探花视频

High Notes, Vol 12 No 16, June 03 2011

From the Principal

High Talent
Congratulations to the High Open tennis team for their performances in the Stan Jones Competition. After easy wins in the preliminary rounds and semi-finals, our boys came up against two highly ranked national players in the Endeavour Sports High team and were outclassed in the final. Our team was Arman Abdollahi, George Panas (Year 12) Pat Rynsaardt (Year 10), Frank Zhang (Year 10) and Lachlan Day (Year 11). Well done to Justin Lin (7M) whose act of kindness on the train at Redfern moved a commuter to email me his appreciation. Congratulations to Wesley Beare (Year 8) whose short story, ‘Creepy Midnight’ was awarded a ‘highly commended’ at the Sydney Writers Festival ‘Write Now!’ Competition. Perennial competitor, Khushaal Vyas (Year 10) has won a place in the NSW Zone Final of the Rostrum Voice of Youth public speaking competition. Another great effort, Kushaal! Nakul Bhagwat (Year 12) was runner up at the Regional Final of the competition.

Cold weather and uniform
Students are wearing inappropriate attire during cold weather. Foreign scarves and beanies are appearing. Students requested school beanies. We purchased them. If you need to wear a beanie – buy one from the High Store! Similarly, the school has an authorised scarf!

Peer Mediation
Ms Barr reported to me that the Peer Mediation program has been working better this year. So far we have had 12 Peer Mediation sessions. Two trained Year 11 students participated in each of the sessions. I urge boys who are having relationship issues or low–level annoyances from others to seek a counselling solution by using our Peer Mediation process. I hope our parents are recommending such a pathway to our boys, too.

School Reports
There are still 20 or so Year 12 reports uncollected. If your son has not discussed his report with you – ask him for it! All Year 9 boys should have their reports. The ones I have left I hope are collected promptly. Both Years will now have to work around Year 10 boys who are getting their reports from June 2. Clearance Forms need to be signed off. I propose to have non- compliant boys placed on detention if they fail to collect their reports after a reasonable period of time.

The Phillip Day Memorial Scholarship Dinner
Pre-dinner drinks were accompanied by wonderful music from the Senior String Ensemble in the Great Hall. Around 140 guests enjoyed a sit down meal by ‘Wild Rocket’ at the fundraising dinner on May 31. Host Daniel Macpherson (1997) was unable to join us due to TV film shooting commitments. However, thanks to the great work at short notice by Jenni May and her film crew, a 5-minute clip was shot on location and edited and transferred to W drive by Scott Zhou, Andrew Cha and Sherman Du. These boys from Year 10 Film Making did a wonderful job and were warmly applauded by an appreciative crowd. Mr Macpherson’s speech was heartfelt and evocative of the deep impact that Phil Day had on people he mentored. Tom Cusbert (2002) was the occasional speaker. Tom completed a BSc BCommerce at the University of Sydney. He won a heap of prizes and graduated with first class honours and the University Medal. He works for the Reserve Bank and is currently on secondment to the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet. Tom spoke in erudite and entertaining fashion about the steps and constraints of building models to address policy issues – in particular exploring options as a response to climate change. Mr Barris worked tirelessly to make the evening a success. It was a thoroughly enjoyable occasion.

My speech to the guests is reprinted below:

"Thank you all for coming tonight to gather to celebrate Phillip Day’s life and to support the Scholarship established in his name. Thank you in particular to Con Barris for his organisation of the evening and to Mary-Ann Cradock who has helped the fundraising effort in many ways.

"Phil Day was a well-organised person. He was also not shy in giving his opinion about a range of issues. He even managed to organise and advance his considered opinion about how he would be remembered by his colleagues, his students and the school he loved so much. Several memorial options were discussed with him in his last days. He gave his approval for a memorial plaque and the establishment of a scholarship in his name. I am glad that together we have been able to fulfil his wish.

