Welcome to Week 7, with a special reminder to Year 11 parents about your gift from the School, as you soon embark on the last year of your daughter’s school education. Please click here to visit the SomerLink post for further detail!

Highlights of Last Week

In this past week, our students have celebrated National Science Week and Positive Wellbeing Week. They have also been engaged in a range of learning experiences both within and beyond the classroom. The performances at last Thursday’s Night of Strings were truly outstanding! It was a joy to be part of the audience in VPAC and listen to the musicianship of our strings players. Congratulations to Ms Raquel Bastos, Director of Strings and Mr Will Eager, Director of Co-curricular Music – and all Music staff for the preparation, music selection, planning and rehearsals culminating in a highly polished and entertaining evening.

Last Saturday’s Rowing Regatta held at Wyaralong Dam proved that rowing is a unique team sport that values some of the most difficult qualities to instil in a person, and some of the best personal qualities to carry into one’s life – the capacity for hard, unrelenting, exhausting work, and the disciplines and virtues that attach to that, including dedication, sacrifice, courage and selflessness.  In its essence, rowing is, more than any other team sport, based predominantly upon the disciplines and values of work.  It was a great day out on the water for our rowing crews and we wish them success for this Saturday’s Head of the River.  Congratulations to Director of Rowing, Ms Samara Quinlan, the Rowing Coaches and our Rowing Support Group. Please come along to support the Somerville Rowing Crews on Saturday!

National Science Week Celebrations

Last week was a celebration of National Science Week and the stats tell us that a large percentage of Somerville House students choose a Science related subject in the upper years, which is testament to our amazing staff. The Science Department enjoyed sharing some exciting Science activities throughout the week!

In 2015, the Office of the Chief Scientist released a paper which highlighted the impetus to overcome barriers to women succeeding in STEM in the workplace must begin right back at primary school. The study reports that girls face barriers from an early age. Busting Myths about Women in STEM examined research and data in the area and concluded that the loss of female talent in the STEM-related fields began in primary schooling, right through to high school, university and then the workplace. The barriers of gender bias, a lack of role models and the inability to accurately assess their competence in the field starts at an early time in a female’s life.

Co-author of the report, Roslyn Prinsley shared the key finding that we are losing female talent throughout the STEM pipeline despite the fact there is no innate difference in ability. Dr Prinsley explains "The first way to fix this is to eliminate bias and stereotyping – that includes exposing girls and boys to female role models at a younger age."

She pointed to overseas research that showed most girls and boys still drew a man when asked to draw a scientist. Further, the research shows girls were not able to accurately assess their ability in STEM-related subjects compared to boys (although they had the same skills).

Across Australia, high school girls are under-represented in advanced STEM subjects, a trend that continues in university where they made up 13% of information technology domestic completing graduates in 2015. Fortunately, here at Somerville House, we have been observing a 30 percent increase in uptake of Science subjects, bucking the state trend. We have a long-standing reputation for having a much higher number of girls enrolled in Science and we encourage this grounding to continue to lead our graduates into a wide range of science based careers. 

The big accounting and advisory firms, strategy firms and technology firms have been challenged to increase the level of female leadership, even though they start with equal numbers of males and female graduates.

Former Head of Technology at Accenture Australia, Jane Livesey contends that the leakage continues once they join the workforce, as evidenced by the fact that even if you start with an equal balance of graduates, there are far more men at the senior levels. Accenture offers a course to teach senior leaders about unconscious bias, while challenging their thinking about gender, recruitment and staffing. Livesey advocated that many are fearful about not being able to succeed at a senior level in technology as a woman so having senior women to look up to is crucial.

