Another important event that gets the year headed in the right direction for students is the Mentor Meeting Evening. This is a valuable opportunity for students to articulate their learning goals for the year ahead, to clarify their action plan for 2022, and for parents to meet the students’ Mentors who have spent time examining each student’s progress in all areas of School life. It is a key element in the holistic care and development of Tara students, promoting and supporting the continuing evolution of Tara students into independent life-long 21st Century learners. The Mentor Meetings also assist in strengthening the important partnership between parents, students, and Tara teaching staff through regular communication and engagement. One of the year’s most inspiring scenes is seeing the many one-on-one mentor-student meetings taking place around the School in the weeks leading up to the Mentor Meeting Evening. They ensure every Tara girl has the time and care she needs and deserves to reflect upon past performance and set future goals in academic, cocurricular, and service pursuits.

In addition to the opportunity of being mentored by Tara teachers, in 2022 we are launching a mentoring program between current Tara students in Years 10-12 and Tara alumni as part of our efforts to prepare students well for life after Tara, Beyond the Gates. This program involves Tara students meeting online in small groups with Tara alumni who have experience and success in their chosen field to discuss career goals and offer advice on post-school pathways.

Students are being partnered with alumni by Tara staff and will meet on several occasions throughout the year. Planning for the program is well under way and we are hopeful the first round of meetings will take place by the end of Term 1. It’s been wonderful to have so much interest from past Tara students who are interested in working with current Tara students to assist in shaping their future, but if you know any Tara alumni who may be interested in participating please point them towards Mrs Kathryn Dickinson, Community Liaison Manager via email kdickinson@tara.nsw.edu.au or telephone 02 8838 2635, as we would like to cover as broad a range of careers and post-school experiences as possible. 

Sign-ups have unfortunately passed, but there is another great way you can contribute to this cause - contribute financially towards the groceries that are needed for the meals!

Students and staff can either bring a gold coin/money donation to Chapel each week, or even use their Student ID Cards at the Cafeteria to make an easy donation of either $1, $2 or $5. 

We are so proud of our Tara Community for using their love of cooking to love their neighbour! 

This week at After School Care the girls worked with Miss Lucinda to research and fill our compost bin correctly. One of the older girls created a poster to show people what they can put in our compost bin. We welcome teachers and students to use our compost bin located behind the Centre. 

Once our compost has broken down, we can use it to fertilise our garden. 

Hanishka J – I enjoyed exploring the Ian Potter WILD playground. I really loved the nature playground that used the gardens to make some fun features. I liked doing different mapping activities with friends. Finding new places on the map was like discovering a new treasure.

Kara C - We all went to the various locations together as a group and stood at different angles so we could quickly find the different objects. It was challenging finding different varieties of plants that were located on the map because we had to look at the location from the right angle. 

Olivia G - We collaborated well by dividing up the jobs and then were able to gather information very quickly. After that we shared our ideas with one another. We had to look for the places on the map and how they related to different pictures.

Chloe A – We learned about how BOLTS (Border, Orientation, Legend, Title, Scale) tells us what a map needs.

Emmie J – We learned about finding different things on the maps, I slowly learned what everything on the map meant.

Dora L – I had lots of fun getting to explore the garden and finding all the cool places by reading maps. Also, I enjoyed learning about what BOLTS meant.

Jemima C – Maps are important tools for people so that they can get around, rather than looking randomly.

Shukan T – Maps help people find their way. They can also help you find treasure.

Nevertheless, the girls enthusiastically participated in the full range of Swimming Championship events over 100m and 50m and in Participation 25m events, covering freestyle, backstroke, breaststroke and butterfly. Some of our little stars also competed in the 200m individual medley. Being able to watch our fellow classmates added a real sense of togetherness and created a wonderful atmosphere throughout the day. The announcer, Mr Reid gave everyone a laugh with a few humorous anecdotes, including the announcement of a new world record! It was awarded to Mrs Snelson for setting a new mark for the number of coffees delivered to teachers and staff in a single carnival! (Please note, we are yet to check the veracity of this claim).

The final, and much anticipated events of the day were the Combined Age and House Freestyle Relays. The relays proved to be very exciting to watch and gave everyone the opportunity to finally cheer on their House! Girls were committed and caring athletes throughout the day and demonstrated thoughtful acts of sportsmanship. Congratulations and thank you to all girls who participated for contributing to a wonderful carnival. 

