Headlines for this Journal are naturally the success of our two candidates for the External Intermediate Certificate conducted by the N.S.W. Department of Education.

Marilyn Conn, 16, Of Croydon Park, was born profound deaf. She commenced at Farrar School at the age of four years and her family moved down from the North Coast so that Marilyn Conn could attend this school. When Marilyn Conn was twelve her father died but despite this set back Marilyn Conn continued to apply herself to her school work, and she passed the intermediate in English, Social Studies, Art and Home Science.

Auriel Kerr, 16, of Lidcombe, was suddenly and profoundly deafened at the age of eight while still in Grade 3 at Berala Infants Schools. Auriel Kerr had to learn to lipread and to adjust herself to deafness. After three years in Opportunity Deaf Classes Auriel Kerr was transferred to Farrar at the age of eleven years. Auriel Kerr gained a Credit in English at the Intermediate and passes in Social Studies, Maths and Arts.

To Mrs. Conn and to Mr. and Mrs. Kerr must go the credit for having encouraged their daughters to remain at school till the age of sixteen years in order to gain their Intermediate Certificates and also for having helped them to do so much extra work at home to reach the necessary standards in reading, lipreading and written expression.

Marilyn Conn has commenced work at Patons Electrical Pty. Ltd. at Ashfield and gained a place for a Technical College Tracing Course next year.

Auriel Kerr has commenced at Metropolitan Business College to learn typing.

Congratulations, Marilyn Conn and Auriel Kerr.

This term Miss Henry and Miss Walter did a series of demonstrations on speech teaching for the N.S.W. Training Course for Teachers of the Deaf. Mr Binns, M. M^cGree, Mrs. Chan and Miss Henry have also discussed and demonstrated the use of the Farrar Special speech and auditory training machines.

Miss Walter has continued as Visiting Lecturer at the Teachers' College; her subject this term was the Teaching of Reading to Deaf Children. Miss Walter also took the students on a one week visit to Melbourne, as part of their training course, to meet the Victorian Department of Education's Training Course for Teachers of the Deaf; and to see pre-school clinic; three schools for the deaf, "Victorian School for Deaf Children", "Glendonald" and "Princess Elizabeth Kindergarten"; their hostel for deaf children; and their Visiting Teacher Service. The students also saw the privately maintained residential building adjacent to the "Victorian School" and the "Princess Elizabeth Kindergarten".

Mrs J. Pennell, Miss D. Godfrey, Miss D. Dalton and Mr G. Smith spent the last three weeks of the year with us for practice teaching.

We take this opportunity of congratulating Mr. W. Parr, lecturer in charge of the course, on being one of the first Winston Churchill Fellows, and look forward to hear from him after his trip abroad.

Mrs. Chan has been active as Joint Secretary of the N.S.W. Teachers' Federation Committee of Teachers of Handicapped Children and Mr. Binns was one of the speakers at the Conference of Teachers of Handicapped Children held on Saturday, November 27^th. Miss Henry and Miss Walter attended the Conference.

Miss Walter was External Examiner of Leader' and Teachers' Certificate Candidates in Lipreading for the Australian Association of Teachers of the Deaf. While in Melbourne Miss Walter was able to meet the Chairman of this National Teachers' Committee, Mrs P. Pengilley, for consultations on this work.

 Mr. Binns has been working on the Social Studies Curriculum Committee of the Australian Association of Teachers of the Deaf; Mr M^cGree is continuing his work on the Mathematics Curriculum Committee.

Miss Walter attended a lecture by Professor Tenny, professor of Special Education, Wayne University, U.S.A.; the lecture was held at Division of Guidance and Adjustment on October 5^th.

We cannot praise too highly the part played by the Correspondence School and Croydon Girls' Junior High School in the prevision of secondary education for our children. In particular, these two schools contributed greatly to the success of Marilyn Conn and Auriel Kerr in the External Intermediate Certificate Examination and we would like to thank both schools.

In the balance sheet for the year the Treasurer, Marilyn Conn, showed that a total of £19.14.3 had been handled this year:-

Miss Henry and a number of fathers have worked consistently in the garden this term. Many of the shrubs are looking very attractive and the grass has been kept in good order.

