Waratah Weekly - Term 3, Edition 9 - Friday, 22 September 2023

Message from the Headmaster

This week has been a week of celebrations for our graduating Year 12 students. Their final after-school "drive home" on Tuesday afternoon, a special Graduation Assembly on Wednesday morning and the College Formal on Thursday night were moments filled with joy and celebration. As we bid them farewell, I would like to extend my heartfelt wishes and congratulations to these exceptional young individuals.

Throughout their time at Wollondilly Anglican College, our Year 12 students have consistently exemplified the values and principles that we hold dear. They have excelled academically and shown remarkable character in how they behave, speak, present themselves and engage in their learning. The positive feedback we continue to receive from both our staff and the broader community speaks volumes about the outstanding group of young men and women they have become.

As our graduates embark on the next chapter of their lives, whether in the world of work or further studies, I encourage them to remember the support network surrounding them. Reach out to your parents, carers and teachers whenever you face challenges or need guidance. They have been your pillars of strength and wisdom throughout your journey and will continue to be there for you.

Moreover, I invite and encourage our graduates to submit their plans and aspirations to God, trusting Him with their futures. As Proverbs 3:5-6 reminds us, "Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will make your paths straight." I pray that our loving God will guide you as you step into this exciting new phase of life.

To our Year 12 students, go forward with confidence and determination and the knowledge that you are well-prepared for the exams, challenges and opportunities that await. We eagerly anticipate hearing of your future accomplishments over the next 12 months to 12 years and we have no doubt that you will continue to make us proud over this time. Congratulations once again and may your journey be filled with success, happiness, and purpose.

Mr Trevor Norman
College Headmaster

College Chaplain - Relationships

The College Learner Disposition focus for Term 3 is Relationships. This is a habit that we are working on developing and cultivating in our students, their learning, their character and also in their faith.

In today's fast-paced world, it's easy to get caught up in the whirlwind of activities and lose sight of what's important - relationships. Mark 1:35 offers a profound lesson about relationships and in doing so highlights the importance of the most important relationship, that between us and God.

Mark 1:35 describes Jesus in this way, "And rising very early in the morning, while it was still dark, he departed and went out to a solitary place, and there he prayed." Even amidst the business of His earthly ministry and mission, Jesus recognised the importance of His relationship with God.

Jesus emphasises the importance of taking time out of our busy routine in order to prioritise that which is of first importance, our relationship with God. Like any relationship, the more time we spend with someone the better we get to know them. As we spend time with God, we get to know Him better and this strengthens our relationship with Him.

I hope you have a great holiday break. I hope it's a restful time full of family, friends and fun. I encourage you to take time out of your busy schedule and prioritise spending time with God. I think it's the most valuable relational investment we can ever make.

Mr Matt Roberts
College Chaplain

College Musical - Sherlock Holmes and the Mystery of the Crown Jewel!

We are pleased to announce the Musical for 2024 - Sherlock Holmes and the Mystery of the Crown Jewel! Secondary students auditioned earlier this week for the main roles, and the auditions for minor roles and the Chorus will be held in Week 2, Term 4, for Years 6-11.

At the beginning of Term 1, 2024, students in Years 5 and 6 will be invited to join the Primary Chorus. Rehearsals for the Secondary Cast will start Week 2, Term 4, and will occur on Mondays, 2.35 pm - 4.15 pm.

Mrs Sallyanne Barker
Primary Music Teacher/Acting Performing Arts Coordinator T-12

Stage 5 Dance for 2024

This past week, students in Year 8 and Year 9 have been informed of an opportunity to choose Dance as a 3rd Elective in 2024. Dance will be offered as an ‘offline’ subject that will run during Sport on Tuesday afternoons through until 4.00 pm. This is open to any current students in Year 8 or Year 9 who don’t already study Dance Elective. 

This is a great opportunity for:

• Students who put Dance down as a reserve option for electives
• Students who are involved in Dance Company, Musical or College Cheer
• Students who do Dance, Physical Culture etc outside of the College 
• Students who have not studied Dance before but are interested in learning more
• Students who would like an additional course recorded on their RoSA Statement at the end of Year 10
• Students who would like their Tuesday afternoon Sport time to have an academic component and count towards their academic achievement

Students in Years 8 and 9 have been invited to complete a survey to express their interest in taking Dance as an Elective in 2024.

For students who indicated that they were interested, a parent permission note will be sent out via the College App next Term. 

Ms Kara Valente
Dance Teacher

Australian Indoor Cricket - Junior World Championship Series- WAC Representative

During the July Holidays, Madison Eddie from Year 9 went to Ipswich, Queensland to represent NSW in the 2023 Indoor Cricket Nationals. The tournament lasted a week in which she scored 162 runs, took five Wickets and contributed to several runouts and catches as well. Unfortunately, the NSW team lost the Grand Final by two runs. 

