Newsletter Term 4, Week 8 25 Nov 2021

Visibility of women’s sport helps to portray positive female role models and assists in showing women and girls that sport is accessible to them, and it can be something that they can strive for. Not that long ago, a young girl who enjoys playing netball or soccer might have seen the odd female on their TV screen playing the sport they love, but this would be the exception to the rule and certainly not the norm.  These female athletes on their screens, however rare, may have been working two jobs around their training and playing schedule and may be using annual leave to travel for these matches that were televised. Whilst some young students would see this pathway and understand that it is what needs to occur to get them to the top of their sport, and would be willing to take this hard road, for others, the juggle between life and sport may be too much, and an aspiration to play sport at the top level may not be realistic.

Fast forward to today where 86,000 fans gathered at the MCG watching a T20 Cricket World Cup in early 2020, AFLW players are on advertisements and food packaging, netballers are paid a full-time salary, NRL Origin players are paid the equivalent to their male counterparts for their one-off match, and some athletes in professional leagues have leave policies that entitle them to 12 months paid maternity leave.

Our young female students finally have positive, healthy athlete role models in their lives that they can look up to, admire and strive to be. They will see strong and confident women on their TV screens and for some of them, they will see a genuine pathway that only a short number of years ago was unclear and unattainable.

There is a lot of research around the sharp drop-off of young girls participating in sport as they age. One recent Canadian study found that despite young boys and girls taking up sport at similar rates, participation in sport for girls begins to decline from age nine and then continues to drop off significantly in their teen years (Canadian Women & Sport, The Rally Report, (2020). Whilst there are a large number of factors impacting on these stark statistics, I hope that one way that we can begin to change and influence these statistics is through having these role models present in our students' lives. As they get older, girls will see that playing sport is fun, entertaining and possible for women of all ages. 

The impact of these gains in women’s sport over the past decade will have far-reaching effects, but there is still more to be done to allow for women’s sport to receive its fair share of media coverage, and for progress to continue to be made across a range of sports. I also look forward to the day that we no longer have to refer to females playing sport as ‘women’s sport’ and instead it is just referred to as ‘sport’.

Keira Wills, Head of Sport

References 

https://www.womeninsport.org/

Canadian Women & Sport, The Rally Report, (2020)

In Term 3 Christian Education classes, junior school students explored global issues such as hunger, water, poverty and climate change. Along the way we discussed the old Chinese proverb, “Give a man a fish and feed him for a day, teach a man to fish and feed him for a lifetime”.  Through this work our students were able to recognise their privileged position and the responsibility that accompanies privilege. Our girls were left wondering; ‘What can we do?’  ‘What is our responsibility?’.

The Bible encourages us to use our voices, time, talent and money to stand up for those without a voice.

Psalm 82:3

“Defend the cause of the weak & fatherless; maintain the rights of the poor & oppressed.”

At Strathcona, we have been able to financially support three girls through Baptist World Aid, giving the gift of education and thus fulfilling the Chinese proverb.  Monika, one of our long term sponsor girls living in Bangladesh, is now 18, has graduated from school and is now set on her life journey with enough education to provide for herself and her community.

Tuesday 30 November is international ‘’Giving Tuesday’’. On this day we are encouraged to think beyond ourselves and give back to community in any way we can.  A number of activities will take place at the school on and around this occasion, including a gold coin donation for our current Baptist World Aid sponsor children at the Christmas Service. This Tuesday, you are invited to reflect on your own giving and how your actions (in any way possible) can positively impact the life of another.

I am convinced that curious minds and generous hearts, become passionate future changemakers.

This is the call chanted across the pool, across the sports field, across the running track at every major sports carnival in the life of a Strathcona girl. Students emblazed with their House blue, green, red or gold, shrieking in joy and support, are the fire that ignite these community experiences, and without their input the carnivals would fall mightly flat indeed. The students’ voices and their spirits are the essence of the House Cup, and we look forward to launching the 2022 year of competition next Monday 29th November at the annual House Swimming Sports. 

In recent weeks, many students across Years 10, 11 and 12 have been recognised for their contributions to their community with House Colours; an honour bestowed upon the most commited of our girls. These students may not be the fastest swimmers, or the most talented shot-put throwers, or even the most gifted singers, but they have most certainly been the ones who got up, dressed up and showed up on the days of traning and carnival, to support their House in all of their colorful glory.

As a School we acknowledge this commitment through the House Colours system, and these contributions are logged from Year 7 and will follow each girl over the course of her time in the Senior School. The more each student contributes to House events, the fuller her House spirit cup is filled, and the higher her House points tally will climb. The time to begin the 2022 season is upon us, so we are looking forward to geting up, dressing up and showing up in full force to support our House, our home, and begin the House Colours tally for 2022 and beyond.

