Connection, Communication and Community

Last Wednesday evening the College welcomed all parents and guardians to the first Parents and Friends gathering for the year.

It was a dual-purpose event to provide detailed accountability information to parents and guardians and to welcome all new parents of Stanmore 7-12 campus. “New” includes our Wyvern and Lindfield families as well as those parents and guardians who are still in their first weeks of College life at Newington.

The agenda for the formal presentations in Centenary Hall included:

• An update on the academic results for the Class of 2014 presented by Deputy Head of Stanmore, Academic, Mr Trent Driver
• A detailed and very enthusiastic report on the Year 12, 2014 student satisfaction survey presented by Head of Stanmore, Dr Andrew Hirst
• An introduction to the Office of Community and Development from the Director, Mr Rod Bosman
• An introduction to the vision and commitment of the Parents and Friends’ Association presented by P&F President, Mr Andrew Loveridge.

Dr Hirst also “put a face to a name” for the senior executive and leadership staff with introductions.

Immediately following, all in attendance were invited to the Space Frame for welcome drinks and canapés. Entertainment was provided by a new line-up Jazz Combo, limbering up on a laidback jazz repertoire.

Each year at this event the P&F Support Groups, manned by current representative parents use this opportunity to start the communication and answer questions on how to be involved on the sidelines and/or in the meetings that are held to raise community support and needed funds for the boys’ co-curricular activities.

We were delighted that so many new families took the opportunity to meet each other, and the members of the P&F Executive, and the Newington staff so early on in the new year. We extend grateful thanks to the long serving P&F representatives who worked so hard on the night to ensure a connection to the Stanmore 7-12 Campus.

A message from the Head of Stanmore

One person can make a difference, and everyone should try
John F. Kennedy

Welcome back!

I extend a big welcome to all ‘New boys’ commencing their journey at Stanmore this year. I also welcome back the entire Newington College community for what promises to be a very exciting 152nd year in the College’s history. Our 2014 HSC/IB cohort results were excellent. Three boys attained a perfect IB diploma score and a further nineteen boys scored an ATAR above 99. Almost seventy boys scored an ATAR over 90 while nearly 80% of our Year 12 cohort finished in the top third of the State. Outstanding results for a non-selective school.

This Year 12’s motto ‘Thrive, Strive, 2015’ is a timely reminder that it is everyone’s responsibility to make a contribution to College life. Furthermore, American President, John F Kennedy’s quote reinforces the prospect that while we all can ‘make a difference’, imagine what the impact would be if we were all truly ‘united’!

The Stanmore school population now totals 1334 boys and new initiatives like ‘meeting with the mentor’ on the first day back will ensure that every boy is a name, not a number!

I welcome the following new secondary teaching and administrative staff to Stanmore:

• Mr Jonno Arscott (English)
• Mrs Olga Caristo (Academic Administration)
• Mrs Margo Fleiser (Learning Enhancement)
• Mr Tyrone Giese (Maths)
• Mr Luke Giles (PRS)
• Ms Ellie Landy (Science)
• Mr Neil Martin (Director of Human Resources)
• Mr Brian McCarthy (Director of Football)
• Ms Briony Morath (IBDP)
• Ms Brodie Richards (Hospitality)
• Mr Tom Ruddock (History)

New developments in 2015:

• Year 7 Sport now being held on Friday afternoons from 3.20pm – 4.45pm.
• Years 7, 8 and 9 boys will attend Parent/Teacher evenings.
• New progress reports for Years 7- 11 will be introduced to update parents prior to parent/teacher evenings.
• House Choir Competition will be held on Thursday 4 June.  All 8 houses will now perform on the one occasion in Centenary Hall.
• Homework Club and Evening Prep: Homework Club offers assistance in the Library to boys in English and Maths on alternate days to their sports training from 3.30pm to 4.45pm.  Similarly boys in Years 9 – 12 are invited to partake in private study from 5.00pm to 7.30pm from Monday to Thursday.  If you have further enquiries please email Mr Peter Wilkins our Head of Co-curricular.

