Newsletter Term 1, Week 8 24 Mar 2022

Our Year 8 girls acted as Student Ambassadors and toured the families to show them our facilities, view classes and get a ‘feel’ for the culture of the School. I thought I would share with you my presentation to the parents before they toured:

"In 2024, Strathcona will celebrate its centenary. Two women decided to open a School nearly 100 years ago. These women believed that girls were entitled to as good an education as their brothers and so this Canterbury School started here in Scott Street. These women were of modest means and their vision was never for a grandiose overstated school, but rather, a ‘down to earth’ home away from home (the School was actually a Scott Street home) that delivers quality education. I believe this notion has remained part of the legacy which is remarked on by parents as a point of difference for us. Parents who are attracted to this School share our values. They want an excellent education for their daughters; they want their daughter; to have a strong character and good ethical framework, and they want them to grow in confidence so that they can go out as strong and courageous women to take their place in the wider world. As important for them is that their daughters are not entitled so they value the grounded quality of the School and its students and the School’s dedication to the holistic development of each of our girls.
Last weekend was the Head of Schoolgirls’ Rowing Regatta. It is a huge event and we had over 100 students who were rowing. We have a large number of past students who coach, and that role modelling and relationship building is really good for the girls. Our Rowing Coordinator loves rowing and the Strath community so much that he does it as a volunteer. I thought I would share this email with you which I received from a student from a nearby girls’ school as it speaks to the quality of our girls.
“I am a Year 10 rower and one of the girls in my crew had a bad asthma attack and then another had a panic attack and needed assistance. Two Strathcona students saw the situation and immediately and effectively helped us. One of the students thoughtfully threw a water bottle into the boat as the Ventolin was stuck in her throat and another pulled us into the landing. All your students always wish us good luck during the races and congratulate us even when we came last. Strath girls have such lovely hearts of gold. They are really lovely girls, and you should be proud”. 

And I am. We did very well at the Rowing in terms of making places, PBs and winning etc, but as I shared time with the parental community on the banks of the Barwon last weekend, it was clear to me that for them too, while winning was great and to be aimed for and celebrated, it is the strength of the community and the development of the girls and the quality of their relationships with others that is valued.

