Matthew Bonson - Dean of Learning Year 11-12

On Wednesday 21 August, Tara held its annual HSC Showcase Evening. As always, the purpose of this evening is to allow the Tara community the opportunity to see the outstanding achievements of our Year 12 2024 Cohort. 

The evening started with a greeting from our Principal, Mrs Adele Ramsay, as guests were provided with drinks and canapés served by our Year 11 VET-Hospitality students. A huge thanks must be given to the Cafeteria staff and VET-Hospitality Students who kept the food and libations flowing throughout the event. 

Our HSC Music 1, Music 2 and Music Extension students kicked off proceedings with a range of vocal and instrumental performances ranging from classical to Fleetwood Mac and everything in between. It was a crowd-pleasing display of musical virtuosity. This evening gives these students a chance to practise their HSC Major Works in front of an audience to receive feedback and identify areas that can be improved before their HSC performances in September. A huge congratulations to all performers and the Music Staff who have supported them throughout the year.

After the Music, parents, staff, students, friends and family were plied with more food and drink and were able to visit a range of presentations from Visual Arts, Design and Technology, IT Multimedia, History Extension, English Extension 2 and Science Extension. Students explained their Major Works and Bodies of Work, giving details on the process involved in creating the artworks, products, essays and multimedia presentations. This is also a great opportunity for students considering these subjects to get a deeper understanding of the requirements of each subject to help them in their subject choices for Years 11 and 12. As we had our biggest official crowd for the evening, all areas of the School were busy as students showcased their achievements and teachers looked on with pride. As with the music performances, some students were able to receive invaluable feedback that they are able to apply to their work before the final submission dates.

The evening came to a close with two sets of performances from our Drama Students. Group and individual performances were carried out with a brief intermission to ensure the audience was always highly engaged. Comedy, Tragedy and Satire were all on display with some highly emotive, moving and in some cases laugh out loud performances from our Year 12 Drama Students. With HSC Drama Performances taking place in the following week, this final rehearsal in front of a highly enthusiastic audience was a perfect opportunity to prepare. It was a wonderful way to conclude the evening.

This event has continued to grow since its inception, and it has become a large scale celebration of the endless hours that staff and students have committed to their subjects. I would like to take this opportunity to say thanks to all who attended. The evening cannot take place without the contributions of our IT and AV staff, The Cafeteria and catering team (and Year 11 VET Hospitality Students), our Marketing Team (special thanks to Angela Doubleday), the Maintenance crew, the Tara Library Staff, the School Executive and Heads of Department. The evening could not occur without the organisation and efforts of Mrs Giselle Henley. Finally, a huge thanks must be given to the students who have worked so hard to produce their amazing opuses, and the teachers who supported them every step of the way.

To watch a highlight video from the evening, click here. 

The Tara Uniform Shop is open Saturday 7 September from 9am to 12pm. 

We are offering reduced prices on essential items at the Second Hand Uniform Shop, located within the Tara Uniform Shop! 

• All Second Hand Winter Long Sleeve Blouses are now just $20.00.
• Enjoy $20.00 off the marked price on all second-hand pinafores.
• Second-hand sports shorts are also available for $20.00.

We are excited to invite you to the 2024 Tara Dads Club Camping Trip! This year's adventure is set for Friday, 18 October to Sunday, 20 October, at the NRMA Ocean Beach Holiday Resort in Umina Beach.

Last year's trip was a tremendous success, with both dads and daughters having a fantastic time. Don't miss out on the fun this year! Spots are limited, so be sure to secure your place soon.

Bookings close on Friday, 27 September — reserve your spot now to avoid disappointment! 

Book now via the link below 

https://www.trybooking.com/CUYKK

The Tara Dads Club's next meeting is scheduled for Wednesday, 18 September, at 6.00pm in the Glass Room. All dads in the School community are encouraged to join. It's a fantastic opportunity to meet fellow dads and strengthen your connection with the school.