Enrolment for 2023

In Term 3, we do our serious planning for the following year, including planning for staffing, the number of classes required and associated learning spaces. I remind parents that if your child is not returning to Somerville House in 2023, we require one full school term's written notice (or one school term's fees in lieu of notice) when withdrawing a student from the School. Currently, we are working on the 2023 timetable and staffing and it is important that we have accurate enrolment numbers. In some Year levels, we have waiting lists and we need to be able to contact those on the list who are hoping to secure a place at the School. Thank you for advising [email protected]

Mrs Kim Kiepe
Principal

At this time of year, when Year 12 students are considering what is next for them once they finish school, it can be exciting for those that have chosen their path and a little nerve wracking for those yet to finalise their plans. School, particularly at Somerville, is a protected, predictable and nurturing environment where staff care for their students and guide them through, encouraging them to try new things and get back up and try again if they fall.

Life beyond school is not as supportive and school graduates can find it difficult to adjust, but they can grow their support and professional networks by tapping into resources and people they are already familiar with through social, cultural or community groups.

The Christiansen Institute has conducted research into this area and refers to building networks and social capital as an asset-based approach. The report describes a host of innovative organisations that are focussed on more equitably building and maintaining students’ social capital and the profound potential of these organisations’ approaches to mapping and mobilising students’ existing social networks.

There is no doubt that building a network and social capital can make all the difference to your success, no matter what you do. Finishing school well and building on the relationships you already have is the first step, and being a Somerville House alumni opens up a network with those who have a shared school experience. What a great start to building a network, whether it is across the world or just around the corner.

Mrs Jo Matherson
Deputy Principal

A Splinter In Your Mind

One of my all-time favourite movies is The Matrix (1999, the original). I am intrigued by the concept that there may be a whole lot more to the life that we are living than what we are immediately aware of. One of the main characters, Morpheus, expresses it well in a conversation with Neo, who already senses this, by saying:

You've felt it your entire life, that there's something wrong with the world. You don't know what it is, but it is there, like a splinter in your mind, driving you mad. It is this feeling that has brought you to me.

It seems to me that this applies in our Western Culture, where the memory of God and the spiritual world in general seems for many to be rapidly fading. The recent census revealed that the number of people in Australia identifying as Christians has dropped by a further 8% to around 44%. Many Christian commentators interpret this as being a change in perspective of those who in the past have nominally registered themselves as Christians when the actual bonds with Christianity had become more social than conviction-based.

It would seem though, that there remain echoes of God’s presence with us, even when we don’t acknowledge them. Some of these may include:

1. Our sense of right and wrong. Who sets the rules and if we all set our own, what happens when our values clash with someone else’s?
2. Our longing for connection. Loneliness is an epidemic and many community groups are in decline, but God has made us for relationship, and our mental health suffers when we isolate ourselves, especially within our virtual worlds.
3. Spirituality. Although many have abandoned traditional churches, spiritual beliefs remain strong, especially among the young. Throughout history humans have always sought something bigger than themselves to worship.
4. Appreciation of Beauty. From a beautiful piece of music to a stunning sunset and everything in between, we understand the need to go beyond the everyday and enrich our lives with transcendent beauty. 

Whatever the reason behind the decline in Christianity, it is yet to be seen what the impact will be in the long term, as society rejects the belief system that led to the powerful Christian values of selflessness, humility, forgiveness and love for enemies (or just those who are different) that we all so admire. This decline is actually only in western nations, as the church in Africa, China and other developing parts of the world is exploding in numbers. It seems that just as in Jesus’ time, it is the poor who are the first to recognize our universal need of a Saviour.

Ms Chris O'Gorman
Senior Chaplain

CHOICES – ‘We are our choices’ Jean-Paul Sartre

Every action or inaction we take is a choice. It suggests the opportunity or privilege to choose freely.

Recently Year 12 students had the privilege of engaging with Melissa McGuinness, co-founder of the You Choose - Youth Road Safety program through which they were encouraged to ‘Own the Choice’.  They committed to reject passivity and gave each other license to stand up and speak out against reckless driver behaviours to protect themselves and others. ‘Own the Choice’ is such a powerful phrase.

Similarly at Paul Dillon’s presentations on drugs and alcohol, students learnt about the impact of their choices on themselves and others, also highlighting the importance of standing up, making the right choices for themselves and speaking out to support, protect and encourage friends to choose the safest path. 

