From the Principal

Andrew Watt – Principal

Only 13 sleeps to the end of the school year – but who is counting? As has been the case all year, our prize presentation events will be ‘special’ or ‘unique’! We have held back as long as possible, to see if restrictions would be eased. Moving forward, we plan to hold the following events:

Primary School Presentations

This year’s K – 2 and 3 – 6 presentation events will be replaced by 2 wonderful websites that will highlight all the elements of what usually happens at these events. You will be able to see photos, recordings and messages from students and staff, musical items, speeches and more. We have chosen this exciting format so that your children can sit with you and your family to enjoy sharing each of the items. It also allows sections to be watched again and again if desired.

High School Presentation

This Year 7 – 12 event will take place on Wednesday 9 December at 2.00 pm, in our Multi-Purpose Hall. This will be a livestreamed event, with all students attending.

Message from White Ribbon Day 

Each year, Emanuel students have joined the community walk from Coogee to Randwick, to mark White Ribbon Day. This year was different. The impact of COVID-19 meant that the walk was no longer viable, but also brought issues of domestic violence to the surface for many Australians. The theme of White Ribbon Day this year was to raise awareness and commit to action to prevent men’s violence against women. Workplaces, schools and communities all over Australia were asked to “stand up, speak out and act to end gendered violence.” Our Year 9/10 stage-based meeting last week (livestreamed to Years 7,8 and 11) featured our first guest speaker in quite a while. Brandon Jack, son of rugby league legend, Gary Jack and previous Sydney Swans player, spoke frankly about his experience of toxic masculinity in a male, competitive team sporting culture. He explained how this harmed men emotionally and physically and how ultimately it can lead to violence against women. He also spoke about how some of his female friends had been impacted by violence and abuse. His presentation, followed by a brief Q&A session, was well received, and was followed up with a program in our Tutor Groups. On Friday, our High School students were asked to wear white, in recognition of White Ribbon Day. Thank you to David Whitcombe, who organised and introduced the guest speaker. Special thanks to Tali Ezekiel and Kim Slender, who planned the week and prepared a very engaging Tutor Group program on this important issue.

Sydney Academy of Chess Inter-Schools’ Competition

Congratulations to our Primary School chess team, who came in first place, on 19 points in the Semi Finals! Our team will now progress to the finals. Congratulations and good luck to Joshua Barnett, Daniel Zipser, Oscar Salek, Max Tsipris, Dylan Vitek, Alexander Gellert and Leah Joshua. Stayed tuned next week for the outcome!

Congratulations also to our Secondary School chess team who finished in 2nd place by 0.5 points, to Killara High School.  Our players represented Emanuel with pride and sportsmanship. Congratulations and commiserations to Daniel Melamed, Joshua Moses, Luca Calderon-Havas, Samuel Moliver, Dan Blecher, Jake Newfield and Amadeus Tjanaria.

Quote of the week

“Without leaps of imagination, or dreaming, we lose the excitement of possibilities. Dreaming, after all, is a form of planning”.
Gloria Steinem

From the Head of Jewish Life

Rabbi Daniel Siegel – Head of Jewish Life

Acquisitive Being

As soon as he enters the world, it is intimated that our patriarch, Ya’akov (Jacob) is an acquisitive being.

Emerging from the womb he is grasping the heel of his brother seeking to take hold of the birthright of the firstborn and its many material benefits. Soon thereafter, he “acquires” the birthright from his older twin sibling, Eisav, for a mere bowl of lentil stew. On the heels of this transaction, he cunningly obtains, from his father, the blessing of the firstborn which promises him the “fat of the earth” and “an abundance of new grain and wine”.

Then, running away from home in attempt to escape his brother’s revenge, in this week’s parashah, VaYetse, he makes a deal with God. If He, henceforth, provides him with food and clothes, he will in return “set aside a tithe” for “all that You give me”.

In his enterprising schemes, Ya’akov makes every attempt to secure and enhance his material wellbeing. But, in his brother-in- law, Lavan, he seems to meet his match. He seeks to acquire Rachel as a bride in exchange for seven years service to Lavan only to find that, instead, he acquired Leah her sister, and must serve an additional seven years for Rachel.

Not to be outdone by the likes of himself, Ya’akov, before leaving Lavan, finds a way to emerge triumphant in acquisition through trickery. By means of manipulating the mating process of his uncle’s flocks, we read that Ya’akov became “exceedingly prosperous” in the ownership of “large flocks as well as maidservants, menservants, camels and asses.” Again, he is forced to flee, but not before explaining to Lavan’s daughters “God has taken away your father’s livestock and given it to me”.

