st mary s college - amazon s3 · 2018-04-05 · st mary’s college ... live-stream themselves to...

S t M a r y ’ s C o l l e g e “Truth-Seeking Through Dialogue”

Issue 3, Friday 6 April 2018

S t M a r y ’ s C o l l e g e 253 Franklin Street

ADELAIDE SA 5000

T:8216 5700 F:8216 5730

W: www.stmaryscollege.catholic.edu.au E: [email protected]

From the Principal

Dear St Mary’s College, Rituals give shape and meaning to our lives. They are multi-faceted and cover many areas and dimensions of our lives. They are both religious and secular. Ritual moments can be times of celebration; opportunities for rest, for connection. They can ground us in times of change, support us through moments of grief and become opportunities to share the whole myriad of human emotions. For many of us, the four day break of Easter would have provided many ritual moments within our faith communities, with our families and with friends. The Easter ceremonies in the Catholic Church contain the most important rituals for our faith community. The commemoration of the Last Supper, the washing of the disciples’ feet, the reading of the passion and veneration of the cross and the rich array of rituals within the Easter vigil celebrating word, light and the waters of baptism. These rituals have been part of my world for as long as I can remember. Easter was different for me this year. I celebrated with my parish community of Norwood, my place of worship for most of my life. The rituals, the music and many of the faces were the same. For the first time, however, my Mum and Dad who have long been integral members of that community, were not there. My parents now live in a nursing home, where they are part of a new faith community. So while the rituals were familiar, the prayerful solemnity of the Easter ceremonies and the joy celebrated in the resurrection were there, the ritual of celebrating and marking this moment with my family was not. In this way, rituals can also serve to connect us with something that has changed or has been somehow lost. This is in itself a mixed moment, tinged with sadness but then also the fond memories of Easter in the past. I felt their absence, but in a way that only ritual can provide, I also felt their presence. Through the Easter ceremonies and the opportunity to slow down and rest for a few days, I am reminded again of the timelessness of the story which shapes our identity as a Catholic community. In life there is suffering and pain. There is injustice that we are called daily to address in whatever ways we can and there is life and growth and joy. As people of faith, as members of a school and church faith community, we have much to celebrate.

Happy Easter!

Clare Nocka

Principal

Junior School Easter Liturgy

From the Deputy Principal: Student Wellbeing

Ensuring our school is a safe place for all I want to assure all parents and caregivers of our absolute commitment to ensuring that St Mary’s College is a safe place for all.

Our staff are committed and trained to protect the children and young

people in our care;

All staff and regular volunteers have current police checks;

We teach our children age-appropriate strategies to keep themselves safe

through South Australia’s Keeping Safe Child Protection Curriculum;

Staff complete certification and undertake regular updated training in

Responding to Abuse and Neglect in Education and Care Settings;

We also promote strategies to minimise bullying and help students stay

safe online.

You can read more about our commitment to the wellbeing of your child on our website.

Additional information about the broader protection policies of Catholic Educa-tion SA can be found on their website. http://www.cesa.catholic.edu.au/our-schools/safe-environments-for-all The website also includes links to online resources for parents and students on a range of topics including anxiety, depression, bullying and how to support your child.

If you have any questions or concerns about child safety please do not hesi-tate to contact me.

Cybersafety News A recent UniSA research involving 5000 children found that one in six young people were online after 11.00 pm four nights a week, and that therefore, when young people are online is the most important thing. Professor Barbara Spears from UniSA said that telling young people not to cyberbully did not work, and therefore campaigns had to target the ‘attitudes and social norms’ behind the problem, including a lack of respect for self and others. Prof Spears says that if we ‘target the social norms rather than the behaviours, we can push and nudge them toward changing the behaviours.’

Another survey, this time conducted by Family Zone Cyber Safety, found that Yubo (formerly called Yellow), a dating app dubbed ‘Tinder for teens’, is ranked in the top five most downloadable apps for teens and pre-teens. The app, launched early last year, is similar to the dating app Tinder, in that young people swipe to match with each other. It also syncs with instant messaging app Snapchat. One of the other features of this app is that it lets young people live-stream themselves to anyone watching on the app.

