From the Principal

Andrew Watt

Appointments to Leadership Roles

After a rigorous recruitment process that attracted a range of outstanding candidates, both internal and external, we have made the following appointments:

• Meghan Carroll has been appointed as Deputy Head of Primary School
• Diana Springford has been appointed as Head of Music (P-12)
• Danny Burley has been appointed as Assistant Head of Music (P-12)

These permanent appointments will commence from Term 4, 2018. We are confident that Meghan, Diana and Danny will bring much to our leadership teams and we wish them well as they settle into their roles.

The 2018 National Australian and New Zealand Winners in the 2018 Search for the Next Tech Girl Superhero competition

Our STEAMA 6 have been awarded the National Primary School STEM award – a wonderful achievement! We congratulate Sophie Poisel, our K-6 Innovation Leader and her team of Year 6 students: Gabriella Freed, Renee Korotkaia, Sophie Masnick, Alice Milner, Yael Rembach and Jacinta Shevelev. We also thank their team of mentors within and beyond school, including Nathanael Clark and their class teacher Anna Economou. This link provides more information about the competition: http://searchforthenexttechgirlsuperhero.org/2018-national-winners/

Welcome back Maxine Chopard

Our much loved Assistant to the Deputy Principal has resumed her duties this week. We are delighted to have Maxine Chopard back, working with our staff and students to maintain high standards of punctuality, uniform and behaviour across the High School. Tina Greenhill has performed the role of Acting Assistant to Deputy Principal throughout this term and we are very grateful for her cheerful efficiency and attention to detail.

The final week for Year 12  

Our Year 12 students have enjoyed a variety of activities, including wearing the uniform of other schools on Friday and receiving a gift at our House Farewell Breakfast on Tuesday. The highlight of the week, however, has been the Year 12 Graduation Assembly, followed by the Graduation Dinner. The legacy of our Year 12 students was recognised and celebrated, through a program that included tributes from each Year Group, reflections on the Year 12 journey and presentations were made to every student crossing the stage. Each musical item was selected and performed by Year 12 students. This has been a wonderful cohort and their positive and energetic presence around the School will be missed greatly. We wish them every success in the HSC and for their future endeavours.

Yom Kippur and Sukkot

This has been an important week in the Jewish calendar, with Yom Kippur, the Jewish day of communal and personal atonement for transgressions committed during the past year. After Yom Kippur, we begin the construction of the Sukkah, which is used for the joyous holiday of Sukkot which we celebrate from Monday through Sunday (followed by our final Jewish holidays of Term 3, Shemini Atseret and Simchat Torah). Best wishes for rest and reflection over this time.

Alumni Pilot program – can you help?

Are you a current employer who may have vacancies to offer? Would you be interested in helping out our Year 12 students when they leave and/or other Emanuel alumni?

We are currently reviewing and gauging interest in a potential program. If this is of interest to you, please get in touch with the answers to the questions below: snewell@emanuelschool.nsw.edu.au

1. Paid/unpaid?
2. Industry
3. Length of time
4. Job name
5. Duties and descriptions
6. Contact details

Mazal tov

• Year 7 students have been working on the Shorashim project all year. This involved investigating all about their family heritage to create an album to be kept for future generations detailing where their family came from and who is a part of their family. Each student gave a presentation in front of their parents and grandparents on Monday night detailing a family artefact that represented the journey of their family.
• Gabrielle Utian won last years’ Shorashim prize, winning a $1000 voucher from the UIA to be put towards an Israel program when she graduates
• Greg Allen, Shai Farhy, Eden Levit and Danielle Rutstein were selected for the ACIES Athletics team.
• Alexander Kirievsky who finished second in the CIS Athletics Carnival in the boys 11 years discus event.

Quote of the week:

“The greatest sign of success for a teacher … is to be able to say, ‘The children are now working as if I did not exist’.”

Maria Montessori

From the Primary School

Meghan Carroll – Acting Deputy Head of Primary

Battle Royale: Screen time vs Real-time

As I plunged out of the battle bus I flew through the air using my glider landing gracefully in one of the largest drop zones, Retail Row. I started to loot up, accessing a few chests and building materials before starting my journey inside the bubble. I began my battle to be number one (for the 34th time…in the same sitting).

It was about midway through August when I decided that it was finally time to join the 125 million worldwide players to explore the fascinating and alluring game that is known as Fortnite. I quickly began to understand how this game can hold you hostage causing players to lose themselves in the storm.

