From the Acting Principal

Welcome back to Pymble for Term 3 and a special shoutout to all our new starters this term. We’re delighted to see students looking refreshed and eager to get back into the swing of school life after the mid-year break. We will be even more delighted to see them in correct uniform, minus the jewellery, false eyelashes and nail polish they are able to wear as they please in the holidays. Thank you for your support in ensuring your daughter shows up as her best self each school day.

Celebrating NAIDOC Week in the first week of term seemed particularly appropriate given the 2022 NAIDOC theme, Get up! Stand up! Show up! Our First Nations scholars did a great job leading our assembly today, during which we celebrated five former First Nations graduates from Pymble who now are giving back to their communities in a professional capacity in the fields of law, health, teaching, sport and the Police Force. We continue to learn, celebrate and stand together proudly with our First Nations scholars and are grateful for the richness they bring to our community.

As usual, Pymble was a hive of activity during the holidays, both in terms of enhancements to our campus and student and staff achievements.

The Senior School Centre has been revamped with a sophisticated colour palate and new furniture, giving our Year 12s more study spaces at their disposal as they approach their final term of school and HSC trials. On that note, it was fabulous to see so many of our Class of 2022 cohort at the HSC study camp in the first week of the break. Great job, girls, and a big thank you to the Pymble staff who create and deliver our pre-trials academic boot camp.

The Boarders’ Dining Room has also had a makeover and is looking suitably crisp, fresh and inviting for our lovely student residents, and work continues on Archie’s Café (next to Mollie Dive Fields), which is due for completion by the end August, weather permitting of course. Over at Arcadia, Vision Valley and Stringbark Lodge have been buzzing as we complete refurbishments and final preparations to the facilities and accommodation ahead of our pilot four-week residential program for Year 9 commencing on Sunday 7 August.

Congratulations to our academic superstars

It’s always exciting to return after holidays to hear what some of our students have turned their attention to. During the break, 20 girls from Years 10 and 11 travelled with Mrs Linda Kovacs and Mrs Sarah Budd to England to participate in the Oxford Royale summer school for teens. The girls represented our country and College beautifully, winning several awards at the graduation ceremony and making their teachers incredibly proud. Angie Wang and Genevieve Power (Year 11) took part in the Inter College debate, where both girls gave strong arguments and responded to impromptu questions from the adjudicator and floor with confidence. Huge congratulations to all, including Angie, who was declared the overall winner of the competition.

Back on home soil, our Year 8 team of Isabella Attard, Grace Beck, Kiki Chen, Rosa Kim, Alice Mao, Ruhani Surana, Amber Li and Katherine Pan attended the National da Vinci Decathlon at Knox Grammar School, where they completed papers in 10 disciplines – and placed first in Australia in the Year 8 division! Congratulations, team, on your outstanding work!

Congratulations to our sporting superstars

Nea Shingler (Year 12) also found her way overseas to compete at the World Orienteering Championships in Denmark, where she placed 19^th in her qualification group, and the Junior World Orienteering Championships in Portugal, where she was the first Australian home and placed 43^rd overall. Well done and welcome home, Nea!

Great to see our Pymble Sailing team making a splash in the sport they love; the girls placed third at the 2022 Australian Secondary Schools Teams Racing Championship and fourth overall. Meanwhile our Snowsports team had a very successful Regional Championships in Thredbo.

We are also incredibly proud of Ruby Nicholas (Year 12) for being selected in the Open Australian Schoolgirls National Rugby Sevens Merit team, and Eugenie Little (Year 11) and Grace Whyte (Year 11), who were selected in the under 17 Netball Australian Squad to attend a camp at the Australian Institute of Sport in the holidays. Good job, girls!

Finally, congratulations and best wishes to Olivia Inkster (Year 12) who is competing in Columbia at the World Athletics Championships in the 200m and 4 x 100m. Liv leaves tomorrow for a pre-departure camp in Miami and is then off to Colombia the following week. Good luck, Liv!

Congratulations to our staff superstars

We also have several staff members who have been recognised for their outstanding achievements in their areas of expertise.

Our fearless, tireless and extremely talented Head Coach – Diving, Mrs Chris Lang was awarded Life Membership to Independent Girls’ Schools Association (IGSA) for her dedication to IGSA Diving during the past 30+ years. Mrs Brigiat Maltese, our Head of Learning Area – Visual Arts has been announced a finalist in the Environmental Art and Design Prize 2022 for her artwork Here on earth, which will be exhibited at Manly Art Gallery and Museum in August.

Six academic staff members received their master’s degree, which is an incredible accomplishment while simultaneously bringing excellence to the College each day as teachers. A massive congratulations to:

• Mrs Natasha Stanfield, Ms Kim Maksimovic, Miss Lucy Macaulay and Mr Peter Ellis: Master of Education (Learning and Leadership)
• Ms Tessa Zwar: Master of Education (Librarianship) 
• Mr JamieWarren: Master of Educational Leadership

Congratulations to our alumni superstars

Not to be outdone, Pymble Alumni were also cause for celebration during the break, with three ex-students receiving Queen’s birthday honours. Special congratulations to:

•  Amanda Farrar PSM (1986) for outstanding public service to arts and culture in NSW.
• Dr Michelle Mulligan OAM (1982) for service to medicine, particularly to anaesthesia.
• Jennifer Toisuta OAM (Dey, 1957) for service to asylum seekers and refugees.

What an impressive start to the second half of the year! Congratulations to one and all for making us all Pymble Proud.

 Helping a flooded school get back on its feet

This weather! While annoying for us, the incessant rain has been particularly devastating for others. The College has formed a connection with the Sathya Sai College in Murwillimbah, NSW, which has suffered the double blow of being flooded out twice. The school’s facilities, buildings and resources have been destroyed and many members of the school community have also lost their homes and personal belongings. The College is supporting the Sathya Sai community through a number of fundraising initiatives, including Spuds for Floods next Tuesday 26 July.

Please don’t pack lunch for school on Tuesday 27 July – click on the link below to order your daughter’s delicious baked potato (meat or vegetarian) and help us to support Sathya Sai as they refurbish and get back up on their feet again.

Order your Spuds for Floods here.

That’s all from me this week. Thank you as always for your generosity in helping others, stay dry and have a fantastic Term 3.

Mrs Julie Shaw

Acting Principal

Scholarship Applications close soon

Applications for available scholarships at Pymble close on 5 August 2022. 

2023 Performance – Sport and All-Rounder Scholarship registrations are open and close 5 August 2022. 

2024 Academic, Performance – Music, Boarding and Pymble Ex-Students Union Scholarship registrations are open and close 5 August 2022. 

For full details and dates please visit the our Scholarships webpage or email cstock@pymblelc.nsw.edu.au.

From the Director of Student Learning (Years 11 to 12)

HSC Trial Examinations

Year 12

Year 12 have been busy preparing for their HSC Trial examinations which are taking place in Week 3 and 4 of this term. 170 students attended the Study Camp in the first week of the holidays to kick start their planning.

In assembly this week, I reminded students that completing Trials is a unique experience and provides invaluable practice and feedback for the external HSC examinations. 

My message to students is to focus on what you can control, your own study and performance. Everyone prepares in line with their strengths and preferred techniques. All study is valuable.

Click here for a link to the presentation.

The examinations onsite will take place in the Senior Centre. Students will sign in on rolls on arrival and will be directed to their exam room.  

Click here to view the 2022 Year 12 Trial HSC Examination Timetable.

Dates for the Trials 

The examinations will commence on Monday 1st August and conclude on Friday 12th August. 

Friday 29th July will be a study day at home for all Year 12 students.   

Students will return to normal classes on Monday 15th August.  

Times 

Morning examinations begin at 8.25am.  

Afternoon examinations begin at 12.25pm. 

Girls should arrive at school 30 minutes before the start of their examinations to sign in and get settled and wear a mask during this time. 

Illness

Students follow the usual Illness/misadventure procedures.

• Email the Senior School and CC in their teacher to notify that they are ill and unable to do the exam
• Obtain a medical certificate and attach this to the IMA form and submit to curriculum@pymblelc.nsw.edu.au
• Students will be emailed with the catch-up time for their exam which will be completed within the Trial examination period.

Year 11

Year 11 students will have yearly exams in Week 6 and 7 this term.

Exams are an opportunity for students to display their understanding, their ability to analyse unseen questions and apply their knowledge. They test work from the whole year in most subjects.

They are important preparation and practice for the trial and HSC examinations which they will be doing this time next year.

The manner in which students prepare and perform in their exams will be one helpful tool in deciding which combination of subjects to pursue into Year 12.

My message to year 11 is to start your planning and study early. We will have an assembly next week and they will be working on their study skills in Directions.

The Year 12 2023 online subject selection evening on 14^th September to talk about the options moving into Year 12.

Mrs Natasha Stanfield

Director of Student Learning (Years 11-12)

From the Director of Student Learning (Years 7-10)

Year 10 into Year 11 2023 – Subject Information Evening   

Thank you to those families who joined us on Thursday 16 June in the Gillian Moore Centre for Performing Arts (GMCPA) and those who joined us online for the live event.

Your child has been invited to attend a Subject Selection Interview during one of the upcoming study lessons. It is imperative that students come prepared with a list of their current subject preferences and any questions they may still have.

Note: subject preferences for Year 11 2023 will be due at the end of Week 3.

You and your child may find it helpful to re-visit our Subject Selection website which contains our comprehensive Subject Information Booklet and a collection of videos about the subjects on offer.

Should you have any questions, please contact me and Mrs Natasha Stanfield at your earliest convenience.

Information Regarding Semester 1 Reports in Years 7 to 10

Your child’s Semester 1 Report is now visible via MyPymble on the website and the MyPymble App.

Please direct any subject specific questions to your child’s classroom teacher.

If you are experiencing any difficulties accessing or interpreting your child’s academic report, please contact me at your earliest convenience.

Jake Plaskett

Director of Student Learning (Years 7-10)

From the Director – Pymble Institute

Talking about Pymble research with the International Coalition of Girls’ Schools

Pymble voices contributed to the inaugural meeting of the International Coalition of Girls’ Schools (ICGS) at its annual conference in Boston, USA, held in late June. The conference was attended by four Pymble staff members, with research presentations from our College Chaplain, Rev Punam Bent, and Head of Junior School, Mrs Kate Brown. Membership of the ICGS connects Pymble to 17 countries and 330 girls’ schools, including schools in Afghanistan, Bermuda, Canada, Colombia, Ireland, Israel, Japan, the Philippines, the Republic of Korea, Rwanda, South Africa, Spain, and the United Kingdom.

