Volume 31 Issue 4 - 25 Feb 2022

From the Principal

Andrew Watt – Principal

The darker side of social media

Many of our young people are prolific users of social media for entertainment, ranging from gaming, chats, posts, photo and video sharing, and streaming services. TikTok, Snapchat, Instagram, YouTube, WhatsApp, Twitter, Kik and Pinterest are currently the most popular Apps. If unsupervised and left to their own devices, parents run the risk of their children accessing pornography or being exposed to online predators. Paul Dillon, Director of Drug and Alcohol Research Australia (DARTA), recently shared with parents the growing adolescent phenomenon of both gambling and sourcing recreational drugs through social media. Perhaps the most common online threat, however, is cyberbullying, where children can be exposed to abusive texts and emails, hurtful messages, images, or videos, imitating others online, excluding others online, humiliating others online, spreading nasty online gossip and chat and creating fake accounts to trick someone or humiliate them. Cyberbullying has been likened to an adolescent pandemic, a virus that has infected our young people

Recent data from Headspace National Youth Mental Health Foundation reveals more than half of young Australians (53%) have experienced cyberbullying, indicating that bullying in an online context is very prevalent among young people. Seventy percent of young people with high and very high rates of psychological distress also said they have experienced cyberbullying, revealing a strong link between these events and the young person’s mental state.

At High School Assembly this week, I posed a question to our students: Are you going to be part of the problem or part of the solution? Despite our best efforts, we often deal with cases of cyberbullying. Hurtful and offensive messages have a significant impact on the wellbeing of the recipient, particularly when exposed on an ongoing basis, 24/7.

Our students are encouraged to be:

  • Respectful – considerate of others when they are online
  • Kind – while online; being a positive role model
  • Prepared to ask for help – reaching out to friends, family, or authorities if something goes wrong online
  • Safe – trying to avoid situations that pose risks to themselves or others online
  • Responsible – thinking about how their actions online might affect others

The School remains committed to educating our students on responsible social media use, encouraging them to be proactive and courageous upstanders, who show support and speak up, rather than bystanders who stand on the sidelines and watch.

Encore HSC Music Showcase – Guy Rein

I was privileged to join our Music Department and a group of Elective Music (Years10-12) students to attend Encore 2021 at the City Recital Hall. This special event showcased a series of outstanding HSC Music performances, featuring solo and ensemble vocal and instrumental performances and compositions. We watched with awe the performances of talented musicians, including our very own Guy Rein. Guy performed in a saxophone quartet: Quatuor Pour Saxaphones Movement 3, by Desenclos.

Mazal tov to Guy and to Diana Springford, for her support. We hope that over the coming years, making our way to the City Recital Hall in February will become a familiar routine!

 

Keeping our young people safe – recreational drug use

This week, Paul Dillon (Director of DARTA), presented to Year 10,11,12, High School staff and parents. Paul’s presentation dealt with the important issue of keeping young people safe during their teenage years. Paul addressed healthy and unhealthy risk taking, alcohol use, vaping, and the use of other illicit drugs. He also provided relevant research, trends and statistics about risk taking behaviours in young people.

Students were given valuable tips and strategies to keep themselves and their friends safe at parties and gatherings throughout their teenage years. Staff were informed about the key issues that are on the rise for young people. Parents were provided with up-to-date statistics about the use of alcohol and other drugs and what strategies the research shows are effective in keeping young people safe when socialising during these years. Paul’s presentations to students, staff and parents are a communal approach, which we know is the most effective strategy to keep young people safe.

Year 6 Leadership Camp

This week marked the start of our Year 6 Leadership journey, where students participated in engaging and interactive sessions that supported them to discover and develop the leader inside them. Students unpacked what leadership is all about in sessions ran by Burn Bright, overcame obstacles in an Amazing Race at Sydney Olympic Park and connected to each other and the community through Jewish Life activities on the Basketball courts.

This 3-day event is only the beginning of the journey, and we expect to see many more amazing things from the Year 6 students as they apply the lessons that they have learned to their leadership roles in the year ahead. 

Lewy Saul with Mr Watt

Mazal Tov

  • We were delighted to present Lewy Saul  with his Year 10 Mensch Award, left over from our 2021 Annual Presentation of Awards event, in my office. Parents and extended family are very proud!
  • Congratulations to the following students on their selection to represent Emanuel at CIS Sporting events:
    Cooper Rosen (Year 5): Selected to attend the CIS Basketball Trials
    Jonah Trope (Year 12): Selected to attend the CIS Cricket Trials
    Luca Calderon-Havas (Year 12): Selected to attend the CIS Tennis Championships

Quote of the Week

“A leader is one who knows the way, goes the way, and shows the way”.
John C. Maxwell

 

 

From the Head of Jewish Life (acting)

Daphna Levin-Kahn – Head of Jewish Studies High School

Moved by Purpose, by the Wise-Hearted
(Vayakhel, Shemot, Chapter 35 ויקהל)

The time has come for Moshe to galvanise the materials and workforce to build the Mishkan, the mobile desert temple, in all its intricate detail and regal glory.

