The Year 12’s have led the clan well over the last year, especially with the inter clan activities. I would particularly like to thank Kalib Dempster-Park, and Tom Sounness.

Kalib has been the front of boarding this year, particularly at assemblies. A few weeks ago he spoke at assembly, talking about his experience of boarding. It was an excellent speech because he came across as being genuine and unpretentious.

Tom, meanwhile, has led Stirling with maturity and humility and I thank him for his efforts.

Next year Jett Sibosado takes over as Captain of Stirling Clan, while Lochie Elliot has been announced as Captain of Boarding for 2023.

While we say goodbye to our Year 12s, I’d also like to extend a big welcome to Stirling Clan to the new boys and their families next term. In Year 10 (new academic year) we have Keats Sullivan from Broome and Toby Smith from Esperance. In the new Year 11 we have Rama Evans from Geraldton who is Rangga’s brother. In the new Year 12 we have Jack Campbell who is also from Geraldton.

Here we are at the end of another busy term. Covid seems to have settled, but we seem to have had a fair degree of flu and other illnesses lingering. Next term we are doing away with the quarantine area which will allow most Year 11s to have their own room. I will miss the quarantine area because it’s located outside my flat, and the first eight months of the year have been very quiet.

These last few weeks of this term have been very focused on exams, with the year 10s sitting their exams in week 7, and the Year 11s and 12’s over the last two weeks. Some boys have made good use of the tutors that are available during prep time, and some have not. I urge all boys to take advantage of this opportunity.

Tomorrow man is an organisation that provides workshops for boys and young men. They have been working with our year 10s and 11s again this year with the aim of developing skills to deal with life’s ups and downs. They challenge old school male stereotypes, build emotional resilience, and offer a healthier version of masculinity to live by. Meanwhile the year 9’s have been exposed to circle conversations with the school chaplain Reverend Gary van Heerden. This has been a good way for the Stirling Year 9s to bond as a group, as it enables them to learn about their peers and be respectful of their differences.

On the Friday of week 7 Stirling Clan were well represented at the Athletics Inters which Scotch won.  Here are the Clan’s results on the day

This term we have had several events. In August we had the Boarders Ball hosted by PLC which went well and thanks to Mrs Hannington, there are some photos on Vidigami. Boarders Ball

Recently the Year 11’s went to breakfast with Mrs Gareffa and myself. We went to the John Street Cafe in Cottesloe and enjoyed a cooked breakfast.

The big event though was the reformed Ag Day where all boarding parents swung into action and produced a very generous and impressive farmers market. I’d like to take this opportunity to thank all the parents involved in a very successful event, that showed Boarding, to be a very vibrant part of the Scotch community.

Some Shoutouts:

• George Yuan Silver Duke of Edinburgh
• Lachie Gooding umpired his first Football Grand final which is a significant achievement in his in his first season of Football umpiring. Apparently, he copped some flak but stood his ground.
• Ed Graham 1^st XVIII Football Best and Fairest
• Rohan Bignell Year 10 A’s football Coaches Award
• Tom Sounness 1^st XI Hockey Coaches Award

• Cullen Falconer family Sid, his brother Angus and his Mum all made the podium in the annual Boarder’s photographic competition

• Lachie Willmott won the Central Wheatbelt Cross Country event held at Meckering

• Tim Hardcastle has been offered early entry to study engineering at UWA next year.
• Lachie Elliot completed a weeklong youth development course on the Leeuwin sailing ship
• Brodie Haywood produced a pyrographic wood cutting for his major art piece.

Colours      – Badminton: Cam Bourne

– Community service: Tim Hardcastle, Michael Gao, George Yuan

– Drama: Lochie Elliott

– Football: Jett Sibosado, Ed Graham, Kalib Dempster Park (and won the Alcock shield)

– Hockey: Tom Sounness

Finally, I’d like to thank all the parents and boys for their kind words in response to my announcement that I would be finishing up at Scotch at the end of the Year. I intend to give my whole to boarding right up until the end of the year.

