St Andrews College Marayong eNewsletter Term 1 Week 10

Congratulations to the many students in our community who continually strive to do their best. As you know, we can only be asked to do our best, but it is essential that we keep reflecting on ways of improving. We all must take the time to evaluate what we have achieved to plan a successful way forward.

Thank you to our wonderful families for the invaluable support you offer our students and staff. Your words of encouragement and the time you take to listen to everyday challenges make an incredible difference.

As we now move into our Easter break, I would like to finish this term with the voices of the new staff for 2022. They were asked …

"What have you found special/memorable about joining the St Andrews community?"

Thank you for your continued support

Patrick Finnerty
Assistant Principal – Systems, Data and Professional Learning

FEEDBACK TO PARENTS VIA COMPASS

Consistent feedback to parents about the learning of your child is a fundamental cornerstone in building relational trust between all members of the St Andrews College community. As a community of learners, parents will be provided with ongoing feedback about their child’s progress from each of their classroom teachers.

What feedback can parents expect to receive from their child’s classroom teacher?

There are several ways in which parents will receive communication about how their child is progressing in each of their subjects at St Andrews College. This is an ongoing form of feedback about your child’s learning as they progress through Years 7 to Year 12. Both the parent and child will receive continuous informal and formal feedback at various times of the term. This is in line with our challenge to all learners at the College that everything they do, in class, in examinations, in their formal and informal assessment tasks, contributes towards their final result at the end of each semester – everything counts.

Formal Feedback:

Students and parents are notified of the times when formal feedback will occur. The first instance of this is the assessment handbook which is posted on each year group’s learning site. The assessment plan for each subject outlines the date or week the task will occur during the year. It will also provide the type of task, type of submission and the weighting of the task. These tasks contribute to the final grade awarded for your child’s achievement in that subject in Years 7-11.

Feedback from these tasks is provided to both the parent and student through Compass and will be in the form of a mark or a grade. Parents will be provided with the notification, marking criteria and marker feedback for the task. Parents can then discuss these results with their child and review the student’s submission of the task and individual feedback received from the marker. We encourage parents to contact the child’s teacher if they need further clarification about the feedback or the result the student achieved for the task.

Informal Feedback:

At St Andrews College students receive informal feedback in every lesson. Informal feedback can be written or verbal and relates directly to the classwork or home learning completed by the student.

Feedback on your child’s ongoing learning in class

Our College continues to communicate informal feedback to students and parents using the Steps in Learning. The Steps in learning provide insight into the student’s progress during or at the end of a learning experience, or at any time in the term where the teacher would like to share the student’s progress with their parents or guardians. Informal tasks are usually marked using comments, marks or grades and also contribute to the final grade awarded for your child’s achievement in that subject for Year 7 to Year 11.

Ms Josilin Kalifa
Assistant Principal Teaching, Learning and Wellbeing

It has been a fantastic first term, with many activities happening across the College. Congratulations to the students who took up the various Wellbeing opportunities on offer, and to our Student Leaders for leading them - such as our Character Strength Weeks (Gratitude Week & Curiosity Week). There will be two more Character Strength Weeks next term - Teamwork Week and Love of Learning. It is also wonderful to see the SRC Portfolios working so well - such as the Publicity Portfolio who have written articles for the past two Newsletters. 

House Cup

It’s great to be able to have our parents share in our Assemblies again. It was a pleasure to present & acknowledge Principal Award winners at this morning’s Assembly on the Junior Campus. Quite a few students are eligible for Principal’s Awards now, and these will be presented to students next term. 

The points update for the 2022 House Cup Competition for this week is:

Bennelong: 14, 585

Chang: 17, 140

Frances: 16, 715

Gould: 19, 975

Keep up the great work!

Mrs Sue Cooper
Leader of Wellbeing and Learning

Resilience

Resilience is directly related to wellbeing; it is about having the ability to cope with and adapt to new situations. Being resilient and positive, with a sense of wellbeing, enables a person to approach other people and situations with confidence and optimism. This mindset is especially important for adolescents, given the enormous changes and challenges they face throughout adolescence.

Why is resilience important?

Adolescents experience a tremendous amount of physical and mental growth on a daily basis. Between school, co-curricular activities, work and their social life, teens face lots of new experiences and challenges. Being resilient gives them the ability to tackle these head-on, bounce back from any setbacks and have the best chance at succeeding. It allows them to learn and grow in all situations – two skills that are crucial to wellbeing and development. Resilience will also help them to approach new situations, people or experiences with confidence and a positive mindset, which will make them more likely to succeed.

