Vanessa Witton, Author at Waverley College

Please find below some reminders about upcoming events. For all of Term 2 events, please refer to the College calendar.

Hearts For Arch Day

In 2020 our community was rocked when we lost Year 8 student Archie Perkins. Archie passed away from a pre-existing heart condition over the summer holiday period. This came as a terrible shock to Archie’s family and the Waverley College community, particularly Archie’s close friends and Year group. Archie would have been graduating from Waverley College this year and in memory of him, we will be holding a Hearts For Arch Day.

This day will be held on Thursday, 13 June 2024 in which the students will wear mufti uniform and are required to give a gold coin donation. All money raised will go directly to the Sydney Children’s Hospitals Network Cardiac Unit and to the purchase of the mobile ECG units; Kardia.The aim to provide a Kardia mobile to every eligible cardiac patient at Sydney Children’s Hospitals, and at $173 each, every dollar counts. Donations can be made through the Hearts for Arch Foundation.

We also encourage students to purchase merchandise which they can wear throughout Week 7. This will be available for purchase at school on Thursday 13 and Friday 14 June, however, you can also purchase merchandise HERE.

We look forward to welcoming Archie’s family to our College Assembly where they will share Archie’s story and the importance of the Hearts for Arch Foundation.

Congratulations Ethan!

Congratulations to Ethan Storie (6 Gold) who entered a poem competition in the science magazine Double Helix. He had to write a poem about Covid and chose to write an acrostic poem (see below). Ethan won his age category and won Pandemic the board game. Well done Ethan!

UNSW and IBSC Boys’ Learning and Wellbeing Research Project

Waverley College is participating in a research project titled ‘Supporting School Students’ Learning and Wellbeing‘ facilitated by the School of Education at the University of New South Wales (UNSW) and the International Boys’ School Coalition (IBSC), which aims to investigate the educational practices that support students’ learning and wellbeing in the classroom and in their co-curricular activities.

Students in Years 7-12 will complete an online questionnaire during Period 1 classes on Friday, 24 May 2024. Students in Years 5-6 will complete the questionnaire during Period 1 on Thursday 23 May. The questionnaire will ask them about educational practices at the school (eg instruction, guidance from teachers, coaches, etc) and also about their learning (eg motivation, engagement) and wellbeing (eg flourishing, sense of belonging). The questionnaire should take approximately 20 minutes to complete.

If you agree for your child to take part in the project, you are not required to do anything else.

If you do not want your child to participate in this project, please fill in your details on page 4 of the attached Parent Information Form for UNSW & IBSC Research Project and email it to Ms Lauren Ryan, EA to the Deputy Principal-Students lryan@waverley.nsw.edu.au by 12pm on Wednesday, 22 May, 2024.

If you have any questions or concerns regarding the above, please do not hesitate to contact me at gsmith@waverley.nsw.edu.au

Termly Curriculum Overview and SMART Goals

A warm welcome back to another exciting and packed Term of learning at the Junior School. Please find below the Termly Curriculum Overviews to see what your son will be covering in each of his Key Learning Areas in Term 2.

A new Term is a fantastic opportunity to set new goals. Your son will be setting SMART goals in class using the College Diary as a guide, we recommend you use this to prompt a conversation about what he wants to achieve and how he can be supported in this.

Co-curricular Sport

AFL

Round 2 went ahead for two of our AFL teams, and they both came away with convincing wins. Well done to the boys who played in the rain and mud and made Waverley proud!

Football

Next week, Year 5 will begin their ManCity PE takeover where they will have the privilege of Mr Ben Charlton running them through professional Football sessions.

CIS Rugby League Trials

Congratulations to the five students who attended the CIS Rugby League Trials on Monday, 13 May. Please read the below report from our Junior School Rugby Convenor, Mr Alon Horry.

The Waverley College Rugby program is up and running at the Junior School, with a wide array of talent and skills on display. After a series of fiercely-contested Rugby trials, we have named our sides to proudly don their respective gold and blue jerseys and represent the Junior School Campus. Mother Nature has been doing her best to stand in the way of our season thus far, with some rain-interrupted fixtures in the opening rounds. However, the boys are raring to go for what is set to be an exciting campaign across the grades.

For Round 3, the Prep Firsts will be travelling to Riverview for what will be a gruelling opening match against a longstanding rival. The two sides last met on the Armidale tour and the Waverley boys will be gunning for a victory to open up their account for 2024. The Prep Blues and Golds will battle against one another in their highly anticipated derby match and one not to be missed. Kick-off is at 8am at Queens Park 6.

