海角大神

Changes to Upcoming Events

The last week of Term 2 hosts a number of special programs at each year level. With the exception of events requiring interstate travel which have had to be cancelled, we are cautiously optimistic that most of the other programs will be able to proceed either as planned or with only minor modifications. We can offer this special program week thanks to the generosity of our staff and I thank all who have committed to this week, especially given that we have experienced high levels of absenteeism due to sickness from COVID-19 and flu-like virus鈥� this term.

School Advisory Council

The School Advisory Council met this week and continued to contribute to the Annual Action Plan. Of particular interest is an analysis about communication between the College and parents/guardians. It was agreed that we would seek feedback about what is proving effective in terms of communication via a brief survey. Please keep an eye out for the survey as this feedback will be crucial to our planning. We also received a progress report on the redevelopment plans for the disused tennis courts adjoining Great Ryrie St which sounds very exciting. The next gathering of the School Advisory Council is for our Seminar Evening in late July and we will be working with our architects on refining our Master Plan.

College Musical - Back to the Theatre

It鈥檚 acknowledged that the Performing Arts, in particular, suffered during our COVID-19 lockdowns. So, with a great sense of anticipation, we look forward to our upcoming 海角大神 Musical Revue which has been playfully titled: Back to the Theatre. Over two nights, 16th and 17th June, students will showcase their talents and perform pieces from some of our best known musicals. Tickets are available here: /events/back-to-the-theatre-musical-revue

School Captains Meeting 

I had the pleasure this week to meet with our School Captains to hear about progress with their projects during Term 2. As always, it is inspiring to hear young leaders who are so passionate about their school and the wellbeing of their contemporaries. We discussed plans for Term 3 including the introduction of lunch activities for younger students to promote physical activity and teamwork.

Year 7 Enrolment Reminder

A reminder to our families that applications for enrolment in Year 7 for 2024 close on Friday August 19 and that we will not presume that you wish to enrol your Year 5 child just because you have an older child currently enrolled at the College. Please contact the College Registrar, Ms Madeleine Kalla on 9259 3008, should you have any questions.

Advance Notice

Term 3 commences for all students on Monday, July 11.  Early editions of our calendar may have indicated that it was a student free day rather than a normal Day 6. Student Free Days in Term 3 are: 

• Monday, August 8 (Staff Spirituality Day)
• Thursday, August 25 (PT Interviews / Subject Expo)
• Wednesday, September 7 (GAT).

Darren Atkinson
Principal

It has been a great semester!

As the first semester of the year concludes, it is timely to reflect on how well the College community has been able to make positive progress despite the challenges that COVID-19 and other illnesses have continued to confront us with. Despite the cold of winter arriving with such consistency over the last few weeks, learning has continued to be the key driver in our appreciation for schooling in its complete and extensive experience at 海角大神. Most of the students have shown resilience and have adapted to the return to school in ways that brings a strong sense of normality despite the imminent absences from school by many, who may have experienced illnesses, periods of isolation and/or other personal setbacks.

The learning programs applicable to each year level require key elements for success; particularly when focusing on the quality teaching that our staff are able to provide and the readiness and investment shown by each student aiming to achieve their best. Effective use of class time, organisation, use of our intranet and other resources, and the application of study skills are reliable elements, which are strongly complimented by a strong sense of the individual student as a learner, a commitment to making the most of the time while at school and the application of learning to real life situations. I hope that your child has been able to adapt all or some of these elements in their learning experiences during Semester One. 

In addition to the learning experience within the confines of the College, throughout the semester, students have represented the College in EISM sport, they have attended camps, attended excursions and external experiences, performed in plays and have learnt practical skills through the Caf茅 N9ne and in Vocational Education and Training programs. Our VCAL students have engaged in work and study outside of the College, while continuing to learn at the school in their respective programs. For most students, their classes are lively and they appear to be making the most of what is on offer to them. This would not be possible if the school鈥檚 staff were not committed to offering holistic development based on an appreciation of learning. I hope that you will have the opportunity to thank your child鈥檚 teachers for the ways in which they care and teach, particularly as they have maintained high expectations, provided exceptional teaching and have provided support to the students across all areas.