Growth mindset

A mindset is the sum of the various beliefs people hold about themselves. These self-perceptions determine their behaviour, outlook and mental attitude. For example, people may believe that they are either ‘intelligent’ or ‘unintelligent’. Developing a growth mindset is essential in building students’ personal and social capabilities, including self-awareness and self-management.

Adolescents need to be taught that failure can be a precursor to success and is a necessary component of learning. The only way to succeed with tasks, assignments and exams, in physical activities such as sport, and in life in general is through perseverance and persistence, and by embracing and learning from failure. This is a growth mindset and a key aspect of developing resilience.

Bouncing back from adversity

Resilience is defined as the ability to bounce back from adversity. It is a necessary skill for coping with the ups and downs of life and one of the key ingredients of success. A number of things impact a person’s resilience, including their previous experiences, their sense of self, the coping strategies they have developed over time and their mindset.

By helping adolescents to develop the skills to build resilience and a growth mindset, we can minimise the effects of negative, stressful situations. These skills allow adolescents to face challenges, learn from them, and develop ways to live a happy and healthy life.

Mrs Andrea Utoikamanu
Leader of Wellbeing and Learning - Junior Campus
Leader of Wellbeing - Year 10

I would like to thank Year 10 and for all of their hard work throughout the term. It has been so wonderful to see the students getting involved in a variety of school initiatives and activities that include the Writing Competition, the Art Competitions, The Jazz and Rock Music Night, Athletics, Cross Country, Public Speaking, Project Compassion and Stations of the Cross and more.

Well done to Frienczel Espino for winning the Writing Competition for the Month of March. 

I would like to congratulate Marley Kozak, Holly McLoughlin, Ava Mulroney and Brooke Robinson for their wonderful efforts in the Diving Competition. Marley Kozak placed 2nd and Holly McLoughlin placed 3rd on Wednesday at the NSW CCC Diving Event and both girls will go on to represent the College and the NSW CCC at the NSW All Schools Diving Championships in June.

I would also like to thank our wonderful Year 10 Learning Advisors for all of their support during Term 1. Their care and commitment to our Year 10 students is admirable and I look forward to working with them all for the remainder of the year. Thank you to the following teachers:

Please see below for some of the wonderful work Year 10 have been doing in their Learning Groups:

Recently in Mrs Kemal's Learning Group, 10F8, students have been discussing aspiring careers and interests in possible pathways in achieving our goals. Students in F8 were asked “What is your dream career?” and a vast range of professions were listed. 

Mrs Kemal took this list, researched these professions/careers providing information in regards to overview, role responsibilities, prerequisites, how to enrol and QR codes for students to interact with. This information was then arranged on the back notification board of F8 for all to engage with. 

For some in the Learning Group this question - “What is your dream career?” was quite confronting and sparked conversation. To facilitate direction, a large QR Code in the centre of the career wall directed the students to a quick career assessment which asks the student questions in relation to their personality, character strengths and interests. This then linked the students to a list of careers which reflected their responses the best. 

― Mrs Shandel Kemal, Learning Group F8

For Project Compassion 10C10 raised funds through an Easter Raffle. Prizes that were up for grabs included - a rebel gift card, playstation gift card, a hoyts gift card and easter eggs just to name a few.

In total we raised just a bit over $80. Thank you to all those who donated. Your donation has gone to a good cause and we are looking forward to next year! ― Mr Giancarlo Ison, Learning Group C10 

Mrs Andrea Utoikamanu
Leader of Wellbeing and Learning - Junior Campus
Leader of Wellbeing - Year 10

Hello everyone, 

Congratulations on completing Term 1 of 2022. I don’t know about you but I felt as though this term was quite difficult. Everyone is trying to get back into the rhythm of school, the workload, expectations and responsibilities. But everyone in year 9 did the best they could this term and you should be proud of how you started the year. However, we have three more terms this year and everyone needs improvement in some way. 

