From The Principal

After weeks of staff preparation for the new school year, there was a wonderful energy earlier this week with the return of students to the campuses. I have loved having the “former” Kindergarten students run up to me in the Prep Playground and tell me they are now “big Year 1s”; or the new Year 7 student who exclaimed to me that they just “love school”; or the Year 12 students who told me this week that it finally feels “real” that they are the senior students in the School and have noticed how students truly look up to them.

I would like to extend the warmest of welcomes to all Redlands families as we commence this new year, and especially those families who are new to Redlands. As I mentioned at some of the student assemblies this week, when I started at the School six years ago, I asked everyone I met over my first few weeks at Redlands – students, staff and parents – what they loved most about Redlands as a school. What made it unique or special. And by far the most common answer I received was the sense of community – a warm, welcoming, inclusive and supportive community. Today, six years later, I share those very same views about what makes Redlands so special and am confident that new families will experience the same warmth and support from the Redlands community that I have witnessed and experienced over the past six years.

I am also fully aware of some of the challenges our community has faced over the past three years due to the disruptions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. That is why a focus of mine this year will be on finding ways to further strengthen and reconnect our community.

Last year I read Trent Dalton’s book, Love Stories, a collection of stories Dalton collected while stationed at a street corner in Brisbane for two months where he asked people to tell him their love story. This year I want to hear our community’s “Redlands stories”. I will be in classrooms and out in the playground speaking to students; I will have individual meetings with each member of staff; and I will be looking to further connect with our parent and alumni communities, as well.

Tomorrow I am honoured to be officially commissioned as Redlands’s twelfth principal in our illustrious 139 year history. While I would instinctively prefer that the spotlight shone on the students and not on me, I have come to the realisation that tomorrow’s ceremony is a celebration of the past, present and future of Redlands – a school I truly love – and I am humbled to have the opportunity to share in that celebration tomorrow.

I look forward to connecting with many of you in person at various community events over the coming weeks and months. When I see you, please feel free to tell me your “Redlands story”, too.

Mr Sean Corcoran

Photo Caption: It was wonderful to join the School Captains in ringing in the new school year with the old school bell on Tuesday morning. 

Community Update

A very warm welcome to the school year to our new families and welcome back to our current families. We trust that you were able to enjoy a happy, healthy and peaceful time with your family and friends over the holiday period.

During my time at Redlands, I have often heard said that our strength is our community, and I have personally witnessed and experienced that warm, welcoming and supportive Redlands community over the past two years.

We are delighted to be able to come together as a community early in 2023 through a number of key and much loved Redlands events – Twilight in the Garden on Friday 17 February, our Yr 7 Meet and Greet on Monday 27 February and our Autumn Fair on Saturday 18 March.

Our Twilight in Garden event, hosted on the Fahl Garden on our Senior Campus, provides a wonderful opportunity for our new families to connect with our community. You can purchase your tickets here or via the Book Now below.  It’s a popular event and as such I would encourage you to get your tickets early.

The Redlands Parents and Friends Association (RPFA), Parent Contact Groups (PCGs) and Friends of Groups (FoGs) all come together as passionate and dedicated volunteers to selflessly support our School and the wider Redlands community. All of these important groups highlight the vital role our wider community plays in the growth and prosperity of Redlands. These community groups provide a wonderful opportunity for us all to stay connected, included and informed. 

The best place to stay up to date on what’s happening at Redlands is through Pulse. Pulse can be accessed through the Redlands App that is available for download in both the App Store for Apple users and Google Play for those using Android. The App, like Pulse, provides a quick and easy connection with the School for all of the important information our community seeks – contact information, term dates, events, sport fixtures, school and absentee notices and other key links.  It also allows parents to subscribe to specific groups of interest without having to see information that is not of interest to you. After downloading the App, you simply enter your Redlands login to access and personalise your settings. The App will be enhanced as the year unfolds and we look forward to receiving your feedback on this key platform.

It should be noted that the WhatsApp groups used by some parents and carers are not formal channels of School communication. All communication from the School is shared via email, Pulse and Note Day. While WhatsApp groups may be considered an easy and quick reference point, this platform should not always be considered as a trusted source of information. Where information is sought or clarification is required, we encourage parents to contact the relevant section of the School directly or through feedback@redlands.nsw.edu.au, as early as possible to avoid confusion and inconvenience. 

I remain grateful for the continued guidance and support our community provides and, as ever, please don’t hesitate to reach out to the Community Engagement team should you have any feedback, suggestions or questions.

All the best for 2023.

Mr Grant Birse
Head of Community Engagement
9908 6406
gbirse@redlands.nsw.edu.au

Foundation

Welcome 

A very warm welcome to Term 1, 2023!

I trust that you have had a relaxing Christmas and New Year and managed to have a nice family time during the break. I was very fortunate to travel overseas and spend Christmas with my family in the Czech Republic. It was wonderful to reunite and spend this precious time together with loved ones.

A very special welcome to our new families. Redlands is known for its open and warm community and I hope you soon will feel part of it. There will certainly be many opportunities to meet other families soon with our annual Twilight in the Garden event for parents and carers on Friday 17 February and also with the Redlands Autumn Fair on Saturday 18 March.

During the holidays our Property Services team has very busy upgrading the following our learning spaces:

Monford Learning Precinct

This new learning precinct welcomed our first students on Monday 30 January. It comprises six large rooms – four classrooms used for various subjects, one classroom for our Drama program and one staff room for Drama and Dance.

Liggins Update

Another significant schedule of works which has been undertaken during the holiday break is the refresh and upgrade of the classrooms in the Liggins building. This historical building, which this year is celebrating 100 years since its official opening, will be further refurbished upstairs. We will provide further update once the term unfolds, in the meantime please read HERE.

Thank you to all members of our community who have supported the Liggins Restoration Appeal so far.

Alumni Newsletter – Term 4 2022

Just before the holidays, the last issue of Alumni News was published with updates on reunions and news from our vibrant Alumni community.

To read this newsletter, please click HERE. 

Mrs Dana Casimaty
Director of Development
dcasimaty@redlands.nsw.edu.au
9968 9858

Redlands Parents and Friends

Redlands Parents and Friends Association

Welcome to the new school year at Redlands and an especially warm welcome to all our new families! I hope you all had an enjoyable and restful summer and are ready to join us in building our vibrant community here at Redlands in 2023. We have several exciting events coming up this term – the parent-only Twilight in the Garden drinks to welcome in the new year in two weeks’ time and the family-friendly Autumn Fair extravaganza in March.

Twilight in the Garden 

Our first major function for the year, Twilight in the Garden is a great opportunity to meet other parents in your Year Group, as well as school executives and teachers, in a casual environment. We are planning to hold the event outside in the Fahl Garden on Friday 17 Feb. We will be serving drinks and light refreshments. Book your tickets here. Although the event concludes at 8pm as this is an on campus school event, please take the opportunity to make plans for a dinner out with friends, old and new, afterwards.

Event Details

5.45pm   |   Doors open and collection of name badges at the welcome desk      

6.00pm   |   Event Opening – food and drinks service begins. Please look for your Year Group flag to meet and mingle with parents and teachers from your Year Group

6.30pm   |   Speeches by JP Forrest (RPFA President), Glenda McLoughlin (Redlands Chair), Sean Corcoran (Redlands Principal)   

7.45pm   |   Conclusion of food and drinks service    

8.00pm   |   Event Concludes

Help Needed

Class and Year Reps 2023

We are currently in the process of putting together an amazing group of year and class parents, who will be the main points of contact between parents and the respective Heads of School, as well as helping to organise morning teas, drinks and other get togethers soon. If you are interested in being a Secondary School rep (particularly for Yrs 8 & 9), please signal your interest by clicking here. For Junior School and Prep School, please let us know if you’d like to be a class parent here. Alternatively, you can send us an email.

Autumn Fair

A tradition since 1961, Redlands’ postponed Spring Fair will be held on Sat urday18 March with tons of food, fun and entertainment, showcasing the community’s diversity and depth of students’ art-related activities. We need parent volunteers for set up/pack down, sell coupons, supervise rides and games, and help out at various food stalls. Please volunteer if you can, to help us make this event a success. Please let us know if you are interested in helping here.

 
Second Hand Uniform Sale

Our Second Hand Uniform Sales provide great value for families and also give each of us an opportunity to contribute to the clear benefits of recycling. In addition, funds raised are contributed towards the means-tested Redlands Foundation Scholarship Fund.

We are planning on holding our next Second Hand Uniform Sale on the last weekend of Term 1. Winter uniforms, winter sports uniforms, fleeces, tracksuits and various accessories will be available for purchase. We will need parent volunteers to help us sort through inventory and run the sale. Please let us know if you are interested in helping here.

Coming Up

Parent Get-togethers                         

‘Friends of’ Get-togethers

Friends of Groups are subcommittees of the RPFA made up of interested parents who support the activities of a particular Sport or Performing Art at the School.                        

Walks on Tracks

Weekly guided walks around the northern Sydney area are organised by an RPFA volunteer. This is a great way to meet other Redlands parents and get in shape, plus a wonderful way to spend a morning discovering the many paths of the Sydney area.

The invitation for walks is open, so if you have friends or family who you think would like to come along, please feel free to bring them. Dogs are also welcome on most walks.

Our first walk for the school year will be on Wed 8 Feb from Balmoral to Chinamans Beach. Meet outside the Balmoral Boatshed at 8.40am.

Any questions, please contact Ann Marie Kimber or call 0406 691 533.

Book Club

Come along and enjoy the lively conversation of other Redlands parents from all around the world with a common love of reading. The Book Club meets twice each School term, rotating among members’ homes. There is also an annual visit to Sunday Writer’s festival (May) and sometimes to movies that are tied in with a book discussion. 

Our first meeting for 2023 will be on Thurs 23 Feb at 7.30pm to discuss Sapiens by Yuval Noah Harari. All are welcome, even if you have not read the book!

If you would like to learn more or join the meeting, please contact Monica Gessner or Sabiha Naqvi for further information.

Save the Date

Sat 18 Mar             Redlands Autumn Fair – food, fun and entertainment for the whole family

Sat 12 Aug             Redlands Gala Ball – a black tie event held at the Fullerton Hotel

Photo Gallery

Book club meeting/Christmas lunch last December

Do you have pictures of parent / family get-togethers you want to share? Please send them to RPFA Note Day.

2023 RPFA Committee

President: JP Forrest
Vice President: Brittne Whitelaw
Secretary: Rebecca James 
Treasurer: Annette Swann
Committee – Jaqui Halliday, Declan Hourihan, Jennifer Mast, Lisa Middlebrook, Karen Nicholson, Emma Okhovat, Sophia Stewart-Kasimba, Carrie Taylor

Contact us!

Head of Secondary School

There’s a Great Energy on the Senior Campus….

The students’ first day back for 2023 was full of energy and enthusiasm. Hugs at the gate and stories of adventure and relaxation were shared between friends. New students were met by buddies and peer support leaders and Yr 7 proudly announced when they had found themselves lost – and reunited – again. This energy has continued into the first week and as a community, we are excited for Mr Corcoran’s Commissioning on the Fahl Garden tomorrow morning.

Spirit and Competition

Today, our students met in their Houses ahead of the Swimming Carnival next Tuesday. They played a series of quite competitive games to build community and practised their chants to build House Spirit. Cowper Yr 7 students enjoyed being the smallest and were able to successfully navigate limbo.

