Dear Parents and Carers,
The National Assessment Program – Literacy and Numeracy (NAPLAN) is a point in time assessment of literacy and numeracy skills that are essential for every child to progress through school and life. Students in Years 5, 7 and 9 participate in the annual NAPLAN tests in writing, reading, conventions of language (spelling, grammar and punctuation) and numeracy.
Our school will be participating in NAPLAN Online between 15 and 24 March 2023.
Years 5 and 7 students will sit their test in Periods 1-2 and Year 9 students will sit their test in Periods 3-4.
Students must bring their fully-charged laptops and headphones to this session.
Excessive preparation for NAPLAN Online is not recommended. Students do not need to be able to touch type to complete NAPLAN Online as the tests are not about keyboard skills (just as the paper test is not about handwriting skills).
Students can use the public demonstration site to familiarise themselves with the types of questions and tools available in the NAPLAN Online tests.
Please click on this link 2023 NAPLAN Online – Information for parents and carers sheet for further information.
If you have any questions regarding this practice test, please contact either Ms Lynsey Porter (Director of Curriculum), Ms Charlotte Stephens (Assistant Director of Curriculum) (Junior School), or Mr David Parnell (Head of Learning Support).
Additional resources:
Furthermore, if parents or carers are interested in learning about strategies to support their son through NAPLAN, our Head of Academic Enrichment, Ms Helen Barrie, has prepared an informative webinar below.
Please take the time to view our impressive new nine-minute webinar where Ms Barrie outlines the Waverley College strategy for supporting student confidence in the lead up to NAPLAN testing.
https://youtu.be/rTeOj2PrVbU
Ms Lynsey Porter
Director of Curriculum
lporter@waverley.nsw.edu.au
This Tuesday, to mark the beginning of Lent, we will have our Shrove Tuesday Pancake Day.
All students are asked to donate a packet of six large pancakes and then at LUNCHTIME in the Centenary Quad, we will be selling pancakes, ice cream and syrup for $3.
Pancake packets can be left at the Wellbeing centre on Monday or before school on Tuesday.
All funds raised from this SRC event will be given to Project Compassion. Thank you in advance for supporting this fabulous initiative.
Shrove Tuesday 2022
Shrove Tuesday 2021
Ms Sue Walsh
Director of Identity
swalsh@waverley.nsw.edu.au
As per the College Diary, this is a reminder that the Year 9 Elevate Session, Study Skills Kickstart will be held in Period 1 on Tuesday, 21 February, 2023.
Students are asked to arrive promptly at the following allocated rooming:
Students are required to bring a pen to the session.
This session is delivered by a group of recent successful graduates and will cover:
The webinars are held fortnightly on Wednesday evenings.
Click here for further information
This week, I’m delighted to introduce a fresh College initiative to support the health and wellbeing of students at Waverley. Our new Therapy Dog, Mabel! Our new College Psychologist, Ms Samantha Jessen, has recently completed specialised training through Therapy Dogs Australia, and with Mabel she is now a certified human-canine therapy team.
Mabel is a 17-month-old blonde Golden Retriever. Because research continues to acknowledge the positive, healing impact that animals have on our health and wellbeing, supporting student engagement, social skill development and calming, we expect that student interaction with Mabel will deliver numerous social, emotional and physiological benefits.
Student interaction with Mabel is voluntary. A Risk Management Plan is in place, however we appreciate that some parents/carers may still have concerns about their child’s interaction with an animal within the Waverley College environment.
To this end, we have prepared a ‘Meeting Mabel – Opt Out’ form for parents/carers who would like to exercise this choice.
We encourage you to take the time to:
Ms Gabby Smith
Deputy Principal – Students
gsmith@waverley.nsw.edu.au
Recently, Radio National’s ‘The Minefield’ aired a wonderful discussion on literacy entitled ‘What does it mean to be literate – and is it under threat?’
Click here to listen to the Radio National discussion
At the forefront of this discussion is the problem which resonates with everyone who works in education (and possibly every parent/carer) – a resistance to spending time reading in favour of the quick swipe, the speedy scan, the info grab. Again – let’s blame the usual culprits – TikTok, Insta, Snapchat!
Few of us – adults, teens and children – have time for books which require deep reading, focused attention, effort even. Apparently, we prefer words we just have to look at rather than words we have to read and actually process and think about. In doing so, however, we are missing out on actually improving our literacy.
