THE HALL IS IN ACTION!

We are very excited to have now held various College functions in our new Hall.

The Opening College Mass, the Badging of our SRC students, our HSC 2022 High Achiever’s Ceremony, an Information Night for Year 11 2022 and Ash Wednesday’s Liturgy were all held over the last fortnight.

It is an impressive new space, and it affords us with a range of opportunities to celebrate our faith, our students and to also drive the academic culture at the College.

We look forward to an official opening by year’s end and inviting parents/carers and community members to various events across the year.

OPEN DAY

Open Afternoon and Evening is a fantastic College event, and one which I look forward to each year. This will occur this coming Monday – see the section below – especially relating to parents/carers who have children in Year 6 2022.

It’s wonderful to see our students demonstrating pride in their College. Already over 200 of our students have volunteered to assist on the night. Well done!

ASH WEDNESDAY

Wednesday marked the commencement of Lent.

The College partook in an Ash Wednesday Liturgy in the Hall, and Mr O’Neill, our Faith & Liturgy Councillors and our Youth Ministry Leaders led us through a reverent ashes service and launch of Project Compassion.

The three key features of Lent: Prayer, Fasting, and Almsgiving – were all spoken about as being at the heart of what Lent is about - a deeper conversion towards the love of the Lord as we prepare over the coming weeks for the Season of Easter.

The following words from Pope Francis are most apt at this time of year:

Fast from hurtful words and speak kind words.
Fast from sadness and be filled with gratitude.
Fast from anger and be filled with patience.
Fast from pessimism and be filled with hope.
Fast from worries and have trust in God.
Fast from complaints and contemplate simplicity.
Fast from pressures and be prayerful.
Fast from bitterness and fill your heart with joy.
Fast from selfishness and be compassionate.
Fast from grudges and be reconciled.
Fast from words and be silent so you can listen.

We encourage students to support Project Compassion throughout Lent. The importance of Project Compassion was highlighted at our service in a message from Ukraine’s CARITAS representative and in a video from Anartecia, a 12-year-old girl from Mozambique https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n1UWEKHP5YI

PRAYER

In light of the horrible scenes of damage, personal distress and the extraordinary amounts of rainfall, flood and destruction in recent days and weeks, we continue to keep in our thoughts and prayers all those affected in our local region, Northern NSW and Queensland.

May our compassionate Lord, and source of all comfort, be with those in their time of need and may they be reassured and find strength in the coming days, weeks and months.

The College also continues to keep in our hearts those afflicted by war. In particular, the following prayer from the Catholic Agency for Overseas Development holds the people of Ukraine at the forefront of our minds:

A PRAYER FOR UKRAINE

Loving God,
We pray for the people of Ukraine,
for all those suffering or afraid,
that you will be close to them and protect them.

We pray for world leaders,
for compassion, strength and wisdom to guide their choices.

We pray for the world
that in this moment of crisis,
we may reach out in solidarity
to our brothers and sisters in need.

May we walk in your ways
so that peace and justice
become a reality for the people of Ukraine
and for all the world.

–        Amen.

RAT's are ready for distribution to Magdalene families. Eight tests will be given to each student next week.

Please note: If your child tests positive to COVID-19, they must remain home until they are free of symptoms (even if this exends past their 7 day isolation). Siblings must also isolate for the 7 day isolation period.

Our Staff Professional Learning Day will be on Friday 18 March. Students do not attend school on this day.

If you have a child currently enrolled at Magdalene, and are looking to enrol a sibling, please contact the College Office to have an enrolment pack sent home with your current Magdalene student.

From the 2020 HSC forward, all NSW students have been required to attain the National Minimum Standard in Numeracy, Reading and Writing to attain the HSC credential (National Minimum Standard testing does not impact a student's ability to attain an ATAR). 

In 2022, National Minimum Standard tests will be completed in English and Mathematics classes for students in Years 10 and 11.  Students not studying Mathematics courses in Year 11 will be offered an alternative time to complete the Numeracy test. 

NMS tests are completed online and are each forty minutes in duration. All students will complete Reading, Writing and Numeracy tests across classes in Week 11 of Term 1. Individual student results will be available to students through their NESA Students Online accounts.

Students who attain the NMS in each domain have the skills to perform tasks such as:

• Follow safety instructions in equipment manuals
• Understand a mobile phone plan
• Complete a job application and
• Create a personal weekly budget.

Through the completion of Stage 5 Mathematics and English Courses, students develop the skills necessary for the successful completion of NMS tests.  Students who do not attain a Level 3 or 4 result can attempt the tests again and may work with teachers on learning interventions if necessary. Students are able to attempt tests up to 6 times across each year. 

For sample tests and information, please visit the NESA website:

Miss Stephanie Phillips

Leader of Teaching and Learning

Open Afternoon and Evening

Given our aim for this year's Open Night to be COVID-19 safe and friendly, we have changed the format of this event.

We ask that one parent/carer attend with their child and pre-register one session. Attendees must be fully vaccinated, and masks must be worn indoors. We recommend comfortable footwear, with no stiletto heels permitted into the College Hall.

There are four sessions from which to choose

3:45pm - 5:30pm

Information session in the College Hall 4:00pm - 4:30pm followed by College Tour

4:00pm - 5:00pm

College Tour only

5:45pm - 7:30pm

Information session in the College Hall 6:00pm - 6:30pm followed by College Tour

6:00pm - 7:00pm

College Tour only

Enrolment

We look forward to welcoming prospective and returning families into our community.

Year 7 2023 Enrolment packs will be available, and guided tours will be offered around the College grounds. Please note, we accept enrolment applications from current Year 6 students only.

We look forward to seeing you on the night!

Bookings can be made via our College Website

Registrations for the 2022 Premier's Reading Challenge are now open for students from Years 7 to 10. The Challenge aims to encourage a love of reading for leisure and pleasure in students, and to enable them to experience quality literature. It is not a competition but a challenge to each student to read, to read more and to read more widely.

Any interested students can see the Library staff to register. The sooner you register, the sooner you can start logging your reading as part of the Challenge. All you need to do is read 20 approved books and you receive a Certificate which you can add to your resume!

The challenge finishes on 19 August, so please see the Library staff to start your PRC journey.

Please visit the following website for more information

Did you know that you can add your childs attendance notes in Compass?

At the base of the main profile page, there is a blue button "+ Attendance note"

Follow the prompts to add your childs attendance note. This can be done ahead of time.