Punam and Kate’s research emerged from areas of interest they explored with the Global Mentoring program, organised by Bright Field Consulting. The conference brought together the mentoring partners from different countries and an audience keen to understand how students from different global background approach the same issues. Summaries of Punam’s and Kate’s research are included below and all parents, students and friends of the College are invited to hear them present at the Pymble Research Conference next Tuesday 26 July, from 5.00pm to 7.00pm in the Conde Library. To see the full program and for free registration, please click here.

Rev Punam Bent, Deities of our time: Social media influencing and impact on senior high school girls

This presentation is the result of a global project undertaken by Punam and Kate Hawtin (St Catherine’s, Bramley, UK) involving small groups of senior girls from St Catherine’s, Pymble Ladies’ College, and Joy Senior Secondary School, Jabalpur India. The project has evolved over a year and aims to shift the paradigm of social media influencers by encouraging young women to look at their own reach in their communities and ways they are and can be being catalysts of change. Issues for young girls, largely around mental health/wellbeing, revolves around a deification of social media influencers, which has become almost cultic in resonance, for example, the TikTok/Instagram revolution. This joint project foregrounds the voices of young women within three educational contexts and hopes to challenge the paradigm of influence which can sometimes be detrimental to mental health, body image and self-growth in a young girl/woman. The presentation will share results from surveys, as well as background reading and research, and showcase findings in relation to conversations the two researchers-educators had with their students.

Kate Brown, The kindness revolution: Enabling children to flourish as learners and leaders

Becoming the Head of Junior School at the start of the pandemic inspired me to reflect on how I could empower children to hold onto the sense of self, joy and hope that is critical to their academic and social/ emotional development. At a time of so much isolation and uncertainty, children needed a strength to hold onto and a belief that their voices could still be heard. I believe a focus on kindness has the power to enable children to flourish as learners and leaders. Kindness is a concept young children readily understand. Over the last two years, I have explored the concept of kindness with the children through three tenets, kindness to others, the environment and self. I have looked at how kindness can impact a child’s sense of self, agency, hope and connection to their learning and their world. Unpacking the meaning of each kindness tenet into four facts has deepened the study into the impact on a child as a learner and leader. Our study into kindness led to the creation of the inaugural Children’s Kindness Convention which Pymble hosted on 15 June 2022, connecting children from 20 schools across Greater Sydney and giving them the opportunity to ideate solutions to global issues, identified by them, through the lens of kindness. Through kindness, children not only believe, but know they can change the world and this gifts them the sense of hope they need to flourish in their world.

Other Pymble staff presenting at the research conference include:

Ms Lexi Ibbotson and Mrs Karen Ahearn, (action research), Exploring the benefits of play in a transition to school context

Mrs Victoria Adamovich, (Master’s degree research), Wellbeing of EALD students: A look at family dynamics

Mrs Natasha Stanfield, (Master’s degree research), Ethics Committees: Training students to take an active role in the Pymble Ethics Committee

Mrs Deb Owens and Mr Liam Hume, (action research), The impact of research on teacher practice in Elective Geography

Mr Ryan Stewart, (PhD research), First Nations representation in twentieth century local histories: From Gilgandra to Pymble

Ms Mariel Lombard, (PhD research), The PhD Journey

Being inspired by brave and determined women

The conference showcased three inspiring keynote speakers working in complex areas relating to conflict, policy, politics, health and negotiation. Readers may be interested in exploring their stories further:

Shabana Basij-Rasikh is the co-founder of the School of Leadership (Afghanistan) (SOLA); Afghanistan’s first and only girls’ boarding school for 100 students. Education for girls was made illegal (again) in 2021 with the Taliban resurgence and Shabana led her students in an evacuation to Rwanda in August 2021. SOLA now runs in exile from Rwanda where a number of Afghanis live in refuge. SOLA hopes to return to Afghanistan one day. Whilst a world away in terms of distance and daily life, SOLA’s mission rings true with the goals we have for our Pymble students – to provide students with education promoting critical thinking, purpose and respect for self and others, and to build a compassionate, curious and confident generation of women.

Leymah Gbowee is a Liberian peace activist and Nobel Peace prize-winner. She holds the amazing claim of ending her country’s 14-year civil war by focusing on the voices and influence of women in Liberia. Leymah brought Christian and Muslim women together to make vital change in their country and then advocated persistently at the highest levels of global policy for Liberian girls’ safety and access to education. Leymah role models her action through her strong participation in United Nations and African Security councils.

Dr Paula A. Johnson, President of Wellesley College, is a cardiologist of African-American heritage who discussed inequities in medical research. Paula said she is not interested in empowerment of women but in taking action. From her background in medicine and science, Paula commented on the absence of diversity of race and gender in medical research participant groups and the global impact of such paucity of representation. It became clear to the audience that knowledge of diseases, development of medication and vaccines, funding and access to health care pivot around the research that underpins each issue and if this does not include a diverse group of people, the outcomes may never meet the needs of that group.

Further exploration:

https://www.sola-afghanistan.org/

https://www.newyorker.com/podcast/political-scene/how-a-girls-school-fled-afghanistan-as-the-taliban-took-over

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6EN4UH27IOs A conversation with Nobel Laureate, Leymah Gbowee, April 2022

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vhVWzkbAW4I Paula Johnson, His and Hers Healthcare

Dr Sarah Loch

Director – Pymble Institute

Year 8 National da Vinci Decathalon Champions

It is with great joy that I write about the recent success of our Year 8 da Vinci Team, who placed first at the Nationals on Monday 27^th July.  Isabella Attard, Grace Beck, Kikki Chen, Rosa Kim, Alice Mao, Ruhani Surana, Amber Li and Katherine Pan are a formidable team!  It goes without saying that they are incredible scholars, capable of near perfect scores in disciplines as diverse as Cartography and Ideation.  What gives this team the “edge”, though, is their abundance of “soft skills”.

When it comes to working harmoniously with others, these are the soft skills that Dr Steel, who heads up the Department of Marketing in Deakin Business School, says you need:

• leadership
• communication
• interaction
• teamwork
• listening
• innovation
• creativity
• problem solving

It has been a pleasure watching this team grow and develop their soft skills over the past year and a half. They set their own goals and schedule their own meetings.  They are quick to respond to e-mails and adept at making group decisions; they know their strengths, taking control in areas of expertise; they are open to feedback and suggestions, and are always up for a challenge, including taking on a new discipline in the competition to compensate for someone’s absence.  It is one of the many blessings of my role, observing the workings of a well-oiled machine!

It beggars belief what these students are capable of producing, given the crippling time limits for each discipline and the pressure that comes with representing Pymble at the very highest level!  Here are a few insights into the challenges they surmounted.  In keeping with this year’s theme of ‘Experimentation’, the girls produced an artwork and poem demonstrating the avant-garde form and style, detailed the process of designing a car, and deciphered codes to encrypt passwords.  They also built this incredible structure in less than one hour with limited resources for Engineering (see image, below).

Clearly this is is a team worthy of celebrating (and cloning)!  Congratulations to our National Champions and thank you to all the teachers, parents, and helpers who contributed to their success!

Debbie Tarrant

da Vinci Decathlon Coach

HPL Co-ordinator K-12

COVID-19 Response Plans and Advice

Please note the following health and safety guidelines for students and staff in Term 3.

Stay at home if unwell

Students and staff are asked to stay at home if they have any COVID, cold or flu symptoms. Please do not allow your daughter to attend campus until she is symptom-free in addition to having returned a negative RAT result.

If your daughter is not well enough to attend school, please follow the normal process of reporting the absence to her teacher/sub school via the MyPymble app.

Testing positive

If the result of your daughter’s RAT (or PCR test) is positive, please follow the normal College procedure of emailing health@pymblelc.nsw.edu.au and reporting the absence to the relevant teacher/sub school via the MyPymble app.

Students who test positive will need to isolate at home for seven days and follow NSW Health Advice for managing positive cases. 

Changes to reinfection period

NSW health has revised the COVID-19 reinfection period from 12 weeks to four weeks, effective immediately.

This means a person who has previously had COVID-19 will be required to re-test for COVID-19 from 28 days after their last isolation period ended if they experience symptoms. A positive result is regarded as a new case, which must be reported as such, and the person will need to follow the relevant health advice again.

Masks

• Students and staff are required to wear a mask at large indoor gatherings, such as assemblies and Chapel services.
• Students who travel to school via public transport or the Pymble Bus Service must wear a mask at all times during transit.
• Masks are strongly encouraged, especially in situations where it is difficult to maintain adequate distance between you and others.
• Students are encouraged to pack a supply of masks for each day.

Hand hygiene

• Sanitiser will continue to be provided at key points around the College.
  
• Unmissable new posters have been placed around campus encouraging frequent handwashing.

COVID boosters and flu shots

• Students who are due for a COVID-19 booster shot are encouraged to have their next vaccination.
• We encourage all eligible students who haven’t had a flu shot yet to do so, as the health authorities are also predicting a substantial flu season.

 Any further information or advice for Term 3 will continued to be shared by notifications via the MyPymble app.

Pymble Swimming – Winter Promotion

From the Junior School

From our Head of Junior School

Welcome to Term 3! I hope you have all stayed healthy and safe these holidays and enjoyed some wonderful family adventures. We are delighted to welcome so many families to our Junior School family this term and extend a warm welcome to you all. I look forward to getting to know these girls who join us this term: Celine Shen and Allison Lu (Kindergarten), Abby Zhang, Ella Jang and Claire Huang (Year 1), Chloe Huang (Year 2), Divangi Sahni and Jiayi Wu (Year 4), Cadence Wong and Georgia Friedel (Year 5). We are also excited to welcome back Patricia Chiu into Year 5.

Welcome New Staff

This term we welcome Mrs Victoria Soumboulidis to our Year 1 team and Mrs Tracy Reid to our Year 3 team. Both these educators bring great wisdom and experience with them, and I know our girls will thrive in their warm care. Please join me in welcoming them to our Junior School community.

Motherhood Beckons!

This week we say au revoir to Mrs Erin Dorsen who heads off on maternity leave. We send Mrs Dorsen off with our love and best wishes for the most wonderful parenthood journey and look forward to meeting her baby soon.

