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Absentee Line - Text 0417 596 611 or Phone Primary 8150 2397, Secondary 8150 2323 or Email student.reception@smc.sa.edu.au

News

Term 2 Week 8 2022

From the Principal

From the Principal

Dear St Michael’s College Community,

Year 12 Retreat

As mentioned last week, the Year 12 Retreat was finally able to proceed with the Year 12 cohort venturing off in three groups to Normanville, Wallaroo and Walkers Flat.

Our thanks to Robert Dempsey, Director of Mission, who manages the Retreat process and works tirelessly to ensure the students and staff enjoy this experience. Robert’s reflection below highlights another successful College event.

It was a fantastic experience to go away with our Year 12 students on Retreat last week. The students who attended engaged with the program is a positive manner able to get out of the ‘big smoke’ to reflect on life, family, friends and faith. The decision to reschedule the Retreat after it was not possible to go in Term 1 due to COVID restrictions, was a brave call at the time, however our feedback suggests it was very worthwhile for students and staff.

I would like to thank the 25 staff who attended and all the staff who supported to make the Retreats possible. The students were extremely engaged and a credit to their families, and I thank them for the way they cooperated and embraced the opportunities presented. It was a tremendous community building event that will be remembered by students for years to come.

Mr Robert Dempsey, Director of Mission

Student reflections:

“The Year 12 Retreat was a fantastic experience that was a highlight of my Year 12 experience. The 3-day retreat allowed us, students, to gain stronger bonds with our year level and brought us all together closer than we have ever been. I love the way everyone really took advantage of the experience and allowed themselves to be fully involved to get the most out of the experience. A highlight for me was the liturgy on the second night. The liturgy allowed me to learn so much about my fellow peers and brought to light just how little you know about people and the importance of not judging a book by its cover.”

“To be honest I was a little reluctant to go on Retreat because I had so many commitments and assignments! But all the Year 12 teachers were really encouraging and kept saying it is a once-in-a-lifetime experience. So I decided to go! Now I’m so glad I went. It was definitely one of the best experiences of my life and I would have liked to stay longer with my friends and teachers. For me, the highlight was getting to know other Year 12 students that I haven’t spoken to before. We came together in small groups and told everyone about our past and our personal stories and it was so interesting. My group was at Wallaroo so the night walks, camp fires and beach activities were fantastic to help me relax and have a break from all the pressure of my part-time job and Year 12 schoolwork.”

“The Year 12 Retreat was an amazing opportunity to build connections with others and reflect on what’s most important in my life. Year 12 is a very busy year for students, with the pressure of dealing with deadlines, exams, and juggling schoolwork with personal time, it can become a bit of a handful. The retreat allowed me to learn the importance of taking a mental break, taking the time to explore some ‘me time’ and reflecting on my connections with friends and loved ones. A key highlight of my retreat experience was creating new relationships with others during various activities and free time which allowed me to expand my friendship group and build a community.”

Refugee Week

Every year Australia celebrates our refugee communities and our diversity during Refugee Week, and every year a different theme is chosen to help us understand some important issues that refugees face. This year the theme is HEALING. Since the Covid pandemic, Australia and the rest of the world have a chance to hit the reset button on how we behave towards one another. The importance of human connections has been underscored by the pandemic and we have all learned to value our face-to-face relationships even more. This is the first time we’ve been able to celebrate Refugee Week as a college community since Covid and is an opportunity for us to come together to heal wounds, to learn from each other and to move forward together.

Healing can occur through storytelling, so some of our Beyond Borders students have recorded their personal stories to share. Healing can occur through community, so our students were excited to share some of their favourite traditional dishes with staff at lunch this week.

Healing can occur through sport, so our soccer-mad Beyond Border students challenged their teachers to a 5-a-side-non-contact-indoor-soccer match, with Sr Nithya as the staff goal keeper. The staff unfortunately lost by 1 goal.   And finally, our Beyond Borders students have also written personal prayers to be read each day during Pastoral Class.

Lasallian Compass

On Monday and Tuesday of this week, 21 staff were involved in a formation program for staff new to Lasallian schools that introduces them to the story, spirituality and innovative pedagogy of Lasallian education and ministry and its application to the contemporary Catholic school and to the work of Yourtown. Drawing upon the shared wisdom and experience of the participants, the program explores the Lasallian educational mission as a mission of the Church and presents insights into the charism of the founder, St John Baptist de La Salle.

The College appreciates the interstate presenters Br John Cantwell and Philippe Dulawan for facilitating the program.

