Penrith Selective High School
May Newsletter 2019
From the Principal
Congratulations to Kristiana Margate (Year 11) who has been selected for the Kokoda Challenge. The place in this program is fully funded and a wonderful opportunity later in the year. Kristiana is a member of the Duke of Edinburgh program.
Samantha Buda (Year 9) has been awarded the prestigious Harding Miller Scholarship at Sydney Town Hall. The scholarship will provide Samantha with a range of support, including high quality mentoring.
A special thanks once again to Ms Pipio who, as Head Teacher- Co Curricular Programs, continues to support students to submit high quality applications for a number of awards and scholarships.
Upgrades
Over the last 2 months, the school has completed a number of significant upgrades. Many of these have been funded through the support of parents through fundraising and early payment of the school contribution. Classrooms have been painted, new seating made available for students in H, M and C Blocks, the expansion of the weights area to allow for a full class to utilise the area and phase 1 of the upgrade to the school gym. In the coming weeks, construction will commence on phase 2 of the gym area which will see the enclosure of the area between the canteen and gym. The large wooden wall will be replaced by 4 sliding glass panels to allow access into the gym. Tables and a kitchenette will be installed for student comfort and use and the Barista Training Program will commence so students can learn additional skills while volunteering to provide a service to staff and senior students. We have a joint funding application being reviewed for Term 3, which would see the space fitted with air conditioning and heating. Additionally, the former music staffroom will be converted into 2 sound proof tuition rooms. Constructed with comfort and line of site in mind, the space will help our musicians to practice during their work with tutors and teachers as well as during lesson time. My thanks to Mrs Ryan, Mr Oxley and Mr Prior for all of their work to manage and complete such a wide range of projects.
Cross Country
Congratulations to everyone involved in the recent Zone Cross Country. After winning Zone Swimming, which is not our strongest event we had set a lofty goal to try and use teamwork to win all 3 carnivals in 2019. This wasn’t to be despite an outstanding effort, but what was very pleasing was the feedback from other schools including parents who wrote to congratulate Penrith students on the way that they supported other students from competing schools with sportsmanship and care. Well done all and thank you to the staff, particularly Mr Newell and Ms Borg.
8-11 Applications
Applications for placement into years 8-11 will open in June. Spaces are highly sought after, but we expect places to be available in all cohorts. Details can be found on our website: https://penrith-h.schools.nsw.gov.au/about-our-school/enrolment.html
Election and Relay for LIfe
Staff and students have been at school events over the weekend twice recently. The large team of students and staff lined up once again for Relay for Life and raised $10,000 for cancer research. Thank you to Mr Devine for organising the event once again, Mr Ferrarin and Ms Sonter for staying overnight and the large number of teachers who came along to supervise. The election was another weekend at school and well done to the Prefects, SRC and JRC for combining their efforts to sell many Democracy Sausages and cakes. There were a large number of staff present throughout the day and it couldn’t have happened without their support. Thank you to the parents who also came along to support the students.
Building and Library Fund (DGR)
We have applied to the Australian Tax Office for Deductible Gift Recipient (DGR) status which would allow parents to claim some of their contributions to the school as Tax deductions. I will share more details once the status is confirmed. Thank you to the P&C for endorsing this plan which should help families while also supporting us to continue upgrading many areas across the school.
Camps- all 3 including Year 9
This week, Year 9 are on their annual camp. The event doubles as the first involvement with our large Duke of Edinburgh program and is also the final year group camp of the year. Each camp is incredibly important for students and I thank all parents for their ongoing support that ensures every student attends. Thank you to the staff who take time away from family so that students can learn and grow as well rounded young adults.
Thank you for your continued support of the school and I hope that you enjoy reading about the range of events that have taken place over the past month. Please remember to keep your contact details up to date so that regular emails from the school reach you.
Warm regards,
Mark Long
Principal
Upgrade of Music Staff Rooms
Mathematics Update
Enrichment has begun with the students working with their tutors and either the Euler, Gauss or Noether booklets. The students are required to hand in questions that they completed themselves in the green exercise books. The tutors will tell the students which questions are due and when.
APSMO is made up of 5 papers given throughout Terms 2 and 3. This year all of Years 7 and 8 will compete in this Olympiad. The cost is $6.50 and this covers all 5 papers. The results of these Olympiads go towards their yearly report mark. Payment is overdue for this, so if you haven’t paid already please pay $6.50 to the Accounts Office asap. The first Olympiad was held during their mathematics lessons on Wednesday May 22. The second paper is on Wednesday June 19.
Computational and Algorithmic Thinking (C.A.T) Competition was held on Tuesday April 2. It was a one hour exam before school starting at 7:55am. This year we entered 11 keen students from Years 9 to 12, and we should know by the end of this term how the students have gone. These students are now in training for the Informatics Olympiad.
The AMC will be on August 1 and it is compulsory for all of Years 7, 8, 9 and 10. The results from the AMC will go towards their yearly report mark. All Students should have paid the $6.50 entry fee and if you have accidently overlooked it, can you please pay at the Accounts Office asap. It is optional for Years 11 and 12, these students have registered their interest with me and they have been invoiced already this term. If they have not paid before the competition date, then they will not be sitting the competition.
Peer Tutoring is up and running again, if you would like a peer tutor to help with your mathematics please send an email to mathspeertutoring@gmail.com stating your name, year, maths class and areas of weakness. The admin will match you up with a tutor and contact you. This is a free service.
Last year we started a homework help Centre for year 12s as this year we have decided to include all years. This runs at recess on Mondays through to Thursdays in room A.1.5. If you have a question with your homework/classwork you can just drop into room A1.5 and ask for help. You can ask as many questions as you like, but if you have a lot of questions regularly we will recommend you get a peer tutor.