Despite the achievements, it is important to encourage students to continue to make progress if they are to fully achieve their best as 海角大神 students. School attendance has been problematic for many due to health reasons and in support of the directions of the health officials, enhancing the safety of others by isolating or staying home while ill. I am thankful for this as it has allowed us to keep the school open. However, these disruptions could also hinder the progress of your child. If you require support to address this, please see your child鈥檚 respective Homeroom Teacher or Learning Mentor. It is important that you encourage them to speak with their teachers to ensure that they are meeting all the necessary requirements for different subject areas and that the necessary adjustments are made to assist the learning experience. 

A noticeable fact is the increase in the use of electronic devices by students in the yard. Our , directs students to be responsible for the use of such devices for learning while at school. Unfortunately, some students have become overly reliant on the devices and this may impact on their socialisation with others. In recent weeks, a committee formed by teachers have looked at the contemporary practices regarding electronic devices by analysing research, identifying best practice in other schools and are exploring the number of different possibilities in assisting students to be responsible with the use of their devices. We will start the new term with some adjustments in the effort to address the issues that hinder the responsible use of technology for some students. Please remind your child that their personal devices such as phones and Bluetooth headphones or speakers are not allowed to be used at school, unless under the direction of a staff member for the purpose of learning. Please encourage your child to engage with their peers in conversation, to make use of the many activities available through sports or to access the ARC as a way to avoid boredom and a reliance on phones. I will be providing further guidance when decisions are made about agreed processes and expectations. 

Since Monday, May 16, there has been a whole school approach to improving the uniform standards of our students. Over time, uniform wear has been an area that collectively, our community has wanted improvement in, so this process is in response to this. It is important that you understand the process as a way to support your child. 

There is a three strike process that focuses mainly on classroom uniform wear.

• Each teacher is responsible for checking uniform wear in their respective class with a reasonably straightforward process of marking this off on the roll.
• Each time a student infringes, there needs to be communication between the student and their teacher.
• The first infringement will only lead to a discussion between the student and the teacher
• If a student infringes a second time, the parents will be informed that the student has had a 鈥榮econd strike鈥� and warned that a 3rd strike will result in an after-school detention. This is on a Monday night (Middle School) and Tuesday night (Senior School).
• Infringements are collated by IT and sent to our reception staff at the respective reception office. Team Leaders get a report each day for monitoring. 
• If a student gets strikes in the same day for something they can鈥檛 change (ie wearing the wrong uniform) this will only count as 1 strike, however, if they have several infringements in a day for something they can change, each strike counts.
• They don鈥檛 go back to zero after a detention. Each subsequent strike is a detention.
• Please refer to the for details on uniform wear.

On Thursday June 2, a group of Year 10, 11 and 12 students attended a workshop with Y2 Architects. Students had the opportunity to nominate themselves to attend the workshop and the experience was phenomenal. All of the students are interested in a career in building and construction, architecture or sports. Matt Dwyer, a partner of Y2 mentioned to me that the students were the best he has ever engaged with. He claimed that their interests, their articulation and rational thinking was beyond what he had anticipated. This is great feedback and a positive reminder that we are indeed lucky to have such wonderful students in this community. The students will continue to engage with the architects as further considerations are given to the redevelopment of the Tennis Courts. Further details will be shared with you in future editions of The Lighthouse. 

Finally, there has been a lot of planning and preparation for the incoming activities week in the last week of the semester. Key staff at each year level have planned activities and experiences for the students which will assist their holistic learning. Please ensure to discuss the experiences with your child and thank you for the ongoing support you provide for the College. It helps make the school a great learning setting committed to holistic education. 

Deputy Principal

Trialling - Notify Student Absences through PAM

As you are no doubt aware, and most probably impacted by, there have been a significant amount of illnesses going around our community and beyond. This has prompted us to review how we can make the process of reporting student absences easier, for both parents and our internal processes. 

