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High Notes, Vol 15 No 2, February 07 2014
From the Principal
High Talent
New Parents Welcome Evening
Summer Sports Assembly "Good morning and welcome to our summer sports assembly. We are gathered here again today to acknowledge and honour our boys selected in GPS teams for tennis, swimming and sailing. To our special guest, Nathan Martin, MICs, coaches, parents and staff – thank you for helping us celebrate their success. For the last couple of years, two GPS competition rounds of tennis have been played in term 4, but teams are allowed to be re-selected for the beginning of term 1, so we wait to present final teams at a second summer assembly. "High Sailing is a high quality, popular program. Sailing’s equipment was boosted by a welcome High Club grant and successful fundraising by parents. Last year saw the addition of two new Pacers to our fleet, bringing us up to 10 boats. We can now have at least 20 boys sailing at once. Also, our new match racing season has started, so a different group of sailors can access the boats on Saturday afternoon. Our program is getting more intense and demanding for the competition crews. Thank you to Graham Moody for his great work as MIC in 2013-14. He has given unstintingly of his time to our boys. Thank you again to coach Adam South for his work in building up the program, particularly for being the driving force behind the Saturday afternoon competition. At the end of 2013, we said farewell to Richard and Sachiyo James from the Sailing Committee. Their combined service to the school over six years was invaluable…we shall miss them "Thank you to again to Mr Loizou for his organisation and promotion of High swimming in 2013-14. I expect that everyone will support the school swimming carnival on Monday. In the GPS competition, particularly in the junior division, High boys are having a good deal of success. Quite a few boys made combined GPS teams and two boys qualified for Nationals. The swimming season is short but hectic, with carnivals each Friday night. As with all sports, in depth participation is the key to success. I urge Year 7 and 9 boys enrolling this year to get involved in the swimming program. "Thank you again to Mr Wright for his work as Administrative MIC of tennis and taking care of Saturday morning arrangements. We acknowledge Mr Boros for his long term commitment to tennis .Mr David Deep, our resident tennis professional, is building up our tennis program. Some promising tennis players have enrolled this year. We are looking towards improved performances throughout the grades in GPS competition. With our new tennis ‘shed’ courtside, the program is really thriving. "One of the most common problems that we face as sports people is a sudden loss of concentration. This can be caused by internal self-thoughts involving future worries of failure or self-recrimination for a recent error. To combat internal concentration loss, the ARIA method is recommended. Acknowledge the error, release it, imprint the correct action and ask your non-conscious self to correct it next time. "When the concentration loss is caused by external distraction (noisy spectators, heckling, unsportsmanlike behaviour by opponents or loss of control by a team mate), Dr Curtis’ 30-second, 3-step focussing technique is a useful strategy. Take 10 seconds to focus on a single, simple aspect of your surroundings or equipment. Focus without thinking about what you’re looking at. Next, close your eyes if possible and focus on breathing deeply for ten seconds. Finally, spend 10 seconds visualising the correct execution of the swing/stroke/movement/play or throw that was imperfectly performed as a result of your loss of concentration. We all have bad moments in sport. It is how we recover, how we bounce back, how we re-focus, that sets us apart. I congratulate all boys who have been selected in GPS teams to represent their school in summer competition. "
Early Bird Discount ends Friday, February 28
Building Fund can be invested to earn interest for longer. Our aim is to encourage at least 55%
of parents to make this financial commitment to the school early in the year. Let’s carry
on High’s self-help culture to make the Governors Centre a reality by 2016! 
From the OfficeLetters Re Absence/Lateness/ Early LeaveWhen your son returns to school from being absent he is required to provide a letter of explanation signed by a parent or guardian. If your son is going to be late for school a note is also required. Alternatively you may contact the school by phone on 9662 9300 and dial “1” for the absentee line. If your son has an early leave note he is required to have his note signed by either Mr Barris, Mr Dowdell or Mr Prorellis before 8:55 am and handed in to the Main Office immediately after. Each letter should be signed by a parent or guardian with the name, date and roll class of your son printed clearly. Your son needs to pick up a leave pass from the Main Office before he leaves the school. If your son has early leave due to a medical appointment you are required to produce a note from the provider the following day. LeaveApplying for Leave
If you require leave for your son please, apply in writing and address your application to the Principal, Dr Jaggar, stating the reason and length of time of the leave. Your son must then present this application to Dr Jaggar for permission for the leave. Please remember to apply before the leave and not after.
Debating at HighAt High we run the largest debating program in NSW with over 250 students and 24 coaches. Each coach is a well accomplished debater in their own right and the majority of them compete at a very high level in University debating competitions. We are very lucky to have these coaches at High. On Thursday 13th February we will be hosting a Parent Information evening at 7pm. This will be held in the Great Hall and will be a good opportunity to obtain essential information about the debating program.
