Whole School News
A Note from our Principal - Mrs Julia Heise
Where will your child be in 2030? An interesting question as 2030 seems so far away, but that is when our current Year 3 students will graduate from Year 12. What will the world be like in 2030? What skills will your child need? More and more it is the ‘soft skills’ of communication, teamwork, problem solving and creativity that are the focus of future work along with an attitude of resilience.
As Zig Ziglar identified, “Your attitude, not your aptitude, will determine your altitude.” This is true in sport, in life and at school. It is an attitude of “giving it your best” that counts, not just the abilities that we are born with, and it is this attitude that we seek to develop in our students at Wahroonga Adventist School.
I invite you to work in partnership with us as we share a learning journey – a journey that challenges each student academically, supports them emotionally and socially, and offers them a connection with God.
Whole School Wellbeing
Welcome to all the new and returning students and families of Wahroonga Adventist School. Transitioning into a new school year can be tricky, particularly for those beginning primary and high school for the first time, and for those who are new to our school this year. If beginning school in 2021 has been tricky for you or your children, the following videos provide some great information and advice on starting the year as smoothly and successfully as possible.
School Transitions: https://wahroonga-adventist.schooltv.me/newsletter/school-transitions
Beginning Yr 7: https://wahroonga-adventist.schooltv.me/wellbeing_news/special-report-starting-year-7
Co-curricular Program - 2021
We have lots of new exciting co-curricular opportunities starting this term for both Primary and High School. These will include sport, art, chess and a variety of other activities catering to all students. These will be available before and after school, as well as at lunch time - detailed information will be available next week!
Wahroonga Adventist School Facebook Page
If you are yet to like or follow our School's Facebook page jump on to see all the great things going on around School!
Calendar of Events
Please see the School Calendar for a list of upcoming events. You can access the School Calendar via the Parent Information tab on the School website. A link to the calendar has also been included below.
Term Dates for 2021
Please click on the link below to view the school term dates and public holiday information for 2021.
Chaplains' News
“Walking through streets of Sydney one might occasionally have noticed a message on the pathways, written beautifully in copperplate style by a mysterious figure, the word “Eternity”! It was the message of Arthur Stace over a 35 year period. Arthur wrote the word itself around Sydney an estimated 10,000 times, with no desire for people to know who was writing the word, rather the one who offered the reality of it.
Arthur, having grown as an illiterate mine worker and eventually soldier, plagued by crime and alcoholism had lived a lonely life until he decided to take a second look at life through the eyes of a loving creator God!
Devoted to revealing life in the context of eternity, Arthur wrote beautifully only one word “Eternity” and yet never knowing his small, caring and devoted influence would touch many hearts, eventually being seen by hundred’s of millions of viewers around the world on Sydney Harbour Bridge for the year 2000 New Years Eve fireworks display!
Arthur’s challenge is to look again at the small opportunities, day by day through the eyes of God and therefore of eternity. Should we do this, God will reveal that the seemingly small things in life, can be the most powerful and meaningful given a second look by faith. Consider Eternity.
Pr Andy
John 3:16
Family Church - Commencing 20 February 2021
Each month at Wahroonga Church we will be running a kids church program in the afternoon. This program will be full of stories, singing, crafts, and so much fun! You are all invited to come and join us, so put it in your diary and we hope to see you there!
Our first Family Church for 2021 is on February 20, our theme for this year is 'HEROS OF FAITH' and we will be looking at a different character each month. So come along and find out who the awesome Hero of Faith is this month!
Pr Eden
School News - Years P to 6
A Note From Mrs Deppeler
It was wonderful to see all the students return to school last week. Lots of smiling faces, full of excitement for the new year.
Thank you all for your patience as we navigate the afternoon pickup. Please be mindful that our school bell for Prep-Year 6 has changed this year to 3:00pm from Monday to Friday. We will continue to monitor the situation and make changes to make pickup more efficient.
Last year many students participated in the Seesaw challenges. Once we have settled into the new year, I will begin to post new challenges for those who would like to complete them. These challenges are not compulsory and are in addition to any work set by the class teacher. More information will be provided shortly explaining how to access the challenges.
