St. Benedict's Catholic College
Newsletter - Friday 17 August
PRINCIPAL'S REPORT
Dear Parents
This week we celebrated the Feast of the Assumption on August 15. The Assumption refers to the Blessed Virgin Mary being assumed — body and soul — into heaven at the end of her earthly life. “Assumption” is different than “ascension” because one is passive (i.e. one is assumed) and the other is active (i.e. one ascends). It is by the power of God that Mary was ‘assumed’. The Assumption illustrates to us the truth about Christ’s promise of eternal life and the resurrection of the faithful.
The number of cities (large and small) that host processions or parades for the Feast of the Assumption is staggering. Our Lady is loved and celebrated in every corner of every continent on the planet. Processions range from small and solemn to large and boisterous. In the suburb where I live, the streets are closed and there is an enormous procession of a Marian statue that processes for a few kilometres around the suburban streets. At night a “Festa” is held with food, wine and song (and fireworks!). Take some time this week in prayer and reflect upon the beautiful words of some of our traditional Catholic Prayers such as the Hail Mary, the Angelus, the Regina Coeli. Some you may only remember from your own schooldays in Catholic Education!
Appointments
In a little bit of history, on Thursday our full-time permanent Assistant Principal was announced to the staff and the wider Catholic Education community. You may recall that Mr Steve Lo Cascio had held this foundation position until Term 2 last year when he was appointed Acting Principal in my absence and then Principal at Mt Carmel, Varroville this year.
Mr David Costin has been Acting as Assistant Principal for nearly 18 months and I am pleased to announce that David has been permanently appointed following a lengthy employment process. I congratulate David on his appointment and I know that the students and parents will support this announcement as David is admired for his tireless work for the school over many years and has a deep understanding of the Benedictine nature of our College.
This leaves the permanent Religious Education Coordinator position to be filled and advertisements for that will appear in the next few weeks. With the growth of our College numbers in Stage 6 (6 streams in Year 11) we will be advertising for an additional five teaching staff for 2019. It is anticipated that our enrolment will reach 950+ next year. Exciting times.
Events
The Trial HSC continued this week and Year 12 students have had their heads down. I have been impressed not only with their preparation but also the way in which they have supported each other and the level of discussion and debrief before and after examinations. Exams continue this week and we wish them well.
On Thursday Night we held an Evening with Prue Salter. Prue visits many of our local schools and is an expert in delivering workshops for parents and students on study skills and examination preparation. The College uses a lot of the ELES online materials and parents can access these for free. A letter which went home two weeks ago gave parents the log on details. I encourage you to make yourself familiar with it and use it with your child if they are struggling with organising themselves and completing work.
Lots of exciting things to report across the school including:
· the great success of our History Debating Team who have moved into the final rounds and will now face Sydney Boys High.
· the Year 8 Debating Team who have won their last three debates in the MISA Debating round robin and are in a commanding position.
· we farewelled our Japanese Exchange students with a fantastic “Sayonara Night”. Congratulations to all the host families and thank you for your support of intercultural understanding.
· A record number of subjects being offered (based on student selections) to Year 11 in 2019 including Physics for the first time.
· A wonderful Year 7 Reflection Day was held at the Don Bosco Centre.
· The huge number of events that were held for Science week this week. Congratulations to Dr De Lima and the Science faculty – the physics behind the paper plane challenge was simply fantastic (not to mention how we all became big kids again).
Finally, the Parents and Friends Executive have raised the idea of fundraising to do our bit to assist those impacted by the current crisis in rural Australia due to the drought.
Vinnies are operating in the frontline, reminding farmers that they are not alone during this difficult time and doing what they have always done - offering a hand-up to those in need. Support for the Vinnies Drought Appeal aligns with the CEDoW Faith in Action guidelines and provides transparency for how our fundraising is being spent.
Types of assistance already being offered to farmers and their families in drought affected regions include but are not limited to: food assistance; household bills; education expenses; household water; fuel; health and wellbeing requirements including counselling; vehicle repairs and expenses; transport costs (not covered by Government subsidies).
After consultation with the students we have decided to provide support through a Gold Diploma Leadership Project initiative being run by Year 11 students, Claude Abdallah, Skye Slattery, Hannah Elborough and Carol Halim.
Michael Hanratty
Principal
FROM THE ACTING DIRECTOR OF MISSION AND VISION
“The Almighty has done great things for me; he has lifted up the lowly.”
This week we celebrated the Solemnity of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary. This is a significant day in our Churches calendar and is a Holy Day of Obligation. It is on this day that we celebrate the special favour that God showed to Mary when he chose her to be the mother of Christ. The term Assumption means that Mary was taken up into the glory of heaven, body and soul. In our Catholic tradition, Mary has a very significant place in our hearts. We believe that Mary was free from sin, and it is from her pure womb that Christ was born. So when she died, God the Father assumed Mary into heaven as a reward for her years of faithful acceptance, prayerfulness and suffering that she endured as the Mother of Jesus. Now in heaven, Mary is queen of heaven and earth, and has become a beacon of hope for many. As we celebrate the feast day of Mary, we can ask our Blessed Mother Mary to guide, protect and care for us.
