Secondary

Calling for volunteers to help with tree planting

As part of the Season of Creation and our ongoing sustainability initiatives the College we will be planting native trees and shrubs and weeding on Saturday 10 September, starting at 8:00am and finishing at 9:30am. The aim of the planting is to offset carbon emissions from the College, provide food and habitat for native bird species focusing on the endangered Carnaby Black Cockatoo.

We are calling for interested parents and students from the John XXIII community to assist with this initiative. If you are interested in assisting please complete the following form. Many of the seedlings to be planted have been grown by the Sustainability Club and science classes with the assistance of Trillion Trees Australia.All equipment will be provided, please ensure you wear comfortable clothing and suitable closed footwear. Also don’t forget to bring a hat and sunscreen. Meeting point is at B8 Science Garden at the College.  Student who participate will be able to use the time as part of their service learning hours.

RSVP: https://forms.office.com/r/zkr9wJVPtW

Adrian Sims

Sustainability Coordinator

Languages Week 

This week, we celebrated Languages Week. It is always a much-anticipated week that both the staff and our language students look forward to. Languages Week enables us to raise awareness of the benefits of language learning, highlights the linguistic diversity in our community and celebrates the work of our students and teachers in Primary and Secondary. Learning a language encompasses much more than language proficiency. Knowing a language means knowing about the culture that is the foundation of that language. 

The various year groups were involved in a variety of engaging, full-filled activities. Our Year 7 students competitively were involved in our version of the ‘giro d’Italia’. This consists of a course on scooters around the tennis courts. The weather, terrain and spectators encourage our students to zoom to the finish line and see which team will win.

The Year 8 Language students enthusiastically completed the Olympic games and worked with their peers to gain valuable points to win for their country. The Year 9s were engaged in a language quiz on different languages and countries around the world. The Year 10s were excited to learn about traditional games and cultural aspects of the three languages and were involved with kendama, petanque and the tarantella. Finally, our senior students engaged in traditional food and created eco-bags with their peers. The students were fortunate enough to enjoy a treat from the different countries.  

A big thank you to our language staff for all their enthusiasm, efforts and passion for making this week a success.

Merci beaucoup, arigatoo and grazie

Melissa Polizzi

Head of Languages 

Breakfast by the Bay

On Wednesday, some of our Year 11 Politics and Law students attended Breakfast by the Bay - hosted by The University Club and the UWA Public Policy Institute. A panel of experts discussed a range of topics centred on compulsory voting, civic participation and democracy. The panel included: Kate Chaney, Federal Member for Curtin; Associate Professor Ullrich Ecker, UWA School of Psychological Science; Lenda Oshalem, National Campaigns Director of SEC Newgate; Dr Lachlan Umbers, UWA School of Humanities; and Professor Shamit Saggar, Director of the UWA Public Policy Institute.

Year 11 Politics and Law student, Daniel Doran, posed a discussion question to the panel:

"Do you think that, considering today's discussion has centred on the dissatisfaction of voters with political systems, that an individual similar to Donald Trump would be able to harness this dissatisfaction with populist ideas and radical beliefs?" 

Daniel’s question was enthusiastically received by the panellists. After the breakfast, the students met with Ms Chaney, and discussed youth engagement in politics. What a stimulating start to the day!

Daisy Farley

Magis Coordinator – Gifted and Talented

Year 8 Social

Dressed in their finest checked shirts, Year 8 students embraced an evening of fun at their Bush Dance on Wednesday 31 August. They were taught some barn dances and dosey-does on the night from the Mucky Duck Bush Band who also entertained the group with their lively folk and country tunes. 

Students showed off their bush themed costumes and won prizes whilst dancing the night away with their peers. The Year 12 SRC students led the night by example, joining in on the dances, assisting with the prizes and interacting positively with the Year 8 cohort. 

Many thanks go to those involved in making the night possible, including Jeff Jansen (AV technician), Doug Watson (logistics) the Year 12 SRC students, and the Year 8 Homeroom teachers who supervised the evening.

Well done to the Year 8 students for their exceptional behaviour while getting right into the spirit of the night and having a fantastic time. 

Miss Morgan Ball

Assistant Deputy Principal – Year 8

Year 9 Social

The Year 9 cohort kicked up their heels on Thursday night and the Year 9 Social, with the team from Humphreys Dance Studio guiding them through a number of dances. The fluoro theme made for a very colourful dancefloor. Thank you to the many parents that lent their high visibility clothing for the evening.  