With all the news items surrounding Facebook, and many calls by well-known people calling for us all to cancel our Facebook accounts, it’s important to remember that most young people don’t use Facebook regularly … they use Snapchat and Instagram all the time, and Facebook Messenger. Facebook is releasing a new version of its messenger system aimed at children between 6 – 12 years of age. Up until now, Facebook was strictly for those aged 13 and over. ‘Messenger Kids’ promises to be ad-free while protecting kids from predators and porn. Some are arguing it is a way for Facebook to get children addicted early, while ‘closely monitoring their habits in order to curate a per-sonalised social media world for them to inhabit a decade from now which they will be sucked into for all eternity.’

Australians now spend 40 hours a week on social media, and real-time (in person) socialising with friends and family equates to just six hours per week. The question we as adults need to ask ourselves when we read about the above studies and the introduction of new social apps for young people is: Is this type of world we want for the young people in our care? If the answer for you is definitely not, what are you doing about it? Is it time to start putting restrictions on your daughter’s mobile phone use … for example: no phones in the bedroom, no screen time after 9.00 pm? Do you know about your daugh-ter’s ‘spam’ account on her Instagram (which is different to her main Insta-gram account)? Have you asked your daughter if she has met every person she is ‘friends’ with on social media? And if she has not met some of them, have you asked her to delete them as ‘friends’? And so on.

We all have a responsibility to protect the young people in our care … and this

includes online as well as in person.

Term 2 - Winter Uniform A reminder that Term 2 sees students wearing the Winter uniform. Students are expected to wear the College skirt, white shirt, and the College cross-over tie. Students have the option to wear navy opaque tights or long white socks, and black flat lace-up school shoes must be worn. The blazer must also be worn to and from school. The College jumper may be worn under the blazer to and from school and as the outer garment at school. The College scarf may also be worn; however, generic black or blue scarves cannot be worn. Navy raincoats can be worn in inclement weather. However, music/netball/Ireland/Canberra and other such jackets/tops cannot be worn to and from

school or at school … they were provided for a specific trip or team, and as such, are not part of the school uniform. Jumpers and blazers are to be worn if students feel especially cold at school. Lorna Starrs Deputy Principal: Student Wellbeing

St Mary’s College, Issue 3, Friday 6 April 2018

Just before the Easter long weekend, four Year 10 students, Alyssa Fryer, Zoe Tinkler, Batol Jawad and Chelsea Innes attended 2018 STEM Sista. This is a professional development program for girls, designed to predominately target three key aspects:

Understanding yourself and others: emotional quotient; financial quotient;

personality profiling; personal presentation

Where you can go and how can you get there: pathways to an engineer-

ing career or careers related to engineering; subject choices; courses/programs; how and when to apply; writing a resume, applying for a job.

When you are there: an overview of various Engineering roles in organi-

sations; roles supporting engineering careers; graduate programs; work experience.

The aim of the program was to develop young women to realise they can be more and do more and ultimately achieve the goals they set for themselves in STEM related careers.

Zoe: “Going to STEM Sista was a great experience! We had many guest speakers come in to share about their experiences through Uni and what they completed in high school to achieve this. We learnt about budgets, goal set-ting and time management to help us organise ourselves during school and in the future.”

Alyssa: “We learnt possible STEM pathways and how studying STEM sub-jects can really impact on our future. It was enjoyable working with girls from schools around Adelaide and Teresa was an amazing mentor.”

Joanne Surman Science Coordinator

http://www.cesa.catholic.edu.au/our-schools/safe-environments-for-all

http://www.cesa.catholic.edu.au/our-schools/safe-environments-for-all

From the Deputy Principal: Curriculum

I hope you had an enjoyable Easter break with families and loved ones. The Easter period is the most significant time in the Christian Church and is integral to our Catholic faith. The short break also reminds us that the term is drawing to a close, which brings specific events along the trail of the Loop of Assessment at St Mary’s College.

