From the Deputy Head
Junior Primary
JSPA
Forthcoming events

20 July 2001 No. 21

From Head of the Junior School

Welcome back to a new term and I trust that all families enjoyed a restful break and are ready for the rigours of the third term. We are set for a quieter term, with only the Cordner/Eggleston Cup and the Foundation Day Concert as the major 150^th activities ahead.

I extend a special welcome to Mr McKinlay who has commenced duties as Deputy Head and I look forward to welcoming Mr Ian Leith from Haileybury College, who will join the Physical Education team in a few weeks. I thank Mr James Robertson for completing the additional duties associated with P.E until Mr Leith's arrival.

Parents should have received a letter outlining the arrangements for the Cordner/Eggleston Cup. This is set to be an exciting day with our Year 5 and 6 footballers having the opportunity to play on the MCG. Please read the details carefully and do not hesitate to contact the school if you have any further queries.

I advise parents that school will finish early on Friday 31 August, due to the commitment required by our upper primary boys in their preparations for the Foundation Day Concert, to be held that evening. All boys will be dismissed at 12.30pm and After School Care will operate as usual. Further details will be provided closer to the tim. In the meantime, I encourage parents to enter this important change into their diaries to avoid unnecessary confusion.

Welcome back to 6P who have enjoyed their annual camp. I was pleased to visit and join in activities yesterday, sharing the special environment in which this camp is situated. Best wishes are extended to 6G who will attend camp next week.

In today's Assembly, I was pleased to award badges of office to our Year 6 Officers for this term. In thanking the Officers from last term, I extend congratulations.

Boys from 6P will be presented with their badges on Monday.

I would like to congratulate David Stern on achieving his red belt in Taekwondo. Well done David!

The 'National Excellence in Teaching Awards' (NeiTA) Foundation has congratulated our school on having a teacher nominated for a National Excellence in Teaching Award.

Members of our community have nominated Mr Dean Gregory and this week, he was presented a 'Certificate of Nomination' at a meeting of the staff.

The purpose of these awards is to honour and recognise excellent teachers and highlight the work, not only of individual teachers throughout Australia and New Zealand but also the contribution the team contribution of all teachers in every school.

Dean is now eligible for consideration for one of 20 Regional Awards to be presented in October of this year. Congratulations Dean, thank you to the nominator, and 'well done' to all of our teachers for doing such a great job!

My thought for the week….

'The past is the past! Do not let the past take your future hostage.'

With this in mind, I encourage every boy to re set individual goals for the remainder of the year and to work at making those goals come to fruition.

Guy B Mason

From the Deputy Head

Welcoming, enthusiastic, friendly. These are just a few words that spring to mind when I reflect back on my first week at Scotch College. I have been overwhelmed by the friendliness and helpfulness of the staff, students and the parents of the College. It has been a very busy start to the term for everyone and I have appreciated all the help that I have received from all concerned and I look forward with great anticipation to the many school and class events planned for Term Three.

There are many unique qualities about Scotch College that I have already identified this past week, however, in particular, two aspects come to mind. One is the high quality of the boys singing in the 3 - 6 Assembly and the enthusiasm of the Preps, Ones and Twos singing, "She'll Be Coming Around the Mountain", in their Wednesday afternoon assembly. (I was unable to keep up with the boys in their very animated display of hand and body actions!) The second area is that concerning the way in which the boys have approached me when introducing themselves. Their politeness and display of excellent manners, together with their friendliness and welcoming approach, has been most impressive and is a direct reflection on the work that the staff and families of the College are doing with the boys.

I have enjoyed the opportunity to speak to many parents during the course of the week, particularly at afternoon pickup. It has helped me develop an insight into the parent body of the College and is an aspect of the College I am looking forward to developing a strong link with in the future. I therefore extend an invitation to you to drop by my office or make a time during the day, or perhaps catch up whilst waiting for your son after school, to spend a few minutes chatting about your family, your time at Scotch or issues that are important to you.

In closing, could I remind you about the importance of naming all your boy's clothing, it makes it easier to return misplaced items to their respective owners. Also, details concerning the much anticipated Cordner - Eggleston Cup at the MCG will be sent home shortly.

I look forward with great enthusiasm and excitement to my time at Scotch and I look forward to meeting you in the very near future.

Rodney McKinlay

Junior Primary Matters

Next week I will begin interviewing our Prep boys for 2002. This process will take three weeks. During this time, Mrs Nash, the Assistant to the Director of Junior Primary, will perform a number of my normal administrative duties and Mrs Comport will take over my teaching duties. I know that both of these teachers will carry on the job beautifully and the boys in the Junior Primary department will be in good hands. I will still be around the school, but perhaps not as readily available as at other times. If you need to contact me, please do so through the office.

From 9.30am - 3.10pm on Wednesday of next week (25 July) and Tuesday of the following week (31 July), audiologists from Taralye will be at school to conduct audiological assessments on our Prep boys. We are in urgent need of parent assistance on both of these days. If you are able to help us by accompanying individual boys to and from their assessment, please let the office know on Monday and we will contact you to make further arrangements.

Finally, a number of items of school clothing have gone missing over the course of Term Two and have yet to be found. Now that you have had a chance to take stock over the holidays, could you please return to school any items of clothing which do not belong to your son, so that we can reunite them with their owners. This is a timely reminder that all items of clothing (including shoes and socks) should be clearly named. This would help us greatly in dealing with the mountain of 'found property' which is collected daily.

Many thanks for your attention to these matters.

Chris Robertson - Director of Junior Primary

JSPA

Welcome back to Term Three of 2001. I hope you and your children enjoyed the break over the school holidays.

The JSPA extends a very warm welcome to Mr Rodney McKinlay, our new Deputy Head. Who starts with us at Scotch College this term. Mr McKinlay has been busy at the school gates getting acquainted with the boys and the parents. Welcome Mr McKinlay.

Mrs Alice Chan - President, JSPA

150 Junior School Photo

For parents who ordered the 150 Mounted Junior School Photos they are now available for collection from the Junior School for parents who ordered one.

Junior School Office

Forthcoming Events