Last term provided me with a wonderful opportunity for reflection on my first 7 years at the College.  I realised how truly fortunate I am to work at such a school as Newington.  I hope this year the boys will learn from their mistakes, embrace the many opportunities before them and remember that one person ‘can make a difference’.

Dr Andrew Hirst
Deputy Headmaster/Head of Stanmore

Into the swing of it at Year 7 Camp

Our Year 7 students swapped desks and computers for fresh air and team building activities last month when they visited Stanwell Tops for the annual Year 7 Camp. Nestled amongst pristine bushland and overlooking the gorgeous Stanwell Park Beach, the boys were housed in modern, air-conditioned accommodation for the two day event.

The group of 220 students attended the camp as part of their transition and introduction to the Senior School as they entered Year 7.

The two day active outdoor learning program included mountain bike riding, problem solving/team building activities and a giant swing, just to name a few.

The adventurous activities were certainly a lot of fun and the boys showed no hesitation getting involved despite the wet weather. The boys were also provided with a significant educational advantage and were supervised by experienced instructors who led the education activities which complemented our transition program.

The program was a great opportunity for the kids to challenge their abilities and practice initiative, teamwork and communication. The boys also got the opportunity to really get to know their classmates and their Mentor – these important relationships are what our transition program is based on before they started attending school. The relaxed atmosphere and guided activities certainly proved worthwhile as the new Year 7 boys of 2015 have settled into their daily school life very quickly and it is now full steam ahead with their learning. There is no doubt that lifelong friendships began at the Year 7 Camp.

Ms Colleen Scalone
Head of Year 7

Duke of Edinburgh Gold Awardees

Congratulations to all boys that received recognition at Annual Prize Giving. 2014 was the first time that the outstanding commitment and perseverance of the Gold Duke of Edinburgh’s Award recipients has been recognised at the Stanmore 7-12 Prize Giving. Of particular note, the following Year 12  students from last year: David Burley (ON 2014), Aki Flame (ON 2014), Michael Gribble (ON 2014), Tom Le Roy (ON 2014) , Joseph Lui (ON 2014), Alexander Perry (ON 2014), Brent Phillips (ON 2014) pictured above, Jean-Luc Poidevin (ON 2014), Mathias Richter (ON 2014), Samuel Wood (ON 2014) and Christopher Yap (ON 2014).

This is a great achievement for the 11 boys.  Previously only three students from one year group have achieved Gold and this cohort has set a new bench mark for the expanding Dukes program at Newington.

Mr Dominic Garner
Duke of Edinburgh Coordinator

Health Notes for the New Year

Welcome

Welcome back and especially “welcome” to all new parents and students to the College. I hope that you will enjoy this year. The Health Centre has moved up in the world … it is now situated at the top of the Le Couteur Centre at the car park end, while building works continue. There is a lift for those with injuries or disability and there are no steps if you enter from the car park end of Le Couteur.

I am here Mondays to Thursdays 8:00 AM – 5:00 PM and Fridays 8:00 AM -3:30 PM. We also have first aid coverage for Saturday sport in the first aid room just inside the back gates on Newington Road.

Please let me know if you have any changes to your medical details or if your son has had any recent injuries/illnesses that I need to know about, so I can update his file. New parents please ensure that you have completed the Online Medical Form under the ‘Essentials’ tab of the Welcome to Newington College insite.

Parents,we have some boys at school who are receiving treatment for cancer and other serious conditions. These students are recovering well but are nevertheless more prone to infections. Therefore, it is very important that if your son develops an infectious disease in particular chicken pox or measles, that you contact me at the Health Centre. It is also important for your son to stay home if unwell with a fever/bad cold and cough or if they have a gastric infection, to help prevent the spread of infection to others.

Nut Free Zone

The college is not a ‘nut free’ zone. There are many boys at school with anaphylaxis, so it would be appreciated if Nutella and peanut butter products were not brought to school. If your son is really keen to bring these items then please have a conversation with them about not sharing these foods and explain how some boys can have a serious life threatening allergy.

