This camp encourages and challenges participants to grow, lead and communicate, building teamwork, confidence, resilience, and courage. Thank you to Miss Bullion and her team of teachers for an adventurous and fun camp.

Loud chanting and exuberant encouragement contributed to strong performances and masses meandered down the pool amidst squeals and laughter gaining extra points for participation. Positive energy, personal effort, and giving-it-a-go was the purpose. Houses gained. What joyous celebrations of House spirit! Thank you to the sports team led by Mr McCabe and our Middle Years and Senior Years House Co-ordinators. Red was the winner x 2!

View all the action from the Senior Years Swimming Carnival HERE thanks to Pixevety.

This evening was a sophisticated Night under the Stars in a ballroom set with candelabras and sparkle which were outshone by mature, young women who thoroughly enjoyed the night of dinner, dancing, singing and connecting. This was a beautiful night with beautiful people making life-long memories. Thank you for Mrs Hartley and her Formal Committee members for a spectacular night.

Pink, red, pink, red – Love was in the air at Somerville House throughout the week: Monday for the Junior School and Friday for the Senior School. Students danced and sang their way through lunchtime, clamoured for hearts on cheeks and ate their way through the amazing array of cupcakes and treats on sale to raise money for Service Learning projects. What fun for a cause!

"Gong hei fat choy!” Wishing you abundant happiness and prosperity in the auspicious Year of the Dragon. As we joyously usher in the new year, our anticipation is brimming with excitement for the promising opportunities and achievements that lie ahead for all.

For those born in the Year of the Dragon, folklore suggests that you are destined for innovative thinking, inherent inquisitiveness, and a flourishing journey in personal pursuits.

As an integral part of our immersive language program, Mrs. Thomas, our Head of Languages, has organised a series of engaging activities for students to delve into the rich tapestry of rituals and traditions associated with Chinese culture and language. The highlight of the week was the captivating 'Lion Dance,' which enthralled the girls as it gracefully paraded around the school oval. In Chinese culture, the lion dance holds significant importance, believed to usher in good luck and dispel evil spirits.

The celebration continues with a focus on the Lantern Festival later this week, traditionally observed on the 15th day of the lunisolar Chinese calendar. This festival is dedicated to promoting reconciliation, peace, and forgiveness. Students will have the delightful opportunity to craft their own lanterns, immersing themselves in the symbolism and significance of this event.

Looking ahead, we eagerly anticipate three more language immersion days dedicated to Japanese, French, and German. These experiences provide our students with a unique opportunity to explore diverse languages, cultures, and traditions, thereby enhancing their understanding of the broader global landscape. By fostering global awareness and citizenship, we aim to nurture well-rounded individuals prepared for an interconnected world.

May the Year of the Dragon bring forth prosperity, enlightenment, and a deep appreciation for the rich tapestry of cultures that make our world vibrant and diverse.

Eva P (6B) and Caitlin S (6D), our Junior School Captains, this week launched the Year 6 theme for the year – ‘Grand in Green’, their motto this year encapsulates: being a role model, always trying your best, taking pride in our uniform, helping others, and loving our differences. With this in mind, we have also tied in our Easter Bonnet Parade to their theme. Students are encouraged to have bonnets that represent that ‘Grand in Green’ motto, they might be green in colour, they might be green in sustainability, the options are endless. We are looking forward to the parade later this term.

Good luck to all girls in Years 3 to 6, taking part in the Junior School Swimming Carnival this week, House Captains are ready with their placards, war crys and costumes. We look forward to seeing everyone later this week. Good luck to all Houses!

Mrs Susan Clarke
Head of Junior School

Junior School Parent Teacher Interviews - Weeks 5 and 6

We look forward to welcoming parents for our Semester 1 Parent Teacher Interviews this week and next. A reminder that all class teacher interviews are in their own classrooms. Art interviews are in the art room (J.3.27). All other specialist interviews are in the Cotton Library. 

The Cotton Library will be open throughout the Parent Teacher Interview days. Parents are welcome to visit the library to see the amazing range of resources available to their children and to speak with the teacher librarians in an informal way about books, reading and research.

Andrews Cup Tennis and Touch Captains

Congratulations to our Andrews Cup captains for Tennis Alexis T (6A) and Sarah H (6A), and Touch Halo H (6D) and Chloe P (6D), as announced at our assembly last week. We wish these students, and all Andrews Cup captains and participants, all the best for their hard work throughout the year ahead in preparing for and taking part in competitions.

