View the Week 3 Careers Newsletter HERE.
Please see me if you require any further assistance or information.
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Ms Kath Knowles
Senior Studies & Careers Coordinator
kknowles@waverley.nsw.edu.au
In line with the PDHPE curriculum, all students in Year 9 will be participating in ballroom dancing lessons and an evening of dance during Week 6 of Term 1. The dance will be conducted in association with St Clare’s College and will be led by the Joan Carmody School of Dance. The details for each event are as follows.
Ballroom dancing lessons will be conducted in the Lacey Gymnasium at Waverley College during Periods 1 and 2. All students are required to bring their PE shoes to change into (normal school uniform to be worn to school).
Students will participate in an organised dance with St Clare’s College. The dance will begin promptly in the Lacey Gymnasium at Waverley College at 6:30pm and will conclude at 8:30pm. Students are requested to wear collared shirts, long pants and trainers.
The dance will be supervised by both Waverley and St Clare’s staff members. Students are required to get their name marked off as they enter the dance.
This is a fantastic opportunity for students to learn the skills of ballroom dancing and to enjoy a social evening with their peers. Boys are reminded that they will be representing the College and therefore normal school expectations for behaviour and cooperation will apply.
Dr Percy Watson was a teacher at our College between 1957 and 1969 who inspired his students so much that they established a scholarship named after him to support our teachers, contributing to their postgraduate study. Our teachers at Waverley College work hard to make sure that their practice is as effective as possible. This includes continuous learning on Professional Learning days and, for many, at university with further study.
The award celebrates the teachers who received the scholarship in 2023 and the winner was presented this week in the High Achievers’ Assembly. It was such a difficult decision for the College to award just one teacher, as they all used their further study to contribute to our teaching and learning, wellbeing and spirituality programs. The recipient of the award for 2023 was Ms Cath Lipman who completed her certificate in Religious Education in 2023. Cath’s study has supported her work with the Stage 4 and 5 social justice programs and Year 10 Service Week.
In this Thursday’s High Achievers’ assembly, our community welcomed back to celebrate the HSC high achievers of the Graduating Class of 2023 and recognise our recipients of the inaugural Old Boys’ Union Award for Academic Integrity and Fortitude. This exciting new award, not only acknowledges academic success, but also qualities of perseverance, dedication, and excellence.
Emphasising the importance of character, one of the six Global Competencies (6 Cs) that our students are learning about in class, we heard the very real stories from the students themselves about their commitment to learning, seeking feedback, and embracing discomfort as essential components of success. In the words of organisational psychologist Adam Grant, “great originals are unafraid to fail,” and our high achievers are living proof of this sentiment.
We commenced our assembly by celebrating our students who achieved the Old Boys’ Union Award for Academic Integrity and Fortitude. We launched this award this year to recognise our students in Years 8-12 who are excellent examples of what it means to have a growth mindset and determination to make a consistent effort. These are attributes that employers and universities want to see in young people as they enter into the world of adulthood.
The Old Boys’ Union Award for Academic Integrity and Fortitude is awarded to students who demonstrated these attributes in a way that can be measured through their GPA improvement from Semester 1 to Semester 2 during the year, and the feedback from teachers about the way these students approached their learning to achieve these gains.
We celebrated the following award winners:
Also in our assembly, it was inspirational to acknowledge the group of Year 11 Accelerated Mathematics students who excelled as recipients of the HSC Distinguished Achiever Awards for Mathematics Advanced – meaning they achieved a Band 6 in this subject at the start of Year 12.
We also celebrated the creativity and artistic achievements of students from the 2023 cohort who were selected and nominated for their Major Works and Performances in Drama, Music, Technologies and Visual Arts.
One of these students, Kit Armstrong, shared the story of his journey and what motivated him to persevere through challenges. He shared many words of wisdom, and one that resonated with many in the audience covered three achievable steps for excellence: “find your passion, pair it with measurable goals, and finally, a lot of hard work. If you do these simple things then your success is guaranteed not only in the HSC, but the rest of your life.”
Kit is certainly speaking from experience, having shared his journey of improving his results from below 50% in Maths and Physics in Year 11 to achieve HSC marks over 90, and a creative arts showcase nomination for Design and Technology with his Dual Eco Power Generator Major Project.
