I hope you have all enjoyed the recent long weekend with your sons, either at home or abroad. For me it has been a pleasure getting to see some of the boys in different environments in the past couple of weeks.

Year 12 Bibbulmun Track in Albany

No doubt the highlight of the fortnight in boarding was getting to celebrate the Year 12s that completed their final expedition on the Bibbulmun Track. The boys walked over 130kms in 6 days to walk from Peaceful Bay to the Southern Terminus in the centre of Albany. Whilst there were some big days of walking, the boys were often afforded day packs rather than having to carry all food, water, shelter and safety equipment like they are accustomed to. They walked through forests, walked on beaches, walked amongst the huge windmills of the Albany wind farm and eventually walked into the middle of town. For anyone that knows the stunning scenery of the south coast, it is definitely worth encouraging your sons to persist with the track to experience those final walks. The boys were even treated to a rest at the mid-way point in Denmark, courtesy of the Gooding family who gave them a home cooked meal and a shower. The boys were even a bit spoiled the next day as the Gooding’s delivered pizzas to them on the track!

On the Friday, a large number of the parent group and some siblings met with the boys on the Track for a special breakfast. Many of the parents then walked a section of the track along the beach with the boys, getting to experience about an hour and a half of what the boys have every day. A number of the parents commented on how special that was and I know the boys loved it as well. As the boys walked in on Saturday morning, they were piped in by a Year 9 Keys house boy, Hugh, who also made the journey down with his family for the weekend just to honour our boarders. The boys were presented with certificates by a member of the Bibbulmun Track Foundation, it was a really lovely ceremony. All parents and boys then shared a lunch together later in the day before heading off to enjoy the rest of the long weekend. Many of the families made a weekend of it and stayed in Albany as a family.

The Bibbulmun Track experience is an incredibly enriching experience for our boys, and the final stage is also a very special time for Year 12 parents. I urge all parents to encourage the boys to persist with the Bibbulmun Track experience, whether they boys have completed every section or not. It becomes a truly memorable experience, and it was clear for all to see what a special bond that group of young men had on the track, forming memories that will last a lifetime. It is opportunities like these that make Scotch such a special school.

There will be a Bibbulmun Track presentation by the Yr 12s in Week 1 of next term.  If you are able to attend, please join us on Friday 19^th April at the Senior School Assembly to congratulate the boys on their incredible achievement.

Year 8 Bibbulmun Track

On Monday 18^th March we walk again with our Year 8s. I am excited as I will actually be walking with the boys that week. They were such an enjoyable group to walk with last year so it will be great to link up with them again. The other teacher walking with the boys is Mr Peter Tresise, a Middle School teacher who also works in the Boarding House. We will be walking from Brookton Highway to Gringer Creek, roughly alongside the Albany highway from around Serpentine to North Bannister. If any parents are in the area and want to come and say hello, please get in contact with Katelyn Guy from the Outdoor Adventure and Learning Department – Katelyn.Guy@scotch.wa.edu.au

Katanning and Wagin

This week myself, Mrs Nixon and Mr Montgomery are heading down south again to host an event in Katanning for our families down in the Great Southern. It is a great chance to catch up with you in your own back yard and to hear about your sons in a face to face conversation. Please also feel free to bring any friends or family along who might be considering boarding school and we can answer any questions that they might have. On Friday and Saturday we will be attending the Wagin Woolorama. If you are in the area, we would love to see you there, please come and say hello at the education stand.

Year 9 Rottnest Camp

Last week the boys went to camp on Rottnest Island, which is always a great time and a meaningful induction into life in Senior School. The boys were able to play beach games, snorkel, learn about the history of the island and its ecology. I was able to get over to the island for three days of the camp and helped take the history lessons for the boys alongside Mr Hindle. I was having flash backs of being in his history class as a Year 12 student! Good memories of course! It was a great opportunity for the boys to form new friendships now that they have been reshuffled into their senior school house groups and to bond with their House Head in a relaxed environment. The boys behaved very well and it was great to see the boarders mixed amongst the day boys, which I don’t often get to see.

Staffing – House Parents

As many of you would know, Mrs Kerry Wilhelm, one of our much loved House Mothers in the Senior House, has been away for an extended period of time, attending to a family funeral over in the United Kingdom. We have missed her a lot and we have really appreciated the relief work done by Mrs Mandy Martin in the interim. I am pleased to say that Kerry will be returning to work on Monday 18^th March.

In the Middle School House, Mrs Pam Seaby has decided that the time is right for some well-deserved Long Service Leave. Pam will be away for all of Term 2 and around half of Term 3. We have been able to recruit a wonderful lady to work with us as the House Mother of the Middle School House, Mrs Kathy Finlayson. Kathy comes with great experience as a boarding parent, a nurse and now a grandmother of the next generation of Scotch boys. Kathy has been a nurse in both Boddington and Williams for over 17 years. Her sons went to Guildford. Many boarding families would know Kathy and I am excited for her to start work later this term with Pam and then alongside Sean in the Middle School House from next term.

End of Term Parent Sundowner and Parent Interviews

As we enter the second half of term, I want to bring parents attention to our Boarding Parent Sundowner that we host at the Gooch Pavilion on the evening before the last day of term. The Boarding Parent Sundowner this year is on Wednesday 27^th March. It would be great to see as many of you as possible there to socialise with each other and with our staff. I will be hosting a Boarding Parent Committee meeting on 27^th March at 3pm, before the Sundowner. The next day, Year 11 and 12 parents have the opportunity to book a time with their son’s classroom teachers. For parents that want to book in an individual time for a chat about their son in boarding, I will be available all day the next day on 28^th March and  Steven Montgomery and Sean Mecham are available after midday once they have finished their teaching duties to meet with boarding parents, please just email or call us and book in a time.

I wish all families a wonderful fortnight and look forward to seeing you soon.

Kind regards

Jordan

Mouthguards

Mouthguards are required by all boys playing contact sports.

If your son needs a mouthguard for Winter sport, please organise this through your local dentist when you are with your son in the school holidays.

If you are unable to do this, you can make an appointment at Swanbourne Dental on Shenton Road.  Please make appointments for after school.  When making appointments, please also include the Health Centre in your email so they are aware of the appointment and can co-ordinate boys walking there together.

Mouthguards take 2 weeks to make and cost $225 for one colour.  Swanbourne Dental will issue you with an invoice so you can claim back from your health fund.

Winter sport will start when boys return to school on April 16th.

Bibbulmun Track

What a fabulous achievement for our young men to complete 130km walk and some of them becoming End to Ender’s.  Very proud of you all.  Congratulations!!

See the video link below to hear Hugh pipe the boys in.

Yr 12s being piped into Albany Southern Terminus

Around the Houses

Middle School boarders at recreation activities and celebrating birthdays.  St Hilda’s invited the boys to lunch and pool games.

In the Senior boarding house we had a few birthdays to celebrate, Valentines day from the boys to Theresa for all her love and support, swims at the beach with icecream and some very happy Boarding Mentors and House mum.

Clash of Clans

Blair and Stirling Clans started the competition off with a game of Touch Rugby. Congratulations to Stirling Clan (wearing Teal) on their close win.

Boarding Parent Sundowner – Wednesday, March 27

At the end of Term 1 we like to celebrate our Boarding community with a Boarding Parent Sundowner to catch up with our wonderful parents and guardians.

If you are able to join us on Wednesday 27 March from 6:30pm at the Gooch Pavilion for a bit of jazz, welcome drink and light dinner, we would love for you to join us.

Register here for the Boarding Parent Sundowner

We provide a Welcome drink, but the event is BYO alcohol.

2024 Boarding Photography Competition

Yes, it’s on again.  Get your camera’s at the ready for the biggest competition of the year.  Mr Mecham will be judging the 2024 Boarding Photography Competition and the competition closes at the start of Term 3.  All winners appear in the Boarding School Calendar 2026.

I hope you have enjoyed you last fortnight, by now many families have had the chance to catch up with their sons at least once and we have a long weekend on the horizon.

The boys have settled into boarding, although it is fair to say that boarding has been a busy place this term so far. We have had some homesickness from some of our new boys but they have been well supported by our more established students. The hot weather has been another factor in the past couple of weeks that has been a challenge for our boys, but frequent trips to the beach and pool have helped us all cool down a bit. We have had a few cases of Covid in boarding this fortnight, so we have been reiterating the importance of hygiene and social distancing with the boys. We appreciate parent help in this regard.

Blair Clan

With Mr Mellor finishing up his time at Scotch at the mid-term break, I hope that Blair Clan families get a chance to thank him for his service over the past three years. We were able to give him a round of applause at our most recent boarding assembly.

As Mr Mellor steps away, Mr Montgomery will step in to take charge of the whole senior boarding house. He will be given more time to do this by lightening his teaching and coaching load in the day school. He will also have increased support from myself, and he has amazing deputy heads of clan and House Mothers who will help him. We will look to replace Mr Mellor on a more permanent basis in the near future but in the mean time, Blair families can contact Mr Montgomery as the Head of Residence for their son.

Yr 12 Ball

Last weekend the Year 12s had their Ball which was a great success. The theme was “Vivid” and there were plenty of bright colours and exciting performances for the boys and their partners to enjoy. We also had a magnificent pre-ball function at the Cottesloe Surf Life Saving Club where the boys and their partners and our parents and the partner’s parents were all invited for a get together, some great photos, and then the students all left together in a party bus to the ball, via Kings Park. A huge thank you to all the Year 12 boarding parents that helped organise that function and then, once the boys went to the ball, parents and myself all gathered back at a restaurant together to share a meal. It was a thoroughly enjoyable evening.

Year 12 Bibbulmun Track

This Sunday, the Year 12s hop on a bus down to Peaceful Bay and walk from there, through Denmark, and into Albany to reach the southern terminus of the Bibbulmun Track. It is a fantastic achievement, with 8 of our Year 12s set to become “End to Enders” and a couple more who have only missed one or two legs of the journey over their six years in boarding. In total, we have 14 boys walking. I am looking forward to seeing the boys in Albany and spending the weekend with them and their parents.

Year 9 Rottnest Camp

Next week the Year 9s travel across to Rottnest for their Pastoral Care Camp. They will get to bond really well as a House group with the House Heads and I will be going over there to spend some quality time with the boarding students. It will be an action-packed week, full of fun and adventure. It is always a highlight of a students time in Senior School. I am showing my age here, but I was actually part of the very first Rottnest Camp back in 1996 as a Year 8 student! I still remember my time there as a student and making friends with some of the new boys to the College, who are still some of my dearest friends today.

