Last Friday saw the commencement of the Debating season. Our first round of the CSDA competition against Marcellin College was highly successful, seeing wins across both junior and senior teams.
I want to particularly congratulate our Year 7 team who turned up ready to debate with poise and confidence in their first Senior School debating competition. Well done to Kasper, Hudson and Oisin on their deserved win against Marcellin.
Friday night also saw the annual Lawrence Campbell Oratory competition take place at The King’s School. Each year, the Lawrence Campbell Oratory brings together one candidate from each of the CAS and GPS schools to participate in one of the most prestigious public speaking competitions in NSW. Candidates are given 15 minutes to select and prepare a speech on one of three topics and present for eight minutes.
This year, Waverley’s representative was Captain of Debating, Harrison Rimell, who chose the topic ‘Everything spoken should be true but not everything true should be spoken.’ A formidable speaker, Harrison’s speech was fitting for the impromptu nature of the competition, delivering ideas about the complex nature of truth and questioning the need to know in a world where truth is often illusory.
I congratulate Harrison on his leadership in representing the College at this fantastic event.
During the second week of the school holiday break, Lachlan Miranda (Year 11) attended the 2023 YMCA NSW Youth Parliament training camp. During this time, he was elected as the Youth Minister for Mental Health. This is an outstanding achievement.
Lachlan was introduced to the Mental Health Committee and participated in a series of worthwhile group activities. Lachlan is a passionate advocate for mental health, especially the mental health of young people. As the student-representative for Coogee, Lachlan has immersed himself in politics and law, working with a committed team of student-advocates aiming to improve the Mental Health Act. Below is a piece Lachlan wrote on his experience:
“The Youth Parliament training camp was a brief, yet highly insightful experience. Surrounded by like-minded individuals who came from around the state, as far as Tweed Heads and as far South as the Snowy mountains. Opening with lectures on the structure of our state government, how policy is created and how young people are able to get involved with advocacy in their local areas. Then, the cohort of 100, split into their respective committees.
In the Mental Health Committee we discussed where our state and local areas are lacking with regard to mental health. After addressing this issue, we as a committee decided that mental health needs addressing in four key areas of our society: the workplace, our education system, the mental health committee that advises the government, as well as providing more support and knowledge for new and expecting parents.
On the third and final day of the training camp an election was held across all of the Youth Parliament students for various government positions. I was lucky enough to be elected the Youth Minister for Mental Health for 2023, not only representing my committee, but young people across NSW.
With the goals outlined previously, the Mental Health Committee and I will draft a bill amending four acts that are already in place across the state. This bill will be presented at the end of Term 2 to various NSW ministers. Ultimately aiming to benefit the mental health of many people throughout the state.”
Lachlan will meet weekly with his committee to develop a cogent Youth Mental Health Bill. We look forward to witnessing Lachlan in action in July where he will debate in NSW Parliament House, connect with elected members, and have a meeting with the Governor of NSW.
Next term, Lachlan will share his learnings and experiences of being a Youth Parliamentarian.
Students complete a unit called ‘Mighty Markets’ as part of Year 7 Technology Mandatory. The class work in groups of four every fortnight to cook different recipes after watching a teacher demonstration.
On Thursday in TO2, they made pancakes. Such recipes teach them the different methods of cookery to practise and this recipe gives them opportunities to use frying.
The Years 7 and 8 cohorts were involved in the Anti-Violence Education campaign on Tuesday. The presentation spoke about the importance of young people engaging in positive social relationships and respecting everyone’s personal space.
This presentation supports the Youth Anti-Violence Education Campaign that was launched by the Commissioner of Police in 2022. The presentation included an interactive presentation and Q&A with two senior police officers.
Students were also shown a 12-minute anti-violence video which was produced by the NSW Police Force and co-funded by the Department of Education and the Advocate for Children and Young People. It featured high-profile players from various sporting codes, such as Sonny Bill Williams, who shared their personal experiences and stance against violence.
The students were very engaged and respectful during the presentation and should be commended on the way they conducted themselves.
On Tuesday, Year 11 Lacey boys welcomed businesswoman Eleni Mitakos (2023 winner Barbara Cox Woman of the Year!) and the Galmatic Car Workshops back to Waverley. Our senior students have been actively participating in these very practical car maintenance workshops for the past four years.
