I’m writing to advise you of an incident which occurred earlier this week and ask you to please speak to your son about the importance of staying safe when travelling to and from school.

We were notified one of our Senior School students was approached one afternoon by a man in a car and this incident was reported to Police. We will be reminding the boys in their mentor or year meetings about safe behaviours when travelling to and from school.

When discussing these matters with boys, we reference the NSW Police Keeping Me Safe information kit. Below is a section relating to before and after school travel.

When you are out or walking on the street:
• If you can use a phone call 000 and say you are scared
• Don’t let anyone see if you have money or a purse, keep them in your pocket or bag
• If a friend is frightened or hurt get them help from an adult right away
• Know where safe places are - Doctors surgeries, schools, churches, shops etc

In Cars:
• Never get in a car with someone else unless your parents have told you to or is in the way you usually get home from school - a car pool
• Don’t talk to people who pull over to the side of the road in cars
• Remember many drivers can’t see people who are small, especially out the back of the car

On the train:
• Always travel in the guard’s compartment identified by a blue light if it is late in the day
• Travel in groups of friends if you can

Walking:
• Stick to major routes and roads and don’t take short cuts
• Use footpaths that are well lit and not closed in by bushes or obstacles
• Stay in groups of people
• Don’t talk to people you don’t know and go straight home or to wherever you are going
• Don’t take short cuts especially around rail tracks etc or when other people tell you to especially if you don’t know the way
• If you are frightened find a shop, school, church or ‘professional’ place like a doctors and tell them you are frightened and ask them to call the police, or if you see a police station go there

Phil O'Regan

In response to the current situation with only students and staff allowed on campus, our Years 8-10 Parent Teacher Interviews will be run virtually via Zoom or phone (depending on any bandwidth and internet connection issues).

The interviews will commence from Thursday afternoon on 4 June until the last week of school. As per our face-to-face interviews, five minutes has been allocated for each interview.

We would normally have had all day on Friday 5 June as a student free day for the interviews, but we have made the decision to keep the Friday as a teaching day taking into consideration missed face-to face teaching time. Your son’s teachers will be making a range of times available during the day and after school over the three-week period. They are not expected to be available every evening.

We are using PTO for all bookings. You will have received an email regarding this today. The Zoom link will be provided when you book a time slot.

Our normal practice is to run the interviews as a Student Led Conference; however, this is not feasible in the virtual world when some of the available times will be during the day. Therefore, in preparation it would be ideal to go through the Learner Protocol questions with your son provided in the recent report.

Karen Yager

It has been such an exciting time over the past week as we welcomed the boys back to face-to-face learning. Having the Year 8 boys and staff together at school is not something that would merit mention at this stage of the year - but this week it took on an extra special significance! Both Ms Robinson and I can’t believe how much some of the boys have grown during the quarantine period, the overwhelming feeling amongst the boys is that that are super-excited to be back at school and can’t wait for the challenges ahead as Knox 'life' slowly returns to normal.

Whilst reconnecting with the boys I have been asking them what they are most looking forward to now. The current COVID-19 Pandemic and resulting quarantine period has given us all the opportunity to reflect on what is truly important and to see everyday complaints in a new light. Complaining never brings out the best in us. This new perspective will hopefully serve to remind the boys that life is amazing, with so much to be grateful for, including the things which sometimes feel like a chore and traditionally hard to get motivated for.

Next week will also see the resumption of school sport during the week. These sessions will be run on Wednesday afternoon and most sports will conclude at 4.45pm. I encourage all parents and boys to check the Knox app for the latest training schedules and ensure that they have adjusted their subscriptions to follow the 'Winter Season'. For those boys who have chosen Rugby, Football or AFL, you are required to bring your boots too.

Please keep an eye out for upcoming Parent Teacher Interview bookings which will go live on Monday morning 1 June. These interviews will be conducted via Zoom and will give all parents the opportunity to touch base with teachers and discuss ways of moving forward in Terms 3 and 4.

As always, please don’t hesitate to contact Ms Robinson or I should you have any concerns or questions.

Julien Manuel

It has been fantastic to have the Year 8 cohort back on campus! Hearing the boys chat and laugh and seeing their smiling faces has been heart-warming. Welcome back CO2024!

A reminder to all students that on arrival at school the first thing you must do before anything else is to be temperature checked and signed in. Do this before going to your locker or heading to another school location. Temp checking will always be at the same location – Woodville Avenue side of the Great Hall foyer. At times it is difficult to remember but it is very important you continue to keep appropriate social distance from each other and your teachers at all times.

Ever wondered what it would be like to work on the other side of the camera? If you have, this is a great opportunity for all our budding movie makers. The 'Knox Flix Short Film Festival 2020' is open for Senior School students to register their entry to make a short film between 30 seconds and 4 minutes in length. Click here for further details.

Have a lovely weekend everyone!

Renee Willson

Term 1 Reports

Following our parent information sessions held last week, we have collated a list of responses to Frequently Asked Questions. 

Parent/Teacher Interviews

Today you should have received an email with instructions on how to make bookings for zoom interviews with your son’s teachers. Interview times will run from Thursday 4 June for three weeks, as per teacher availability. Bookings open at 8am on Monday 1 June. If you have not received an instruction email today, please contact Mrs Marita Tyler.

Return to campus

Now that most boys have returned to campus, one of the areas that Mentors will focus on for the remainder of this term is guiding the boys to develop the organisational skills they need to flourish in their academic studies. This will include consideration of strategies to manage both digital work and paper work. Teachers will also be working to support their students who may have found it challenging to navigate the demands of online learning. I encourage all boys to attend an After School Academic Support Session on Zoom to gain extra assistance.

Upcoming Assessment Tasks

 Janelle Charlton

Please download the PDF document here for all the information for students to continue to be involved in these important and beneficial programs.

For any questions or concerns regarding the co-curricular program offered in Term 2, please feel free to contact me via email.

Chuck Ardron

Monday 8 June

• Queen's Birthday - Public Holiday

Friday 26 June

• Term 2 concludes 

Please find below the menu for the Canteen for Week 6. 

BOSTON DYNAMICS
ATLAS HUMANOID TEAM LIVE Q&A

What: The Atlas Humanoid Team at Boston Dynamics have agreed to have a live Question and Answer (Q&A) video chat with 20 students about their work. Selection of students is based on three criteria; a question you would ask the Atlas Humanoid team about their work, your involvement in co-curricular and further interests and subject involvement.

You will need to register your interest on this link to be part of this unique opportunity.

When: Wednesday 24 June, 7.30am

Where: WSA Lecture Theatre

Contact: Melinda Valent valentm@knox.nsw.edu.au

Further information on Boston Dynamics: https://www.bostondynamics.com/atlas