Middle School Boarders

This past month has been a big one in the middle school. Everything is so different and new. It has been hot and the boys have felt a little cooped up with all the building that is going on at our doorstep. It is also challenging getting to learn to live with 41 other boys under the same roof. The boys have been really good at including each other in games and utilising the grounds after school, playing football on the oval and cricket in the nets. There has also been a couple of table tennis competitions going on in the house. Congratulations to Noah for winning the Year 7 competition and the grand final of the Year 8 competition is being played today between Darcy and Tom! We have been using prep time to try and help the boys focus on organisation skills as homework has been a bit thin, however, after the long weekend, homework will start to ramp up and the boys will be able to utilise their term planners and weekly planners to stay on top of it all. As the building of the playground gets into its final stages, we look forward to the boys having more space to play after school.

I wish all families a wonderful week ahead and a restful long weekend with their sons at home. Please make sure all families have put their plans into REACH so that we know the boys’ movements and can help organise transport if required.

Best Wishes

Jordan

Scotch on the Road – Albany

If you are planning a trip to Albany over the long weekend, join Jordan for a catchup at Due South on Friday 1st March from 6:30pm.  Details are at the link:

Scotch on the Road Albany – Due South

We are also welcoming our walkers in after finishing the End to Ender’s walk on Saturday 2nd March at 10:30am at the Southern Terminus on York Street.

All welcome!

Year 12 Pre Ball Function – Cottesloe Surf Lifesaving Club

Our wonderful Yr 12 boarders looking amazing in their suits at the Boarding Pre-Ball function at Cottesloe Surf Lifesaving Club.  Thank you to the wonderful parent helpers run by Jane Wandel for the stunning decorations.

Around the Houses

Photos from recreation activities, assemblies and at ‘home’ relaxing.  Enjoy!

Boarding Parent Sundowner – Wednesday, March 27

At the end of Term 1 we like to celebrate our Boarding community with a Boarding Parent Sundowner to catch up with our wonderful parents and guardians.

If you are able to join us on Wednesday 27 March from 6:30pm at the Gooch Pavilion for a bit of jazz, welcome drink and light dinner, we would love for you to join us.

Register here for the Boarding Parent Sundowner

We provide a Welcome drink, but the event is BYO alcohol.

Welcome to the 2024 school year! A special welcome to all our new families, and welcome back to all our families who were already with us last year. It has been lovely to see parents over the last two weeks as they have dropped their sons off and for those who have stuck around in Perth for a couple of extra days. It was lovely to welcome you all back into a newly refurbished entrance foyer in the Senior School Boarding House. The facilities team did a great job over the summer recreating the staff area and creating a good study space for our boys. I have included some photos below for the families who weren’t able to see it. Unfortunately for Middle School families, we couldn’t reveal the new playground as planned, however that should be finished before the end of term.

Andy Mellor – Head of Blair Clan

I have also had to write to families this week to inform you all that Mr Andy Mellor has made the difficult decision to step away from his role at Scotch in order to spend more time with his family. Andy will continue with us until the mid-term break at the start of March. After that, Mr Steven Montgomery and myself will share responsibilities for the families in Blair Clan whilst we go through a recruitment process. I will keep families updated. I would like to thank Andy for his service to the College and wish him well for his next chapter. Andy will remain a Scotch parent because his and Jodie’s two sons attend the College so he will remain connected in that way.

Parent Information sessions – Day School

In the past couple of weeks, there have been parent information sessions for the parents of Year 7, Year 8 and Year 9 boys. For those boarding families who were unable to attend, or perhaps one parent attended but the other couldn’t make it. There are links to the presentations here.

Scotch MS 2024 Middle School Parent Information Evening

https://clickv.ie/w/hFKw

Scotch MS 2024 Year 7 Parent Information Evening

https://clickv.ie/w/DEKw

Scotch MS 2024 Year 8 Parent Information Evening

https://clickv.ie/w/8EKw

The Year 9 presentation will be sent to you next week by Senior School and was unavailable to add to the Blog.

If you have any questions, please get in contact with your son’s Head of Year (Middle School) or Head of House (Senior School) and please feel free to include your sons boarding Head of Residence into that email correspondence to make sure we are all on the same page.

I also want to make sure parents of Year 8 boys are aware that there are parent/teacher interviews coming up so parents have the opportunity to meet their son’s PCG Teacher. This is an important touch point at the start of the year, the PCG teacher is a main point of contact in the day school, they will see you son at the start of each day at school and also teach them a number of lessons each day. If you are unable to make the meeting in Perth, please contact your son’s PCG teacher directly and arrange for an online meeting through Teams or a phone call.

Academic tracking in boarding

As the academic year gets underway, I would like to assure parents that we have academic tutoring available for the boys during prep time in boarding and if your sons want/need to access these services, please contact his Assistant Head of Residence to arrange for tutoring.

Stirling Clan – Michael.Ninkov@scotcjh.wa.edu.au

Blair Clan – Alex.Wood@scotch.wa.edu.au

Year 7 – Brent.VanIngen-Kal@scotch.wa.edu.au

Year 8 – CJ.Jackson@scotch.wa.edu.au

We are also trialling a new system of academic tracking by asking our tutors to complete online feedback forms from their tutoring sessions. These forms are emailed to Assistant Head of Residence and can be forwarded on to parents as required. Furthermore, Mr Michael Ninkov recently addressed all boarding students about study skills and organisation. Each boy was presented with a weekly planner and a blank assessment calendar that they can fill in and display in their rooms. We will be using Sunday prep time to focus on organisational skills. We ask that all boys are back from weekend leave by 5:30pm, in time for Sunday dinner and prep so that they can spend some quality time organising their week ahead.

Adventure World

Last weekend we took the boys to Adventure World. The boys had a fantastic time and were able to mingle with each other as well as many boarding students from other schools. It would have been nice for the boys to see friends from their home town who may attend different schools. We took all Year 7-10 students and it was great to see some Year 11 students opt to join us as well. The boys were well behaved and enjoyed the day. They were certainly exhausted on Sunday evening after the first week back at school and then a big weekend in boarding. This weekend is a bit more chilled out with regards to rec to give the students a chance to recharge their batteries.

Swimming Carnivals

This week we had both the Middle School and Senior School Inter-House swimming carnivals. This is the first chance for the boys to earn points for their house and hopefully have a bit of fun along the way. The first inter-school swim meet was last Friday and there will be another couple of swim meets coming up in the next two weeks. If your son has an interest in swimming, training is before school every day. There are also swimming squads that the boys can join all year round. The best person to speak to regarding swimming is Mr Ryan Steenkamp Ryan.Steenkamp@scotch.wa.edu.au

Chinese New Year

This week our community is celebrating Chinese New Year. This is a wonderful tradition that started in Scotch Boarding three years ago. Two of our Chinese students are leading the charge with regards to organising the event, we have decorations, quizzes and a special dinner planned for the evening. Dr O’Connell will be in attendance which is special and so will a large number of Chinese day students and their families. Many of our Chinese families are coming in before the dinner to help prepare dumplings with our catering staff. Congratulations to Mike Liu and Jerry Li for all their work on this event.

Yr 12 Ball

Next weekend is the much-anticipated Yr 12 Ball and I am looking forward to seeing our Year 12 parents in Perth for the big event. We have a pre-ball event down at the Cottesloe Beach Surf Lifesaving club and then the boys are travelling together to the ball. We have a booking for Year 12 parents to have a dinner together once we have gone and seen the boys and their partners enter the Dickinson Centre.  If you haven’t yet RSVP’d to either event, please email Boarding.Admin@scotch.wa.edu.au and let Jan know.

Year 9 Rottnest Camp/ Yr 12 Bibbulmun Track

In the week leading up to the long weekend we have two year groups out on camp. All year 9s will go to Rottnest, which is one of the great camps in Senior School. It is a chance to get to know their House Head very well and to bond as a cohort. It’s an excellent time for our new students to make friends with the boys in their House.

In the same week, the Year 12 boys embark on their final Bibbulmun Track expedition. They will be walking from Peaceful Bay, through Denmark and into Albany. I have encouraged all boys to consider walking, whether they will be an “end-to-ender” or not. It is a great event to tick off in year 12 as one of the many “final times” that the boys will experience. For year 12 parents, I also encourage you to consider travelling to Albany for that weekend to see the boys come in and to share the celebrations as the boys complete their Rite of Passage by completing the Bibbulmun Track. We have a function planned on the Friday and Saturday night for the families that make a weekend of it down in Albany.

I wish all families a wonderful fortnight ahead and I thank you all for your support as you have trusted us to care for your sons in your absence, it is a privilege that we take very seriously. Please continue to stay in contact with us about anything concerning you son. We know the first couple of weeks are difficult as the boys adjust to our routines and miss their families. It might be worth having another read of our homesickness booklet, which we have attached here Homesickness Handbook 2024

Kind regards

Jordan

Middle School Residence

Welcome to our new Year 7 and 8 boys and families.  We have a full house this year which is wonderful.

Our boys with their home room teachers.

MS Swimming Carnival

Congratulations to Robert house (Red) on winning this year.  The boys had great weather for a day at the pool.

Senior School Residence

The Reception area and new prep/study room were refurbished over the holidays.  The team headed up by Matt Luton did a fabulous job.

House Mothers, Kerry and Theresa keep a tight ship – work, rest and play!

SS Swimming Carnival

Congratulations to Cameron House, who by coincidence have only one boarder, won the Inter-House Swimming Carnival on Wednesday.

Clans

Welcome to our new clan members in their Blair and Stirling shirts with the Student Leadership team.  Mr Montgomery addressing the big house at Clan Meeting on the steps of the big house.

Recreation

Some great photos from rec activities.

Marching

The first assembly of the year in Senior School with marching and the pipe band.  We have boarders that are pipers and drummers.  Captain of Boarding Rhama, on the right.  Always a treat.

Swanbourne Tigers Football Club – early registration

The new registrar at Swanbourne Tigers Football Club, Genevieve Hohnen, has offered Scotch College boarding families the chance to register their son’s early.

This is the link to register:

Swanbourne Tigers early registration

If you would like to chat with Genevieve, please email registrar@swannytigers.org.au

Photographs

Thanks to Ivan (Yr 12) for taking great professional photos of rec activities, dinners and sports events for me to use.

Ivan is our official boarding photographer this year.

