T E R M T W O 2 0 2 1

WHA T WE C AN DO . WHA T WE D I D DO . WHA T WE W I L L DO .

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Acknowledgement of Country

Bankstown Girls High School acknowledgesthe people of the Cadigal, Wangal and

Bendiagal clans of the Dharug tribe as thetraditional owners of the land upon which our

school stands.

Our new STEAM initiative has shownextraordinary commitment with staffprogramming and delivering excitingSTEAM lessons across Years 7-10. Ourschool has embodied the educationalapproach of multidisciplinary learning andcomprehensive education to sufficientlyresemble STEAM practices in real life. Byteaching our students the often-integrated nature of subjects, we are ableto prepare them for the practicalapplications of STEAM in our ever-growingworld. In Term 4, we look forward toshowcasing each year groups projects atour STEAM Exhibition.

Furthermore, I would like to thank theP&C volunteers that attended our veryfirst Working Bee , Elham Ayoubi, SuluiaCampbell, Ba Vinh Duong, and Tazin Kazi,in addition to our staff members, AnnaEdwards, Randa El-Haddad, RobertMcNeill , Maria Varikos, and DominicVartuli. I would like to extend a specialthank you to our EnvironmentalRepresentative, Randa El-Haddad, for hercommitment and effort in running thesustainability group at Bankstown Girls'High School.

“Energy rightly applied and directed will accomplish anything.” Nellie Bly

We are nearing the end of another successful term. It is wonderful to get theopportunity to report to our school community of all the great events and learningopportunities that have occurred during Term 2.

Our new school Strategic Improvement Plan is well underway and is available on theschool website. The new initiatives being implemented aim to support the work we doto continue achieving excellence in student outcomes. We are all looking forward toconsolidating gains in literacy, numeracy, attendance and HSC results.

Success at school starts with regular attendance, effort and a self-belief that you canaccomplish anything when you put your mind to it. This term has seen manyaccomplishments, and by flicking through this issue of Candid, it will give you a senseof the tremendous work being achieved each day.

PrincipalSuada Bilali

I would like to thank all my staff for their hard work and

commitment each day. I'd also like to thank our parents/carers

for their dedication to their child's education.

I hope everyone has a restful break.

As we move towards the end of the term,we approach an important time for ourYear 8 and Year 10 students. It is at thistime that students are asked whatsubjects they would like to study goinginto their next stage of schooling.

Year 8 will be doing two elective subjectsas part of their pattern of study in Years 9and 10. It is important that they choosewisely as they will be doing thesesubjects for two years and once studenttimetables are developed there will be noopportunity to change their subjects. Inorder to prepare the girls for thesechoices, we held junior subject marketson Wednesday the 16th June. During thecourse of two periods, Head Teachers andteachers of elective subjects spoke to thegirls about the subjects being offered andthe girls were given a subject selectionbooklet that gave more information aboutthe Stage 5 Record of SchoolAchievement (RoSA). We encourageparents/carers to read this booklet withtheir daughter.

On Tuesday the 22nd June, we held ourParent/Teacher night and our transitiontalk. It was important that all parentscame to this evening to pick up yourdaughter’s report and talk to herteachers. There was also a 30-minute talkabout expectations for the Stage 5 RoSAand information about how your daughterwill be able to submit her electivechoices. I hope that you found theinformation from her teachers pleasingand the transition information useful.

Year 10 are also considering the subjectsthey will study for their Year 11 RoSA andHigher School Certificate. On Tuesday the15th of June senior subject markets were

held and the girls were given theopportunity to learn about subjects beingoffered. The girls were also given asubject booklet that gives details aboutYear 11 and the HSC. I encourage you totake the time to sit down and read thiswith your daughter and if you need anyassistance in considering your daughter’spattern of study, we have a team ofpeople who can help you from myself tothe careers advisor, our learning supportteam and our expert Head Teachers.

