Mackellar Girls Campus Newsletter29 21 SEPTEMBER 2018

Term 3, Week 9 Meeting the educational needs of girls

Next General P&C Meeting: Wednesday 7 November 2018

Director General’s Award for Turning Potential into Performance

Director General’s Award for Excellence in Girls Education

Director General’s Award for Excellence in Gifted and Talented Education

Director General’s Award for Excellence in Aboriginal Programs

Secretary’s Award for Excellence in Pacific Islander Programs

PRINCIPAL’S MESSAGE -

Dear Parents, Staff and Students

BOOK WEEK - Mackellar has many events that bring the school together with a real community feel. Our Book Week Parade is one of these very special days. The program highlighted students’ love of reading, with students and staff parading in their favourite book characters, prefects singing about the joys of reading, and students being fully engaged in a gamut of reading genre. This year, we incorporated the National Indigenous Literacy Day Book Swap. Mackellar certainly joined in the celebration of reading and supported Indigenous literacy endeavours. YEAR 12’S LAST DAYS - Year 12 students are in their last moments of formal schooling. It is a sad time for them and yet an exciting time to be finishing school. It is very easy to become distracted in this time because of the activities, functions and emotions involved. The need to maintain a focus is important. Students should organise a plan for study that is systematic. They should ensure they eat properly, take regular exercise, have regular sleep and engage in some enjoyable activities. They should practice those things that reduce stress for them. This should avert the need for high stress, panic-driven study during the HSC. The teachers of the school have enjoyed the opportunity to teach this wonderful group of students over the last six years. They are fine people and we will miss them and their contribution to the school. I wish them all well in their future. YEARLY EXAMINATIONS - The Yearly Examinations are an important event in the academic progress for each student. They provide a measure of each student’s learning for the year, and provide valuable information for the teaching and learning in the following year. It is therefore important that all students in Years 7, 8, 9 and 10 sit their Yearly Examinations. Unless students will be absent from the examinations due to school commitments, all students must sit their examinations at the specified time. It is inappropriate for students to take leave during their examination period, and examinations will not be rescheduled for absent students. Our examination schedule: Year 12: HSC Examinations 18 October - 9 November (Term 4, Weeks 1-4) Year 11: Yearly Examinations 17 September - 28 September (Term 3, Weeks 9-10) Year 10: Yearly Examinations 29 October - 2 November (Term 4, Week 3) Year 9: Yearly Examinations 12 November - 16 November (Term 4, Week 5) Years 7 and 8: Yearly Examinations: 5 November - 9 November (Term 4, Week 4) ATTENDANCE OF STUDENTS - All students will be required to attend school up until the last day of teaching, Wednesday 19 December 2018.

EMAILING THE SCHOOL - Please use our nbscmgirls-h.school@det.nsw.edu.au email address for correspondence

DEDICATED SMS NUMBER - Please text 0427 459 133 before 9am to advise late or absent students

Freshwater Community Bank is the proud Community Sponsor

of Mackellar Girls Campus Manly Vale

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SCHOOL VISITORS - As a school we have a duty to care of our students. As such, all visitors to the school must firstly go to the office, and if their visit is appropriate beyond the foyer area, sign in as a visitor and be given a visitor’s badge to wear for the duration of their stay in the school. This applies to parents who come to the school to see a teacher or student. It is not appropriate for parents to email any staff directly. Staff will not respond to any email they receive directly from a parent. Parents are welcome to either write a letter or send an email to the school email address, where it will then be forwarded to the teacher, Deputy Principal or Principal. Congratulations for high achievement to: Isabella (Y7) for her selection in the State Choir Gaby (Y10) for her selection in CHS Tennis team Rebekah (Y11) for her selection to participate in the NSW Schools Constitutional Convention at

Parliament House Emma, Chelsea, Poppy and Molly (Y9) for their selection to participate in the Rotary sponsored

RYPEN summer camp Alex, Madeline, Ruby(Y9), Emily, Kirra, Amelia, Evelyn (Y8), Milla and Ella (Y7) for their outstanding

grand final win in the Intermediate Waterpolo competition Anneke (Y7) for her NSWE Schools Orienteering Championship results: 4th in the Sprint and 4th in

the Middle Distance Junior Netball Grade Team for winning the Super Zone Grand Final Touch Football Grade Team for winning the Super Zone Grand Final Josephine, Lilli (Y10), Elinor, Katia (Y8) Gemma, Ashley and Olive (Y7) for participating in