How was he to get this to happen, especially to a level of accuracy, grandeur and holiness as would befit God’s Presence?

It would make sense at this time for Moshe to levy taxes to acquire the myriad of precious metals, stones, materials and wood, and to set up training schools to ensure he had the right people with the required skills.

Incredibly, neither of these becomes necessary. What takes place instead is a flood of voluntary donations of treasured items and materials from all parts of the community, including both men and women, (to the extent that they had to be asked to stop!) and an unbridled enthusiasm for being involved hands-on in all manner of craftmanship.

When reading the Hebrew verses in Chapter 35, a seemingly superfluous word ״לב״, “lev” (heart) is seen repeatedly connected to the wordsחכם  hakham (wise) or נדיב nadiv (charitable or generous), for example: נדיב-לב, חכמת-לב / חכם-לב, אשר נשא לבו. This just begs us to wonder why.

To best guide us in understanding the juxtaposition of these words, it helps to explore several different translation-interpretations:

Example Torah Texts

Eitz Hayim Torah & Commentary, JPS translation

The Five Books of Moses by Robert Alter

The Schocken Bible; the Five Books of Moses by Everett Fox

כׇּל־אִ֖ישׁ אֲשֶׁר־נְשָׂא֣וֹ לִבּ֑וֹ 21.

 

Everyone who excelled in ability

Whoever’s heart moved/urged him…

Whose mind uplifted him…

25. וְכׇל־אִשָּׁ֥ה חַכְמַת־לֵ֖ב

 

And all the skilled women

All the wise-hearted women

All the women of willing mind / wise of mind

29. אֲשֶׁ֨ר נָדַ֣ב לִבָּם֮

 

…who excelled in that skill

…whose hearts moved them with wisdom

…whose mind made them willing

Additional interpretive comments from these books:

“The Hebrew חכמת-לב (hokhmat-lev) translated as “skilled” literally means “wise-hearted”. A Hasidic master comments, “Wisdom of the mind alone, without wisdom of the heart, is worthless” (Aaron of Karlin).”

“as before, the wisdom (hokhmah) in question slides from the notion of insight or intelligence to skill in a craft…”

 

Which sounds best to you?

The Jewish People are almost desperate to outpour their devotion and commitment by giving from their heart, as their soul moves them – no need for coercion. The Mishkan itself is built not by the trained elite, but by “ordinary” men AND women, those who already possess those gifts and talents, wisdom and skill at creating beautiful handiworks, so that the Mishkan, the place where God will connect with the people before they reach their destination, was built from and by the people, for the people and for God.

One of the books each staff member received as a generous (wise-hearted) gift from the School Board at the end of last year was the light-hearted yet thoughtful ‘Happy & Other Ridiculous Aspirations’ by the inspirational Turia Pitt. I happened to read the following (pages 199-201) this past weekend as I was also thinking about this Parasha. This excerpt is from an interview Turia conducted with Marie Forleo, entrepreneur and author of the number-one New York Times bestseller ‘Everything Is Figureoutable’.

Turia: Do you happen to have any thoughts on how happiness and purpose work together?

Marie: I actually think the concept of ‘finding your purpose’ can keep people navel-gazing and lost. I’d rather people start taking action and find a way to be of service to others. To get moving. I usually talk about sharing your gifts and contribution. We all want to feel useful in life, as though we’re somehow making a difference… When…you’re fully immersed in helping others, you tend to feel a sense of fulfillment, connection and meaning – feelings that many people would associate with happiness.

I think that Marie may be speaking about using our hokhmat-lev; when people are able to use their gifts and talents in their work, especially for others, they can feel that their life has meaning, and so their heart-mind-soul are joined in purposeful living.

 

Shabbat Shalom

 

 

Ma Koreh

Adam Carpenter – Head of Jewish Life Primary

During our Meet the Teacher presentations, Morah Bar-On and I mentioned the importance of a strong home-school partnership in nurturing the Jewish identity, lives and experiences of our young people. It is important for children to know that ’being and doing Jewish’ exists outside school hours and that Jewish learning and using Hebrew can take place beyond the classroom. Alongside the קְהִילָּה kehilah (community), the מִשְׁפָּחָה mishpacha (family) is a cornerstone of Jewish living, with many of our celebrations, festivities and rituals taking place in the home with family. 

Sometimes as parents we may feel like we do not have enough knowledge to engage with our child. I know I feel that at times when my eldest son shares what he is learning in HSC Chemistry. However, we do not need to have attended a Jewish Day School or to possess rabbinic knowledge to engage our children in Jewish matters. 

