A Message from Mr Holden

Senior staff were recently debriefed by the specialist external firm (MMG) about the results from the extensive stakeholder survey undertaken last term about all aspects of the College. The survey was sent to parents, staff and students (Years 5 – Year 12). We had a very good response rate especially from Wyvern parents. I will give an overview of Wyvern’s results at this evening’s P and F meeting, but in the meantime I can inform you that Wyvern’s profile in all main areas (Academic Program, Student Wellbeing, Co-curricular, Communications, Leadership, Facilities and Resources), was exceptionally strong. Overall parent satisfaction was 87% which is well above MMG’s bench mark for similar independent schools. Thank you to the many parents who took the time to complete the survey; we remain restless to improve on the already very good satisfaction levels, and in coming weeks we will analyse all areas to plan for further improvements which will be outlined in the 2018 strategic plan. This will be made available to parents at the end of the year.

We are looking forward to the Year 5 and Year 6 musical performance of The Lion King next Wednesday at 6:00pm (Centenary Hall). The boys are very excited about this performance opportunity and it is made even more memorable because of the support we have received via the P and F to hire professional props and equipment as well as the extra-ordinary efforts of a number of hard working parents who have given their considerable time to make various costumes.

Finally as we approach the final few days of this busy term I thank the boys, parents and staff for their tremendous efforts over recent weeks in making the many learning opportunities, activities and events so successful and enjoyable. I also hope that the upcoming New Zealand Rugby and Football tour is a wonderful experience for students and staff.

Ian Holden
Head of Wyvern House

Achievement Awards

 The following achievement awards were awarded at Assembly:

Artists of the Week

K – 2 Artists of the Week

In Visual Arts, Year 1 have been exploring portraiture and the changing styles of Pablo Picasso.  Congratulations to Ross Tsaloukas and Beau Lilley of 1P for their fantastic Picasso inspired portraits. Both artists have shown a sophisticated use of line and colour.  Great Work!

Yelena Rubie
K-2 Visual Arts Teacher

Clubs & Extra Curricular Activities at Wyvern Term 4

Dear Parents,

Please find attached Club and Extra Curricular Activities at Wyvern – Term 4 below. Once you click on the link below select the activity you are interested in and it will take you to the relevant Space Page on SPACES. 

2017 Term 4 Clubs and Extra-Curricular Activities at Wyvern

All Clubs and Extra Curricular Activities commence in the first week back in Term 4.

Kind regards

Wyvern Office

Faith Matters

What you see is what you get!

If I think of you as a friend and collaborator, my emotions on meeting you will be warm and positive. If I see you as an enemy and competitor, my emotions will be just the opposite.  You may know the little verse:

Two men looked out from prison bars.

One saw mud, one saw stars.

In the pursuit of the fullness of human life, everything depends on this frame of reference, this habitual outlook, this basic vision that I have of myself, others, the world, and God. (Our worldview if you like.) What we see is what we get!

Consequently, if you or I are to change, to grow into persons who are more fully human and more fully alive, we shall certainly have to become aware of our worldview and patiently work at redressing its imbalances and eliminating its distortions. All real and permanent growth must begin here. A shy person can be coaxed into assuming an air of confidence, but it will only be a mask – one mask replacing another. There can be no real change, no real growth in any of us until and unless our basic perception of reality, or vision, is change.

Rev Peter Morphew
Chaplain

Flyers in Bookstand

Martial Arts – Kung Fu Action at Wyvern

Term 4 Clubs and Extra Curricular Activities at Wyvern 

Sport

Greek School

School Student Opal Information

OshClub

Uniform Shop

• Summer Price List
• Winter Price List
• Order Form

Kids and Co Psychology

ICAS Competition English Results

ICAS ENGLISH RESULTS

NEWtalks – Real teachers talk about how they teach

The College has begun a series of videos starring teaching staff talking about how the school serves the needs of each boy through personalised learning or, in the school jargon, differentiation. So far there is one of these, by Trent Driver (Head of Stanmore-Academic) with another two to be up loaded soon featuring Rebecca Panagopoulos (Head of Learning Enhancement) and Alex Fisher (History teacher). By the end of the year there will be eleven talks available to staff, boys and parents. You can find them on SPACES. https://spaces.newington.nsw.edu.au/stanmore/staff/articles/16514-newtalks-series-1-episode-1

Next Two Weeks

Oshclub – Wyvern’s Before and After School Care Provider

Wyvern’s Before and After School Care Program is run by OSHClub. Enrolment for all students is recommended and allows parents to easily manage their before and after school care needs via an online account. Visit www.oshclub.com.au to use the free enrolment service.

