Activities
Students who call the Ravenswood Residential College (RRC) home can participate in a vast range of activities.
Close proximity to the School also means that Boarders need not make travel arrangements to take part in co-curricular activities.
The RRC orchestrates a vibrant weekend program known as ‘Excite Weekends’, where friendships flourish, minds expand, and lifelong memories are created. The program explores Sydney while catering to Boarders’ diverse interests – from delving into museums and galleries to embarking on outdoor adventures or taking part in community-building exercises. Each activity is thoughtfully designed with Positive Education principles to cultivate a strong sense of belonging, independence, resilience, curiosity and teamwork.
Boarders are encouraged to prioritise their physical, emotional and mental health by participating in sports and a plethora of co-curricular activities.
The RRC boasts a bespoke wellbeing garden where students can enjoy outdoor chess, basketball, table tennis and yoga classes. Boarders also enjoy Pilates and use the School’s pool and Strength and Conditioning Centre, while ‘Move it Monday’ encourages Boarders to participate in weekly Zumba classes.
Student-initiated gatherings, such as the new ‘mini socials’, are smaller, casual co-educational events with friends and brothers from nearby boarding schools.
On ‘Bring Your Own Day Girl and Teacher’, the RRC welcomes Day Girls and teachers to attend an afternoon tea, make friendship bracelets and play games. There are also termly Chapel services led by our School Chaplain in conjunction with Boarders, as well as special themed dinners.
Boarders enjoy two ‘Community Weekends’ as part of the ‘Excite’ program. Past activities have included themed barbecues, visits to Taronga Zoo and Raging Waters Waterpark, and a wellbeing session focusing on meditation and mindfulness. Food trucks have also attended the RRC to create a special feast under fairy lights in the boarding wellbeing gardens.
Two Boarding Activities Captains are elected each year to help create opportunities for fun and social functions for the Boarders.
Tutoring Program
Academic success is paramount, and the RRC Prep tutoring program plays a pivotal role in this. Facilitated by recently graduated, high-performing Alumni tutors with bespoke skills and credentials, students work within their year group every school night and engage in comprehensive recaps, forward-planning sessions, and targeted study skills ‘spotlight’ sessions tailored to individual needs. The tutors cover a broad spectrum of subjects, catering to both HSC and IB Diploma curriculum requirements.
The tutoring program at RRC fosters holistic growth and personal development.
Through specialised study skills sessions, forward-planning activities and individualised goal-setting, tutors empower students to cultivate effective learning strategies and unlock their full potential. This personalised approach not only enhances academic performance but also instils valuable skills such as time-management, critical thinking and self-discipline – skills essential for lifelong success.
The RRC Prep tutoring program fosters a culture of excellence, reaching beyond the classroom to shape students’ academic trajectories.
Ravenswood Boarders consistently achieve their first university preferences.
Holidays and Weekends
The RRC allows Boarders to apply for leave for activities such as shopping or going for dinner with a friend, or for being away from the RRC for a weekend. Weekly Boarders do not need to apply for leave on weekends; they may also stay on at the RRC if they wish. Boarders are also given a travel day at the beginning and end of each term.
Boarding Communications and Support
Our aim is to provide flexible and open communication between the School, parents and students. We want our Boarders to have as much of a ‘home experience’ as possible, and we want parents to be able to share their daughters’ academic, sporting, co-curricular and personal experiences.
Partnering with parents in supporting their daughter’s learning is pivotal in fostering academic success among Boarders. Boarding families are provided with academic calendars and support resources such as ‘Success in the Senior Years’ information evenings, delivered via recorded videos. Alumni Academic Tutors’ notes are also shared with parents and teachers, offering real-time updates on progress, which reinforces the cohesive approach of the RRC and broader school community.
Ravenswood’s Boarding Community Welcome Event is an excellent opportunity for parents to meet the academic and support staff who will be assisting their daughters. Held at the start of the academic year, the event is a catalyst for ongoing rapport-building. Boarding families meet key academic and wellbeing staff, including Year Coordinators, subject teachers, Heads of Curriculum, and members of the Wellbeing Team.
Throughout the year, boarding families engage with the School community through Parent-Teacher meetings via Zoom, catch-ups with the Director of Boarding, and weekly email updates from the Director of Boarding and Year Coordinator, informing them about their daughters’ learning progress and upcoming academic events.
Boarding parenting information evenings are also held each term, giving boarding families an overview of the term and an opportunity to connect with families within their daughter’s year group, as well as with boarding families across year groups.
Ravenswood also offers boarding families a range of community forums and seminars, which can be attended in person and via zoom.
Contact
The Director of Boarding, as well as our Deputy Principal – Boarding and Community, are always available for parents to call.
Boarders RAVO Connect Portal
The Boarders’ Portal on the current parent RAVO Connect portal provides boarding families with a range of news, photos and updates of recent events and activities held in the RRC.
Newsletter
The School Newsletter is emailed fortnightly during term time and is also available on RAVO Connect. The newsletter provides boarding families with updates from across the School, with additional boarding-specific news from the Deputy Principal – Boarding and Community.
Transitioning into an Australian School
Our overseas Boarders are particularly nurtured to ensure a happy transition to boarding in the RRC.
The Director of Boarding supports the students both within the RRC and the School, while the Boarding Supervisors are there to support the Boarders within the RRC. The Senior Leadership Team and Student Wellbeing Team, along with the Boarders’ Year Coordinators and Mentors, also provide support for Boarders in their academic and co-curricular pursuits, and for their overall welfare and wellbeing.
Each overseas Boarder has a local guardian to act for her parents, as well as to attend parent–teacher interviews and doctor’s appointments if required.
Through Ravenswood’s Boarder Support Program, families of Day Girls volunteer to act as a Boarder Support Family for new Boarders. Within the RRC and the School, the Boarding Captains and Boarders offer further peer support to international Boarders.