“To create a culture where students are safe, supported and challenged to achieve personal excellence.”

This week I shared this goal with the students in our Welcome Assemblies to commence Term 1. As a staff, we want the students to confidently know the people, places and processes which ensure their safety and provide support as well as really challenge them to be their best selves, in all spheres of life.

During our first assembly for the year, both Mr Corcoran and I asked the students to reflect on some possible challenges that might be posed to them, this term:

“We might challenge a goal you set for yourself, especially if it is underwhelming, or not really going to require you to stretch yourself.”

 “We might challenge the amount of effort or diligence you put into your school work, or home learning.”

 “We might challenge you if you do all ‘the work’ but sit quietly in class and never put your hand up or participate.”

 “We might challenge you about the way you are managing your relationships, or how you are talking to, or about, others.”

 “We might challenge your way of thinking or mindset.”

 “We might challenge you on the little things… because we know getting these right creates space for the big things.”

 “To not challenge you, to accept mediocre, is to diminish you. We challenge you because we want the best for you – and from you.

 And when we challenge you, it might not feel very comfortable. That’s okay – because the magic, the learning, the growth, the realisation – it happens outside the comfort zone.”

Stories of Personal Excellence

I also shared the stories of some of the students from 2022. In particular, I talked about Jessy and Jessica.

In 2022 Jessy Sun completed the HSC and achieved top bands in Geography, Visual Arts and Chinese in Context. She scored an ATAR of 95.7 and has received university offers from King’s College London, Manchester and Edinburgh.

Jessica (Jia) Wei completed the IB and achieved top grades in Chinese, Economics, Physics, Maths, Chemistry and an A in Extended Essay. She scored an ATAR of 99.80. Jessica intends to study Mathematics at university and has received numerous offers from the UK including Oxford.

There are many more stories from the Class of 2022. Since the results have been published, the staff at Redlands have been sharing with each other the stories of the Class of 2022, and quite proudly, articulating the uniqueness of each individual as well as their common success traits.

We learn so much from exploring a student’s iGrow data, and coupling this with what we know about each student’s background, individual journey and how they have been challenged along the way. The final year of Secondary School and the ‘big exams’ are never easy for any student. What the students have in common is how diligently they pushed themselves and overcame setbacks and failure – some of which were quite significant – as part of the learning experience.

Some students might look at these two girls, or hear about their experiences, and think ‘that’s not me’ . They might think ‘We have nothing in common’. And yet they do. Jessy and Jessica’s school was Redlands. They came on to the Senior Campus each and every day and inhabited the same learning spaces as our current students. They had the same teachers that the current students now have. Like our current students they had their good days, and their not-so-good. They were supported and challenged. All of the Secondary School students can benefit, learn and feel affirmed by the stories of Jessy and Jessica. And they can aim high, set ambitious goals and feel confident that they too can tell a story of personal excellence.

You are Invited!

Parents – you are invited! We strongly encourage you to attend the following SS Events….

The Basics

All secondary school students must adhere to the following uniform and presentation expectations at Redlands:

Uniform Guidelines

• Girls are to wear plain white ankle length socks, not low-cut or no-show socks.
• Hairstyles that obscure the face, fall down onto the face, or sit on the shoulders, need to be tied up or cut short. All forms of mullet hairstyles are not permitted. Students who do not comply with these expectations will be required to have a haircut.

Student Planners

All students will receive their Student Planner tomorrow. Yr 7 and 8 students are required to have their Planner signed weekly by their parents and Tutor. All students are encouraged to use their planner as an essential tool for self-regulation and organisation. The Student Planner has been updated and improved for 2023, and features the 2023 Student leaders’ motto ‘Fall Forward’ on the front cover.

Yr 12 Student Leadership Team happily exploring their new Planners which feature their self-designed ‘Fall Forward’ front cover.

Swimming Carnival Details

Students must be at the following locations by 7.00AM sharp on Tuesday morning.

Ms Gemma Van de Peer
Head of Secondary School
gvandepeer@redlands.nsw.edu.au
9968 9811 

University and Careers

Boston University Pre-College Summer Programs

Babson Summer Study Online

Year 12

Welcome

A warm welcome back to all parents, carers and students from the Class of 2023. I hope that you and your family had a relaxing summer break as the Class of 2023 begin their final year at Redlands. A solemn reminder that this year is a trail marathon, not a sprint. There will be steep mountains to climb for students to achieve desired academic results, tree root obstacles to overcome and muddy pathways which will slow our students down; particularly around assessment and exam time, and moments of joy on downhill slopes when students complete all their finals assessments and exams. It’s important to emphasise that the Class of 2023 are not alone in their trail marathon this year. They will need well-being and academic support from their support crew at home and internal support crew at Redlands to reach the finish line. I am sure though, that when every student in the Class of 2023 reaches the trail marathon finish line, they will look back, and be proud of what they have achieved throughout their time at Redlands. I also encourage each student this year to be involved with their co-curricular activities so that they can use this opportunity to strengthen social connections with friends and switch off from academic studies which can become very consuming in Yr 12. The Class of 2023 is collectively a strong, hard-working Year Group and I can’t wait to see what 2023 brings to each and every student. 

Welcome New Tutors

This term, we have four new fantastic Tutors joining the Yr 12 Pastoral Team:

• Brittany Blunt – Dumolo Blue (replacing Lily Peschardt who is on Maternity Leave)
• Tony Callaghan – Roseby Red (Replacing Ellie Dalton)
• Joseph Montz / Ruth Apple – Roseby White (Replacing Jimmy Tod-Hill)

Welcome, Brittany, Tony, Joseph and Ruth.

Communication 

For any HSC or IB academic follow-up, Yr 12 students are strongly encouraged to independently communicate with their teachers and members of staff either in person or via email. Should there be any major academic issues, all academic concerns should be directed towards the subject teacher or the Subject Coordinator. 

For any well-being concerns, the Tutor and the Year Advisers are the first point of contact.

Below is a list of the Yr 12 Tutors and their emails should you wish to make contact with them:

All general HSC and IB questions are to be directed towards the Dean of HSC, Ms Lucy Benjamin (lbenjamin@redlands.nsw.edu.au) and the Dean of IB Mr Darren Taylor (dtaylor@redlands.nsw.edu.au) 

For any Career related  communication please email the Career Adviers, Justine Fowler and Clare Hurst on the following email: careers@redlands.nsw.edu.au 

The Ringing of the Bell 

The start of the term was rung in by our School Captains, Josie Simpson and Dan Close. The ringing of the bell signified the start to the new year and it was lovely to see all of Yr 12 present as Josie and Dan rang the bell to successfully start 2023. 

Principals Commissioning 

This coming Friday will be the Commissioning of the Principal – Mr Sean Corcoran. Yr 12 will have a designated seating area and have been asked to look well presented in their Redlands summer uniform. Students may bring a drink bottle and are encouraged to wear a Redlands sports hat and sunscreen for this special occasion. 

Student Achievement 

Congratulations to HSC student Ellie Trueman who completed her Diploma of Communications in December last year at ASCA (The Australian Speech Communication Association). Ellie also received a High Distinction for her Diploma which is an outstanding achievement. ASCA is an organisation that promotes and helps individuals with the development of oral communication and listening skills in education, professional and social spheres. Ellie is now eligible for extra ATAR points for Universities under the Elite Performer Award. 

Ellie has also been selected as a finalist in the Hockey NSW Community Young Coach of the Year 2022 award.

Well done Ellie!

Swimming Carnival 

Next Tuesday the 7 February is the Secondary School Swimming Carnival. At 7:00 am, all Yr 12 House Captains will be departing from Murdoch St, along with any swimmer involved in the 200 Individual Medley. The rest of Yr 12 will depart from Dunnet Hall at 7:15 am. I would like to encourage 100% participation from Yr 12, along with excellent attendance given this is Yr 12’s final Swimming Carnival. 

Driving Application Forms

A friendly reminder that any student who received their P Plate Drivers License over the break and is planning to drive to school, that they need to complete the Student Application to Drive to and from School Form which needs to be signed by parents, the Year Advisor and Ms Gemma Van de Peer and returned to the School Administrators in the Student Services Centre. Any student catching a lift with another student needs to complete the Student Application Form to be a Passenger Form which needs to be signed by parents, Year Adviser and Ms Gemma Van de Peer. 

Key Dates for Yr 12

Other Dates for the Diary:

Yr 12 Formal: Friday 23 June (Last day of term, Term 2.) 

Valedictory Dinner: Wednesday 20 September. (Term 3)

Secondary School Individual Portraits and Sibling Photos – Friday 10 February

Secondary School Sibling Photos will take place on 10 February from 7.15 – 8.20am in Redlands Hall. To order Sibling Photos, please click here, enter the password ‘ALLISTER’ and select Siblings Order Form before 8 February. Parents/Carers who have children at both the Junior and Senior Campus and may attend the sibling photo and should accompany their Junior Campus children to school afterwards.  

On 10 February Year 7 to 12 students will present to the Redlands Hall in classes to have their portrait photo taken between 8.20am – 12.55pm. If your child is unable to have their portrait taken, or if they have an external appointment scheduled during the school day please inform the Year Advisor.  

A catch-up date for missed sibling photos and portraits will be offered on 3 March at 10.10-11.05am in the Learning Hub Level 2, or by appointment with Melba Studios, located in Artarmon.

All students are required to be wearing their full school uniform, including blazers. Boys must be clean shaven with hair that has been cut so that it is away from eyes, ears and collar. Boys and girls with a hair length touching the collar is to be styled and tied-up neatly so that it is away from eyes, ears and collar. Hair is to be tied back with navy and hair coloured accessories.  No hair dye, mullet style haircuts, make-up or nail polish is permitted. No jewellery is to be worn other than one pair of plain gold or silver studs in ear lobes.

Our Standard Portrait and Year Group Package will be automatically billed to your school account and posted directly to your primary contact address following the Year Group photos taken on 7 June. If you do not wish to receive a standard package, please click here to opt out before 10 February.

The Standard Package will cost $40 and consist of: 

• Year Group Photograph 20 x 30cm
• Portrait packages containing 7 portraits:

1 – 15 x 20cm

2 – 10 x 15cm

1 – 10 x 7cm

1 – 7.5 x 5cm

2 – 5 x 3.5cm

• Online access to a high-resolution digital portrait download

If you have any questions, alterations or additional orders, please contact Melba Studios directly on (02) 9438 4566 or email sales@melbastudios.com.au.

Mr Nicholas Walker
Yr 12 Year Advisor
nwalker@redlands.nsw.edu.au
9909 3133

Year 11

Welcome Back

This week, Yr 11 students returned with maturity, poise, strength and energy. Conversations between students and staff have been meaningful, positive and energetic and their approach to school expectations and rules has been refreshing and appreciated. It is evident this cohort is now a group of senior students. 

This year, students will focus on gaining leadership experience and leading by example. In Tutor, we will also focus on supporting students in self-regulating their own learning and managing their own distractions and study routines. This year’s theme is Enrich. Students will aim to enrich their interactions with others, their learning experiences, their engagement in community and their outlook on school and life after school.  

