No Images? Click here Dear Friend of PLC And all of a sudden, here we are at the back end of Term 3 – the ‘meaty’ part of the School year! Term 3 is always busy in terms of co-curricular activities and every day it is wonderful to see our PLC girls embrace every performance, game or practice session with vigour and enthusiasm. Whether it’s waking up at the crack of dawn for athletics training in the cold dark mornings, practising and performing with the amazingly talented girls in Chicago the Musical, or giving their all in the myriad of musical performances occurring during the school day and at weekend festivals – our girls continue to inspire and achieve. This part of the year is particularly ‘meaty’ as the end of the academic year draws near and final examinations loom large. For a lot of girls, there are times when the thought of what lies ahead, on top of your current commitments, can be a little overwhelming. As the Year 11’s approach Semester 2 exams and Year 12’s approach the mock and the final exams, pressure can be tremendous. If I have any advice to offer at this busy time, it is to take everything day by day. Planning is important (fail to plan = plan to fail!) but it’s also important to break things down into manageable and achievable pieces. Focus on what you are doing right at this moment and do it to the best of your ability; not what you have on next week, or what you are doing in the holidays. In the busiest time of the year there is a tendency to get distracted and procrastinate, but focus and simplicity can bring results faster than you could have imagined. - Eliza Donaldson, Head Prefect Thursday 30 AugustPLC Old Collegians’ Association Bursaries open, more information here Friday 31 AugustFathers' Day Breakfast, book here Saturday 1 SeptemberSenior School Spring Concert, 5.30 pm Wednesday 12 SeptemberParents@PLC Country Day Trip to New Norcia, click here to book Friday 14 SeptemberPLC Orientation Day for current Year 6 students and new Year 7 - 12 students entering PLC in 2019. Friday 14 September - Monday 17 SeptemberCreative Arts and Technology Exhibition - Collective Ground, Senior School View Street Friday 26 October Open Garden Day, save the date Friday 16 NovemberPrincipal’s Thank You Sundowner, 6.00 pm – 8.00 pm Thinking about the lack of humility among leaders around the world and the endless quest of some to exercise power devoid of wisdom, Carla Grosch-Miller’s book called ‘Psalms Redux - poems and prayers’ gives me some encouragement. The Psalms are noted as much for their raw honesty as for their beauty and depth. Carla’s contemporary reworking of various Psalms throws a wonderfully fresh light upon them. This is part of her reinterpretation of Psalm 92:
Recently as I read the moving obituaries for Aretha Franklin and Kofi Annan, I was reminded of the inspiration a single life can bring to the human family. In their own ways, they both allowed us to hear the ‘sound of Home’ – their lives have taken us to places in which we can reconnect and rediscover each other. Every day there are people who continue to lift us from the bland into that wider perception of humanity. That is why I keep hoping; why ultimately the continuing struggle for a more inclusive, accepting and humane world is so immensely important and worthwhile. And Carla’s words also allow us to glimpse another truth expressed by her with such insight. It is about our gaze – our focus. With the surprising Spirit of God within us as we search for goodness, for deep integrity and for a heart that encompasses the stranger, we become aware of ‘the fulfilment of love in this place’. And such fulfilment is the very opposite of the emptiness which pervades so much of our public discourse today - the easy ill thought out criticisms of others and the desire to accept the lie that all that matters are these familiar companions – wealth and power. In the places which are sacred - either within us or in the outer world, we encounter the mystery both of freedom and of love. It is there we are at Home. It is there we know for certain that we belong to that wider frame of meaning which is God’s. (With thanks to Peter Millar) The Performing Arts Department continues to be ably representing the PLC community with a variety of performances in different disciplines. Concerts at One, St. George's Cathedral and Piano RecitalsCongratulations to the very talented Year 12 ATAR Music students who performed at St. Georges Cathedral yesterday. The girls did a superb job. The Junior School Piano Recital and Senior School Piano Recital, held yesterday, was marvelous. Well done, girls. Chamber Music ConcertOn Wednesday evening, we were delighted to present the second Chamber Music Concert for the year. The Percussion Ensemble performed well in opening the show. We were delighted by the string performances and, as usual, they set the bar very high. IGSSA Dance 2018Congratulations to the Dance staff and students who performed in IGSSA Dance 2018 last Thursday at St Hilda’s. Both performances were well prepared and performed with excellence. ABODA Jazz FestivalOn Sunday August 26, the girls in Stage Band had the opportunity to perform in the Edith Spiegeltent at WAAPA as they represented us at the ABODA Jazz festival. Thank you for your dedication and commitment, girls. Events Coming Up
