College Newsletter
Term 3 Week 10 Friday 23 September 2016
A Message from the Principal
This week we graduate the Class of 2016. Our purpose is to graduate young women of purpose and, armed with the light of Mary, send them out to not only take their place in the world, but also make a difference. Jerry Zucker (Director) gave a commencement speech at the University of Wisconsin in 2003 in which he delivered this call to action:
"It doesn't matter that your dream came true if you spent your whole life sleeping. So get out there and go for it, but don't be caught waiting. It's great to plan for your future. Just don't live there, because really nothing ever happens in the future. Whatever happens happens now, so live your life where the action is — now".
We wish the class of 2016 all the best as they prepare for the HSC Examinations beginning 13 October. Our hope is that they answer the call to make a difference and be a difference in the world starting today.
We wish Ms Steele all the best as she goes onto Maternity leave and are looking forward to seeing her and her newest addition back at the College very soon.
We farewell Mrs Vicki Van Der Werf who has served the College community for the last six years. Apart from her work in supporting the TAS Department and the students, Mrs Van Der Werf also assists with the catering for school functions, makes sure our representative sports uniforms are immaculate and is always present to make sure any of our formal functions run smoothly. You will be missed.
Mrs Baker, Sr Kate, Mrs Parker, Mrs Butler, Miss Parker, Mrs Tooma, Mrs Townsend and Ms Posavec will travel to Spain on pilgrimage over the school holidays and the first three weeks of next term. The Pilgrimage is part of the staff celebrations of Fourviére and the Marist Sisters story. We wish them a safe and spirit filled journey.
Arrangements for next term are as follows: Mr Zammit will act in place of myself as Assistant Principal (Curriculum), Mr Mulheron will act as Assistant Principal (Mission and Administration) and Ms Ackaoui will continue in her role as the acting Religious Education Coordinator.
I'd also like to thank the staff for their tireless efforts again this term; without their commitment and energy the vibrant co- and extra-curricula programme of the College would not be possible. Many students benefit, not just from the school hours care they receive, but from the many and varied out-of-hours activities available to them.
Enjoy a safe and well earned holiday break. School returns Monday, 10 October and students will attend in their summer uniform.
God of the Journey,
we give you thanks for the signs of your love that surround us.
Strengthen us for the work that lies ahead
that we might be compassionate to human need,
tender and strong in care for one another,
genuine in friendship and faithful
to the commitments we have made.
We pray this prayer through Christ our Lord.
Amen
God Bless.
Mr Frank Caristo
Acting Principal
Congratulations to the 2017 Student Leadership Team
Congratulations to the following students who have been elected to the Student Leadership Team for 2017:
College Captain - Nicole El Jammal
College Vice Captains
Riley Carroll (Social Justice and Community Service)
Thy Mai (Creative and Performing Arts)
Lauren Smith (Sport)
Emily Stoove (Academic)
2016 Bishop's Award
Amelia received her award at a special presentation evening at St Patrick's Cathedral on Thursday 8 September. Amelia is truly a worthy recipient of this award for student excellence as she is an exemplary role model in the way she works tirelessly to promote Social Justice initiatives within the College. She is an effective College Vice Captain who serves others in living out the Gospel values. Amelia is a collaborative builder of College spirit, an active member of her parish and always gives generously of her time and talents to make a difference in the life of the community. Amelia is an impressive young woman who demonstrates Christian Values in all her ventures. She is obliging, passionate, compassionate, respectful of others and the environment, and a lover of life and learning.
Mrs L Parker
Assistant Principal
Mission and Administration
2016 NSW Premier's Reading Challenge
Congratulations to the following students who have completed the NSW Premier’s Reading Challenge in 2016. Each student receives a Coordinator’s Award, 10 points towards their House Team and an Award from the Premier (to be received in Term 4).