Students were asked to return this week both physically and mentally ready for the new year. A few key reminders shared with students this week: 

• School bags must remain in lockers throughout the day.
• Hair needs to be kept back in a ponytail if long enough to do so.
• Hair that is kept short, needs to be cut away from the face, ears and collar.  In no way can hair represent a mullet (shorter on the sides and longer across the top and back). 
• Black leather belts must be worn with trousers.
• Earrings may be worn as a silver or gold stud or sleeper in the lowest hole in your ear.  
• Smart watches may be worn as long as they are not connected to the internet during classes.
• Phones are allowed throughout the day and may be used at Lunch and Recess.  Please ensure they are not taken out during class time unless prompted by a teacher. 
• Necklaces and bracelets are not allowed. 
• Bags must be kept in your locker throughout the school day.
• No facial hair is allowed.

Thank you for your support from home and for your ongoing support and communication throughout the year. It is valued, appreciated and essential for encouraging our young people to be the best versions of themselves every day. 

Key Dates

3 February Debating Trials for New Students

3 February Principal’s Commissioning

7 February Swimming Carnival

10 February Secondary School Photos and Sibling Photos

10 February Yr 11 hosts a Move Night for Yr 7 & 8

1 March 6-7pm Yr 11 HSC and IB Information Session

6 April End of Term 1

Principal’s Commissioning

For Yr 11, this will be a special experience our students have not had a chance to participate in throughout their schooling. The Fahl Garden will be used for this more formal event and Yr 11 students will be sitting in the front rows. They will also be sitting outside Friday morning for approximately an hour.  Students have been asked to bring with them a water bottle, a Redlands hat and sunscreen. Students will report to Tutor Friday morning prior to the commissioning to prepare for the event. Thank you for reminding your teens to prepare appropriately.

Yr 7 & 8 Movie Night

Next Friday, Yr 11 students will be hosting a Movie Night fundraiser as an opportunity for younger years to spend time outside of lessons together. They will be running a Bake Sale after school, organising a few games and showing a movie in the Learning Hub. The event will run from 3:30pm – 5:30pm and it has been entirely planned by our Yr 11 Service Students. More volunteers are needed to join the Yr 11 Service students, we will be seeking more volunteers this week. This is a fantastic opportunity for students to step outside of their comfort zones and further develop their leadership skills.  

Yr 11 Peer Support Leaders – Yr 7 Transition Day

On Monday, 64 Yr 11 students took on their first duty as a Peer Support Leader by welcoming and guiding the new Yr 7 cohort throughout the Yr 7 Transition Day.  Yr 11 leaders were described as engaging, helpful, reassuring, calm and enthusiastic as they balanced various emotions of the Yr 7 students, helped them feel connected and settled as well as spreading their excitement and enthusiasm for being in the Secondary School. Yr 11 students were exhausted by the end of the day yet they came back the next morning smiling and ready to start themselves.  Peer Support Leaders will be working with Yr 7 students every other Friday throughout the first semester and more information and photos will be coming out throughout this term.

Swimming Carnival – Yr 11 Expectations

As a Yr 11 student, it is expected that the entire cohort attends the Swimming Carnival and participates in at least one event throughout the day. As a senior leader, students are seen as role models for younger years and they have the ability to influence and inspire younger students and their peers. As many of our students are embracing the opportunity to be a leader and eager to engage in leadership this year, the first step to leadership is to be a leader in school events. On Tuesday, our Yr 11 students have the opportunity to demonstrate their ability to lead and their desire to step into that role.

Secondary School Individual Portraits and Sibling Photos – Friday 10 February

Secondary School Sibling Photos will take place on 10 February from 7.15 – 8.20am in Redlands Hall. To order Sibling Photos, please click here, enter the password ‘ALLISTER’ and select Siblings Order Form before 8 February. Parents/Carers who have children at both the Junior and Senior Campus and may attend the sibling photo and should accompany their Junior Campus children to school afterwards.  

On 10 February Yr 7 to 12 students will present to the Redlands Hall in classes to have their portrait photo taken between 8.20am – 12.55pm. If your child is unable to have their portrait taken, or if they have an external appointment scheduled during the school day please inform the Year Advisor.  

A catch-up date for missed sibling photos and portraits will be offered on 3 March at 10.10-11.05am in the Learning Hub Level 2, or by appointment with Melba Studios, located in Artarmon.

All students are required to be wearing their full school uniform, including blazers. Boys must be clean shaven with hair that has been cut so that it is away from eyes, ears and collar. Boys and girls with a hair length touching the collar is to be styled and tied-up neatly so that it is away from eyes, ears and collar. Hair is to be tied back with navy and hair coloured accessories.  No hair dye, mullet style haircuts, make-up or nail polish is permitted. No jewellery is to be worn other than one pair of plain gold or silver studs in ear lobes.

Our Standard Portrait and Year Group Package will be automatically billed to your school account and posted directly to your primary contact address following the Year Group photos taken on 7 June. If you do not wish to receive a standard package, please click here to opt out before 10 February.

The Standard Package will cost $40 and consist of: 

• Year Group Photograph 20 x 30cm
• Portrait packages containing 7 portraits:

1 – 15 x 20cm

2 – 10 x 15cm

1 – 10 x 7cm

1 – 7.5 x 5cm

2 – 5 x 3.5cm

• Online access to a high-resolution digital portrait download

If you have any questions, alterations or additional orders, please contact Melba Studios directly on (02) 9438 4566 or email sales@melbastudios.com.au.

Redlands School TV – The Wellbeing Barometer

Our students have now had a full year in school post the COVID pandemic. However, the significance of the pandemic during impactful years of development continues to unravel for students, parents and teachers as they learn the implications of these two years. School TV has requested for parents to take a moment and reflect on their child’s disposition, engagement and mental health since the pandemic by completing this anonymous survey to assist School TV in providing appropriate resources for parents, staff and ultimately to assist our youth.

The survey can be seen here.

Student Achievements

Congratulations to Will Andrew, Will Algar and Andrew Kinghorn for all successfully completing their Bronze Medallion in Surf Life Saving at the end of last year. They are now officially Surf Life Savers and you may see them at Manly when you are out for a swim. 

Marcus Cooper-Hor was accepted to the Griffin Ambassadors Program for 2023. He will be able to access workshops, performances and access industry professionals to continue developing his love for acting and theatre.

Congratulations to our very own James Stuart, who posed and acted for the new Duke of Edinburgh Be Your Own Champion Campaign.  Well done to James for showcasing his talents in multiple ways as he was also completing his Silver Duke of Edinburgh at the time of shooting.

See it here for yourself.

Secondary School Individual Portraits and Sibling Photos – Friday 10 February

Secondary School Sibling Photos will take place on 10 February from 7.15 – 8.20am in Redlands Hall. To order Sibling Photos, please click here, enter the password ‘ALLISTER’ and select Siblings Order Form before 8 February. Parents/Carers who have children at both the Junior and Senior Campus and may attend the sibling photo and should accompany their Junior Campus children to school afterwards.  

On 10 February Year 7 to 12 students will present to the Redlands Hall in classes to have their portrait photo taken between 8.20am – 12.55pm. If your child is unable to have their portrait taken, or if they have an external appointment scheduled during the school day please inform the Year Advisor.  

A catch-up date for missed sibling photos and portraits will be offered on 3 March at 10.10-11.05am in the Learning Hub Level 2, or by appointment with Melba Studios, located in Artarmon.

All students are required to be wearing their full school uniform, including blazers. Boys must be clean shaven with hair that has been cut so that it is away from eyes, ears and collar. Boys and girls with a hair length touching the collar is to be styled and tied-up neatly so that it is away from eyes, ears and collar. Hair is to be tied back with navy and hair coloured accessories.  No hair dye, mullet style haircuts, make-up or nail polish is permitted. No jewellery is to be worn other than one pair of plain gold or silver studs in ear lobes.

Our Standard Portrait and Year Group Package will be automatically billed to your school account and posted directly to your primary contact address following the Year Group photos taken on 7 June. If you do not wish to receive a standard package, please click here to opt out before 10 February.

The Standard Package will cost $40 and consist of: 

• Year Group Photograph 20 x 30cm
• Portrait packages containing 7 portraits:

1 – 15 x 20cm

2 – 10 x 15cm

1 – 10 x 7cm

1 – 7.5 x 5cm

2 – 5 x 3.5cm

• Online access to a high-resolution digital portrait download

If you have any questions, alterations or additional orders, please contact Melba Studios directly on (02) 9438 4566 or email sales@melbastudios.com.au.

Ms Alissa Ynson
Yr 11 Advisor
aynson@redlands.nsw.edu.au
9968 9865   

Year 10

Welcome

Welcome to the 2023 school year. We look forward to working with you in partnership to support your child’s learning and wellbeing so that they can flourish and achieve to their full potential.

We ask all parents and carers to advise the School of any changes of address, contact details or family circumstances, along with any recent changes to your child’s medical history. Most of this can be done via the Parent Portal. It is a legal requirement for the School to have the most accurate information.

Both myself, Abby Walker (Assistant Year Advisor), and your child’s Tutor, are always available to discuss your child and assist you in managing any situation that may arise throughout the year. We also invite you to share any successes or achievements your child experiences outside of the School, so we too can celebrate with them.

The School appreciates and encourages the collaborative communication between parents and staff. Please allow teachers to respond to emails and phone calls within 48 hours, as many are managing a range of different responsibilities. Rest assured your correspondence will be attended to as soon as possible. 

We also warmly welcome 4 new students to our Year 10 cohort:

• Marko Cavric – RR
• Tobe Cornelius – DB
• Luzie Steinroeder – RR
• Aiden Van Hulsen – MG.

We have an exciting term planned with the Pastoral Program, with a focus on Coaching Conversations (Week 4), Relationships, and Careers planning (Career Profiling in Week 5).

Key Dates:

Thank you for your continued support and partnership as we work with your child this year. We wish you and your family all the best for the start of the year.

Secondary School Individual Portraits and Sibling Photos – Friday 10 February

Secondary School Sibling Photos will take place on 10 February from 7.15 – 8.20am in Redlands Hall. To order Sibling Photos, please click here, enter the password ‘ALLISTER’ and select Siblings Order Form before 8 February. Parents/Carers who have children at both the Junior and Senior Campus and may attend the sibling photo and should accompany their Junior Campus children to school afterwards.  

On 10 February Year 7 to 12 students will present to the Redlands Hall in classes to have their portrait photo taken between 8.20am – 12.55pm. If your child is unable to have their portrait taken, or if they have an external appointment scheduled during the school day please inform the Year Advisor.  

A catch-up date for missed sibling photos and portraits will be offered on 3 March at 10.10-11.05am in the Learning Hub Level 2, or by appointment with Melba Studios, located in Artarmon.

All students are required to be wearing their full school uniform, including blazers. Boys must be clean shaven with hair that has been cut so that it is away from eyes, ears and collar. Boys and girls with a hair length touching the collar is to be styled and tied-up neatly so that it is away from eyes, ears and collar. Hair is to be tied back with navy and hair coloured accessories.  No hair dye, mullet style haircuts, make-up or nail polish is permitted. No jewellery is to be worn other than one pair of plain gold or silver studs in ear lobes.

Our Standard Portrait and Year Group Package will be automatically billed to your school account and posted directly to your primary contact address following the Year Group photos taken on 7 June. If you do not wish to receive a standard package, please click here to opt out before 10 February.