To quote the program’s guest speaker, Maryanne Wolf (Director of the Center for Dyslexia, Diverse Learners, and Social Justice at the University of California in Los Angeles), “The time and cognitive-resource-demanding requirements of the deep reading process is getting lost in the transition from a literacy-based culture to a digital age.”
As an English and Literacy teacher of teens saturated in digital media, who knows all too well the challenges students face when presented with difficult texts, I have set myself the goal of ensuring that students ‘read deeply’ as often as possible. Yes, we will practise the skills of ‘skimming, scanning, sifting’. Students are already quite adept at this.
It is the making of connections that requires real effort, but brings the greatest reward. Through deep reading, students allow themselves to be surprised and moved somehow by what they read, because they bother to make the effort to connect with what they already know about themselves, and about life in the real world (not the digital world).
In our Year 7 and Year 8 Library Reading classes, our goal is to ensure that students read for pleasure. If students can read deeply for just 20-30 minutes, they will also improve their ability to read for pleasure, while becoming truly literate.
As quoted in the radio program ‘The Minefield’, the philosopher Ludwig Wittgenstein said: “When I read a poem or narrative with feeling, surely something goes on in me which does not go on when I merely skim the lines for information.” We know it won’t happen immediately, but with this single, simple message and a good book in hand, that ‘something’ is sure to happen for our students at Waverley College in 2023.
All Year 7 students have been given a NAPLAN writing booklet to complete for home-learning over the next few weeks in preparation for the NAPLAN writing test in Week 7. All the resources can be located on the Year 7 English CANVAS page.
If parents/carers or students have any questions or enquiries about this work, please email Ms Mary Ryan at mryan01@waverley.nsw.edu.au
This is just one aspect of a holistic approach by all teachers to ensure that students in both Year 7 and Year 9 are well prepared for the NAPLAN tests taking place in Term 1 this year.
For nearly 20 years, the Whitlam Institute’s ‘What Matters? Writing Competition’ has been empowering students to raise their voices and feel that their perspectives are valuable, no matter their age, background or point of view.
Part writing exercise, part civics and citizenship activity, ‘What Matters?’ is the perfect platform for students to express what they care about and why.
Visit their website to learn more about the competition, get inspired by past entries, explore classroom resources, and view the amazing prizes on offer.
Click here to view information about the What Matters Writing Competition
Entries can be fiction, non-fiction, poetry or prose of 600 words or less, and can be submitted quickly online.
Entries close Friday, 5 May 2023.
Last weekend saw a big first full round of activities for all students. A number of the new Year 7 teams demonstrated some outstanding performances, particularly in Basketball, Touch Football and Tennis.
Our 2nd V Basketball remain undefeated after a comprehensive victory. Our 1st V Basketball went down narrowly but were very well supported by students and staff, and I want to thank all of the members of the College community who came to cheer these players on.
This Friday evening the 1sts and 2nds Basketball are travelling to St Aloysius’, and any supporters must be attired in full College summer uniform please.
Special mention to Cooper Ryan (Year 9) who last weekend won a gold medal in the NSW Beach Volleyball titles and has now qualified for the national championships. Cooper was competing in the u16 and open categories as a 14 year old – what an amazing achievement!
NSW Open Under 16s 2023 Gold Medal Winner – Cooper Ryan
Thank you to all of the parents and carers who have applied for leave for some of the upcoming state championship and events this term. Just a reminder that we need as much notice as possible via email, and not to log these via the College absence app please.
This week was the final week for winter activity changes. We will notify students who have requested a change early next week in regards to their applications and preferences based on current numbers.
Activities
Larger Events
Best wishes to all teams this weekend.
On a midsummer’s night at Bass Hill, whilst most of us were celebrating Valentine’s Day, two of Waverley’s finest young prospects were setting The Crest Athletics Track alight with outstanding performances over 1,500m.
Both Evan Rowbotham (13s) and Asher Thomasyu (16s) competing for Randwick Botany Harriers ran lifetime bests of 4:16.43 and 4:05.97 respectively.
The significance of these runs is remarkable, considering Evan ran 11s under the current 13 years school record of 4:27.06 set in 2015. Evan will look to replicate and improve this performance over the rest of the summer and during the school season, where he can solidify his name in the record books.
