From the Principal

Andrew Watt – Principal

Smartphones, health and self-control

World renowned Finnish education expert, Dr Pasi Sahlberg, has recently weighed in to the argument surrounding the use of smartphones in schools, advocating keeping them stored away at school and reinforcing “safe, responsible and smart use of technology.” Attributing distractions related to smartphone use to our decline in (international) PISA rankings, Dr Sahlberg suggests that we must teach our students to exercise self-control around phone use. I suspect that the issue is more complicated, and that the (over)use of technology is but 1 significant factor. However, having mobile devices tucked away in lockers, with limited access during breaks, may positively impact our student’s physical and social health, and generate greater focus in our classrooms. This article can be accessed through the following link: www.smh.com.au/national/nsw/schools-need-to-react-quickly-education-expert-urges-smartphone-ban-20180525-p4zhm4.html

Checking in with our Primary School madrichim

I enjoy my termly lunches with both Primary School and High School madrichim! I asked them whether they were enjoying their leadership journey – and received and enthusiastic affirmation. I have shared some of their insights below:

“It has been a privilege to be a leader and learn more skills.” (Ethan)

“I have learnt to be patient and to explain my ideas in more detail. It is easier to work in a team with more ideas flowing through.” (Sienna)

“I try to be a good role model and watch what I say and do because the little children look up to us.” (Jack)

“Everyone can be a leader if they have a goal and organise it. That’s what we do in our Mad sessions and then we go away and do the work. I like helping people find their own ways of helping themselves.” (Jasper)

“I have learnt to be patient. At our meetings everyone has something to say. We try to take turns. It’s a good thing that there are so many ideas.” (Gideon)

“I have learnt team work with the madrichim and with the younger children, like when we teach prayers.” (Stacey)

“I have become better at speaking in front of people and at assembly. I have become patient teaching Year 3 prayers.” (Georgia)

“We have become a better team. Over time we have got to know each other better and plan together better.” (Leah)

“I have become more confident and become better friends with the other madrichim. I have learnt to take other approaches to things and I am still learning.” (Connor)

After expressing appreciation for their contribution to the culture and operations within our Primary School, I offered advice (as Principals tend to do):

• Pace yourself to keep your energy high throughout the role
• Be organised in advance
• Support and encourage each other
• Enjoy the journey.

World Business Forum

I had the privilege of hearing some of the world’s most influential figures in the business world and beyond – CEO’s, entrepreneurs, innovators, thought leaders and creative minds present on innovating, connecting, leading and transforming. Our very own Emanuel parent, Rachel Botsman, presented on Digital Transformation. I was informed that this forum “brought together 1 000’s of restless minds,” and I was not disappointed! I want to share with you some gems from a presentation by Sir Ken Robinson, on “The Pulse of Innovation.” His premise was that all people have hidden talents that need to be uncovered; that we are all unique – and that the role of educators is to uncover and cultivate these talents. He talked about the challenges of changing technologies and the need to nurture a culture of adaptability. He observed that all humans are inherently creative, imaginative and different from all other life forms, as we can anticipate the future, review the past, and enjoy empathy. So, from this, our challenge is to develop a culture of regular innovation, to encourage our students to regularly exercise their imagination and put it to work (creativity), to encourage lifelong curiosity. As we move forward we will explore how we can support our staff and students to develop creative ideas and follow them through, promoting a lifelong love of learning. The difficult part for our school team will be to translate this commitment into the practicalities of our programs and activities.

Rachel Botsman speaking at the World Business Forum on Thursday

Emanuel trial of Family Zone, Cyber Safety app

Our trial of Family Zone has concluded and we have gathered feedback from students and parents – many of whom expressed that they would continue to use the app. As a result, we have partnered with Family Zone to provide an optional layer of cyber safety. Family Zone provides parental controls in-home and on mobile devices, giving parents the tools to monitor and protect their children from online risks and the power to intervene effectively when incidents occur. I have included links below:

• How does Family Zone work?
• How much does it cost?

For more information please visit our Parent and Student Cyber Safety page on My Portal. http://myportal.emanuelschool.nsw.edu.au/parent/cyber-safety/.

With the internet at their fingertips, young people have access to a virtually limitless world, so parents should be aware of the risks and take steps to manage the use of technology in the home. Teaching your child to be cyber safe will help them to engage with the online world safely, responsibly and discerningly and can assist to protect them from online risks. Some ideas on how you can protect your children as they operate in the online world are outlined below.

1. Talk with your child: Ensure that you regularly talk with your children about their online experiences. Ask them what they have seen or done, and if they have had any problems. If you hear about a site which concerns you, have a look for yourself.

Helpful Parent Cyber Safety Links

2.    Implement family rules for home devices: Establishing a consistently applied set of rules for smartphone and other digital devices can help to build awareness of expectations, boundaries and consequences.

Download a Cyber Safe Digital Contract template here

Download a Phone Use Contract template here

3.    Use an internet filter: Sometimes children are faced with online situations that they simply don’t know how to handle. Whilst we do our best to educate our students and protect them from inappropriate online content, with filters at school, we find that these controls are not always available to parents on their home devices. 

Cancer Council’s Biggest Lunch

On Wednesday the whole school staff came together and enjoyed a delicious lunch raising over $2,000 for the Cancer Council. To read the full story and more photos see the Marketing and Communication page.

Mazal tov

• Brody Elbourne – CDSSA Cross Country winner
• Ethan De Melo – played at CIS Football Championships on Monday
• Jordan Weizman – played at CIS Football Championships on Monday/Tuesday
• To the 16 brave High School students who cut their hair on Wednesday for Cut for Cancer. They raised over $4,000 and donated their hair to charities supporting those battling cancer. Below is their after photo!

Quote

“Learning is a treasure that will follow its owner everywhere.”