In one-to-one and group scenarios, students learned both theory and hands-on training, improving their knowledge, skills, confidence and safety awareness in a one-hour, outdoor session in the Kenny Quad.
Eleni’s warmth and encouragement created an environment where our students felt comfortable asking questions, and she made use of real-life scenarios to teach new skills.
She believes these interactive Galmatic workshops remain indispensable:
“We have a misconception that dads are helping their kids to fix cars and that because many of us have new cars, that we don’t need to know anything about how they run. These workshops are important because they empower teenagers to feel confident about fixing a car – safely, quickly and easily.”
Eleni Mitakos, Director Of Training And Development at Galmatic – Eleni established Galmatic in 2007 with the launch of the Galmatic Car Care Handbook for Girls and the Galmatic Car Care Workshops for Women
Year 11 student, Tom Park, found the workshop really worthwhile:
“Today we learnt how to change the tyre if we have a flat and where to put the jack. We learned the important parts of the engine, incase we need to change the oil, wiper fluid or coolant. The new thing I learned today was how to check the dipstick – with too much oil, you’ll get spits out the back, too little oil and the pistons will run against the engine and break the motor.”
These unique Galmatic Workshops ran this week for all Year 11 students. Thanks Eleni, for sharing your expertise and passion, in a fun, authentic and non-judgemental environment.
Teaching Year 9 boys the skills of creative writing presents a number of challenges. As we know, by the time students reach Stage 5, their interest in reading has noticeably waned. Gone are the days when the teacher can ask their students to compose a ‘story’ and the power of the imagination clicks into action. Instead, we are generally met with the fear of the blank page and a newfound understanding of ‘Writer’s Block.’ More often than not, we must go right back to basics and break down the components of a short story, a paragraph, and a sentence. Thankfully, this year I had the assistance of Writer’s Toolbox, as well as two Ray Bradbury short stories, to help with some of the heavy lifting.
Our students always like to know how they can access those ‘extra’ marks. Recently, Writer’s Toolbox consultant, Mr Robert Tall, told the Year 7 boys that the student who gets the top grade will cast six to eight different sentence styles by the bottom of the first page they write. With this in mind, the ‘Sentence Builder’ feature seemed like the perfect place to start. This skill would be my main focus throughout the unit. While some sentence styles proved easier to master than others, students quickly got used to labels such as ‘Explore the subject’ and the ‘W start’ as a way of avoiding the much overused ‘simple’ sentence.
Writer’s Toolbox sentence graph
The most popular feature among the students was, without doubt, the ‘Feedback’ function. An analysis of the data reveals that collectively, the class sought feedback 1,388 times. More pleasing is the fact that 1,073 improvements were made. Revision is an integral part of the writing process. It is not always easy for our busy students to grasp the importance of editing their work. In response to the feedback suggestions in Writer’s Toolbox, the boys were all very keen to make the changes in an attempt to achieve 90% plus in their writing strength. Personally, my own favourite feedback feature is the ‘easy-to-read-for-English-Teachers’ sentence style graph.
Reflecting on what worked well and what didn’t, I have made some observations on how my Year 9 class have responded.
Writer’s Toolbox removes the fear of the blank page. It supports students throughout the writing process and our students love that support. When the fateful moment came to leave Writer’s Toolbox and export stories to PDF form, I was reminded of the experience of removing bike stabilisers for the first time.
A quick glance at the students’ work reveals a noticeable improvement in sentence structure. While there are still some issues, I have spotted (among other styles) a number of ‘W’ start sentences to reveal thought and knowledge.
On a side note: The most interesting piece of feedback I received for this article was: “Time to toughen up what’s in your paragraphs and aim for 100-120 words.”
Expect better next time!
This week saw the second session of our Big Brother Little Brother program, involving Year 10 and Year 5 students. Boys took part in an introduction session to the Rock and Water Program delivered by their Heads of House.
The Rock and Water Program is designed around activities that focus on self regulation, emotional awareness, risk taking and behaviour management. Students were led through a series of activities taken from the ‘I Can Stand Up For Myself’ module including; how to stand strong and how to make a Rock and Water greeting.
The Big Brother Little Brother Program matches our Junior School students in Year 5 with our Senior School boys in Year 10, to provide guidance and friendship with the aim of becoming a long-term positive role model. Boys connect with their brothers throughout the year to help develop trust, responsibility and grow healthy relationships.