We can bring Jewish living and learning into our homes in multiple ways; by asking questions, listening actively, sparking conversations, creating opportunities and by being role models.

In this spirit, the following ideas and resources may be helpful for you and your family:

  • Ask your child to share what he/she has been learning in Hebrew and Jewish Studies  
  • Listen to your child read Hebrew, speak Hebrew or share Hebrew words they have learnt
  • Let your child be the teacher and have them teach you something
  • Have your child help lead in the Shabbat table blessings on a Friday evening
  • Let them teach or lead a song or tune learnt at school
  • Add the parental blessing for children to your Friday night Shabbat table rituals
  • Discuss a Jewish value, text or teaching and explore its relevance and connection to your lives
  • Be inspired by the weekly Torah portion to engage in discussions around the dinner table
  • Play Hebrew songs or music in the lead up to festivals and Shabbat. Ask your child if they have favourites and use YouTube to expand your Jewish musical knowledge
  • Cook Jewish food together with your child…this could be challah for Shabbat, hamantaschen for Purim or matzah brei during Pesach.

Helpful video resources for parents, families and children

Jewish values discussion and action ideas:

Family friendly commentaries, contemporary stories and discussion questions on the weekly Torah portion:

Jewish craft ideas: 

 

שַׁבָּת שָׁלוֹם
Shabbat Shalom

Primary News

Carrie Thomas – Acting Deputy Head of Primary

The Friendology program

The Friendology program is an award-winning friendship program that empowers students to establish and maintain healthy relationships, manage conflict with kindness, and increase their overall resilience. Many Emanuel students have participated in this program, and it is also the source of a common language shared by teachers.

Disagreements are referred to as ‘friendship fires’, which are normal, low-level conflicts that exist in friendships. Hurt feelings, misunderstandings, disagreements…these negative feelings that sometimes arise because we are different people with differing opinions. Students are taught strategies on how to put friendship fires out. They are also taught how to recognise what is normal in a friendship, how to determine healthy and unhealthy relationships, and how to distinguish a friendship fire from ‘mean on purpose’ behaviour. 

Friendology is currently offering free membership to families. Families can access a wide range of resources to help you and your child develop skills and language to foster healthy, feel-good friendships through this resource. Between articles, videos, and activities, there are hundreds of resources that families can access at home to support the friendship skills your child is learning at school. 

Some of my favourite resources available are:

  • Afternoon Convo Starters
  • Interactive Friendship Fire or Mean on Purpose Advice
  • What is forgiveness?
  • How to say “No”
  • Your child’s emotional piggy bank 
  • Cyberbullying and Friendship Fires in a Digital World 

Through the resources available, you can learn how to become a ‘friendship coach’, encouraging and empowering your child to make healthier decisions in their friendships and how to resolve conflict in a respectful way.

Parent Teacher Interviews

Please save the dates for Parent Teacher Night – Monday 28 March and Wednesday 30 March. Booking information will be sent via email.  

 

From the Year 6 House Captains

Primary Swimming Carnival

We had a fantastic day at our school Swimming Carnival this year. We all sat in our year groups supporting our Houses. We wore amazing costumes!  Due to COVID-19, we had to host our Swimming Carnival a little differently this year. Instead of chanting in our Houses, the House Captains recorded dances and songs. These were so much fun!

A new and exciting initiative this year was to introduce a race for the fastest swimmers of each age group. It was so exciting!

Congratulations to all competitors who swam on that day, and a special shout out to all the swimmers that will represent Emanuel at ASISSA. Thank you to all our Primary sport and school staff, teachers and House Captains who put so much effort into making this Swimming Carnival a great success.

By the Year 6 House Captains 2022: Maia Sharabi ,Grace Lyons, Cameron Barel, Jacob Yakubson, Noaa Smily, Tia Camiller, Arlo Broughton-Oshlack, Cooper Adler, Lexi Butt, Noah Kessell, Yasmin Fisher and Josh Greengarten

K-12 Sport

Stuart Taylor – PDHPE Teacher

Primary Swimming Carnival

On Thursday 17 February 2022, the students in Years 3 -6 converged on the Des Renford Aquatic Centre for our annual swimming carnival. With the grandstand decorated brilliantly in red, green, and blue, the scene was set for a fantastic day. As war cries and cheering were put on hold this year, the innovative House Captains choreographed wonderful dance moves that saw their respective houses moving and grooving in the grandstand to earn extra house points.

Each race was great to watch with many ending in a nail-biting finish.

Well done to each and every student who swam on the day!

My gratitude is also extended to the Primary staff of Emanuel School who work tirelessly to make the day successful for our students.

