OPAL Everett is only five years old, but has been preparing for school for more than two years.
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Her older sister, Hannah, said Opal regularly copied her siblings by sitting at her own desk with books and a row of pens and telling her family she was doing her maths or English homework.
“Sometimes she’d call out to our brother Carter and say ‘Have you done your geography homework?” Hannah said. “She was trying to emulate what we were doing, but he’d have to tell her not to wish away the days when she didn’t have homework!”
Opal will have her kindergarten orientation at Newcastle Grammar School’s junior campus on Wednesday and vice captain Hannah will start her second term of year 12 at the senior campus on Friday.
The school is one of the first in NSW to kick off term one classes. Teachers at most other schools will return to work on Friday and students will make staggered returns to school next week.
Head of school Erica Thomas said new staff members started at the school last Friday and all teachers had professional learning days on Monday and Tuesday.
“We felt if we left it to the following week we’d be losing momentum, that we’d lose a week,” Ms Thomas said. “This has traditionally been the return week and we tend to find that students are ready to come back to school.”
Kindergarten, year five, year seven and new students from year six upwards will attend orientation on Wednesday. The rest of the school will return on Friday.
Opal said she was “happy” to start school and was looking forward to playing with her friends. She said she thought it would be similar to preschool, but with a “scratchy” uniform.
“I’m not too nervous about starting,” she said. “I’m excited to be in Macquarie house, to meet my teacher, to play in the big playground and visit the library.”
Her mum Rachel said she would be trying to hold back her tears. “Hannah was my first to go to school and that was tough, but with Opal it’s quite surreal,” Mrs Everett said. “It came quickly for me, I could hang on to her for another year, she’s good little company to be around.”
“It’s hard to believe that while Hannah is exiting, we’re starting this journey all over again.”
Send us your photos from the first day of school, taken this year and in previous years. Email mcarr@theherald.com.au
Helen Gregory
Helen Gregory joined the Newcastle Herald in 2010. She is the masthead’s education reporter and has written for the H2 and Weekender sections, as well as across a range of issues. Helen is a Walkley Award winning journalist and was also part of the Newcastle Herald team that won the United Nations World Environment Day Media Award for Environmental Reporting.
Helen Gregory joined the Newcastle Herald in 2010. She is the masthead’s education reporter and has written for the H2 and Weekender sections, as well as across a range of issues. Helen is a Walkley Award winning journalist and was also part of the Newcastle Herald team that won the United Nations World Environment Day Media Award for Environmental Reporting.