The under 11s are heading to Shore for their first match of the season, with the 11As determined to get their season up and running with a win. The Cs will play in the curtain raiser with the 11Bs travelling to Terrey Hills to face Mosman Prep. All three sides had the luxury of Waverley Old Boy and former Wallaby, Morgan Turinui joining them for training this week as part of ‘Legends Week’ at the College. Morgan put the boys through their paces with some tackling drills that will have them in good stead for this week and the upcoming season.

Around the grounds, we had five students from the College try out for the CIS representative Rugby League team this week at The Ponds. Jacob Coleman, Taj Cooke, Jude McDermott, Fergus Samba Hoare and Patrick Spencer attended the all-day event and represented the College with great honour and prowess. Each of our boys were well in the mix right up until the very end with Jacob, Fergus and Patrick selected as part of the 17 who will play matches in Lake Macquarie and Wollongong. Congratulations to all of the boys for their monumental efforts and especially the boys selected for representative honours.

Home Learning Term 2 Week 4

We offer all students in Year 5 and Year 6 the opportunity to receive free additional support after school for the completion of home learning tasks. The afternoon sessions also provide a quiet, supervised study space for students who want to complete their assigned tasks.

Home Learning Club operates in the Learning Hub from 3pm until 4pm – Mondays, Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays – during school term unless there is a scheduled Professional Development meeting and the club will be closed.

Procedures

Only register his name once to allow other students the opportunity to attend. The session is limited to 20 spots. There will be a roll call to ensure attendance.

Students are required to stay for the full session unless there is a message in the student diary requesting early leave, a parent’s signature will be required.

Behaviour

As it is important to respect the rights of others to learn and work, all students are expected to settle to work in the Learning Hub and not cause a disturbance for others.

Teachers

An important note to remember, if afternoon training sessions are cancelled, unfortunately, you cannot send your son to Home Learning as an alternative plan, students are registered for the afternoon sessions in advance and the capacity is always reached.

2024 ICAS Competitions | Years 5 and 6 students

What is ICAS? 

ICAS is an online academic competition designed to assess students’ higher-order thinking and problem-solving skills in English, Mathematics, Science, Writing  and Digital Technologies.

Each assessment celebrates students’ accomplishments by providing opportunities forrecognition and development. Every student who participates will receive a printed certificate and an online results report.

If you would like your son to compete in the 2024 ICAS Competitions, you will be asked to nominate which competitions you would like him to be entered in through the Parent Payment System. At the Junior School, the following ICAS competitions are offered: Writing & Digital Technologies, Science & English and Mathematics.

This year all the competitions will be held in August / September, Term 3 and will be completed online in the Learning Hub before school starts. A timetable will be shared closer to the assessment dates.

Click HERE to register your son. Through this system, parents can pay for ICAS directly online while tests will still be held at our school. Please use the school’s access code details to register your child no later than 23 July 2024

Please consider carefully before choosing this enrichment opportunity for your son. It is a rigorous competition with many questions set beyond grade level. Participants are required to demonstrate a deeper, integrated and thorough level of learning. If you are unsure of your son’s suitability, please consult with his teacher. More information about the assessments can be found at ICAS Assessments: Home.

If you require additional support registering your son contact the customer service team. Call Australian Toll-Free 1800 931 775.

IPSHA Debating

I thank our Year 10 student Dante Fearn for offering to mentor our Junior School IPSHA Debating Team. It has been a successful start to training sessions.

Dante’s experience in debating has offered the Junior School team valuable insights into effective argumentation, rebuttal strategies, and public speaking techniques.

Drawing Club

Good luck to the Drawing Club students who entered the Mysteries of the Deep competition run by Waverley Council. Your interpretation of the theme was original.

A Window into the World of 6 Gold and Mr Ghattas

Over the last couple of weeks, the students of 6 Gold have been busy working on different class tasks to showcase their learning across the different subject areas.

In Mathematics, to reflect their knowledge of angles and how they are useful in the real world, they designed a mini Putt Putt Course that needed to adhere to certain criteria.

In English, we are studying Young Dark Emu, by Bruce Pascoe, which gives an insight into the early history of Australia from an Indigenous perspective.

The students have been reading the various chapters and then reflecting on this through their own personal journal.

