A Message from the Head of Lindfield
Staffing Update
As mentioned in my weekly update I am not involved in the appointment of the new Head of Lindfield, however, the Headmaster has requested that I provide a brief update on the College’s search for my replacement. After conducting a national and international advertising campaign for the position, over 40 applications were received from a range of candidates including existing Primary Principals, Deputy Principals and Senior Leaders from schools across Australia and internationally. The panel has conducted 9 first round interviews this week and has further shortlisted the field to 2. These candidates will participate in a second interview, consisting of a demonstration lesson at Wyvern (to maintain confidentiality) and a presentation to the panel, in the week commencing 1 December. Given that one of the final candidates is an Australian working abroad the timing of the second round is dependent on the candidates’ availability. The Headmaster is hoping that an announcement will be made by Prize Giving.
As previously gazetted, the Headmaster has enlisted the support of Mr John Cooley, a recently retired former Primary Principal of three schools including a PYP school, to be the acting Head until the new person can start. Whilst the possible starting date for the candidate is yet to be discussed it will be no later than Term 2 2015.
I am very pleased to announce that Mr Jackson English will be joining us for 2015 as the second Year 6 Teacher. Mr English is a highly experienced teacher having taught at Trinity Prep in Sydney before moving to United World College in Singapore. Mr English has had experience as a curriculum leader, House Master and classroom teacher. He has significant experience teaching within a PYP setting including being involved in a number of PYP Exhibitions. He will be moving back to Australia with his young family over the Christmas Holidays in preparation for 2015.
2015 Classrooms
As previously indicated, over the holiday break there will be some major refurbishments and alterations made to the existing Music Room and the Don Brown Hall in order to accommodate our new Year 6 Class.
The Don Brown Hall will become the Hall / Music Centre with the works adding an operable wall that will allow the Hall space to be split in two to create a designated space for Class Music lessons. This space will be in the back half of the existing Hall. The wall will open up (into a cavity) to allow the Hall to continue being used for Assemblies, Chapels and other community events. In addition to the operable wall there will also be some soft surfaces added to improve the acoustics in the space.
The vacant Music Room will be transformed into a new Year 6 Classroom including a sizeable break-out space where the current Strings Storeroom is located. This space will be accessible through a new doorway that will be created between the rooms. This room will become one of the Year 6 Classrooms next year with the other located in the existing 5W Classroom. The two rooms are not equal in size so we have decided that each class will spend one semester in each room. The larger room will be used regularly for whole grade learning activities or when teachers want to group the boys across the grade. This will also allow the boys to make use of the internal break-out space, the area immediately outside the room and the Hall when it is unused. Mr C’s Class (6C) will be in the ‘Music Room’ for Semester 1 followed by Mr English’s Class (6E) in Semester 2. This experience of changing classrooms will also serve as a good traineeship for High School when the boys move much more frequently.
Year 5 will occupy the current 5E and 6C rooms for 2015. All other classes will remain in their current location.
Orientation Morning – a sign of things to come
The Orientation Morning held earlier in November whet the appetite for what promises to be a fantastic year in 2015. On the day we welcomed over 50 new students and a couple of new teachers to Lindfield and each of them seemed to settle in quickly with the other boys and their teachers. Whilst we are sad to be farewelling some of our current students, it is exciting for our current students to meet some new boys and to look forward to developing friendships with them next year. It was also particularly encouraging to see all the classes settle so quickly into cohesive learning habits and relationships within the classrooms. 2015 promises to be another great year of learning at Lindfield!
Farewell Year 6
It is with mixed feelings that we farewell Year 6 2014. After developing close relationships with all of these boys and seeing the tremendous growth in each of them it is sad to see them leave, however, at the same time we are very excited for them and know that each of them is more than ready to tackle the challenges that lie ahead in High School. Year 6 2014 is a great group of boys, with each of them making a mark and leaving a strong and positive legacy on our school. In reflecting on their impact a number of things came to mind;
• The leadership and the initiative shown in leading the P.A.L.S. (Positive Attitudes and Life Skills) program and the significant peer leadership they provided about character, resilience, anti-bullying and the value of relationships.
• The PYP Exhibition that highlighted the wonderful learning skills and interests of the boys.
• The Year 6 Fair that was enjoyed by all of the other Lindfield boys.
As the boys finish up their final weeks of Year 6 it is a great reminder of the quality of the education and mentoring the boys receive at Lindfield. We wish each and every one of them well as they continue their learning journeys. We look forward to hearing of their successes in the future.
2015 Term Dates
As previously announced our holiday periods will be slightly different next year. This is to enable a better balance of term time and to maximise time for Year 12. The only change to the norm is that there is a 2 week break in July and 3 week break in September / October. All holidays overlap with State or Catholic school break times. This arrangement is for 2015 only.
The Term Dates are:
Term One: Thursday 29 January to Thursday 2 April
Term Two: Monday 20 April to Friday 26 June
Term Three: Tuesday 14 July to Friday 18 September
Term Four: Monday 12 October to Wednesday 9 December
Thank you and farewell
As my time at Lindfield draws to a close I feel very blessed and privileged to have had the opportunity to lead such a fine school and community. Put simply, there are not many schools around that have the quality of teachers and support staff, students and parents that Newington College does at Lindfield Prep.
As part of the recruitment process for my replacement, I was asked to show one of the candidates around the campus and it served as a great reminder of the many special qualities of this school. I was able to speak with great confidence about our teachers and their commitment to ongoing professional growth and the amazing friendliness of our support staff. I shared of the boys’ enthusiasm for learning, their friendliness and the way they embrace all aspects of their education. I spoke of the amazingly supportive and welcoming parent community that is so heavily involved in the school. I showed them the wonderfully distinctive and generous grounds and facilities the boys enjoy on a daily basis. We walked through the bush and their jaw dropped!
Lindfield is most certainly a special place!
I want to thank each member of the Lindfield Prep community for your support, encouragement, involvement and complete commitment to the boys’ learning. It has made being the Head of Lindfield an extremely rewarding experience. I have learnt so much in my time at Lindfield and I eagerly anticipate continuing my learning journey at Trinity Prep. I look forward to seeing some of you on the sporting fields next year when black and green collide!
This week’s ‘Farewell Assembly’ was a very humbling experience. I really appreciate the kind words and gifts – thank you!