Running from Lavan, Ya’akov then encounters Eisav whose good favour he seeks to acquire by offering a lavish gift of over 550 animals, explaining “God has been gracious to me and I have plenty”.

With his great acquisitions, Ya’akov soon loses much that is dear to him. His beloved Rachel dies in childbirth, her first born and most favoured of Ya’akov, Yoseph, is sold into slavery, his older son, Shim’on is being held captive in Egypt and Binyamin, his youngest is about to be taken from him as well. The money he had given his sons to acquire food in Egypt, due to famine, held no currency, they were all being accused of spies and his material wealth could not be bartered for what he held most dear. In despair he cries out “All this has happened to me”.

As we know, Ya’akov is reunited with his family before he dies. What is remarkable, however, is the response of Ya’akov when he sees the many wagons and animals laden with gifts that is sent his way by Pharaoh, through the agency of Yosef. Seeing this great abundance, we read, “The spirit of Ya’akov their father was revived”.

But, the critical words are those that follow. “Enough”, said Ya’akov. “My son Yosef is still alive”! Ya’akov and his family learned that one cannot acquire but can only foster and nourish what truly counts – unity and love of family.

VaYetse

Jessica Lowy – Year 11

VaYetse

This week’s Torah portion, Parashat VaYetse, is a highly significant source of both Jewish and broader ethical values.

In this portion, Ya’akov makes his way to Charan in an attempt to find family and someone to marry. He places down a rock to use as a pillow and sleeps, dreaming of a ladder connecting earth and heaven, with “angels” ascending and descending. Ya’akov is told that the land he slept on will eventually belong to his children. He raises the rock into an altar which he calls Beit El, “The House of God”.

When he reaches Charan, Ya’akov stays with his uncle Lavan, working for him and tending to his sheep. Lavan agrees to allow Ya’akov to marry his daughter Rachel, in return for seven years of labour. However, on the day of their wedding Laban decides to swap Rachel with his elder daughter Leah without Jacob’s knowledge. Ya’akov only discovers this deception in the morning, after already having married Leah. He agrees to work for an extra seven years in order to marry his love, Rachel.

Leah and Ya’akov have six sons and a daughter together – Reuven, Shim’on, Levi, Yehudah, Yissachar, Zevulun and Dinah, respectively. However, Rachel is barren and becomes jealous of her sister’s pregnancies. Rachel offers Ya’akov her handmaid, Bilhah, to bear children for them, and together Ya’akov and Bilhah have two sons. Leah’s handmaid, Zilpah, gives birth to two more of Ya’akovs sons. Finally, Rachel gives birth to her own son, Yoseph (and later Binyamin), and her prayers are answered.

I was personally quite angered by Lavan’s deliberate misstep from his agreement with Ya’akov. Perhaps my disapproval is a product of modern values; after all, maybe it was fairly reasonable decades or centuries ago to swap out the wife of a husband to somebody else without their knowledge. But I doubt it, and even if that is the case, I believe his actions are completely immoral. Ya’akov’s strong love for Rachel was exploited to completely manipulate him into working for Lavan for seven more years. It breaks all modern concepts of justice and righteousness; the idea of a contract stems from the belief that the terms of an agreement should be made clear to both parties and followed, promoting honesty and integrity.

In addition, the parashah raises several questions about the concept of surrogacy which are highly relevant to our world today: Who is considered the real mother, legally, ethically and socially? Is motherhood determined by birth or genetics? If using traditional surrogacy, where the surrogate’s eggs are used (the case of all pregnancies with handmaids in the parashah), the surrogate fulfils both criteria – is it then care and child-rearing that labels one a true mother? Is this not the philosophy behind adoption?

Whilst this parashah doesn’t explore these questions in depth, it offers a reference for such discussions, which I believe is highly valuable.

Ma Koreh

Adam Carpenter – Head of Jewish Life Primary

COVID travel restrictions have not stopped Year 3 students from planning a family holiday in Israel. 

This term in Jewish Studies they have been learning about Israel, its land and geography, its people and special places.