RJAH

]]> https://home.scotch.wa.edu.au/scotch-boarding/2022/06/30/stirling-clan-end-of-autumn-term-update-2022/ Thu, 30 Jun 2022 05:18:53 +0000 https://home.scotch.wa.edu.au/scotch-boarding/?p=4934 Dear Stirling Clan Parents and Guardians

Firstly, I would like to welcome our new House Mum Wendy Gareffa to the clan. The Gareffa family is synonymous with meat processing in Perth. Wendy is the mother of three teenage daughters and had already met several of the boys as she also has the role of taking Boarders to appointments during school hours. In the short time she has been with us she has gotten to know the boys and has shown herself to have a caring and unflappable personality.

Also, a big welcome to Stirling Clan to the new boys and their families. In Year 9 we have Lawson Froenholt from Singapore. In Year 10 we have Kai Fujii from Japan, and Ben Kay from Denmark (the town).

Here we are at the end of another busy term. I remember one night on duty in about week three when they were 23 boys in the house out of about 84 students. The Covid wave was washing through the house. Blair House mum Pam Seaby and I are probably the only two staff who have not at this stage had Covid (touch wood). Having created an isolation wing in ground floor north has enabled us to manage the situation, but I’m genuinely grateful to parents and guardians who have managed to find temporary accommodation at short notice around Perth whilst their sons have recovered. I have observed though, in the last week or so, that several of our students seem to be getting other illnesses whose symptoms are often more severe than Covid. I’m not a doctor but I think this may be due to a lower immunity or tolerance caused by Covid. Consequently, it has been decided to maintain the quarantine area for another term.

This term started with the year 11 and 12 sitting their midyear exams. While for some this has been a wakeup call, for most the results are a confirmation that the train is on the tracks. That said I do urge the boys to take advantage of the academic tutors available to them in prep from Mondays through to Thursdays. Also, during this term, the Year 9s had a chance to experience exams, and what was certainly noticeable was the increase in focus during prep time in the lead up to these exams. The year 10s will have their exams during week seven of next term whilst the 11s and 12s have their end of academic year exams in weeks eight and nine.

During Week 3 the day school arranged to hold parent interviews on the Wednesday for Years 9 and 10. This meant that we need to have a plan B for the Boarders, whilst at the same time conduct parent teacher interviews. Plan B was Team building day. The morning started with an inter clan game of Gaelic football, and then the boys experienced a relaxation session, speechmaking, team bonding using Duplo, and how high a team could get a piece of tape could go up a football post. In the afternoon the Outdoor Ed department ran games in both the gym and the chapel lawn and held relay races in the pool using a surfboard. All in all, an exhausting day, which the Year 9s and 10s threw themselves into.

In Week 8, House Captain Tom Sounness, along with Brodie Haywood and Sid Cullen Falconer finally completed the last leg of the 1003km Bibbulmun track after it was delayed from the previous term. No doubt the weather was more challenging which only added to the amount of resilience required. I talked to the clan last week about handling stress and made the point that people who have come through tough times can draw on that experience when you face the next tough time. The ability to say to yourself, “I have survived tough times in the past, I can survive this” is invaluable.

On Friday of week 8 we had the Cross Country. This event tells me a lot about a young man. Obviously, you’d expect good runners to do well. Even still to finish in the top 20 or so requires a degree of mental toughness. However, boys who may not be great runners, you’d expect to finish at the tail, when they achieve a halfway place, I take notice. These are the characteristics I admire and promote when I come to writing references. On the other hand, it was noticeable that due to the Bibbulmun track as well as injury, illness, and other reasons, about a quarter of the clan did not run the relatively short course of 3km. Below are some results for Stirling Clan.

