Date: Friday, 5 March 2021
Venue: Des Renford Aquatic Centre
Dress to and from venue: Waverley Tracksuit and PDHPE attireSwimmers or Waverley swim shorts (no regular board shorts. Old sports uniform is not permitted)
This is a popular, well-supported day which strengthens our House system. The emphasis of the day is fun, participation and involvement. There are events for students’ differing levels of abilities and the day is an excellent opportunity for students to display their House Spirit, talents and have fun in a supportive environment.
Any student getting a bus from school to the venue must be at school by 8am.
All students have the option of making their own way to and from the venue and must be at the venue by 9am. The carnival concludes at 2.15pm.
Buses are scheduled to arrive back at school by 3pm.
All students need to bring sunscreen and a hat. We will provide shaded areas and students are strongly encouraged to seek sun protection at all times.
The event is a compulsory day for all students – rolls will be marked at the start of the day by Heads of House and absences reported on students’ files.
Mobile phones can be brought to the carnival but students will be requested to have them stored in a secure box in the announcers’ booth at the venue along with any other valuables.
Students are encouraged to bring their own food for recess and lunch. A cafeteria is available, although prices are quite high.
In case of wet weather, the wet weather line will be updated by 7am and if the carnival is cancelled it will be a normal school day. (Phone: 8250 3780)
I am certain the day will be enjoyable and the cooperation and involvement of all students is expected.
Waverley student in his swimming cap
COVID-19 RESTRICTIONS SPECIFIC TO THIS EVENT:
All students should be reminded to ‘tap on & off’ with their Opal cards as they travel to and from school. Travel to and from school is free of charge for many students, however they are required to tap on and off in order to validate their travel. This is particularly important during COVID-19 when tracing is an important part of the public safety strategy.
All school students over 12 years of age must wear a facemask when travelling on public transport. The College is supporting this NSW public health order by not permitting students on to public transport without a mask. Waverley students are encouraged to purchase a reusable mask. Limited single-use masks are available from the Health Centre.
People over 12 must wear masks on public transport as per COVID-19 regulations
At last week’s assembly, I spoke to the students about an unfortunate incident that occurred to one of our students after cricket training. It provided us with a timely reminder that students need to be aware of unsavoury individuals in our community. On Monday, 8 February a Year 8 student was walking home from cricket training and was approached by a male occupant in a car who parked nearby. The male pursued the Year 8 student for about 50 metres.
Both the boy and his father attended Waverley Police station later that evening and provided a statement. This is a timely reminder to all parents to remind their children of some simple tips when walking home.
The College always recommends that if your sons walk, they should do so in a pair or group. But if they find themselves walking alone, here are some tips to keep them safe:
1: Wear appropriate footwear. School shoes or trainers after sport are ideal. Bare feet or thongs make you less stable and clumsy.
2: Stick to well-lit, busy routes. Always stick to routes that are busy and well lit, and try to stay in areas densely populated with houses. The shortcut across fields, through parks or down dark alleys may knock minutes off your journey, but it is not worth the risk.
3: Phone a friend (but don’t text). Call a friend or relative to chat whilst you’re on your journey to let them know where you are. A chat can also calm you down if you’re feeling nervous. Stay on the line chatting until you reach your destination, whilst keeping focused on the direction you are taking. Although a chat can provide a welcome comfort for a walk alone, refrain from texting or playing games on your phone that will require you to look down and distract you from your surroundings.
4: Keep your house keys to hand. Hold on to the key you need inside your pocket. When you get to your destination, you’ll be able to open the front door to your home straight away without fumbling through your bag or getting distracted.
5: Appear confident. Those who appear confident are less likely to be targeted. Even if you feel nervous, maintain the appearance of confidence by taking steady strides and keeping your eyes up and looking ahead. Always walk facing traffic to keep yourself visible and don’t be afraid to make eye contact with people you pass.
6: Use your phone as a flashlight. If the light drops on your walk home, make use of your phone’s in-built flashlight to help guide the way.
7: Never wear headphones. Listening to your favourite songs may seem like a great accompaniment to a solo walk home, but wearing headphones greatly impacts on your ability to stay alert to your surroundings, such as detecting and responding to traffic noises or people approaching.
8. Plan your route. Planning the direction in advance will allow you to project confidence as you walk and lessen the chance of finding yourself in a position where you are unsure of your surroundings. If for any reason you do get lost, do not wander aimlessly. Find the nearest shop, petrol station or restaurant to ask for directions.
9. Avoid carrying multiple bags. If there’s a chance you will find yourself walking alone, try to carry all possessions in one bag. Having multiple bags will restrict your ability to respond to a situation quickly if one arises.
