Issue no. 14
From Our Deputy Principal /
Head of Senior School
It’s hard to believe we are a third of the way through the term already. As we reach this point, students and their Home Group Teachers are coming together to have their 1:1 meetings during Home Group lessons. These meetings allow for relationships to be built and further strengthened which, in turn, creates a wider network to support the girls throughout their schooling journey. It is a feature of the #EMPOWHER wellbeing program that provides valuable insight into our students’ lives, any concerns they might have and the goals they are hoping to achieve.
To further support our new ‘Leadership Matters’ program launched to students across Years 7 to 11, the 1:1 conversation format will now also invite our girls to discuss with their Home Group Teachers moments where they have demonstrated leadership. They will investigate what they have learnt from the experience while also reflecting on times when they have supported a leader. It is our hope that by including these points of discussion and reflection, our students will continue to grow in confidence as leaders and that they recognise leading doesn’t always require official titles or badges. We are all capable of leading each day in the smallest of ways.
Working in conjunction with #EMPOWHER is the Career.Ready program. The Career.Ready team has had the pleasure of interviewing Year 12 students to discuss their post-school options. It is a privilege to help guide our Year 12s as they investigate what life can look like after Saints. Their energy and excitement was palpable as they began to envision themselves in years to come as doctors, lawyers, allied health workers, businesswomen and many other roles. Through the Career.Ready program, students have now gone on to research university options and will have the opportunity to meet with industry leaders over the coming term.
The beauty of the Career.Ready program is its reach to students from Years 7 to 12. That’s not to say we expect our girls to know what job they want in Year 7! However, they have the chance to understand themselves better, to know their strengths and areas of passion, which are themes also supported through #EMPOWHER and Leadership Matters. The Year 11 cohort has spent the past two weeks delving into areas of interest and then linking these into possible career pathways. Likewise, the Year 10 cohort will take part in Work Experience later this term, providing them with the opportunity to experience life in a work field of their choosing.
#EMPOWHER, Career.Ready and Leadership Matters all have the development and progress of Saints Girls at their very core. It is our hope that through these programs, students feel supported to explore new opportunities, to take risks in a safe environment and to grow as young women.
Lauren Sutton
Deputy Principal/Head of Senior School
Spellbinding Production Captivates Crowds
Congratulations to our Year 12 Drama and IB Theatre students on their production of The Eyes of Her Beholder, a somewhat twisted re-telling of the story of Snow White which captivated Arts Centre audiences this week.
It has been a lot of fun working with talented students who are willing to commit wholeheartedly to the process in order to play with a story with which people are familiar and use that familiarity to develop something a little unpredictable and thought-provoking. It is also, as always, creatively stimulating to make theatre that is entirely original: from the writing, to the design, to the performances, to the final product itself, it is a unique (and risky!) approach to make something from nothing, but also tremendously rewarding. Thank you for supporting our creative endeavours, and we hope theatregoers enjoyed watching the show as much as we enjoyed crafting it.
Special thanks to the following:
As always, to Chris Morden and Neil Fuller who, once again, constructed an amazing set and solved many problems along the way to do so! Anne Ninnes for her unwavering support in designing, making and collecting costumes. Wesley Hiscock who took on so many features of the show and made sure they were possible. Asha Eaton and Mollie Kennett who came in during their holidays to help paint the set. The Arts Faculty for supporting the process in all sorts of ways and for allowing me to completely commandeer the Arts Centre. Staff who helped with Front-of-House and accepted the disruptions caused by rehearsals. And, as always, to Rach, Bella, Hope and Quinn – for their encouragement, support and help!
Michael Butler-Wills
Writer and Director
Cross Country Interhouse Results
Last Friday saw students from Reception to Year 9 compete in our Interhouse Cross Country. The course in neighbouring Bell Yett Reserve ranged from 1km for our Reception students, up to 3km for students in Years 8 and 9. Interhouse Cross Country is a fantastic opportunity for students to challenge themselves over a course which we train on during PE lessons.
In a close event with only 39 points separating the top 3 Houses, congratulations goes to Selwyn for taking out the 2022 Cross Country Shield!