For this task, they have been using tourist websites in Israel and their own knowledge to plan their holiday in Israel and to meet certain requirements, including:

• Experiencing Israel as a modern country, an ancient land and a holy land
• Celebrating Shabbat in Jerusalem
• Visiting the places that the Year 3 classes are named after – Akko and Caesarea  
• Spending time outdoors enjoying Israel’s special environment
• Touring Israel from north to south

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Primary

Natanya Milner – Head of Primary School

Emma Buzo

We are sad to announce that Emma Buzo has resigned and will be leaving Emanuel at the end of this year. After seven years, we will miss Emma as both a wonderful classroom teacher and an incredible Director of our end of year musicals. I have been grateful for her dedication and creativity in all that she does. I wish Emma all the very best for the next step in her journey and hope she will keep in touch with her Emanuel family.

End of the Year

As we head towards the end of the year, I thought I would offer some reminders for the upcoming dates and events. It is a busy time ahead and we are excited to share these events with the students.

Triguboff Courtyard Play Equipment

I am so excited to see the new play equipment being built in the Triguboff playground over the school holidays. We will begin next year with many new play opportunities for our Primary School students and I am sure they will love it.

Thank you to the Board and the Parents & Friends for their support and funding towards this project! Look out for photos at the beginning of 2021!

From the Art Leaders

Art Leaders 2020

It has been so rewarding being the Art Leaders for 2020. We have held a number of art clubs this year, with a variety of different art techniques and mediums. Students have joined in from Years 3 – 6 and tried things that they have never done before. An example of this was the Gudetama – the lazy egg. 

On a personal level, Jessica really enjoyed working with the younger years and it helped her to understand how to explain processes. Elke felt that it gave the younger students extra time to do art, which is always a good thing. Leo enjoyed watching how other students did things to learn new styles and ideas for his own artistic endeavours.

We really enjoyed the role and it will be interesting to see how future years take it on and shape this responsibility.

By Tehya Miller, Elke Selinger, Leo Masnick, Jessica Hart
Year 6 Art Leaders

Primary School Chess

From the Primary School Chess Leaders

In recent years, Emanuel has developed a strong Chess culture, with four teams competing at different levels in Inter-school competitions. Emanuel has a great reputation amongst junior Chess players around NSW and even Australia. In November last year, the Emanuel A Chess Team proudly represented the School in the National Championships in Canberra, and placed fourth. 

So, we were very excited to be the Chess Leaders for 2020 and to have a chance to spread our enthusiasm for Chess at Emanuel.  

Daily Chess Club 

Throughout the year, the Chess Leaders hold lunchtime Chess sessions every day of the week, except Thursdays. All ages and levels are always welcome at these sessions where the Chess Leaders and members of the A and B teams play games and teach new and junior players at their own levels. 

Chess in the time of COVID-19 

During Term 2, many of the Chess tournaments that we normally participate in were cancelled. Keen players were disappointed, but took the opportunity to keep up their Chess practice. With lots of students having fewer extra-curricular activities, the Chess Leaders encouraged students to use their free time to improve their Chess. We recommend https://www.chesskid.com and https://www.chess.com as great websites for students to use. 

Inter-school Chess Tournament

Sadly, the Australian Junior Chess Championship that we love and do so well at was severely impacted in 2020. Emanuel had entered two teams, and played the first round against St Therese Mascot. Our A team won and our B team drew. Unfortunately, the matches were cancelled after that and we did not have the chance to repeat last year’s success as the NSW champions. 

Emanuel Queens

In Term 1, the Chess Leaders introduced a new program called the Emanuel Queens, which is aimed at encouraging more Emanuel girls to play Chess. We hope that this program grows and attracts lots of girls in Years 3 – 5. We hope that next year’s leaders will be able to select an all-girls team that can compete in some of the girls only Inter-school Chess Competitions in 2021. Girls – don’t be afraid to give Chess a try! Come to Miss Elkins’ office at lunchtime on any day (except Thursday) and discover whether Chess is the game for you. All levels are welcome.

Next Generation 

As we will be going to High School in 2021, we really hope that next year’s leaders will be able to identify strong Chess players, particularly in Years 3 – 5 who can form the next Emanuel A and B teams, to compete in the many Inter-school competitions that are held each year. So, even if you have not played before, come to a lunchtime session and give it a try. You may find something that will be your lifelong passion. 

By Daniel Zipser, Joshua Barnett, Max Tsipris, Oscar Salek
Year 6 Chess Leaders

From the K – 2 Play Leaders

From the K – 2 Play Leaders

At the end of Year 5, we got our Leadership roles. We were all excited to be K – 2 Play Leaders. We have enjoyed lots of things such as Gratitude days, helping with Year 1 and playing with the Kindergartens making some of our best memories this year. We will look back at the time we have spent in this Leadership role with pride and happiness. 