Some things that you could improve on next term:

• Seeking feedback from your teachers to improve writing skills
• Attendance
• Lateness
• Receiving merits
• Attitude towards learning - not giving up, trying your best
• Doing something for the community and others - helping with school work, picking up rubbish, etc
• No uniform infringements
• No lunch or afternoon detentions

We want to make sure we are continually improving everything about ourselves during our time at St Andrews. Let’s make sure that we set ourselves some goals to make sure we can be the version of ourselves. 

I hope you guys have a restful and enjoyable 2 week break. 

Kharl Carlos

Leader of Wellbeing Year 9

Dear Parents/Carers, 

What a wonderful term year 8 has had! Year 8 have settled back into schooling life and have had a successful term 1. 

Wellbeing Lessons 

During our Wellbeing lessons this term, students have had the opportunity to learn about their character strengths and how students will use their character strengths in their learning and life. Students set goals for the term or semester. Students set goals around building skills, connecting with others and a personal goal. Students have worked on their social intelligence skills focusing on empathy and respect in order to form positive relationships. 

Learning Group Leaders 

This term we elected Learning Group Leaders for each Learning Group. 

Congratulations to all students selected for the role of Learning Group Leader. These students will assist their Learning Advisors for semester one. 

B3 - Archisha Thumma, Zac Saliba

B7- Jerome Chin, Monica Luong

C1- Taufui Afu, Jesse Scott 

C3 - Ruby Ison, James Ilagan

F1 - Ethan Escador, Thon Malual

F2 - Sebastian Tomas, Rowena Kubik

G5 - Amelia Korczowski, Gian Portelli

G16 - Ana Donjerkovic, Kaydence Wells

Student Achievements 

Year 8 has been fortunate enough to have some amazing opportunities. Students from Year 8 have been involved in Representative Sport including Volleyball and Basketball, NSWCCC Diving Competitions, Dance, Swimming and Cross Country. 

Students have participated in CSDA Public Speaking Competition and Project Compassion fundraising activities. Well done to all students involved.  

Term 2 Uniform 

Term 2 is winter uniform. 

Girls - Black or navy stockings, short sleeve blouse, blazer (compulsory), school jumper and long pants (optional) 

Boys - Black or taupe socks, taupe trousers with a black belt, short sleeve shirt tucked in, boys school tie, blazer (compulsory), school jumper (optional)

I hope you have a restful break and return to school to have an even more enjoyable and successful term 2. 

Alicia Harwood 
Leader of Wellbeing Year 8

As we reach the end of Term 1 and the Easter holidays, we can look back on a very successful term and transition for Year 7. Students and staff have been involved in a wide range of events and activities, and we have enjoyed and celebrated many successes. 

Through 2022, we will continue to emphasise to all students the need to do their best, care for one another and concentrate on their learning, making the college a place which has a unique and dynamic learning experience. The Year 7 students have been working hard this term to ensure they are achieving their best, the result of their work is visible in what they produce and in the extent of their participation in school activities.

However, many students have been struggling with the increased workload that is attached to high school life. It is important that students quickly get themselves into a routine of study and home learning to ensure they are able to achieve their best. During our Wellbeing lessons we have been working on the concepts of organisation and the importance of structure around home learning. 

This term break could provide a fantastic opportunity for the conversation between parents and students to take place around the expectations and workload of highschool and provide students with time to create a clear plan around how they will tackle the remainder of the year. 

The following organisations provide resources and information around these ideas and would be a great starting point for starting the conversation:

• Kidshealth.org
• Youth Central
• Matrix Education
• Student Tutor

Peer Support

The Year 10 Peer Support Leaders and their Assistants have run the Peer Support Program with our Year 7 students. Peer Support was a huge success – and a big thank you and congratulations must go to our Year 10 Peer Support Leaders and their Assistants. They have done a tremendous job helping our new Year 7 students settle in – going out of their way to take them to classrooms, answer all their questions and just giving them a few tips on how to cope with homework and high school in general.

Although Peer Support only runs during Term 1, I’m sure the friendships and bonds that were formed during Peer Support will continue throughout the year. Well done Year 7 and your Peer Support Leaders!

School Uniform 

A reminder that Term 2 is full Winter Uniform. This means that the following is required by all students:

• Girls - Black or navy stockings, short sleeve blouse, blazer (compulsory), school jumper and long pants (optional) 
• Boys - Black or taupe socks, taupe trousers with a black belt, short sleeve shirt tucked in, boys school tie, blazer (compulsory), school jumper (optional)

Wishing you all a very happy Easter and a restful break. Looking forward to the rest of the year ahead with Year 7.  