Along with the rest of the students, they researched and discussed the life of Blessed Edmund Rice, founder of the Christian Brothers, through various activities in class including podcasts, posters and research activities.

I am proud of how they have all been applying themselves to the their schooling in Term 2.

We will be running a series of workshops designed to enhance English and Writing skills as Year 12 students work toward the HSC. All students in Year 12 Standard and Advanced English courses are expected to attend both workshops once.

Students must register for these workshops which will be conducted in P6 on Mondays and at another time yet to be confirmed. Students are advised to check that they do not have an existing assessment task during that period. Registrations will be capped at 25 students per workshop.

Workshop 1 – Effective Paragraph Writing
Facilitator: Ms Mary Ryan – Head of Literacy

This workshop is relevant to all subjects which require the writing of long answer responses and extended responses. Focus will be on the following:

Students will be expected to bring along a sample of their own work (long answer/ extended response) which has already been marked. This can be from any subject.

Workshop 2 – Interpreting Marking Criteria in English
Facilitator: Ms Helen Barrie – Head of Academic Enrichment

This workshop examines the precise elements that support an HSC marker’s decision to determine which band your essay sits in. By matching your essay with the specific criteria of each band, you will learn how to tighten and elevate your essay compositions to ensure they precisely convey your overarching thesis and establish a strong writer/reader relationship with the marker.

Students will be expected to bring along a sample of one of their English responses.

Please find below the schedule for the Year 12 Tutorials in Term 2, Week 4. Topics covered during the tutorials include content revision, study skills, exam preparation and practice papers. These tutorials have proven extremely valuable and, while not compulsory, are strongly encouraged.

It is important that we know attendance numbers so teachers can prepare accordingly. To that end, the expectation is that students who register for the tutorial, attend. Rolls will be taken to assist us to manage the program. The cut-off time to register for morning tutorials is 3pm the day prior.

Ms Brooke Kent has emailed the registration sheet to students to register their attendance at the tutorials.

Dear Students, Parents and Carers,

DATE	SUBJECT	TIME	STAFF	ROOM
Monday, 20 May 2024	Geography	7:30am – 8:30am	Wallington	W25
Monday, 20 May 2024	Studies of Religion II	3:15pm – 5:15pm	Cooper/ Stewart	W40
Tuesday, 21 May 2024	Maths Standard 2	7:30am – 8:30am	O’Connor	E36
	Mathematics Advanced	7:30am – 8:30am	Phoebe Guirguis	E42
	Visual Arts	3:15pm – 5pm	Turnbull	C13
	Drama	7:30am – 8:30am	Gina Cohen	P12
Wednesday, 22 May 2024	Industrial Tech Multimedia	7:30am – 8:30am	Gibbs	W32A
	PDHPE	7:30am – 8:30am	Darvill	GHR
	Maths Standard 2	7:30am – 8:30am	Cornish	E33
	Modern History	3:15pm – 4:15pm	Brophy	K11
Friday, 24 May 2024	Software Design & Development	7am – 8am	Stead	T04
	Hospitality	7am – 8am	McCarthy	TF1
	Design and Technology	7am – 8am	Medcalf	T03

Ms Brooke Kent has emailed the registration sheet to students to register their attendance at the tutorials.

Weekly Careers Newsletter – Term 2 Week 3 2024

Jobs for Juniors – Casual Job Opportunity – Beach Burrito in Coogee

A local, family owned business, Beach Burrito is offering opportunities for any young people (15 -18 years old) looking to gain experience in the hospitality industry, as no experience is required.

Juniors only work short shifts and are always supervised and taught by senior staff and management.

If you are interested, contact Emma emma@anexion.com.au or call in to the restaurant.

Annual Passing Out Parade and Awards Ceremony – Sunday, 16 June 2024, 11am – Centenary Quad

On Sunday 16 June, we farewell our Senior Ranks at the Annual Passing Out Parade and Awards Ceremony. This special event gives us the opportunity to recognise the amazing contribution our Year 12 cadets have made to the Unit over the past five years. With the whole Cadet Unit parading in ceremonial dress, we also recognise cadets across all Year groups who have excelled in their service to their platoons, companies, and the Unit.

All members of the Unit are required to attend Passing Out Parade, forming up at 10:30am on Sunday, 16 June in AMCU Ceremonial Dress Code 4Z.

We welcome all parents/carers to view the parade from the upper-level balconies. Please bring your coat in case of cooler weather.