I grew up with some exposure to video games, playing Mario Brothers on my cousin’s 8-bit handheld Nintendo Game Boy console and buying my first and only home console Sega Genesis collecting gold rings and racing through levels using the spin dash move in the iconic Sonic the Hedgehog game. When I was a kid, online worlds, leveling up and in-game currencies didn’t exist. Video games were a secondary means of entertainment, often dusted off on a rainy (or snowy) day or when friends gathered.

Nowadays many children (and adults) use video games and online worlds to socialise and escape from reality. Games like Fortnite have a magnetic recipe that keeps their players fixated and wanting more. It’s a game that requires very little skill, using single and team player options, the idea of survival and popular culture dances to create a fantasy realm with cartoon-like depictions of violence and a last man standing mentality.

With many children glued to screens, parenting is more challenging than ever. The American Academy of Pediatrics states that:

“Media should work for you & work within your family values and parenting style. When media is used thoughtfully & appropriately, media can enhance daily life. But when used inappropriately or without thought, media can displace many important activities such as face-to-face interaction, family-time, outdoor-play, exercise, unplugged downtime & sleep.”

The AAP suggest creating a Media Plan which helps parents and users to think more about what they want the purpose of media to be and create media goals and rules. If you are interested in this tool feel free to access it here: http://bit.ly/2CZSnXd

The Children’s Hospital at Westmead has produced an excellent fact sheet that can be found here: http://bit.ly/2Qw4QVn. In summary they suggest the following guidelines:

• Eight-twelve hours of sleep and one hour of exercise should always take priority over screen time.
• Set screen time guidelines for your family and involve older children in the decision making.
• Screen time is not recommended for children under two years old.
• Monitor the use of screens, keeping in mind the recommended maximum per day is two hours.
• Consider turning off the TV and other devices during meals.
• Keep TVs and screens out of bedrooms.
• Be a role model for your kids by being active and limiting your own use of screens.

So rather than spending your time in the lobby waiting, I encourage you to take a proactive approach by making yourself more aware of your child’s screen time, game play and online social interactions; teaching your child to be mindful of screen time and their behaviour online and using teachable moments to help your child better understand the digital world.

Year 6 and Project Heritage

The Year 6 students proudly showcased their learning on Friday during the Project Heritage event. After interviewing their Living Historians, the children prepared biographies, poems and a range of activities to form the basis of their presentations special tributes to the Historians. They gained a great deal of information about world and Jewish history, values and traditions. Thank you to all of the Year 6 students, class teachers and mentors, Music, Art and Jewish Studies teachers for making this event a memorable one.

Absences and leave

All absences need to be directed to absence@emanuelschool.nsw.edu.au. Below is a summary of the absence procedures.

Sick or sudden leave

If your child is sick or applying for sudden leave, please email absence@emanuelschool.nsw.edu.au before 8.00 am on the day and include your child’s name, Year Group and reason for the absence. You do not need to follow up with a written note. Please state the class your child is in.

 Leaving for part of the day

If you are leaving for part of a day (such as leaving early for an appointment), please email absence@emanuelschool.nsw.edu.au by at least the day before. Years K-2 are collected from their classrooms and Years 3-6 are collected from main reception in the Administration Building, upper campus. Please state the class your child is in.

Lateness

If your child is late to school, please email absence@emanuelschool.nsw.edu.au with the reason for late arrival. Please state the class your child is in.

 Leave for leave five or less days

If you are applying for leave of five or less days, please email absence@emanuelschool.nsw.edu.au at least one week before and include your child’s name, Year Group, dates and reason for leave request.  Please state the class your child is in.

Leave for more than five or more days

If you are applying for leave of more than five days, please email absence@emanuelschool.nsw.edu.au at least two weeks before and include your child’s name, Year Group, dates and reason for leave request. You will be sent a form to complete to request long term leave from the Principal.

The Absence Line phone number is 8383 7311. Please clearly state your child’s name and what class he/she is in.

From the Head of Jewish Life

Rabbi Daniel Siegel

In the paths of our parents

Parashat Ha’azinu constitutes Moshe’s ‘swan song’. The word צור/Rock appears more times in this farewell poem than in any other place in the Torah.

Reminding the people that their ‘Rock’ (God) has been faithful, הצור תמים..אל אמונה, he reprimands them for not being steadfast:

צור ילדך תשי

ותשכח אל מחוללך

You forsook the Rock that begot you

Forgot the God who brought you forth

As Moshe is about to take leave of the people he seeks surety that they will not take leave of God.