The Primary School Peer Tutoring program, whereby a group of our year 9 students work with the gifted and talented students from Penrith Primary School is up and running. We meet every Tuesday recess in the library. Each primary school student has been matched with a Year 9 student and they work together through the problems. Watching both sets of students interact, grow and challenge each other is very exciting for myself and Mrs Wilkes.
Sue Briggs
Head Teacher Mathematics
Naveen Manivasagan
Maths Student Profile Newsletter
What do you picture when you think of a genius? A mad, crazy looking individual working furiously on a table with paper stacked everywhere, flying all around the place and a blackboard full of mathematical mysteries?
But did you know great minds are lurking in the middle of Penrith Selective High grounds, hiding in its vast rooms and alleyways? Naveen Manivasagan is one such student and I managed a quick talk with him.
What are your secrets to being successful in mathematics?
doing past papers is a good idea.
Anything else?
*stammers*...Practise doing problems, and practise hard problems.
What's your favourite topic in extension 2?
Integration.
Are you aware of the cult following you have within year 12?
Yes.
What do you think of it?
I don't really interact with them, but I'm competing with a lot of people right now. But I'll just do more past papers and study more and keep on the routine.
Apparently, if you rub Naveen Manivasagan’s chin before an exam, a band 6 is guaranteed?
Is that true?
Yes, for some people, yes.
That's pretty interesting. I remember before last 3 unit exam, I rubbed your chin, and I got 87%. Do you think that might be because of the magic contained within your chin?
Yep. definitely so.
Do you enjoy maths just as a subject or even as a hobby? What do you do for fun?
Not maths. I watch TV shows. I used to watch Game of Thrones and Breaking Bad and all the classics, but a lot of them have finished now.
Are you thinking of going into mathematics after high school? If not, what are you thinking of doing?
No, I plan on doing medicine.
What uni?
UNSW.
What do you think your chances are?
Pretty alright, but my interview skills are pretty poor, so I'll have to brush up on them.
How's your UCAT preparation going? Is Quantiative Reasoning your best section?
No, it's actually my worst as I find it tedious.
What's your best section?
Decision making; I like the logic that goes into it.
Any tips you would want to give junior students?
For junior students, maths isn't about memorising a bunch of formulae and reciting them in a test. To get high marks you must actively understand the concepts and the way to do this is by asking why something is true.
What really interests you about Maths and what do you think is the greatest skill required in maths?
The most important skill in maths is to imagine, and picture what the question is trying to ask. To be able to see what you are solving is the most important step in solving the problem.
Watch out for the next newsletter where we will catch up with another genius from the grounds of PSHS!!!
Journalist: Kyung Yong (Tommy) Kwon
Photographer: Troy Affolter
Rubik's Cube Challenge
Near the end of Term 1, the Mathematics Faculty ran a highly competitive Rubik’s Cube Competition during Spirit Week. The contestants individually were given 15 seconds to analyse a randomly mixed cube and then were given three opportunities to solve the cube while being timed. The overwhelming majority of the competitors were from Year 12, however the talented Abhinav from Year 7, single handedly defeated all of the Year 12s; leaving them all speechless. Congratulations Abhinav!
Below are the results:
1. Abinav Chennupati Year 7 -14.69 secs
2. William Santoso Year 12 - 16.89 secs
3. Mustafa Bandukwala Year 12 - 23.96 secs
4. Victor Zhou Year 12 - 25.54 secs
5. Benjamin Renaud Year12 - 27.86 secs
6. Sanjay Yuvaraj Year 12 - 32.73 secs
7. Kevin Zhong Year 12 - 45.12 secs
8. Akshar Maharaja Year12 - 45.53 secs
9. Nikhil Khatri Year12 - 96.43 secs
Some reactions:
William Santoso: ‘What…’
Akshar Maharaja: ‘How did Kevin beat me?’
Nikhil Khatri: ‘Please include me in the newsletter’
All competitors please be on the lookout for the next competition which will be run later this term.
Abinav Chennupati from Year 7 - overall champion!
Opening of new classrooms at Penrith Public School
News from the Career's Adviser
Post-School Planning Night
The first half of this term sees a big focus on year 10. Firstly, the Post-School Planning Night which saw over 450 parents and students in attendance. This event helped parents and students to take some steps towards planning the students’ futures. There is a long way to go still but it was a good first step in understanding what sorts of decisions need to be made and how to start thinking about them. It was a pleasure to meet and talk to parents and hear the wonderful questions they asked regarding their children’s future study and careers. I am looking forward to working with students and parents to help guide them through this process.
Work Experience
Week 6 is our mandatory Work Experience block. Students have done a great job finding some very interesting and high-quality placements this year, and I am looking forward to hearing about their new and unusual experiences when they return to class.
Something that can help parents to guide their children through the week is to ask questions to help them reflect: What was the best thing that happened? What was different to what they expected? Did the work seem interesting? Was there anything about the week that made them reconsider their future? What steps can they take to find out more about working in that industry? Are they now more motivated to reach a career goal? There are many conversations to be had and I encourage you to explore all ideas as thoroughly as possible.
UNSW Business Day
Students often seek out their own opportunities and this past few weeks a group of year 11 students arranged with me to go to the UNSW Business Day where they learned more about careers in business and what approaches they can take to get there. They had a great day out on the UNSW campus in Kensington, getting a view into university life as well as exploring their future careers further. See below for some photos of the event.
Year 12
Year 12 are as busy as ever and I am enjoying meeting with them to assist them with their plans. With the exception of the last week, while I have been working with year 10, my door is always open to year 12 and they can book meetings with me to discuss their plans, thoughts, ideas or the utter lack of those in the worst-case scenario. I can help with all of these things!
They are currently applying for Business, Technology and Engineering cadetships so they have been busily writing drafts and getting feedback from me on those. The first wave of business cadetships has resulted in a number of students moving forward to the next round which involves some online aptitude testing. There are then two interviews to get through with companies such as UBS (banking) and Cubic Transport (inventors of the Opal Card) before students can be offered a job as a cadet next year. They do this alongside completing their university studies, usually doing both part-time.