Mrs Sylaprany
Sr Ann Marie Learning Centre
Year 7
Shamiya Dissanayake
Lauryn Galea
Anna Haider
Nitika Harpalani
Sarah Mekdessi
Alicia Nagamine
Bethany Nicholls
Marleyana Pillay
Sophia Siderides
Bianca Simonetta
Edwina Tu
Amelia Williams
Year 8
Zali Furness
Margaret Makary
Suzanne Mekdessi
Shanice Seaib
Sarah Vella
Year 9
Georgia Ashkar
Andrea Budini
Quynh Doan
Angelina Elias
Veronica Gambacorta
Alexandria Makary
Shirley Nagamine
Perpetual Nkatiaa Boadu
Jade Williams
Numeracy at Cerdon
ICAS 2016
On Tuesday 16th August, about 149 students from Years 7, 8 and 9 took part in the University of New South Wales’ International Mathematics Competition. This was Cerdon’s first involvement in the competition.
It was decided to have students take part in this very challenging competition as part of the College’s drive to improve students’ numeracy growth and development by exposing students to a level of Mathematics requiring a deeper level of understanding than students are exposed to in their typical Mathematics lesson.
While we are yet to be informed of the name of the recipients, the College is delighted to learn Cerdon students have received the following awards; one High Distinction, nine Distinctions, twenty-five Credits and twenty-one Merits. That makes a total of 56 awards or 38% of all who took part have received awards.
Once the names’ of the award recipients are known, they will be proudly published.
Congratulations to all students who took part!
Mrs Muscat
(Numeracy Coordinator and Acting Mathematics Coordinator)
Enrichment@Cerdon
As the end of term approaches I would like to take this opportunity to congratulate all the students who have participated in the many competitions, programs or projects during this term. For some girls the holidays too will provide some wonderful enriching opportunities. After winning the zone and regional finals, Christina Kheir from Year 12, will be representing Holroyd City in the District finals of the Lions Youth of the Year Competition in Goulburn. We wish her every success for this event. Almost thirty students from Years 11 and 12 will be participating in the Engineering Link Project at the UNSW , while a group of Year 10 students will begin their work on their engineering projects for the annual Science & Engineering Challenge .
In this issue of enrichment read about the success of two of our students in the University of Sydney Science Gifted and Talented exam and the highlights of the 2016 Kids Lit Quiz Sydney Heat at Cerdon College.
The University of Sydney Science Gifted and Talented Discovery Program Qualifying Exam
Last November a group of students from years 8 and 9 sat the Science G&T Qualifying exam for the Discovery program at the University of Sydney. The program is open to students in Queensland, NSW and the ACT and only the top 12% of the applicants are offered positions. Following the exam, Catalina Gonzalez and Jessica Li both in year 10, have been accepted into this prestigious program.
Both girls will now attend a three day science program at the University of Sydney with like-minded students, during the July holidays. Congratulations to both girls for this outstanding achievement.
The 2016 Kids Lit Quiz
On Friday March 18 Cerdon College hosted the Kids Lit Quiz Sydney Heat. 30 teams from school all over Sydney and beyond gathered together to participate in what is becoming a very popular international competition. Last year the competition attracted about 90 teams from ACT, NSW and Queensland. This year 176 teams participated in the sport of reading. The competition promotes team work , broadens student’s knowledge and encourages a love for reading
Working in groups of four the children from ages 10-14 answer over 100 questions on everything related to books. It is amazing to see the excitement of so many enthusiastic students and even more amazing how knowledgeable they are! The day is a lot of fun and from the student’s insights it will be a popular event in the years to come!
‘It was great to be part of such an amazing event. It was a day filled with enjoyment and knowledge and it felt good to be part of a team…
We really enjoyed this day..It was great meeting new people and challenging our minds to answer lots of questions.. wish I could do it again next year..but I will be too old!’
Congratulations to all the girls who participated and helped out on the day. A special Congratulations to Bethany Nicholls, Isabella Anderson, Ilije Ghasb and Jordyn Severin for winning the book prizes for winning a round and for Emma Giudice for winning the cash prize question.
PDHPE and Sport Report
NSWCCC and NSW All Schools Athletics
Congratulations to Natasha Milakovic, Daniella Elakcnouch and Mikhaela Topfer on being selected in the PDSSSC Athletics Squad which competed at the NSWCCC Athletics Carnival on Friday September 16. All students participated to the best of their ability and proudly represented the College. Congratulations to Natasha Milakovic on finishing 2nd in the U16 Javelin event with a throw of 31.86m allowing her to progress to the NSW All Schools Carnival, which will run from October 13 to October 16. Whilst Daniella and Mikhaela will not progress to the next level, they certainly relished the opportunity to participate and we look forward to their opportunity next year. Congratulations girls!