Dining In Night – Sunday, 16 June 2024, 6:30pm – Waverley College Gymnasium

All Year 12 cadets and parents/carers should have received their invitation to attend this special formal military dinner to celebrate your sons and daughters as they graduate from the Waverley College Cadet Unit.

Cadet Promotions Courses

In farewelling the Year 12 senior rank, we turn our attention to developing the next leaders of the Cadet Unit at the annual Promotions Courses. Here, our dedicated and motivated young men and women come together to learn the skills they need to lead the Cadet Unit for the coming Cadet Year.

The courses are run concurrently from Monday, 15 July – Saturday, 20 July 2024 at Winbourne Conference Centre, Mulgoa. Attendance is a requirement of promotion so please keep these dates free.

For those already making plans for 2025, the Promotions Courses next year will be held from Monday, 14 July – Saturday, 19 July 2025. Attendance at Promotions Courses is compulsory for all aiming to become a Sergeant, Warrant Officer or Cadet Under Officer. Please note these dates if your child is wanting to progress to these important leadership roles.

Year 9 Discontinuing Cadet Uniform Returns Weekend

Bookings are now available for those discontinuing Cadets to return all uniform and equipment on Saturday, 25 May and Sunday, 26 May 2024.

Returns are at the Q Clothing Store located behind the Grange Building. Access is easiest from the Carrington Road carpark.

Each appointment will only take five minutes, but it is important that your gear is marked off against the issue sheet, as any missing items will incur a replacement fee, charged to your school account.

We thank all our discontinuing cadets for their time in the Cadet Unit and wish them well in their future endeavours.

Year 8 Parent Information Evening

Our new Year 8 recruits commence their Cadet journey in Term 3, 2024. To learn more about this exciting new venture, we are holding a Parent Information Evening on Monday, 27 May at 6:30pm in the Performing Arts Centre. To ensure enough space for everyone, please send one parent/carer and your son.

Year 11 Design & Technology students recently travelled to the Walsh Bay Arts Precinct to attend seminars and see the ‘SHAPE’ Exhibition. This exhibition displays students’ exemplary 2023 HSC major projects from Design and Technology, Industrial Technology and Textiles and Design.

Senior marker and guest speaker Ms Wagner spoke to students about what markers are looking for in their Major Design Project (MDP) and folio. She discussed the marking guidelines through examples of student work, and provided advice on choosing a Major Design Project.

In our second seminar, students heard from and engaged with industry professional, Sydney-based Product Designer Zachary Hanna. Zachary spoke about his education at UTS, travelling to work in Milan and his passion for furniture and lighting. Zachary has worked in numerous design consultancies, winning numerous awards.

After the seminars, students had time to unpack what they had learnt, examine the range of different projects, view the works closely and read sections of the exhibited design folio. The opportunity to engage with markers and industry professionals at the exhibition was a great experience for Waverley College Students.

The University of Sydney is running a repeat of their subject selection information webinar specifically for Waverley College students and parents/carers.

The webinar will run on 3 June, 6pm-7:30pm. We will have staff available to answer questions. Here is a link to the webinar registration, if you would like to attend.

It is with great excitement that our 2023 Visual Art student Luka Zonich’s selected artwork ‘What Would Pa Do?’ will be on exhibition for ARTEXPRESS at the Ngununggala (Southern Highlands) Art Gallery. Opening Night will be on Saturday, 25 May 2024, and the exhibition will be open from 18 May – 30 June and is a free event.

Luka’s artwork was inspired by Reg Mombassa and is a visual chronicle of tales that his Pa has shared with Luka. Pa’s tales are a unique blend of wisdom and humour, with a touch of the extraordinary. They have been invaluable life lessons, as well as a nostalgic link to childhood and that time spent with family.

Within the art making process for the body of work, Luka explored Pa’s storytelling and narratives, subject matter that symbolises his home and heritage of New Zealand. The chosen colours and drawing style are representative of Pa’s humour and remarkable stories.

Mother’s Day

We wish all mothers, grandmothers, stepmothers and significant female carers a respective Happy Mothers’ Day on Sunday. I hope you are acknowledged for the significant role you play in your children’s development, for the care and support you provide and the wisdom and skills you share so generously.

I hope boys are thankful and appreciative for all that you have done and sacrificed for them and will continue to do for them. The College also thanks you for the significant contribution mothers have made to Waverley throughout its 121 years of service. Mothers and other female carers have made a significant impact on the lives of students, the school’s culture and the sense of community. Happy Mother’s Day.