We extend our heartfelt thanks to everyone who attended Tara’s 2024 Gala Ball. It was a memorable evening filled with exquisite food, wine, exciting prizes, and lively dancing. It was truly a joy to see the Tara Community come together to celebrate.

Congratulations to all of our winners! Grace Kwaan took home the lucky door prize, while the team at Table 9 (Kate Kesby, Matt Kesby, Natalie Harrison, Wesly Harrison, Anastasia Chemerys, Anton Chemerys, Andy Zhao, Echo Zhang, Violet Tang, and Xiang Lu) emerged victorious in the Family Feud segment.

Special thanks go to Alexander Jewellers for generously providing the stunning 14K White Gold Diamond stud earrings, which were won by Xiang Lu. We were all on the edge of our seats as keys were tried one by one until the last key unlocked the box containing the beautiful diamond ring, which was won by Karen Tabet, also graciously donated by Alexander Jewellers.

Our cruise raffle, valued at over $8,500, was won by the very lucky Sophia Hou. She will be enjoying the ultimate tropical holiday with a fantastic 10 night cruise for four around the breathtaking Pacific Islands. 

Thank you again for making the night so memorable!

To access photos from the Tara Gala Ball, click here. 

Thank you to all of our sponsors for making the night possible

Applications for the prestigious Joan Waugh Scholarships are now open. If you are a former student of Tara Anglican School for Girls and meet the criteria, don't miss this chance.

Scholarship Details:

• Named in honour of Miss Mary Elizabeth (Joan) Waugh, the former headmistress of Tara Anglican School for Girls.
• Scholarship value: $10,000.
• Eligibility: Candidates who demonstrate excellence in various aspects of community life and show leadership potential, in addition to strong academic abilities.
• Purpose: To support further studies, research, or development in a specific field of interest, skill, or expertise, both in Australia and overseas.

Application Deadline: 20 October 2024

To apply, please download the application form here

Don't miss your chance to honour Miss Waugh's legacy and further your educational pursuits. 

Congratulations to alumnae Sarah Fahd, Class of 2021, for representing Australia at the 2024 World Rowing Under 23 Championships! Sarah has secured an impressive 5th place in the world in the U23 Women’s Quad.

Sarah’s journey in rowing began at Tara, where she consistently demonstrated excellence both in the classroom and on the water. Her passion for the sport has only grown, and now, as a current rowing coach, she is inspiring the next generation of Tara rowers to pursue their dreams.

We are beyond proud of her achievements and can’t wait to see her continue to make waves in the future! 

Photo via Rowing Australia and Art of Rowing.nz

The Tara Old Girls’ Association held their Annual General Meeting on Wednesday 28 August which resulted in the following people being elected to the committee. 

President: Lucinda Beck 
Vice President: Barbara Edge
Secretary: Alana Liu 
Treasurer and Joan Waugh Chairperson: Alison Lillyman 

Committee Members:
Kathryn Dickinson 
Leah Virtue  
Emma Hull 
Ivy Wang 
Nathalie Taylor 

Please join me in congratulating the committee members. 

Our Learn to Swim programs for those up to and including Dolphins and Teen Intermediate will start back on Monday 2 September. 

Programs such as Advance, Squads and Power hour in the 25m main pool will start back on Monday 16 September.

We look forward to welcoming everyone back to the pool this week and continuing our programs together. 

“Power Hour” is a non-competitive squad program that offers a combination of endurance, speed, overall fitness, with plenty of fun with friends. The session runs for 60 minutes and is a great way to help improve or maintain your fitness level during the water polo season (or supplementing other sporting activity), as well as your mental health.  

Contact the Swimming@Tara team for more information and to join. 

swimming@tara.nsw.edu.au 

Please review the Tara Aquatic Centre Terms and Conditions in the Aquatic Centre parent portal as they have been updated.  

We are accepting Active Kids and First Lap vouchers.