From Tuesday 14th June we will be launching and trialling Student Absent notifications through PAM. This will mean rather than emailing or phoning the College, parents will be able to use PAM to communicate absences quickly and conveniently. The process is simple. 

1. Log on to PAM and the Parent Notified Absences button is prominent on the right hand side of the screen.
2. Click this and the next screen has an Add Absence button. 
3. This will take you to this online form. 
4. Simply select your child鈥檚 name, choose a reason and note the duration and the absence will be recorded by the College. You will be able to notify for up to two days of consecutive absence. 

You can add optional notes if necessary, but these notes will be able to be viewed by all your child鈥檚 teachers. If you want a teacher to have detailed knowledge about an absence reason an email to that teacher might communicate better. 

The notification must be made before 11am.

We will be launching this next week, and looking at full implementation for Term 3. Thanks in advance for your support on this process, we hope it will make the mornings that you are dealing with a sick student a little bit easier.

Michael Box
Deputy Principal Learning

Thank you to the staff who have provided some reflections on their Professional Learning this month:

Alison Prince, Sam Warren and Brendan West  - English teachers

Alison, Sam and Brendan attended Ticking Mind鈥檚 professional learning session on implementing the new VCE English Study Design. The session was highly valuable given the changes that will be in place for 2023鈥檚 Year 11 students. The current comparative elements have been replaced by a more open Crafting Texts unit allowing for a wider variety of writing skills to be honed than in previous years. Additionally, Unit 1s text response has been modified to a personal text response, allowing students to be more expressive of their own unique interpretations of texts. The session provided a wealth of new perspectives on teaching resources, skills and techniques that the English department is excited to implement from next year.

Senior Physics - Quantum Theory

"Last week I took part in an online training session called "Senior Physics: Quantum Theory Workshop''. The workshop was aimed at introducing teachers to new methods of delivering concepts using practical equipment. Quantum Theory is traditionally an area that does not have a lot of hands-on experiences for students, and as such content can seem difficult to visualise. The workshop introduced ways of measuring the wavelength of light in Young's famous (if you're a Physics teacher) double-slit experiment, and a new method for estimating Planck's constant using LED鈥檚. The current Year 12 Physics students will be the first to try out these new approaches in Term 3." 
David Mullholland - Physics Teacher

PAVCSS 鈥淎lternative to ATAR鈥� Conference

"Parents and educators alike are all too aware that the final years of schooling are changing. With the age up to which a young person is in compulsory education and training now at 17, schools are needing to be creative about how they  manage best fit programs for a diverse range of students. VCE both scored and unscored; VCAL currently undergoing a serious reimagining as one senior certificate: the VCE-Vocational Major; the new Victorian Pathways Certificate - all combined with a rapidly changing workplace let alone world can make for an uncertain and stressful time for our young people (and College timetablers!)

At 海角大神, we are taking positive steps to address these issues front on, and one of those recent initiatives was to host a wonderfully informative round table conference run by the Catholics Principals鈥� Association: PAVCSS. As a group we heard a series of inspiring and thought provoking presentations from leaders from other Catholic schools who have developed some viable and really creative programs.

The stated purpose of this day was to share ideas with colleagues and hear what others are considering, and if the buzz around the tables was any indication then it was a huge success. Listening to people from other schools was really informative and challenging at times however it was the ensuing conversation with my colleagues from here that was the most instructive."
Meredith Greenwood -  Student Programs Coordinator

"'Alternatives to ATAR' was an event coordinated by the Principals Association of Victorian Catholic Schools to bring together staff willing to share ideas about programs that address a growing need to provide meaningful options for senior students who do not want or need an Australian Tertiary Entrance Rank (ATAR). Examples were shared of a range of micro-credentialing options and post-secondary partnerships that were being trialled. There are some interesting approaches to this cohort who are not necessarily the same students suited to the current VCAL certificate and, given that VCAL is to be superseded by the VCE Vocational Major strand next year, it was also timely to hear how others are planning for this transition. Our special guest, Dr Kelly Jarvis from the VCAA, was able to give some insight into the progress being made in the development of resources and policies at the Victorian Curriculum and Assessment Authority. 海角大神 College was the host for this event and a number of our staff who work on senior student pathways were able to be present and share with their contemporaries from other Catholic schools. Those in attendance indicated that the event had been valuable and the topic was worthy of further consideration."
Darren Atkinson, Principal and Rachel Crawley, Head Senior Years