You will have seen our strong and consistent ATAR results. An analysis over the past ten years demonstrates that our results do not change very significantly. How do we achieve them? Well, we have students with a strong work ethic whose parents care deeply about education and the right of girls and women to achieve equally to their brothers. The quality of our teachers is second to none and their work ethic is quite remarkable. But I believe that one of the key reasons for students achieving their very best is the quality of the relationships they have with their teachers – especially as they mature and understand their learning more. The teachers love and care about their students and more importantly, I think, respect them. And vice versa. The students know how hard their teachers work and that they will go above and beyond to help each one of them. This was amplified and very visible to parents over these past years of lockdown when parents at first hand could observe what the Strath teachers were doing for their children.
This is a mid-sized school – it is not so small that we cannot resource people and activities generously – and it is not so big that girls get lost. As they go through the School, it is becoming evident that most teachers know most of the students. Students are genuinely valued and known, and the resourcing and the skills of the staff are such that we can and do provide a personalized approach to each student’s learning and care. You may have read recently of the mental health crisis of young people, particularly here in Melbourne post two years of lockdowns. We have a proactive Wellbeing Program, recently refreshed in the context of the times and recent research, and networks of care so that we can pick up if a student is not faring so well. This means that intervention and support can be provided in a timely fashion. I have always believed that for students to flourish and achieve to their best, whether it be in study, co-curricular or in developing friendships, they need to be cared for and understood. Learning and wellbeing go hand in hand as does the importance of the partnership of School and parents. I also believe that if girls are well supported, they will rise to challenge, and I think it is important to teach them to go into situations that take them out of their comfort zones. Yes, they could fail – but they need to learn that to reach higher levels of whatever the endeavour is, they need to push themselves to try and try again. We proactively encourage them to do this in their learning and in encouraging them to try out new things in the co-curricular sphere. They have learned much about adaptability and resourcefulness these last few years, we need to keep that momentum of development.
Why a Girls’ School?  I just read yesterday that take up in the UK of girls’ schools is increasing as a result of recent reporting outlining the extent to which girls in co-ed schools are subjected to sexist commentary and even sexual assault. Of course, some boys’ schools have gone co-ed. I wonder about the extent to which they remain predominantly boys’ schools with girls in them. In girls’ schools, we are dedicated and skilled in teaching and understanding girls and most importantly, they have time to grow up without having to deal with bias and sexism that they will encounter soon enough. In girls’ schools, they hold all leadership positions, and we have an intentional leadership development program, especially for girls and young women. Research shows they play more sport and the take up of higher-level Mathematics and the Sciences is stronger than it is for girls in co-ed schools. Certainly,it is very strong here as is the pursuit of the sciences and engineering, etc post-school. Australian research shows that girls in girls’ schools have more confidence than those in co-ed schools and are more likely to have a go at doing different things, take positive risks, and to speak up in class and ask questions. Also, I love the sisterhood that develops over time and takes them into their lives after School as they navigate university and the decades that follow.
I have worked in leading girls’ schools for most of my life and I think I deeply understand how they work and how girls develop. Before Strath, I was at Brisbane Girls Grammar School for many years where my two daughters went through. Now they are both independent, well-educated, well-travelled professional women for whom social justice is important. I am also President of Alliance of Girls’ Schools Australasia and currently, we are exploring the possibility of a merger with the National Coalition of Girls’ Schools North America (soon to be the International Coalition of Girls’ Schools) which is already merging with similar entities in the UK and Europe. There is much happening globally in the girls’ school’s world to elevate girls’ education in all parts of the world and it is a joy that we are working together sharing ideas, research, wisdom and experiences.
The two women who started Strathcona adopted the motto ‘Bravely, Faithfully and Happily’. That still speaks to how we approach educating girls. We design activities and an approach that assists them to be courageous in a low stake high support environment; we provide role models and intentionally teach and talk so that each girl develops a strong ethical framework, and we also shape our School so that they feel safe, are happy and have fun. We want them to be optimistic and we actively encourage them to reflect on things, respect others, solve their own problems, and to bounce back when life does not go to plan. That way we inspire and empower our young women to live courageous and purposeful lives so they can contribute to the world with wisdom, imagination, and integrity.

Thank you for coming – please enjoy our School."

Marise McConaghy, Principal

To cater for this diversity, and to acknowledge the rift in learning, a heavy emphasis has been placed on social and emotional learning as well as a broad theme of connection in all activities. Students partaking in Orientation day, were able to begin the process of meeting each other in Term 4 last year, undertaking several class activities, and familiarising themselves with the campus. Throughout Term 1, they have been immersed in connection! The Burn Bright leadership day engaged the year level in reflection, frivolity and icebreakers! House assemblies run by their Year 12 role models, and their Year 10 Buddy Program activities such as badge-making and an amazing race, have forged new inter-year level connections. Students have recently become excited to participate in their first House Sports Carnival. The girls have embraced opportunities to play weekly sport, join clubs like Kaleidoscope, and participate in lunchtime activities. The Year 8 Leaders have wanted to share in the idea of connection, fostering early friendships with the girls through organised dodgeball games. Staff have worked hard to provide space and time to vary assemblies for both year-level interactions through team challenges and reflections, and whole school, formal occasions that culminate in a sense of community.

From Day 1 this year, students have needed a heightened sense of adaptability, as the Day 1 program was significantly changed to account for student computer deliveries being delayed; another unfortunate outcome of supply chains interrupted by the pandemic. Year 7s have also had an unprecedented number of vaccinations this year! Receiving their HPV, and triple shot immunisations on top of their Covid vaccinations was probably not on their list of what to look forward to in their first year! Remarkably, as covid cases and close contacts started to occur, students gradually were introduced to the online teaching system at Strathcona, patiently troubleshooting the variety of challenges they might’ve had connecting or using technology from home. Although we seek to teach resilience and scaffold for learning in fostering relationships, surprisingly the covid context in which they’re placed presently has been our ‘invisible teacher’ – many students supporting each other while they’re away, problem-solving their own difficulties, catching friends up on work and finding ways to include them in group activities while they’re isolating.