We have more visits from universities coming up. Students will soon get a visit from the UNSW Co-op Scholarship faculty and others are on the way as well.
Over 450 parents and students attended the Year 10 Post School Destination Planning Night!
UNSW Business Day
Science Update
From Science, we wish good luck to the seniors with their upcoming assessments and
everyone who recently completed the ICAS exams for Science!
A reminder to everyone entering exam week to stay focused on feedback from last
assessment blocks and keep up the good work. As half-yearly exams and entrance exams
for year 10s get closer, help in certain topics or explanations in specific areas can be readily
available from your Peer Tutors. Our accommodating tutors are here to help you and your
studies. The list of tutors is available outside the science faculty or you can ask your science
to teacher to pair you up. The tutors can help prepare you before an exam or arrange regular
meetings to reiterate topics from classes.
On a final note, we wish everyone a good last couple weeks and a holiday full of relaxation :)
Year 8 Science Incursion
Recently our Year 8 cohort were involved in a Science Forensic incursion. Students handled and observed a range of evidence reproduced from a real life crime. They used their power of deductions to solve the mystery. It was wonderful to see every student working and thinking logically. Some students also participated in role playing.
Note No real footage/photographs or names of victims/suspects were provided. All materials were reproduced by Education Interactive for the purpose of school use.
Preliminary Science Excursion
Pedler's Day - part of School Spirit Week!
SRC Report
Last term concluded with School Spirit Week, an opportunity for us to spread the Penrith spirit through themed mufti days, activities, food and, of course, the Cross Country Carnival on the last day of term. The event was a huge success, with students from all year groups getting involved and celebrating our school community. Some highlights of the week were Monday’s “10 Year Challenge” mufti, when students were encouraged to dress up in the way they might have ten years ago. Pigtails, overalls and long socks were popular choices as we tried to recreate the tacky fashion trends of the early 2000s. I’m relieved to say that, although some of us may have only been toddlers ten years ago, we didn’t have anyone showing up in nappies.
Another popular activity was the “Baby Photo Challenge”. Generously- supplied childhood photos of our teachers were on display, as students were challenged to guess who was who. Kahoot quizzes were also held during lunchtime in the hall, with a great turnout of both students and teachers. On Friday, the SRC held a sausage sizzle, supplying our cross country participants with their hard-earned lunch. We also held a sausage sizzle on Election Day ( May 18), a combined effort with the prefects and JRC. Thank you to all the student volunteers and teachers who took time out of their weekend to come and help out.
The SRC is currently continuing to plan for Multicultural Day, which will be held on Friday July 5. This is always a highlight of the school year and we encourage all students to come and enjoy the variety of performances and food stalls that will be held on the day. As always, we’d like to remind everyone that the SRC is all about student voice, so if you have any suggestions or concerns, please come and see any of your SRC representatives. We look forward to celebrating the diversity of our school community this Multicultural Day, and hope it will be as successful as School Spirit Week was!
Sophia Hadjimichael Year 11
Fun times in Spirit Week!
Cross Country 2019
Penrith Selective High School students gathered for the annual Cross Country Carnival in a fun filled last day of Term 1. The event delivered many exciting races over a fast and flat course for all distances. Once again, the PSHS competition attracted a solid field for all age-groups. The racing was genuinely hard and fast with the top ten in each age group qualifying for the Nepean Zone Carnival. Thank you to all staff who worked on the many checkpoints and various other vital roles on the day.
Congratulations to Blaxland House on winning the overall day with 3528 points.
Second, third and fourth were extremely close with Lawson on 3141, Mitchell 3109 and Wentworth House on 3107.
Congratulations to our age champions:
Boys:
12 Years- Tonmoy Roychowdhury
13 Years- Owen McCann
14 Years- Santhosh Samuel
15 Years- Sujanthan Manoharan
16 Years- Luke Boyes
17 Years- Rithvik Nair
18+ Years- Jem Herbert-Rice
Girls:
12 Years- Ria Kamalakkannan
13 Years- Daniela Daniels
14 Years- Harini Paranthaman
15 Years- Zoe Elizade
16 Years- Zoe Peters
17 Years- Rhalize Cereno
18+ Years- Prithi Sakthi Sivabalan
Anzac Day Assembly 2019
On April 11, 2019 Penrith High School’s Years 7, 10 and 12, joined by special guests, commemorated the lives of Australians lost at war in the school’s annual ANZAC Day Ceremony.
The opening address made by Mr Stone highlighted the significance of the ceremony and the everlasting impacts it has on us. We learnt of the ideals of mateship and sacrifice that distinguish and unite all Australians irrespective of their origins.
Our guest speakers, Leading Aircraftsman Hugh Allen and Leading Aircraftswoman Shanae Stengrod, from Richmond RAAF Base, spoke of personal experiences in the force and allowed the student body to connect on a personal level to the sacrifices made. The musical performance of “And the Band Played Waltzing Matilda” by the Year 10 music students captured the Australian culture and ANZAC spirit, central to Australia’s national pride and identity. The reading of “The Last to Leave” written by Leon Gellert and read by Andreas Higginbotham, Year 12 History prefect, taught the students about remembrance and respect for those who lost their lives fighting.
The Ode has been used in commemoration services in Australia since 1921. It was followed by The Last Post, then one minute’s silence and finally The Rouse, which reinforced the solemnity of the ceremony. The student body respectfully reflected upon all those lost in wars, reminding us of the devastating effects war has on humanity.
Ashley Xia
History Prefect
Year 12
YEAR 10 VIETNAM WAR PERFORMANCE
Vietnam: Dusted Off” by Brett Hunt
On Friday, May 24, Year 10 students attended a performance of “Vietnam: Dusted Off’ by Brett Hunt, based on his father’s experiences in the Vietnam War era. Many of you will know the song “I Was Only 19” by Redgum, of which Brett’s father Frankie is the subject.
