Issue no. 4

Swimming Carnival 2021: And the Winner is…

Swimming Carnival 2021 exploded off the blocks today, with girls in Years 4 – 12 going stroke-for-stroke across the four Houses at the Adelaide Aquatic Centre.

As always, determination, team spirit and participation featured throughout the day, with impressive performances in the serious races and colourful entertainment in the novelty events, including the annual crowd favourite, the Crocodile Relay!

House spirit was in overdrive, the Year 12 costumes lived up to all the hype and it was terrific to see our girls cheering on from the stands.

By the end of proceedings with all results tallied, the 2021 overall champions were announced: SELWYN!

McGill Shield
Selwyn – 3504 points
Kilburn – 3254 points
Kennion – 3209 points
Patteson – 3054 points

Congratulations to all involved! Detailed results will appear in next week’s eNews.

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From Our Head of Junior School

Leadership in the Junior School

On Tuesday, we held our Year 6 Leadership Induction Service. This is an important occasion at the beginning of the school year, at which the Year 6s are presented with their badges showing their positions of responsibility and introduced in these capacities to the rest of the Junior School. As part of their year-long inquiry into Leadership, the Year 6 students have begun looking at the qualities of ‘good leaders’. In doing so, they have thought about the skills, attributes and dispositions they would like to develop as they embark on their roles as leaders of the Junior School. This involved working collaboratively to decide upon a mission statement for each leadership group that will guide their work this year and thinking about ways they can support the younger students and the School in general. Opportunities for stepping up to new challenges and pushing themselves outside of their natural comfort zones will be explored throughout the year, as will the notion of standing up for what is right rather than what is popular.

Meanwhile, students in Reception to Year 5 were given the opportunity to be considered for the role of class Student Representative Council member, and two students from each class were presented their badges at the same service. They look forward to meeting as a group and considering ways to support the Junior School students.

Also, during the first few weeks of term, Year 4 students have been investigating the leadership shown by a wide range of role models, past and present. With a focus on female leaders within a broad range of fields, the girls have been researching the qualities and strengths of a particular woman, and they will present their findings to their Junior School peers and parents in coming weeks.

These are just a few of the ways in which leadership is explored by the younger members of our School community and we wish all of the girls well as they develop their own and collective leadership potential.

Suzanne Haddy
Head of Junior School

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Music Camp Hits Right Notes

Our annual Music Camp was a hit! Girls from 11 of our ensembles swapped notes with some of Adelaide’s top artists. Another highlight was world-renowned jazz pianist, composer and conductor Kym Purling who delivered a special concert, ran improvisation workshops and conducted our combined items featuring 100 girls!

Here are some reflections from the experience:

Camp was a little different this year, as we headed down to Malvern Uniting Church instead of Ardrossan. The girls made the absolute most of it, participating in bands, singing groups and activities. The singers had an amazing workshop learning about the Estill technique, a singing model we hope to incorporate more into our choirs. We had a wonderful few days to bond as leaders with the younger girls, and have a chance to focus on improving our musical abilities in a fun and inspiring learning environment.

Georgie Raftopoulos
Chorister

Every year since Music Camp began at Saints Girls a decade ago, my family and I have travelled to Ardrossan to watch the concert. This was my sixth camp, but my older sister was at the very first camp back in 2011! Although I’m saddened that we weren’t able to go to Ardrossan this year, I am extremely thankful to all the Music staff and parents for putting on this camp. It is so important for our Music program to have a camp every year, not only to get a head start on the year’s music, but also to build relationships with each other. Whether it was their first or last camp, I’m sure every girl learnt something from the guest speakers, our wonderful Music teachers or from a mentor, and made some memories that they will cherish for years to come. A highlight for me was the annual lip sync battle which was won by the Year 8s with their rendition of ‘I Want It That Way’ by the Backstreet Boys, followed closely by the Year 10s who wrote an original song for the occasion. As always, the girls shared some amazing music with the community and I look forward to seeing what these talented girls achieve this year!

Steph Smalls
Band Captain

I have been to Music Camp every year since I was in Year 6, with this one being especially special as it is my last. This year, the Music Camp was changed up a bit due to COVID restrictions. However, this was a blessing in disguise because more ensembles, such as Chamber Choir, were able to be part of this wonderful opportunity. Music Camp has always been one of my favourite school events. Not only am I able to improve my music skills through the many tutorials, but it is also such a great opportunity to create friendships with like-minded girls from different year levels. Music Camp is such a fun event and I highly recommend girls who aren’t yet a part of the Music family to participate next year.

