YEAR 7 MATHS PATHWAYS

On Tuesday night Year 7 students and parents/carers came together to hear information about an exciting new online mathematics programme called Maths Pathways. This new programme provides an opportunity for independence as students can, having completed diagnostic tests, go ahead and move through various topics and modules to increase their ability as needed. Students will still be completing work in their exercise books and there will be a focus on building automaticity, however, Maths Pathways is built upon nations of a growth mindset therefore it allows the mathematics staff to tailor their individual guidance and allow for / build upon the range of abilities that exist in any class at any given time.

A representative from Maths Pathways was present on the evening to provide guidance and answer any particular questions and our Mathematics staff, led by Mrs Pickles, provided logins for parents and students to access the program and answered any queries as needed.

Year 7 2019 will be trialling Maths Pathways in Term Four, and, if deemed to be suitable for  Magdalene students will be extended to Year 7 2020 and a continuation into Year 8 for this group. I thank our Mathematics staff for their interest, professional engagement and support bringing in this new initiative.

POSITIVE PARENTING

During the abovementioned evening, I also had the opportunity to talk about notions of “positive parenting”. While this idea has been a feature of positive psychology for a number of years, it is only now starting to filter down into the mainstream. I quoted from an article in the Sydney Morning Herald (dated Tues 15^th October) entitled: “How 'strength-based parenting' is bringing out the best in kids.” (https://tinyurl.com/y5avq4be) This article details the ongoing challenge to remain positive to support our children best. It acknowledges that: “At a basic biological level, even though we love our children, our brains are wired to avoid what's going wrong before we notice what's going right.” Therefore, we should avoid this urge and instead focus on our student strengths/successes because “focusing on their weaknesses can be counterproductive”. I raised three questions which the article stresses:

1. What do they love to do?
2. What excites them?
3. What do they feel passionate about?

and asked rhetorically how many parents/carers could confidently answer this?

Obviously, the parent body has a wide range of experiences, with some parents/carers having had multiple children complete the HSC already whereas others have students in Year 7 for the very first time. Therefore, whenever speaking about parenting I only ever raise what research recommends and put these ideas forward as suggestions. What seems to be clear though is that operating out of a growth mindset can encourage children to see their skills and abilities very much at any given point in time – as being flexible – and open – and able to be added upon. Of course, no matter which approaches we take, often hard work, self-belief and dedication are the key determinants in terms of student success.

HSC EXAMINATIONS 2019

This week our Year 12 2019 cohort commenced their HSC examinations. The year group has been working particularly hard across 2019 and we wish the group all the very best.

These HSC examinations are the culmination of 13 years or more of education and, while the examinations can certainly be a challenge and/or stressful, we are confident that, through their hard work and dedication, this year group will move towards their potential.

We thank the Year 12 Pastoral Team, and especially Mrs Blair Colella, Year 12 Coordinator, for her work and support of this group. We also thank Miss Stephanie Phillips for her hard work across the year (including being there during extended study library hours and running the Golden Achievers Club).

Our prayer in this newsletter is obviously focused on these students and we will continue to pray for our year 12 students throughout the entire examination period.

A Prayer for our Year 12 2019 HSC cohort

Dear Lord, we ask you to bestow Your blessings on our Year 12 Magdalene students as they commence their HSC Examinations.

May they have the confidence they need to give their best in each examination situation.

May their reserves of resilience be matched by unwavering focus and diligence.

Allow them to call on the College’s values of a love of learning and desiring for their personal best when things get difficult.

Provide them with the ability to read questions carefully, be discerning in their answers and structured and thoughtful in their planning.

May they be enriched by the gifts of the Holy Spirit and may they find solace in You Lord – our abundant source of love and hope.

We ask this through Christ Our Lord,

Mary Magdalene: Pray for us.

Amen

On Tuesday of this week, our Year 12 2020 Leaders and Junior SRC representatives were formally badged in a ceremony to recognise their election into a range of significant positions for the remainder of this term and 2020.

Father Joe was present to lead prayer and bless the various badges and there was a large number of parents/carers present to congratulate and recognise these students.

The full list of student leaders is listed below, however, it is important to note that all Year 11 students received their "Year 12 2020" badge - a recognition of their move to becoming the next HSC cohort and also the leaders of the College - in their approach and role modelling.

We commend and acknowledge the following:

On Thursday 26th September, we officially farewelled Year 12 and celebrated their accomplishments at the Graduation Assembly and Mass later that night. 

As I mentioned in my address, Year 12 2019 have been a wonderful year group and achieved many great things in their time here at Magdalene Catholic College. Since their beginning at the College in 2014, they have grown together in their commitment to learning and will enter the community as wholesome, caring and compassionate individuals. 

With at least two HSC exams under their belt, they are well on their way to completing their final exams and I wish them all the very best. Stay resilient and determined to achieve your goals. Every successful person has made mistakes, doubted themselves, failed to reach a goal. It's not our accomplishments that define us but the way we overcome the challenges we face.

