With more participation and excellence comes a raised expectation and I would like to remind all parents that although Knox strives for excellence, we always need to keep the best interests of each boy in the School at heart. The reason Knox has a sporting program is to ensure that our young men develop a sense of belief in themselves, experience the exhilaration of winning and the disappointment of not achieving their goals. Boys need to develop resilience in the face of adversity and be courageous enough to realise when they have dropped the ball, figuratively and literally. Sport gives them the opportunity to collaborate in a team environment and to develop an understanding of how to work meaningfully with others to further the team’s cause.

There are both positive and challenging times in the sporting environment and it is important for parents to support their sons (and other team members) at all times, no matter the circumstance. As we enter another competitive season, I encourage parents to ensure that they are there for their sons and to reaffirm and encourage our boys to be resilient, focused and determined to achieve their goals.

School sport is a wonderfully encouraging time of a young man’s life and I’m excited to partner with you as we seek to raise healthy, well-balanced, determined and resilient young men. I look forward to supporting your sons as they step out, once again, to represent the Black and Blue this season.

Scott James

Supervision and academic support is provided in the Middle Academy on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday afternoons until 5.15 pm. Students are welcome to work independently or collaboratively with their peers. Please encourage your son to take advantage of the spaces and support available. The staff available to provide academic support are:

Monday
Ms Coughlin – Maths
Mr Mulligan – English
Mr Neville – PDHPE

Tuesday
Mr Charlier – Maths
Ms Aldridge – English
Ms Shurville – Commerce

Wednesday
Ms Keegan Ward – Maths
Ms Rodrigues – Maths
Ms Khun – Science
Ms Thompson – Science

Thursday
Ms Choucair – Commerce
Ms Heverin – Maths

It was pleasing to see Year 10 students arriving to commence the term in full winter uniforms, complete with Boaters and Blazers, meeting the School’s expectations. Should your son be missing any part of his uniform, he is expected to see Mr Mulray, Mr Openshaw or myself on arrival at school to discuss the circumstances.

Elizabeth Ruff

This term in Mentor, boys will continue to investigate career options, looking closely at the information they received in their reports from careers testing and interviews throughout Term 1. The aim of the sessions will be to develop a more in-depth understanding of the nature of personality and how it relates to working in teams, leadership, learning styles and career choices. Alongside this, we begin the discussion of subject selection for Year 11 and 12. Upcoming information sessions will provide students and parents important information about HSC, ATAR, available courses and strategies for suitable subject selection. Information regarding these sessions is provided by Greg Nunan and Beth Goddard in the Senior Academy Team section of this newsletter.

In Year Meeting this week we were visited by members of the 1st XV Rugby team to promote their curtain raiser game against Joeys at Bankwest Stadium. We wish our own Ned Ericsson luck in this game and congratulate him again on the massive achievement of being selected in this team; a rare feat for a student in Year 10! I look forward to cheering from the sideline. We also had a chance as a year group to congratulate our boys who performed in the fantastic Term 1 production of 'Beauty and the Beast', and a number of boys for their achievements in the Doing da Vinci Day. As always, it is fantastic to be able to celebrate the diversity of interests our Year 10 boys have.

Please do not hesitate to get in touch with your son's Mentor or the Team Leaders should you have any queries.

Alec Openshaw

Kai Lilienthal took part in the National Age Swimming championships on the Gold Coast and received the national champion award for 100m butterfly. He also obtained a gold medal in the 4 x 50m medley relay, a silver medal in 100m backstroke and a bronze medal in the 4 x 50m freestyle. In addition, he came fifth in the 50m freestyle, 100m freestyle and 200m freestyle. Congratulations Kai on such fantastic results.



Sean Williams was busy participating in the athletics and triathlon championships. At the Australian Track and Field championships 2021 he placed 14th in the U16's 3000m with a time of 9:22.80 with a 9sec personal best. At the NSW Triathlon Academy Games 2021 he placed 2nd and at the Australian Youth Triathlon Championships, he placed fourth. Well done Sean on such a great achievement.

Year 10 Parents' Morning tea
Just a reminder that the Year 10 Parents' Morning Tea will be taking place on Monday 3 May in the Great Hall Foyer from 11am to 12.30pm. Due to COVID-19 capacity restrictions, RSVPs are essential and the due date for those is on Monday 26 April. Please click here to RSVP and if you require further information please contact Araz Wallbank via email.

Finally, wishing good luck to Ned Ericsson in his 1st XV Rugby game at Bankwest Stadium this Saturday. Congratulations Ned on being selected to the firsts and I cannot wait to hear how you go this weekend.