10. Make as much noise as you can. If you are worried about being followed, scream and make as much noise as you can. This will draw attention to yourself and whoever it is following you. This is the last thing that they want.
Dear Parents and Carers,
All of our programs in the first few weeks of Term 1 are designed to help achieve a few main objectives for all of our boys. For them to:
I hope your son has had a good start to the year and is making progress in each of the above objectives. If your son is struggling in any of these areas, please engage with his Wellbeing Mentor, Core Teacher (Years 5 and 6) or Head of House or for specific subject questions with the respective teacher. Working in partnership with you will certainly assist to change habits and attain desired outcomes.
We were blessed last week at our High Achievers Assembly to have so many great examples of ambitious, goal-focused and self-disciplined 2020 Year 12 students return, who are driven by a strong personal desire to accomplish meaningful and important goals.
We want all students to be high achievers, but in the words of Ralph Waldo Emerson, ‘we want them to leave the world a better place, for them to know even one life has breathed easier because they have lived’.
The very reason this school exists goes back to the motivations of our Founder, Edmund Rice where he saw a need for the poor boys hanging around the docks in Ireland. By providing them with an education, he could liberate them from their circumstances and also assist others.
All of the people quoted in the College Calendar this year are high achievers, but they also have that extra key ingredient in their makeup. They seek to make life easier for others, to take others along for the journey, to inspire change and to make the world a better place.
When I think about some of our great high achieving Old Boys, the ones that stand out were just not hard workers, they had vision and drive. They sought to make others’ lives better.
I would like to congratulate all of our High Achievers on their fine results. I thanked them at last week’s High Achievers Assembly for finding the time to come back. I believe it says a lot about who they are, because I do not believe they came back for themselves. They came back to recognise some of their teachers who helped them along their journey, and they came back to inspire the younger students. This desire to give back, to care for others, give others a helping hand and inspire excellence, is what we want of every graduate that goes through the College.
Please take a moment to read the High Achievers article by Ms Gabrielle Smith.
On Wednesday morning, we gathered for the solemn ritual of Ash Wednesday. A ritual that marks the start of our Lenten journey as a Christian community to Easter Sunday. This is a hope-filled journey that is characterised by the three traditional pillars of Lent – prayer, fasting and almsgiving. These three actions help us to follow in the footsteps of Jesus and remind us of the ultimate sacrifice that he made on behalf of all humankind. In our prayers on Wednesday, we sought God’s help to make this season a time when we make choices that bring us closer to God. To amend our lives in even the smallest of ways, finding time to pray is a choice that we can make that draws us nearer to God.
In the words of Pope Francis reflecting on Lent during his Ash Wednesday Mass:
‘It is a time to reconsider the path we are taking to find the route that leads us home and to rediscover our profound relationship with God, on whom everything depends.’
Read more about the meaning of Lent and our Lent Liturgy in the Around Campus article below.
Waverley uniforms were safely delivered to the Navosa Central College last Wednesday, to a very excited student body. The trucks were unloaded in minutes.
Thank you to the school community given the enormity of work, support and effort that has enabled this great outcome. The positive social and environmental benefits derived from this project are incredible.
We are experiencing significant delays getting some items into the uniform shop because of issues with freight. The uniform shop will continue to provide yellow wrist bands and write in the diaries of students who are unable to pick up items.
The below replenishment deliveries have been delayed:
On Saturday, 20 February Joseph Simonella, Class of 2020, will attempt to run a 117.8km ultra-marathon raising awareness and funds for lymphatic cancer. Joe will be running in honour of Gary Kennedy’s wife, Isabella Kennedy, who sadly passed away in 2020.
Joe will be setting off from Bondi at 2am, running to Palm Beach and back again! You may have seen this on the Waverley Instagram account.
He is hoping to have a group to support and run with him in the final stretch of the run from Hyde Park back to Bondi, and he assures me that at this stage it will not be a fast pace (7:30min/km). If you would like to join, he is estimating that he will be back at Hyde Park fountain between 4pm and 5pm on Saturday (he will update as he makes his way back). Ms Pace is planning to be there to accompany him on this final stretch along with a few students and other teachers.
Joe has so far raised an impressive $2,415 of his $3,000 goal. You can find his story and donation page at this website if you feel you would like to support him: https://www.mycause.com.au/page/243539/joes-long-run
Thank you to all parents, staff and students for their very positive start to the term and in co-curricular. I also want to thank the community for their patience last weekend with the inclement weather and some of the late notifications regarding rolling cancellations.