"Soon after Phil’s funeral in February 2007, monies were collected and a memorial plaque was fixed to the wall on the stairs leading from the foyer of the main building. The Phillip Day Memorial Scholarship Trust Deed was executed on 4 July, 2008. The remaining funds of $16,000 held in a school account were transferred to the SHSF Inc. to establish the Phillip Day Memorial Scholarship Trust Fund. In general terms, the Trust Fund is to apply its income in perpetuity, for the promotion and encouragement of education at SBHS, in the manner outlined in the Deed. Twenty-five per cent per annum of the balance of the income of the Fund, is applied annually in funding a scholarship for a student of SBHS, who is a talented all round student with special needs or commitments, financial or otherwise, arising out of his participation in activities organised or promoted by SBHS, in various areas of academic, sporting, cultural, performance, service, leadership or associated endeavour.

"Applications for the Scholarship are invited from current students and from those joining High through our Placement Committee process for Years 8 to 12. To retain its DGR status for tax deductibility, the Scholarship Fund must be a public fund and its associated scholarship must potentially be accessible by a segment of the public. The Scholarship is advertised annually in metropolitan newspapers. A committee comprising close colleagues of Phil’s, considers scholarship applications and recommends a successful applicant to the Principal.

"The inaugural Phillip Day Scholar, selected in 2008 for 2009 was Alexander Belokopytov, who graduated in 2009 with a great academic and co-curricular record. He was later awarded a Maikin Scholarship at UNSW and subsequently took up a prestigious scholarship to study in the USA. In 2010, Terence Pham joined the school in Year 9 and was awarded the Scholarship for his academic ability, talent in three sports and necessitous circumstances. This year’s Phillip Day Scholar is a Year 8 student, Jesse Nixon. Jesse is a talented all-rounder, who was on the Academic Achievement List in Year 7 and participated in rowing, rugby, three school carnivals, two music ensembles, school service projects, parking, academic competitions and the da Vinci decathlon. Jesse is here tonight and he will share his feelings about the scholarship with you later this evening.

"In order to preserve the balance of the Fund, yet at the same time to commence a scholarship, the School decided in 2009 to finance the actual Scholarships of $1200 each and it then receives a quarter of the Fund income as an annual disbursement from the Foundation each September. The income at this time does not cover the full cost of the Scholarship.

"Since its establishment, the Fund has benefited considerably from the proceeds of the inaugural Phil Day Scholarship Fundraising Dinner in 2009 and from subsequent donations from Old Boys and well-wishers. It also has retained interest earnings each year. The current balance of the Fund is $42,700. It is our intention to raise the profile of the Scholarship by awarding it for a number of years to one person or to multiple people. To do so, we have to grow the Fund until it is self-sustaining. The purpose of my rather protracted recount of the context of the Trust and Fund is to assure you that funds raised through our dinner or other activities will be directed to the Fund securely and used for the purpose intended. It is my intention to underwrite and subsidise the Scholarship award until the capital reaches a self-sustaining amount. Ideally, we want to achieve a target of $80,000 so that @ 6% interest, one quarter of the income would finance a $1200 scholarship.

"So here’s the thing. We need your support to get to our target. The cause is worthy. Please give generously and spread the word about the Scholarship and Fund to students, Old Boys and others."
Dr K A Jaggar

Gifted and Talented Study Day

Suitable for Year 10 and Year 11 students.

This study day is on Monday 15th August at Ascham. The promotional material says:

“This study day is designed to explore the key philosophical issues at stake in the God debate. Why is it that there is no single religious leader in the world, past or present who preaches ‘happiness’? Is it because being fully human is far more than being happy? Being a fulfilled and complete individual means taking time to consider the big questions about life, its meaning and purpose. Inevitably, this raises engagement with the question of God. This study day is suitable for students of any religious persuasion or none and will open up the rational and philosophical issues confronted by those who believe, as did Socrates, that ‘An unexamined life is not worth living’ “

There are 14 places available for students who are interested and who are prepared to pay $20 to attend. If this sounds like you, please see Ms Eggleton in the English staffroom, before Wednesday 8th June, to register.
Ms Eggleton

Peer Mediation at SBHS

Hey got a problem? Get peer mediated! Peer mediation is a program run by a select group of Year 11 students which seeks to solve conflict between students without getting teachers involved. The program seeks to help the students resolve their issues while under the guidance of the Year 11 students. The program is confidential and stays between the peer mediators (Year 11 students) and the students who have a problem with each other.