The Standard Package will cost $40 and consist of: 

• Year Group Photograph 20 x 30cm
• Portrait packages containing 7 portraits:

1 – 15 x 20cm

2 – 10 x 15cm

1 – 10 x 7cm

1 – 7.5 x 5cm

2 – 5 x 3.5cm

• Online access to a high-resolution digital portrait download

If you have any questions, alterations or additional orders, please contact Melba Studios directly on (02) 9438 4566 or email sales@melbastudios.com.au.

Ms Lisa Vale
Yr 10 Advisor
9968 9837
lvale@redlands.nsw.edu.au

Year 9

Welcome Back

This week, Yr 9 students returned to campus with an excited readiness. While many have been challenged to break out of holiday mode with the return of uniform expectations and bell times, conversations between students and staff have been meaningful, positive and energetic, and Yr 9’s approach to school expectations and rules has been mature and appreciated. 

This year, Yr 9 students will be guided by the theme of Experience; here, they will challenge themselves to try new things, take on leaderships roles and engage with a range of growth activities inside the classroom, and socially. In Tutor, we will also focus on supporting students in self-regulating their own learning and social and emotional competencies, and continue to assist them in managing their own distractions and study routines. Yr 9 students will experience positive interactions with others, connected learning experiences and enthusiastic engagement in the wider Redlands community. In Term 2, Year 9 Camp will take place in Arnhem Land – a powerful experience for our Yr 9 cohort. We look forward to sharing more information about this camp as the term progresses.

Students were asked to return this week both physically and mentally prepared for the new year. A few key reminders shared with students this week in-line with the expectations of ‘what it means to be a Redlands student’. These expectations are fair and consistent across all year groups: 

• School bags must remain in lockers throughout the day.
• Hair needs to be kept back in a ponytail if long enough to do so.
• Hair that is kept short, needs to be cut away from the face, ears and collar.  In no way can hair represent a mullet (shorter on the sides and longer across the top and back). 
• Black leather belts must be worn with trousers.
• Earrings may be worn as a silver or gold stud or sleeper in the lowest hole in your ear.  
• Smart watches may be worn as long as they are not connected to the internet during classes.
• Phones are to be kept in student’s lockers unless they are being used for academic purposes in a specific class – this will be directed by the class teacher. They are not permitted at recess and lunch. Students should not contact parents via their phone during the day – all communication should come through the Secondary School Office. 
• Necklaces and bracelets are not allowed. 
• Nike sneakers are not to be worn as school shoes.
• No facial hair is allowed.

Thank you for your continued support from home in partnership with the school. It is valued, appreciated and essential for encouraging our young people to be the best versions of themselves each day. 

Welcome to Mr Millham

This year, we make welcome Mr Richard Millham as our new Assistant Year 9 Advisor. Hailing from Scotland, Mr Millham is an incredibly experienced educator, and has been teaching IB Geography and HSIE at Redlands for five years. He has previously taught in Sydney, Darwin, Scotland and Hong Kong. Mr Millham has extensive experience in the wellbeing space, most recently having led Year 12 2022 as their Assistant Year Advisor. We look forward to Mr Millham’s encouragement, guidance and excellent sense of humour!

Key Dates

3 February: Debating Trials for New Students

3 February: Principal’s Commissioning

7 February: Swimming Carnival

10 February: Secondary School Photos and Sibling Photos

6 April: End of Term 1

Principal’s Commissioning

On Friday, Yr 9 along with the wider school community will take part in the special commissioning of our new school Principal, Mr Sean Corcoran. For Yr 9, this will be a special experience our students have not had a chance to participate in throughout their schooling. The Fahl Garden will be used for this more formal event on Friday morning for approximately an hour. Students have been asked to bring with them a water bottle, a Redlands hat and sunscreen. Students will report to Tutor Friday morning prior to the commissioning to prepare for the event. Thank you for reminding your teens to prepare appropriately.

Secondary School Individual Portraits and Sibling Photos – Friday 10 February

Secondary School Sibling Photos will take place on 10 February from 7.15 – 8.20am in Redlands Hall. To order Sibling Photos, please click here, enter the password ‘ALLISTER’ and select Siblings Order Form before 8 February. Parents/Carers who have children at both the Junior and Senior Campus and may attend the sibling photo and should accompany their Junior Campus children to school afterwards.  

On 10 February Yr 7 to 12 students will present to the Redlands Hall in classes to have their portrait photo taken between 8.20am – 12.55pm. If your child is unable to have their portrait taken, or if they have an external appointment scheduled during the school day please inform the Year Advisor.  

A catch-up date for missed sibling photos and portraits will be offered on 3 March at 10.10-11.05am in the Learning Hub Level 2, or by appointment with Melba Studios, located in Artarmon.

All students are required to be wearing their full school uniform, including blazers. Boys must be clean shaven with hair that has been cut so that it is away from eyes, ears and collar. Boys and girls with a hair length touching the collar is to be styled and tied-up neatly so that it is away from eyes, ears and collar. Hair is to be tied back with navy and hair coloured accessories.  No hair dye, mullet style haircuts, make-up or nail polish is permitted. No jewellery is to be worn other than one pair of plain gold or silver studs in ear lobes.

Our Standard Portrait and Year Group Package will be automatically billed to your school account and posted directly to your primary contact address following the Year Group photos taken on 7 June. If you do not wish to receive a standard package, please click here to opt out before 10 February.

The Standard Package will cost $40 and consist of: 

• Year Group Photograph 20 x 30cm
• Portrait packages containing 7 portraits:

1 – 15 x 20cm

2 – 10 x 15cm

1 – 10 x 7cm

1 – 7.5 x 5cm

2 – 5 x 3.5cm

• Online access to a high-resolution digital portrait download

If you have any questions, alterations or additional orders, please contact Melba Studios directly on (02) 9438 4566 or email sales@melbastudios.com.au.

Parent Contact Groups:

The RPFA are seeking volunteers to be part of the Parent Contact Group (PCG) for our Year 9 cohort. Members are predominantly involved with organising Year Group social events, such as coffee mornings and dinners. In addition, the reps may also support their Year Advisor/s with any help they may need. Reps are also the conduit for parents to provide feedback to, and ask questions of, their particular School Head, in relation to issues particular to their child’s class/year as well as the day to day operations of the School. PCGs meet once per term with their respective Head of School. This is a great way to become more deeply involved in the school on the community level and meet other parents in our year group. 

Mrs Lucienne Willis
Yr 9 Advisor
lwillis@redlands.nsw.edu.au

Year 8

Welcome Back

It was a pleasure to welcome back our Yr 8s in full on Tuesday morning. There was a very positive atmosphere as students met their Tutors in their new rooms on Level 3 of the Redlands Learning Hub. This year we welcome two new Tutors to our team, Ms Amanda Cooper (8MG) and Ms Paige Power (8RR) as well as a number of new students to the Year Group.

Our challenge for the Year Group this year is to ‘experiment’. Our Yr 8s have spent a year learning the routines and skills needed to navigate the first stage of high school and we challenge them this year to engage in all that Redlands offers. This may look like taking part in a sport that they have not yet tried, joining a music ensemble with the new skills they have developed over the previous year or becoming a member of one of the many clubs on offer. This theme hopefully also resonates in the classroom as well as they develop their identity as learners and experiment with learning strategies and content that push their critical thinking skills.

Both Dr Meta Regis and I are excited to start the year supporting this wonderful group of students and if you have any questions please email either of us at thoran@redlands.nsw.edu.au or mregis@redlands.nsw.edu.au.

Upcoming Events

We have a a number of significant events in the first part of the term which include:

• Week 1 – Friday 3 February – Principals Commissioning
• Week 2 – Tuesday 7 February – Redlands Swimming Carnival
• Week 2 – Friday 10 February – Senior School Portrait Photos
• Week 3 – Thursday 16 February – ySafe Online Safety Session
• Week 5 – Monday – Friday – Coaching Conversations
• Week 6 – Monday – Friday – Yr 8 Camp
• Week 8 – Tuesday – Friday – School Musical

Further information about some is these events is below

Secondary School Individual Portraits and Sibling Photos – Friday 10 February

Secondary School Sibling Photos will take place on 10 February from 7.15 – 8.20am in Redlands Hall. To order Sibling Photos, please click here, enter the password ‘ALLISTER’ and select Siblings Order Form before 8 February. Parents/Carers who have children at both the Junior and Senior Campus and may attend the sibling photo and should accompany their Junior Campus children to school afterwards. 

On 10 February Yr 7 to 12 students will present to the Redlands Hall in classes to have their portrait photo taken between 8.20am – 12.55pm. If your child is unable to have their portrait taken, or if they have an external appointment scheduled during the school day please inform the Year Advisor. 

A catch-up date for missed sibling photos and portraits will be offered on 3 March at 10.10-11.05am in the Learning Hub Level 2,  or by appointment with Melba Studios, located in Artarmon.

All students are required to be wearing their full school uniform, including blazers. Boys must be clean shaven with hair that has been cut so that it is away from eyes, ears and collar. Boys and girls with a hair length touching the collar is to be styled and tied-up neatly so that it is away from eyes, ears and collar. Hair is to be tied back with navy and hair coloured accessories. No hair dye, mullet style haircuts, make-up or nail polish is permitted. No jewellery is to be worn other than one pair of plain gold or silver studs in ear lobes.

Our Standard Portrait and Year Group Package will be automatically billed to your school account and posted directly to your primary contact address following the Year Group photos taken on 7 June. If you do not wish to receive a standard package, please click here to opt out before 10 February.

The Standard Package will cost $40 and consist of:

• Year Group Photograph 20 x 30cm
• Portrait packages containing 7 portraits:

1 – 15 x 20cm

2 – 10 x 15cm

1 – 10 x 7cm

1 – 7.5 x 5cm

2 – 5 x 3.5cm

• Online access to a high-resolution digital portrait download

If you have any questions, alterations or additional orders, please contact Melba Studios directly on (02) 9438 4566 or email sales@melbastudios.com.au.

Yr 8 Camp

Please ensure that you have completed the Operoo profile for your child/ren. If you haven’t received an email, please visit Operoo.com to sign up and create a medical profile for your child/ren.

If you are need some support with the medical form process you can contact medicals@oeg.edu.au and/or Mr Atkins  eatkins@redlands.nsw.edu.au

If you child/ren require medications on camp, you will need to complete and return to Mr Atkins a Medical Authority Form located on Pulse HERE. This form will need to be completed prior to departure.

Please contact Mr Atkins for any other questions about camp.

Parent Contact Groups

The RPFA are seeking volunteers to be part of the Parent Contact Group (PCG) for our Yr 8 cohort. Members are predominantly involved with organising Year Group social events, such as coffee mornings and dinners. In addition, the reps may also support their Year Advisor/s with any help they may need.  Reps are also the conduit for parents to provide feedback to, and ask questions of, their particular School Head, in relation to issues particular to their child’s class/year as well as the day to day operations of the School. PCGs meet once per term with their respective Head of School. This is a great way to become more deeply involved in the school on the community level and meet other parents in our Year Group.

A Message from Yr 11 Service students for the Yr 7 & Yr 8 Move Night

We are organising a Movie Night as a fundraiser on Friday February 10 from 3:30pm to 5:30pm. All proceeds will go to the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF).  The WWF strives to conserve nature through protecting our valuable environment and aims to reduce the most pressing threats to the diversity of life on Earth. The movie that will be shown is Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle. It is classified PG. The ticket price is $5 and Yr 11 students will be selling tickets at lunchtimes throughout next week (Week 2) by cash and EFTPOS. Additionally, there will be snacks and drinks available for purchase in the afternoon prior to the movie starting. If your child stays to watch the movie, please ensure they are able to return home via public transport or get picked up at 5:30pm as the campus will be closed at that time. We would love for your child to attend what will be an exciting and enjoyable evening for them while contributing to an excellent cause.