Tournament of the Minds and being awarded the “Spirit of Tournament” Jasmine (Y8) for placing 17th in Alpine for the Australian Championships in Perisher. Anna-Lei, Lily, Sophie (Y9) Zara and Daley (Y8) for competing in the Lifeline Surf Tag Challenge Cassandra Morrison, Relieving Principal

Minister for Education Award for Excellence in Student Achievement

Congratulations Vannia and Jaime for being awarded the prestigious Minister for Education Award for Excellence in Student Achievement. Both girls have distinguished themselves and demonstrated excellence in every aspect of their school life. As School Captains, the girls embody and exemplify the Mackellar Girls Campus values.

Vannia has distinguished herself academically, excelling in both Years 11 and 12, especially in Spanish language, where she has placed first with 100% at the Open High School in both Years 11 and 12.

Jaime has distinguished herself academically, excelling to the highest level in both Years 11 and 12. Her consistent selection in CHS Swimming teams and her numerous coaching positions further evidence Jaime’s commitment to excellence.

Both girls have exceptionally high personal standards, talent and commitment to excellence. They are outstanding role models. Congratulations Vannia and Jaime, you are most deserving of this prestigous award.

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W@M

YEAR 7 - Our Year 7 students have had a busy Term 3. Apart from the usual assessment tasks to complete, the girls were kept busy knitting for their charity Wrap with Love. The 28 squares are almost complete and Mrs Maconachie will be joining them together to make a blanket for donation. We are so proud of the girls for persevering and being determined to learn to knit so they could contribute. We hope the growth mindset they all displayed is carried through to their classwork and also in their preparation for the Yearly Examinations which will be in Week 4 next term.

Year 7 also experienced their first Mackellar Book Parade and are to be congratulated for their level of participation. We were all impressed with their creativity and courage to join in. More opportunities to join in were presented to the students in Week 6 with our ‘Clubs Expo’. All the extracurricular clubs that run at Mackellar were on display, giving Year 7 a chance to find out more about them and hopefully join one to make their experience of high school more than just academic work. The clubs are also a great way to meet like-minded people and make new friends. The girls also recently attended the InRhythm incursion. This group drumming workshop was an enjoyable experience and a fun diversion for the students. Group drumming brings people together in a non-competitive space and fosters teamwork. Much research also shows it to have therapeutic benefits in helping to regulate our nervous system as well as calming the fight-flight response.

In W@M this term the students have been discussing Emotional Intelligence (EI) and the importance of self-regulation and self-awareness. Students were taught that we all have response-ability - the ability to choose our response to any situation. Managing our emotions will allow us to make the appropriate choices on how to respond to a given situation. Recognising and understanding emotions in ourselves and others, as well as the ability to use this awareness allows one to have greater control of their behaviour and relationships. Importantly EI is a skill that can be developed which will have a positive effect on one’s life – a high EI is a much greater indicator of success and satisfaction than IQ.

Mrs Karandonis, Mrs Lombardo & Mrs Maconachie, Year 7 Advisers

YEAR 8 - Recently the Year 8 cohort participated in a full day KYDS workshop run by an outside organisation which was very well received by the students. KYDS offers a series of early intervention programs that deal with issues we encounter on a daily basis. As specialists working on the front line of adolescent mental health and wellness, the content covered included cyber safety, personal safety, risk-taking and decision making, self-esteem issues and helping each other in times of stress and trouble.

In the W@M sessions students have been discussing the importance of developing a growth mindset and GRIT as opposed to learned helplessness. Positive self-talk and challenging our negative thinking is often confronting for teenagers. Remind your daughter(s) of the strategies they have discussed in class to help change harmful thoughts. These include reality testing, looking for alternate explanations, ’putting it in perspective’ and making use of goal–directed thinking. A good You Tube clip to watch on challenging Negative Thinking is: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fz8jpHccOC8.

This year our nominated charity was our farmers. We cooked lots of rice and were able to fund raise $315 dollars. Well done girls!