We have now concluded our winter activity requests and will be finalising numbers this week. We will also notify students who requested a change as to whether they were successful, and the activity they will be doing. Our summer season concludes on Saturday, 6 March and the following week is the CAS swimming & diving Championships on 11 March. More information for those students attending will be published closer to the date. Saturday, 13 March is a sport-free weekend for most students, as this is when the College’s winter coaches’ induction will be run. Monday, 15 March will see the commencement of the winter season for 2021.
I also want to congratulate our 1st V captain from last season and 7A/B coach Ryan Abbott on his selection in the Australian U/19 Basketball team. Well done also to our Swimming and Diving squads and our coaches for their efforts at the CAS Invitational last week at Homebush.
We had a large number of students competing last weekend at the NSW Oz Tag championships and I want to congratulate and thank all of these families for following the correct procedures in regard to requesting leave. I am aware of upcoming State Touch Football and State SLS championships, and ask that if you are attending these, then request your leave urgently please.
It was a privilege to attend the Cadet Reveille Dinner last Friday Night and congratulations to our C.O Ms Julie-Ann De Kantzow and her team on a wonderful event and the College’s Cadet Unit SUO Mark Gapanov for representing the College at such an exemplary standard.
We also had some other key Co-curricular events over the past two weeks including Friday night 1sts and 2nds Basketball fixtures against Cranbrook and Trinity respectively. The 1sts game against Cranbrook was a hard-fought match that saw Waverley win by one point with less than a second on the clock, and despite going down by 5 against Trinity.
I also want to remind our community of the College’s expectations in regards to Co-curricular. Students need to commit to their school commitments as a priority, and this includes external club commitments such as NPL Football.
I would also like to remind all parents that all schools have a policy regarding having no dogs on any school premises or campuses at any stage. This is a child safety rule and must be followed at all times.
Best wishes to all teams and activities this weekend and ‘Go the Waves!’
The 2021 year has seen a strong start, with students enthusiastically spurred into action in their teams with positive signs emerging. Waverley has some excellent talent in new Year 5 and Year 7 age groups, while many senior cricketers are being recognised with representative honours.
1st XI Bowling spearhead Harry Schultz has been named in the NSW Combined Independent Schools side to compete in the NSW Schools Cricket Championships next month. This follows Harry impressing with his left-arm pace opening the bowling for the CAS rep side, and is currently the leading wicket taker in the CAS competition. Congratulations Harry on this fantastic achievement. Much of this success can be attributed towards his excellent work ethic.
Congratulations also to Maxim Brooks and Hirav Gandhi, both of the 1st XI, for their selections in the CAS Under 16 side.
Angus Sullivan sweeps for the 9As test
There have been many exciting games in the first weeks of 2021, with week one against Cranbrook especially producing some nail-biters. The 1st XI had a one-run loss in the Twenty20 competition, then saw Cranbrook overhaul the 151 target in the final over, despite a rapid 2/21 from Harry Schultz. The 1sts had a mid-week T20 victory by six wickets over I Zingari, one of Australia’s oldest Cricket clubs, with Dylan Brown hammering a strong 54.
Rain has dampened many of the opening weeks’ matches, but Angus Sullivan in the 9As used a rain-shortened match to blast a rapid 64 not out, to almost claim victory. With the energetic and strong attitude towards training continuing, there looks to be rewards coming in future weeks for all our sides.
CAS Cricket Representatives 2021 and Harry Schultz (centre) selected in NSW CIS Cricket side
The 1st V came into the second half of the season ready to build on their tremendous win in Round Five against St Aloysius. Jack Sherston led the team defensively with a season-high eight blocks. This defensive presence allowed Waverley to stay in the game up to the fourth quarter. Fritz Jahnke-Tavana and TJ Speedy-Coe, through a combined effort, won the game for us in an exhilarating finish. With four seconds left and down 72-71, Fritz stripped the ball off a Cranbrook athlete and passed down the court to TJ. TJ attacked the rim and drew a foul in the process of his layup. His shot had been goal-tended by an opposing player, granting Waverley two points and securing the victory. This close game was a great start to the second half of the season and hopefully the first of many wins.
Hoping to build on their spectacular victory over Cranbrook, the boys came into the game fierce and competitive. Despite missing two role players and their head coach, the 1st V managed to secure an 8-point lead early on. Charles Harris showed tremendous potential, making a significant impact from the moment he stepped on the court. He finished with 9 points and managed to defend their key players in crucial moments. The game was extremely back and forth until the end when Trinity gained a 15-point lead with not long to go. Hugo Roles rose to the occasion, scoring a three key three-pointers in a row to close the gap. Despite this tremendous effort, Waverley fell short by 5 points.
