While most students have bounced back, there is some ‘unfinished learning’ that is being recovered and the teachers are being intentional in filling in the gaps. It has been a big week of readjustment and the daily wellbeing activities have helped facilitate reconnection. Furthermore, our Year 11 students have begun their HSC journey. As the second HSC cohort in our school’s history they are wearing their senior jersey’s with pride.

Today is World Teachers Day and I honour all of our staff on this special day. The teamwork involved in just this week alone is a testament to the school staff: from the painting of signage on the rear carpark, to the friendly canteen service; from the organisation of the office ladies to the good humour of the chaplains and wellbeing team; from the cleaners and IT Staff to the preparation of teachers, all that we do as a Wahroonga team is a testament of our vision to support the wholistic learning of each child. This year has been one of the most challenging for educators and students in our nation’s history and the positive attitude our school staff has been significant.

Thank you also for assisting in the implementation of the COVID protocols to keep students and staff in cohorts as much as possible – the changed afternoon pick-up lines are operating smoothly. Just a reminder that if your child is unwell within even the mildest flu symptoms, they are to stay at home.

In conclusion we have some very welcome news – the outdoor basketball courts will be covered by a permanent structure in 2022. The Home and School has made a very generous donation to make the construction of the Covered Outdoor Learning Area (COLA) a reality and I would like to thank them for their passion and support. The COLA will provide protection for the students from both sun and rain during play times and PE and sport lessons.

God bless and keep safe.

Julia Heise

Welcome!

Over the last two weeks as students have resumed face-to-face learning, I have had the pleasure of observing and participating in the joy of welcoming our students back. There were moments of uncertainty and apprehension along with great excitement and enthusiasm as students returned. I have observed prolonged embraces, intentional “I love you’s” and kind love-filled gazes as parents drop their children off at the beginning of the day. I have observed children running towards each other, faces beaming with smiles and joyful sparkling eyes. I have heard the sound of laughter and playfulness echoing along the corridors and across the grass. And I have seen many calm circles of children sitting, standing or just ‘hanging’ in deep enjoyment and gratitude to be in each other’s company again. These are the life-giving and profoundly ‘real’ experiences that make schools come alive.

Children are naturally attuned to seeking out these kinds of ‘real’ experiences – experiences of connection and belonging that sustain and grow life. British psychologist, John Bowlby, called this attachment and described how lasting psychological connectedness between humans is necessary for wellbeing. When we connect with each other, we share in each other’s experience and opportunities for understanding and being understood emerge. When we welcome someone, we set up these same opportunities for attachment. Welcoming is more than just inviting or accepting someone. Welcoming has a warm intent that expresses recognition and value. Welcoming is an action towards each other that promotes connection and belonging. Maybe this is why Jesus welcomed little children and calls us to do the same.

Luke 9:47-48 But Jesus knew their thoughts, so he brought a little child to his side. 48 Then he said to them, “Anyone who welcomes a little child like this on my behalf welcomes me, and anyone who welcomes me also welcomes my Father who sent me.”

Wellbeing Activities

During their first week back students have been participating in daily wellbeing activities to help with transitioning back to school and re-establishing positive connections with their peers.

In the primary school, students have created, explored and played through a selection of mini pop-up festival activities, including belonging, calm, courage, curiosity, goals, gratitude, hope, kindness, love, and nature.

In the high school, students began with an extended Warm Welcome homeroom on Monday to allow time and space for sharing, re-connecting and being able to enjoy seeing each other again, and have been using homeroom time to reflect on growth from the past, hope for the future and gratitude for the many blessings and privileges we experience.

Mr Ben Stewart - Wellbeing Coordinator

Chaplains' News

Seeing the smiles of students, hearing the laughter, sharing the joy of catching up, has made this last week so powerful despite some of the disorientation in 2021 at times.