Farewell Mrs H

It is with great sadness that we farewell our beloved Mrs Helen Holobrodskyj (‘Mrs H’ as she is affectionately known by many) this week. Mrs Holobrodskyj has dedicated 20 years of exceptional service to the Junior School and she will be very much missed by us all. We send her off with much love and wish her many happy years full of adventures with her beloved husband, Andrew, their children and grandchildren.

Our Kindness Focus this Term

Our young people are determined to make a positive impact on their planet and so this term we are focusing on kindness to our environment. We are hoping that many of our girls will commit to undertaking small actions to help protect our precious environment and in the coming weeks, each girl will be given a Service Journal (similar to last term) with ideas of actions she can do to make a difference.

I am very proud of Charlotte Pang (Year 5) who has demonstrated her strong sense of social responsibility and advocacy by designing a poster and creating a character, Myrtle the Turtle, to inspire our Junior School into action and to help our younger girls connect with this important mission.

An amazing group of environmental advocates in Year 4 worked with our Lead Horticulturalist, Sarah Shields, and me to plan and ultimately plant a new garden at the end of last term. The girls had campaigned for this garden as they wanted to attract more pollinators and also bring more flowers into our grounds to appeal to our youngest girls. I am so proud of their thoughtfulness.

Our Week in Learning Pictures

Congratulations!

We are so proud of Aimee Qiu (Year 2) who represented NSW Fencing Club Under 8 Years Sabre in a competition last weekend and was awarded the gold medal. This is an outstanding achievement.

Congratulations to Haylee Lam (Year 6) who competed in the Sydney Eisteddfod Woodwind competition for 12 Years and Under, performing a flute solo on 6 July. Haylee won second prize and we are extremely proud of her effort and achievement. We hope Haylee will share her flute solo with us all in assembly this term. 

Congratulations to Megan Ng (Year 3) who competed in the Sydney Eistedford playing both the violin and the piano. She came first in the 9 Years section for violin and was highly commended on the 9/10 Years 19th Century piano section.

From the JSPG

Welcome to Term Three! Hope you all had a lovely and restful holiday break. Just a few reminders for you all to mark down in your calendars.

Upcoming Parent-Daughter Dances

Years K-1 – Saturday 6 August – please see attached invitation here.

Years 2-3 – Saturday 30 July – please see attached invitation here.

Year 4-5  – Saturday 27 August – theme ‘Sparkle & Shine’, please save the date.

JSPG Athletics Carnival Stall – next Tuesday 26 July

As you will be aware, our postponed Athletics Carnival is due to be held next Tuesday 26 July. This will be subject to favourable weather in the lead-up to the day so let us hope the weather is kind to us.

Thank you to those who have signed up to our JSPG Food and Drinks stall and are either providing food/drinks on the morning of the carnival via car line or serving at the stall during the day. If you would like to contribute on the day or review your commitments, please go to: https://signup.com/go/jmUQwFJ

Build-A-Pymble-Bear – next Wednesday 27 July

Our Build-A-Pymble-Bear event will be held on Wednesday 27 July for our Kindergarten to Year 3 girls. This is one of our absolute favourite events of the year for our younger girls as it is such a special experience for them. This year, we have chosen a few different animals to make it a richer experience for the girls. Kindergarten are being given a bear to build, Years 1 and 2 girls are being given a rabbit and Year 3 girls are being given a puppy.

Jeans for Genes Day – Friday 5 August

Friday 5 August is Jeans for Genes Day and the JSPG is holding a fundraising sausage sizzle in Sunshine Square. An invitation will be sent out shortly for this event.

Save the Date – Garden Party, 17 September

Pymble is so excited to be holding its annual Garden Party this year again for the first time since 2019! The JSPG runs many stalls which are so much fun for the girls and their families.

Please contact us or your year coordinator if you would like to be involved in participating in one of your year group stalls!

If you haven’t been to a Garden Party, there are numerous rides, hundreds of stalls, lots of food and drinks and overall it is an amazing family day out. Please save the date and look forward to the highlight of the Pymble year!

From Care & Support

We are still looking to fill our JSPG freezer with meals as part of our care and support role to Junior School families. If you are able to pick up an extra meal, or do some cooking at home, this would be much appreciated. All food can be dropped off at our Junior School Reception.

Ideas for meals are ones that will freeze well such as pasta (lasagne, spaghetti bolognaise etc), cottage pie, butter chicken etc. Alternatively, anything you would normally cook for your family.

Thank you for your support. Please feel free to contact Shweta Deshpande if you have any questions (shwetadesh@gmail.com or 0406 484 002).

Communication with Parents

The parent contact directory is available on MyPymble and has been developed for parents and carers to opt-in to share their contact details with other parents and carers in their daughter(s) year group to help build community connections.

To check your details, login to MyPymble, click on Parent Contact Directory (under My Shortcuts) and then your Roll Class. There are some parents/carers with names, phone numbers and email addresses missing. To update your details, please click on your name in the top right corner, and select My Profile.

From all of us at the JSPG, we hope you have a great Term Three.

If you have any questions or require further information, please email us the JSPG at: pymblelcjspg@gmail.com

Volunteers Needed for the Sri Lankan Food Stall at Pymble’s Garden Party

Dates for your Diary

Term 3  

26 July                         Junior School Athletics Carnival   

26 July                         100 Days of Kindergarten Celebration, 10.25am – 12.45pm  

27 July                         JSPG Build-a-Bear for Kindergarten to Year 3  

27 July                         Year 6 Author Visit

28 July                         Year 6 Incursion

29 July                         Year 4 Incursion 

30 July                         JSPG Years 2 and 3 Parent Daughter Dance  

1 – 4 August               Kindergarten to Year 6 Learning Discussions

4 August                      Kindergarten to Year 2 Performing Arts Incursion  

5 August                      Jeans for Genes Day     

6 August                      JSPG Kindergarten and Year 1 Parent Daughter Dance

8 – 10 August             Kindergarten to Year 2 Concert Rehearsals     

12 August                    Kindergarten to Year 2 Concert, 2.00pm and 5.00pm  

15 – 18 August           Life Education Kindergarten to Year 2 

18 August                    Year 5 Author Visit

19 August                    STEM Festival 

25 August                    Book Week Parade

26 August                    Author Visit Kindergarten to Year 6

27 August                    JSPG Years 4 and 5 Parent Daughter Dinner Dance

30 August                    URSTRONG Parent Workshop, Online

1 September               Year 5 ‘Spring into Leadership’ Day

2 September               Fathers’ Day Lunch

Term 4 

17 October                  Year 2 OEP 

19 October                  Year 1 OEP 

20 October                  Kindergarten OEP 

25 October                  Year 6 Musical Performance, 7.00pm 

26 October                  Year 6 Musical Performance, 7.00pm 

28 October                  Links Day 

1 December                Kindergarten Celebration of Learning, 9.00am

1 December                Years 1 and 2 Celebration of Learning, 11.00am

2 December                Years 3 to 6 Speech Day, 1.00pm

Mrs Kate Brown

Head of Junior School

From the Middle School

From our Head of Middle School

Welcome to Week 1 of Term 3!

It was so lovely to welcome the girls back onto the campus on Tuesday. I trust that the break provided opportunities for our Middle School families to spend time together and recalibrate for the term ahead.

Over the winter break we had some wonderful news from our Year 8 team competing at the National da Vinci Decathlon. Congratulations to Isabella Attard, Grace Beck, Kiki Chen, Rosa Kim, Alice Mao, Ruhani Surana, Amber Li and Katherine Pan who are now national champions!

Congratulations to Zara Kinniburgh who has been selected for the NSW Hockey Under 13 Years squad. This is a wonderful achievement, and we wish Zara good luck in the upcoming trials and future competitions.

This week, Year 7 students from Bennett, Goodlet, Lang and Marden will be out at Vision Valley for their three-day Outdoor Education program. We look forward to sharing many stories and photos with our Middle School families next week.

Year 7

Welcome back to our Year 7 girls and families. It has been lovely to reconnect with the girls and hear about their recent holiday break. We hope that everyone was able to recharge and enjoy a slower pace over the last few weeks.  We would also like to welcome Phoebe J, who started in Year 7 this term.

We hope that most families were able to meet with their daughter’s Compass teachers on Monday. If you were unable to attend this meeting but have any questions or concerns, please contact your daughter’s Compass teacher or Head of Year to follow up as necessary.

After a long break from school, it can take the girls some time to adjust back into school routines. This week we continue to encourage the girls to be proactive about being organised for school each day so that they can make the most of all that is ahead of them this term. Please encourage your daughter to utilise her diary and term planner so that she can map out her academic and Co-curricular commitments for each week.

For the girls in Bennett, Goodlet, Marden and Lang, it has been an exciting week spending time at Vision Valley for their Outdoor Education program. Despite the wet weather it is a fantastic opportunity for the girls to experience new activities, challenge themselves and strengthen their relationships throughout the year group.

Year 8

A big welcome back to our Year 8 students and families for Term 3. We hope that you were able to enjoy some rest and family time over the break. This term we are welcoming four new students into Year 8. Welcome to Jadyn, Krystal, Ella and Annie. We are looking forward to getting to know the girls over the coming weeks and hearing about their experiences in Hong Kong, Copenhagen and Jerrabomberra!

It was wonderful to have so many parents connect with their Compass teachers online on Monday for our Compass Conversations. If you were not able to attend the meeting but have any questions or concerns, please contact your Compass teacher or relevant Head of Year who will be able to follow up accordingly.

Earlier this week, Year 8 students were sent a term planner by email. This may be helpful in planning for the term ahead and entering key dates into their diary. Some important dates ahead for Year 8 this term include the subject selection evening on 17 August, an environmental service day at Vision Valley on 1 September and Garden Party, which will take place on Saturday 17 September.

Congratulations to Olianna Tighe (Pymble Rugby Sevens), who was selected in the holidays for the Sydney Junior Rugby Union 2022 Representative team.

The theme for Directions this term is ‘character’. For the purposes of our Directions curriculum ‘character’ embodies: Personal qualities that shape who we are and what we will become. How will this be achieved? We will explore and define what drives us, how we view the world and what we value in our lives and in our community. Why is this important? Our character motivates and influences our decisions and actions towards positive change in our community and beyond.