Spare epipens are located in the Health Centre, pool office, Library, Common Room, Concordia, Boarding House and the Boat Shed.

For those with asthma, please ensure that you carry your reliever in your bag. At school ventolin inhalers are available from the pool office, Library and the Health Centre.

Vaccinations for 2014 will commence in March

Year 7 are offered:

• Boostrix (diphtheria, tetanus and whooping cough booster) – single dose

• Chicken pox vaccine – only if they have not had it previously or had the disease

• HPV vaccine in a three dose course.

Year 11 & 12 are being offered:

• Measles, mumps and rubella vaccine (MMR) – one dose if you do not have documented evidence of two doses previously

Consent forms will be handed out at Mentor group later in February. Feel free to contact me if you have any questions regarding immunisation, as it can be confusing.

 Settling into School

To help your son settle into the school routine, the best advice I can offer is to be positive, patient and encourage him to get enough sleep each night. Nine hours of sleep really helps the boys to cope with the demands of school and new friendships.

I have a small supply of spare uniform in case an item has been forgotten or gets damaged, which the boys are welcome to borrow. I would appreciate it if these could then be returned ready for the next boy.

If you would like to discuss any concerns, please feel free to contact me on email or via my landline 02 9568 9426 or mobile 0407 004 738.

Sister Margaret Bates
College Nurse

Sport Report

Basketball

Newington 1sts Basketballer Grant Anticevich (11/KL) has been selected for the U18 NSW Metro State team that will compete in the U18 National Championships in Ballarat, Victoria on April 11-18 this year. This is Grant’s first representation at this level, and is a great reward for his effort and dedication. We wish Grant all the very best for the championships.

Swimming

The Newington Age Swimming Championships were held on Friday 6 February with boys from Year 7-12 competing in a number of events. Reports from Director of Aquatics  Mr Ryan Moar indicate a strong season ahead for the Newington Swim team. It was very encouraging to see many boys striving to do their best.

The following students are the Newington Age Swimming Champions for 2015:

12 Years: Jack Xu (7/ME)

13 Years: Shannon Lowe-Griffiths (7/PR)  

14 Years: Jack Rudkins (9/MA)

15 Years: Jason Hartill (10/MO)

16 Years: Callum Lowe-Griffiths (11/PR)

17 Years: Nathan Hassett (12/LE)

18+ Years: Jayden Sortwell (12/MA)

Congratulations to Jack Xu (7/ME) who broke the 12 Years 50 m Freestyle (28.96 sec), and 50 m Breaststroke (38.43 sec) Age Championship Swimming Records. The 50 m Breaststroke record was previously set in 2001 and held by Jack Martin (ON 2006). This was the oldest existing swimming record until it was beaten last week by Jack Xu.

Swim Squad

Newington College offers a twice weekly swim squad for students with medium to high level of swimming ability. The purpose of the swim squad is to help boys improve their fitness and technique for competition in swimming, water polo and for general well-being.

During Term 1 2015 the squad will operate at the following times:

Every Tuesday
7:00AM – 8:00 AM

Every Thursday
6:00 AM* – 7:00 AM

*On Thursday mornings entry to the school MUST be via the main gates on Stanmore road. Students can be dropped off near the top car park, and can walk through the school to the swimming pool. No drop offs should occur on Newington road. The back gate to the school will be locked at this time.

For more information or if you have any questions relating to the swim squad please email  the Director of Aquatics, Mr Ryan Moar .

Tennis

On Saturday January 31, Newington took part in the GPS Under 14s/15s Invitational Tennis Tournament. The College was represented by Daniel Nailand (8/LE) and Ethan Whitty-Pike (8/LE), Calvin Meng (9/LE) and Torran Herbert (9/ME). The boys enjoyed a day of competitive singles play where they were divided in eight qualifying pools with players from the other GPS schools. Calvin Meng progressed through to the quarter final and Daniel Nailand went one step further, reaching the semi-finals of the U14s division. Well done to all four boys.