The Loop of Assessment aims to keep students and families aware of feedback and grades relating to assessment tasks in a timely manner. Gone are the days where we need to wait until a Term 1 Report to gain summative feedback on how our students have progressed this year. Across our R-12 landscape, timely and constant feedback on student evidence of learning is available in a variety of forms, including:

Storypark in R-2;

Seesaw in Years 3-4;

Student OneNote notebooks in Years 5-6 (with an emerging presence

in Seqta);

Seqta in Years 7-12.

Added to this, specific content that is covered in units and lessons is available on Seqta in all year levels R-12. As always, please contact your daughter’s teacher if there are any questions about content, teaching or assessment.

Formal parts of our Loop of Assessment provide academic, wellbeing and engagement feedback over the last few weeks of the term. Last week saw Junior School families engage in Learning Reviews. Along with classroom conversations earlier in the term, this provided important feedback and feed forward information about the girls’ learning. End of term assessment rubrics for core subjects will enhance this feedback.

In the Middle/Senior School, the end of this term will see Term 1 Progress Reports both posted on Seqta and printed and sent home on the last day of Term 1. These reports are a snapshot of academic achievement of work completed and assessed at this point in time. They are comprised of teachers’ on-balance assessment decisions of the quality of students’ work against year-level achievement standards. After discussions with Learning Area Coordinators and teachers, this year these grades will be comprised of plus and minus grades, which means that all subjects in Years 7-12 will be assessed with grades between A+ and E-. As teachers, we believe that these grades will help more accurately report on summaries of student progress and reflect and report on-balance assessment decisions.

Throughout the term, we have worked as a staff on our understanding of Standards Referenced Assessment, as well as evidence of learning, to reinforce that our process of on-balance assessment decisions is common across the Middle and Senior Schools. The grades should always be reinforced by more assessment information fed back either through Seqta or directly to the students themselves.

Middle and Senior School Learning Reviews in Week 2 (Tuesday and Wednesday May 8 and 9) of next term, provide chances for teachers, families and students to have informed discussions about student progress. These may be related to reports, assessment information on Seqta, or feeding forward information for the remainder of Semester One. Information for bookings will be available in letters accompanying reports.

Finally, a reminder that students will come back to school on Wednesday 2 April. Teaching staff are using the Monday and Tuesday to plan for contemporary integrated curricula in 2019 in the Middle School. This is informed by our work last year during our Future Learning Symposium, timetable changes for 2019, and contemporary moves in Catholic Education which promote a Capabilities-based curriculum. We will also use the time to have discussions at Junior and Senior levels about how to best capitalise on

these developments, as well as opportunities that may be inherent in the new building (which is on track!).

I look forward to reporting in more detail about how these two days progress.

Corey Tavella (Deputy Principal: Curriculum)


Parents and Guardians of Year 10, 11 and 12 Students

You are invited to a road safety information evening conducted by the SA Police.

On Wednesday 9 May, a presentation will be given by Senior Constable First Class Robert Grinter at St Mary’s College.

This presentation is aimed at parents and guardians of children who are about to, or have recently, obtained their learner driver’s licence. Much of the initial education of novice drivers is provided by parents.

To assist with this, the following information will be covered:

The preparedness of parents to

undertake the task of supervising a novice driver.

Recent changes to the road rules.

The incidents and severity of novice driver crashes.

What to look for in a driving instructor.

ANCAP safety ratings and the issues surrounding vehicle selection,

price, safety ratings, consumer rights and roadworthiness.

This presentation will begin at 6:30pm in the Centre for Performing Arts (CPA) and take approximately one hour.

If you wish to attend, please email: [email protected]. or online bookings: http://www.stmaryscollege.catholic.edu.au/upcoming-events.html

Jasmin Parasiers Year 10 Coordinator

Project Compassion Inspirations

The power of change that is witnessed through the Project Compassion Partnerships prompted one of our Junior School students to take the message home and make it real.

