Embed Size (px)
Citation preview
Page 1
Dear Parents and Carers, Term 2, Issue 3 5th June—16th June 2017
In this Issue:
Page
1. Acting Principal’s Message
3. Message from the Religious
Education Co-ordinator
4. Message from the Director of
Student Wellbeing
5. Student News
13. Message from the Adminis-
trator of Curricular Activities
14. Other College News
15. P & F News
16. Community News
Upcoming Events:
TERM 2
Week 7
5th June—Year 10 History Excursion
5th June—Year 8 Reflection Day
5th June—Year 9 Commerce Excur-
sion
9TH JUNE COLLEGE CLOSED
Day in lieu from Open Day
13th June—Year 8 Italian Excursion
Period 3-5
Week 8
12TH JUNE QUEENS BIRTHDAY
HOLIDAY
14th June BBSSSA Soccer U13/15
16th June—Year 12 Physics Excur-
sion
17th June P & F Mercy Trivia night
Thursday 22nd June
Athletics Carnival
“Strive for Better Things” Mercy Catholic College, Chatswood [email protected]
101 Archer St, Chatswood NSW 2067 Telephone: 9419 2890 mercychatswood.nsw.edu.au
Over the past fortnight our students have achieved some excellent
results in competitions.
The Chamber Choir came fourth and was Highly Commended in the
City of Sydney Eisteddfod held at the Concourse on Sunday 21 May.
They were selected to compete on Sunday 4 June in the Australa-
sian Choral Championship at Sydney Grammar School.
Year 9 Drama students performed in the Shakespeare Regional Car-
nival and won their section.
Congratulations to the students, Ms Gill and Ms McGreal on such
wonderful results.
Ms Dorey is also to be congratulated on 14 years of service to the
Duke of Edinburgh Award Scheme. She was recognized for this at
the Duke of Edinburgh Awards presentation in Sydney two weeks
ago.
PAYMENT FOR SPORT:
The College is launching a new method of making payments for
sports. It is an easy to use, secure phone app for making school
payments from your mobile phone. The app is called
Qkr (by MasterCard). You will find details about it on page 14 of
this edition.
Federal Education Funding Charges
On Monday 29 May parents/carers received a letter from the Direc-
tor of Schools in Broken Bay Diocese Peter Hamill, regarding the
governments proposed Education Funding changes.
I would encourage you to write or email your local Federal Member,
Federal Minister for Education or the Prime Minister which Peter in-
dicated in his letter.
Ms Dorey & Mr Ian Walker Executive Office Duke of Edinburgh
Page 2
Year 10 Parent Teacher night Tuesday 27 June 2pm-6.30pm.
More information will be given out in the next few weeks.
I would also encourage you to attend one of the Parent Forums that have been organized over the
next three weeks.
Tuesday 6 June 2017
7.30pm – 8.30pm at Our Lady of the Rosary Catholic School, Waitara
Wednesday 7 June 2017
9.15am – 10.15am at Our Lady of the Rosary Catholic School, Waitara
7.00pm – 8.00pm at Our Lady of Dolours Catholic School, Chatswood
Thursday 8 June 2017
7.00pm – 8.00pm at St Kieran’s Catholic School, Manly Vale
Wednesday 14 June 2017
7.30pm – 8.30pm at Our Lady of Good Counsel Catholic School, Forestville
Your support is vital to ensure Catholic Schools are accessible to you and everyone in our communi-
ty.
Ms E Kayrooz
Acting Principal
Thursday Walking Club
Join Mrs Tailor and Mrs Oliver every Thursday at 1:30pm (weather permitting) for a social and fun
walk departing from the school gates! Open to all students from Years 7 to 12. Girls bring their
lunch and walk around the local streets for approx. 20 minutes, usually ending at Beauchamp Oval.
Girls can wear sports shoes, but this isn’t a requirement. Parent permission slips (valid for the year)
are available from student reception and there is no cost for this wonderful activity!
