City

Celebration of Excellence

Our annual Celebration of Excellence (formerly known as Speech Night) is fast approaching and will be held on Friday, 6 December. All Middle School students will attend, and we look forward to a night celebrating excellence in all facets of our Haileybury program. Details are on the app.

Early Learning Centre

Our Family Art Project

Children in Reception have been observing and discussing our families. To foster this interest, children have had opportunities to create a self-identity poster focusing on their families, interests and special moments together. This project has encouraged children to use various techniques such as painting, drawing and manipulating clay to form their family.

This has led to discussions about our different features, such as the colour of our hair and how tall we are, as we learn about the uniqueness of our families. Children have celebrated their families as they also deepen their sense of belonging within the ELC.

Pre-Prep Buddy program

The Pre-Prep children have started the Buddy program with Year 3 students. This program provides children with opportunities that support the broadening of friendships and a sense of belonging within the wider Haileybury community. Each session encourages the children to engage and develop skills that prepare them for their transition into Junior School. Our first session was at the Inside Out court, where children engaged in various ball games developing teamwork and communication skills.

The Pre-Prep children will continue to engage in opportunities to share knowledge with our Year 3 students to strengthen their connections throughout the wider School.

Junior School

ELC friends visit

This week, we were delighted to welcome the City Campus Pre-Prep students to our fortnightly Junior School Assembly, where they joined us to share in the experience. The Pre-Preps worked in pairs to prepare and present a very special ‘snapshot of learning,’ highlighting one thing they loved learning or doing in the ELC this year. Their highlights were accompanied by some photos and drawings to support their presentations. The Junior School students were excited to see our special guests, creating a sense of community and support. Overall, their presence added a memorable energy to the gathering.

Science Talent Search achievements

At this week’s Junior School assembly, we celebrated the achievements of students who participated in the 2024 Science Talent Search competition, where they achieved outstanding results. This year’s theme, ‘Species Survival: More than just sustainability,’ inspired students to create projects as games, posters, working models, or picture storybooks. Completed at home, these projects met the competition’s specific criteria, and each student should feel proud of their accomplishments.

We congratulate the following students:

Harvey (Year 1)
Molly (Year 1)
Luca (Year 2)
Penny (Year 2)
Ian (Year 3)
Anthea (Year 3)
Aidan (Year 4)

Diving into Junior School swimming

We recently re-launched the highly anticipated Junior School Learn to Swim program at Victoria University (Footscray Campus). Aligning with our commitment to building strong industry partnerships within our distinctive local environment, the program was led by expert swim instructors, seamlessly woven into the Physical Education curriculum. The program continues to focus on stroke development, water safety, rescue skills, flotation and pool entry/exit techniques. This experience highlights the essential role of water competency in their physical education journey, making it an unforgettable occasion.

Premier’s Reading Challenge

We would like to congratulate all students who completed the 2024 Premier’s Reading Challenge. During our Week 1 Assembly, these students were awarded with their Premier’s Reading Challenge badge, a symbol of their hard work, consistent dedication and love of reading. 2024 saw a total of 51 Junior School students participating in the competition. We look forward to having even more participants take part in 2025.

Middle School

Poetry brilliance

Maverick (Year 7) has been named a winner in this year’s Independent Schools Victoria (ISV) Student Poetry Competition with his poem, ‘Chronos’ — a fantastic achievement. This year saw over 850 entries, totalling well over 100,000 words, from students in Foundation to Year 12 at schools across Victoria, with many exploring the theme of ‘awe.’ You can see all the winning entries on ISV’s Arts Learning Festival website and find Maverick’s poem below.

Chronos
I kill the hours from the rising of the sun,
To the closure of curtains at sunset.
The time when daily pursuits are done
And the moon rules over my domain,
To the end of its dark reign.

Presented in ebbs and flows,
Abruptly halting at clock’s cruel chime.
Awakened by the harsh call of crows
I yearn for a blissful nightfall,
I yearn to be wrapped in its tranquil shawl.

