A big welcome to 2024 and a very warm welcome to our new families who have joined Waverley this year. We have already had such a busy start to the year!
It was so lovely welcoming our new Year 5 students and parents/carers on Monday. It is such a special day for the students who looked smart in their new uniforms and were keen to start their journey at Waverley College.
This week the boys were involved in Sports Trials for the upcoming summer season. This is always a highlight of the year for the boys as they meet new friends and enjoy being active. We understand there can be disappointment but we do instil in our students the need for being resilient and embracing the opportunity to be challenged and grow.
Our Meet and Greet Interviews were a huge success this week and I hope you all enjoyed meeting your son’s new teacher. We hope this gave you a chance to discuss any concerns as well as being able to set goals for the year. Please keep open communication with your son’s teachers as we progress through the year.
We welcome two new teachers to the Junior School this year. Ms Mikaela Turner who replaces Ms Charlotte Stephens in 5 Indigo while she is on maternity leave and our new Music teacher Mr Jonathon Bowden.
Please see below the new contact details for reporting your son’s absence (including co-curricular). If it is for a long period of time please contact myself for approval by emailing ssanchez@waverley.nsw.edu.au
Absence and reporting an absence
Please have a discussion with your son about always having a Plan B for when plans change. This is very important for our students, especially around sport and co-curricular activities. At times, these activities will be cancelled due to wet weather and other unforeseen circumstances. Please put together a plan so your son knows exactly what to do when circumstances change.
For those new to Waverley, there is a drop-off and pick-up space in front of the school but it is very limited. Most students have organised alternative spots to meet their parents/carers that don’t cause chaos on Henrietta Street. Please organise an appropriate pick-up spot that works for you.
There has also been a huge concern on the footpaths at the front of the school as it is very crowded, and I’m watching students cross the road not using the crossing. This is extremely dangerous as cars can not see the boys. Please refrain from calling them across the street and please ask them to use the crossing. Please also be mindful of the neighbouring houses by not blocking their driveways and parking in ‘No Stopping’ areas.
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. There is an Early Bird Offer (valid till 5 February 2024) – Save $15.
Please include this Discount Code: T124EB
Details: Monday, 12 February to Monday, 8 April – 8 sessions
Time: 3:15pm – 4:30pm
Please find the booking link HERE
Please find below some reminders about upcoming events. For all of Term 1 events, please refer to the College Calendar.
Ms Gaby Bransby
Director of the Junior School
gbransby@waverley.nsw.edu.au
Throughout the year, you will receive notifications within the Parent Lounge and via email regarding Pastoral Care incidents. These include:
Please note that information and the reasons behind these notifications are given within the Parent Lounge, therefore it is important that you check details before contacting teachers.
With any questions or concerns you have about any of these matters, please reach out to your son’s class teacher first and then if you wish to discuss these matters further, please contact me.
As part of our Catholic faith, the Junior School students will attend Mass at Mary Immaculate with the regular parishioners throughout the year. These Masses begin at 9:15am and parents/carers are warmly invited. Dates of when your son’s class will be in attendance will be sent to you by your son’s class teacher in the coming weeks.
Additionally, each House will have a Mass throughout the year. This Mass is held in the College Chapel in the Senior Campus, beginning at 6pm and is followed by a light supper. Once again, parents/carers are warmly invited to attend. Dates for these Masses are published in the College Diary and information will be sent to parents/carers and students via email from the Heads of House.
A warm welcome to all new families and returning families in our Waverley community. We are so thrilled to have you join us at the Junior School, and I look forward to getting to know you more as the year progresses. Please see the important Co-Curricular information shared at the information session on Day 1 for all new Year 5 families.
We have had a very positive and enjoyable Sport Trials, and look forward to welcoming your sons into their Summer Sport teams for 2024. Our new and continuing students have shown resilience and commitment and I look forward to an exciting season ahead.
Please remember the Junior School Swimming Carnival will be taking place on Thursday, 8 February 2024. Boys are encouraged to wear House shirts, which you can purchase from the Uniform Shop. More information will be sent out before the carnival. Parents are welcome to attend.
It is very important to label all articles of clothing, shoes, bags and equipment. There has been a lot of lost property during trials this week.
Please use this link to the College Website for all Junior School Co-Curricular information. On this page, you will find policies, expectations, Code of Conduct, the Training Schedule for the current Term, and the current Draw. Fixtures for each Saturday will be sent out via the Waverley App in the days leading up to each Saturday.
Download our Waverley App and turn on push notifications for urgent announcements, fixtures for upcoming Saturday matches, wet weather updates, training or game cancellations.
In our weekly Nurrunga newsletter, you will find upcoming dates, match results, and information about representative competitions.
Chess Club information can be found by clicking this link here. Please email Ms Samara Sanchez ssanchez@waverley.nsw.edu.au if your son wishes to participate this Term. All other Extra Co-curricular information will be sent out via the Waverley App in the coming weeks (a full list of options are on the Junior School Co-curricular page).
(NO HOME LEARNING Thursday, 8 February 2024 – Junior School Swimming Carnival)
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.
Register your son via the link https://homelearningclub.youcanbook.me
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/carer’s signature will be required.
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.
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.
As we welcome a new group of students to Waverley in 2024, The Learning Hub aims to nurture and guide them in their social, creative and academic development.
This week we saw the boys use this space in many different ways before school and during lunch.
Over the next few weeks, different initiatives will be on offer for the students to join. The initiatives aim to promote the 4 Cs: communication, collaboration, critical thinking and creative thinking.
Please find below some reminders about upcoming events. For all of Term 4 events, please refer to the College calendar.
This week we say our goodbyes to Ms Michelle Rollins who has been with us for 27 years. She will be truly missed by our whole Waverley community and we wish her the very best in her journey ahead.
Junior School Music Captain Joe Madden presents Ms Rollins with a floral token of our deep appreciation of her work
We also wish Ms Charlotte Stephens a wonderful maternity leave and look forward to seeing her return to the classroom in 2025.
I would like to congratulate Ms Jade Sparks who will be replacing Mr Jack Watchel in the position of (Acting) Assistant Director of Co-Curricular. Mr Jack Wachtel has made the decision to step down and work part time at the College. He has some wonderful business opportunities and we wish him all the best. He will continue to teach PDHPE in the Junior School next year.
I would also like to congratulate Mr Elliott McKimm who will replace Ms Charlotte Stephens as the (Acting) Director of Curriculum for Terms 1, 2 and 3 in 2024.
I want to thank all parents and carers for your support through such a fantastic year. I continued to be amazed by the commitment, dedication and resilience of each student and I am so proud of their growth and achievements this year in every facet of school life. Together our community has supported each other and made many special memories. I feel blessed to be part of such a wonderful community.
Have a fantastic Christmas break, stay safe, enjoy the sun and take care of one another. Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.