The 2nd V came into the Cranbrook game with a new coach, fired up and with great energy, sure that they were going to beat Cranbrook. The team played well in the first half, keeping up with Cranbrook and overtaking at various stages. The team’s energy slowly declined, however, because of a few calls from the refs that did not go Waverley’s way, resulting in some players getting down about it and losing their focus. This eventually allowed Cranbrook to take back the lead and win the game. Waverley did play well on defense, but the shots they were taking on offense were just not falling, and the team was not as well organised as they would have liked. The game was a teaching moment though, on how talking back to the referees never changes a decision, and to not focus on it.
Hoping to improve on their previous game, the 2nd V came into the Trinity game full of energy for the first 5-10 mins, keeping the score at 0-0 despite Trinity being a great offensive side. Despite this, the team did lack fitness and the ability to keep up with the Trinity players, allowing them to secure a comfortable lead for the whole game. Waverley’s offense was sub-par for this game, only having two points in the first half scored by Daniel Malone. In the second half, however, Waverley came out with more intensity, trying to score at least a few more points in the half. The 2nd V ended up scoring 12 more points making the final score 14-55, which was not the best outcome. Despite all of this, the 2nd V’s offense was not bad, however their shooting percentage was where they fell short.
The 10As played very well against Cranbrook with Oscar Walters-Green leading the pack tremendously well in spite of their 60-52 loss. Following the previous week’s loss, Waverley was seeking vengeance and with superstar Tom Gleeson back from his duty in the 1st V, they managed to secure a 35-31 win.
The 9As lost in a tight game against Cranbrook, despite being up against all odds, they still fought hard to the end with the final score being 56-50. Unfortunately, the next week they were unable to win against a star-studded Trinity team, and they lost 82-31.
The 8As have shown tremendous improvement since last year, however, they came up short both times in the past two weekends against Cranbrook and Trinity. The scores being 43-33 and 49-28, respectively.
The 7As led by coach, Mr Ryan Abbott, won their first game against Cranbrook 30-25. This was a tremendous effort considering these students have only been playing together for the past two weeks. Their next match-up against Trinity proved to be more of a challenge with the end result being an exciting 29- draw.
All Year 9 students attended a Study Skills Kick Start Session last Tuesday 17 February with Elevate. The session covered tips on dynamic reading, taking notes, and how to construct mind maps. All students received a Student Activity Pack that summarises the key tips, which they completed during the session.
The Study Skills session was a very valuable exercise where students developed skills to help them organise their study for their senior years of schooling and end-of-year examinations.
This week students in Years 10 to 12 participated in The Truth Project workshops delivered by Year13, an organisation, which helps connects young people aged 15-24 to all the options available to them post-school life. The project has also been designed to help young Australians make better decisions when it comes to their future.
Students were shown how to identify transferable skills and find careers that best suit their skills, interests, and personality. The workshops focused on the benefits of discovering purpose and passion when choosing a career and how to select the best options to reach them.
Year 12 Students participating in an activity relating to their skills, interests, and personality.
Year 12 students during a workshop about post-school choices.
Please click here for the latest careers newsletter.
Yesterday Waverley College Gym was transformed into a sacred space as we celebrated our Ash Wednesday Liturgy, capably led by Ms Suzanne Walsh, Director of Identity and Student Formation. Sadly, Father Bernie could not lead our service due to illness, and we thought of him in our prayers.
Ash Wednesday is one of the most important holy days in the liturgical calendar. It opens Lent, a season of fasting, prayer, quiet inner reflection, repentance and celebration. Ash Wednesday is mainly observed by Catholics, but many other Christians observe it too. In 2021, Ash Wednesday fell on 17 February.
Ms Suzanne Walsh leads the Ash Wednesday Liturgy 2021
What was the focus of the Ash Wednesday Mass at Waverley in 2021?
Ashes symbolise Christ’s death on the cross, and remind us that we belong to God and need renewal. Ms Walsh encouraged Waverley students to think about the type of person they would like to be. She challenged them to do something about it over the next 40 days via deeds and not just words.
Vice Captain Byron Scott asked students to reflect on ‘real gratitude’, challenging them as Australians to reflect on what they were grateful for; suggesting water, education, clothing, shelter, freedom, and safety from conflict and discrimination.
Is an Ash Wednesday celebration different during a pandemic?
