Secondary Campus
MUSICAL AWARDS NIGHT
On Friday of Week 9, secondary students along with Year 6 students who were involved in ‘Mary Poppins Jr.’ celebrated their achievements at the inaugural St Michael’s College Musical Awards Night.
Held in the Mary MacKillop centre, it was an evening of glitz, glamour and lots of dancing! Students organised and ran the event and gave out awards for everything from ‘Best All-round Performing Artist’ to ‘Best Comic Act’ and even the ‘Queen Bee Award’.
Thank you to the student-led organising committee for the hard work put into planning the event, and congratulations to the award winners!
Ms Emily Burns, Drama Coordinator – Secondary
YEAR 9 ART
Students have been exploring the work of South Australian artist, Dana Kinter. We have looked at how she has collaborated with Design companies such as Adairs and Gorman. Kinter works in a range of media and styles. The students have used mixed media on plywood to create these pieces which explore a range of decorative patterns, native flora and fauna. Our next project will involve working with white clay to create bird sculptures, also inspired by Kinter.
Ms Leanne Michalik and Ms Sally Armour, Art Teachers – Secondary
DANCE CLASSES
Secondary students of all ages and abilities are invited to three ‘come and try’ dance sessions with old scholar Alana Consalvo (2020).
Alana will be offering Jazz, Lyrical and Contemporary so students can decide what style/s they may like to explore in classes with Alana in 2022.
Our Hip Hop classes with old scholar Charlie Gilbert (2018) run Tuesday and Wednesday mornings, and with Mega Crew on Tuesdays after school. Students have been creating incredible routines with Charlie and we can’t wait to see what they perform at our up-and-coming performance at The Parks Theatre on 17 November.
If you are interested in getting involved in these fun, supportive, and positive dance classes, please register your interest with Ms Caputo or Ms Kollevris by signing the sheets in either one of the dance rooms.
Mrs Dani Caputo, Dance Coordinator – Secondary

YEARS 7-9 LEARNING AND WELLBEING CHARACTER STRENGTH FOCUS
Week 1: Zest
Zest… we usually think of this word in the context of food technology, or in my day (showing my age now!) – home economics. But while the notion of zest in the context of character strengths is a bit different, there seems to be no doubt that it still does pack a bit of zing and does make life more flavourful.
Zest, as a character strength, refers to energy that propels us forward in whatever our endeavours might be. When we approach life with zest, we show excitement, energy and stronger willpower. According to the VIA website, “those who are high in zest are excited to get up in the morning, and they live life like an adventure”. While this may not come naturally to all of us… especially the last part… especially this week… we can all work on it!
Interestingly, zest is directly related to our physical and mental wellbeing. There is a large body of research that shows a strong correlation between strong overall life satisfaction and engagement, and zest, and it’s accepted that zest is constructive in motivating and facilitating perseverance and grit – so very important to our sense of achievement.
This week at St Michael’s students and staff resumed their activities with lots of zest! Wild Wednesday lunch this week saw a group of students in Years 7 to 9 come together based on their passion for art and drawing, and the zest with which they discussed their experiences and connected with each other was clear. In their discussions over shared lunch, they were also able to articulate what was good about being at St Michael’s, and what else they dreamed it might be!
Another dedicated group of students between Year 7 and 11 met at a recess to discuss the plans for bathroom renovations which they have been working on together over the course of a year! It’s looking great! Zest definitely helps here too!
School and our community life definitely benefits when zest is present!
In the world of work where many of us spend many hours a day, numerous studies have indicated that zest has been found to be one of the most important predictors of work-related wellbeing and satisfaction. It seems that when we work through zest, we experience more gratitude, hope, and love and this can make a difference on how we navigate stress and challenge.
According to the The Greater Good Science Center at the University of California, Berkeley, and the article Four Reasons to Cultivate Zest in Life by Kira Newman, managing editor[1], the following strategies are useful in bolstering zest in our lives:
- Take care of our body: Eat well, get enough sleep, and don’t smoke. Exercise can make us especially more zestful if it’s fun—so perhaps we should join a team of some sort or find a running buddy, rather than work alone on a treadmill.
- Practice savouring: Zest involves feeling fully engaged in our world, with awareness seeping through all our senses. We can build that feeling by trying to savour positive events and feel good experiences— rather than letting them pass us by, unnoticed. At these times, we can even find ways to do this in our zoom encounters! Be mindful!
- Cultivate optimism: Feeling hope can boost our excitement and passion for life. We can work on mindfully remembering and focusing on what we’re grateful for- three things a day- perhaps we can discuss this over dinner- what went well today?
- Get social: The connections that helped our ancestors survive tens of thousands of years ago bring us greater vitality today. Spending time with friends, developing our relationships at work, or participating in social activities can help our zest levels to grow.
- Experience nature: Being around nature of all forms can make us feel more energetic, too. According to studies, just being in nature—even if we don’t exercise— can help us to feel energised.
In short, a bit less zzz (notwithstanding the value and necessity of good sleep) and a bit more conscious zest, can see us be happier, healthier and more fulfilled. Note to self…I will remember that tomorrow morning when the alarm rings before 6:00 am!
Have a great Week 2 and weekend ahead!
[1] Accessed at https://greatergood.berkeley.edu/article/item/four_reasons_to_cultivate_zest_in_life 11 October 2021.
Mrs Tonia Carfora, Year 7-9 Learning and Wellbeing Initiatives Leader