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Meet the Teacher Night
This week we held the Prep-Year 6 "Meet the Teacher Night". Thank you to all the parents that were able to come along. The event abled parents to meet their child’s teacher where expectations and general organisational information was provided. The evenings were successful and enjoyed by all who attended.
Junior School Chapel
We are blessed that we are able to use Wahroonga Church to hold our Chapel programs this term. Thank you to Year 4L for hosting our chapel. We loved your enthusiasm during the songs. Thanks Pastor Andy for sharing with us some stories this week.
Upcoming School Events - Years P to 6
Primary School Sport
Commencing week 3 (Monday 8 February), students are to wear their sports uniform to school two days a week. Students will wear their sports uniform on Wednesday for sport, and also on the day their class has PE. Please see the schedule below for the days your child needs to wear their sports uniform to school.
Basketball and soccer coaching began this week on Wednesday and the students have really enjoyed the training. This will continue over the next 5 weeks.
- Friday 5th February - ASISSA Tennis Trials: Nathan S and Aditya L from Year 6 have proudly represented our school today.
- Wednesday 10th February - ASISSA Basketball Trials: Families will be contacted once the number of placements has been confirmed.
- Wednesday 24th February - Primary School Swimming Carnival: Please be on the look out for the online permission note.
- Friday 4th March - CIS AFL: Expressions of interest can be sent to Mr Hurst at nathan.hurst@wahroonga.adventist.edu.au. Please keep in mind this is only for students who are currently part of an AFL team outside of school.
School News - Years 7 to 12
A Note from Mr St Mart
Welcome to the start of the 2021 school year! I trust that everyone is refreshed and ready for what this year holds.
I have had the opportunity to welcome new students, visit classes, and mix with students in the playground. It is always rewarding to see students interacting warmly with each other and genuinely desiring to learn in the classroom. I have witnessed students expressing kindness and extending a friendly smile or welcome to new students and teachers.
Gestures expressing kindness, such as looking out for the lonely, assisting a student with navigating a combination lock, or finding their way to a classroom is not small or trivial. The cumulative effect of kind gestures and thoughtful actions has a profound effect on the school community.
The Bible teaches us to be kind and gentle in our interactions with others. When we treat others this way, we honour God and help others to feel that they belong. When students feel this way they can thrive and not just survive at school.
In this way, I extend a warm welcome to all students, parents and teachers, especially to those who have joined our school family for the first time. I pray that you too will feel settled and feel a deep-seated sense of belonging within our school community soon.
School Captains and Vice Captains
Our first ever Year 12 School Captains and Vice Captains were announced last week! Congratulations to Grace and William - our School Captains, and Claudia and Jonathan - our Vice Captains for 2021!
Upcoming School Events - Years 7 to 12
Year 7, 2022 Academic Scholarships - Registrations Open
Year 7, 2022 Academic Scholarship registrations are now open! All students entering Year 7 in 2022 are encouraged to apply.
Please see the following link for further information: https://wahroonga.adventist.edu.au/year-7-2021-2/
Registrations close 23rd February 2021.
Maths News
Maths Help Club
If you are in Years 7-12 and would like some help with maths assessments or homework, Maths Help Club runs every Wednesday lunch in GLA 4. Come and ask a question!
Maths Newsletter Challenge
This week we are launching Maths Newsletter Challenges. In each newsletter there will be challenges for students to attempt.
Categories include Junior – Years 7 to 9 and Senior – Years 10 to 12.
Worked solutions can be submitted to the office in the Maths Challenge post box and Junior and Senior winners will be drawn from the correct entries.
Entries for this week’s challenge close Friday 12th February.
High School Sport
- Thursday 18th February - High School Swimming Carnival: Please ensure you have completed the online permission note.
- Monday 22nd February - CSSA Open Boys Cricket Gala Day: Trials have occurred and team lists will be announced shortly.
- Wednesday 10th March - CSSA Open Volleyball Gala Day: Trials have occurred and team lists are available on Seqta notices. Training will be held at lunchtime on Mondays.