Some highlights for us in Chaplaincy have been to see letters of thanks to staff, emails of support and care from families, recognition of the sheer massive efforts of staff and families partnering together for the student's education in a really difficult time, cakes and cookies from Church families, staff reaching out to connect, and our recent online Kindy Orientation day. We are truly growing a nurturing community with God in the centre. 2021 has had some disorienting elements, yet here we are and have so much to be thankful for in our school community!

Our blessings and growth are both the result God's presence, and the purpose of His will! We as a community can be thankful for the need to continue to find our orientation in life through Jesus. There are so many promises in scripture that can remind us of God's desire to help bring purpose and hope to our lives, to avoid the disorientation that life can throw our way. Romans 12:12 invites us to be "joyful in hope, patient in difficulty and faithful in prayer", this is the beginning of true human health and wellness. Jeremiah 29:11 remind us that God wants us to know Him and follow His direction to be truly oriented with a thriving life! "For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope." May you be blessed with clarity and purpose and continue to be oriented by God through the journey of life.

Blessings

Pr Andy, Pr Nick and Pr Eden

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Whole School News

Calendar of Upcoming School Events

You can access the list of upcoming School events via the link below. The School Calendar is also available under the Parent Information tab on the School website.

Term Dates for 2021 & 2022

Please click on the link below to view the school term dates and public holiday information for the remainder of 2021 and 2022.

Primary School News

A Note From Mrs Deppeler - Head of Junior School

It was so lovely to see all the students back on-site this week. There were mixed emotions from some as they returned to school, however the excitement of seeing friends soon turned any anxious feelings to joy and happiness.

Kindergarten Orientation

On Wednesday we were able to meet our new Kindergarten students for 2022. It was wonderful to see their eager faces on Zoom. A special thank you to Mrs Els and Miss Andrews for creating such as wonderful online session for our new students.

In the evening it was nice to have some time to meet the parents of our newest students. Thank you to all who were involved in helping to create a special time for our new families.

Prep Orientation Day

We are looking toward to meeting our new Prep students and families at our Prep Orientation taking place on Wednesday 17th November. If you are planning to send your child to Prep in 2022, please contact the office for an enrolment form.

Uniforms

Just a reminder that in term 4 students are to wear their full summer uniform. Sport Uniform is to be worn on Wednesday for sport and an additional day for PE. Please refer to information from class teachers in relation to PE days for your child/ren.

Year 3K Online Event

Year 3K were able to put to use their many new technology skills last week by getting involved in the ‘Get Online Event’ with some of the residents of the Adventist Aged Care Wahroonga Facility – just across the valley from our school.

Everyone was introduced and we asked each other questions and found lots of points of connection. The first point of connection was that many of the residents are grandparents, and all of our students are grandchildren! Other points of connection were bushwalking and looking after our environment, gardening and one resident is a retired teacher who was very interested in how the children had found online learning. We also played some games together. The first one was 2 lies and 1 truth. We found out that many of the residents had gone to university or started jobs at just 16 years old. Our favourite game was a Pictionary-type game where someone drew a picture in steps on the online whiteboard and we all guessed what it was. I think the hairy leg brought the most laughs!

It was a big highlight of our week and was spoken of many times in the days since by the 3K children. It was awesome to bring a little joy to the lives of others while bringing so much happiness to our own. It is such a good thing to reach out to others, especially at this time of so much aloneness and separation. “My command is this: love each other as I have loved you.” John 13:34

Fruit and Vegetable Challenge

Missy the Canteen Manager wanted to say a big thank you for all the yummy Fruit and Vegetable creations that were sent to her from students in Kindy to Year 4. She found it so hard to choose a winner from each grade. Congratulations to the following students who have won a $10 voucher to the canteen for their amazing Fruit and Vegetable creations.

• Kindy – Chloe C
• Year 1 – Sierra B
• Year 2 – Lilly S
• Year 3 – Ben T
• Year 4 – Lillie O and Ella A

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Primary School Sport

As we were unable to have our Athletics Carnival this year due to COVID restrictions, we are going to hold a limited series of events at school.