Congratulations are in order to a number of Year 8 students who have shown inspirational leadership. They include Chloe who raised $1051 and Kendra over $400 for the 40-hour Famine Backpack event. Mali is also to be commended for her outstanding effort at the CPISRA World Games event which was held in Spain recently. Mali won four Gold Medals in Athletics. What a fantastic effort!

Ms Biswell & J Joldzic - Year 8 Advisers

YEAR 9 - The end of Term 3 is an exciting time at Mackellar as we farewell our outgoing Year 12 students. It is a time for Year 9 to consider their own futures here at school, and to remember that the more activities, clubs, groups and events students participate in, the more memories they make. We encourage the entire year group to take advantage of every opportunity they are presented with, as these will be what they look back on and remember fondly as adults.

Next term brings with it the excitement of the Yearly Examinations. Year 9 should ensure they maintain a mature approach to their studies as they’ve shown in the past, as this is vital practice for sitting examinations in the future and the best way to show how much they’ve learnt over the past year. In terms of preparation, students should follow the advice of their teachers as to how to best study. Practice papers, the creation of careful study notes and practice writing in timed conditions are all ways to prepare for any subject.

Enjoy the holidays and stay safe!

Ms Hawes & Ms Coles - Year 9 Advisers

YEAR 10 - Recently, our year group attended the ‘bstreetsmart’ excursion at Qudos Bank Arena. The day-long forum, run by Westmead Hospital, involved over 4000 students from Sydney high schools and provided students with important information about safe driving practices. Students heard about the first hand experiences of those affected by road accidents, and were shown the potential dangers of risk taking behaviours while

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driving. We hope that as Year 10 students start driving, they will remember the advice given to them about being safe and responsible drivers.

Next term is set to be another busy term. In Week 3 Year 10 will sit their Yearly Examinations and we anticipate that students will display a mature and committed approach to their study. A reminder that students cannot bring smart watches into the examination room and that all materials must be stored in a clear container.

Some other important dates for Term 4 include: All My Own Work program (Week 3); Crossroads Program (Wednesday, Weeks 6 and 7); Work Experience and ABW Week (Week 8); Multicultural Day (Monday, Week 9); Year 10 Graduation Assemble (Thursday, Week 10)

Year 10, have a safe and relaxing break.

Miss Robertson & Mrs Peachey - Year 10 Advisers

YEAR 11 - The enthusiasm displayed by our Prefects and participation from the cohort in the school’s annual Book Parade in Week 7 has made it a memorable experience for all. The commitment displayed by everyone during rehearsals and the support they have provided to our Prefects has brought the year group closer together. We also thank the Prefects for the organisation of Mahboba’s Breakfast on Monday Week 8. The funds raised from the breakfast are to be donated to Mahboba’s Promise, an Australian non-profit charity organisation which supports and uplifts women, children and orphans living in Afghanistan.

Currently, the year group is sitting for their Preliminary course Yearly Examination. It can be an overwhelming experience as it is the girls’ first formal examination in the senior school and sitting it in the school hall. We encourage the girls to do their best and utilise the skills they have learned from the study skills workshop earlier this year. Having a good night’s rest is also important for the body to revitalise and reenergise so that it can perform at its best the next day.

The HSC course begins day 1 of Term 4. To support the girls’ transition into the HSC year, the school has introduced the Teacher-Mentor program. This program allows the girls to nominate teachers they wish to act as their mentor in support of their studies throughout their final year of school. The teacher mentor nomination form must be returned to Ms Warne at the beginning of Term 4 so that it can be finalised. In addition, a HSC Study Skills day is scheduled to be held on Friday of Week 1, Term 4. The day involves a Managing HSC Stress session delivered by the UTS Psychology Unit as well as workshops on subject specific study skills for the HSC delivered by the executive staff of the school.

Miss Reeves & Miss Leung - Year 11 Advisers

YEAR 12 - It is sad to say that this will be the last Year Adviser report for the Year 12 class of 2018. We want to wish the girls the best of luck for their upcoming HSC and for their futures. With the HSC Trial Examinations now finished and handed back, all students should have received their ATAR estimates. Keep working consistently towards your goals. Remember to eat well, exercise, make time for fun and get enough sleep.

Congratulations to all students who have now completed the performances of their major works in Dance, Drama and Music.