For all late bookings, please contact the Coordinator on 0428 131 700. OSHClub’s head office number is (03) 8564 9000 Click here for the OSHClub Information Flyer.

Newsletter, Click here

Kind regards

OSHClub Team

Reading Hour

Thank you to the over 140 Wyvern boys, Senior School boys, parents and staff who joined us in Wyvern Library this morning to participate in the Australian Reading Hour. It was great to see so many of our Wyvern Community engaging in this important activity of reading in every corner of the Library. Our Lucky Door Prize winner was Andrew Latham in 4P.

To view the photos taken this morning, please click here.

Joanne Barnes
Librarian – Wyvern House

RoboCup 2017

INTRODUCTION

Our team, Tom Carlisle, Vasili Filippatos and I competed as the only Wyvern team in the Rescue compartment. There was also another team in the dance compartment consisting of Toby Eastway and Stirling Williams. We competed against hundreds of teams in these competitions, programming our way to victory.

ROUNDS

We competed in a number of rounds, if you performed well enough in your allocated rounds at the end of the first period then you would go into the next round. We will talk about going into the next round in the different sections.

RoboCup Dance

Stirling Williams & Toby Eastway

At RoboCup there were lots of people that had lots of robots some had small robots and some had big robots. There was a lot of waiting around but when we had our turn it was all worth it. We went to the interview, they look at our robot and told us that it was up to robocup standard.

Robocup Rescue

Tom Carlisle, Vasili Filippatos & Bodie Young

In the rescue section, we had built a robot that had to play out a scenario. This scenario was that there had been a disaster and they needed it to follow a line from the city limits through the course and had to overcome numerous obstacles, these included marked intersections, obstructions to the line and ramps and speed humps. And the final obstacle that you had to do was a chemical spill, or a green area where you had to locate a randomly placed “victim” that you had to push out of the spill. There were 6 different courses, all varying in shape, size and difficulty. And, you got to allocate a “drop zone” where you could start your robot if it failed a part. On the day they randomised the tiles in which they built the course, meaning you had to program the robot with sensors and tell it what to do through code. The robot we used was a mindstorms ev3 robot. However this was one of our own robots that was higher quality than the school’s current ones. Of course, there are different strategies to completing the course, for example, last year, our team used three sensors instead of two, and we used the school’s robots. This shows the diversity in programs and robots designs , on the day we saw hundreds of different robots, all with unique things that made them good.

Conclusion

Robocup was a thrilling and fun experience and we enjoyed it in every way, the moments of despair, and those of happiness. In the end it bonded all the robocup teams together and taught us a thing or two we didn’t know.

Bodie Young & Stirling Williams

Sport

Sport Newsletter, Click here

Sporting Venue Addresses, Click here

2017 Sports Handbook, Click here

SRC Bake Sale

On Tuesday 12^th September the SRC representatives held a Bake Sale in order to raise money for the Starlight Children’s Foundation. Starlight have built ‘Express Rooms’ for many years to give children and families a welcoming break from the relentless cycle of medical treatments and procedures. Our SRC representatives were keen to help the Starlight Children’s Foundation, to bring smiles to children from anywhere and everywhere.

All staff and boys at Wyvern were absolutely amazed at the overwhelming generosity and support within our school community. Many families had taken the time to bake cakes themselves – ranging from Custard Cup Delights, Football Cupcakes to some very delicious Gingerbread Men.

The SRC Representatives did a super job of setting up the stalls and getting ready for their hungry customers. The cakes all proved to be very popular and were enjoyed by both boys and staff, for a gold coin donation. As a result, we were able to raise $830. This money will be donated to the Starlight Children’s Foundation to help build more ‘Express Rooms’ for the children who are on the road to recovery.

A very big thank you to the Wyvern families who either baked or bought baked goods for the Bake Sale.

Jenny Yoon, Hana Kitamura & Angus Lowrie
SRC Lead Teachers

Term 4 Parent Calendar

Dear Parents,

Please note that there have been changes made on the Term 4 Calendar due to circumstances beyond our control. Any previous dates you may have diarised from previous versions or from the SPACES Calendar on SPACES for Term 4 may now not exist of be on a different day. 