How it works
When two students have a disagreement they are to email the following address:

This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it requesting a Peer Mediation session. From this point Ms Barr will receive the request and will appoint two Peer Mediators to accompany the disputers in a closed off room, whereby the two students will eventually resolve their problem and sign an agreement to not create more problems with each other.

Remember. The email address is: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it  
Adam Booth & Thomas Zhang

School Student Transport (SSTS)

School Student Code of Conduct – Students travelling on buses must: -

• Dip school bus pass or pay the fare when joining the bus. This is particularly important as the data collected from the on bus fare collection system may be used for service planning purposes
• Use school specials when provided
• Vacate seats for adults when requested
• Follow the driver’s instructions about safety on the bus
• Respect the needs and comfort of other passengers
• Behave appropriately at all times (e.g. no offensive language, no throwing things)
• Protect bus property (e.g. no vandalism)

Students are reminded to:-

• Only use the school bus pass for its intended purpose i.e. for travel between home and school (does not include travel to and from sporting activities)
• Maintain possession of the school bus pass at all times.

During 2011, authorised officers will be deployed to inspect Code of Conduct compliance on school bus services in the Eastern Region. Students who are found to have breached their obligations may lose their travel entitlement and possibly incur an infringement.

From the Canteen

Canteen parents at Sydney High often find that though it may be busy helping in canteen, it can also be a social time as well as being beneficial to the boys and the school.

Our thanks go to the following people for their help in canteen last week:
Vicki Chao, Irene Ben and her neighbour - Lilian Liu ( ‘how nice, when she doesn’t even have a boy at school’...Canteen managers comment ).Jade Ni, Rena Yin,Agnes Leo, May Ip, Sally Hunt, Helen Kon, Rita Shackel, Maria Farell, Li Jian Ping, Charles an Fabienne Ovadia, David Mah, Li Yang, Trang Mai, Susan Zhang.

Volunteers voucher draw
The committee and managers especially appreciate those parents who, on their day off from work, come into canteen to help out. One way we like to say thank you to all our volunteers is by drawing someone’s name out each month for a $10 canteen voucher which their son can then use at school.

And the winner for March/April was ......June (Wu) Long!! The winner for May will be in next week’s High Notes.

Sometimes we also get vouchers etc as a ‘Thank You’ from our various suppliers. These we like to pass on to our volunteers as we simply couldn’t manage without you all!!

So - Louise Warren – congratulations!! You have won a $30 petrol voucher. Give Karen and Tracey a call for the details.

Please phone Tracey and Karen on 9360 4027 if you would like to help out in canteen on any particular day.
Thank you
The Canteen Team

From the High Store

Mid Year SALE - One Week ONLY

From 3 June -10 June
25% off School Beanie
Normally $20 NOW $15

Black Double Zip Pencil Case
ONLY $2

Supporter Polar Fleece Jumper
Normally $69 NOW $50

National Chinese Eisteddfod 2011

The 22nd National Chinese Eisteddfod was held on Saturday, 21 May 2011 for Cantonese and non-native Mandarin speakers, and on Saturday, 28 May 2011 for native Chinese speakers at Strathfield Girls High. Selected students across all Years participated in the competition, a nationwide event for Chinese language students in Australia, organised by the Chinese Language Education Council NSW with Chinese newspaper Sing Tao Daily.

Chinese poetry is the most highly regarded literary genre in China. Learning poetry and prose builds language ability and allows greater understanding of China’s rich history and diverse culture. It provides insight into the minds of classical and modern China’s great poets, many of whom were also great philosophers. Competitors are no longer subliminally taking up syllabus learning outcomes; they are setting themselves up for a challenge and receiving recognition for their achievements.

Contrary to popular perception, the competition is not merely about poetry recital; it is a performance requiring adept pronunciation and the conveyance of meaning and emotion through changing facial expressions, body language, pitch, rhythm, tempo and dynamics. However, tones may not be altered so much such that the four tones inherent in Mandarin become unrecognisable. As a result, the task is an extremely difficult balance - credit goes to Ms Zhang, Ms Fong and Ms Wang for their relentless efforts in shaping us up to these challenges. Students clearly understood concepts taught and put them into practice with confidence.

