As we prepare to farewell our girls as they begin their holiday break for 2021, it is with enormous pride that we reflect upon the year that has been.

We had the joyful opportunity to acknowledge the efforts and achievements of our Academic, Sporting, Co-curricular and Values Prize recipients at our Prize Giving Assembly on Monday.

We know that each of our girls demonstrates excellence in so many different ways; in striving to learn something new, demonstrating great commitment to a team or club or living out the values we hold dear as members of our Wilderness community. The spark of excellence grows as it is shared and it is in this sharing with others that we continue to build upon the foundations of our adventurous learning community.

Our girls accomplishments in 2021 including the way they treated one other, the effort and persistence they demonstrated, most particularly when things did not go as expected or planned, were what made this a year of great learning, growth and achievement.

It was evident in the outstanding learning observed in our classrooms and in the many JSSRC committee events held across the year. It shone brightly in the Outdoor Education activities our girls participated in and was demonstrated in the sense of joy and healthy competition they brought to their House events, after school sport, debating and music commitments.

Most importantly, it was demonstrated in the quality of their interactions within our community.

Rotary Club of Walkerville Numeracy and Literacy Awards

At the Final Assembly today, we were incredibly pleased to acknowledge the following girls who were awarded the Rotary Club of Walkerville Numeracy and Literacy Award for outstanding progress.

Kailey Reynolds, Ivy Rowberry, Tiah Michailaros, Arabella Hill and Aurelia Di Maria were acknowledged for their outstanding progress in literacy. While Alice Bonar, Florence Carrocci, Eugenia Di Maria, Lily Costoglou and Ariana Ng were acknowledged for their outstanding progress in numeracy.

Year 6 Graduation

We also had the opportunity to celebrate and farewell our Year 6 leaders as they completed their Junior School journey and prepared to enter the Middle School. This group of Year 6’s have brought such diversity in their skills, talents and personalities, with each individual playing their part to contribute to the whole. It has been the staff of the Junior Schools’ pleasure to watch them grow from the very little girls who joined us either in our ELC, Reception or at various stages along the way into the confident, well-prepared and articulate girls that are in Year 6 today.

Each of these girls is equipped with the understanding, knowledge and personal qualities needed to take this next exciting step on their educational journey.

The ELC and Junior School Farewell Ms Danvers

Farewelling Ms Danvers wasn’t ever going to be an easy thing for us to do, however I am happy to report that our ELC to Year 6 cohort did a beautiful job of just this at our special, surprise assembly on Wednesday 1 December. Presenting Ms Danvers with a beautiful book, contributed to by every girl in the Junior School, titled ‘Lessons from Ms Danvers’, each girl wrote a statement about something she’d learnt from or something she was grateful for about having Ms Danvers as their Principal. We then surprised her by singing a blessing song for her, with the words ‘Hambe Gahle’ – meaning ‘Go Well’ as an entire student group.

As Ms Danvers said in her Speech Night address this week, this is not an ending but a new beginning, and we wish our Principal wonderful things for her new beginning in 2022.

Farewell Mrs Heather Davis

This week we also have the task of farewelling long-standing Junior School teacher, Heather Davis as she commences retirement at the end of this year. Heather has been a Junior School teacher at Wilderness for 14 years and, in that time, has developed a reputation for her absolute commitment to ensuring the girls in her care are nurtured, challenged, catered for and known deeply.

Heather is a teacher, not by the qualification alone, but by the whole-heartedness with which she undertakes her role. Her passion for ensuring her students grow both academically and personally, for her tireless work behind the scenes to individualise each girls’ learning and for her seemingly boundless energy for embracing current educational theories while holding true to time-honoured and well-tested pedagogies of learning mean she is one of life’s ‘true teachers’; one students long remember and whose lessons become embedded at their core.

We thank Heather for all she has been to our community and wish her all the very best as she retires from teaching. We know she will delight in the opportunity to spend time with her precious new grand daughter and to have time to engage in her many passions outside of school.

Finally, I would like to take the opportunity to thank each of you, our ELC and Junior School families for your partnership, commitment and trust this year. Working for your girls is a privilege and a delight.

I would like to wish you all the blessings of the coming season and a restful, joyous time with those you love most. I look forward to welcoming you back in Term 1 2022 as we begin another year together.

Liz McCarthy
Head of Junior School