I would also like to take this opportunity to thank all the teaching and support staff that have continued to guide our Year 12 students and provide the emotional and academic support needed. 

Year 12, be kind to yourselves and be proud of what you have already achieved.

I wish you every success for your future and can't wait to celebrate with you at your formal on Friday 15th November. 

Mrs Blair Colella

Year 12 Coordinator

Magdalene Catholic College has been given an opportunity to trial a new Mathematics Package for Year 7, called Maths Pathways,Maths Pathways will make a significant change in how your child’s Mathematics learning will take place.

Please watch this video for an overview of the changes and what Maths Pathways is about.

In essence, Maths Pathways uses an online diagnostic tool to find all the gaps in a student’s mathematical knowledge and then works to make sure all those gaps are filled.

We believe an individualised learning path for each student will result in faster growth in their mathematics journey, as well as reducing the anxiety often associated with Maths, as students work at filling in any gaps before moving to new concepts.

Math Pathways can also allow students to grow at a faster rate if they are committed and could see them achieve a higher level of Mathematics than in a normal traditional system. 

Students are given individualised modules to work from on their laptops, but all work will be completed in their exercise books. We believe maintaining habits of keeping notes and setting out solutions is still a very important aspect of learning.

We would like to ask for your support, to help us set routines for your child, to encourage them to sit 20 minutes each night to complete their modules in their exercise books. This will be available once all their diagnostic tests are completed at the beginning of next week.

We are excited that this program will have a significant impact on the student’s ability in Mathematics.

This is a trial. We will be seeking feedback from parents and once we have observed the program throughout Term 4, we will make an informed decision as to whether to implement the program in 2020.

Please feel free to contact me, Renee Pickles, through the school office.

Best Wishes,

Renee Pickles

Catholic Mission Diocesan Launch

On Wednesday 18th September, some of our newest Youth Ministry Leader students represented the College at the Diocesan Catholic Mission Launch at St John’s in Nowra. This yearly event to commence World Mission Month starts off with a main focus, this year’s focus involved looking to promote and support the work of various church agencies in Ghana who work to provide the basic needs of orphaned or outcast children. Whilst confronting at times, this was a wonderful opportunity for representatives from all Catholic schools in the diocese to come together as one community and stand in solidarity with our brothers and sisters who are less fortunate than ourselves. During the liturgy, we had the fortunate opportunity to learn and gain insight on some of the struggles in which the children of Ghana go through when they are outcast from their community, often due to disability. We were privileged to hear from Monsignor Anamooh, who gave a first-hand insight into the work of the Church in Ghana and the many needs that this year's appeal can assist to address.

The College held a number of events during Term 3 to raise awareness for the work of Catholic Mission and to raise funds to support their work. Events were run by each of our SRC student leaders, supported by Year Coordinators and Pastoral Teachers.

Mr Kevin Wade Oztag Match - Staff v Students - Year 11 & 12 SRC

Wednesday 11th September saw the staff take on the students in our annual Mr Kevin Wade Oztag match. The match honours both the sportsmanship and care of others that were very much characteristic of Mr Wade. The match was a tight affair with the staff holding on for a tense 3 - 3 all draw against a fast-finishing and well-credentialed student team. The real winners on the day were those that are supported by Catholic Mission with our BBQ raising over $400 for Catholic Mission. Well done to our Year 11 & 12 students and helpers who organised and ran a very successful event. Thank you also to the staff and students who participated in the match.

Staff v Students Netball - Year 9 & 10 SRC & Donut Eating Competition - Year 7 & 8 SRC

During August the staff took on the students in a Netball match and Doughnut Eating Competition both in aid of Catholic Mission. The Netball match was a tight affair with the staff holding on for a 16 -15 victory against a fast-finishing and well-organised student team. In all the Stage 5 BBQ raised over $300 for Catholic Mission, which is a great result. Well done also to our Year 7 and 8 student leaders who organised a doughnut sale and doughnut-eating competition which the students won convincingly. Again all money raised has gone to support Catholic Mission. Thank you to all the staff and students who participated in both of these wonderful events.

Youth Ministry Update

Primary School Activitate Fire Days

Our 2019 YMLs have supported a new initiative in the Diocese this year, by attending and helping to facilitate two Primary School Activitate Fire Days. These days bring together Year 6 students from a cluster of schools from the same region to participate in a Youth Ministry retreat experience similar to the LIVE Twilight retreats we run here at Magdalene. Our YMLs did a great job running various ice breakers and leading small groups at both the local cluster event held at St Clare’s Primary school (involving students from St Pauls, St Justines and St Clare’s) and more recently at the Southern Highlands event held at Thomas Aquinas Primary at Bowral. The represented the College with distinction and were admirable role models for the primary school students.