Swimming Success

Congratulations to Lulu G (6D) for her achievements at the 2024 Brisbane Sprint Championships on 28 January. Lulu placed 10th in the finals of the Girls 11 years 50m freestyle, and 5th in Brisbane in the Girls 11 Years 50m breaststroke and swam PBs in each of her events. Well done Lulu on your achievements, and for maintaining the hard work and training that leads to great results.

Aquathlon Achievements

Last weekend Polly S (5D) competed in her first QSS Aquathlon in Hervey Bay representing Met East. The Aquathlon event is a 1km run, a 200m swim and then another 1km run. In the combined 11 and 12 years race, Polly came 11th in her age group, with a time of 13:59 (taking 1.5mins off her All Schools time). Well done Polly for your hard work and your outstanding achievement.

Chess Congratulations

Our Junior School Houses battled over the chess boards on Monday 12 February in the Interhouse Chess Competition. It was a lightning tournament so all the students were using timers, many of which were supplied by our amazing Chess Support Group. Pieces raced across the board and fell in a desperate struggle to checkmate the king before the clock ran down to zero. As soon as each game finished, both players would rush off to find new opponents. The more games they played, the more points they would win for their house. Congratulations to Osburn on placing first, followed closely by Franklin and Durack.

Spirit and Class Achievement Awards - Term 1

Each term, classroom teachers select one student to receive the Spirit Award. These students consistently demonstrate the Somerville House 5Rs.

• Respect
• Responsibility
• Resilience
• Relationships
• Reflection

These students wear the Spirit Badge each day with pride and are exceptional role models for other students.

Students in Years 3, 4, 5 and 6 are also eligible for class achievement awards, based on a variety of accomplishments, such as displaying a growth mindset, completing a task to an excellent standard, showing progress or for being curious and investigating a topic of interest.

Congratulations to the following Term 1 recipients.

Living our Values – A Culture of Care

Congratulations to Dora S (5B) for her winning entry into the Culture of Care Competition where girls were invited to share their thoughts about our new revitalized wellbeing framework - Culture of Care.

Click here to find out more about our Somerville House culture of care along with parent and student help resources.

This term we have a special focus on the 5Rs – respect, relationships, resilience, responsibility and reflection. By applying these in our daily lives we are actively living our school values and building a culture where everyone feels welcome.

Our Culture of Care provides a powerful foundation for building positive mental health and wellbeing for all. We look forward to supporting all our families in 2024 as we embrace the Somerville House Culture of Care.

Mr Tim Smetham
Assistant Head of Junior School - Pastoral & Administration

Over the weekend, BWPI provided Somerville House with the rare opportunity to have all 10 of our Water Polo teams play their fixtures at the MESAC Pool, in front of fellow squad members and supporters. The Somerville House Water Polo day was a great success, and it was fabulous to see so many people in their green colours, supporting their school mates with an abundance of Somey Spirit. Thank you to all those that came out and supported our students and thank you the Support Group who spoilt our Water Polo community with baked goods and slushies! Your hard work elevated the experience for our students, and we are very grateful for all that you do.

Congratulations to all students who took part in the event! Overall, there was some great Water Polo on display, and it was a memorable experience for the younger students to be able to watch the older girls compete and see what they’re aspiring to achieve one day. All 10 of our teams played very well and should be proud of themselves.

The PMSA Sailing program that launched last year is continuing to grow. Sailors have been preparing for the upcoming Teams Racing competition beginning on Sunday 18 February at the Royal Queensland Sailing Squadron, Manly. Our newer sailors are taking home new technical skills each week as they spend time on the water under the guidance of knowledgeable and dedicated coaches. They are also becoming acquainted with the rules of racing and will continue to train while the selected racing team will battle it out each Sunday against teams from five other schools for the remainder of the term.

The program offers a communal sailing experience for students from Somerville House, Brisbane Boys' College and Clayfield College.

If you are interested in participating in sailing contact Christia Willcocks ([email protected]) for more information.

Our Term 1 Little Frogs program has kicked off with Tiny Touch! 

Our students from Pre-Prep to year 4 have been loving getting to know the game and develop their skills and with four sessions left for the term, our coaches will help develop those skills even further. We’ve got some little Touch stars in the making!

The start of the school year brings upon the start of Met East School Sport! 

So far, we have had numerous students partake in trials across multiple sports. For this week's newsletter, we will highlight Pollyana S, who competed in the 11/12 years Aquathlon in Hervey Bay last week. Polly came 11th in her combined age group, with a pb of nearly 2 minutes! 

Congratulations Polly!