 New Year 9’s

• We welcomed our new year 9’s for 2024 at our Boarder’s Assembly on Wednesday 22^nd November. The boys then came into our Senior Residence on Sunday 26^th November for some fun at the beach with our leaders for 2024, my son Aubrey who is in their year group tagged along. This was followed up with a sleepover in the Senior Boarding House. Monday 27^th November saw these boys head to Senior School Orientation Day. Our new boys include three younger siblings of current Year 10-12 boys, the new boys are for 2024 are: Ben Carrington (Broome), Kade Gangell (Kulin), Milo Hewson (Broomehill) Van Jasper (Kulin), Archie Macnamara (Williams) younger brother of Oli (yr 12), Lennox Mongoo (Carnarvon) younger brother of Keion (yr 12), Riley Raffan (Badgingarra), Oliver Risinger (Dongara) younger brother of Xavier (yr 11), Harrison Smith (Cunderdin), Ethan Sullivan (Paraburdoo) and two new boys Rishi Munro from Bali, and Zac West, cousin of Toby Jones (yr 12) from Esperance.

Recreation Activities

• Boys enjoyed Recreation activities:
  • The Marvels Movie with PLC @ Event Cinemas Innaloo Friday 10^th November – Year 10-12
  • Golf at Cottesloe Golf Club on Saturday 11^th, 18^th, 25^th November – Year 11-12
  • First Lights Kooranup Drone Show Saturday 11^th November – Year 10-12
  • South Perth Sunset Picnic @ Perth Zoo with All Schools on Friday 17^th November – Year 10-11
  • Surfing Lessons @ Brighton Beach on Saturday 18^th & 25^th November – Year 10
  • Driving Range @ Wembley Golf Course on Saturday 18^th November & Friday 1^st December – Year 10
  • Adventure World with PLC on Sunday 19^th November – Year 11-12
  • Bounce Cannington on Friday 24^th November – Year 10
  • Recreation Skippers Ticket on Sunday 26^th November – Year 10-12
  • Paintball Clan Games @ Dizzy Lamb on Saturday 1^st December – Year 10-12
  • Beach Shuttle Sunday 2^nd December – Year 10-12

New Year 10’s

• Boys from both clans headed along to the “Try-a-Trade” Career Taster excursion at South Metro TAFE. From the smiles on faces, and the reviews these boys loved the day!

• Congratulations to Tom Falconer-Radford who continually received Theresa’s 5-Star Award for the tidiest room in the Year 10 wing throughout the last few weeks of term!

New Year 11’s

• John & Oscar of the boys (along with seven boys from Stirling Clan) made the commitment to keep walking the Bib Track. They walked 126.2km over 6 days, from Palings Rd (North of Beedelup) to Northcliffe, under the guidance of Mr. Scott Galipo (House Head of Shearer) and Mr. Callum Rigby (Outdoor Education Assistant). Boys enjoyed and welcomed the significant number of swimming spots, as well as the Pemberton Caravan Park. Well done John & Oscar on your choice to continue this significant Rite of Passage.

• Congratulations to Dallmyn Kelly, who has been elected Madalah Head Boy for 2024. Dallmyn attended a lunch at Parliament House on Wednesday 29^th November. Ben Stack also received a Madalah Student Council for 2024, Congratulations Dallmyn & Ben, good luck with your roles for 2024!

• Congratulations to John McGinniss, who received Kerry Wilhelm (Stirling House Mum) award for Best room in the Year 11 Wing.

New Year 12’s

• We said goodbye to School Captain David Walton, although we (Boarding & Blair Clan will claim him for the rest of the year).
• I finally managed to get these boys over to my house for a BBQ. After trying a Monday, where it looked like only 3 of them would make it, a late switch to Tuesday worked well as it meant both Alex Wood (my Assistant Head of Residence) & Theresa Moss (House Mum) were able to join us, although we were missing Noah McCreery (who was unwell at home) and my wife who was at the MLC Boarding Christmas dinner! There was an attempt at a version of handball which Fergus was keen on playing with the big boys.

• 5 boys (along with 5 Stirling boys and 2 ex-boarders) completed the 115.6km leg from Inlet Rd (near Broke Inlet) to Peaceful Bay under the guidance of Mrs. Rochelle Gaudieri (Middle School Teacher) and Miss Katie Guy (Outdoor Education). From the photos and videos I have seen, the boys had a fantastic time, caught fish, built a river wave and generally enjoyed being with each other on our beautiful southern coast! Well done Hudson, Toby, Oli Mac, Noah, & Oli Wandel, it seems like only yesterday I walked into Balingup with you all, and you weren’t even half way! One more walk (148.1.km) boys!

• On Thursday 23^rd November, we had our Year 12 Boys “Bring a Mate to Dinner”. 44 hungry, hot Year 12 boys descended on Keys House, a great opportunity for the day boys to see how our boarders live!

Year 13 (Leavers 2022)

• Valedictory on Saturday 25^th November and then the Awards Assembly on Friday 1^st December.

Christmas & Secret Santa

On Thursday November 30^th, we had Christmas Dinner in the Dining Hall, this was followed with a Secret Santa’s for the three year groups. Many thanks to our 2024 leader, Oli Wandel for organising. A great initiative that allowed boys to show their “family away from home” that they care!

Final Week Beach Fish & Chips

On Monday 4^th December Steven Montgomery & I took the entire Senior Boarding House for Fish & Chips at Cottesloe Beach.

We departed the house at 5pm and returned to Keys House at 7.30pm for Prep. Boys were well fed, played Spikeball on the beach and had a nice refreshing swim with the odd wave!

Academic Achievements

Excellence in any area should be celebrated, remembering that each boy is individual. It was pleasing to sit through Friday Assemblies and the Senior School Presentation Ceremony and see boys rewarded for their efforts, Well done guys!

Certificate of Academic Excellence

Congratulations to the following students on achieving a Certificate of Academic Excellence for Semester Two. These students were presented with their award at Senior School Assembly on Friday 24^th November.

https://home.scotch.wa.edu.au/senior-school/2023/11/24/year-11-2023-semester-2-certificates-of-academic-excellence/

Year 11

• Jiahe (David) Shen
• David Walton

Academic Colours

Congratulations to David Walton for achieving Academic Colours for Semester Two.

https://home.scotch.wa.edu.au/senior-school/2023/11/24/year-11-2023-academic-colours-24-nov-2023/

https://home.scotch.wa.edu.au/senior-school/2023/11/24/student-achievements-24-nov-2023/

 ASDAN Certificates

Congratulations to: John McGinniss & Mesheech Ozies

Vocational Education & Training Certificates

Congratulations to:

• Kai Allan for achieving a Certificate II in Fitness
• Oliver Macnamara & Keion Mongoo for achieving a Certificate II in Workplace Skills

Prize Winners

Congratulations to the following students who were presented with their prizes at the Senior School Presentation Ceremony on Friday 1^st December.

https://home.scotch.wa.edu.au/senior-school/student-achievement/speech-night-awards/

“An Endeavour Prize is awarded to a student in Year 9, 10 or 11 who is industrious and who consistently demonstrates that they are striving to work to their full potential. The prize is achieved by nominations from at least six teachers in Years 9 and 10 and at least five teachers in Year 11. An Endeavour Prize is superseded by a Subject Prize or a Proficiency Prize.”

 “A Subject Prize is awarded in each subject that runs for the whole year. A student who attends a cross campus class, is in a class with a small cohort or who studies a Diploma course through Pamajo can still win a Subject Prize if their results are of a prize winning standard (at least an A in WACE or a high Grade 6 or 7 in Diploma). In the Diploma program, Subject Prizes are available for Standard Level and Higher Level.”

 “A Proficiency Prize is awarded for a high level of performance across all learning areas. In Year 9 and 10 this is determined by summing the course results achieved by each student and the top 5% receive a Proficiency Prize. In the Diploma program the grades of each student are summed and the students ranked. In the WACE program the school scores for each student’s best five subjects are summed and the students ranked. The top 5% receive a Proficiency prize. The top student in WACE, Diploma and VET programs are awarded Dux.”

 Year 10

Academic Proficiency – Arts: Media

• Mike (Haotian) Liu

Academic Proficiency – Arts: Photography & Graphic Design, Health & Physical Education, Humanities, Philosophy

• Oscar Male

Year 11

Academic Proficiency – Accounting & Finance (ATAR)

• Rylan Firth

Academic Proficiency – Biology SL (IBDP), Business Management HL (IBDP), Chinese HL (IBDP), Mathematics: Analysis & Approaches SL (IBDP)

• Jiahe (David) Shen

Dux of Year 11 (WACE) – Economics (ATAR), Literature (ATAR), Mathematics: Methods (ATAR), Mathematics: Specialist (ATAR), Modern History (ATAR)

• David Walton

Year 12

Arts Purchase Prize – Visual Arts (General)

• Kaymus Brierly

Subject Prize – Mathematics: Essential (General)

• Sam Thompson

Clash of the Clans

Softball was held on Thursday 30^th November just before Christmas dinner. We split the two games 1-1 with Stirling. The Year 9/12 Blair team getting up 12-11. Unfortunately, the Year 10/11 boys couldn’t prevail despite being well in control at 7-4 up going into the last innings, going down 7-12.

Other News

 Blair Clan Teams Meeting

 I will hold a MS Teams meeting for new families in the week before our January return to boarding, please keep an eye out for a calendar invite from me!

 Finally, I wish you all a safe break, enjoy time with your sons, have a merry Christmas and a happy new year!

Andy

As this is the first blog of the term, it has certainly been a busy first three weeks! Plenty of action and plenty of fun being had. As well as all that has been happening in boarding, it is important to note that Senior School boys have also all changed their academic year, so everyone has new teachers and new subjects to learn.

Graduation/ March Out

Our first week of Spring Term largely revolves around graduation ceremonies for our Year 12s, including special breakfasts and dinners, exam hand back and final preparations and then culminating in Assembly and March Out on Friday.

The night before March Out the parents and boys of Year 12 had our graduation dinner at Royal Freshwater Bay Yacht Club, which was a fantastic evening. The beautiful setting was a fitting way to celebrate the boys completing their journey of boarding at Scotch. It was wonderful to celebrate the boys and parents. Each of the boys gave a small speech about each other, which was a nice touch.

March Out the next day was a great celebration of the leaving Year 12s was another great spectacle. It was a beautiful day and the whole school turned out as well as over 1000 relatives and friends to see the boys complete their March Out. It was also a good moment to do a handover ceremony for next year’s House and School leaders.

Parent Committee Meeting

On the first day of Term I hosted a Parent Committee Meeting and we discussed a range of things, including a new proposed renovation of the Senior Boarding House for 2024. We are looking at renovating the kitchen and patio area downstairs and the big TV room upstairs. Other issues we discussed included some ideas around increasing the amount of parent functions we have throughout the year, with the new kitchen and outdoor area, we are hoping that on drop off days we can host parents so that they stick around when they are dropping boys off and socialise with each other and with Heads of Residence and House Mothers. We are also looking at having a Yr 7 and a Yr 11 Mother/ Son dinner in 2024, to start a new ongoing tradition and a pre-Father’s day BBQ and games day in September.