“In Religion we saw a Project Compassion video about Janaki. She comes from Nepal and was really poor. It was a really hard for her. After Project Compassion came and helped her she got a sewing machine and learnt how to sew.

She makes clothes and I went home and made a dress just like Janaki with my Nanna and my sewing machine. It is really good that Janaki knows that she is not alone, has more friends and a job to help her live.” Chaise, Year 4

Anne Soldan

JS Coordinator of Prayer, Liturgy & Dominican Faith

Formation

mailto:[email protected]

http://www.stmaryscollege.catholic.edu.au/upcoming-events.html

http://www.stmaryscollege.catholic.edu.au/upcoming-events.html


Thursday 8 March marked International Women’s Day, something we hold close to our hearts at St Mary’s College. This year we decided to place a strong focus on the event and turn it into a week- long celebration of the social, cultural and political achievements of women, and the advances in gender equality around the world.

On Tuesday night, the extremely talented chalk artist, Valli from Morph-it, took time out of her busy schedule to draw a large chalk mural on the CPA wall of the famous ‘We Can Do It’ propaganda poster used in WWII to promote women’s strength and power to enrol in work. In addition to this, she wrote quotes on the pavements by influential women such as Coco Chanel and Michelle Obama. This reminded each student as they walked into the school gates over the course of the week, of the courage, uniqueness and beauty they uphold as a young woman in society and within our St Mary's College community.

On Wednesday, we held Spill the Tea with Adelaide’s Strongest Women, a panel that featured numerous women who are making a difference in our society. This included a police officer, a University professor, an old scholar, a member of parliament and a current Year 12 student. This panel gave students the opportunity to listen to a variety of perspectives on what it means to be a woman in today’s world, as well as hear about what the 2018 IWD theme Press for Progress means to them.

On Thursday morning, we held a whole school breakfast on the Convent Lawns which allowed the school community to gather together and celebrate this significant event in our calendar. The breakfast featured the famous gingerbread women, cannolis, muesli cups and coffee vans, as well as a playlist compiled of empowering music by female artists. To finish off our morning, Monica, a Year 10 student, sang live on the

lawns to end what was an incredibly successful morning and week.

“Here's to strong women. May we know them. May we be them. May we raise them.”

Grace Bresolin (College Captain) and Gabrielle Byrnes (Deputy Captain)


On Thursday 15 and Friday 16 March, the Year 11s had their retreat at Encounter Bay Conference Centre in Victor Harbor. This retreat provided us with an opportuni-ty to connect with our deeper selves through learning more about our own personal-ities and through connecting with other people who have similar personality traits to us. We did this through exploring the nine Enneagram personality types. We com-pleted activities to determine which personality trait we related to the most. Each number had a different set of characteristics, traits and habits. We found it interest-ing to find out more about our personality types with the Enneagram, as it allowed us to understand why we do some of the things we do and also how our personality affects our relationships with others. We took part in mindfulness activities, and were able to connect with our spiritual selves. The whole cohort took part in a meditation session on the Thursday night, which allowed us to unwind and clear our minds after a busy day at retreat. On Friday, students were able to choose activities which included mindful colouring, planting a seed, and yoga meditation.

Students also participated in a walk to the Bluff, on the Friday morning, which provided us with an oppor-tunity to explore the town and also acted as a mind-fulness activity. Annie Burgess and Megan Girdler Year 11 students


On Thursday 8 March the Years 3 to 6 participated in a fun-filled and active Italian Cultural Day.

We began with various class activities:

Year 3 investigated Ancient Rome through the world of mosaics.

Year 4 created a segmented Mona Lisa using warm and cool colours.

Year 5 investigated, made and tested one of Leonardo Da Vinci’s

scientific inventions - the pyramid parachute.

Year 6 studied and created Amadeo Modigliani (a 20th century painter)

styled portraits. A lunch of delicious pasta alla napoletana sauce with a piccante (spicy) hint, served by our Year 12 Italian students was enjoyed by all Junior School students.