Time: 9am – 10:30am (students to arrive at school at 8:15 am)
Location: Gym (Senior School)
Student Dress Code: Academic Uniform (no blazers)
Only the parents/carers of students who are receiving an award have been invited to this event. These parents/carers will be notified in a separate email.
A Google Doc was sent to you by Mr Ghattas for you to inform us if your son has permission to go home, or if they will require supervision until 3pm. If you have not already done so, could you please fill this out asap. Link HERE.
I hope you took the time to go through your son’s Semester 2 report and reflect on the achievements and areas of growth.
Term 1 2024: Coding
Coding class on a Monday will continue next year. If you would like your son to be part of the session, please find the booking link HERE.
Monday, 5 February to Monday, 25 March – 8 sessions
Time: 3:15pm – 4:30pm
Ms Gaby Bransby
Director of the Junior School
gbransby@waverley.nsw.edu.au
What a delight it was to take the Year 6 students to Raging Waters and share in their end of year celebration. We were blessed with a beautiful sunny day and the boys were full of excitement as they boarded the buses.
Plenty of fun was had by all as they raced around the park venturing down the many different waterslides, lazed around in the dinosaur lagoon or swam in the beach wave pool. Their behaviour throughout the day was exceptional and I am sure they will hold onto some very special memories.
Mr Steve Ghattas
Assistant Director of Junior School / Identity & Student Formation
sghattas@waverley.nsw.edu.au
As I reflect, it has been an extremely special year for all areas of co-curricular at Waverley College Junior School. This includes all sports undertaken in both the Summer and Winter seasons and the growth, development and successes that followed.
This includes all of the extra co-curricular activities undertaken throughout the entire year (Innovation Club, Debating, Judo, Hip Hop, Chess, Drawing, Homework and Board Games Clubs), not to mention the amount of time and energy put into all areas of Music and Performing Arts by the amazing Ms Michelle Rollins and music teachers (Wakakirri, Stomp, Junior School Band and Ensembles, and Junior School Rock Band).
In working towards developing this Junior School Co-Curricular program over the past three years, it’s given me immense enjoyment, pride and appreciation to see how it’s grown from year to year.
As mentioned, I have some exciting new opportunities in sport and business taking place, which means I will be pulling back to working part time at Waverley College. I will still be based at the Junior School teaching PDHPE and look forward to working with the community.
I just wanted to say a massive thank you to all my colleagues, staff, coaches, parents and carers, and the wider Waverley community for your ongoing support while your son has been at the Junior School.
2022 Junior School Fun Run
Ms Jade Sparks, Junior School Rugby Convenor and classroom teacher of 6 Blue will be taking over my position. She will do an outstanding job and will no doubt continue to grow the junior co-curricular program for many years to come.
If you have any questions or concerns regarding Junior School co-curricular, please feel free to direct them to Ms Jade Sparks jsparks@waverley.nsw.edu.au
Mr Jack Wachtel
Assistant Director of Co-curricular Years 5-12
jwachtel@waverley.nsw.edu.au
As the school year comes to an end, I would like to acknowledge all the students who immersed themselves in the many activities the Learning Hub offered.
The Learning Hub aims to inspire, engage and empower students through critical and creative activities, plus allow students to retreat, explore and collaborate with others, whether that be before school, during Learning Hub sessions or during lunch. I look forward to working with all the Junior School students in 2024.
I would like to express my sincere gratitude to Brad Burke, Jessica Buchanan, Bryn Tilly, Christy Norwood, Dr James Roy, Dr Matt Pelletier, Richard Simpkin, Nicole Draper, Ian Storie, Phil Gartland, Claire Petit, Mark Zimmermann and Monique Kalmar for your time and expertise as guest speakers this year.
Your contributions have been invaluable to our students, and we could not have achieved our goal to inspire the Junior Schools without your support. Your willingness to share your knowledge and experience with our boys has made a significant impact, and we are truly grateful for your generosity and dedication towards this initiative. The talks aim to inspire the next generation of learners, leaders, entrepreneurs, sportsmen, scientists, writers, and all the other industries.
If you would like to volunteer to do a presentation in 2024, please email me directly at nzivanovic@waverley.nsw.edu.au
Ms Natasha Zivanovic
Literacy and Innovation Teacher
nzivanovic@waverley.nsw.edu.au
In an exciting cross-school collaboration earlier this term, Year 6 boys had a unique opportunity to engage in a co-educational STEM lesson at St Catherine’s School in Waverley.
Leveraging the institution’s state-of-the-art resources, our students immersed themselves in a hands-on experience that left a lasting impact. Back at our own campus, boys in Years 5 and 6 delved into the fascinating world of acids and bases through immersive experiments and keen observations.
This has been an exciting end to our first year in the new science lab. Both cohorts should be proud of their consistent dedication and enthusiasm to science throughout the year.
Mr Max Mancinelli
Specialist Science Teacher
mmancinelli@waverley.nsw.edu.au
Please find below some reminders about upcoming events. For all of Term 4 events, please refer to the College calendar.
Time: 9am – 10:30am (students to arrive at school at 8:15am)
Location: Gymnasium (Senior School)
Student Dress Code: Academic Uniform (no blazers)
Only the parents/carers of students who are receiving an award have been invited to this event. These parents/carers will be notified in a separate email.
A Google Doc was sent to you by Mr Ghattas for you to inform us if your son has permission to go home, or if they will require supervision until 3pm. If you have not already done so, could you please fill this out asap.
Semester 2 Reports will be available on Monday, 27 November at 5pm in the Parent Lounge. Please take the time to go through and read the report with your son. Should you have any questions or concerns regarding the Semester 2 Report, please contact your son’s teacher.
Term 1 2024: Coding
Coding class on a Monday will continue next year. If you would like your son to be part of the session please click the button below to book.
Click here to book for 2024 After School Code Camp
When: Monday, 5 February – Monday, 25 March 2024 (8 sessions)
Time: 3:15pm – 4:30pm.
Today you will have received an email regarding the changes in Years 5 and 6 for Mathematics next year. Please click the button below to view the Mathematics PDF that was emailed to you.
Click here to view the Mathematics PDF
As mentioned, at Waverley College we are constantly reflecting on our practice and how we can continue to innovate and improve the learning of our students. We see this new syllabus as an exciting opportunity to build mathematical confidence and competence in our learners while developing a growth mindset.
We believe in a Primary setting, based on research, that we structure our Mathematics program in a mixed-ability setting and as such we will not be explicitly streaming our Mathematics classes in 2024. The opportunity to learn Mathematics in mixed-ability classes at this age leads to better cognitive and social outcomes, a greater sense of wellbeing and confidence in Mathematics.