Gina Goss
Assistant Principal - Staff

Go and Do Likewise

Last Sunday we celebrated the end of the Easter season with Pentecost Sunday and this weekend we celebrate Trinity Sunday. Pentecost focuses on the birth of the church, where the Holy Spirit came down upon the apostles, giving them the gifts needed to face the world, spreading the good news. Trinity Sunday focuses on Trinitarian love, an unconditional love from one God and expressed through three natures. Prior to his death, Jesus instructed his disciples to go out and baptise in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit (Mt 28:19). From the very beginning of our Church, the message from Jesus has been simple, 鈥淕o and do Likewise鈥� (Lk 10:37), go and baptise…

Evangelism is a term that causes people to cringe. People are not comfortable talking about faith with others. Evangelisation is not about standing up, bible in hand and preaching scripture quotes, nor is the focus about encouraging people to convert. It is about sharing the Good News, some will recognise this and receive the News while others may not yet be ready to see; the key is the sharing. St Francis said, 鈥淧reach the gospel, use words if necessary鈥�... so practice what you preach. 

As a Catholic school, our foundations are based on sharing the Good News, we are all part of the evangelisation process. We may not always get it right, however through our actions, our striving to follow our mission鈥檚 core values, we are sharing the News with each other and with the broader community. Our Year 12 core value is Spirituality and their scripture text is 鈥淕o and do Likewise鈥�. As these students complete their final year they will head out into our broader community to share the Good News. Most of the time it will not be in words but in their actions. If we look at so many of our alumni, quietly working to bring equity, justice and peace; who show compassion and perseverance, who fight to ensure our earth is protected and that all of creation can feel they belong - it is then we realise that the love of God is being shared with the world.

Tania Grace
Assistant Principal - Mission

Senior Years Report

Student attendance is an important indicator of student success. Attending school every day for the whole day enables students to participate fully in their learning and develop life and social skills. Positive engagement in school enhances student wellbeing and academic outcomes. In traditional school years, the goal for attendance is to remain above 90% and anything below 80% is of great concern. With multiple periods of isolation and quarantine these targets become more difficult to achieve within semester one.

The College understands that the current health circumstances are impacting attendance for both students and staff. Illness and injuries are acceptable reasons for being absent from school. Registering absences for COVID still requires an email notifying the deputyprincipal@aquinas.vic.edu.au. For all other absences due to illness or injury, if they extend beyond two days, then a medical certificate is required. Medical certificates can be handed directly to the relevant school office or emailed: absencesmid@aquinas.vic.edu.au or absencessen@aquinas.vic.edu.au. 

Continuity in learning and social connections is gained through regular and consistent school attendance. Explained absences such as the ones mentioned above are taken into account when reviewing student attendance. Students with unexplained absences will continue to be queried and students supported to address challenges which impact their ability to consistently and adequately attend school.

If you have concerns about your child鈥檚 current attendance, please do not hesitate to contact your child鈥檚 Mentor teacher or Level Leader to discuss reasons or to enable support resources to be provided as required. 

Rachel Crawley
Head Senior Years

Middle Years Report

I always thought that Tyson Darmody (Year 9) learnt the hockey skills that gained him selection in the Victorian Under 15 State team in my four week hockey unit in Year 8 PE…but he assures me he has honed his craft for much longer. As promised, Tyson is another great example of a student who is truly living the core value, Perseverance. Here, Tyson talks about how how seeing improvements in his game helps enormously with his motivation and that a variety of setbacks and the pain of being hit by a hockey ball (they are really hard!) can鈥檛 override his desire to play the game he just loves.

What are some things about hockey that you love?
I love that hockey is a team sport. The fast pace of the game and the constant running as well as the stick skills you can learn. There is also a strategic side of the game that I find appealing.