Age Champions

8 Years – Ravi Keller and Alicia Butt
9 Years  – Brody Reid and Zella Benko
10 Years – Ryan Miller and Tali Strous
11 Years – Jake Rosenfeld and Talia Gellert
12 Years  – Noah Kessell and Noaa Smily

Results

Cowen – 730 points
Monash – 560 points
Wynn – 419 points

As a result of their performance on the day, the following swimmers have been selected to represent Emanuel at the ASISSA Swimming Carnival on 18 March 2022 and have commenced team training:

Jake Rosenfeld, Noah Kessell, Netali Jadouin, Noaa Smily, Ravi Keller, Aviv Smily, Brody Reid, Zella Benko, Courtney Kadish, Ryan Miller, Dylan Pal, Amelie Lipman, Claudia Kaplan, Alfie Berger, Akira Aronstan, Liam Frankham, Shayna Abitz, Talia Gellert, Jonathan Shmuel, Zara Keller, Dan Garfinkel, Eitan Shmuel, Ariel Efrat, Mia Goodridge, Jessica Gellert, Cooper Adler, Heidi Martin.

A thank you to photographer Ofer Levy!

Indi Faithfull

Basketball News

Term one is always this biggest term of Basketball during the year and within the first few weeks, Emanuel basketball students have started off with a bang!

There are twelve teams competing in weekly basketball competitions, across Years 5-12, which is the highest participation for the sport to date. Teams play in the Easts Basketball League competition on Sundays, as well as the Sydney Schools Cup which is on Tuesday afternoons.

The teams range from newcomers Years 5 and 6, to the 18A’s team, competing in the top division. Although these competitions are only a few weeks in, there have already had some fantastic performances.

Well done to Jaime Goldman, Year 9, who sunk a free throw with seconds left on the clock of his match on Sunday and to Josh Fraser, Year 10, who shot a top three pointer to push the game into overtime.  

The High School girls’ teams are competing in the St Catherine’s competition on Wednesday afternoons. The Junior A’s have had a good start to the season. Although they were behind Moriah at half-time, with great play by all, and strong defence Arielle Sharp of Year 9, who had an unbelievable ability to rebound every shot, the team made a great comeback.

Representative Basketball

Over recent weeks, the Primary students have had the opportunity to take part in the representative pathways. Following Emanuel trials, five students were chosen to represent the School at the ASSISA basketball trials.

Congratulations to Sophia Kirievskaya, Grace Lyons, Cooper Rosen, Joshua Greengarten and Cooper Adler for representing the School at this event. They did a fantastic job and caught the eyes of the selectors, with Cooper Rosen selected to represent ASSISA at the CIS trials. Cooper competes against sixty other Year 5 and 6 students from schools across NSW.

As Cooper is in Year 5, he was one of the youngest players there, but that didn’t stop him from impressing the selectors with his, speed, ball handling and shooting range! Cooper made the cut to the final twenty players, only to just miss out on the CIS team of 10 that will compete in the NSW PSSA Basketball Cup. Well Done Cooper!

CDSSA Basketball Championships

Emanuel recently convened the CDSSA Basketball Gala Day for the eleven schools in the association. It was a fantastic day, with some very competitive matches. Emanuel 1st & 2nds Boys and Girls teams competed at the event. Congratulations to all students who competed at the event.

The Emanuel Boys 1sts played exceptionally well, going down in the semi-finals.

Well done to Alexander Kirievsky, Ben Shapiro and Sacha Rosen, who have been selected for the CDSSA Representative teams.

 

Kornmehl

Terry Aizen – Director of Kornmehl

What is Play?

The Kornmehl Philosophy states the following about learning through play: 

We embrace and acknowledge that children come to the Kornmehl Pre-school with a richness of experiences. We believe that childhood is a time to be, to seek and make meaning of the world. We believe that children learn best through play. We see play as being the “heartbeat” of our Pre-school Program. Play provides opportunities for children to learn as they experiment, explore, discover, create, improvise and imagine. When children play with other children, they form relationships, test out ideas, challenge each other’s thinking, explore language and build new understandings and connections. Play provides a supportive environment where children can ask questions, solve problems and engage in critical thinking. In these ways play can promote positive dispositions towards learning.

Play is an active investigation and utilises creative expression. It helps to build resilience, problem-solving, language development and speech, communication, empathy, creativity and self-expression. Play is vital for acting out feelings, fears, ideas, experiences, and for self-expression. Children in play are learning the skills of life – to negotiate, take turns, share, express frustration in appropriate ways, to creatively explore their world in a safe early childhood environment. Play releases great hormones in the brain that help children to relax. It inspires and motivates children to keep on going. It is a natural aspect of children’s lives.

Children’s immersion in their play, illustrates how play enables them to simply enjoy being. There is a wealth of research available to support the positive impact of play on a child’s lifelong learning and well-being. Neurological research confirms that play is a powerful tool to support healthy brain development and cognitive function. Play allows children to be active leaders in their own learning and development. It takes shape in many forms and will look different in every context. 