We will all miss being K – 2 Play Leaders and helping the Primary School. Our wish for the future K – 2 Play Leaders is that they have a fun time working with the younger students to help them make friends and play in the playground correctly. Our collective message to them is to make the most out of this experience because it is one of the best parts of being a Year 6 student. 

• ‘It doesn’t matter which Leadership role you’re in, just have fun.’ Jamie
• ‘I am so grateful that I was a K – 2 Play Leader.’ Yael
• ‘Being a K – 2 Play Leader has made me appreciate the young children around me.’ Declan 

By Jonathan Goldberg, Sam Dworkin, Declan Christie, David Miller, Josephine Miron, Jamie Nabarro, Ben Diamond and Maya Hersh. 
2020 K – 2 Play Leaders

Kornmehl

Terry Aizen – Director of Kornmehl

What our Security Guards do

With the end of the year approaching we spoke to the children about the role that the security guards play at Pre-school and how we can thank them for the work that they do:

Talia: Max and Archie take care of our school. If anybody comes in, they protect us.
Ari: If they don’t know a Mummy or Dad, they stop and them and ask who they are, so they can get used to each other.
Kayla: They make sure nothing bad happens to the cars and help the people know what to do.
Phoebe: They make sure no one gets hurt. They make sure cars can come in safely. They keep us safe because we might get hurt or injured if a stranger comes in.
Koben: So, when the kids come in, they make sure they don’t get hit by a car. They protect us when we are going to Bush School.
Liam: They keep us safe. If you don’t have an orange 2020 sign on your car, you can’t come in.
Cian: They keep us safe and protect us.
Kirra: They look at the people in the cars and look out for the parents and children.
Abi: They look after the people that are parked inside
Zola: They make sure no baddies come in. They protect the kids. Thank you for keeping us safe.
Levi W: Thank you for helping us and looking after the cars.
Miles: They are for security. They open the fence to let the cars out and in. They look after all of us. Thank you for helping us in the car park. I hope you have a lovely year.
Rafi L: Thank you for looking after us. Thanks for being our security guards.
Julian: Thank you for protecting our school.

Video Stories

This term, parents were invited to record themselves reading a story to the children. This was a way we could bring families into the pre-school to connect with the children. Videos were sent in and showed to the respective groups on the big screen. There were mixed emotions and reactions from the children, but on the whole, they were elated, very proud and happy to see their family involved in reading a story to the group. 

Levi’s story was Pig the Winner, which was read by Levi’s mum Leah. When the video started to play Levi said “I am embarrassed, but it made me happy. I was a bit shy too”. After saying that Levi had big smiles while mum was reading and a few little giggles too.
Talia’s story was The Giving Tree, which was read by Talia’s mum Ella. Talia was quiet during the reading, but the kids were so excited as they loved the story. This story evokes many emotions and feelings. Talia felt a bit overwhelmed with the story. She became emotional as Mum was reading it. What a special story to share with the group.
Talia: I felt excited because I saw mummy, I was also happy, shy and scared. I liked the book.
Koben’s story was Are you my mother? The story was read by Naomi, Koben’s mum and Zella his sister, with a cameo appearance from Koben himself reading parts of the book. There were lots of giggles throughout the reading of the book especially with the snorting, that was a big hit. 

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Concerts 

This week all three groups performed their concert at Pre-school virtually. The concerts were videoed and will be shown to families via a YouTube link before the end of the year. The build up to the concerts was exciting and the children were involved in selecting the songs they wanted to sing and making props for their songs. The songs were fun and interactive, including using musical instruments and a mix of Jewish, Aboriginal and other songs. The children were all confident and participated beautifully on the day. We did not have any tears or children feeling overwhelmed by having their parents in a live audience. It was lovely to see how they all participated so enthusiastically. We can’t wait to show it to families, who will now have the concerts as a reminder for many years to come.

Thank you to Mr Edward Smith and Mr Ben Marshall from the IT department for their time and expertise on the day in recording and editing the concerts ready for distribution.Thank you to the educators for all the hard work they put into preparing the children for the day.

Bush School Family Picnics

This week on Wednesday and Friday, the Starfish and Dolphin families were invited to join us at Bush School for our final visit of the year. It was very special to be able to include families in our Bush School experiences for the first time this year. The children were equally excited and delighted in showing their families around our Bush School classroom, how they can climb trees and look for bugs in the dirt.