Kind regards,

Mr Damian Patton
Acting Principal

Weekly Communication and Important Dates

Weekly Communication and Important Dates

RIP

Mrs Jean McMahon 
Much loved Great-Nana of Mark Coggins (Year 8) and Tara Coggins (Year 7).

Eternal rest grant unto her O Lord and let perpetual light shine upon her. May her soul, and the souls of all the faithful departed, through the mercy of God, Rest In Peace. Amen

IMPORTANT DATES

27 June
Ensemble Fest – click here to register your attendance.

1 July
Year 12 Seminar Day 2

4 July – 11 July
NAIDOC Week

8 July
Classes conclude for Term 2.
Early dismissal at 12:40pm (Primary) and 12:45pm (Secondary).

Please click here to view our online calendar.

UNIFORM SHOP

The Uniform Shop will be closed for the first week of the school holidays and will reopen in the second week. Please refer to the information below for the holiday opening times:

Tuesday 19 July, 8:00am – 4:15pm
Wednesday 20 July, 8:00am – 4:15pm
Thursday 21 July, 8:00am – 4:15pm

Click here for Term Dates.
Click here for Uniform Shop hours and information.
Click here to purchase the Entertainment Book.

For previous editions of The Star Newsletter, if using Desktop, please navigate to the side bar to view previous editions or if viewing on a mobile phone scroll to the bottom of the page.

Not all College activities make it into The Star so please be sure to follow us on Facebook and Instagram to keep up to date.

Primary Campus

Primary Campus

MAKE MUSIC DAY

On Tuesday 21 June, the Primary Campus celebrated Make Music Day. Launched in 1982 in France as the Fête de la Musique, it is now held on the same day every year in more than 750 cities in 120 countries. Completely different from a typical music festival, Make Music Day is open to anyone who wants to take part, it’s a DIY Music Festival! Every kind of musician — young and old, amateur and professional, of every musical persuasion — can organise their own gig, or join the many organisations that will host events, to share their music with friends, neighbours, and strangers.

The Primary Campus celebrated the day with performances at lunchtime by the Staff Band and DJ Luke, and students dressed up as a rock star or their favourite musician. In the afternoon we had performances by our College Captain Massimo Cavallo, Music Captain Henry Cook, and Music Vice Captain Luca Camozzatto. They were also invited to share their music journey from Primary to Secondary with the students.

Students made a gold coin donation on the day and the money raised will go towards KickStart for Kids. KickStart For Kids is a not-for-profit organisation that helps disadvantaged school children in South Australia achieve positive educational outcomes and increased self-esteem through school breakfast and lunch programs, mentoring programs and their Camp KickStart school holiday care program. The Primary Campus raised an amazing amount of $481.35.

Thank you to all the staff involved and a huge thank you to all the students and parents for the incredible effort in making the day such a success.

Ms Talia Gaertner-Jones and Ms Holly Dineen, Music and Performing Arts Teachers

PRIMARY CROSS COUNTRY

Recently, five St Michael’s Primary students were selected to represent the Western District Zone at the SAPSASA State Cross Country Carnival held at Oakbank Racecourse. The boys showed great enthusiasm, courage, and determination against the best runners from across our State. It was fantastic to witness the boys achieve some outstanding results for the day.

Congratulations to the following students who represented our school at the carnival, Xavier Bourn, Tyler Freeborn, Jake Upitis, Lachlan Jones, and Oliver Pearn.

A special mention to Tyler Freeborn and Lachlan Jones who were provided with an opportunity to trial for the State Cross-Country team to compete at the national championships held later this year. At the trials Lachlan Jones was a successful candidate in being selected in the state team. We look forward to seeing how he races interstate.

Mr Dion Gazettas, Primary Sports Coordinator

OH THE PLACES WE’VE BEEN!

Our Reception students have been exploring the inquiry topic of ‘Place’. We have been looking at where we are in the world, places that are important and special to us and how we care for these places. We have been learning about the Traditional owners of the land and how we can show our respect to the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. On Monday, students were immersed in a cultural experience of Indigenous dance, music and language. Performers from the Kuma Kaaru Cultural Group taught students about Aboriginal heritage, instruments, language and story telling through song and dance.

Please view a video of the performance below created by Year 3 student, Bodhi Ansell.

Reception Teachers 

REFUGEE WEEK

On Wednesday 22 June, three Primary students along with with Ms Tyrwhitt and their parents went to the Children’s ArtSpace to attend the launch of Refugee week in the new venue at the Festival Theatre.