Ms Gaby Bransby
Director of the Junior School
gbransby@waverley.nsw.edu.au
Dear Parents, Carers and Students
On Thursday 30 November 2023, the current Year 5 students will be voting for 2024 House Captains.
If your son would like to nominate himself for House Captain or Vice Captain for their Colour House, they need to fill out the Google Form below by Tuesday, 28 November. Click the button below to view the Google Form.
They will also need to present a speech to their House before voting takes place. They can use the scaffold here to assist in planning.
Responsibilities include:
On Friday 1 December, the Year 6 students will be going on their end of year excursion to Raging Waters. The information below outlines the important details of the day.
Raging Waters – Year 6 (2022)
Mr Steve Ghattas
Assistant Director of Junior School / Identity & Student Formation
sghattas@waverley.nsw.edu.au
As 5 Gold wraps up the Term and academic year, I am filled with pride witnessing the remarkable growth and achievements of the boys throughout their Year 5 journey. Their unwavering dedication and resilience have shaped a year marked by unparalleled success.
Notably, their collaborative scriptwriting and performance showcased creativity and teamwork, fostering a sense of confidence. Their addition of instrumental activities, including learning to play the guitar with Mr Jesse Johnston, enriched their educational experience this Term and also provided valuable skills in music.
Moving into Year 6, I am confident that the bright individuals of 5 Gold will continue to shine, embracing new challenges with the same enthusiasm that defined their extraordinary journey this year. I am wishing the boys all the best in all of their future endeavours!
Mr Luke Burns
5 Gold Teacher
lburns@waverley.nsw.edu.au
Please find below some reminders about upcoming events. For all of Term 4 events, please refer to the College calendar.
Time: 9am – 10:30am (students to arrive at school at 8:15am)
Location: Gym (Senior School)
Student Dress Code: Academic Uniform (no blazers)
Only the parents/carers of students who are receiving an award have been invited to this event. These parents/carers will be notified in a separate email.
Students who have parents/carers that attend the event, may leave with them straight after.
There will be supervision as normal, however, there is the option for your son to leave after the event, with written permission.
Each classroom teacher will send a Google Doc out on Monday where you may indicate if your son can go home and the arrangements, or if your son will require supervision until 3pm.
Over 150 Years 5 and 6 students took to the stage on Wednesday evening to perform at the 2023 Junior School Music Festival in our Performing Arts Centre.
The Waterford Concert Band, Junior School Guitar Ensemble, Stomp, Junior School Rock Band and Cantores all provided a fabulous night of entertainment for the audience.
Our Junior School music captain, Joe Madden performed a jazzy clarinet solo and our Wakakirri item provided a dramatic close to the program.
Events like these do not happen without the support of many people. As such, the junior school would like to thank – all of the boys who spent many hours of rehearsal in preparation for the festival, all of the tutors involved in preparing these items, in particular ensemble directors Mr Dan Williams, Mr Nick Yavtsev and Mr Jesse Johnston, the Senior School music department and Ms Keiran Kossenberg for their continued support, the Music Supporters’ Club and Mr Bishoy Wasef for his technical magic. We would also like to thank all of the parents and carers of our performers for their ongoing encouragement.
Ms Gaby Bransby acknowledges the substantial contributions of Music and Drama Teacher Ms Michelle Rollins over her 27-year career at Waverley
Ms Gaby Bransby
Director of the Junior School
gbransby@waverley.nsw.edu.au
Dear Parents and Carers,
You are all invited to the Year 6 Graduation on Monday, 4 December 2023 to acknowledge the end of your son’s primary school years. Please see the invitation below.
Kids Giving Back is a NFP – DGR-status charity who offer meaningful volunteering opportunities to young people 6-18 years. Our mission is to create the next generation of generosity. Our philosophy embraces the triple impact of volunteering: creating empathic and responsible kids, supporting charities, and improving the society in which we live by creating a civic-minded population.
Kids Giving Back partners with over 50 charities and would love our support. I appeal to all students to please bring in the following essential items. With these donations, we enable children in the school holidays to create care packages, which are then donated to victims of domestic violence and the homeless community. Thank you for your support!
Thank you to Noah Nunn (6 Indigo) for bringing this charity to our attention once again this year.
Donations for this charity can be handed in to Ms Sanchez at the Junior School front office. We will collect donations up until Friday Week 8 (1 December 2023). Your generosity and support is very much appreciated.
Mr Steve Ghattas
Assistant Director of Junior School / Identity & Student Formation
sghattas@waverley.nsw.edu.au
Round 12 Sport (Saturday, 18 November 2023)
We’ve made it to the final co-curricular round for 2023 sport. I wish all teams the best of luck this weekend, and especially our Year 6 students who will be competing in their final round of sport at the Junior School.
Please click the link below to access the sports fixture for Round 12 this Saturday, 18 November. All adjustments to times and venues have been noted in red, please take note carefully.
>>>> Click here to view the College Website: Junior School Sports Fixtures and Season Draw.
Mr Jack Wachtel
Assistant Director of Co-curricular – Years 5-8
jwachtel@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 – 4pm – Mondays, Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays – during school term unless there is a scheduled Professional Development meeting and the club will be closed.
Click here to register your son
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.
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.
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.
As we come to the end of a productive year of Drawing Club, I allowed the students to work on their mini drawings for the final sessions. Observing the students thinking critically about their drawings and watching them work creatively, is a highlight for me.
I have watched the boys make new friends, discuss and appreciate each other’s drawings. There are only two sessions left in 2023 and I look forward to seeing what they produce.
Toby and Ceilim did Waverley proud on Friday, 10 November 2023. These two boys represented Waverley at the IPSHA Speakers’ Challenge competing against 90 students from a variety of schools in NSW.
Both boys showed strong speaking skills, and their matter, manner and method were exceptional. I’m extremely proud of the growth both boys made since Round 1, the Junior School finals and now the challenge.
Ms Natasha Zivanovic
Literacy & Innovation Teacher
nzivanovic@waverley.nsw.edu.au
Boys in the Junior School have been exploring the musical concept of structure in Term 4. As a part of this topic, we have developed musical language to help us define and describe musical structure such as introduction, verse, chorus, bridge and coda. We used our listening skills to identify different sections of the music by comparing and contrasting melody, rhythm and instrumentation. We then used our knowledge of structure to develop a class performance of the theme from the TV series S.W.A.T. Once we learned the main melodies, we were able to experiment with different arrangements.
In Term 4 we have consolidated our skills into a final project including importing audio and video files into Garage Band, sampling sounds, creating loops and adding sound effects. Boys created a backing soundtrack for a small section of silent animated film. Students considered mood (tone colour), timing (duration) and sound effects (sampling). We are looking forward to sharing our work in class in Week 7, when every student will have the opportunity to show one of their 2023 Music Tech works to the class.
