Tue 21 April – first day back, full formal school uniform, assemblies
Fri 24 April – Formal secondary school ANZAC day assembly
Term 2 Week 2B
Mon 27 April – ANZAC Day public holiday
Tue 28 April – Redlands 2026 AGM
Wed 29 April – Yr 7 Music Excursion: The Making of the Orchestra (10:30-2.15pm)
Week 10B in Review
You made it! This final week of Term 1 with Yr 7 has been a blast. I’m sure you’ve noticed just how tired your children are when you’re trying to get them up in the morning. I know they’re very much looking forward to the holiday break (and we might be as well!).
Monday saw the Battle of the Bands rock the Senior Campus, with two of our Year 7 bands competing in Division 1. A huge shout-out to Swaz (Alice D’Ambrosio, Zack Beardshaw, Sam Edwards and Bastian Keher), who performed the grunge classic Come As You Are by Nirvana. We also had Jetfire (EJ Abbott, Tom Byron, Freja McInnes, Jack Samuel) performing another Nirvana hit, Smells Like Teen Spirit.
The week continued to race along with Cross Country on Tuesday afternoon. There was plenty of excitement and energy, along with a few nerves and more than a little exhaustion afterwards. Please see the Sports section for more photos, as well as the results from the afternoon.
Also on Tuesday during Tutor Time, thanks to our wonderful Yr 7 parent representatives (Emma O’Lone, Line Andersen, Ruchi Sabharwal, Louise O’Connor, Karen Moore and Jacqueline Zeller) – the Year Group got together in the undercroft – after giving their lockers an end of term clean out – and had an Easter egg surprise. We managed to capture the majority of the Year Group on a beautiful sunny day before they turned that chocolate energy into fuel for the Cross Country.
Lastly, this week our Yr 7 cohort experienced their first full formal assembly in Dunnet Hall. As a new Year Advisor I was particularly impressed with their composure both on the way to and from Dunnett Hall, as well as during the formal assembly. They listened attentively and even the numerous students who brought fidgets kept them out of sight in their laps, quietly fidgeting away.
Yr 7 Parent Dashboard by Saasyan – now here
The long awaited parent dashboard to help your manage your Yr 7 child’s digital access on their laptop has been launched today in a testing phase. Please see the Pulse Notification from the Director of Digital Innovation (click image below).I’m sure some of you will be able to install and manage this very quickly, while for others it may take a little longer. That’s completely normal, and our Digital Services team is ready to provide support and receive feedback on your experience. If you encounter any issues or would like to share feedback, please email support@redlands.nsw.edu with Parent Dashboard in the subject header. Screenshots are greatly appreciated, as they help the team assist you as quickly as possible.
An important note worth highlighting: the Parent Dashboard is not a solution to all the digital challenges we face in raising children in this digital age. Rather, it is a scaffold and support tool – one that should help protect privacy and reinforce the boundaries you choose around safe and balanced technology use. Ideally, it will also prompt conversations at home about these boundaries. What constitutes appropriate use will look different in every household.
If you haven’t already done so, I encourage you as a family to discuss and establish healthy habits around technology use (and yes, these should apply to us adults tool). For example:
No devices at the dinner table during meals or family gatherings
No devices in bedrooms overnight or in bathrooms at any time
An agreed time when devices are put away on charge, possibly locked up, or at least with Screen Time/Downtime enabled or no internet access (the new dashboard can help support this)
Lastly, some related and recommended reading: The Anxious Generation: How the Rewiring of Childhood Is Causing an Epidemic of Mental Illness (2024) by Jonathan Haidt. Haidt presents substantial evidence suggesting that the shift from a “play-based childhood” to a “phone-based childhood” has contributed to a rapid rise in young people’s mental health issues. He advocates for no smartphones before high school, no social media before 16 and phone-free schools. Importantly, he also highlights the power of parents supporting one another and agreeing, collectively, to these guidelines, so our children feel supported within their peer groups because “everyone is doing it.”
Activities and Club Snapshots
The Irregular Newspaper
Students have so many great opportunities to engage in a variety of clubs and activities at Redlands. Our cocurricular offerings allow students to expand their skills, knowledge and confidence; build social connections and enjoy themselves! You can find a list of all the clubs on offer through the Cocurricular Page on Pulse.
One such club is the Irregular Newspaper club, which just published its Term 1 newsletter, containing reviews, serious news reporting and a collection of fun games. If your child is interested in developing their writing skills or building their capacity for exploring local and global issues or just keen to meet some new people who can help them publish an article, story or creative art piece, perhaps a visit to the Irregular at lunchtimes on Mondays in LH2.6 might be a great option for them!
Year 7 are having a wonderful time in History, learning about Ancient Athens and Ancient Sparta. After a month of learning, students have chosen whether they are Team Athens or Team Sparta and have been busy creating team flags and team songs. They have also developed arguments, supported with strong historical evidence, for why their city state is better than the rest.
These photos are of students constructing their arguments and performing their songs for the other team (met with some energetic booing! – historically accurate of course).
Some lines from their team songs:
“We’re Athens, we’re so great! Sparta can face their fate that we’re better. We have… democracy, culture, trade, amazing architecture, really cool, really smart philosophers and astronomers.”
“We’re Sparta. We’re strong and wealthy. You can’t say we’re rude because we have equality. We give land to all our citizens. Imagine not having an insane shield position.”
English (with Ms Mukherjee)
Yr 7 English classes have reported they have just started a new unit – Mystery and Detective Fiction. These class snapshots show some English classes collaborating and brainstorming.
It can also be reported that three English classes tested out their collaboration skills on April Fools Day. Thankfully they were all well coordinated and respectful April fools pranks that demonstrated they have an authentically positive relationship with their teachers. Two pranks I heard of were – where one student commented it was so hot in the classroom and then the whole class simultaneously fainted; and another where one student stated their disgust of English as a subject and stormed out, only for the remainder of the class to stand up agree and all walk out. Hilarious! Thankfully all teachers concerned thoroughly enjoyed the good hearted humour with Ms Mukherjee even rewarding her class with some Wide Reading in the Fahl garden.
Balmoral Burn 2026 – Get Involved
Our school community is invited to take part in one of Sydney’s most iconic charity events – the Humpty Dumpty Balmoral Burn, taking place on Sunday 24 May at Balmoral Beach, Mosman.
Celebrating its 25th anniversary, the Balmoral Burn features the famous 420‑metre climb up Awaba Street, all in support of the Humpty Dumpty Foundation, which provides life‑saving medical equipment to children’s hospitals across Australia. Please scan the QR code to register.
I’m sure some of you will be able to install and manage this very quickly, while for others it may take a little longer. That’s completely normal, and our Digital Services team is ready to provide support and receive feedback on your experience. If you encounter any issues or would like to share feedback, please email support@redlands.nsw.edu with Parent Dashboard in the subject header. Screenshots are greatly appreciated, as they help the team assist you as quickly as possible.