House Results
1st Selwyn (442 points)
2nd Kilburn (414 points)
3rd Kennion (403 points)
4th Patteson (283 points)
Individual Results
Reception: 1st – Darcey Wilson, 2nd – Chloe Liu, 3rd – Zoey Zhao
Year 1: 1st – Charlotte Kelly, 2nd – Millie Dougherty, 3rd – Alex He
Year 2: 1st – Mia O’Brien, 2nd – Scarlett Drake, 3rd – Florence Cleland
Year 3: 1st – Lucy Dougherty, 2nd – Jiaen Lu, 3rd – Amber Guo
Year 4: 1st – Aurelia Tan, 2nd – Milly Richardson, 3rd – Olivia Ianniello
Year 5: 1st – Emily Robinson, 2nd – Mika Valmorbida, 3rd – Ella King
Year 6: 1st – Lauren Disney, 2nd – Audrey Fox, 3rd – Lois Burton-Howard
Year 7: 1st – Isla Fahey, 2nd – Aleesha Gray, 3rd – Ava Fox
Year 8: 1st – Elodie de Wit, 2nd – Chloe Richardson, 3rd – Abigail Hawkes
Year 9: 1st – Carys Kinsella-White, 2nd – Ella Warrick, 3rd – Charlotte McAuliffe
Tommy Peak
Director of Sport
‘A Touch of Blue’ for Young Old Scholars
‘A Touch of Blue’ for our young Old Scholars was held last Friday evening in the School Library. This was the first event on the OSA calendar for our most recent graduates with alumni from 2018 – 2021 attending.
It was fabulous to welcome the girls back to Stonyfell for this reunion event which continued with a fun bus ride to the Feathers Hotel.
Megan McCormack
Community Relations Manager
Raw Reflections from Moving History Excursion
In Week 2, the Year 10 History cohort visited the Andrew Steiner Centre/Adelaide Holocaust Museum as part of their Depth Study into World War 2 in Europe. While learning about the causes, course and consequences of the Holocaust through the interactive displays, students were also able to meet a Holocaust survivor and reflect on the legacy of such a traumatic event.
To read some of the students’ insights, click here
Gregor Dingwall
Head of Humanities
Iconic Work by Year 6 Art Leaders
Last term, the Year 6 Art Leaders worked with Junior School Art Teacher Sarah Casson to develop icons for each IB Learner Profile attribute. The Learner Profile attributes are central to the International Baccalaureate programme. They represent the capacities and responsibilities of people, and help us to strive to be the best citizens we can. These attributes support our students to take action, whether that be with their learning, in their relationships with others or in the community.
These icons were launched at last week’s Junior School Assembly where each Art Leader shared the thinking behind her artwork. These icons will soon be displayed around our School.
Helen Smith
Deputy Head of Junior School
Saints Make a Splash in Little Mermaid Production
We’re excited for Saints Girls who’ll be appearing in the production of The Little Mermaid JR. by Shane Davidson Presents. Journey under the sea with Ariel and her aquatic friends. Featuring wonderful songs such as ‘Part of Your World’, ‘Under the Sea’ and ‘Poor Unfortunate Souls’, a vibrant cast of 40 will sing and dance their way through colourful scene after scene.
Venue: Arts Centre, St Peter’s Girls’ School
Dates: Saturday 11 June and Sunday 12 June
Tickets: $35 via TryBooking – click here
Shane Davidson
Year 4 Teacher
Music by Lyrics by Book by Alan Menken Howard Ashman & Glenn Slater Doug Wright. Based on the Hans Christian Andersen Story and the Disney Film produced by Howard Ashman & John Musker and written & directed by John Musker and Ron Clements. Licensed exclusively by Music Theatre International (Australasia). All performance materials supplied by Hal Leonard Australia.
Kilburn House Charity Day
On Friday of Week 6, the Year 10 Kilburn girls will be running a sausage sizzle to raise money for our House Charity, Treasure Boxes. This organisation helps people from all walks of life who are experiencing poverty, domestic violence or homelessness.
Sausages with bread and soft drinks will be sold for $2 each and juice boxes for $1. Soft drinks are only available for Years 3 – 12. We will also be offering a vegetarian option, gluten-free bread will be available (at no additional cost), and we’ll have a meal deal consisting of one sausage with bread and a drink for the total of $3.
A TryBooking link and further details will be provided next week. Thank you and we hope to see you supporting our House Charity on the day!
Alysa Trinh
Year 10 Student
Nude Food Tuesdays
The Environment Club is encouraging all Saints Girls to minimise their plastic usage, especially in the packaging of their recess and lunch. Many of us pack our recess and lunch in zip lock bags and cling wrap. But the issue with this is that we use these once and then toss them into the bin. These plastics are not biodegradable, and over many years will simply break down into microplastics contaminating our water sources and even our food.
So, to decrease this impact, the Environment Club is inviting everyone to participate in Nude Food Tuesdays. On this day, we ask that students’ lunch and recess are not packaged in single use plastic and are instead packed in other items such as containers, beeswax wraps or even multi-use silicon bags.