Students were tasked to “visually illustrate the theme of the exhibition namely, multiculturalism, human rights, cultural diversity, anti-racism and  the welcoming of refugees into Australia, as well as how refugees become part of, and contribute towards, the Australian ‘family’.”

Students Veer Solanki, Tyhsen Javier and Lucas Santos Tait created a group poster depicting The Guernica inside a Greek crumbling theatre with the Picasso eye symbol shaded with the colours of the Ukrainian flag.

The artworks were diverse and full of hope and support for the plight of refugees escaping countries of conflict. It was staggering to learn how many people are seeking refuge in other countries this year. Two young women from Sudan and Afghanistan spoke very eloquently about their story of arrival in Australia. It is very important for our community to empathise and show compassion towards these very brave people.

Ms Kate Tyrwhitt, Art & Design and Indigenous Education Coordinator – Primary

Secondary Campus

Secondary Campus

COLLEGE LEADER AND HOUSE CAPTAIN PROFILES

College Leader Claudia Sherratt

As a leader I would describe myself as someone who wishes to inspire others to become the best version of themselves by helping around the school, keeping a positive mindset, and being caring towards others.

I am the proudest that I can sew and make my own clothes because my grandma was a seamstress and she taught me how to sew.

My greatest sporting moment was winning my first premiership for Port Districts.

My favourite songs are From the Dining Table and Kiwi by Harry Styles

The funniest moment in my life was when my sister fell out of a tree house in New Zealand.

In my spare time I like to take my dog, Syd, down to the beach.

The best thing about attending SMC is the friendships that I have made with my peers.

This year as a College Leader I wish to be best known as someone who is easy to talk to and will help if there is a problem.

Five words which best describe my personality are kind, relaxed, generous, funny, and inclusive.

Something interesting about me no one knows? I have done classical ballet since the age of three.

Turon House Captain Sabrina Wingard

As a leader I would describe myself as collaborative, understanding, patient, supportive and hardworking.

My favourite TV program is Brooklyn Nine-Nine.

My greatest sporting moment is winning a netball Grand Final in a position I don’t regularly play.

Someone I admire is my sister Suraia because she is caring, hardworking, and helps me to improve myself.

The funniest moment in my life was when my sister and I went on the tube up the river and she kicked my tooth out.

In my spare time I like to spend time with my family, read books, watch movies and tv shows, and spend time with my Dog Kenji

The best thing about attending SMC is the community and the opportunities that I have as a student.

Leadership means to me leading by example while still being a part of the team, and making sure everyone’s voices are heard.

This year as a House Captain I wish to be best known as a strong supportive leader who encourages others to be their best.

A quote that I believe in is “what you do has far greater impact than what you say”.

PODCAST CLUB

Last week members of the Year 7 and 8 Podcast Club recorded their first podcasts! This initiative is a brand new co-curricular activity for Year 7 and 8 students this term and has seen eight of our finest speakers work tirelessly over the last eight weeks to learn the ropes of podcasting. This group have been fortunate to work with James Meston of Arch D radio – a Catholic Education podcast, to plan, prepare and record a real podcast. Their podcasts on ‘sporting achievements’ and ‘anime’ will begin their editing phase this week and be live on Spotify by end of term!

Great work to everyone involved!

Ms Rhiannon O’Hara, Teacher – Secondary

VOCAL FEST

On Monday evening, the Music Department celebrated the hard work and talents of the College’s vocal students at “Vocal Fest 2022.” Four of the College’s choirs and vocal groups, as well as 20 soloists, performed for an extremely supportive and enthusiastic audience. A highlight was our new ensemble, the Year 7 Vocal Group, along with the Year 7 girls who performed a rousing rendition of ‘Ex-Wives’ from the hit musical ‘Six’.

Congratulations to all our students who performed, you made us all proud! Particular thanks go to our voice teachers, old scholar Matt Monti, Jess Bigg, and Kiah Lanigan, for leading and directing our choirs so wonderfully. Thanks to all families and friends who attended, and to our music staff who organised the night, it was a stunning success!

Mr Tim Donovan, Director of Music

YEAR 10 DRAMA PRODUCTIONS 

Last week, the SMC Drama Studio was filled with the sounds of live theatre as both Semester 1, Year 10 Drama classes presented their group productions to appreciative audiences. Ivy Shambit and the Sound Machine written by Daniel Evans and directed by Emily Burns was presented on Tuesday 14 and Wednesday 15 June and Disconnected written by Donna Hughes and directed by Danii Zappia was presented on Thursday 16 and Friday 17 June. A big congratulations to both casts and crews for an outstanding effort during a very challenging term. It has been inspiring to see our young actors blossom throughout the process of collaborative theatre-making and we are certain that we will be treated to many more wonderful performances from this cohort of stars.

