Issue no. 6
From Our Deputy Principal /
Head of Senior School
Throughout the week, the Saints’ community has acknowledged and celebrated International Women’s Day. Globally recognised on 8 March, it provides us with an opportunity to appreciate the social, economic, cultural and political achievements of women around the world, whilst also acknowledging that gender equality has not yet been achieved.
This year, the theme is ‘Embrace Equity’. In her Assembly address, Deputy Head Prefect Ruby Richards reminded us that, ‘to embrace equity means to create an inclusive world. Equity recognises that there isn’t always a level playing field, so we need to create an environment where each individual is provided with the unique resources and support they need to succeed.’
Middle and Senior School students attended our International Women’s Day Assembly, where we were privileged to welcome back and hear from Old Scholar Natalie Koutsikas (Kilburn 2009). Currently working in social media, Natalie shared with the girls her journey in business and working in the online space. She discussed the impacts social media can have on young women as many feel the need to compare or alter their bodies and lifestyles to fit into what is portrayed as the ideal life.
Under the leadership of the Prefect Team, students have been encouraged to support a charity drive for Catherine House which offers crisis care, longer-term accommodation and other support services for women over the age of 18, unaccompanied by children. It operates right across South Australia and is the only dedicated women’s homelessness service in the State. The Prefects baked International Women’s Day cupcakes with all proceeds donated to Catherine House. In addition, they ensured each student had a purple ribbon to wear as an outward sign of support, and represented St Peter’s Girls at the International Women’s Day Breakfast and Student Leadership Summit.
Every day, we are fortunate to witness our young girls and women growing physically, mentally, socially and spiritually. A girls’ school such as ours provides an environment in which every girl gets the chance to lead, to learn, to be confident, to voice her opinion and to be respected.
Lauren Sutton
Deputy Principal/Head of Senior School
Social Scholar Connects at Stonyfell
To celebrate International Women’s Day, our Prefects led a special Assembly with a focus on the representation of women in the media. We were thrilled to welcome Old Scholar Natalie Koutsikas (Kilburn 2009) as our guest speaker who delivered an engaging speech about her experiences in social media marketing as well as providing sound advice for our girls in this space.
Highlights included how Natalie’s career in real estate was where her interest in social media, marketing trends and their ability to influence behaviours firmly took hold. Implementing a content marketing and social media strategy saw her recognised as Adelaide’s most influential agent on social media for two years running, and in turn, triggered a career shift to social media marketing.
Having worked for some of Adelaide’s most innovative brands, Sweat and Ryderwear, and leading the way for influencer marketing nationally, Natalie launched Digitale social media and creative in 2019. Working with businesses big and small to grow from the ground up, Digitale utilises a deep understanding of community and connection, backed by strong strategy and data, and Natalie has swiftly cemented Digitale’s position as a leading social media agency in Adelaide.
Megan McCormack
Community Relations Manager
From Our Head Prefect
On 8 March each year, communities from around the world recognise and celebrate International Women’s Day, with this year’s theme to ‘Embrace Equity’. Equity acknowledges that each person faces different challenges, so they should be provided with unique resources and support to achieve their goals. Celebrating women of courage who have broken gender-based barriers, International Women’s Day creates an opportunity for inclusion and encourages important conversations to forge positive change.
This year, our Prefect Team has collaborated with other student leadership teams from around Adelaide to support the theme with a fundraiser for Catherine House which provides accommodation and support services for women experiencing homelessness. At Saints, the girls have embraced this campaign with compassion and enthusiasm by offering items noted by volunteers at Catherine House as being in high demand and donating to our cupcake stall. This has highlighted the power of collaboration and the importance of coming together on International Women’s Day to create an inclusive environment for all women.
On Tuesday, the Middle and Senior School girls participated in an International Women’s Day Assembly focused around the importance of positive influences in the media and how we can build a supportive and welcoming community. Among hearing from many staff and students, we were privileged to welcome back Old Scholar Natalie Koutsikas (Kilburn 2009) and listen to her experiences working in social media marketing. It was interesting to hear how Natalie experiences shifts in the industry such as Instagram making the ‘like-count’ optional, and how such changes have both positive and negative implications for the gender equality movement.
We hope this week has inspired girls to continue to be brave and stand up for their beliefs. International Women’s Day is, above all else, about unity. By building a supportive school community, we can ‘embrace equity’ to give our girls the support they need to foster their passions and celebrate their individuality.