Play-based learning is a key feature of quality early childhood programs and involves a range of sensory learning experiences that promote discovery, curiosity, creativity, exploration, interaction, learning and development. A play-based learning approach also fosters children’s critical skills, understanding and dispositions which are essential to their successful learning and development.  

Children are intrinsically motivated by play and play nurtures a positive attitude towards learning. Through play children develop connections, build relationships and make meaning of the world around them.

What does a play-based approach to learning look like?

Educators encourage children’s learning through play by:

  • providing resources that reflect children’s ages, interests, knowledge, strengths, abilities and culture to stimulate and support play. Resources which allow open ended use of items e.g. loose parts, boxes and crates
  • planning play experiences based on the assessment of children’s individual differences, interests, developmental needs and ability. For example, as a child learns to hold a pencil to draw and write, educators will give children different sized objects to grasp, and to build strength in the child’s fingers
  • observing children as they play so that they can understand how they play with other children, what skills and understanding they demonstrate in play and what activities can strengthen their skills in play
  • joining in children’s play to extend the child’s learning and to model skills such as reasoning, appropriate language, and positive behaviours
  • providing large blocks of unhurried and uninterrupted time for play for children’s ideas and games to develop

Resource:

 

 

Fascinating, insightful and so inspiring

Sonia Newell – Development Officer – Alumni & Community Relations

Fascinating Trivia facts : 22/02/2022

Tuesday (TwosDay) was indeed a very special day. Did you know that it was both a palindrome and an ambigram? The date reads the same from left to right, from right to left and upside down!

 

COVID Restrictions

As of today, most of the previous restrictions due to COVID in NSW will be lifted. Members of our community with family and friends in Western Australia (WA) will be especially excited as, from next week, they will have the opportunity to visit loved ones there and likewise their WA friends and family can come here to Sydney. As we are all aware, only time will tell how these latest changes impact on us, our families and our friends. There are many in our community for whom getting back to as close as possible to “normal” life may bring with it ongoing and new challenges. We wish everyone in our wonderful close-knit community only happy and safe times ahead. We look forward to welcoming parents and grandparents back to School soon but in the meantime, we hope you continue to enjoy reading this page and the whole of Ma Nishma each week, along with the opportunity to follow us on Facebook. If you are not already a member of our wonderful Emanuel Community Facebook page, please join here.

Grandparents – we will always want you!

I say it each week and will continue to do so – a huge thank you to parents who have been in touch to provide grandparent updates for our database. No one can accuse me of not being persistent! My ideal goal is to have a complete set of grandparent contact details for all students with living grandparents, no matter where in the world they live. This week, I want to say an extra special thank you to parent Odin Kay for her update. Odin’s daughter, Katya Sandy, now in Year 2, started at Kornmehl Pre-school aged 3 and has just one living grandparent Lea, Odin’s mother, who lives in Israel. She will celebrate her 89th birthday on Monday 14 March 2022. We hope Lea, also known as Leni, will enjoy reading Ma Nishma each week as of today and see some of the wonderful things happening at her granddaughter’s school thousands of kilometres away. Lea has only met Katya once, when she came to Sydney for her birth in 2015, but they do stay in touch via Skype.

As you know, it doesn’t matter how close or how far away our grandparents live from us, there are so many ways to stay connected and we hope you all continue to enjoy reading about our amazing School. Odin also told me she has an uncle (her mum’s brother, and Katya’s great uncle) Joseph Schwarzberg, who lives in Toronto. He is now 95, turning 96 on Friday 17 June 2022. He unfortunately does not use email these days, but Odin thought it might be of interest to some of our readers, to know he wrote a book about his life through WW2 in the French underground.

Ryan Miller – 2020 Swimming Championships

Good luck

Club President Elan Miller and Coach Anthony Goodridge, both Emanuel parents, are very excited about this annual event, as are all the participating swimmers. This is a photo of Year 4 student Ryan Miller, Elan’s son from the 2020 Swimming Championships, the first time he ever entered. He competed then in the 7 year old races and won a gold and two bronze medals!

I would love to include some news and photos from this year’s event, so please send them through to Sonia Newell.

 

 

 

More connections

Rebecca Kummerfeld with Eddie Jaku OAM

The connections between Emanuel School and the Sydney Jewish Museum go on and on and on.

Although I mentioned some of these connections on my page last week, here are a few more:

Members of the Museum Board include Emanuel grandparents Charles Aronson OAM and Paul Drexler, along with current parent Daniel Grynberg whilst grandparent Rita Prager looks after Major Gifts, Fundraising and Plaques and alumna Dr Rebecca Kummerfeld (Class of 2003) is Head of Education. She is pictured here with the late Eddie Jaku OAM, author of “The Happiest Man on Earth” He was a Holocaust survivor, SJM volunteer guide and an Emanuel great-grandfather, who passed away last year aged 101. Current parents Ilana McCorquodale and Lee-Anne Whitten are also Educators at the Museum and our previous Social Media guru, Kira Friedman, now works there too.