Sydney Boys High participants have rehearsed enthusiastically for more than three months, steadfastly congregating each week both in class and at lunch to practice. As a result, we have secured some admirable achievements for the school in both group and individual performances. Prose/poetry performed included Shan Quan Yuan, a spring’s wish; Yi Ke Kai Hua De Shu, a blossoming tree; Shi Shei Chui Xiang Le Lu Di, who blew up the reed; Hua Shuo Chang Jiang, glorifying the Yangtze River; Huang He Lou, the yellow crane tower; Xiang Chou, homesickness; and Yu Mei Ren, recalling the lost land.

Individual participants and achievements included:
Edward Lin (7)
Glanden Zheng (10): 3rd prize
Jeff Peng (10)
Ming Chin (11): 3rd prize
Henry Lu (12)
Yale Wong (12): 2nd prize (Cantonese), 2nd prize (Mandarin)

Naturally, individual and group performances are challenging in their own unique ways. Our collective success is testament not only to strong individual performance, but also to our ability to work cohesively, including the sacrifice of personal glory for the greater gain of the team. This is exemplified by our self-discipline and united delivery, in stark contrast with some of our competitors. All Year groups must be congratulated on potent performances, especially Years 9-10, who won a well-deserved 2nd place.

Thank you to all competitors for their energy, dedication and resolve, especially to the Year 12s who despite heavy commitments have continued their motivation, many of whom have done so for many years. Thank you to the Chinese teachers for their continual support and determination in fostering interest and talent in the eisteddfod. To all students: continue to devote yourselves to the pursuit of excellence in Chinese to the highest of levels!
Yale Wong

SBHS Debating

Well Done to Year 11 for getting so far in the FED competition against the Newington Firsts. I must admit my head was in a bit of a spin with all the Ozzie sporting references!

I wish the Year 8, Year 10 and Year 11 all the best in the finals this week. Please come along to support the SBHS boys.

In PDC we are doing well with the Year 12s into the inter-zone rounds now and Year 10s won their first debate against Bankstown Girls.

In addition Year 10 took part in the Les Gordon History Comp, but were beaten by SCEGGs who have been winners two years running.

All the GPS squads have been chosen and therefore next week debating coaching will return to normal for all boys. In fact we will be holding some social debates with Rose Bay which will give all Junior boys the chance to watch a debate and listen to the adjudication.
R Powell
MIC Debating

FED Report
Having snuck into the Senior A semi finals, High took on the top ranked team Newington with a group of Year 11s who all season debated in the Year 12 division. Against Newington’s 1st grade side, High was placed on the affirmative of the topic “that we should abolish the NRL salary cap” and although the whole team spoke very well we were unable to overcome the large amounts of knowledge that the Newington team possessed about the NRL and lost in a close debate. Despite this all speakers debated very respectably against a very strong Newington team.
By Christopher Chiam

GPS and PDC Teams: Year 7

GPS A's:
Elias Hall
Liam Jepson
Thomas Shortridge
Tim Luo
Fayed Morshadi

PDC:
Karthik Subbana
Masrur Joarder
Preetham Kadappu
Max Koslowski

B1:
Thomas Nimac
Harishaan Puvanenthiran
Oliver Lethbridge
David Kim

B2:
Saransh Saini
Mohammad Tajwar
Ali Khan
Ciaran Farrell
Isan Mohamed

Reserves:
Salil Shringapure
Jaeco Agawin

COMPETITION

Friday 3rd June

FED Finals at Newington
Year 8 v Newington
Year 10 v Newington
Year 11 v Newington

More information can be found at and will be emailed to you on a weekly basis.
Please CHECK YOUR EMAIL regularly and ensure we have current contact details for both students and parents.
PARENTS: If you are not receiving weekly emails about debating please email us at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it and ask to be added to the parent group for your child’s year.

