It’s getting close to “Time to say Good-bye’! As Term 4 starts we wanted to let you know about several occasions when the College community will be formally acknowledging Ms Richardson’s time at the College and celebrating her retirement. These celebrations started with the Graduation of our Year 12 students on 18 September when the girls and their families had the opportunity to mark the graduation from St Scholastica’s of not only 130 HSC students but also their Principal, whom Ciara nominated as ‘the ultimate Schols girl”. On 31 October Ms Richardson’s service and leadership will be acknowledged by the Members of Good Samaritan Education and her fellow Principals at the Good Samaritan Education Assembly being held at Mount St Benedict Centre, Pennant Hills. On 12 November Sr Clare Condon and her Council will host a special dinner for Ms Richardson with the College Board of Directors and Members to be held at the Good Samaritan Congregational Centre. Our Annual Speech Night will be held at The Sydney Town Hall on Tuesday 18 November when the occasional address will be given by Sr Clare Condon, Superior of the Sisters of the Good Samaritan, with a focus on Ms Richardson’s contribution to Good Samaritan Education over 33 years. All students and their families from Year 7 to Year 11 are invited to attend this special celebration. On Saturday 29 November a Farewell Cocktail Party will be held at the College; please contact Sandra Payn at [email protected] if you would like to receive an invitation to this event to which responses are required by 10 November. On Monday 1 December the College Board of Directors will host at the College the annual thank you dinner for staff, which will be an opportunity for Ms Richardson to be acknowledged among her colleagues. A Farewell Gift for Ms Richardson from the College Community A number of parents have asked about this and the College has chosen to ignore the protests of the intended recipient in this regard! We have identified the gift of travel as the most useful, practical and welcome gift that we can offer Ms Richardson and one which will symbolise her newly found freedom. We invite families who wish to, to contribute to fundraising for this gift in one of the following ways: By Direct Deposit to the following Account by 10 November 2014: Please note that this is a DIFFERENT Account from the one fees are paid into: BANK: Commonwealth Bank BSB: 062 172 A/C No: 0090 0741 REFERENCE: GIFT By Cheque made out to St Scholastica’s College, addressed to Ms Diane Anderson, C/- The Boarding College, 4 Avenue Rd, Glebe 2037; please indicate the purpose of the cheque inside the envelope; By Cash donation (only on the specific date of Monday 10 November and again directly to Diane Anderson in the Boarding College Office). Mr Adrian Eussen Assistant Principal, Teaching & Learning [email protected] Ms Elizabeth Carnegie Assistant Principal, Pastoral Care [email protected] SCHOLS NEWS St Scholastica’s College, 4 Avenue Rd, Glebe Point 2037 [email protected] www.scholastica.nsw.edu.au College Phone: 9660 2622 Ranier Uniforms 9552 2870 To advise absences—[email protected] TERM 4 ISSUE 1 17 OCTOBER 2014 TERM DATES 2015 ARE ON OUR WEBSITE UNDER ‘CALENDAR’ Upcoming dates for your diary Parents/Carers of current Year 8 and 9 Students Saturday 18 October Outdoor Movie Night /ScholsFest Thursday 23 October Woodwind Soiree, 6.15 pm @ DRT Saturday, 25 October Piano Soiree, 2.30 pm @DRT Sudanese Gala Day at Lidcombe Mon.-Tues. 27-28 Oct. Yr 10 Exams Mon.-Wed. 2-4 November (leaving at 2.30pm on Monday) Senior Retreat (Year 11) Friday 7 November Yr 7 2015 Orientation Day Last day of HSC Saturday 8 November Boarders’ Mass and Dinner Tuesday 18 November Speech Night, Sydney Town Hall, 7pm Friday 21 November P & F Christmas Drinks/Raffle Draw at Harold Park Hotel Wed. 26 November Year 10 Camp commences Friday 28 November Picnic Day (Yrs 7,8,9,11) 28-30 November Good Samaritan Weekend Mon.-Tues. 1-2 December Yr 10 Transition to Yr 11 Wednesday 3 December Yr 10 Reflection Day Thursday 4 December Yr 10 Mass & Lunch; Social Night Friday 5 December Advent Liturgy; final day students Monday 8 December Staff Day Tuesday 9 December Staff Day St Scholastica’s College will be opening up the BYOD (Bring your own device) program to your daughters in 2015. Thursday 29 January Classes commence for 2015 all years SECOND HAND UNIFORMS ARE URGENTLY NEEDED With 2015 Year 7 students approaching Orientation Day on Friday 7 November, the demand for second hand uniforms becomes very strong. Year 10 and Year 12 families in particular, please check through your uniform wardrobe and identify those items of uniform that can be sold second hand to other students through our second hand uniform shop. CURRENT YEAR 10 STUDENTS—SENIOR