Links - Term 2 Week 8 Dear Friend of PLC From The PrincipalPLC has a strong music tradition and it is wonderful that we have been able to resume our instrumental groups, ensembles and choirs after many weeks off. I strongly encourage our community to tune in via Facebook next Friday to the Junior School Winter Concert – which will show that not even a pandemic will stop this loved annual event and the girls’ passion for music and performing. Families and visitors to PLC may have seen that ground works have now been undertaken at the site for the new Music Centre. Plans for this exciting new capital project are still in place, although the time frame for construction has been set back as a result of COVID-19. We will continue to keep the community informed about the new Centre as more information becomes available. I would also like to recognise the amazing work of our music staff over the past few months. Delivering online lessons is a challenge for any classroom teacher, but for music and instrumental teachers it certainly requires some lateral thinking and teaching techniques. Seeing our staff and students respond so enthusiastically and willingly to the task was certainly a highlight of that uncertain period. - Cate Begbie, Principal From The Deputy PrincipalChris Goff - Director of MusicChris Goff joined PLC at the start of this year as Director of Music, having led the Music Programme at Perth College for the past 15 years and their Performing Arts Programme for the past four years. As well as having extensive teaching experience, Chris is also a highly accomplished musician who plays the tuba, in both the West Australian Symphony Orchestra and Perth Symphony Orchestra on a casual basis. He is a keen vocalist who believes that singing holds the key to improving all aspects of musicianship, pursuing excellence and unlocking musical potential. Chris is a passionate Music educator who brings a great sense of fun to the learning environment; his personal aim is to promote a love of learning and he believes that Music provides an ideal setting for students to learn how to learn. In this regard, he is thrilled to join our inspiring Music staff who champion amazing projects such as Music Every Day for early years and the Kodály approach to learning. PLC has a strong Music programme, encompassing Suzuki Strings, Year 5 Beginning Band, co-curricular ensembles, ATAR and IB Music in Years 11 and 12, with a longstanding musical partnership with Scotch College. The Bagpipe programme is a particular feather in our cap that celebrates our heritage and Chris has been impressed by the passion and dedication of all involved. During the COVID-19 pandemic, online music lessons proved to be popular with many of the girls and some parents even observed an increase in their daughters’ home practice. While some restrictions still remain over holding concerts, the Music Department is firmly committed to continuing to provide performance opportunities for the students in new and creative ways. Performing is not only a reward for effort but arguably provides the best learning opportunity for our young musicians. It also brings the PLC community together, even if only virtually. This year the Junior School Winter Concert will be pre-recorded, uploaded and streamed through the School’s Facebook page and we encourage families to come together in their homes to view this online concert at 7.00 pm on Friday 26 June. The Music team is committed to helping students achieve beyond their vision. Reflecting and creative thinking will be important parts of their future as they seek to provide all students with an outstanding musical experience at PLC. - Chris Robinson, Deputy Principal From The Senior School Junior School CaptainPLC has such an awesome community spirit that I think is present in everything we do, whether it’s on the sporting field, in a music classroom, or even just in the halls between classes. This was one of the things I personally missed the most while spending time away from school during online learning, and I’m so glad to have it back! We learn so much from interacting with people our own age and even more so from people of different ages, as we all have such diverse perspectives on the world. I think it’s so important for us to take a step back and look at the world and its current issues through someone else’s eyes, especially right now with prominent issues such as the Black Lives Matter movement. This week, a group of the Year 12s were lucky enough to spend lunch with the Years 1 and 2 students. We had a fantastic time sitting and chatting with them. The amount of energy they had was incredible! It was so nice to get away from the stresses of Year 12 and focus on the simple things again. I also found that the Years 1 and 2 students are great careers councillors. When I asked my buddy what she wanted to be, she instantly had an answer. When she grows up she is going to be a dance teacher. However, when she asked me what I want to be when I grow up, I didn’t really have an answer. I told her what uni courses I’m thinking of applying for, yet still I couldn’t tell her what I want to