For any further questions regarding this event, please contact the Yr 11 Advisor, Ms Ynson, aynson@redlands.nsw.edu.au. 

Thank you very much. 

Mr Tobias Horan
Yr 8 Advisor
9968 9872
thoran@redlands.nsw.edu.au

Year 7

Welcome to 2023 in the Redlands Secondary School!

It has been an exciting, busy and energetic week for Yr 7 as they entered the Redlands Secondary School and began to find their space in the school. Monday and Tuesday were ‘Transition Days’, offering students a chance to connect in their Tutor Groups and Core Class groups as they successfully engaged in key orientation sessions designed to help them integrate smoothly into the Redlands Community.

On Monday Yr 7 were supported by the Yr 11 Peer Support leaders and their Tutors, and partook in ‘ice-breaker’ games, school scavenger hunts, an ICT induction, and sessions on how to stay organised in school and how to make friends. On Tuesday, Yr 7 joined with the Redlands community on the first official day of school, finishing their transition sessions in their Core Classes. They explored the new expectations Senior School will place on them, discussed how to overcome challenges and establish support networks, and reflected on what they had learned over the past two days.

By Wednesday, the cohort was ready to tackle a ‘real’ school day and students were excited finally to engage in their subject lessons. It will be an action-packed few weeks and term ahead for Yr 7, and we wish them all the best as they embrace all that Redlands has to offer.

The theme for Yr 7 this year is Empower and so teachers and Tutors are all seeking to help students build their confidence and expertise to take control of their new journey at Redlands to become their best selves.

Key Dates and Upcoming Events

Friday 3/2 – Principal’s Commissioning Ceremony

This will be a gathering of our school community and formal recognition and celebration of our new Principal, Mr Sean Corcoran. Students will be seated outside in the Fahl Garden for an hour in the morning sun, so it is recommended that students apply suncream prior to school, wear a hat and bring a water bottle to the event.

Tuesday 7/2 – Secondary School Swimming Carnival

This is a fun event, fostering House spirit amongst students. Attendance is compulsory and students are all encouraged to engage in at least one race. Students need to arrive at school by 7:15am.

Friday 10/2 – Individual Portraits and Sibling Photos, and Yr 7 and 8 Movie Night

See below for further details on both events.

Monday 13/2 – Goal Setting Conversations

Students will engage in important one-to-one conversations with their Tutors, establishing ‘empowering’ goals for their year at Redlands.

Thursday 16/2 – ySafe online safety seminar

During Period 3, students will be spoken to about appropriate online behaviour and security, and how to keep themselves safe on the internet.

Monday 20/2 – Friday 24/2 – Yr 7 School Camp

All Yr 7 students will journey to the High Country Campus for a fantastic week of camping, including activities such as hiking up to Mount Kosciusko, mountain bike riding, raft building and more.

School Camp Medical Forms

Please ensure that you have completed the Operoo profile for your child/ren. If you haven’t received an email, please visit Operoo.com to sign up and create a medical profile for your child/ren.

If you need any support with the medical form process you can contact medicals@oeg.edu.au and/or Mr Atkins eatkins@redlands.nsw.edu.au

If you child/ren require medications on camp, you will need to complete and return to Mr Atkins a Medical Authority Form located on Pulse HERE. This form will need to be completed prior to departure.

Please contact Mr Atkins for any other questions about camp.

 
Debating Team and Public Speaking Trials – Friday 3 February and Monday 6 February

Debating develops students’ confidence, respect for others and sense of timing and structure, as well as their ability to present a persuasive argument and their knowledge of current affairs topics. Redlands aims to foster an inclusive culture in our Debating program that supports all students to develop their skills in debating.

Public Speaking is an extra-curricular activity that is available to Senior School students in Years 7-12. There are many benefits of public speaking, which translate into many aspects of a student’s personal and academic life. The ability to communicate confidently and articulately with an audience is a valuable skill that will serve you well for your whole life, no matter what career path you take.

Debating Trials for new students from Years 7-12 are after school on Friday 3 February, in Level 2 of the Redlands Learning Hub, from 3:30pm-5:30pm. Full details can be found through Pulse or for any further questions regarding this event, please contact the Debating Coordinator, Mrs Beggs: rbeggs@redlands.nsw.edu.au

Public Speaking Trials for students interested in participating in external competitions in Years 7-12 are after school on Monday 6 February, in Level 2 of the Redlands Learning Hub, from 4:00pm-5:00pm. Regular coaching sessions start in Week 3 on Monday afternoons from 4:00-5:00pm and all students are welcome! Full details can be found through Pulse or for any further questions regarding this event, please contact the Public Speaking Coordinator, Mrs Kang: vkang@redlands.nsw.edu.au

Secondary School Individual Portraits and Sibling Photos – Friday 10 February

Secondary School Sibling Photos will take place on 10 February from 7.15 – 8.20am in Redlands Hall. To order Sibling Photos, please click here, enter the password ‘ALLISTER’ and select Siblings Order Form before 8 February. Parents/Carers who have children at both the Junior and Senior Campus and may attend the sibling photo and should accompany their Junior Campus children to school afterwards.  

On 10 February Yr 7 to 12 students will present to the Redlands Hall in classes to have their portrait photo taken between 8.20am – 12.55pm. If your child is unable to have their portrait taken, or if they have an external appointment scheduled during the school day please inform the Year Advisor.  

A catch-up date for missed sibling photos and portraits will be offered on 3 March at 10.10-11.05am in the Learning Hub Level 2, or by appointment with Melba Studios, located in Artarmon.

All students are required to be wearing their full school uniform, including blazers. Boys must be clean shaven with hair that has been cut so that it is away from eyes, ears and collar. Boys and girls with a hair length touching the collar is to be styled and tied-up neatly so that it is away from eyes, ears and collar. Hair is to be tied back with navy and hair coloured accessories.  No hair dye, mullet style haircuts, make-up or nail polish is permitted. No jewellery is to be worn other than one pair of plain gold or silver studs in ear lobes.

Our Standard Portrait and Year Group Package will be automatically billed to your school account and posted directly to your primary contact address following the Year Group photos taken on 7 June. If you do not wish to receive a standard package, please click here to opt out before 10 February.

The Standard Package will cost $40 and consist of: 

Year Group Photograph 20 x 30cm

Portrait packages containing 7 portraits:

1 – 15 x 20cm

2 – 10 x 15cm

1 – 10 x 7cm

1 – 7.5 x 5cm

2 – 5 x 3.5cm

Online access to a high-resolution digital portrait download

If you have any questions, alterations or additional orders, please contact Melba Studios directly on (02) 9438 4566 or email sales@melbastudios.com.au.

Yr 7 & Yr 8 Movie Night: a Message from Yr 11 Service Students – 10 February 

We are organising a Movie Night as a fundraiser on Friday 10 February from 3:30pm to 5:30pm. All proceeds will go to the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF). The WWF strives to conserve nature through protecting our valuable environment and aims to reduce the most pressing threats to the diversity of life on Earth.

The movie that will be shown is Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle. It is classified PG. The ticket price is $5 and Yr 11 students will be selling tickets at lunchtimes throughout next week (Week 2) by cash and EFTPOS. Additionally, there will be snacks and drinks available for purchase in the afternoon prior to the movie starting.

If your child stays to watch the movie, please ensure they are able to return home via public transport or get picked up at 5:30pm as the campus will be closed at that time. We would love for your child to attend what will be an exciting and enjoyable evening for them while contributing to an excellent cause. For any further questions regarding this event, please contact the Yr 11 Advisor, Ms Ynson, aynson@redlands.nsw.edu.au.

Thank you very much,

Yr 11 Service Team

Mr Jimmy Tod-Hill
Year 7 Advisor
jtodhill@redlands.nsw.edu.au
9908 6462 

Head of Junior School

And We’re Off!

The first day of a new school year is one of my favourite days in the school calendar and what unadulterated joy it was to welcome our students back this week as we start the 2023 school year full of hope, expectation and excitement.

Monday’s orientation session for our 62 new and 3 returning students allowed them to feel much more settled as they began this first week. On this day, it was also delightful to be able to welcome new parents in for refreshments before they collected their children, also attended by staff and members of our Redlands Parents and Friends Association (RPFA) team who generously volunteered to attend to help to start new connections within our Redlands community.

There has been a palpable and visible vitality around the campus and I acknowledge the preparative work of our teachers, leaders, support staff and facilities team over the holidays to allow us to hit the ground running. In particular this break, we had major renovations work in the Parkes classrooms and I am gratefully to our Property Services team for their project management and to teachers in these rooms for their flexibility and support in preparing their rooms later than we had anticipated.

In our first assembly on Tuesday, we welcomed our new students and staff and the students also heard from our new Principal, Mr Corcoran; setting the tone, and expectations for a great year ahead.

During this assembly, I shared my three key messages for the students for the year ahead and I encouraged them to also talk to you about these topics too so do prompt them if they have not done so yet!

The first was about the significance of our School Values, which underpin all that we do. Respect, Honesty, Fairness, Compassion, Responsibility and Moral Courage are personal qualities that we hope become part of who our students are. As I explained to the students, an important role we play at School is to grow them into good people as well as skilled thinkers and learners and I asked the students to strive to aim to live these values, both at school and at home, and not just when someone else is watching.

My second message highlighted goal-setting and us all focusing on just one word that we hope might inspire, centre and define us in 2023. This has been a theme for the Junior School for the last few years where instead of having longer-worded goals, each student and teacher has chosen to focus on just one word for the year. I shared my one this year of ‘Progress’ and the thinking behind this choice and a number of students have shared their #oneword2023 with me already in passing. I encourage you to ask your child what their one word for 2023 might be and ask them to explain why they have chosen this word. And you may even like to consider a word yourself and share it with your child?

My third and final message was around how we treat and interact with one another and how important this is in life, not only just in the context of a school. Sometimes it can be the small gestures that make the most difference to others and helps to nurture our supportive, diverse and inclusive community.

The staff and I look forward to supporting each and every child this year as we aim to provide experiences and opportunities to enable each student’s light to shine and to illuminate the light in others around them.

2023 Junior School Captains

After the formal announcement of our new Junior School Leaders for 2023 at last year’s Speech Day, I was delighted to re-introduce these students to the Junior School in our assembly, where they were duly recognised. As I shared with the students, I have every confidence that they, alongside every one of their peers in Year 6, will set a wonderful example to the rest of the Junior School in the year ahead and we wish them all the best in their student leadership roles.

Junior School Captains                      Sophia Moriarty and Kenzo Takeda

Arts Captains                                      Elysia Angus and Cameron Lloyd

Sports Captains                                  Piper Aubin and Jake O’Sullivan

Environment Captains                       Pearl Brown and Calvin Macnab

Cowper House Captains                    Ella Lorriman and Arlo Wainberg

Dumolo House Captains                    Daisy Nassar and Harrison Bird

McDouall House Captains                  Jenna Forrest and Charlie Hutchings

Roseby House Captains                     Mila Lipscomb and Kyler Simpson 

‘Meet the Teacher’ Evening

As mentioned in the start of year letter, there is an opportunity for parents to come in and meet your child’s class teacher for this year next week as outlined below.

