Senior School

Years 7-12 House Swimming Carnival

Friday 15 August 2025 - 8.35am to 3pm | Hobart Aquatic Centre

The Years 7-12 House Swimming Carnival will be held at the Hobart Aquatic Centre (HAC) - 1 Davies Ave Hobart, on Friday 15 August from 8.35am – 3.00pm. Students are to make their own way to the Aquatics Centre, arriving no later than 8.35am to sign in at the tables set up at the start of the 50m pool.

All Years 7-12 School students will attend the carnival for the day. Should students be unable to swim they are encouraged to help out with service on the day. If a student is sick we ask parents to advise the school through the normal channel to the Senior School Office - 6210 2474. If driving their own car, Years 11/12 students must have permission from parents submitted to the Senior School Office beforehand. In addition, any students travelling as passengers must also have parent permission (specifying the student driver) submitted to the Senior School Office, beforehand.

Any early departures due to appointments must be notified by parent email no later than the day before. At the conclusion of the carnival, students will need to make their own travel arrangements home at 3.00pm. Please be aware that traffic around the Aquatic Centre can be quite congested at this time. (Arrangements have been made for students travelling on country buses.)

A program of events can be accessed here: 2025 Aquatics Carnival program of Events. Events will be held in both the 25m and 50m pools. The 25m pool events are for participation points from 9.30am to 2.30pm. Entry for all individual events will be at the pool on the day.

Parents are warmly invited to attend. Please note that parking is limited to 3 hours at the HAC. We recommend using the overflow parking area at the regatta show grounds which will be open for the day from 8.00am.

Careers & Pathways

The latest edition of The Friends’ School Careers & Pathways Newsletter is here!

Inside this edition:

Pathway Popup
University of Melbourne Visit
Parent Information
UTAS Medicine
Careers in Horticulture & Plant Science
No ATAR? No worries.
Year 10 – Monash University Info Session
IB Student?
Victoria University Dates
Thinking of a Career in Sport?
Careers on the Water!

Take a look at the full newsletter HERE

Host Families Wanted!

The Friends’ School is looking forward to the visit of German students from our sister school in Germany, Lessing Gymnasium Uelzen in the Term 3 term break. They are reciprocating our recent visit to Uelzen in April and will hopefully have an amazing time in Tasmania. This exchange program has been running successfully since 1993. As the German group is slightly bigger than our group, we are looking for families to host the students that haven't got an exchange partner yet.

The group will arrive in the second week of the Term 3 break on Tuesday, 7 October and they will leave on Sunday 19 October. During the school week, the students are attending classes at school, and several excursions are planned. The program and further details will be shared at an information evening at the end of Term 3.

Here are the names, approximate ages, their preferred partner and some information about the German students:

Kolja: 15, male, prefers to have a male host partner, loves sports (handball)
Alina: 16, female, prefers a female host partner, is very sporty (gymnastics)
Linda: 16, female, has no preference, loves playing and writing music, gluten-free diet
Lotte: 16, female, has no preference, loves horse riding and playing tennis
Mai Vi: 16, prefers to have a female host partner, loves playing music

If you are interested in hosting one of the students for the full duration or even part of their stay, please contact me. It would be a fantastic opportunity for you and your family to practice speaking German, get to know a young German and share living in Tasmania with them. There might even be the option of spending some time with your prospective host partner in Germany in the future.

For more information please contact Christine Whittlinger

LAST CHANCE! Share the Dignity School Drive

A reminder that donations will be collected nearing the end of August, so now's the time to act! If you wish to contribute period/feminine hygiene products to the drive, the collection box remains at the Senior School office.

All donations will directly support women in need through Share the Dignity.

Any questions, contact senior student: Amelia Cooper

Student Resources Shared by TASC

End of Year Exams are fast approaching for Years 11 and 12 TCE Students.

While a lot of teaching and learning is still happening, right now is when students need to start thinking about how best to prepare for the external assessments at the end of year. TASC has developed student resources with the information students most wanted to know.

Here are some resources parents and students may wish to access prior to the November exams:

If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact your teachers or the TCE Co-ordinator Joe Cairns.

Assessment Reminder

In the lead up to the final examinations for our Year 11 and Year 12 students, we remind families of expectations around assessment practices.

Formal assessments are an important part of the Senior School experience and all dates and expectations are published on SEQTA, in advance, to support workload management. TCE and IB assessment tasks are informed by requirements of TASC and the International Baccalaureate Organisation (IBO).

Students are reminded that all assessments are to be completed on the due date. This is inline with the expectations of TASC and the IBO, and supports equity and fairness for all students.

To support fairness and equity, if a student is absent for an in-class task due to an unavoidable reason, parents must contact the school in advance. The student will be provided with the opportunity to sit the task at the next available catch-up session, from 3pm - 4pm Monday or 3.45pm - 4.45pm Thursday. If a student does not attend this session, the opportunity for assessment will have passed and the student will be awarded a ‘z’ or 0. If non-attendance at the catch-up is unavoidable, for example illness or family emergency, parents must contact the school in advance.

If a student signs out without parent contact it will be assumed that the absence is unapproved and a ‘z’ or 0 will be awarded.

Ongoing assessments are to be completed in a Googledoc, shared with the class teacher. If a student does not submit the work on the due date, the draft will be assessed unless an extension has been granted.

To support your child’s learning, we remind families that appointments should be scheduled outside school hours wherever possible.

Please contact the relevant curriculum coordinator, or Kate Baldry if you require further information.

Register for Elevate’s Parent Webinar Series

This Term Elevate Education delivers high-impact workshops to our students that help to develop their study skills, motivation, and exam preparation. Over the next term, you're invited to join their parent webinar series, where you can help support your child at home by reinforcing the skills they're learning at school.

Upcoming Webinars:

How You Can Make Technology an Ally (& Not the Enemy!) - Wed 20 Aug 6.30pm
How To Help Your Child Improve Their Note Taking - Wed 3 Sept 6.30pm
How You Can Support Your Child During Exams - Wed 17 Sept 6.30pm

Register for the series by clicking the link below and learn some great practical strategies to help support your child this year. https://go.elevateeducation.com/auschoolwebinars

Absentees

If your child will be absent from school for the day please advise the Senior School Office (phone: 6210 2255, or email: seniorschooloffice@friends.tas.edu.au). We appreciate your support in this process.

Important Dates

Term 3 Tuesday 22 July to Friday 26 September

Friday 12 September – Wellbeing Day, as part of Wellbeing Weekend (no K-12 classes)