Chinese proverb

Shabbat Shalom

From the Primary School

Helen Maynard – Director of Studies K-6

Homework

As many of you are aware, class teachers have been experimenting with a variety of different homework strategies. I know that my Maths group has been excited by some of the options that I have provided them with to use mathematical thinking in the home. I have been told that it has even been discussed at the Shabbat table! The one thing that many teachers have been observing and commenting on in their informal discussions relates to how many children don’t appear to read as much as they used to. We know that the skill and love of reading directly correlates to success at school. We live very busy lives but as a school we feel very strongly that reading with and to children is so beneficial to their development. As a parent modelling a love of reading is also very powerful. 

We will run 3 Parent Focus Groups in Term 3: Tuesday 31 July: 7.00 -8.00 pm, Wednesday 1 August: 2.30 – 3.30 pm and Thursday 2 August from 7.30 – 8.30 am.

Please watch your inbox for a link to select 1 of these sessions.

Reflections on a walk through the classrooms

I am so privileged in my role as Director of Studies in the Primary School as it enables me to constantly observe the teachers practising their craft. Over the last week I have observed some amazing ways that teachers are working to engage their students in real world contexts.

Year 4 students were utilising the Design Process to test floating aluminum foil devices to see how many counters they could handle. They were working collaboratively to alter and test their ideas. It was fantastic to see the level of co-operation and discussion that this learning opportunity fostered. It was evident that the teachers had spent considerable time and effort ensuring that learning dispositions were also at the forefront of this lesson.

Year 1 had an invertebrate expert (Ms Buzo’s son) who taught the students about habitats where these creatures thrive. The students then created terrariums for their slaters and centipedes. How powerful for students to learn from other young people that have a passion area.

Some of the Year 6 novel groups worked together to undertake a Refugee Simulation as part of their overarching theme of survival. This saw them having to select essential items to take in a limited timeframe. These items where then lost out of the back of the truck, left on the track as they were too heavy and used to barter as payment for the boat to a safer country. The ability of the Year 6 students to empathise was heart-warming.

The creativity and dedication of our teachers often leaves me speechless.

Year 1 lesson with Mrs Buzo’s son

Year 1

Signing students out

Parents, please remember to sign out with your child at the Main Reception when taking them throughout the day. We need to ensure that we know where all our students are so thank you for your support with this. Please note that this differs between High School and Primary School procedures and it is our procedure that all Primary children are signed out by an adult at Reception.

BBQ day

At our next BBQ day we will be raising funds to assist Ms Maynard to build a toilet block at the School in a Cambodian village that she visited earlier in the year (Charm Bok Future School). The School has 1 toilet for 400 students! When Ms Maynard asked the teachers and Salas (the lady that runs the School) what their top 3 wishes were, this was top of the list. Cows for Cambodia will assist the country to ensure that their vision is realised. Ms Maynard estimates that she will need to raise US $1600. She has already started raising funds with her friends and family.

Cambodia toilet

Details:

Date: Monday 4 June

Cost: $3.50 for sausage sizzle

Canteen: The canteen will be closed, children are asked not to bring dairy to school

Booking: On the day, students need to bring a sealed envelope with the exact money inside. On the front, please write your child’s name and his/ her order. The options are listed below:

1. Sausage sizzle: $3.50
2. Gluten free sausage sizzle: $3.50
3. Vegetarian sausage sizzle: $3.50

Thank you from Year 6 Charity Committee

Uniform reminder – Boys’ socks

Just a reminder that the uniform shop no longer sells the long grey woollen socks. Whether wearing pants or shorts, the boys wear the short grey socks.

From the Head of Jewish Life

Rabbi Daniel Siegel

Being inspired

Socrates: The gift you possess… is not a skill but an inspiration. There is a divinity moving you like the force contained in the stone Euripides calls a magnet. This stone not only attracts iron rings but also imbues them with the power of attracting other rings. Sometimes you may see a number of pieces of iron and rings suspended from one another, forming quite a long chain—and all of them derive their power of suspension from the original stone. This is like how the Muse first of all inspires men herself, and from these inspired ones is suspended a chain of other people who take inspiration…They are inspired and possessed, like bacchic maidens who draw milk and honey from the rivers when they are under the influence of Dionysus but not when they are in their right mind.

This week’s parashah, BeHa’alotcha (“When you raise up”), introduces the 70 elders, enlisted to assist Moshe, with the following words:

“Gather for Me seventy elders, bring them to the Tent of Meeting, taking their place there with you … I will draw from the spirit that is on you and put it upon them… And, when the spirit rested upon them, they experienced inspiration, in the moment.”

The elders are moved by the spirit of Moshe, but only momentarily. Soon they return to their “right mind”.

The very next passage speaks of 2 individuals, Eldad and Medad, who are not at the Tent of Meeting with Moshe, “yet, the spirit rested upon them and they became inspired”. When Yehoshua, Moshe’s deputy, seeks to restrain them, Moshe replies: “Would that the Lord put His spirit upon all the people”.

Unlike the 70 elders, these 2 individuals are not deriving their spirited state from Moshe but, through their own being, directly from God. Accordingly, they are themselves inspired and this state is not momentary, if and when the spirit moves them. It is who they are, in “their right mind”. Inspired living informs one’s being and is not a magnetic force being exerted from a source without. Moshe’s calling upon all to be like Eldad and Medad is reflective of the statement of God to Moshe: “And you, remain here with Me”, in an ongoing inspired, dedicated state.

As parents and educators, we strive to encourage and guide our children and students to live inspired lives. But, can anyone but a Moshe remain up on the “mountain”? The story of Eldad and Medad, who attain and maintain their inspired being within the Israelite camp, not in the Tent of Meeting or upon Mount Sinai, suggests that we each can live inspired lives.

I end with the story of James Harrison who, by virtue of his unique circumstances, quietly lived an inspiring and inspired life.

For 6 decades, ‘the man with the golden arm’ … saved 2.4 million babies.

Amy B Wang

In 1951, a 14-year-old Australian boy named James Harrison awoke from a major chest operation. Doctors had removed one of his lungs in a procedure that had taken several hours — and would keep him hospitalised for 3 months. But Harrison was alive, thanks in large part to a vast quantity of transfused blood he had received, his father explained. “He said that I had 13 units of blood and my life had been saved by unknown people,” Harrison told CNN’s Sanjay Gupta decades later.