Sometimes, however, being faithful to the ‘tried and true’ requires beginning anew. This is the very point of the following subversive Hasidic reading of the above text:

צור ילדך תשי

ותשכח אל מחוללך

Forsake that which has brought you to this point

Then shall you find (anew) your Creator

A new people, a new time, a new leader and a new land require new pathways in which God can be found. The passing of Moshe must mark the past giving way to the present if the people are to have a steadfast future with their God.

As we farewell our graduates this week, we must take to heart that they, as well, need to forge their own paths. Only in doing so can they faithfully walk in the path of their parents and our ancestors.

We wish our graduates a joyous journey of ongoing discovery and growth. May they become steadfast in creating and celebrating life and Judaism anew.

He suckled him with wild honey from the rock” Ha’azinu

Student Devar Torah

Dan Bethlehem – Year 11

An important part of this week’s parashah is God telling Moshe that he will see the land of Israel, but not be able to enter it and instead die alone on a mountain top. Many see this as a punishment that is extremely cruel and overbearing, as it denies Moses the fruit of his life’s work for a single slip-up.

However, looking at this from a different perspective can cause it to make a bit more sense. Moshe has constantly preached to the Jewish people about how one must listen to and revere God throughout their journey out of Egypt to the promised land. However, he contradicts these declarations on multiple occasions, whether that be his infamous act of “hitting the rock” or a number of other occasions in which he loses his patience and is overly angry with the people. Despite this, staying faithful to God is what the parashah is really about, speaking of how Ya’akov and his descendants strayed from God’s light and sacrificed to “strange gods”.

In considering Moshe’s ultimate fate, I believe these actions of Moshe and what he requires of the people are meant to ‘play off’ each other and better illuminate God’s actions. If God is omniscient and omnipotent, in addition to being partial to a dash of divine smiting, then listening to Him is probably a good idea. I believe that the biblical author has used this opportunity to demonstrate that even those who are most faithful to God can stray from his illuminated path and towards sin. Beyond this point, we can see that the deeper message is to listen to those close to us, and not act or speak harshly to them just because we are having a bad day or that we disagree with what they have done. If we do so, the consequences might be far greater than we would have thought.

Noa’s parashah Insights

Having recently engaged our students in Machaneh Ayekah and then in Machaneh Krembo, our Israeli Madrichim are now meeting with our students in Year level mifgashim. The following Devar Torah was written by Noa Tsairi, one of our five Madrichim. We hope you enjoy her reflections and insights.

Rabbi Daniel Siegel

Noa Tsairi

Parashat Ha’azinu

Parashat Ha’azinu is the tenth parashah of Sefer Devarim. Each year we read it in the Shabbat between Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur or between Yom Kippur and Sukkot.

The parashah talks about Am Yisrael’s preparation for entering Eretz Yisrael and the preparation for Moshes’ death that is yet to come. Most of the parashah is a poem – Ha’azinu. The poem is written in twoequal columns and in each column there are three words.

The poetry is an eternal alliance between Am Yisrael and God, and between the individual and his/her Creator. Moshe calls shamayim (the heavens) and aretz (earth) to be witnesses to all the challenges, vision and redemption.

We read this poetry on our way to the Shanah Chadashah, the New Year, after a month of tefillot and teshuvah-returning – the time of the year that each and every one of us hopes to return to themselves and to God while we try to fix things and be better people than the year before.

The poetry begins with the words:

האזינו השמים ואדברה ותשמע הארץ אמרי פי

Ha’azinu ha-shamayim va-adabera, va-tishma ha-aretz imrei phi.

Ha’azinu poetry might hint to us about our challenge to find balance in different aspects of our lives, between what we will say and what will be heard, between our thoughts and our actions, between our spirit and our material body, between heaven and earth. It’s all about the balance between the different parts of ourselves. As we begin our Shanah Chadashah, I hope that each and every one of us will find his/her balance and make this year a better year for himself /herself and for all those around us.

Shorashim Project 2018

Alexis Demos

Jake Fleischer

Shorashim is a major project that we do in Year 7 from the middle of Term 1 until the end of Term 3. The word ‘Shorashim’ in Hebrew is translated into ‘roots’ in English and this project is all about the roots of your family. Examples of things you do in this project include family trees, family recipes, journey maps, family genealogies and many other tasks. You show your hard work in a creative way by putting it into a scrapbook and adding pictures, stickers and lots of colour.

Shorashim was so enjoyable since we got to discover so many things that we never knew about our families. One person in our Year found out that they were related to Anne Frank by marriage.

