Welcome back for Term 3 to all Middle School families. I hope that you have been able to enjoy some sun over the three-week break and have had the chance to spend some time with your family and friends.

This term, all girls in the Middle School will have new timetables and some new subject teachers. We welcome Ms Scarlett Korner as a teacher of History and Ms Mia Parkin as a teacher of Art and Drama. Welcome back to Mrs Julie Grant, Head of Sparaxis and Teacher of Mathematics, following leave in Term 2. Thank you to Ms Marnie Eddington for her support of the Sparaxis girls as Acting Head of Sparaxis last term.

Homework Timetables

Girls in the Middle School will receive their Term 3 Homework Timetables at the beginning of term via email. Girls should spend a maximum of 20 minutes on each subject allocated. Girls that have commitments on particular evenings are encouraged to discuss these with their subject teachers and negotiate alternative times they can complete homework.

Year 7 Homework Timetable

Year 8 Homework Timetable

Year 9 Homework Timetable

Permission to Feel – Year 8 Artemis and Wellbeing

At the start of Term 3, Year 8 students will partake in a new and collaborative unit through Artemis and Form, called "Permission to Feel". This evidence-based unit is designed to address contemporary issues that impact our young girls’ wellbeing while equipping them with resources to help them navigate through life’s challenges.

The "Permission to Feel" unit highlights the concept of wellbeing through a holistic lens and interrelated framework, which is used to cover a wide range of concepts including perfectionism and procrastination, helpful and balanced thinking and academic resilience. By equipping our Year 8 girls with these social and emotional skills, we aim to prepare them for the social, emotional and academic challenges they may face at school, fostering their academic buoyancy.

The primary objective of this program is to empower our students with the tools they need to navigate the complexities of adolescence and establish a strong foundation for their wellbeing. Through engaging and collaborative activities and discussions, this unit will encourage self-reflection, self-awareness and the development of healthy and adaptive coping mechanisms.

We encourage you to engage with your child during this unit by discussing the concepts covered and supporting their growth in these areas. In addition, we invite you to reach out to us with any questions, concerns or feedback you may have regarding this unit. We value your partnership and involvement in your child's education and wellbeing.

Andrew Mittiga
Acting Head of Cedar House

Music Ensemble Timetable

Please note the following ensemble timetable for Semester 2.

Term 3 Sport Dates

Please note the following Sport dates for Term 3 in the Middle and Senior School:

• Winter Intercol: Monday 21 August to Monday 28 August (Week 5/6)
• Middle School/Senior School Athletics Carnival: Friday 8 September (Week 7)
• IGSSA Athletics Carnival: Wednesday 27 September (Week 10)

Ashleigh Young
Director of Sport and Recreation

Uniform Shop

Please note the following special opening time ahead of Term 3:

Week 1, Term 3: Tuesday 25 July, 8.30am – 1.00pm
No Saturday opening.

The Uniform Shop regular opening hours are:

• Monday: 8.00am to 9.00am
• Tuesday: 8.00am to 9.00am and 3.00pm to 4.30pm
• Wednesday: 3.00pm to 6.00pm
• Thursday: 8.00am to 9.00am
• Friday: Closed

Meredith Olsson
Uniform Shop Manager

Le Paris Plage – Term 3 Excursion

Please enjoy this reflection from Year 9 student Emmy Denys about their French class excursion to Le Paris Plage.

At the end of last term, the students from Year 9 French were given an opportunity to experience French cuisine. Prior to participating in this excursion, girls prepared by learning vocabulary regarding how to order and ask questions about food. When we arrived at Le Paris Plage, Madame Otina-Griffin greeted the owner in French, where he showed us to our seats and handed out the menu.

The crêperie was a true French affair with comfortable chairs and the aroma of crêpes. Once we had selected our meal, Mademoiselle Rossi guided us to the ordering station. To order our meals, we said ‘Bonjour’ to the waitress and picked our favourites from the menu. Service at Le Paris Plage was excellent, as within approximately five minutes of ordering we received our meals. The savoury galettes were full of flavour and texture, but the sweet crêpes blew everyone away—especially since we were looking for a sweet treat to end the term! Even the presentation of each dish was superb, from an egg in the centre of a savoury galette, to a sweet cloud of whipped cream topped with chocolate sauce and strawberries. After leaving Le Paris Plage, Year 9 French students arrived at Wilderness School wanting to go back!

Le Paris Plage was definitely a great experience, it is highly recommended for future meals. Thank you to Madame Otina-Griffin and Mademoiselle Rossi for organising this excursion, and the staff at Le Paris Plage for welcoming and assisting us we are forever grateful!

I Am Who I Am – Chinese Film Excursion

Please enjoy this reflection from Year 8 student, Lola Stradwick about their Chinese class excursion to the cinemas.

On Thursday of Week 9, Term 2, the Year 8 Chinese classes saw the Chinese animation I Am What I Am at Prospect Cinemas.

The film was about a small boy called Ah Zhen. He developed a passion for lion dancing in the hope of being able to see his parents, who were away working in Guang Zhou. This movie gave us insight into families that are struggling with poverty and the sacrifices they have to make in order to just put food on the table. It also gave our class insight into what lion dancing really is and its significance in Chinese culture.

The movie also had many recognisable Chinese characters. It was spoken in Chinese, which required us to read the subtitles and allowed us to see how these characters were put into everyday sentences. The movie experience improved our Chinese skills by enabling us to look for the characters we did not know and try to work out the meaning from the context of the rest of the sentence.

Overall, the movie excursion improved our Chinese while spending time with our friends and classmates and enjoying the entertainment of the film.