The children aged 8 to 13 years attended the District Athletics at Concord Oval on September 21^st. Some were competitors, others were spectators. Places in the heats ranged from 4^th to last; the whole day was an experience for all who attended.

Once again a school camp was held at the National Fitness Midway Cabins. Mrs. Chan, Mr Dinns and Mr. M^cGree accompanied the children from Friday, October 1^st to Monday, October 4^th, and were assisted by Mr. B. Day, P. and C. Vice President and his wife. We do appreciate the time given up by these adults to provide the children with this camping experience.

The extensive parent guidance programme carried out by the Staff has continued this term. Parents have again been invited to make individual arrangements with class teachers in order to observe their child in class and to discuss problems with the teachers. Miss Henry has an evening meeting for the parents of her class. Miss Walter has a meeting for mothers in her classroom where Marilyn Conn and Auriel Kerr showed their work, explained the High School courses and answered question. In addition, a private appointment was made for the parents of each pupil to see Miss Walter and discuss their child's progress during the years.

Each P. and C. monthly meeting gives opportunity for Miss Walter to mention specific ways in which parents may help thier children during the month. As well as this, something different has been attempted at each meeting. At the October meeting Miss Jennifer Luke, A Government Tracer and Miss Robin Hiffernan, a typiste, addressed parents and told them of their own likes and dislikes as children. Miss Luke and Miss Hiffernan are both members of Farrar Ex-Students' Union. At the November meeting Mr. Day showed slides of the camp. In December the meeting terminated with a special festive supper.

Mrs. Wordley has continued to represent us at the Council of Social Services. Mr. Day, as Vice President of the Federation for junior Deaf, as attended all meetings of the body and other members of our P. and C. have attended some of these meetings. Mr. Day has also represented our P. and C. at Western Districts' P. and C.

Mr. And Mrs. W. Read represented the P. and C. and Miss Walter represented the school at the 25^th anniversary of the election to State Parliament of our patron, Mr. David Hunter, M.L.A. This function was held at the "Amory" on September 20^th.

The ex-students have continued to meet monthly. In October they joined with the P. and C. for a combined meeting at which two ex-students, Misses Luke and Hiffernan, spoke.

The end of the year dance was held on November 27^th; the Patron, Miss A.D. Burns, attended.

Visitors
From interstate we have had Mr. L. Dodd, Superintendent of Primary Schools, South Australia; Mr Allan, Government Architect, South Australia; and Mr. W.M. Hart of the Research and Guidance Branch, Department of Education, Queensland.

Officials of our Department of Education have included Mr. Staff Inspector M.H. Bryant; Mr. M. Thomas, Chief of Division of Guidance and Adjustment; Miss B. Kemp, Principal Guidance Officer for A-Typical Children; Mr. P. Ailwood, School Counsellor for the Deaf; and Dr. M. Golomb, Medical Officer-In-Charge, Child Health Centre, Ryde.

Commonwealth Government visitors have been Mr. P. Robinson and Mr. M. Morris of the Commonwealth Acoustic Laboratories and Mr. H. Greenfield of the Commonwealth Employment Service Commonwealth Centre.

We are very pleased when Mrs. A. Farrow of the Hearing Clinic, Royal Alexandria Hospital for Children visited us for the first time. So any of our children have previously been to Mrs. Farrow at the Clinic that they, as well as the teachers, were delighted to see her.

Two other colleagues who honoured us with visits were Mr. W.E. Johnson, Principal of the North Rocks School for the Deaf, who came to conduct speech exams for the trainee teachers of the deaf and Mr. K. Watkins, Principal of the North Rocks School for the Blind, who came here preparatory to making a world trip in connection with the teaching of deaf-blind children.

Many students have visited; medical students from the University of N.S.W.; Infants' Teacher students from Alexander Mackie College; trainee school counsellors; and Diploma of Education students from Sydney Teachers' College. A group of teacher about to go to on exchange to the United Kingdom also visited.

Parents of young deaf children have been encouraged to visit here; some are considering future placement of their children at Farrar and others want to ideas for handling their children. Young deaf children who are likely to commence at Farrar when they turn three years of age were our guests at the Christmas tree on December 16^th.

Miss Burns has visited several times to see the children.