10 April 2025
From the Deputy, Head of Preparatory Schools & ELC
Welcome back for Term 2! We hope you all had a wonderful Easter break and enjoyed some memorable moments with family and friends.
Easter at Wyvern
Our Easter celebrations on the final day of Term 1 were a huge success. It was wonderful to see so many members of the Wyvern Community enjoying the barista made coffee and applauding the vibrant hats at the fantastic parade. We also loved having parents and carers join for our whole school Easter Chapel Service.
Theatre in Education Program
On Tuesday, students in Years 4 and 6 participated in a Brainstorm Productions session about resilience, cyber safety and bullying.
The theatre education program provides practical strategies for bullying prevention, online safety, social skills and emotion regulation.
The curriculum-linked lesson plans are designed to facilitate further conversations and learning in the classroom and support Wyvern’s wellbeing, cyber safety and bullying prevention strategies.
Students in Years 3 and 5 will participate in the same session towards the end of May.
Brainstorm Productions is listed as an evidence-based program on the Victorian Schools Mental Health Menu. Brainstorm is also endorsed by the eSafety Commissioner as a Trusted eSafety Provider.
What Happened This Week
Welcome
We are delighted to welcome Marlo and his family to our Wyvern Community. Marlo has joined us in Year 5 and we trust his first week was an enjoyable one.
Chapel Thought
For people of Faith, the last two weeks have been a monumental and full few weeks.
We went into the holidays journeying into Holy Week. In the middle weekend, we celebrated Easter, showing us God’s Liberating Hope and All-Inclusive Love. And on the day that followed we heard the news of Pope Francis’ death. The week that followed was full of reflections on his life, culminating with his funeral on Saturday.
Whether you’re Catholic, Protestant or Orthodox Christian, people of other faiths or no faith at all, the death of Pope Francis was a significant event. He was a remarkable figure and one who embodied Christ’s teachings in a profound way.
Pope Francis showed what it means to welcome the stranger and support those who are different. He was fearless in his advocacy of migrants and refugees and made some concessions to groups who had traditionally been marginalised by the Church. He advocated for care of creation and action on climate change.
As the world waits with eager anticipation to see who will become the next Pope, let us be inspired by the example of Pope Francis in our daily actions and our work in the world. And in this Easter Season may we continue to know God’s liberating hope and all-Inclusive love in our daily lives.
– Pastor Richard La’Brooy
Newington LitFest
The excitement is building for Newington’s 12th biennial Literature Festival. The event will take place next week and we ask parents to please take note of the details for the following activities and events.
The Newington LitFest Book Fair will be held in Wyvern Library. Gleebooks will be providing books for sale, and the fair will include books written by the visiting authors, recent new releases and more popular titles.
Parents are most welcome to accompany their children to the Book Fair in Wyvern Library during the following times:
| Date | AM | PM |
| Monday 5 May | 3.00pm–4.30pm | |
| Tuesday 6 May | 7.30am–8.30am | 3.00pm–4.30pm |
| Wednesday 7 May | 7.30am–8.30am | 3.00pm–4.30pm |
| Thursday 8 May | 3.00pm–4.30pm |
All Wyvern parents are carers, are warmly invited to attend our LitFest Book Parade to see the students and teachers in their fabulous Book Character Costumes!
Wyvern’s LitFest Book Parade will be held on Tuesday 6 May at 8.30am. The theme for this year’s parade is ‘Favourite Book Character’. Students should arrive at school dressed in their costume ready for the parade. Students can remain in their costume for the day, however, if their costume is bulky, we ask that they wear their PE uniform underneath.
The parade is a fundraiser for the Room to Read organisation. Room to Read envisions a world in which all children can pursue a quality education that enables them to reach their full potential and contribute to their communities and the world. Students are asked to donate a gold coin to support this worthy charity. Coins can be placed in the donation box in Wyvern Library.
LitFest 2025 Speaker Panel
Parents also have the opportunity to join in the excitement by coming along to the LitFest 2025 speaker panel at the Stanmore campus, as they explore the evolving role of human storytelling in an era shaped by artificial intelligence (AI).
Hosted by two student MCs, this conversation promises to ignite fresh perspectives on creativity, narrative, and the future of storytelling in a digital world.
The panel will feature renowned authors Joel McKerrow, Jack Heath, Rawah Arja and Sue Whiting. Tickets are booking up first, so don’t miss out!
7 May 2025
Newington College – Old Boys Lecture Theatre
Free!