This term we have had several expeditions. The Year 10’s went to breakfast with Mrs Gareffa and me. We went to the C Blu restaurant at the Ocean Beach Hotel in Cottesloe and enjoyed a cooked breakfast. Meanwhile the Year 11s had a day at Royal Perth Hospital on “the Party Program” that comes face to face with people who have survived traumatic accidents often because of drugs or alcohol. Given the age of the boys who are starting to get their driver’s licences, the timing of this is highly relevant. Lastly, we took all the Year 12s went on the Police led Northbridge at night tour. As the Year 12s begin to turn 18 and within five months they will have left school, the relevance of this tour was not lost on the boys.

Finally, as a head’s up the Boarders Ball Saturday 6^th August and Mr Owenell has said,

Scotch Boarding is happy to cover the cost of all attending and expect that this is a compulsory recreation activity, so families will only need to purchase tickets for boys’ partners. If boys are unable to attend, please let Mr Owenell know by next Monday 20th June otherwise a ticket will be purchased for you.

Some Shoutouts:

• Colours for Jett Sibosado for basketball, Finn Beard for Volleyball and Tim Hardcastle for Swimming and Volleyball
• Lachie Gooding who last holidays flew a Cesna airplane solo, taking off flying a circuit and then safely landing back on the ground.
• George Stoney has made the U15 State Football team that flys to New South Wales in the holidays to play against all states
• Ed Graham (South Fremantle) Kalib Dempster Park (Perth) and Jett Sibosado (Claremont) all are playing club Football at Colts level.
• Lachie Elliot had a major role in the recent senior school drama production of Charlie and the Chocolate factory. Also Kai Fujii has a role in PLC’s senior production.
• Loch Mactaggart is the Vice Captain of the 10A Football team which have lost only once this season. In the last game against Christchurch there were 10 boarders playing and collectively they kicked 16 of the 19 goals in a 123-9 victory.

RJAH

Hopefully all the families had a good long break over Christmas. Unfortunately, I had only one week in Tasmania before I had to return. I am aware that while it was generally a good harvest for many, the later prevalence of fires was scary.

The start of the year is always hectic, and this has been exacerbated by trying to handle the Covid protocols. For instance, reminding boys to only socialise outside or in large spaces such as common rooms rather than each other’s rooms have been a constant. We start back on Monday night with the boys having to wear masks around the House except in their rooms. The threat of the approaching Omicron Wave has caused some traditional events to be brought forward or postponed.

The Year 12s who were due to complete the last leg of the Bibbulmun track will have to W.A (like the state – wait awhile). They also had to adapt to their ball being held outside. My perception was that after the wind died down the outside venue worked well. I am grateful to all the Year 12s their partners and their parents who turned up for the Boarders Pre-Ball function. We understood they were itching to get to other Pre-Ball functions, but I was appreciative with the respect that was shown to boarding. It was also really pleasing to see Eli Blackburn give the Welcome to Country presentation at this prestigious event. As the eldest indigenous boy in our clan, Eli has certainly stepped up.

The swimming Inters were also brought forward. In a change from previous years the Boarding House were well represented. Alexander Wallace, Lochie Elliott, Rangga Evans, and Tim Hardcastle were Stirling Clan’s representatives, and I commend them on the teams 3^rd overall placing at the Inters.

The Head of the River was also brought forward, and Sam Doney and Nick Chadwick represented Stirling at the recent rowing regatta. While Scotch could not repeat the success of last year, it was pleasing to hear of the growth in the numbers of rowers and the overall improvement of crews throughout the season.

On the first weekend of the term there was a full House barbeque held up at school on the Chapel lawn. Whilst Stirling lost the game of backyard cricket 92 all out versus Blair 7/95, the Year 12s did an excellent job organising the barbeque. The next day the younger boys in the Big House made the trip to Adventure World which was a good way to start the year, especially to get any new students mixing in with the old hands.

I have been very pleased with the leadership shown by the Year 12s generally. At the regular clan meetings held every Sunday – Thursday evenings, Clan Captain Tom Sounness has got the other Year 12s well organised to take the roll and have input into the meetings. There is a good feeling at these meetings and the boys show genuine appreciation of each other’s achievements.