Term 4 is all about performing! Year 5 Drama students performed ‘Vulga the Vampire’ at the beginning of the Term. The characters were great fun and the boys developed voice projection, special awareness and teamwork.
As we come to the end of the year, our final play ‘Here comes the Judge’ is in rehearsal and is looking good. The boys will perform this play in Weeks 7 and 8.
We hope you enjoy some of the Music Tech works below that were produced in 2023.
School Blues by Leo Vigil, Charlie McKenzie and Freddie Fearon
Space Emergency (using genuine sound effects from NASA to create a soundscape) by Alex Banhidi
Dance Track by James Draper
Dance Track by Benedict Vanzella
Ms Michelle Rollins
Music and Drama Teacher
mrollins@waverley.nsw.edu.au
Please find below some reminders about upcoming events. For all of Term 4 events, please refer to the College calendar.
Thank you to those parents/carers who joined the Ysafe webinar last Thursday. If you missed the session, I have included the link below. This webinar has some really important information and I really encourage you to watch it.
>>> Click here to view the Waverley College Junior School ySafe Webinar.
Ms Gaby Bransby
Director of Junior School
gbransby@waverley.nsw.edu.au
Dear Parents, Carers and Students
We look forward to the Junior School Music Festival next Wednesday evening.
The event will showcase the Year 5 and Year 6 students’ abundant talent in creative arts. The performances will commence at 6pm and will finish by 7:15pm.
The Festival will take place in the Performing Arts Centre Theatre located at the Senior School campus, 131 Birrell Street, Waverley. Parents/Carers and friends are welcome to attend. The event is non ticketed. Please arrive early to find a seat.
All performers will need to be at the Performing Arts Centre by 5:30pm. Boys will need to wear their academic uniform unless they are also in Wakakirri – (Wakakirri boys will wear their costume).
Our Music Supporters’ Group have organised a supper service and will be selling pizza slice, cakes and soft drinks along with beverages from 5:15pm in the PAC Foyer. Cash or EFTPOS available. Please email pac_supporters@waverley.nsw.edu.au if you are able to help, any assistance with service on the evening would be greatly appreciated.
The Waterford Concert Band rehearsal will be held in the Performing Arts Centre Theatre at the senior campus, before school on Wednesday morning 15 November, 7:30am.
Following this, students will be escorted to the Junior School campus. Students are reminded to bring their instruments and music.
Ms Keiran Kossenberg
Performing Arts Centre Coordinator
kkossenberg@waverley.nsw.edu.au
Dear Parents and Carers,
You are all invited to the Year 6 Graduation on Monday, 4 December to acknowledge the end of your son’s primary school years. Please see the invitation below.
Mr Steve Ghattas
Assistant Director of Junior School / Identity & Student Formation
sghattas@waverley.nsw.edu.au
My name is Charlie Barrett and I recently visited Nepal with my dad, my brother and another family. We first landed in Kathmandu and met our friends at the hotel. The next morning we woke up and went to our meeting with our lead guide, Ram, and met the owner of the company for some briefing. The day after, we woke up early and went to the airport and prayed that the flight would not be cancelled as the flight the day before had been cancelled. Luckily we got on a flight and off we went. It was the most spectacular flight ever as we were going through the Himalayas but we were also very nervous as this is one of the most dangerous flights. We landed on the runway with a large smack to the tarmac and we all bounced out of our seats.
The first village we visited was called Phakding which was a reasonably large village with a very nice bakery and a lot of nice things to do. The next day we went to Namche Bazaar and that day was one of the hardest days of the trek. The height of Namche is 3443m which was a lot of elevation in one day but it was worth it because it is one of the biggest and nicest villages in the trek.
We visited lots of villages such as Tengboche, which was quite small but had great views. Dingboche which was a large town with a lot of accommodation and some bakeries. The town of Lobuche was one of my favourites and the accommodation was very clean and nice.
The hardest day of all was the Cho-La Pass, one of the three passes (the trek that Miss Sparks did). It is the second hardest and boy was it tiring! We started our day with a group of people yelling at their guide to get them off the mountain and then we had a large rock climb to conquer and boy we thought that was the hard part but it was only the beginning. One of our guides got quite sick during the walk and halfway through, my own body had had enough and I toppled over and threw up all over the white snow. So a porter took my bag and l continued walking. When we got to the top of the pass, I felt like I was on the top of the world! It was the highest I’d ever been and we celebrated with some biscuits and a KitKat each, then I looked over the edge and saw the slippery steep rock face that we had to climb down. I didn’t look down there ever again.
Then the next day we went over a glacier to get to Gokyo, our guide said it was flat (Nepali flat means “a little bit up, a little bit down). Then it started raining which made it very slippery and hard to walk over the rocky surface. We had a great stay in Gokyo, it is a beautiful village. Then we enjoyed the town of Namche Bazaar again, eating lots of yummy food. In Lukla, our flights back to Kathmandu kept getting cancelled due to the weather, plus my brother got very sick. So my dad, Seb and I went to the hospital with Ram and my brother was given a drip and oxygen. He rested and started to feel better so we checked out and went back to the hostel.
Finally, our guide had luckily been able to do a deal with his friend who said he would take us back to Kathmandu in a helicopter. We jumped on with the propellers still spinning and then the helicopter did a sharp turn and took off. It was super exhilarating, we got an amazing view and were so happy to be on our way. Another special part of it was that we got special permission to fly directly to Kathmandu rather than have to do a six-hour bus drive on twisty, bumpy roads. When we got off, we collected our stuff and then went to surprise our friends… they couldn’t believe we’d made it and that night we all luxuriated in having a shower (after 10 days!) and eating a delicious meal. That night we fell asleep in our clean and cosy beds, what an adventure we’d all had!!
Only two more rounds of Summer Co-Curricular sport for the remainder of 2023. Please refer to the link below to access the sports fixture for Round 11 this Saturday, 11 November. All adjustments to times and venues have been noted in red, please take note carefully.
>>> Click here to view the College Website: Junior School Sports Fixtures and Season Draw.
Mr Jack Wachtel
Assistant Director of Co-curricular – Years 5-8
jwachtel@waverley.nsw.edu.au
*No Home Learning on Wednesday, 15 November 2023.
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 – 4pm – Mondays, Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays – during school term unless there is a scheduled Professional Development meeting and the club will be closed.
Click here to register your son
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.
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.
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.
Ms Natasha Zivanovic
Literacy & Innovation Teacher
nzivanovic@waverley.nsw.edu.au
It has been a busy start to Term 4 for 6 Red. With the year wrapping up, boys have been hard at work with a variety of summative assessment tasks. For Science, students were tasked with using a selection of recycled materials to craft an enjoyable, functional, and user-friendly game of their choosing. The boys displayed excellent teamwork in their collaborative efforts, resulting in the successful creation of numerous outstanding games, which they subsequently presented to the class.