“Find your passion, pair it with measurable goals, and finally, a lot of hard work. If you do these simple things then your success is guaranteed not only in the HSC, but the rest of your life.” – Kit Armstrong (Class of 2023)
Our community finally celebrated the outstanding achievements of the students who came back to attend the Roll Call of Academic Honour for those achieving an ATAR of 90 and above. These students walked the stage as the embodiment of what it means to demonstrate character: looking for opportunities to learn even when it is challenging; seeking feedback and using it in our learning; learning to live with the feeling of discomfort when things become difficult and knowing that is the time when we are learning the most.
Our highest ATAR recipient, Liam Wood, also shared his story with the community about how he achieved an ATAR of 99.2, the All Rounder Award (10 Units at 90 or above), Distinguished Achiever in all his subjects, and 5th in State for Ancient History out of the 7,000 students who sat the course in New South Wales.
Liam was unable to attend the assembly in person as he had already moved down to Canberra to commence his study at the Australian National University (Canberra). He will be studying a Bachelor of Philosophy with honours in the humanities and social sciences. Despite having to move down to Canberra last week, Liam took the time to record a message to share his blueprint for success.
You can view his inspirational speech below.
You can view the list of award winners HERE.
Following our assembly, our HSC high Achievers’ gave sage advice – or ‘trade secrets’ as they put it – to our current Year 12 students about their strategies and approaches for success in the HSC.
Some top tips that the graduates shared were:
Ms Lynsey Porter
Deputy Principal – Teaching & Learning
lporter@waverley.nsw.edu.au
Throughout 2024 there will be extra monitoring of student attendance.
“Non-attendance has a variety of effects on students, both academically and socially. Absenteeism can increase social isolation, including alienation and lack of engagement with the school community and peers, leading to emotional and behavioural difficulties.” (Carroll, 2013; Gottfried, 2014).
The importance of attending school each day is paramount. The goal for every student is to be sitting on 96% attendance for the year.
Image: courtesy Powerstock School
On Monday, 26 February, from 1:30pm-3:30pm, parents/carers of students in Years 7-12 are invited to meet their son’s Wellbeing Mentor via Zoom, to engage in a conversation that will help us to best cater to their needs in 2024. This important initiative supports our student Wellbeing program.
The purpose is to know as much as possible about each student, both in and out of the classroom. By identifying their goals, hopes, dreams and aspirations for the future, we can work together to bring about the best possible learning outcomes for your son. We rely on the three-way partnership formed between the College, families and your son for this to occur.
These meetings are in addition to Parent/Teacher academic interviews, which will also take place later in the semester.
Students in Years 7-12 will be dismissed at 1pm, because it is expected, where possible, that students will attend these meetings with their parents/carers. Limited supervision will be provided in the Library and in the Centenary Quad from 1pm-3:15pm.
Bookings can be made by logging into the Waverley College Parent Lounge via the parent landing page. Bookings will open at 9am on Monday, 12 February and close at 3:30pm on Friday, 23 February.
CLICK HERE TO ACCESS THE WAVERLEY COLLEGE PARENT LANDING PAGE
Please find below information from Transdev Sydney, operator of Sydney’s light rail network about planned trackwork next week.
From Monday 12 to Wednesday 14 February 2024, nightly from 9pm to 1am, L2 Randwick and L3 Kingsford lines light rail services will not run due to planned trackwork and maintenance works.
During this time, use alternative transport including:
Please allow extra travel time and use the Trip Planner to plan ahead or check travel alerts to see if your travel is affected.
For enquiries and feedback visit transportnsw.info
Ms Gabby Smith
Deputy Principal – Students
gsmith@waverley.nsw.edu.au
At Waverley College, we are committed to caring for and supporting all students on their Literacy journey. Here is just a sample of some of the many strategic initiatives and activities we have in place to ensure that our students are best supported from Year 5 right through to Year 12.
We are delighted to expand the Writer’s Toolbox program in 2024. Writer’s Toolbox is a comprehensive writing program, developed by Dr Ian Hunter that is designed to improve syntax, punctuation, and paragraphing. The interactive software component of the program has been very well received by our students and teachers across all faculties.