After the tournament, Madison was selected for the Australian Under 16s Indoor Cricket Team. During the September holidays, she will be travelling to Dubai to play for Australia in the Junior World Championship Series. The tournament goes from 26 September to 9 October. During this tournament, Madison will play up an age group representing the Under 18s age division.

We wish Madison every success in her matches. Go Australia!  

Mr Timothy Clarke
Year 9 Patron

Year 9 PASS - Wheelchair Basketball

Students in Year 9 PASS have recently been learning about physical activity for specific groups. Last week they participated in Wheelchair Basketball. This was a new experience for students and they responded well to a variety of different challenges. Some areas of difficulty were turning, stopping the wheelchair, shooting and catching the ball when you are on the move. 

The students embraced the challenge and improved significantly throughout the experience. It gave them a great sense of appreciation for the sport of Wheelchair Basketball.

Mr Matthew Stark
PDHPE Teacher

Primary Sports

College Sports House Games

Well done to Sollya, the winners of our Term 3 House Games Competition!

WASP Academy - CRICKET - TERM 4
WASP Academy continues in Term 4! Throughout Term 4, WASP will transition to Cricket training and development sessions run by the professional staff from myPEAC.  https://www.mypeac.com.au/

All boys and girls from Years 4 to 8 are welcome to join. There will be eight sessions on Wednesday afternoons throughout Term 4 for a flat rate of $100 for all eight sessions (working out to $12.50 per session)

Please email sport@wac.nsw.edu.au to register your interest. 

Primary CIS Athletics Carnival - Cheyannah Hall CIS High Jump record breaker
On Tuesday, a group of WAC students braved the heat of Homebush to represent NASSA at the Primary CIS Athletics Championships. While all WAC students competed gallantly, the biggest highlight of the day was Cheyannah Hall’s record-breaking High Jump victory. Cheyannah jumped a soaring 1.60m! This is a massive achievement; CIS records are to a very competitive standard and rarely broken. The victories kept coming for Cheyannah; she also won her 100m final!

Well done Cheyannah! Another highlight was the tough and gutsy relay run of our Junior Boys' Relay Team involving Nicky Laukaitis, Mason Carter, Xavier Thompson and Will Rodden. 

PHYSIE - Scarlett Bronneberg
Scarlett Bronneberg had her main Physical Culture Competition over the weekend. Competing against her entire zone, Scarlett placed a very respectable 4th. She will now go on to compete at Nationals which is at Homebush in November.

Scarlett has been very committed to her sport all year, so it’s great to see her hard work has paid off! Well done Scarlett!

Stage 3 College Sports Swimming at Wollondilly Leisure Centre - Wednesdays throughout Term 4
Students in Stage 3 will have the opportunity to participate in Swimming at the Wollondilly Leisure Centre for College Sports throughout Term 4. More information to be released in the coming weeks.  

Upcoming events:

• NASSA Boys' Cricket Gala Day at Woodbine Oval - Thursday, 19 October
• NASSA AFL GALA DAY at Greenway Park West - Tuesday, 24 October

Mr James Gooden
Primary Sports Coordinator

Years T-6 P&F Fundraiser

P&F Fundraiser
At the beginning of the term, Students in Years T-6 designed an artwork for this year’s P&F Fundraiser. These have now been sent away to Crazy Camel and loaded onto our own portal for you to view and order your child’s keepsake. The students have spent a lot of time and effort on their artwork and they are beautiful.

Orders will need to be finalised by COB Friday, 22 September. All money raised will go towards Wollondilly Anglican College.

Mrs Anita Belusic
Transition Teacher

Book Week Competition Winners for Years 3-6

During Library Lessons this Term, Years 3-6 took part in Book Week Competitions based on the shortlisted CBCA books. Congratulations to our winners for 2023:

Year 3 completed an artwork based on Frank’s Red Hat by Sean E Avery

• Winners: Addison Hill (3F), Maddie Holton (3H), Thomas Hall (3J)

Year 4 completed an artwork based on Farmhouse by Sophie Blackall 

• Winners: Mackenzie Field (4F), Ali Croft (4H), Koa Van Althuis-Jones (4J).

Years 5 and 6 created board games based on a CBCA-shortlisted Picture Book of their choosing and played the game with their Buddies.

• Winners: Savannah Houghton (5F), Paige Lindsay, Taylor Szabranski (5H), Logan Buckley, Matilda Metus, Georgie Pile (5J), Amelia Maxwell (6F), Elijah Pullen, Job Tindall (6H), Rachel Bawden, Indi Luhr (6J)

All our Book Week Competition winners will receive Book Prizes and Merit Certificates.  

