Principal's Address

Welcome Back to Term 2

Term 2 started well with many activities and excursions in the first few weeks of school. One activity that occurred during the holidays was the Boorowa Anzac Day march and service. Much to my delight, we had 75 students representing the school, Army Cadets and the drumming band, an excellent number. I am always proud of their conduct and attentiveness on sombre occasions such as these and could not commend them and their families enough for allowing them to represent the school on such an important day of remembrance.

Anzac Day service

Boorowa Central School also held their annual Anzac Day service when students returned on 27 April. Despite the weather and being the first day back to school, the students again behaved immaculately and participated in the service with quiet respect. Thank you to Mr Dean Franklin, Mr Alan Banks, and Mr John Piper for attending our service, it was appreciated. Thank you also to Mrs Di Sykes for preparing the delicious morning tea for our special visitors and school leaders.

Cross Country

Our annual Cross Country was held last Thursday, between rain showers. Thank you to all students who tried their best on the day. Also, a special thanks to the parents who helped on the day. We could not run events such as these without your help.

Upcoming events

School photos are being held on Monday 9 May 2022. All families will have received their order envelopes by now. They can be returned on the day, with money enclosed. Please use the attached 'family pack' envelope to order sibling group photos.

The annual Athletics Carnival, scheduled for 6 May 2022, has been postponed until Wednesday 18 May 2022. Unfortunately, due to a combination of factors, we were unable to staff the event to ensure the safety of all staff and students. I look forward to this revised date as it is my favourite day of the school year.

Transition Information Evening 

The 2023 Kindergarten and Year 7 Transition Information Evening is fast approaching and will be held on Tuesday 24 May 2022. This evening is for all parents who have children entering Kindergarten and Year 7 at Boorowa Central School in 2023. Kindergarten children and their parents can arrive at 5:30 pm and enjoy a classroom tour and a meet and greet with the teaching staff before joining Year 7 parents in the library at 6 pm.

The Year 12 Parent/Teacher Interviews will be held on Tuesday 17 May 2022 from 5-7 pm in the school library. This is an important evening for parents of Year 12 students to attend so they can meet with their child's teachers, discuss their progress, and identify strategies that can be employed at home to best support their children.

Something to think about

I am an avid audiobook listener. I listen during my early morning walk, whilst doing housework, yard work and driving. My favourite genre is a good autobiography as I love hearing about the trials, tribulations, and triumphs of elite sportspeople, defence force service people, businesspeople and many more. My current audiobook, titled 'Able', is written and narrated by Dylan Alcott. Dylan is an elite Australian sportsperson who happens to be in a wheelchair. He has won four Paralympic medals, three gold and one silver, in two different sports – wheelchair basketball and quad tennis. He has also won six grand slams in quad tennis, regularly been a presenter on Triple J and sports broadcasts on the 7 and 9 Networks. He has also appeared on the ABC's Q+A to discuss disability and delivered a TED talk about overcoming adversity. All of this made me realise that with the right mindset, anyone can achieve anything.

In his book, a particular aspect jumped out at me. In the lead up to one of his Australian open titles, his coach had a discussion with him about performing under pressure. Whilst not an exact quote, his coach said something like 'When under pressure we don't rise to the occasion as is commonly said, we actually fall back onto our previously established habits'. This made me think about our children and the 'habits' we try our hardest to establish for them and with them. Without these habits, what happens when they are under pressure to complete an assessment task or examination, under peer pressure to do something risky, or under pressure to do their best? Do they succeed or do they do something they regret later?

After reading this today, think about what 'habits' you want your child to fall back onto when they are under pressure. Have you helped them develop these already? Or do they need some extra attention and refining? It is never too late to develop, refine or change a habit.

Mr Graham Jones I Principal