Coaching The highest standards of behaviour are expected at coaching and students will be asked to leave if they don’t behave appropriately.
Competitions Debates are on Friday evenings. Some are at home and some are away at other schools. Sometimes we will provide transport, but usually students make their own way to venues. It is important to have made arrangements for getting home safely. If Ms Powell hears that students are making their way home, alone by public transport they will not be allowed to debate again. Each debate you take part in you gain 1 award point. You must sign in on the debating sheet which will be available on the night. At Home debates you get involved by offering to chair. In Year 7 you can do this with a friend. Each debate you chair you gain one award point, but more importantly you get to watch the debates and learn from other boys. After debates we have suppers. When we host we rely on contributions from you for the suppers. If you are debating or chairing you must bring some food to share – a plate of sandwiches, chips, biscuits, cakes etc. SBHS is renowned for providing the best suppers on the debating circuit. Don’t let us down! Key People
We have a debating coordinator in each Year group and it is their job to: communicate on matters of debating; organise teams for social debates etc; contribute to debating events eg Orientation Day, Debating Dinner and play a key role in maintaining records of award points for debating. I am currently seeking a Year 7 coordinator. In order to apply you must address the above points, in writing to me before 9am on Friday 14th February. I will announce the successful applicant at the first coaching session.
Communication
In addition you need to read High Notes where Lokesh and I write something weekly and check the
debating notice board and the Daily Notices regularly.
SHS RowingSydney High Regatta ResultsThis was a full GPS regatta last Saturday with 17 High crews racing. There were some encouraging results, but unfortunately some crews experienced gear failure. Congratulations to the following crews with the best results on the day–
Thank You
Upcoming regattas -
2014 Taree Summer Camp ReportThe annual senior rowers’ trip to Taree this year went off without a hitch, competing in the last day of the Taree Summer Regatta in a wide range of boats and crews. Congratulations go to Shawn for winning his heat in 1x single scull! Four hours north of Sydney and spanning seven days, the senior sheds practically packed and moved the majority of the Outterside Centre to the Croker farm on Oxley Island. There, we were greeted by the Croker family and the familiar sight of Manning River dolphins. With something of the order of fifteen water sessions throughout the week, the entire squad surprised ourselves with our capabilities, achieving some of the best rowing we've had all season. Selections for the two eights and four were held over two days of hard seat racing and all of us have learnt just how to get the most out of the boat in competition. In addition, all 24 senior rowers succeeded in the island row challenge (28km) in eights, quads and even doubles, a feat unequalled thus far. Fish and chips at the beach, a hike to a lookout with an incredible view, and a tour of the internationally renowned Croker Oar Factory were all highlights of the trip, but the parents' cooking will be the most memorable. They pulled out all the stops, with a massive bacon and eggs breakfast each morning, sandwiches and burgers for lunch, and steaks for dinner each day to keep the boys loaded with fuel.
A big thank you to all the parents, coaches and our MIC Julie Blomberg, who supported us the
whole week. They gave their precious time and effort to help us and without them, this camp would
not have run so smoothly and the big improvements we made would not have been possible.
Basketball: Shootin' HoopsHigh vs KingsTerm 4, 2013
Term 1, 2014
This week, both High 1st Grade and 2nd Grade played fantastic matches to secure wins against King’s, rendering them undefeated in the ‘official’ AAGPS 2013-2014 Summer Sport season so far and still in the running to be the AAGPS Premiers this year. The rest of Opens also posted great wins, with only 3rd grade unfortunately suffering defeat. The 16s division, although losing, posted very close games, with the majority of teams losing by single digits. 13s have improved dramatically from last term, having won the majority of their games going into the 14s division this year. 14s have also improved to be the only undefeated division this week, going into the 15s division. Overall, High posted a very good effort, coming out of the weekend still having won the majority of games this Saturday. In other news, High 1st Grade also won against many private schools, at Trinity College, during games played in the holidays as a follow up to the 17 day USA tour by both 1st Grade and a junior side. Both sides recorded numerous wins. High pursued in the road trip format that of a professional team around the States. The team flew in to Dallas from Australia for their first game, before winning their debut game to start the USA tour with a bang. The road trip then began, the first stop being Houston, where the team lost in an intense overtime game. The road trip then continued to San Antonio, where High was in top form and won a whole tournament consisting of 3 consecutive wins to secure the title. Travelling to Austin, they lost before travelling back to Houston the following day to win another game against a different team. The team then won their last two games in Waco and back to Dallas, holding a very high win percentage during the USA ‘road trip’ tour. Concluding the basketball trip, the team then went to Los Angeles for a post-trip holiday, where they went to College basketball games, NBA games, Disney World, California Adventure, Universal Studios then beach, before flying back home. All players participating in the tour would have gained a massive amount of experience and knowledge, as well as having a lot of fun in the process. I’m still looking for an editor to continue the High Notes Shootin’ Hoops after I graduate. If you are interested please see Mr B Hayman as soon as possible. Award Scheme points apply. This Saturday High is up against Shore; a school that plays with physicality and vigour, so be both physically and mentally prepared and good luck to all teams this week!