Staff annually look to Year 7 Camp as a crux point for students to achieve a greater sense of social identity, develop friendships, grow in confidence, build community and challenge themselves to be courageous. Camps are all about having fun, being free and bonding over these shared experiences too. This year’s program although exceedingly different from our expectations, was able to achieve these outcomes despite the unique circumstances, with help from our ‘invisible teacher’. We plan for students to experience: a variety of activities that will challenge them, groups that will encourage them to develop social skills, and environments that will stimulate their senses. This year’s program offered these three elements, with the objective of enhancing courage and connection. Although we had students entering the program midway due to prior isolation, or departing early as close contacts, in the debrief that followed in Week 7, students shared their moments of courage and connection that stemmed from the unpredictable scenario during their camp week. Each student had witnessed their own perspective and journey through the week, be it at home or in a group where all friends had returned home. They were privy to their emotions and able to articulate their highlights, gratitude and moments in which they were courageous or proud. 

Transition for Year 7s is unchartered territory in many ways during this pandemic, however, we have seen that as we continue to help students make sense of their world, they are able to grow and learn, seek challenges, develop resilience, and create strong connections, through the experiences in which they have faced.

Click here to view a video of some highlights from their recent camp and activities.

Liesl Woods, Year 7 Coordinator

After an extended period of remote and hybrid learning, students may be struggling with the intensity of balancing the commitments of schoolwork with co-curricular activities, adjusting to the social codes of face-to-face vs online social interactions, or experiencing challenges around disrupted learning dispositions. 

The return to in-person learning during further unprecedented uncertainty continues to challenge students – particularly those in the pre-teen and teenage years – as they adjust to ‘normal’.

Amber Sowden, Dean of Students at Strathcona Girls Grammar says schools, parents and teachers need to be realistic about how emotionally, socially and academically match-fit young people are, following two years of lockdowns.

Below, The Educator speaks to Sowden about how schools can support their students as they re-adjust to a busy, full life.

TE: How can principals encourage students to widen their focus?

A: The nature of the pandemic and subsequent restrictions required students to hunker down, follow directives and rules, and live, through no fault of their own, a very insular life. This is the very antithesis of childhood and adolescence. Students need explicit and simple reminders to ‘look up and look out’ so that they can re-engage with their worlds again. For schools, finding the balance between the perceived losses and how they can be made up is imperative. Many students still have lingering feelings of loss that cause anxiety in various ways and prevent them from widening their focus. Some students are worried about the academic losses due to extended periods at home and many students are finding the social implications of being back at school challenging. The key for schools I think, is to realign student expectations, acknowledge their challenges but also consistently highlight and provide opportunity for future aspiration, both short and long term. This will help students to widen their focus and have hope. Hope is one of the most important and protective factors for mental health and wellbeing.

TE: What are some tell-tale signs that students are experiencing anxiety during uncertainty and can you share any practical strategies teachers can use to support them?

A: There are several key anxiety indicators, which are tell-tale signs that students may be experiencing distress during uncertainty. These indicators include withdrawing from family and friends, avoidance of school or social events, poor sleep, lack of motivation, catastrophising, or poor academic achievement. Teachers are likely to notice some of these things straight away. Often all a student needs is a chance to talk through their concerns and feel heard. Teachers can provide practical strategies, and reassurance, and encourage the student to speak with their family. Teachers can also re-adjust some work expectations or make a referral to pastoral support within the school as required.

TE: You say school wellbeing programs need to go back to basics. Why is this, and what would this look like in practical terms?