In his play, Brett, an accomplished actor and guitarist, shared his family story. He performed in the style of the Australian artists of the day - Normie Rowe, Col Joye, Johnny O’Keefe etc…as he told of his mother Connie and his father Frank, who joined the army at 17, trained at Canungra jungle training centre, departed Townsville on the Vung Tau ferry and found himself a forward scout in the jungles of Vietnam.
After a contact with a mine Frank is dusted off to Vung Tau and repatriated home. Frank and Connie were determined to recover and build a loving family and a future; they are, however, confronted with a legacy of physical and emotional pain, the indifference of governments and the contempt of society.
This was a tremendous performance which engrossed all of Year 10. Many students commented afterwards on how emotional they became during the performance.
History is the story of humanity. Brett's story is just one story of many incredible stories to tell from ancient through to modern times.
Mr Stone
Head Teacher History
Stage 4 and 5 Update
JRC Project
Throughout the term, the JRC have had weekly meetings to discuss their upcoming JRC Project for the term and have provided many exciting suggestions to creatively raise money for their chosen charity, so stay tuned and listen up for the assembly announcements to support not only the JRC but a good, charitable cause.
Excursions
In a few weeks, year 7 will have a reptile incursion in school. It is a great opportunity for the students to learn about the classification of animals by looking at real life reptiles. Year 8 will also have a Medieval Day to look forward to towards the end of term where they can elaborate their knowledge on history in an interactive day.
NAPLAN
Recently Year 7 and Year 9 underwent their NAPLAN for school. Congratulations to year 7 for completing their first NAPLAN in high school and year 9 for completing their final NAPLAN, all the best for the results.
Year 9 Camp
Year 9 will be going on a three day camp for the Bronze Duke of Edinburgh in week 5. They will be participating in 12 hours of hiking across Somerset. Through this, they will build teamwork and communication skills as they hike and camp together as a grade. We’ll be looking forward to hearing all about the hike when they come back.
Special thanks to Mr Elias (Year 9 Year Adviser) and Ms Andreatta (Duke of Edinburgh Coordinator) for organising this wonderful camp and to the attending staff, Ms Cush, Ms Reid, Ms Borg, Ms Andreatta, Mr Mell, Mr Buchli and Mr Bates.
Have fun at camp Year 9 !!!
Year 10 Work Experience
The year 10s will be going on work experience in week 6. Work placement is a rewarding experience in which our students can attain first hand experiences within the workplace environment. A huge thank you to Miss O’Regan and Mr Buchli, for their tremendous help in organizing and aiding the year 10s! We wish the year 10s good luck and hope they enjoy their time during work experience.
Stage 4 Prefects
Tommy Kwon, Rhalize Cereno and Troy Affolter
Stage 5 Prefects
Maggie Li, Pav Nadagobalan and Josh Lin
Towers Magazine 2019
From the Towers Prefects:
Heidi Lui, Lachlan Reeves, William Gao, Keshna Jeyandrabalan
Additional Club Updates
History Club
Starting at the beginning of this year, History Club is for history enthusiasts
who enjoy delving into historical topics interactively through board games. Throughout our time venturing through the timelines of history, we explored the Cold War, fought for a town in Northern France, became wealthy socialites and now, we have become chariot
racers in the Ancient times. Come down to the History Block on Thursday recess and enjoy playing board games with Mr Hoekstra!
Fair Trade
Throughout first term, Fair Trade gained many new members with our number
of members reaching forty-five. With this help added, Fair Trade was able to hold a profitable stall during School Spirit Week, selling our classic Iced Chocolate drinks. Additionally, Fair Trade has been busy preparing for Multicultural Day as it fast
approaches. Including our classic Iced Chocolate drinks, we will be selling baked goods such as brownies and cinnamon scrolls using Fair Trade sourced ingredients. Make sure to find us during Multicultural Day to taste delicious Fair Trade products! If you would
like to join Fair Trade Club, be sure to come to the Art Block during recess on Monday to join the team!
Recycling
Recycling has been operating for more than a year now, taking on new roles
helping the school environment. One of the major new projects that Recycling undertook was the Return and Earn program introduced in term one this year. This has been a successful ongoing project as the school gradually learned the benefits the program
could bring. A group of 33 students operate on a daily basis from a wide variety of grades, each taking up different tasks around the school to collect recycling, including cans and bottles, to help the school environment stay a clean place.
Owen Pangcog
Public Relations Report
Throughout our term as the Public Relations Prefects, Divinia and I have had the opportunity to present our ideas to the school. The most notable Is the Return and Earn Program.
Return and Earn
Divinia and I have successfully established the Return and Earn Recycling Program at Penrith Selective High School. We have achieved this in partnership with the school Recycling Club. This program aims to inject funds back into the school as well as reduce the environmental impact of our school.
Social Media
Throughout our term we have also been managing the school social medias alongside senior prefects. This has helped the prefects communicate messages with the school and wider community. We have also worked with the TAS prefects to produce our Prefect Afternoon Tea video that is available on the Prefect Youtube account.
Public Relations Prefects
Troy Affolter and Divinia Eather
Photography Club
Recently, the Photography Club has been taking photos of school events such as Cross Country, Spirit Week and the Athletics Carnival. Currently we have around 100 students who are part of the Photography Club. Upcoming events that we are participating in are Multicultural Day and MADD Night. From term 3, two new leaders will take over from myself as I graduate and complete the HSC.
Troy Affolter, Club Leader
Social Justice Club
What’s been going on!