Shorashim was a great project because we also got to be very creative in the design which made the process more enjoyable. Overall Shorashim was a very rewarding and necessary project which helped us discover more about our Jewish and non-Jewish roots which we didn’t know before. This also means that we can pass all this information down to future generations and it won’t be forgotten.

The Shorashim evening was an amazing night where we got to show everyone our finished projects and how proud we were of them. It was so nice to see how everyone did the same project so differently. Everyone should look forward to doing Shorashim.

From the Head of Science

Jennifer Selinger

View from the Kleinlehrer Family Science Building

They stroll down in twos and threes, chattering like magpies. Once in the rooms, they stand around awkwardly in groups, wondering what happens next, slightly nervous and slightly excited, but trying not to show it. Year 10 Night of Science and Wonder is here! Around the room hang the posters – some beautifully presented, some looking rather dog-eared, but all distinctly individual. Want to know how to make a flower glow? Ever wondered if it is actually possible to teach an old dog a new trick? Do you know which Youtube videos are most likely to be watched … and why? If not, you should have been at the Year 10 Night of Science and Wonder!

I “wonder” every year how it is possible that the students come up with such an interesting variety of projects. The topics are as different as the students and they seem to see no barriers to investigating anything that they find interesting – no matter how complicated. They research the concept they have chosen, design an experiment to go with their idea and then present their work as a poster. Standing in front of their display, each student is able to talk knowledgably about their topic, their experiment and the difficulties they have overcome to have a decent presentation on the night.

As the parents trickle in, the room begins to buzz. Generally, each parent starts with the display that their child produced and hangs around there for a while, but inevitably they begin to be seduced by the enthusiasm of the other students and drift around from display to display, stopping to chat with the creator and generally finding themselves being informed about all manner of phenomena. There are always things presented that I did not know. Last night I learnt about misphonia, something I had never heard of before. The students eagerly explain what they have done and their audience listens … and learns.

Congratulations to all involved – the work was terrific, the presentation engaging and I was very proud of the students and the evidence of their hard work – well done to all!

From the Music Department

Diana Springford – Acting Head of Music Performance and Years K-6

Daniel Burley – Acting Head of Music – Academic Years 7-12

HSC Music Showcase and Practical Examination

Six of our Year 12 students are breathing a sigh of relief with the performance component of their Music HSC now completed. On Thursday 6 September we held our annual HSC Music Showcase followed by the HSC performance examinations on Thursday 13 and Monday 17 September. Congratulations to  Ashne Amoils, Noa Blair, Adam Cranko, Aaron Ellis-Bloor, Genevieve Goldman and Gabriel Sebban for their hard work and high quality performances. I would like to thank our regular private music Tutors and the other professional musicians who accompanied the students for their HSC performances. It is a wonderful opportunity for our students to play with such fine professional musicians and this exciting interaction is a valuable component of their educational experience during their HSC Music course. Having completed the practical component of their Music HSC and having submitted their musicology essays and compositions, these students now have only a written examination to complete during the normal HSC examination period. Good luck to you all!

Deadline – Private Music Tuition and Infant Strings Program

The due date for new enrolments, notification of changes or intention to discontinue private tuition or Infants String Program for Term 4 has passed. All students currently receiving private music tuition and students participating in the Infant Strings Program will be automatically entered into tutor schedules for next term, committed to the full term of lessons and liable for the full term of fees. Please contact Deborah Beder by email to music@emanuelschool.nsw.edu.au if you have any questions.

Save the date

Night of Instrumental Music:  Tuesday 6 November at 6.00 pm

Year 11 PDHPE Sports Science Camp

Ray Francis – Head of PDHPE

Congratulations to the Year 11 PDHPE class, who represented the School very well at the recent Sports Science camp held at Sydney Academy of Sport, Narabeen.

Students participated in a range of practical activities relating to improving fitness for sports performance, including blood lactate measuring, VO2 Max testing, and fitness training methods to develop power and speed.

Unfortunately the Manly Sea Eagles, who train at the Academy, were not there as unfortunately they were not good enough to make the finals!

Luckily the entire Emanuel group are Rabbitohs supporters, so “Go the Bunnies” this weekend!

High School ESport and EActive registrations

Kristy Reed | Head of Sport | PDHPE Teacher

In Term 4 there will be a number of sporting opportunities available for all High School students.

The ESport program will provide weekly competition sporting matches in basketball, netball and touch football.

The EActive program will continue to provide a variety of recreational activities and fitness activities.