PDSSSC Oz Tag
On Monday September 12, our Oz Tag squads travelled to The Kingsway playing fields at St Marys for the PDSSSC Oz Tag Gala Day. It was a warm day for the competition and there were many Parramatta Diocesan schools in attendance. We had two teams represent the College on the day, a Year 7-8 team and a Year 9-10 team. Both teams faced tough opposition and performed to best of their ability. The Year 7-8 team finished 3rd overall and the Year 9-10 team finished 4th, which is a great achievement. The following students are to be commended on their efforts at the Gala Day:
Year 7-8 squad:
Chloe Issa, Olivia Achmar, Georgia Daoud, Jennifer Ghaleb, Annabelle Danil, Josephine Moujaes, Alyssa Khouli , Deanna Hanna, Gardenia Habib , Jessie Finch and Chelsea Kaua
Year 9-10 squad:
Amira El-Sayed, Natasha Chan, Chantelle Chan, Tahlia Del Principe, Daniella Elakcnouch, Vanessa Madeleine, Elissar Maalouf, Barbara Mataia, Quyen Nguyen, Louise O'Neill, Sophie Robinson, Shiarna Tarasenko, Louise Awad and Emma Tuhmeh.
I would like to thank all players for their efforts on the day and hope to see you competing in the Oz Tag Gala Day next year. I would also like to acknowledge the efforts of Rachelle Amoah and Mallory Morrell of Year 12 who refereed on the day. Both students volunteered their time and did an outstanding job across the day, refereeing many games. I would also like to acknowledge the efforts of Mrs Deegan who attended the day as a coach for the Year 7-8 team.
PDSSSC Futsal Gala Day
On Monday September 19, Cerdon College competed at the PDSSSC Futsal Gala Day at Penrith Valley Regional Sports Stadium. Both the Year 7-8 and Year 9-10 teams performed quite well against strong opposition, with the Year 7-8 team finishing in 3rd place overall. Both teams were competitive on the day and showed tremendous character against quality opposition. Congratulations to the following students for their efforts on the day:
Year 7-8 Team
Paris Kambouris, Jessie Finch, Katerina Bonovas, Julia Ljubicic, Josephine Moujaes, Isabelle Stipic, Priscilla Granata, Isabelle Putrus, Bianca Bezzina.
Year 9-10 Team
Alysha Biber, Natasha Chan, Sabrina Granata, Jessica Stipic, Chantelle Chan, Mikayla Ozols, Shuashawnee Hancock, Briana Titmuss and Janine Udan.
Sport Aerobics National Championships
On Thursday and Friday September 15 and 16, the Cerdon College Sport Aerobics squad travelled to Bendigo, Victoria for the National Championships. After some impressive results at the State Championships in July, the girls were well prepared for the tough competition at Nationals. The Senior Trio, consisting of Rochelle Salatino and Angela Pham of Year 11 as well as Rachael Vella of Year 12 finished in 3rd Place. The Intermediate team, consisting of Vera Chakti, Vanessa Madeleine, Amy Townsend and Maddison Temple-Twindley placed 3rd also. In the Senior Pair competition, Rochelle Salatino and Angela Pham placed 4th. These are great results and continue the fine performances displayed by Cerdon College Sport Aerobics Teams at past National Championships.
Please see the full list of performers below and congratulations to the students on their commitment to training for all competitions across 2016:
Rochelle Salatino, Angela Pham, Rachael Vella, Vera Chakti, Vanessa Madeleine, Amy Townsend, Maddison Temple-Twindley, Rose Hanratty and Sarah Vella
We look forward to next year’s competition and hope to continue to achieve to the high standards set by the 2016 squad.
A special thank you must go to Mrs Hanratty and Mrs Chaiban for giving up their time to accompany the girls on the trip and their efforts in the lead up in terms of organisation.