When discussing bullying we highlight the same message, to take action – choose to stand up and speak out - to assert yourself and to help others. 

Brene Brown quotes Viktor Frankl, “Between stimulus and response there is a space. In that space is our power to choose our response. In our response lies our growth and freedom.”  She refers to that moment as a space to think, to calm, to select the right response.

Every action or inaction we take is a choice. ‘Own the Choice’ implies that we accept the responsibility that comes with the choice. We should aim to create a space to calm, to think and to select the right response for us. Parents and teachers can assist students to hold that space to explore the consequences of that action or inaction by stepping back. The more students learn to use that space, the more they grow their ability to take responsible action and accept the consequences of their choices.

FLOURISHING IN OUR FLORAL GARDEN – Positive Wellbeing Week

SUMMER UNIFORM

• OPTIONAL CHANGE TO SUMMER UNIFORM – Term 3 Week 7
• REQUIRED CHANGE TO SUMMER UNIFORM – Term 3 Week 8

We are enjoying the sea of green this week as students begin wearing their green uniforms. 

Mrs Julie Brunckhorst
Dean of Student Wellbeing

Last week was an especially busy one in the Junior School, with a range of wonderful activities and opportunities across the academic, cultural and sporting arenas. In addition to our ‘regular’ weekly scheduled lessons and co-curricular activities, students and staff also managed to ‘squeeze in’ the following extra special events.

We wish Mrs Gaye Ryan (Assistant Head of Junior School – Teaching and Learning) all the best on her long service leave for the remainder of this term. In her absence please direct any teaching and learning queries to [email protected].

Chess

The Somerville Chess Tournament was held on Sunday 14 August. 144 players from all over Brisbane attended. Our top team (Chloe W 3A, Isabella X 5C, Sophia X 4C and Olivia C 3A) placed third in the Open Division, with Chloe and Sophia winning Merit Awards individually. In the Intermediate Division Quiana L 2C and Clarissa L PM won Merits. Our Novice Team (Cynthia C 3A, Aayra S 3A, Emilia B 1C and Sienna L 2B) placed third. Dishi M 2A won a Merit Award in the Beginner Division.

Congratulations to all participants and thank you to Mr Gilpin and coaches for all their work preparing the girls for this event.

Combined Music Festival

On Tuesday, over ninety Years 5 and 6 students from the Co-curricular Music Program took part in the Combined Junior School Music Festival at Clayfield College. This event carries a a rich history, with former collaborations existing between Somerville House and both Queenwood School for Girls and Ascham School for Girls in Sydney. This year, we were excited to join forces with Brisbane Boys College and Clayfield College in a fantastic day of music making. 

Students formed a combined Concert Band, String Orchestra and Choir to workshop new pieces, culminating in an informal concert at the end of the day. They were engaged in intensive rehearsals with guest conductors from each school as they worked toward a common goal. Students were also able to develop their musicianship, ensemble skills, teamwork, and social skills as they interacted with their fellow musicians during workshops and also during breaks.

Despite only having a few sessions together, the students were able to produce some finely polished performances at the end of the day. Everyone had a wonderful time, developed their musical skills represented the School wonderfully. Congratulations to all the staff (Mr Bob Schultz, Ms Raquel Bastos, Mr Shannon Leonard and Mr Will Eager) and students who were involved. 

Science Week – ‘Glass: More than meets the eye’

During the lunch break last Wednesday, Year 1 students had the opportunity to participate in a Science Week activity in the Robinson Laboratory. They had lots of fun making colourful kaleidoscopes.

As another fun Science Week activity many Junior School students made glass-themed posters for the poster competition. We look forward to hearing news about the winning entries!

Year 6 Debating

The Year 6 Debating teams have now completed three rounds of interschool debating and have made huge leaps in their knowledge of the art of arguing with words. The Round 3 topic 'That all bicycle riders should be required to display registration plates' proved a challenge for the Affirmative teams but 6.1 and 6.4 were successful in winning against two teams from Brisbane Grammar School on Thursday night.  We now move onto our final debate where we will investigate whether video games can be linked to the Australian Curriculum. 