UNIFORM FITTINGS Saturday Fitting Days—1st and 15th November. It’s time to organise the fitting of your daughter’s senior high school uniforms. Appointments essential. VISIT Ranier.com.au EMAIL [email protected] CALL Mrs Jeneva Sweyda on 9552 2870 Normal Trading Days (During School Terms) Tuesday & Thursday 9am-2pm PARENTS & FRIENDS NEWS—PLEASE TURN TO LAST PAGE EXCITING UPCOMING EVENTS INCLUDING MOVIE NIGHT THIS SATURDAY 18 OCTOBER 6.30PM This means that all students in Years 9 -12 next year will be allowed to bring an alternate device that meets the College Device Recommendations which can be found on our website on the Campus Facilities \ Information Technology page. Please read the “BYOD Information” document carefully to make sure that the Device Technical requirements are met, as the College wireless network will be going through some changes for 2016 that will cause devices not meeting these recommendations to stop working. The document also provides information about software provided by the College and software which is required to be installed by the Student before using it at the College. Devices must have an appropriate Antivirus application installed before it will be allowed to access the College network, this is to protect their computer, college systems and all other students from possible infections. As your daughter chooses elective courses and cocurricular activities, she will need to make choices about the appropriate device she intends to use to best approach her learning. When joining the BYOD program students will need to first fill out the “Device registration” form under the Campus Facilities \ Information Technology page so the process to on-board their device can begin and access the school wireless network. Students can continue to use their current Toshiba notebook if in working condition up until the end of 2015, these devices will not function on the College network in 2016. All Toshiba notebooks at this stage will be out of warranty and support by Toshiba. If you wish to know more or seek further answers regarding either Technical or Learning Environment, please email us a DLE @ Scholastica.nsw.edu.au Kind Regards Digital Learning Environment Team St Scholastica’s College Glebe A reminder to students and parents to have a regular look at the Careers Website —St Scholastica’s Careers FROM THE PRINCIPAL Last Friday 10 October was World Mental Health Day. A day for global mental health education, awareness and advocacy to raise public awareness of mental health issues worldwide. Saturday was the day of the girl child and it was definitely worth celebrating when we heard that Malala Yousafzai had been awarded the Nobel Peace Prize jointly with Kailash Satyarthi “for their struggle against the suppression of children and young people and for the right of all children to education”. As a newly qualified teacher in the 70’s I was lucky enough to be selected for a position at one of only two Catholic High Schools in Edinburgh. It was a large school of 1600 students and the catchment area was wide covering the whole eastern and northern parts of the Scottish capital. It was very comprehensive in its intake and as a result we had children whose parents were academics at the university, high flying business entrepreneurs and children who came from the council housing estates, one of which had the highest murder rate in Europe. It was a baptism of fire for a young teacher who had been to a private independent convent boarding college and to Edinburgh University. Still I loved the variety and loved teaching literature to the 6th form students and helping the students who struggled with their reading and writing skills. Meantime my then husband, newly qualified like me, was a psychiatrist and working in the Royal Edinburgh hospital. As the year wore on I got to know many of the students and was coming home and listening to the stories my psychiatrist husband was telling me about his patients. Many of the adults he treated suffered from depression and he described to me their deep sadness and unhappiness and he sometimes came home looking really grey as a result of some catastrophe in the ward that day. I was then struck at school in some of the classes by children who for one reason for another were also deeply unhappy, late for school, disengaged with their classes and unable often to complete their work. I would try hard to lift their mood, to find resources which might engage them but often felt a complete failure. At dinner one evening I said to my husband, “You know some of the children I teach appear to have symptoms like your depressed patients.” He paused for a moment and considered my statement and replied, “ Well, you know, those young people probably are suffering from depression but it is not really recognised as such by the medical profession, except in very severe cases like children from war torn countries or refugees.” Today in contrast we are all aware of young people who are depressed and children as young as 6 or 7 have had to be medicated to help them overcome their deep sadness. At a Conference in the holidays Dr Michael Carr-Gregg told us that 31% of adolescents are depressed and 40% suffer from anxiety. That statistic alone is horrifying but the list of other statistics just reinforces the importance of wellbeing and resilience training with all our young people. 