Jarryd Leaves
Leader of Learning Year 7

College Cross Country

Amongst all of the rain, we were recently incredibly lucky to hold our College Cross Country. Thank you to the 40 students who ran this as competitors. Congratulations to those students who qualified for the PDSSSC Carnival in Week 3 of Term 2. We wish you all the very best and hope that you will be training hard for this event during the school holidays!

Our next and final College carnival for the year is the Athletics Carnival in Term 2. This is held on school grounds on Friday 10th June and further details about this wonderful day are to come next term.

Student sporting success

Brooke Robinson (of year 10) recently competed a the NSW state Gymnastics championships. Brooke competed across 3 state competitions and finished in the top 8 for NSW at Level 9 which successfully earned her a place in the NSW state team.

Brooke will compete at the Australian gymnastics championships on the 19-25 May on the Gold Coast. Congratulations Brooke!! We look forward to following your successes!

Hailey Targarona (of year 12) recently trialled for the PDSSSC Open Girls Netball team and was successful in being selected for the first round of the selections. Hailey will now attend some further training/trial sessions in the hope of being selected for the NSWCCC Netball team. This is the first time EVER that the Parramatta Diocese has a Netball team compete at the pathway competition which is very exciting. We wish you all the best, Hailey!

Julio and Dominic Tatupu (both of year 10) recently competed at the Australian Track & Field Championships.

Both Dom and Julio competed in three events each over the last 2 weeks at Nationals and achieved remarkable results. 

U15s Hammer - Julio placed 2nd and Dom 6th

U15s Shot Put - Dom placed 4th missing podium by 9cm

U15s Discus - Dom placed 14th and Julio placed 18th

U17s Hammer - Julio competed up from his age group and placed 6th.

Little Athletics State Championships

U14s - Shot put - Dom 5th and Julio 6th

U14s - Discus - Julio 7th and Dom 10th

Congratulations and well done, Julio and Dom.

Esther Peter (of year 10) also competed in the 400m event, finishing 6th in her heat. Congratulations to you, Esther!

Thursday Representative sport

Mr Carlos’ Open boys basketball team played their semi-final against St Patricks, unfortunately losing 36-29. Well done to the boys on an exceptional season and thank you to Mr Carlos for his work preparing and training the team this season. 

Thank you also to Mr Wills for his assistance and support of the team at their semi-final in Mr Carlos’ absence.

Our junior and intermediate boys basketball teams are playing their semi-final this week! The junior boys are currently first on the competition ladder.

Thank you to Mr Alata, Mr Fellows and Mr Cetinic for your coaching, encouragement and support of these teams throughout the season.

Due to the ongoing rain, our representative volleyball season has sadly come to an end. This was very disappointing news for our coaches and students who were so committed to training and improving their skills. We look forward to a better season (with hopefully less rain) early in 2023.

Season 2 will begin mid way through Term 2 and sports on offer include girls Netball and boys and girls Football (Soccer).

Trials will take place in Week 2 during Thursday sport with information being posted on Compass for students to express their interest in trialling for a team.

Just a reminder that students in representative teams are likely to return to the College after the normal 2.45pm departure and afternoon buses so students must ensure that they have transport home on a Thursday afternoon.

Congratulations to our Diving team, led by the very experienced Mrs Weaver who competed at the NSWCCC Diving competition this week. 

The students below were medal winners who will be progressing to the All Schools Carnival in June.

2 yr Girls

Chelise Fernandez 1st

12 yr Boys

Xavier Borg 1st

13 yr Girls

Ruby Scicluna 2nd

Jessica Waligora 4th (only missed 3rd place by 4 points)

Amelia Seymon 5th

14 yr Girls

Lara Kearns 6th

Amelia Manks 7th

14 yr Boys

Gabriel Narayan 2nd

15 yr Girls

Brooke Robinson 6th (there were only 16 points between 1st and 6th. It was the toughest age group of the day)

16 yr Girls

Marley Kozak 2nd

Holly McLoughlin 3rd

Ava Mulroney 4th

Jade Kember 5th (Jade beat 6th place by over 40 points)

Congratulations to the team on a wonderful day and we wish all the students the very best of luck who have been successful in progressing to the All Schools Diving Championships in June (Chelise, Xavier, Ruby, Gabriel, Marley, and Holly). Thank you to Mrs Weaver for her hard work in preparing these students for the competition and to Mrs Borg who accompanied the team as the manager on the day.