Mrs Usher on Leave

I want to inform parents that as of next week, Mrs Usher is on leave for four weeks. Jan is having surgery and has a recovery period that will keep her out of action for a while. We wish her all the very best as she goes away on leave. In terms of Boarding Administration, I will be getting some help from Mr Chris Stretch, who knows our systems very well and I will also be keeping an eye on the Boarding Admin email inbox. May I ask that parents keep in close contact with their Head of Residence in the first instance, especially for any leave or host arrangements and then myself as per normal. If you email Boarding.Admin@scotch.wa.edu.au we will work as hard as we can to attend to your issue. However, it is hard to replace the irreplaceable! As well as my mobile number, please be aware of my direct office number 9383 6919.

New Staff and boys

On staffing updates, we have a number of new staff and boys. Mr John Black joins us in the Middle School Residence as a Boarding Mentor, as does Ms Maddie Bridle who moves from being a tutor in prep to being a Boarding Mentor. Mr Peter Tresise, who is a much-loved Year 7 teacher, is now working one night a week to undertake prep shifts, which is fantastic.

In The Senior School House, Mr Dylan Watson joins us as a Boarding Mentor as does Mr Jerome Woods. Both Dylan and Jerome are young teachers in Maths and Science respectively. We also have Ms Aman Bhabra joining us to tutor in Maths.

We have also recently hired a new Health Centre Assistant to drive our boarders to and from medical appointments. Mrs Dianne West, a former teacher herself, is taking on that role. Lastly, we have hired a casual relief House Mother who can help out if and when required. Mrs Mandy Martin has already done her induction and has met the boys and staff. Mandy will be there for times when Kerry, Theresa and Pam are away.

In terms of boys, this term we welcome a whopping 12 boys into boarding. Many of those boys are day boys who are staying temporarily for a month, or even for the term, however, we make special mention of Dallmyn Kelly (Yr 11), Lachlan Kirkham (Yr 11), Oliver Campbell (Yr 11), Shae Brown (Yr 11), Zach Darling (Yr 10) and Blair Haultain (Yr 10) who have joined us on a permanent basis.

Year 12 Ball and Bib Track Next Term

For Year 12 Parents, we have booked in a pre-ball function at Cottesloe Surf Life Saving Club. We look forward to hosting all boys and parents at this function on 17^th February from 4pm-6pm. There will be photo opportunities down by Cottesloe Beach and we have booked a bus to take boys and partners to the ball.

I also wanted to alert parents to the Bibbulmun Track Albany weekend which is next term on the March long weekend. The boys will walk from Sunday 25^th Feb until Saturday 2^nd March. We have a breakfast with the boys in the track on Thursday 29^th February at 8am. We have a function on Friday Night 1^st March without the boys and then another on Saturday night 2^nd March with the boys. I would love for as many parents and boys to make a weekend of it in Albany that long weekend. I am writing in advance so that parents have the opportunity to book accommodation. Please note that the school does not provide transport back to Perth after the walk, so if parents are not there, please arrange for your son to get a lift back to Perth with another group of parents.

Year 10 Bibbulumun Track

This Term I had the privilege of walking on the Bibbulmun Track with our new Academic Year 10 boys. Whilst the walk itself was difficult and I am currently nursing a sore calf (I think they call it the ‘old man injury’) and a lot of mozzie bites, it was an absolute pleasure walking alongside the boys. It was also a real pleasure walking alongside our Outdoor Ed staff member Callum and Rev Gary van Heerden, who has walked the track with these boys since they were in Year 7. We walked from around Collie north towards Dwellingup in the beautiful hills of the jarrah forest alongside the Murray River.  There were a couple of great swimming spots along the way and the boys sure knew how to have a great time. We found a rope swing at one spot, a zip line at another and camped at some beautiful huts along the way. We also had some deep chats around the campfire about times where life can take a turn for the unexpected and we have to find a way to deal with it. Our boys battled through heat, hills and blisters on their feet and still found that the most memorable times were the ones where we laughed together, and such is life.

Year 11 and 12 Bibbulmun Track

Our Year 11s and 12s get to head onto the Track this term as well, leaving on 12^th November and arriving back on the 17^th. I encourage all boys to go on the track, whether or not they will be end-to-enders in Year 12. For our senior boys, and especially at that time around Week 6 of term, I encourage them to start a dialogue early with their classroom teachers and find a way to navigate a personalised assessment plan where necessary so that they can catch up on assessments or study review they miss while they are walking, but then don’t get overwhelmed when they return. Assessments are important, organisation and pre-planning is important, and the Bibbulmun Track is important as well.

PSA Bye 10^th and 11^th November

This Term there is a PSA bye for Scotch on Friday 10^th and Saturday 11^th November. This is about half way through term. There is no mid-term break this term and the boarding houses will not be closing, but I did want to alert parents to that fact. I am mindful that, with the school year ending in December, many boys miss out on experiencing harvest season or having a break at home. The school week will function as normal, with school on Friday and Monday, there is no long weekend this term. However, with no sport on Saturday 11^thNovember, families might want to pencil that weekend into their calendar as a possible chance for their boys to reconnect with home. If families look to include a day off school and create a long weekend, parents will need to be proactive in informing teachers and working around any assessment requirements for the boys.

Rec

There have been some really good rec events this term, including a Year 10/11 river cruise with St Hilda’s. We have also started surfing lessons for some senior school boys and will soon be starting a recreational skippers ticket for senior school boys. This weekend coming up, our new VC Boarding – Middle School, Toby Jones is organising a soccer game for Year 12s with the Year 7s and 8s which will be a great way for them to bond. There have also been lots of trips to the beach in the afternoons and Mr Stretch is investigating an end of year trip to Adventure World. We also have our big paintballing end of year event coming up in late November.

Yr 8 Communty Project Showcase and Denmark Camp

Over the last couple of weeks, our Year 8s have held their Communtiy Project Showcaes where they have shown the fruits of their labour, making the world a better place. This is an important part of their IB MYP learning experience but also reinforces the community mindset and servant leadership model at the heart of the College’s value system. The boys put a lot of hard work in, often boarders contribute to their local communities at home, and they should feel proud of their efforts. As the Community Project finished off, boys have now gone down in separate waves towards Denmark and Walpole to undertake Yr 8 camp. This is a new initiative in Middle School and I am sure it will be well received by the boys. Not to be too controversial, but I have done a lot of travelling around WA and Denmark has to be on my podium for WA’s best regional town. I am sure the boys will have an amazing time.

I wish you all the best over the next two weeks, The boys have settled into a rhythm here in Perth and we will concentrate on putting smiles on their faces and helping them set challenging goals to achieve their personal best. We love our work in boarding and we love our community. If you need support from us in boarding over personal issues or to check in with your son about a specific issue, please never hesitate to call.

I wish Mrs Usher all the very best in her time away from the College. She will be missed as a friend and colleague. We look forward to seeing her back at 8am on the 29^th November! A huge thank you to Mr Stretch for his offer to help out in the interim. I look forward to seeing him in his smart casual attire (RM Williams and a checked shirt) at 8am on 30^th October.

Kind regards

Jordan

Assembly

This morning’s assembly saw our Captain of Boarding, Rhama address the senior school about Boarding and Rory and Clem spoke about Remembrance Day which is coming up.

Year 12 Graduation Dinner

Here are some lovely photos of the Grad dinner at Royal Freshwater Bay Yacht Club.  It was a very special night and lovely to see your son’s grow into wonderful young men.

March Out

It was a glorious Friday morning for March Out this year.  These photos are from Vidigami and highlight our Boarders enjoying the sunshine and supporting the end of School for our outgoing Year 12s.  Congratulations on a wonderful display.  Vidigami

New Boarders

Welcome to Boarding!!

Senior Boarding Residence Breakfast

Captain of Boarding, Rhama and the new Boarding Leadership team organised for the boys to have breakfast in the recreation room on a beautiful sunny Friday morning.  It just happened to be Kai’s 17th birthday and they sang him a rousing Happy Birthday.  Great way to start the day!!

Year 8 Community Project Presentations

The Year 8s presented their community projects to boys, parents and staff with resounding success.  The Headmaster and Head of Middle School were very impressed with the standard of work and presentation skills.

Clash of Clans – Cricket

New Year 12 leaders set their first Clash of Clans event on Thursday of Week 1 – Backyard cricket on the Chapel Lawn.  Three games, Year 7/8 game, a Year 9/10 game and a Year 11/12 game.  Boys cooked a BBQ dinner and had a refreshing swim in the pool afterwards.  Congratulations to Blair for winning.

Yr 9 Bibbulmun Track Walk (Academic Year 10s)

Our new Year 10s walked Harris Dam, Collie to Swamp Oak, Dwellingup.  Rev Gary, Callum and Jordan walked with the boys from Sunday to Thursday.  Weather was great, the walking was challenging with the heat and the hill at the end.  The boys were fantastic.  Congratulations.

Year 10 (Academic Yr 11) River Cruise

St Hilda’s invited the boys to join them on a river cruise on Friday

Its nearly the end of term and, for senior school families, the end of the Academic year! For our year 12s, many of them have only a few examinations and a graduation ceremony before they officially make their way onto the next phase of their young lives.

The past two weeks has seen our Year 11 and Year 12 boys undertake their end of year examination period. The boys have done a good job balancing their commitments and it has been great that our House Mothers have taken a more active role in supervising the students during the day, working hours that they don’t normally work in order to prioritise our boys during this stressful time. We hope the boys have made the most of our evening tutors, in conjunction with the advice from our Assistant Heads of Residence, and that they achieve the results that they have been aiming for. We have also had two weeks of activities for our AAP boys, last week the boys were given time to complete their certificate courses and this week there has been a range of activities for them to do, such as a course to attain their “white card” for the construction industry, an RSA course for the hospitality industry, and a two day first aid course.

Kerry and Theresa have also used this time with me to do some furniture rearrangement to try and reinvigorate our downstairs common room and encourage more of a café style kitchen/dining experience for our boys. Some of our boys have been using their study breaks to help us juggle things around and it has been nice to have their input into how they currently use the space and how they would like to see it used in the future. I have also had the pleasure of a few parent conversations this week who have also given their input. Our Senior refurnishing project is an exciting one and we hope to continue to make good progress over the next term, to the point that we can host a family function at the end of next term.