LIVE Festival 2019

On Friday 30th of August 61 students from Year 10 and Year 11 travelled to Wollongong to participate in the Diocesan LIVE Youth Festival. This festival was a great opportunity for new experiences, new friends and new encounters with the Holy Spirit. The day included a wide range of activities such as talks, live music, dancing, bubble soccer and much more. These experiences were all aimed at giving the youth of our Wollongong Diocese the opportunity to explore their own faith and spirituality in a supportive and community-oriented environment. This year the event was held at a new venue, the WIN Entertainment Centre in Wollongong. The day started with energy and response to the sounds of the CYMW Rock Band and was followed by a range of talks and guest presenters. Each session provided ideas and lessons about what it means to be catholic, one significant activity included a talk and presentation on Mental Health from Jonathan Doyle. Jonathan is best known as a motivational speaker and leadership councillor working with leaders from all over the world. We got to learn a lot about who he really is behind his voice, how his faith has helped him overcome the challenges of mental illness and the journey that made him who he was. This journey resonated with many students and provided an opportunity to reflect and refocus in their own lives. All in all an absolutely fantastic day was had by the Magdalene Staff and Students who attended.

Youth Ministry Leaders

We were fortunate to have a significant number of Year 10 students apply to be Youth Ministry Leaders for 2020. These students will follow on from and work with our 2019 YMLs who have done a fantastic job building the role and supporting the important work of Youth Ministry in our school. In addition, these students will represent the College at the upcoming Australian Catholic Youth Festival in December this year. A detailed application process was undertaken and it is with great pleasure that we announce our 2020 YMLs:

• Talia Omac
• Madison Hamilton
• Alyssa Greenhalgh
• Lyndsey Dunlop
• Mali Dillon
• Kristina Younan
• Hayden Abernethy
• Beau Severin
• Andrew Rixon
• Brady Cottle

A big congratulations to all the students who applied and we look forward to the continued growth of Youth Ministry under the leadership of our YMLs in partnership with the Student Representative Council.

Mr. Peter Collins

Mission Coordinator

The inspiration for this puppet comes from traditional Chinese dragons, “How to Train Your Dragon 3” and a video on YouTube by Tiny Badger. The construction of this puppet took around 3 weeks to complete and measures 1.9 meters from the tip of the nose to the tip of the tail.

The eyes were inspired by the eye mechanism inside a Chinese dragon, meaning that when a wire or stick is pulled down the eyelids will close and pushing it back up causes the dragon to blink. To make this my dad drilled a hole in two handballs that I attached to a wooden rod and then attached half of a soft play ball on top of each eye. To finish off the eye mechanism I attached a spring so that the eyelids could close automatically and painted the eyelids white. 

The body was inspired by the light fury in How to Train Your Dragon 3. The dragon is fully white so I added my own colours to make the dragon more unique. The head was crafted using foam, cardboard, fabric and a lot of hot glue, this process took around a week. Once i was happy with the head I glued feathers to the back and used floristry leaves for the details and nostrils. The next step was to make the body, to do this a measured my arms and added room so that I could freely move the head and tail around. I then sewed two pieces of different coloured fabric together and made sure that there were no mistakes.  Once I had completed the body I used hot glue to keep it in place. 

As soon as the body was complete I cut two slits in the belly and lightly stuffed the body and heavily stuffed the tail. I then added wings and feathers to the tail and tried it on with a jacket that had stuffed sleeves to make it look like I have my very own pet dragon.

To assist with any enquiries you may receive regarding student travel applications, we have provided some information below.

Applications for student travel in 2020 opened on Friday, 11 October 2019.

Students progressing to year 3 and year 7 no longer need to re-apply if they:

·       are continuing at the same school

·       are residing at the same address

·       have not been sent an expiry notification from Transport for NSW.

Where a student meets the new distance eligibility, the system will automatically update their entitlement. If they do not meet the new eligibility, they will receive an expiry notification via email.

Students who have an entitlement approved under a medical condition which is due to expire will receive a notification advising them to re-apply.

Term Bus Pass holders will receive a notification to re-apply.

If students need to update their information or re-apply, they should go online to https://apps.transport.nsw.gov.au/ssts/updateDetails

Applications need to be submitted before 31 December 2019 to ensure student entitlements are updated and their current entitlement/card is not cancelled. If their application is submitted after 31 December 2019, the system will automatically cancel an entitlement/card and a new one will need to be issued.

Students in the Opal network applying for a SSTS or Term Bus Pass entitlement for the first time will receive their card at their nominated postal address. Cards will be mailed out from January 2020.

Students residing in Rural and Regional (R&R) areas should receive their travel pass at the commencement of the new school year from their nominated operator, this may be distributed via the school or sent direct to their address. Note: some R&R operators do not issue travel passes. Students/Parents should confirm with their nominated operator if they do not receive a pass.