1 in 4 students in secondary school have a mental illness and 1 in 7 in primary school, with 75% of mental illness emerging before the young person reaches 25. Hospital figures for self harm have doubled in NSW in the last ten years. Dr Carr Gregg described the problem as a contagion in young people. His question was, “Is Resilience still a useful concept in relation to adolescents?” TERM 4 ISSUE 1 17 OCTOBER 2014 The answer of course is yes and our young people today need to learn to live life in the face of adversity. As Mary Tyler Moore said, “You can’t be brave if you have never had anything bad happen to you”. The courageous Malala Yousafzai is a case in point. Here we have a young woman who started her fight for education for the women of Pakistan at age 12 and, because of this, by fifteen she nearly lost her life in an attempted assassination. Two bullets were lodged in her brain. If anyone was going to be depressed - we could see the reason why. Instead Malala has gone from strength to strength. She is back at school and is still fighting for the right of Pakistani women and indeed all young people to be educated. Malala’s acceptance speech is worth watching on the net . Share it with your daughter and draw inspiration. The question is: what makes Malala strong, courageous and resilient in the face of adversity? The answer in part lies in the five key characteristics which make a resilient human being. Malala has these and they have helped her develop as a strong determined woman. Firstly she is passionate about education and her passion gets her out of bed in the morning. She has a great intellect but in addition also has an amazing repertoire of social and emotional skills. This is demonstrated in her unassuming, direct and humble approach to spreading her message. She always has an optimistic outlook. Despite having a bullet pass through her brain and nearly kill her, she has recovered and continues to follow her passion. Her father is obviously the adult in her life who has kept her safe, inspired her, given her confidence, listened to her and ensured that she feels valued enough to persist in pursuing her dream. She also has a strong spiritual belief which allows her to see beyond the world and its materialism. Malala is a model and exemplar for all young people and of course explicitly for young girls. However the characteristics she possesses are equally valid for every young person: passion; social and emotional intelligence; optimism; an adult who inspires, listens, gives confidence and with whom the young person feels safe; a deep sense of spirituality which goes beyond the materialism of society. It is confronting to see any young person suffering from depression but it is a fact of our modern life. What we must do is take the opportunity to skill our young people in the above characteristics so they can also see a bright and positive future. Continued over page Continued from previous page A special word and prayer too for our own HSC students who sat their first examination on Monday. Just as Malala calmly went about her normal routine and attended her English and Physics classes despite the distraction of the announcement of her extraordinary shared prize, so we pray that our Year 12 students will take courage from her example and face each exam assured of their ability to do justice to their hard work of the past two years. Louise Buckley with Bishop Peter Comensoli (then Administrator of the Archdioese of Sydney) and Dr Dan White of the CEO, on the occasion of receiving an Archbishop’s Award for Excellence recently at St Mary’s Cathedral. The HSC written exams began with English on Monday morning and VET Hospitality in the afternoon. This marks the end of a long chapter of learning in the girls’ lives and we pray a blessing today on all those put to the test during these weeks. God – send your spirit upon all those undertaking exams. We give thanks to you that their value is not based on their performance but on your great love for them. Come into their hearts so that they can walk through this time together with you. Help them, not only with this test, but the many tests of life that are sure to come