A Fortnight at Fahan - Term 3, 5 August 2022

Principal's Report

One of the many things I enjoy in my role as Principal is the opportunity to meet with prospective parents and their children. I often ask the students to tell me about themselves and their interests to gain an understanding of who they are as learners and how they see their future.

The world in which we are preparing our students for is changing, and so too are our students. A recent report from McCrindle Research entitled, Equipping students to thrive in the new world of work, states “Generation Z have an entrepreneurial mindset, are looking to work with flexibility and are ready to embrace the new world of work – which is a good thing considering the average school leaver could have 18 jobs across six careers over their working life. Understanding the students of today and their perspective is key to understanding how this new generation of workers will reshape the workforce with their perceptions and expectations.”

As teachers and staff, we are ourselves lifelong learners and each have a role in shaping the hearts and minds of our students. Together with parents and carers, we are equipping them with the knowledge and social and emotional skills to become anything from data scientists to cyber security experts or entrepreneurs.

At Fahan, the work we are doing in the space of positive education, careers and wellbeing offers a framework to support every student, no matter their pathway. Our values of Learning, Spirit and Community are evident in the way our students develop confidence, are willing to take risks and celebrate success in all their learning. These values are showcased in so many ways; Kinders and Preps taking their first bushwalking steps at the Waterworks Reserve, Year 3 climbing walls at Rockit, House Chairs leading choirs for House Music, Lumina 9 students fundraising for charities and the plethora of outdoor experiences and other opportunities across the School all contribute to their growth and development in this ever-changing world.

Best wishes
Meg Lawson

Learning about Little Sparks at Fahan School

We are very excited to announce that Thursday 1 September marks the opening date of Fahan School’s very own play-based learning program, Little Sparks, for families with children
from birth to four years.

Little Sparks will be held every Thursday from 9:15am to 10:15am during School term time, with the program operating in Fahan’s early learning classrooms.

Children and their parents, grandparents or carers are invited to join in and participate in the fun and engaging activities. Families are welcome to come for casual visits or attend each week during term time and there are no fees to attend.

Hosted by our wonderful Fahan staff, Mrs Tania Gath and Ms Fiona Short, families can enjoy participating in the many fun, playful, messy, noisy, active and delightful activities on offer, both indoors and outdoors. Fahan’s enchanting gardens and playgrounds are an immersive experience that our Little Sparks are encouraged to explore.

Children do not need to be enrolled at Fahan to participate and all children aged 0 – 4 years are welcome to join in.  Tea and coffee will be provided for parents.

Opening Date: 1 September 2022
When:   Every Thursday (School term time only) from 9:15am – 10:15am
Where: Fahan School, 1 Fisher Lane, Sandy Bay.  Access is also available via Coolabah Road, Lower Sandy Bay
Please Bring:  A drink bottle, sunscreen and hat for your child, as well as fruit to share

Registration and Enquiries

For enquiries about the Little Sparks program and to register your attendance, please contact Katie or Mary at Fahan School by phone on 03 6225 1064 or email enquiries@fahan.tas.edu.au.

Learning about Dental Health Week

On Monday the children in Kindergarten welcomed two special visitors.  The Tooth Fairies from Moonah Dental Centre came to talk to us about dental hygiene during Dental Health Week.  We would like thank Joyce Yuen’s family for organising this for us. 

Mrs Rebecca Wiggins

Learning about Giving, Sharing and Caring

With the help of the story Have You Filled a Bucket Today? by Carol McCloud, Prep students have learnt that everyone carries around an invisible bucket (our self-esteem), the purpose of which is to hold good thoughts and good feelings about ourselves.  Students have enjoyed thinking about each other, our different qualities, and learning how to deliver some kind thoughts to someone else.  Students have noticed that not only does showing kindness and appreciation fill our friend’s bucket, it fills our own bucket at the same time!  

Our classroom buckets have been very busy places.

Ms Kim Menadue

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Learning about the State Library

The Kinders spent a lovely afternoon at the State Library in the city.  What fun we had and we are looking forward to visiting again in Term 4 and borrowing our own books with our own library cards. 

Thank you to Julian for reading us some stories and also Carolyn Johnston for helping us organise our visit. 