After lunch, we watched the play ‘”Mangia Banane 2 “ (Eat Bananas) performed by two extraordinarily energetic Melbourne performers from La Commedia Variety Productions.

We were given masterclasses on how to prepare gnocchi alla panna (cream) and cannoli (unfortunately, there were no samples). The play was interwoven with much humour and mayhem with Italian words and phrases sprinkled throughout the performance. We were treated to action-packed songs, the compulsory madcap chase around the stage, and generous

opportunities for audience participation.

The play was a perfect way to finish off a very enjoyable Italian inspired Day. Maestra Anne Junior School Italian Teacher


SRC News Year 12 SRC Induction Day On Saturday 17 February, the 2018 Year 12 SRCs, along with Ms Starrs, met at the Thebarton Community Centre for our Induction day. We began the day with some get to know you and ice breaker games. During this time, we also discussed what our group goal was for the school this year. Last year's College Captain, Annabelle Witkowski, came in to speak to us about what it is to be an SRC rep, as well as telling us about her experience. We then undertook some activities about exploring our top five character strengths and how we could use them to our advantage this year.

As a group, we then did a survival challenge, which got us working together as a team. Our next challenge was to decide as a group what we wanted for lunch, and be back within 30 minutes, spending no more than $100. We had to work together to come to an agreement on what we would purchase, just like how we had to work together in the survival challenge.

After lunch we discussed as a group the kinds of events we wanted to hold throughout the year. For the rest of the day we split into smaller groups, working hard to start planning these events. Overall, the day was fun and extremely productive, and has us excited for the year. We can’t wait for the events planned for 2018! SRC Formation Day On Tuesday 27 February, the 2018 Year 6-12 SRCs gathered together for the SRC Formation Day. We began the afternoon getting to know each other through fun games like name bingo, and creating name tags describing ourselves through drawings. Throughout the rest of the day, we gathered as a whole group to discuss different aspects of the role, such as what being an SRC means, and the role of an SRC in the class and school community. We broke off into mentor groups and worked together to create and perform some very entertaining skits on how you should and shouldn’t handle situations you may encounter throughout the role.

After a short break, we reassembled into our small groups and played a few games. These games required the participation and teamwork of all members. To give the SRCs an idea of the kinds of tasks they would be required to do this year, we worked together to make the pins and hair ribbons for International Women’s Week. Our last task for the day was to complete a survival game. Each SRC had to rank a list of items from most to least important in order to survive in the middle a desert after a plane crash. They then had to work together to get each member of their year level to agree on what they should rank the items as a group. We then heard how the experts had ranked the items, and everyone was shocked to hear what they had to say.

We finished up the afternoon with a BBQ under the library and taking some group photos. Overall the afternoon was very successful, and we hope all the SRC’s enjoyed themselves.

Brigitte Cupkovic and Stephanie Oxenham Year 12 SRC


From the Music Department

Acoustic Sounds This year the College Music Captains have established a weekly acoustic performance at Wednesday lunchtimes called Acoustic Sounds! These mini showcases give students of any year level and music experience an opportunity to display their talents in an informal setting as well as giving everyone the pleasure to listen to some fantastic music!

So far, we have had performances from… Monika S, Christen P, Ruby S and Anna I – all who were outstanding and unique in their own acoustic abilities.

Well done girls!

Chelsea O’Donnell and Holly Ellul 2018 Music Co-Captains

Junior String Ensemble – Excursion to Elder Hall On Friday 16 March, Mr Chambers took the Junior School String Ensemble to Elder Hall to see the Elder Conservatorium Symphony Orchestra. The orchestra included the Violins, Violas, Cellos, Bass, Flute, Piccolo, Oboe and much more.

The orchestra was conducted by Dr Luke Dollman. The songs they played were: A Grand, Grand Festival Overture, Op. 57 written by Malcolm Arnold, Dot and the Kangaroo (world premiere) written by Rachel Bruerville and a few songs from Symphony No. 7 in A major, Op. 92 written by Ludwig Van Beethoven.

