The P&C has had an extremely busy and productive year with many great achievements.

The Committee has assisted with the Tears and Tissues morning tea for new parents, Easter Parade, Mother's and Father's Day stalls and all-school concert, which brought on many smiles and happy tears. Thank you to the staff at Holroyd for making these events such a success.

Next year we will continue to run P&C gatherings in the Community Hub, located behind the school. All parents and carers are welcome to join the Committee or to simply drop in for coffee, tea or a chat. Regular P&C meetings will be held at 9.30am on the first Wednesday of the month.

Congratulations to the Class of 2019 and we wish all graduating students the best for the future.

Our thoughts and prayers are also with the family of the late Anne Ryan, who is dearly missed here at Holroyd.

On behalf of the P&C, I wish all students, parents and staff a safe and restful holiday. We look forward to new exciting fund-raising endeavours in 2020.

See you in the New Year,

Liz Brannon

President

How long have you worked at Holroyd School?

Since the start of the year.

What is your favourite childhood memory?

Going camping with my family.

What was your favourite subject at school?

Drama and Biology.

If you could only keep five possessions, what would they be?

My dog, phone, family photos, car and bed.

What is your favourite book?

The Book Thief by Markus Zusak.

If you could invite any three guests to a dinner party, who would they be?

My husband Timothy, English actor Tom Holland and Mexican filmmaker and actor Guillermo del Toro.

What is your favourite song to sing along to?

Mr Brightside by The Killers.

What pets did you have growing up?

Lots of dogs.

What is your favourite day of the year?

Christmas Day!

What fad or trend do you hope comes back?

Good quality teenage chick flicks like Mean Girls and She's The Man.

How long have you worked at Holroyd School?

What is your favourite childhood memory?

Going to school and seeing my friends.

What was your favourite subject at school?

I loved art.

If you could only keep four possessions, what would they be?

Family photos, my first coaching trophy, Star Trek collection and videos.

What is your favourite book?

Treasure Island, by Robert Louis Stevenson. I loved it as a child and I still do.

If you could invite any guests to a dinner party, who would they be?

AC/DC guitarist Angus Young and Canadian actor William Shatner.

What is your favourite song to sing along to?

It's a Long Way to the Top, by AC/DC.

What pets did you have growing up?

I was very attached to my little dog.

What is your favourite day of the year?

Christmas would be my all-time favourite. I love getting together with family and friends.

What fad or trend do you hope comes back?

Disco!

Congratulations to our 13 graduating students - Arif, Carlos, Daniel, Sohum, Amara, Bas Bibi, Kenny, Maymuna, Sean, Mujahid, Andy, Johny and Nicholas.

We celebrated their achievements at an awards ceremony in the hall, followed by lunch in the Community Hub, on Thursday 28 November.

Special congratulations to our seven award recipients:

Pursuit of Excellence Award : Sean Nguyen

Judy Reilly Memorial Trails Award : Bas Bibi Jamshidi

Principal's Award for Citizenship and Consistent Effort : Johny Tedela

Caltex Best All Rounder Award : Daniel Jose

Rueben F Scarf Award for commitment : Arif Briggs

NSW Premier's Sporting Challenge Medal : Amara Jalloh

Work Experience Award : Carlos Ruiz

We congratulate the Class of 2019 and wish them all the best for the future.

Congratulations to the twelve students who were awarded Premier's Reading Challenge Medals this term. Medals are awarded to students who have demonstrated outstanding commitment to reading by completing the Challenge every year from Year 3 to Year 9.

The medal recipients were:

Twenty-seven platinum awards [for completing the Challenge for seven consecutive years] and 15 gold awards [four consecutive years] were also awarded.

A total of 185 Holroyd students from kindergarten to year 12 participated in this year's Premier Reading Challenge.

Many thanks to the 15 community members who generously volunteered their time last Friday to bring fun and laughter to Holroyd.

It was a wonderfully festive day with music, games, presents and even a surprise visit from Santa!

A big thank you to Garry Baker (Annie's dad) who spent countless hours putting together the fun activities.

Our junior classes were treated to a day of fun activities at the Variety Special Children's Christmas party at Rosehill Gardens Racecourse on Wednesday 4 December.