Yes. Usually, the priest dips his finger into the ashes and spreads them in a cross pattern on the forehead. This year, because of COVID-19 restrictions, a cross marked in ash was not placed on the foreheads of worshippers, but instead was sprinkled over the crowns of heads with the spoken words: “Repent from sin and be faithful to the Gospel.” This method is also reflective of the ancient tradition of repentance, which was to sprinkle oneself with ashes.
Principal Mr Graham Leddie receiving sprinkled ash
Where does the ash come from?
Ash used during an Ash Wednesday Mass is made from the burned blessed palm leaves used during Palm Sunday of the previous year.
Do Waverley students actively participate in the liturgy?
Yes! As always, Waverley students played a meaningful role in all areas of this significant celebration. We especially thank those who volunteered to be involved in the liturgy as readers, those who brought the gifts forward and all those who assisted with the distribution of the ashes.
Who sang at our liturgy this year?
A special acknowledgement must be given to the graceful singing of our choir that was admirably led by Music Liturgy coordinator Ms Anne Fahy. The liturgy concluded with the beautiful hymn The Lord is my Shepherd.
The Senior Library Staff were pleased to recently meet Waverley College Old Boy General Sir Peter Cosgrove. Not only did we have his two books in our collection, but we could tell him that his latest book You Shouldn’t Have Joined: A memoir (2020) was currently out, being read by a Waverley College student.
James Peate, the young man who borrowed the book, was surprised and honoured to have Sir Peter come to his room, introduce himself personally, and sign the book!
General Sir Peter Cosgrove signing James Peate’s workbook
General Sir Peter Cosgrove visiting Waverley students
James Peate
We hit the ground running when Cadets started back for 2021. AFX (Annual Field Exercise) is just around the corner and this term is an important one to consolidate skills and behavioural expectations for our annual Cadet Camp. Standards have unfortunately slipped over the summer holidays, and we will need to see considerable improvement if we are to enjoy the many exciting opportunities available to us at Majura Military Training Area.
Our senior rank are busy preparing engaging and challenging activities for AFX which is an important element in their leadership training. In planning activities, they are thinking through logistics, ordering stores, analysing risks, solving problems, and developing contingency plans – skills that will stand them in good stead for their futures.
This week, our Senior Cadet Under Officer, CUO Mark Gaponov, the Adjutant, CUO Will Gibson and the Training Officer, CUO Bryn Parry joined with senior cadets from other Cadet Units at the CAS Cadet Conference. Free exchange of ideas and plans reinvigorated our seniors as they discussed ways to address the impact of COVID-19 limitations on all school-based Cadet Units.
Here at Waverley, we are giving our recruits the chance to experience camp by staying in the Unit for an extra term. As a consequence, we have changed the Cadet year so that our Year 8s will start their Cadet journey in Term 3 2021 and go through to the end of Term 2 2022. The change has several benefits, allowing our seniors to finish earlier and concentrate on their HSC, and ensuring AFX is the culmination of the year’s training in fieldcraft, milskills and leadership development.
Cadets 2021
Cadets 2021
On Friday night, we celebrated the wonderful history of the Cadet Unit at the annual Reveille Mess. Cadet Old Boys and, for the first time, Cadet Old Girls came together to reminisce and to reignite friendships, bonding over their shared experiences during their time at Cadets. We are grateful to our seniors who all played a part in proceedings and to our Dining Stewards who were exemplary in their service throughout the evening.
Annual Reveille Mess 2021
Annual Reveille Mess 2021
Annual Reveille Mess 2021
Our first SRC event for 2021 was held this week and consisted of the celebration of Shrove Tuesday – Pancake Day! Over 500 Pancakes, 20 litres of ice cream and syrup were enjoyed on the day.
Thank you to all those students who supported this most worthy cause that helped kickstart our Project Compassion appeal for Lent. Thank you also to all the SRC students who brought in the pancakes and helped serve on the day.
Shrove Tuesday 2021
Our next big SRC event will be St Patrick’s day March 17th. This will involve everything from green jelly and lollies to Gaelic football. Come along and support these wonderful initiatives of your SRC.
Congratulations guys on making such a great start to our fundraising.
On Friday 12 February 2021, students from the Year 12 Marine Studies course travelled to the Royal Motor Yacht Club in Port Hacking to participate in the Boat Smart Program with Tim Grant, the Boating Hub Coordinator for the Sydney Metropolitan area. In association with the Marine Teachers Association of NSW, the Boat Smart Program aims to provide a Safe Boating Course that can lead to students obtaining a General Boat Licence. The course consists of a Practical Safe Boating training day and completion of the written Boating Licence examination.