Bookings for Term 4 are now open. Places are expected to fill quickly so it is important that registrations are completed at www.trybooking.com/FNNJ

ESport program offered in Term 4 includes:

• Boys basketball training and competition (Easts Basketball League)
• Girls netball training and competition (High Performance Netball)
• Boys and girls touch football training and competition (Easts Touch)

EActive sessions offered in Term 4 include:

• Girls fitness
• Boys fitness
• Swim squad training
• Gymnastics
• Pilates
• Rock climbing
• Surfing
• Beach volleyball
• Cricket training.

 If you have any questions please email Kristy Reed (Head of Sport) on: kreed@emanuelschool.nsw.edu.au

The David Horwitz Rugby 7s Challenge Shield

Kristy Reed | Head of Sport | PDHPE Teacher

The David Horwitz Rugby 7s Challenge Shield is now a regular fixture for many schools in our sporting associations and the local area. The Emanuel initiative had another successful season this year with six schools playing in the competition, across three divisions. The three-night series involved junior, intermediate and senior age divisions, with Emanuel entering teams into each of the categories. The tournament included games against Kesser Torah College, Masada College, Moriah College, Reddam House and St Andrew’s Cathedral School.

The three Emanuel teams had been preparing for this tournament since the beginning of the winter season through weekly training sessions. Many of the boys in the junior squad were new to rugby and this tournament provided the perfect opportunity for them put their training to the test and to gain some much needed game experience. The team played exceptionally well, showing great team and school spirit. Well done to Arthur Drannikov, Justin Faul, Saul Galambos, Samuel Milner, Luca Moses, Gavin Robinson, Mahley Rosen-Tal, Jarah Weinstein and Zac Weizman.

The intermediate boys team had a little more experience as the majority of the squad played in this tournament in 2017. This experience proved to be vital, leading to some exciting tries. Congratulations to Ariel Berger, Alan Drannikov, Jonathan Eremeev, Alon Erez-Rein, Ari Karjalainen, Jesse Koslowski, Max Kidman, Oscar Morgan, Jonathan Naiger, Jared Robinson, Benjamin Torban and Adam Winter.

For many of the senior boys, this was event is the highlight of the representative sport program and the school year. It proved to be a fantastic school sporting experience, providing them with fond memories. Special guests from the Waratahs visited the team prior to their first match, providing them with motivation, encouragement and also a few tips on the game. Although the St Andrews and Moriah teams proved to be too strong for the Emanuel boys, they all played with exceptional determination and sportsmanship. Well done to Jake Anthony, Leo Carroll, Dylan Herdan, Ari Karjalainen, Jake Kurlansky, Blake Nixon, Max Leveton, Adam Riesel, Ben Shapiro, Liahm Simon and Timothy Troyanovsky.

The tournament ended with the presentations from official guests from the Horwitz family, Randwick Rugby, and former Wallaby, Russell Fairfax. I would like to congratulate all players on their effort and thank Heath Morley for coaching the Emanuel teams and Sharon Fairfax for her assistance at the events.

Emanuel Intermediate Ruby Team

David Horwitz Rugby 7s Challenge

Emanuel Junior Rugby Team

Extra-Curricular, including EActive Term 4

Emma Hill | Primary Teacher and Co-ordinator of Extra-Curricular Programs

New Extra-Curricular Club – Code Camp

Code Camp has been running sessions with Years 2-6 at Emanuel as part of our curriculum this year. We are excited that Code Camp is now offering an after-school program on Mondays. This club is open for students with coding experience in Year 2, as well as Years 3-6 students.

New EActive activities:

• Beach volleyball Years 3-6
• Cricket Years 4-6
• Futsal Years 3-6

Please note, the final date for booking into the activities below is Week 4, Friday 2 November

Club information, including enrolment and booking details, are now online on the Parent Portal. Please note clubs have minimum enrolment numbers. https://myportal.emanuelschool.nsw.edu.au/parent/extra-curricular/

 Term 4 Extra-Curricular (including EActive) Schedule:

Rabin Bugle

Shabbat Shalom Rabinites

It has been a very special and memorable week. Our House farewelled our oldest Rabinites on Tuesday morning at House Assembly. The Class of 2018 will now take on the HSC and then enjoy the Formal and celebrations, before setting out on new pathways with many interesting chapters and challenges. Kindergarten to graduating High School is wonderful journey and this Year Group’s warm, inclusive and fun-loving spirit will be very missed. Rabin House would like to commend Years 7 and 8 students who together with our House Captains, Year 12 Tutors, Mrs Udovic, Mr Dean and our Head of House, Mr Rembson, gave thoughtful and caring speeches. Kiara Rosen-Tal’s video presentation brought both laughter and sentimental tears and it was a wonderful moment to share. We wish each of our departing Year 12s the very best and hope that you will let us know how you are going from time to time. Mazal Tov Year 12! You leave a fine legacy behind!