Despite a lot of rain this term and many disappointing washouts for representative sport at a school, Diocesan and state level, our St Andrews community have experienced many successes this term.I look forward to sharing and celebrating more successes with our community in Term 2.

Have a safe holiday break.

Kayla Brogan
Leader of Learning Sport

Operation Art

Year 9 Visual Arts - The Archibald Prize

After researching a number of influencing artists and preparing a list of insightful interview questions for their chosen sitters; Year 9 Visual Arts students worked diligently in their Visual Arts Process Diaries in order to plan their artwork. They were issued with their canvas last week and for many of our students, this is their first time working with a canvas. In order to mimic the Archibald Prize, students are asked to meet with their chosen sitter or conduct their interviews using technology such as Facetime or Zoom. Students were asked to select a person who is inspirational to them in real life. The completed artworks will be presented in our inaugural St Andrews Archibald Prize. Watch this space!

Mrs Harris - Leader of Learning Visual Arts

Year 7 Pop Art Food Sculptures

In addition to the Pop Art colour food artworks, students were challenged to transform their 2D artwork into a 3D sculpture using Paper Mache. Year 7 worked collaboratively in groups to construct their sculptures using artist Claes Oldenburg as inspiration, enlarging popular foods through constructing soft sculptures. Students chose 1 2D food artwork drawn in their previous task to enlarge using sculpture skills & techniques such as constructing an armature (framework within sculpture providing structure and stability), manipulating medium and applying paste to create their unique structured form. 

Year 7 Pop Art Food Colour Pencil Artworks 

Since our work in progress update in our previous newsletter article, students have utilised various skills such as; blending of hues, tonal variation and burnishing when applying their colour to their realistic food artwork. We commend our students for their application of skills in composing their own reference shots, transferring practice, reflecting upon their weaknesses and building upon their strengths in order to grow their technical skills beyond their personal bests. Well done Year 7!

Year 8 Cubism Artworks

Year 8 artists have recently started working on their next assessment task - Cubism Artwork. Students were to choose to fragment a childhood character or an instrument of their choice. We investigated the purpose, character and form of their selected subject before drawing drafts for us to choose from. Students have just begun to enlarge their chosen draft piece onto a surface of their choice (fine art paper or canvas) using a medium of their choice (oil pastel, watercolour, colour pencil or acrylic paint). Stay tuned for their end results.

Year 10 Suburbia: BOW Proposals & Work in Progress 

Year 10 Visual Art students have been working on Body of Work Proposals to individually depict themes of Suburbia within their series. This included in-depth research on their chosen material and conceptual practice as well as elaborate annotated drafts and evaluations looking at the relationships between their artworks, audience and the world around them. These artists have recently begun the artmaking process based on their proposals submitted considering constructive feedback from their teacher.

Artist works in progress:

Mrs Kemal - Visual Arts Teacher

Year 11 & 12 Art Gallery of NSW Excursion 

Year 11 & 12 students visited the Art Gallery of NSW on Friday 1st April to view and admire works selected in the ARTEXPRESS 2022. 

The annual ArtExpress exhibition showcases a range of the outstanding Body of Works from the Visual Arts HSC course. The Body of Work is worth 50% of the HSC course. A range of conceptual ideas are explored through different chosen mediums, suited to students’ artmaking intention. 

It was a wonderful experience for our Stage 6 students to explore the range of works from last year’s HSC. Students had the opportunity to view the various artworks as well as participate in dialogue and discussion with their class teachers and peers. 

Keep your eyes peeled for events such as HSC ‘Works in Progress’ Night - Term 2, Week 6. This WIP night will provide the audience with an insight behind the scenes of an artist in practice. We look forward to sharing the finished artworks from our Stage 6 students later this year.

Mrs Harris and Mrs Kemal

Origami Club News

Origami Club is back in G5 every Wednesday lunch. Origami club returned in Week 8 of this term. We have been focusing on making Easter Origami in the last couple of weeks. Have a look at these cute rabbits! There is even a little pocket for you to put your easter egg in. Kawaii desu ne (It’s cute, isn’t it?)