A prayer for all Mothers;

Blessed Edmund Rice Feast Day – 5 May 2024

We wish a blessing upon all that have worked in Christian Brother Schools and Catholic Schools in the Edmund Rice Tradition, for the lasting legacy of schools across Australia and the world, which all began in 1802 with the establishment of the first school in Waterford, Ireland by our Founder Edmund Rice.

Please find an EREA Feast Day message from the Chair of the EREA Council, Dr Michael Slattery HERE.

Hearts For Arch Day

We look forward to welcoming Archie’s family to our College Assembly where they will share Archie’s story and the importance of the Hearts for Arch Foundation.

Strategic Planning – Perspectives Survey

The 2025-2027 Strategic Planning process will begin shortly. The College will be seeking feedback from stakeholder groups. The information gathered will assist in furthering the growth and development of our school community. We will use the survey results to help inform and direct future school planning and improvement strategies.

The survey instruments that we are using have been created by the Association of Independent School NSW (AISNSW). These surveys have been specifically designed to assist schools in gaining an understanding of stakeholders’ perceptions of five important areas: School Environment, Teaching and Learning, Student Wellbeing, Leadership and Community. All staff, students, parents/guardians/carers, leaders and board members will be invited to participate.

The surveys will be distributed via email to all from ‘evidence@aisnsw.edu.au’ on behalf of the school and will take approximately 10-15 minutes to complete. All information will be anonymous and no data information will be stored past the process.

Your input and contribution are important to the success of our continuous school improvement process as we aspire to improve the learning experience for everyone at our school.

Thespian in Action

Congratulations to Fox Stapleton (Year 11) who played the senior male role in the St Catherine’s School 2024 School Musical Legally Blonde, which opened last night. Fox produced a stellar performance along with his St Catherine’s School colleagues. It was truly an enjoyable evening of entertainment with all students delivering a very high standard of performance.

Mr Peter Lamb (Head of Drama) and I were both impressed also with the number of Fox’s peers who had bought tickets to go along and support him and friends at St Catherine’s. We saw this same support last Term for Mackenzie Singh (Year 12) and Matthew Frost (Year 12) who had lead roles in the KRB 2024 School Musical.

It is a nice attribute that I see often from Waverley boys and something we as a community should acknowledge and encourage. I am looking forward to Waverley’s production in Week 8 of this Term (18 – 22 June 2024), Tartuffe (The Hypocrite) where we will see a number of our students along with St Clare’s and Ascham students perform.

Courage2Care Presentation Inspires and Provokes

During Thursday morning, our entire Year 10 cohort participated in a special program delivered by the Courage2Care organisation. Focussed on the Holocaust, the key message of child survivor Mr Jack Feller and the volunteer presenters was for Waverley staff and students alike to be upstanders and not bystanders. In line with our Wellbeing program, for our staff and students to act against bullying and discrimination in all its forms.

The centrepiece of the presentation was Mr Jack Feller relating his personal, harrowing story: being born to parents in hiding in Nazi-occupied Poland, surviving the final months of the war with a foster family and being reunited with his birth parents at 11 months of age. As Mr Feller told our students, he survived because Polish neighbours stood up to the Nazis at risk of their own lives.

Year 10 History students are currently engaged in a deep-learning investigation of the Holocaust, which covers the entirety of Term 2. The study includes formative tasks related to the Courage2Care presentation, as well as a formal assessment task on refuting Holocaust denial.

The Courage2Care incursion is part of the College’s ongoing community engagement project, seeking to reach out to groups within the immediate neighbourhood of Waverley and beyond.

Thank you to the History Department staff who organised this important incursion. A great initiative which is sure to have inspired our students as well as to provoke deeper thinking about themselves.

Redfern Jarjum College ‘ Our Mob’ – 15 June 2024

Every two years, Jarjum College holds a fundraiser at the International Convention Centre Sydney to assist them to raise funds to support the educational model of their school. It is also a great opportunity for us to share with the wider community our success. Given the on-going partnership between Waverley and Jarjum, they would love to see some of our community present on the evening.

University of Sydney Year 12 Information Evening – Wednesday, 22 May, 4pm – 7pm

The University of Sydney is offering an information evening to explore their iconic campus and learn more about university entry, scholarships, study options and more at their information evening for Year 12 students and their caregivers.