International Women’s Day
On March 8, our school celebrated International Women's Day, holding a bake sale and selling bracelets for the cause on other school event days such as Spirit Week. The club has raised a total of $766.90 to go towards the funding of gender equality around the world. The theme for this year is “More Powerful Together”, and we used this special event to remind everyone that, if we stand united against gender inequality, we have the power to ensure a better future for girls and women around the world. A lot of progress has been made when it comes to gender equality, but we still have a long way to go. Donations will be made to OxFam and possibly to The UN Women National Committee Australia. These organisations exist to raise funds for and awareness of women’s platform to end violence against women, promote economic empowerment, advance women in leadership, ensure women’s participation in peace processes and to accelerate gender equality worldwide.
Coming up!
LGBTGQ+ Awareness
The club will be having a focus on the awareness of the LGBTQ+ community throughout the school and also all around NSW! We would like to share the message of love and support for all types of genders and sexualities and make school a welcoming environment for everyone. Look out for the selling of vibrant rainbow flags for the price of $3.00, all donations will be going to the Twenty 10 Gay and Lesbian Counselling Service of NSW. They are a Sydney based service working across NSW, providing a broad range of specialised services for young people 12-25 including housing, mental health, counselling and social support.
World Environment Day
World Environment Day is on June 5 and is a great reminder for everyone in our school community of environmental awareness. Separate from Social Justice Club, the recycling team works very hard each week to collect and recycle any recyclable materials placed in the cardboard boxes found in each classroom. It would be greatly appreciated for students to keep an eye out for those when placing their rubbish in the bin! There are also the Return & Earn bins for students to place their cans, etc.
Just a reminder, if you’d like to join the club and help out with upcoming events, you can come by at one of our meetings which take place every Monday recess in room T.1.1 (room 19), you can come see either Sophia or I or send us an email.
Sara El Youghun
LOTE Report
Hakusan Exchange
From July 24 to August 2, Japanese exchange students from Hakusan will be coming over for an exchange program at our school where they will be staying for a week. It will be an exciting time as we welcome the Japanese visitors and learn more about each other’s cultures. Thank you to all the students who have volunteered to host the Hakusan exchange students, but, we still need 5 more host families for boys, this is very important! We need to have all the host families organised before we can continue preparing, so please, if you are at all interested in doing so, talk to Mrs Sullivan or either of us!
Special thanks to Mrs Sullivan for organising this exchange program and enabling this wonderful experience to occur.
As this is our final newsletter, we’d also like to say a big thank you for everyone involved in the LOTE faculty. Mrs Sullivan and Mrs Pipio have been our teachers since year 7. Every year we’ve had the privilege of studying a language, and it’s an opportunity we’re incredibly lucky to have. For everyone who has assisted during exchange visits, thank you so much, as they’ve been incredible experiences for everyone involved. For all the students who are studying Japanese or Italian, please don’t stop! It’s a skill you will never lose and it’s so valuable.
Thank you for a great year of being able to represent one of our favourite subjects, we hope you enjoyed our stay.
LOTE Prefects
Lachlan Reeves and Maggie Li
English Report
YEAR 12 EXTENSION 1 ENGLISH WORKSHOP
We had 6 students from Year 12 and their teachers give up their Sunday on May 19 to attend an Extension 1 English workshop day at Newington College in Stanmore. An enrichment to their studies, they sat through lectures which showed them how to both analyse their texts in a more meaningful way and write more creatively. This has given our students more confidence in tackling the rest of their HSC.
A big thank you to the 3 supervising teachers: Ms Ross, Ms Cush and Ms Scardanas for the valuable opportunity.
DEBATING
Debating News – University of Sydney Senior Debating Training Day
On Friday May 24, four teams from Year 9, 10 and 11 went with Ms Craigen to the University of Sydney to debate against different high schools. We had three rounds of debates consisting of one prepped debate and two impromptu debates. This was a very valuable experience for us, as it allowed for us to think critically about the different topics and write speeches in teams. Throughout the day, we were able to make friends with members of other teams, engage in conversation about important issues and learn from university debaters who had very developed skill sets. All the debates were focused on topical issues that required us to pull information from various sources. We had extremely limited preparation times which made it even harder to create strong cases, but worked with our teams and had a great day. Overall it was a great learning opportunity for all of us, as it allowed us to improve our debating skills.
Year 11 – 12 PREMIER'S DEBATING CHALLENGE
Two Penrith teams were entered into the Premier’s Debating Challenge this year in the year 11 – 12 division. Our year 12 team won two of its three debates winning against our Penrith year 11 side and against Nepean. They narrowly went down to Blaxland in the third and final round which was politics. The team is now waiting on other results to see if there will be a playoff or not. The year 11 team unfortunately went down in their three debates against the year 12 Penrith team, Katoomba and Colo. They got better with each debate and the adjudicator commended them on their growth on the day.
THE DIGNITY DRIVE
Everyday thousands of homeless women must choose between food and basic sanitary needs. The Dignity Drive organised by Ms Craigen, has helped these women by providing sanitary products. Over the course of a few weeks, students and teachers have been donating money and sanitary products, in hopes of alleviating the hardships these women must face on a daily basis. As a school, we raised resources to help over 60 strong, beautiful women!
Debaters who attended the Sydney Senior Training Day
Yr 11 Debaters (in sports uniform)
Yr 12 Extension 1 English Workshop
Yr 12 Debaters
Election Day Sausage Sizzle helped to raise funds for the JRC and SRC!
Boys Knockout Volleyball
Edward Sung
Richard Guo
Sidharth Kumar
Edison Zou
Eric Lin
Samuel Ip
Joshua Lin
The Boys Knockout Volleyball team made a valiant effort against a very strong Baulkham Hills team who look like favourites to go on and win the competition. The boys held BHHS to a very close first set, going down 22-25, partly thanks to some fantastic blocking by Edward. A few unlucky points early in the second set gave Baulkham Hills the momentum they needed and they soon found their rhythm - going on to win the 2nd and 3rd set fairly comfortably.