Students in Years 7 and 8 have been assigned a year-long Writer’s Toolbox Home Learning Program. This program requires students to complete set tasks on their Learning Journey. Students’ progress will be checked on a weekly basis.
All Year 7 and Year 9 classes have one scheduled Library lesson for Wider Reading each cycle in Semester 1. (Year 8 Library Lessons will resume in Semester 2). These classes are run by myself, Mr Roberts, the library staff, and the classroom teacher. In our Library Reading classes, our goal is to ensure that students read for pleasure.
Students also have time during English classes to complete wider reading and it is essential that students bring their own reading books to every English lesson, including when they attend their library lesson. Suggested reading lists for students can also be found on the relevant English CANVAS pages.
As was the case in 2023, the NAPLAN assessments will take place in March. Specific dates will be set by the College in the next few weeks and then communicated with students, parents, and carers.
All Year 7 and Year 9 students will be given a NAPLAN writing booklet to complete for home-learning in preparation for the NAPLAN writing test. This is just one aspect of the holistic approach adopted by all teachers to ensure that students in Year 7 and Year 9 are well prepared for the NAPLAN tests.
All NAPLAN resources are located on the Year 7 and Year 9 English CANVAS page. Students are also encouraged to use the public demonstration NAPLAN site to familiarise themselves with the types of questions and tools available in the NAPLAN online tests.
Students are also encouraged to avail themselves of the following supports in the Library via our co-curricular program, run by expert teachers:
Shrove Tuesday is always an eagerly anticipated day at Waverley.
Pancakes will be for sale at lunch time in the Centenary Quad next Tuesday, 13 February 2024.
Cost is $3 with cash and card facilities available.
All proceeds to Project Compassion (Caritas Australia).
See you there!
Shrove Tuesday / Pancake Day 2022
Shrove Tuesday / Pancake Day 2023
Ms Sue Walsh
Director of Mission and Identity
swalsh@waverley.nsw.edu.au
Please find below some reminders about upcoming events. For all of Term 1 events, please refer to the College calendar.
The Junior School Parent Information Booklet is intended to inform you of the more detailed aspects of life at Waverley College Junior School. The first section deals with overall aspects of the College and the second section is more class specific. I hope that you get involved in the many facets of life at Waverley College and enjoy being part of our great community.
The Parent Information Booklets are in the links below.
>>> Click here to view the YEAR 5 2024 Parent Information Booklet.
>>> Click here to view the YEAR 6 2024 Parent Information Booklet.
You are invited to a webinar presented by Elephant Ed on Puberty and Embracing Change.
When: Tuesday, 20 February 2024, 6pm-7pm
Topic: Puberty and Embracing Change
Elephant Ed is a leading sexuality education provider to hundreds of schools around Australia. Elephant Ed’s workshops are evidence-based, age-appropriate and mapped to State and National curriculum guidelines. Elephant Ed is endorsed by the eSafety Commissioner as a Trusted eSafety Provider and is endorsed as a quality-assured program in the NSW Department of Education’s Student Wellbeing external programs catalogue.
In advance of Elephant Ed’s workshops with Waverley College students, this webinar will include discussion around the physical, social and emotional changes associated with puberty, as well as strategies for starting open and effective conversations at home.
Registration: You are required to register in advance for this webinar. Please click HERE to register.
After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the webinar.
Term 1 2024: Coding
Coding class on a Monday will continue this year. If you would like your son to be part of the session please go to the booking link below.
When: Monday, 12 February to Monday, 8 April – 8 sessions
Time: 3:15pm – 4:30pm
Please click HERE to book.
Ms Gaby Bransby
Director of the Junior School
gbransby@waverley.nsw.edu.au
As part of our Lenten Appeal, the students have been asked to make a promise to help support CARITAS, an organisation that supports those who are less fortunate than others, both here in Australia and worldwide. Students are encouraged to use part of their weekly pocket money or do extra chores around the house, to help to fulfil their pledge. We thank you in advance for your generosity.