Rabin Year 12 2018

Rabin X-Factor

Rabin House has certainly got talent and the highly anticipated Rabin X-Factor auditions were held last week in the Multi-Purpose Hall. Georgia Meyerowitz, Ariella Tracton and Amber Langman all gave stunning performances and can be very proud of themselves. Each captivated our House and they are skilful and passionate singers. We wait with excitement for next week’s announcement of who will be Rabin House’s X-Factor representative this year. Don’t forget that rehearsals for the small House item have begun and to remember to email our House Captains Tia and Adam if you would like to join.

Ariella Tracton, Amber Langman and Georgia Meyerowitz

It is hard to believe there are only a few more days left of this Term, so make them most of them and enjoy the holidays.

Reminder: We would love to acknowledge your achievements or celebrations. Please remember to email Mr Rembson or the House Captains, Adam Riesel and Tia Mallinick, if you would like to make an announcement or a mention. 

Pitch to the Principal

The SRC invites students to Pitch the Principal

Students were offered the opportunity to redesign parts of our school playground. They were asked to think outside the box and to present their innovative ideas. There were many excellent concepts put forward, and four finalists, Ben Freed, Talia Pollak, Misha Grynberg and Leah Joshua were chosen for the task. 

After much work including surveying students, drawing plans, photographing potential sites and developing multimedia presentation, they were invited to pitch their ideas to Mr Watt and Mrs Milner. Some of the final ideas included a slide, tyre swings and adjustable basketball and netball hoops. All of the finalists’ ideas were accepted. Mr Watt and Mrs Milner invited the four finalists to be part of a working committee to help further develop the playground and incorporate their projects into a master plan.

Leah Joshua, Ben Freed, Talia Pollak and Misha Grynberg

CIS Primary Athletics carnival

Stuart Taylor | PDHPE Teacher

The CIS Primary Athletics carnival was held at Sydney Olympic Park Athletics Centre on 13 September . Emanuel was represented by Jonah Broughton-Oshlack, Ashleigh Gold, Mia Gottlieb, Talia King, Alexander Kirievsky, Joshua Ottaviano and Ella Sherman.

All students participated strongly in their respective events. Mazal tov to Alexander who finished second in the boys 11 years discus event. He will now participate in the PSSA carnival in October.

Alexander Kirievsky – Year 6

K-6 pyjama/movie fundraiser

Marina Akstein – Year 6 Play Leader

Last Friday the Year 6 Charity Leaders together with the Play Leaders organised a fundraiser for the Pyjama Foundation, a charity that helps foster children change the direction of their lives by helping them with their education. Years K-2 watched Sing and Years 3-6 watched Paper Planes. 

The students raised $385.50 which is a terrific effort!

Thank you to Ben Marshall for helping set up the movies.

Year 2 Making a Difference project

Nicole Esra – Primary Teacher

Year 2 students have been very active in our Making a Difference project. It all started last term when we were studying Kids In The Kitchen for our Science topic. We went on an excursion to Our Big Kitchen. When we were there we met George and Shannon who chatted with us about everything they do and how they make a difference in so many people’s lives every single day. All of us felt very motivated from that point on to become involved with such an incredible organisation. We knew that an easy way for us to make a difference would be to implement our 7 habits. This is how we did it:

Being Proactive – We thought about ideas on how we could help Our Big Kitchen to continue their incredibly important work of supporting those in our community less fortunate than us. We spoke to them about coming to their kitchen to help.

Begin With The End In Mind – We decided the best way to help was to have a fundraiser for Our Big Kitchen. If we raised money, then we could donate it to help Our Big Kitchen buy things they need.

First Things First– We discussed the many different things we could do for our fundraiser and decided the best way was to have a Challah Bake Sale. We contacted Our Big Kitchen, shared our idea and made a date to go and bake challah.

Think Win Win – We knew that by having our Challah Bake Sale we would be helping Our Big Kitchen, helping those who are hungry in the community and even helping ourselves feel fantastic by knowing how much we have made a difference in so many people’s lives.

Seek First To Understand and Be Understood – We visited Our Big Kitchen in Term 2 whilst we were studying our Science topic of Kids In The Kitchen. We realised then how there are others in the community much less fortunate than us and how easy it would be to make a difference in their lives.