Year 7 Retreat
Last Friday, the students of Year 7 had the opportunity to participate in their first Religious Retreat at the College. The retreat was held at the Don Bosco Youth and Recreation center at St Mary’s, and the theme of the day was ‘Ways of Praying’. This is in line with what the students have been studying in Religion classes. The day began with the year 7 students and staff coming together in prayer- praying the Rosary with the new beads they made in class. After this, the students moved through a variety of prayer inspired sessions including making a prayer bookmark, spontaneous prayer writing, a prayer brick, a banner of images that represents each homeroom and even a prayer through music activity that let us hear the beautiful voices of year 7!
It was an enjoyable day and the students participated wholeheartedly in the activities and are to be commended on their mature behaviour throughout the day - especially in trying something new. A big thank you must be extended to Mrs Heather Brown for her support in helping to organise the students for this big day, and to all the Year 7 teachers who led sessions and helped to make this day enjoyable and rewarding for us all.
Social Justice Update
The Social Justice Group last week had the joy of being able to show the Benedictine virtue of hospitality by making ‘Australiana’ care packs for the Japanese students who spent over a week as special guests in our College on their immersion experience. The packs contained some great Aussie essentials that will help the students to remember their time in Australia, including vegemite, tim tams, wagon wheels, caramello koalas and pencils adorned with Australian images. On behalf of the Social Justice group, we wish them all the best in their future and hope that they take home good memories of this immersion experience.
God Bless;
Mrs Tarnya Grana
Director of Mission and Vision
DATES TO REMEMBER
P & F Meeting - Tuesday 21 August at 7:pm
CAPA Evening - Tuesday 21 August
Year 10 Outdoor Camp - Wednesday 29 August - Friday 31 August
Year 9 Elective Evening - Wednesday 29 August
LIVE Festival at Wollongong - Friday 31 August
Next P & F Meeting
Stage 5 2019 Information Evening
The College is holding an information evening for Year 8 families on Wednesday 29 August 2018 at 7.00pm. This will be a compulsory event for all students and they will need to wear full winter uniform.
The Stage 5 Elective Selection Process will be explained and parents will receive a copy of the Stage 5 Electives Information Guide. Stage 5 courses, expectations and the Record of School Achievement will be introduced.
As part of the evening, we will also explain the Leadership Diploma for students in Years 9 - 11, as well as an outline of the function and purpose of the Outdoor Education Program. Please RSVP at info@sbccdow.catholic.edu.au by Monday 27 August 2018 to indicate the number of people attending.
LITERACY IN HISTORY
When studying History, students are exposed to a variety of sources that require them to interpret data and analyse it for historical information. In order to interpret and understand the sources, it is important that students read, highlight, deconstruct and annotate their sources. This allows them to break down the information being presented and view it from the author of the source’s perspective. Students are prompted to use the following questions to guide their analysis:
- What is the source about?
- Is the message of the source clear?
- Why was this source created?
- Whose perspective is the source from?
What does the source do to help my study?
- Does it support your other knowledge?
- How does the source make you feel?
By doing so students are able to form their own opinion on a historical event and support it with well researched evidence. From this point, students write a response following the PEEL structure to convey their knowledge.
Some sources include:
YEAR 7 RETREAT
DEBATING SUCCESS AT BENNY'S
Currently the College has two successful debating teams who have progressed to their next rounds. The Year 8 MISA team and the Year 10 JA Thomson History debaters both travel away for their next rounds. Here are the reports from their coaches.
YEAR 8 MACARTHUR INDEPENDENT SCHOOLS ASSOCIATION DEBATING
2018 has seen the St Benedict’s Year 8 MISA Debating Team come across some challenging and competent schools in our local region. Beginning in May, the team of six, Sophia Laurantus, Rhiannon Essex, Annalysse Stevens, Amy Crisante, Joseph Banks, Jack Kremer,
was faced with the Round 1 debate against John Therry Catholic High School. Arguing the topic “Australians focus too much on sport” St Benedict’s, despite their best efforts, could not match the excellent arguments brought forth by John Therry.
Entry into Round 2 saw the team find their feet and perfect their skills further, ending in a very close but unfortunate loss against Macarthur Anglican College. The following weeks saw the team work extremely hard in argument and rebuttal practise as well as impromptu speech formation. Such efforts proved fruitful with Round 4 ending in a victorious St Benedict’s win against Broughton Anglican College, arguing the topic “We learn more from our parents than our teachers”. After gaining some confidence, the team entered Round 5 against Wollondilly Anglican College arguing the topic “Energy drinks should have an age restriction.” This topic allowed the team’s sophisticated language, critical thinking and teamwork shine. St Benedict’s left round 5 with another win under their belts. With eagerness and excitement the St Benedict’s team hosted Magdalene Catholic High School this week arguing the topic “Earth Hour is a waste of time’, showing their incredible hard work and ending the debate with another win.