What are some of the main challenges that you have found?
There is a lots of running so it can be very tiring. The ball is hard so getting hit does hurt and I need to continually strive to improve my stick skills. I didn鈥檛 get the chance to play for Victoria at Under 13 level due to COVID so my family made a small training pitch for me in the backyard so I could keep working on my skills. I have had trouble with my knee due to Osgood Schlatters disease over the last couple of years and had to wear a brace to manage the pain. I鈥檝e had to learn how to manage my knee issue and have worked with a personal trainer to strengthen it and understand it better

What are some of your greatest memories?
Going to Newcastle with the Victorian Under 15 squad was the best experience I鈥檝e had in hockey. Being with the team for a whole week and playing each day was something I will never forget. My first time playing in the State Championships is also a great memory as it was the first stage of me seeing the higher levels and made me want to go higher.

Do you have any higher ambitions in hockey?
My main goal is to play Premier League hockey which is the highest level of senior hockey in Victoria. I want to play for Victoria again at Under 18 and Under 21 level and I would also love to play overseas .  

Phil Box
Head Middle Years

Global Green 

In the last seven days of the Semester, Year 8 students will be participating in the Global Green program. Students will be focused on finding a sustainable solution to a range of different environmental issues locally and globally. It is a wonderful opportunity for students to work with students from different houses in a challenged based learning environment. They will be encouraged to use their problem solving abilities, critical thinking skills and group collaboration to complete the program. Throughout this program students will also be attending various different excursions, incursions and workshops to help them understand more about cultures, social justice issues and resources pressures in our local communities.

Detox items around you home

• Toxic items such as chemicals are not permitted in your rubbish bins. You can take these items to free 鈥淒etox Your Home events鈥� run by sustainability Victoria and your local council area.
• Taking items to a detox event will reduce the negative environmental impacts, keep waterways healthy and prevent items ending up in landfill.  It is an excellent way to recycle these resources. Items that can be collected include herbicides, cooking oil, cosmetics and cleaning chemicals.
• Unwanted paint and paint cans at home - Paintback is a not-for-profit organisation that will sustainably recycle, repurpose and reduce paint waste from landfill. They responsibly dispose of unwanted paint preventing it from ending up in landfill and waterways. Check out Paintback locations close to you by clicking here:

Karyn Myers
Environment & Sustainability Coordinator

While our music students have had a small break from the competition circuit, this fortnight many of our music ensembles have had the opportunity to perform and showcase their work to friends, family and guests across a number of College events.

Last Tuesday, our Year 11 VCE Music Performance Class entertained guests for The Long Walk, which was particularly helpful given that the weather meant our invited guests and local primary school guests were unable to actually get out and walk. Students in the class performed the piece "From Little Things, Big Things Grow" written by Paul Kelly and Kev Carmody. It tells the story of Vincent Lingiari and his battle for indigenous rights in the 1970s. A poignant and fitting song for the recognition of ongoing Indigenous issues.

Then on Wednesday night, students undertaking VCE Music Performance had the opportunity perform to an audience and finesse their exam pieces.

Earlier this week, friends, family and guests were treated to a glimpse of our talented musicians at the 海角大神 Band Concert. From the Beginner Band's rendition of "We Will Rock You" to the incredibly talented VCE students showcasing their performance pieces, it was great to see our musicians performing again.

It has been a surprisingly busy week of performances...well done to all the performers!

Jared Campbell
Music Programs Coordinator

Higher Order Learning requires the development of critical thinking skills, an important skill demanded in the 21st Century, so that students are equipped to deal with the social, scientific and practical problems of today and the future. High Impact Teaching Strategies such as 鈥業 wonder鈥� walls, 鈥榃hat if鈥� discussion points and the use of concept mapping are some of the methods used in the Humanities classroom to develop these critical thinking skills.

In the Years 7-9 Humanities curriculum Civics and Citizenship is an important unit students undertake that allows higher order thinking skills to be learnt within the context of enabling students to become active and informed citizens. Active and informed citizens participate in being part of the solutions to the practical problems we face today and in the future. 