The focus of Directions this week was NAIDOC and the 2022 Theme: ‘Get Up! Stand Up! Show Up!’ The theme advocates for, “The relationship between Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples and non‑Indigenous Australians needs to be based on justice, equity, and the proper recognition of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples’ rights.” https://www.naidoc.org.au/

In class students explored the concept of rights and responsibilities and discussed the difference between personal and civic responsibility. This included a discussion about how being informed can be seen as a civic responsibility. Students read and briefly discussed the Uluru Statement from the Heart and then explored what it means to be an Indigenous ally.

REMINDER FOR ALL STUDENTS

Learning for Secondary School students will be face-to-face and on campus from Term 3 as advised via the Parent Portal at the end of Term 2.

Secondary students who test positive to COVID or are not well enough to attend school are to follow the normal procedure by contacting their subject teachers via email and/or referring to Canvas to catch up on missed work.

Homework Help in Term 3

Homework Help is an after-school service offered to all Pymble students in the Secondary School to provide assistance and support with everyday homework, assignments and research skills in a friendly, quiet environment. Homework Help is staffed by teachers from the Learning Support Team. 

When: Monday, Tuesday and Thursday after school: 3.30pm to 4.30pm 

Where: Classroom C3 (Top floor of the Colonnade Building) 

Dates: From Monday Week 3 (1 August) to Thursday Week 9 (15 September)     

For further enquiries, please contact Mrs Lora Lim, Head of Learning Support at llim@pymblelc.nsw.edu.au

Volunteers Needed for the Sri Lankan Food Stall at Pymble’s Garden Party

Mrs Jenny O’Donnell

Head of Middle School

FROM THE SECONDARY SCHOOL PARENT GROUP

Year 7 Co-ordinators                         

Carol Bai   0450855866

Shiva Rich 0414322874

Year 8 Co-ordinator

Sunny Ires  0424878781

From the Upper School

A Message from Mr Riley, Head of Upper School

Hello and welcome to Term 3! It is hard to believe we are there already, but what an enjoyable year it has been. We are very excited for the action-packed term ahead and hope that the Compass conversations on Monday were a great way to plan for future opportunities and to discuss your daughter’s journey to date.

As a keen scientist, over the break I was blown away with the first release of images from the James Webb telescope. It was a wonderful reminder of our key Upper School theme of ‘perspective’. Seeing light from 5,500 galaxies that has been captured having travelled for the last 13 billion years helps to both highlight the wonder of life but also reminds us of our infinitesimally small (yet no less valued) position in the context of the universe.

For me, it reminds me to always try (it isn’t always easy) to consider the bigger picture when dealing with what is right in front of your face. As I’ll be saying to the girls early next week, this might be choosing to rise above something when you don’t really want to, keeping deadlines and pressures in perspective when feeling stressed, and taking that moment to be where and with whom you need to be when it feels right.

As I quoted in an earlier edition:

Remember to look up at the stars and not down at your feet. Try to make sense of what you see and wonder about what makes the universe exist. Be curious. And however difficult life may seem, there is always something you can do and succeed at. It matters that you don’t just give up. – Stephen Hawking

I would like to take this opportunity to congratulate the following students who enjoyed some fantastic successes over the break:

• Lucy Middleton for being selected in the State Water Polo team
• Anda Xintong Wang for becoming the 2022 Junior Latin Open Champion in the ADS Night of Stars DanceSport Championship in WA.

Academic reports were circulated this week and we hope you can find the time over the coming days to discuss your daughter’s progress and areas for development. A reminder that these are available on the MyPymble App and can be found on your daughter’s page by clicking on the ‘Academic’ link.

In Week 4 this term, 56 girls from Year 9 will embark on their pioneering Pilot Residential Program at Vision Valley. This program will be staffed with its own pastoral and academic teams and is unlikely to disrupt normal classes for the remainder of the cohort on the main campus. All Year 9 students who are not attending the pilot programs at Vision Valley will enjoy an Outdoor Education experience in Week 6 Term 4. A few places remain for Term 4 should your daughter now be keen to attend!

On Tuesday 26 July, our Year 9 students will have their Mind Body Spirit Day – The Butterfly Effect. Delivered by Danielle Miller’s Enlighten Education, the girls will enjoy three workshops titled; ‘Forever Friends’, ‘Real Girl Power’, and ‘Love the Skin you are in’.

These workshops will collectively explore how to make, keep, and support good friends, what sisterhood means today, and how our girls can evaluate and respond to messages that bombard them in popular media. For more information, please click here. We will have counselling support available on the day, but should you be concerned about your daughter’s attendance, please contact your daughter’s Head of Year.

I hope that your girls feel well rested and took the opportunity to recharge their batteries over the break. We have loved seeing them back smiling this week and look forward to what we can collectively achieve over the term ahead. As always, please do not hesitate to contact members of our team or the Upper School Office, should we be able to further support you and/or your daughter.

REMINDER FOR ALL STUDENTS

Learning for Secondary School students will be face-to-face and on campus from Term 3 as advised via the Parent Portal at the end of Term 2.

Secondary students who test positive to COVID or are not well enough to attend school are to follow the normal procedure by contacting their subject teachers via email and/or referring to Canvas to catch up on missed work.

Homework Help in Term 3

Homework Help is an after-school service offered to all Pymble students in the Secondary School to provide assistance and support with everyday homework, assignments and research skills in a friendly, quiet environment. Homework Help is staffed by teachers from the Learning Support Team. 

When: Monday, Tuesday and Thursday after school: 3.30pm to 4.30pm 

Where: Classroom C3 (Top floor of the Colonnade Building) 

Dates: From Monday Week 3 (1 August) to Thursday Week 9 (15 September)     

For further enquiries, please contact Mrs Lora Lim, Head of Learning Support at llim@pymblelc.nsw.edu.au

Volunteers Needed for the Sri Lankan Food Stall at Pymble’s Garden Party

Key Dates

Thursday 21 July – Residential Program Information Night

Tuesday 26 July – Year 9 Mind Body Spirit Day – The Butterfly Effect

Thursday 28 July – Textiles on Parade (Years 8 to 11)

Mr Tom Riley

Head of Upper School

From the Senior School

From the Head of Senior School

Welcome back to all for a busy and exciting Term 3. I do hope that you all found time to relax and reconnect with your daughters over the break. Year 12 students have returned for the final term of formal schooling and many were very reflective about this on their first day back.

This term the Year 12 girls will sit their Trial HSC examinations in Weeks 3 and 4. They will also have a Study Day on 29 July. On this day, students can stay at home to work and of course, they are very welcome to come to school to study.

I would like to remind the girls that regular and consistent revision and practising the application of their knowledge by completing past papers are the best forms of preparation. Keeping to solid routines around sleep and exercise are also vital in the lead up to these examinations. The HSC Trials provide a very good reference point for the students to reflect on their areas of strength and those that need more attention. It is helpful to view these as a diagnostic tool which will help the students move forward and prepare thoroughly for their final HSC examinations.

Year 11 girls are beginning the process of the appointment of student leaders for next year and will be voting for their leaders this week. Information has been sent home to both parents and girls regarding the process that will be followed.

REMINDER FOR ALL STUDENTS

Learning for Secondary School students will be face-to-face and on campus from Term 3 as advised via the Parent Portal at the end of Term 2.

Secondary students who test positive to COVID or are not well enough to attend school are to follow the normal procedure by contacting their subject teachers via email and/or referring to Canvas to catch up on missed work.

From the Heads of Year 12

Year 12 have returned from the break refreshed and ready to commence their final term at the College. Lots of students spent time at the College during the Study Camp week or at other times finalising major works and studying. This week their focus is on the upcoming Trial period and final preparations for their exams.

In Directions, students have had their last session as part of the intercultural unit. This unit has generated awareness and conversation around diversity, stereotypes, cultural acceptance and respect. All student contributions have been valid and appreciated. Well done to our Year 12 students who thoughtfully prepared these sessions.

On Wednesday afternoon, after many reschedules, our prefects hosted their Prefect Afternoon Tea. All students enjoyed mixing with others from different schools and eating the treats that were available. All in attendance enjoyed the trivia and there was lots of excitement when the winners were announced. Congratulations to our prefect body on a successful afternoon.

From the Heads of Year 11

Welcome back! 

We hope you had a wonderful break and managed to recharge your batteries. 

Year 11 has an action-packed Term 3 before starting Year 12 next term. This week will see 2 very important events take place. Leadership voting will occur on Friday, with Year 11 applicants putting a lot of effort into their applications. The end of the week will see the Year 11 Formal take place at Luna Park. An event we know that the whole year group is anticipating with eager excitement! 

As we start Term 3, it’s important to be aware of what’s around the corner. Year 11 exams will take place in Weeks 6 and 7 and early Term 3 Directions lessons aim to help students organise their study by exposing students to a range of different techniques. In addition to this, our Futures team is arranging a lesson where students will learn about various post school pathways, as well as university specific language. 

We look forward to a busy yet rewarding Term 3 and hope everyone enjoys their last term of Year 11. 

Homework Help in Term 3

Homework Help is an after-school service offered to all Pymble students in the Secondary School to provide assistance and support with everyday homework, assignments and research skills in a friendly, quiet environment. Homework Help is staffed by teachers from the Learning Support Team. 

When: Monday, Tuesday and Thursday after school: 3.30pm to 4.30pm 

Where: Classroom C3 (Top floor of the Colonnade Building) 

Dates: From Monday Week 3 (1 August) to Thursday Week 9 (15 September)     

For further enquiries, please contact Mrs Lora Lim, Head of Learning Support at llim@pymblelc.nsw.edu.au

Volunteers Needed for the Sri Lankan Food Stall at Pymble’s Garden Party

Mrs Nikki Wyse

Head of Senior School

From the Boarding School

From our Head of Boarding

It is always exciting to welcome our Boarders back and to hear the joy of our Boarding family coming together again for another term. It was especially nice that some of our parents could join us for dinner and start off the term by ‘Eating Like a Boarder’.

It was a much quieter term break here on campus with just some of our Year 12 Boarders on site to attend the College Study Camp. My thanks go to our fabulous Lang House staff, and particularly Anne Graham, Roz Martindale and Vicki McGilvery, who cared for these girls during the time when they would normally be on a break themselves.  Anne also took the time to lead our much anticipated ‘Bringing the Joy of Art to Boarding’ project and I am sure the girls will appreciate the new installations that were lovingly and expertly installed by our Facilities team.