If everyone participates, the amount of plastic which the School contributes to landfill will decrease greatly, thus benefitting our environment. You can even do this every day if you are extra keen to help our environment!
Nathara Perera
Environment Club
Piano Eisteddfod – Coming Soon!
On Thursday 16 June in Week 7 of Term 2, the Arts Department will hold St Peter’s Girls’ Piano Eisteddfod. It is open to all Junior and Middle School students who play piano. Parents are welcome to attend, and the time of each student’s performance will be communicated to families.
Girls will have the opportunity to perform a piece to a panel of judges, who will critique their performance based on accuracy, technique and musicality for their specific music level. This is a great opportunity for girls to perform in a supportive environment and receive some valuable feedback.
Girls are asked to play one piece that best displays their musicality and technical ability at their own musical level. There will be no minimum or maximum time limit. While the Eisteddfod provides our top piano players with a platform to perform, the aim is to give performers of all levels the opportunity to participate.
A Piano Recital will be held at 6pm on Thursday 23 June. Students will be chosen from the Eisteddfod performers who show confidence and a high level of musicianship. Selected recital students will be notified by the beginning of Week 8.
If your daughter would like to be involved, please fill out and return the Piano Eisteddfod consent form by Friday June 3. Girls can collect the form from the Arts Office or you can download it via the link below. Students will later receive their time slot to perform in the Eisteddfod.
Download the Piano Eisteddfod Consent Form
Sari Noble
Acting Director of Music
Starry Night Gala Ball
Saturday 18 June
Saints Girls is over the moon about our Starry Night Gala Ball to celebrate and support our fundraising efforts for a new Gym, including our ‘Saints Girls All-Stars’.
Don’t miss out on this amazing evening with our Saints Girls’ community.
7pm, Saturday 18 June
Adelaide Convention Centre
Tickets: $200 per person
Includes three-course meal, beverages and live entertainment
To book your tickets, CLICK HERE
Star Struck Major Lottery
As momentum builds for our Gym fundraising campaign featuring our ‘Saints Girls All-Stars’, we are thrilled to share our Star Struck Major Lottery.
Ticket sales are now open, so get in quick!
First Prize: Toyota Yaris Ascent Sport from Northpoint Toyota (valued at $27,811)
+ a personalised car park at St Peter’s Girls’ School from 1 January 2023 to 31 December 2023.
This stunning new car could belong to you or someone in your family! Spread the word and feel free to share this opportunity with your friends and relatives.
To buy your tickets: CLICK HERE
Lottery Licence No: M14175
COVID-19 Information
SA Health has advised that asymptomatic COVID-19 close contacts no longer need to quarantine. Therefore, asymptomatic children and students can attend school or ELC despite being a close contact, provided they undertake 5 RATs over the subsequent 7 days and receive negative results.
Please also be reminded of these vital requirements:
Should your child develop any symptoms, even mild ones, they must not attend school or ELC and should be tested for COVID-19. They require a PCR test with receipt of a negative result and resolution of symptoms before return to school/ELC can be considered. Students who have previously tested positive and have completed isolation in the past 12 weeks do not need to undertake testing.
If your child tests positive to COVID-19, notify us immediately. Please also advise the type of test (RAT/PCR), the date your child’s test was taken and the date symptoms started (if no symptoms, note ‘asymptomatic’).
Please notify us via email or text:
Email: attendance@stpetersgirls.sa.edu.au
Text: 0428 601 957 (save to phone contacts as SPGS)
If you need to notify us over the phone, please call the Front Office on 8334 2200.
Please note that if your child is too sick to attend school, they are therefore also too sick to be working remotely from home.
School Medical Information Reminder
It is imperative that all medical information, including immunisations, is up to date on the School’s myLink parent portal.
Please follow this pathway to check and/or update details: myLink > Community Portal > My Details > select child name
If you have any questions, please email healthcentre@stpetersgirls.sa.edu.au
Warm Up with Saints’ Scarves and Beanies
With the cooler weather, the School Shop has some branded winter warmers:
Saints Girls’ Supporter Scarf – perfect for staff, coaches and parents
Saints Girls’ Beanies – can be worn by students during their sport training sessions and warm ups, and also available for staff coaches and parents
To get your hands on these fabulous new items, please visit the School Shop.
General Absences from School
If your child is going to be absent, late to school or leave early, please use one of the following methods to notify the School, providing the student name, Class/Home Group and reason:
Text: 0428 601 957
Email: attendance@stpetersgirls.sa.edu.au
Phone: 8334 2200
Feel free to include the Class/Home Group Teacher when emailing. It would be appreciated if notifications could be made prior to 9am.