From the Principal
Andrew Watt
Staff Appreciation Awards
Our fourth annual Staff Appreciation Award presentations were held last week, celebrating many important milestones for our staff. We recognised 18 loyal and long-serving staff members who have been at Emanuel School for a combined total of 210 years, an impressive tally, considering our School’s size and relatively young 36 years of operation. One of the key ingredients of a successful school is having a strong and united staff team. The success of our School is due in no small part to the collective efforts of our professional and caring staff team, who are always willing to go the extra mile for those they serve. The success of a school is not easily measured – but in terms of academic success, undergirded by a strong wellbeing program; stability in numbers; outstanding administration; excellent, purpose-built facilities; low debt level – and most importantly, happy and engaged students, who want to be here – we are right up there with the best of schools! John Hattie, in his meta-analysis of the key factors for academic achievement, found that it was not class sizes, learning spaces, demography or programs that had the most impact on our student’s learning, but rather it was the work of teachers; their expectations, their care and their feedback, that made the difference. Similarly, the efficient operation and administration of the School is a critical success factor. Our admin team work tirelessly behind the scenes, to provide order, structure, financial and physical security – and many other supports. Together, we form a formidable team! When a student leaves Emanuel, they will look back and remember those staff members who impacted their lives and encouraged them, rather than the buildings or the programs… or the principal!
Michael Todd, Daniel Zipser, Joshua Barnett, Oscar Salek and Max Tsipris.
Our magnificent Chess team – State champions!
Emanuel presence at Sculptures by the Sea
Mazal tov to Joel Adler (Class of 2011), the alumnus who designed our beautiful staff recognition tree in reception. Joel created a sculpture in Sculptures by the Sea this year. The piece is called Viewfinder and allows the viewer to look into the water below the cliff. It looks magnificent. Joel will be visiting Emanuel to talk to our students about his design process.
Is your child too sick to be at school?
Keeping sick children at home is important for many reasons, such as improving recovery time, preventing the illness from spreading to others and minimising the disruption illness causes with peers and staff. If your child presents with any of the following symptoms, please do not send your child to school. It is advised that you seek medical attention and keep your child at home until they are either no longer contagious or their symptoms have improved:
- Fever: Any temperature of 38° C and above is a fever. Fevers are a sign your body is trying to kill a virus or bacteria that has caused an infection in the body. Giving medicine (Paracetamol/Ibuprofen) might bring the fever down, however, it won’t stop your child from being contagious or assist with recovery. Children should be fever-free for 24 hours before coming back to school.
- Rash: A skin rash could indicate a contagious infection such as chicken pox or impetigo. A doctor must evaluate your child before sending them to school.
- Vomiting and diarrhoea: If your child has vomited or had bouts of diarrhoea they should not return to school until after 24 hours after their last episode. They need to stay home and be monitored for any signs of dehydration.
- Coughing: If your child has trouble breathing, wheezing or a harsh cough, it can be the sign of something more serious, such as bronchitis, pneumonia or whooping cough. If your child has a severe cough, they must see a doctor and be cleared before coming back to school.
- Red eyes: If your child has a red eye that is watery, itchy and produces discharge, they might have conjunctivitis which is highly contagious. Your child needs to seek medical attention and cannot return to school until they have commenced treatment.
NSW Health and NSW Department of Education consider the following medical conditions as being too sick to be at school – https://education.nsw.gov.au/public-schools/practical-help-for-parents-and-carers/family-wellbeing/health/too-sick-to-go-to-school
Quote of the week
Education makes a people easy to lead but difficult to drive: easy to govern but impossible to enslave.
Peter Brougham
Mazal tov
Our Year 3 Garden came 2nd place in the Randwick City Council’s Best School Garden category.
Matthew (Matty) Simon in Year 3 has been cast in an Opera, Farnace by Vivaldi, to be performed during December at the City Recital Hall.
Amber Langman, Year 12 (Class of 2020) has received seven A’s from The Berklee College of Music. This means that she receives a credit in the future for Fundamentals of Musicianship which is an undergraduate level course.
During the holidays, Jordan Baskin, Year 9, organised a cookie bake in Bondi Junction with family and friends to raise money for the Leukaemia Foundation, raising over $1,000. The cookie bake was inspired by Jordan’s father, Darryl, is fighting Leukaemia.
Sasha Baskin, Erin Baskin, Coby Baskin, Darryl Baskin, Jordan Baskin, Sasha Goldman, Jessica Rubin, Lois Borman and Ellie Morris at the cookie stand