Synergise – We worked together with Our Big Kitchen and furiously kneaded and shaped dough to make over 200 mini challot for the sale.

Sharpen The Saw – We are now thinking of the next way that we can make a difference!

From our efforts we raised $638 for Our Big Kitchen to continue their highly-valued work.

Year 2 students were also very busy this week as we visited the Imaginarium in the Innovation Centre for five periods on Monday to make instruments with recycled materials. We began this journey by watching the Landfill Harmonic Orchestra. This video focused on a small community in Cateura, Paraguay. They live in a landfill and scrape together recyclable materials to sell to make money. They also salvage what they can to make musical instruments which sound identical to the ones you buy from a shop. Their heart and souls go into this process and it makes the world of difference to their lives. We thought about this a lot and discussed their perseverance and positive attitude in difficult circumstances. This gave us great inspiration and proved to us that you can really do anything if you put your mind to it.

Year 2 decided to collect a variety of recycled materials. We then sat down and planned how we were going to use these materials to make instruments. Our scientific brains kicked in as we discussed how each of the materials could be used to change the volume and/or pitch and help maximise the soundwaves. On Monday morning we followed our plan and some of us realised that things don’t always work out and that you have to be resilient and creative.

In the end, everyone had created a musical instrument which they were proud of. Well done to Year 2!

From the Primary Library

Ginnette Cameron-Gardner, Netty Grant and Norman Stein

Netty Grant – Primary Library Volunteer

This week we celebrated Netty Grant’s 97th birthday.  Netty has been a volunteer for more than 30 years at Emanuel School having worked alongside her husband when the Founders were setting up the School’s current site. She has been volunteering in the Library since the beginning, including assisting with the preparation of all incoming new books. We were first located in what is now The Aron Kleinlehrer Performing Arts Centre and Netty has moved with us over the years into the refurbished Hana Weisz Building which opened as the Maria Tirabosco Library in 2002, and then in 2011 into the new four-level Kleinlehrer Family Science Building which also houses the Primary School Library.

Living near the School at Montefiore Home, Randwick, Netty takes her work in our library seriously and really looks forward to her weekly visits. Netty has such a great sense of humour and a sharp wit. We have heard she’s also an outstanding bridge player in Montefiore! Netty interacts well with the students and staff and we love having her on her volunteer days.

New books in the Primary Library

Many of the students enjoy survival books. We have a large number of this genre including Bear Grylls’ Mission Survival series written for ages 9-11 years which are fast-paced, exciting new adventures full of real survival details.

A new survival series called Horizon with various New York Times authors writing each book in the series, has started to arrive in the Primary Library for Upper Primary students.

#1 in the series is Horizon by Scott Westerfield

“When a plane crash-lands in the Arctic, eight young people step from the wreckage expecting to see nothing but ice and snow. Instead they find themselves lost in a strange jungle with no way to get home and little hope of rescue. Food is running out. Water is scarce. The jungle is full of threats unlike anything the survivors have ever seen before – from razor-beaked shredder birds to carnivorous vines. With danger at every turn, these eight kids must learn to work together to survive.” (Google books.)

#2 in the series is Deadzone by Jennifer A. Nielsen

“Having made it out of the deadly jungle, the survivors emerge into a desert which has its own dangers.”  (Google books.)

#3 in the series is A warp in time by Jude Watson

“Trapped in an otherworldly landscape filled with unnatural dangers, Molly and her friends still reeling from their experiences in the desert, emerge into an eerie blue forest, where they make a startling discovery.

Humans — real live humans — are living in the woods. Like Molly and the others, these young musicians crashed and have been hoping for rescue. At first, both groups seem overjoyed to find each other, but in this place, nothing is what it seems. There’s a chilling secret lurking beneath the cheerful facade of the musicians’ camp.” (Google Books)

This series is reminiscent of 1954 classic novel Lord of the Flies by William Golding in which during wartime evacuation a British plane crashes in the Pacific Ocean and the only survivors are boys who then try to survive on an isolated island. There is a choir who have a leader and the others who are ordinary students. The story details their trying to set rules and make order, the conflict between groups and individuals and their descent into savagery as they vie for leadership.

If you have not read a Survival Fiction book before, give one a try during the holidays.

Kornmehl

Terry Aizen – Director Kornmehl

Parent Involvement

Involving parents and grandparents in the life of our Pre-school adds enormous benefits and value to our program. We work hard to establish collaborative partnerships with families, recognising how important this is for each child to thrive, gain confidence and develop their emotional, social and spiritual well-being.