In the 2022 Federal election we have seen informed and active citizenship in action, demonstrated by the ABC Virtual Compass Poll which identified the number one issue for most citizens was tackling climate change. This demonstration of problem-solving was also represented by the shift in primary votes from the two major parties to independents running on in part the policy platform of tackling climate change, and this was also shown with the increase in primary votes for the Greens.

Some amazing work was completed by our Year 7 Humanities students in Term 2 in the study of Ancient Civilisations. Part of their assessment was to re-create a museum artefact from their chosen civilisation. In creating the artefact students had to identify the significance of it to their respective civilisation, as well as its purpose, and if relevant, methods of construction. Our teachers have been very impressed with the time, effort and level of detail students put into their work. Some of the artefacts are currently on display in the ARC.  

Steve O'Brien
Humanities Learning Area Leader

As our VCE students studying Music and Drama prepare to showcase their exam pieces, they had an opportunity to perform and test out the audience responses at our VCE Performance Nights held last week. Friends, family and guests were treated to a glimpse of their incredible talent. 

Here are some of their "behind the scenes" thoughts and reflections: 

"I was extremely nervous as I had never performed any of my drama work to an audience. But once I got on stage, I felt really comfortable, kind of like the audience just melted away and I was onstage with just my group members. I think our group performed the best that we had done since rehearsals and I believe that the relationship that we established with the audience really helped keep the energy up through the performance and elevated our performance. Overall, I had a really fun night and thoroughly enjoyed watching the other groups perform as well as performing myself."
Hayley Freeman
Year 11 Drama (Drama Performance Night)

"Year 12 performance night was such an incredible experience for us all to showcase the programs we have been working on for our end of year exams. All students, alongside their teachers, have been working hard to make sure we could all be prepared for performing three songs that will be in our final programs. I thoroughly enjoyed seeing all my peers putting their hearts into their performance and being proud of the product so far. It was excellent to get feedback and to also see such incredible talent after the past couple of years of not being able to perform very much. The night was a great success and could not have run without the wonderful music teachers and parents' support."
Eliza Crouch
Year 12 (Music Performance Night)

Following a design brief, Year 11 students designed and created a range of Instagram worthy smoothie bowls for their assessment. They researched information about superfoods and looked at a range of foods that enhance our gut microbiota as these needed to be included into their smoothie bowls. Each student sought inspiration and sketched their own designs for their task. They successfully produced and evaluated their final products.

Caitlin Stewart
Teacher   

This week our Year 11 Chemistry students headed to University of Melbourne to analyse water samples for common organic contaminants and metal ions using either HPLC, AAS or UV-visible spectroscopy. This 3 hour workshop supports their unit of study for this term, and it looks like they really enjoyed getting a glimpse of university study.

Stewardship is one of the College's core values and embodies the responsible planning and management of the planets finite resources. The concepts of stewardship can be applied to the environment and nature, economics, health, property, information, theology, and cultural resources.

Focusing on this, the Year 8 Art students were asked to think about their stewardship towards our natural resources. This term their folio is all about sustainability and creating art looking at our beautiful natural environment.

Looking at the Great Barrier Reef and its destruction over the last 50 years due to global warming and environmental issues, students designed and made a piece of coral using clay. The aim was to raise awareness of environmental issues impacting the reef, like coral bleaching, by using colourless glazes, instead of the bright lurid colours to show what the reef could look like in the years to come. We recycled the scraps of glass from Glass and Metal class to glaze the bases of their coral pieces. Students were surprised and pleased with the effects created by the melted glass.

Continuing on with the theme of Stewardship and sustainability students went out into the 海角大神 gardens and collected natural materials to create handmade brushes. Once the brushes were bound together with string they formed groups to create a collaborative piece of nature using nature! Students explored the variety of marks that could be made with their individual brushes using coloured inks. They enjoyed the freedom their brushes allowed them to explore. Students are currently working on lino prints of endangered or extinct animal species and plants that they will print collaboratively onto their group paintings. Looking forward to seeing the final piece come to life. 

Kathy Thompson
Teacher

The probability carnival is a Year 8 tradition and this year the students creativity has shown through with original games and incorporation of ICT.  