At the time, Australia’s laws required blood donors to be at least 18 years old. It would be 4 years before Harrison was eligible, but he vowed then that he too would become a blood donor when he was old enough. After turning 18, Harrison made good on his word, donating whole blood regularly with the Australian Red Cross Blood Service. He disliked needles, so he averted his eyes and tried to ignore the pain whenever one was inserted into his arm.

Meanwhile, doctors in Australia were struggling to figure out why thousands of births in the country were resulting in miscarriages, stillbirths or brain defects for the babies. “In Australia, up until about 1967, there were literally thousands of babies dying each year, doctors didn’t know why, and it was awful,” Jemma Falkenmire, of the Australian Red Cross Blood Service, told Gupta. 

The babies, it turned out, were suffering from haemolytic disease of the newborn, or HDN. The condition most often arises when a woman with an Rh-negative blood type becomes pregnant with a baby who has Rh-positive blood, and the incompatibility causes the mother’s body to reject the fetus’s red blood cells.

Doctors realised, however, that it might be possible to prevent HDN by injecting the pregnant woman with a treatment made from donated plasma with a rare antibody. Researchers scoured blood banks to see whose blood might contain this antibody, and found a donor in New South Wales: James Harrison. By then, Harrison had been donating whole blood regularly for more than a decade. He has said he didn’t think twice when scientists reached out to him to ask if he would participate in what would become known as the Anti-D Program.

Before long, researchers had developed an injection, called Anti-D, using plasma from Harrison’s donated blood. The first dose was given to a pregnant woman at Royal Prince Alfred Hospital in 1967. Harrison continued donating for more than 60 years, and his plasma has been used to make millions of Anti-D injections, according to the Red Cross. Because about 17 percent of pregnant women in Australia require the Anti-D injections, the blood service estimates Harrison has helped 2.4 million babies in the country. “Every ampul of Anti-D ever made in Australia has James in it,” Barlow told the Sydney Morning Herald. “He has saved millions of babies.”

Scientists still aren’t sure why Harrison’s body naturally produces the rare antibody but think it is related to the blood transfusions he received as a teenager. And through the decades, Harrison has brushed off excessive praise regarding his regular trips to the blood donation center from his home in Umina Beach, on the Central Coast of New South Wales.

He had “never” considered stopping, he told the Daily Mail in 2010. In interviews, Harrison has said by far the most fulfilling part of his unwavering commitment to donate plasma has been the babies he has helped save — including his own grandchildren.

On Friday, Harrison made his final trip to the blood donation center. At age 81, he had already passed the age limit allowed for donors, and the blood service had decided Harrison should stop donating to protect his health.

 “We’ll never see his kind again,” Barlow told the Sydney Morning Herald. Harrison told the Red Cross that he is eager for his legacy of 1,173 donations to be surpassed. “I hope it’s a record that somebody breaks, because it will mean they are dedicated to the cause,” Harrison said.

Source: The Washington Post , May 12, 2018.

“We become what we want to be by consistently being what we want to become each day.”

Richard G. Scott

Devar Torah

Gabriel Sebban – Year 12

This week’s parashah, BeHa’alotcha, is packed with drama. It’s like those really intense episodes of Bachelor in Paradise but way more stressful and not featuring as many love stories. Okay, maybe it’s not like Bachelor in Paradise, but it’s still an extremely interesting and stressful parashah full of plot twists that will have you on the edge of your seat.

Let’s get into the story-telling. Throughout BeHa’alotcha, Moses faces several challenges to his leadership. The people have been camped at Mount Sinai for a long time, and everyone’s getting a bit sick of it. God finally tells Moshe after a long spell of not doing much, to set out from Mount Sinai and to start heading to the Holy Land (spoiler alert, none of these people end up making it to Israel). Before they get very far though, everyone complains about everything.

The Israelites have been living off bread that falls from the sky for the past year, called manna, but they are a bit tired of that now. They kvetch and kvetch and kvetch: “If only we had meat to eat! We remember the fish we ate in Egypt at no cost—also the cucumbers, melons, leeks, onions and garlic. But now we have lost our appetite; we never see anything but this manna!”

What is manna exactly, you might ask, and why is everyone complaining about having to eat it? Well, manna is described to be something that looked like bread, tasted like wafers, and fell from the sky every night so people could eat it the next day. It’s actually been presented as the reason for using 2 challot on Friday nights. The Torah says that twice as much manna fell on Friday, and that none could be found on Saturday. Moses instructed the Israelites to collect twice as much on Friday so that no one had to leave home on Saturday and everyone could rest and relax.

Sorry, back to the story. The Israelites didn’t only complain about the food, but also about how hard the journey was and how they just wanted to go back to Egypt. Well, God heard the Israelites cries for something other than flying bread, and so at the end of the parashah, made the wind throw huge numbers of birds from sea for the people to enjoy the meat. But, in true prank patrol fashion, God made those who ate more than their fair share of food die in a plague. The moral of that story? Don’t be selfish and care about others – pretty self-explanatory.

If the people complaining wasn’t enough for Moses, his sister, Miriam, starts to complain about Moses to other people, and so she gets a skin disease, but don’t worry, she heals when Moshe prays for her.

Now that’s a lot to take in, so what can we learn from this dramatic tale? Well, complaining is a big part of this parashah, and it seems that all the issues that arise in the parashah come from people complaining. Yes, in our modern society of minimal hardship, we all love to have a little grumble, but this obviously didn’t end up too well for the Israelites in this week’s parashah.

Let’s think about it. Complaining. Yes, it can be nice to get something off your chest, but it does nothing to fix your problem. If you’re going to talk the talk, you have to walk the walk as well. Well that’s what Moses did, at least, after some of his own complaining about the people’s complaining. With everyone around him complaining, he joined in but then acted and attempted to fix the problems at hand. For the Israelites, it wasn’t as simple. It’s really easy to put blame on things that are external to you, as it avoids personal responsibility and allows you to refuse the possibility that you may have things that can be changed. So, what to do?