Thank you to all the parents who gave up their time to join us. Next week on Tuesday, the Seashell families will join us at Bush School for their visit.

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Happy Birthday

We wish a very happy birthday to Uriel Stein (4), Oliver Frank (5), Talia Lizor (5), Rafi Silvera (4) and Elisa Lavecky (4),  We hope you had a special birthday.

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Preventing genetic diseases

Sonia Newell – Development Officer – Alumni & Community Relations

Mazal Tov

Shana Kerlander

Emanuel parent, Shana Kerlander, mother of Year 7 student Jack Fridman, has just been awarded this year’s annual President’s Award, for her work as CEO of Mandelbaum House. Read the full story.

Preventing genetic diseases

An article in last week’s AJN highlights just how far the Community Genetics Program (CGP), a collaboration between Wolper Jewish Hospital and NSW Health Pathology, has come in screening for genetic diseases over the past 25 years. The OneScreen Community Genomics Study conducted by the Garvan Institute of Medical Research’s Kinghorn Centre for Clinical Genomics in collaboration with Wolper and NSW Health, will run alongside the existing screening programs involving our students and those at all Sydney Jewish High Schools and Reddam House. The study will determine whether DNA analysis for more genetic conditions would benefit individuals and their families. Emanuel parent and alumna Associate Professor Sarah Kummerfeld (Class of 1997) is the Scientific Head of the Centre, and she says that although it will take at least three years before this research could be implemented into clinical practice, by conducting the study, “we can work out the kinks” and understand how the genetic information can be used effectively. 

New life

Betty Levy with her daughter Janine Davidowitz

Most of us take it for granted that if we want to have children we will. For some however, that is not the case. One in six couples in Australia understand the heartbreak of infertility whilst one in 20 Australian babies are born as a result of IVF – that is one in every classroom. The Australian Jewish Fertility Network (AJFN) was set up in 2006 to help provide financial and emotional support to Jewish couples struggling to achieve their dreams of having a baby. AJFN recently screened a free online event, Stories of the Soul which included a mini-documentary following the IVF journey of Janine and Shimon Davidowitz. There seems to be an Emanuel connection with so much in our community. Janine’s mother, Betty Levy came to Emanuel School mid-way through 1987 as a Commerce teacher and later became Co-ordinator of HSIE and Careers Advisor until she left 10 years later in 1997. Betty was always keen to hear about the School and her students and she attended a number of alumni reunions over the years after she left. Sadly, Betty passed away on 24 November 2015, just two days after Janine and Shimon’s wedding. Loren Finger, Development Manager of AJFN was a student here for four years in Primary School and is married to alumnus Adam Finger (Class of 2001) whose sister Samantha Butt (Class of 1998) is a current parent and Betty Levy was one of her teachers. Small world! Other Emanuel connections with AJFN include current parents Gabbie Budai, Leigh Goldberg, Amy Friedlander, alumni Leanne Kawalsky, Kate Samowitz and Sarah Robuck also a current parent, who are all Committee members.

B’nai B’rith & JNF Jewish Changemakers Awards 2020

Nominations have now closed for these wonderful awards that recognise and honour the volunteering efforts of Australian youth and young adults. We wish our Emanuel student and alumni nominees the best of luck, and we thank you all for your volunteering efforts: Ezra Hersch, Chloe Miller, Ari Merten, Liat Granot, Lara Fosbery, Sarah Manoy, Joshua Moses, Nadia Coburn and Julia Sussman.

Please keep 14 December 2020 at 8.00 pm free for Live Panel Discussion and Awards. Julia is one of the panelists at this event. The Zoom link will be sent on registration.

Friendship Circle (FC) needs your children

It’s that time of year again with Friendship Circle Day Camp just around the corner, and they are seeking teen volunteers who are Year 7 to Year 12 students. This is an amazing opportunity for your children to volunteer their time helping children and teenagers with disabilities who will attend this day camp from the 18 January 2021 to the 22 January 2021, based at North Shore Synagogue, Lindfield. There will be free transport available from Bondi by Telfords Bus to Lindfield and then back to Bondi at the end of each day. FC will have a COVID-19 Safety Plan in place.

Find more information here     

If you have photos and/or news to share, please send them to: snewell@emanuelschool.nsw.edu.au

Stay safe and Shabbat Shalom.