Ms Danii Zappia and Ms Emily Burns, Drama Coordinators

YEARS 7-9  WELLBEING CHARACTER STRENGTH FOCUS

Week 4: Hope

Over the last three years we have had many opportunities to draw on hope. A year or two ago, life returning to our current phase of ‘normality’ might have seemed impossible, and yet, here we are.

Science tells us that hope has a positive impact on physical and mental health, providing protection against anxiety and stress, and a stronger ability to bounce back from what can sometimes seem an impossible challenge. Hope also helps us to be better communicators, strengthening our relationships, and potentially leading to a longer life with much better physical health.

Each day in the Notices students see an Action for Happiness and a link to a Daily Minute of Mindfulness. Breakfast Club has now resumed, and further to this our beautiful garden continues to be nurtured by an Eco Squad that focuses on the bounty of nature and welcomes new members with open arms.

We have been able to gather again as year levels and this week students in Year 9 were able to attend a presentation by Derrick McManus who shared an incredible story of bravery and hope.

Closer to home our Beyond Borders students have shared incredible stories of personal bravery and hope each day in the notices to celebrate Refugee Week with the theme of Healing.

Hope gives us the strength to persist and to reframe the situation we face in the positive, rather than being overwhelmed by negativity. Hope whispers that the sun will always return to shine on us, despite momentary darkness, and that it’s always present, even when we can’t see it.

As Albus Dumbledore invited us to remember “Happiness can be found in the darkest of moments when one decides to turn on the light.”  Hope gives us the strength to do just this.

May we all find the ‘light switch’ and nurture our hope this week, and at the times we need it most.

Mrs Tonia Carfora, Year 7-9 Wellbeing Initiatives Leader

YEAR 10, 11 AND 12 EXAM PROTOCOLS

  • Students should be ready to enter Exam Room 15 minutes before the starting time. Please assemble in the adjacent courtyard; for example for all morning exams, please assemble by 8:40am, sign the attendance sheet outside the room and you will be directed from there.
  • Students are not to enter the Exam Room until invited to do so.
  • Students are to ensure that all the necessary equipment has been obtained for the Exam. NOborrowing will be permitted. NO pencil cases allowed.
  • Where the exam is undertaken in electronic format, students are responsible for ensuring their laptop is fully charged and updated and wired headphones only are used if required (check requirements with Subject Teacher).
  • Students plagiarizing will have their paper cancelled. However, the Exam must be completed. Obviously final assessment will be adversely affected.
  • No student will be permitted to leave the Exam Room before the appointed finishing time.
  • The allowance for Reading Time varies depending upon the particular exam. Students must listen carefully to instructions from the invigilator regarding reading time. All notes must be written on the sheet supplied ONLY.   Before the Exam, consideration should be given as to how best to use this time.  Check with teachers if uncertain.
  • If a student is ill and unable to attend, a phone call must be made to Mr O’Reilly, ideally prior to the commencement of the exam.
  • Full College uniform is required for all exams, including compliance with the Uniform Code.
  • Students are encouraged to bring a dictionary into the examination room but only unmarked dictionaries are to be used.
  • Students will not be required for formal lessons during the exam week. Instead, private study should take place at home.
  • Graphic calculators need to be cleared for subjects other than Mathematics.
  • For online exams students will need to clear their laptops of any unnecessary files, undertake a complete shutdown and restart the night before the exam to avoid being disrupted by updates, and ensure their laptops are fully charged.
  • Mobile phones are NOT permitted. Teachers will not be responsible for these during the examination period.
year 10 and 11 exam schedule

 

Please note that exam results will be released via SEQTA in early Term 3.

WEEKS 9 AND 10: SUBJECT SELECTION PROCESS FOR 2023

Please note the following important dates for students of Years 10 and 11. On these days, Heads of Department will present information regarding subjects in order for students to begin subject considerations for 2023.

This is an important discernment process for students as they contemplate future career pathways. These events are aimed at providing Year 10 and Year 11 students with information in relation to SACE subject offerings.

Year 11 (Year 12, 2023)

  • Subject Expo and Study Skills Day: Tuesday 28 June

Year 10 (Year 11, 2023)

  • Future Pathways Day: Monday 4 July. Students will have early dismissal this day

It is expected that all Year 10 and Year 11 students attend their respective events in order to be fully informed regarding prerequisite and minimum grade requirements for intended subject choices.