The first of several fundraising and awareness-raising initiatives begins with the sale of pancakes on Shrove Tuesday (Week 3), the day before Ash Wednesday. Pancakes will be on sale during the day for $2. We are kindly asking for donations of pre-made pancakes to be delivered to the Junior School by Monday morning. Your generosity is greatly appreciated.
One of the ways in which the students can show their leadership qualities is to nominate himself for Class Captain or Vice Captain. If they would like this opportunity, they need to let their class teachers know as soon as possible and begin thinking of ways in which they can best serve the Junior School community.
Students will need to present a speech to their class before voting takes place. They can use the scaffold below to assist in planning.
Prepare a two-minute speech addressing the following:
Please be aware of the following dates:
Year 6: Speeches delivered during Week 4
Year 5: Speeches delivered during Week 5
Mr Steve Ghattas
Assistant Director of the Junior School / Identity & Student Formation
sghattas@waverley.nsw.edu.au
We have had a busy start to the term with Sport and Swim Trials, ending this week with our amazing Swimming Carnival on Thursday. I was very proud to watch all students participate and put 100% effort into everything they did.
The big week of Co-Curricular sport continues with Round 1 commencing tomorrow (Saturday, 10 February 2024) and we are very excited to get the Summer season for 2024 underway.
Please ensure you refer to the Waverley College app announcements each week, as I will continue to send out the weekly Sports Fixtures for each round, containing updated locations and times that may deviate from the Draw.
All families can also locate all relevant Junior School Co-Curricular information through the College website via the links below.
>>> https://waverley.nsw.edu.au/events/senior-and-junior-sport-fixtures/
>>> https://waverley.nsw.edu.au/information/junior-school-sport/
You will have received notifications via the Waverley app about the wonderful opportunities for students to participate in extracurricular activities this Semester. Information has been sent out for the following Clubs;
Registrations for Junior School Extra Co-Curriculars close on Friday Week 3, 16 February.
Ms Jade Sparks
Assistant Director of Co-curricular
jsparks@waverley.nsw.edu.au
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 4 pm – Mondays, Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays – during school term unless there is a scheduled Professional Development meeting and the club will be closed.
Procedures
Register your son HERE.
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
Monday and Wednesday:
Ms Natasha Zivanovic nzivanovic@waverley.nsw.edu.au
Tuesday and Thursday:
Ms Gaby Bransby gbransby@waverley.nsw.edu.au
If you require any further information, feel free to contact us.
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.
Try to avoid messaging your son during this period, unless it is urgent.
Thank you.
Ms Natasha Zivanovic
Literacy & Innovation Teacher
nzivanovic@waverley.nsw.edu.au
As many in our community would know, Waverley College recently launched the Manchester City Football School to provide authentic and creative football coaching programs for students, utilising the coaching philosophy and methodology of Manchester City.
We’re excited to introduce Manchester City Football Schools Head Coach Australia, Mr Ben Charlton, who has joined us full-time to coach across the College with our co-curricular staff, mentor our co-curricular football staff and run the Manchester City Football School.
For someone who has delivered numerous successful football education programs in professional clubs across the globe, Mr Charlton is surprisingly humble when talking about his 18 years’ experience working in sports development. Quietly spoken with a thoughtful disposition, we were grateful that amidst the bustle of Week 2, he made time to share a little about his life with Nurrunga.
“How Australians play football and interpret the game. Especially during the winter season and winter fixtures. The students I’ve met have been great and have all the right ingredients – they’re enthusiastic, respectful, friendly, and whether this can translate into their training, competing and winning – is the real interesting thing. We’re hoping they’ll be able to participate in the ‘Australia Manchester City Football Schools Cup’ at Parade College in Melbourne [EREA school] to celebrate what they’ve done, later this year.”
“I love to travel and I’d always wanted to go to Australia, as it’s the furthest away from England! It was on my ‘to do’ list and like the English, Australians love sports and football. For the last few years I’ve been hearing great things from the coaches that are involved in the Australia programs in Edmund Rice schools and I wanted to experience the Edmund Rice partnership with kids in Australia. This partnership will be five years and we hope to extend and create a continuous pipeline. In only eight days in Australia everything has lived up to my expectations. The people have been so nice. I just did the Bondi to Coogee walk and harbour walks … in terms of location, everyone says it’s a ‘dream job.’ ”
“I’ve been with Manchester City Football Club since 2015, working in their Football Education Team, leading training experiences in Manchester at the City Football Academy for ages eight to adult. People travelled to us from all over the world, including Australians, to train on the field and learn tactics in the classroom. I also coached with the Manchester City Girls’ Academy focusing on our foundation and youth development players.