Thank you also to the professionalism and efficiency of all the staff involved, both Junior and Senior School, which allowed the carnival to run so smoothly and with time to spare.

We keenly look forward to the announcements and presentation of the Junior and Sub Junior Champions and Runners Up and Medallions, as well as the 2022 Swimming House Champion at the Junior School Awards assembly in Week 11.

In a ‘sign of the times’, unfortunately, not all selected could make IPSHA due to COVID. Those who did were rewarded for their hard efforts and courage by bettering their qualifying times. Special credit goes to Sophia J who, without prior notice, was asked to lead off the Sub Junior Freestyle Relay. We can all be immensely proud of our girls’ efforts and achievements and in the way they supported and cheered each other on.

On 8 March, Tara celebrated International Woman’s Day with fun activities to celebrate the diverse and amazing women at our School by holding a stall, selling purple pins for $2 where all proceeds to be donated to the Parramatta Woman’s Shelter to help others in need, and also having a station set up at lunch for girls to write uplifting and empowering affirmations to their friends.

While in assembly a quick and fun game of heads and tails was held to educate students about the inequality of women in other countries and lovely brochures being handed out after, highlighting many influential women around the world.

Overall, it was a great day of learning and empowering our friends! 

"I am doing a Bachelor of Law/Commerce at UNSW. Learning about the ongoing legal injustices in our world and the significant ripple effect of business decisions on the social, political and environmental spheres of society inspired me to undertake a double degree." - Dhara N

"I loved the environment in Legal Studies and how interesting the topics were, along with the flexibility of discussion which enriched our learning. Since I loved Legal Studies I’ve decided to pair Law with my Psychology degree and undergo this as my next steps and future path." - Sophia K

"I loved the teachers always making it relevant to the real world and current issues! After studying Economics and Business I am almost certain that the Social Sciences are a field I would love to work in!" - Mary-Claire N

"I studied Legal Studies and Business Studies and it was the best time of my life! I am studying Commerce at UNSW and I hope to major in Marketing or Business Law." - Nikki Z

"I found taking Economics at Tara a wonderful albeit challenging experience, and am still grateful for all the relevant and applicable skills and concepts I learnt as a part of the course." - Evelyn M

"In Business Studies I loved understanding real world concepts and the importance of understanding the business world as a function of everyday life. In Legal Studies I loved discussing the system in which our society is built upon, having lots of debates in class, and the engaging content.  Legal Studies definitely inspired me to do the current course I am doing which is Law/Communications UNSW."- Aneesa S

"I studied Business Studies and Economics and I loved learning about Business Finance and all macro topics in economics. I am studying a Bachelor of Business and I plan to major in both Finance and Economics." - Bianca M

"I loved taking Legal Studies as a subject, as it provided me with a wider knowledge on how our society works and how not to break criminal law.  Studying Business has been the core inspiration for my tertiary studies, as I’ve continued onto a Business and Innovation degree, to extend on my fascination with marketing developed in my Year 12 studies." - Paris G

"I loved Legal Studies as we were able to share our ideas and thoughts on what we were learning about and therefore learn about different perspectives and incorporate this into our writing, to produce a more rounded response.  My passion for learning about current news stories and the way in which the law responds to these emerging issues through law reform inspired me to study a Bachelor of Communications majoring in Journalism, as I found a passion for learning more about current issues within society and having a platform to share this with a widespread audience." - Sophie B

"I found all the Social Sciences interesting at Tara and I found the teaching staff to be very helpful, always giving detailed feedback and information on how to apply and better your results. I am now studying a Bachelor of Laws/Bachelor of Business Administration at Macquarie University, which I found my passion for through social sciences at Tara." - Jordyn F

"I studied Business Studies, Economics, and Legal Studies whilst at Tara and thoroughly enjoyed these courses. All the resources made accessible, and feedback provided by my teachers really furthered my learning, ultimately allowing me to achieve in the HSC. Inspired by my social science study at Tara, I have now begun a Law and Criminology & Criminal Justice degree at UNSW and thank the department for their guidance." - Mackenzie C

Congratulations ladies on your fine results and getting into your chosen courses. We look forward to you staying in contact with Tara and mentoring and advising younger students when possible.