Congratulations to all the boys on their hard work to reach the 2nd last round of the competition. Special thanks to Joshua Lin for his leadership role within the team.
Laurence Chapple
Athletics Carnival
Attendance levels were outstanding and we were treated with fantastic weather for the day. Many thanks must go to all of the staff who worked tirelessly throughout the day to conduct the events for our students.
We would also like to recognise Mr and Mrs Stark of Nepean Amateur Athletics Club who donate many hours of their own time to contribute to the successful running of our carnival. Their assistance is greatly appreciated. Thank you to Ms Stewart and Ms McDonald from Sydney University who volunteered on the day to run our Long Jump and Triple Jump events.
Congratulations to all students who participated on the day and enjoyed the many events on offer. Students had the opportunity to participate in the 100m, 200m, 400m, 800m, Long Jump, High Jump, Triple Jump, Shot Put and Discus. The 1500m and Javelin events were held on the school oval the day after the carnival. Next year, we look forward to bringing back the House relays which always generate plenty of competition, excitement and House spirit.
The Nepean Zone Carnival will be held on Thursday and Friday June 13 and 14, at Tom Hunter Park, Faulconbridge. The first two competitors in each event at the school carnival qualify for Zone and the 3rd placed athlete will be reserve.
Special mention to Luke Boyes who broke 3 long standing records:
400m old record - 54.6secs J. Lauder (1968) - new record 53.7secs
Long Jump - old record 5.86m A. Haines (1987) - new record 6.05m
Triple Jump - old record 12.00m A. Haines (1987) - new record 13.23m
Congratulations to our Age Champions and Runners Up.
Boys
12 Years - Tonmoy Roychowdhury - 91
Runner up - Ranuga Jayaweera - 69
13 Years - Owen McCann - 57
Runner up - Tanish Patil - 49
14 Years - Santhosh Samuel - 102
Runner up - Eric Han - 94
15 Years - Nicholas Tseung - 111
Runner up - Lachlan Stone - 55
16 Years - Luke Boyes - 148
Runner up - Eric Rajan - 72
17+ Years - Rahul Sahadevan - 66
Runner up - Ayush Arora - 45
Girls
12 Years - Mahathi Bethamsetty - 86
Runner up - Hillary Gosal - 58
13 Years - Shyla Vashisht - 89
Runner up - Arsha Manovarnnan - 56
14 Years - Harini Paranthaman - 145
Runner up - Leah Joseph - 76
15 Years - Zoe Elizalde - 87
Runner up - Halis Rishamsulkamal - 60
16 Years - Zoe Peters - 111
Runner up - Jessica David - 87
17+ Years - Liza Drozd - 98
Runner up - Audrey Honrada - 79
Nepean Zone Cross Country Carnival
On Monday May 13, 130 of our students ventured to Glenbrook in the Blue Mountains for the Nepean Zone Cross Country Carnival.
Penrith Selective High School produced some outstanding results.
The following athletes placed in the top 3 in their age group.
Luke Boyes - 2nd 16 years boys
Zoe Peters - 3rd 16 years girls
Jem Herbert-Rice - 2nd 18 years boys
Prithi Sakthi Sivabalan - 3rd 18 years girls
The following Penrith High teams were the best scoring team in their respective age groups.
12 year boys, 16 year girls, 16 year boys, 18 year girls and 18 year boys.
Overall, we finished an impressive 3rd in the Zone out of 8 schools.
Good luck to the following students who will compete at the Sydney West Championship at Sydney Motor Sport Park on June 12:
Reeve Dudhia
Tonmoy Roychowdhury
Arvind Janardhan
Santhosh Samuel
Halis Rishamsulkamal
Zoe Elizade
Eric Rajan
Zoe Peters
Marco Perri
Alison Joseph
Luke Boyes
Ashvini Dolamulla
Rhalize Cereno
Rithvik Nair
Sophia Hadjimichael
Jasmine Singh
Prithi Sakthi Sivabalan
Sanaa Chaudhry
Chess Update
Chess Champs at Penrith? Check.
The Penrith Selective High School Intermediate Chess Team recently travelled to Wentworth Falls to play Blue Mountains Grammar School in the second round of the Secondary Schools Chess Tournament. The team played brilliantly and we remain undefeated! Penrith has not dropped one point in this competition - next week we have a bye then another away round against Kingswood High School. Congratulations to the players Fabien Malherbe, Yash Mishras, Daniel Biswas and Jamima Rumey Jiffrey and to Cedric Kutschera for coaching and management.
Chess Club happens every Monday Lunch in room H.1.1 and we are ALWAYS happy to have new students join and start playing.
If you are interested in participating on behalf of our school in Chess competitions, join Chess Club, where you will be able to practice against other students and will be brought to Ms. Kwiet’s attention for the next Chess Competition.
Cedric Kutschera, Chess coach, and Fabien Malherbe, chess club and chess team member
Gardening Club
History Smash
History Smash! Are you ready for it?
Are you smart, Year 7? Are you awesome, Year 8? Are you knowledgeable, Year 9? Are you terrific, Year 10? Are you excellent, Year 11? And what about you, Year 12, the creme de la creme of Penrith High School - in the words of Tay Tay, are you ready for it?
The History department has planned a giant quiz for the whole school. History Smash is a history-based quiz competition for all years to be run Thursday lunch in the H block. We will start with Year 7, the following week Year 8, Year 9 in Week 7 and so on. There will be a spectacular year-versus-year grand final either in week 10 or next term. Please sign up as soon as possible outside the History staff room and come up to watch on Thursday lunchtime. There will be ‘traditional’ History questions, some quirky challenges and audience participation and super prizes of course. Penrith, get ready to smash it!
See You in Court!