The 6 Red team have also been actively engaged in developing health-related advertisements. They’ve been focusing on the promotion of the concept of being an ‘upstander,’ a subject of significant importance within the Junior School community. The boys have produced concise advertisements aimed at educating the audience about the role of an upstander and how we can collectively combat bullying.
Additionally, the students of 6 Red have found great enjoyment in delving into the creative world of stop motion animation during English. They have dedicated their efforts to exploring this fascinating medium, honing their skills and unleashing their imaginative talents.
Please find below some reminders about upcoming events. For all of Term 4 events, please refer to the College calendar.
I wanted to share the incredible trip that our 6 Blue teacher Ms Sparks journeyed on over the last month. Ms Sparks completed the Everest Three-Passes trek in Nepal. This was no small feat and I thought her story below was worth celebrating.
Next week, I will share Charlie Barrett’s adventure (6 Gold) who also went to Nepal and completed the trek to base camp.
Namaste! On the 30th September this year, I boarded an eight-hour flight to Singapore and then a five-hour flight to Kathmandu, landing in the early hours of the morning. I was greeted with a smack of heat and a buzz of human and car traffic, despite the time. In Kathmandu the next day, I met my World Expeditions leader and my fellow trek-mates, then we got on a bus to Ramechhap. After a breakdown and a swap of buses, we arrived safely at Ramechhap after six hours. Our first night at camp ended in the early hours of the following morning, when we woke in the dark to get to the airport for our final flight (18 minutes on something not much larger than a remote-controlled plane) to Lukla.
Once in Lukla we finally started walking. And for 18 days we walked, up to eight hours every day. Each day, walking was different, but never flat. “Nepali flat” means “a little bit up, a little bit down.” The first of our three high passes was Kongma-La (elevation 5,550m) where we battled altitude and many steep climbs to get to the top. The way down was always a relief, but mostly a sense of accomplishment. The second of our high passes was the Cho-La (elevation 5,420m) which involved wearing ice cleats over our boots to trek up the glacier (imagine walking on a snow cone). Finally, the third high pass was the Renjo La (5,360m) which we conquered after staying at the beautiful Gokyo lakes.
Gokyo Lakes
Amidst the three passes, we climbed Kalla Pattar, went to Everest Base Camp, stayed in Wilderness Camps, visited the Sir Edmund Hillary School, stayed in the tiered village of Namche Bazaar, and saw incredible views of Sagamartha (Everest), Ama Dablam and so many more of the highest peaks in the world. In total we walked 170km and climbed a total elevation o 8,500m. I am so grateful I had this experience which was made possible by our World Expeditions leader, Sherpa guides, porters and cooks.
Thank you to the support of the College and community whilst I was on leave in Nepal. I have returned more aware, grateful and fulfilled and I recommend traveling to Nepal to anyone who wishes to experience the stillness and serenity of the highest points on Earth, while being surrounded by some of the happiest people in the world. – Ms Jade Sparks
Ms Gaby Bransby
Director of the Junior School
gbransby@waverley.nsw.edu.au
Dear Parents and Carers,
You are all invited to the Year 6 Graduation on Monday, 4 December to acknowledge the end of your son’s primary school years. Please see the invitation below.
As part of the Year 6 Graduation, I will be putting together a slideshow presentation. I would be very appreciative if you could send through a photo of your son’s Kindergarten photo (or their first day of Kindergarten, or similar), as this will form part of the presentation.
If you could please send a labelled photo through to liturgy@waverley.nsw.edu.au by no later than Friday Week 5. Picture format as a jpeg or png file would be preferred. Please do not send through pdf files.
Mr Steve Ghattas
Assistant Director of Junior School/Identity & Student Formation
sghattas@waverley.nsw.edu.au
Round 10 Sport (Saturday, 4 November 2023)
Please refer to the link below to access the sports fixture for Round 10 this Saturday, 4 November. All adjustments to times and venues have been noted in red, please take note carefully.
>>> Click here to view the College Website: Junior School Sports Fixtures and Season Draw.
Mr Jack Wachtel
Assistant Director of Co-curricular
jwachtel@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 – 4pm – Mondays, Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays – during school term unless there is a scheduled Professional Development meeting and the club will be closed.
Click here to register your son
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.
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.
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.
A shout out to Hugh Rachel (Year 5) for going above and beyond to get the latest Learning Hub books signed by the incredible author Suzanne Leal! And let me tell you, the new release, Running With Ivan, is an absolute page-turner! It’s a thrilling read that will have you on the edge of your seat from start to finish. Don’t miss out on this fantastic book.
Monique Kalmar, actress and mum of Ashaan (Year 5), took us on a journey on why she became an actress. Monique’s insights and experiences were truly inspiring, and we are grateful for the opportunity to have learned from her.
Monique’s passion for acting and her dedication to her craft were evident in her life experiences, and the Junior School students were all captivated by the stories of her time in remote villages in developing countries.
Monique’s willingness to share her journey with us has left a lasting impression on our students, and I am confident that they have taken away valuable lessons from her talk.
Thank you for taking the time and for sharing your expertise with us.
Ms Natasha Zivanovic
Literacy & Innovation Teacher
nzivanovic@waverley.nsw.edu.au
This Term in English, our theme is “Life Is An Adventure,” a fitting topic for our last Term of Year 6 where change and adventure awaits our Year 6 students next year. We are immersing ourselves in a wide range of quality imaginative texts, through our own reading and being read to. We are exploring short stories (humorous and adventurous), particularly those of Australian authors, for example Paul Jennings and Oliver Phommavanh.
One way of presenting short stories is through stop-motion films. We have viewed some examples of stop-motion films through Literacy Shed and examined the themes, imagery, emotion and effectiveness of each short story. This Term we will create several short film projects individually and in groups. Our focus is using creative visual literacy skills to develop stop-motion films that use characters and stories to engage audiences.
See the images below of our creators at work, using their bodies to make a stop-motion film. We had to pay great attention to the shots and angles we used in order to create the illusion effect that is possible with stop-motion. For example, we could make our characters fly and flip in the air through a sequence of high-angle shots of someone lying on the ground.
6 Blue embraced the challenge and have now produced two high quality stop-motion films, with more to come.
Ms Jade Sparks
Teacher 6 Blue
jsparks@waverley.nsw.edu.au
The Orientation Day for students in Year 7, 2024 will be held on Tuesday, 7 November, 2023.
Please drop your son to the Birrell Street Basketball Courts at 8:30am. The boys will participate in a number of activities including:
Students are required to wear their PE Uniform on the day and bring the following:
The day will conclude at 2:50pm. Students will be dismissed from the Birrell Street Basketball Courts and collected by parents or carers or they can make their own way home if permission is granted.
Ms Gabby Smith
Deputy Principal – Students
gsmith@waverley.nsw.edu.au
The local monthly magazine of the Eastern Suburbs The Beast has launched The Beast Young Writers Competition this month.