The last few weeks has involved Scotch’s Art exhibition and there is a large number of boarders who have contributed. Some of the art work is outstanding! I walked around and took some photos of boarders’ work. I didn’t get them all, but a good showcase of what our boarders have been producing. I love seeing our boarders making art, taking photos and making things in our woodwork and metal work after school workshops with Mr van Ingen Kal. It is so important that boys continue to nourish their creative streak. It was also wonderful to see a number of boarders at Scotch Rocks, playing music on stage at the Rosemount Hotel recently.

This week we have had our Year 10s on Expeditions. Some boys have been up north on the Karijini expedition, whilst others have been down south in Margaret River, either caving and climbing, walking the Cape to Cape, mountain biking, or horse riding. Some lucky boys have also been off to New Zealand! Our Year 10 boys that spent that last week of their school holidays in July in Exmouth on Expedition were able to spend this last week of term at home.

Next Term

Next term starts in a an unusual way for boarding families, particularly those that have boys in both boarding houses. Please note that the Middle School boarders are due back in Residence on 9^th October and start school on 10^th October. Our new Year 12 leaders are also in on this day. The Senior School Boys are back in Residence on 10^th October for school to start on 11^th.

I will be hosting a Parents Committee meeting at 1pm on 10^th October. I apologise if Middle School families are not able to be there for that meeting, due to drop off being the day before, but it was impossible for me to have a common day. As always, all parents are invited to join, please send me through any topics of conversation prior to the meeting. The Dining Hall is being used on that day, so we will hold the meeting downstairs in the Senior Boarding House. This can give parents a good look at the space and we can discuss our plans for renovation and refurbishment, as I have a meeting with the architect during the holidays, and a meeting with our CFO in the first week of term.

Also in the first week of term we have our Yr 12 Boarding Graduation Dinner which takes place at the Royal Freshwater Bay Yacht Club on Thursday 12^th October, the night before March Out. Friday 13^th October has an Assembly in the morning, followed by a House Assembly for the boys and March Out is scheduled to begin at around 11:40am. March Out is a fantastic spectacle and I encourage all families to consider being there, not just Year 12 families. It really is a fantastic day on the Scotch Calendar.

Next term we have a number of families joining our community. In fact, at last count, we have 12 new boys starting boarding next term! 6 new permanent boarders, and 6 current day boys that are boarding for a temporary period. We look forward to welcoming them all into our community. The word is spreading fast that Scotch Boarding is the place to be! It’s a very good sign and a testament to the pastoral and academic support that our boarding staff give to our boys and their families. As of 2024, we will be very close to capacity in boarding at Scotch, which is fantastic. I was recently in Esperance with Mr Gill and Mr Kyle connecting with our current families and also some families that are joining us in 2024 and 2025. It is always such a pleasure to meet families in their own backyard and we had a wonderful time in Esperance. We were hosted for dinner and lunch at family homes, visited farms and stayed at lovely accommodation owned by a Scotch boarding family. We also had the privilege of being toured around the region by Jason Riggs, father of Ben in Yr 11, and seeing the amazing Cape le Grande National Park with all of Esperance’s world-renowned beaches. We love travelling to the regions and believe it leads to building genuine relationships with our families and helps our boys feel more at home in our boarding community.

I also want to alert parents that next term we will be reviewing our mobile phone policy in boarding, with the view to make some changes in 2024. In short, we believe the boys are spending too much time on their phones accessing social media and gaming, and this is to the detriment of their social skills and their overall wellbeing (although the boys may not agree). Specifically, I would like to limit the time the boys get on their phone in the evenings after prep, just before bed. I acknowledge that many boys like that time to call parents, and that this time might also work well for busy parents, so I will look for ways to accommodate that. However, in reality, many of the boys spend most of that time scrolling through social media and being exposed to a blue light just before bed. It has been my longstanding belief that boys don’t need the phones after they hand them in for prep at 6:30pm (Middle School) and 6:45pm (Senior School). I will be putting this on the agenda of our upcoming parent meeting and I do invite your feedback on the matter. I would like to ask parents to consider that their daily phone call to their son be before dinner, ideally at around 5:30pm. There is also an opportunity to text before school. Addiction to devices is a societal issue and it is something that we are exposed to in boarding. Some of our boys are struggling to interact appropriately with people without a screen in front of their faces. We also need to ensure boys are not wound up each evening from social media use and gaming just before bed. I encourage parents to please have this conversation with your son. If, due to work, this time is not possible for families, we can always arrange for a boy to call home on the house phone. I realise that, in a teenagers psyche, this is a hot topic and so I am following a process of consultation with parents, however, from a staff point of view, people who see how they are using their phones each day, we believe that this is a good thing and it is in the interest of the boys overall wellbeing. I would be interested to hear your views on the matter. Any changes are likely to be implemented in the first terms of 2024.

I wish all families a relaxing and restful break, hopefully away from devices! I encourage you all to have a rest, get outdoors, and spend some quality time together.

All the best

Jordan

Yr 12 Boarding Graduation Dinner – Royal Freshwater Bay Yacht Club

We farewell our outgoing Year 12 Boarders at the Graduation Dinner on Thursday 12 October.

For Parents and Boys still wanting to book, please use the link below:

Yr 12 Graduation Dinner bookings

Surf Lessons

For the new Academic Year 10s next term we are offering Surfing lessons with Perth Go Surf.  The boys will have 5 lessons on Saturday mornings at Leighton or Brighton beach.  If your son is interested, please email Boarding.Admin@scotch.wa.edu.au for the forms.

Lessons begin on Saturday 21st October.

Recreational Skippers Ticket

In Spring Term boarding are offering the new Academic Year 11s the chance to gain their Recreational Skippers Ticket.

If you think your son will be interested, please check out the link below for the necessary requirements and email me at Boarding.Admin@scotch.wa.edu.au to register interest.

https://www.transport.wa.gov.au/imarine/how-to-get-an-rst.asp

Save the Date – Year 12 Pre-Ball Function 2024

Scotch Boarding will be holding a Pre-Ball Function on Saturday 17 February 2024 at the Cottesloe Surf Life Saving Club from 4:00pm to 6:00pm.

We will be catering the event and the bar will be open for parents of boys and their partners and families.

Year 8 Bibbulmun Track

The Year 8 boys received their Bibbulmun Track Certificates and sew on Waugal badge at Boarders Assembly last week and all seem pretty happy.

Ms Kerry walked with the boys and had a wonderful time getting to know them.  Congratulations boys!

Art Exhibition

In Boarding we have many talented boys and the showcase of art and craft within the College provides a wonderful array of boarders work.  The annual Senior School Art and Design Exhibition had its opening night on Tuesday 5 September and was held in the Mathematics & Commerce building. Here’s a snapshot of our boy’s work.

Here’s what your sons have been up to in boarding:

Year 9

• Bib Track Week 2 of Spring Term!

• We welcome two new boys into Blair Clan next term, thanks to Cooper for taking on the role of “buddy” for one of our new boys as they transition to Scotch Boarding:

• • Blair Haultain, from Dongara
  • Zach Darling, from Albany
• Boys enjoyed Recreation activities:
  • Roller-skating with All Schools @ Morley Rollerdrome on Friday 1^st September
  • Bounce @ Bounce Carousel on Saturday 26^th August & 16^th September
  • Neon Glow Indoor Beach Volleyball with All Schools on Saturday 27^th August
  • The Meg @ Event Cinemas on Sunday 28^th August
  • Driving Range @ Wembley Golf Complex on Saturday 2^nd September, Friday 8^th September
  • Ice Skating with All Schools @ Cockburn Ice Arena on Saturday 9^th September
  • Gym Floor for Games on Friday 15^th September
  • Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles @ Event Cinemas on Saturday 16^th September
  • Mini-Golf @ Holey Moley in Fremantle on Sunday 17^th September
• Tom, Cooper, Harry, Lynton & Tate, along with Jake, Wil, Taka, Oli (Year 9, Stirling) and former boarder Oli Gooding, were all in the Subiaco Basketball team that Won their Grand Final. Well done guys!

• Lynton was runner-up Best on Ground in a premiership winning Mosman Park Redbacks team in the Year 9 Maroon Competition Grand Final for the Metro North Conference. Jake & Taka (Year 9, Stirling) were also in the team. Congratulations!

• Boys joined myself & Theresa for breakfast @ C Blu Restaurant in Cottesloe on Tuesday last week of Term. A great catch up, no technology, and despite bragging about how much they could eat, some of them did not finish their meals!

Year 9 Breakfast at C Blu

Year 10

• Year 11 and new pathways are just weeks away. If you have any queries regarding your sons course selection, please speak firstly with your sons House Head.
• We welcome three new boys into Blair Clan next term, thanks to Hudson, Noah & Oli Wandel for taking on the role of “buddy” for these new boys as they transition to Scotch Boarding:
  • Shae Brown, from Cygnet Bay who has been a boarder before
  • Dallmyn Kelly, from Ellenbrook, who is a day boy.
  • Lachlan Kirkham, from Cowaramup
• Boys enjoyed the following Recreation activities:
  • Roller-skating with All Schools @ Morley Rollerdrome on Friday 1^st September
  • Freo Torchlight Prison Tour with St. Mary’s on Friday 25^th August
  • Golf @ Cottesloe Golf Club on Saturday 26^th August, 2^nd, 9^th September
  • Neon Glow Indoor Beach Volleyball with All Schools on Saturday 27^th August
  • The Meg @ Event Cinemas on Sunday 28^th August
  • Driving Range @ Wembley Golf Complex on Saturday 2^nd September, Friday 8^th September
  • Ice Skating with All Schools @ Cockburn Ice Arena on Saturday 9^th September
  • Gym Floor for Games on Friday 15^th September
  • Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles @ Event Cinemas on Saturday 16^th September
  • Mini-Golf @ Holey Moley in Fremantle on Sunday 17^th September
• Congratulations to Oscar Male who was part of the UWA Hockey Club Year 9/10 Division 1 team that won their Grand Final! Fellow boarder, Scott Ericsson (Year 9, Stirling) was also in the team.

• Congratulations to Willem Buckley & Xavier Risinger, who were both members of the Subiaco AFC Under 16 Division 4 team that won the League and the Top 4 Cup. Digby Smith (Year 10, Stirling) was also in the team. Unfortunately Xavier missed the final, as he was on his Year 10 Expedition.