be. So, she asked me what I like about each of the courses and as it turns out, I actually don’t have a real interest in a few of the courses I'm considering. By focussing on the simple things, my little buddy gave me a different perspective on what career path I should take, making the question of my future seem much less complicated. This experience highlighted how much we can learn from the girls around us and how important it is to take a step back to focus on the simple things in life. The relationships we establish at school can teach us more than we think, so I encourage all the girls to get involved in our incredible community whenever they get the chance. - Abby Weber, Senior School Junior School Captain PLC Foundation Student Hardship Appeal - Thank YouA massive thank you to our PLC community, who have helped to raise $461,204 for the PLC Foundation Student Hardship Appeal. This is an incredible amount and will greatly assist the School to support those families facing extremely difficult financial circumstances as a result of COVID-19. The Appeal aims to provide those families in need, time to get themselves ‘back on their feet’ and avoid having to withdraw their daughters from PLC and enroll them elsewhere. A rigorous and confidential application process is in place to ensure only families facing genuine hardship receive funds. If you would like to contribute to this cause, please click here. Senior School Free Dress DaysSupport Trillion Trees & World Vision Child Sponsorship by participating in our upcoming Free Dress Days for $10! Your contribution will support a local charity, Trillion Trees, whose mission is to bring people together to plant and grow trees and to achieve healthy, productive, sustainable landscapes. Donations also sponsor our two World Vision children, 10-year-old Josephine from Zambia and 13-year-old Lucy from Kenya. Due to COVID-19 restrictions, we are collecting the $10 contributions online. Free Dress Days are non-compulsory, with the next day scheduled for Friday 3 July. Students who wish to participate will need to make the $10 contribution. Click here to see the poster with more information. Birthing Kits AustraliaBirthing kits are small packages containing seven fundamental items for women in developing countries, to have a safe and sanitary birth. Support the International Baccalaureate CAS initiative to build 200 birthing kits by completing this permission form and returning to PLC by Friday 26 June. Only 40 places are available with a fee of $25 per person. Each person will be building five kits as part of a production line in Term 3 after school on Thursday 13 August 2020. Refugee WeekThe Year of the Welcome – Reflections from Madeleine Grist, Civics and Social Justice CaptainGiven that there are 68.5 million forcibly displaced people worldwide as of June 2018 (that's more than the populations of Australia, New Zealand and Canada combined), the need to draw attention to the challenges facing refugees is more important than ever. This week is Refugee Week, with the theme being 'The Year of Welcome'. PLC is a proudly multi-cultural community, so it's important to celebrate all the unique cultures that contribute to PLC's livelihood and open-mindedness. Every refugee seeking safety brings their own story of why they left home. The sharing of stories is an opportunity to not only remember and honour their journey, but also to educate the Australian community to better understand the courage and contribution that refugees make. This week, we are asking the students to reflect on what being welcoming means to them. Physical Activity – Everyday!Physical activity is a critical part of human development. We have always emphasised the role of physical education, co-curricular sport, fundamental movement skills and physical activity for all children. As you may be aware, I believe there are two very important parts of a Primary Education – academic rigour and the joy of childhood. I believe increased physical activity provides a boost to both these outcomes. Increased physical activity is irrefutably linked to cognitive benefits and growth. It is also fun! With those outcomes in mind, we are excited to launch a new initiative in Term 3: Daily Physical Fun! The students from Years 1-6 will begin a morning physical activity session, conceived, created and conducted by Ms McGurk and Ms Harris, every morning from 8.35 am - 8.45 am. This programme has been developed to improve basic fundamental movement skills and overall fitness, while building self-confidence and competence, by exposing the students to a wide range of physical activities. It will be easy and accessible; the activities will be adjusted so the girls can take part in their uniform of the day and their timetabled day will commence as normal at 8.45am. These sessions have been designed to be a quick session that gets the heart rate up and will be movement and fun for all! The staff and I are very excited for this programme to commence in Semester 2 and to see the positive outcomes, both physically and cognitively, in our students. Three-way Interviews and Parent Teacher MeetingsOn Monday, we