge spread, challenges to their power became more common. That was where a lot of the trouble started for me. I’ve been burned. Buried and shredded. Dissolved and drowned. Erased. I’ve suffered redaction and other humiliations. I have been used to manipulate when different views have been suppressed.

I could survive those things, though. They could not get rid of all of me. The age of the internet seemed at first to be my saviour. How could I be silenced now? I was everywhere and accessible by almost everyone in the world. However, suddenly, I could be edited by anyone. Facts omitted. Facts made up. False information is often more powerful than information. I am used to silence those with differing views. Respectful debate is no longer. Insults are delivered. Different views are not tolerated.

I am changed. I have become a weapon against tolerance.

l should be ideas. I should be discussion. I should be polite disagreement. I should be debate. I should be free speech.

Who am I? I am the written word. I am books. I am newspapers. I am magazines. I am websites.

I am what matters.

Music Matters

This week’s banner is from the SCEGGS and the Scots College Rock Band Workshop.

SCEGGS and the Scots College Rock Band Workshop – Monday 18 September

Students from SCEGGS rock bands were invited to The Scots College for a combined rock band workshop and performance.  The students from both schools took turns to perform for each other and were given feedback by renowned Sydney guitarist by Dr. Zane Banks on their performances.  It was a wonderful afternoon for all students to share their performances and the opportunity to listen, learn from each other.  Thank you, Mr Michael Tierney (Director of Bands) and Mr Neal Sutherland (Rock band tutor), for accompanying the students and providing them with the support.  Well done to all students who participated in this event!

Primary Piano Concert – Thursday 14 September

The Primary Piano Concert was held last Thursday afternoon with 32 students performing for family and friends in the Great Hall.

We were very fortunate to hear a mesmerizing performance by our guest artist, Rebecca Colwell (Year 11) (accelerated HSC Music student) who shared a piece from her HSC program.

It’s so important for us to know where a musical journey may take us.

Now that the piano concerts are over for this year, students are encouraged to choose a piece for the Term 1 SCEGGS Eisteddfod. Term 4 is the perfect time to learn your piece so it will be performance ready in Term 1.

String Studio Concerts

In Term 4, all primary string players from Kindergarten to Year 5 will be invited to perform a short solo at one of three Studio Concerts being held on Monday 30 October, Tuesday 31 October and Wednesday 1 November at 3.20pm in the Primary Music Room. Solo performances of this nature, in a familiar and non-threatening environment with an appreciative audience are vital to a musician’s development. The registration form to participate will be sent to parents in Week 1 of next term. Parents, siblings and relatives will be most welcome to come along. Girls are encouraged to have a chat with their string tutor in lessons this term to decide on a performance piece for the concert. Year 6 string players will not participate in the Studio Concerts due to their busy schedule with the musical “Moana” in Week 4 next term.

AMEB Piano Examination – Angelina Wang (Year 6)

Congratulations to Angelina Wang who has achieved an outstanding result for her AMEB 6^th Grade Comprehensive Piano Examination.  Well done Angelina for your hard work in attaining your 6^th Grade certificate.

Upcoming Music Events

Term 3

Term 4

Pauline Chow
Head of Music

Year 8 Camp

Year 8 students embarked on quite an adventure for camp in Week 7. Not only did they brave some challenging weather conditions, they managed to hike some very steep mountains, enjoyed spending time with one another in front of a camp fire, played some games while canoeing and engaged in a whole range of team building activities. The Year 8 students were able to create some wonderful memories as they biked in the rain, supported each other while abseiling and learned how to cook a warm meal all together. It was an enlightening experience for many of them and a test of their resilience as they all managed to persevere together as a group to achieve their goals. Here is an experienced shared by Orla Darroch in Year 8 of her time during camp:

At first, I was scared for camp because of the long hikes and the heavy backpacks we would have to carry but when I got there it was so much better than I thought. Although it rained as we hiked down towards our campsite, it cleared up the next day so we could do activities such as abseiling and bike riding. I really enjoyed how our group was always helping out one another and how close our group became during camp. I especially enjoyed eating dinner around the campfire together and talking about our favourite experiences from that day or some of the challenges we had faced.

It was also really interesting seeing all the nature like when we were eating dinner on the first night, we had a possum come over and watch us and on the second day we got to see some emu eggs which were really cool. I also really enjoyed when we went abseiling and how eager we were to work together teaching each other on the practice abseiling as well as how encouraging everyone when people were too scared. A challenge I had to overcome on camp was hiking with our backpacks on while it was raining on the first day, but I also thought it was a fun opportunity getting to know some of the people in my group as well as being able to see the beautiful views while walking down the track. I feel as though I was also able to make some new connections with the people in my group whether it was talking to them while making dinner or helping pack up all the tents together.

I also felt as though I made some stronger connections with the people I already knew, and that camp was a really good experience to become closer with some of the people who were in my group. I definitely made some good memories at camp as well from abseiling down the cliff to the simple things like standing around the campfire with everyone toasting marshmallows and getting to know our camp guide Adam or eating lots of lollies after dinner.