• Year 10 Boys as part of their curriculum at Scotch elect to attend a one week camp, with the final group of students enjoying one of the following camps in the final week of term:
  • Margaret River Experience
    • TJ
  • Karijini
    • Jordy Bowden
    • Jayden Clarke
    • Xavier Risinger
    • Ben Stack
• The following students attended their camp in the third week of July:
  • Sea Kayaking
    • Mike Liu
    • Oscar Male
  • Whale Shark Diving
    • John McGinniss
    • Sonny Saunders

Year 11

• Year 12 officially starts Spring Term, Monday of Week 2. During Week 1, boys will take part in a seminar around the importance of sleep, managing their time and devices, as well as in induction on the Scotch College Boarding House Gymnasium. Once parental approval is received, boys will enjoy further privileges. I stress the word “privilege” as they must fulfill their responsibilities to keep their privileges.
• We welcome David Walton, Captain of School 2024, into boarding as a temporary boarder for the first 3 weeks of term.
• Boys enjoyed the following Recreation activities:
  • Kings Park Pokemon Drive on Friday 25^th August
  • Golf @ Cottesloe Golf Club on Saturday 26^th August, 2^nd, 9^th September
  • The Meg @ Event Cinemas on Sunday 28^th August
  • Driving Range @ Wembley Golf Complex on Saturday 2^nd September, Friday 8^th September
  • Gym Floor for Games on Friday 15^th September
• Congratulations to the following boys on their appointments to leadership positions for 2024:
  • Boarding
    • Oliver Wandel – Vice Captain of Boarding – Senior Residence (Blair Clan Leader)
    • Toby Jones – Vice Captain of Boarding – Middle School Residence
  • House
    • Hudson Hammond – Vice Captain of Keys – Operations
    • Clem Hardie – Vice Captain of Stuart – Service

Year 12

• AAP Students only March Out & Valedictory to go……
• WACE/IB Students only March Out, WACE/IB Exams & Valedictory to go…..
  • Important for boys to use this holiday period as a break from the rigours of studying before returning for one final stint.
• Boys enjoyed Recreation activities:
  • Kings Park Pokemon Drive on Friday 25^th August
  • The Meg @ Event Cinemas on Sunday 28^th August
  • Driving Range @ Wembley Golf Complex on Saturday 2^nd September, Friday 8^th September
  • Gym Floor for Games on Friday 15^th September
• I’d like to extend my thanks to Jensen Westerman and Kaymus Brierly for their leadership and organisation of Boarding Events, and to Lewis Parsons, Harry Hammond & Myles Ross who helped with Boarder’s Council activities and events.

Co-Curricular

PSA Sport

Congratulations to:

• Willem Buckley who was awarded Colours for Soccer as a member of the 1^st XI Soccer team.
• Oscar Male who was awarded Colours for Hockey as a member of the 1^st XI Hockey team.
• Jayden Clarke, Toby Jones & Jaezari Wynne who were awarded Colours for Football as members of the 1^stXVIII Football team.
• Donnacha Spencer who was awarded Colours for Rugby as a member of the 1^st XV Rugby team.

Congratulations to:

• Jayden Clarke, Hudson Hammond, Solomon Short, Ben Stack & Jensen Westerman who were all members of the Winning Alcock Shield Interschool Athletics team, the 6^th year in a row!

The Arts

Media

Thursday 7^th September was the annual Directors Cut Media Night. Clem Hardie is undertaking Film as a course as part of his IB pathway. Clem contributed several short films to the Directors Cut.

Art

Tuesday 5^th September saw the annual Senior School Art and Design Exhibition Opening Night, with a new location inside the Math’s & Commerce building, to display the 2023 exhibition, combining both traditional and innovative mediums and technology as it reflects our diverse range of students’ identities.

I particularly enjoyed seeing the excellent work from the Blair Clan boys, with Harry Russell, Noah McCreery and Kaymus Brierly all winning awards.:

Music

Solomon Short, as part of his Certificate III in Music performed with a band (created within his class with former boarder Dean Brown) at Scotch Rocks on Thursday 31^st August at the Rosemount Hotel. Solomon and his band put on a good show, the highlight being “Jump” by Van Halen.

Interhouse Sport

A glorious day met the boys for the athletics carnival on Friday 25^th August. St. Andrews house was successful with many of the Blair Clan boys involved across multiple disciplines.

Photos on vidigami are available here.

Clash of the Clans

Despite winning the final Clash of Clans (Gaelic Football) before the Mid-Term break, Stirling have claimed the Clash of Clans win for 2023, 12.5 points to 8.5 points. This means Stirling now leads overall 2-1.

Other News

Academic Assistance

A reminder, if you identify or believe your son may need specific academic assistance, please speak directly with Mr. Alex Wood (Assistant Head of Residence – Blair Clan) and CC me in. Alex oversees our academic tutors. While we do our best to monitor their academic achievements, sometimes boys will divulge information to you their parents, and as much as I preach strength in adversity, asking for help is a sign of strength, we know men in particular like to think they can solve their own problems themselves.

We have available Monday to Thursday up to four academic tutors as well as three boarding mentors to assist during Prep time.

Alex’s email is alex.wood@scotch.wa.edu.au

I hope you are able to spend some quality time with your sons this holiday period.

Thanks

Andy

I hope you have had an enjoyable fortnight, this term seems to be racing along. It seems only yesterday I was talking about mid-term break, and now we are looking at only a fortnight left of school! There has been a lot happening across all the year groups at school, in boarding and also on the athletics track!

Today is the inter-school athletics carnival and we are pleased to see many of our boarders having trained over the last little while and make the team, with approximately 20 boarders making the team. Hopefully Scotch can continue its strong showing in the PSA athletics and successfully defend the Alcock Shield.

As well as training for athletics, many of our boys have been involved in various special dinners over the last week.  Many of the winter sports had their end of season ceremonies and the Pipe Band also had their special annual dinner. Many of our boys were involved, and the boys who weren’t directly involved still had to share the dining hall, or have the occasional dinner in the boarding house to accommodate these groups, so it was very much appreciated that our boarders were able to be flexible over the last week with their dinner arrangements.

I am very pleased to announce that we have finalised our leadership process over the past week. The Year 11 boys undertake a leadership course throughout Year 11 and it culminates in nominating for leadership positions for the new academic year. We have a very strong group of leaders in this year group and I am thrilled that many of them have been awarded positions throughout the school next year. I am particularly excited to announce our new boarding leaders, starting next term.

Boarding Leadership 2023/24

I would also like to commend the following boys for achieving leadership positions within their Houses in the Day School.

Rohan Bignell – House Captain of Brisbane

Rory Purser – Vice Captain of Brisbane House

Hudson Hammond – Vice Captain of Keys House

Clement Hardie – Vice Captain of Stuart House

We had a very strong field of candidates this year and I am excited about the impact that these boys and their cohort can achieve over the next twelve months. I would also like to take this time to thank our current Year 12 cohort, some of whom have their final official day of school today, for their leadership over the past twelve months. Lochie, Jett, Jensen, Kaymus and the rest of the cohort did a great job this year and pass over the baton to our new crop of leaders with boarding in a great state.

This week I had the absolute pleasure of walking the Bibbulmun Track with the Year 7 group. I took half the boys on the track and Mr Mecham took the other half. It was an incredibly joyful and rewarding experience and I loved getting to know the boys in a different setting. They worked very well as a team and our themes for this walk were the themes of “Connection” and “Gratitude”. After a hard days’ walk, the boys would prepare a meal to share and we would reflect on the day and then on some of the deeper themes. The boys spoke of their parents often and how much love, respect, and gratitude they have for their parents and for their friends. It was really special and I hope they have relayed that home with their phone calls. The previous week, our Year 8s walked the track with Mrs Wilhelm and Gyles Davies. Both staff members thoroughly enjoyed walking the track with the boys. The “camp fire chat” themes for Year 8 was the theme of role models and what qualities make them special. I am sure that many parents would have been discussed in those chats too!

The year 9 boys have also spent time outdoors recently, with the Year 9 camp in Moray in full swing. The Year 10s, 11s and 12s have been preparing for and undertaking examinations, which started for Year 10s this week and get underway for Year 11s and 12s over the next two weeks. I wish all boys well with their preparation and their performance. Just like the athletics carnival, all we ask for is to plan well, give it your best shot and aim for a PB! Next week some of our Year 10s get the chance to undertake our Try-a-Trade programme, which is a three day programme off campus. I hope our boys take up those opportunities to explore possible career options.

Last week we had the pleasure of giving out awards for our world-famous boarding photo competition. The pictures are worth a thousand words, so all I will say is that I hope you enjoy the display of creative talent we have in our community. It’s a very special competition and thank you to Mr Mecham and Mrs Usher for all the work they do in this regard.

I have been travelling a lot recently, having visited Karratha, Mingenew, Geraldton, Dowerin, and Mr Mellor and Mrs Nixon visiting Newdegate this week. Next week I visit Esperance. I love getting to regional communities to visit families and I thank all those who have made the time to see us whilst we are out there. I am looking forward to Esperance soon.

I wish all families all the very best over the next two weeks. Please make sure your son’s Holiday Leave is in REACH so we can best arrange help with transport and other logistics.

Many thanks

Jordan

2023 Photographic Competition Winners announced by Sean Mecham

Hold the press….. like any highly competitive competition, there is always a bit of controversy, but all sorted now….

So, Nick Scotney’s photo of the “Sheep coming home” was in fact, Tom Dennis’ photo (it was unnamed, and he did Airdrop it to me, ages ago). So this is the new and updated results: Tom Dennis will get equal 1^st Place with Will Fox in the Junior Division and all other places remain the same in that Division.

In the Families Division, Nick Scotney is eliminated …. His beautiful wife, Nyree Taylor takes 1^st Place, Shay Creagh moves up to 2^nd and Kate Stoney moves up to 3^rd Place.

Family Category:

1^st Nyree Taylor

2^nd Shay Creagh

3^rd Kate Stoney

Staff Category:

1^st Michael Ninkov

2^nd Kerry Wilhelm

3^rd Alec O’Connell

HC Jordan Owenell

Junior Category:

Equal 1^st: Will Fox & Tom Dennis

2^nd Archie Macnamara

3^rd Wesley Cooper

HC: Sim Stoney

Senior Category:

1^st Noah McCreery

2^nd Ivan Berdychevskyi

3^rd Henry Dyke

HC Myles Ross

Middle School Residence

Year 7 Bibbulmun Track walk

The Year 7 boarders have just returned from their walk up Mount Dale.  The boys walked in two groups, one with Mr Mecham and the other with Mr Owenell.  Looks like they all had a great time in the wilderness.

Year 8 Bibbulmun Track walk

Reflection by Kerry Wilhelm

Boys in great spirits, all food, cooking utensils & gear was distributed out to all boys and staff Callum Rigby and Kerry Wilhelm.