Ellie Humphrey
Head Prefect
School Photos Picture-Perfect
It’s been a picture-perfect week at Stonyfell with our annual School Photos! The star of the show was our fabulous Class of 2023.
Choral Night Countdown Begins!
Thursday 23 March
7pm
Influencers Church, Paradise
With music rehearsals kicking off this week, our girls are gearing up for Choral Night 2023!
Choral Night is one of the most anticipated events on the Saints Girls’ calendar, and this year’s spectacle carries the theme ‘Australian Female Artists’.
Tickets are now available for family and friends; to book – click here
We look forward to the festivities and can’t wait to see what our girls have in store!
Check out highlights from last year’s extravaganza:
Global Support for International Student Evening
Last Friday night, St Peter’s College generously hosted our annual interschool International Student Social Evening.
This year, we held a games night where the girls were able to play a wide variety of games such as quizzes, Uno and Ludo with students in St Peter’s College’s Chinese Society Club.
We also enjoyed a delicious dinner of fried rice and spring rolls together. It was great to see the students be so enthusiastic in playing the games as well as forming new friendships along the way!
Genevieve Leong
International Student Prefect
Year 8 Happy Campers on KI
Last week, the Year 8 cohort headed to Kangaroo Island for camp and had such a great time!
We arrived after a short ferry trip and split into two groups exploring the eucalyptus and honey farms. We learnt all about how the family-owned businesses create their products. Next, we set up our tents at the first camp site and enjoyed the sunset on the beach – with a few seals as well!
On Tuesday, we went sand-boarding at Little Sahara. We all had so much fun sliding down the sand dunes and chasing each other to the bottom. Covered in sand, we then visited the Raptor Domain bird show to learn about and even hold some of the birds. After lunch, we explored Admirals Arch and Remarkable Rocks. We had a fun time seeing the seals and climbing through all the different types of rocks.
Wednesday was a tiring day as we had our expo. We walked a 9-kilometre trail and settled for lunch near a lighthouse with a beautiful view.
On Thursday, we had a beach day where we enjoyed snorkelling and seeing underwater creatures, with some of us managing to overcome our fears of deep water! The rock pools in the morning were really fun and we found four crabs. In the evening, we staged a talent show which was a wonderful way to wrap up the past four days.
On Friday, we packed up our things and headed home. While it is nice having proper toilets and warm showers, we really miss camp and would like to say thank you to the Year 8 Home Group Teachers and the Wilderness Escape staff for making it possible.
Charlotte C, Nathalie, Matilda S, Maria and Lola
Year 8 students
Athletics Stars Enjoy Runaway Success
Athletics has always been an integral part of the Saints’ sport community where girls have made significant strides, particularly in recent months.
India Goodall (Year 8) has competed in numerous events at both Junior and Senior level. She came 1st at the Little Athletics SA Multi Event State Championships, competing in an array of events including 200m, 800m, 80m Hurdles, High Jump, Long Jump and Shot Put. India also competed in the Senior Athletics State Championships where she achieved Silver in the U15 1500m and also ran up an age group in the U16 800m to gain another Silver medal. As a result, she will be travelling to Brisbane later this month for Nationals. Well done India!
Elodie de Wit (Year 9) has also achieved some fantastic results this year. She writes: ‘I recently had the opportunity to attend the World X-Country Championships in Bathurst. This is where the best of the best athletes come from all around the world and compete. I participated in 3 events: the Golden Ticket (4km), the 4x2km Relay and the age group 4km race. Although this was a challenge, the experience was unreal. It was a great atmosphere with so many talented athletes and it was especially cool to see Aussies proudly representing the country. The Bathurst X-Country course is said to be ‘the toughest XC course in the world’, and it was a privilege to be able to race on it.’ Elodie also competed in the Senior Athletics State Championships where she came 3rd in the U16 1500m. Congratulations Elodie!
Saints had several other girls at the Senior Athletics State Championships. Isla Fahey (Year 8) achieved 1st place in the U15 2000m Steeple Chase and 1st in the U15 1500m. Malaika McLeod won the U17 1500m, U17 400m and U17 800m. Charlotte McAuliffe came 1st in the Open Women’s category for the 400m and placed 3rd in the 200m. Daisy Braithwaite (Year 11) was 2nd in the U20 10000m Walk. Carys Kinsella-White (Year 10) achieved 4th place in the U17 400m and 6th in the U17s 200m. What amazing results from so many Saints Girls!