Page 3
Message from the Religious Education Co-ordinator
ALPHA for Youth Program 2017 I am excited to announce that Mercy Catholic College in conjunction with St Pius X College will be commencing an ‘Alpha for Youth’ series through our local Chatswood Parish.
The Alpha for Youth Program will be facilitated by Adrian Brannan, Youth Minister at Our Lady of Dolours and Ms Gabie Stojanovski Religious Education Coordinator at Mer-cy Catholic College. Alpha is a relational program on intentional discipleship; basically it is a chance for our students to gather with peers of a similar age and discuss their faith, raise questions and doubts they may have and grow in fellowship and friendship over a meal and discussion.
The course will be held in the Chatswood Parish’s Bishop Barry Room, located on Kirk Street, it will run for 8 weeks commencing later this term on Wednesday 21 June in the afternoon after school from 3:30 until 5pm and conclud-
ing on Wednesday 13 September in Term 3. Each afternoon will begin with an afternoon tea after which the students will have a chance to self-direct the ses-
sions through conversation in response to short inspirational videos. Later in the course there will be a Retreat Day scheduled on Sunday 20 August to further enrich and deepen the experience. With the Australian Catholic Youth Festival in December and 2018 being declared as a ‘Year of Youth’ for the Aus-tralian Catholic Church it is an opportune time to provide this program for students to explore their faith. We will be promoting this course to Year 9 and Year 10 students in the coming fortnight and looking for students
who are interested in such an opportunity. For further information or to register the interest of yourself or your child please do not hesitate to contact me.
ACYF 2017 The Australian Catholic Youth Festival (ACYF) is a national gathering of Catholic young people established by the Australian Catholic Bishop’s Conference
(ACBC). It will be hosted by Sydney at Olympic Park from the 7 – 9 December 2017. Mercy Catholic College will be looking to have many students from Year 9 – 12 in attendance at this exciting and faith filled event. The festival provides young people with opportunities to deepen their relationship with Jesus, be em-powered to be disciples in the world today and encounter and celebrate the vi-
tality of the Church in Australia. Students will have the opportunity to engage with local examples of social ac-tion, liturgy and prayer, catholic music and catechesis.
Some initial details about ACFY are below: When: December 7 – 9, 2017 Where: Sydney Olympic Park, Homebush Who: The invitation is open to any student from Year 9 – 12 to attend.
Cost: Registration for ACYF is $250, train transport for 3 days is included but the cost of meals is not. Registrations are due by Monday 7 August, 2017.
Why: To provide students with an encounter with Christ and the broader Australian Catholic Church, in order for students to discern their own faith journeys. The ACYF is a festival designed to be a par-ty atmosphere! There will be fun activities as well as a range of challenging workshops and presentations. It is an opportunity for students to express and explore their faith no matter where they are on The Way.
Website: http://youthfestival.catholic.org.au/
On Wednesday 7 June, Mercy College will hold a Mini-Festival at lunchtime to launch ACYF. Students who are in-terested will be able to register their interest in attending ACYF on the day. Expression of Interest Forms and Stu-dent Information Packs will also be available for students to collect. Please do not hesitate to contact me if you have any further questions about registering your daughter for ACYF.
Ms Gabie Stojanovski Religious Education Co-ordinator
Page 4
Message from the Director of Student Wellbeing
Let’s Move Mercy
On Wednesday in period 2 Year 11 and Year 12 students taught Year 7 to 10 students the Beyoncé
dance to ‘Let’s Move’. Beyoncé worked with Michelle Obama on her Let’s Move Campaign. The cam-
paign was created to raise awareness about healthy living and the importance of exercise.
At Mercy we are using the dance to start the new Mercy Wellbeing program –RISE. By allowing the
Year 11 and 12 students to lead and teach the dance, it is providing them with an opportunity to use
their leadership skills, to engage the group and have fun.