Kathy Peng
Year 8 Co-ordinator

Science Week Celebrations Continue

As an extension of our Science Week celebrations, Mrs Mia Sharma, Science Teacher in the Secondary School, hosted a series of Science Shows for the girls in the Primary School. Starting with Kindergarten, Year 1 and Year 2, Mrs Sharma organised a range of hands-on activities for the girls to learn about static electricity. This included a soft-can race powered by static electricity and a balloon relay in which each team had to use static electricity to ‘attach’ as many balloons to a person in their team as possible. Mrs Sharma explained the science behind how static electricity works. She introduced the girls to atoms and explained that everything in our world is made of atoms. She then dived in deeper to explain that atoms are made up of even tinier particles called electrons. While we cannot see electrons with the human eye, we can see what happens to an object when electrons move. The girls created their own dragonflies and, by rubbing a balloon on the carpet, they created static electricity that then made the wings of their dragonfly flap.

Years 3 and 4 also learnt about static electricity and ventured a little further in their understanding of electrons. The girls learnt that a static charge is formed when two surfaces touch each other and the electrons move from one object to another. Mrs Sharma set up an experiment using the Van de Graaff Generator to demonstrate what happens when like charges of electrons repel each other. The result was some impressive new hairstyles as the force of the electrons made the girls’ hairs stand up and spread away from each other. Another experiment demonstrated what happens when opposite charges attract. They loved trying to ‘stick’ as many balloons as they could to their head by creating static electricity.

How can a potato power a light globe? Mrs Sharma proposed this challenge to the girls in Years 5 and 6. Using a potato, fork and electrode, the girls created a power source for a LED light. They learnt that the potato acts as a battery and conducts electricity by acting as a salt bridge between the fork and the electrode. Using their knowledge of electrical circuits, the girls created an impressive string of LED lights that decorated the Auditorium and were powered by the humble potato! Science is fascinating!

Thank you to Mrs Sharma for organising these amazing Science Shows for our girls in the Primary School.

Cristi Wilsmore
Deputy Head of Primary (Teaching and Learning)

Community Service News

Congratulations to Year 11’s Sophia Willis who was recently awarded the Skeete Family Nipper and Community Inclusion Award for her participation in the Bronte Dippers program run in partnership with Autism Swim. This program gives children who may not otherwise be able to participate in Nippers, the chance to develop water skills and learn beach safety. This award recognises the impact Sophia has had on both the children and their parents.

This recognition is especially significant as Sophia has been involved in the program for only one season. “I am really grateful that I was chosen for this award because it means that the work that I am doing has a positive impact on the people that I help and that is honestly the reason why I did it in the first place,” said Sophia.

Having previously participated in the Swim for Ukraine program, one of the leaders noticed Sophia worked well with children and recommended the Dippers program. Sophia said that “I really enjoy being able to help the kids gain more confidence in the water, and I love watching them improve every week.”

Well done, Sophia. You are an inspiration to us all!

Secondary Sport News

IGSA Basketball Grand Finals

Term 3 basketball saw eleven SCEGGS secondary teams give their all, with six of them qualifying for the playoffs including the Seniors 1sts, 2nds and all four of the Junior teams.

Unfortunately, in the semis the Senior 1^st lost a close 2 point game to Kambala and the Junior 4ths were overwhelmed in their game but the other four SCEGGS teams were victorious!

Grand Final week turned out to be as exciting for players and coaches as it was for parents and supporters.  The Junior 1sts and 2nds both won close games to remain undefeated throughout the entire third term.  Congratulations to the girls and coaches Michael Scarpin and Andrew Freebury on their perfect seasons. 

The Senior 2nd’s had a thrilling match against Monte and narrowly lost by two points right at fulltime.

The Junior 3rds also had a close match against Santa Sabina 3, and narrowly lost by 3 points.

Overall, we’re so proud of our SCEGGS girls who played with a positive attitude, great effort and strong teamwork all year.  A big thank you to all our committed coaches and staff who prepared our teams each and every week.

We now look forward to Term 4 which tips off with our Primary school Years 4 to 6.  Good luck to all our girls!

Head Coach of Basketball
Mark Handel

IGSA Netball

SCEGGS played in 3 Netball Grand Finals on the weekend.

Congratulations to SCEGGS 6 who defeated St Vincents 11 to win the J07 grade.

SCEGGS 7 were narrowly defeated by Ravenswood 15 to be runners up in the J09 grade.

SCEGGS 11 were also narrowly defeated by PLC Sydney 25 to be runners up in grade Y706

IGSA Football

SCEGGS 1 defeated Kambala 2-1 in a thrilling grand final 1 in S02.

SCEGGS 4 defeated St Catherine ‘s 3 3-1 in the J01 Grade.