The Adelaide Invitational is a prestigious event where Australia’s best athletes earn World Athletics ranking points to help them achieve their goals such as attending the Commonwealth Games and World Championships. Saints Girls had two representatives, Charlotte McAuliffe (Year 10) and Malaika McLeod (Year 10), who were among just three U17s invited to compete. It was great to see Old Scholar Lakara Stallan (Kilburn 2021) also competing at this event. Charlotte competed in the 100m B Race and was the pacer for the 800m A Race. Malaika competed in the 800m B Race. Outstanding achievements!
It is incredible to see so many talented Saints Girls in Athletics. These achievements are certainly wonderful to see, and we hope that they can give inspiration to the next generation of athletes at Saints.
Amelia Lucas
Athletics Captain
New Art Space for Young Learners
In our ELC, we are designing a captivating new Atelier (Art Studio) for the children to explore thought-provoking materials and art techniques.
Supported by our ELC Atelierista (Art Educator) Caterina Pennestri, children across the Centre are exposed to various artistic and expressive languages including painting, sculpture, dance, music, technology and multisensory experiences.
Our Atelier will be a space where the children can further express themselves through their Hundred Languages, which is a metaphor for the extraordinary potential of children’s creative processes involved in the construction of knowledge.
Friendship Facts and Potato Pals
Over the past few weeks, Year 1 students have been exploring one of the cornerstones of the URSTRONG program: the Four Friendship Facts
Fact 1: No friendship is perfect
Fact 2: Every friendship is different
Fact 3: Trust and respect are the two most important qualities in a friendship
Fact 4: Friendships change…and that’s okay!
We have embedded these facts into our everyday language and used role play to normalise friendship expectations and experiences. The girls designed and created their own plasticine ‘Potato Pal’ which they are taking home to help tell their families about the Four Friendship Facts!
Kathryn Clark
Year 1 Teacher
URSTRONG Friendship Program
We are proud that our Junior School has become a ‘URSTRONG School’ in 2023. This whole-School friendship strategy will connect students, teachers and parents with a common language around friendships.
Junior School parents are invited to take advantage of a free Parent Membership to access hundreds of resources. For more information – click here
We are also pleased to partner with the URSTRONG organisation to offer a ‘Language of Friendship’ parent and child online workshop on Wednesday 22 March at 6pm. This session will teach you and your children the skills and language to foster healthy, feel-good friendships. To register – click here
Helen Smith
Deputy Head of Junior School
Summer Interhouse Meal Deal – Order Now!
The Friends of Sport (FOS) will be cooking up a storm at Summer Interhouse on Thursday 6 April. We’re offering delicious cheeseburger Meal Deals and a sausage sizzle (vegetarian option available).
Pre-order your daughter’s cheeseburger Meal Deal before 5pm, Thursday 30 March via TryBooking – click here
Friends of Sport volunteers will hand-deliver the Reception – Year 2 lunches to their classrooms, and Years 3 – 12 will collect theirs from the FOS barbecue area.
There will also be cash and EFTPOS sales on the day for the sausage sizzle.
To get you into the Summer Interhouse spirit, branded keyrings, supporter hats, House hats, water bottles and wristbands can also be pre-ordered, or purchased on the day.
All proceeds raised by the Friends of Sport directly benefit our Saints Girls and their sporting endeavours.
Thank you so much for your kind support.
Friends of Sport
Dad’s Night on the Green
Friday 17 March
From 6.30pm
Tranmere Bowling Club
1 Kings Grove, Tranmere
Tickets: $40
Includes entry, bowling fees, hamburger and sausage sizzle
Drinks and lucky squares can be purchased on the evening
To book your ticket – click here
Bookings close Tuesday 14 March
Participants will be assembled into teams of four. Bring a mate and meet other Saints Girls’ Dads!
Supported by the Friends of Sport
COVID-19 Information
Please find the latest guidance from SA Health:
- It is strongly recommended that students stay home if they have cold or flu-like
symptoms, and test for COVID-19. - Whether they receive a positive or negative result, they should stay home until symptoms subside (usually five to seven days).