The reason behind starting the program by doing a dance is to show how movement and exercise is
an important part of wellbeing and can be a lot of fun. Many studies have been done about move-
ment and exercise, one of the most recent studies is by Dr Nicola Burton, senior research fellow at
the University of Queensland's school of human movement studies. Dr Burton’s study has proven
physical activity gets the blood flowing to the brain so students can think better and will feel more
alert. It enhances good mental health and vitality. Physical activity can be fun, it is a great way to
engage with the school community and bring the school community together.
On Wednesday there was a lot of fun and joy coming from the Year group gatherings. In one room
there was a sound issue; however, that is part of the learning experience for the seniors and deciding
whether, you fix the issue and how that should be done or work around the issue.
In Week 10 all the students will go in the playground and do the dance as a whole school community.
As we mentioned above, it is about having fun, being together as a school and knowing that fun and
enjoyment helps wellbeing. It is also important to not judge others but have fun, no matter how well
students can or cannot dance.
Thank you to Jane Lennon the Creative Arts Coordinator for taking the photos. If you look carefully
you may be able to spot the special guest who turned up to support the Mercy RISE program.
Mrs Gemma McDermott
Director of Student Wellbeing
Page 5
Italian Immersion Tour 2018
An Italian language, Visual Arts and Ancient History Study Tour is being proposed for April 14-28,
2018. The focus of the trip will be for the girls to immerse themselves in the culture, art and history of
Italy.
It will be available to students who are interested in studying Visual Arts, Italian or Ancient History in
2018/9. The trip will be especially relevant to those that may study one of these subjects in Years 11
and 12 but would be of cultural interest to any student in Years 10 or 11 2018. Students will be en-
gaged in language lessons, cooking classes, visiting historical sites and art galleries etc in the main
cities of Rome, Venice, Florence, Volterra, Pisa, Pompeii and Milan.
Interested students are encouraged to collect an Expression of Interest Letter and return the slip to
either Mrs Lennon, Mrs Perignon or Mrs O’Halloran by Wednesday 7 June. If your daughter is interest-
ed in attending this exciting opportunity you and your daughter are asked to attend an information
evening presented by Horizons Group Travel, Sydney on Wednesday 14 June, 2017 from 7 - 8pm at
the College. Details on cost of trip, itinerary and logistics will be discussed on this night.
Following is a link to the Expression of Interest letter for those students who were not able to collect
one:
Expression of Interest
Mrs I Perrignon
Mrs J Lennon
Mrs R O’Halloran
Student News
Page 6
Student News
Debating Article
Mercy College has had a very successful opening to the debating season. We fielded four teams in the
Catholic School Debating Association (CSDA) competition this year. Each Friday evening this term, debat-
ers and teachers have travelled across Sydney to compete against different schools, including St. Claire’s
Waverly, St Clare Catholic College, Mount St. Benedict’s and St Leo’s. We also hosted Domremy College
and Montgrove College. Debating is a wonderful intellectual sport to develop because it has so many ben-
efits to the way one thinks and communicates with others. It strengthens confidence and challenges pre-
vailing attitudes.
On Wednesday night, we debated Montgrove College on the topic of Environment. Year 7 and 8 were
asked to consider “that the private car should be stopped” and Year 9 and 10 were debated “that in Syd-
ney we should prioritise cycleways over motorways.” Our students were full of apprehension as they had
faced them before and knew them to be strong opposition. Perhaps pressing on their minds was the
knowledge that a Mercy win would ensure the teams made the finals. I am pleased to announce that
Years 8, 9 and 10 will progress to the elimination finals.
All debaters should be congratulated for their success, thus far. Our debaters have been meeting, re-
searching and preparing for the debates during their lunch breaks. They have been excellent ambassa-
dors of our college and have debated with enthusiasm and energy. I would particularly like to congratu-
late Year 7 debaters. We had a team of seven girls with only three required at each debate. They were all
capable speakers, showing confidence, control of ideas and depth of understanding. It is disappointing
that they lost three debates which put them out of contention for the finals. I am certain they will go
from strength to strength next year.