Cheri Wong
Music Captain

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Rising Stars Now Fringe Dwellers

Saints Girls will once again be in the spotlight at the Adelaide Fringe, with a group of our students appearing in the show Star’s Got Talent.

Cartia plays Rhonda Jones, Olivia is Kerry-Lee, Montana plays Mont, and Issy and Sienna are featured dancers.

Here’s a description of the show from The Adelaide Fringe website:

This insanely hysterical, immensely talented, intensely captivating show is presented for children by children! Adelaide’s best talent comes together to determine the Most Talented Star! Comedy, Dance, Singing – awe-inspiring and hysterically cringe worthy, there is something for all ages! The best part…you, the audience, get to choose the winner!

“I am very excited to be performing in my fourth Fringe show in Gluttony, The Peacock tent for Star Academy!” – Cartia

“It is such an amazing opportunity to perform in a professional environment with my friends.” – Olivia

“I love the atmosphere that is brought to the tent every day when we perform.” – Montana

Performances:

February 20, 21, 27, 28
March 6, 7, 8, 13, 14, 21

Visit the Adelaide Fringe website to book your tickets!

Olivia Slivak
Student

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Drama Students Share the LimeLight

One of the requirements of the Stage 1 SACE Drama course is that students collaborate on creating a theatre company in order to have a shared vision for their learning and development in Drama.

The 2021 Stage 1 class has created ‘LimeLight’, a company which aims to shine a light on important issues and engage your attention through their work. Please see our ‘media release’ below for information about our company.

We will be presenting two dramatic works in 2021 and look forward to your support!

View our media release here.

Katherine Kitching
Drama & English Teacher

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Mind Over Matter at Ethics Olympiad

On 10 February, two teams comprising of students from Years 8 to 10 competed in the Junior Ethics Olympiad.

The team of Heidi, Alysa, Angelina, Maddy and Alvie placed 2nd, and the other team, with Alix, Isabella, Jessica and Abigail, placed in the top 10. The competition lasted the whole day and included schools from all over the State. The teams competed in three rounds (plus a bonus practice round), where we discussed cases and tried to come up with ethical solutions to real-world problems. Before the Olympiad, we spent just over a term preparing, looking at a total of eight stimuli. Some of the cases we discussed included topics such as No-Platforming, Mass Quarantine and the Repatriation of Foreign Fighters.

The Olympiad was a very rewarding experience and is a great way to look at current global topics through multiple perspectives. Thank you to Ms Burton-Howard, Holly Wallman-Craddock and Sara Peak for mentoring and coaching the teams.

Alvie Iley
Student

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Dumpling Delights for Chinese New Year

During Tuesday lunchtime, our international students came together and enjoyed delicious dumplings in the Food Technology Centre to celebrate the Chinese New Year.

The traditional new year paper-cut decoration was put on the windows and the lantern riddles written in both English and Chinese were hung on the Food Tech deck. With our International Student Coordinator, Events Officer and our Community Service Prefect serving the dumplings and sauces, the event ran smoothly and everyone enjoyed the various types of dumplings and felt a sense of home.

The lantern riddles were a highlight of the event; our international students and a great number of Junior School girls tried their best to be bold and got involved in the activity, winning delicious fortune cookies.

Cynthia He
International Student Prefect

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Food for Thought on Shrove Tuesday

This week, our Year 9 girls marked Shrove Tuesday by preparing pancakes during their Food Tech class.

It is an important day on the Christian calendar as it marks the last day before Lent begins. To honour Jesus’s 40-day journey into the desert, Christians traditionally would give up butter, milk or eggs during Lent. Often, people would use up these ingredients by making them into pancakes to reduce wastage. This is why Shrove Tuesday is sometimes referred to as Pancake Tuesday!

The Year 9 girls enjoyed cooking pancakes in preparation for Easter.

Jenni Manson
Home Economics Teacher

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Head of the River Dinner 2021

The Friends of Rowing invite all rowers, family and friends to celebrate the efforts, improvements and achievements of our St Peter’s Girls’ rowers throughout the 2020/21 season. The annual Head of the River Dinner will be held in the function room at Next Generation on War Memorial Drive, overlooking the beautiful Torrens Lake. The evening will feature speeches from students and coaches about the season that has been, and will conclude with awards being presented. The dinner includes a two-course menu and soft drinks. Other refreshments will be available for purchase in the foyer upon arrival, and from the bar throughout the event.

To comply with COVID requirements, all adults will be required to sign in to the venue by QR code upon arrival.