If you have not visited the Museum, I would encourage you to do so – they offer not only guided tours of the permanent and temporary exhibitions but also lectures and book launches, and they have a wonderful Museum Shop where you can find beautiful Judaica plus an amazing range of books. You may want to join them on Sunday 6 March 2022 for International Women’s Day for a very special presentation “Survivor Talk: Break the Bias – Women of the Holocaust, where, as Rebecca Kummerfeld says, “you will meet some of the powerful, inspiring women I get to work with”. Buy your tickets here.  

If you are interested in becoming a Volunteer Guide at the Museum click here to apply direct for this year’s G2G Course.

Fascinating, insightful and so inspiring

Dr Ilana Feain ((nee Klamer, Class of 1996) dropped out of School in Year 10 after deciding school was not for her.  However, she quickly changed her mind and enrolled at Emanuel for Years 11 and 12, and, then after completing a PhD in Astrophysics at Sydney University she worked as an astrophysicist at the CSIRO for a number of years, with many other major accomplishments and awards since then, including running her own very successful company.

She was the guest speaker at our 2012 High School Speech Night, where her final message to the graduating Class of 2012 and to all the students was “Don’t stand by and allow things to occur which are unacceptable, but if you find yourself in a situation beyond your control, then you need to find a way to see what opportunity it might provide in the longer (sometimes even much longer) term”. Ilana and I speak from time to time and, late last week, she contacted me about a recent interview she did for labnotes” – “Thought you might like this one – those teachers and school I refer to that changed my life after I quit and went back of my own volition were my maths and physics teachers at Emanuel.” 

Dr Ilana Feain with Year 11 students Stephanie Knespal & Sasha Buch at 2012 High School Speech Night

Friendship Bakery Care Packages

Even with COVID restrictions and isolation rulings changing now, there will still be members of our community who need help with food deliveries, so if you know someone in isolation, Friendship Bakery Care Packages might just be the thing to organise for them. Deliveries in the Eastern Suburbs are on Wednesday between 10.00 am and 1.00 pm, and orders must be placed by Tuesday 5.00 pm. Soups, salads, quiches and sweet treats – delivered to your loved one’s home. These are perfect for lunch or a light mid-week dinner.

Friendship Circle (FC)

Volunteers are always needed for the many weekend and holiday camps plus other activities organised by FC for children and young adults with disabilities. The Young Adult Melbourne Getaway is on Friday 1 April 2022 – Sunday 3 April 2022. Some of our readers with older children who might be interested to volunteer for this weekend, can get in touch with Emma Sharp to register. Emma Endrey (striped shirt in the photo below), is the older sister of Year 11 student Tessa Endrey, who has spoken at School Assembly on a number of occasions about Autism and disabilities along with the wonderful work done by FC. Emma has been a participant of FC for many years, where she and the other participants love going on the many outings and camps they organise and then seeing many of Tessa’s friends who volunteer. Being a volunteer with FC is such a rewarding experience, and many of the older volunteers started their volunteering journey as young high school students at Emanuel and continue doing so way past their university/studies days, well into their late 20’s and beyond. FC is also planning a fun and exciting Day Camp from Monday 11 April 2022 – Thursday 14 April 2022 for their younger members, with orientation scheduled for Sunday 10 April 2022.

Registrations will be open soon, so watch this space. In the meantime, if you have any questions, about Friendship Circle and/or if you or someone you know would like to join their programs as a participant or a volunteer, please email: hello@sydneyfc.org.au

We look forward to sharing our news and yours, so if you have photos or news you would like to share with us, please send to Sonia Newell.  

Shabbat shalom, stay safe and have a great weekend.

Careers

Claire Pech – Careers Advisor

An area of my role that I find very interesting is working with students to try to find a career path and options when they don’t have the skills to navigate this.

I work with students with a range of learning profiles. Some students have ADHD and some are on the Autism spectrum. One of the skills that is often not developed in students (and adults) with ADHD, is the executive functioning skill. This is the skill needed that allows us to plan, organise and put together a plan. Sometimes this is never developed, or only occurs in early adulthood. I have worked with adults who also find this difficult. If you can’t plan easily, or find it hard to organise yourself how can you plan out a career? This can be a huge roadblock for some and can continue on throughout a lifetime.

One of my answers to this conundrum – like any skill in life that we lack, is to enlist the help of someone who has these skills. Just like we would use a personal trainer when we find it tricky to get off the couch, we need help and support when faced with these planning challenges – someone who can do this with you! If you can work with someone who has those planning and organisation skills – this can take the headache (and sometimes heartache) out of the dilemma.