I would also like to thank all the students who volunteered their time to help as timekeeper, chairpersons
and helpers. Teachers also give up their time to attend the debates, coach students, manage transport
and adjudicate. I would like to thank Ms Michelle Brandwood, Mrs Christine Mooney, Mrs Melissa Loy and
Mr Mark Strong for their support.
Debaters:
Year 7: Jenna B, Isabella H, Logan M, Bianka N, Dyashree R, Sofia S, Lucca T.
Year 8: Sophie L, Genevieve O, Sophie S, Caitlin W.
Year 9: Louise F, Felicia L, Isabella S, Betsy W.
Year 10: Sarah B, Vanya D, Claire F, Aoife M, Alessia I.
Mrs Rachel Morgan
English Co-ordinator
Music:
Congratulations to the Chamber Choir who received a Highly Commended from the adjudicator in
the recent City of Sydney Eisteddfod at Chatswood
Concourse last Sunday.
The Chamber Choir sang two acapella works, ‘Mr
Sandman’ and Cindi Lauper’s hit ‘Girls Just Wanna
Have Fun’. They competed against some of the
best school choirs in Sydney and regional areas to
receive 4th place out of the 9 choirs who competed
in the Youth Chamber Choir event. Special men-
tion was made as to the energy and secure pitch
of our choir.
Well done to all of the students who have been
training each week for this event over the past few
months.
Kathryn McGreal
Chamber Choir Director
Page 7
On the 3rd of May we travelled back in time to visit and understand ancient civilizations. At Sydney
University we attended the Nicholson Museum which is home to the largest collection of antiquities both
in Australia and the southern Hemisphere. We were shown around the museum and informed about
the artefacts donated by Sir Charles Nicholson from Egyptian, Greek and Roman civilisations, including
mummies, coffins, vases, and pottery. We discussed the role of archaeologists, the questions they need
to answer and how they attempt to piece together the past. Through observing statues, facial masks
and everyday objects such as bowls, cups and perfume bottles, we were able to get an insight into the
lives of ancient societies, their beliefs and values. Also I realised that humans honestly haven’t changed
a great deal. We then got to become archaeologists!!
Heading downstairs we held and illustrated ancient artefacts, some of which were completely unknown
to us. We had to make our own inferences about the purpose, materials, age and importance of each
object, a process all archaeologists go through when they discover artefacts. I personally had a piece of
Greek pottery from around 600 BC, and it would have been used everyday. It was so hard to compre-
hend that this piece of ceramic was used 2500 years ago by people who aren't too different to me
(except for body oil and a tan) and I was just simply observing it. It is rather impossible to fathom how
long ago 600 BC is and the similarities the we share with the ancient Greeks. After drawing the artefact
and answering questions we discussed everyone’s objects including, a leather puncher, canopic jars,
ushabtis and amulets, gaining a further understanding of Egyptians, Greeks and Romans.
I just want to say a huge thank to Ms Dorey and Ms O’Halloran for accompanying us on this excursion
and imparting their knowledge and passion to us!
Zoe C . Year 11
Student News
Page 8
Student News
On the 29th of May, 11 Mercy Action students attended the Junior Mercy Action day at Our Lady of Mer-
cy College, Parramatta with the four other Mercy schools in Sydney.
The theme of the day was ‘Cry for the Earth, Cry for the poor.’ The day was broken into three sessions
where we participated in many interactive activities that raised awareness about the environment. In
the first section, we learned about the uneven distribution of wealth around the world. This showed us
how lucky we are and inspired us to help the less fortunate.
In the second session, we listened to Maria Tiimon from the Edmund Rice Centre talk about how her
home country, Kiribati which is the most affected by climate change even though they haven’t contribut-
ed to it. This opened our eyes to the impacts of climate change and how we need to work together and
act to stop climate change.
In the final session, we discussed initiatives that each school takes in relation to Laudato si' - On the
Care of Our Common Home (Pope Francis’ encyclical). This gave us ideas of what we can do at Mercy
to be better stewards of creation. Overall, this day opened our eyes to the impact humans have on the
environment and inspired us to do something about it.