Goooooo Grenfell!  

Rhiannon Ward, Head of Grenfell House.

Below are some glimpses into activities written by our Year 7s:

Drama
In Drama, we are doing a  4-5 minute long scripted play The students were given an option to choose their own script or use the ones given to them. We chose our own group and cast our roles. We learned about costume changes, directing and adding props. 
After 3 weeks, Mrs Rowlands started assessing by seeing the groups individually (not in front of the class) yet, my group asked to present and showed our class 4 scenes from Cinderella.

Zoe Fallscheer
 
Shrek Musical
Shrek rehearsals were packed with fun, laughter, and a little bit of raised voices! We practiced for so many weeks, had to reschedule the Musical a couple times and now we are about to perform! All of the costumes look funny and we all sound great! Year 5s and 6s joined in on the songs and the scenes! All of us together it really looks like a Musical. With a few prompts for lines, and a few “Uh, what’s this scene again?” we have managed to learn our lines, our songs, and the scenes we need to run on for. Our rehearsals have been spread across lunchtime, afterschool and sometimes during school but all the hard work has paid off and we all look and sound awesome! 

Belle Howell (aka ‘Shrek’)

Rock up and Play
Students have been staying after school for some fun and games of any sports they wish to play. We have had netball and basketball, 1v1 tennis-cricket, Footy target practice and dodgeball. Next week, GSV trials will start for Term 1, 2022.

Maths Probability
Maths classes have been looking at statistics, and we were thrilled to be using chocolate as the method of study! Students recorded their findings, looked at the mean, median and mode, frequency and various ways of graphing.
We also congratulate our Maths Olympiad winners who received prizes for their outstanding performance in the competition, L-R: Edilyn Wong, Janelle Cheok, Helen He, Isabella Xu, Becky Tong, Saloni Gunasekera, Elizabeth Lee, Selina Li.

Sydney Giglia

Science
During lockdown, this term, science classes were exploring the topic of Soil from Earth Resources. Students were encouraged to use seeds from the tomatoes they bought from the supermarket to do some planting. They observed the germination of those seeds, and some students continued observing their plants and recording their photos. The attached images are of Isabella Xu’s tomato plants: “I use a container with drainage holes in the bottom. Also, a tray of some sort should be placed under the pot to catch any excess water that drains out the bottom. Fill the container with the soil, then I cut some fresh tomatoes and gently squeeze the seeds into the containers. Finally, cover the seeds with the rest of the soil and put some water in thoroughly. I just find a place to put it and water it every 1 or 2 days, but don’t put too much. After a few days, I find the tomato is starting to grow." 

Isabella Xu
 
Art
In Art in term 4 we have completed a backyard photo essay, a character design for Strathcona and today we did an image with fine lines and water. It has been good doing a variety of mediums and I really enjoyed these activities.

Natalie Curl

The following students were recognised for their efforts:

Year 7

High Distinction
Anusha Nadig

Distinction
Helen He
Saidie Schlicht
Janelle Cheok
Erin Ellis
Gabby King
Elizabeth Lee

Credit
Claire Dai
Saloni Gunasekera
Selina Li
Rebecca Tong
Sarah Chen
Isabella Xu
Amelia Lau
Liya Luo
Ginnie Kim
Amelia Allen
Sharon Zhou
Candy Yi
Isabella Cheng
Phoebe Suttie

Year 8

High Distinction
Cindy Qu

Distinction
Olivia Xin
Yolanda Mao
Jessica Tang
Tessa Kohne
Aaryn Chieng
Theresa Wang
Linh Nguyen
Ziyi Tang

Credit
Bernice Mao
Jessica Field
Mikaela Kwan
Charli Donaldson
Olivia Ma
Amanda Un
Eleanor Smith
Alexia Keenan
Maddie Tong
Haley Bullen
Grace Beaton
Vivian Lee

Year 9

Distinction
Vinny Liang

Credit
Katherine Ma
Rachel Zhou
Frances Chan
Cynthia Shi
Stephanie Tang

Year 10

Credit
Claire Adam

Year 11

Distinction
Crystal Liu
Mahalakshme Thiagarajan

Credit
Aimee Li

Christy Kertes, Head of Mathematics

Next week (November 22-26) tickets will be on sale for a raffle to support Strathcona’s new partnership, Women’s Property Initiatives! WPI is a wonderful Melbourne-based not-for-profit organization, supporting women and children, facing homelessness across Melbourne, by providing affordable and secure long-term or permanent housing.