James McLaughlin

Assistant Deputy Principal - Year 9

West Coast Eagles SOAR Program

An informative session was held of our female students during the week with the West Coast Eagles. Their SOAR program teaches students about athletic movement and injury prevention specific to females, as well as nutrition and recovery for sport and Australian football skills and game play.

Year 8 Guest Speaker - Amy Coombe 

During the Wellbeing Assembly on Thursday 1 September, Amy Coombe presented to Year 8 students on the topic of mental health in adolescents and personal wellbeing. Amy shared her own experience during her teenage years, battling an eating disorder and depression where she managed to hide her illness and suffer in silence. Having overcome this, Amy uses her experience to change the lives of others and passionately works towards breaking the stigma associated with mental illness. Amy spoke with heart, humour and honesty, and she left students with an important message regarding their own personal wellbeing; “Spend more time in the yellow and not the black”. Amy has also encouraged parents to ask their children how they are doing and to try and engage in mental health discussions at home. She explained that having conversations with children about mental health early in life can help remove the stigma and encourage them to ask for help and learn how to cope with adversity later in life.

Ms Morgan Ball

Assistant Deputy Principal – Year 8

Expressions of Interest: New Inspire Representatives – Secondary

The Inspire program at John XXIII College was instigated in 2013 in response to a request from the College Leadership to promote more parent engagement and to address arising social issues affecting the students and their parents/guardians.

We are looking to appoint two new Inspire representatives one each for Primary and Secondary. Inspire representatives seek to provide high quality presenters with excellent reputations in their field. The successful candidates will work with College Leadership to seek presenters / educators that support the curriculum of the students, ensure the correct procedure for Funding Submissions is followed and report back to the Parents’ Association meetings each term.

If you are interested in an Inspire representative role please forward your expression of interest to the Parents’ Association President, Paula Hackett, on parentsassociation@johnxxiii.edu.au.

Year 7 Social - 10 Pin Bowling

• Date: Thursday, 8 September 2022
• Time: 5:30pm students are to be collected from Melville Super Bowl by 7:10pm
• Bus option: 4:50pm departure from John XXIII College bus stop from John XXIII Avenue (otherwise meet at venue). Please note there is no return bus to John XXIII College.
•  Where: Melville Super Bowl, 248 Stock Road, Melville 
•  Cost: $21.50 including bowling and meal option
• RSVP: www.trybooking.com/952111 

SPORT

ACC A Division Athletics Team

Congratulations to the final ACC A division Athletics Team. The team has been posted on the Pavilion notice board. All students are encouraged to double check the events that are in so they are prepared for the big day.  All named team members are encouraged to attend the morning athletics training sessions with our specialist coaches.

Some important information for the upcoming weeks

• Monday 12 September – All relay members will participate in relay training period 5 and 6 during school time. Students will have permission to wear sport uniform for the day. 
• Monday 12 September - Compulsory afterschool training session 3:30pm-4:30pm followed by team dinner 5:00pm-6:15pm in the TMEC. Please use the TryBooking link to confirm your attendance and any dietary restrictions www.trybooking.com/949295

Congratulations on your selection into the ACC Athletics Team, it is a wonderful achievement and something to be extremely proud of. On Monday 12 September you are required to attend the ACC Athletics Team Dinner. This is a chance for us to come together as a team and share in a meal in the lead up to the big day!

• Monday 12 September 5:00pm 6:30pm
• Thomas More Exhibition Centre, John XXIII College, 

There are only four training sessions left until the ACC A-Division Athletics Carnival on Wednesday 14 September. We look forward to seeing our athletes at as many of these sessions as possible. One team, one dream! 

Congratulations

Congratulations to Lyla Stewart and Elizabeth Edwards who travelled to Adelaide to compete in the School Sport National Cross-Country Championships. The course was challenging with ankle deep mud and some hilly terrain. It amazing to see our JTC students competing against the best of the best. 

• Lyla Stewart 29th
• Elizabeth Edwards – 20th

Congratulations also to Georgia Perry who has been selected in the U/17’s State Team for Water Polo. All the best with upcoming national Tournament later in the year.

Water Polo

Well done to all the students who attended the Years 9/10 Water Polo trials. Thank you to Mr Chris Morris, Miss Jodi Power and Mrs Donna Kolka for their knowledge and expertise. The final teams will be posted in the notices next week.

Year 7/8 Rugby

All students in the Years 7/8 rugby team are required to attend a short meeting at recess on Monday in the St Louis Gym. 

Jess Pillera

Head of Sport