Mr Zammit
PDHPE/Sport Co-ordinator
Study Skills Handbook
A MESSAGE TO YEAR 12 STUDENTS
These last few months of Year 12 can be overwhelming as the focus just seems to be on marks, marks, marks.
So here are some important things to remember:
Yes this year is important. And yes you want to get the best marks you can. BUT.
A very big but.
You as a person are not defined by a number alone.
There are always alternate paths to get to where you want to go in life. The marks might make it quicker or easier but if you really want to get somewhere, if you are passionate about what you want to do, you will find a way to make it happen. Many people don’t get their first preference at university, so start off in one course then transfer after a year to the one they really wanted.
Lots of students leave school and find out that they actually have some incredible skills, they just weren’t academic! They discover that they are really good at lots and lots of stuff and that in the end, the marks did not make that much difference to their final career.
Really what you want after the next few months is to walk away with no regret, to be able to walk away saying no matter what, I really did the best I could – rather than I threw away twelve years of school just because I couldn’t be bothered pushing hard in the last few months. Doing your best is all anyone should expect of you, teachers, parents and even yourself.
These can be challenging months and you will be so over study by the end of it. Remember everyone has to go through it and the good news is it is never like this again! Just keep saying to yourself each day, this is one day less and I will never ever have to study like this again. The hardest part of Year 12 is finding the self-discipline to make yourself do the study when you don’t feel like doing it! So hang in there, persist, just take it day by day and make use of the support structures around you through the school, family and friends.
Dr Prue Salter
While Year 12 is busy studying, the rest of the school can learn more about how to achieve their personal academic best at school at www.studyskillshandbook.com.au by logging in with these details:
Username: cerdoncollege
Password: achieve
Working With Children Check
Parents or carers who engage the services of a private tutor or coach have an important role to play in helping to keep their children safe. The Certificate for Self Employed People will no longer be valid after their expiry date and the certificate holders will need to apply for a new Working With Children Check.
From 1st April 2016, adults who provide private tuition or coaching services to children are required to have a Working With Children Check. There are some exemptions, including volunteering by a parent or close relative with a team, program or other activity in which their child usually participates in or is a team member.
Parents or carers should ask their child’s tutor or coach for their name, date of birth and their Working With Children Check number.
They must then go online and verify the tutor or coach is not barred from working with children in NSW.
Verifying that a tutor or coach can work with children is quick and easy – just follow the simple steps at www.kidsguardian.nsw.gov.au/parentscheckthecheck . If a person is barred, interim barred or not found then you cannot engage them in child-related work.
If you suspect that an adult is providing services to children without a Working With Children Check you can go online to make a confidential report or phone (02) 9286 7219.
2016 SMH HSC Study Guide
The 2016 HSC Study Guide is published in the Sydney Morning Herald and is now available. The guide is a joint project with BOSTES. It is a valuable resource for students, teachers and parents covering a wide range of HSC subjects. It contains:
- study advice
- oral, performance and written exam advice
- tips for finalising submitted works
- videos
Contributors include BOSTES curriculum inspectors, experienced HSC teachers and markers, past HSC students and parents.
Updated advice for HSC students about examinations
Advice for HSC students about examinations has been updated on the Students Online website to include important information about the 2016 HSC examinations.
It covers a range of topics including revised syllabuses, changes to specifications and courses where personalised answer booklets are being introduced.
HSC Dates for Practical and Performance Examinations
School Calendars
Future Makers
Is your daughter passionate about making artworks or has a desire to learn new skills?
Then this course may be of interest to her.
For more details on this course - Future Makers access link here
Mrs Odonga
Visual Arts Coordinator
College Uniform Shop
Regular Trading Hours
Monday and Wednesday 8:00 am—2:00 pm (Terms 1 and 4)
Mondays only 8:00 am—2:00 pm (from Week 5 Term 2 and all Term 3)
Cerdon College Uniform Shop Management
Telephone: 8724 7329 (During trading hours only)
About us
Email: cerdon@parra.catholic.edu.au
Website: http://dev.cerdon.nsw.edu.au
Location: Sherwood Rd, Merrylands West, New South Wales, Australia
Phone: 8724 7300
Facebook: www.facebook.com/CerdonCollege
Twitter: @CerdonCollege