Last Wednesday, 20 Year 10 students competed against other schools in the 2023 Science and Engineering Challenge run by the University of Newcastle.
Students worked in small teams to solve problems that aligned with careers in science and engineering. From building mars rovers, earthquake-proof buildings, and small planes, to communicating via code, designing electrical pathways for cities, and planning efficient road maps, students were challenged to think ‘outside the box’ and communicate effectively to complete tasks under pressure.
The day concluded with a showcase of the bridges built by each school. Waverley’s bridge, designed by Yannick, Kayden, and James, weighed in at 87g, and was able to withstand a whopping 1.5kg trolley travelling across it, before breaking.
The room was buzzing with energy and excitement the entire day. The students who represented the College should be commended on their collaboration, critical thinking skills, and consistent effort throughout the day.
Yannick Hott; James Peate; Luca Cornelius; Harrison Thorpe; Kayden Baker; Thomas Jackson-Whitlock; Nicholas Zanapalis; Mark Rede; Fox Stapleton; Max Sheehy; Tamen Peralta; Hugo Perks; George Alexandratos; Tomas Crosson; Lachlan Marzol; Benjamin Pelikan; Axl Igra; Lachlan Isaac; Montgomery Armstrong; Giles Strachan; Sam Vlack.
Last week, our Year 11 SLR students were lucky enough to go on a hike through the heritage-listed Royal National Park.
This delightful trail offered options for picnicking and waterfall views along with treating students to a nature fix.
Students pushed through the damp conditions enjoying the exceptional natural environment, a well-earned brief break from a busy term.
Last week the Year 11 Food Technology students looked at how food changes from paddock to plate. In line with this and food product development, it’s an important element when looking at where their food comes from, and why hygiene is taken so seriously in the Australian Food Industry.
They donned their most stylish blue gloves and got to work emaciating some fresh beef and pork cuts. Following this seemingly easy task, they weren’t prepared for what was next.
I had pre-loaded the sausage attachment and the hog casings were there ready to both show to them and test out. A little put off at first, they hesitantly had turns understanding the logistics of the speed and support needed for the skin as the meat comes out; but they were expert sausage handlers within no time at all.
The sausages were cooked a few days later on the barbecue grill, and the boys found a much more interesting appreciation for the work that goes into sausages, as well as noticing the taste differences when made with ingredients you know and understand are being put in.
As the world of food gets more and more processed, it is hoped that these small activities exploring household methods to replicate processed/industrialised food can help students understand what does go into their food, and maybe more price-efficient ways to prepare meals at home as they grow up and move out on their own.
Student Representative Council members: Archie Godby (Year 10), Oliver Stewart (Year 9) and Stirling Quinn (Year 8) represented Waverley College on Friday, 17 March at the annual St Patrick’s Day Mass at St Mary’s Cathedral.
Schools in the Sydney Archdiocese, founded by Irish orders of nuns and brothers, were present and the Mass was celebrated by Bishop Terence Brady. The order of Christian Brothers founded many schools, including Waverley College 120 years ago in 1903, to provide Catholic education for young men. The Mass included a strong focus on the need for prayer for peace in the world.
The wearing of green on St Patrick’s Day represents the Irish landscape and the significance of the shamrock. St Patrick used the shamrock, with three petals in one leaf, to explain the concept of the Holy Trinity based on the Christian belief of three parts to one God.
Last Friday night, some of our Pasifika Brothers and Walawaani Indigenous group were invited to attend the Multicultural Round of the National Rugby League. They were lucky to attend the South Sydney Rabbitohs and Eastern Suburbs Roosters game at Moore Park.
One of our students, Tyden Hennessey, was excited to attend this rugby league game. He writes:
“Although I supported the Bunnies and they lost, it was a great experience with all my mates. It was a great game of footy. Both teams played well, the other boys and I even made it onto the big screen. I have never experienced anything like this before. The whole crowd saw us and we got to clap the players on. I was lucky enough to meet Jonathan Thurston and Cameron Smith, which was a once in a lifetime experience. It was such a great night and I hope it can happen again. Thank you to all who organised this wonderful opportunity for us.”
Many thanks to Ms Alicia Romijn for accompanying the students. A wonderful time was had by all.
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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