Principal’s Message

Dear Parents, Staff, Students and Friends of WIS,

Congratulations to Bonnie Eathorne, Orla Colling and Lauren Darley who will be playing in the Girls U14 National Age Grade teams over the break and Lochlan McArthur who will be representing boys. To the students not mentioned here (and there will be many) we also wish you some great new year’s day play. A great deal of effort to be celebrated.

Shout out to Winston Lam who was given an honourable mention for presenting at the second International Young Researchers’ Conference (IYRC) held in Tokyo.  Twenty papers made it to the final, including Winston’s research on reducing air pollution.

It’s definitely Christmas.

This week started on Monday with our Jazz Band welcoming students with carols, a Christmas market on Tuesday with stalls and karaoke Wednesday. My sincere thanks to the Inclusion Team for hosting Learning Centre students from across the foundation to celebrate the end of a long term.

The five most important things to people about Christmas are putting up the tree and lights, spending time with family, exchanging presents and reconnecting with the foods which remind us of home and childhood. All of it tradition and very comforting.

This is also the time of year when people have a heightened sense of empathy and compassion and I am really grateful for the many donations to the support staff raffle – your generosity for others continually surprises me. Thank you.

What’s true of Christmas is also true of life. Much of our fulfilment, meaning and purpose can come from others, from our relationships with friends and family. Of faith or no faith, there is a real meaning in this Christmas holiday for us all, celebrating the life we have together now and in the future.

Our last day together is Friday when we will host our annual whole school assembly for students with a particularly special gift from staff this year. We finish early and school buses will leave at 12.30pm. Students may dress in their own clothes with their best Christmas jumper.

Thank you for the year just gone, your partnership and patience during trying times and the new beginning just around the corner – with each other, with hope and with joy for the future.

Rest, be merry and rejuvenate West Island School.

Merry Christmas

Yours,
Christopher Sammons
(Principal)