Please check the Term 4 Parent Calendar attached below to diarise with the most up-to-date events.

Terms 4 Parent Calendar

Wyvern Office

Term Dates 2017

Term Dates 2018

Tuckshop

Please click here for the Spotless Food Safety Information for Volunteers Guidelines

Tuckshop Menu and Roster Term 3 Week 10, Click here

Tuckshop Menu and Roster Term 4 Week 1, Click here

Everyday Menu and Price List, Click here

Online Ordering Instructions, Click here

Online Ordering FAQs, Click here

Kind regards

Wyvern Office

Uniform Shop

UNIFORM SHOP TRADING HOURS

Wyvern Uniform Roster Term 3 Week 10,and Term 4 Week 1 Click here

Wyvern Uniform Shop Order Form, Click here

Wyvern Uniform Shop Winter Price List 2017, Click here

Wyvern Uniform Shop Summer Price List 2016/2017, Click here

Kind regards

Nicole Williams
Uniform Shop Convenor

Year 2 Excursion to Rouse Hill

On Monday 11 September, Year 2 went back in time and visited a schoolhouse in 1889. The boys (and ‘girls’) wore costumes and participated in a lesson as it would have been back then. They recited times tables, did some sewing and marched around the maypole and used dumbbells for exercise. The boys thoroughly enjoyed their experience and gained a lot from the first-hand history experience.

Recount by Joe Everett 2M
On Monday 11 September I took a bus trip which transported me back to the year 1899. I found myself wearing the original school uniform from Rouse Hill School. I discovered that my name was now Amos Graham. We started the day by singing ‘God Save The Queen’. We then did a group maths lesson, before breaking up into our groups.

We marched to the maypole where we danced around it. We then did some weights before going back inside to work on our sewing and cursive writing. We didn’t use books like we do in 2017, we used a writing slate. I am not sure how they keep their work.

Our lunch break wasn’t very different to 2017. We ate our lunch and then played, the only thing that was different was the games we played. The afternoon science lesson was my favourite part, we got to see what baby sharks look like and we saw a kookaburra.

We were finally transported back to 2017, where I want to stay. I liked experiencing 1899, I am glad I didn’t get the cane.

YouTube – the digital compfire to all

I am constantly amazed by the number of times I need to use YouTube to help with tasks around the house. I celebrated my second Father’s Day with a very neat present from my one-year-old daughter. She knows me so well and bought me a digital coffee cup. It allows me to pay for my coffees without using cash or card. It truly is a coffee lover’s best friend. Unfortunately, the cup doesn’t clean itself and this saw me pulling it apart this week to scrub it thoroughly. 

After a successful wash, I was left with seven little tiny parts to put back together. Being male, I thought not to look for the instructions but to tackle this straight on. How hard could it be? Well, quite hard actually. After 20 minutes of frustration and standing at the kitchen sink I decided to go straight to my digital campfire, YouTube. Fortunately, around 500 people had uploaded instructional videos on how to put the digital coffee cup back together. Instantly I was gifted with this week’s eLearning newsletter topic. 

YouTube is an incredible source of information where people constantly share their ideas, knowledge or ‘hacks’ on certain topics. Two amazing YouTube channels that I would like everyone to discover are Life Noggin and Crash Course Kids. Here you can view any short video on a certain topic that you might be wondering about. You can understand what would happen if the earth was twice as big or even discover the difference between climate and weather with easy to understand examples. Life Noggin answers the questions for which you rarely have the answer. Crash Course Kids is a YouTube Channel put together by a young female scientist and strives to explain life mysteries to primary students at a level accessible to all. A true gift to all lifelong learners everywhere. 

The use of this digital campfire can be easily forgotten and we need to remember that this source of information is what our students are accessing to gain instant knowledge. We must consider what they do with the information and how they use this information effectively in their learning journey. This is why the use of technology running seamlessly next to the core educational program is so beneficial to success in 21^st century classrooms, a system that Wyvern is getting right on a daily basis.

If you have any questions about the information provided above, please do not hesitate to contact me. I’d love to hear how Life Noggin and Crash Course Kids answers the big and small questions for your family of learners once you discover it!

Tony Cross
eLearning – Wyvern House and Lindfield Preparatory School