Please refer to Seqta notices for all upcoming individual nominations and information.
NSW Youth Advisory Council 2021 – Applications Now Open
Applications are open for the NSW Youth Advisory Council 2021. Children and young people between 12-24 years of age living in NSW are encouraged to apply. Council members are sought from diverse locations, backgrounds and life experiences. The 12 member YAC advises the NSW Government on subjects relevant to young people across the state. Applications close 14 March, 2021.
More information on the NSW Youth Advisory Council as well as application forms are available here www.acyp.nsw.gov.au.
Library News
Library Classes
Library borrowing has started for the year so please check your child’s library day below and remind them to bring their library bags on that day. Prep-Year 2 can borrow a maximum of 3 books at a time, Years 3–6 can borrow a maximum of 5 books, and High School students may borrow a maximum of 6 books. Library bags are required for all junior borrowers (P-4) but are optional for middle and senior students.
Library WebAPP
Wahroonga Adventist School Library has an online catalogue which makes searching for resources easy from any device with internet access. To visit our Library WebAPP go to bit.ly/waslibrary.
Premier’s Reading Challenge
The Premier’s Reading Challenge website will become active from 1 March, 2021. All books read from September last year can be added to this year’s list, so please keep a written record of these books to add online when the website is active. Students new to our school will receive their log-in details in March.
‘To the Book Fair and Beyond!’
Our annual Book Fair is going to be held in Week 9 of Term One this year, so watch this space in coming weeks for more information.
Home and School
Welcome to 2021
Home and School is excited to see that the Pirate Ship is going up down on the oval and we are currently working to create a space for our Year 12 students.
We have a calendar of social events this year – so keep your eye out for adverts of these events. With current Covid restrictions some events may need to be altered.
To celebrate the opening of our new multisport courts and play areas, the Home & School bought footballs, soccer balls, netballs and touch footballs as a gift for the students to play with at recess and lunch! The students and staff would like to thank the Home & School, the students are having a ball... :)
FOCUS GROUPS with the PRINCIPAL
This year Home and School will be working with our Principal Julia Heise to run some focus groups throughout the year with our parent body. Term 1 the focus group will be about selecting 4 key values for our school to guide our behaviour management and well being program – date for this event to be confirmed.
Later in the year we will also be running other focus groups seeking feedback on teaching and learning.
Canteen
Please see below the Term 1 2021 Canteen Menu. It is recommended that students save time and order online as there is a limited amount available from the window.
We have a great online system to make ordering of lunches easier and more convenient, all orders must be submitted by 8am.
To order:
• Go to www.flexischools.com.au
• Click register now to create an account
• Add Wahroonga Adventist School
• Top up your balance
• Start ordering
Volunteering
Many hands make light work! Mum’s and Dad’s are all welcome. Anything from 30 minutes to a couple of hours any morning of the week, we would love to see you. No experience is needed, just the willingness to chop, pack bags, follow a recipe and serve our lovely students. Please click here to register your interest. Please note due to COVID we require all volunteers to complete to registration form and sign in to the office before proceeding to the canteen.
We look forward to having you volunteer in our fabulous canteen.
Meals with Love
For those new to our School, 'Meals with Love' was created to help fill the gap when unexpected or challenging events occur in our lives. It is a Wahroonga school-based initiative which provides a cooler bag with a frozen homecooked meal, fresh salads and a dessert/lunchbox snack to school families. If you know a family that would benefit from a meal then please send us an email and we'll arrange a meal to be sent to the home.
Due to ongoing Covid restrictions, we cannot accept donations of frozen meals from the school community. However, if you would like to donate dry ingredients such as microwave rice or packets of pasta these would be gratefully accepted. Any donations can be delivered to the School Office. We are also looking for more volunteers to join our Meals with Love Team. If you would like to be involved in preparing meals for our freezer, then please let us know.
Many thanks for your support!
Nicola Binns: nicolasweetman@gmail.com
Tish Armstrong: tishiarmstrong@hotmail.com
Vanessa Carter: vanessa.c.carter@hotmail.com