Bus to the start was loud with songs and singing. Clearly the boys were excited.

Ms Katie Guy was our back up, driver & met us on the last day for BBQ breaky/lunch.

Day #1 – Sunny and quite warm which added to the exhaustion we all felt by the time we reached base 1. With3/4 hills on first day and our packs at the heaviest, was challenging to say the least.

Dinner 1 -Shepherd’s Pie 7 bed by 7:30pm. Little rain during the evening but nothing to make us uncomfortable.

Day#2 Bellies full of porridge. Off we set out on our 16+km trek.

There was much talking , games, questions, a lot of eye spy & loads of bartering with snacks.

Was fantastic to see the group show leadership, resilience, team work & compassion to those struggling.

Blisters, Lethargy, Frustration and Emotions were all part of the day. Boys did incredibly well. Some speedy, some steady & some slow. Boys played camouflage after setting up tents, which was fun to watch.

Dinner 2 – Salami Pasta , boys were excited for this, not so much when the veggies were added. Bellies full. We had a circle chat with the talking stick. Base 2 was on a hill. Full moon and chilly.

Day#3 We all could see our breath on waking up! Boys getting good at pack up & fire lighting for porridge. Not many grumbles when items were distributed to packs…

An amazing view on first pack break, was nice to see the boys really appreciate it. Wind was up & still chilly, again we set off over rocks, gravel, sand, through bush trails & up hills. Base 3 was nice and in a low-lying valley. Clear night, more talking stick convo’s around the fire & a quiet last night. Boys were Very excited for BBQ meat and the news of 8km to the BBQ in the morning not 3km … was taken well. Slight mis calculation from Callum!!

Day #4

ALL boys had great attitudes on this last day. Covered in dirt, hungry & tired, all showed strength.

Leaders were instructed to shout their chosen calling “CHEESY” when they got too far ahead, if the back people didn’t reply with ” DIBBLE”, the speedy walkers were to stop and wait. BBQ was a hit, boys ate sausages, burgers and lots of bread! For me MY highlight was the coffee not the bbq. Ms Guy is an absolute legend. Snack’s were in high demand, still lots of bartering going on, which was very entertaining for me. A relatively flat walk on this last day with 26km to walk. But not easy by any means. The last 5 km was a day pack only between two people, with more snacks given at this Dwellingup stop and swap. We pretty much walked to the finish which was Moray camp, as one big family, really lovely feeling to be part of this journey. Fabulous year group, that was enjoyed by the majority.  I have seen strong leaders, contributors, care givers and entertainers in this year group. Cant wait to walk again with them in year 9.

Senior School Residence

Jake Ednie-Brown

There were four teams, being two very professional Malaysian sides on their own horses, and two comprised of boys who had flown in from all over the world, who jumped on four strange foreign horses each.  (As in, 16 ponies per polo team!)

Jake’s “International All Stars” side were runners up in what was a very close, and fast contest between the international representatives.

Their team was coached by Pakistan’s National Coach Agah Khan.

…..And Jake was awarded Most Valuable Player of the tournament.  Congratulations Jake!!

End of Winter Term – Reach entries and Transport

The last day of Winter Term is Friday 22 September and Middle and Senior School finish at 12:55pm.

If you have flights, bus or train tickets booked, would you please add these to Reach or email to Boarding.Admin@scotch.wa.edu.au

Reach – Holiday Travel Arrangements Creating a Leave Request

Information for Year 10s

If your son has either already completed his year 10 Expedition (in Week 3 of the July School Holidays) or will be undertaking one in Week 9 of this term, there are no classes for year 10 students in Week 9.

If your son has already completed his expedition (Sea Kayaking, Dive Expedition), his last day of term is Friday 15^th September (end of Week 8).

If your son is attending the New Zealand expedition, it is important to note that the return date for this expedition is Saturday 30^th September, at which point the boarding house will be closed for the October School holidays, so we would advise collecting any items from boarding that your son may need before your son departs on his expedition.

If your son is attending an expedition in Week 9 (Mountain Biking, Caving, Horse Riding, Karijini, Surfing or Margaret River Experience) then your son will return to boarding around lunchtime on Friday 22^nd September. The boarding house will close for the end of Winter Term at 6pm.

We will use time in the evenings of Wednesday 14^th & Thursday 15^th September to allow boys to do an end of term pack up.

The boarding house will reopen for students to return for Spring Term at 1pm on Tuesday 10^th October, with school resuming Wednesday 11^th October.

Could you please make your “Holiday Travel Arrangements” in REACH by 8^th September, any questions please don’t hesitate to contact either Andy or Steven.

I hope you all enjoyed the recent mid-term break. It seems crazy that we are halfway through this term already!  

As the winter sport season has concluded, we have now begun the athletics season and it has been pleasing to have boarders participating in training. Please encourage your boys to go down to training and maintain an exercise schedule, even without PSA sport as it helps them get that initial pent-up energy out of their systems after having been in the classroom all day, it gets them playing outdoors and helps a huge amount with their general wellbeing, particularly helping them to get a good night’s sleep. 

Our Middle School boys are about to embark on outdoor adventure of another kind, with the Year 8s out on Bib track next week and the Year 7s out the week after. I am really looking forward to getting out on track with the Year 7s and enjoying some time together out in the bush and working with them on our Rites of Passage Programme. A lot of work is going into developing our Bib Track programme and I have been working closely with our Director of Pastoral Care, Mr Hindle and our new Head of Outdoor Learning and Adventure, Dr Picknoll, to further refine our planning. As the boys go out on the track, our Outdoor Ed and Boarding Staff lead them through conversations around the campfire that help them grow as individuals and as a group. In Year 7 the boys explore the themes of connection and gratitude. In Year 8 the boys explore the themes of leadership by looking into important role models in their own lives. I am sure that next week a lot of parents’ ears will be burning because the boys will be discussing them at night and how important their parents are in shaping the people we are and how our parents serve as an inspiration for us.  

Speaking of inspiration, we have also had a series of inspiring speeches recently, with our Year 11 group presenting to our boarders’ assembly and making their case for leadership roles next year. I was so proud of the way that the boys conducted themselves and all of the staff agree that this was a very strong group, who are clearly very passionate about boarding and creating strong relationships amongst the boys. It will be a pleasure to work alongside these boys as we start to shape what boarding will look like under their stewardship. One topic of conversation later in the week was a meeting I had with a number of Senior School students about a planned refurbishment of the Senior Boarding House, particularly our common room areas. This is a really exciting project and it was so good to get the boys’ input. We are taking our ideas to the architects and our facilities team, who are all very keen to get something happening soon. It is our plan that with a better kitchen/dining space downstairs we will be really well placed to host more functions with parents at the start and end of terms to build an even greater sense of community. 

Recently we held Naidoc week at the school and were able to celebrate our Indigenous students and Australia’s indigenous culture, heritage and connection. It not only builds our human relationships, but also our sense of place, which is extremely important in boarding. Furthermore, most of our Indigenous students at Scotch are boarders, so Naidoc week has a particular importance to us. Our students took leadership roles thoughout the week, going down to the junior school to chat to boys, participating in Naidoc assembly and running barbeques during lunchtime. There was also the famous staff vs students basketball game at lunchtime which was a joy to watch. 

Coming up, our Middle School boys are about to embark on some Yoga classes as part of our wellbeing programme, this will take place during half of prep, with the year 7s and Yr 8s rotating. It will be a four week block of lessons. We hope to give the boys some skills in mindfulness and helping them be in control of their bodies and being able to calm themselves down. Yoga is great for staying present in the moment, being very aware of our bodies and our minds and our breathing cycles, and also increasing flexibility and improving posture. If we ignite a passion for yoga in the boys when they are young, it is hoped that in more stressful times in life, such as when they are going through examination periods, they can take some concentrated time out to clear their mind and look after their bodies. There also a great sense of fun in learning new skills and I think that the boys will really enjoy their yoga classes.  

Our year 10-12 boys are all starting to ramp up their preparation for examinations coming up. Mr Ninkov recently took the boys though some study techniques and also the importance of planning and being organised. Please encourage your sons to utilise our tutors, who are there every evening to help the boys prepare for their exams. Tutors can work with individuals or lead a small group session. Boys are able to book times in with boarders in the afternoon so that they are prioritised during prep time. Boys and parents have also recently been sent information on career tasters that boys can sign up for. There are courses in the last week of term for boys doing the AAP programme, boys can do their construction white card, a carpentry and bricklaying try-a-trade course, a barista course, a responsible service of alcohol course and a first aid course. Many of these courses are aimed at making our boys highly employable in their time after school. There are also career tasters for our years 9s coming up, an Automotive career taster, a STEM workshop, a Construction career taster and an Animation and Game-Art career taster. These are all courses that happen at TAFE and need to be signed up for, so please check your emails and chat to your sons (see below). 

I wish all families a great week ahead and I hope that some of you are able to make it to the athletics carnivals on Thursday and Friday. 

All the best 

Jordan 

Middle School Residence Courtyard refurbishment

We’d like to share a few photos of the refurbishment of the Middle School Residence courtyard.

Surprise Barbie Dinner

Catering staff surprised the boys with a Barbie themed pink dinner.  The boys tucked into Pink burgers, pink gnocchi and pink icing on cupcakes.

Senior School Residence

Ms Theresa captured the Year 9 footy boys after their games looking pleased after a good season.

Jayden Clarke, Toby Jones & Jaezari Wynne who were all members of the Alcock Cup winning (outright) 1^st XVIII footy team when Scotch 8.18.66 def Aquinas 7.3.45, meaning that the team also went through the season undefeated, 12 wins from 12 games. Completing a historic four-peat (2020-23) in the process.

1st XV Rugby team

Donnacha  who was a member of the Brother Redmond Cup winning (outright) 1^st XV rugby team, when Scotch 51 defeated Aquinas 5. It meant the team finished the season undefeated with 11 wins and one draw record from 12 games.

Year 9 Career Taster program

The Year 9 Career Taster Program (CTP), which is run in conjunction with North and South Metro TAFE, aims to inspire secondary school students to become ‘career curious’ about further study opportunities and potential careers.

The program offers the following.

• Industry-led experiences and activities that will introduce them to new and different areas of work and career opportunities.
• Career development training that will assist them in making informed decisions on their subject selections and post-school options.

We are delighted to be able to offer a variety of Career Taster’s to your son. This is a pilot programme being run at Scotch College with the aim to make this available to every Year 9 student in the coming years.

The experiences that we have on offer are as follows:

Automotive Taster- 22 September @ Kwinana

Students will have a full day at South Metropolitan TAFE’s dedicated automotive campus in Kwinana where they will get to be in a real-life workshop.