Next Gen Memorial Drive
War Memorial Drive, North Adelaide
Saturday 20 March 2021
5.30pm arrival for 6pm start

Tickets
$45 per person via https://www.trybooking.com/BOVBY

Ticket sales close at 5pm, Friday 5 March.

Please note, this event is compulsory for all current rowers.

Brynley Millward
Director of Rowing

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Dad’s Night Out – Ready to Roll!

LAST CHANCE – Don’t miss out!
Bookings close this Monday 22 February at 5pm.
We already have more than 50 dads booked in and ready to roll.

Friday 26 February from 6.30pm
Tranmere Bowling Club
1 Kings Grove, Tranmere

Tickets are $40 via www.Trybooking.com/BONMD
(includes entry, bowling fees and a sausage sizzle – drinks can be purchased over the bar).

Lucky squares and raffle tickets can be purchased on the evening (cash only).
Dads will be placed into teams of 4 on the night; we will run a fun competition with 2 games and an eventual winning team and prizes.

Hope to see you there!

Melissa Westgate
Foundation Manager

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Friends of Rowing

Great news for Saints Girls Rowing!

For parents keen to watch their daughters row, we have sourced a dedicated viewing space at the Lakes Hotel for the next few weeks.

The Lakes Bar looks out onto the course and has been set aside for us for the following regattas below (you can also go outside on the patio for a great view down the course).

Saturday 20 February: 7.30am – 4pm
Saturday 27 February: 7.30am – 4pm
Saturday 6 March: 7.30am – 4pm

The bar will be open for food and drinks, so please come along, watch the girls, have a meal and support the Lakes Hotel (a family business connected to the School) for making this opportunity possible.

They will also have a live stream of the rowing on the big screen throughout the day.

To view a map of the area, click here.

Ed Parker
Friends of Rowing

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Good Soles Support Saints Girls

In November, The Athlete’s Foot Burnside presented the School with a cheque for $890 for our involvement in its school rewards program. We encourage our community members to support this ongoing promotion. When you visit The Athlete’s Foot Burnside, $5 from every shoe purchased by anyone connected to our community will be donated to St Peter’s Girls’ School. Please let their staff know that you would like your donation to go to Saints Girls when you make a purchase.

Thank you for your kind support.

The Athlete’s Foot – School Rewards Program Information

Melissa Westgate
Foundation Manager

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Virtual School Tour

Following the completion of several state-of-the-art building works, St Peter’s Girls will be launching a public, online Virtual School Tour to showcase life at our wonderful School.

Air and land drones and advanced 360 degree cameras will be used to create dynamic aerials and building fly-throughs that capture our facilities as they’re being used by staff and students. An example of the technology can be found here. Filming is scheduled to take place on 1 and 2 March (Monday and Tuesday of Week 6). As always, we ask that all students are neatly dressed in uniform.

If you have any queries or concerns, please contact Communications Director Caroline Kelly via cakelly@stpetersgirls.sa.edu.au

We look forward to sharing the site with you once it’s completed later in the year.

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COVID Measures

With the school year underway, please note the following information regarding our continued COVID response.

The School has a QR code tracing system to facilitate the safe return of parents on site, in line with wider government measures. Parents entering the campus to drop off or collect their children need to scan the QR code provided each time. This also applies to parents visiting the School for events such as parent information evenings or sports training/matches.

Parents and visitors with more formal appointments at the School, such as meeting a staff member, are still required to sign in/out at Front Office and also need to scan the QR code as well for SA Health tracing purposes.

Adults who do not have a device to scan the QR code need to write their details on the paper form provided in the Front Office.

Parents who remain in their vehicles in the main car park do not need to scan in, and students do not need to scan in as the School already tracks daily attendance.

Logistics around events will be shared in due course, dependent upon the latest advice. Attendance numbers, particularly for indoor events, will still need to be restricted to facilitate social distancing.

The following general requirements remain in place:

• Ensure adults maintain a distance of 1.5m from each other.
• Practise sound hand washing and other hygiene measures.
• Students should remain at home if they are unwell; please notify the School of absences by calling 8334 2200, emailing attendance@stpetersgirls.sa.edu.au, or texting 0428 601 957.

We thank all of our families for your cooperation.

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Health Notification – Norovirus

The School has been notified of some suspected cases of Norovirus, a type of viral gastroenteritis.

SA Health says there have been increased reports of gastroenteritis in South Australia. Symptoms include:

Nausea
Vomiting
Diarrhoea
Abdominal cramps
Headache
Low grade fever

Noroviruses are very infectious and can spread easily from person-to-person via faeces and vomit. Symptoms usually begin 24 to 48 hours after ingestion of the virus, but can appear as early as 12 hours after exposure.

