Last week Figtree Anglican Church kindly hosted the regional 2025 da Vinci Decathlon competition. Over two days, Senior School students from Illawarra Grammar competed in hotly-contested intellectual and creative challenges against students from across the area.

Students from Year 7 to Year 10 enjoyed success in a range of areas – see table below – with Year 8 and Year 9 finishing as overall runners up in their age groups. But it was our Year 7 team which brought home the trophy, having secured an impressive first place in their first year of senior competition.

Our Year 7, 8 and 9 students will now proceed to the State Finals, taking place at Knox Grammar School later this term.

On behalf of all involved in this year’s da Vinci Decathlon competition, I would like to thank Mrs Therese Horley who did a wonderful job of coordinating the event and ensuring the three days of competition proceeded smoothly and efficiently.   

Selected highlights of our teams’ successful performances are shown below.

Year 10
2nd in Science

4th Overall

Year 9
1st in Art and Poetry
1st in Creative Producers
2nd in English
3rd in Legacy

2nd Overall

Year 8
1st in English
2nd in Mathematics
3rd in Creative Producers
3rd in Science

2nd Overall

Year 7
1st in English
1st in Code-breaking
2nd in Science

1st Overall

Congratulations to all team members!

Year 7 – Mia Nott, Evelyn Carroll, Chenlin Shi, Caroline Werakso, Sidney Davis, Joanna Miller, Amity Sanders, Sophia Hernandez. 

Year 8 – Linnie Tran, Astrid Esslinger, Felicity De La Fuente, Xiaojia Tang, Kimia Beirne, Isabella Xu, Elise Cordaro, Amelia Jefford.

Year 9 – Poppy Fulton, Apollo Karakaidos, Ava Hernandez, Zaria Nguyen, Isaiah Barila, Bianca Ratajkoski, Niruthikan Sutharsamohan, Finnian Bobbert

Year 10 – Sienna Bohm, Saskia Esslinger, Yaoting Wang, Leon Do, Kaj Eriksson, Audrey Davis, Emma Denley, Aubrey Koll

Saturday Library has recommenced and will be open to senior students (in Years 10, 11 and 12) every Saturday during term time for the rest of the year. Opening hours are 9.00am – 2.00pm.

Free Tuition from high-achieving TIGS’ alumni who are now studying at university will be available from 11.00am. Tuition offered: English, Mathematics, Chemistry and Physics.

Tickets are now on sale for the Year 12 Trivia Night.

Join us on Friday 30 May for a fun-filled evening themed The Wild West. Fancy dress is optional but encouraged, with prizes for best dressed.

All proceeds will support the Year 12 charity, The Water Gift.

Book now

You can pre-order a grazing platter when purchasing tickets, or bring your own food. Please note this is an alcohol-free event; a mocktail on arrival is included in the ticket price, with soft drinks and additional mocktails available for purchase.

We look forward to an enjoyable night hosted by our Year 12 students.

As we go into the third week of term, I would like to remind students of the importance of personal organisation. Over the first weeks of this term there has been a small, but larger than usual, number of students who have needed to borrow laptops or chargers from the Library for a sustained period.  This service is provided to support learning for the rare, short-term situations in which a student is otherwise unable to access their own laptop. 

Students who repeatedly need to leave lessons to charge their laptop or who need to book laptops out on a daily basis will be having an impact on their, and their peers’, learning and will reduce the ability of our Library staff to support other students. 

Your support in ensuring that students are equipped each day with their own laptop and charger is greatly appreciated.

Mr Chris Breheny – Head of Academics

Parent Teacher Interviews will be held in the Goodhew Library from 3.30pm – 7.00pm on the following dates:

• Year 11 – Tuesday, 27 May
• Year 10 – Tuesday, 3 June
• Year 7 – Tuesday, 10 June
• Year 9 – Tuesday, 17 June
• Year 8 – Tuesday, 22 July

Students are strongly encouraged to attend with their parents/guardians and are expected to wear full school uniform.

You will receive an email from School approximately two weeks prior to your relevant session/s with your unique login details. Once this has been received, you will be required to follow the following steps to login to the booking system:

• Log in to the TIGS Portal https://portal.tigs.nsw.edu.au/
• Click on the Booked Icon
• Click the Senior School Booked Icon
• Enter unique login details from the email

Please note that the system will be accessible from 5.00pm on the day the email is sent until 10.00am on the day of the Parent Teacher Interview evening.

You will be guided through the remaining steps after login. Please note the following points:

• Bookings are made for individual parents/guardians, not for couples. If two parents/guardians wish to attend a single timeslot, one parent/guardian should make the booking, and both parents can attend that timeslot
• Booked prevents double-booking of teachers or parents/guardians. You will only see timeslots that are available
• Please ensure that you confirm your bookings by clicking on the green plus sign to the right of the time selection window
• Once you have made your bookings, you can print the details
• You can log in and change bookings any time up to 10.00am on the day of the interviews
• If you see an exclamation mark symbol displayed alongside the class name, it means this teacher recommends that you book an interview
• Other parents may be making bookings while you are using the system. It is possible, though unlikely, that a timeslot is displayed to you as available but is then booked by another parent. If you attempt to book this time slot, it will not be available and a message will be displayed to indicate this.

If you are unable to attend your evening/s or find suitable timeslots, please contact the School to arrange an alternative time to speak with your child’s teacher/s.

If you have any problems or questions, please contact Ms Kerrie Sheldon via email at ksheldon@tigs.nsw.edu.au

Mr Chris Breheny – Head of Academics

This term, students will receive their Half Yearly Reports, which provide a valuable snapshot of their academic progress so far this year. These reports are designed to offer meaningful insights into each student’s current achievements, highlight areas presenting the greatest opportunities for growth, and reflect their broader contribution to the life of the School.

At Illawarra Grammar, we believe that reporting is not merely a record of past performance, but an important part of the learning process. Reports help students develop self-awareness and agency by identifying their strengths and areas for improvement. For families, they serve as a platform for meaningful conversations about learning, study habits and personal goals. Importantly, they also enable teachers to continue shaping instruction and support based on each student’s evolving learning needs.

Please note that Half Yearly Reports will be accessible at 5.00pm on OLLE on the following dates:

• Year 11 – Friday 23 May
• Year 10 – Friday 30 May
• Year 7 – Friday 6 June
• Year 9 – Friday 13 June
• Year 8 – Friday 20 June

To access reports via OLLE, please follow the steps below:

1. Log in to OLLE via the TIGS Portal under the Parent tab.
2. In the My Students section, click the three dots next to your child’s name and select Academic Reports.
3. Alternatively, click on your child’s name and then select the Academic Reports button.

These reports will frame the conversations at Parent Teacher Interviews. Should you have any further questions about your child’s progress after Parent Teacher Interviews, please do not hesitate to follow up with the relevant classroom teacher.

Year 8 Biggest Morning Tea – Friday 23 May

On Friday 23 May, Year 8 students will be hosting the Biggest Morning Tea to raise funds for the Cancer Council. We would love the support of Year 8 families by providing nut-free baked goods or treats for the event. All donated items must be nut-free and delivered to the Library by 8.40am on the morning of the event.

We encourage the whole school community to get involved by bringing gold coins to purchase items at recess and lunch on the Library Lawn. Every dollar raised will go towards supporting cancer research, prevention programs and patient support services.

Thank you for supporting this important cause!