WIZO fundraiser

On Wednesday 25 November 2020 the Primary School Charity Leaders ran an event to support WIZO (Women’s International Zionist Organisation). The whole of the Primary School completed fun morning activities including search-a-word and a colouring competition and looked like a sea of blue and white as students supported this worthy cause and helped acknowledged 100 years of WIZO. WIZO was founded in 1920 in direct response to the needs of women and children in Israel. Today, WIZO continues to identify the needs of Israeli society and creates solutions to meet them. The Charity Leaders also collected donations from students and will send this money onto WIZO to help them continue their great work for children and youth in Israel.

By Madison Narunsky, Kayla Parks and Jemma Drutman
Charity Leaders 

Blue and white were the colours of the day

Music Matters

Diana Springford – Head of Music

Instrument Maintenance Check Day

Tuesday 1 December 2020

If you are borrowing any school instrument (for IP, for ISP, or for your ensemble playing) please bring it into the Music Department by 8.15 am on Tuesday 1 December 2020 to be checked and serviced by our team. Regrettably, any instruments which are not serviced in our maintenance check will need to be taken by parents to be serviced at a music shop at their own expense. Please pick your instrument up on Thursday, unless you get an email from us or are returning it permanently. Instruments should be clean and have a student name tag attached with the instrument barcode on the reverse. If this name tag is missing, please ask Mrs De Araujo in the music staffroom to label it for you.

Private Music Tuition and Infant Strings Program for 2021

Please note that from 2021 the cost of individual private music lessons will be charged at a rate of $46.00 per half-hour lesson (plus GST, if the tutor is registered to pay GST). This is the rate advised by the NSW Music Teachers Association. Lessons shared in pairs are only available in special circumstances and would cost $24.00 per student per half-hour lesson (plus GST where applicable). The Infant Strings Program (ISP) for students in Years K – 2 will be charged at $262.00 per term on school fees, in addition to an instrument bond of $200.00 which is fully refundable on safe return of the instrument with all parts and accessories.

 Thank you to those who have already advised us of changes to private tuition and Infant Strings Program enrolments for next year. The deadline for new enrolments, notification of changes or intention to discontinue for Term 1, 2021 has now passed. All students currently receiving private music tuition and students in Years K – 1 who are currently participating in the Infant Strings Program will be automatically re-enrolled into tutor schedules for 2021, along with students commencing lessons for the first time. Parents should enrol or discontinue using one of the online forms accessed from the links below. If your child intends to discontinue, formal notification in advance must be received by the end of the term to avoid being committed to the full term of lessons and liable for fees. Please contact Matilda Grieve if you have any questions about private music tuition.

The schedules for Term 1, 2021 will be created at the end of term and emailed in late January.

Links to online forms  

• New enrolment requests for private tuition
• To discontinue private tuition
• To enrol into the K-2 Infant Strings Program (ISP)
• To discontinue Infant Strings Program (ISP)

Careers

Claire Pech – Careers Advisor

As we get closer to the end of term, and therefore results, ATAR’s, preferences closing and tertiary places being released there are some very valuable resources available for the Class of 2020 and their parents.

“Let’s Chat” from UAC – Offers and preferences

This video answers questions regarding offers and preferences. This is a great resource and explains the offer rounds clearly to both students and parents. Other videos from the UAC on all aspects of the UAC process can be found here. Students must take the responsibility to now track all dates and manage their applications. 

Free Summer Courses

For the Class of 2020, there are over 20 short courses available to them for free. All NSW 2020 Year 12 school leavers can enrol in Summer Skills training courses over the summer period. Places are limited so book in and call 132811 to find out where training is taking place near you or read more about the Summer Skills program.

Five Quizzes that help you narrow down your Uni preference choices

Here are 5 great quizzes if you want to narrow down the STEM field to see which one is the best suited to your interests. If you want to figure out which area in the IT sector interests you, t which Science subject you should specialise in, which area of Engineering is the right path for you or which Maths sub division you should specialise in then this website is for you. There are also lots of alternative pathways that don’t involve heading to University.

Why choose a Double Degree?

Most students who know me, know that I often push this option to keep all options open for the future. Some universities offer their own combinations; others may allow you to choose a combination of your choice, and some also allow you to do an Undergraduate Degree mixed with a joint Masters Level Degree at the same time. For more choices click here.

Find out which occupations have skills shortages

The Department of Employment, Skills, Small and Family Business (formerly Department of Jobs and Small Business) carries out research to identify skill shortages in the Australian labour market. Their findings can be found here and state based shortages can also be accessed here

Labour market information portal 

The Labour Market Information Portal is an online resource of the National Skills Commission that brings together data, reports and insights to help you better understand your local labour market and key employment trends.

