Andrew Watt – Principal

Welcome back to what we hope will be an exciting term, as we move towards a ‘new normal’. The term commenced with a dignified and respectful High School Yom Ha’Zikaron ceremony and it was wonderful to see our students arrive in a sea of blue and white. In the afternoon, our High School students were involved in a Yom Ha’aztmaut program, where student facilitators (Nitsavim) visited each Tutor Group to run a special program.  The day finished with a ceremony in the MPH, including singing, poetry and ruach.  

Vaping: a growing trend

Over the last decade, the number of young people experimenting with and/or taking up vaping has increased steadily. I addressed vaping in our student assembly on Tuesday.

This relatively new phenomenon, with its sweet smelling, colourful vials involves the inhalation of a heated vapour. Surely, you say, this is less harmful than smoking? Surely vaping is a much cooler and safer option than the addictive tobacco leaf? The short answer? Just like it took many years for the links to cancer and other major health issues to emerge, we just don’t know yet. One thing we do know; vaping is a business – and the sellers don’t want their customers to stop buying their products.

As with every school, vaping has permeated the Emanuel School campus. We know for a fact that students have vaped in the toilets. We are currently exploring the use of sensors that can detect vapour. We are also aware of the clever devices that disguise vaping, currently on the market. Recently, some of our students were caught vaping at an inter-school event. Several of our students have been identified as selling vaping products and we have received many calls from worried parents, who report to us the growing number within our Emanuel community who have started vaping.

Like its name, vaping involves inhaling vapour. This happens through an electronic device, where a cartridge full of vapour, or flavoured juice is heated. It can smell really nice – such as berries, coconut, mint – even mango. However, the many chemicals in the vapour can be both harmful and addictive. There are different kinds of e-cigarettes, but many people use the Juul. This e-cigarette looks like a flash drive and can be charged in a laptop’s USB port. Some brands contain vitamin E acetate, a sticky substance used as an additive or thickening agent. An increasing number of people have been hospitalised with the related condition, EVALI, with some of them dying. Many of the e-cigarettes contain nicotine, which is highly addictive; one Juul pod’s nicotine levels are the same as in a full pack of cigarettes.

Parents are encouraged to have a conversation about vaping, as a follow up from our assembly. The following article from Paul Dillon will shed some further light: What should parents say when their teen says “But it’s not smoking” when they find out they’re vaping? An Emanuel School Special Report on Vaping can also be accessed at: https://emanuelschool.nsw.schooltv.me/wellbeing_news

Departure of our Head of Jewish Life

After six years of faithful and loyal service, Rabbi Danny Siegel will be leaving us at the end of this year. Rabbi Siegel is well regarded within the Emanuel School and the broader Jewish community. He has proven to be a strategic leader and a diligent and committed member of our School Executive. Perhaps Rabbi Siegel’s greatest strength has been his significant and ongoing contribution to both our formal and informal Jewish Education, which includes Hebrew and Jewish Studies, as expressed within our prayers, shabbat celebrations and programs for understanding and celebrating Jewish Festivals and Holy Days. Throughout his time at the School, Rabbi Siegel has provided strong support for the mission, values and ethos of the School. Rabbi Siegel has served the School well and will depart at the end of the year with our sincere best wishes for the future.

What a mitzvah!

Thank you to the parents who volunteered their time in the holidays to help make delicious soup, lasagne and chocolate brownies (my favourite) for the School’s Mitzvah Meals program. Mitzvah Meals was started many years ago to provide members of our community who are experiencing hardship with a home-cooked meal. It’s a way for Emanuel families to show our support and for the recipients to know that they are in our thoughts and prayers. Thank you to Michelle Favero for co-ordinating the cook-up and to all those parents who have been involved, now and in the past, in this very important project. There’s a full story and photos in the article entitled Let’s cook.

Primary undercover

A large shade structure was erected over our new playground equipment, to provide shelter from both the sun and the rain. This space can now be used for combined Year Group meetings. 

Visitors to the School

With the easing of COVID restrictions, we are glad to welcome parents back onto our campus. Parents can enter the campus for meetings, checking in (with our QR code) and answering the pertinent questions. Our standard procedures will be followed when parents come onto campus before or after school for drop off or pick up.

Eden Levit with her SLC medal

Mazal tov 

Eden Levit, Year 10, finished 3rd place in the 90m sprint at the Australian Surf Life Saving Championships (making her the 3rd fastest U15 Australian on sand). Additionally, her relay and mixed relay teams both won gold and she returned from the Gold Coast with a total of two gold medals and a bronze medal. Eden then competed at the Australian Track and Field Championships, finishing 5th in her heat, which placed her 11th in the country in the U17s age group. This was a wonderful achievement after a tiring tournament the previous week. 

Phoebe and Buzby jumping to victory

Eden Glass, Year 10, placed a superb 2nd in the State at the NSW Rostrum Voice of Youth Public Speaking competition.

Phoebe Machlin, Year 7, had a double victory at Sydney Show Jumping Club last weekend with 1st place in both the 55cm and 65cm events, defeating over 50 entrants of all ages in each category. 

Our Years 3-6 Extension Maths students performed exceptionally on the KSF Maths Competition by the Australian Mathematics Trust. 

Tom Shilbury, Year 1, was recently awarded the Bondi SLSC Mini Male Nipper of the Year – a wonderful achievement that is testament to his hard work.

Quote of the week

“It is not the mountain we conquer but ourselves.” Edmund Hillary (1919 – 2008), New Zealand mountaineer, explorer, and philanthropist