The following students received Highly Commended Merit Certificates:

• Amelia Brierly, Seth Challinor, Jordan Greaves, Dakota Van Althuis-Jones (3F)
• Charlotte Law, Lucy Ollerton, Isabel Opat, Leonardo Parnell, Bronte-Lee Vermaak (3H)
• Paige Britten, Andy Huang, Levi McTaggart, Darwin Noakes, Jake Wood (3J)
• Peter Dvorak, Holly Hughes, Frankie Hurst, Nicky Laukaitis, Isabella Wilkinson (4F)
• Estelle Galea, Ben Taylor, Lachie Underwood (4H)
• Harvey Bryant, Gus Hobby, Paihana McDonald, Paul McKay, Gabriella Micari (4J)
• Mackenzie Bleeker, Isla Broome, Hope Deutschbein, Leah Holloway, Chloe Parr, Millie Tooala, Joab Tooth, Mackenna Van Son, Imogen Watkiss (5F)
• Kiella Brown, Arabella Hinton, Owen Johnston, Ryker Koppelhuber, Eva Kumar, Amilia New, Bella Rowe, Jess Simmons, Lexi Waudby, Catherine Zhong (5H)
• Joyce Lloyd, Katherine Gibson, Anneka Warne, Leie Machiavello, Lily Bartolo, Amelia Fodor, Sophie Manuel, Jordyn Blain, Grace Williams (5J)
• Bella Dvorak, Harmony Groves-Young, Indie Levings, Erin Luxford (6F)
• Hannah Grzasko, Edie Bright, Ellena Bentham, Cheyannah Hall, Berg Koppelhuber, Ruby Banks, Eliza Douglas, Elenor Holloway (6H)
• Abbey Cook, Jeremy Frendo, Addison Metus, Norah Rebelo (6J)

Mrs Justine Colombo
College Librarian

P&F Golf Day - Save The Date!

• Date: Friday, 3 November 2023
• Venue: Antill Golf Club
• Time: 7.30 pm - 1.30 pm
• Golf Registration Cost: $165.00 (includes Cart/BBQ breakfast/Green fees/Cooler Bag/Shirt/Golf Ball/Tees/Drink Voucher/Lunch)
• Non Golfer lunch only - $65.00
  
• If you wish to register for this event please go to TRYBOOKING using the following link:
  

P&F Clothing Pool

We have a great selection of used uniforms for all Year Groups from Pre-K to Year 12 at very reasonable prices! 

• Shirts and Polos $10.00
• Sport & Boys' Shorts $10.00
• Tunics $30.00
• Blazers $60.00
• We also have new socks and ties available for purchase.
  

Come and say hello to our friendly volunteers and grab some uniform bargains!

Payment: Card Only (no cash)
Location: White Cottage through the side windows
Monday to Friday 7.45 am to 8.30 am
Phone: 4623 0286
Email: clothingpool@wac.nsw.edu.au

Have a great day! 

Mrs Melissa Whishaw
Clothing Pool Coordinator

Church Services

Community News

WAC Kids Care
From time to time, families undergo trauma such as severe or terminal illness. There are short-term support structures in place at the College to assist families during these times.

We have a collection of beautifully prepared meals that are ready for distribution to any families in need.

The WAC Kids Care Program offers support to families in the way of meals. Please contact Mrs Hay or Mrs Evans via the College Office. Confidentiality will be respected. If you know of anyone who may need meals at this time.

Name the Feathered Friends Masked Owl Competition

Charity Car Rally
This October, my husband Brandon and I will be participating in the Cancer Council Charity Car Rally for Spring 2023. The Rally will see us driving our Holden Rodeo pictured below (purchased for $800) from PORT DOUGLAS to ADELAIDE through the centre of Australia with 550 other participants.

Last October we raised almost $8,000 and completed over 9,000kms driving to Darwin. A few photos of the trip are attached. 

WE NEED SPONSORHIP!

This year, the Rally aims to raise $2 million for Cancer Council, which is used to fund cancer research projects nationally. Since the Rally launched in 2009, it has raised over $30 million and is the largest private fundraiser for the Cancer Council in Australia.

Would you Like to donate? Please follow the link and Donate Here

Any assistance you could give would be most appreciated and will help our team achieve our goal.

Thank you very much for considering sponsoring us!

Mrs Lisa Cooper

Carers NSW Young Carer Program
Young carers are young people who help look after a family member or friend who lives with a disability, mental illness, medical condition or who is frail. Providing support can be very rewarding for young carers, however at times it can have a big impact on their education and wellbeing.

Our Carers NSW Young Carer Awareness Training is a free, one-hour session aimed at supporting professionals and educators to identify and help young carers.

