Senior School

As we draw towards the coming holiday and look towards Term 4, much remains uncertain. While we expect the imminent release of the HSC Timetable for our older students, we do not know when the current Public Health Order will ease and allow us to resume the panoply of camps, excursions and incursions, special assemblies and celebrations that normally mark Term 4. As a normally busy school, this creates a great deal of uncertainty for us all. 

What we do know, however, is who we are and what we value. We know that we are a School community who values the academic learning of our students. For this reason we are continuing our assessment program throughout the Senior School, with appropriate modification in place to help students engage appropriately in our online context. We are also continuing to adhere to our structured timetable, with students engaged in rigorous learning activities in each allocated time. We also know that we are a School community that cares deeply about the wellbeing of our young people. For this reason we have initiated Wellbeing Wednesdays. Please note that in Week 10 we will revert to the model of Weeks 6 and 7, with students completing lessons in Periods 1, 2 and 3 with Period 4 and 5 classes waived in favour of self-care activities. We are also asking our Tutors to reach out to students and to do everything possible to ensure that our young people are cared for in this challenging season. 

We are also a School who values the partnership we enjoy between parents, students and our staff. Thank you to all those parents, students and staff who have responded to various surveys over recent weeks. As we plot our course through the uncertainty of coming weeks and months we will continue to use the feedback you have provided to ensure that we provide the outcomes that matter most in our community. In that spirit of partnership, thank you also to the many parents who have taken the time to write messages of encouragement to our staff over recent weeks. Like many of our parents, our teachers and staff are working from home, many juggling the demands of their own children in home learning mode, ageing parents needing care and all the other challenges of this COVID-19 season. Your kind words mean a great deal to our team.

Mr Owen Laffin

Deputy Head - Head of Senior School