The first song was very interesting and unique because they added some humour and used vacuum/ floor polishers. The second one was also and unique because it is a book, but they played music whilst a narrator (Jacob Whitelock) was telling the story. The other songs by Beethoven were very intriguing because the musicians were very focused when playing!

SMC old scholar, (Nicola MacLucas) was also playing violin was in the orchestra.

On behalf of the Junior String Ensemble, we want to thank Mr Chambers for taking us on this incredible experience!

Ioanna Antonio and Summa Arrizza (Year 6)

Middle School Small Jazz Ensemble I am Emily Dennis and I play Clarinet in the Middle school Small Jazz Ensemble.

This band has offered me so much in the time I have been involved in it. From competing in competitions, making friends, and developing my musicianship.

This band caters for all abilities. If you are just new at playing music, or you have been playing for a few years, we play music that suits all. We play really upbeat and fun music that is sure to keep you entertained.

We are always looking for new members to join our band; no matter what your skill level is, you are always welcome. Our rehearsal times are every Thursday after school from 3:30 – 4:30pm. If you are in Years 7-9, and want to be involved please speak to Mr Chambers.

Thank you and we look forward to seeing as many new people as possible!

Emily Dennis 9W

Middle School Assembly Performance On 21 March the Middle School gathered together for the first time this year, in St Patrick’s Church. I was lucky enough to have the opportunity to play my clarinet along with two other students on clarinet and saxophone. I was also joined my Mr Deslandes on the clarinet, Mr Chambers on the double bass and

a Year 9 student on the Cajon. Together we created a beautiful sound playing “Black Orpheus”. I am grateful for the opportunity and I found it was a great experience to play in a big church with a big audience. It was extremely fun putting it together and overall was an enjoyable experience. I encourage any students who are thinking of playing the clarinet to talk to Mr Chambers and give it go. I’ve been given a lot of opportunities that have made my Middle School years a lot more enjoyable.

Danielle Miller 8W


NACEL: Your Opportunity to Host an

International Student in 2018

Welcome a Nacel European high school student into your school this winter and enhance your language skills, cultural exposure and global network. Every year our organisation assists students from France, Italy, Germany and Spain to experience life in an Australian school while living with an Australian family. We are seeking a host family for a FRENCH student for 4 or 10 weeks of June, July and August 2018.

4 Week Program: 29 July - 25 August 2018

10 Week Program: 16 June – 25 August 2018

Key points about Nacel Student Exchange: Nacel’s programs help young people around the world expand their horizons, engage with other cultures and improve their language skills.

Our aim is to place one student per school to promote full cultural

and lingual immersion

Our students enter Australia on a visitor (tourist) visa and are

classified as a guest of the school they attend

Exchange Students are required to pay for all school related

expenses including; uniform, textbooks and subject resource charges, public transport to and from school, outings, excursions and all personal and incidental spending

Students live with a volunteer host family sourced from your school

community

We liaise and work directly with the host family preparing to receive

an overseas student and provide them with 24/7 support throughout the stay

Students on placements also have access to 24/7 support and have

comprehensive insurance

School language programs are also greatly enhanced by having a native, French speaker interact and converse with students. Students are also motivated by being able to explore the difference in language and culture with someone of their own age.

We are currently reaching out to parents to ask if there is someone who would be interested in hosting an exchange student.