As well I was Head Coach of the Indian Football Schools Operations for two years at Karjat near Mumbai, and also developed talent in Vietnam, Thailand, China and New York, mainly youth football, university teams and training local coaches in schools. I was also the Head Coach in Cairo, Egypt and trained kids as young as three up to 18. I’ve been really lucky to have had these opportunities with Manchester City, I learned a lot and really enjoyed coaching people from many different cultures, and I really look forward to working here in Australia with Waverley college and Edmund Rice – we all speak football!”
“It’s good to know you have an influence on other people’s lives and you’ve guided others. When I was young, I loved athletics and football and I think these experiences have shaped my values and ways of thinking. Some of the players I trained have gone on to be selected for the national team in England and India, and awarded scholarships for higher education. Being able to return to work with these students now they’re adults, has been really nice.”
“I do like sport, but I’m getting a little creaky! [laughs]. I like the outdoors and nature. I loved travelling in India and Egypt – there are fascinating things in India in the middle of the jungle. 90 minutes from Mumbai there are monuments carved into rock from 3,000 years ago, incredible precision and geometry. You think … how did they do it? I’m very interested in ancient cultures and have done a lot of travelling. With my wife, we work hard, and then go away to places. I loved the Great Wall of China and also the north east of England, Newcastle and Northumberland. From York to the top of England to the border of Scotland, there are tons of castles, some in ruins and others with gardens and intact buildings. It’s fascinating.”
Launching in 2024 for Year 7 and Years 5 and 7 for 2025 and beyond, click HERE to view further information about Manchester City Football School.
The Term 1 Parents’ Association morning meeting will take place in Week 3. It will be face to face only.
When: Tuesday, 13 February 2024
Where: Grange Boardroom, 12A Carrington Road Waverley NSW 2024
Time: 7:30am-8:45am
Agenda: Click HERE.
*Parking: Parking for parents/carers is not available in the Grange carpark, as these spaces are reserved for teaching staff. We kindly ask that you please respect this directive.
Do you have a passion for music? Are you ready to rock out with your classmates? Then we have an exciting opportunity for you!
Boys in Year 7 who are interested in joining one of the school’s Rock Band Groups are invited to meet Mr Johnston next Wednesday, 14 February 2024 at 10:15am in the Recital Room of the Performing Arts Centre. This is your chance to showcase your musical talents and be a part of our amazing music program.
Whether you play guitar, drums, bass or any other instrument, we welcome all aspiring rock stars to come together and make some unforgettable music.
Don’t miss out on this opportunity to be a part of the Year 7 Rock Band.
If you have any questions or are interested, send an email to Mr Johnston at jjohnston@waverley.nsw.edu.au or complete the Private Music Tuition Form here.
See you there!
Please find below the schedule for the Year 12 Tutorials in Term 1, Week 3.
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.
| Date | Subject | Time | Staff | Room |
| Monday, 12 February 2024 | Studies of Religion II | 3:15pm – 4:45pm | Cooper/ Stewart | E40s |
|
Tuesday, 13 February 2024
|
Visual Arts | 3:15pm – 5pm | Turnbull | C13 |
| Maths Standard 2 | 7:30am – 8:30am | P Cornish | E33 | |
|
Wednesday, 14 February 2024
|
Spanish Beginners | 7:30am – 8:30am | D Kroll | W24 |
| Mathematics Extension II | 3:30pm – 4:30pm | S Hall | E32 | |
|
Friday, 16 February 2024
|
Hospitality | 7:30am – 8:30am | B McCarthy | TF1 |
| Maths Advanced | 7:30am – 8:30am | M Mountfort | E26 |
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.
Ms Martina Cooper
Director of Curriculum
mcooper@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.
Watch our video