their way. As they take these exams, bring back to their minds everything they have studied and be gracious with what they have overlooked. Send your spirit of focus, calm and confidence with a sure knowledge that no matter what happens, you are with them always. Professor Marie Bashir (centre) with Ms Richardson, Ms Barnett (at right) and students from St Scholastica’s at her Ecumenical Service of Thanksgiving held at St Mary’s Cathedral on 11 September 2014. APPOINTMENT OF NEW ASSISTANT PRINCIPAL, PASTORAL CARE I am pleased to announce the appointment of Ms Jennifer Petschler to the position of Assistant Principal Pastoral Care to commence in 2015. Ms Petschler, who would be known to many of you as a Coordinator of HSIE, formerly held the role of Guidance Coordinator at the College for three years, during which time she led the review and rewriting of the College’s Student Welfare Policy. She has just completed her PhD dissertation and is waiting to graduate with a PhD in Education. The College was very fortunate to have a strong field of candidates for this important position. As you know Ms Elizabeth Carnegie, the current Assistant Principal Pastoral Care, will take up the position of Principal at Stella Maris College Manly for 2015. On Sunday 21 September three of our Year 10 students pictured with Ms Alice Priest, College Chaplain, represented their fellow Schols catechists at the Annual Catechist Mass at St Mary’s Cathedral. I, who made the stars of night, I will make their darkness bright. Who will bear my light to them? Whom shall I send? ASSISTANT PRINCIPAL—PASTORAL CARE Apps increasingly popular but have inherent risks According to ACMA (Australian Communications and Media Authority- Aussie Teens Online) it is no surprise that we think our teenagers are online a lot. 82% of teenagers see the internet as very important in their lives. As of December 2013, 89% of teenagers had a mobile phone with 69% having a smartphone. Teenagers were accessing websites such as Google, Facebook, YouTube, Mi9 and Microsoft to view and upload content, engage in social networking, communicate and explore products. Apps are now an increasing part of a teen’s online experience. Twitter, Instagram, Vine, Kik (17+), Tumblr, Pheed, WhatsApp and Snapchat are the places to be. It might be worth discussing your daughter’s use of apps as a recent article (13.10.14) in www.guardian.com has suggested that videos and pictures of as many as 200 000 teenagers have been stored without permission on a third party website. Users of Snapchat have been tempted into using another site- Snapsaved.com which allows them to use the service on a website on a desktop computer. But the news article suggests that the site saved the users’ login details which make teenagers particularly vulnerable to having their images used without permission. Read the article: Snapchat videos and pictures stored - The Guardian PARTIES AND RISK-TAKING Risk Taking Behaviour As we move into the last part of the year, parents are possibly becoming more lenient with regard to parties and teens going out. As Dr Michael Carr-Gregg has suggested (Dr Michael Carr-Gregg) it is important to help young people reduce risk-taking behaviours and he suggests the following: Know your child’s personality and temperament and monitor them and their peers Keep the lines of communication open Create ground rules that are not negotiable Establish a ‘bail-out’ system for when things go wrong Encourage them to undertake safe and constructive activities At a recent Boarding College Conference Dr Carr-Gregg stated that he is concerned that today we are dealing with the most vulnerable teenage generation yet, as adolescence now starts at 10.2 years. For our girls that vulnerability continues until they reach full maturity at about 23 years of age. The incidence of mental health concerns such as depression and anxiety is on the increase, as is the number of young people self-harming. It is important that we set boundaries for our teens and handle inevitable mistakes with understanding, not anger. Carr-Gregg suggests that we look for the teachable moments, when others’ experiences can inform family discussion, such as news reports and television shows that deal with relationship issues or discuss building self-esteem in young people. The 2014 HSC English Examination included a stimulus that was an interview with Sherry Turkle, author of Alone Together, exploring the impact of new technology on our communication skills. Turkle said that having these devices constantly around means we never develop the capacity for solitude… the ability to be alone. It might be worth chatting with your daughter about developing some alone time. ‘What is so seductive about texting, about keeping the phone on….is you