Staying Healthy and Well

As always, we have a strong focus on personal and environmental hygiene in order to minimise the risk of infectious disease. We will continue our twice weekly Rapid Antigen Surveillance Testing and strongly encourage the Boarders to wear masks when in indoors. Thank you in advance for your willingness to promptly collect your daughter should she become unwell.

Boarding Hits the Road

This week our Deputy Director of Boarding, Mrs Katie White, will be out and about meeting families in North Western New South Wales. If you are in Moree on this Thursday or Tamworth on Friday or Saturday, please call in and say hello to team Pymble!

Loving Love It

The Love It program is back and bigger and better than ever. We have lots of exciting opportunities for the girls to engage, have fun and get to know each other and local Boarders. This week we have the Year 11 Formal, a trip to the driving range and the opportunity for a ferry ride to Manly for a day of exploration.  A hard copy of the program is available in the Houses, or you can click here for the link to the program.

Dates for your Diary

Sunday 14 August – Gordon and Pymble Uniting Church Service (no leave for Boarders between 9.00am and 11.00am)

Friday 16 September – Boarding Parent Group Meeting, 2.00pm

Friday 16 September – Boarding Community Event (no leave for Boarders from 4.00pm), 7.00pm

Saturday 17 September – Garden Party (no leave for Boarders)

Tuesday 20 September – Year 12 Boarders and Parents’ Celebration

Friday 23 September- Boarders’ Travel Day

Mrs Carolyn Burgess

Director of Boarding

Save the Date

Please add the following dates to your Boarding calendar. If you missed out on a copy of our calendar, please let us know at boarding@pymblelc.nsw.edu.au and we will send one out to you. 

Friday 22 July and Saturday 23 July
Boarding Schools Expo Tamworth

Sunday 14 August
Combined Chapel Service, all Boarders are required to attend

Tuesday 13 September
Boarders’ End of Term Chapel and Year 12 Farewell, all Boarders are required to attend

Friday 16 September
Boarding Family Event there will be no leave for Boarders between 5.00pm Friday 16 September and 3.00pm Saturday 17 September

Saturday 17 September
Garden Party

Tuesday 20 September
Year 12 Parents and Boarders Celebration

Tuesday 29 November
End of Term Chapel and Christmas Dinner

Co-curricular Administration

Term 2 Co-curricular Performance Awards

Congratulations to students who have received a Performance Award for Term 2 2022. Please click here to view the full list of award winners. 

2022 Co-curricular Programs

Most Co-curricular programs started or continued this week, from Tuesday 19 July, unless previously advised that the program would not be starting until Week 2. Confirmations for all programs starting in Term 3 were sent on Tuesday 12 July. If you have not received confirmation of your daughters program or have any questions about your daughter’s registrations, please do not hesitate to contact Co-curricular Administration at ccsa@pymblelc.nsw.edu.au If you would like to withdraw your daughter from a program, transfer between programs, or have missed registering her for a program, registration requests can be made by clicking here and completing the Co-curricular Registration Request form. Please note, we are receiving a high volume of emails, calls and registration requests at this time so we appreciate your patience as we get back to you which may take a couple of days.

A reminder that our conditions of Co-curricular registration were updated for 2022 and can be found by clicking here.

Term 4 Saturday Sport Registrations

This is a reminder that registrations for Term 4 Saturday sports will remain open until Friday 5 August at 12.00pm. The options available to students are as follows:

• IPSHA Basketball (Year 3 to 6)
• IPSHA Cricket (Year 3 to 6)
• IPSHA Tennis (Year 3 to 6)
• Cricket Sixers (Year 7 to 12)
• Summer Rowing (Year 7 to 12)
• IGSA Tennis (Year 7 to 12)
• Santa Sabina Volleyball (Year 7 to 12)
• IGSA Water Polo (Year 7 to 12)
• IGSA Touch Football (Year 7 to 12)

All registrations are made via the online registration system, which can be accessed from the Co-curricular at Pymble pages of MyPymble (click here – parent log in required).

Mrs Susan Lindsay

Acting Head of Co-curricular Administration

Sports

Athletics

Over the holiday break, Pymble held a three-day Athletics and Cross Country training camp at Narrabeen Lakeside Caravan Park, with a total of 32 Pymble athletes taking part.

The girls were taken through their paces, with intense, quality track sessions every day under the guidance and direction of our high-level track and field coaches.

Our Athletics Captains took the lead each training session by beginning with a warm up. They had also put together a wonderful trivia night for the team, consisting of prizes which our Pymble team really enjoyed. Our athletes were also given an opportunity to extend their knowledge on the importance of nutrition as an athlete, followed by a tasty (and healthy) post work out smoothie! 

With early morning rises consisting of a morning run down to the rock pools and yoga, it was the perfect combination to start the day.

Our Health and Fitness Co-ordinator, Mr Jack Pennington, also visited, taking our athletes to their limits by testing their strength in a circuit, focusing on lower and upper body strength, with a mix of plyometric exercises. 

With back-to-back training sessions every day, and a few sore bodies, we took our Pymble athletes for a recovery swim in the ocean rock pool, followed by a relaxing evening at the cinemas. 

It was so exciting to have training camps back again. We hope that our athletes feel better prepared coming into the Independent Girls’ Schools Association (IGSA) season this term, commencing with the first twilight carnival on Friday 22 July at Sydney Olympic Park.

Thank you to all the staff and coaches that attended the camp, we know the girls thoroughly enjoyed themselves, and we look forward to many more in the future.

Miss Laura Verlinden

Sports Co-ordinator – Athletics

Cross Country

Our Cross Country athletes have been training hard throughout the holidays for their next big event in the Cross Country calendar. Good luck to the following Pymble athletes who will be competing in the NSW All Schools Championships in Eastern Creek on Friday 22 July.

• Tessa Newitt (Year 9)
• Abigail Ballhausen (Year 11)
• Georgia Phillips (Year 10)
• Caitlyn Tan (Year 11)
• Nea Shingler (Year 12)
• Lucia O’Dea (Year 11)
• Annabel Maple-Brown (Year 12)
• Yi Ying Lim (Year 11)

Our Pymble athletes will be striving to for a place in the NSW team to compete at the Australian Cross Country Championships in South Australia on Saturday 27 August.  

Ms Megan O’Keeffe
Co-ordinator – Cross Country

Dance

Updates on Dance at Pymble

In the last week of the holidays the Co-curricular Dance Department held Junior Dance Workshops. The workshops were open to any Pymble student from Year 3 to Year 6 that wanted to explore different genres of dance. All students had a wonderful time and it was great for them to make new friends and learn new dance skills.

Eisteddfods continue in Term 3 for our Dance Eisteddfod Groups. We wish them all the best!

In Term 3, all Onstage Dance Classes will be busy preparing for their Dance Showcase. Students will be rehearsing their routines ready to perform in Week 5, Term 4.

Miss Katrina Cluff

Head of Dance

Drama

Welcome Back!

Welcome back to our K-12 Co-Curricular Drama students and also to those joining us in Semester 2. We have a really exciting term coming up with various Eisteddfods, Competitions for our Improvisation/Theatresports students and also Drama Festival teams, please check the parent portal regularly for messages for these. We will also be showcasing our Years 7-9 Co-Curricular Drama Production, Peter Pan on the 15, 16 and 17 of September in the GMCPA, booking details for tickets will be shared closer to. A reminder of Drama students needing to wear Drama blacks to their classes afterschool, a black t-shirt and black pants, as well as comfortable sneakers. I hope all Drama students have a great term of Drama, as we are busily prepared our showcase items for our end of year performances and film festivals.

New Co-Curricular Drama Staff

We welcome in Semester 2, two new Co-Curricular Drama staff to our team, we are thrilled to have their expertise and creativity as part of our Drama team.

Rhianna Spooner – Filmmaking

Rhianna is a director, producer and screenwriter. She is currently in her graduate year of studies at the Australian Film TV & Radio School. Rhianna brings 10 years experience as a working artist. She comes from a background in professional dance and theatre, and is highly engaged in the regional arts space. Rhianna grew up on a farm in the Yackandandah Valley. From an early age she enjoyed taking classes at Murray Youth Ballet in the nearby town of Albury. She left her hometown during high school to dance full-time at the Queensland Ballet. She initially intended to be a dancer/choreographer but suffered an ongoing injury in 2014. During this time a teacher contacted her parents back home, encouraging them to put her in drama classes. She took classes with HotHouse Theatre, and upon graduating high school was accepted into the National Theatre in Melbourne. In 2017, at age 19, she was invited to study at the Royal Central School of Speech and Drama in London. She deferred and took a hiatus to explore climate sciences and journalism, before deciding to complete a bachelor’s degree in filmmaking at AFTRS. Rhianna is the recipient of the 2021 AFTRS Scholarship fund. Rhianna has written, produced and directed a number of projects including short films, music videos, web series and documentaries. She is currently developing her AFTRS capstone project and pursuing a career as an independent filmmaker.

Rebecca York – Drama Festival

Rebecca has been teaching Drama for 10 years across Sydney. She has a Bachelor of Theatre Studies (University of New England) and a Graduate Diploma in Secondary Education (University of New South Wales). Rebecca is a trained singer, dancer and actor having worked with many theatre companies and musical societies, such as Canterbury Theatre Guild, Earle Page Musical Society, Castle Hill Players, Felt Tip Theatre, and Bare Bones Opera. 

She has a particular passion for Musical Theatre because of its incorporation of all three performing arts disciplines. In this field, she has designed and taught several courses to both adults and school age students through TAFE as part of a cert 3 in community, dance, theatre, and event for over 6 years. 

As a director, Rebecca has produced over 7 largescale original musicals, as well as 3 original theatre performances as part of the Sydney VIVID festival. One of which was a highly acclaimed original verbatim piece entitled “Memories of Sydney.” Her most recent directed performance was “Wendy and Peter Pan” which showcased over 45 performers, and included high energy physical theatre, and dance elements. As a choreographer, she has choreographed several events ranging from an intimate vaudeville showcases setting to a large scale event for the Sydney fringe festival.

HSC Drama Showcase

The HSC Drama showcase will take place in Term 3, Week 2 on Tuesday the 26 and Wednesday 27 of July, 7:00pm in the Pymble Drama Theatre (ex-SLT). The evening will feature Individual, Group Performances, Video Drama and Portfolio of Theatre Criticism. There are 20 students in HSC Drama this year and the cohort will perform across two evenings. Seating is limited so please book prior to secure your ticket.