September will see the team challenge Oran Park Anglican College. There is no doubt that whatever the outcome the team will continue to show their dedication, hard work and incredible ability to think critically about issues impacting society today. Perhaps what the team should be most proud of is the way they conduct themselves, no matter the outcome. All students involved should be extremely proud of their efforts and achievements.
The St Benedict’s community is super excited by the success of the team and can’t wait to see their future successes.
Ms Brooke Hollis, Coach
YEAR 9 - SPOTLIGHT
Every newsletter this term I will be acknowledging a Year 9 student’s external achievements. Within the year group there are a lot of talented, modest students who keep quiet about their wonderful accomplishments.
Mrs Smith
Charlotte Stanley
Charlotte gives up her time on the weekends to help out at Messy Church. Messy Church is a fun way to teach younger parishioners about the Bible teachings.
“I have been involved in our parish community by teaching the ways of the bible to younger children in our community. Many children go to church not actually understanding the ways of the bible, which is why I participated in Messy Church. This allows the people who understand the Bible to be able to break the Stories down and tell them to younger children in a way they are able to comprehend - whether that's through practical activities or listening to stories.”
Charlotte Stanley Year 9
The College is very proud of Charlotte’s dedication to her faith and the hard work she puts into helping educate the younger members of the St Mary Mackillop Catholic Parish.
Grace Cremen
As one of our young parishioners, Grace Cremen has been working with the Mackillop Youth Group. She is an active member of the group appearing in their Facebook promotional video. The College would like to congratulate Grace on actively exploring her faith and sharing her experiences with others.
COLLEGE SPORTING WEEK
Congratulations to the following students who were nominated as MVPs for Week 4
AFL:
Brad Krsulija
Soccer:
Paloma Castro, Riley Hagarty
UFC:
Orlando Font, Madelyne Waters
NRL:
Chloe McVeay, Benjamin Vincin
Martial Arts:
Cooper Colmenar, Marc Angulo
Netball:
Sohpie Flint, Wesley Sicat
Barefoot Bowls:
Victoria Pinkerton, Barbara Prezois
Crossfit:
Emily Murdoch, Matthew Hurley
Golf:
Peterson Caccamo
Kickboxing:
Jonty Stead
Gym:
Charlotte Stanely
Dance:
Daniela Rebollo, Eve Raisin
Tennis:
Emily Azzopardi, Nicholas Carroll
Skating:
Jacob Monier, Mia Pieplenbosch
MISA Sport
Our MISA teams had their third week of competition against Wollondilly Anglican College
Year 7-8 Girls Soccer Loss
MVP: Kayley Skeers
Year 9-12 Girls Soccer Won
MVP: Hannah Elborough
Year 10-12 Boys Basketball Won
MVP: Ayel Ring
Year 10-12 Girls Basketball Loss
MVP: Miora Cruz
Year 10-12 Mixed Frisbee Loss
MVP: Tyler Chamberlain
Year 7 Girls Netball Loss
MVP: Larissa Hobman
Year 8 Girls Netball Won
MVP: Chelsea Paciullo
Year 7-9 Girls AFL Won
MVP: Amy Evans
Year 7-9 Boys AFL Won
MVP: Ethan Broadbeck
Yours in Sport
Miss Liska
All the jumpers, jackets and hats look the same at school. As much as we believe our children will take care and be responsible for uniform pieces removed during the day, it is often not the case. A named article of clothing will make its way to a lost property basket, front office and eventually back home. Unnamed pieces are often lost to other homes, bottomless lost property baskets and rarely come back to the original owner. Iron on name tags are great these days, but if you want to be extra vigilant take the time to stitch the tag on as well.
Parents are reminded that students should go to the office if feeling unwell. The office will call parents if student needs to go home. Students should not text or email parents first.
The next P & F meeting is scheduled for Tuesday 21 August. Parental involvement is of utmost importance in any planning which affects the total school population. Parents are aware of their children’s needs and it is important they become involved in College life. It is hoped that these meetings will allow communication of the concerns of the wider population of the parents to the school staff.
Please telephone or email the school office to notify daily absences. If a student has a planned absence of more than 2 days please notify the office by email with the dates and explanation of absence. For absences of 10 days or more an Application for Extended Leave must be completed and are available from the College Website. If your child is ill, please keep them at home and notify the school.
"Did you know? Mr Bulfon Worked in the video games industry before becoming a teacher"
He also likes to eat a lot of rice!