Over the holidays we heard that our House Mum, Marika Ball, had decided to return to university to do further study. Marika was the first House Mum of the Stirling clan. Many of the younger boys knew her well from her work in the Middle School Boarding House. Hardworking, and empathetic she had a good sense of fun. Marika is a big loss for us.

I am pleased to announce though, that Mrs Rebecca Melsom will start as the new House Mum for Stirling after the mid term break. Bec, as she likes to be called, is a mother of two whose son is currently in Year 10 at Scotch. As a Scotch Mum she comes to us with a good understanding of how the school operates and I wish her well.

At this stage I’d like to thank Pam Seaby who has held the fort for the first half of the term, when we were down to only one House Mum. I have been putting off the Year 9 Stirling breakfast until the new House Mum was appointed, but Covid willing we will endeavour to visit a restaurant for breakfast in the next couple of weeks.

In conclusion, as we head towards the start of the winter sports season it is apparent that many boys are taking preseason very seriously and are making good use of the gym, especially at the Revo Sports in Claremont. However, having had a son try to become a professional sportsman, I do urge caution about boys pushing too hard, and not stopping when their body is telling them to take it easy. By my calculation 1 player in 380 becomes an AFL player. A good school qualification may be a better long-term investment of time. I do not want to dissuade any young man from following their dream, but I do urge that a healthy balance is maintained.

RJAH

The last four weeks at Scotch have been hectic as the senior boys did their end of academic year exams, the Year 12s go through their rite of passage which is “March Out”, and the remaining year groups all move up a year. This means that all Year groups get to go to bed 15 minutes later. The Year 12s get a few more privileges, such as, with permission from their parents get to keep their phones, sleep in longer in the morning and get to use the Year 12 weights room.

The new Year 10s walked the next section of the Bibbulmun track last week, and Resident Master and Teacher Mr Tom Orford was very complimentary about his group’s expedition. A number of the boys I spoke to were on a bit of a natural high when they returned last Thursday, and as they are now getting physically stronger they are not finding it so challenging ………even enjoyable!

Several of the Year 11s in the clan have opted for a general educational pathway, and many had their first day of work experience last Wednesday. It was pleasing to hear from these boys how much they enjoyed their first day of work placement, and we seem to have a large number of mechanics coming through.

The new Year 12 Stirling leadership group includes Captain of Boarding Kalib Dempster Park, Vice-Captain of Boarding – leading Stirling clan – Tom Sounness, and House Captain of Keys Ed Graham. They are our representatives on the Boarder’s Council. The Boarder’s Council have made a good start, presenting at their first Boarders Assembly, which is held in the dining room every second Wednesday. They also organised the first inter Clan event of the new year last Sunday on the “sacred turf” (Rugby field).

The following is the match report.

Clan Soccer Sunday 24^th October.

This was the first clan event organised by the new Year 12 boarder’s council. Stirling started the game with 18 players whilst Blair had 14. The numerical advantage did not help Stirling on the scoreboard as they were down 1-0 by half time thanks to an excellent strike from Blair Captain Tyler Messina, that soared into the top corner of the goal.

Things were looking worse for Stirling after halftime as they had to even up the numbers, and Tyler Messina rocketed in his second from a low shot, past several Stirling defenders, and into the bottom corner of the goal. Blair was 2-0, and was winning the banter as well.

Things could have been worse had it not been for new Stirling Captain Tom Sounness chucking out a foot at the opportune moment to prevent a certain goal, and Brandon Wright who got his head on the ball in the box to blunt another Blair attack. Then Resident Mentor and Soccer aficionado, Anthony D’Ignazio, who was refereeing the game, awarded a penalty on the edge of the box to Stirling.  Jett Sibosado took the penalty and drilled the ball straight at Kye McCreery who was in goal for Blair. Kye looked to have it covered, but Kye bobbled the ball and it fell over the goal line. Although Stirling was down 2-1 they were at least back in the game.

