Category Archives: Assemblies

Beatles Mania

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Ok … a confession … I wrote a big blurb for this post. I read over it and while everything that I wrote was true … when I read it I thought to myself “Why am I writing this … there is no need … it speaks for itself”.

So … I deleted what I wrote and wish to just leave you with the video. Below is Oliver Sumsky (Alexandria) from Year 7 performing “Let it Be” by the Beatles at last week’s assembly. I could talk about the fact that Oliver is a Year 7 boy. I could talk about the fact that he was performing in front of a school of 1000 boys. I could talk about the fact that you could hear a pin drop in the hall. I could talk about how outstanding the performance was … but I won’t.

I need say no more … just … enjoy!

‘A’ for Effort

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Each term, the College acknowledges a limited number of boys by awarding them with “Excellence in Effort” awards. These awards are presented by the headmaster and are one of the most prestigious awards that a Year 7 boy can achieve.

In order to receive one of these awards, a student must be nominated by three of his teachers. What makes it difficult, however, is that teachers are only allowed to nominate three boys from their class. Therefore, for a boy to be nominated by three of his teachers is an exceptional achievement.

What I love about these awards is that any boy in the form is able to achieve one of these awards. They are not based on progress or results but rather the attitude and effort of the boys. It is wonderful to see a wide range of boys being nominated each term.

Congratulations to the following boys who were awarded Excellence in Effort awards for Term 3:

Study Effort T3

On Thursday at the College’s Headmaster’s Assembly, Mr Tarlinton presented these boys with with their awards in front of the whole school and all the staff. This is obviously a special occasion and we congratulate each of the boys who received the award, with some of them being nominated by up to six teachers!

The video of the presentation at assembly is below.

Click here to see the Presentation

The Musical Change

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During Term 3 the boys in the “Young Guitar Ensemble” (named after Neil Young rather than being based on the boys’ age) were invited to play in front of the whole school at the College Assembly. Although this may have sent shocks of anxiety into the boys, it was certainly a wonderful opportunity for them.

The boys played “My Girl” made famous by the Temptations in 1965 when it became a number one hit.

I can tell you beyond a shadow of a doubt that this is the best ensemble performance I have seen by a group of Year 7s at an assembly in my time at Joeys. When you watch the video below, you will notice how in-tune the boys are and most importantly, how in-time they are with each other … not something that is easy to achieve with so many boys playing the guitar at once.

Apologies if it is a little slow to load, however, I really wanted both this video and the one below to be in the same blog post … I’ll explain the second video after you watch this one. Enjoy!

Click here to view the Year 7 ensemble!

Ok … now that was good … well done to all the boys in the Young Guitar Ensemble!

Now … it is hard at this time of year not to reflect on the journey of the Year 12 boys as they graduate from the College. For Year 7 parents, it is more about looking forward rather than reflecting … this next video is a way of looking forward.

Below is the final performance of a group of Year 12 boys. I guess, having just watched the Year 7 boys perform, it is worth seeing where they may well be at in just 5 years time.

Again, apologies if the load time is slow … trust me, it is definitely worth watching. Further, it appears that the audio cuts out after Br Anthony introduces them – don’t worry, that is just the switch of the microphone. Please be patient as David finds his pick! No matter what … you have to watch this one until the end!

Get your dancing shoes on as Jordan, James and David, on behalf of Year 12, take you rocking back into history!

Click here to view the Year 12 band!

For those of you who have a good musical knowledge … apologies that I spelt the title incorrectly … it should be “Johnny Be Goode”. Unfortunately by the time I realised, it was too late!

I really do look forward to seeing the current Year 7s perform just as well, if not better, in only 5 years time!

“My First Few Weeks at Joeys”

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Assembly 1Assembly 2It has become a tradition over the last few years that a couple of weeks into term, two Year 7 boys are invited to join the official party on stage at the Headmaster’s Assembly and give a recount of their first few weeks at Joeys.

This year, we were represented by Hugh Edwards (Wellington) (left) and Connor Berkery (Wahroonga) (right). These two boys did an outstanding job, showing amazing confidence as they spoke in front of more than 1000 people. To add to their challenge, they were given less than 24 hours notice – a real credit to them.

The video of the boys’ speeches will be available for you to watch in the next day or so, however, in the meantime, we congratulate both Hugh and Connor firstly for saying ‘yes’ without hesitation when I asked them to speak and secondly for doing a wonderful job!