Year 12 Drama Class One

Amelia Brown, Sophie Coughlan, Amelia Fantham, Arabella Ibbotson, Mehreen Khan, Ruby Nicholas, Samantha Scott, Pippa Stoodley-Williamson, Chloe Tedesco, Tahmara Thomas

Year 12 Drama Class Two

Annabelle Ainsworth, Alisha Behl, Antoinette Boxall, Kate Falconer-Flint, Ciara Gibson, Kashika Goswami, Annika Johnson, Anna Mufford, Tessa Webster, Rosanna van Horen 

Mrs Tamara Sweetman

Head of Drama

Fencing

On Sunday 26 June, Sienna Stephens (Year 11) and Alyssa Yee (Year 11) competed in the NSW Cadet Under 17 State Championships in Sydney. With a competitive field, our Pymble team competed with great courage. Sienna had a tough final falling short by only five points to MLC to finish in second place. Alyssa won three out of six matches and finished in fifth place overall.

The following weekend on Friday 1 July, Sienna Stephens (Year 11) and Alyssa Yee (Year 11) competed in the Australian and Oceania Under 17 Cadet Championships in Sydney. Sienna and Alyssa had an outstanding competition where they competed against girls from New Zealand, French Polynesia, Singapore and from all around Australia. Sienna finished in eighth place with Alyssa finishing in 12th place. Both Sienna and Alyssa also competed in the NSW teams component which narrowly went down to Victoria and finished in second place.

Congratulations to Sienna who is currently ranked number four in Australia for the Under 17 Cadet Épée category.

Sienna and Alyssa will compete on Saturday 23 July in Sydney for the Australian Senior Schools Championships.

On Wednesday 6 July to Sunday 10 July, three Pymble students competed in the 2022 Koala Mini Challenge in Sydney against athletes from NSW and Victoria.

Large fields meant for some high-quality athletes which provided our Pymble team with an amazing opportunity to progress their skills.

Aimee Qui (Year 2) – Gold medal in the Under 8 Years Sabre category

Lulu Hargraves (Year 7) – Bronze medal in the Under 14 Years Épée category

Polly Hargraves (Year 5) – 8th in the Under 12 Years Épée category.

Congratulations to our Fencing team for an amazing few weeks of fencing!

Miss Megan O’Keeffe

Sports Co-ordinator – Fencing

Language Arts

Archdale Debating

Archdale Debating recommences next Tuesday at Pymble for Round 6. The following Tuesday we will travel to Monte for the final preliminary round.

Evatt Model United Nations competition

During the break Maya Hu and Jessie Xie performed well in the Evatt Model United Nations competition and will now be representing Pymble in the Grand Final to be held next Tuesday at State Parliament House. Good luck girls.

Social Debating

Social Debating classes commenced this afternoon. We are opening up an additional class and have found a coach, as there are thirty on the waiting list. Social Debating is proving very popular.

UN Negotiations and Legacy Public Speaking Competition

The UN Negotiations competition and Legacy Public Speaking competition commence soon and girls are busy preparing.

Mediation

Well done to our Mock Mediation team who are through to the Quarter finals commencing this Friday.

Mock Trial

Last night we welcomed the Normanhurst Boys’ Mock Trial team to Pymble. The Pymble team were strong and we won the trial. We are hoping to proceed to elimination rounds and finals.

Festival of Speech

The Festival of Speech will be held on the afternoon and evening of 21 October and 22 October. There will be an extended program this year with Improvised Drama and Soap box Public Speaking. The team will be selected early in Term 3. Pymble will host this event and we will have students from around twenty-seven girls’ schools attending. There will be many opportunities for students to assist.

Mrs Bronwyn Hubbard

Head of Language Arts

Music

Term 2 Secondary School Ensemble Concert Photos

There are some wonderful photos of all the music groups from the Term 2 Ensemble Concert: Auf Wiedersehen – Farewell Mrs Turner and our Music Class of 2022. These can be purchased through LightBox Photography. Please follow the details below.

• Visit: lightboxphotography.com.au
• Select ‘View and Order Photos’ from the right hand menu.
• User registration will be required to view your photos the first time.
• Enter your name, email and a user password. Note: This ‘password’ is not the access login but your own user password that you create. This prevents others accessing your photo order.
• Select ‘Access Gallery’ (top right).
  • Enter the following code into ‘Access Gallery’ Photos code: music2022
• To view the photos on repeated occasions only your email and ‘user password’ is required.
• In the ‘Prints & Products’ column select the product with associated size.
  • Selection of prints
  • Block mount prints
  • Canvas prints
• To finalise your order please select ‘Check Out’ and complete the payment and postal details.
• Options for sending your order can be via online or postage (Lightbox Photography, 24 Alder Avenue, Lane Cove SYDNEY 2066)

If you have any further inquiries please contact Lindsay Kearney – 0425 255 264

City of Sydney Eisteddfod Results

Congratulations to the Amazon Trio who competed in the City of Sydney Eisteddfod (19 Years and Under Chamber Music). The students performed exceptionally well and were awarded second place.

The Amazon Trio comprises clarinettist Aine Oo (Year 9), cellist Gabrielle Zhong (Year 11) and pianist Ella Liu (Year 9). The ensemble was established in 2021, under the guidance of Mrs Sabina Turner. The trio has worked closely with various renowned artists and musicians including Frank Celata, Zoltán Szabó, Clemens Leske and Kathryn Selby. 

The name “Amazon” reflects the powerful ancient female warriors with their synchronicity and passion. As a group they strive to be closely bonded and musically complete.  

Later this year the students will travel to Melbourne to compete as finalists in the Strike a Chord at the Melbourne Concert Hall.

Mr Kurt Schweinberger

Head of Co-curricular Music

Orienteering

Congratulations to Nea Shingler (Year 12) who competed in the World Open Orienteering Championships in Denmark in June. Nea placed 19th in her qualification group. She also competed at World Juniors in Portugal in July placing 43rd overall and the first Australian home. Well done, Nea!

Mrs Katie Edwards

Head of Sport – Years 7 to 12

Performing Arts

Welcome to Semester 2 and another busy term within the Performing Arts. Rehearsals, debates and lessons are well underway, and it is sure to be a jam-packed term of creativity and fine performances. 

This term there will be a wide variety of showcases, concerts and performances to spotlight our diverse and talented actors, dancers, musicians and public speakers. It will begin with the HSC Drama Showcase in Week 2, followed by the Senior School Music Scholar’s Recital in Week 4. ​There will also be Mock Mediation Quarter finals, Evatt Model UN Grand Finals and many Eisteddfod performances. We look forward to seeing you at these performances in support of our amazing performers and dedicated staff.

Social Debating classes have commenced for Semester 2, Archdale continues next week, and our Mock Trial team won against Normanhurst Boy’s yesterday and are hoping to progress to finals rounds. 

Ballet and Junior School students participated in some very exciting holiday workshops and now our dancers are preparing for the Dance Showcase to be held in Term 4 and several upcoming Eisteddfods performances.

The Speech and Drama girls are getting excited about performing at the Ryde Eisteddfod over the next couple of months.  They are practising poems, drama, prose passages and speeches in readiness for their performances.Go Pymble Speech and Drama!

Finally, the Pymble Performing Arts Support Group will be meeting on Tuesday 2 August, 7.00pm. All parents are welcome to attend the meeting, which will be held in the Music Gallery. Please contact Kim Johnson (Head of the PPASG) for further information at kimbo.johnson@gmail.com

Rugby Sevens

Over the holiday break, Ruby Nicholas (Year 12) in team NSW One and Jessica Colbran (Year 11) in team NSW Two, competed at the Australian Schools Rugby Championship held at Knox Grammar School. Both girls were excellent on the field and came up against some of the best school Rugby Sevens players in the country.

NSW One took out the inaugural championship and Ruby Nicholas was selected into the Australian Girls Merit team! Congratulations Ruby on a great representative campaign. 

Mr Jack Garrad

Co-ordinator – Rugby Sevens

Sailing

Our Pymble Advanced Sailing team represented NSW at the Australian Teams Racing Championships during the five-day nationals competition held at Georges River in Sydney from Wednesday 6 July to Sunday 10 July. The team came up against the best schools representing the other states and territories around Australia. Our girls battled windy, cold and rainy conditions throughout the week but remained solid as a team and gave it everything over the marathon event.

The team finished a fantastic fourth placed girls’ team and third placed girls’ school in Australia.

A big congratulations to the following students: Isabella Holdsworth (Year 12), Olivia Williams (Year 12), Penelope Girdis (Year 11), Chantelle Wu (Year 11), Clio Moran (Year 11), Charlotte Wykes (Year 10), Sara Bruce (Year 10) and absent team member Simone Bennett (Year 8) on an amazing year of dedicated training, regattas and team building.

Mr Edward Ellwood-Hall

Sports Co-ordinator – Sailing

Snow Sports

NSW Regional Snow Sports Day 1

Ski Cross Division 4

Competitors: Aurora Zhang (Year 6), Eloise Gavagna (Year 5), Hilary Eyers (Year 5), Imogen Jones (Year 6), Estelle Macolino (Year 5)

Result:

• Pymble A Team 2nd Regional Team Champions
• Pymble B Team 16th
• Pymble C Team 14th

Our first event for interschools took place on High Noon course at Thredbo. It has been two years since an interschools event and our outstanding Pymble girls were strong down the course.

Congratulations to our Pymble A Team for coming second place overall team.

Alpine Division 5

Competitors: Amélie Rahme (Year 4), Zoe Liang (Year 4), Zara Younger (Year 4), Christina Yang (Year 3), Ellie He (Year 3)

Result:

• 4th Team

It was a great start to the morning session with Amélie Rahme (Year 4) being the first athlete down the mountain. The busy lifts early in the morning made it a challenge between runs but all our Division 5 athletes made clean runs in the event – well done, girls!

Alpine Division 6

Competitors: Kimberly Zhao (Year 2), Michelle Zhang (Kindergarten)

The first event for our two Division 6 athletes, both were confident and were all smiles at the end of the event! Well done, Kimberly and Michelle.

NSW Regional Snow Sports Day 2

What a great day for team Pymble! Firstly, we wanted to give a big shout out and thank you to all our parent volunteers on the snow today and yesterday: Simon Clifford, Elie Rahme, Percy Yang and Ke Zhao. These events would not run without your assistance, so well done team!