Time was running out for Stirling though, but in the last minute of normal time, a hand ball in the box saw Stirling have another penalty shot. Jett Sibosado again stepped up and slotted the goal which made the game 2-2 at fulltime. Kalib Dempster Park representing Stirling and Tyler Messina representing Blair were given the option of a penalty shoot-out or a golden goal.

They opted for golden goal. Blair won the toss and got to kick off. The ball ended up down Stirling end but then the ball was hoofed down the Blair end. The kick seemed more in hope than any obvious tactical advantage, but somehow it deflected off Blair for a corner.

Jeremy Tremlett took the corner and his kick landed close to Blair’s near post, causing panic. There were several air shots and deflections from both sides, before Lachie Elliot bounced the ball off his body into the goal.

Stirling had won in the most unlikely circumstances, which proves you should never give up.

The game was well supported and played in an excellent spirit and it was a great start to the “clash of clans”.

So in conclusion, Stirling have made a good start to the new Academic Year.

RJAH

Two Saturdays ago, we hosted the Boarders Ball for the Year 11s and 12s from Scotch and PLC. It was a fun night, finishing with a stirring rendition of “Sweet Caroline”. We were grateful for the help of a group of Year 12 PLC boarders who came across on Saturday morning to decorate the Mackellar Hall while the boys were at sport.

The 1^st teams play their final rounds tomorrow and having not coached this season I have had time to get out and see most boys play sport for the school. (I apologise to the Hockey players who always play away).  Ed Graham and Jett Sibosado have been regulars for the successful 1^stXVIII Football team, with Kalib Dempster-Park pushing for a more permanent spot. The 1^st XVIII will either win the Alcock cup outright or share it, based on the final game against Hale. Charlie Yin has played in the 1^st Badminton team which will finish the season second.

Finn Beard

While it’s good to celebrate the 1^st teams, I also like to recognise teams and individuals who have performed well or improved. The 9A team is well represented by boys from Stirling Clan including Loch Mactaggart, Rory Purser, Rohan Bignell and George Stoney. I was critical of their performance against Trinity when they fell away in the second half. They responded to my criticism in the best possible way when a week later when they accounted for Aquinas for the first time. Last week Lachie Willmott stepped up to play 9A’s, which was a great reward for his consistent performances in the 9B’s.

Jeremy Tremlett and the 10 A Football team has had an undefeated season, but I have been particularly impressed with the improvement in the 10 Bs. After being well beaten twice before by Aquinas earlier in the season, they came within two goals of beating them in their penultimate game. The 10 B’s are coached by new resident mentor Mr Travis Roost, and Nick Howson, Azhar Sgro and Lochie Elliot have come a long way this season, with Lochie getting some time in the 10 A’s.

After half of the 3^rd vs 4th XVIII Football game last Friday, I want to commend Boarding Captain Brenton Macauley, who after he’d scored a few goals, then looked to set up his teammates so they could score. Muddy Sgro did the same when acting as the distributor for his teammates playing for the seconds the next day. Good team men. Both games were played in a festival like atmosphere as for most Year 12s it was there last time to represent Scotch.

Both Tom Anderson and Darcy O’Halloran kicked goals for the 2nds with Tom, an unlikely looking ruck man, winning two hit outs.

Other notable performances this week included Justin Sweet, playing for the Rugby 2^nd XV, who scored a try after an impressive 60-meter run, and George Yuan who kept a clean sheet in his role as the 3^rd XI Soccer team.

Regularly on a Tuesday evening at clan meetings I have a “shout out” to those who have performed well or have accomplished significant achievements, not just in sport.

For instance, I set “Mars Bar Challenges” to boys who want to target an improvement in an academic subject. For instance, Tim Hardcastle had done poorly in a Physics test. I negotiated with Tim what a realistic challenge was and we agreed on 60% in his next test. He got 67%, and one of the top marks in the class, and so I paid up at the Stirling Clan meeting where he was warmly applauded.