Author visit - Phil Kettle

Last Thursday, renowned Australian children’s author Phil Kettle came to Somerville House to speak with our Prep, Years  1, 2 and 3 girls about story writing and the importance of reading for life. We were very excited to host a ‘real live’ author in the Cotton Library, where our girls had the opportunity to learn about the writing process and ask lots of interesting and entertaining questions.

Phil Kettle explained to our young and eager students that ideas for writing come from ‘what you see, what you hear and what you do’. If you add to that a ‘cupful of imagination’, you have all the ingredients you need for a good story. The girls listened with wonder as Phil described his own writing journey and especially how his famous ‘TooCool’ series came to life from his childhood experiences. Although at times the Preps may have wondered at words like ‘setting’ and ‘plot’, all the girls were certainly familiar with the writing process and enjoyed Phil’s presentation.

One of our current library displays illustrates Phil’s trek around Australia for his National Geographic series Our Australia. The characters visit many places, including Alice Springs, Hobart, Cairns and Canberra. Our Year 2 girls designed inquisitive and wonderous questions to ask Phil as many of them have been to the same places. These questions are pasted up around the library for everyone’s curiosity.

We thoroughly enjoyed our author experience and came away reassured that reading is the most valuable thing you can do throughout your whole life.  We look forward to hosting another renowned Australian author, Michael Gerard Bauer, this Wednesday. He will be speaking to our Years 4, 5 and 6 students.

Prep and Year 1 Open Classroom Demonstration

Congratulations to our Prep and Year 1 students who took part in a special afternoon concert showcasing our classroom music program. Our young musicians demonstrated how rhythmic and melodic skills are developed during the early years. Special thanks to our inspiring Prep and Year 1 Music Teachers, Dr Debra Shearer-Dirie and Ms Georgia Davey supported by Mrs Sylvia Cody, for creating this entertaining presentation enjoyed by Prep and Year 1 families and students from the Early Learning Centre.

Andrews Cup Athletics Competition

Well done to all who took part in the Andrews Cup Athletics competition last Thursday. Please see the co-curricular section of the newsletter for a full report, and thank you to Mrs Simpson and coaches for their work up to and including the competition. 

Somerville Night of Strings

Some of our most advanced Junior School string players performed in last Thursday’s Night of Strings concert. We congratulate the following girls for their outstanding performances in this thrilling concert showcasing intermediate and advanced senior string ensembles.

Stradivari Strings

Year 4 Catherine K 4B; Ariel L 4C; Emma Y 4A

Year 5 Olivia C 5B; Chloe C 5B; Olivia K 5D; Ella L 5C; Isabella X 5C; Ellie Y 5C; Hannah Z 5C

Amadeus Strings

Year 5 Harper H 5D; Kotoyo K 5C; Alice L 5A

Year 6 Maika M-P 6B

Somerville Strings

Year 6 Monique M 6C; Collette W 6C

Year 1 Bugs Ed – Year 1

On Friday, the Year 1s had the wonderful opportunity to experience an interactive insect workshop to enhance their learning and knowledge within their Science Unit on Minibeasts. The girls were enthralled by the passionate Entomologist, Megan, and her many facts about insects. They saw an amazing display of preserved Australian insects, spiders and scorpions and even encountered some live insects up close! 

Graham Street – Afternoon Collection Request

We ask parents and carers collecting students from the Turning Circle in the afternoons to arrive in Graham Street no earlier than the start of the pick-up time for their child.

We appreciate how hard it can be to juggle traffic and collection of siblings each day. In our ongoing efforts to have pick-up run as efficiently as possible for all families, please remember that it is better to arrive a few minutes after your allocated pick-up time than early. Arriving earlier than your daughter’s scheduled collection time creates unnecessary congestion and excess queuing along Graham Street by preventing other parents accessing the Turning Circle.