Transition evening for Year 10 was alsoheld on Tuesday 22nd June starting withParent/Teacher night at 5.00pm andending with the Transition talk from6.00pm to 6.45pm. This consisted ofinformation that will help you understandthe requirements of the HSC and try todemystify some of the confusing andcontradictory information that oftensurrounds the senior years. Importantly,the girls were given information on howthey can submit their subject choices. Ifyou have any questions, do not hesitateto contact the school.

Year 12 are steadily progressing to theirtrial exams, so it is important that theyspend their time wisely preparing andmaking sure they are confident with theskills and content involved in theircourses. Keep working hard and if thereare any concerns speak to your teachersand listen to their feedback about howyou can improve the quality of your work.There is still plenty of time for you tomake a significant difference in yourwork.

Have a wonderful and safe break over theschool holidays!

Deputy PrincipalMark Leary

As Term 2 draws to a close, I would like totake this opportunity to congratulateYears 7, 9 and 11 for the outstandingcommitment they have shown to all keylearning areas this term.

I would like to thank Year 11 parents whoattended Parent/Teacher evening thisterm. I am certain that your conversationswith your daughter’s teachers have betterinformed you of your daughter’s progressin the senior school and her report wouldhave been a strong indication of theoutcomes achieved.

I have been equally impressed with Year 9and their STEAM (Science, Technology,Engineering, Arts, Mathematics) projects.Year 9 have demonstrated enthusiasmand deep knowledge of each STEAMproject they are learning about and thiswas highly evident when representativesfrom Year 9 were asked to speak abouttheir projects to our DEL, Jan Green, andour Executive Director, DebSummerhayes. The girls spoke withauthority and knowledge about theDesign Thinking Process and were able toanswer quite tricky questions about whatthey were learning as well as therelevance and application of thisknowledge in the real world.

Similarly, Year 7 have been showing astrong willingness to understand theirlearning styles in Foundations ForLearning , a Year 7 transition programwhich the English Faculty has assumedresponsibility for but underpins learningacross a number of subjects. The girlshave explored their Habits of Mind andnow are about to start their next module:Little Women Big Dreams . This modulelooks at female role models throughouthistory and how they influence us today.Year 7 were also invited to speak abouttheir Science projects, where they arebuilding an Orrery (a clock work model ofthe solar system) as their STEAM project.The girls spoke with enthusiasm whendescribing their projects and also thevalue of group work.

In summary, great things are happeningat Bankstown Girls' High School and asthe Deputy responsible for Years 7, 9 and11, I am delighted to be sharing in theexperiences presented to your daughters!

Deputy PrincipalCathy Porreca

What a fabulous term it has been forBankstown Girls’ and particularly for theWellbeing and Learning and Supportteams. Early this term our studentscompleted the Tell Them From Mesurveys which provided information on arange of areas, such as teachingpractices, student aspirations andleadership from the perspective of thestudents. The Learning and Support teamfacilitated the NAPLAN tests for Year 7and Year 9, with the results allowingparents to see how their child isprogressing against national standards inliteracy and numeracy. The NAPLANresults also provide teachers with theopportunity to develop learning plansthat ensure every student at BankstownGirls’ develops their literacy andnumeracy skills across key curriculumareas.

We are fortunate to have run yet anotherABCN (Australian Business CommunityNetworks) program with the Optusmentors over 2 days with our Year 9 girls.This program was called Future Thinkers .The mentors took time out of their dayvoluntarily to meet with our girls todevelop students’ confidence, skills andaspirations that are vital for thriving infuture workplaces. The feedback wasextremely positive and they are lookingforward to similar programs in the future.ABCN have also planned a short 1-dayprogram for our senior students at theend of Term 2 – the Digital Empowersession with NBN. It is very exciting!

On May 25th, the Zonta Club of SydneyWest held their citizenship awards. TheZonta group are a global organisation ofprofessionals that empower womenworldwide through service and advocacy.This year, Ayah Maikel from Year 11 gave aspeech and was presented with thecitizenship award. Congratulations Ayah,it is well deserved!