Cricket

Jordan Gauci (12/FL) has recorded one of Newington’s largest individual scores in its 152 year history. Record books are yet to ascertain whether his score of 201* has been surpassed by anyone, including Don Bradman’s idol Johnny Taylor who went on to play for Australia. Both Jordan and Lachlan Hodges (11/MA) (55) joined each other in the middle with the score on 3/23. They then combined to amass a 200+ run partnership At the end of play on Day 1 Newington declared at 6/318 and have Sydney Boys High 2/28 at stumps.

Water Polo

This month, the U14 and U16 State Club Championships were played. Newington Water Polo was well represented across all clubs so on the weekend of 31 January, the U16 boys went down to Canberra for the tournament which saw many Newington boys playing against each other. After a competitive pool round and finals series, Cronulla won the competition with Ned Churchyard (10/ME) and Harry Dickens (10/LE) in the team. The weekend of 14 February will the U14 boys’ turn. We wish them all the very best for the tournament.

Triathlon

Any boys wishing to compete in the CIS Triathlon at Penrith on 26 February must see Mr Dickens in the Sports Department before Thursday 12 February. Further details can be found on SPACES.

New Gold for 1sts at Australian Schools Basketball Championships

Newington Basketball competed at the Australian Schools Championships in Canberra in early December 2014. With 40 boys playing in four divisions – 1sts in the U20 D1, 2nds in the U20 D3, 16s in the U17 D1 and our 15s in 14s D1. The week provided an excellent basketball experience for all involved as well as an educational one with visits  to Parliament House and Australian War Memorial. The experience gave our boys and staff exposure to the best schoolboy basketball in Australia, and clearly showed areas for improvement. The “on floor” highlight was the 1sts winning the Gold for the third year running in the U20 D1 level. The level of competition was high because three of the six teams were sports high schools.

Mr Rex Nottage
Director of Basketball

Archibald Finalist at Bundanon Art Camp 2015

The ‘New’ Artist-in-residence Program continues to go from strength to strength as it now begins on February 1 as part of the Year 11 Bundanon Art Camp for HSC and IB students.

The first 2015 resident, Mitch Cairns, who was a finalist in the Archibald portraiture prize last year, gave two long and intensive drawing workshops, and co-chaired the lecture on Representation in Contemporary Art. No doubt, he was the highlight for many boys on camp. In one workshop which involved boys being challenged to think about the non-literal representations of objects they had drawn, and how these associations can add meaning to their artwork, Elliot Ulm (11/LE) said,“I want to portray a message within my artwork rather than just making lines on a page.”

Students where also given a lesson on the history of art and learned about the significance of choice in modern art and context in contemporary art. This made an impression on student Sam Sommerville (11/LE) who said he hopes “to keep drawing with intention so the audience knows that it is my artwork and what it is about.”

The three day and two night masterclass is an incredible opportunity for students to learn about and work within an environment that is so rich in Australian Art History. The Bundanon Education Centre, which was the home of the legendary Australian painter Arthur Boyd and his wife Yvonne, was designed by the Pritker Prize winner, Glenn Murcutt. The unique opportunity to attend this camp allowed the boys the focus, time and framing to gain a deeper understanding about what art is, before they begin the making and writing journey of the HSC and IB Visual Arts courses.

The goal for the teachers, Mr Andrew Thompson, Ms Marina Hinves and Ms Hannah Chapman was to bring the three classes into one creative community so that they could support and challenge each other to reflect. “I think the workshops were all really good as they pushed us out of our comfort zone so that we could challenge the way we make art,” said Fergus Kinahan (11/MA).

Ms Marina Hinves said that the benefits of the camp continue well into Year 12 and beyond. “The opportunity to work over long periods of time in a beautiful landscape, enables the boys to richly develop their skills and understanding of landscape representation.”

Students also valued the expertise that a professional artist brought to the instruction and communication of ideas and techniques, “because he’s not a teacher, but a passionate artist, he’s teaching us in a completely different way,” said another student.

Many thanks to Mr Andrew Thompson, Ms Marina Hinves and Ms Hannah Chapman for organising this unique experience for the Visual Art students.