After we had the chance to fill ourselves up, we made our way to Tamburlaine. Tamburlaine is the largest organic wine producer in Australia and the southern hemisphere with two vineyards and cellar doors in Orange and the Hunter Valley, where we got to visit. We were met by our tour guides Georgia and Adrian who showed us around all the different facilities on site. Our first stop was “Phoebe’s Block”; a section of Tamburlaine’s vineyard where we learnt about organic winemaking and the steps they take to combat the hot and dry climate of Pokolbin. We visited one of their four dams where we talked about biodiversity and the functions Tamburlaine holds, such as weddings in their ‘Lodge’ over the dam. Our next stop was their winery where we learnt about some of Tamburlaine’s external linkages such as where they source their barrels, which we found out was in France, as well as the general process for how their wines are made and some of the technology used like their unique balloon press that crushes the grapes without bursting the seeds. Next to the winery was Tamburlaine’s 8 tonne Vertical Composting Unit, where all of their green waste is recycled and used as fertiliser. Our tour finished up by visiting Tamburlaine’s aeration dam, where all their greywater is treated before its release in the natural water system, followed by a visit to one of their warehouses where we learnt about how they have dealt with the past two years of bushfires, COVID, and now flooding. This was when we learnt that Tamburlaine thrived during lock down with online sales growing seven-fold due to everyone unable to buy wine direct from their cellar door. Overall, our tour was exceptional and filled all the gaps in our knowledge for this unit of study.

We finished up our excursion by visiting ‘Harrigans’ for lunch where we ordered pizzas, salads, and other meals before our long trip back home. We are so lucky that Mrs Chaiban put together this amazing excursion for us, and all the extra fun treats she added in for us, as well as Mrs Losco for joining us on the excursion.

Amani (Drama Captain) and Jessica (Debating Captain)

Recently Jess and myself delivered an online Teams presentations to the Year 7's. Throughout this presentation, the girls received an understanding of what it means to be on the Student Representative Council (SRC). After this presentation, girls were given the opportunity to self nominate for SRC and last Wednesday, each girl who nominated was required to give an informal speech during Activities. Congratulations to the following girls who were successful in being voted into the SRC:

• Eden (Crawford 1) 
• Sophia (Crawford 2) 
• Ella (Hake 1) 
• Josephine (Hake 2) 
• Megan(Walker 1) 
• Sydney (Walker 2) 
• Natasha (Waugh 1) 
• Erum (Waugh 2) 

Our topic for this debate was ‘That the misuse of history motivates its existence’ and it essentially covered many of the points of the History Extension syllabus. We were on the negative side, arguing against the topic. It was a tough theoretical debate with lots of historical examples and historian quotes used to support our case. We debated against Roseville College, and while their team had impressive arguments and strong rebuttal, Sienna E, Evelyn J, Jessica D, and myself, with the help of Cherie G won; all three adjudicators, voting unanimously in our favour.

We would like to thank all the History teachers who supported us through this extra-long season, and convinced us to keep persisting, without them, this win would not have been possible. An extra special thank you to Mrs Donato for organising the History Debating teams at Tara, as well as being our biggest supporter.

The tournament started early on Sunday morning with Singles. After waking up early to start warm up at 6:30am, the girls were excited to play and cheer on their teammates. Diya H, Stephanie H and Zoe G all fought hard in their first rounds, with some thrilling points against challenging opponents from Loreto Kirribilli, Pymble Ladies College and Roseville. Bhavya B and Yashika K played excellently and were able to win their second and third round matches after receiving Byes in the first round, continuing to play phenomenally in their fourth round matches against Meriden with some amazing rallies! 

After our success in Singles, Tara came back the next day for Doubles. Zayla T and Chloe C played an exciting first round against Abbotsleigh, working together to challenge their opponents. Our pairs of Lucia Z and Selina F and Jessica S and Georgia M were able to win their first round matches against Loreto Normanhurst and Monte, with some powerful serves and tricky volleys, as well as playing excellently in their second round matches against Queenwood and SCEGGS. 

Overall a massive thank you to the Tara staff, parents and players who attended Tildesley and supported our girls - and congratulations to the Tara team on their efforts in preparation for and performance during Tildesley!