Rule of Law Day at Parramatta Courts
On Monday May 13 2019, the Penrith High School Legal Dream Team, aka Yr 12 Legal Studies, visited Parramatta Law Courts on an excellent excursion organised by the Rule of Law Society. We met Jacklyn from the Rule of Law Society outside the Courts and then spent 10 minutes trying to get in tough security.
Heidi: “Oh no, I have sharp scissors in my bag. Can you please carry them, Ms Kwiet.”
Ms K: 😳
We had the incredible opportunity to meet the Magistrate and hear her speak about her career, the profession, the difficult cases and how she overcomes the stress (jogging). We got to ask questions and view the dock and jury box. Then we went court-shopping - walking into different courtrooms until we found one with enough seats, no adjournments and an exciting case. We saw a young woman on trial for stalking and a man who was pleading not guilty to using a mobile phone while driving.
Defendant: “Your honour, I wasn’t talking or texting. I was just holding the phone and scrolling through the maps.”
We also observed an armed robbery trial heard before a jury. It was tense and exciting, sitting so close to the defendant and the jurors and hearing the witnesses, lawyers and judges.
After the Court adjourned, we had lunch in Parramatta and discussed the cases. We all agreed that it had been an eye-opening experience and many of us really wanted to become lawyers now. Thanks to the Rule of Law Society for the great program, to Ms Grice for her organisation and to Ms Kwiet for taking us, carrying sharp implements and feeding us manaeesh. ❤️
Daniil Rzhevsky in Yr 12 Legal Studies and Ms Kwiet
Easter Cookies
cookies for the teachers and staff of Penrith High School. This not only spread festivity for the celebration of Easter but was also a means of expressing year 12's and the school's appreciation of the staff's dedication towards our education and well-being.
Furthermore, it not only provided an opportunity to give back to the staff at Penrith but also a means to raise funds for the children in need in Kenya. This term, we welcome Ms. Bowering, a new and experienced economics teacher into the social science faculty who has come from North Sydney Boys to teach the wonders of economics.
Relay for Life
Once again, Penrith Selective High School has sent a massive team to the Penrith Relay For Life event to raise much needed funds for cancer care and research. Some patchy weather didn’t stop over 130 students, 10 teachers and some of our brilliant office staff from enthusiastically participating in the event and walking many laps of the track. Our school managed to raise an amazing $9500 for this very worthwhile charity. We also saw Ben Sayer join in as one of the DJs for the silent disco throughout the night and many of our students assist with the morning tea for carers and survivors. Our students should be congratulated on their exemplary behaviour and attitude throughout the event. Special thanks go to Amber Vella of Year 12 for her enthusiastic organisation, Mr Duclos for returning to the event well into his retirement and all of the teachers and staff for giving up their time, especially Ms Sonter and Mr Ferrarin for doing the overnight shift with some of our Year 12 students.
A large contingent of our Relay for Life students
PSHS co-host Economics and Business Studies lecture days with WeSSSTA
On May 10 and 17, Penrith Selective High School hosted two very successful lecture days organised by the Western Sydney Social Sciences Teachers Association (WeSSSTA). The first day saw our Economics students join in with around 100 students from a variety of schools across Western Sydney to listen to guest speakers including the legendary Ross Gittins, who filled them in on the state of the Australian economy. They also got some tips on how to best prepare for their upcoming Trial HSC and HSC exams with some helpful hints, as well as a lecture from experienced HSC marker, Head Teacher and University Lecturer Peter Kennedy on the relationship between Australia’s exchange rate and Balance of Payments. It was a highly successful day that allowed the students to gain some valuable insights into the subject.
The second day saw the school host a highly successful Business Studies lecture day. Our students were joined by over 150 students from other schools to unpack each of the topics covered in the HSC course. A wide range of guest speakers included our very own Business Studies expert, Mr Paul MacVean, who guided the students through both the Operations section of the course and how to approach the exam itself. The Business Studies day was another great success, as it has been for many years. Our students were able to gain extra confidence in helping them to prepare for their HSC. Penrith High are thanked by WeSSSTA for continuing on with this valuable partnership to help students across Western Sydney achieve more in their studies.
Penrith High’s Economics students with the one and only Ross Gittins
Year 11 Year Adviser's Report
Next week Year 11 will meet to discuss the process for selecting Prefects – the formal leadership team at Penrith Selective High School. Year 11 have been busy completing their applications. Many students have been volunteering around the school. I would like to remind students and parents that while these efforts are appreciated, and valuable, the aim of this part of the process is to ensure that our student leaders have demonstrated a long term commitment to the school. Regardless of the outcome of this process, it’s never too late to give a little bit back to the school community, and, I’m sure, that the great work students are doing will continue throughout their senior schooling. I firmly believe that Year 11 have begun to realise the value that school has in their lives.
At the recent Recognition Assembly, which highlighted the academic and social efforts being made by Year 11 students, I highlighted some achievements of some Year 11 students. Kristiana Margate has been successful in her application to walk the Kokoda Track, sponsored by St Marys RSL. She is in for a wonderful and formative experience. Manraj Singh must be congratulated for being a member of the winning dance group at the recent International Bhangra Competition in Washington DC. And Raunak Srivistava has once again been selected as part of the Sydney West Hockey team. It is fantastic to see Year 11 students engaging in such a wide range of activities in the community, and I remind students to please make use of my Year 11 dropbox to fill me in on other students who deserve recognition.
With the reports issued, and Parent Teacher night upon us, I also wish to relay the general message from teachers that the senior students are to be congratulated for their relatively smooth transition into Year 11. There is still work to do, but with the excellent attitudes towards schoolwork on display, much is going to be achieved.
CAPA NEWS
DRAMA
CO-LAB
Our Year 12 Drama class, along with many students from across Western Sydney, came together at Penrith High School to attend workshops which support students in devising their HSC Group Performance. They had the wonderful opportunity to work with Naree Shields, Natalie Richards, Swoop Physical Theatre and internationally renowned Zen Zen Zo. Along the way, they were exposed to a range of theatrical styles while also making new friends and gaining valuable experiences to help with the creation of their own projects.