Year 12 Marine Studies students
During the one-day program, the students were required to safely launch a vessel from a trailer; row a tender; conduct a dinghy capsize and rescue exercise; drive a boat and return a boat to its trailer. Students also discussed maritime employment and boating regulations with a local Maritime Boating Officer, and ran through some basic small outboard operations, including the servicing of their own life jackets.
Year 12 Marine Studies students
It was an amazing experience and the students had a great time. These students should be congratulated, not only for passing their course, but also on how they conducted themselves on the day: Evan Athanassiou, Fergus Braha
On Friday 19 February 2021, Year 11 Marine Studies, SLR and Entertainment students will be taking part in their First Aid and CPR training with the trainers and examiners from Surf Life Saving. This course will provide participants with the skills and knowledge to manage emergency first aid situations until professional medical support is available.
On Monday 1 February students from the Year 12 Geography class, along with their teachers Mr Wallington (Head of HSIE) and Ms Sutcliffe (Geography teacher), ventured out of the Eastern Suburbs to North Narrabeen. The aim of the day was to investigate coastal sand dunes as an ecosystem at risk. The cohort attended the Narrabeen Coastal Environment Centre (CEC). The qualified educators at the CEC provided Waverley students with an innovative, relevant and enjoyable field trip, engaging them in active field work.
Year 12 Geography students completing a field sketch
Narrabeen’s geographical structure makes it significantly susceptible to coastal erosion. The most vulnerable Australian coastlines are those that are made up of unconsolidated sediments, such as beaches, dunes and sand cliffs; areas that experience erosion and longshore drift. Narrabeen on the Northern Beaches has seen its fair share of storms, also known to geographers as East Coast Lows. In 2016 and again in 2020, the beach profile was extremely impacted with approximately 25 metres of beach being swept away due to storms, abnormal high tides and strong winds.
Students embarked on a bushwalk to Narrabeen Headland, a high vantage lookout area to visualise Narrabeen’s topography and to utilise their field sketching skills. A walk along the beach followed where each student used instruments to obtain primary data at regular intervals across the dune transect.
The day finished with students enjoying a stand-up paddle-board on Narrabeen lagoon, a definite highlight of the day.
Year 12 geography students at Narrabeen Headland
Tournament of Minds (TOM) offers teams of students the opportunity to solve authentic, open-ended challenges that foster creative, divergent thinking whilst developing collaborative enterprise, excellence and teamwork.
Challenges are set in the following disciplines: The Arts, Language Literature, Social Sciences and STEM.
TOM is entering its third year at Waverley College, and there are spaces available on teams. TOM forms part of the Academic Enrichment program at Waverley College, providing challenges for students across a range of domains.
Students can choose to do TOM as their only Winter Co-Curricular, or in addition to their current Winter Co-Curricular. Teams comprise students in Years 7-10.
If your son is interested in participating, please contact Academic Enrichment Coordinator Ms Boyce.
Do you have any book art you would like to display? Please bring it into the library and we can showcase!
Here is an amazing creation by our Library Staff and Book Hire Manager, Ms Pearce.
An amazing artistic book creation by our Library Staff and Book Hire Manager Ms Pearce
A reminder to all students in Years 7-10 of our Numeracy and Literacy tutoring available on Monday to Thursday afternoons in the College Library from 3.30-4.30pm.
As part of the Academic Mentoring Program, Waverley will be hosting Old Boy Kurt Von Hofe (class of 2014, 1st Football team) speaking about his journey at Waverley College through to university and to his current exciting job at the Australian Centre for Space Engineering Research here.
Kurt will deliver an engaging presentation and then take questions from students regarding all Space, Engineering and Science enquiries. So come along. Bring your friends!
Date: Tuesday 2nd March
Time: Lunch
Venue: Senior Library
RSVP: click here
Please remember to:
Should you wish to speak at the lunchtime mentor speaker series in the future, please contact Ms Belinda Buchan at bbuchan@waverley.nsw.edu.au.
Old Boy Kurt Von Hofe (class of 2014, 1st Football team)
Unfortunately due to COVID-19 restrictions, we are unable to hold our annual Welcome Cocktail Party. In lieu of the event, our wonderful Parents’ Association and Parent Representatives are hosting individual events for each year group at Clovelly Hotel. These events will provide parents with an opportunity to catch up, meet new parents and enjoy a fun evening together. Please note bookings are limited to 80 guests to comply with COVID guidelines. We hope you are able to join, booking links for each year group can be found below.
The Waverley College Parent Representatives manage a Facebook page for each year group. This group does not replace communications from the College but acts as an optional hub to allow parents to connect and communicate. If you would like to join your respective year group Facebook page, please find the links below. You will be asked a few security questions when you request to join, please answer these questions so your request can be accepted.
