SECONDARY NEWS 

From the Assistant Principal 

Year 10 Graduation

The Holy Trinity Year 10 Class of 2020 graduated from Holy Trinity School last Thursday.

For the first part of the week students had a Christian Living Camp at Copeton Dam. Mrs Guest, Mr Lewis, Mrs McLachlan, Mrs Rainger and Miss Bailey all spent time at the camp. Secondary staff, Fr. James and Fr. Thaddeus also joined the camp on Tuesday night for the evening meal. Students enjoyed the experience and were able to spend quality time together before they go their separate ways next year.

The Graduation Mass on Thursday was a moving experience for all who attended. Fr. James congratulated the students, reminding them of the love and support they have received from their families and that something worth achieving may take time and patience. He encouraged them to be good friends with all in the community, to be lifelong learners and congratulated them on their Graduation. 

Year 10 students had prepared a beautiful liturgy that included relevant scripture readings and inspiring hymns and music. Congratulations to Mrs Guest for her overall planning of this special event.

The Graduation Mass also served as the Presentation Assembly for Year 10 students; with students receiving both Commendation and Presentation Day awards. They also received their final report and school reference and officially graduated from Holy Trinity. Students are now able to log on to the NESA site to receive their grades. These results will be added to as the students progress through their final two years of school.

Thursday evening saw the culmination of a hectic week with the Graduation Dinner at the RSM Club. The young men and women were a credit to themselves, their families and the school. After a formal presentation by Mrs Rainger, Mrs Samone Bell responded on behalf of the parents. She spoke about Holy Trinity and the strong family connections made over her family’s time at the school. It was a fantastic night for the staff, students and their parents.

Although the experience was different due to COVID-19 restrictions a great time was had by all.

Congratulations to all Year 10 award recipients. 

Sophie Mijic was awarded the prestigious honour of School Dux at the conclusion of Presentation Night. Sophie received several awards during the evening and she is a worthy winner of the Sisters of Mercy Shield for Secondary Dux in 2020. Congratulations, Sophie! 

A list of the major awards winners from Year 10 follows. 

Presentation Day

Due to COVID-19restrictions,our usual Presentation Night will not be able to go ahead and instead we will hold Presentation Day on Monday 4 December in the Hall. The Secondary Presentation will commence at 12pm. Students will receive both Commendation Awards and Presentation Awards at this assembly. Unfortunately, parents will not be able to attend the event this year due to COVID-19 restrictions. However, the assembly will be livestreamed and also made available to parents via our social media channel.

2021 SRC 

Congratulations to the following Year 9 students who were the successful candidates in the recent elections for the 2021 Student Representative Council; Charlotte Doman, Charlotte McInnes, Lillian Rainger, Anita Thivakon, Jock Hollis, Isaac Hutchings, Riley Schutz and Campbell Walsh.

Voting for School Captains will be held today and announced at the Coin Drop on Wednesday morning. 

Reports

Students in Years 7 - 9 will receive their reports on Monday 4 December. 

Vinnies Christmas Appeal

Food Hampers

Students are being encouraged to bring in 'Festive Food' items for their class hampers. All hampers will be donated to St Vincent de Paul for distribution to those in need in our local community. Hampers will be collected and taken to the Hall as part of our Thanksgiving Prayer celebrations on Friday.

Coin Drop

On Wednesday 9 December we will be having a Coin Drop in the K - 2 Quadrangle. Students are encouraged to bring in some loose coins to contribute.

We thank you in advance for your generosity and support of these important traditions - it does make a difference to many people in our community.

Week 10 End of Year Activities

Wednesday 16 December

Notes will be sent home shortly outlining the program for class activities on Wednesday 16 December. Students will go to the pool, have lunch downtown and return to school for a movie. Students may wear plain clothes and are reminded to have hats and sunscreen. Notes must be returned in order for the students to participate in the festivities.

Lost Property

Students have been advised to check lost property. Many items of clothing and other belongings do not have names, making it very difficult to return to the correct owner. 

Secondary Requirements for 2020

Years 7 & 8

Students in Years 7 and 8 are able to purchase bookpacks from the canteen. These can also be purchased using Flexischools.

Years 9 & 10

There are no bookpacks for the students in Years 9 & 10.

• All students will need books for each subject, they will need to be covered and clearly labelled with the student’s name.
• At times students may require lined paper.
• Students are encouraged to have headphones and a USB storage device for use with laptops/computers. Students in Year 9 & 10 will have their iPads.
• Mathematics: students will need a scientific calculator and geometrical instruments.
• Specific Elective requirements:

Evaluating Areas to Improve

Over the Christmas break, it is easy to put all thoughts of school out of your mind and just enjoy the holidays. This is not a bad thing, it is important to have a good break and clear your mind. However, when you start back at school again you will probably have forgotten what you were doing well at school and what you need to change in order to improve your results.

So before school ends this term, it is important to take some time and evaluate your approach in these key areas, writing down the changes you will make when you return to school so you don’t forget them.

USE OF CLASSTIME

How well did you use your time in class? Who did you sit next to? Did you work well together? Did you listen to teachers and fellow students when they were speaking? Did you participate and contribute in your lessons? What are the main changes you need to make in this area?

ASKING FOR HELP

 If you didn’t understand something in class did you ask a question about it? If you were unsure about an assignment or assessment did you check in with your teacher? If you were struggling with a topic did you ask for help? What are the main changes you need to make in this area?

TIME MANAGEMENT 

Did you do enough schoolwork each afternoon? Did you plan out a timeline to do the work for your assessments? When you were working at home did you remove all distractions so you could focus? What are the main changes you need to make in this area?

PREPARING FOR TESTS

Did you ensure that you were always clear on what you were being tested on? Did you make study notes along the way so you had them ready for test time? Did you test yourself on the content as you were learning it to see if it was in your memory? Did you do lots of questions to practice the skills of the subject? What are the main changes you need to make in this area?