want to know who wants you,”… Sherry Turkle Continued over page Continued from previous page RYDA ROAD SAFETY DAY It is evident that teens need both firm guidelines and a caring hand from family and school in negotiating the teenage years. It will be an unpopular decision to take away the technology or to limit their social networks but sometimes our duties as a parent ask this of us. It is also important that we debrief difficult situations and allow opportunities for the young people in our care to suggest and negotiate tough situations, always knowing that we care about them. Attendance Update Attendance at school is now monitored using our new student database. As a result we have this week moved to update parents immediately with regard to any partial absence from school (lateness). Parents will receive an email indicating that their daughter is late and will be asked to provide a valid reason, which will be logged by the office through the email address: [email protected]. In the next weeks we will also notify parents of full day absences by email. Replies to the email will be recorded as the reason for their absence. We ask for your support in the new practice to streamline our attendance process. Elizabeth Carnegie Assistant Principal- Pastoral Care [email protected] YEAR 10 AND WORLD MENTAL HEALTH DAY Friday 10th October was World Mental Health Day a day for global mental health education, awareness and advocacy to raise public awareness of mental health issues worldwide. One in five Australians will experience a mental illness this year, almost half of us in our lifetimes. That's why every little action counts. Year 10 students marked this day at Schols by: asking students in Year 7 and 11 to practise Mental Stillness inviting students in Year 8, 9 and 10 to post a mental health promise on the www.1010.org.au website inviting students to check their mental fitness at http:// www.biteback.org.au/mental-fitness/ students were also sent an inspirational e-card that had been created by Year 10 displaying Mental Health Posters with tips on how to maintain mental wellbeing inviting students to pop in to see our College counsellor Jen to talk about mental health issues. We think the girls managed to raise awareness and we hope they brightened everyone's day with the messages from our 1000 postcards project. Year 10 students & Ms Vicki Spaulding Year 10 Guidance Coordinator [email protected] On Tuesday 14th October, all year 10 travelled out to the Sydney Tennis Centre, Homebush to participate in the RYDA Road Safety Day. The girls participated in 6 interactive sessions throughout the day including: Stopping distances, the girls had the opportunity to be passengers in a car driven by a licensed driving instructor, highlighting the impact an extra 10km/h can have; Hazards, Distractions & Risks, highlighting common crash types; Plan B: Alcohol, Drugs and Fatigue, focuses on the impact that these have on driving ability; Road Choices, a discussion led by a Police Officer on consequences of poor choices on the road; Crash Survivor, a powerful presentation by a person who has a brain or spinal injury as a result of a vehicle crash; My Wheels, students learn about vehicle safety covering ABS, car maintenance and insurance. I hope the day was a valuable educational experience as these students face the challenge of getting behind the wheel of a car as a young driver. Ms Palmer PDHPE Coordinator [email protected] Free workshop for supervisors of learner drivers Ensure your learner driver has the best possible introduction to driving; their life could depend on it! The City of Sydney aims to improve road safety with a workshop for supervisors of learner drivers. Tuesday 28 October 2014 6pm -8pm Customs House Alfred Street, Circular Quay The two hour workshop will provide pertinent practical advice regarding: Laws for learner and P-plate drivers. How to use the Learner Driver Log Book How to plan on-road driving sessions & supervise learner drivers Understanding the benefits of supervised on road driving experience Bookings are essential, please phone The City of Sydney on 9265 9333 or email [email protected] to reserve your seat. ASSISTANT PRINCIPAL—TEACHING AND LEARNING NAPLAN Year 11 Study Skills Year 7 and Year 9 parents will have received the results of their daughter’s NAPLAN tests conducted in May this year. These tests are another measure of performance however it is to be seen as a point in time result of how your daughter was performing in May on that given day. In the past fortnight I have had the opportunity to talk to Year 11 and outline the importance of starting the HSC from day 1 and not leaving it till next year. The analogy of the Harbour Bridge again highlighted the importance of setting a solid foundation