Being a leader takes courage and requires the willingness to face your fears, experience failure, and take complete personal responsibility of everything that happens to you. It will break down your ego yet build a new one, one of strength of character, humility, and humbleness. You have no one else but you to respond to your own complaints, so take the leap.

Year 11 Jewish Studies – Humane Technology

Humane Technology – Max Stossel @ The Emanuel Speaker Series

Noah Klein – Year 11

In Year 11, for Jewish Studies, every student is able to take part in a multitude of different courses. Many of the cohort, including myself, chose The Speaker Series. The Speaker Series is a program where approximately once a week a different speaker comes to the School to talk to the Year 11 students about a variety of different issues to do with Judaism. We have had speeches ranging all the way from Jewish ethics in life or death situations given by Rabbi Elton from the Great Synagogue, to Kashrut in the 21^st century from Rabbi Kamins, to Greg Fisher who came to talk to us about his experiences being a Jewish, gay, ex-convict who has turned his life around. Clearly, we’ve had quite the range of speakers, to say the least!

This week our speaker was a man named Max Stossel, who came to speak to the year about how we use our technology. This speech struck a chord with me and it got me deeply thinking about the issues he raised. Mr Stossel explained to us a lot of information I was unaware of such as when we tap on a website or app on our device, there is an algorithm designed to keep us looking at that website for longer. 

Just one more episode, just one more video, just one more minute…

He explained that whilst mobile devices can be used for a useful tool for learning, often they just become distractions that take us out of the real world. He mentioned the fact that it takes about 23 minutes for someone to completely regain focus on a task they have been distracted by! Simply glancing at our phone on our desk can completely distract us.

This speech really made me rethink the amount I use my phone and specifically social media websites. After the talk, when I got home, I decided to make a few small but effective changes that Mr Stossel recommended.

Firstly, I changed my notification settings – I have turned off all notifications that don’t come from a real human being trying to reach me. Whilst receiving less notifications during the day, it means the only time I check my phone is if another person is actually trying to contact me. Secondly, I have also started removing my phone from my workspace. It used to sit on my desk, tempting me to pick it up and check it every half an hour or so, however, now after moving out of my room when I work, I am not at all distracted by it.

Whilst Mr Stossel didn’t relate this topic back to Judaism specifically in his speech, we can extract what he said and find the parallels to Judaism. Shabbat gives us a perfect opportunity to switch off our devices completely and focus on the more important things in life, like friends and family. We are lucky to be privileged enough to have such nice valuables like mobile phones, but occasionally, such as on Shabbat, we should leave the devices alone and ‘just be’.

I urge you to look online at some of Mr Stossel’s work and to maybe try some of the tactics I listed too (http://humanetech.com/take-control/www.maxstossel.com). Mr Stossel, who was brought to Sydney from the US by the JCA for their fundraising campaign, is an accomplished poet and filmmaker and was a fantastic example of a speaker that can have a large influence and impact on Emanuel School students, like it did on me.

The Eugen Drexler Memorial Essay

Miriam Itzkowitz – Year 10

Last Tuesday, Year 10 had a visit from guest speaker, Mr Paul Drexler, to speak about his life as a Holocaust survivor and shed light on his father’s story. This was integral in our understanding of the history behind the Eugen Drexler Memorial Essay and the Holocaust, a task which Year 10 students complete based on their understandings of the Holocaust, World War II and a primary account from a Holocaust survivor.

The Eugen Drexler Memorial Essay is named after Mr Paul Drexler’s father. Mr Drexler and his parents were taken to a ghetto where he and his mother were separated from his father. Mr Drexler spoke resiliently and vividly about his memories of the Shoah, recounting his experiences hiding on a farm, being arrested, seeing his parents being beaten – things that “no child should ever have to experience”. He didn’t think he’d ever see his father again, but while in the ghetto, his father actually served him food once, a memory that has stuck with him and which was unfortunately the last time he saw his father.

Mr Drexler and his mother were sent on a train to Theresienstadt just before the war finished and once they were liberated, his mother went to check for Eugen every day. One day, Mrs Drexler came back with the news that he’d been shot and killed, something which Paul struggled to come to terms with for many, many years.

I commend Mr Drexler for being so willing and capable of talking about such a painful subject, and while the school task can be confronting at times, it’s a respectful way of commemorating and recognising the lives of so many who perished because of mass discrimination, genocide and prejudice. I hope that this task will improve my understanding of the Holocaust and in doing so, allow me and my peers to grow a stronger connection to our Judaism.

Ma Koreh

Adam Carpenter | Head of Jewish Studies Primary

Asylum Seeker Centre visit

This week Morah Jenny, Jamie Goldman and SRC Year 6 Representatives David Hakim, Kian Hamburger, Lani Israel, Gabriel Lee and Koby Michel visited the Asylum Seeker Centre in Newtown to deliver a cheque and food donated by the Emanuel School community.

During our visit we had a guided tour around the centre to learn more about what happens there and who they help. We learnt that:

• 1 600 people used the food bank last month
• They provide hot lunches everyday to people at the centre
• The centre provides a health clinic with volunteer doctors
• Activities provided by the centre include music classes, swimming lessons, gym session, child care
• The centre can be helping people from up to 70 different nationalities, speaking over 50 different languages
• Around 90% of the people who use the centre eventually get a visa to stay in Australia.

On the way back to school we discussed our visit, what we learnt and students shared the following reflections:  

Jamie Goldman: “I found it interesting how we can live in this really lovely country and there are so many people in other parts of the world, like Syria, who are living in fear and in war.”

Kian Hamburger: “I was surprised that people could come and use the Asylum Seeker Centre for food, hot lunches and to see doctors.”

Lani Israel: “I was surprised how organised the centre was, with so many people who work and volunteer there.”

David Hakim: “I was surprised at how small the centre was and how they are can do so much to support so many people.”