Suggested arrival times in Graham Street:

Prep/Year 1 – no earlier than 2.27pm

Year 2 – no earlier than 2.37pm

Year 3 – no earlier than 2.42pm

Year 4 – no earlier than 2.47pm

Years 5 and 6 – no earlier than 2.57pm

Thank you for your consideration of this request which will help traffic to move more efficiently at the end of the school day.

Translation Options

To assist with communication with all our families, translation and text options have been added to a variety of our online content.

This newsletter can be accessed in a range of languages – as highlighted below you can select your language from the drop down menu. 

Translation options and the ability to change how text is viewed on the screen using Immersive Reader has now been added to SomerLink, along with the ability to read text aloud.

Please click here for a How-To video on using the feature. More 'How To' Videos and guides can be found on the Technology Services page on SomerLink.

Please email [email protected] if you need any assistance with accessing these or with translation, or if you have any queries.

JSSG Father’s Day Stall – Thursday 1 September 

A reminder that the JSSG is running a stall in the Cotton Library next Thursday 1 September for students to purchase gifts for fathers and other significant men in their lives.

Gifts (for $5, $10, $15 or $20) are on display now in the Library for students to view and decide what special items they may like to purchase.

On the day, students will visit the stall with their class teachers and in class groups. There will be an initial limit of two gifts per student, with opportunity at lunch time to purchase additional gifts if available.

Please remember to send cash on 1 September, and be aware that there will be no IOUs. Eftpos will be available for students with their own Eftpos cards - please DO NOT send students with a parent Eftpos card.

A reminder also that next Friday 2 September is a Student Free Day.

Mrs Louise McGuire
Head of Junior School

Positive Wellbeing Week

'All the flowers of all the tomorrows are in the seed of today.' - Croft M. Pentz 

Junior School students took part in various ‘flourishing activities’ last week as part of our Positive Wellbeing Week. Flourishing is a term that has been adopted in the field of positive psychology that refers to a heightened sense of physical and emotional wellbeing. The good news is that we can all experience ‘flourishing’ by finding and engaging in activities that employ our strengths and give us joy. Michael Seligman’s PERMAH model for wellbeing provides a good starting point for exploration in positive mental health and wellbeing.

P – Positive Emotion: feeling good

E – Engagement: engaging with our strengths and things we enjoy doing

R – Positive Relationships: authentically connecting with others

M – Meaning: sense of purpose and connection to something bigger than ourselves

A – Accomplishments/Achievements: sense of accomplishment and success

H – Health: eating well, moving regularly and sleeping deeply

Click here if you would like to learn more about the PERMAH model.

Below we share some pictures of Junior School students engaging in mindful meditation and a whole school picnic on the School oval beside the garden of flowers wall created by students during the week.

Mr Tim Smetham
Assistant Head of Junior School – Pastoral Care & Administration

Please click here to view a list of upcoming Junior School events and activities.

Combined Junior School Music Festival

Congratulations to all the staff and students who were involved in the Combined Junior Music Festival at Clayfield College last Tuesday 16 August. This year we were excited to join forces with Brisbane Boys College and Clayfield College in a fantastic day of music making. Students formed a combined Concert Band, String Orchestra and Choir to workshop new pieces, culminating in an informal concert at the end of the day.

Please click here to read student experiences from the day.

Student Achievements

Congratulations to the following student for their recent AMEB exam results!

• Dishi M (2A) – Grade 1 Violin – B+

Mr Will Eager
Director of Co-Curricular Music

Night of Strings

Congratulations to the secondary string groups who performed on Thursday at the Night of Strings. The concert was of high standard and showcasing some of the repertoire the groups have learned this year. The evening was filled with energetic and harmonious string playing and specially featured Inez Quah who perform Winter by Vivaldi as a soloist with Somerville Strings.

We thank Ms Bastos for her hard work with all of the ensembles and Ms Loreta Fin who graciously presented the Year 12 string students a token of appreciation for all they have contributed to music at Somerville.