Graduation night will be held on Thursday 27 September at 6pm. Students will need to be in the Performance Space, dressed in their robes by 5:30pm. On the final Friday of Term 3, the Year 12 Assembly will be held in the hall at 9:30 am. Year 12 are invited to breakfast in the A Block courtyard from 8:00am to celebrate their years of hard work with the staff.

If anyone would like to purchase a 50th Anniversary of Mackellar Book which includes information about the school from 1967 – 2018 you are very welcome to. The cost is $25 and can be purchased by contacting Robyn Brettell via the school.

It is with highest regrets that Miss Maxwell, the Assistant Year Adviser, will not be attending the girls’ Graduation as she will be on the Mackellar History Europe Excursion from the Wednesday of Week 10. She would like to say a few words about her role as Assistant Year Adviser:

I am very happy to have been a part of Year 12’s last few years at Mackellar since the end of 2016. It has been a wonderful introduction to the teaching profession and has certainly made my first few years of teaching a bit brighter. I will miss seeing their faces every day and their enthusiasm for all school activities. I am very proud of Year 12 and the adults they have become. I would like to give a big thank you to their Year Adviser Mrs Griffin who has played an integral part in their lives since Year 7. She has done an amazing job and has been a wonderful role model. Good luck with all your future endeavours girls and always remember your days at Mackellar.

A final reminder to look after yourselves and each other over this study period. This is the point where you bring together everything you have learnt while at Mackellar and use those skills to ensure you achieve to your highest potential. While we are so sad to see you go, we are equally excited about all the amazing things you will achieve in the future.

Ms Griffin and Ms Maxwell - Year 12 Advisers

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SPORTS NEWS -

GRADE SPORT SUPER ZONE FINALS - Congratulations to the Junior Netball Team and the Open Touch Team who played against Narrabeen Sports High School in the Super Zone final. This means that the winner from our Zone (North Shore Zone) and the winner from the Warringah Zone play off against each other. Congratulation to these 2 amazing teams who won and to their coaches, Skye Campbell and Emma Adams.

The Netball team: Taylah, Paris, Lauren, Chelsey, Lily, Mia, Milla and Sophie.

YEAR 11 PDHPE - In Year 11 PDHPE we have been exploring different Fitness Choices. We tried power walking, bushwalking and aerial yoga. Aerial yoga was the most interesting. It involved some classic yoga poses and mindfulness, while being suspended in a hammock style device. YEAR 9 PASS – have been doing Orienteering and went to Manly Dam for a session. CROSS COUNTRY - Anneke of Year 7 competed in the NSW All Schools Cross Country Championships on Friday 27 July. As an elite runner, she is also perfectly suited for orienteering. She competed in the State Schools Orienteering Championship events on 1-2 September. She placed 4th in the NSW Schools Sprint Orienteering Championships and 4th in the NSW Schools Middle Distance Orienteering Championships. Congratulations Anneke! WATERPOLO - Congratulations to the Intermediate Waterpolo team who won their Grand Final on Monday 10th September in the A Division. They defeated Stella Maris 8-1.

The team consisted of Alex, Madeline, Ruby (Yr 9), Emily, Kirra, Amelia, Evelyn (Yr 8), Milla and Ella (Yr 7).

NITRO ATHLETICS CHALLENGE Mackellar Girls Campus entered a Years 7 and 8 team in the Sydney Schools Nitro Challenge for Athletics on 31st August 2018. A wonderful team performance resulted in the team winning Silver and therefore qualifying to compete at the Australian Schools Nitro Challenge event in Cairns on 10th December. The girls competed against 20 other teams who were predominately from private schools. NSW CHS ATHLETICS RESULTS - Congratulations to our State Athletics competitors. Here are the results for girls who came in the top 4. Very impressive results particularly with 3 relay teams coming 2nd and some other amazing individual achievements.