To use them in our program, please forward the details to swimming@tara.nsw.edu.au with your child’s details

The theme for this year’s Children’s Book Council of Australia’s book week was “Reading is magic”. The Junior School celebrated by hosting a Great Book Swap with all proceeds going to The Indigenous Literacy Foundation. Thank you to everyone who donated and swapped, we raised $636. 

There were plenty of lunchtime activities like, koala bracelet making, sensory glitter tubes, scratch unicorn bookmarks and a treasure hunt around the Junior School available each day as well.  We also built with upcycled books in the foyer of the library, which was inspired by Bilby from The Bush Book Club by Margaret Wild and illustrated by Ben Wood.  The students also collaboratively coloured a giant poster, pinned the hat of Frank (inspired by Frank’s red hat by Sean E Avery) or became a G.O.A.T. (Greatest Of All Time by Kate and Jol Temple and illustrated by Rebel Challenger). Students voted for their favourite Australian titles from the 4 categories in this year’s K.O.A.L.A. (Kids Own Australian Literature Awards) shortlist. 

Years 3 to 6 welcomed Katrina Nannestad, author of 3 Mim’s and 6 Leisl’s class characters. They learnt the origins of their class characters as well as how to turn experiences, research and history into great stories. ELC to Year 2 met with Bundjalung descendant Charmaine Ledden-Lewis, during which time they saw her create art and had a go at their own, while learning some Dharug language as well. 

Finally, Junior School staff twinned their clothes and accessories with another staff member throughout the week so that students could enter the daily Tara twin’s competition.  Reading really is magic!

Congratulations to our IPSHA Athletics team on a great day at the IPSHA Athletics carnival last week! 

A special congratulations to Lucinda F who placed 2nd in Discus and will compete at CIS.

Go girls! 

Steph, Jemima and Hannah and Popi - Environmental Committee  

On Monday 9 September the Environmental Committee will be hosting Ration the Fashion! 

The aim of this event: Reduce the consumption of clothes, many of which are considered ‘fast fashion’.  

Why is this important: 

• Fast fashion has a big environmental footprint.👎
• Garments are made up of synthetic fibres and are poorly made which limits their lifespan. 
• Results in fast fashion garments being sent to landfill where it can take up to 200 years to decompose. 

How to participate? 

• Swap clothes with a friend. 👯‍♀️
• Borrow clothes from family. 👨‍👩‍👧‍👦
• Purchase thrifted (second-hand) clothes from an op shop 👕

Is there any cost?

• There is no cost for this event ❌💵
• Will be an optional opportunity to recycle an old unwanted garment of clothing for $2.

The Environmental Committee will recycle garments via Upparel  

• Garments that are in good condition: passed to charity partners 🤝
• Garments unable to be resold: repurposed into a new fabric called UPtex 🧵

Most importantly, no garments will go to landfill. ❌

More detail will come out in Week 7 regarding this, including more actions we can take to avoid sending clothing to landfill. There will also be a competition for best clothes swap between friends and best thrifted outfit. 

Looking forward to seeing some fantastic outfits. 

Mrs Judy Cropper and Mrs Jane Napier - Food Technology and Hospitality Staff 

Dignity Dishes continues to gain momentum as a rewarding service activity amongst our students in Years 9-12.

Mrs Cropper and Mrs Napier are very grateful to all student and staff volunteers who give of their time after school each fortnight to cook meals for the less fortunate, as the need in our community is greater than ever.

Our efforts yield approximately 60-70 meals each cook and are distributed as far as Newcastle and Wollongong as well as the Sydney Metro Area.

Well done to everyone and please keep volunteering!

Earlier this year, Years 7-10 students at Tara put their historical knowledge and analytical skills to the test, competing against some of the brightest young minds from across Australia in the Australian History Competition. The study of History is invaluable subject as it allows students to explore the complexities of human experience, understand the forces that have shaped our world, and reflect on their own place within it.

We are immensely proud of the following students who not only rose to the challenge but excelled beyond expectations in this prestigious competition against approximately 40 000 students across the country.

Congratulations to the following students who excelled in the competition. Of the 198 students from Tara that entered, 25% of students attained either a Distinction or High Distinction!