Asher finds himself only marginally off (0.5s) the current 16 years school record of 4:05.47 set in 2017, and with many races to come including the NSW and Australian Championships, much like Evan, he has many more opportunities to improve upon this mark.
A massive congratulations to Evan and Asher who have been training hard all summer long, and we wish them all the best for the remainder of the season and into the future.
Mr Jeremy Roff
Track & Field Head Coach
jroff@waverley.nsw.edu.au
Evan Rowbotham
Student Based Tutoring (SBT) was started at the end of last year in an effort to provide more academic support for students who want to improve their academic ability. SBT provides competent senior students as tutors to help students to reach their full potential.
SBT is available to any students from Monday to Wednesday 3:30pm – 4:30pm in the library. SBT runs parallel to the current literacy and numeracy tutoring sessions, so students may also be able to get help from experienced teachers at the same time. Why pay for private tutoring when free quality tutoring is available for you?
The goal of SBT is to help Waverley students achieve improvements in all areas of academic life. It also allows boys to meet with senior students who can give invaluable advice to help them achieve set targets, while learning how to still schedule time for co-curricular and social activities. School is about learning but you also have to have fun along the way, and SBT can teach you how to achieve both goals simultaneously.
Whether you want to go from 50% to 60% in a subject, or from 85% to 90%, SBT is here to help you. SBT tutors can help you find your mistakes and may be able to teach you content that you are struggling with. Nobody is perfect, and these senior students have gone through hundreds of hours of study to reach their success. From this experience they can provide techniques that worked for them to achieve this success. Moreover, SBT provides an efficient way to increase your marks while also building crucial relationships with senior students.
SBT is the one-stop shop for your academic aid, so make use of it.
Click here to view the SBT flyer
Jack Preller (Year 12)
Lacey House Captain, Waverley Tennis Captain, Founder of SBT
Click here for Swim School Information
Cadets on Friday was an exhilarating and energetic afternoon as platoons competed for the coveted Golden Boot Trophy.
Company Commanders inspired with incredible energy to bring their companies together under their respective flags. Company spirit is so important for morale on AFX and the levels on Friday were astronomical.
We congratulate Delta Company for their all-round excellent performance, but the winning platoon was 2 Platoon from Alpha Company. Congratulations to SGT Mitchell Ho and his team for their physical stamina and collective teamwork.
Thank you to the SUO, CUO Kayla Heng, and her team in RHQ for putting together an engaging afternoon for our recruits. Thank you to our MCs, CUO Alistair Isaac and WO1 Angus Birrell for running the afternoon so well.
From our reporters in Media Platoon:
“The Golden Boot is a thrilling competition that builds on confidence, teamwork and communication skills. The recruits participated in multiple activities such as push-ups, plank, methods of movement relay, jerrycan relay race, ordering rank slides and tug of war. Extraordinary work by Delta Company for the best overall company and congratulations to 2 platoon on winning the Golden Boot for 2023.”
Friendly competition from Delta CPL Stapleton and Bravo CPL Isaac
Great form in the push up competition
Leopard crawl in the Methods of Movement relay
Company Plank
Incredible stamina from REC Freddie Robertson in the plank competition
Alpha Company giving their all in the tug of war
Jerry can relay
The winning platoon – 2PL – with their trophy
Thank you to the parents/carers who have responded to the Joining Instruction and registered their cadet’s attendance on AFX. Could I please encourage everyone to click the button below to register and provide the latest medical information?
All cadets need to be registered via this form by Wednesday, 1 March 2023.
6 weeks to go!
On Saturday, the 1st’s V Basketball team faced off against their strongest opponent of the CAS competition, Knox Grammar School. Surprisingly, there was a large number of supporters in the crowd rooting for Waverley to take home the victory. Unfortunately, the Waverley boys came up short to Knox, falling 75-69 in an extremely close and hard-fought game.
The boys were led and motivated throughout the game by Tom Gleeson’s all-around impact, as his defensive efforts were enough to slow down the great offence of the Knox Basketball team. The score was close throughout the whole game, with the lead only slipping to a high of 9 for Knox, however the boys were unfortunate and unable to close the gap by the end of the game, as Knox fought hard for their victory.
Good luck to the 1sts who now face a tough opponent in an electrifying atmosphere: St Aloysius’ at St Aloys on a Friday night, a game that is bound to be exciting to witness.