This term the SRC hosted a Pyjama Nightwhere the students paid a small entry feeand a movie, pizza, popcorn, and drinkswere provided. The fundraiser wenttowards the Equilize Health campaign, acharity that provides healthcare andmedical research in developing nations.These girls raised $1480. It was anamazing night led by Ms Komodromos’positive can-do attitude that permeatesthrough her SRC team.

This term the Pacific Islander Girls havecontinued to meet on Wednesdayafternoons, bringing their energeticvolleyball skills and later their positivemental skills into powerful andempowering discussions with thementorship of Sina Winterstein, AudreyHill and Jacqui Vagana.

It has been a positive term where all thethings we could do were completed andTerm 3 looks just as exciting. I lookforward to writing in this forum toprovide further updates on our programoutcomes and our school achievements.

Learning Support and WellbeingMaria Varikos

filmmakers who come to Bankstownevery fortnight to work with 10English3.We can’t wait to see the final films!

And finally, a massive tutorial programhas been initiated by the English faculty.We have 24 tutors from MacquarieUniversity, who are all studying theirMasters in Teaching, come to Bankstownevery Monday and Tuesday. Studentsfrom 7B, 8B, all of Year 10 and all of Year12 are placed in small groups and given auniversity tutor to help improve theirreading and writing skills. It is a greatopportunity to improve your English workas well as find out what life is like atuniversity. This is a valuable program thatcan save parents a fortune on tutoring.

We are very proud of our English studentsand their achievements this term. Theyhave worked hard and continue to show areal love of learning. From the Englishfaculty, we are very pleased to have beenable to offer you opportunities forlearning outside of the classroom and wehope they have enhanced your love ofEnglish and Drama.

The English and Drama department hashad yet another exciting and successfulterm, we not only provided engaginglessons in our classrooms, but alsooffered wonderful opportunities beyondthat learning space.

This term has seen each and every yeargroup offered opportunities to engagewith authors, actors and activities. Year 7and 9 were lucky enough to gain a tasteof Shakespeare from the Bell TheatreCompany. Year 7 watched a version ofRomeo and Juliet , whilst Year 9 enjoyedMacbeth . This opportunity was providedto the girls free of charge, as the Englishteachers worked with the actors toprofessionally learn on how to deliverShakespeare in a more practical way.

Year 10 and 11 Drama classes wereprovided with a workshop on acting skillsand devising group theatre. Theseworkshops were run by professionalactors from the Belviour Street Theatreand were a lot of fun. Again, thisworkshop was given to our school free ofcharge, because the English teachersattended a performance in order to makethis opportunity possible.

Another activity that one Year 10 classcontinues to be involved in is the SydneyStory Factory project. This project has ourstudents write poetry and then swap theirpoems with another school. The studentsmust then turn the poems from the otherschool into a short film. This is allfacilitated by volunteer authors and

EnglishLisa Carmody

In Mathematics, we have supported ourstudents’ learning by implementing ourtutoring program. Tutoring is availablefive days a week during the lunch breakfor all students. Our incredibleMathematics teachers are willinglyspending time to ensure that studentsare provided with the opportunity toreceive additional help if the need arises.It is inspiring to witness the engagementof staff and students during this time. Iencourage students to continue makinguse of this resource. Additionally, smallgroup tuition has commenced acrossmost classes to support our students.These sessions are conducted by MsWang, Ms Carter and Ms Fattouhthroughout the week.

Term 2 has seen an incredible amount offantastic work done by all our students.Year 7 worked on their take-homeassignment to design a new vegetablegarden for Mrs Porecca, using theirknowledge of fractions, decimals andpercentages. Year 9 students used theirown data to determine their height andarm-span using a range of measuringinstruments. This provided an opportunityto consolidate their understanding ofmean, mode and median.

Furthermore, Year 7 and 8 studentsblended their geometry skills, and inparticular line symmetry with the cross-curriculum priorities of Aboriginal andTorres Strait Islander histories andcultures to create a boomerang designthat used cultural symbols to depict astory. This learning occurred duringNational Reconciliation Week, May 27thto June 3rd, adding to the significance ofthe work that students were undertaking.