Alpine Divison 4

Competitors: Aurora Zhang (Year 6), Eloise Gavagna (Year 5), Hilary Eyers (Year 5), Imogen Jones (Year 6), Cienna Heald (Year 5), Grace Akers (Year 5), Ashleigh Du (Year 5), Bella Xu (Year 5)

Result:

• Pymble A Team                                     1st Regional Champions
• Individual: Aurora Zhang (Year 6) 2nd Individual Athlete

Rossignal race course opened the full course for our Division 4 alpine skiers. There was a delay in the race start due to competition organisers judging the challenging and icy conditions on the mountain. In true Pymble fashion our athletes took the delay in their stride and made strong runs down the mountain. A big congratulations to our Pymble Team A who finished champions of the event and were overall winners of both the boys and girls divisions.

Ski Cross Division 5

Competitors: Amélie Rahme (Year 4), Zoe Liang (Year 4), Yixin (Christina) Yang (Year 3), Ellie He (Year 3)

Result:

• Pymble A Team 4th
• Pymble B Team 10th

It was a tricky start to the day with a delay in chairlifts and icy conditions much like the alpine course on High Noon. Well done to team Pymble’s final event for the regionals campaign and thank you to our course officials who assisted on this event

Ski Cross Division 6

Competitors: Kimberly Zhao (Year 2), Michelle Zhang (Kindergarten)

Result:

• Pymble A Team 1st Regional Champions

Kimberly and Michelle had another fantastic day on the slopes for the beginning of the Regional Interschools competition. This time they were named Ski Cross Division 6 Champions and finished in first place as a team. Amazing work to both stars for a fantastic start to your interschools journeys.

Snowboard X Divisiom 5

Competitors: Ashlee-Rose Saba (Year 4)

Result:

• 4th Individual Result

This was Ashlee’s first snowboard event for Interschools and she gave it her all in very tough conditions. Well done, Ashlee!

Moguls Division 4

Competitors: Hilary Eyers (Year 5), Eloise Gavagna (Year 5), Bella Xu (Year 5)

Result:

• 2nd Team

Our Division 4 Moguls team finished off Day 2 of interschools on the Hump Run course for the first Moguls event of the week. Hilary, Eloise and Bella had a fantastic team finish of second place. Hilary finished first place overall individual and was offered a two-day training camp scholarship at Perisher in August – great work team!

Great moment around the grounds Day 2

Finally, a shout out to this dad whose daughter fell asleep on the mountain for one hour and he made sure she didn’t slip down the mountain.

NSW Regional Snow Sports Day 3

Day 3 was snowboarders’ day. Conditions improved from Day 2 and the sun was shining in Thredbo!

Snowboard GS Division 3

Competitors: Alessandra Braysich (Year 10)

It was Team Braysich on the mountain to start the day with snowboard athlete Sasha competing in the Snowboard GS event on Rossignal race course, Jeff Braysich as the start official, Claudia Braysich as team coach and Michelle Braysich as chief supporter. In the icy and steep conditions, Sasha did a great job and improved on her first run by 21 seconds in her second attempt – well done Sasha on stepping up and giving a new event a go to help team Pymble in the snowboarding events.

Snowboard GS Division 5

Competitors: Ashlee-Rose Saba (Year 4)

Result:

• 2nd Individual Champion

In the Division 5 event, Ashlee-Rose Saba (Year 4) competed, finishing off the day’s events with two great runs down Rossignol race course. In great team spirit, the Braysich family and Sasha all came along to cheer and support Ashlee down the mountain. Ashlee finished second place individual champion.

Great moment around the grounds Day 3:

Snow angels were created by Co-ordinator Megan and Ashlee.

NSW Regional Snow Sports Day 4

Day 4 was yet another sunny day in Thredbo and our skiers returned to the mountain for a very successful and enjoyable day. A big thank you to alumni Claudia Wheatley for filling two volunteer positions today and doing Pymble proud. Also thank you again to Simon Clifford for another day of assisting on the mountain.

Alpine Division 3

Competitors: Arabella Wheatley (Year 8), Georgia Yuen (Year 7), Winter Shirvington (Year 8), Athena Chen (Year 8), Alessia Macolino (Year 8), Amber Wang (Year 8)

Result:

• Pymble A Team 3rd
• Individual Result: Arabella Wheatley (Year 8) – 1st Individual Champion

Alpine returned to Rossi for our Skiers and Alpine Division 3 kicked off the day. Today it was Team Wheatley on the mountain: Arabella competing, Kyra as team coach, Claudia Wheatley as finish line official and Simon ferrying equipment and assisting at the top of the race course. In a very successful morning Arabella Wheatley (Year 8) was first placed individual champion after posting the same time in her two runs. Winter Shirvington had a great first race for Pymble today and well done to Georgia, Athena, Alissa and Amber on the mountain – great job team!

Alpine Division 1

Competitors: Sienna Stephens (Year 11), Catherine Gavagna (Year 11), Rhiannon Castle (Year 11)

Result:

• Team Result 1st Champions
• Individual Results: Sienna Stephens (Year 11) 1st Individual Champion, Catherine Gavagna (Year 11) 4th

Alpine returned later in the day on Rossignol race course. The conditions continued to be icy but our Division 1 skiers raced down the mountain. Congratulations to Snow Sports Captain Sienna Stephens (Year 11) who finished first and Catherine Gavagna (Year 11) who finished fourth. Also a big shout out to our Cross Country ski superstar Rhiannon for two great runs down the mountain.

Ski Cross Division 2

Competitors: Alessandra Braysich (Year 10), Olivia Clifford (Year 10), Louise Lovell (Year 9), Sarah Lovell (Year 9), Evelyn Zhu (Year 9)

Result:

• Pymble A Team 3rd
• Pymble B Team 12th
• Individual: Alessandra Braysich (Year 10) 1st Individual Champion

Ski Cross returned to High Noon. Sasha had an amazing two runs and finished as first place overall champion. It was panic stations to begin with when Sasha did not have her Leki straps, however Clem Yuen (pictured below) saved the day. The combined team finished third place. Shout out to Liv, Louise, Sara and Evelyn for clean runs and having a great attitude for a fantastic team effort.

Moguls Division 3

Competitors: Arabella Wheatley (Year 8), Winter Shirvington (Year 8) 

Result:

• Team Result 1st Overall Champions
• Individual: Arabella Wheatley: 2nd, Winter Shirvington (Year 8) 3rd

Well done to both Arabella and Winter who both had great runs down the course and finished second and third respectively with a first place overall team win.

Moguls Division 2

Competitors: Alessandra Braysich (Year 10), Olivia Clifford (Year 10)

Result:

• Team Result 2nd
• Individual: Alessandra Braysich (Year 10) 4th, Olivia Clifford (Year 10) 7th

It was a great time at Division 2 Moguls; there were smiles all round and it was a great sunny day at Hump Run. Well done to the dream team of Division 2, Sasha and Liv, for another great performance.

Moguls Division 1

Competitors: Sienna Stephens (Year 11), Catherine Gavagna (Year 11)

Result:

• Team Result 2nd
• Individual result: Sienna Stephens 3rd, Catherine Gavagna (Year 11) 4th

Snow Sports Captain Sienna Stephens (Year 11) finished in an amazing third place after only one run on the event as she had to rush over to Alpine and a fantastic fourth place finish for Catherine Gavagna (Year 11).

Great moment around the grounds Day 4

A shout out to our super coaches, Kyra, Claudia and Will. Our coaches had a busy day at Hump Run assisting with carrying skis up the moguls course between runs. Best of luck to Will with the leg cramps after more than 15 trips up the hill!

NSW Regional Snow Sports Day 5

Final day and what a day it was! The sun left and the snow and wind came back for the last events at Regional Interschools for 2022. We would like to thank all our team members for such an amazing effort. You all did Pymble and more importantly yourselves proud in the way you competed throughout the week. It would be amiss not to mention the support and dedication of all our amazing parents putting in countless hours of effort (and even more driving) to make this all possible, so thank you!

Alpine Division 2

Competitors: Alessandra Braysich (Year 10), Olivia Clifford (Year 10), Louise Lovell (Year 9), Sarah Lovell (Year 9), Evelyn Zhu (Year 9)

Result:

• Individual Result: Alessandra Braysich (Year 10) 1^st Individual Champion

The final Alpine event on Rossignol race course saw windy and fast conditions down the mountain, but nothing our Division 2 dream team couldn’t handle. Amazing efforts from all four competitors with Alessandra taking out first place with a sub 22 second run! In some tricky icy conditions, the girls all found their groove in their second attempt, all bettering their first run times. Well done team Pymble.

 Ski Cross Division 1

Competitors: Sienna Stephens (Year 11), Catherine Gavagna (Year 11), Rhiannon Castle (Year 11)

Result:

• Team Result 1st Overall Champions
• Individual Results: Sienna Stephens (Year 11) 4th, Catherine Gavanagh (Year 11) 5th, Rhiannon Castle (Year 11) 26^th

Kicking off the final morning at the High Noon Ski Cross we had our champion team of Sienna, Catherine and Rhiannon giving it their all in their final event. With a dusting of snow overnight, our Pymble skiers definitely looked at home on the course which showed as they were able to take out first place in their final event of the week.

Ski Cross Division 3

Competitors: Arabella Wheatley (Year 8), Georgia Yuen (Year 7), Winter Shirvington (Year 8), Athena Chen (Year 8), Alessia Macolino (Year 8), Amber Wang (Year 8)

Result:

• Pymble A Team 1st Champions of Arabella Wheatley (Year 8), Georgia Yuen (Year 7) and Winter Shirvington (Year 8)
• Pymble B Team: TBC
• Individual: Arabella Wheatley (Year 8) 1st Champion, Georgia Yuen (Year 7) 2nd

Our second event of the day at the High Noon Ski Cross course. By the time the race was underway we had some heavy snow falling and less than ideal visibility for the event, but an amazing effort from both teams to finish off the week with some amazing results. A special mention to Arabella Wheatley (Year 8) who after a nasty tumble over the finish line in her first attempt, was still able to take out first place in the event. We were all very relieved to hear that Arabella was okay and sustained no major injuries. Also, an amazing effort from Georgia Yuen (Year 7) to come back from a tough day to take out the silver medal and second place.