Year 8 Japanese

Year 8 Japanese ended the term presenting information on major cities in Japan that they had researched collaboratively in class. The students had to research three major cities in Japan and include information about its geography, population, interesting places to visit and specialty foods. They had to analyse which city would be the best to visit in comparison to the other cities that they had researched.

Thon Malual & Joshua Tjhen (8LOTE4)

Josephine Juwa & Sofia Manalac (8LOTE4)

Claudia Fuimaono, Heidi Kam, Hayley Donovan & Catalina Gutierrez (8LOTE4)

Marcus Suarez, Dev Vyas & Seth Dela Torre (8LOTE6)

Year 9 Japanese

In Year 9 Japanese, we have been learning new katakana and new kanji alongside learning how to pronounce each character. We have also learnt how to ask and respond to multiple different questions such as facts about family, where we come from, where we live and our nationality.

Our class has been learning through various teaching methods including Quizlet, Kahoot, workbook activities, surprise quizzes and slideshows

Elyscia Mary Barret, Miyaka Abellar, Dean Hussain & Sean Park

Our class has finished off this term with a fun origami activity to celebrate Easter. This has been an enjoyable experience with our sensei (teacher) and we look forward to the next term of Japanese class.

 

The students have also learnt how to use a genkouyoushi and have written a detailed description of their family whilst following the genkouyoushi rules.

Leila Kefu & Elyscia Barret

Sharlene SanPedro & Miyaka Abellar

Written by Leila Kefu & Elyscia Barret (9JA1)

Year 10 Japanese

This is the third year we will be taking Japanese as a subject and it was a great decision. Doing Japanese in Year 10 is both a challenge and a fun experience, especially learning about all the different scripts, sentence structures and vocabulary. 

This term we looked at time, invitations, and different types of housing in Japan. We also hope to personally view traditional housing, as well as use these items we have learnt in casual conversations. Throughout the years, we have gained a lot of knowledge on Japanese lifestyles and culture, and would soon hope to use what we have learnt in various situations.

 - Jeremy Delfino, 10JA1 and Cate Astillo, 10JA2

Events around Sydney 

Hello Kitty Town 

Do you love Hello Kitty and other Sanrio characters? Don’t miss out on Hello Kitty Town at Darling Square in the city. This special event is only until April 29.

Check the website for more information. https://www.darlingsq.com/hellokittytown/

During term 1 the Learning Centre has been a growing hub of collaboration and academic growth.

Increasing numbers of students have been attending afternoon Learning Centre sessions to utilise the facilities, teacher expertise and the resources available. 

Typically students work independently or with peers to complete home learning tasks, work on assessment tasks, prepare for exams and take the opportunity to study course content. Teachers from a variety of KLAs are available to assist students with their learning needs.

Some students have scheduled Learning Centre lessons as a part of their weekly timetable. 

Any senior student can opt to attend Learning Centre before school, during their break times or after school (Tuesdays and Wednesdays).

This term Learning Centre participants have: 

• grown in their knowledge and understanding of study theory through 1:1 instruction and mini lectures
• set themselves study goals to achieve by the end of term 1 
• worked diligently in dedicated study lessons and have seen the advantages of seeking teacher feedback and value of purposeful collaboration with peers 
• benefited from support and accountability in order to achieve their goals
• increased their participation in after school study sessions

All senior students are encouraged to ‘Do more and go beyond’ by attending Learning Centre and applying the effective study practises that are promoted by the College.  

The Learning Centre is open before school, every lesson, recess and lunch times as well as after school on Tuesdays and Wednesdays (5pm close).

Mrs Bradford
Study Facilitator

Curiosity Week

Curiosity Week was a huge success as students from both the Junior and Senior SRC came up with fun and exciting activities that engaged students to participate in. There was also

a day when the students were able to come to school with anything but a bag. Lawnmowers, shopping carts and rubbish bins, anything that was safe and appropriate, were allowed to be used as a bag by students. This allowed the students to not only show their curiosity and creativity, it also allowed students to get together and have a laugh at the crazy ideas that came to life! Curiosity Week was a week where students could show off their creativity and curiosity, as well as make new friends, making memories and sharing a laugh with others!

Travis, Year 10

Anything But A Bag!