Music Notes

Senior Strings

Thank you to the Senior String Ensemble who played at the Phil Day Memorial Dinner last Tuesday evening, and a special thank you to Ms Rebecca Irwin who has worked solidly with the ensemble and will be partaking in the Performing Arts Challenge on Thursday 9th of June.

Year 7 New Instrumentalists

ALL New Year 7 students who began lessons on an instrument last term are encouraged to join the Training Concert Band (Woodwind/Brass/Percussion) and Junior String Ensemble (Strings) this term. Please see below the rehearsal timetable and rooms and turn up with your instruments. Award scheme points apply!

Music Performance Co-Payments

Please arrange to make Music Co-payments ASAP as they are needed to fund the ensembles. Letters have been sent out to students in the Music Performance Program, we appreciate your co-operation in this matter.

Music Performance

Congratulations to Year 11 HSC accelerated Music student, Ennes Mehmedbasic who performed Vivaldi’s Concerto for two Oboes in D minor last Sunday with Orchestra 143 at Macquarie University. A wonderful performance; well done.

Rehearsal Schedule 2011

Music ensemble rehearsals are now up and running, please check the schedule below and attend your appropriate ensemble. ALL new students welcome, please see the Music Staff for ensemble information. We look forward to your son’s involvement in the Music Performance Program.

REHEARSAL SCHEDULE 2011

TIME	MONDAY	TUESDAY	WEDNESDAY	THURSDAY	FRIDAY
Morning rehearsals 7.45am (Unless stated otherwise)	Intermediate Concert Band Room 201	Chamber Choir Room 201   Also Lunchtime rehearsal	Junior Stage Band Room 201	Senior Concert Band Room 201	Symphony Orchestra Room 201
	Senior Stage Band Room 101	Jazz Ensemble Room 101	Intermediate Stage Band Room 101	Senior String Ensemble Great Hall	Guitar Ensemble/ Saxophone Ensemble Room 101/102
	Training Concert Bandd Room 202 Terms 2, 3, 4		Philharmonic Orchestra Room 208
	Junior String Ensemble Room 208				Marching Band TERMS 1 & 4 Moore Park West
Afternoon rehearsals Start @ 3.30pm		Marching Band TERMS  1 & 4 BB Courts 3.30 - 4.30pm

The Bookworm

Don’t MISS OUT on LibraryVIP!

Library VIP is Rewarding. Literally.
Many students have already joined Library VIP to be rewarded for their Library Loyalty. Read for your chance to win a $50 book voucher. The more books you borrow and read, the greater the chance you have of winning! Don’t leave it too late or you’ll miss out!

Pick up a Library VIP card with your next loan in either the Junior or Senior libraries. Every loan = 1 stamp 10 stamps = 1 entry into the draw for a $50 Book Voucher

Some FAQ…
1. How does the system work?
Present your Library VIP card/bookmark every time you borrow. It will be validated with a date stamp and a library stamp. Once you have filled in the 10 stamps, drop your card into the box in the Junior Library (7-9) or Senior Library (10-12).

The date stamp is the DUE DATE for the books borrowed. Please return or renew before your books are overdue.

Library VIP operates across the two libraries. You can earn stamps from both libraries whenever you borrow.
Please ask us for a Library VIP card if you haven’t received one when you borrow.

BE REWARDED for your reading.

PICK UP your Library VIP card with your next loan. The BOOKWORM Is an initiative of the Junior & Senior Libraries.

Tips from Booko!

Term 2 half way through! Why not borrow a DVD as a related text for your next assessment task and receive 1 Library VIP stamp for it? Yes!

Can you search for book availability online? Yes! Simply go to

Can I win $50 book vouchers through the library? Yes! Pick up a Library VIP card, and place in box once you borrow 10 items to win!

Can I renew books online and check my borrowing record? Yes! Simply go to the portal and click on “My Library”

Happy Reading!