Sydney Marathon and Running Festival

Congratulations to Annabelle Jessup (Year 7) who competed in the 3.5km run over the Sydney Harbour Bridge. Annabelle absolutely smashed the race and completed the 3.5km in 12:10, finishing third overall (out of 5,770 finishers) and was the first female across the line. (She was also first in her own age 12-15 years).

Do you have any sporting news or photos to share in the Green Gate?

We love seeing our students being active and want to celebrate their passion and enjoyment amongst the SCEGGS community. Please send in any action shots from the weekend and any other interesting sporting highlights to alisongowan@sceggs.nsw.edu.au

SCEGGS Training sessions before and after school plus Saturday Sport

Please check the @SCEGGSSport Twitter feed for the latest updates relating to cancellations and wet weather.

IGSA Fixtures, Results and Wet Weather

Head to the IGSA website and platform to access wet weather, fixtures and team results.

If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact myself on 9052 2721 or 0418 491 521.

Alison Gowan
Director of Sport

Primary Sport News

Congratulations to all the girls who took part in the various activities this term, including AFL, Touch Football, and Minkey Hockey. It’s great to see so many students actively participating in these sports. As we bid farewell to this term, we eagerly anticipate what Term 4 has in store for us. We hope all families have a safe and relaxing break. We are excited to resume activities in Term 4! We can’t wait to do it all again in Term 4!

Athletics News

Congratulations to Charlotte Willis (Year 3), Emily Snow (Year 4), Klemintine Chylek (Year 4), Clementine Finlayson (Year 4), Beatrice Emanuel (Year 4), Stasia Serafin (Year 4) and Ava Pepper (Year 6) who represented SCEGGS at the CIS Primary Athletics Carnival on Tuesday 19 September. All girls should be extremely proud of their efforts against some tough competition.

With some amazing results on the day, we are excited to announce the following results with these students moving onto represent CIS at the NSWPSSA Athletics Carnival held next term.

Well done to our team who have trained hard in the lead-up to the carnival and gave it their all on the day.

Student Achievements

Congratulations to Maddison Soulos (Year 6) and her U13 UNSW Hockey team for making the Grand final this last weekend. Unfortunately, they lost 1-0 in a very close game that could have gone either way. It has been a great experience playing club hockey for the first time, making new friends and improving her skills.

Well done to Scarlett Jessup who was involved in the Sydney Marathon Festival on Sunday 17 September. Scarlett ran in the 3.5km fun run, racing against nearly 6000 participants!

Congratulations to Georgina Sharp (Year 3) who competed her riding class at the Equestrian NSW Horse of the Year and was awarded runner-up rider 6-9 years. This has qualified her to compete at the Equestrian Australia Show horse Nationals in December, and will be part of the NSW team. Only three riders in her age group from each state qualify to compete. Well done Georgina!

Holiday Programs

SCEGGS’s Exclusive Tennis Coaches Justin and Vince are hosting a SCEGGS JUNIOR SCHOOL ONLY tennis program this upcoming school holidays.

All standards are welcome and programmed for Beginners, Intermediate and Frequent Players.

Justin and Vince are the long-time and current SCEGGS Tildesely Tennis Team coaches, running PE tennis classes for SCEGGS junior school.

Please take a look at the attachment here and feel free to contact us if you have any questions/inquiries.

If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact me on 0435 138 037. Alternatively, if you have any news or photos that we can highlight in the newsletters, please email TomMitton@sceggs.nsw.edu.au.

Tom Mitton
Primary Sport Co-ordinator

New Online Co-curricular Platform

Parents, carers and secondary students will receive an email this week regarding the launch of Clipboard – a new platform we will be launching in Term 4 for managing and communicating information regarding co-curricular activities at SCEGGS.

The plan is to start with all K-12 Sporting activities in Term 4 with other co-curricular activities coming online in 2024.

Clipboard provides an interface for parents and students to access information regarding their co-curricular activities such as:

• Scheduling of training sessions and fixtures / competitions
• Activity sign ups
• Attendance / absence notifications
• Location details including maps
• Scores and Results

Please refer to the email which contains information on how to sign into Clipboard. Whilst we are asking parents and secondary students to logon now and ensure they are able to access the platform, a gentle reminder that information for Term 4 sports will appear in Week 1 of next term.

Craig Whalland
Director of ICT

Blazer Pocket Awards

Girls in the Secondary School who are awarded a blazer ‘Pocket’ for excellence and outstanding achievement in a co-curricular activity can have their blazers embroidered only during holiday periods.

Awards will be announced at End-of-Term Assembly on Friday 22 September. Blazers may be left at the Student Services Reception on either that Friday or before 1.00pm on Monday 25 September (the first weekday of the School Holidays).

Students with previous awards that have not yet been embroidered can also leave their blazers at this time.

As above, blazers cannot be accepted after the cut-off time of 1.00pm Monday 25 September. Any late submissions will need to wait until the next School Holidays.

Embroidery and dry cleaning will be done during the holidays and the cost will be charged to your daughter’s account.

Administration Office

Parents’ and Friends’ Association

Class Parent Events