Trans Tasman Tour 2014

Trans Tasman Tour 2014

In the first week of the summer holidays the 1sts Water Polo team travelled to Auckland to take part in the annual Trans Tasman Schoolboys Water Polo Competition. The tournament was hosted by the eventual winners of the tournament Rangitoto College situated in the city’s north shore. The week long competition proved to be a great learning experience for our top Water Polo players. Some of Australia and New Zealand’s best teams took part and fought on in many nail-biting matches. Newington played out four wins, one draw and one loss in the group stage of the comp. This was followed on by a penalty shoot-out win in the quarter-final against The Scots College Blue. A gutsy 3 – 6 semi–final loss to a much, bigger, older and more experienced Rangitoto team was disappointing for the Newington team who were pining for their first Trans Tasman trophy. However, the competition finished on a high with a win in the Bronze medal play-off over Sacred Heart College.

Recent Success for Newington Boys in Club Competitions

Early in 2015, a number of Newington Water Polo players have tasted success with their respective club teams. Harry Dickens (10/LE) and Ned Churchyard (10/ME) became State U16 Champions with their club team, Cronulla at the State Championships in Canberra at the end of week 1. Wil Cotterill (12/LE) was named in the Tournament Team (top 7 players) of the NSW U20 State Championships while representing Sydney University.

Basketball Tour of the States

On December 27, 28 boys, five staff and numerous parents departed for the Newington Basketball USA Tour. The tour started in Seattle before moving onto Vancouver, in British Columbia, Canada where the group was broken into three squads for tournament play.

The teams played in the Port Moody High School tournament with the 1sts winning the tournament and the 2nds and development team going undefeated in a series of exhibition games. Already, the tour was off to a great start. The group then moved onto Central Washington for games against Chelan High School where the boys experienced American country life, staying with host families for two memorable nights before moving back to Seattle for more games and attendance at a college game.

The group then moved onto Portland, which ended up being the highlight of the tour. The boys were based at the University of Portland for practice sessions, having access to their facilities. The boys also got to opportunity to go shopping at the Nike Employer store and the chance to tour the amazing Nike World Headquarters.

The tour ended up in Los Angeles for four days of Disneyland, California Park, Universal Studios, NBA games and of course shopping. For the record, the 1sts came back with eight wins and two losses, the 2nds, five wins, four losses, and the Development team had five wins and three losses.

Mr Rex Nottage
Director of Basketball

Hamlet Coming Soon!

Senior Production – Hamlet – Coming Soon!

Rehearsals are well underway for the Senior Production of Hamlet by William Shakespeare. This 90 minute version, developed by Sport for Jove Theatre Company, will take place in Centenary Hall on Thursday 26, Friday 27 and Saturday 28 February at 7:00 PM. Tickets are available from Jane Wynn-Jones in the Music Department  and are $10 for students and $15 for adults. All elective Drama students should attend and HSC Advanced English students who are studying Hamlet should also make an effort to be there to help with their understanding of the play. Looking forward to seeing you all there!

Hamlet Cast Workshop

From the 19 – 21 January, the cast of this year’s Senior production, Hamlet, began rehearsing what will prove to be an awesome and very different production. The highlight of our three day rehearsal camp was on the final day, when we had the privilege of working with one of the great Shakespearean actors/directors in the country, the founder of Australian Theatre Company’s Sport for Jove, Mr Damien Ryan. As we are performing his very adaption of the original text, it would be an understatement to say that we were somewhat nervous and keen to impress. However, he greeted and educated us in an incredibly friendly way, helped us analyse the texts and decrypt Shakespeare’s language that’s laden with metaphors and images. Mr Ryan mixed fun drama activities with the seriousness of acting, intertwined the characters and their emotions so they related to our own lives and helped us look beyond the text in order to deliver the lines convincingly.

Interestingly, he also gave us a contextual understanding of how innovative Shakespeare was for this time by comparing his incredibly complex and profound plays to the bawdy, childish material of theatrical works written only a few years prior to his birth. But perhaps most memorably, he emphasised the importance of collaborative efforts and a “team” mindset when piecing together a Shakespeare production (or indeed, any production). He said the entire cast of 19 must all work together and support each other as they would in any other team or ensemble.