early and building slowly upon it until the HSC exams start in 12 months’ time. The concept of “What am I doing for one more mark?” allows the students to focus on what they can currently do to learn better. The other motto was for the students to “Keep calm and get organised”. This was in direct response to students who are about to approach a very busy time of assessments in weeks 6 and 7 of Term 4. As in previous years the NAPLAN results provide the College with valuable information about students’ Literacy and Numeracy skills. These results are used to target students and their needs in particular areas such as Mathematics, English and Learning Support. The results are also used by the College to inform teachers about levels of Literacy and Numeracy in classes that they teach. The results below again indicate fantastic results for a College that prides itself on holistic education. Academic performance is important but there are many other aspects of the person that are important in making a quality person. The results below from NAPLAN 2014 show improvements in the upper bands with at least one third of results in Year 9 being in the top two bands. The percentage of Year 9 College students in the bottom two bands is well below the State average. Great results for hard work offered by all including staff and students. YEAR 9 Year 11 also undertook a study skills lecture which focussed on goal setting and planning. This session was designed to alleviate any stresses and pressures and to enable them to be prepared for upcoming tasks. Please take the time to support your daughter so we can maximise their HSC together. Band 5 % Band 6 % Band 7 % Band 8 % Band 9 % Band 10 % Grammar/Punctuation State School 10.5 2.9 19.1 8.7 26.2 18.5 19.9 26 16.7 33.5 7.5 10.4 Scholsfest Spelling State School State 7.6 1.7 14.3 11.5 6.4 20.2 25.9 23.1 21.6 28.5 32.4 22.7 14.3 22.5 9.7 12.2 13.9 6.5 School State School 3.5 7.5 0.6 13.4 15.6 8.1 18 23.3 12.7 31.4 26.4 24.9 22.7 19.3 35.8 11 7.9 17.9 State School 2.9 0.6 17.2 8.3 26 24.3 24.6 37.9 15.1 32 14.1 10.1 I look forward to meeting parents on Saturday night at the outdoor cinema but more importantly it is a great opportunity to meet our young moviemakers. I am sure the quality will be as high as last year. Scholsfest provides an opportunity for students to create and learn together. State Band 4 % 6.2 Band 5 % 15.4 Band 6 % 17.5 Band 7 % 27.3 Band 8 % 18.7 Band 9 % 14.9 School 2.8 5.1 15.9 30.7 25.6 19.9 State 5.4 11.2 18.9 26.3 23.4 14.7 Writing Reading Numeracy YEAR 7 Grammar/Punctuation Spelling School 1.1 4.0 21 25.6 29.5 18.8 Writing State School 8.6 1.1 23.0 9.1 28.5 27.3 21.1 31.8 13.9 22.7 4.9 8.0 Reading State 3.5 12.8 25.1 27.2 18.5 12.9 School 0.6 4.5 17 30.1 27.3 20.5 State 2.8 15 26.2 24.5 16.6 14.8 School 1.2 13 20.8 34.1 26.6 9.8 Numeracy Year 7 and 11 Parent Teacher Night Last Monday the College held parent teacher evening for Year 11 and Year 7 parents. It was pleasing to see such a large turnout of parents taking an active role in their daughters’ education in what turned out to be wild weather. If you were unable to make the night please contact your year coordinator for a progress report for your daughter with a view to getting positive feedback for the remainder of the year and good ideas to start 2015. 2015 Calendar Currently the College is working on the detail of the 2015 calendar. The term dates for the College are on the College website and can be easily accessed under ‘Calendar’. MESSAGE FROM THE DIGITAL LEARNING ENVIRONMENT TEAM Parents of students currently in Years 8 and 9—please ensure you read the message at the front of this newsletter about Toshiba notebooks and possible use of BYOD for 2015 . Adrian Eussen Assistant Principal – Teaching and Learning [email protected] TEACHING AND LEARNING—AN ACTIVE AND CREATIVE COMMUNITY OF LEARNERS VISUAL ARTS NEWS Welcome back to Term 4. Congratulations to Year 11 students: Isabella Irwin-Bacon Nikola Ma and Jessica Ram who successfully completed their HSC Intensive Studio Practice course at the National Art School during the last holidays. This course gave selected students the opportunity to develop skills under the guidance of practising artists. The Head of Academic Studies at the NAS, Simon Cooper, '(saluted the) ambition, enterprise and commitment of the students' and congratulated them on their achievements over the two week studio based course. Isabella Irwin-Bacon with her paintings completed during the National Art School HSC Intensive Studio Workshop Nikola Ma with her Ceramics piece developed at the NAS Studio Practice Course. Well done to those students who have submitted works into the SCHOLARCHIE PRIZE competition. We have some great entries already. Due to Ms Armstrong being on leave until