This week’s AUTHOR SPOTLIGHT is on…TERRY PRATCHET

Terry Pratchet is a best selling fantasy fiction author. Look for TERRY PRATCHET on the shelf:- F PRA

Need to reserve a book? Please see the friendly librarians. CHECK THE CATALOGUE for AVAILABILITY INFORMATION  

Be Rewarded. Literally.Now ANYONE can be a VIP…

Volleyball

Round 3

Matches against our old rivals, Grammar are always going to be action-packed. These are the two strongest teams in the GPS. However, last Saturday must go down in the records as one of the most dramatic for a number of reasons. Unusually, the Firsts started with what looked like a confident few points. Gradually, Grammar pulled back the set and ran out close winners. The second set went our way with a similar margin. Back again to Grammar but that is where it got interesting. One of our stalwarts, Chris Morrow, landed very badly on his ankle and had to be taken off court. There is the risk that such a move can disturb the team just at a crucial point in the match. However, far from falling apart, the team, which up to that point had not showed the best of which it is capable, fought back and eventually dominated the final set. A massive game with supporters from both sides making it a memorable occasion.

Almost any match after such drama would seem an anti-climax but our Seconds managed a very clean 3-set win over another very good Grammar side. The statistics tell their own tale, most notably that the Seconds have a very wide spread of good, reliable volleyballers. At a time when the competition this year is marked with senior teams losing valuable players this is a good sign for us.

The stats have been drawing a lot of interest, not least from the players. It is having a noticeable effect both on their training and on their match duties. We continue this week with some slight modifications. Next week we aim to add another column to show those whose great saves help win points.

Player	Passing Accuracy % (number of  contacts)	Serving Efficiency %   (number    of   contacts)	Spiking and Blocking Efficiency %   (number  of   contacts)	Kills (Spike or Block)	Total Average %
First Grade
J.Yang	94       (16)	(0)	(0)	0	94
A .Liao	100      (1)	60         (5)	57         (7)	2	72
D.Nguyen	100      (3)	50       (16)	55       (35)	10	68
A.Dhaliwal	91      (29)	46       (14)	65       (54)	22	67
Second Grade
S. Sethi	71       (14)	(0)	(0)		71
S.Dinhgra	100       (1)	67         (9)	46       (12)	3	71
P.Gao	75         (8)	71       (14)	64         (7)	2	70
E. Mehmed	75         (4)	60       (14)	65       (10)	4	67

One of the advantages we have at High (that few other GPS schools can currently muster) is that we have not only talent but depth of development. Grammar is in a similar position and so it was that on Saturday our development teams managed to get some vital match experience. In a reduced best-of-3 match our 14As narrowly lost 2-1 but our 14Bs took at a convincing win at 2-0. Well done, boys. It’s worth noting that most of our students are in Years 7 and 8 whilst Grammar’s are in Years 8 and 9!

It’s been a great week for volleyball. Not only do we have this vital win over Grammar but our teams also played the day before in a series of matches lasting all day! The Firsts won their All Schools tourney and 16A ran out winners in the U16 division. More reports from this in 16th June’s High Notes!
P S Ganderton

Sydney Boys High School Fencing

Sydney High Fencers in new competition and obtaining medals
Last Sunday some fencers attended the team and individual competitions in sabre and epee. It was a hugely successful day with Ian Li coming third in the individual Sabre and Shaun Pak coming third in the epee individual event. In the sabre team event, Mathew Chan, Ian Li and Ben Hillier came 2nd and our second sabre team comprised of Kritman Dhamoon, Ashley Chan and Tian Ling came 3rd . Our Epee team with Shaun Pak, Jeremy Dobrowolski and James Cao came 2nd. Congratulations.

Under 15
SBHS U15 1
Ashley Chan, Kritman Dhamoon, Kenneth Yu, Daniel Chen Poule 6 with SGS B, Newington 5, Arden

We were the highest ranked fencers in our age group, and we were put in the first team, against 3 other teams. We were ranked 7th, while Grammar B was ranked 6th, while Newington 5, and Arden, were ranked 21st and 22nd, respectively. Our matches against Newington and Arden, were an easy win. We had a 4th member in our team, who was new to fencing in teams, and it was good to see he was doing well. The match against Grammar was pretty intense, we were close to losing, but thanks to Daniel, he scored the last point, and we won against Grammar. The game was hectic!