Time skates and slithers slyly,
Circling its unsuspecting prey.
I beg you never to skulk away shyly
Waiting, watching and wishing for the tide to turn,
From sun-kissed days to a wintry burn.

I crumble with fallen civilisations past,
Grappling and grasping at their lost memory.
I now fly my flag half-mast
For heavenly cities forgotten by my generation,
May now be invisible to the hour’s veneration.

Adrift days blowing in the wind
As these final hours become thinned
I am toughened. Am I thick-skinned?

A story left untold, I wonder why
A truth may just look as false as lie
At the end of time, what is left but to die?

Modern day’s poison is Time,
Time is modern day’s poison.
The toxin may taste sublime
How hard will my forgottens fall,
If I do not heed their clarion call?

Year 7 and 8 examinations and celebrations

Congratulations to our Years 7 and 8 students for their efforts on their recent exams. Students completed examinations on year-long subjects as well as semester-based electives. The Years 7 and 8 Exams are a summative assessment tool that provides an opportunity to measure academic growth while also developing the students’ ability to complete examinations. Sitting exams requires a skillset of its own, as students need to establish an understanding of how they best study and prepare, address different examination questions and manage the environment that exams can create. Haileybury exposes its students to formal examinations from Year 7 and provides a revision period to assist them with these.

Following the examinations, to celebrate and reflect on the academic year that was, students visited Queen Victoria Market, Chinatown, State Library Victoria, were involved in sporting activities, experienced Haileybury Startup’s Pitch Showcase, undertook a leadership workshop and went tenpin bowling. We are proud of our students’ endeavours throughout the year and in preparing for their exams. The Exam Helpdesk sessions, which are revision opportunities overseen by teachers before school and at lunchtimes to assist students as they study for their exams, were incredibly well attended. It was pleasing to see the students embracing these optional sessions to help them achieve their potential.

Year 8 Graduations

It was a momentous occasion on Friday, 15 November as our Year 8 students marked the end of their time in Middle School. Both the GMS and BMS enjoyed lunches, when they reminisced on the many highlights of their Middle School journey. These were followed by formal graduation ceremonies in which students reflected on their growth, learning experiences and the relationships they had developed. We thank the 2024 Year 8 cohort for the impact they have had on the Middle School at City and wish them all the very best for their Pre-Senior year and beyond.

Caroline Merrick
Head of City

Springtime Party

At the time of the last Insight, the Springtime Party photos were still being collected and the final tally for the night’s efforts needed to be calculated. As you can see from the photos below, a great deal of fun was had by all. Some of the comments include:

• “A wonderful event, beautifully organised.”
• “This was my first HPF City, and it has been terrific. I will be a definite to all the future events. Such a great night.”
• “Congrats to everyone. So great to see smiles all around and everyone having a great time.”

A special thank you to all of those who bid on items and those who were successful in purchasing items. I can announce that we raised over $11,000 which all goes back to the students. What a fantastic effort by our community.

Annual General Meeting – HPF City

The Annual General Meeting for HPF City was held on Thursday, 14 November via Zoom. We thank our past and new committee members. Being a part of fundraising and community life at Haileybury is a rewarding experience.

Second-hand Uniform Shop

Just a reminder that our final Second-hand Uniform Pop-up Shop day this year will be on Up Day, on Tuesday, 19 November. We will be open from 8.00 am – 9.00 am and 3.00 pm – 4.00 pm, plus ELC from 9.30 am to 12.00 pm. The collection bins are currently on display at King Street and in the basement. You can also drop off your items whilst the shop is open. All information can be found on the myHaileybury app.

If you would like to volunteer your time to assist with the Second-hand Uniform Shop, please drop us an email and join in the fun.

We hope that you have a wonderful few weeks ahead. Enjoy the spring sun!

Melissa Fisher
President, Haileybury Parents & Friends City