Jana D, Helena C, Cailin G and Brooke A (Year 9)
Page 9
Student News
Year 10 Textiles Technology
“Cultural Diversity”’
This semester the Year 10 Textiles class designed and constructed a cultural doll. The girls did a fab-
ulous job and their dolls clearly represented a variety of different cultures around the world. They
then completed their first Apparel item, which was a Kimono. The girls worked really hard and they
should be very proud of their final products .
Mrs S Holman
Textiles
Page 10
Student News
This semester for Technology we completed the Pyjama unit. In this unit we created Pyjama’s using a
pattern. We worked really hard for 10 weeks on the sewing machine to construct our Pyjama’s. We
also had to decorate a t-shirt using various surface decoration techniques. This unit was great fun as
we were able to make a product that we were proud of and could wear.
Deanna and Hannah
Year 7 Technology Mandatory
“Pyjama party”
Year 7 Technology classes A and B completed their first unit in the Textiles room, designing and mak-
ing a pair of Pyjama’s.
Mrs S Holman
Textiles
Page 11
Student News
SHAKING IT UP: SUCCESS AT THE REGIONAL SHAKESPEARE CARNIVAL
This year Mercy entered the Sport for Jove Shakespeare Carnival for the first time. Many girls have
spent lunch times working on performances for various categories of the competition. Claudia B,
Elizabeth F and Codie H of Year 9 were chose from this group of amazing young ladies to represent our
school in the regional carnival. The regional carnival was held on Monday the 22nd May at Barker
College. The girls were competing against many schools from the Northern region.
After an energetic warm-up with Sport for Jove Theatre Company the girls were the first on stage.
They presented a dance that expressively told the story of Shakespeare’s Macbeth. After watching the
interesting and incredible work of their competition it was time for the judges to announce the win-
ners.
Claudia, Elizabeth and Codie placed 1st in their category with Abbotsleigh coming a close second. They
are now off to the state carnival at the Seymour Centre in June. We wish them all the best at the state
carnival. Break a leg girls!
Mrs Amy Gill
Educator
Page 12
Athletics Carnival
Thursday 22 June 2017
Due to unforeseen maintenance issues, the College Athletics Carnival this year will be held at
Bannockburn Oval (Pymble) on Thursday 22 June. Students will be transported by bus to and
from the venue. Students are allowed to leave the venue if their parent/carer writes a letter to
the respective Year Coordinator. A food van will be operating on the day from 10.30am to
1.30pm but students are encouraged to bring their own lunch and water bottle. Also, girls should
ensure they have a hat, warm clothes, towel, ground mat and wet weather gear. Students are to
wear their sports uniform or Winter uniform to school before changing into their House colours
before the buses depart. Your daughter will be notified of any changes due to wet weather. The
3000m and 1500m running events are being held at lunch in the weeks leading up to the carni-
val. Students who wish to nominate for BBSSSA selection in High Jump, Triple Jump and Hurdles
may submit their times/distances for consideration.
Student News
Mercy Catholic College - Athletics Carnival Program
8.45am Tutor Group + Cheers
9.25am Buses to oval
12 & Under 13 & Under 14 & Under 15 & Under 16 & Under 17 & Over
10.00 - 10.20 1500 Walk 1500 Walk 1500 Walk 1500 Walk 1500 Walk 1500 Walk
10.20 – 10.40 1500 Walk – Whole School Participation Race
10.40—11.20
100 100 100 100 100 100
LONG 1 SHOT 1 JAVELIN SHOT 2 DISCUS DISCUS
11.20 – 12.00
800 800 800 800 800 800
--- DISCUS LONG 2 JAVELIN SHOT 1 SHOT 2
12.00 – 12.40
200 200 200 200 200 200
SHOT 1 LONG 1 DISCUS LONG 2 JAVELIN JAVELIN
12.40 – 1.20
400 400 400 400 400 400
JAVELIN --- SHOT 2 DISCUS LONG 1 LONG 2
1.20 – 1.40 DISCUS JAVELIN
1.40 – 2.00 Relays
2.00 – 2.20 Clean up + Assemble for buses
Mr Mark Cuttler
PDHPE Co-ordinator
Page 13
Message from the Administrator of Curricular Activities
Mercy Catholic College has launched Qkr (by MasterCard) as an easy
to use, secure phone app for making payments from your mobile
phone for co- curricular activities (i.e. Swimming, Cricket, Basket-
ball, etc). Qkr will accept payment using ANY credit/debit card
(except American Express) and has a simple checkout function.