Instrumental and Vocal Lessons - Term 4Congratulations to all students for their hard work and dedication to their music study throughout Term 3. Please note that any cancellations of instrumental or vocal lessons for Term 3 should be received by the Music Department via music@plc.wa.edu.au by Friday 14 September, otherwise students will automatically be timetabled for Term 4 and tuition fees applied. Wear it Purple Day – Friday 31 AugustWear it Purple Day is an annual LGBTI+ awareness day specifically for young people, where supporters wear purple to celebrate diversity and show LGBTI+ young people that they have the right to be seen and heard in their world. Next Friday, Senior School students are invited to wear a purple ribbon in their hair to show acceptance and support for the diverse community that we have at PLC. Environmental Fashion SwapDonating second hand clothes helps the planet and other people. Students in Years 7 to 12 are encouraged to bring in their pre-loved clothing to take part in the Environmental Fashion Swap, led by the Environmental Committee. Quality clothes can be exchanged for a token during recess on the Quad each Tuesday and Wednesday until 5 September. The fashion swap will take place at lunchtime on Thursday 6 September. Click here to view the poster. - Chonny James, Director of Wellbeing Junior School Arts DayJunior School Arts Day was a celebration of music, dance, drama and an opportunity for our community to come together to explore and embrace creativity through art. The wonderful pieces of student art that adorned the walls and corridors of the Junior School were much enjoyed by our visitors. Students proudly showcased their musical, dance and drama talents to their guests during the short performance pieces, before heading in to their art activity rotations. Junior School Arts WeekArts Week ended on a high note (and many laughs) with the Aladdin themed House Choir songs and staff pantomime. The students looked resplendent in their House colours, highlighted by props and subtle costumes. The staff entertained the children and guests with their hilarious over-acting and delivery of the witty dialogue - who knew that we had quite so many hams on the payroll?! I don’t think that we will ever look at Mrs Barnaby quite the same again! Congratulations and thank you to everyone involved in making Junior School Arts Week 2018 such a success. Junior School AppealWe would like to invite the Junior School community to donate items for the UnitingCare West homeless helper starter pack. Please refer to items on this list and leave your donations at Junior School Reception by Wednesday 19 September. - Louise Peyton, Head of Junior School JUNIOR SCHOOL KEY EVENTSChapel Years 2 to 6Date: Monday 3 September (hosted by Year 3) Year 5 Outdoor Ed ProgrammeDates: 5 – 7 September Junior School Assembly – Language BDate: Friday 7 September Exams Around the CornerWhen we are confronted with things that are ‘unpleasant’ or challenging, we all know that there can be one of three responses – often we get a Fright, then we either stay and Fight or take Flight! Year 10, 11 and 12 girls have exams just around the corner and I am certain that many of them are feeling one of these responses right now. In conversation with Mike Hinchley last week, we came up with an analogy of the exams being like the Great Escape. My first thought was about the former fun park at Hillarys, with water slides, some of them dark tunnels that may have seemed scary at first, and during the ride, but ultimately at the end was the great splash of water, and open skies – freedom. An apt anaology with exams. However, Mike was actually talking about the scene from the move The Great Escape, where the British prisoners of war are faced with a fence between themselves and freedom. While our wires were clearly crossed, both have relevance to the exams. Faced with a challenge, there is no point just staring at it and hoping it will disappear. What is required is to tackle it, to cut down the fence between us and the end goal. We will be encouraging the girls to do that – confront that fence (exams) with determination and a strategy (study), and put the strategy into action. Climb to the top of the ladder, take a deep breath and whizz to the end! Everest LeadershipThis week I had the immense privilege of convening the Prefects’ Retreat for our Year 12, 2019 leaders at Dwellingup. Despite, or perhaps partly because of the non-stop rain and a visit by a resident kangaroo who helped herself to our Weetbix for breakfast, we had an amazing time. I was left feeling overwhelmed with gratitude for the fact we have such able girls to lead us into the new year. As all Year 12s will be the leaders in our school next year, we are planning an Everest Day for Term 4 for all girls. Together with our appointed leaders from all four stages, all girls will have the opportunity to engage in a round of leadership workshops. These will be held at school on Friday 2 November. More information will follow closer to the date. - Sharon Anderson, Head of Senior School Student AchievementsLucie O’Sullivan (Year 11) has been awarded a place in the 2018 Fogarty Futures Leadership Conference. Students from over 40 different schools across the state applied for these places and Lucie’s application stood out as ‘one of the best’ Zoe Jagger (Year 8) and Jemima Officer (Year 8) have been selected to represent Western Australia in the 2018 Diving Team. This team will compete at the School Sport Australia National Championships from 8 September to 14 September. Career NewsFor upcoming open days and information sessions, download Career News below. Boarding House NewsFarm2Fork was amazing! To read about the event and see some photos, download Boarding House News. SENIOR SCHOOL KEY EVENTSSenior School Spring ConcertDate: Saturday 1 September Boarders Year 12 FarewellDate: Sunday 2 September Creative Arts and Technology ExhibitionDate: Friday 14 September to Monday 17 September PLC Orientation Day |