There will be two categories:
Anyone who lives in the area of The Beast’s distribution area and is aged 18 or under, is invited to enter.
The short stories need to be between 500-600 words and the poems need to be under 300 words. The only rule is that it needs to be original with local relevance, that hasn’t been entered in any other competition.
The judges will be Dr Marjorie O’Neill, Waverley Mayor Paula Masselos, Reddam House English Teacher Mr Compton, and Beast writers, including Nat Shepherd.
To enter, email your short story or poem to james@thebeast.com.au
Include your:
Prizes include $150 for 1st prize in each category and $50 for 2nd place.
Entries close on 30 November 2023 and winners will be announced in The Beast magazine before Christmas.
Our Cybersafety initiative kicked off this week with sessions for the Senior School students covering a range of topics relevant to their age group.
Next week we will facilitate sessions for the Junior School students, and finally turn our attention to Parents with an online session for both Junior and Senior School parents/carers.
To register for these events please use the following links, we will be recording these invaluable sessions for publication later.
Protecting kids in the digital world is an ever evolving task for Australian families. Now, more than ever, parents are looking for guidance on how to manage screen time, deal with negative online experiences, and navigate the world of gaming and social media.
Join Australia’s award-winning and leading cyber safety educators, ySafe, as they take you through the latest trends in online behaviours, social media and games, as well as the latest research and legislation as it applies to children and their families in the online world.
This session is strategy rich, and full of practical tips (including take home resources) to help you ensure you are able to create a truly cyber safe home.
If you’ve ever struggled in getting your kids off their devices and into bed, or worried about the content or connections they have online, then this webinar is for you.
We look forward to seeing you there!
Please find below some reminders about upcoming events. For all of Term 4 events, please refer to the College calendar.
A huge congratulations to Junior School Drawing Club People’s Choice Winner – Dash McDonough!
At the HSC Showcase Art and Design show, the Visual Arts faculty in collaboration with the Junior School Drawing club and Book Week ran a competition for a People’s Choice Award. There were so many talented entrants and artworks that demonstrated the Book Week theme ‘Read, Grow, Inspire’.
For first place, this was only won by one point! Congratulations to Dash for sculpting his artwork. Dash has received a wonderful art prize pack that will help him to continue to create some very remarkable artworks!
After winning a NSW Story-Dance award and progressing through to the national competition, Waverley College has now received a Highly Commended award for their performance “The Right to Dream” as part of the 2023 National Wakakirri Story-Dance Festival.
Wakakirri is Australia’s largest performing arts event for schools with 200 taking part in 2023. Participating schools are inspired by the Wakakirri ethos ‘great stories inspire change’ to create and perform story-dances that reflect students’ thoughts, ideas and aspirations.
Wakakirri Festival Director Adam Loxley praised the outstanding performance and storytelling of schools this year, stating, “The standard this year was exceptional, so Waverley College should be very proud of their award.” This acknowledgment reflects the high quality and creativity that Waverley College brought to their participation in the Wakakirri Festival.
We are so proud of our students and we thank Ms Michelle Rollins for her incredible work and vision.
Protecting children in their digital worlds is an ever-evolving task for Australian families. Now more than ever, parents are looking for guidance in how to manage screen time and navigate the world of games and social media.
We warmly invite our Waverley College Junior School parent community to a crucial and engaging education webinar with ySafe, Australia’s leading provider of online safety education. This practical, strategy-rich session will cover the most important points that all families need to know about online safety, covering key information about social media and gaming, screen time recommendations, and step-by-step instructions on how to set up a cyber safe home for children of all ages.
If you’ve ever struggled with getting your children off their games and into bed, worried about the content of the games that they are playing, or felt concerned that your child was spending too much time in the digital world, this workshop is for you!
Register now.
A reminder that supervision in the mornings doesn’t begin until 8:15 am or 7am if your son has training. This is also for the afternoon. Students aren’t allowed on school grounds after 3pm unless they have school sports. Once they have finished their training, school grounds are closed. We appreciate your assistance in the matter.
Ms Gaby Bransby
Director of the Junior School
gbransby@waverley.nsw.edu.au
Dear Parents and Carers,
You are all invited to the Year 6 Graduation on Monday, 4 December to acknowledge the end of your son’s primary school years. Please see the invitation below.
As part of the Year 6 Graduation, I will be putting together a slideshow presentation. I would be very appreciative if you could send through a photo of your son’s Kindergarten photo (or their first day of Kindergarten, or similar), as this will form part of the presentation.
If you could please send a labelled photo through to liturgy@waverley.nsw.edu.au by no later than Friday Week 5. Picture format as a jpeg or png file would be preferred. Please do not send through pdf files.
On Friday, 3 November, Year 6 students will be involved in their annual retreat day at the Senior School. This will focus on the importance of friendship, inclusiveness and leadership. Students are expected to arrive at the Junior School at normal time in their PE Uniform.
A BBQ lunch (sausage and drink) will be provided, however the students will need to bring their own recess. Flexischools will still be available to the students if needed.
If you have any questions or concerns regarding dietary requirements, can I please ask you to contact your son’s class teacher.
‘Kids Giving Back’ is a NFP – DGR status charity who offer meaningful volunteering opportunities to young people 6-18yrs. Their mission is to create the next generation of generosity. Their philosophy embraces the triple impact of volunteering: creating empathic and responsible kids, supporting charities, and improving the society in which they live by creating a civic-minded population.
Kids Giving Back partners with over 50 charities and would love the support of our school community in appealing to our students to bring in the following essential items. With these donations, Kids Giving Back enables children in the school holidays to create care packages which are then donated to victims of domestic violence and the homeless community.
Thank you to Noah Nunn (6 Indigo) for bringing this charity to our attention once again this year.
Donations for this charity can be handed in to Ms Sanchez at the Junior School front office. We will be collecting donations up until Friday Week 8 (1 December). Your generosity and support is very much appreciated.
Mr Steve Ghattas
Assistant Director of the Junior School / Identity & Student Formation
sghattas@waverley.nsw.edu.au
On Monday morning the Junior School opened our classrooms up to parents/carers to come and have a look at all of the incredible work that the boys have been doing. It was wonderful to see so many parents and carers in attendance.
The whole school was buzzing with the sound of our students proudly showing off their amazing pieces of work, which included writing and maths samples, creative artworks and ongoing projects. Thank you to everyone who came and made it such a special event for our students.
Ms Charlotte Stephens
Assistant Director of Curriculum
cstephens@waverley.nsw.edu.au
Round 9 Sport (Saturday, 28 October 2023)
Another great round of Summer Sport we experienced last weekend, with some amazing team results and nail-biting finishes. The weather has been consistently good on Saturdays, and we look forward to that continuing this weekend.