Students worked collaboratively to design, create and reflect on their games and should be proud of their creations. The odds were in my favour this year, winning a few games though I still need to practice my free throws! 

Well done Year 8s!

Erin Cumming
MY Mathematics Coordinator

Last week, as part of Reconciliation Week, the 海角大神 College community participated in a modified version of our Long Walk. Bad weather conditions meant we couldn't come together and walk like we normally do.

However, there was still so much gained from having guests speakers including Courteney Dempsey and Mikaila Long with us to help our students and invited guests to understand the significance of reconciliation, specifically for our Indigenous Australians and the importance of our role in continuing this.

"I was so excited to finally be able to share the 海角大神 Long Walk experience face to face after two years of online versions. The opportunity for our students to take action by walking in solidarity with our First Nations guests to acknowledge reconciliation and  encourage action to close the gap. Unfortunately, we did not expect the weather forecast to be so grim and Plan B was initiated! Our FIRE (Friends Igniting Reconciliation through Education) Carrier students hosted approximately 100 guests from various schools and organisations. Courtenay Dempsey and Mikaela Long (Michael Long鈥檚 daughter) from The Long Walk Foundation came and spoke to the guests and answered questions in regards to Indigenous Australian issues and reconciliation. They both then spoke to our Year 7 cohort and responded to insightful questions from our students, such as: 鈥淒o you think the Prime Minister has done enough after Michael Long鈥檚 walk?鈥�

Other guests who spoke included Helen Christensen from MACS Indigenous Education and Cardinal Souraphiel who is leading reconciliation between the faiths in Ethiopia and came to see an example of how reconciliation is occurring in our school." 

Sally Spicer
Year 11, FIRE Carrier

Last Friday night, a collection of enthusiastic students gathered together for the Winter Sleepout in recognition and appreciation for the work that St Vincent de Paul do for the homeless and those sleeping rough in our community. The students made and ate soup for dinner, received "care packages" of essential items and had a small insight into the experience of sleeping rough.

Their insights included:

• don't ignore homeless people as there are often many reasons why they have found themselves in this situation, and they might just want to chat.
• it was surprising how many young homeless people there are, and how easy it can be to slip into this situation.
• they enjoyed making the soup together as a group.
• those people who were homeless but found a passion or purpose found themselves with more hope.
• substance abuse can dramatically change someone's life and lead to homelessness.
• educating people on how people are experiencing homelessness is important.

Thank you to the student Social Justice Group and the teachers who gave up their Friday evening and Saturday morning to be a part of this eye-opening experience.

Sasha Tukavkin
Justice & Outreach leader

This week our Year 9 and VCE dance classes came together to perform 鈥楲et鈥檚 Dance鈥�, a showcase of this semester's choreographed dance numbers. It was wonderful to see our students take to the stage and perform for the first time this year. The showcase was a combination of whole class learnt work, group pieces and solo performances. Both the Year 9 and VCE classes would like to thank their audience and all involved for the amazing 鈥榦pportunity to perform and share their hard work鈥�. On reflection, many students found the night an 鈥榚xciting鈥�, 鈥榚njoyable鈥� and 鈥榝un experience鈥� to dance with their friends and be on stage in front of an actual audience. Fantastic work to all involved, especially to the students and their efforts leading up to the big night! 

Gina Goss & Lauren Bourke
Teachers

After two long years without our annual musical performances, it is very exciting to see the junior and senior students perform together in Back to the Theatre...a collection of memorable numbers that pays homage to some of our favourite musicals. Come and support the hard working and talented students (and staff) and let them entertain you for an evening.

Thursday 16th June and Friday 17th June. .  Here a sneak peek of the rehearsals...

Congratulations to Year 11 student, Anthony Jordan, on his selection to compete at the Commonwealth Games in Birmingham later this year, he is the youngest member of the team. We will all be cheering you on in July!

The Camps, Sports and Excursions Fund (CSEF) provides payments for eligible students to attend activities like:

• school camps or trips
• swimming and school-organised sports programs
• outdoor education programs
• excursions and incursions.