Explore your options at UTS Info Days

18 December 2020 and 19 December 2020

These information days are being held for students who will have received their results and are trying to make that final decision. Students can attend in person and online.

Summer Holiday Basketball Camp

Indiana Faithful – Head of Basketball

Summer Holiday Basketball Camp

The Emanuel Basketball Program will be holding a Basketball Camp for Emanuel Students during the summer holidays.

The Camp will be held from Monday 18 January 2021 – Wednesday 20 January 2021

• Session One (9.00 am – 11.00 am) of each day will be dedicated to all Emanuel Students from Years 4 – 6. The focus of these sessions will be skill development in a game sense approach. All students are welcome to attend and no prior basketball experience is required!
• Session Two (11.30 am – 1.30 pm) of each day will be dedicated for all Emanuel Students from Years 7 – 9. The focus of these sessions again will be skill development in a game sense approach. All students are welcome to attend.
• Session Three (2.00 pm – 4.30 pm) of each day will be dedicated for the Emanuel Elite Squad (invitation only).

All of these sessions will be held at Perry Park Recreation Centre. Address: Bourke Rd & Maddox St, Alexandria NSW 2015.

For registration details and enquiries please email Indiana Faithfull – Head of Basketball.

Rashi Times

Aden Hoenig and Aaron Lemberg

Rashi has been participating in various activities, both within the House and in competition with the others. Interhouse Debating kicked off in Week 6 with our Year 7 team playing the other Houses and in Week 7 our Year 9 team took part. The Year 12s will be competing early Term 1 2021. 

Meanwhile, Futsal competitions have been occurring weekly and Rashi has continued to dominate the field, with the Year 10s once again finishing without a loss, following the Year 12 team. Rashi is leading the charge in Futsal and finals will take place later this term, where we will secure the win. 

Rashi also had our first House assembly in some one billion years, playing trivia and eating copious amounts of Freddos. We also participated in a second House assembly where we played some interactive games with the whole House and spoke about animal week.

Expecting big things, Rashi! There is much planned for 2021.

Endangered Animals

Zac Levenson – Year 12

Endangered Animals

What do these three pictures have in common? These three incredible Australian animals, the Black-flanked rock wallaby, the Gouldian Finch and the Northern Quoll are all endangered. 

Black-flanked rock wallaby

Gouldian Finch

Northern Quoll

Since the arrival of the British settlers in 1788, there has been huge destruction of wildlife to make way for urban infrastructure. In fact, the Eastern Suburbs was once predominantly mangrove forest but this terrain is almost entirely gone. This destruction has caused major problems for native species since then due to habitat loss and the effects of industrialisation in the form of global warming. That is without mentioning the poaching of various animals like the Tasmanian Tiger and introduction of pests like foxes, rabbits and cane toads which have devastated local species.

Evidently, we have a bad track record with wildlife and while some improvements have been made in the last twenty years with increased governmental and NGO investment in protecting endangered wildlife and species, events like the recent bushfires have caused major damage.

Unfortunately, 2020 has been one of the most hectic years we’ve ever experienced and so many of us have forgotten about the mass devastation of these bushfires. However, we should be aware of the deadly consequences of this event.

The Australian bushfires spanned from June 2019 to May 2020 and caused cataclysmic damage, not just to people and houses, but also to trees and animals. Over 20% of all forest terrain was burnt, an area of about 11.49 million hectares (size of UK)

The WWF declared the bushfires as one of the “worst wildlife disasters in modern history” with an estimated 3 billion animals being killed

This is not like the events of the British invasion 250 years ago. These numbers have occurred in the last year and our actions over the next five years are vitally important in helping replanting wildlife and helping endangered species.

This raises the question – what can we do to help?

While tasks as extensive as this may seem too extensive and intimidating for some, there are a few things we can be doing to really support Australian wildlife and stop species from becoming extinct:

1. Stay informed! Become educated and be vocal. Find news sources and websites like https://www.australianwildlife.org/news/ that show both positive and negative news about Australian wildlife. It is also important to spread awareness of the devastation and need for support for many of our beloved Australian species
2. Become more sustainable! Be more conscious of our carbon footprint and the waste we produce. By doing so, even on a small scale, we are limiting the effects of global warming and pollution on the environment and particularly endangered animals
3. The best way to support this important issue is with time or money. There are many incredible charities which work to protect endangered species as well as looking after nature parks and rivers:

1. 1. • WWF Australia
      • Nature Conservation Council
      • Humane Society International
      • Birdlife
      • And Australian Wildlife Conservancy, which we raised money for today with an animal themed mufti day.