Gabriel Lee: “It was interesting that the people seeking asylum were not poor people, but people who had to escape their countries due to their political views, religious beliefs or ethnic identity.”

From Primary Music

Primary Music Incursion: B’tutta

On the morning of Thursday 7 June in The Millie Phillips Theatre, B’tutta, a 4-piece band of percussion musicians and educators, will present 2 concerts for Years K-3 and Years 4-6 students.  

“B’tutta is a brilliant percussion ensemble with a gift for removing barriers for anyone else who wants to make music. Students are integrated into the group from the very beginning, where they build the courage and confidence to become conductors, composers and players. Students can join B’tutta onstage with their array of instruments, including marimbas, vibraphones, cymbals and Latin American percussion. B’tutta’s inspirations are as diverse as Brazilian Samba to Tokyo subways.” B’tutta website

ASISSA Cross Country is also on that morning and we have scheduled around it so that all runners will attend the 1^st concert (which they will depart 5 minutes early) before walking with their PDHPE supervisors to Queen’s Park.  

Changes in the Music Department

Elizabeth Birrell

We are very excited to have some wonderful new teachers and conductors in the Music Department. Nathan Henshaw will be taking the Bernstein Concert Band, and Max Harris will be taking our Gershwin Concert Band.

Elizabeth Birrell will be our new classroom Music teacher for classes in Kindergarten, Year 2 and Years 5-8, as well as conducting Junior Choir. Elizabeth comes to us from Wenona School and has extensive experience in singing teaching, choir directing and has held positions in pastoral care. She has taught in a variety of schools including Loreto Kirribilli, Redlands, Danebank and PLC Sydney. Elizabeth holds a Bachelor of Music (Hons1) in Voice and a Master of Secondary Teaching in Music. 

Years 9 and 11 workshop with Brent Saunders

Brent Sanders spoke with Year 9 and Year 11 students last week about important topics related to safety such as consent.

Kim Slender – School Counsellor

Every year we give our students the opportunity to hear from guest speakers who are experts in a particular field, and who we think have an important message both in the broader context but also relevant to our community.

With the #metoo campaign being so prevalent at this time, the Brent Sander’s talk was a timely reminder for our students about this important issue.

On Friday 25 May our Year 9 and 11 students participated in Brent Sander’s annual Emanuel workshops. Our Year 9 boys went through Secret Blokes Business with Brent and the Year 11 boys had the opportunity to engage in a question and answer session with Brent about what is a very hot and controversial topic at the moment. Our Year 9 girls participated in the Back off workshop and the Year 11 girls had a Q&A with Brent.

Brent is one of Australia’s most respected communicators in the field of workplace harassment, bullying and discrimination. For over 2 decades, he has provided more than 350,000 people with the tools and mindset to create a harassment-free work/social/university environment. Brent is renowned for his ability to communicate delicate, sensitive subject matter in a unique, empowering and inspiration way.

The Secret Bloke’s Business, is a course designed specifically to address issues confronting young men, (Years 10-12), in the new millennium.

This is not a self-protection seminar but rather a presentation that addresses relevant issues facing young men in our society.

The main focus behind Secret Bloke’s Business is to deliver a frank, open and down-to-earth presentation to the boys which examines critical issues such as; peer pressure, decision making, self discipline, respect, and motivation.

Three key elements addressed in the presentation are: 



• Taking responsibility for yourself and your actions

• Life is all about choice 

• The importance of respect and self discipline.

The girls workshop, Back Off, has been developed around 3 key elements of effective self-protection.

• The ability to control how they think in pressurised situations
• Knowing what an offender may be thinking
• The importance of always having a strategy or plan in place.

As always, our students came out from the sessions buzzing with thought provoking conversation, statements and ideas.

Kol Szenes

Miriam Itzkowitz – Year 10

Reconciliation Week

This was acknowledged during our High School Assembly this week, with the theme Make History not a Mystery. Students heard from Adjunct Professor George Newhouse, an Australian human rights lawyer. Together with Lt Col (ret) Dan Mori, Professor Newhouse established The National Justice Project, a not-for-profit legal service. They apply their “expertise to advancing human rights by representing and giving voice to the vulnerable who would otherwise be unable to find legal representation”.

Szenes House Assembly

Our House Assembly this week continued to focus on developing teamwork skills within Tutor Groups, led by Year 11 and 12 students. The bridge which supported the most mass was awarded a prize.

Philosophy Club

At Philosophy Club, we have been having some fascinating discussions about utilitarianism, existentialism, animal rights, AI and the Holocaust. These topics are highly interesting and it is always fun to see how other’s opinions differ from your own!

Autism Awareness Day

On Tuesday, I spoke about autism at Assembly, as I am organising a fundraiser next week in support of my brother’s condition. Here is my speech:

” ‘Gay, Retard,Spaz.’ These are words my brother has had said to his face or about him behind his back almost every single day. ‘You’re autistic!’, ‘This is autism!’ Those phrases are thrown around school constantly as a means of insult towards one another.

Autism is a neurological condition that impairs one’s ability to communicate ‘normally’. My brother suffers from autism, but he doesn’t suffer from the condition itself, rather, he suffers from the way people treat him as a result of his autism. A lot of people who bully him don’t necessarily know that he has it, as it’s not a condition one can see. Many people believe my brother just acts crazily for no reason, which somehow translates to a right to tease him. While there’s nothing really wrong with teasing, one massive part of autism is having trouble differentiating between sarcasm and literalism. So even if what someone was saying was meant as a joke, to the person with autism, it could be an insult. However, on the other hand, people who pick up on my brother’s difficulty in telling the difference between a joke and seriousness, often take advantage of him and manipulate him into doing things he doesn’t want to do, which is not OK.

It’s difficult to explain how it feels to be autistic if you’re not on the spectrum, which makes it hard to empathise. The 1^st time I was really able to empathise with my brother was when I went on exchange to France. While I understood most of what people were saying, when people made jokes, I didn’t always laugh because I couldn’t understand why what they were saying was funny, which is a common trait amongst the autistic community, as they take most things literally. Additionally to being highly sensitive emotionally, autistic people are also sensitive when it comes to the extremes of the 5 senses, which is why it’s common to see an autistic person with headphones or earplugs or sunglasses.