Don’t miss this opportunity to explore your options and ask any questions you have about joining the Sydney student community next year. This on-campus event will include a tour, course advice exhibition and information sessions on curriculum, scholarships, student support, campus life and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander study pathways.

If you can’t make it in person, don’t worry – the online session on 23 May will cover everything you need to know!

The University of Sydney also has a number of upcoming webinar events to help you discover what it’s like to study a bachelor’s degree there. Their events are best suited for students from Years 10-12, and include tips on your school subjects, preparing for uni and how to choose a course.

We are thrilled to share exciting news about the Waverley Council and Walawaani Art project. As part of our commitment to reconciliation and fostering understanding and respect for Indigenous cultures, Walawaani has partnered with Waverley Council for an art project to create artworks and promotional banners for the council’s Reconciliation Week. Over the weekend, the flags were installed across parts of the Waverley local area. Key places of the flag are Campbell Parade, Bondi Junction and Birrell Street.

During this project, our students had the unique opportunity to work closely with local Indigenous artists and the Council to collaboratively create artworks that celebrate and honour Indigenous cultures and histories. This initiative not only allows our students to express their creativity but also provides them with a platform to learn about and engage with Indigenous perspectives and artistic traditions.

From their artworks they created, key symbols from multiple artworks created the flag for Reconciliation Week. This flag will be hung in the local area for the next three weeks.

Students’ artworks will be on exhibition at Waverley Library 28 July – 22 August 2024.

Edmund Ignatius Rice Senior Essay and Speech Competition

Congratulations to the finalists of the inaugural Edmund Ignatius Rice Senior Essay and Speech Competition who presented their speeches in Round 2 of the competition on Monday, 6 May 2024.

All three finalists were extremely impressive and the judging panel will have a tremendously challenging task to award first, second and third place. There was a discerning audience who attended to support the students including the College Principal, Mr Leddie, Old Boy, Dr David Curran (Class of 1970) and a range of staff and senior students.

The award winners will be presented in our Edmund Rice assembly next Thursday, 16 May alongside the students who will be receiving Highly Commended and Commendation certificates.

Many thanks to the judging panel: Dr Couani, Head of English, Ms Stewart, Head of Religion, and Mr Smith, Head of History.

Waverley Students Commended at the Ethics Olympiad

This week our Senior students showcased their capacity for rigorous intellectual debate and ethical exploration at the annual Ethics Olympiad. Among the standout topics this year were discussions exploring the societal impacts of new AI technologies and the ethics of sporting investments from potentially questionable sources. Our Waverley students were commended by judges for their exceptional insight and empathy as they engaged with these current issues receiving honourable mentions in the results.

We would like to take this opportunity to celebrate James Barber, Ben Cromer, Dante Fearn, Xavier Kopsiaftis and Ryan Murphy from Year 10, as well as Alexander Avdalis, Henry Goldrich, Carter Hughes, Leo Owen, Evan Service and Luke Ibrahim from Year 9.

The collaborative spirit and respectful engagement from these two teams demonstrates that the Ethics Olympiad not only fosters intellectual growth but also encourages empathy and open-mindedness—a sentiment that was evident in the camaraderie of these teams and their interactions with teams from other schools.

As always, it takes a village to pull off these events, we would like to thank the Canteen for providing morning tea and lunch and to Mr Bill Roberts and Ms Bella Davies for their supervision and coaching.

2024 Lawrence Campbell Oratory Competition

On Friday 4 May, James Peate (Year 11) took part in the Lawrence Campbell Competition at Scots College. This is a prestigious competition that has seen the likes of Malcolm Turnbull, Murray Gleeson and Adam Spencer as previous winners. On the evening of the competition, all competitors were given three topics:

James had 15 minutes to compose an eight-minute speech based on one of the topics. He then had to deliver the speech in front of a panel of judges as well as all the spectators. The focus of James’ speech was survivorship bias, the nature of objective truth and interpretations of history.

James should be both congratulated and commended for representing Waverley College at Lawrence Campbell. It is no easy feat to speak in front of a room of strangers especially with little time to prepare and he represented the school with pride.

Inaugural LEGO League and Inaugural Robotics Competitions

UNSW EMU Robotics, is a student-led robotics competition team, participating in the first First LEGO League and First Robotics Competitions!