Week 5, there is still time to get an entry in. Go to http://bit.ly/1pJoGWt or see a Visual Arts teacher for more details. Ms Vicki Armstrong Visual Arts Coordinator [email protected] On Sunday there was a marvellous performance by Carmen Lia at the National All Styles State Titles. Carmen easily secured the NSW State Title for her division of 10 th - 6th Kyu Female point sparring. th Carmen was invited to compete in the 5 Kyu to Black belt open grade point fighting. Carmen fought valiantly against a Black Belt opponent holding her own and was defeated by only 3 points. Carmen then competed in the 12-14yrs open grade continuous fighting, defeating a Black belt opponent in the first round. Carmen went on to an amazing fight for third place where she was narrowly defeated by a much taller and more experienced opponent coming 4 th in the NSW State division overall. Carmen was congratulated on her performance by 7 Judges, and spectators alike - in particular a female instructor from another school commented that Carmen “was absolutely amazing and held her own against much more experienced competitors. You should be really proud of the way you fought today.” We are incredibly proud of Carmen's performance and she is to be congratulated for her diligence and commitment. We remind all girls that the Tournament team is recruiting for the 2015 season, all styles and levels welcome. Shihan Scott Brailey Schols Tournament Coach Jessica Ram with her NAS workshop artworks SCIENCE NEWS Sydney University Gifted and Talented Qualifying Exam MUSIC NEWS ENCORE NOMINATIONS Congratulations to our HSC Music students: Tara Down and Bridgitt Ryan who have been nominated for the prestigious ENCORE concert! This annual event that is held in the Sydney Opera House designed to showcase exemplary HSC Music students. Tara and Bridgitt both studied Music 1 course and are talented singers in musical theatre and classical repertoires, respectively. We thank their teachers and tutors who have worked extremely hard to help them achieve this outstanding result: Ms McNeill, Ms Fried, Ms Karen Buck and Ms Konelia Perchy. Instrumental Music Scholars Concert The aim of the Sydney university Gifted and Talented Discovery Program is to provide gifted, enthusiastic Science students with the opportunity to be challenged through hands-on experiments, interactive lectures and interactive demonstrations . The program will run during the July school holiday period for three days. Students are challenged in the areas of biology, chemistry and physics. Students need to sit the Gifted and Talented Discovery Program Qualifying Exam to qualify for the program. In 2014, the College introduced the Endangered Instrument Program where selected Year 7 and Year 8 students received instrument tuition scholarships on instruments such as the cello and the brass. This program helped our young musicians to pursue their musical learning as well as keeping our orchestra in good balance in parts. On October 14, we had a lunch time concert that showcased those students' talents. Congratulations to the following students who performed at the concert, and thank you to all the students, parents and teachers, and in particular to our new principal, Mrs Rayment, for coming to the concert. Students in Years 8 and 9 this year are eligible to sit the exam in November. The top 10-15% of students are then invited to attend this competitive program. If you wish to nominate for the qualifying exam, please email Ms Julian at [email protected] with your name, name of your science teacher and year of your science class by Thursday 23nd October. For more information, please go to http:// sydney.edu.au/science/outreach/gifted BE PART OF THE SOLUTION Environment Group meets at lunchtime Friday Week B in S2 Year 7: Meg Bell, Sabine Hattersley, Hannah O'Connell, Francesca Nikolic Year 8: Olivia Cakarun, Tara O'Keefe, Julia Nadalini Year 11: Emily Brady, Phoebe Bognar, Isabelle Turpin If you are a Year 7 or Year 8 student who is interested in taking violin, viola, cello or any brass instrument lessons, you might be eligible to apply for a scholarship in 2015. Please contact Ms Miao for further information [email protected] Coming up Music Concerts: Thursday 23rd October: Woodwind and Brass Soiree, 6.15pm in TFC Studios Saturday 25th October: Piano Soiree, 2pm in Drama Theatre Updates on Term 4 music ensemble rehearsals: Jazz Band and College Band now have combined rehearsals on Monday morning 7.45 am in J19. This will remain the same for the rest of the year. Ms Julian Assistant Science Coordinator [email protected] Students in Orchestra, Stravinsky Strings and College Choir: 100% rehearsal attendance is expected in preparing the repertoires towards the Speech Night. If you have more than one