A: Already many students are finding the intensity of being back to ‘normal’ very tiring. School classes and co-curricular activities are basically back uninterrupted for the first time in two years and many students are finding this exhausting. Parents and teachers need to be realistic about how match fit our young people are following two years of lockdowns. Students across the board need help to intentionally manage their weekly commitments as they readjust to a busy and full life. By doing this, students can approach everything, including their reassimilation back into social groups, calmly at their own pace, which will result in more positive interactions. Students would also benefit enormously from spending a short amount of time each week discussing their week ahead with a teacher or parent. This gives students a chance to express any concerns or worries and strategise around them with the necessary support. Teachers are generally able to provide a good view of the week, or weeks ahead, for their classes, so if a student has looked at their schedule ahead of time, they can proactively flag any concerns with their teachers or pastoral support.

TE: Can you share some tips for teachers who want to help students move away from digital and back to more to face-to-face social interactions?

Strathcona Girls Grammar’s teaching and learning focus has been on setting the students up for success in the face-to-face classroom environment. Many classroom behaviours and learning dispositions have been interrupted due to so much time at home. Teachers should work on consolidating key learning structures that will help students gain confidence in the classroom once again. Out of necessity, the learning experience has been very prescriptive with a narrowed focus, so teachers should look to create opportunities for students to own their learning again. Teachers should also look to prioritise connection now that students are back at school. Strathcona’s Wellbeing program in Term 1 has been dedicated to activities that allow for students to work together on both structured and unstructured projects and activities to support social connection. Feedback from our Student Executive Team has informed much of our approach in this area, and this feedback highlighted the need for cross-age activities to really help bring the whole school community back together, not just year levels.

Amber Sowden, Dean of Students

Head of Schoolgirls

What can only be described as a history making weekend! There were so many highlights across the 3-day event, including many students making their HOSG debuts, Year 12s rowing their final races for Strathcona, our parent & supporter tent thriving with enthusiasm and some huge results for our crews on the water.

Results include:

• 6 C Finals, 6 B Finals and 12 A Finals
• Bronze medallists – Inter greens
• Silver medallists – Inter blues, senior purps, senior reds
• Gold medallists – Senior pinks, senior blues and senior blacks
  
  It was the first time in our history that we have won the Division 1 and Division 2 senior quads!
  Congratulations to our students, coaches and staff who put in a mountain of work in preparing for the event and across the entire weekend. Thank you to our Friends of Rowing volunteers for their assistance, coordination and overall support of our students and coaches.
   

GSV Swimming & Diving

Our Swimming team competed in the Division 2 GSV Championship Carnival on Tuesday and our Diving team competed in the Division 1 GSV Championship Carnival on Wednesday.
Both of our teams overcame team members being unavailable and showed true Strathcona character by stepping up, helping out and going above and beyond.
Our Swimming team finished in 3rd position overall in Division 2 (12th out of all GSV schools) and our Diving team finished in 8th position in Div 1 which meant 8th overall as well. Our swimming result is our highest place since 2015…fantastic achievements by both our swimming and diving teams.
Progressions through to Finals Evening are still to be confirmed, but it is likely that we will have a significant representation again in 2022.
Some initial results include:

• Junior Swimming Team – Division 2 – 5th
• Intermediate Swimming Team – Division 2 – 1st and overall – 2nd
• Senior Swimming Team – Division 2 – 4th
• Junior Diving Team – Division 1 – Equal 7th
• Intermediate Diving Team – Division 1 – 7th
• Senior Diving Team – Division 1 – 5th

Kayaking Schools Championships
We had large numbers of students participating in the Kayak Schools Championships at Lake Nagambie on Sunday. We finished as the second placed stand-alone school across the championships which is a huge result for us. Congratulations to all involved for your efforts on the water! 