We invite parents to be a part of this journey through many different and varied avenues.

These include: Parent Club, Parent Partnership forms, Parent surveys, baking and cooking, gardening, Bush School, reading books, sharing a talent or hobby as well as inviting them to have input into our program through suggestions and ideas shared with educators.

Educators recognise that families are children’s first and most influential teachers. Partnerships are based on the foundations of understanding each other’s expectations and attitudes and build on the strength of each other’s knowledge.

It is very clear and evident to see as we approach the end of the third term of the year, how happy and settled the children are, how familiar they are with routines and expectations, how friendships have been established, how much trust each child shares with their educators and how much wonderful learning is taking place through the creative arts, through music and movement, through imaginative play and outdoor explorations. The list is endless…the possibilities endless…the fun and learning endless!

We are thrilled to have parents accompany us on this exciting journey with their children!

Shabbat

This term parents have been joining us for Shabbat each Friday morning when their child is sitting at the Shabbat table. It’s always very special to share Shabbat with parents and extended families. We value this time together. The children always feel so proud and happy to have their mishpacha join us and participate with enthusiasm and joy. This is another way to connect to families and to deepen relationships with them.

Buddy Reading

Each week our Year Two buddies come down to Kornmehl to connect with our children in the Pre-school and to share with them the gift of stories and reading. Many of the Year Two buddies previously attended Kornmehl and it is very exciting for them to be coming back and for us to see how much they have grown and how well they can read. Many of our buddies have siblings at Kornmehl, and this too is another special connection. All in all, our Buddy Reading program has enormous benefits for both parties and is something that we all look forward to each year.

Hebrew

This year we have had the most beautiful interactive and detailed Hebrew lessons with Morah Brocha – Mrs Jemma Lopis. Morah Brocha has made our Hebrew lessons fun, visual with lots of props and extremely interactive. The children have all looked forward to their Hebrew lessons each week and have gained lots of confidence with their Hebrew knowledge and vocabulary.

Sadly, we have to bid farewell to Morah Bracha at the end of next week, as she leaves to go on maternity leave to have her third special baby. We wish Morah Bracha lots of good health, happiness and nachas from the new addition to her family and we will miss our Hebrew lessons with her very much.

We look forward to welcoming Morah Michal Eilon to the Pre-school to continue with our Hebrew program into Term 4.

Happy Birthday

We wish a very happy birthday to Luca Schwartz (5) and Ariella Mervis (5). We hope you both had a very special day.

We wish you all a Chag sameach and a happy Sukkot.

Generation of Emanuel Alumni

Sonia Newell – Development Officer

Next Generation of Emanuel Alumni

It is always a great privilege to share a “first” with our amazing community, and this week we celebrate a milestone “first”.  Yesterday we witnessed the Class of 2018’s final School Assembly and one member of this cohort, Benjamin Dobrin, is the first child of an alumnus to have completed his schooling here at Emanuel from Year K to Year 12.  Benjamin’s father, Greg Dobrin is from the Class of 1990.

Benjamin’s classmate Lauren Faul is also the child of an Emanuel graduate.  Lauren started at the School in Year 7 and her mother Danni Faul (nee Jenner) finished school in 1991. You can see both Danni and Greg in their Year 11 photo taken in 1989 and if you look closely, you will see a few more current parents too – Bryan Narunsky, Nadine Ben-Mayor (nee Weinberger) and Phillip Hakim.

Greg Dobrin (Class of 1990) and Benjamin Dobrin (Class of 2018)

Lauren Faul (Class of 2018) and mother, Danni Faul (Class of 1991)

Breakfast with Emanuel

We look forward to our Breakfast Session next Wednesday morning 26 September when 2 of our inspiring Jewish Studies teachers Kobi Bloom and Daniel Samowitz, who is also an Emanuel alumnus (Class of 2004) will provide us with a fascinating insight into how our students are guided to embrace and foster a love of Judaism that can be sustained throughout their life.  RSVP: snewell@emanuelschool.nsw.edu.au

More Alumni News

Rachel Buch (Class of 2011) has received a residency in Paris for ceramics as part of the National Art School (NAS) international residency program. 2019 is going to be a very busy year for Rachel – she has a residency in Curtin Springs, Northern Territory for 2 weeks, then 3 months residency in Onkaparinga, South Australia before she heads off to Paris at the end of next April to the Onslow Storrier Studio at La Cite Internationale des Arts for 3 months. We wish Rachel Mazal Tov and all the best for these amazing adventures.

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

Breakfast with Emanuel