Mrs Rebecca Wiggins

Learning about Counting

From the very first day of school in February, the Year 1 girls have been counting each day at School by placing an icy-pole stick in a jar.  On Monday, we reached 100 days!  To celebrate, the day was filled with a variety of games and activities that included the number 100, and a few that were just for fun.

The girls enjoyed a creative writing task where they imagined what the world might be like in 100 years from now.  They played a speedy dice game called ‘race to 100’ and tried to guess an unknown number between 1-100 with only a few simple clues.  We shared a piece of ‘100 cake’ together and played a very large game of pass the parcel.

The consistency in counting each day has offered a wonderful opportunity for the girls to learn about place value and how we can make counting easier by grouping numbers and skip counting. 

We are now looking forward to counting the remaining days at School and wonder if we’ll make it to 200!

Mrs Sarah Parsons

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Learning in Vertical Groups

Last Friday, Years 3 and 4 had vertical groups with Mr Hodgman and Mrs Bury. With Mrs Bury we did Craft and with Mr Hodgman we did Digital Technology (DT). 

In Craft we made cards with stickers, felt animals and lots of different things.  Some people also made pop-up cards.  We all had a great time and really enjoyed being creative. 

In DT we designed online computer games using an app called Bitsbox. We did some coding and also chose some effects and...VOILA...we had made a really cool game!  We were all very happy with our new games. It even had a QR code we can scan and share with our friends.  We love DT!  

Big thanks to Mr Hodgman and Mrs Bury for organizing the 3/4 vertical groups! 

By Abbey Lodge and Rosie Briggs (Year 4) 

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Learning about Indoor Rock Climbing

On Thursday 4 August, Year 3 students had a fabulous excursion to the Indoor Rock Climbing venue, Rockit. We all had an absolutely awesome time! We had the opportunity to use our movement skills in challenging and adventurous activities. The venue provided a controlled environment for us to step out of our comfort zones and extend ourselves. It was also a fantastic opportunity for team building and developing an awareness of the importance of supporting each other as we faced new challenges, which the girls did brilliantly!

Mrs Nicole Bury

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Learning about Democracy

The Inquiry focus for Year 5 has been looking at the Democratic Values of Australia. Elements of our work have included:

• the history of democracy
• values of trust, diversity and respect
• freedom of speech, expression and religious beliefs
• freedom of assembly and political participation
• freedom of election and being elected

The students have enjoyed learning about Australia's democratic system and made some creative posters reflecting what they would like Australia to represent in their futures.

Mrs Susan Wright

Learning about French Inventions

Years 5 and 6 students have made some very creative posters on the theme of French Inventions. They spent most of Term 2 preparing them for the Alliance Française competition.  A selection of Senior School teachers will also be judging the posters and selecting the best three from each class to be presented in assembly. 

Mdm Christine Palmer

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Learning about Plate Tectonics

Last week, both Year 9 classes were lucky enough to hear from a guest speaker, Dr Tiege McCarthy, from UTAS. Tiege is a researcher in Galactic astronomy and Geodesy. Geodesy is the science of measuring where things are on Earth, the size and shape of the Earth, the direction of the Earth’s rotation and the distance from the Sun. Tiege told us all about how radio telescopes like the one in Cambridge can be used to help measure the distances between objects on Earth, allowing us to track how fast and the direction in which the tectonic plates are moving. These very accurate measurements allow us to utilise tools such as GPS. Black holes in the universe allow us to make these measurements because they are so far away, they don’t move much relative to us. This opened up some interesting discussions about black holes, the universe and everything!

Tiege also told us about the hydrogen atomic clock that is also at the Cambridge/Mt Pleasant Observatory. This clock is the most accurate clock in Tasmania, and only loses one second every 300,000 years, compared to our best wrist watches, which lose a second every few days. This makes the atomic clock 100 million times more accurate than our clocks!

Following Tiege’s talk, we are now working on a task which involves graphing the changing distances between radio telescopes across the world, to determine which tectonic plates are moving towards each other (converging), which are moving apart (diverging) and which are moving past each other. The students were all engaged in the discussion with Tiege, and very grateful that he gave of his time to come and teach us!