Facebook – join the group
Social Event – SOLD OUT (If you would like to place your name on a cancellation list please email Daniella and Anne)
Year Representatives: Daniella Strbac – daniella.strbac@gmail.com and Anne Clerc Johnson – anne_clerc-johnson@amp.com.au
Facebook – join the group
Social Event – SOLD OUT (If you would like to place your name on a cancellation list please email Liz)
Year Representatives: Liz Clothier – lizclothier@hotmail.com, Rebecca Nicholson – rdnicholson1982@yahoo.com.au and Alex Stuart Robinson – astuartrobertson@gmail.com
Facebook – join the group
Social Event – book your ticket
Year Representatives: Camille Owen – camille@cdconsulting.net.au
Facebook – join the group
Social Event – SOLD OUT (If you would like to place your name on a cancellation list please email Tina and Sheila)
Year Representatives: Tina Lee- theleefamily2301@gmail.com and Sheila Royles – sheila@roylesjohnson.com
Facebook – join the group
Social Event – book your ticket
Year Representatives: Cinzia Montresor – cinziamontresor@gmail.com
Facebook – join the group
Social Event – book your ticket
Year Representatives: Gloria Reimer – gloria@reimerfamily.com.au, Veronica Green – vgreen15@hotmail.com and Lamya Sadi – lamyasadi123@gmail.com
Facebook – join the group
Social Event – book your ticket
Year Representatives: Violetta Elliott – vi.elliott@optusnet.com.au, Roslyn Diesner – roslyn.diesner@curwoods.com.au and Liz O’Neil – liz@theoneilfamily.com
Facebook – join the group
Social Event – book your ticket
Year Representatives: Melissa Cahill – mlcahill@optusnet.com.au and Rae Norman – rae.norman@bigpond.com
Congratulations to Barney Wilson of Year 12, 2020 for his acceptance to The Australian Film Television and Radio School (AFTRS) in their Bachelor of Fine Arts: Screen Production course. (BASP). Being accepted to AFTRS is a great achievement and reflects Barney’s skills and capabilities as a young film maker, shown throughout last year in his production and filming of his Visual Arts major work ‘A Metaphor of the Mind’. We wish him luck in his exciting years of learning ahead and look forward to seeing his work on the big screen in the near future.
Welcome back to all of the Waverley College families and a special welcome to those new students and their families joining us in 2021. It has been a very busy start to the year that has already seen Year 7 and Junior School sports trials as well as weather impacts, photos and a brand new uniform that looks fantastic on the students. I wanted to highlight some important information regarding co-curricular for Term 1.
Covid-19 guidelines: We are still under important Covid restrictions for all venues on the weekends and all parents attending school sport venues must register via QR codes at the venue as well as maintain social distancing. No person should be attending if not feeling well. There are still some limitations on attendance and face-masks are encouraged at all indoor venues.
This weekend we have our next full round of co-curricular activities including Friday night 1sts and 2nds Basketball versus Cranbrook at Waverley. Parents of players only can attend and no student spectators will be permitted. We also have the CAS swimming and diving invitational at Homebush and only one parent per competitor will be permitted.
Attire – all students must be fully and correctly attired for all co-curricular activities. Students in Years 8-12 will continue to wear the kit from Term 4 summer sport, and the new Year 5 and Year 7 cohorts will be in the new kit. All students will be required to wear the new co-curricular uniforms from winter moving forward.
Leave – we have already had a number of students requesting leave for upcoming events and tournaments, and I thank all of those students and parents for their attention to this. Any leave request must be in writing (email is fine) to myself for weekends, or a student’s Head of House for school days as soon as possible. Only two weekend leave requests will be permitted per year. If a student is sick or injured for the weekend it is College policy that a medical certificate be produced please.
Codes of Conduct – I want to remind all students, parents and spectators that there are very specific Codes of Conduct and that these must be met at all times. Any breach of these Codes of Conduct will result in sanctions and potentially place a student’s enrolment into question.
The Codes of Conduct can be found here
A reminder to all students that they are required to be at fixtures on the weekend 30 minutes prior to the start, and must leave immediately at the conclusion of their game. All students playing outdoor fixtures are also strongly encouraged to wear hats and take other sun protection procedures. All students must not share water bottles at any stage.
Best wishes for all students for this weekend and ‘Go the Waves!’
2021 Fees
Discounts and Penalties
Fees paid before 4pm on the prompt payment date attract a $25.00 discount.
Any payment received after the due date will attract an administrative fee of $110.00.