Ms Raquel Bastos
Director of Strings

Water Polo 

To sign up for Water Polo please follow the steps in this document (PDF).

N.B. registrations will close for these sports at 5:00pm Friday 26 August. Should you wish to register after this date you will need to contact the Director of Sport [email protected]  

We expect there may be teething issues with the Water Polo sign up due to the new system we are implementing. If you have any questions relating to Activity Selection, please contact the Director of Sport [email protected]. To report or gain assistance with login queries contact our Technology Services team via this link, noting their office hours.

Trials are compulsory if you wish to be selected in a team.

The details for the 2022 trials are below.

Athletics 

Last Monday, Somerville hosted an invitational meet for girls to develop their skills under competitive circumstances. At this meet, we had numerous school records broken.

Emma F – Under 13s 1500m
Previous record – 2016 Charlotte Alexander (G) 5:10.21
New Record – 4.57.17

Ella R – Under 17s 1500m
Previous Record – 1997 Josie Loane (D) 5:03.50
New Record - 4:45.55

Brianna L – Under 17s High Jump, Long Jump and Triple Jump
Previous High Jump Record – 1997 Hayley Strow (D) 1.65m
New High Jump Record – 1.70m

Previous Long Jump Record – 1994 Susan Lawson (D) 5.17m
New Long Jump Record – 5.54m

Previous Triple Jump Record – 2015 Renae Betten-Rines (C) 10.17m
New Triple Jump Record – 11.10m

Congratulations to all the girls in attendance and a reminder that there are three lead up meets remaining before QGSSSA Athletics. These include:

Lead Up Meet 4 - Friday 26 August

Lead Up Meet 5 - Wednesday 31 August

Lead Up Meet 6 - Friday 9 September

Girls wishing to qualify for the team should be in attendance. 

Andrews Cup Athletics 2022

Well done to our 58 students led by Captains Florence G and Elke A who travelled to QSAC last Thursday 18 August to compete in the annual Andrews Cup competition against the other nine other schools.

Many of the students achieved personal bests, placed and won ribbons for their individual events. Congratulations to Pollyanna S who won and broke the 9 years and under 800m Division B record. It was evident that the students were all doing their best when the first tally of points placed Somerville House in third position.

Congratulations to all our relays teams who placed in six out of the ten relay events. It was a very exciting finish to the competition. Particular mention to our 8 years and under age group who placed second overall. Many thanks to all the coaches Phoebe M, Allyssa K, Aaron G, Mia H and staff Mrs Ashwood, Mrs Ruffin and Ms Brown for their hard work and helping the girls achieve their best. Special thanks also to Mr Sinclair for his undying enthusiasm, expertise, and positivity that he brings to every training and competition. 

Results

8 Years - Second 

9 Years - Fifth 

10 Years - Eighth 

11 Years - Fourth

12 Years - Fourth

Click here to secure your tickets! 

The Prep students focus is creating artwork about themselves and their world. Through this theme they are introduced to different materials, processes, techniques and ideas.

We have discussed how your facial and body expressions and posture can indicate how you are feeling. In Victoria’s small sculpture she has demonstrated her fine motor skills and her understanding of how to manipulate the clay to create an expressive face and body. The Prep children are also learning early colour theory, mixing paint to create new colours and understanding how to use the bias of warm and cool colours to create the colours they want.

In Week 10 of this term, Art students from Prep to Year 12 will be involved in our InSight Art Exhibition. Each student will have one work exhibited when we turn the Honour Room into a gallery and showcase the talent of our students.

Year 8 Visual Art Students explored the key concepts underpinning the Cubist Period in art history. They looked closely at works of founding artists George Braque and Pablo Picasso.  

Building upon the observational drawings of our 'precious' objects students then developed and resolved cubist responses of these using acrylic on canvas. 

Juliette's work explores her 'precious' glass object in a soft 'muted' colour pallette from a variety of viewpoints within one image in keeping with cubist ideas.