And autism is not such a terrible thing. Many people on the spectrum, like my brother, are extremely high functioning and intelligent. My brother is an expert on Science of all sorts, especially Astronomy. He also has a photographic memory, which is beneficial in memorising his outer space facts, which he’ll just repeat constantly. The IDF even has a special unit where they use people on the spectrum to help analyse aerial and satellite photos. Most connotations about autism being bad are incorrect, and come out of pure ignorance, to the point in which people refuse to vaccinate their children in case they contract it, or try to cure it by injecting bleach enemas.

I want to spread awareness of autism, so those who have it will be treated with more respect and compassion in hopes they can be celebrated for who they are and their differences. So next Tuesday, 5 June, will be an Autism Awareness day. It will be a blue-themed plain clothes day with a gold coin donation. As blue is the representative colour of autism and the puzzle piece is the representative symbol, there will be a bake sale at recess, selling puzzle piece shaped cookies and blue cupcakes. During your Jewish Studies lessons, there will be some activities you’ll be participating in in the Angles Leadership and Learning Centre and at lunch, there will be lots of fun activities, including a sensory-then-non-sensory disco in The Aron Kleinlehrer Performing Arts Centre, which involves really loud music and flashing lights, which will then progress into something which would be considered more of a utopia for someone on the spectrum. All the money raised will be going towards Autism Spectrum Australia.

Next week in Szenes House

We have some exciting events coming up next week, and basically THREE PLAIN CLOTHES DAYS!!!! Yes, 3.

Week 6

• Monday is the SRC BBQ and PLAIN CLOTHES day, raising money for Asylum Seekers.
• Tuesday is the Autism Awareness day which is a blue PLAIN CLOTHES day raising money for Autism Spectrum Australia aka Aspect.
• Thursday is the Athletics Carnival, and remember to come in your Szenesian colours (purple and gold/yellow)! A reminder that this event is compulsory and that absences will require a Medical Certificate.

Quotation to inspire

“What is tolerance? It is the consequence of humanity. We are all formed of frailty and error; let us pardon reciprocally each other’s folly – that is the first law of nature.”
Voltaire

Enjoy the weekend and Shabbat Shalom

CDSSA Cross Country

Kristy Reed | Head of Sport | PDHPE Teacher

Earlier this week a team of 79 students competed at the Combined Districts Secondary Schools Association (CDSSA) Cross Country Carnival at Centennial Park. These students had engaged in an excellent training program for the 7 weeks leading up to the event, training twice a week with the Emanuel running coach, Jordan Williams.

The weather conditions on Monday were perfect for running and the students appreciated the support of the many parents who attended. Brody Elbourne was a stand-out performer of the day, winning his 4km race by over 40 seconds. Excellent results included:

Jared Elbourne and Daniel Van Sluys Erlich

Brody Elbourne: 1^st place 14 Years boys

Shai Farhy: 2^nd place 12 Years boys

Gabriella Goodridge 2^nd place 16 Years girls

Allegra Goldman: 2^nd place 17 Years girls

Samara Trenaman: 3^rd place 15 Years girls

Jesse Gothelf: 4^th place 13 Years boys

Jacob Rose: 4^th place 15 Years boys

Jared Elbourne: 4^th place 16 Years boys

Aaron Harpaz: 5^th place 13 Years boys

Hannah Kim: 5^th place 13 Years girls

Victoria Miller: 5^th place 14 Years girls

Daniel Van Sluys Erlich: 5^th place 16 Years boys

As a result of such a successful carnival, 25 of our best long distance runners have now qualified for the Association of Independent Co-educational Schools (AICES) Cross Country Championships to be held next Tuesday. I wish all of these students the best of luck. 

Shai Farhy, Samara Trenaman, Gabrielle Goodridge and Brody Elbourne

13 Reasons Why – Season 2

Kim Slender – School Counsellor

13 Reasons Why, Season 2  information for young people, parents and schools

You may be aware that 13 Reasons Why, Season 2 officially launched on Netflix on Friday 18 May 18. headspace has collaborated with Netflix to develop supporting resources and discussion guides for young people, parents and schools which was also available upon the Showcase™’s launch (Friday 18 May at 5 pm).

In the meantime, headspace has created a blog post on the headspace website, which is available now, and provides young people and parents with information to consider prior to the release of the show. The blog post includes: 

–       tips for discussing the show safely

–       points to consider before watching the show

–       questions to help start a conversation.

You can access the blog post here: headspace.org.au/news/the-launch-of-13-reasons-why-season-2

Once the series is officially launched, people can be directed to 13reasonswhy.info where the resources will be available, including the information that can be found on the headspace blog. 

Further to this, eheadspace will be holding group chat sessions for young people on Thursday May 24 from 7-8 pm AEST and Sunday May 27 from 7-8 pm AEST.  You can access the group chat sessions here: eheadspace.org.au/get-help/eheadspace-group-chat-session

Finally, we would like to inform you that a range of measures have been put in place with Netflix to assist with safely launching Season 2 of the series. This includes:

• A designated webpage 13reasonswhy.info where resources and help-seeking information will be provided. 
• Inclusion of warnings and help-seeking information before and at the end of each episode of the show. The end frame directs users back to 13reasonswhy.info
• On the webpage you will find:

• • Videos – One will feature the cast of the show (coming out of character) to address issues depicted in the show, and the other features Australian young people talking about the importance of reaching out to family and friends and seeking help on mental health issues
  • Resources – Tailored discussion guides for young people, parents and schools
  • Help seeking information – Detailed help seeking information for young people.

It is important to note that 13 Reasons Why, Season 2 is rated MA15+ in Australia, therefore the resources have been developed for secondary schools, parents and secondary school aged young people. The resources are designed to promote help seeking and support having conversations with an individual young person and are not intended to be used for large groups or for classroom lessons.