Please refer to the link below to access the sports fixture for Round 9 this Saturday, 28 October. All adjustments to times and venues have been noted in red, please take note carefully.
College Website: Junior School Sports Fixtures and Season Draw
Best of luck to all teams this weekend.
In preparation for Summer and Winter Co-Curricular Sport in 2024, I am seeking your son’s sport selection for the summer and winter sports that he will be choosing to trial for at the beginning of next year and at the end of Term 1.
This will allow me to nominate the appropriate amount of teams based on how many students nominate for each sport.
Summer Sports include: Basketball, Cricket, Tennis, Touch Football and Water Polo
Winter Sports include: AFL, Football (Soccer), Rugby Union and Rugby 7s
I ask that you please discuss this with your son, and complete the form by Monday, 30 October 2023.
Please be aware of the following prior to your son making his selection:
Form Due – Monday, 30 October 2023.
E: jwachtel@waverley.nsw.edu.au
Year 5 Parents to Complete Only:
2024 Summer and Winter Sport Selections (Click & Complete)
During the Term 3 holidays, Charlie Carrano represented Waverley at the NSW Primary Schools Challenge (Athletics).
He came 8th in the 200m Finals, 8th in the 100m Finals and 1st in the Long Jump.
Further to this, Louis Coleman came 4th at State for high jump, with a personal best of 1.55m. He said he’s looking forward to training with the Senior School Athletics program next year.
Well done for your achievements Charlie and Louis, Waverley is very proud.
Mr Jack Wachtel
Assistant Director of Co-curricular Years 5-8
jwachtel@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 – 4pm – Mondays, Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays – during school term unless there is a scheduled Professional Development meeting and the club will be closed.
Click here to register your son
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.
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.
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.
I love the enthusiasm the students bring to their weekly Drawing Club session. This week the students focused on ‘Sketch Art.’ The students’ focus on Sketch Art shows their dedication to improving their skills and exploring different techniques. It’s inspiring to see them taking an interest in different forms of art and pushing themselves to learn and grow.
The Learning Hub’s 3D printers provide students the opportunity to develop while using the 4Cs—Creativity, Critical and Creative Thinking, Collaboration, and Communication—to increase engagement.
Thank you very much to Noah Nunn (6 Indigo) for managing the 3D printers.
I would like to thank James Peate, Captain of Public Speaking, for giving up his time to mentor Toby and Ceilim for their upcoming IPSHA Public Speaking Competition.
His mentoring was extremely valuable with excellent feedback to the boys. We appreciate James’ continued support of the Junior School students.
Ms Natasha Zivanovic
Literacy & Innovation Teacher
nzivanovic@waverley.nsw.edu.au
This week, 5 Blue performed a whole class cast play titled ‘Vulga the Vampire!’ where they learnt to convey dramatic meaning by using the elements of drama and to use a range of movement and voice skills. During the Term, the boys rehearsed the performance and refined their performance styles.
Taj, the narrator, articulately set the scene and revealed the plot of the story which revolved around the main character, Vulga (Jack G). Vulga, the vampire, had a series of bad days where nothing would go right! Thomas, the sign holder, cleverly made his way across the stage to signify changes of character and scenery.
In the dead of night, when trying to find a tasty meal, Vulga comes across a series of interesting characters. The boys created stage effects such as mist, torches for light flickering, and sound effects such as howling to create atmosphere.
Firstly, he came across a blood donor (Jude) who thought he was in fancy dress, then a happy couple (played by Arlo and Oscar) who got spooked and ran away, and a professor named Joey, who confused him about different blood types.
In the final scenes, Vulga pounces on a committed dentist (Harry) who studies his teeth and tells him he’s in need of urgent dental attention. He tries his luck with Mr Stone and his dog (Rufus and Blake), who cleverly tells him “you can’t get blood out of a Stone!”
The play ends with the dog biting Vulga, who gets a taste of his own blood. The boys in 5 Blue did a stellar job and it was evident that they enjoyed the learning process.
Here are some reviews from the boys on how they thought they performed in the final performance:
Rufus Nicholson, 5 Blue
It was very fun to learn this play as we learnt many skills along the way including teamwork, communication skills, improvisation and the ability to not laugh when acting! We had to practice during all drama lessons with Ms Rollins. I would practice my part after school and on weekends and it took a long time to get right but I eventually was up and running knowing my whole script off by heart! Picking my costume at home was exciting because I could see myself on stage wearing all of my options. When we heard about the play we all erupted with excitement. I feel we were very lucky to do this play!
Jack Gibson, 5 Blue
This performance was super fun for the whole class, and especially for me, because I was the main character. The play was a comedy and was extremely entertaining as there were lots of different characters that I; Vulga the Vampire could not suck blood from. Miss Hunt and Miss Rollins were our audience, and we performed amazingly. All our costumes were true to the characters and there were no mistakes made during the performance. Miss Rollins taught us how to improvise, not laugh while performing, and to work as a team. Overall, the experience was marvelous.
Ms Elise Hunt
Classroom Teacher 5 Blue
ehunt@waverley.nsw.edu.au
Please find below some reminders about upcoming events. For all of Term 4 events, please refer to the College calendar.
Protecting children in their digital worlds is an ever-evolving task for Australian families. Now more than ever parents/carers are looking for guidance in how to manage screen time and navigate the world of games and social media.
We warmly invite our Waverley College Junior School parent community to a crucial and engaging education webinar with ySafe, Australia’s leading provider of online safety education. This practical, strategy-rich session will cover the most important points that all families need to know about online safety, covering key information about social media and gaming, screen time recommendations and step-by-step instructions on how to set up a cyber safe home for children of all ages.
If you’ve ever struggled with getting your children off their games and into bed, worried about the content of the games that they are playing, or felt concerned that your child was spending too much time in the digital world, this workshop is for you!
Click here to view the webinar page
There are still places available for Coding Camp this Term.
Class Type: Coding After-School
Day: Mondays
Dates: Monday, 23 October – Monday, 4 December 2023 (7 sessions)
Times: 3:15pm – 4:30pm
Ms Gaby Bransby
Director of the Junior School
gbransby@waverley.nsw.edu.au
Dear Parents and Carers,
You are all invited to the Year 6 Graduation on Monday, 4 December to acknowledge the end of your son’s primary school years. Please see the invitation below.
As part of the Year 6 Graduation, I will be putting together a slideshow presentation. I would be very appreciative if you could send through a photo of your son’s Kindergarten photo (or their first day of Kindergarten, or similar), as this will form part of the presentation.
If you could please send a labelled photo through to liturgy@waverley.nsw.edu.au by no later than Friday Week 5. Picture format as a jpeg or png file would be preferred. Please do not send through pdf files.