LitFest Volunteer Call Out
These great events are only made possible through the generosity of our parent community. There will be several opportunities for parents to volunteer during the festival, outlined below/ These will include providing hospitality to authors and helping coordinate authors with their student buddies:
Author Services – Grove Room (Chapel):
| Timeslots | Tuesday 6 May | Wednesday 7 May | Thursday 8 May |
| 8.00am–1.00pm | 2 parent volunteers | 2 parent volunteers | 2 parent volunteers |
| 10.00am–2.00pm | 2 parent volunteers | 2 parent volunteers | 2 parent volunteers |
Speaker Panel:
| Timeslots | Wednesday 7 May |
| 5.45pm–7.45pm | 3 parent volunteers (library & OBLT) |
New Phone System
The College has a new phone system that has been operational since the commencement of Term 2. Please be understanding as our wonderful office staff adjust to the new system – don’t take accidental disconnection personally!
Grandparents & Special Persons Day Photos
Thank you to the Newington Foundation and The Wyvern P&F for their generous support our Grandparents & Special Person Day held at the end of Term 1. Their support allowed for there to be a professional photographer on site to capture as many special moments as possible during the day.
Please use the following link to access the secure gallery to view, share and download images in high resolution on any device.
The PIN to download is: 2406
If you have questions, please don’t hesitate to the Wyvern front office.
Newington Supporter Expectations
Saturday 3 May is the first-round of 2025 winter fixtures. To ensure our teams, officials and coaches, and those of visiting schools, enjoy a positive experience when they play, Newington is sharing the following school-wide expectations at games:
- Spectators should make their presence and support as positive as possible. If we are hosting, we ask our parents to make visiting parents feel welcome.
- Avoid excessive comments directed towards an individual, even if they are positive. A good example should be set by applauding any skillful performance or play.
- Officials do make mistakes, but it is not for the spectators to remind officials of this.
- Parents should never seek to give advice to coaches, officials or players during or immediately after a match.
- When visiting another school, respect the host school’s premises and rules in matters such as parking and tidiness.
- If you have concerns, contact a staff member on the day, or our Sports Master, Mr Joel Wilson.
It is gratifying to see how much enjoyment parents get from watching their children play sport, but it is our responsibility to ensure this experience is fun for everyone, including our visitors.
Newington has an excellent culture of encouragement and sportsmanship, and our parents are encouraged to be wonderful role models and ambassadors for our community.
Mother’s Day Breakfast
This year, due to the Year 4 Camp and LitFest, the Wyvern P&F Mother’s Day Breakfast will be held on Tuesday 13 May from 7.30am – 8.30am. Click here for more information and ticket sales.
Following the breakfast, students in Years 3-6 will be departing the school promptly at 8.30am to attend the Newington ANZAC Service at the senior school and are required to wear their winter greys and black cap on this day.
Co-education at Newington
Hear from Brigid Taylor, our Director of Co-education as we prepare to welcome our first cohort of girls in Kindergarten and Year 5 from 2026.
Discover the strengths and values that define Newington – and how the move to co-education will enrich and expand our community.
To learn more about co-education at Newington, including the Pioneer Scholarships for girls and boys in Year 5 2026, click here.
Co-ed Scholarships for Year 5 2026 Now Open
Become a part of history with the Pioneer Scholarship, created to celebrate Newington College’s transition to co-education and support girls and boys who are ready to lead, innovate and inspire. This is more than just a scholarship—it is an opportunity for trailblazers who are eager to make a lasting impact.
This scholarship is available to existing and prospective students (both boys and girls) currently in Year 4 (entering Year 5 in 2026). This prestigious opportunity is designed for students with a balanced range of achievements who will benefit from the outstanding opportunities at Newington College while enriching our vibrant school community.
Current and new students can apply here. Applications close tomorrow, May 2.
Staff Profile
This week we chatted with Meg Edwards, who has been a teacher at Newington for 10 years. While she spent the first 6 years at Wyvern, Meg has become an integral part of the Lindfield community since she began there 4 years ago. She is not only a passionate and kind teacher of our youngest students, but she also leads the Lindfield K-3 teaching team.
Q. Why teaching? What is it you enjoy about teaching?
A. I absolutely love teaching because you form unforgettable relationships and get to see huge growth. It’s a really special thing to be part of.
Q. What is something about you that other people may not know?
A. I can pick almost any song just from hearing the first few notes.
Q. What is one of your favourite memories of being a student?
A. Going on school camp!