~ Go HIGH!
High TideSydney Boys High School Sailing1st February 2014 Saturday’s racing on Rose Bay was a pleasant exercise, with a 12 knot SSW breeze to begin the season. With only six boats being used and after a slow start in the first race, High sailors posted exceptional results in races two and three. Race one was a chance to wash away the cobwebs from the holidays. David Evans with Ethan Tay as crew, took advantage of a controversial pin end start, to sail into a podium position. Other sailors suffered from mediocre starts and had to weave their way through the fleet to finish in the top ten. Two highlights from race two stand out. Gaining first, second and third places in race two was a most impressive result. High sailors dominated the start, especially Daniel Fang and Alex De Araujo, where they tacked early in front of the rest of the fleet by successfully completing a very difficult pin start. This gave High a great opportunity to signal to the other schools that this term High are here to race competitively. David Evans /Brian Nyugen followed their first race with another good placing and Darren Tiang/Kai Huang sailed well to fill the final podium position.
Race three saw High try to repeat the same tactics at the start with both David and Daniel at the
pin end. Excellent placings for both of these boats at the finish bore out the sense of using
these tactics. Other crews sailed well generally, but the main determinant of a good final
placing was again, the start.
Chess Coaching 2014This year the weekly coaching sessions will be changing from Friday mornings to Monday mornings. Our coach, Vladimir Feldman will be offering coaching to committed chess players and those keen to learn and compete in inter school chess competitions and championships. Coaching begins on Monday 7th. February and will be in room 104 at 8am every Monday. Year 7s who have played chess before are encouraged to attend along with our regular players and new interested boys from all other Years.
In 2013 Sydney Boys High School won the senior, intermediate and junior divisions of the
interschool chess competition as well as The Scots College Invitational. Sydney Boys was placed
4th in the Australian Schools Teams Championship.
From the CanteenWelcome to all our volunteers for 2014, in particular all the new parents to the school. Canteen provides a wonderful opportunity to meet other parents, find out what is happening at the school and provides significant contributions to the P&C to fund worthy projects which benefit all of our sons. If you can spare a day a month to help out please contact the canteen on Ph: 9662 9350. Your sons will love to see you there. Don’t miss out on food you want! Keen to try out the fabulous range of food in our canteen but keep missing out?
Order ahead and reserve what you want!
In order to avoid disappointment, it is a good idea to put in a lunch order, as sometimes what you want may have sold out. Thank you to our volunteers at the end of last term:-
MON: Tina Chang,Shannon Hickey,
High FamilyThe Bulletin Board for Sydney Boys High P & C.If you would like to have any parent community news or upcoming events included in High Society, please contact Ian Sweeting P&C President This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it New Parents WelcomeLast Tuesday evening, more than two hundred parents of our new High boys attended the New Parent Welcome in the Great Hall. The P&C would like to express its gratitude to the many people involved in what is a complex event at a very busy time of the year, including: Ron Trent and the Year 8 parents and boys who organised and ran the evening; Lin Jin and the Sailing parents and boys for their excellent catering; from the school, Dr Jaggar, Messieurs Barris, Higgins, Aldous, Moody, Ms Rigby and Genias for giving up their own time to attend and stay on for discussions with the new parents; members of the P&C and supporters groups; as well as individual parents. Thank you to all for your time and effort. First General P&C Meeting for 2014Our first P&C general meeting for 2014 will be held next Monday 10th February at 7:30pm in the Staff Common Room. Subjects for discussion will include works to the Staff Common Room, Light Rail and Governors Centre updates, and focal points for the P&C in 2014. We look forward to seeing many of our new parents in attendance. Setting up Your Individual Parent Portal LoginThe Parents Portal on the school website is accessed via individual parent logins. To create a personal account you will require the following two pieces of information:
If you have multiple children attending the school, any ID Number will suffice. If you have trouble recalling the email address you supplied, your son can tell you by looking up the My Details section of the Student Portal. Alternatively, contact the school Administrative Office. Once you have these two pieces of information, create a personal Parent Portal Account:
Upcoming P&C Parking EventsPlease find listed below upcoming P&C parking events. Each co-curricular supporters group has a nominated parking coordinator whose role is to ensure that sufficient numbers of parents and boys are available to meet the expected demand. If you are unsure of the contact details of your co-curricular parking coordinator, you should email the parent sub-committee president of the various supporters’ groups or the P&C at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it Saturday 8 February – Sydney FC v Adelaide United (Debating) Upcoming Meetings & EventsP&C General Meeting – 7:30pm, Monday 10 February, Staff Common Room Ian Sweeting
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Sydney Boys High School