People should be excluded from childcare, pre-school, school and work until there has been no vomiting or diarrhoea for at least 48 hours.

Please keep unwell children home, particularly if they complain of stomach pains in the morning.

For further information on symptoms, treatment and prevention, click here. Please note the recommendations regarding hand washing in particular. The School applies strict hygiene standards for the safety of our community, and we ask families for their cooperation and vigilance.

If your child will not be attending school/ELC, please notify the School via one of the following methods:

Text: 0428 601 957 (save to phone contacts as SPGS)
Email: attendance@stpetersgirls.sa.edu.au
Phone: 8334 2200

If you have any queries, please contact the Health Centre via 8155 5762 or healthcentre@stpetersgirls.sa.edu.au

Kind regards

Lara Waltham and Sarah Wilkinson
Registered Nurses, Health Centre

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2021 School Immunisation Program

The information below is provided by Eastern Health Authority

Immunisation Information for Parents/Legal Guardians of Year 8 and 10 Students

The SA School Immunisation Program will be offered at your school by Eastern Health Authority.

All Year 8 students will be offered:

2 doses of the human papillomavirus vaccine, Gardasil®9 at two separate visits.
1 dose of the diphtheria, tetanus, whooping cough vaccine, Boostrix®.

All Year 10 students will be offered:

2 doses of the meningococcal B vaccine, Bexsero® at 2 separate visits.
1 dose of the meningococcal ACWY vaccine, Nimenrix®.

Immunisation consent packs will be sent home with all Year 8 and 10 students. It is important that you read the information contained in the packs before you give consent for your child to be vaccinated at school. If you have any questions about this program, please contact Eastern Health Authority via 8132 3600 or www.eha.sa.gov.au

All parents/legal guardians are to complete, sign and return the consent cards, even if you do not consent for the student to be vaccinated at school. Students aged 16 years and above can consent for themselves.

If you do not receive an immunisation consent pack from your child, please ask for one at the School’s Front Office.

If you do not want your child to be vaccinated at school, please contact Eastern Health Authority to arrange for your child to receive the free vaccines. If you go to your local doctor for the vaccination, they will need to order the vaccine and may charge a consultation fee.

Remember to keep your child’s School Immunisation Program records in a safe place as they may be required for future employment or travel.

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Sports News

On 17 February, Saints Girls sent a fantastic group of athletes to participate in the State Schools Triathlon. Saints has a long history of success in this competition and the girls certainly did themselves proud in 2021. In what was an extremely hot day, topping 36 degrees, Alice Braithwaite, Daisy Braithwaite and Carys Kinsella-White competed in the individual event, with Alice taking out 2nd place.

In the ‘come & try’ event, Lady Murphy finished in 3rd place for the second year running.

From a team perspective, the U17 podium was filled with Saints Girls, with Alice Braithwaite, Daisy Braithwaite and Dani Cox scoring 1st place, closely followed by Sophie Dansie, Ellie Humphrey and Willow Stewart-Rattray in 2nd.

Congratulations to all Saints Girls who challenged themselves and took part: Tara Young, Letitia Page-Thomson, Imogen Elliott, Emily Whittaker, Lydia Tolley, Lady Murphy, Sophie Dansie, Elanor Humphrey, Willow Stewart-Rattray, Alice Braithwaite, Daisy Braithwaite and Dani Cox – you are all champions!

Many of our students have enjoyed success at other recent carnivals and squad selections. Congratulations to the below students:

• Amelia Lucas and Winnie Vartuli: selected for the U15 State Hockey Team to compete in Bathurst in March.
• Carys Kinsella-White and Charlotte McAuliffe: won Silver and Gold respectively in the State Championship Heptathlon in U16 girls.
• Charlotte McAuliffe and Carys Kinsella-White: will be competing in the National Heptathlon championships in Melbourne in March.

• Athletics SA State Relay Championships
Phoebe Lucas – Silver in 4x100m and 4x200m (U14); Isla Fahey – Silver in 4xMedley Relay (U18); Charlotte McAuliffe and Amelia Lucas – Gold in 4x400m and Silver in 4×200 (U18) and Silver in the 4×100 and 4xMedley Relay (U16); Holly Cardone – Gold in the Open Field Relay; Carys Kinsella-White – Bronze in 4×100, Silver in 4×200 and 4×400 (U16).

It’s been terrific to watch our girls in action across a variety of pursuits, including our tennis players below hosting Seymour this week, and we look forward to seeing them go from strength to strength throughout the year.

Tommy Peak
Director of Sport

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