There are 3 prizes in total, (meaning more chance to win for all!), with 2 $30 Mecca Beauty Gift Cards and one Cadbury Chocolate Hamper full of delicious treats!
Tickets will be $2 each, sold both throughout the week and at the swimming carnival on the 29 November also! Please see designated ticket leaders from each year level to purchase (an email will be sent soon).

So, if you can, ensure you purchase raffle tickets and support women in need either at school or at the Swimming Carnival!

Good luck!

Katie Johnson, Ebony Reid (Service Captains 2022) and Emily Harle (Issues and Actions Captain 2022)

Tay Creggan teachers this week have pivoted from exams and the formal advancement of learning to teaching activities such as jewellery making, cross stitch and macrame. Others among us have spent time teaching students how to use an electric drill or rehearsing lines for the Year 9 play "Hating Alison Ashley". At Year 9, these more informal aspects of the curriculum are just as important, I would argue, as being able to write a well-structured essay, or solve an equation. I spent the morning yesterday assisting (in a limited capacity) Tim Churchward to teach students how to make a wooden laptop stand. For many, it was the first time they had used a power drill, a belt sander and a hand saw.  Lockers were also re-purposed for students learning a number of new knotting techniques in macrame.  Opportunities such as these foster risk-taking, cognitive development and a sense of pride in accomplishing a task with no grade attached- they are also simply plain fun! We are very much looking forward to watching a number of hard-working students in the Year 9 play today. A video of the performance will be available before the end of term.

Earlier in the week I met with the four Heads of House for a handover and introduction to all current Year 9 students and on Wednesday afternoon, the Heads of House ventured to Tay Creggan to introduce themselves and chat more about Friday's Transition Day. Our Year 9's have an important mentoring role for the incoming Year 7 students who they will meet on Friday at Main School. 

The conclusion of Term Four is a busy one for Year 9 students as they move between Campuses and have a number of planned activities. Your assistance in reminding students to check the schedule each day on MyStrathcona would be appreciated. 

Best wishes,

Karyn Murray, Head of Tay Creggan

On Monday Year 6 went on Camp to Grantville Lodge. The weather was truly superb and time was spent at the beach with shoes off and once again relishing the feeling of sand between toes. Many commented that they had missed this feeling and they longed to spend time at the beach again during summer. I joined the campers for the tent sleepover on Tuesday evening. The girls were all exhausted but managed to set up their own tents and cook their own dinner using the camping stoves. For many of the girls this was their first time sleeping in a tent and time spent away from immediate family for such a long time. I was so impressed by the way the girls supported one another and overcame worries and fears to all spend the night in their tents.

My favourite moment at this camp was simply watching the girls play together, making up their own games and laughing and relishing the time spent simply playing together as a group.

Lisa Miller, Head of Junior School

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Wednesday 1 December 6.00pm.

Please join us for this virtual event to celebrate the girls and boys from ELC-Year 6 and their creative endeavours at the Annual Art Exhibition. Both collaborative and individual pieces on display exploring both two and three-dimensional forms and a wide variety of mediums for your viewing.

Monday 6 December 2021, from 6.00pm

Strathcona Families are warmly invited to join us for 2021's Presentation Night on Monday 6 December. The formal part of the evening will commence at 6.30pm however we encourage you to attend from 6.00pm to enjoy performances, music and art.  

Once again Presentation Night will be online in 2021. Organisation for the event commenced well before restrictions eased and we are mindful of the health and safety of our community. The night will have elements from our Presentation Night including awards for Years 5 to 11 students and will be live-streamed for you and your daughter/s to reflect on the year 2021 and celebrate achievements.

We look forward to you joining us for this exciting event!

Sunday 5 December 2021 5:30 PM - 9:30 PM
The Year 6 Graduation Committee is excited to invite you to the Year 6 graduation dinner to be held on Sunday 5 December 2021 from 5.30pm to 9.30pm. 

The evening will be held at Nini's Restaurant in Hawthorn. We look forward to celebrating with you and your daughter!

We warmly invite you to the 2021 Valedictory Dinner on Wednesday 8 December 2021 at the RACV City Club (501 Bourke Street, Melbourne) at 7pm to 11pm.

The cost is $145.00 (over 18) and $135.00 (under 18) (plus booking fee) per person which includes a 3-course dinner with alcoholic beverages (beer, sparkling, red and white wine and soft drinks) for guests over 18 a 3-course dinner with non-alcoholic beverages for guests under 18.

When booking, parents please purchase a ticket for your daughter. Please note there is a maximum of 3 tickets per family. Please indicate the name of two other families you would like to sit with as there will be tables of 9.

Please RSVP by Monday 29 November 2021.

We look forward to you joining us for what is sure to be a great evening!