Student Celebrations

Meadowbank Persuaders Power into the Regional Semi-Finals of the Premier’s Debating Challenge 

The Meadowbank Persuaders debating team has continued its outstanding run in the Premier’s Debating Challenge, recording two impressive victories in the Regional Knockout rounds.

On Wednesday 9 September, Meadowbank hosted Mosman Public School in the Meadowbank Public School Hall. With Year 2 students providing an enthusiastic audience, the team of Claire, Thea, Josie and Shine took on the negative side of the topic: 

“That Year 5 and 6 kids should have to help out in their community for 2 hours a week as homework.”

Our speakers presented thoughtful arguments, strong rebuttals and excellent teamwork to secure a well-deserved victory and progress to the Regional Quarter-Final. 

On Tuesday 15 September, the Meadowbank Persuaders travelled to Forestville Public School for their next challenge. The team of Gemma, Thea, Layan and Shine once again debated as the negative team, tackling the topic:

“That teachers should have to sit their own version of NAPLAN each year.”

The team produced another outstanding performance, demonstrating confidence, persuasive reasoning and impressive rebuttal skills. Their efforts were rewarded with another victory, securing Meadowbank a place in the Regional Semi-Finals of the Premier’s Debating Challenge.

This is a fantastic achievement and a reflection of the commitment, teamwork and preparation shown by all members of the Meadowbank Persuaders throughout the competition.

Congratulations to Claire, Gemma, Thea, Josie, Layan and Shine on their outstanding performances. We wish the Meadowbank Persuaders the very best as they prepare for the Regional Semi-Final!

Meadowbank’s Public Speaking Stars Shine

Meadowbank Public School recently held its school finals for the 2026 Ryde Community of Schools Public Speaking Competition. The Ryde Community of Schools Public Speaking Competition was created by Meadowbank Public School to provide students across 11 local schools with an opportunity to develop confidence, communication skills and a love of public speaking.

Students from Early Stage 1 through to Stage 3 took to the stage in the school hall to present their prepared speeches. The standard across all four stages was extremely high, with finalists demonstrating confidence, creativity, clear expression and impressive presentation skills.

Reaching the school final was already a significant achievement, with students first progressing through class heats to earn the opportunity to represent their class. The finalists should be very proud of the preparation, courage and effort they showed in presenting to a large audience.

A special thank you also goes to our student hosts who did a fantastic job keeping each session running smoothly and entertaining the audience between speeches.

Congratulations to all of our finalists on their outstanding performances. We are extremely proud of the confidence and enthusiasm shown by every student who took part and wish our Meadowbank representatives the very best at the Grand Final in Week 10.

Ryde Community of Schools Chess Competition: The Final Four Battle It Out

The Ryde Community of Schools Chess Competition reached an exciting milestone on Friday 11 September, with the top teams from both A Division and B Division competing in the Semi-Finals at Meadowbank Public School.

Created by Meadowbank Public School, the competition was designed to give students from local schools regular opportunities to compete, develop their chess skills and build connections with other young players across the Ryde community. Around 90 students have participated each week throughout the competition, making it a fantastic celebration of chess across our local schools.

After seven weeks of round-robin competition, the four highest-ranked teams in each division earned their place in the finals series. The semi-final matches brought together some of the strongest young chess players from across the Ryde Community of Schools, with students needing to think carefully, remain composed under pressure and work hard for every point.

In A Division, Ryde, Denistone East, Hunters Hill and Ermington battled for a place in the Grand Final.

In B Division, Ryde, Hunters Hill, Ermington and Ryde East also competed for a place in the Grand Final, with Ryde taking on Hunters Hill and Ermington facing Ryde East.

The standard of play was outstanding. Across the boards, students demonstrated excellent concentration, strategic thinking, resilience and sportsmanship. Many games were closely contested, with a tie break playoff in the B division. 

Congratulations to all students who reached the Semi-Finals after an excellent season. Unfortunately Meadowbank just missed out on the finals, but the future is bright with a lot of player interest and a strong K-2 and Year 3-6 chess team.

A special thank you to Mr O’Keefe, Mr Thomson and Mr Britton, who have generously given their time each Friday afternoon to help run the competition and ensure it has been such a success.

We now look forward to the Grand Finals, where the remaining teams will compete to become the 2026 A Division and B Division champions!

Premier's Sporting Challenge - Final Active Thursdays Challenge

Thank you to all our students for participating in our final PSC Active Thursdays Challenge for the term.

Well done to Fatima (3/4C) and Celina (3H) for winning our Footy Challenge! 

Keep up the great work and remember to stay active over the holidays. We look forward to seeing everyone getting involved again next year!