Distinctions: Zara F, Dora H, Claire H, Kaylee L, Mia L, Adelaide P, Teniola T, Charlotte W, Rosie X, Caitlin J, Alice S, Evelyn S, Shievon T, Amber W, Melody Y, Claire D, Charlotte G, Fiona H, Agatha H, Jasmine I, Ella J, Aishani S, Shradha S, Eden W, Nicole W, Ella Z, Helena Z, Mat B, Mia C, Diba D, Ying L, Daniella M, Teon O, Vicky Y

High Distinctions: Claire G, Katerina N, Olivia P, Chaucee X, Aileen Y, Ruby O, Emmeline T, Isabella W, Olivia Y, Livia Z, Allison Z, Addison A, Yezka H, Iris J, Lara W

Year 7 have been exploring who the Bible tells us Jesus is. How Jesus is the fulfilment of the promises in the Old Testament. Students creatively engaged with an AI image generator to develop images of what Jesus might look like. This was a great cross curriculum learning opportunity as well as challenging students to engage AI with integrity and creativity. 

Ashley M developed this image of Jesus as the snake crusher. Ashley was focusing on the story in Genesis 3 where God says he will send someone who will crush evil (represented by a talking snake). 

Anaya B developed this image of Jesus as the Lamb of God. Anaya focused on the stories in the New Testament where John the Baptist calls Jesus the lamb of God and Jesus says he is the final and complete sacrifice for us.

Claire H imagined a hyper realistic Jesus taking a selfie. Claire explored how Jesus might be now, taking a selfie with friends. It helps create a different sense of reality. Claire explores the idea that Jesus is still here with us and is our friend and saviour. 

Congratulations to our Tara Snowsports Team on their fantastic success at the State Interschools Snowsport Championships! 

Our girls from both Junior and Senior School had an incredible time competing in skiing, snowboarding, XC skiing and Biathlon.

Congratulations to Lucinda, Cellena, Angela, and Jemima for advancing to the Australian Interschools Championships! We are so proud of you all.

Go Team Tara! 

Our amazing Linda H and Bethany S competed at the State Championships at SGAC on Sunday 25 August. Linda competed in the Level 6 Division and performed some beautiful routines and received some great scores. Bethany competed in the Level 5 Division and excelled with her floor routine. She placed 6th in the State on Floor. We are so proud of the girls and their efforts at this tough competition.

Congratulations to both Gymnasts! 

Congratulations to our IGSA Athletics team on a great day at the IGSA Athletics Carnival. 

Special congratulations to:

• Chelsea C who placed 1st in Senior High Jump
• Jess C who placed 2nd in Senior Discus and 
• Maya W who placed 3rd in the 13 Years Long Jump.

Go team Tara! 

Huge congratulations to Sharon in Year 7 for her incredible achievements at recent Dance Eisteddfods! Sharon has truly shined on stage, earning outstanding results:

Extreme Dance Competition: 2nd place for 12/u Contemporary Open, 3rd place for 12/u Classical Ballet Open

Platinum Dance Competition: 1st place for 12/u Contemporary Gold session

Shine Bright Dance Challenge: 1st place for 12/u Classical Open, 2nd place for 12/u Contemporary Open

Hollywood Bound Dance Championships: 1st place for 12/u Classical Open, 1st place for 12/u Traditional Contemporary, and a Top 5 score in the Pre Teen Section

We are so proud of your dedication and talent Sharon! Keep shining! 

Congratulations to Year 8 student Zoe who competed in the NSW State Championships in Tamworth over the weekend and placed 1st in the time trial and 3rd in each of the Road Race and Crit Race! Go Zoe! 

Each week we send Year 10 to Year 12 a listing of the relevant events and ideas and programs to them to help with their Career planning.  

There are some great events and opportunities coming up! Learn more about them via the links below. 

Careers Newsletter -  29 August 2024 

For more information please contact Mr David Berridge via email - dberridge@tara.nsw.edu.au