After a few hours of exploring the language and concepts behind the play, we went into Centenary Hall and performed for him the skeleton of what we’d put together two days prior. As we performed, you could feel the cast applying the knowledge he had shared with us and giving it a go which lifted the energy and quality of the scene immediately. With Hamlet being a play about vengeance, hatred, faith, love, grief and ghosts, it can really only go up from here. Performing Shakespeare on stage is completely unique, and working with Mr Ryan has opened our eyes to new possibilities. We thank him greatly and appreciate the time he spent with us.

Jeremi Campese (11/MA)
Drama Student

Who was Fanny Hayes?

Late last year Mr Rod Bosman, Director of Community & Development, spotted on eBay a school exercise book from the 1860s and asked me if we should acquire it for the College’s Archives. He thought it might provide a good illustration of teaching methods during that period. I agreed, but neither of us expected it to have any connections with Newington.

The exercise book contains ‘letters’ written to practise handwriting and composition. They are signed ‘F.A. Hayes’, ‘Fanny A. Hayes’, ‘Frances Ann Hayes’ or just ‘Fanny’ and have ‘Surry Hills’ (and in one case ‘181 Campbell St’) under the date. They date from August 1864 to November 1865. Most are to female friends (e.g. Lydia, Louisa, Annie), who were perhaps her schoolfellows. Generally the letters contain news of Fanny’s family and life. Some are formal invitations, or responses to invitations, to picnics and birthday parties, A few are annotated, presumably by Fanny’s teacher, though the comments — ‘V bad’ and ‘Careless’ — seem a little harsh. Enclosed with the book was a photograph of a young girl who may well be Fanny.

A number of Fanny’s letters refer to her attending Sunday School and going to ‘chapel’ with her parents and grandmother. In this context she mentions several names from Newington’s early history. One is ‘the Rev’d Mr Rabone’, undoubtedly Stephen Rabone (1811–1872), a prominent advocate for the establishment of Newington and subsequently the first Chairman of the College’s Council. ‘Miss Rabone’ is reported as playing the harmonium in Sunday School. Another name is the Reverend George Hurst, who was the Wesleyan Methodist minister at Surry Hills from 1862 to 1864 and who served on the College Council from 1867 until his death in 1885. Hurst was appointed to the Methodist circuit in Wollongong in 1865; Fanny reports Mary Hurst being presented with a Bible and hymn book, and Annie Hurst with ‘a nice little book’, by their teachers and classmates on their departure for Wollongong. Finally, Fanny also mentions visiting ‘The Reverend Fletcher at Parramatta’, almost certainly the Reverend Joseph Horner Fletcher, who served as Newington’s second President from April 1865 to 1887.

Most likely, the school that Fanny attended was the Wesleyan Methodist Day School at Surry Hills, one of nine such schools operated by the Methodists in and around Sydney in the years before Sir Henry Parkes’ great education reforms. While we know little else about Fanny Hayes, her exercise book tells us much about her childhood life, as well as providing a glimpse of education in the 1860s and some unexpected links to Newington College.

Mr David Roberts
College Archivist

Sustainability Committee is Back!

As part of an updated and refreshed Sustainability Committee program, we will regularly be featuring an article here in the Black & White Newsletter. These articles will focus around sustainability and the environment and will be written by students from all years.

The committee is intent on making Newington a more environmentally place, and this year will focus on major projects such as ‘Freshie’ water refill stations and an updated recycling system.

So stay tuned as we bring you information on the progress of the Committee, as well as student-written articles on the greater global environment.

Ashan Karunagaran (12/KL)
Sustainability Committee Member

Namaste from Nepal

On the 27 December 2014, 24 Newington College students in Years 10 and 11, accompanied by Mr Greg Pike, Mr Jon Mountain and Mr Dom Garner travelled to Nepal for three weeks. The boys spent those three weeks engaging with the very different sights, sounds and smells of Nepal.  Their itinerary included helping teach local Nepalese students at two different schools; assisting in the maintenance of the Kushudebu Medical Centre in Nepal; shopping in Bhaktapur near Kathmandu; meeting the very friendly and generous people of Nepal; and hiking the paths and mountains of the Khumbu region, close to Mount Everest.