Dr Melanie East and Ms Felicity Jacobs
Year 9 Science teachers

I really enjoyed learning that there are millions of black holes and that black holes can have an effect on time. With the effect of mass, time goes slower in space than it does on earth so say you manage to survive from coming back from a black hole, you might be generations in the future.  Isabel Willcox

During the presentation we learnt about lots of interesting things. We were fascinated by the concept of life outside our galaxy.  Nell Terry and Claudia Sampson

The lecture was a perfect mix of teaching the basics of geodesy (the science of measuring earth) while simultaneously inspiring the class with interesting facts about the universe and how humans have learnt about space.  Nina McLean

We find this presentation very interesting and especially thought that the information about black holes and how they are made was captivating.  Jemima Baker and Amelie Rincon Franco

Learning about Outdoor Adventure Skills

On Monday morning, the Semester 2 Outdoor Adventure Skills (OAS) Class A, went on a bushwalk for their first practical lesson. We drove up to Fern Tree and the class did a short walk on Mt Wellington as an introduction to OAS.  Due to the rain we have had, Silver Falls had plenty of water coming over it. Next week we will be rogaining at Waterworks. Here the students will put together their orienteering and bushwalking skills to try a fun and new activity.

Ms Jayde Steer

22/23 Rowing Season - Important Dates

Fahan Rowing Information Evening (for all new and existing rowing families)

Fahan School, Wednesday 10 August, 5:30pm (RSVP by Monday 8 August)

Clothed Safety Swim (for new rowers)

Thursday 1 September, Collegiate Pool 1:30-1:45pm

Introduction to Rowing 
Sandy Bay Rowing Club, Marieville Esp.
Saturday 3 September, 8:00-10:00am

Rowing Capsize Drills
Hobart Aquatic Centre
Saturday 1 October, 8:00-10:00am

Junior Sculling Skills Camp and Regatta (U13 and U14 only)

Lake Barrington
Saturday 5 and Sunday 6 November

Schools Regatta 1

Lake Barrington
Saturday 19 and Sunday 20 November

Southern Junior Quad Regatta (U13-U15)

New Norfolk
Saturday 3 December

Schools Regatta 2

Lake Barrington
Saturday 10 and Sunday 11  December

Junior Rowing Camp (U13-U15)

New Norfolk
Saturday 28 (U13-U15) and Sunday 29 January (U14-U15)

Rowing Coaches

Fahan Rowing is looking for expressions of interest from experienced and enthusiastic Rowing Coaches, for our junior age groups.

It would be ideal if you have:

• Experience as a participant in rowing
• Rowing coaching experience
• At least level one rowing coaching qualifications or the intention to obtain
• Current motorboat licence or intention to obtain
• Current Working with Vulnerable Persons certification

Please email Director of Rowing, Stephen Lambert, to express your interest at lamberts2@fahan.tas.edu.au

Supporting Fahan Parent Businesses

Fahan Rowing occassionally requires work done by qualified professionals/businesses and we would be very interested in supporting any of our families with such business, for example:

• welding 
• trailer, mechanical and marine repairs/servicing
• Gelcoat repairs and spray painting
• outboard maintenance

If you would like your business included in this registry, please forward your contact details and relevant information to  lamberts2@fahan.tas.edu.au

Mr Steve Lambert                   Mrs Jo Banks-Smith                          Mrs Sophie Baxter
Director of Rowing                Senior Rowing Coordinator            Junior Rowing Coordinator

Spirit of Support

On Thursday 4 August, Year 10 students went to the Tasmania Hockey Centre to support their fellow students, Prue Clarke and Emily Bushby playing in the National Under 16 Hockey Tournament. Our students had a great time cheering for our Tasmanian players and watching national level sport in action. Tasmania played against the leading team from Queensland who they lost to by a narrow 3-1 margin, producing the second best result of the tournament against Queensland outside of NSW - well done girls!

Our students really enjoyed watching Prue and Emily in action and were great supporters.

Ms Peta-Jane Buchanan

Spirit of the Commonwealth Games

This week, we were lucky to have our very own behind-the-scenes reporter at the Commonwealth Games in Birmingham.

Liz Jack, a former Director and Chair of the Fahan School Board, and one of the Directors on the board of Diving Australia, flew to Birmingham this week and enthusiastically supported the Australian Diving Team, including our very own Alumna, Emily Meaney (Class of 2015), who competed in the 10m platform diving.