They enjoyed a day of celebrity stage shows, fun rides, interactive games, face painting and many more fun activities.

Our students particularly enjoyed waving to Santa, hi-fiving superheroes and police officers, patting farm animals and climbing inside the cab of a massive truck. They ate loads of party food, received presents and danced the afternoon away.

Our budding artists, from kindergarten to year 12, were celebrated at our annual art exhibition last week.

Thank you to all the families, staff and community members who stopped in to admire the students' creative efforts and purchase artwork. All profits will be donated to Beyond Blue.

We still have some student art available for purchase at $10, $15 and $20. If you are interested, please contact the ladies in the office on 9637 1219.

Many thanks also to all the staff and parents who supported S25's Christmas store. Every cent of the money raised will go to our less fortunate school friends in the remote mountain communities of Marcani and Ttio in Peru, in South America.

Students were given the opportunity to interact with some of Australia's most stunning wildlife this term.

The team from Taronga Zoo's Zoomobile visited Holroyd on Friday 22 November. It provided students with a hands-on experience with a wonderful variety of native animals.

Thank you to all the wonderful families and staff members who donated to the Toys N Tucker Anglicare Christmas Appeal.

Your generosity has made this Christmas a much happier time for families in need.

This year the students in J10 have completed units of work related to science experiments and Australian history. We particularly enjoyed science day where we experimented with chemical reactions to make volcanoes erupt and lava lamps with moving bubbles. In our Australian history unit we have enjoyed exploring Aboriginal culture and the Gold Rush. Visiting Elizabeth Farm with J12 and J9 was a highlight where the students got to play games kids played 200 years ago, wash clothes using a scrubbing board and ring the 'dinner bell'.

Earlier this term we had an absolute ball attending the Special Children's Christmas party. J10 had such cool dance moves that four of our students won prizes. Boy were we tired when we got back to school!

We have also loved going horse riding at Box Hill every Monday of Semester two. The students have learnt to mount and dismount from the horse with minimal assistance and communicate with their horse using the terms 'walk on' and 'whoa'. During the sessions J10 play games on their horses where they carry flags, bean bags and toys to other areas of the arena. All students have shown amazing progress in their riding skills and confidence around the horses.

We also enjoy getting outdoors. We have particularly enjoyed gardening. We've planted cherry tomatoes, parsley and cauliflower and it's been interesting watching the plants grow and change. It's always a lot of fun taking turns watering the plants (and often spraying each other with the hose)! We also participate enthusiastically with our sport program on a Thursday morning. J10 try and get as many activities in as we can - obstacle course, golf, playing with the parachute, throwing and hitting balls and much more. It's been fantastic to see our students delight in the outdoors.

As the year comes to a close we want our parents and students to know how thankful we are for this year with them. We are so proud of their progress and achievements and hope it is a refreshing and enjoyable Christmas break.

Until next time, 

William, Danish, Aylin, Maggie, Shiven, Kyarah, Isabella, Emma, Kylie and Irene.

What has been the highlight of the year for your class?

J17 really enjoy birthday parties. However, the highlight for the year has been the school concert. Everybody enjoyed their concert item Science Totally Rulz and their costumes.

What unit of work and/or curriculum-based learning activity is the class studying this semester?

This semester J17 has been studying History: Events that Changed Australia. We have learnt how different life is now compared to the past, Pemulwuy and the Gold Rush. We have panned for gold and made damper.

What are the highlights of your week?

We like to sing and dance in our class. These are our brain breaks. The students in J17 look forward to our Just Dance sessions and have learnt both the dance moves and lyrics to their favourite songs.

How does the class spend time outdoors each week?

Every Wednesday afternoon we ride bikes and scooters in the senior bike track.

Is there a message you would like to give to your students' parents?

The students in J17 have had many successes this year. Their greatest achievments have been the social interaction and friendships they have developed.

Parents and carers are invited to a free two-day Autism workshop to learn more about strengthening the home-school partnership.

Liverpool Catholic Club - Tuesday 18 February and Wednesday 19 February.

Morning tea and light lunch provided. Interpreters available.

To register, visit positivepartnerships.com.au

Wishing all our students, families and staff a safe and happy summer holiday.

School resumes for students in Years 1 to 12 on Wednesday 29 January, 2020.