Also, this week Sean Bonney was acknowledged for performing his first “Welcome to Country” speech, while Lochie Elliot spoke about the upcoming Year 9 and 10 play “The Outsider” which also features Rohan Bignell and Lachie Gooding. The play is on in two weeks, and we have bought tickets for a group of Year 9s and 10s to attend on the Thursday night in Week 6. Where appropriate we are using the Clan meeting time as an opportunity for boys to develop confidence speaking in front of a group, and the boys have been very supportive of each other.

On the school front, this is a busy term as it is the end of the academic year. The Year 9s are currently going to Moray for their outdoor education camps, while the Year 10s have their exams in Week 7, and expeditions Week 9, if they haven’t already completed them. The Year 11s have their exams in Week 8 while the Year 12 mock exams start in Week 8. The Year 12 General boys will need to complete all their units and have their teachers sign them off before they can depart.

Finally, please enjoy the mid-term break.

Regards

Richard

PS I have included some key dates below.

Key dates

1. 1. Week 8/ 9 + first week of holidays 16 September (Thursday) -1^st October Year 12 WACE and IB Mock Examinations

    

   2. 24 September (Friday) Final day of Winter Term for Senior School

    

   3. 12 October (Tuesday) Incoming House and Boarding Student Leaders’ Planning Day

    

   – Boarders return

    

   4. 13 October (Wednesday) Commencement of Spring Term 9 weeks (no mid term break)
   5. Middle school start school a day earlier Tuesday 12^th October

    

   – Year 12 House Dinners

    

   5. 14 October (Thursday) Year 12 Boarders’ Farewell Dinner

    

   6. 15 October (Friday) March out

   Awards Assembly (Colours/Honours)/Leadership Handover

   Time: 8.30am – 10.30am in Dickinson Centre

   Following Assembly, parents to Gooch Pavilion for light refreshments

   Following Recess, boys to Memorial Ground (Year 12s in Winter uniform)

    

   7. IB Diploma Examinations 22 October (Friday) to 12 November (Friday)

    

   8. WACE Examinations 1 November (Monday) to 19 November (Friday)

    

   9. 27 November (Saturday) Valedictory Chapel and Dinner

   Chapel: Please be seated at 5.20pm for a 5.30pm start,

   Dinner: 6.00pm, Dickinson Centre Winter uniform and House tie

    

   10. 3^rd December (Friday) Senior School Presentation Afternoon 1.20pm for a 1.30pm start

    

   11. 8^th December (Wednesday) Last day of term

    

   12. 12^thFebruary (Saturday) 2022. Year 12 ball. There will be a Boarders pre ball function.

    

1. Thank you for getting your Holiday Leave into the Reach system.

2. Congratulations to Michael Gao in Year 11 who gave a presentation at the biweekly boarder’s assembly (Wednesday dinner) where he was representing the Chinese Community and explaining the Red Lantern festival. He did an excellent job especially when you consider English is his second language.

3. After the media focusing in on attitudes to women in parliament recently, I spoke to both the Stirling and Blair clans about the issue a week ago. It was relevant because Christian Porter was only 17 when the allegations aimed at him occurred. I think this may be a good opportunity for further discussion at home especially with a father or respected role model.

4. Marika Ball, the House Mum and I took the Stirling Year 9s out to breakfast last week and it is our intention to take all of the year groups out over the coming weeks.

5. Last Thursday evening, the dining hall was being used for the rowing dinner, and so we had a barbeque outside the main common room. The Year 12s did an excellent job cooking the barbeque and this was followed up by a large portion of the House upstairs in the big TV room watching Carlton play Richmond in the first game of the AFL season. We did go 7 minutes into prep, but the game was close. This will not be a regular event, but it was good for community spirit. The Year 12s have also organised a footy tipping competition, which has been well supported by the boys and the staff.