Great moment around the grounds Day 5

A rare sight! Pymble team parents stepping into the limelight for a sneak peek into the behind the scenes of Snow Sports.

Mr Edward Ellwood-Hall

Sports Co-ordinator – Snow Sports

Swimming

2022 NSW SC Metropolitan Swimming Championships 15 July to 17 July

Twenty Pymble students and two alumni competed at the Sydney Metro Championships for the Knox Pymble Swim Club (KPSC) on the final weekend of the school holidays. Most had just finished a solid block of aerobic training so achieving the following results for the Knox Pymble Swimming Club to win the point score was sensational.

Medallists

Megan Chia (Year 6) – Silver 11 Years 100m Butterfly

Jessica Cullen (year 9) – Silver 14 Years 50m Backstroke

Bella Zhang (Year 11) – Bronze 16 Years and Over 200m Individual Medley, bronze Women’s 100m Individual Medley, bronze 16 Years and Over 400m Individual Medley

Adrianna Fydler (Alumni) – Silver 16 Years and Over 400m Freestyle, bronze 16 Years and Over 100m Backstroke, bronze 16 Years and Over 200m Backstroke

Claudia Fydler (Alumni) – Silver 16 Years and Over 200m Butterfly, silver Women’s 50m Butterfly, bronze 16 Years and Over 100m Butterfly

Maile Wilson (Year 7) – Bronze 12 Years 100m Backstroke (Ryde Swimming Club)

Point Scorers

Indianna Cameron (Year 9), Megan Chia (Year 6), Arabella Cox (Year 10), Jessica Cullen (Year 9), Imogen Jones (Year 6), Annabelle Li (Year 7), Anne Liu (Year 6), Lily Lockhart (Year 9), Jisoo Yeou (Year 7), Bella Zhang (Year 11), Adrianna Fydler (Alumni) and Claudia Fydler (Alumni).

The following Pymble swimmers competed with some recording personal best times:

Hannah Carmichael (Year 9), Arabella Cox (Year 10), Oriana Fenton (Year 5), Imogen Jones (Year 6), Samantha Lever (Year 11), Lily Lockhart (Year 9), Jessica Needham (Year 12), Isabelle Reed (Year 10) Charlotte Sadler (Year 5), Angelica Tan (Year 12) and Sarah Tian (Year 8).

A massive shout out to our coaching team of Michelle Thomas, Rafael Rodrigues, Andrea Raso and Steven Qu for their contribution leading into the meet. An extra shout out to Michelle Thomas who assisted me and covered us all with the coaching all weekend. Michelle also provided me with the stats for this report.

Ms Leanne Speechley

Head Coach – Swimming

Volleyball

Congratulations to Emma Sargeant (Year 11) who recently captained the NSW Under 19 Years Women’s team to a bronze medal at the Australian Junior Volleyball Championships over the holiday break.

Emma has been a consistent performer over the last number of years and being named captain is a testimony to her great character and determination.

Well done, Emma!

Mr Jack Garrad

Sports Co-ordinator – Volleyball

Spuds for Floods

Pymble Cyber Safety Hub

Your family, your school and cyber safety

Our school recognises that children today are growing up in an increasingly online world and that it’s important that we do more to support and guide them to navigate this digital landscape.

Successfully developing healthy and responsible digital citizens requires a holistic approach, and that’s why our school’s cyber safety ecosystem allows us to work collaboratively with you to support your children’s digital development and provide the advice and support you need.

Click here to access the Pymble Cyber Safety Hub.

Pymble Station Upgrade

Click here to read information from NSW Government about the Pymble Station Upgrade. 

From the Director of Community Engagement and Advancement

Events Update: Garden Party, Parent Daughter Dance more!

A big warm welcome back to our Pymble family! We hope you enjoyed a relaxing term break and are feeling revitalised for the term ahead. We have much for your daughter to be excited about with a jam-packed events schedule for Semester 2 including JSPG Build-a-Pymble-Bear on 27 July, our Father’s Day Lunch on 2 September and the Have a Go Expo (date TBC).

Our biggest upcoming event of course is our ever-popular Garden Party. After a two-year hiatus due to COVID and flooding, the party is officially back on. Come 17 September our campus will come alive with rides, food and market stalls, demonstrations, live music, competitions and more! Make sure you mark this fun family day out in your diaries – and keep your fingers crossed for sunshine.

Another extra special event on our Community Engagement calendar is the upcoming Years 2 and 3 Parent Daughter Dance. On Saturday 30 July, you’ll have the opportunity to make some lovely memories with your daughter – and show off your dance moves!

A reminder also to our Secondary School parents to please encourage your daughter to sign up for Spuds for Floods – a great initiative to help raise much-needed funds for the Sathya Sai School in Murwillumbah, Northern NSW whose school facilities, resources and wider school community were greatly affected by the devastating floods earlier this year. Students in Years 7 to 12 can enjoy a yummy spud lunch on the Marden Lawn on Tuesday 26 July for a good cause. Please note, that today (Thursday 21 July) is your last chance to pre-order. To do so, please click here.

To view all our upcoming events for Semester 2, please click here.

MyPymble app 

The one-stop shop for College communications, aka the game-changing Pymble Portal, is fully operational and has already been updated to iron out any technical glitches and include new features. Please update your app in the app store to access these benefits if you haven’t already done so. We hope you’ve found it useful in keeping up to date with your daughter’s schooling journey at Pymble.

If you haven’t downloaded the MyPymble app, please do so here.

Mrs Kelly Mancey

Director – Community Engagement & Advancement

Important: Communications at Pymble

Important: MyPymble app updated   

We hope you have been enjoying the benefits of our MyPymble parent portal – the one-stop shop for parents and carers to receive and store College communications. Going forward only minimal communications will be sent via email, with our ultimate goal being 100 per cent of communication to be viewed via MyPymble.

The College greatly encourages all parents and carers to please update the app via the app store as we have updated the software with some new features and technical enhancements to further improve the user experience.  

Communications posted on MyPymble include academic, community, events, sport and co-curricular information, as well as important messages from Dr Hadwen. All communications sent to a year group, sub-school or the entire school will be posted on MyPymble and will not be emailed.  

Please check your family is set up for success this term by ensuring you download the MyPymble app and have access to all the information relevant to your daughter’s learning. 

To log in you will need to use your unique carer number and password, which you should have all received via email. If you are unable to log in, please reset your password using this link, or alternatively, contact the IT Helpdesk on +61 2 9855 7771 for assistance.  

For further information on these tools please click here to view the MyPymble User Guide.  

Semester 2 Community Events Calendar

Parent Contact Directory

We are excited to launch the new user-friendly Parent Contact Directory which you can access via MyPymble or the MyPymble app. The Parent Contact Directory has been developed for parents and carers to opt-in to sharing their contact details with other parents and carers in their daughters/s year group to help build community connections. Please note if you give permission for your details to be added to the directory this will enable all parents across your daughter’s year group to also view your details.

As per our Privacy Policy (which can be viewed on our website), these contact details are for personal use only and not to be shared with other parties. They should only be used to make appropriate, school-related contact between parents and carers and they must not be used for any other purpose.

If any details are not listed on the MyPymble Parent Contact Directory this is likely because a parent or carer has not opted in to having their information shown. Please note contact lists constantly change as parents and carers update or add their details and you should refer to the list available on MyPymble for the latest correct details. You can also change your sharing preferences via MyPymble.

To log in you will need to use your unique carer number and password. Please refer to the email you will have received with your carer number to log in. If you are unable to log in, we would request that you reset your password using this link, or alternatively, contact the IT Helpdesk on +61 2 9855 7771 for assistance.

PymConnect

PymConnect is our online mentoring platform, designed to link our Pymble alumni, parents and carers to facilitate mentoring opportunities that help create a culture of shared learning, and enhance personal and professional growth.  

Since the launch of PymConnect last year we have received an enthusiastic response from our community. We currently have 177 mentors and 159 mentees making connections and building a sense of belonging.

The past 18 months have been extraordinary with lockdowns and restrictions impacting the lives of everyone – including our current Year 12 students. As they prepare to complete their HSC studies and embark on their next life journey, this is a time where connections and support are important. In preparation for our newest graduates joining PymConnect, we would like to invite you to participate in this program as a mentor.  

A special thanks to those of you who have signed up to join the program following our last invitation. 

To express your interest or to ask us a question, please feel free to reach out to us at pymconnect@pymblelc.nsw.edu.au or phone +61 2 9855 7799.

Pymble Business Directory

Pymble Business Directory – Now Live

The College is pleased to announce the Pymble Business Directory to current families. The Pymble Business Directory will allow Pymble families to advertise your business or service to our Pymble family. 

Businesses who have registered can now be found on the Pymble website here. 

To list your business, please complete the attached form.

With your support, we hope the Pymble Business Directory will grow to become a valuable resource to our Pymble families. 

From the College Uniform Shop

A reminder that girls need to be wearing the winter uniform in Term 3. This includes the navy blazer, which is a compulsory garment to be worn to and from school.

Important Winter uniform notes

• Girls in Kindergarten to Year 8 wear the winter tunic with a plain white pointed collar blouse and tie.
• Kindergarten to Year 6 girls have the choice of knee-high black socks or 70 denier black opaque tights.
• All Secondary School girls wear 70 denier black opaque tights.
• Years 9 and 10 wear the winter skirt with a plain white pointed collar blouse and tie.
• Years 11 and 12 wear the skirt with the long sleeve tartan trim long sleeve blouse and tie.
• The navy blazer and winter navy hat must be worn to and from school each day.

Click here to access the shop online.

Garden Party – Save the Date

Parent Handbook 2022

Our Parent Handbook provides a quick and easy reference for families on all things Pymble. We encourage all our families to familiarise themselves with the handbook.

Should you have any questions or require further clarification on any of the information contained in the handbook, please contact communityengagement@pymblelc.nsw.edu.au.

Pymbulletin

The Ex-Students’ section of Pymbulletin reports on the achievements of Pymble alumni, news items and engagements, weddings, births and vale notices.

Illuminate

This journal shines the light on Pymble people as designers and innovators of education, and the creative, connected and engaged practice in our community of learners. 

The articles will take readers into classrooms from Kindergarten in the Preparatory School to Year 12 in the Senior School, from Drama to Science to the Library. We invite you to enjoy this insight into the depth and diversity of innovation in our learning environments and our commitment to sustainable capacity building.