Girls 800 Metre 12 Years 2nd - Alyssa Girls 100 Metre 13 Years 2nd - Olivia Girls 200 Metre 13 Years 1st - Olivia Girls 800 Metre 13 Years 3rd - Mercy Girls 4x100 Metre Relay 13 Years 2nd - Olivia, Sara, Naomi, Indiana (Westfield Sports High Came 1st) Girls Shot Put 3kg 13 Years 3rd - Emma Girls Discus Throw 1kg 13 Years 4th - Emma Girls Javelin Throw 500gms 14 Years 4th - Edie Girls 4x100 Metre Relay 15 Years 2nd - Madeleine, Kiiahla, Madeleine, Jamie, Freya (res) Girls 800 Metre 16 Years 4th - Piper Girls 400 Metre 17+ Years 2nd - Rowena Girls 4x100 Metre Relay 17+ Years 2nd - Jasmine, Sophie, Eloise, Rowena Girls 100 Metre Multi-Class 15 & Under 1st - Mali Girls 200 Metre Multi-Class 15 & Under 1st - Mali Girls 800 Metre Multi-Class 15 & Under 1st - Mali S Saunders, Sports Co-ordinator ALPINE - Jasmine (Yr 8) represented Mackellar Girls in the Female Division 3 Alpine, and after a combined time total of 49.86, Jasmine finished 12th overall, qualifying her for the Australian Championships in Perisher, where she drew 17th.

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Congratulations to the team on your outstanding achievements. Junior 2 x 100m Relay: Olivia and Charlee 60m: Edie Shot Put: Emma 800m: Mercy Javelin: Emma 150m: Olivia Long Jump: Stefanie 4 x 200m Relay: Olivia, Edie, Sophia and Stefanie

Nicole Robb, PDHPE Teacher

TOUCH FOOTBALL - 7 and 8 Touch Football Team – National Schools Cup - After finishing second in the state in 2017, our 7/8 Touch Football side were invited to compete in the National Schools Cup in Caloundra on the Sunshine Coast from the 12th – 14th September.

The team had the opportunity to compete with some of the strongest touch football schools in the country and played some great touch, growing a lot as a group.

After the completion of the round games, the girls finished third and progressed to the semi-finals. Unfortunately, we lost the semis to the eventual national champions, Helensvale State High School. However, the girls were absolutely ecstatic to have competed with the best and enjoyed the experience immensely.

Canteen News We wish to send a big thank you to all our current parents who generously give their time to help in the Canteen. Without you we can not run it to its full potential. In addition to our regular volunteers who we always need more of, we are in need of extra help and have come up with a solution for those who can't commit to a regular full day. Go online and sign up to Sign Up Genius. We are offering morning slots and afternoon slots for term 4 to come and help out. Please follow the link and we look forward to meeting you.https://www.signupgenius.com/go/70A0C4AA4A62EA3FB6-canteen The following Sign Up Genius slots need to be desperately filled as we have no full day helpers these days - Monday slots October 22 and November 19 Tuesday slots October 23 afternoon slot and both morning and afternoon slots November 20 and

December 18 Thursday slots October 18 November 15 and December 13th Warmest wishes Canteen staff

MACKELLAR GIRLS CAMPUS - TERM DATES - 2018

Term 3 Friday 28 September - Last day for students and staff

Term 4 Monday 15 - Students and staff return Wednesday 19 December - Last day for students

SEPTEMBER 2018

Monday 3 (9am-2pm)

Wednesday 5 (12-2pm)

Monday 10 (9am-2pm)

Wednesday 12 (12-2pm)

17 (9am-2pm)

Wednesday 19 CLOSED

Monday 24 (9am-2pm)

Wednesday 26 (12-2pm)

TERM 3 ENDS FRIDAY 28 SEPTEMBER

UNIFORM SHOP OPENING TIMES

SEPTEMBER 2018

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Mackellar Girls Campus Campbell Pde Manly Vale NSW 2093

T: 9949 2083 F: 9949 3028 E: nbscmgirls-h.school@det.nsw.edu.au

W: www.mackellargirls.nsw.edu.au

Director General’s Award for Turning Potential into Performance

Director General’s Award for Excellence in Girls Education

Director General’s Award for Excellence in Gifted and Talented Education

Director General’s Award for Excellence in Aboriginal Programs

If you email us at nbscmgirls-h.school@det.nsw.edu.au we can email the school newsletter directly to you. It can also be accessed online at www.mackellargirls.nsw.edu.au

Director General’s Award for Turning Potential into Performance Director General’s Award for Excellence in Girls Education

Director General’s Award for Excellence in Gifted and Talented Education

Director General’s Award for Excellence in Aboriginal Programs

Secretary’s Award for Excellence in Pacific Islander Programs