6. On Friday night we had our third “clash of clans” event. While Stirling went down to Blair at volleyball, I have been very pleased to see that these events are being organised and run by the Year 12s, and the younger boys are buying in.

7. During prep Monday-Thursday there are a large number of tutors available for the boys to use (at no extra cost). Mr Michael Ninkov, my deputy, has been channelling the boys to various tutors. However please can you encourage your son to be proactive in using this resource.

8. Just a heads up. Anzac Day is on the Monday of week 2 next term, and there is no school that day. There is sport on the Saturday before, and so it is not a long weekend. The boarding house will be open, and I think our Rec officer (Mr Chris Stretch) is arranging an activity. It would be possible for the boys to go on leave after they have had sport and then return on Monday by 5.30pm in time for dinner and evening prep.

9. Congratulations to George Purser who was part of the winning 1^st VIII rowing crew on Saturday. George rowed for the 3^rd VIII last year and has been rewarded for his resilience this year. (By my calculations this is only the second time in the last 30 years that Scotch has won the “Head of the River” – so it’s a big deal.)

10. A reminder of the Boarding Parents’ Sundowner on Wednesday, 31st March 2021
    at Scotch College Dining Room 6:00pm – 9:00pm. If you are in town this is a good chance to catch up with other boarding parents.

Finally, I wish you all a good holiday. Next term is a relatively long one of 11 weeks and is also the start of winter sport.

Regards

Richard

• I’d like to start by welcoming Ben Riggs and his family to the Clan. Ben is in Year 9 and from Esperance and started yesterday. I  am very pleased with the way the Year 9s have been looking after him and ensuring he finds his way around.
• The last couple of weeks have been busy for the Year 12s with the ball two weekends ago, and the final leg of the Bibbulmun Track walk last weekend. The school ball was spectacular and I have included a photo of the Year 12 Stirling boys at the boarding house pre-ball function. Last weekend two boys completed the 1003km Bibbulmun track after chipping away at this challenge since Year 7 (see photo). Congratulations to George Purser, Ben Nixon (now a dayboy) and Mr Hildebrandt who completed the event and Haig Mactaggart who went along to support his peers.
• The Year 9s have the next leg of the Bibbulmun track coming up on March 21^st and so I have attached the letter with the gear list in case it was lost. Boys new to Year 9 will be provided with some of the gear the boys received in earlier years. A special request from Mrs Grosse and Mrs Usher who work in the Scotch Boarding administration office, please can parents ensure that their medical forms are up to date.
• Last week the Year 9s went to Rottnest for their camp. This has been a regular camp for originally Year 8s and now Year 9s. This is an important time for boys in their new houses to bond together as a group. The reports I have had back from this camp have been very positive. Last night at our House meeting I asked George Stoney to speak to the rest of the clan about the camp and he did a good job, despite being put on the spot.
• It is my intention to give boys the opportunity to speak at House Meetings and develop their confidence speaking in front of about 40 other boys.
• After this week there are  4 more weeks of school. Usually during this time there will be at least one if not two assessments in most subjects. (Serious subjects like Geography have two assessments) Year 11s and 12s will have their mid-year exams in weeks 2+3 of next term and so I would imagine that revision should start in the last week of this term.
• The boys seem to be making better use of the tutors available to them Monday-Thursday during prep. Recently we have had a bit of a focus helping boys who have OLNA tests, whether it be for reading, writing or maths. The boys have responded positively to this challenge and we are committed to keeping on trying.
• Last night we had a fire alarm. This was not planned but it was important that we run a drill earlier in the year. The drill was done well with all boys gathering on the sacred turf (rugby field) with rolls taken and boys accounted for. Myself and two other resident mentors checked every room, common space, toilets etc to ensure all boys were out, and this was completed in very quick time as the room locks have been removed.
• Finally after the sports bye and the long weekend, we face Hale this weekend on the sport’s field.

Regards

Richard