Outstanding individual results include: 

U14 TK1

• Liya Luo - 1st 
• Abigail Adamson - 2nd 
• Emma Nettleton - 3rd 

U14 TK2

• Paige Gutheridge/Abigail Adamson - 2nd
• Elizabeth Lee/Ananya Rana Parmar - 3rd 

U16 TK2 

• Mia Horskins/Madi Martin - 1st 

U18 TK2 

• Madi Harvey

Items in the Career News include:

• Studying Design Courses at RMIT

• News from JMC Academy

o New Acting (Performance) Courses

o New Music Production Specialisation

• News from Monash University

o Monash Explorer

o Primary Teaching at Monash

• News from Victoria University

o New Bachelor of Data Science

o Free TAFE course Pathway into the Bachelor of Business

• Australian Apprenticeships and Traineeships Information Service

• Animals, Conservation, Wildlife & Zoology Degrees in Victoria in 2022

• Veterinary Science Degrees in 2022

• Snapshot of Flinders University in 2022

The Year 7 and 8’s also had a chance to share what ‘Lean In’ means to them and shared their words to create a display that represented their ideas of what it means to belong and connect to their peers here at Strathcona. The banner will be displayed at school and form a reminder throughout the year that we are all a part of a great community here at Strathcona, a place where students can belong, feel safe, have fun, ‘lean in’ and learn. Year 9, 10, 11 and 12 will have a chance to contribute to this in the coming weeks.

The House Captains were also working with the Year 7 and 8’s on Tuesday as a part of their project to strengthen the sense of belonging and connection in their house amongst the middle school. They ran fun games that encouraged teamwork, communication and problem-solving skills.

Congratulations must also go to all of the Year 12 Leaders who ran a well organised, thorough and engaging presentation at assembly on Tuesday. Each of the Year 12 Leaders from across the school including: Art, Drama, Music, Sport, STEM, Service, Faith, Information and Literature, International Students and Issues and Action spoke with such passion about their portfolios and shared what they have been working on this term and what to look forward to in the future. Well done everyone involved.

Megan Boyd, Head of Findlay House

As Week 8 has flown by, I have been reflecting on her words as I have watched our Tay Creggan students seize opportunities and navigate their way through the conclusion of Rowing, competing in Swimming and Diving carnivals, moving between school and isolation, all whilst undertaking numerous planned assessments. Undoubtedly, for some, there have been anxious feelings, but sitting with being overwhelmed and working your way through, is a skill we all need to learn. For Year 9s, this can often be the first year when a result is not as high as expected or hoped for, where study has missed the mark slightly or notes have not been as accurate as needed – but it is these experiences and having the opportunity to reflect and try again that is the real gain.

Year 9’s had our first Chapel Service on Wednesday with Rev Costello. She entertained us by reading her own Year 9 school reports (not dissimilar from my own “she should speak less in class”)  and spoke about the importance of taking care of our mind, our body and our spirit. It was a lovely opportunity to sit in peace and to think mindfully of caring for ourselves and others. One of our students, Sienna is also starting up the Mustard group at TC and had several people join in on the first session.  

In Tuesday’s Envision class, we enjoyed learning new Circus skills – juggling, using fire sticks and hula hoops and seeing if we could discover a few tricks. As we mature, we often forget what it is like to fail, certainly, I could not master the fires sticks! Learning the circus skills is another way of modelling the optimistic mindsets we wish to encourage.
Sheryl Thai, co-founder of the League of Extraordinary Women joined us on Wednesday afternoon to share her journey with us – another story of courage, taking risks and seizing opportunity. Sheryl spoke about her career from IT consultant to owner of Cupcake Central, imploring students to embrace opportunities and not be dissuaded by thoughts of failure. Now as a co-founder of the League of Extraordinary Women, a women’s networking group with over 1000+ female members, Sheryl is keen to encourage the next generation of women to “hatch their dream”.

This week, many of our students also completed their NAPLAN practice test. For those who had canoeing or have been isolating, there will be an opportunity to install the Locked Down Browser and complete their practice later this term. All Year 9s will sit their final NAPLAN tests in early May, just prior to Camp.
Enjoy your weekend – when it arrives!

Karyn Murray, Head of Tay Creggan

It’s that time again to let you know about the amazing AUTUMN Holiday Program we have planned at TeamKids! The ELC flyer can be accessed here.

TeamKids have another amazing AUTUMN Holiday program planned!