unexplained absence, you will not be able to perform at this event. Ms Cindy Miao Music Coordinator [email protected] PARENTS & FRIENDS NEWS Attendance Update— Reminder of new arrangement SEE ‘FROZEN’ AT SCHOLSFEST ON SATURDAY AT 6.30PM Attendance at school is now monitored using our new student database. As a result we have this week moved to update parents immediately with regard to any partial absence from school (lateness). Parents will receive an email indicating that their daughter is late and will be asked to provide a valid reason, which will be logged by the office through the email address: [email protected]. In the next weeks we will also notify parents of full day absences by email. Replies to the email will be recorded as the reason for their absence. We ask for your support in the new practice to streamline our attendance process. Please ensure you book for this great night out at Schols. See the flyer on our website for details and don’t forget to rug up if it’s a little wintry. The pizzas will be piping hot! Bookings available at: http://www.trybooking.com/FYFL http://www.trybooking.com/104245 Don’t miss the chance to see the fabulous creative efforts of our students on some great short video films to be judged on the night. The girls have been asked to develop a film based on one of our College’s Benedictine values. Christmas Raffle - will start selling at Movie Night and will then be sent home with the girls after Monday. To be drawn on Friday 21 November. All funds raised to support the Drama Department. Keep the date free P&F End of Year/Christmas Drinks Friday 21 November at the Harold Park Hotel raffle to be drawn that night. Estee Lauder Corporate Store Shopping Event to be confirmed We hope to be running this popular event over two nights just in time for your Christmas shopping. SAVE THE DATES Thursday 27th of November and Tuesday 2nd of December. Ticket holders will have the opportunity to purchase at staff prices. 60% off retail. Brands include Estee Lauder, Clinique, Bobbi Brown, DKNY, Aveda and of course MAC just to name a few. Tell your friends and family to save the dates and watch future newsletters and/or emails for the flyer with booking details. Charles Bailey, P & F President [email protected] [email protected] Do you know someone who may be interested in learning more about the Good Samaritan Sisters? A “no obligation” weekend from the evening of 28 November to 30 November might be of interest! Contact: Srs.Bernadette Corboy or Catherine McCahill for information: [email protected] or [email protected] Jujitsu At Schols... and Glebe Public School A lot of Schols parents ask me about little kids classes in Jujitsu. I want to let parents know that there are classes at : Glebe Public School on Thursdays 4 - 6pm for kids 3 - 12 years old The classes are grouped according to age and taught by myself AND some of our Schols Jujitsu girls!!! We have so many helping out I have had to make a roster! We play lots of games while learning self defence and self control. Most importantly we will do "Manners for the Modern Warrior" level 1 as part of the term starting next Thursday October 16 and running for 8 weeks. It’s a great introduction to Jujitsu and a great way to ensure good manners over Christmas. Remember Jujitsu is GREAT for girls AND boys. Call Rose on 0413376356 to book your place. Rosemary Smith, Principal Hoshin Jujitsu Australia Modern Warriors developing happy, confident kids across Australia! Interested in reading The Good Oil, the free, monthly e-magazine of the Good Samaritan Sisters? The Good Oil aims to nourish the spirit, stimulate thinking and encourage reflection and dialogue about issues of the day from a Christian, Catholic, Good Samaritan perspective. Visit www.goodsams.org.au to read it online or to subscribe. 2014 City of Sydney Peace Prize Lecture and Award Ceremony celebrating JULIAN BURNSIDE AO QC Wednesday 5th November, 6pm for 6.30pm start, SYDNEY TOWN HALL Julian Burnside AO QC is one of Australia’s most respected and celebrated barristers and human rights advocates. The Peace Prize Lecture and Award Ceremony have a 6pm for 6.30pm start at Sydney Town Hall. Rt Hon Malcolm Fraser AC CH GCL will present Julian Burnside AO QC with the 2014 Sydney Peace Prize. The Sydney Peace Prize Gala Reception will start at 7.45pm, directly following the Ceremony and Lecture. More information is attached, below and on the Sydney Peace Foundation’s website: http://sydneypeacefoundation.org.au/peace-prize-recipients/2014-julian-burnside-ao-qc/ Tickets to the City of Sydney Peace Prize Lecture and Award Ceremony ($30/$15), and the Sydney Peace Prize Gala Reception ($180/$150) are available online: http://tinyurl.com/SPPtickets2014.
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