Planning out a career is already a tricky process, so my advice would be to find someone who can help you do this. This could be me (or a trusted careers professional), a parent, or a sibling who has already been through this process, or a family friend who is in the industry that you are interested in.

More information on executive function skills can be found here. I love the above infographic that shows all of the amazing work-skills that can be such of such benefit to companies and industries. It can be easy for students and families to see the left-hand side black/white negative traits, but let’s focus on all of the creativity, energy, imagination and enthusiasm that companies are crying out for!

Attending a webinar for any parents of students on the autism spectrum could be a helpful start.

Events

Career planning for students on the autism spectrum
Wednesday 9 March 2022, 4.30 pm Online

Join us as the team from myWAY Employability discuss such topics as: 

  • Starting challenging conversations about the future
  • Identifying personal strengths, interests, and sensory preferences to guide career exploration and work experiences
  • Providing a just right challenge
  • Building self-determination.

Register now for this free event.

Notices

Information Technology (I.T.) at UTS
Tuesday 26 April 2022, 5:30 pm Online

Hear from key academics about what it’s like to study IT at UTS and how best to prepare. Find out more here.

Engineering at UTS
Wednesday 27 April 2022, 5:30 pm Online

Hear from key academics about what it’s like to study engineering at UTS and how best to prepare.Find out more here .

Work Experience at AIE
The Academy of Interactive Entertainment (AIE) runs a Work Experience Program for students in Years 10 – 12 throughout the year. The Work Experience Program encompasses a range of activities including 3D animation, programming, QA testing and much more. These can be competitive so register to ensure that you can take this up during the holidays. Learn more

SIX the Musical

Year 11 Music 1 students had the privilege of going to SIX the Musical on Sunday 13 February 2022.

SIX is a musical about the six wives of King Henry VIII. The musical is formatted like a concert with each of the wives having a song describing their lives and their struggles with their marriage with Henry. The musical is amazing, and it displays a perspective on history that isn’t normally explored. The feminist retelling of a famous patriarchal story is only one aspect that makes this musical even more captivating.

The fabulous characters, costumes and storyline creates an all-round exciting and energetic environment. This musical is one of the best and is a must-see!

Thank you to Mr Majsay for taking us on Sunday, and Joanne De Araujo for organising it.

By Ella Kirschner Year 11

 

Rabin

Somerset Camp – Challenge accepted!

Last week Year 8 Rabin bravely returned to the Colo River for a second Somerset Camp. This time, we did different activities. One of our favourites was rock climbing. Here, we had to be persistent and were challenged in many ways. We climbed a natural rock face with harnesses and helmets. At the end of the course, the top part, had only tiny hand and foot holds. It was hard to find a way up. We really loved rock climbing because it tested our mindset, which needed to be positive and resilient; our physical abilities; and our mental abilities, because we had to navigate a good path.

The most challenging activity was canoeing. This was because we had to push through a 5.5 hour ride against the current. Some of us struggled a lot at the start because we couldn’t find a comfortable rhythm despite having kayaked before. After a while, we got the hang of it and weren’t going from side to side at the back anymore. Halfway through the trip our arms were aching and we could feel our bodies burning under the sun. Our camp guide told us we could take a break at a little beach where we all ate some snacks. At this point there were about 4 or 5 km left to canoe. Our entire tutor group was determined to make it to the end, partly because if we stopped paddling our canoes would be pushed back by the current. Through this experience we learnt how strong our willpower is and that we can be persistent.

One of the funniest moments was when we were donughting (riding on a rubber tyre tube down the river). Everybody tried to flip each other over. We were laughing and having a great time as people struggled to get back on. Another funny experience was on Wednesday night. Our camp instructor was trying to get us to sleep, but nobody was falling asleep. Periodically, there would be a small peep from someone in their tent, or a loud throat clearing. There was even an instance where somebody said good night to the instructor, before saying in a small voice: “Please say it back.” Although our camp instructor didn’t find it funny that night, she was joking with us about it in the morning, and everyone was laughing and happy, showing that everyone was okay.

Over the course of the camp, we learned how strong our tutor groups willpower is. On the tough hikes and long canoe rides, we never once quit and kept going all the way to the end. We admire everyone’s persistence and determination as a group because we supported and cheered each other on. This resulted in all of us completing hard challenges and facing brand new experiences together.

One of the greatest things about camp was the fact that we had peer support leaders with us. We were lucky to be the first group to experience the peer support program in Year 8 as well as Year 7. Our tutor group felt very comfortable around our leaders because they were so supportive and caring. During peer support sessions on camp we played fun games as well as more in depth, enlightening activities. On the last night of camp, our peer support organised a meditation exercise as a chance for us to relax and think. We learnt how to be independent and to push through tough times because there are always going to be people there to support you. 