The Mathematics staff have joined MelissaSilk from STEAMpop to explore the magicof ‘Lumifold’. Working within the STEAMdisciplines, a series of lessons will bedeveloped to deliver to our students inTerm 3. The concepts of probability andsymmetry will be explored to createBinary Bugs.

MathematicsVicky Saisanas

Yolanda Tuitupou's WorkRelates to the cross-curriculum priorities of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanderhistories demonstrated through artistic storytelling.

"Once upon a time there was a youngwoman who loved to watch the raingracefully dropping on the damp soil.She would watch the rain until a shiningbeautiful rainbow appeared. She satthere admiring its beauty and colours. Atnight-time she would stay up and gazeat the shimmering stars until she fellasleep. This is the story of the peacefulyoung woman.”

On Thursday 30th of March, the Year 12Business Studies classes accompanied bytheir teachers Mr Dalton and Mr Mohanvisited IKEA Tempe to conduct fieldworkthat complemented their units of work onOperations and Marketing for their HSC.As part of Year 12 Business Studies thegirls are required to undertake study on aglobal business.

In 2021, the classes have been studyingMcDonalds, Apple and IKEA among globalbusinesses. Since a trip to McDonaldsseems to be the norm, an excursion toIKEA was organised once COVIDrestrictions eased! IKEA was founded inSweden in 1943 and has grown to becomethe world’s largest furniture retailer. Thisglobal business has 10 stores in Australiaand is an excellent example of a businessto study! The classes set off to Tempe via a train to

Sydenham station in the morning and onarrival took part in a tour of both floors ofIKEA Tempe’s store and warehousefacility. The girls were able to gain abetter understanding of IKEA’s marketingstrategies, their inventory managementsystems, operational processes, and theuse of layout to gain a competitiveadvantage. A fieldwork activity wascompleted and lunch was enjoyed by allat the on-site café and restaurant beforeheading back to school (tired from all thewalking, both to and from the stationsbut also around IKEA’s 2.5km long storelayout!).

Overall, this excursion was a welcomedopportunity for the course content tobecome ‘real’ and, despite being unableto purchase IKEA blue bucket hats, bothstudents and teachers enjoyed the day.Hopefully the day provided a practicallook at material for the HSC exams!

Human Society and its EnvironmentJim Tsafis

Whenever I have the chance to chat to ourstudents in class or in the playground, Ialways find myself asking students aboutthemselves or telling a story about myself.It is in these interactions that I amreminded how important to it is to staycurious and listen to everyone’s story, asevery interaction is a learning experience.For this reason, this Candid article isfocusing on our faculty members.

For our teachers, this term has been abusy one for the application of Science –particularly in this time where we areliving through a pandemic. By the timeyou read this article, more than half of ourfaculty will be fully vaccinated againstCOVID. By relying on evidence-basedpractices, such as those conducted toproduce the amazing vaccines that areavailable to most of us over a certain age,means that as a group, we were one of thefirst to register and receive the vaccinewhen they became available. Mrs Singh,Dr Ijaz, Mrs Perkins and Ms Edwards willall be fully vaccinated by the end of thisterm, and Mrs El-Haddad, Mrs Charif andMr Golestan are booked for their firstvaccine. This nicely compliments the topicYear 12 Biology is currently learning about,Infectious Diseases and Vaccinations.

Mr Golestan has achieved two milestonesthis term; firstly, being conferred as aMaster of Teaching at the University ofSydney, and secondly, he was therecipient of the Eureka BenevolentScholarship in STEM Education, which is agreat honour and reflects his commitmentto helping students develop their critical,analytical and creative thinking throughSTEM subjects. In mid-June, Mr Golestanwas asked to speak at the scholarshipawards presentation night, during whichhe reflected upon his own time at schoolby touching on the importance ofeducation and how impactful a goodteacher can be.

Mrs El-Haddad has continued to prioritisemeaningful environmental engagementand encourages the preservation ofnature-based learning spaces. Her tirelessefforts to protect and enhance our schoolenvironment needs to be acknowledged.Further work is being planned for thedevelopment of our shared communitylearning spaces.