Crystel Hodgson

The following subject Information will be outlined in the Year Meeting next Wednesday:

Monday 3 May -  Vimeo link for subject selection evening. Access information will be sent through prior to the presentation. This can be viewed at any time from this date.

Monday 10 May to Friday 28 May – Face to face lunchtime sessions for the boys. Each department will hold one Q&A session. Boys are encouraged to speak to their teachers and contact Heads of Department if they have any unanswered questions.

Monday 31 May - Subject Selection Evening (part 2) will be conducted in venues throughout the Weeks Senior Academy (subject to any COVID-19 restriction changes). Departments, other than English and Mathematics, will run five repeated sessions over the course of the night. These sessions will be hosted by senior staff and specialists in each subject area. Further information regarding the organisation of this evening will be provided in future newsletters. A subject selection booklet will be provided at the start of the evening and via the Year 10 portal.

The key sessions and dates are listed below.

• Monday 10 May to Friday 28 May – lunchtime subject presentations for students. Details of these sessions will be provided on the Year 10 portal.
• Subject presentations - Monday 31 May.
• The subject selection link will be on the portal, in the newsletter and sent in an email on Tuesday 1 June with login details.
• Online subject selection of subjects is due on Monday 19 July.
• Preference receipt signed by a parent will need to be returned to Mrs Hodgson by Friday 23 July.

Greg Nunan and Beth Goddard (Stage 6 Team)

Macquarie University - Business School Breakfast Seminar
Students from Years 10, 11 and 12 are invited to attend this event on Thursday 29 April from 7am in the WSA Lecture Theatre.

Students will hear from Macquarie University academics and lecturers who will present on the different majors available within the Business School and the extensive opportunities a degree in business can present. I would encourage students interested in studying a Business, Commerce, Finance, Actuarial Studies or Accounting Degree to attend this event.

Due to COVID-19 restrictions, this event is for students only. However, the event will be recorded and the recording to be made available to parents at a later date.

Due to limited space available in the WSA Lecture Theatre, students must register to attend this event. Students can click on this link to register.

Linda Gomez

4. Is your son playing away? Which school is he playing against?

Waverley College
• 2 spectator parents/guardians per player for all outdoor sports
• 2 spectator parent guardian per player for all indoor sports

St Joseph’s College
• 2 spectator parents/guardians per player for all outdoor sports
• 2 spectator parent guardian per player for all indoor sports

Sydney Grammar School
• 2 spectator parents/guardians per player for all outdoor sports
• 2 spectator parent guardian per player for all indoor sports
• Canteens will NOT be open.

St Pius X College
• 2 spectator parents/guardians per player for all outdoor sports
• 2 spectator parent guardian per player for all indoor sports

The Scots College
• 2 spectator parents/guardians per player for all outdoor sports
• 2 spectator parent guardian per player for all indoor sports

As always, any sports cancellations due to wet weather or late changes will be announced via the Knox app (make sure you have subscribed to alerts for your son’s summer sport).

Doctor on-site
Each Saturday throughout the winter season we are fortunate to have Doctor Jomaa here on the Senior Campus. The Doctor is available to attend to any Knox student of any age, playing any sport that may have had a serious injury from any venue – requiring assessment. Please consider coming to see our Doctor between 11am and 2pm this week as this may save a long wait at the local hospital. Dr Jomaa is also available here on campus each Monday morning from 7am for follow up or assessment of all head knocks and other serious injuries.

Holiday news
The action just did not stop over the break with so much to be proud of and I would like to share all of the special news.

Track & Field Nationals
Knox had as many as nine students qualify for the Nationals – a big number that we are very excited about. To qualify for Nationals is a huge achievement and full credit to Matt Fowler and his team of coaches. Congratulations to Sean Williams, Alex Sherlock, Archie Saunders, Chester Swaffer, Ewan Burns, Hamish Hart, James Harden, Maks Saravanja and Dylan Hall who all competed.

Knox’s first medal of the event came from Maks Saravanja in the Under 14’s High Jump. Maks cleared a height of 1.68m to take out 3rd place in the event. Congratulations on your first national medal, Maks!

The highlight of the competition came from Dylan Hall. Dylan claimed a total of three medals across the competition. Dylan claimed the silver medal in the Under 15’s 100m in a time of 11.26, a bronze medal in the Long Jump with an impressive jump 6.06m and was part of the NSW 4x100m relay team that placed 2nd in a blistering time of 43.73. Incredibly Dylan also qualified for the 200m final, where he was in medal contention, but sensibly made the decision to withdraw due to soreness from such a massive program of sprinting.