What a week!

By Akeisha Kantor and Oscar Salek

 

 

The Recollect Program

Lisa Starkey – HSIE and Design & Technology Teacher | Coordinator of High School Sustainability Programs | Tutor

Late last year you may have seen an email encouraging you join Emanuel School’s ReCollect Program. In case you missed it I am sending this reminder and offer great thanks to the families who have thus far taken this opportunity- you have already made a difference!

We need more families to get involved and it’s easy!

What is Recollect?

ReCollect is a program that will pick up recyclable plastic and glass bottles from your home and recycle them for you, donating 10c to our chosen charity-Our Big Kitchen- for every bottle.

What do you need to do?

Joining is simple: click here to set up an account, book a collection and donate to the school.

Once you have collected at least 2 bags of eligible bottles:

  1. Download the ReCollect app from the App or Google Play Store
  2. Click the sign in as a customer
  3. Enter the details it asks for.
  4. Click to organise a pickup – make sure you have at least 2 bags of bottles
  5. Follow the instructions on the app
  6. Make sure to enter EMANUEL SCHOOL as the organisation to make sure all donations go straight to Our Big Kitchen and use promocode EMANUEL SCHOOL

The benefits

  • Sustainability – The school will have a running tally of achievements with tangible information about the positive impacts of our efforts.
  • Charity – Help support a local charity in need!
  • ‘Closed Loop Recycling” is used by Return and Earn which is more effective than the recycling of materials you place in your home recycling bin
  • Setting a great example about being proactive for your children

If you have any queries email info@re-collect.com.au or call their customer service team on 9137 6188 for assistance.

 

Thank you for your support!

P&F

Justine Hofman – Head of P&F

A big focus for the P&F this year is to bring our beautiful community back together after the COVID-induced lull.

As such, we are creating a program of P&F initiatives (some new, some much-loved) aiming to bring us together in different and fun (covid-safe) ways. To make these initiatives happen, we will be forming committees who will be responsible for organising these events.

We want you – volunteer call out

The success of this new approach relies on our whole community chipping in. We all love being part of this incredible community. Let’s all get involved and make it even more special  by contributing. Grab a friend or soon-to-be-friend and join us!

Learn about volunteering opportunities and register your interest here.

Emanuel Family Camping – SOLD OUT
Join the waitlist

We’ve had a fantastic response to the Emanuel P&F Family Camping trip coming up on Friday 18 March – Sunday 20 March 2022 at Bents Basin campground. Incredibly, it’s now fully booked.

If you missed out and are still keen to join, please register on the waitlist by emailing emanuelschoolcamping@gmail.com

If you have booked but are no longer able to attend, you can also email us at emanuelschoolcamping@gmail.com and provide your contact details and the number of adult and child tickets you have available. Then we can connect you others on the waitlist

P&F Meetings

Meetings are held on the first Wednesday of each month at 7.00 pm (on Zoom until further notice). Everyone is welcome. Email Justine Hofman if you would like to attend.

Events to diarise

Purim Disco: cancelled (due to COVID restrictions on campus)
Friday 18 March – Sunday 20 March 2022: Emanuel Family Autumn Camping  
Friday 6 May 2022: Mother’s Day (Breakfast and stalls) 
Friday 26 August 2022: Father’s Day (Breakfast and Stalls) 
Friday 4 November 2022 – Sunday 6 November 2022: Emanuel Family Spring Camping 

 

 

Parent Safety Group

Thank you to our volunteers for last week (Monday 14 February 2022 – Friday 18 February 2022)

Saul Berkowitz, Nicky Abitz, Darren Isenberg, Steven Durbach, Yossi Bitterman, Kim Samuel, Brad Allen, Peter Notham, Leon Waxman, Warren Aronstan, Shai Simhi, Florette Ickowicz, Harley McKenzie, Tony Gellert, Natalie Cromer, Dorran Wajsman, Sol Caganoff, Lindy Lowenstein, Steven Troupe, Daniel Grynberg, David Camiller, Jackie Elias, Ros Shammay, Raffy Shammay and Alisa Siale.

Community Notices

 

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 Ruth Harvey

Roast Chicken in Orange Sauce

Ingredients

1 whole chicken cut in 4, 6 or 8 pieces
3 tbsp olive oil
2 tsp curry powder
1/2 tsp salt

Sauce
1 cup orange juice
1/2 cup brown sugar
2 tbsp mayonnaise (non-dairy)

Directions

Preheat oven to 2000C.
Mix oil, curry powder and salt and brush all over chicken pieces.
Place the chicken in a roasting pan.
In a small saucepan, place the orange juice, sugar and mayonnaise and bring to the boil over a low heat.
Pour sauce over the chicken and roast in oven for 45 minutes at 2000C.
Serve with rice and salad or roast vegetables.