A quick mention must also be made to ourwonderful new staff in Science andLanguages. Mrs Charif, who works part-time in Science on Mondays and Tuesdays,has brought a tonne of happiness, careand fun into the staffroom (not tomention a continuous supply of food). Ithas been a delight to welcome her and welove having her in Science. Mrs Cowin, ournew French teacher, has brought a freshapproach and new ideas to the Languagesfaculty and we are so pleased that she hasjoined us.

Last, but certainly not least, we can’t letthis article pass without mentioning ourwonderful lab technician and general all-round chief organiser in Science, MrsPerkins, without whom we would be lost.I am very lucky as a Head Teacher ofScience and Languages to have such awonderful faculty.

Please know that you’re always welcomein Science and we love teaching you.

ScienceAnna Edwards

Stay curious!

Cross Country PicnicOur annual Cross Country Picnic was held during week 7 and it was a massive success. MsBaddah and the PDHPE team worked hard in organising another successful event whichwas situated at the picturesque lakeside at Garrison Point. Students competed in the 3kmCross Country in both a competitive and fun environment, with many students postingexceptional times and others enjoying a nice day out with some important physicalactivity. Not only did the students test themselves against the grueling track, the teachersalso led by example with a record number of staff putting their hand up to complete thetrack. Congratulations to Miss Baddah, Ms Alam, Ms Matty, Ms Doai, Mr Nadile, MrHeptinstall and Mr Dalton for showing the students how it's done and running the entireCross Country track.

After the formalities of the races, the students and staff enjoyed the day out with abeautiful BBQ put on by Year 12 and some fun and competitive sporting activities takingplace. Ms Varikos, Mrs Edwards and Mr Golestan showed off their skills in soccer and reallygot into the spirit by encouraging students to take part in what looked like a serioussoccer match. The main event of the day was the Staff v. Students Oztag match which sawthe annual trophy stay in its rightful place with the staff. Led by captain Mr Baker, the staffput on a stella performance, outclassing the Year 11 students 4-1. Despite plenty of 'track'talk throughout the week, the staff showed off their new recruits in Mr Dalton, MrHeptinstall, Mr Baker and Mr Nadile, and they didn't skip a beat with all playerscontributing to the dominant victory over the students.

Personal Development, Health andPhysical EducationShadi GhazalThere's has been plenty of action within the PDHPE faculty this term with whole schoolevents and meaningful programs taking place. Staff and students have been busy workingon many wonderful projects this term and it has resulted in exceptional engagementlevels and quality teaching throughout the school term.

Thank you to all staff and students for contributing to a

fantastic Cross Country event.

Liverpool FC Soccer ClinicThe Bankstown Girls' High School Opens Football Team was invited to a skills clinic hostedby the Liverpool FC International Academy NSW and the Australian College of PhysicalEducation . This extremely special event allowed us to be the first all-girls school inAustralia to be a part of this authentic international program.

Liverpool FC engages with tens of thousands of coaches and players every year throughtheir global program delivered via 30 different operations around the world. The LiverpoolFC International Academy NSW is the club’s only program in Australia and is unique in itseducation and career outcome focus.

The girls participated in a variety of drills and small-sided games, and finished off with amini Champions League competition. The girls showed absolute class throughout theclinic by displaying exceptional skills whilst also representing our school with pride bydemonstrating excellent behaviour. The coaches were very impressed with the girls'attitude and commitment and they were full of praise for all students that took part in thiswonderful opportunity. We look forward to continuing our partnership with the club thathas won the most Champions Leagues in England.

A big thank you to Miss Baddah and Mr Ghazal for organising this amazing opportunity forthe girls. Also, a big thank you to Ms Varikos for coaching the girls for their knockoutcompetition and attending the session as well. A special mention to Aya Jlailati (Year 11) forcreating an amazing video that captured the day, which is now posted on the schoolFacebook page and website. Be sure to check out the video!