Please be advised that some financial institutions need more than 48 hours to process their payments (e.g. internet/BPay/BPoint).
Please see the last page of your account for payment method and contact details.
Enrolment Withdrawal Notice
You are reminded that if you wish to withdraw your son from enrolment at Waverley College, you are required to give one term’s notice in writing to the Head of College that your son’s enrolment will cease.
The last day you can give notice that your son’s enrolment is finishing at the end of a school term, is the first day of the same term. If not received by that date, a penalty equivalent to one term’s tuition fees will be payable.
The relevant dates for 2020 and 2021 are below:
Home Learning serves many purposes. It may be to consolidate or check or extend the learning from the day, or prepare for the learning to come in subsequent days. It could be to do with longer term work such as assignments or preparing for tests and examinations. Ultimately it comes back to what school is all about – learning. And learning not just about learning content, but learning and developing skills.
At times students feel that the work they are doing at school is not relevant to their lives, however sometimes we need to look beyond the content to the purpose of the learning exercise. At times the content will be a vehicle to teach particular skills. Much of what we learn in Mathematics develops the problem solving circuits in our brain. When you are analysing Shakespeare you are learning not just about Shakespeare, but to think critically and expand your point of view and broaden your experience of the world through examination of different lives, emotions and experiences. The message is that everything you learn at school has purpose and value, even if you can’t always quite see it at the time.
There is much debate in the media as to the value of homework. In primary school it has been shown that only a small amount of students actually benefit from doing homework in terms of academic achievement. The exception to this is reading at home – every student benefits from this. However, other benefits can’t be discounted: developing independent working skills, establishing study routines necessary for learning in later years, helping students master things they are struggling with and allowing parental involvement.
In secondary school, homework has been proven to be an essential component of academic success in the senior years. The reality of Year 11 and 12 is that a large component of independent learning needs to be undertaken at home. One of the biggest problems for students transitioning to the senior years is that they have not learnt to work effectively and efficiently in the home environment. This is why developing good habits and learning to do at least a solid hour a day of home study is essential in Years 7-10. It is also about developing the qualities of discipline and perseverance, both essential for senior studies. Students will not like every subject equally, so students need to learn how to make themselves do the work even for their least favourite subjects.
What can you do this year to manage your homework effectively? Try these top tips:
Get Organised Straight Away: As soon as you get home unpack your bag before you have a break and something to eat. Lay out all the work first. It is easier to get started if you have everything ready to go.
Prioritise and Plan: Before you start work, write a list of what needs to be done and decide in what order you will do it. Focus on what is most important, not just what subject you like best! Also write down how long you think each task will take to do.
Develop Thinking Pathways: Keep in your mind that it is all about learning. Try to look beyond the actual content to what type of skill this homework might be developing in you – analysing, critical thinking, writing skills, or problem-solving skills for example.
Chunk Time into Focused Blocks: Do your work in 20-30 minute blocks with no distractions during that time. So switch off the TV, turn off your phone for that 20-30 minutes. When you just focus on the work that needs to be done, you’ll be amazed at how much work you complete. Of course if you are on a roll, you can keep going past the 30 minutes.
Alternate and Chip Away: If there is a task you really don’t want to do then alternate this with a task you enjoy doing. For example, 15 minutes on the homework you like, 5 minutes on the homework you don’t like. When you chip away at it you will be surprised how quickly you get through the work.
Learn more this year about how to improve your results and be more efficient and effective with your schoolwork by working through the units in Study Skills Handbook
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We are extremely pleased to advise that we again have the ability to have volunteers back in the Senior Canteen this year starting next week.
The canteen will continue to be open every school day of the year. Therefore, we are looking for as many volunteer workers as possible to assist us in our daily operations from 9.30am till 1.45pm.
Lunch is provided for all volunteers.
We highly value the assistance and support of our volunteer workers as it allows us to be more efficient in our services for the students. We welcome all members of the Waverley College Community (Mothers, Fathers, Grandparents, Aunts, Uncles, Carers etc). We are also happy to take on any availability, whether it’s once a week, month, or even once a term – it all helps.
We are currently putting together the volunteer roster online, so if you are interested please select the below link for the Senior School:
If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to reach out to Ms Nina Kormanyos, College Canteen Manager via email: nkormanyos@waverley.nsw.edu.au
We would like to acknowledge the Gadigal people of the Eora nation who are the traditional Custodians of the land on which Waverley College is located. We pay our respects to Elders past, present and emerging. We are committed to honouring Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples’ unique cultural and spiritual connections to the land, waters, seas and sky and their rich contribution to society.
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