Please note that this is strictly for parents only and d children should not be left to play by themselves in unsupervised in the playground for safety reasons.

Years 3 & 4      Wednesday 8 February          5pm – 5.45pm           

Years 5 & 6      Wednesday 8 February          6pm – 6.45pm

With spaces limited in each classroom, it would be preferred if only one parent per child attends.

Drop off, Parking and Pick-up

The safe arrival and departure of our students remains of the highest priority and I thank parents as we have returned to school and the different options available to do this safely.

Please be mindful that many families are new to Redlands and getting to grips with new parking and pick-up arrangements. For families using the car line process, please remind your child to wait with the duty teacher at the Junior School gate and follow the guidelines clarified in the letter sent before term.

Two key points are not to leave your car in this no parking zone and to arrive early and as close to 3.20pm as possible to avoid additional congestion to our younger Prep School students’ departure times. We have duty staff looking after the children at all gates and bus stops until 3.45pm so do not worry if you are held up in traffic or a little late. Thank you, in advance, for your cooperation and support.

Extracurricular Activities

Some of our paid activities that are run by external providers commence next week as outlined below. Teacher-led cocurricular clubs commence in Week 3 and this will be circulated at the start of next week.

Junior School Debating Trials – Tuesday 7 February

Representative debating is an exciting way for your child to develop their reasoning, persuasive and public speaking skills. Redlands students are taught by experienced coaches and compete against school across Sydney on Friday evenings. Debating trials will be next Tuesday.

For more detailed information, please go to the Junior School Debating page on Redlands Pulse and if you have any questions regarding the program, please get in contact with Mr Watkins.

Debating is an optional cocurricular activity that is available to students in Yrs 4, 5 and 6 and takes place across the year. The debating workshops are run by coaches who are experienced debaters and coaches. They prepare lessons and track progress of every student.

Term 1 Code Camp Clubs

In Term 1, two after school classes will be run by Code Camp, who have run holiday camps here for us. These classes run for 8 weeks from 3.35pm – 4.50pm on site here at Redlands and are booked directly with Code Camp through the links provided.

Minecraft Engineers (Years 3-6)        Tues 7 Feb – Tues 28 March

Learn fundamental concepts of engineering and command-based programming through building a fully featured rollercoaster in Minecraft’s Education edition.

To book, please click HERE.

Drones (Years 5-6)                             Thurs 9 Feb – Thurs 30 March

Please note this class is small with a limit of 9 students.  It is a repeat of the class content offered in 2022 and is offered for students who did not attend a 2022 Drone class. Students will learn about drone tech and safety, movie making, and discover how drones can save the world by fighting bushfires, rescuing koalas, spotting sharks on the coast and loads more.

To book, please click HERE.

Science Club

Our extracurricular Science club opportunity will run from Week 3 this year through Eye Heart Science, who have been part of our school offerings for many years.

Safer Internet Day

Next Tuesday 7 February is Safer Internet Day, a global event that brings together our communities to help create safer online spaces. This Safer Internet Day our government agency, the eSafety Commissioner, invites us all to Connect. Reflect. Protect.  

• Connect safely and with purpose – by keeping apps and devices secure and using social media in positive ways. 
• Reflect before we act – by taking a moment to consider how what we do and say online may affect others. 
• Protect ourselves and others by taking action – by telling family, friends or colleagues about eSafety and how we can help.  

The eSafety Commissioner is offering a range of webinars for parents during February on a range of topics such as online friendships, gaming and setting your child up for success online.  

In addition, and in partnership with ySafe, Redlands has our own Cyber Safety Hub specifically for our community; a treasure-trove of current, research-based information and assistance for our families and staff. I encourage every family to take the time to explore this valuable resource to support you and your child, which includes a range of relevant topics such as:

• Cyber safety guides
• Managing screen time
• Creating a safe home
• Gaming
• Setting up parental controls
• App and Game reviews

Arnold Library Student Use Before and After School

Junior School students are able to use the Arnold Library before school each day from 8am until 8.20am and after school on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays until 4pm. 

Class Parent Representatives

We are always fortunate to have parents volunteer for the role of Class Parent each year and class teachers will seek interest for this role at the ‘Meet the Teacher’ evening next week. The role is not an onerous one but is one that makes such a huge difference for families in the class, particularly our newer families to Redlands. If you would like to nominate as the person for your child’s class or if you have any questions about the role, please contact your child’s teacher or if you want to know a little more about the role, do contact one of our Junior School Parent Contact Group Coordinators, Catherine Grinham or Michelle McDonald, who will be only too willing to assist.

Flexischools – Change your Year Group

Parents who use Flexischools for ordering food at school are kindly asked to check that you have updated your child’s year group and class accordingly as some students are still being listed in last year’s year group.

Mr Ari Guha
Head of Junior School 
aguha@redlands.nsw.edu.au
9953 6022

Head of Preparatory School

It’s Great to be Back

What a great first week back we have all had. From Redlands House Juniors to Year 2, the commencement of the 2023 school year has been exciting, smooth, and fun. Can you believe that this time last year we were wearing masks, saying our hellos and goodbyes at the gate whilst meeting each other on Zoom.

I am so grateful for this week and all the connection points we have experienced together so far. My energy levels are high as is the staffs’ enthusiasm for this year so let’s get started!

For our new families, please take the time each week to read Note Day as it will provide you with upcoming event information as well as messages around operational aspects of the Prep School. Pulse will always have specific information relating to extracurricular actitivtes as well as the key contact people if you have questions.

I look forward to getting to know our new families as well as continuing friendships with existing Prep families. If at any time you would like to get in touch with me directly, please email me at abreckenridge@redlands.nsw.edu.au or Claire Hunt or Karin Alfonso can always be contacted on 9968 9848 to make a meeting or answer a question.

Allister Street Parking at Drop Off and Pick Up Times

Please be aware that between the hours of 7.30am-9am and 2.30pm-4pm daily,

Parents and carers are only to use Allister Street as a drop off or pick up space for their K-2 children.

If you do drop your child off in this zone during those times, please DO NOT exit your car. Your child will be met by a staff member who will ensure their safe entry into school.

During these time periods, please DO NOT park your car and leave it to pick up or drop off your child. Rangers frequent Allister Street often and they will issue fines to any parent who is not obeying the parking guidelines.

We ask parents to either park in surrounding streets and walk in to school or use the car line option to drop off and/or pick up their children.

Thank you for your cooperation in keeping our children safe and the traffic flowing smoothly.

2023 Class Parents

Thank you to the many parents who have been in touch already with Jen Mast or Jenny Krallis regarding the positions of class parents for this year. We are thrilled with the interest to date, but we would still like to extend the invitation for any interested parents to reach out over the next few days. We would certainly love to hear from some of our new families as well as it is a great opportunity to meet other parents and families.

Please email Jen Mast at Jennifermast18@gmail.com or Jenny Krallis at Jenkrallis@gmail.com if you would like to discuss the role with them or volunteer.

K-2 Meet the Teacher Evening

5pm-6pm Thursday February 9

We look forward to welcoming all our K-2 families to our Meet the Teacher evening next Thursday. On arrival, please head straight to your grade area. The sessions will be consistent in messages across grades and information will only vary slightly depending on the age group so please feel free to move between sessions if you have more than one classroom to visit.

The evening will provide an overview of key logistical and operational information for families. Please note that there will be further workshops and information sessions throughout the year that will focus on specific areas such as IT and how we use it in Prep, curriculum updates and other key pieces of information we’d love to share with you.

If you would like to have a further conversation with your teacher after the information evening, please contact them directly for a more one on one conversation via their email address.

We look forward to welcoming you all next Thursday. Please be aware that this a parent only event and there is no babysitting or supervising of toddlers available during the evening.

Safer Internet Day

Safer Internet Day is coming up on Tuesday 7^th February. This is a global event that brings together our communities to help create safer online spaces. This Safer Internet Day our government agency, the eSafety Commissioner, invites us all to Connect. Reflect. Protect.  

• Connect safely and with purpose – by keeping apps and devices secure and using social media in positive ways. 
• Reflect before we act – by taking a moment to consider how what we do and say online may affect others. 
• Protect ourselves and others by taking action – by telling family, friends, or colleagues about eSafety and how we can help.  

The eSafety Commissioner is offering a range of Webinars for parents during February on a variety of topics such as online friendships, gaming and setting your child up for success online.  

Link here

Lost Property

As always, we ask that every piece of your child’s property is clearly labelled. We do have a large amount of lost property already so if your child is missing something, can I please ask you to come and check the lost property cupboard in the mornings or afternoons. Drink bottles and lunchboxes are normally disposed of after a week if they are not claimed.

One of key learning points at the start of the year is to teach our students how to be responsible by looking after their property and ensuring they have everything in their bag at the end of the day. We would love you to help us do this by asking your child if they have everything with them before you head home.

Mrs Ainslie Breckenridge
Head of Preparatory School
abreckenridge@redlands.nsw.edu.au
9968 9848

Redlands House and Transition Gold

Welcome!

What a fabulous first few days we have had in Redlands House and Transition Gold to start the year! We warmly welcome all new and returning families to our environment, and look forward to embarking on a wonderful year of fun and learning together.

 
Parent Information Session

An information session will take place for new Redlands House families in Week 2. As this session is for parents to listen and participate in the presentation from the Redlands House teachers, we ask you do not bring children. It will allow you to get to know the staff and your class teachers a little better.

Redlands House – Tuesday  7 February   5pm – 5.30pm  – in Classrooms

Transition Gold – Wednesday 8 February  5pm – 5.30pm  – in TG classroom

Parking

Parking around the school can be problematic, especially around pick up time. To ease congestion and ensure the safety of our students, the Prep school use a carline that enable parents to collect their children from the underground carpark from 2.45pm each day. We therefore ask Redlands House families to refrain from parking in the 5 minutes parking zone outside the preschool from 2.30pm onwards. Families are still able to park for 5 minutes out the front of Redlands House until 2.30pm.

Birthdays

The preschool staff love to celebrate the children’s birthdays each year. The children love to celebrate their birthday too – it’s a great conversation topic all year round!  We have many children in the preschool with food allergies, so we are not permitting cakes or any type of food in the preschool for birthday celebrations. Please be assured we will celebrate their special day in a variety of ways.

Mrs Chemane Huon
Redlands House and Transition Coordinator
chuon@redlands.nsw.edu.au
9904 1448

Mrs Ainslie Breckenridge
Head of Preparatory School
abreckenridge@redlands.nsw.edu.au
9968 9848

Secondary Sport

I trust everyone has had a safe, enjoyable and restful holiday break. We are very much looking to the return of the summer season this weekend with the ISA Round 7 Rowing Regattas for the Junior Rowers, with Sailing returning to the squadron and NSTA tennis beginning next week.

As I mentioned in my return to 2023 Welcome letter we are going to focus this year on the Mission Statement and Values for Redlands Sport and how they are lived within our programs. Our Mission which aligns with the schools is to deliver a school sports program where students develop life-readiness by fostering qualities such as teamwork, responsibility and resilience in a supportive and competitive environment. Redlands provides holistic, diverse and inclusive opportunities for students to let their light shine while striving for excellence in sport and physical activity.