The TAS faculty has been working hard inTerm 2 with a packed schedule and non-stop events. Our senior years have showngreat dedication throughout thischallenging term. In Design andTechnology, Year 11 has completed theirsustainable project and sewn some buckethats from recycled school fabric. Inaddition, the students have developedtheir own recycled project by applying thedesign process. Meanwhile, Year 12 got tovisit the HSC Shape Exhibition at thePowerhouse Museum to get some ideasfor their major design projects.

Throughout Term 2, Hospitality studentshave been working hard and had theopportunity to develop their skills in real-life practices. On May 18th, studentscollaborated with our TAS teachers toprepare an incredible menu for ourInterfaith Celebrations Morning Tea . Thisexperience provided our students with anopportunity to apply their theoreticalskills and strengthen their competencies.We would also like to extend a specialthank you to Year 12 students VivienChiem, Ivonne Stafurik, Kaelyn Phan, ChauDang and Julie Nguyen who came toschool to assist Mrs Bilali host theEducation Minister and many south-westPrincipals with great coffee and deliciousmorning tea.

Technology and Applied StudiesEvelyn Mircevski

Year 10 has deepened their designthinking on their STEAM project. Theproject requires them to design a newanimal enclosure for Taronga Zoo.Students are in groups and are aiming tonot only design an enclosure to scale butalso consider the wellbeing of the animalby adding music which compliments theirnatural habitat.

We would also like to congratulate ourYear 7 cohort who have successfullyengaged in the process of creating theirtimber photo frames.

We are excited to see what Term 3 holdsfor the TAS faculty and our students.

Term 2 in the CAPA department has notdisappointed, being filled with excitingopportunities and learning experiences.

Year 11 students, Lucina Phan and AnitaNguyen, were selected to attend theDobell Drawing School at the National ArtSchool during the April school holidays.This program engages students with anintensive drawing experience, providingan opportunity to work in a studio-basedsetting whilst undertaking study underprofessional artists and other talentedstudents from all over New South Wales.The last day of the program concludedwith an 'open studio' event thatshowcased the students’ final artworks.Parents, friends, and teachers werewelcome to attend. The Visual Arts staffattended the exhibition and were soproud of the amazing achievements of ourtalented students. Congratulations toboth Lucina Phan and Anita Nguyen!

On May 18th, our Interfaith CelebrationsMorning Tea took place. Our studentsCherrie Tran, Vivienne Al-Malah, Alaa Harb,Naomi Lee, and Yellena Albaso providedentertainment for our guests, performingsome old classic tunes and some modernpieces. We would like to give a special shoutout to Year 8 student, Yellena Albaso, whoexperienced her first live performance as aguitarist and vocalist. She did an amazingjob!

On May 24th, Bankstown Girls' hosted aDirector's Morning Meeting . On this day, Year9 experienced their first live performance.They welcomed our special guests in themorning with a loud, powerful, and energeticDjembe (West African Drum) Piece. Year 10,11 and 12 Music students also providedbackground music for our special guestswhilst they warmed up with a hot coffee.

Six of our senior music students were alsolucky enough to be invited along to the CityRecital Hall to watch the rehearsal of theAustralian World Orchestra. Students weregiven time with Australian composer Mr.Paul Dean to discuss his career, influences,and gain insight into the life of a composer.

Creative and Performing ArtsBrooke Carpenter and Electra Vassiliou

A School RecapCelebrations and Events

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On April 19th, Bankstown Girls' Staff returned a day before our students for adesignated Staff Development Day . Traditionally, Staff Development Day issynonymous with hours upon hours of lectures and non-interactive trainingpractices - we wanted to change this.

Our plan was to create a day that helped foster staff relationships andadditionally encourage staff to work collaboratively. Through this, we couldsupport partnerships and nurture relevant attributes such as empathy, engagement, patience, and most importantly fun.

Our planned event was The Amazing Race: Bankstown Style . With ten teams, tendifferent challenges, and three hours on the clock, it was a race against time towork through challenges and through teammate differences. It was important toaccentuate that the strengths of individuals rested in different challenges and,therefore, show the importance of effective communication and trust.