Over two weeks, students from Years 3-6 will be able to compete in the 100m sprint and are to meet on the synthetic grass at 11:00am on the following days:

Years 3 and 4: Wednesday, 3 November

Years 5 and 6: Wednesday, 10 November

Students are invited to wear House colours for the event only or PE uniform. If your child is from Years 3-6 and would like to participate in their event, please click here.

Secondary School News

Year 7 Science

Over the past few weeks, Year 7 have been learning about habitats and interactions. We have been virtually exploring the habitats, adaptations and distribution of various native flora and fauna, but this week we got to explore it in our own school backyard! On Monday, Year 7W conducted an investigation of the organisms in our native bush land in order to make a food web. They have learnt all about producers, consumers and decomposers and how they are connected within a balanced ecosystem. The students will now use their first-hand data to predict the effect of human impacts on our local ecosystem and explore the importance of local habitat conservation.

Year 8 Science

This term Year 8 have been studying energy, specifically energy transformations and how we can efficiently produce and transform energy for a particular purpose. Over the past two weeks, Year 8 have been using their knowledge to plan, design and create a solar hot water heater, and this week they got to put them to the test! Their goal was to use the heat energy from the sun to heat up a cup of water as much as they could in 10 minutes. They put their understanding of radiation, convection and conduction to the test and achieved some fantastic results, with some students even heating up water 15°C in 10 minutes!

Mrs Madeline Hokin - Secondary Science Teacher

Red Room Poem Forest Competition

We had some wonderful submissions from our students in Years 8-12 who participated in the Red Room Poem Forest competition this year. Students took part to raise awareness about nurturing the natural world. Click on this link to see some of their work that has been published on the Red Room website! Well done everyone!

Years 7 & 10 Vaccination Schedule

Please Note - Vaccinations for students in Years 7 and 10 will now be held at school on Thursday 18th November 2021.

• Year 7 - HPV Dose 2. No action required - the consent forms submitted for Dose 1 also apply to Dose 2.
• Year 10 - Meningococcal ACWY. Consent forms have been distributed to students. Please ensure they are returned to the School Office by Monday 8th November.

Library News

Overdue Books

Due to lockdown there are still many overdue books that need to be returned to the Library as soon as possible. If you are unsure of what books your child has out and when they are due back, please log on to the library WebApp at bit.ly/waslibraryand follow the instructions on the home page to access your child’s library records.

Last Week of Borrowing

Borrowing will finish at the end of Week 6 this term (Nov 12) in order to ensure all books are returned before the end of the school year. Please remind your children to bring their library bags each week so they can take advantage of borrowing for the next couple of weeks. All books need to be returned promptly by the end of Week 8 to allow time for our annual stock take and year end wrap up.

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Canteen

The Canteen will remain open in Term 4 with a limited menu. Primary aged students will only be able to access the canteen through online orders. High School students are encouraged to order online, a window service will be available following a COVID safe procedure.

Home and School

The Home and School have decided to cancel the upcoming meeting for the 2nd of November. Given the limitations on planning events due to the current Public Health Order and with lots happening with returning to school it was felt best to cancel the next meeting.

Ginger Bread Competition closes on the 5th of November 2021 so make sure you have emailed a photo of your Gingerbread House with your child’s name and year to the Home and School email: homeandschool@wahroonga.adventist.edu.au so they can be judged to win a $20 Gift Card.

Family Campfire Night - 20th November 2021 at 7.00pm - Invite a family over to join you for a meal, melting of marshmallows and join the fun via zoom. More details to come.

Spoonville at WAS………Home and School sent home with the Primary students a wooden spoon and flyer outlining the history of Spoonville. It is so heart warming to see Spoonville coming to life at WAS. I hope you have all enjoyed driving or walking past the little village of Spoonville at the front of the school. What talented and creative little people we have at WAS who have spent time creating their spoon. It is a great talking point and way to re-connect with each other after such a long time away from the school arena. If you haven’t taken a moment yet to look at Spoonville, try and do so over the next few weeks.