They will be provided with a pair of safety glasses for the day and get to tour the workshop facilities. Students will get to hoist the vehicles up to where they will learn how to change tyres, check the pressure, and hoist them back down again. They will be shown a variety of engines and end the day by seeing how air bags are deployed with the inclusion of strapping watermelons on them to see how they burst!

Students must wear steel capped footwear, long trousers (no jeans) and t-shirt preferably long sleeve with no offensive print.

STEM workshop- 9 November @ Munster

STEM Workshop collaboration with Sci-Tech to discover all things STEM!

Students will be able to explore South Metro TAFE’s Munster Campus where they will have a quick morning welcome before taking part in 2 activities, one hosted by Sci-Tech, the other hosted by SMTAFE.

Sci-Tech will host a Bucket Tower Challenge where students will work together to find innovative solutions to a complex problem and South Metro TAFE will host hands on activity involving a robotic arm where students will try to program it to pick up certain items.

Construction Taster- 27 November @ Rockingham

Students will undertake hands-on experiences in the Construction Industry at South Metropolitan TAFE’s Rockingham campus.

This taster program will give students a great introduction into the building and construction industry. This taster will see students getting their hands dirty in 3 different trade industries across bricklaying, plastering/tiling and wall and ceiling.

Students must wear steel capped footwear, long trousers (no jeans) and t-shirt preferably long sleeve with no offensive print

Animation and Game Art- 5 December @ North Bridge

Build your own robot!

Students will have a chance to learn all about robotics in this taster experience. Students will have the opportunity to model and texture a robot using real industry software.

To gauge interest and assign your son to a taster programme, we ask that you please complete the form below by Friday 1 September. Transport will be provided to all the Career Taster programmes and there is no cost involved.

Career Taster Expression of Interest Form

Middle School Athletics Carnival

A great day for the MS Athletics carnival on Thursday this week, with glorious weather.

The results will be announced on Monday 4th September.

End of Winter Term – Reach entries and Transport

The last day of Winter Term is Friday 22 September and Middle and Senior School finish at 12:55pm.

If you have flights, bus or train tickets booked, would you please add these to Reach or email to Boarding.Admin@scotch.wa.edu.au

Reach – Holiday Travel Arrangements Creating a Leave Request

It will be a busy end to Winter Term, with two moray camps still to come for year 9’s, year 10 exams, year 10 expeditions, year 11 WACE & IB examinations, & Year 12 WACE & IB Mock Examinations.

 Here’s what your sons have been up to in boarding:

Year 9

• Boys enjoyed Recreation activities:
  • Driving Range @ Wembley Golf Course Friday 28^th July & 11^th August
  • Firepit with PLC on Saturday 29^th July
  • Barbie Movie with All Schools @ Innaloo Cinema Friday 4^th August
  • Fremantle v Brisbane @ Perth Stadium on Sunday 6^th August
  • Ikea Trip with Theresa on Friday 11^th August
  • Beach Run at Cottesloe Beach on Sunday 13^th August
  • Fremantle Markets on Sunday 13^th August
• “Circle Convos” with Rev Gary van Heerden have been put on hold for now.
• I was fortunate enough to spend the last week of the July Holidays on one part of the Year 9 Scotch/PLC Melbourne Tour with Cooper, Hugh & Tom. We had a great time with Theatre, MCG Tour, Rope Courses, Phillip Island, Movie Night, Skiing/Snowboarding and of course a trip to Melbourne is not complete without a game of Aussie Rules!

• Declan and Harry have had the experience of their Year 9 Moray Camp, while the weather was not great, that didn’t stop them from having some fun, there are two more camps to come in Week 6 & 7!

Year 10

• Boys enjoyed the following Recreation activities:
  • Driving Range @ Wembley Golf Course Friday 28^th July & 11^th August
  • Golf @ Cottesloe Golf Course Saturday 29^th July & 5^th August
  • Outdoor Social with All Schools @ St. Mary’s on Saturday 29^th July
  • Barbie Movie with All Schools @ Innaloo Cinema Friday 4^th August
  • Surfing Lessons with Go Surf on Sunday 30^th July & 6^th August
  • Fremantle v Brisbane @ Perth Stadium on Sunday 6^th August
  • Gym Games in the Scotch Gym on Friday 11^th August
  • Beach Run at Cottesloe Beach on Sunday 13^th August
  • Fremantle Markets on Sunday 13^th August

• Meg Baker (VET Coordinator) has been in during some Prep sessions the last few weeks to discuss alternative options for boys looking at the Alternative Academic Pathway. This includes Vocational (Certificate) Courses, Work Placements, Instep and TAFE).
• Jayden Clarke spent the week of 22^nd to 29^th July representing Western Australia at the School Sport Australia Boys and Girls 15 Years & Under Australian Football Championships. WA finished as runners-up, going down to Victoria Navy by 5pts in the final. Jayden came home with a silver medal, was runner-up in WA’s best & fairest and was selected as an All-Australian. Well done Jayden we are all proud of your efforts!

• Year 10 Boys as part of their curriculum at Scotch elect to attend a one week camp, either in the third week of July holidays, or the last week of Winter Term, this year sees the return of the New Zealand Ski Trip for the first time since COVID-19. The following boys enjoyed their July Year 10 Expeditions to Ningaloo:
  • Sea Kayaking
    • Mike Liu
    • Oscar Male
  • Diving
    • John McGinniss
    • Sonny Saunders

Year 11

• Boys enjoyed Recreation activities:
  • Driving Range @ Wembley Golf Course Friday 28^th July & 11^th August
  • Golf @ Cottesloe Golf Course Saturday 29^th July & 5^th August
  • Outdoor Social with All Schools @ St. Mary’s on Saturday 29^th July
  • Surfing Lessons with Go Surf on Sunday 30^th July & 6^th August
  • Fremantle v Brisbane @ Perth Stadium on Sunday 6^th August
  • Gym Games in the Scotch Gym on Friday 11^th August
  • Beach Run at Cottesloe Beach on Sunday 13^th August
• Wednesday 16^th August saw some of our aspiring Year 11 Leaders speak to the Boarding Community at the Dining Hall as part of the 2024 leadership process. Well done guys, your speeches were excellent and well thought out!

Year 12

• Not long to go, many assessments being finalised for WACE & IB boys, with AAP boys working hard to get the bookwork completed for their Certificate courses and final assessments done for General courses.
• Boys enjoyed Recreation activities:
  • Driving Range @ Wembley Golf Course Friday 28^th July & 11^th August
  • Gym Games in the Scotch Gym on Friday 11^th August
  • Fremantle v Brisbane @ Perth Stadium on Sunday 6^th August
  • Beach Run at Cottesloe Beach on Sunday 13^th August

• Congratulations to Ben Brierley who was a member of the Scotch Surfing team that competed at the Surfing WA Metro Titles on Wednesday 16^th August. Ben and his partner made it to the final of the Senior Surfing where they were unfortunately beaten and had to settle for second place. Overall Scotch won the 3^rd day of the metropolitan compettion. A tremendous effort, well done Ben. Surfing Western Australia have a short video on their Facebook page, click here.

NAIDOC Week

Scotch celebrated NAIDOC week from Monday 31^st July to Friday 4^th August. As part of the celebrations led by Indigenous Programme Coordinator, Mr. Micheal Spratt, Indigenous Students’ Mentor, Mr. CJ Jackson, and the Indigenous students.

Our amazing Indigenous students shared their culture, proudly to both Junior, Middle and Senior school staff and students, educating others through “For Our Elders”!

• Indigenous Students v Staff Basketball Match on Monday
• Sausage Sizzle of Yongka (Kangaroo) for Middle School on Wednesday
• Dance Performance for Junior School on Wednesday
• Sausage Sizzle of Yongka (Kangaroo) for Senior School on Thursday
• Flag Raising, Smoking Ceremony, Senior School Marching and NAIDOC Assembly & Morning Tea on Friday

Congratulations to Mr. Spratt & Mr. Jackson and well done to all the Indigenous students.

Madalah Ball

On Saturday 5^th August, the Crown Ballroom played host to the Madalah 2023 Ball. Madalah is a scholarship provider that Scotch College partners with to provide opportunities for young Indigenous people to attend school and university.

I was lucky enough to attend, where Scotch College OSC (2015) and Young Australian of the Year (2020) Yarlalu Thomas was a special guest. But the highlight of the night for me was the performance of our own Ben Stack on guitar, with fellow Scotch students Dallmyn Kelly and Nick Chi. These proud young Indigenous men showed poise, composure and performed to a standing ovation. Well done gents!

SPIRIT Award

Sparkle – Sparkle is about connection. Sparkle is what you exude, your special essence. The glint in your eye.

Passion – Passion is what fuels you, what lights your fire. It helps build your identity and motivates you to succeed.

Imagination – Imagination is the ability to visualise your goals and to be creative in how you express yourself.

Resilience – Resilience is the ability to bounce forward. Learn from the things that you find challenging.

Integrity – Integrity is the ability to live your values through your actions. To be true to yourself, be honest and reliable.

Tenacity – Stick at it! Ride the bumps and persevere. Self-discipline is a fundamental determinate of success in life.

We were blessed to have Chris Higham with us. The overall winner was Lochie Elliott (Year 12, Stirling). Congratulations to those Blair Clan boys who were recognised with a certificate of nomination for the Award:

PSA Sport

• Congratulations to:
  • Donnacha Spencer who was a member of the Brother Redmond Cup winning (outright) 1^st XV rugby team, when Scotch 51 defeated Aquinas 5. It meant the team finished the season undefeated with 11 wins and one draw record from 12 games.

• • Jayden Clarke, Toby Jones & Jaezari Wynne who were all members of the Alcock Cup winning (outright) 1^st XVIII footy team when Scotch 8.18.66 def Aquinas 7.3.45, meaning that the team also went through the season undefeated, 12 wins from 12 games. Completing a historic four-peat (2020-23) in the process.

Clash of the Clans

In the final Clash of Clans for 2023, we were victorious Gaelic football. Some inspired performances from our year Jaezari, Tom Councillor-Dann, Hudson, Oli Wandel, TJ, Xavier, and Lynton saw us claim a 2-0 victory.

Other News

Blair Clan Teams Meeting

I hosted a Teams meeting for parents of Year 11 boys 7.15pm on Thurday the 10^{th of} August. There is a whole clan parent catch up scheduled for Wednesday 30^th August at 7.15pm. If you need me to resend the invitation, please let me know.

My thoughts are with those of you who did not have the opportunity to spend time with your sons over this boarder’s long weekend. Stay safe!

Thanks

Andy