The session will explore:

• Who young carers are and why identifying young carers is important
• Potential impacts (both positive and negative) of their caring role
• Practical support options available 

Carers NSW can help you to continue to reflect the principles of the NSW Carers Charter in your work to ensure that young carers across NSW are achieving their highest potential.

If you would like to organise Young Carer Awareness Training, please email the Carers NSW Young Carer team at yc@carersnsw.org.au or you are welcome to call me on 02 9280 4744. 

Natalie Elliott
Young Carer Project Officer
Carers NSW

Tahmoor U/12 cricket - Players Wanted!
Tahmoor U/12 Cricket Club are in need of a couple more players (boys or girls) in order to be able to enter a team this year. The only requirement is that the player turns 13 after 1 September 2024.

Tahmoor is a great club who made it to the semi-finals last year.

Please email Deb at deb.bunch09@gmail.com to express your interest.

Mittagong Swimming Club - Registrations Are Open!

Community Links Wellbeing (CLW) will be running the following Parenting Education courses commencing 2023:

• Managing Challenging Behaviours Collaboratively- October 18 to December 6  - An eight-part session of 2 hours each week at Tahmoor Community Centre.

A very popular and in high-demand course for parents of children exhibiting challenging Behaviours which can often co-exist with a diagnosis that impacts emotional regulation eg. ASD, ADHD, ODD, intellectual concerns etc. This is the course for parents if other popular parenting courses & strategies have not worked.

• Tuning in to Teens - October 26 to November 30 at Tahmoor Community Centre in partnership with CLW and Health SWSLD- Family Connect and Support: a six-session, evidence-based program for parents/carers who have young people aged 10 to 17 years old. The course teaches skills in emotion coaching and raises awareness of the developmental needs of their young person so parents can better respond to their teens emotions and needs which improves their connection with their teen.

When parents and carers respond to teens’ emotions in ways that validate and accept emotions but still guide them with appropriate behaviour, young people learn important skills in emotional intelligence. Over time young people use these skills in all aspects of their lives. Emotional intelligence helps teen’s to be more resilient so that when they face challenging experiences they can talk about their feelings and work through these experiences.

• 1-2-3 Magic and Emotion Coaching: Coming Term 4, dates to be confirmed. Taking expressions of interest now. A three-session program of 2.5 hours for parents of children aged 2-12 years old with an extra booster session for support ( four sessions in total). The 1-2-3 Magic and Emotion Coaching program aims to help parents and carers manage difficult child behaviour with a focus on strategies and techniques that promote positive behaviour; encouragement in developing the child's ability to manage their emotional reactions; and relationship-building. 

Priority placement is given to parents in the Wollondilly, Wingecarribee and Camden LGA’s. Parents outside these areas may still be able to attend, please contact the email below to discuss further.

HCS Study Camp
Wollondilly Library is supporting local Year 12 students in the lead-up to the HSC in a number of ways. We’d love for you to share this information with your students and staff. Please find a PDF flyer attached for distribution.

Extended Wednesday Hours:
In addition to our regular Thursday evenings (7 pm close), Wollondilly Library will be staying open until 7 pm on Wednesdays in September and October.

Events for HSC Students:
A number of events have been organised to support our Year 12 students while they are studying. Follow the link to our events page for more information and to book.

• 4 October: HSC Pizza Night

HSC Collection:
Physical collection of up-to-date books for HSC students including Excel, Cambridge Checkpoints, ATAR Notes and A+ Study Guides, covering a range of HSC subjects. For use in the library and for borrowing.

View the catalogue here. 

HSC4Me Online Resource:
A free online resource filled with study notes, practice questions and responses and on-demand videos for 11 HSC subjects.

Register now for HSC4Me

Please note: This resource is for library members. Not a member? It’s free and easy to join online. 

Free Photocopying and Printing:
HSC students have access to free printing tickets to print study notes and past papers or photocopy from HSC resources.

Mindful Activities:
A break-out station offering a changing selection of mindful activities will be available upstairs at the Library, with activities including LEGO, jigsaw puzzles, colouring and crafts.

Additional Study Space:
In addition to our newly renovated community lounge and study rooms, extra study space for HSC students will be made available in our events space when it is not in use.

We hope to see your students soon at Wollondilly Library. Please don’t hesitate to contact me with any questions. 

Kind regards,

Emma Kramarzewski
Children & Youth Librarian

Mittagong Junior Disco  

• Date: Saturday, 30 September  
• Times: 4.00 pm - 6.00 pm
• Venue: Mittagong RSL – Bessemer Street, Mittagong
• Cost: $5.00
• Ages: 0-14
• Please note, this is a CASH-ONLY and ALCOHOL-FREE event.
  

All money raised goes back to the children in the Southern Highlands community.  

We hope to see you there

College Sponsors