Register your interest today and bring the world into your school! Please email Mrs Catrina Tridente, Languages Coordinator, St Mary’s College to register your interest and for more information: [email protected]

“It has been a real pleasure to host a student in our home and the whole family has enjoyed the experience enormously. We have learned so much about France and, even though our lives are a little different on either side of the world, we have found that we have so much that connects us. It will be very sad to say goodbye, but we have a lovely long friendship to look forward to.” Stephenie

The 2018 dates of our incoming students:

Italian Students 8 Weeks: 10 Weeks: 12 Weeks: 12 Weeks:

Committed to providing every student with personal attention, Students of the World encourages cultural exchange, foreign language study and international education. We provide affordable opportunities for high school and university students to participate in international cultural visits and exchange programs. Register your interest today and bring the world into your school! Please email Mrs Catrina Tridente, Languages Coordinator, St Mary’s College to register your interest and for more information: [email protected]

Uniform Shop Opening

The Uniform Shop will be open during the school holidays at the following times:

Wednesday 18 April 9.00 am – 1.00 pm and 2.00 pm – 4.00 pm Thursday 19 April 9.00 am – 1.00 pm and 2.00 pm – 4.00 pm

Monday 30 April 8.00 am—11.00 am

Uniform Shop - Winter Uniforms

All Winter uniform stock (up to size 16) is now available in the uniform shop.

If you have any queries please contact Gen on 8216 5719.

mailto:information:%20%[email protected]





On Tuesday 6 March, members of Writer’s INK and Book club attended Writers’ Week for the Adelaide Festival at the Pioneer Women’s Memorial Garden. We were able to hear different authors speak about the books they have written and the writing process behind them. It gave us an insight into character development and word building in a way we may never have experienced before.

During the morning session, we heard from the author Thomas Mullen who travelled all the way from Atlanta, Georgia to discuss his book Darktown. The book focuses on racism during the Civil Rights movement. It follows two black men who join the police force and struggle with the boundaries that they must not cross, such as not being allowed to arrest white suspects and the hostility from their white peers. Thomas gave an insightful and interesting talk about a time when racial inequality was a major issue and the certain rights and freedoms that black citizens were not allowed. Thomas was my favourite author and speaker at Writers’ Week that we had the honour of hearing. (Phoebe Howie, Year 10)

An author that stood out was Justine Larbalestier, the writer of My Sister Rosa a psychological thriller about Che and his psychopathic younger sister. During Justine’s panel, she spoke about everything from living in New York to the traits of a psychopath. Her extensive research on the topics made the details in her book so much more noticeable and she truly knew what she was talking about. Larbalestier incorporated a lot of her personal life into her novel, including her passion for boxing and her frequent moving between Sydney and the US. She taught us that writing about what you know makes it much easier than writing about unfamiliar places or feelings. Justine spoke with such knowledge and hope that one couldn’t help but be deeply moved by her extravagant words. It was very peculiar to hear someone who has written such a dark book, think so positively about life. Justine was truly a highlight from the Writer’s Week experience. (Rebecca Aaserud, Year 10)

My favourite authors at Writers’ Week were Sarah Krasnostein and Alexandria Marzano-Lesnevich because the memoir genre they were writing was very interesting. The two books that caught my attention were the Trauma Cleaner by Sarah Krasnostein about a crime scene cleaner and her life from becoming a man to a woman, and The Fact of a Body: A Murder and a Memoir about a murderer and how the narrator relates her life to of the killings. The number one thing I remember for writing a book or a story is that, “the first draft should not be your final copy”. This advice works in all aspects of schooling, when writing an essay or an assignment. Some other advice was to take out most irrelevant things in the book, but keep in some information that may seem irrelevant to make an emotive point. (Gauhar Bhullar, Year 9)

Adelaide Writers’ Week was amazing, and I learned a lot about writing and how to improve my writing from the authors that I saw. My favourite author that I saw was most definitely Thomas Mullen. Thomas Mullen was talking about and discussing themes all to do with his amazing novel Darktown. Thomas opened up throughout his interview about how he incorporated racism in his book and all the history he discovered and research he did before writing. This avid research before starting to write the book inspired me to gather more information and plan out the actual topic and themes

that I want to write about in my novel and future writing endeavours. Darktown sounds like an amazing book and I cannot wait to pick it up and read it. I really loved all aspects of Writer’s Week, such as the environment, how the setting is outdoors and under trees that shade the area, and the community of different ages who attend to listen to the authors. This was great to see and experience as it allows you to become more aware of how books can be interpreted by different people. (Abbey Hilder, Year 10)

Bernie McInerney English Coordinator

On 25 January 2018, Jayda Addleton (12W) completed her Gold award after registration via SA Open Award Centre, South Australia, Australia, Asia Pacific.