- It is strongly recommended that parents/guardians inform the School if a student is a
close contact. For further advice regarding close contacts, click here - While face masks are no longer mandated, they are an important physical barrier to help stop the spread of COVID, particularly when indoors.
If your child tests positive to COVID-19, please inform the School. Please also notify the School each day of absence, or provide the expected period of absence.
You can notify us via one of the following methods. Please include the name of the ELC Room, Class or Home Group. If emailing, feel free to ‘CC’ the teacher of the Room/Class/Home Group as well.
Email: attendance@stpetersgirls.sa.edu.au
Text: 0428 601 957 (save to phone contacts as SPGS)
Phone: 8334 2200
For more SA Health information, click here
Please note that if your child is unwell, they should remain home until they have recovered, irrespective of the illness.
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
Car Park Protocols
Burnside Council has advised it will be conducting routine street parking patrols to support the safety of all people within the vicinity of the School. For council parking information, please find an information brochure here.
A reminder about the School’s car park protocols:
If the car park is full and you are unable to enter, circle the block until it is clear to enter, find a park elsewhere or, where age-appropriate, meet your daughter in a surrounding street.
Please note that, unless special circumstances apply, parents of girls in Years 2 to 12 should not enter the car park to collect their daughters prior to 3.30pm. Parents of girls in Reception and Year 1 have exclusive use of the pick-up zone prior to this time for safety and traffic reasons.
Please also refrain from turning right into or out of the car park at peak times, and please do not queue in the car park’s lanes as this often prevents drivers who are legally parked from exiting.
We have also previously received complaints about cars being parked too close to or in front of driveways, or across from other vehicles in surrounding streets, making it extremely difficult for residents and other road users to navigate.
We ask all community members to show consideration for others. Thank you for your cooperation.
School Shop Notices
School Shop Opening Hours
Monday to Friday: 8am – 4pm (closed for lunch 12 – 12.30pm)
Parents can also order items via our Online School Shop. This is now accessible via the Flexischools platform which also administers our Online Tuck Shop. To sign in or sign up to Flexischools, click here
Winter Uniform Appointments
A reminder that we are scheduling Winter Uniform fittings, and to streamline the process, we operate an online booking system. It shows our available time slots from 6 March through to 6 April. Click here to access the calendar and select the time that best suits you (please include your daughter’s name).
Appointment times are filling fast, so your prompt attention is appreciated.
Middle and Senior School students are welcome to visit during their recess or lunch breaks.
New ELC Uniforms
Our new ELC uniforms are available to purchase in the School Shop.
This beautiful range is designed for the needs of our youngest community members, giving our ELC children a smart, cohesive look, and simplifying the routine of getting dressed in the morning.
We look forward to seeing the children proudly wear their new ELC attire.
Absences from School
If your child will not be attending school/ELC due to illness or otherwise, please notify the School via one of the methods below.
Please include the name of the ELC Room, Class or Home Group, along with the reason for the absence as the School requires this for government reporting purposes.
If emailing, feel free to ‘CC’ the teacher of the Room/Class/Home Group as well.
Text: 0428 601 957
Email: attendance@stpetersgirls.sa.edu.au
Phone: 8334 2200
It would be appreciated if notifications could be made prior to 9am.