All the boys cherished the experience, as they were able to directly connect with the Nepalese community. We experienced the Nepalese Buddhist culture, when we visited the Thubtencholing Gompa Monastery and the Tengboche Monastery within the Khumbu Region, and we were fortunate enough to give our respects to the former head Llama in the Gompa Monastery along with the rest of the monks. We also ventured through Bhaktapur too, where the marvellous Hindu temples surrounded our guest house including the Nyatapola Temple, Bhairavnath Temple and the Changu Narayan Temple. These experiences made us treasure our time in Bhaktapur.

All of us experienced the beautiful landscapes of the Khumbu region too, as we visited towns, that included; Junbesi, Taksindu, Karikhola, Puiyan, Ghat, Monjo, Namche, Tengboche and Lukla. During this 15 day hiking component of the trip, we ascended to a maximum height of 3800 m above sea level, which presented an astounding view of Mount Everest for all of us to remember.

During our time in Bhaktapur, we visited the SOS school of Kathmandu, which has had a long lasting relationship with our school, since the college began visiting Nepal. The boys were given a tour of the grounds and the neighbouring family village, where orphaned children lived and we even played a friendly football match against the school’s football team – which we luckily won 2-1. We also visited the Junbesi Secondary School, where the boys attempted to teach the local students about good hygiene and the world.

Prior to the trip, the touring party helped to raise $5600 for the maintenance of the Kushudebu Health Centre. The donation was very appreciated by the Medical Centre Staff. While we were there, we helped in re-painting some of the exteriors and interiors of the Medical Centre.

The trip is one I’m certain all the boys will remember and appreciate, as it provided us with different views of a very different world. On behalf of all the boys we would like to thank Mr Garner, Mr Mountain and in particular Mr Pike for making the trip possible and for sharing the journey and the memories with us.

Cameron Hoareau (12/ME)
Student

SMART ways to jump start 2015

I just wanted to take this opportunity to touch base on an area of particular interest at this time of year. It’s a new year, fresh beginnings, and in many instances an opportunity for individuals to either commence some physical activity, or challenge themselves in ways they haven’t before. So without giving you the general spiel about how great exercise is for you I thought I’d provide some ‘SMART’ examples that will help you get where you want to go in 2015!

Specific- when setting goals or commencing in a new regime try and make it specific. What exactly would you like to get out of your new regime? Run, walk, swim, or joining a gym? These are all great initiatives but try and aim for one area of interest, and work towards it (i.e. like running in the city to surf), that way you’ll work towards achieving it.

Measurable- ensure goals are set, and quantifiable. Training for an event is a great way of doing this. Don’t just commit to the city to surf, try and run the whole 14 km, or complete it within a certain time.

Achievable- this is often an area where people fall over in adhering to their new regime. Everyone has their goals and expectations they place upon themselves in life, and there is nothing more frustrating than not accomplishing them. So challenge yourself, but make sure you don’t set the bar too high… and for the record unlike a particular TV show a weight loss of 5 kg in a week isn’t realistic!

Realistic- talking of realistic, have you set the bar too high? Things to consider are family/work commitments, social agendas and most importantly your time! To do this effectively time management is key. Don’t over commit yourself, whereby it becomes a chore. You’ll enjoy and accomplish far more by setting realistic plans for your success.

Time- deadlines are often a part of our lives, but have you set a deadline for your own personal accomplishment? Well you need to so in 2016 you’re still not talking about doing that city to surf. Set a timeframe for your new adventure and stick to it, that way the countdown is on!

For any further fitness/exercise suggestions feel free to contact me via email nparnham@newington.nsw.edu.au or alternatively some of you may be considering our parents group exercise sessions run Monday,Wednesday and Friday mornings. Click here to find out more.

All the best in 2015, and really kickstart those goals!

Mr Nathan Parnham
Strength and Conditioning Manager