Liz Jack reported direct from Birmingham, “It was a great performance by Emily Meaney in the women’s platform finals. Not only did she improve her standing from 12th to 5th, but she was the top ranked Aussie in an event that provided some tough opposition, especially from the English and Canadian divers.”

Well done Emily and thank you to our roaming reporter, Liz Jack, for keeping us involved in the excitement! 

Liz is also a former Olympic diver and coach and a member of the Tasmanian Sporting Hall of Fame and the Tasmanian Honour Roll for Women. She is the mother of two adult daughters, both of whom attended Fahan School.

Spirit - Junior School Sport

Junior Basketball

This roster has now commenced, with some very exciting games held last night in the Fahan gym.  Two of the games came down to the final seconds, with the Years 3/4 Fahan Orange v Years 3/4 Fahan Blue finishing in a 22-22 draw.

Fahan will field two Years 3/4 teams and three Years 5/6 teams in these competitions.  

Final rosters are now ready to be distributed.  Please note that the participation rate in this competition has grown again with 18 teams in the Years 3/4 roster and 15 teams in the Years 5/6 roster, resulting is some later games. 

An Edsmart will also go out in the next few days also alerting parents to some early fixtures that will require an early departure from School.  Additionally, there will be two further rounds where Fahan will host three games, where we will again offer an afternoon tea for any girls waiting for their games.

Junior Athletics

This season is almost upon us.  Below are the dates for the upcoming Carnivals.

Junior House Athletics

When:  Thursday 22 September
Time: 10:30am to 2:45pm
Where:  Domain Athletics Centre

JSSATIS Athletics

When:  Thursday 10 November
Time: 10:00am to 2:45pm
Where:  Domain Athletics Centre

Mr Tim Dale
Junior Sport Co-ordinator
dalet@fahan.tas.edu.au

Spirit - Senior School Sport

Term 3 Sport 

Term 3 sport rosters have commenced for Basketball, Hockey, Netball, Badminton and Soccer. We wish our teams the best for the season and extend our thanks to all coaches and team managers.  

Inter House Swimming Carnival 

The Inter House Swimming Carnival was held at The Doone Kennedy Hobart Aquatic Centre on Thursday 28 July. It was an exciting day with plenty of House spirit and participation with Fenton winning the House Swimming Cup.  Congratulations! 

The Junior, Intermediate and Senior Swimming Champions will be announced in the Senior School Assembly in week 5.

Congratulations to Year 7 student, Ava Mignanelli, who competed at the Regional Swimming Championships in June. Ava won gold in the 11-12 year old 100m butterfly, 100m free, 50m free and 100m Individual Medley as well as swimming in two winning relay teams. Ava has been selected in the Tasmanian Swimming Team for the School Sports Australia Swimming Championships to be held in Brisbane in August. We wish Ava all the very best in this competition. 

SSATIS Athletics Carnival

The Southern SATIS Athletics Carnival will be held on Tuesday 6 September at the Domain Athletics Centre. The squad and training schedule is available on the Tree. 

Rowing 

A reminder that the Rowing Information Evening will be held on Wednesday 10 August in the Years 5/6 rooms from 5:30pm – 6:30pm. This information evening is for parents and students who are interested in Rowing in the 2022/2023 season.  

Hockey 

Congratulations to Year 12 student, Lily Bushby who recently returned from Western Australia where she represented Tasmania in the Under 21 Women’s Hockey Team and received the coaches award for her State.  Tasmania finished 5^th overall in the competition.  

Mrs Jo Banks-Smith
Senior Sport Co-ordinator
bankssmithj@fahan.tas.edu.au
0428 031 012

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Community - Fahan School Twilight Fair

Your School Needs You!

The Fahan School Fair is back this year, and is set to be bigger and brighter than ever! Our Fairs have always been fun and are a wonderful way to showcase to the broader community how amazing our School is.

To ensure we can make this year’s Fair one to remember, we are seeking assistance in some way, from each and every family. So, please help us! Let’s get together and make this Twilight Fair the best that it can be.