Commencing Term 3 all payments for co-curricular activities will be
processed via Qkr. It is simple and convenient to use with no fees
or charges.
Getting started!
Step 1. Download Qkr! on your Android phone or iPhone Via App Store or Google Play
iPad users can download iPhone App.
Step 2: Register
Select your Country of Residence as ‘Australia’ and follow the steps to register
Step 3: Find Mercy Catholic College, Chatswood
Search for Mercy Catholic College or Chatswood
Step 4: Register your Child/ren
When first accessing your school menu; you will be prompted to register your child. This allows
you to make school payments on their behalf.
Note: The Qkr web client is available for those not wanting to complete transactions
from their mobile phone.
About the Qkr! App
Qkr is a safe, secure and reliable way to pay for school items. Qkr is provided by MasterCard so
you know the payments are secure. No information is stored on your phone. Registration details
and card information are saved securely on the MasterCard network.
For more information please click on the link below or contact Mrs Margaret Kellendonk Co-
curricular activities Administrator 9419 2890 or [email protected]
https:// www.marcard.com.au/en-au/about-mastercard/who-we-are/qkr.html
Page 14
Other College News
Dear Parents,
To make sure that you don’t miss any late breaking careers news from Universities, Private colleges,
TAFE don’t forget to read the weekly Mercy Careers Newsletter at
http://www.mercychatswoodcareers.com/
Or download past editions from
http://www.mercychatswoodcareers.com/?page=newsletter
Mr E Regoli
Careers Advisor
DIOCESE OF BROKEN BAY - ADVISORY COMMITTEE VACANCIES
Bishop Peter A Comensoli is looking to fill some vacancies for the various Advisory Committees of the Di-
ocese of Broken Bay. Historically, we have had great success in identifying wonderful people, with ex-
ceptional gifts, skills and experience to form part of these important Committees.
The following Committees are currently seeking voluntary membership:
Diocesan Finance Council
Investment Committee
Audit & Risk Committee
Catholic Development Fund
If you are interested in applying to be a voluntary member for a Committee, you are warmly invited to
provide an expression of interest. The relevant Committee Knowledge & Skills Requirements Criteria are
also available on request. For all matters please contact Mr Tony Davies, Chancery Human Resources
Manager at [email protected] or on 02 9847 0446. Applications close: Tuesday, 13 June 2017
Page 15
P&F News
2017 Trivia Night
We look forward to welcoming you to our Trivia Night on Saturday 17 June 2017.
There are 102 RSVPs so it should be a great night. We are extremely grateful to those families in the
College community who have donated prizes. Your generosity is wonderful and we truly appreciate
your contributions.
All sponsors will be acknowledged.
To book your tickets https://www.trybooking.com/273443
Sewing
If you are interested and available to cut and sew some plain white polycotton fabric into tablecloths
for the P&F, I would be grateful if you could contact me. The fabric has recently been washed and
ironed and we have been using it as a single long piece but would prefer a few more manageable
pieces instead.
P & F Meeting
Thank you to those parents who came along to the P&F Meeting on Wednesday night.
The minutes will be uploaded to the College web site within a few weeks.
Please feel free to call me at any time if you have any questions or would like to provide ideas or
feedback.
Phillipa Sobb
President P & F
0411 429 629
Page 16
Community News
Page 17
Community News