The upcoming ‘Open Nights’ are held at the UNSW Electrical Engineering building. The Junior team learn about robotics through their hands-on experience with LEGO EV3 and SPIKE robots. Senior teams design, build and code a robot from scratch using materials like aluminium and timber. This robot competes in an annual competition where it plays on an alliance with two other robots.

They are also trying to establish a regional First LEGO League competition within the Eastern Suburbs so that a local option is available to teams in the area.

If your child is interested, please see the flyers in the links below for more information and registration.

Robotics Team Open Nights

Linking to Experts in the Field to Celebrate 2024 NSW Law Week

Linking to legal experts was on display today with our Waverley Council and Waverley College Library collaboration for NSW Law Week.

Our Year 11 students were fortunate that Waverley Public Library partnered with Legal Aid to foster community and student engagement with Law.

Legal Aid professional Caterina Mazza presented some compelling issues relating to young people and the criminal law in a workshop which delivered a very practical understanding of the Children’s Criminal Law jurisdiction. Based on syllabus outcomes for the Year 12 Legal Studies course, it illuminated:

Both students and teachers learned a great deal from this collaboration and share their reflections below.

Students:

“It was something new that I have never experienced, I would love the opportunity to learn about the law in real life more.”

“It would have been good to be longer, there was more I wanted to ask and find out.”

Teachers:

“The boys enjoyed it and lots of relevant questions were asked at the end.” – Mr Bill Roberts

“The partnership with NSW Law week was a resounding success, as it provided our Year 11 students with a unique opportunity to delve into practical aspects of the legal system. The students gained invaluable insights into the criminal jurisdiction of the Children’s Court, diversionary and sentencing options. This excursion not only enriched their understanding of the Year 11 Legal Studies syllabus but also fostered a deeper engagement with the complexities of the law, empowering them to become informed and conscientious citizens. Thank you Waverley Public Library, Legal Aid and Mr Roberts for all his assistance in organising this.” – Ms Michelle Joyce

We look forward to further workshops on Criminal Law and Consent coming up over the next Terms.

Diary Dates

Hearts For Arch Day

Congratulations Ethan!

UNSW and IBSC Boys’ Learning and Wellbeing Research Project

Termly Curriculum Overview and SMART Goals

Co-curricular Sport

AFL

Football

CIS Rugby League Trials

Home Learning Term 2 Week 4

Procedures

Behaviour

Teachers

2024 ICAS Competitions | Years 5 and 6 students

What is ICAS?

IPSHA Debating

Drawing Club

A Window into the World of 6 Gold and Mr Ghattas

Workshop 1 – Effective Paragraph Writing Facilitator: Ms Mary Ryan – Head of Literacy

Workshop 2 – Interpreting Marking Criteria in English Facilitator: Ms Helen Barrie – Head of Academic Enrichment

Weekly Careers Newsletter – Term 2 Week 3 2024

Jobs for Juniors – Casual Job Opportunity – Beach Burrito in Coogee

Annual Passing Out Parade and Awards Ceremony – Sunday, 16 June 2024, 11am – Centenary Quad

Dining In Night – Sunday, 16 June 2024, 6:30pm – Waverley College Gymnasium

Cadet Promotions Courses

Year 9 Discontinuing Cadet Uniform Returns Weekend

Year 8 Parent Information Evening

Mother’s Day

A prayer for all Mothers;

Blessed Edmund Rice Feast Day – 5 May 2024

Hearts For Arch Day

Strategic Planning – Perspectives Survey

Thespian in Action

Courage2Care Presentation Inspires and Provokes

Redfern Jarjum College ‘ Our Mob’ – 15 June 2024

University of Sydney Year 12 Information Evening – Wednesday, 22 May, 4pm – 7pm

Edmund Ignatius Rice Senior Essay and Speech Competition

Waverley Students Commended at the Ethics Olympiad

2024 Lawrence Campbell Oratory Competition

Inaugural LEGO League and Inaugural Robotics Competitions

Robotics Team Open Nights

Linking to Experts in the Field to Celebrate 2024 NSW Law Week

Students:

Teachers:

Senior Campus

Junior Campus

A Catholic School for boys inthe tradition of Edmund Rice

What is ICAS? 

Workshop 1 – Effective Paragraph Writing
Facilitator: Ms Mary Ryan – Head of Literacy

Workshop 2 – Interpreting Marking Criteria in English
Facilitator: Ms Helen Barrie – Head of Academic Enrichment

A Catholic School for boys in
the tradition of Edmund Rice