From Primary Library

Ginette Cameron-Gardner- Primary Teacher/Librarain

There is much excitement in the Primary Library and it is now not just the location of a wonderful collection of Literature that opens up imaginative worlds to the students but also the Coding lessons they attend there on Fridays. This is a wonderful venue and many events are held here.

Congratulations to the following students who have recently completed the NSW Premier’s Reading Challenge 2018 bringing the number of completers to 13.

Mazal tov to מזל טוב

Year 1 students Joel Hersh and  Dan Kalinko.

Year 5 students, Gemma Wainstein and Ariel Bloom

Year 6 student, Sophie Masnick.

Fablehaven by Brandon Mull

Another of the series that is now held in the Primary Library is Fablehaven, an engaging adventure and fantasy series that should hook even the reluctant readers.  The content is suitable for Year 5 upwards.

While their parents are away on a Scandinavian cruise, 13-year-old Kendra and 11-year-old Seth Sorenson travel to their grandparents’ house, but they find Grandma is mysteriously missing. Grandpa Sorenson and Dale the groundskeeper are there. He sets up a complex puzzle for them to solve which involves 6 keys and a locked journal which Kendra unlocks. Inside the journal she reads “drink the milk”. Dale puts ‘magical’ milk out for Kendra and Seth each morning which, when they drink it, has an eye-opening effect on them.  

Grandpa Sorenson, is revealed as the current caretaker of Fablehaven which they discover is where, for centuries,mystical creatures have been gathered to protect them from extinction. Exciting adventures begin.

Kornmehl

Terry Aizen – Director Kornmehl

Building resilience – part 1

Life can be challenging and may include many stressful situations. Parents and children can feel overwhelmed by different things at different times like sudden changes, relationship difficulties, serious challenges, hectic schedules, feelings of isolation, discrimination and financial hardships.

Resilience is the ability to steer through serious life challenges and find ways to bounce back and to thrive.

We are born with the capacity for resilience. But resilience is not something we have or don’t have. We work on it throughout our lives. And we need to start as early as possible. Parents are the most important people to help build their children’s resilience.

Children learn a lot by watching their parents. When parents cope well with everyday stress, they are showing their children how to do the same.

Why is it important to develop resilience?

Resilience makes a big difference in people’s lives. People who respond to hardships with resilience are:

• healthier and live longer
• happier in their relationships
• more successful in school and work
• less likely to get depressed.

What builds resilience?

Many of the things that support healthy development in young children also help build their resilience. These things include:

• a secure bond with a caring adult
• relationships with positive role models
• opportunities to learn skills
• opportunities to participate in meaningful activities.

We need both outside supports and inner strengths to build our resilience.

Outside supports include:

• caring relationships
• positive role models in families and communities
• community resources such as community centres, parent-child drop-in centres, faith groups, or support programs for children with special needs

Inner strengths include:

• self-control
• thinking skills
• confidence
• positive outlook
• responsibility and participation.

Building a close, loving relationship with your children is the most important thing you can do to support their resilience. Children do best when they feel loved, understood and accepted, and are protected from harm. Feeling wanted and loved helps us get through the hard times in life.

Children learn to feel safe and secure through a close attachment with at least 1 caring person. They also learn that their needs will be met. All of this gives them the confidence to explore their world.

Caring relationships provide accepting places where children can learn to regulate their:

• bodies
• feeling
• attention
• thoughts
• behaviour.

Positive daily interactions with parents teach children how to have caring relationships with other important people in their lives. And it makes it easier for them to reach out to others when they need help.

Taken from – Building resilience in Young Children – A booklet for parents from birth to six years

http://www.beststart.org/resources/hlthy_chld_dev/pdf/BSRC_Resilience_English_fnl.pdf

Parent talks

A reminder that our interesting and informative parent talk series is on again next week Wednesday evening 6 June from 7.45 pm – 8.45 pm in the Pre-school. 

Dr Sarah Robuck is a Clinical Psychologist (Registrar) with a combined Masters/PhD from the University of NSW and specialises in working with children/families and also in perinatal mental health. Sarah works with families helping children with various presentations including anxiety, depression, emotion regulation difficulties, defiant/aggressive behaviours, adjustment difficulties, learning delays and Autism.

Module 2: Managing misbehaviour
Why do children misbehave?
Planned ignoring
Directed discussion
Four-Step procedure implementation
Principles of time-out (or calm space).

Social event and fundraiser

Below is the link  to book your family ticket for our social event and fundraiser – Go Go Healthy on Sunday 17 June from 10 am to 12 noon in the Lehrer Family Building Multi Purpose Hall and Basketball Court at Emanuel School.

Please join us for a fun morning of non-stop activities organised by Go Go Healthy Kids. There’s fun for the whole family to join in, with activities including:

A giant Inflatable obstacle course, giant soccer and footy darts, hockey dribble course, basketball shoot out challenge, rope skipping challenge, soccer juggling and plank challenge and more.

Hot and cold beverages plus snacks will be available for purchase. Please wear comfortable clothing. Siblings welcome. Be ready for an action-packed 2 hours of family fun time.

Cost

$30 per family

We look forward to seeing all our Kornmehl families at this wonderful event.

The link is https://tinyurl.com/HealthyKids2018

Care Packs

Thank you to all the Kornmehl and Emanuel School families for bringing in your Care Packs. All Care Packs need to be in by Friday 15 June, so there is still lots of time to support this wonderful project for Aboriginal children in outback NSW.

Careers

Claire Pech – Careers Advisor

Last week I was delighted to host Careers Space 2018, along with Sonia Newell. We invited 22 Emanuel alumni who came from a range of backgrounds, from electrical engineers, to computer scientists, make up artists, to 3D animators, occupational therapists and everything in between!