To begin with, we are putting the call out for donation items – these can be large or small and will be used to raise money for the School, either on stalls or as prizes for the raffle tickets and chocolate wheel. Not sure what to give? Are you part of a business or organisation that may be willing to donate items or services? Or are you the creative type, a maker, designer, or grower? Or perhaps fresh produce, wine, beer, cider, gin? Maybe it is florals or cuttings, clothing, textile, or art? Even experiential vouchers that will hit the spot for someone young or old. We would be happy to promote your business, in exchange for your donations – your support will be recognised on the day of the Fair in a number of ways. All donations will be greatly appreciated and will contribute to the success of our Fair.

Donated items can be delivered to Fahan School Reception and will be collected and stored safely until the time of the Fair.

We are also inviting people or businesses to sponsor our Fair. Sponsors will be greatly promoted prior to and on the day of the event. If you are interested, please contact Sabina by email at sab.b@hotmail.com, or call 0473 345 072.

Lastly, we need volunteers! Please get in touch with us if you feel you would like to contribute your time. This can be in the organisation of the event, setting up on the day of the event, helping during the event and finally, clearing the Fair grounds when it is all over.

During the lead up to the date, information regarding donating, volunteering, sponsorship, and any other messaging will be posted on all the various Fahan social media platforms including Facebook and Instagram – please keep an eye out for these.

If you would like to get in touch with us regarding any of the above, please contact Sabina by email at sab.b@hotmail.com, or call 0473 345 072.

We thank you in advance for your support and look forward to hearing from you.

Mr John Padas
Fair Coordinator

Community - Alex Pitt Art Exhibition

Below you will find an insightful article featured in The Mercury TasWeekend magazine about our exceptionally talented and loved Fahan School Senior Art Teacher and Alumna, Alex Pitt (Class of 1990). Alex has been preparing for her exhibition opening, 'On the Island', which is a culmination of 25 years of creating art inspired by nature, highlighting her experiences living near the ocean.

You are welcome to celebrate Alex’s vibrant large scale works in person at her exhibition, 'On the Island' at Handmark Gallery, opening this Friday night, 5 August, at 5:00pm.  The exhibition runs until 22 August. 

Community - NEW Uniform Items!

Winter Shirts

Winter shirts are now back in stock.

NEW! Formal Shorts available from 2023

We will be adding the option of shorts as part of the formal Summer uniform for Years 1 to 12 from Term 1, 2023.

Please register your interest in an email to uniformshop@fahan.tas.edu.au, including the name and year group of your child, if you would like to express your interest in purchasing shorts for 2023.  These are a special order item so we are gauging interest to ensure we order appropriate stock.

Clothing Pool

Fahan is now accepting clean, current uniform items in good condition for sale in the Clothing Pool.  Items can be left at the School Office and must be accompanied by a completed Clothing Pool form, available from the School Office or on the website. 

Community - Fahan School Holiday Program - Week 1

What a wonderful exciting and busy week we enjoyed during the first week of holiday program!

The children had the opportunity to participate in a variety of incursions including beautiful henna art painted on their hand, and an excursion to Risdon Brook Dam, where they enjoyed a BBQ sausage and a walk around the dam.

The children enjoy the opportunity to catch up with their friends and participate in enriching opportunities designed to engage and entertain them in an inclusive environment.

We asked the children to have some input into the holiday program and many activities offered are an extension of their ideas and interests.

We look forward to extending our holiday program (idea bank) over Term 3.

Kind regards

Lisa, Kelly, Moya and Vivienne
Lady Gowrie Fahan Education and Care Team

Community - Has Anything Changed?

Please ensure you notify us of any change to your address, email, phone numbers or emergency contacts.  To update your details, please email fahanschool@fahan.tas.edu.au

Community - Student Absence

Notification of student absence as a result of illness should be emailed to absence@fahan.tas.edu.au, advised by telephone on 6225 1064 or submitted through the Fahan App. 

You are reminded that if foreseen absences are unavoidable, such as holidays during term time, a Request for Absence form should be submitted to the School.

Community Notices

Free Parent and Unpaid Carer Autism Workshops

Autism Tasmania Autistic Community - Autism Tasmania provide a range of informational workshops for parents and carers of Autistic children of all ages. These sessions aim to give encouragement and trustworthy information so that parents and carers can support their children to grow into confident and empowered adults. A confirmed diagnosis of autism is not needed.

For further information regarding workshops and how to register click here. 

Fahan School Bus Service

For more information on the Fahan Bus Service, please click here.