When we were five we were asked what we wanted to be, we enthusiastically answered that we wanted to be princesses, rockets, crocodiles and dragon trainers.

 I think for me it was somewhere in between a pirate and a fairy but butterflies were definitely up there too.

When we were ten we were asked again and of course we had matured greatly, now we wanted to be mad scientists, astronauts, singers and rich and I was certain I was going to be a fashion designer.

And now we are being asked what we want to be and that question has become a whole lot more scary when we know that they are serious and won’t accept ‘octopus’ as an answer.

One of the best things about Girls’ High is that we have not been taught what to be, not even asked but have been given the tools and the opportunities to be anything we could imagine. Not just what others expect us to be. Something which we will be infinitely grateful for.

When we all arrived at Girls’ High, it was a strange new world where we were able to make so many decisions surrounding what we wished to be involved in, it was like Harry Potter arriving at Hogwarts but instead of Quidditch we had the 38 sports listed in the Girls’ High prospectus (and yes I did count them) but if we wished to make a Quidditch team we could do so. We were challenged to take things into our own hands and we were encouraged to give everything a go, to experiment and to discover what we love to do.

I encourage everyone to continue to try these opportunities and to make the most of them for who knows where they may take you.

Year 11,

There is no mistaking you for a junior in your new dresses. You have successfully finished your first year as a non-junior and I am sure very happy that this is a junior-free event. However, with the new senior life, you may have discovered the dangerous thing which is formal dresses, friendships have been ruined but you are older and wiser now.

Year 12,

You have survived the ‘hard year’ where your results go towards university and life but it isn’t even over yet. Soon you will be at the top of the school with leadership roles and the responsibility to go and get coffee during study because that is really what all this work has gone towards.

Year 13,

We have made it through 5 years of high school and we have all grown so much since Year 9, our ponytails have moved from the side of our heads to the back, we now know that calculus is maths rather than a sort of disease, we have made amazing friendships and are no longer those scared girls in over large uniforms.

We were meant to spend this year planning for the future and deciding on university, but the real thing we were concerned about was whether Max Key would turn up to the formal or not. I know that everyone will do amazing things in the future and when we see each other on the stage, in the paper, on the sports field we will be proud to say that we went to school together.

We could not have had the time we have had without a large number of people.

To Ms Otway, our Dean, thank you for all your support throughout our time at school and for always having your door open to us. You are finally free of us and of our drama. We will definitely miss your surprise uniform inspections.

To all the staff, thank you for all your time you have selflessly dedicated to us and for truly caring about our education. Thank you for having the patience to go over the same thing a thousand times because we were not paying attention and for introducing us to the competitive sport that we all know and love, kahoot.

June, thank you for being an amazing deputy, for all your support and kindness. You have done such an amazing job, not the least with organising leavers gear. I am so grateful that we were able to work together this year.

Another thank you to Nadia, for all the work you have done this year, both at Acland and at school. You have done an amazing job.

Thank you to the prefects, peer support and all the student leaders for all the work you have put in. It has been so fun working with you all.

Thank you to the family and friends who have supported us through our schooling and helped us get to where we are.

I would like to say a massive thank you to the Senior leadership team, PTA and Board. All the work you do behind the scenes is much appreciated from ordering lollies to running school events and more, the school could not function without you.

And finally to Mrs Duthie, thank you for everything you have done for the school, your passion and dedication. You started Girls’ High at the same time as we did and are leaving with us, clearly you cannot imagine the school without us. Similarly we cannot imagine Girls’ High without you. We have all discovered our inner wonky tusk, have polished shoes and have continually been inspired by the time and passion you put into the school, from shaving your head to revamping the school image. You have inspired every girl who has come through the school and I will never forget the life changing advice you gave to June, Nadia and I at the start of this year during school photos- that we should never quit our day jobs to become models.

We came to Girls’ High with so many expectations of what it would be like, not the least those from Glee and High School Musical. Perhaps we do not have whole school flash mobs but Girls’ High has shaped us all and not only in knowing to walk on the left hand side of the stairs. We will remember Girls’ High from the friends we have met, the inspirational teachers, all the opportunities we have had and all the stories we have to tell.

Now when we are being asked what we want to be, we should not be worried for Girls’ High has taught us that we can do anything and be anything, and has given us the tools to do so. For me I don’t think I will be a fashion designing pirate fairy but who really knows what might happen.