Congratulations to all Knox athletes that competed at the Championships. Just qualifying alone is a huge achievement and we look forward to your continued and promising development within the sport.

Swimming Nationals
Knox had as many as 16 boys competing for the Knox Pymble Swim Club on the Gold Coast in the break and came away with many more medals. Most exciting are the boys that competed for the very first time at the top level. The results were outstanding.

Congratulations to: Henry Anderson (Y9), Tane Bidois (Y11), Jason Buddee (Y10), Joshua Collett (Y12), Nathan Gladman (Y9), Joseph Hamson (Y12), Tyler Krenkels (Y12), Justin Lee (Y11), Kai Lilienthal (Y10), Will McDonagh (Y11), Toby Peknice (Y12), Daniel Rigby (Y8), Ben Rothery (Y12), Daniel Seo (Y9), Benjamin Shen (Y12), Dylan Zhang (Y12).

Knox Pymble finished 2nd in the country and we could not be happier for the Club and all swimmers.

AFL tour to Newcastle
Our 1st XVIII AFL pre-season tour to Newcastle went extremely well. Nearly 30 boys continued their preparation for this coming CAS/GPS AFL season as well as some games back here in Sydney vs Riverview and Newington.

Over the break many team arranged trial games and training sessions. Our footballers played Scots and are well prepared for another big season whilst the Rugby teams visited St Pat's and also had a great day.

Camps
A good number of boys attended sport camps in the holidays and had a great time staying fit and healthy and continuing to pick up some tips along the way. Well done to all who attended the Volleyball, Squash, Tennis, Rugby and Football camps.

Australian Squash Junior Open
Marcus Wang (Y7) entered and won the Boys Under 13 at 2021 Australian Squash Junior Open. Marcus overcome a fellow Queenslander in a tough 45mins 5 sets in the semi final, then went on to beat a player from Hong Kong in the finals, coming back from a match point down to win the thrilling fifth set 12-10.


Great work, Marcus!

Finally, good luck to everyone for this weekend and please remember to update your Knox app and ensure you are only receiving alerts for the sport(s) your son has chosen to participate in this winter. Our alerts are extremely important and we don’t wish for them to be lost among any notifications that are not relevant to you.

I look forward to seeing our Knox supporters around the fields and courts this weekend positively supporting our boys who will be proudly wearing the Black and Blue.

Martin Haywood

New releases include the following:

'The Boy' from the Mish by Gary Lonesborough.
'House of Secrets' series by Chris Columbus, Ned Vizzini, Chris Rylander.
'Rule of Wolves' (final book in the King of Scars series by Leigh Bardugo.
'Clear and Present Danger' by Tom Clancy.

Enjoy your reading.

Sally Thomson

Tuckshop volunteers will be required to adhere to the following COVID-19 requirements:

• Do not attend if unwell, even with the mildest of symptoms
• Sign in at main reception, 2 Borambil Street, prior to meeting a Sodexo Supervisor in the Middle Academy Canteen
• Gloves, hair net and apron to be worn - provided by Sodexo
• Face mask to be worn – please bring your own
• Practise good hygiene (hand sanitisation etc.)
• Maintain a physical distance of 1.5m from other adults
• Comply with food safety requirements as instructed by Sodexo

All volunteers are also asked to please read and comply with the Knox Volunteer Code of Conduct.

If you have any questions about volunteering in the tuckshops, please contact Caron Suleyman, Senior School Tuckshop Convenor.

General Stationery
Slim Wallet Folders (display folders), Double Sided Tape (to hang pictures), Blu Tac, Blue Pens, Black Pens, Black Pencil Cases (large with letter inserts to spell student names), Copy Paper, 12 x A4 Display Folders (for resumes), Plastic Zip Up Folders (A3 and A4), Clear Plastic (thick) Document Protector Sleevs (A4), Sticky Page Tags.

Toiletries
Hand Wash, Hand Cream, Hand Lotion, Shampoo, Conditioner, Toothbrush, Toothpaste. Please note that all items can be small. No need for large bottles. (An example of size may be the shampoo and conditioner bottles from hotels).

Shoes for the Philippines
We are collecting school shoes in good condition (small sizes for children up to age 14) and clothing in small sizes. COVID-19 has had a huge impact on the communities around Manilla and the need is greater than ever. Please deliver any shoes or clothing to the SAOs.

Helen Clarke, Head of Diversity Justice and Stewardship