We have also collectively developed a number of values and how they are lived through sport, being:

• Strive for excellence
• Responsibility
• Fun
• Teamwork
• Respect

Over the next few weeks I will delve into how these values will be incorporated within sport and what this looks like for the students and Redlands community.

“Excellence can be achieved only today—not yesterday or tomorrow, because they do not exist in the present moment. Today is the only day you have to flex your talents and maximize your enjoyment. Your challenge is to win in all aspects of life. To reach that goal, you need to set yourself up for success by winning one day at a time. Procrastination is no match for a champion.”

• Jim Afremow, The Champion’s Mind: How Great Athletes Think, Train and Thrive

Redlands Secondary School Swimming Carnival – Tuesday 7 February

A reminder that the Swimming Carnival is on Tuesday 7 February (Term 1, Week 2). Students need to be at school in their departure locations at 7:15am (those on the 200IM bus who need to be on at Redlands Lane at 7:00am) more information can be found on Redlands Pulse – Swimming

Basketball

We hope our Basketball families have enjoyed the holiday break and are looking forward to the recommencement of the 2022/23 Season. A reminder that all team training sessions are compulsory as per the schedule on the Redlands Pulse – Basketball Page. We are back into the ISA Competition in Term 1, Week 1 with all teams playing in Round 7. Please check Redlands Pulse for the game details for this Saturday. All students are required to wear the Redlands Basketball uniform and arrive 30 minutes prior to the start time indicated on the fixture. 

Congratulations to Emilie Bessel who has been selected into the U18 NSW Metro State Basketball team. A further congratulations to Renae Garlepp, our Director of Coaching (Basketball) who has been appointed as the Head Coach of the team. Best of luck to both Emilie and Renae when they travel to Queensland for the National Championships later this year.

Sport Uniform

The Redlands Sports Uniform is available through the Uniform Shop & Flexischools, the uniform requirements for each sport are available on Redlands Pulse. Failure to meet these requirements will result in school disciplinary action.  

Rowing Camps

During the summer break our rowers attended the January Rowing Camps located in Berry, seeing 36 senior rowers attend their 7 day camp while a further 78 junior rowers attended their 4 day camp. Staying at the Berry Sport and Rec Centre, all accommodation, meals and access to the water is contained in the one location, and this year is our first January camp back in Berry post the 2020 bushfires and in more recent years Covid disruptions.

These camps are our key training block and transition from building our fitness and skill base to race ready training as we take on our major Term 1 regattas. Both squads of rowers completed 2-3 training sessions per day with some very significant improvements to how both individuals and crews are training. Our Rowing Captains Briar Carter and Matthew Fry were outstanding in how they have led the program to ensure that the student body have come together to form a very united program as opposed to individual teams.

We also take the opportunity to select crews for the first part of Term 1, which for our Yr 9-12 students includes the NSW State Championships held in mid-February.

Small Boat Regatta

Many of our senior rowers took the opportunity to race at Penrith on Sat 28^th Jan in the NSW Small Boat Regatta where they raced in either single or double sculls with some strong results at what is a highly competitive regatta.

Men’s Under 16 Scull – Zach Borness Yr10 (3^rd in the Final)
Men’s Under 17 Scull – Angus McInnes Yr10 (3^rd in the A Final)
Women’s Under 17 Scull – Jemima Hugmann Yr10 (5^th in the A Final)
Men’s Under 19 Double Scull – Finn Woodward Yr12 & Pat Walker Yr12 (5^th in the A Final)
Women’s Under 19 Double Scull – Georgia Verschoor Yr12 & Cat Croll Yr12 (6^th in the A Final)
Women’s Under 19 Double Scull – Briar Carter Yr12 & Alice Bennett Yr12 (8^th in the A Final)

Swimming

Over the holidays Xander Halfen competed at the NSW Senior State Age Championships, Xander finished with 2 Silver medals in the 50m Backstroke and the 200m Freestyle, a Bronze medal in the 100m Backstroke, a 4^th place in the 200m Medley Relay. Xander also finished with a number of Top 20 results. We look forward to seeing Xander compete next week at the Redlands Carnival and beyond!

Tennis

A warm welcome back to all new and returning tennis players! We hope you have had a restful break and are ready for the next season of competition!

Training will commence for all groups on Thursday 2 February and we will continue in the same training schedule as Term 4 until the end of Summer Tennis. Please refer to the newest update email for training group rolls as some students have been moved. Competition and Development Squad will begin next weekend so please keep an eye out for emails regarding teams and the draw in Week 2. 

We hope players enjoyed the Holiday Training Camp as well and we look forward to another great season of Summer Tennis!

Please contact Ms Caitlin Wong should you have any questions regarding Summer Tennis.

Mr Cameron Ellis
Head of Secondary School Sport
cellis@redlands.nsw.edu.au

Junior Sport

Welcome 

Welcome back to all families and students in what promises to be a very exciting year for Sport in the Junior School; a special welcome to those families who are new to Redlands in 2023. I hope you and your family enjoyed the Christmas and New Year break. We commence our Summer Sport Season for Term 1 for our Representative Sports program along with our Non-Representative Wednesday Sport Program this week, Wednesday 1 February. Like last year, we will be asking students to continue to practise good hygiene at all times and to use the hand sanitisers available here at school before and after sport training and matches.

Week 1 Term 1 is always a busy time and there will be information aplenty coming from the school from a range of areas, sport being one of them. In our first assembly I will speak to our students about the three ‘rights’ and how they impact upon their involvement in Redlands Sport. Students are asked to adhere to these;

• Right place
• Right time
• Right equipment

It may be worth opening up some discussion on how these can be followed at home in preparation for Wednesday and Saturday sport. Hearing “my mum or dad didn’t pack my swimmers” or “I don’t know what time my game is” is not what we are trying to instil in students as they prepare for sport. Building students’ responsibility will make for a much more pleasant experience for all. If they ask you questions about their Sport or one of our Carnivals, direct them to the Sport page on Redlands Pulse or better still if they have their device, you can always share the link to the Redlands Navigation video so they can research what they are after.

More detailed information can be found in the 2023 Term 1 Sport outline that was emailed to all parents and carers last week.

For this publication of Note Day I have included some shortcuts in the way of document links below. For all future publications all this information can be found on the Junior School Sport section of Redlands Pulse.

Redlands Pulse Orientation and Navigation Video

For the benefit of our new families and a refresher for our returning families please select the following link to view a short navigation video that we have put produced for the Junior School Sport pages on Pulse.

2023 Sport Pulse-Navigation Video

Redlands Pulse

The Junior School Sport pages on Redlands Pulse will continue to be the ‘source of truth’ for all information relating to sport this term. As you would be aware we have switched over to our new look Pulse later last term which allows more functionality and more positive user interaction. If parents have an enquiry relating to Sport, could you please make your first port of call will be the Junior School Sport section of Redlands Pulse.

Sport Information Booklet

For all Sport information regarding what Sports we offer when, how to navigate our documents, as well as information on Uniforms and Carnivals please refer to our Parent Information Booklets on Pulse.

Sport Calendar

We have a Sport Calendar for each Term. To view the 2023 Term 1 Sports Calendar please click here

This calendar is regularly updated and provides all the key dates for you for school sport, carnivals and major events.

Term 1 Summer Sport:   As you would be aware in towards the end of last year you would have nominated either a Representative Sport (Saturday commitment playing other schools with training taking place in school hours on a Wednesday) or a Non-Representative Sport (Wednesday sport with no Saturday commitment) for your child to participate in this term. A reminder of what sport your child has selected can be found here: 2023 Summer Sport Choices.

If your child has nominated to participate in a Representative Sport (Saturday commitment), there will be compulsory trials on Wednesday 1 February and Saturday 4 February. Details with times and venues for these trials can be found here 2023 Summer Sport Trials

For all Representative Sports, ability based gradings will occur at these trials for students to be allocated into teams in preparation for Round 1 of our Saturday Sport competition. 

Term 1 Swimming Carnival

Our school carnival will take place this Term on Wednesday 22 February at Sydney Olympic Park Aquatic Centre with all students required to participate. Students will be assigned an entrant number which they will use to register for events on the day. All information for this carnival can be found here Swimming Carnival.

Term 1 Athletics Carnival and Field Event Trials

Our school carnival will take place this Term on Thursday 16 March at Sydney Olympic Park Athletic Centre with all students required to participate. All information for this carnival as well as the nomination link for pre carnival field event (shot put, high jump, long jump)  trials can be found here Athletics Carnival.

Representative Sport Student Absence

From this Saturday onwards, if students are absent on match day, parents are required to complete this online absence form. This will allow your responses to be passed on electronically to your child’s coach efficiently and at short notice. The Student Absence link can also be found on the Junior School Sport Page on Redlands Pulse.

Representative Sport Team Movement

In regard to representative sport and the movement of players across ability based teams, it is transparent for all parties as unexplained team movements sometimes cause unnecessary stress. At Redlands our teams are ‘fluid’, meaning teams may change from week to week depending on 3 main criteria:

ABILITY              in direct comparison to other students across the sport

ATTENDANCE    any student who misses 2 games in a season unrelated to sickness may be moved

ATTITUDE          this is based on behaviour at trainings, on game day and not limited to the sporting arena

Upcoming Events/Key Dates

 Wednesday 1 February

• During school hours Non-Rep sport commences as well as Representative Summer Sport Trials #1 (compulsory for all students who have nominated to play Summer Sport) 

 Saturday 4 February

• Compulsory Representative Summer Sport Trials #2 (compulsory for all students who have nominated to play Summer Sport- Basketball, Tennis, Touch Football, Girls Football). See link for timings

Wednesday 8 February

• Representative Summer Sport before school skills sessions commences (Year 3&4 Basketball @ Dunnet Hall and Girls Football @ Redlands Oval). 7:00am-8.00am

Friday 10 February

• Representative Summer Sport before school skills sessions commences (Year 5&6 Basketball @ Dunnet Hall and Year 5/6 Touch Football @ Redlands Oval). 7:00am-8.00am

Saturday 11 February

• IPSHA Round 1 Summer Sport – see Pulse for sport fixtures.

I look forward to meeting many of you over the course of the term and beyond and please don’t hesitate to view our Sport Information page on Redlands Pulse if you have any questions pertaining to Sport.

Have a great term.

Mr Trevor Dunne
Head of Junior Sport
tdunne@redlands.nsw.edu.au
9953 6022

Ballet and Dance

Welcome to Ballet and Dance 2023

We look forward to another amazing year of dance at the Redlands Ballet and Dance Academy. This year is sure to be an exciting one as we welcome back our existing students as well as new recruits, and new dance teachers too.

It was great to see so many of you come along to our Auditions this week. Well done everyone!

We are looking forward to getting back into our regular weekly classes and would like to begin as we mean to go on. Please ensure that you have neat tidy hair for all genres of dance, buns are preferable. Make sure to have all correct uniform as the uniform police will be making random inspections!

Although the main aim at the Academy is for everyone to enjoy their dancing, it is important that this is done through focus and attention. There is a lot of learning to be done this Semester with the Redlands Autumn Fair, RAD exams, Eisteddfods and Gala Arts as well our big new Class Watching experience on Saturday 1 April. So, no time to waste, let’s make every moment count!

Term 1 Classes & Important Dates

We have a lot planned for 2023 so for all other Important Dates for 2023 please go to the Ballet & Dance page on Redlands Pulse.