The event was a great success, and in my view, that meant it gave students  ideas and inspiration to take with them on their career journey. A lot of the core messages in each of the rooms were very similar. I learnt from Marina Mahklin working in real estate about the grit and tenacity that is needed to succeed in that industry and having a thick skin is a must in order to survive. I found it very interesting chatting with Mitchell Weiss, Jonathan Moallem and Joseph Harris about their industry where the average time spent with a company was about 6 months. Working any longer than that was seen as unusual.

I enjoyed the lively interactions in the People Professions room, where each speaker lit up talking about the joy in their job, the areas that interested them and from Melanie Aron, the very positive upside of shift work. Our Law, Education and Creatives room had lively banter on the zig-zag paths that careers took and from Andrei Dolkinov, encouraging students to follow their interests and passions. Jenna Bean expressed the true job satisfaction she enjoys in her current role teaching Art, having done a range of other artistic endeavours. Our alumni enjoyed the experience of coming back to their (new and improved) old school and seeing their past teachers and engaging with the Emanuel Community once again.  We look forward to refining and improving on this format to launch Careers Spare 2019 next year.

STEM ROOM

Joseph Harris – Electrical Engineer

Jonathan Moallem – Software Developer and Start Ups

Dr Gabby Radnan – Scientist, PHd

Dr Joshua Don – Science/Education

Mitchell Weiss – Software Engineer

BUSINESS ROOM

Marina Makhlin – Real Estate

David Mintz – Chartered Accountant, Forensics

Dina Gofman – Accountant, Start-Up

Justin Model – Business Owner

Russell Gordon – Business Process Management

Daniel Brockwell – Commerce/Computer Science

PEOPLE PROFESSIONS

Ischa Ropert – Life Coach

Dr Sarah Robuch – Psychologist

Steffi Radnan – Naturopath

Melanie Aron – Radiographer

Cara Antonelli – Occupational Therapist

CREATIVES, LAW AND EDUCATION

Leah Grolman – Lawyer/Academic

Filea Tsapepas – Make Up Artist

Sivan Stern – Early Childhood Educator

Andrei Dolnikov – 3D Animator and Interior Architect

Lara Pitt – Journalist, Fox Sports

Jenna Bean – Jewellery Designer and Artist

Career notices and events

As I mentioned last week, Year 12s should be attending the HSC + Career Expo at The Entertainment Quarter this week. This is a 4-day event (Thursday to Sunday) showcasing all tertiary providers in NSW. It is the only event where students can investigate university courses, private colleges, the defence forces and the job market under 1 roof. I highly recommend attending and tickets can be bought at the door for $10 which allows access over the 4 days. Parents can/should attend also and Year 11’s can gain an early insight into next year’s decisions.

http://www.hscandcareers.com.au/

UNSW events

Parent information evenings for Built Environment, Engineering, Medicine and Science

Thursday, 14 June, 6.00 pm-8.00 pm

https://www.be.unsw.edu.au/event/unsw-student-and-parent-information-evening

Do’s and Don’ts of HSC Subject selection from University of Sydney

This is a good article from University of Sydney about how/what to choose for Year 10 students going in to Year 11. As that process is around the corner this is a good introduction into that area.

Read the article here https://sydney.edu.au/campus-life/student-news/2018/03/06/dos-and-donts-of-hsc-subject-selection.html

My future – supporting your child’s career development

This is a MyFuture article about how to support Year 10 students to make career decisions. A key focus is on helping them observe, chat to and discuss other working professionals. The more exposure they have to this the better, and even more so if they have not done a part time job.

Read more here https://myfuture.edu.au/career-insight/details?id=supporting-your-child-s-career-development – /

Biggest Afternoon Lunch

Michelle Favero – Manager of Marketing and Communications

Australia’s Biggest Afternoon Lunch

For over 10 years Emanuel School staff have been supporting the Cancer Council’s Biggest Morning Tea. It has, over time, morphed into Australia’s Biggest Afternoon Lunch, allowing more staff to take part. Raising money is a pretty easy task due to the generosity of our staff. Each Department invests time and money into creating a raffle basket. This year was particularly delicious and delightful with an Israeli food basket, a movie and munchies basket and a healthy eating bonanza to name a few.

Thank you to a number of companies who generously donated goods for the raffle: Amaze in Taste, Back 2 Earth, Bake Bar, Eden Flower Design, The Good Guys Tempe, Hair by Jennifer Barker, Tucker, Office Max and getyoo.

In 1 hour we raised $2270 – a massive achievement. This, together with the $4000 that the students raised cutting their hair will make a huge difference to the lives of those living with Cancer. Kol Ha’kavod!

Connecting our Community – Gesher

Sonia Newell – Development Officer

Out in the community

Mazal Tov to the Shteinman family – great news featured in the article below which appeared in last week’s Australian Jewish News.

How exciting that so many members of our extended School community are presenting at YomLimmud Sydney, Festival of Jewish Ideas, on 17 June at The Roundhouse, UNSW: alumni Simon Holloway, Mitch Burnie and Donny Janks, current parents Sharon Berger and Shirli Kirschner, past parent Geoff Sirmai and past grandparent Helene Cadry. For more information and to view the program: www.shalom.edu.au/limmud

If you have news you would like to share with us, please send to: snewell@emanuelschool.nsw.edu.au

From the Parents and Friends

Ruby Berkovic and Jennifer Opit

Hi Everyone,

 

We hope you have had a good week!

 

Our monthly P&F meeting is this Tuesday, 5 June at 7 pm in the Boardroom. Everyone is welcome to join us!

 

Booking has now opened for this year’s main event: our Games Night!

 

On Saturday 25 August, please join us in the MPH for an evening of good company, food and plenty of fun. There will be Trivia, Bingo and more (teams will be formed in tables of 10). Dinner and drinks will be served, there will be an auction, and musical entertainment will be provided by Emanuel parents. It is sure to be an amazing night. Tickets can be purchased individually, or at a discounted price if you book a table of 10.

 

Booking link:  

https://www.trybooking.com/WCAK

 

If you are able to assist with sourcing/providing items for the auction, let us know:

joanner174@gmail.com

 

We hope to see you all there!

Jen and Ruby