As part of our activities for Curiosity Week, the school participated in the challenge of bringing anything but a bag to school. This allowed the students to use their creativity, as well as making them curious as to what to bring. Many students participated in the challenge, including both the Juniors and Seniors, as they showed their inventiveness and amazed us with what they’ve been able to come up with. Numerous people had many eye-catching ‘bags’ that they brought to school, giving us a surprise. A generous amount went outside the box, bringing in Lawn Mowers, Shoe Boxes, Prams, Microwaves and even a KFC Bucket! The day was filled with amounts of laughter and joy, being able to witness the clever ways of replacing a bag with an alternative.

Irish, Year 9

Curiosity Week

From the 21st of March to the 25th of March 2022, St Andrews College, both Senior and Junior campuses, celebrated Curiosity Week, in order to help enhance our character strength of curiosity. An activity was posted each day for us to complete. The list included: Researching the meaning of our name, Learning Group fun debates, Wordle sites, Riddle and word search and to finish off the week a Personality test and ‘Anything But a Bag Day’. Items that were brought on the day ranged from lawnmowers to eskies, prams to baskets and pillows to animal cages, anything but our school bag (and anything safe) was welcome, allowing students to drive their curiosity and creativity of what else could be a bag. But most importantly, it gave students a chance to be able to bond and get together to laugh, discuss and talk about the crazy ideas that have been brought to life.

Jasmine, Year 12

Viktoria’s reflection was presented to the Senior College Community during our Holy Week Liturgy on Friday the 8th of April. Her words are a pertinent reminder of our enduring relationship with God as we remember the holiest time of our Church’s liturgical year.

How difficult is it to even think about the Passion of our Lord Jesus, words might sometimes even fail us. In today's reenactment we are reminded of the suffering which Jesus endured, and yet we choose the word good to describe it. On this momentous day, we remember the time when Jesus willingly suffered and died by crucifixion as the ultimate sacrifice for our sins, and in this, God finds a profound presence in each of our hearts as we undergo our own spiritual journey to find the inextricable root of our Christan existence. 

On this day, we are invited to celebrate and mourn the death of our Lord, remembering he is ever-living in our hearts, minds and souls, reminding us we are not alone in this journey. That while we bear our own crosses, he remains steadfast in our hearts and this belief will strengthen and guide us forever. May we remember the adoration of Good Friday as a way to place our troubles with the Lord, so that he may once again deliver us from our unrest, and instil a safe, holy presence within us.

I assure you, no matter how grim the suffering or bleak the future seems, the Father has a great dream for us which he will realise, just as he did for his Son. I tell you that today’s message is not to be afraid, for Jesus said; “I have overcome the world, and so can you.” 

I pray the Father blesses and nourishes each one of us as we come to the conclusion of this blessed Lenten season, in the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. Amen.

Careers

Careers

The University of Notre Dame Early Entry Program

The University of Notre Dame makes early offers on student Year 11 and Year 12 academic performance along with their community engagement.

Early Offers will be made between July and October. Many of these will be conditional offers. This means that The University of Notre Dame has reserved a place for you, however is seeking other criteria such as completing the HSC and meeting other requirements such as an adjusted ATAR.

Applications are now open. Students wishing assistance with their application are encouraged to see Ms May.

Click here to start your application

University of New England Direct Early Entry

Early Entry at the University of New England  is open to all Year 12 applicants and relies solely on a school assessment of student attributes and abilities to determine their suitability for entry into a UNE degree. UNE offers places on a student’s ability to work and learn independently and their overall potential for academic success.

As part of the application process students are required to submit a school’s recommendation statement. 

Applications are now open. Students wishing assistance with their application are encouraged to see Ms May.

Click here to start your application

University Clinical Aptitude Test 2022

The University Clinical Aptitude Test (UCAT) is required for entry into most medical and dental schools in Australia. The UCAT is a two hour computer based test consisting of multiple-choice questions and is divided into five separately time subtests. These subtests are: Verbal Reasoning; Decision Making; Quantitative Reasoning; Abstract Reasoning; and Situational Judgement. 

In NSW the UCAT is required for the following Universities and courses:

UNSW Medicine

Newcastle/UNE Medicine

Western Sydney Medicine

Charles Sturt Medicine and Dental Science

Key Dates:

Registrations and bookings are now open

Registrations and bookings close 17 May

Testing begins 1 July

Last Testing date 12 August

Results delivered to universities Early September

University application deadline September

Cost to sit the University Clinical Aptitude Test is $305

Click here to Register for UCAT

Click here to book a test