ANNUAL YOUTH THEATRE FESTIVAL
Year 11 Drama is currently rehearsing for a performance at the Annual Youth Theatre Festival 2019 at the Joan Sutherland on June 28. Tickets will be $20.00.
Students are learning to devise original theatre and preparing to perform in a professional venue under the guidance of their professional director Jason Winston
MUSIC
OPEN MIC NIGHT
On the last Thursday of term 1, music students Anwen Gregory from year 8 and Divinia Eather from year 12 were invited to perform their original songs at Penrith Council’s first Open Mic Night. Congratulations girls! Students have been invited to perform at a range of other events as a result of their outstanding performances.
INCONCERT
On Tuesday May 21, 21 members of our choir across years 7-12 travelled into Sydney Town Hall for the final rehearsal and performance of InConcert. As part of the Combined Secondary Choir, they collaborated with over 600 other high school students. After months of hard work learning challenging repertoire, they had the opportunity to work alongside featured guest Casey Donovan and conductor Elizabeth Scott, as well as the NSW Public Schools Symphony Orchestra. A special congratulations to John Maddock from year 12, who successfully auditioned for, and performed a solo part in the concert. The choir wishes to thank Mrs Ridgeway and Mrs Whittaker for the time and effort put into organising such excellent opportunities.
PULSE
In 2019, Penrith Selective High School will participate in Pulse, a showcase of excellence in the Arts at the Sydney Opera House. In particular, students from our school will perform in the following ensembles:
Pulse String Ensemble
Pulse Choir
Pulse Concert Band
Pulse Stage Band
Congratulations to all students and teachers who have been successful in gaining entry into this prestigious event. Tickets are available from:
https://www.sydneyoperahouse.com/events/whats-on/Kids-and-Families/2018/pulse.html
ART
ART EXPRESS
Year 10 Art had the amazing opportunity to attend Art Express at the Art Gallery NSW featuring a selection of outstanding student artworks developed for the artmaking component of the HSC examination in Visual Arts 2018. Art Express provides insight into students’ creativity and the issues important to them. The exhibition encompasses a broad range of approaches and expressive forms, including ceramics, collection of works, documented forms, drawing, graphic design, painting, photo media, printmaking, sculpture, textiles and fibre, and time-based forms.
VIVID - ERTH
For Vivid Sydney 2019, Exchange Place in Barangaroo will transform into Winter Camp, where visitors will experience layers of light, sound, and puppetry reflective of the land and water. Winter Camp draws inspiration from the changing of the seasons and invites visitors to share in the practice of hunting and gathering. The magnificent, six-metre tall puppet Marri Dyin (Great Woman) will return this year for Winter Camp, accompanied for the first time by a school of captivating fish puppets. Our school was lucky enough to explore how the puppets worked and had a go at interacting with the art piece hands on. We look forward to their performance June 8 2019! Good luck to all involved.
EXTRAS
INTERVIEW: NAREE SHIELDS
Naree Shields is a drama tutor at Penrith High School who is working with individual students to better improve their performing skills and assist in developing their creative ideas. CAPA assistant leader, Sara had the pleasure of interviewing Mrs Shields, getting to know her and her story as someone very passionate about Drama and all forms of art. Naree Shields has been interested in Drama and Arts her whole life and has been practising it for over 12 years. She has a Theatre/Media degree and has been interested in music and dance since she was younger, such as classical piano and ballet.
Mrs Shields is fascinated by all forms of creative expression, she is specifically intrigued with and specialises in clowning. She sees clowning as an “art form that is so broad and an outlook for a lot of things.” She described the art form as “poetic and beautiful and gives voice to all aspects of human expression.” Mrs Shields mentioned she feels honoured to be tutoring the talented kids here at Penrith and feels as if each one of them and the whole experience is special. She is excited to see each student and their ideas develop. She is proud to be creating a space for people so they can express who they are and believes everyone can do it!
Naree Shields expresses the importance of creativity and nurturing it at such a young age. She emphasises that the “creative being is essential for our wellbeing”. Having some sort of creative outlook to explore is very important. She believes every human being is creative and that all intelligence grows from creativity. For critical thinking, you need creative thinking. Drama is a way of learning, of being and of understanding the world; through doing drama you learn the skills of communication, confidence, and learning through doing, skills that can help with everyday life as well as many other schooling subjects. The wonderful Mrs Shields encourages her students as well as others at Penrith High to “Keep having the courage to try things that excite you”.
ART BLOCK - CHANGES
The wonderful Mr Prior and Mr Oxley have built a beautiful deck for the Art block which matches all the wonderful new architectural changes happening in the school.
SPECIAL THANKS TO MR BAUMAN
The student body would like to wish the best for Mr Bauman. Since arriving at Penrith High School, Mr Bauman has been a very valuable member of the CAPA family and the amazing work he has done will be missed very dearly. We were extremely lucky to have had him in our school community and he has worked so hard in the past years to build Art Club and complete projects all around the school.
Mr Bauman would also like to thank Mr Prior for his help in the past few years as “he is full of wisdom and a huge supporter of art education.” We wish Mr Bauman the absolute best in all his future endeavours. In the words of his and the year 10 class of 2017 “Art is always expanding”.
CO-LAB
Open Mic Night Divinia Eather
Open Mic Night Anwer Gregory
Inconcert at Sydney Town Hall
Vivid- Erth
The new Capa Addition -thanks Mr Prior and Mr Oxley!
Penrith Selective High School
Email: penrith-h.school@det.nsw.edu.au
Website: https://penrith-h.schools.nsw.gov.au
Location: 158-240 High Street, Penrith NSW, Australia
Phone: 02 4721 0529
Facebook: www.facebook.com/PenrithSelectiveHighSchool