SBHS U15 2
Hardy Zhu, Chi Mao, Michael Hauser Poule 2 with Newington 1, Barker C, Penrith

Firstly, we fenced Newington 1. As the 2nd best team, Newington beat us, but there was a very impressive win by Chi, making the score 5 – 1. Against Barker, we won 5 – 1, and against Penrith we won 5 – 3. Impressive fleching (crazy attack, running forward, screaming not necessary) by Chi meant that he won all his matches against Barker and Penrith. Great job!

SBHS U15 3
Christopher Chen, Peter Choi, Oliver Long Poule 3 with Newington 2, SGS C, NSBH

The matches were not easy, a combination of blood, sweat, tears (well mostly sweat) and sheer effort, the end result was a very close and very painful loss for SBHS U15 Cs. Our first match was against NSBHS, a seasoned team of fighters from the North. We played hard, and we played well, coming close with great victory in the end. After a triumphant victory our next opponent was SGS. However, due to arm length issues we were utterly road-rollered by their power, with many close losses. Our last match was against Newington, and after suffering many injuries to the lower groin area our opponents recovered and returned with a 5:3 match victory. It was a very close match yet they respectably won. Overall, our team played better than usual and to the fullest of our abilities. Well done, men!

SBHS U15 4
Gideon Kwok, Yiu Tao Wong, James Chee Poule 4 with Aloys, SGS D, Newington 4

We were looking forward to the day against 2 of the 3 teams who were ranked 4th as well. Our first match was against St Aloysius A. We had an advantage of height when we were face to face with our opponent. Being told they were ranked 3rd in the comp, we had underestimated them. Eventually we lost 5-0. Our next opponent was Grammar D, a much fairer bout. We had a very good start, winning our first 2 bouts. With great support from Adam and James’s dad, we won the game 5-1. Because of the limited amount of ref’s and strips available, we had to wait an hour for our next match. We did not have a great start losing 3-0, but due to great determination by the whole team, we managed to win our next 3 bouts. Each team needed 2 more wins to secure victory; we were the unlucky team in the decider.

SBHS U15 5
Bohan Deng, Jason Deng, Riley Irwin Poule 3 with St Ignatius, Barker B, SAC

SBHS U15 6
Hawk Ji, Michael Alexandratos, Eric Le In poule against SGS A, Newington 3, Barker AP

It first started off as a very hard match. We won on bout midway, but just as the tables were turning we lost the other bouts against Barker A. The next match was against Newington D and of course we stood no chance and we lost 0v5. Finally there was our last match against Grammar A and as well we lost 5v0. Although we lost it was a great experience and we will win our future matches.

U13 School Championships
SBHS 1
Stratton Vakirtzis (Captain), Akhlaaq Ahamed, Arthur Chao

It was a tough battle as we fenced against Sydney Grammar’s B team and our own school, but unfortunately we lost both. Against Sydney Grammar’s highly trained team, we only managed to sneak in one point but that is a very good achievement for us. We also just missed out on another point however we all put in our effort and that what matters the most. Against Sydney Boys (Team 6) it was mostly up to luck and some skill but we managed to gain one point. The overall games were a really enjoyable and learning experience and we all try again (individually) next month. This report is brought to you by Stratton Vakirtzis.

SBHS 2
Gary Huang (captain), Joshua Chin, Julian Tu

This was the first time against other schools and we put in a great effort for 2-5 against Sydney Grammar As, a team that Josh thought was “unbeatable”, and a 3-5 with St Ignatius, who pushed out on top. Both Grammar and St Ignatius displayed excellent skill and taught us new things about fencing. Our losses today were disappointing but have made us promise to try harder next time.

SBHS 3
Daniel Jiang captain, Peiyuan Li, Simon Nguyen

The first time we competed against fencers not our own, we had Hills 1 and St Ignatius as our opponents. Unfortunately Hills 1 and St Ignatius beat us by a long shot. We lost to Hills 1 with a score of 5-0 though we scored a few hits. We lost to St Ignatius with a score of 5-0 as well even though we scored over double the points and almost won once.

SBHS 4
Yu Fan Chen, James Ye, Rafael Ng

We started off with okay results against Grammar D. We lost 5-1 which is a good start considering this was our first ever competition.