Parent Pick-Up Point after Dance

Please see the map below for the location of the parent pick-up point.

The Murdoch Street pedestrian gate is open from 2.30pm – 4.00pm, Monday to Friday, and is closed all day Saturday and Sunday. When the Murdoch Street gate is locked access to Parkes Hall for Academy Dance classes is via the gate off Allister Street, adjacent to Junior Reception.

x

If you are picking your child up from the Ballet & Dance Academy, a reminder that children are not allowed to play on the play equipment without Redlands staff supervision.

This means no play on the equipment after school.

Enrol in Dance for Semester 1

If you would like to join us at the Academy for Semester 1, enrolments are open until Monday 27 February. Please take a look through our timetabled classes, and then complete your enrolment form.

Drop a Class

We understand that sometimes a class just doesn’t work. If that is the case, please complete our Notice of Change form no later than Monday 27 February, form available here

DanceLife Unite

Congratulations to Dante Minassian, Year 9, who took part in DanceLife Unite over the weekend and placed:

1st in Ballet
1st in Contemporary
4th in Jazz

Dante was also awarded the Directors Choice Award.

Dante then progressed to the grand finals and won Teen Protege Grand Champion with his Lyrical solo, choreography by Jennifer Psaroulis, which came with $1,000 cash, a travel voucher to compete at Starpower in Las Vegas and a professional photo shoot.

Congratulations Dante!

New Teachers

We are delighted to introduce our new Academy dance teachers:

	Amanda Deller is an Australian-based dance instructor. Her love for dance began in Western Australia learning jazz, hip hop, tap and contemporary.  Amanda’s 20 year varied skill set has enabled her to inspire children of all ages. From the age of 18 she was a specialist dance teacher in numerous Performance studios, Primary and High Schools. Her passion took her to Sydney to work with multi platinum selling artist Guy Sebastian as a movement coach/choreographer for his 2012 Armageddon Tour. She has also choreographed and performed for Aria award winning singer/songwriter Samantha Jade, touring Australia and Asia. Her other credits include Peking Duk Splendour in the Grass 2015, Justin Timberlake opening act 2004, Johnny Ruffo “On Top” music video, Woolworths Cheap Cheap Campaign, The Australian Open, Hennessy Artistry Asia, World XFactor and supporting act for One Direction Australian Tour. Amanda has a positive, inspiring nurturing nature, she is all about connecting people through dance.
	Fabio Lo Giudice was born in Sicily, Italy and moved to attend the Royal Ballet School when he was 10. After graduating he danced with the Joffrey Ballet in Chicago, USA, for three years before moving to the Royal New Zealand Ballet for six years where he danced as a Soloist. In 2020 Fabio joined the West Australian Ballet as a Demi Soloist. During his career he has performed a variety of classical leading roles including “The Cavalier Prince” in The Nutcracker, “Romeo” in Romeo & Juliet, Main roles in George Balanchine’s in Divertimento.15 and Allegro Brillante. His Neo Classical Repertoire includes Jiri Kylian’s Sechs Tanze and Petite Mort. Alexander Ekman’ Cacti & Episode 31 and Roland Petit’s Carmen and L’Arlessiene. Leading up to his retirement he also performed in Air and other Invisible Forces by Graeme Murphy and in Krystof Pastor’s Dracula where danced the role of “Arthur” in West Australian’s Ballet 2020 production.
	Claudia Willimann began her classical ballet training at the age of three. She spent most of her childhood in New Zealand at Canterbury Academy of Dance where she completed her exams for RAD Ballet. In 2016 Claudia moved to Melbourne to complete her Advance Diploma of Dance at The Australian Conservatoire of Ballet. She then went on to dance for the Yellow Wheel Youth Company for a year before accepting a position for the 2019 Pre Professional Year at Sydney Dance Company. Pre Professional Year allowed for Claudia to progress her contemporary skills and learn new ways to choreograph and move. Claudia has been teaching dance throughout the years of her professional dance training. She is looking forward to sharing her knowledge and passion for dance at Redlands Ballet and Dance Academy.

End of Year Performance 2022

We are thrilled to be able to share the photos and videos of our wonderful End of Year Performance. Please CLICK HERE 

Any Questions?

Please contact us at dance@redlands.nsw.edu.au with any questions, concerns or feedback.

Ms Gilly Revie
Head of Redlands Ballet and Dance Academy
grevie@redlands.nsw.edu.au
02 9908 6488 

Dance Curriculum

Welcome back to another exciting year of Curriculum Dance for our Year 8 through to Year 12 students. 

Important Dates

Any Questions?

Please contact us at kboase@redlands.nsw.edu.au with any questions, concerns or feedback.

Mrs Katharine Boase
Subject Coordinator of Dance
kboase@redlands.nsw.edu.au 

Drama and Theatre

Welcome to Drama 2023

Welcome to the 2023 school year. I’d like to introduce myself as the new Head of Drama and Theatre. My previous role, which I held for six years, was Head of Drama at Pymble Ladies’ College and I’m also a Senior Marker for the HSC with NESA. I hold a Masters in Research of Philosophy in Education from Sydney University. 

I’m really excited about the year ahead; we have a fantastic Drama program led by outstanding Drama teachers in both Curricular and Cocurricular, and I’m thrilled to be leading this faculty. Redlands offers a variety of courses in Acting, Theatresports, Musical Theatre, Film and Production for students from Preschool to Year 12. There are lots of fabulous activities, festivals, performances and competitions planned for 2023. This term we have our Musical, The Addams Family, which will be held at Chatswood Concourse on the 23, 24, and 25 of March, and we have many other Drama performances to look forward to throughout the year. 

I’m sure this will be a great year for Drama at Redlands and I thank you for involvement in the Drama program. If at any stage you have any queries or feedback on the Drama program, please email; drama@redlands.nsw.edu.au

The Addams Family

Rehearsals are well underway for our exciting production of The Addams Family. Tickets will be on sale shortly and will be available directly from The Concourse Chatswood box office. Redlands will be presenting this fun musical on the 23, 24, and 25 March in The Concourse Theatre. Our full rehearsal schedule has been emailed to all Musical company families. Exact scenes, songs and students required for each rehearsal are available on the Theatre and Drama Pulse page. Students are reminded to be prompt to all rehearsals, bring plenty of food and water, wear appropriate clothing as required. We are really looking forward to this coming Sunday with our full cast.

Onstage – HSC Drama Excursion

On Monday 6 February we are having our first Drama excursion for the year, to Onstage, a showcase of the most outstanding exemplar works from the HSC for NSW. Years 11 and 12 Drama are looking forward to this inspirational excursion.

Theatresports

Junior School

Workshops are free and open to all students from Years 3 to 6. If you would like to register for an enrolment into Theatresports, please email drama@redlands.nsw.edu.au.

Secondary School

Workshops are free and open to all students from Years 7 to 12. Classes take place on Tuesday lunchtimes in the Drama Studio. Redlands will be entering a senior and intermediate team in Impro Australia’s 2023 Theatresports Schools Competition. The regional TSC takes place in Term 2 with heats running from early May. Winning schools will progress to take part in the qualifying finals in June and the top teams in each division will go into a Grand Final at the Enmore Theatre at the end of June.

Senior Acting club

Interested in becoming part of the Redlands Drama Senior Acting Ensemble? Students who would like to develop their acting skills and be part of an ensemble that creates new works as well as working towards Theatre Festivals are invited to come on Monday lunchtime to the Drama Studio, please email drama@redlands.nsw.edu.au for more information.

Ms Tamara Sweetman 
Head of Drama and Theatre
tsweetman@redlands.nsw.edu.au

Music

Welcome to Music 2023

Music is resounding as our classes resume and our Senior Chamber Ensemble rehearses for tomorrow’s Principal Commissioning.  Next week, Private Lessons, Musicianship Lessons and Rock Bands fire up; and Week 3 sees all our Prep, Junior & Senior Ensembles kick off for the year, with enrolments already at a record high. A magnificent year is ahead in Music!

A new year is always a great chance to consider what we hope the year ahead will hold, and position ourselves accordingly.

If not enrolled already, we hope that you might consider which Extracurricular & Cocurricular Music activities could enrich your child’s life in 2023. Many of our participants report our programs as the highlight of their school week – affording social connectedness, rich reward for self-discipline, and immeasurable neurological benefits that enhance both academic and wellbeing outcomes. 

We look forward to welcoming your child within our Curricular, Extracurricular & Cocurricular offerings.

Let’s make some music!

Amy Richardson
Director of Music P-12

When do we start?

‘ABC. Easy as 1,2,3.’  Jackson Five

Week 1 – Curricular Classes Resume
Week 2 – Extracurricular Lessons Resume
Week 3 – Cocurricular Ensembles Resume

Please note that this staggered start is only ever for Term 1 at the beginning of the year. All other terms see offerings resume in Week 1. 

All our happenings are listed alongside enrolment forms on Pulse, and our Music Administrators are available on each campus to take your questions as they arise. 

Make sure you’ve subscribed to your Campus Music Pulse page for all the relevant News updates in the weeks to come.

Auditions for Advanced & Extension Ensembles (Senior)

For Senior School students, information regarding Audition requirements for the Advanced or Extension ensemble streams is available on the ‘Music Auditions Page’ on iLearn.  Auditions for Semester One entry to these streams are closing next Friday 10 February, and require video upload to the iLearn page. Expressions of Interest are also being received on iLearn for Chamber, Piano, Conducting & Composing enrichment streams.

Junior students will be advised regarding the audition process for Junior School extension streams shortly.

Staff Movement

‘You say goodbye, and I say hello’  Beatles

This year we are excited to welcome the following staff members to our team of world class Music specialists. Mr Stefano Caroleo (Orchestral Percussion) and Dr Karina Avanesian-Leonas (Piano) as well as Dr Jeremy Eskenazi in a newly created role as our Resident Associate Artist (Piano).  All three have had extremely successful international careers and bring a wealth of experience and knowledge to their roles at Redlands. We are looking forward to our partnership in support of our Redlands learners as they join our team of specialists.

Sadly, we also farewell Ms Annette Houghton as she seeks a tree-change after 27 years of dedicated piano instruction with us. Ms Sandy Sin & Ms Elina Yasumoto are similarly moving on from Redlands for family reasons. We wish them every success in their next chapter.

Who is my Curriculum Music teacher this year?

Communication in 2023

Have you downloaded The Redlands App?

In addition to Pulse News alerts, Note Day remains the weekly voice of our Music Department (as we seek to minimise the number of emails in your inbox!).  Create a ritual – make a cup of tea and sit down to read the digest each week – and you’ll be happily across all the happenings in our busy department!

The Redlands App will also move to a more central role in communicating Private Lessons and Rehearsal Session times this year.

When all else fails, our Music Administrators are on hand to assist you with any questions that arise.

Be our Friend?

We deeply value the school and home partnership, and know our students benefit so richly when we work together.  We are grateful for the enthusiastic support of our Friends of Music who give their time because of their belief in the importance of creativity, community and collaboration.  We extend the invitation to all Prep, Junior & Senior School parents to consider becoming one of our Friends of Music (FOM) in 2023!  To find out more, feel free to email our 2023 President (Lisa Connors) at redlandsfriendsofmusic@gmail.com or leave your details via the Friends of Music Expression of Interest form.

We are beyond excited for another year of music making, and we can’t wait to see our community at our many events this year.

Wishing you every good thing for your 2023.