Writers’ Awards 2020

David Camp – Head of English/Library & Year 11 Tutor

‘Writing is its own reward’
– Henry Miller

We’ve come to that time of the year again – The Emanuel School Writers’ Awards.

Each year, in the High School, we recognise the wonderful written work that our students do throughout the year, either for school or for external writing competitions, or just for fun. This year, the glitzy Presentation Evening has had to be cancelled in favour of an even more glitzy website!

Our Emanuel School Writers’ Awards 2020 website contains a virtual treasure trove of amazing writing from our nominees for Emanuel School’s Writer of the Year. Each nominee has work on display and the work from our talented English Extension 2 students is also on display.

If you are only interested in who won the awards, then the website is also for you – the winners of our Most Dedicated Awards and Writer of the Year Awards are announced on the website!

Click here for the website or copy and paste the address below into a browser: https://sites.google.com/emanuelschool.nsw.edu.au/writersawards2020

Please note that although the website does work on mobile, the best experience can be gained when viewing on a computer.

Happy reading!

Speech Afternoon invite

Gifted & Talented – Chess

Colleen Elkins – Gifted and Talented Coordinator K – 6

Chess

On Friday 20 November 2020, our Primary and High School Chess teams participated in the Sydney Academy of Chess Inter-schools’ semi-finals. Both teams qualified for this round, in the local heat played earlier this year.

Well done to all students for their tenacity, resilience when technology was less reliable than it could have been and for representing Emanuel School with pride.

Our High School team came in second, just behind the winning team.

Our Primary School team came in first, qualifying them for the finals on 4 December 2020.

Congratulations to the team and best of luck for the finals!

Chess

Chess 2

Scholarships 2022

Happy Holiday Reading

The Primary Library is allowing students to borrow books over the long vacation.

If you are travelling interstate or into regional New South Wales perhaps the books would be safer at home, but you are encouraged to read for pleasure over this vacation.

We have a huge Fiction Collection as well as many craft books in the Non-Fiction Collection.

Happy Holidays.

Ginette Cameron-Gardner
Primary Teacher Librarian

Community Notices

Parents and Friends

Ruby Berkovic & Jen Opit

Hi Everyone,

The countdown to the end of the year is on!

Parents & Friends Meetings

Our last Parents & Friends Meeting of the year is next week on Tuesday 1 December 2020. It’s a great, and easy, way to get involved in the School and everyone is welcome. This meeting will be the first one held in person, rather than on Zoom, since the beginning of the school year.

It will be held at a private residence so if you would like more information on attending, please contact us: rubykb@gmail.com

We always love to have new members of the Parents & Friends so please come join us and bring friends!

Entertainment Books

If you want to order an Entertainment Book, you can do so here   

Weekend Brain Teaser

Question: The number 8,549,176,320 is a unique number. What is so special about it?

Have a great weekend and enjoy the warm weather,

Jen & Ruby

Recipe of the Week

Each week we’ll bring you a tasty recipe passed down by Emanuel families, from the Emanuel School Community Cookbook, The Family Meal. 

From the kitchen of Isaac and Nathan Shammay

Bread Salad

Ingredients

2 large handfuls of rocket
125g cream cheese block
400g orange grape tomatoes
1 large avocado
1 loaf Turkish bread
1 clove of garlic, chopped
Zest of 1 lemon
1/8 cup olive oil
1/8 cup of balsamic vinegar
Olive oil spray

Directions

Turn on oven to 200⁰C fan forced.
Cut cream cheese block into small 1cm cubes.
Sprinkle on garlic and lemon zest.
Spray with oil and cook in oven for 10 minutes.
Cut Turkish bread into small chunks, about 2cm cubed.
Put on tray and spray with oil.
Turn over to grill and toast for about 3 minutes or until golden brown.
Cut grape tomatoes in half and cut avocado into slices.
Shake olive oil and balsamic vinegar in a jar.
Assemble toasted Turkish bread, cream cheese blocks, washed rocket, tomatoes and avocado in large salad bowl.
Dress with olive oil and balsamic vinegar and toss to combine.

Serves 4 

You can order the Emanuel School Community Cookbook, The Family Meal by contacting rubykb@gmail.com