Only 1% of young people attempting the Gold award will actually complete it, so this is an incredible achievement for Jayda.

His Royal Highness, The Earl of Wessex, Prince Edward, Chair of the International Award Foundation will personally be presenting Jayda with her Gold award.

Jayda has performed in Ballet, Point, Stretch, Contemporary, Hip Hop, Jazz and Tap as well as becoming an NCO in St John and developing her leadership skills and learning new first aid skills. Jayda has also volunteered her time teaching juniors and attending events as a St John Cadet. Jayda was also a youth leader at a residential camp for recreation/respite for disadvantaged children where she used her first aid skills to help save a young girl.

The Award is a leading structured (non-formal education) youth development program, empowering all young Australians between ages 14 to 25 to explore their full potential regardless of their location or circumstance. The Award is a fully inclusive program and has no social, political, or religious affiliations.

Bronze earns you 10 Level 1 SACE points, Silver earns you an addition 10 Level 1 SACE points and Gold earns you 20 Level 2 SACE points.

Each young person who takes part in the Award learns a skill, improves their physical wellbeing, volunteers in their community and experiences a team adventure in a new environment. All participants are supported by a network of adult Award leaders, assessors, supervisors, and mentors.

The key elements of our program are:

Open to all between the ages of 14 to 25.

Three levels: Bronze, Silver, and Gold, each progressively more

challenging.

Four sections: Physical Recreation, Skill, Service, Adventurous

Journey plus Residential Project (Gold Level only).

Achieving an Award recognizes individual goal setting and self-

improvement through persistence and achievement.

Today more than 140 countries have adopted The Duke of Edinburgh’s International Award program.

St Mary’s College Absentee Phone Line : 8216 5716

Please telephone before 9.30 am if your daughter is absent

St Mary’s College Uniform Shop : 8216 5719

Opening times - Monday 8.00 am - 11.00 am Wednesday 1.00 pm - 4.00 pm Thursday 8.00 am - 11.00 am

St Mary’s College OSHC : 8216 5743


Did you know that St Mary’s College has a Facebook page? Check out our weekly uploads (each Friday) of the events and activities that students and staff are involved in at the College.

Facebook is a great way to see our college community in action! https://www.facebook.com/StMarysCollegeAdelaide/

April

8 Gen Connection—Governor Hindmarsh (Sunday)

9-13 Year 9 Camp—Grampians

13 Last Day of Term 1—3.15 Dismissal

May

2 Term 2 commences for all students (Wednesday)

4-6 Generations in Jazz—Mt Gambier

14-18 Year 6 Camp Ballarat

15-17 NAPLAN for Year 3, 5,7 and 9

23 Year 7—12 Swim Carnival (Adelaide Aquatic Centre)

28 Reconciliation Week

29 School Tour from 9.30 am—CPA

E V E N T C A L E N D A R

Writers INK Club.

The Year 8 – 12 student writing club, Writers Ink, is back for its fifth year! We meet after school from 3:30 to 4:30 on alternate Tuesday and Wednesday afternoons in the Susan Sullivan Library. The main purpose of the club is to share ideas about and experiment with writing, volunteer stories and poems for competitions, and receive constructive criticism from fellow members.

We participate in excursions to places such as the Central Market and nearby city streets for inspiration, Adelaide Festival Writers’ Week, and listen to visiting authors. We’re always on the lookout for new members, so if you enjoy writing and meeting people with similar interests, come to a session and experience Writers Ink for yourself.

For more information regarding the camps offered and to book: www.codecamp.com.au or 1300 263 322

https://www.facebook.com/StMarysCollegeAdelaide/

st mary s college - amazon s3 · 2018-04-05 · st mary’s college ... live-stream themselves to...

Documents