Week 8, Winter Term 2022
Dear Boarding Families,
We are almost there! I am sure that you are looking forward to having your boys back in your arms in the next few days and I hope that you get to enjoy some down time together. I am aware that, especially on farms, the work preparing for harvest will really start ramping up and I am sure you will appreciate an extra pair of hands to help out. For those families that are a flight away and don’t get the opportunity to travel to Perth very often, I know these school holidays are a particularly sacred time for both boys and parents. Next term for our Senior School boys we begin the new academic year so our boys will be getting new classroom teachers and other new experiences.
This week we have focused on the Year 11 and 12 examination period, a week of assessments for all of our boys and then the upcoming Year 10 expeditions and we look forward to the upcoming Middle School Highland games next week! We have also been planning for the upcoming public holiday on Thursday 22nd October where school will be closed, but boarding will be open. On that day we will let the Yr 11s and 12s stay in house to study and we will take the Yr 7s, 8s, and 9s out on a rec activity.
With regards to the start of next term, it will be quite different to other terms. Firstly, our Middle School boys are set to arrive back into boarding on Monday 10th October and begin their classes on Tuesday 11th October. Our Senior School boarders come into boarding on Tuesday 11th October and begin school on Wednesday 13th October. I would like to make clear that if you have siblings that are in both houses, the older brother is most welcome to come in on Monday and stay the extra night to avoid parents having to do a double drop off. Please may parents make sure that their sons’ leave on REACH and specifically their arrival times next term are accurate and transport has been requested if required. We still have some boys who we expect to be flying in but don’t know what time they land at the airport.
Week 1 is a different week at School as well, particularly in Senior School. Our Senior School boys will engage in two days of conferences and exam feedback on Wednesday and Thursday and then have a big assembly and march out ceremony on Friday. Normal classes will begin on Monday of Week 2. We also have graduation ceremonies for our Year 12s including the Yr 12 Boarding Family Dinner at the Royal Freshwater Bay Yacht Club on Thursday 13th October, the night before March Out. Finally (and we are still only on Week 1 of next term!) I would like to remind parents that our new Year 10s (current Year 9s) will go straight out on Bib track in Week 2 of next term, so it would be a good idea for those boys to bring their Bib track gear back with them from their holiday. The rest of our boys go out on the Bib track later in the term.
Next term we have no less than 8 new boys starting with us in boarding, which is very exciting. We have also had a large number of enquiries from recent Field Days in Dowerin and Newdegate so that number could climb even further! We look forward to welcoming those new boys and I am fully confident that our current students will be very helpful and inclusive. Our numbers are so strong that it will means that we will no longer have a corridor of six bedrooms in the senior house that we can dedicate to quarantine for COVID purposes and we will have to make other arrangements. It also means that in the Middle School House, with such strong numbers next year, we are building more cubicles and that work started today. Our capacity in the Middle School boarding house will build to 44 (or 22 per year group) and then our Senior house will have capacity for around 25 per year group. Of our recent admissions, I would like to extend a thank you to our current parents who have advocated for Scotch on behalf of their son’s experience, many of our prospective parents have spoken of a connection to our current parents.
I have had feedback from parents with regards to our Ag Day on 26th August. In general, it was thought that the Farmers’ Market was a smashing success and having the day on the same day as the athletics carnival had some great advantages, such as boarding parents being able to enjoy time with each other and also get to see their boys compete. The Middle School games in the afternoon were also a big hit. It was also thought that if we were to expand Ag Day to include a careers focus, it might be better served on another day where boys could be more available to get involved and even lead some of the activities that we have instead of having to focus on their upcoming events. It might be an idea to keep the famers’ market on athletics day and to do a careers focus on another day so that we get the best of both worlds, and let’s be honest, the more spotlight that boarding gets at School the better it is for everyone! I would like to acknowledge the hard work that the Boarding Parents Committee and Mrs Jan Usher from Boarding Administration put into the day. It was a great day and the generosity, hard work, and good vibes of our boarding community were on full display!
Speaking of Mrs Usher, I would like to conclude with a special comment to thank her for the term and to wish her the best as she has a well-earned break for Long Service Leave next term. She will mix a bit of travel with a bit of relaxation. Jan is a wonderful person and a wonderful colleague and we will miss her next term, but I am very happy for her as she gets afforded a break in recognition of her service to Scotch. We held interviews this week for the Boarding Admin position in Spring Term and I am pleased to announce that Ms Sophie de Jonge will step into the role. Middle School parents would already know Sophie from her live-in role in the Middle School Boarding House. Sophie has a background in event management and marketing and will be excellent addition to our team next term.
Once again, I wish families all the very best for the end of term and the holiday break and I look forward to seeing you at pick up over the next week!
Kind regards
Jordan
Interschool Athletics
Middle School Residence
Check out the photo of the Penrhos social where the boys had their make-up and nails done by the girls.
Year 11 Blair breakfast
Andy, Pam, and Aubrey took the Year 11 Blair boys to Sea Blue for breakfast. It was a good morning for the boys with a lovely view.
Senior School Residence – Recreation
A wonderful afternoon of golf at Claremont saw Blair take out the win.
Clan quiz night
Blair also took out the quiz night win. Tom, Kody, Tyler and Sid organised and presented the night. The boys had categories including history, sport and geography with prizes being awarded for each category.
Blair wins the clan shield for 2022.