•  Learn new skills and make new friends

• Qualified and REMARKABLE Educators

• Digital detox with our no screens policy

• Delicious and nutritious morning and afternoon snack

• CCS approved care

Head to teamkids.com.au to secure your spot! 

Parents’ Night Out – Dancing Under the Stars 2
Saturday 26 March 2022

The Strathcona Family Association are delighted to invite parents to join them for a fun evening at Dancing Under the Stars 2. Last year's event was a huge success with parents enjoying an evening on the Deck socialising and dancing the night away.

Enjoy a complimentary drink on arrival and then drinks can be purchased at the bar. Bountiful finger food and a DJ to entertain you who will be happy to play your requests!

Blow the Covid cobwebs away and have a fabulous evening with other Strathcona parents!

Smart casual attire and only $45per person.

* Please note that parents must be double vaccinated to attend

You are warmly invited to this upcoming Parent Seminar Series Event. 

'Body image' has been named as one of the top concerns across adolescent age groups and genders consistently in a number of surveys and studies over the last decade. Far from being a superficial or harmless concern, body image worries can span across physical, mental and social aspects of health and life to have significant impacts on young people, their families and communities. Significantly, this topic has never been as important as has emerged over the last 2 years with the various challenges that have been presented to all of us. It's not unusual that we are concerned about our teen's body image, but we might be unsure what to do or say. Should we be concerned or not? What is 'normal' anyway?

The good news is that parents, families, schools and communities can play powerful and important roles in supporting young people to understand their own experiences and provide environments where they are more likely to take care of their bodies from a place of respect.

This Parent Seminar will be presented by Body Image specialist and Dietitian Fiona Sutherland and is for parents and caregivers who would like to understand how to support a body-positive environment at home. The aim will be for attendees to leave with a deeper understanding of how body image concerns show up, how to have constructive conversations and take timely action if/when needed.

You are warmly invited to this very special Strathcona Centre for Learning Futures event: Quantum Computing, Carbon Capture and Flying Cars. The talk will feature three guest speakers; Mithuna Yoganathan, Rebecca Phillips and Aidan Biggar.

ABOUT GUEST SPEAKERS

Mithuna Yoganathan

Quantum computers have been hyped to be the next big thing in computing, but will we really all have quantum computers in the future? If so, when? In this talk Mithuna will explain why the buzz around quantum computers might be missing the point. Quantum computers do hold a lot of promise- but probably not for running your laptop faster. 

Mithuna is from Melbourne and did her PhD research at the University of Cambridge in the UK. Her research was about whether certain kinds of computational problems could be run faster on a quantum computer. 

Rebecca Phillips ('17)

Increasing carbon dioxide concentrations in the atmosphere is a concern for many of us and affects or will affect us all in one way or another. Rebecca will introduce carbon capture and conversion as a technology that is expected to play an important role in future efforts to fight climate change. She will outline the approach a Monash student team is using to try and develop such technology and how being involved in student teams can be an enriching experience at university.

Rebecca attended Strathcona, graduating in 2017. She is now in her final year of studying Environmental Engineering and a Diploma of Chinese at Monash University. She is currently involved in the Monash Carbon Capture and Conversion (MC3) team. Their proposed solution of turning algae to biochar won funding in the XPrize student award competition, supporting their progress until the final submission in 2025. 

Aidan Biggar

Aidan will speak about what we can achieve with aerospace technology, where he thinks the future of the industry is going, and why he thinks we direly need more women to enter the field! He’ll share his  background of living in the US and Australia and what it was like to work in Silicon Valley before moving back to Victoria where he joined a small start-up. Aidan believes there almost always exist opportunities to work in your desired industry! 

Aidan was born in New Zealand before moving to France and ultimately settling in Australia. He graduated from Melbourne High School in 2013, before moving to California for university. He studied mechanical engineering at Stanford University and then worked for two years as a flight test engineer for the flying car company Kitty Hawk. His current role has him leading the flight test team at Swoop Aero, a drone start-up in Port Melbourne which focuses on delivering vaccines to hard-to-reach regions of the world.