Following our Amazing Race , staff members had a choice of attending either aTai Chi or Pilates class. Both of these practices are proven to decrease stress,anxiety, and depression. It is important to implement exercises and proceduresfor all school community members to promote positive psychological andemotional health.

We were overjoyed to learn that Staff Development Day was a raging success. Itwas an opportunity to discover new programs to introduce into the educationalnetwork of our students in order to create more interactive and engaginglearning environment.

We would like to extend a massive thank you to our Principal Suada Bilali , OliviaNeskovski, and the rest of our Executive Staff for planning and organising thisevent. We also want to thank all staff members for their participation.

We are excited to integrate more interactive projects into our educationalenvironment as we strongly believe that it will improve student engagement andinteraction.

On May 7th, celebrations for Mother's Day begun early with our SRC hosting ourannual Mother's Day Raffle . From a cookie bouquet donated by Simply PerfectDelights to Bankstown Sports Club vouchers, we were able to host a gift-filledraffle with many students going home as winners. We would like to thank thegenerosity of our wider Bankstown community for their contributions to ourschool raffle.

The SRC also individually wrapped nearly 200 roses for the women supporting ourstudents' lives. This event was a massive success and for organising this Mother'sDay event a special thank you goes out to our SRC coordinator, MissKomodromos.

This event raised over $1000 with the funds being equally distributed between theNational Breast Cancer Foundation and RizeUp Australia.

On May 18th, Bankstown Girls' High School hosted our Interfaith CelebrationsMorning Tea which our school stakeholders attended. The event acted as aninvitation into further discourse regarding our school's intercultural and interfaithethics, objectives, and accomplishments.

The event was catered by our TAS teachers, Kate Easterbrook and Danika Kalan,as well as our Year 11 and Year 12 Hospitality classes. Our SRC students soldcupcakes and applied henna during recess and lunch in exchange for gold coindonations. Our students contributed to this celebration dramatically and we areso grateful for their dedication! The money raised from this event was donated tothe Starlight Foundation .

Traditionally in Australian schools, celebrations tend to be based upon anglo-celtic religons; this can also be perpetuated by the set holidays we have (e.g.Easter, Christmas, etc). Our hope is to extend our practices of multi-faithcelebrations to ensure all staff and students feel as though their faith isrecognised and celebrated.

At Bankstown Girls' High School, we are dedicated to creating an environmentthat nurtures our differences and actively fights for equality for our students.Bankstown is a racial, cultural, and religious melting-pot – protecting this iscrucial to maintaining this interconnected space.

"More than a word. Reconciliation takes action."

Reconciliation Week 2021 (May 27th - June 3rd) focused on the importance ofprogressive action to strengthen intercultural relationships between theAustralian Community and our First Nations. 2021 marks almost three decades ofAustralia’s formal reconciliation process.

Reconciliation is the journey to collectively build relationships and supportcommunities that treasure Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, theirhistory, and their future. It is important to the future of our nation to amplify thevoices of our Indigenous in our stand for justice and equality.

Bankstown Girls' is currently in the process of introducing further educationrelated to Indigenous culture both historically and currently. As a school that isprivileged to stand on Indigenous land, we have a duty to protect our IndigenousAustralians and educate our school community on Australia's traditional owners.

Since starting back up on May 5th 2021, Breakfast Club has been back in fullswing growing to over 45 students attending the breakfast each Wednesdaymorning between 8.00 and 8.45am.

The Loin Club in Bankstown is currently supporting the Breakfast Club byproviding healthy and nutritious foods to start the day. We hope to gather moresupport from the wider Bankstown community for our Breakfast Club , this waywe are able to provide a broader range of food for more of our students.

A special thank you goes out to our Year 12 students who have aided our youngeryears and helped with the club by coming to school early. Our Breakfast Clubwouldn't be able to function without the hard work of our TAS/CAPA HeadTeacher, Mrs Mircevski, and our TAS assistant, Mrs McAuliffe. We thank you foryour dedication to our students' wellbeing.

WHA T WE C AN DO . WHA T WE D I D DO . WHA T WE W I L L DO .

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