published information on the PLC App and via email about the Three-way interviews and Early Learning Parent Teacher Meetings. I hope all parents and guardians have had an opportunity to read the information and book a time for Monday 29 June. These meetings are important to keep you informed, have the students empowered by speaking about their achievements and goals and will be special to have the community come to school to celebrate our girls learning. StaffingI am very excited to announce that Mrs Jill Willetts will be returning to PLC in Semester 2 as a teacher in the Learning Enrichment Centre (LEC). Mrs Willetts taught in the LEC previously and has a number of years experience teaching literacy and numeracy support. We are very excited about her return. End of TermA reminder the Term 2 comes to an end on Friday 3 July at:
- Richard Wright, Head of Junior School Senior School Junior School PicnicOur Team PLC events have continued this week with our Year 12 students arranging a lunchtime picnic with the Years 1 and 2 students in the Junior School. Our younger students were excited to get to have their lunch with the big girls of the School and talk to them about the House system, their hobbies and show them their classrooms. It was lovely to see the interaction and I think our older students got as much out of the event as our younger students did. A big thank you to Abby Weber, Senior School Junior School Captain, for her leadership on this wonderful new initiative. National Refugee WeekThis week has also seen our students celebrating National Refugee Week. This year’s theme is ‘The Year of Welcome’. Maddy Grist, Civics and Social Justice Captain, has been encouraging our students to learn more about the most common refugee nationalities in Australia and each day, through our Daily Notices, our students have had the opportunity to learn how to say ‘hello’ in one of the languages spoken by these groups. The aim of the activity was to learn more about other communities and to allow us to celebrate what it means to be a multi-cultural community. Virtual Cross-CountryWhile our students were completing their remote learning at the start of this term, they were also involved in a fun inter-school virtual cross-country competition. Our Student Council worked hard with a range of other girls’ schools to create the competition. Students were encouraged to get outside, run and provide evidence of the distance that covered through their devices. At PLC, 396 of our Senior School students participated. They covered an impressive 1508.32KM and finished the competition in second place. Last Day of TermFinally, as we draw closer to the end of another busy term, I would like to remind parents that school will finish at 1.00 pm on Friday 3 July. If your daughter requires supervision after school, she is welcome to utilise the Library or Year 12 Common Room until 3.45 pm. - Rebecca Watts, Head of Senior School From The Music DepartmentInstrumental and Vocal Lessons - Term 3Congratulations to all students for their hard work and dedication to their music study throughout Term 2. 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 19 June, otherwise students will automatically be timetabled for Term 3 and tuition fees applied. From The Sports DepartmentSwimming TrainingSenior School swimming training is back! We encourage all students to get involved, whether you are trying to improve your technique, looking to get fit or cross training for your winter sport. Sessions are running every Tuesday and Thursday from 7.00 am - 8.00 am at the PLC swimming pool. If you are interested in taking part, please email Mr Steenkamp. IGSSA Sport TrialsIn preparation for Term 3 IGSSA Sports, PLC will hold trials for Years 7 - 12 IGSSA Basketball and Soccer this term. Trial dates and registration links were emailed to students on Monday 15 June. Trial dates are also listed on the PLC Calendar. Please contact Ms Turnseck-James, Head of PE/Head of Sport if you have any questions regarding Sport at PLC. From The Maths DepartmentAMC Maths Competition 2020 – Years 7 to 12The AMC is an engaging 30-problem competition that demonstrates the importance and relevance of mathematics in students’ everyday lives. The problems get more difficult through the competition, so that at the end they are challenging to the most gifted students. This year, the competition will be completed online. Sitting Dates: Thursday 30 July or Monday 3 August (students can choose one) Further information may be found here. If you would like your daughter to participate, please advise Ms Shelley Stewart by email shelley.stewart@plc.wa.edu.au no later than Wednesday 1 July. Please indicate your preferred date (Thursday 30 July OR Monday 3 August). Costs will be added to the school fees. Late entries cannot be accepted. 2021 ScholarshipsApplications for 2021 Academic, General Excellence and Music Scholarships will open on Monday 22 June for girls currently in Year 6. More information about the criteria and application process are now on the PLC website. Parent Events Coming UpYear 10 Parents Morning TeaDate: Friday 26 June No need to RSVP. |