Before the 1sts faced off in their hardest game so far, the so far undefeated 2nds showed up to prove why they were undefeated, as they too faced a tough Knox opponent. Unlike the 1sts, the 2nds were able to outplay Knox, concluding the game with an amazing 43-point victory, the final score 73-30.
The game was not so one-sided, as Waverley went into the second half up barely 5 points to Knox, led by Ehren Little’s defence and Tashi Harrison’s athleticism. As the 1sts went into the change room to prepare for their game, the 2nds exploded. This was largely credited to 3 back-to-back 3-pointers sunk in by Charlie Smith as the 2nds increased their winning margin. From then on, the game was one-sided, as the boys were able to increase their lead until the end of the game, regardless of the never-ending efforts from the Knox boys.
Good luck to the 2nds who remain undefeated with a record of 6-0, as they too face St Aloysius’ away next Friday night.
On Saturday, the 10As faced off against another historically tough Knox squad, after watching their B team in a tough loss. Unfortunately, the boys weren’t able to get it done, but were led by Renato Rovacchi and Rory Donnellan, with the final score 43-64.
10A Basketball V Knox
10A Basketball V Knox
10A Basketball V Knox
The 9As were able to contain Knox’s tough squad, and remain undefeated going into round 7 of the CAS season. The boys were led by Angus Peshos’ leadership, Jonte Garvey’s rebounding and hustle plays, and Nico Palacio’s defence. The game resulted in a 45-37 win for the 9As, as they face another great St Aloysius’ team next week.
9A Basketball V Knox
9A Basketball V Knox
9A Basketball V Knox
The 8As faced off against Knox in a home game that eventually didn’t sway their way. As the highly organised Knox team slightly edged over Waverley, the efforts of Phil Falaniko, Phoenix Miconi and Hayden McAusland assisted Waverley in staying in the game. Unfortunately, the final score was 41-54, and the boys fell short of another victory to their name. Good luck, as they too will be facing St Aloysius’, who are at the top of the table.
Make sure to keep an eye out for the annual Basketball Presentation night, which will occur after the conclusion of CAS Round 10 at Barker.
Daniel Palacio
(Captain of Basketball)
Tom Gleeson
(Captain of 1st V)
The start of the second half of the season saw Waverley take on CAS Basketball heavyweights, Knox Grammar. With Knox one win in front, the 1st V came into this game needing to beat their North Shore rivals to give themselves their best chance of staying in the premiership race. They did extremely well to compete in a closely fought game against the reigning CAS premiers, however, they were ultimately unable to snatch victory.
Waverley was slow to start, and Knox was able to pull out to a 7-point lead before Waverley troubled the scorers. At one stage, Knox had a game-high 11-point lead, however, Waverley was always able to pin this back and finished the quarter trailing by 6 points. In the second quarter, Waverley was able to reduce their deficit by 1 point and move to a 3-point lead midway through the third quarter, however Knox was always able to find a way to maintain a small lead.
Ultimately, Waverley went down by 6 points, 75-69. It was a gutsy effort by Waverley and the closest game between the two schools since the 2017/18 season, when Waverley last defeated Knox with a 66-62 score line. The 1st V still sit equal third and now turn their attention to St Aloysius’, who defeated Barker by a point, and remains in equal first place with Knox on 15 points.
Coming into the game, the 2nd V were all-conquering, having defeated all five CAS schools in Term 4 to sit atop the table, as well as the best in the GPS, ISA and AICES, with their incredible efforts to win the Newington Classic Tournament.
In Round 1, Waverley defeated Knox by 4 points, and it looked like it might be another close game with the score at the end of the first quarter, 11-7 to Waverley. Waverley had other ideas and continued to build on their lead, going into the big break 26-15, however, it was an impressive 3rd quarter performance that saw Waverley outscore Knox 26-4, to take the score to an unassailable 52-19 lead.
The 2nd V continued to up the ante, winning the 4th 19-11, and ultimately taking the game in a somewhat unexpected but satisfying 71-30 score line. The undefeated 2nd V is now a win clear of Trinity, and has a very healthy points differential of 120. Next up is a winless St Aloysius’ this Friday night in Kirribilli.
Top of the table Knox was too strong for Waverley in 10As, who still sit on two wins.