Further information regarding Subject Selection will be circulated early in Term 3.

YEAR 11 VET STUDENTS AND EXAMS

Year 11 VET students are expected to attend VET in Week 10. If any of your exams clash with a VET day, please see Mrs White in Student Services and she will be able to reschedule your exam time. Please come and see me if you have any questions.

Ms Leanne De Young, VET Coordinator

YEAR 9 ITALIAN PALIO AT SMC

This week students raced in our own PALIO. The PALIO is a famous horse race that takes place twice a year in Siena, Italy. The three-minute race is steeped in history and district loyalty as the fans crowd the piazza to see their horse win. Dating back to the middle ages, the race has few rules. The horses are ridden bareback and can succeed in winning with or without their jockey.

Here at St Michaels’ divided into contrade (districts), students developed a group chant, poster and motto. They paraded and the race was held. It was over in a heartbeat! GIRAFFA was the winner this year, despite the strong teamwork and creativity of the other contrade!

Mrs Tonia Carfora, Year 9 Italian Teacher

Co-curricular

Co-curricular

click here for fixtures and results

 

SCHOOL SURFING CHAMPIONSHIPS

The inaugural School Surfing Championships were held at Goolwa Beach on Friday the 17 June with St Michael’s represented in both Open Boys and Whitewater Girls events. The Open Boys qualified for the Championships by finishing in the top 50% of the draw in Group 2 of the Metro and Country school’s event.

Light offshore winds and a 2ft swell greeted the competitors with Max Wandell and Oskar Kilpatrick surfing together in a team format in the first round. Max started off strong with some high-scoring waves but ultimately, they didn’t make it through and were relegated to the repechage round. Some strong surfing got them through their repechage heat, and this moved them into round 2 up against some solid competition from the Southern Metro and Fleurieu schools. With the conditions proving tricky and not many waves coming through, a close finish had them tied for 2nd place but on a count back narrowly losing by 0.1 and just missing out on surfing in a Semi-final and finishing in 6th place overall. An excellent result for the St Michael’s Open Boys surf team showing they can compete with the best of them.

The Whitewater Girls’ event had some healthy competition with 24 girls competing from all over the State. St Michael’s was represented by Sanur McMahon, Kennedy Santos, Chloe Riley and competing for her first time, Isabella Pacicca.

The sun was out but the water was cold, and the girls hit the surf for the first heat of the day, and all caught some classic waves out in the surf. Isabella showed some great form for her first time out and they all progressed through to the next round and opted to leave their wetsuits on to try and keep warm in the chilly conditions. The girls cheered each other on from the beach and yelled out instructions for when the best waves were coming through and generally just tried to keep moving to stay warm. The girls all pushed further out the back and were rewarded with big scores for catching the larger waves and riding them all the way to the beach. Kennedy even had enough time in her heat to do a board change halfway through but the tactic didn’t pay off in the end and she was knocked out of the competition.

Sanur and Chloe made it through to the semi-finals and with the tide coming in and the wind dropping off the waves were getting better as the day went on. Sanur was unlucky not to progress through, finishing 7th overall but showed that she is very competent in the water thanks to all the years of her doing Nippers at Grange SLSC!

Chloe progressed through her semi-final and was up against some strong competition in the Whitewater Girls Final against three other competitors all from Tatachilla Lutheran College. All the girls were surfing at their best with the judges looking to reward surfers that took off on unbroken waves and performed manoeuvres on the clean face and the length of the ride. The final result had some excellent scores with Chloe taking out the White-Water Girls Championship for St Michael’s.

All competitors surfed great, and we look forward to representing the College again next year.

SMC Surf Team

Congratulations

Congratulations

STATE RUGBY UNION

Congratulations to Year 8 student, Seth Lightbody who has been selected to play in the Under 14 State Rugby Union Team. Seth will participate in the Southern States Championships, held in Canberra from 12 to 13 July.

Well done Seth, the College community wishes you the best of luck!

 

 

 

 

AUSTRALIAN U18 WATER POLO

Congratulations to Year 12 student, Tayla Dawkins, who has been selected in the Australian Under 18 Water polo team. Tayla will be travelling to Serbia next month to compete at the World Championships.

Well done Tayla, the College community wishes you the best of luck!

 

 

 

 

OLD SCHOLAR NEWS

Congratulations to old scholars Joseph Sinor (2011) and Jimmy Toumpas (2012) on their milestone 100 games played for the Woodville West-Torrens Eagles Football Club this weekend.

An amazing effort!