Next, we were up against Aloys and lost 5-0. We tried the best we could as beginners. Soon came our battle with St Andrews. They were a worthy opponent. We won the first two bouts but then started losing a few. After an exhausting few battles, we ended up losing 5-3 but the bouts during this round were very close.

SBHS 5
Chen Yu Wang, Anthony Taing, David Zhou

First game of the year. against Grammer C, Hills B and Newington. The results weren’t as good as we thought they would be. However, we did win against Grammar C with a score of 5-3. But lost against Hills with a score of 3-5 (we should have won) and the day finished with us losing to Newington (score of 1-5) who were really good. David and Anthony improved a lot.

SBHS 6
Peter Lin, Benjamin Long, Aaron Tse, Kentaro Takahata

Our team went against Grammar Team B and also against our own school with SBHS 1. With the results against Grammar, we did okay with our first try losing 3-5. When we fought against our teammates, we fought till victory with a 5-1 win. It was an overall good result for our first time.

High Family

The Bulletin Board for Sydney Boys High P & C

Julie Connolly
P&C President
If you would like to have any parent community news or upcoming events included in High Society, please contact Julie Connolly, This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it ; M: 0418 470 203.

Joint SGHS & SBHS P&C Meeting, 7.30pm Wednesday 22nd June

SGHS Multi-purpose Hall.
Two guest speakers addressing the important issue of Improving Mental Health for Young People – an evening not to be missed.

Each year SGHS and SBHS hold a joint P&C meeting. This year’s meeting is hosted by SGHS with two guest speakers who will address the important issue of improving mental health for young people:

• Professor Ian Hickie AM, Director of Brain & Mind Research Institute, at the University of Sydney, where he is also a professor of psychiatry. Professor Hickie is a previous CEO and clinical advisor to beyondblue: the national depression initiative and Visiting Fellow, Centre for Mental Health Research, Australian National University as well as a member of the Australian National Council on Drugs and chair of Mental Health Council of Australia's research committee.
   
• Professor Helen Christensen, Professor and Director, Centre for Mental Health Research, College of Medicine, Biology and Environment, The Australian National University. Professor Christensen’s research interests include depression and anxiety that are major causes of incapacity and present high risk for suicide and self harm. Her major research aims include to improve levels of help seeking to mental health services in Australia and globally; and develop and trial prevention and early intervention programs using health technologies for anxiety, depression and self harm. This is an important area for parents and we encourage as many parents as can to attend this joint P&C meeting. Supper will be served following the talks.

Co-curricular Program Co-payments

SBHS provides an outstanding program of sport and other co-curricular activities such as music and debating. As a GPS School, High offers our boys opportunities to participate in programs that are unmatched in any other public school in Australia and even in most private schools, where the fees are many times those at SBHS. Moreover, the School’s programs are structured to fit with the academic focus of our students. As a result, High produces outstanding scholar-sportsmen equipped not only for academic success, but with the broader skills and attributes to succeed in their careers and their lives. For example, team sport boosts the physical and personal development of our boys and facilitates entry to business, professional and social networks.

The School makes a substantial contribution to the cost of providing its 15 co-curricular programs but is unable to cover the full cost from the relatively low annual contributions it invoices to parents at the beginning of each year. To help provide adequate coaching and facilities for each co-curricular program, the School Council, supported by the P&C Association, has requested that the School invoice a co-payment of at least $100 per boy, per season for each co-curricular activity.

For all co-curricular programs, the School pays GPS membership fees, venue access fees, major equipment costs, student insurance and charges for the Head Teacher Sport and the Master-In-Charge from the Sports Levy included in the annual contributions. Co-payments will be directed towards coaching and additional equipment within each co-curricular program.

The School Council and the P&C believes we must provide good coaching, facilities and support for every team. We believe the co-payment is very reasonable compared to the actual cost of the 15 co-curricular programs (on average around $500 per boy) and the cost of playing club sport ($100-$250). Moreover, like most things at High, we believe it is a bargain considering the many benefits our boys get from co-curricular participation. Co-payment invoices for Winter sports will be despatched shortly. When you can, make your payment to the School Office as soon as possible.