10A Basketball V Knox
10A Basketball V Knox
10A Basketball V Knox
10A Basketball V Knox
The 9As continued to dominate their opponents, downing Knox for a second time this season, and are two wins clear of the rest of the league, on six wins.
9A Basketball V Knox
9A Basketball V Knox
9A Basketball V Knox
The 8As loss to Knox sees them remain on two wins and a draw. Our new Year 7 teams gave a very good account of themselves in their first-ever games for the Senior School, winning four games and drawing two from 10.
The 7As drew their game 36-all in a high-scoring game, with a last-second buzzer beater.
Over the past decade, Knox has been Waverley’s toughest opponent and while this week was no different, there are signs that this dominance is waning. While just a handful of teams were able to savour victory: 10G (20-15), 10H (32-22), 9A (45-37), 9B (35-11), 9D (24-21), 9G (44-22), 7B (27-21), 7F (33-18), 7G (44-26), 7I (25-23) and draws by the 3rd V (36-all), 8A (36-all) and 7E (26-all), 13 teams lost their games by 10 points or fewer, demonstrating Waverley is closing the gap, and becoming a lot more competitive.
10B Basketball V Knox
10B Basketball V Knox
10B Basketball V Knox
10B Basketball V Knox
Head Coach, Mr Matthew Johnston, deserves enormous praise for his leadership and expertise in guiding the program, and the development of our players and coaching staff.
Thanks to our amazing Supporters’ Club for their wonderful efforts again on the BBQ. It was a very busy day, and it was great to see them sell out by 2pm. If you can help for one hour this Saturday, before or after your son’s game, please contact Ms Rachael Smith at 0412 693 243 or rachael_gray@hotmail.com because any assistance would be greatly appreciated.
Recently, the College purchased two new Porter glass backboards for the main court in the Gym, as well as new rims for all backboards in both the Gym and TAS COLA. A significant sum of money from funds raised by the Supporters’ Club contributed to the purchase of this new equipment, and it is the weekly Saturday BBQs that raise the most money for the Club over the season.
Saturday, 18 March is the Basketball Presentation Evening. The awards ceremony will be hosted in the Gym, after an onsite dinner in Braidwood (weather permitting). On the night, there will be shooting games and prizes to win. A flyer with further details will be released shortly.
Good luck to all teams this week against St Aloysius’!
Dear Parents and Carers
The South Eastern Sydney Local Health District (SESLHD) Immunisation Team are due to attend Waverley College on Wednesday, 1 March 2023. The targeted grade for their first visit is Year 7. The team will be providing vaccinations for dTpa and HPV.
According to SESLHD, they have only received 30% of online consent forms. Waverley College usually has numbers well over 90% for vaccinations in Year 7. Please provide online consent via this link: https://nswhealth.service-now.com/school
Please note that all of the vaccination programs at Waverley College are run through the local health district as a part of NSW Health. If you are having any issues with the online consent forms, please contact them directly on (02) 9382 8333 (ext 2). If you would prefer a hard copy consent form, please email healthcentre@waverley.nsw.edu.au and I will organise one to go home with your son.
Catch up vaccinations will also be offered for any student who missed out on any doses in previous visits. Please also note that there has been a change in HPV dose scheduling. Please refer to this Nurrunga article from last week about HPV scheduling for further information. As a result, the number of Year 8 students due for catch-up has reduced.
Parents/carers can refer to Australian Immunisation Record (AIR) to check outstanding vaccines. Parents/carers are required to notify the College if their child has completed their course elsewhere, to avoid any potential vaccination errors. Parents can also withdraw up to 24 hours before a clinic if they have provided consent online. If the withdrawal of consent is within 24 hours of the clinic date, the parent/carer must notify the College directly.
Please note that parents/carers need to consent to both vaccines online if they would like their child to receive both vaccines. Parents/carers can edit their consent on the portal up to 24 hours before a clinic. Additionally, parents/carers must not tick previously vaccinated for HPV, if their student has not received an HPV vaccine outside of school. Parents/carers can check their child’s vaccines through MyGov and Medicare.
Parents/carers unable to provide consent online must return a paper consent form to school.
Please do not hesitate to contact the Immunisation Team on 02 9382 8333 should you have any further queries relating to your upcoming visit.
Waverley College Health Centre Team
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