Sports News
BASKETBALL
Open A: Saints (41) v Walford (15)
Open B: Saints (34) v Walford (43)
Open C: Saints (10) v Immanuel (34)
Best Player: Anna Wang
Super Women:
Christina Zhu – made some great steals in defence which turned into scores
Agnes Li – consistently ran back hard in defence, had some great rebounds which also resulted in scores
Middle A: Saints (61) v Walford (7)
Middle B: Saints v Immanuel – cancelled
Middle C: Saints (0) v Immanuel (73)
Best Player: Serena Zhang
Super Woman: Si Cheng – consistent effort throughout the game, always running hard in defence and wasn’t afraid to defend players much taller than her
CRICKET
Open A: Bye
Open B1: Bye
Year 3/4 White: Saints (77) v Seymour (104)
Year 3/4 Blue: Saints (88) v Walford (80)
HOCKEY
A huge congratulations to Matilda Paterson (Year 9) and Phoebe Lucas (Year 8) for making the U15 State Hockey Team! They will be travelling to Darwin next month. I had a chat with the girls about the new selection process and their experience with hockey both individually and at Saints. To read the full interview – click here
Bridgette Leach (Hockey Captain)
LACROSSE
U13: Saints (7) v Hounds (10)
Best Player: Matilda Purvis and Violet Tulloch
Super Woman: Neela M – played in goal first half with excellent saves; in second half, great defence and created space when in attack
TENNIS
Open A: Saints (46) v Wilderness (60)
Best Player: Sapphire Moser and Gloria Zou
Super Woman: Sophie Wiggins – filling in as one of our regular players was injured, she paired with Gloria for a great win in the doubles and then lost in a close singles 4-6; showed outstanding resilience and competitiveness and certainly looked like she belonged at this level
Senior Div 1.1: Saints (7-44) v Scotch (2-25)
Best Player: Bella Willson – in some highly competitive matches
Super Woman: Charlotte T – worked on her lower body base skills improving her groundstrokes; her forehand was unstoppable
Saints Senior Div 4.1 v Saints Seniors Div 4.2 – internal match
Best Player: Olivia Clarke – won both doubles and singles even though it was only her second time playing
Super Woman: Zoe – used her voice and upheld the School’s spirit
Senior Div 4.3: Saints (internal matches)
Super Women: Rongxin, Annie and Angelina – played their first games and showcased some of the skills we have been working on; they also managed to feel confident in scoring and understanding how doubles and singles work
Best Player: Yu Thong – played very well against other Saints Girls in internal matches; her serve was a standout
TOUCH FOOTBALL
Open A: Saints (0) v Marryatville (5)
Open B: Saints (4) v Mercedes (3)
Open C: Saints (1) v Wilderness (6)
Best Player: Dani Cox
Super Woman: Amy Dillon – scored our only try and was always eager to be on the field
Middle A: Saints (0) v Marryatville (5)
Middle B: Saints (0) v Pembroke (3)
Middle C: Bye
VOLLEYBALL
Open A: Saints (1) v Walford (2)
Best Player: Chloe Porter
Super Women:
Annabel – communicated with the team very well and implemented her skills throughout the game
Claudia – made something out of every contact, especially when we were out of system
Open B: Saints (0) v Immanuel (3)
Best Player: Lauren – great serving in the first set helped us get the lead; good voice on court and a couple of nice spikes
Super Woman: Asha – taking on the feedback from the previous game where the team was slow to react; this time, fast feet in passing and moving all around the court
Open C: Saints (0) v Concordia (3)
Open D: Saints (0) v Walford (3)
Best player: Labrini Psaltis – served extremely well including many aces
Super Woman: Izzy McCabe – cheered everyone on and got around the girls when they did well
Middle A: Saints 1(62) v Walford 2(64)
Best Player: Angelina Tran – played a standout Captain’s game in a fantastic whole team effort
Super Women:
Olivia Ng and Valerie Ng – putting it on the line and going for everything, lifting the confidence of the whole team
Keira – with a 12-point serving streak, BOOM!
‘The team confidence is growing and the girls are playing much better as a team with some brilliant attacks.’ (Coach)
Middle B: Saints 61(1) v Walford 75(2)
Middle C: Bye
Middle D: Saints (11, 20, 12) v Concordia (25, 25, 25)
Best Player: Aoife – she was very vocal during huddles, landed some good serves and even saved a few points via returning opposition serves/plays
Super Women: Grace and Olivia – the first game both girls nailed multiple consecutive serves that almost won us the match
Year 6 Blue: Saints (1) v Wilderness (2)
Year 6 White: Saints (1) v Wilderness (2)
Year 6 Sliver: Saints (2) v Seymour (1)
Year 5 Blue: Saints (3) v Year 4/5 White (0)
Year 5 White: Saints (3) v Year 4/5 Blue (0)
WATER POLO
Open A: Saints (17) v Wilderness (1)
Open B: Saints (5) v Pembroke (3)
Open C: Saints (13) v Loreto (2)
Best Player: Evie Gosse
Super Woman: Genevieve Braithwaite
Middle A: Bye
Middle B: Bye
2023 LYNNE SPRY CUP
Friday 17 March
6pm
St Peter’s College
55 Hackney Road, St Peters
The Lynne Spry Cup, named after our very own supportive Water Polo supervisor Mrs Spry, is a game between our Open A Water Polo players and the Old Scholars’ team. It is a great opportunity for our current players to get involved and learn from the Old Scholars while also having a good time. Please come along and support our wonderfully talented girls.