Mr Steve Ghattas
Assistant Director of the Junior School / Identity & Student Formation
sghattas@waverley.nsw.edu.au
I am pleased to share the Term 4 Curriculum Overviews for Years 5 and 6. These documents are a guide to the learning that your son will be covering in class this Term.
I hope this is a useful document that will help you to support your son and engage him in conversation about his learning experiences at school.
As we move towards our final assessment and reporting period for 2023, this is a crucial Term for achieving our learning goals and finishing the year with a sense of pride and achievement. I wish you all a wonderful Term ahead.
>>> Click here to view the Year 5 Term 4 Curriculum Overview.
>>> Click here to view the Year 6 Term 4 Curriculum Overview.
Ms Charlotte Stephens
Assistant Director of Curriculum
cstephens@waverley.nsw.edu.au
The first round of Summer sport for Term 4 ran smoothly with all teams enjoying being back playing co-curricular sport again after an extended break.
Please click the button below to view the sports fixture for Round 8, Saturday, 21 October. All adjustments to times and venues have been noted in red, please take note carefully.
Click here to view the 21 October Sports Fixture
Best of luck to all teams this weekend.
In preparation for summer and winter co-curricular sport in 2024, I am seeking your son’s sport selection for the summer and winter sports that he will be choosing to trial for at the beginning of 2024 and at the end of Term 1 2024.
This will allow me to nominate the appropriate amount of teams based on how many students nominate for each sport.
Please discuss this with your son and complete the form at the end of this article by Tuesday, 24 October 2023.
Please be aware of the following prior to your son making his selection:
This will be the only opportunity to complete the form, so if any changes need to be made to your son’s selection, please email me at jwachtel@waverley.nsw.edu.au
Click here to view and complete the Form
Form due: Tuesday, 24 October 2023
Mr Jack Wachtel
Assistant Director Co-curricular Years 5-8
jwachtel@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 – 4pm – Mondays, Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays – during school term unless there is a scheduled Professional Development meeting and the club will be closed.
Click here to register your son
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.
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.
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.
Ms Natasha Zivanovic
Literacy & Innovation Teacher
nzivanovic@waverley.nsw.edu.au
In 5 Indigo we have been developing our skills as communicators and composers. Through Term 3 we have been looking at ways in which people communicate their passions and interests with the world. Firstly, by studying the text Mechanica by Lance Balchin and then by investigating the speech writing skills of advocates such as Greta Thunberg.
Below are some examples of our own version of Mechanica, Australianica!
In Visual Art we have been designing, drawing and creating an artwork that displays the effect climate change has on the planet. Our artworks show a comparison between a healthy planet and an unhealthy planet.
The following artworks were created by Riley Jones, Edgar Gibson, Louis Vereker, Fergus Samba-Hoare, Anthony Zanapolis, Joe Fanning and Boyd Green.
Artwork by Anthony Zanapolis
Artwork by Boyd Green
Artwork by Fergus Samba-Hoare
Artwork by Joe Fanning
Artwork by Louis Vereker
Artwork by Riley Jones
Ms Charlotte Stephens
Teacher 5 Indigo
cstephens@waverley.nsw.edu.au
A big welcome back to all our Waverley College families. I hope the break gave you a chance to slow down and spend quality time with your family. We are back in full swing and excited for the Term ahead.
Just a reminder that students no longer require a blazer in Term 4, except for special events. I have noticed some haircuts that do not align with the College Haircut policy, which can be found on page 25 of the school diary. If your son has been asked to have his hair rectified, please have this done by Monday Week 2.
Please find below some reminders about upcoming events. For all of Term 4 events, please refer to the College calendar.
Congratulations to all the students who participated in ICAS Assessments. A special congratulations to the following students who received a credit or above in Writing.
Ms Gaby Bransby
Director of Junior School
gbransby@waverley.nsw.edu.au
Round 7 Sport (Saturday, 14 October 2023)
I hope all families have enjoyed a nice and lengthy break from sport since Term 3. It is great to be back enjoying summer co-curricular as the weather begins to warm up and daylight saving has begun.
Please click the button below to view the sports fixture for Round 7 this Saturday, 14 October. All adjustments to times and venues have been noted in red, please take note carefully.
Click here to view the Junior School Sports Fixtures and Season Draw
Best of luck to all teams this weekend returning to summer sport.
We are excited to announce Junior School students will have access this Term to Friday morning cricket batting sessions with external coaching in the Senior School College nets between 7am-8:15am.
The sessions will be run by 1st Grade cricketer and Waverley Old Boy, Mac Jenkins and his experienced coaches. The sessions will provide students with the opportunity to improve their batting through skills and drills.
Batting Club is a service currently offered to Senior School students Monday-Thursday, with the invitation now being extended to Junior School cricketers wanting to improve their batting.
Please express your interest by clicking the button below. Spaces are limited, so please get in early.
Click here to complete the Batting Club sign up form
Cricket Nets
On the back of a successful NBA Basketball Hoops Invitational for our Waverley team in Term 3, there were three students selected as part of the NBA schools representative holiday camp. This brought all the strongest and highest performing players together from the invitational tournament.
Hunter Bligh, Cruz Peralta and Remy Garvey were selected to attend the NBA camp. They again performed at an extremely high standard and we’re proud of their involvement.
Congratulations to Hunter, who received the most coachable player award at the camp.
NBA Basketball Hoops Invitational, NBA Camp
Mr Jack Wachtel
Assistant Director of Co-curricular Years 5-8
jwachtel@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 – 4pm – Mondays, Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays – during school term unless there is a scheduled Professional Development meeting and the club will be closed.
Click here to register your son
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.
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.
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.
Ms Natasha Zivanovic
Literacy & Innovation Teacher
nzivanovic@waverley.nsw.edu.au
This Term Running Club will continue to operate on Mondays at lunchtime.
There will be two options for boys to choose:
Boys will be presented with a series of running challenges with the aim of improving their cardiovascular endurance in preparation for the 2024 Winter Sport Season.
Please note:
Should you have any questions about Running Club this Term, please do not hesitate to email Mr McKimm emckimm@waverley.nsw.edu.au
This Term we are pleased to announce that Wednesday Cricket sessions will continue at lunchtimes.
Mr McKimm will facilitate these sessions.
Should you wish to participate, families must register their son by clicking the button below.
Click here to register your son
Sessions are limited to 20 students and anybody wishing to bat, should bring their own kit.
These sessions are a great opportunity for students who already play cricket, to have an extra training session in their week.
Mr Elliott McKimm
Running and Cricket Club
emckimm@waverley.nsw.edu.au
We would like to acknowledge the Gadigal people of the Eora nation who are the traditional Custodians of the land on which Waverley College is located. We pay our respects to Elders past, present and emerging. We are committed to honouring Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples’ unique cultural and spiritual connections to the land, waters, seas and sky and their rich contribution to society.
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