Senior School News

Positive Education (Years 7 & 8)

Students in Stage 4 (Years 7 and 8) are exploring three personality traits that we are hoping to develop through our interactions with others and in the way we approach activities in the classroom. Now that we are all working from home, I thought it was pertinent to share some of this with parents and carers.

The three traits are Strength, Gratitude and Consistency (SGC). Both year groups have had Pastoral Care sessions where staff members have introduced these three traits. Hopefully, this has given the boys a clearer understanding of what they are and how they can demonstrate these traits in their interactions with others and in their academic endeavour.

One of the key areas for the success of this model is the common language that all staff members need to use when addressing students in Stage 4. Parents present at the recent Parent Forum suggested there might be some additional benefit for the boys if this language was used around the home too. Here are some practical examples of what this may look like and sound like as you chat to your sons at home:

Strength

• Words and actions associated with this trait include; leadership, resilience, perseverance, self-discipline and learning from mistakes.
• Examples; If your son is struggling with a difficult concept but continues to work hard at mastering it during study at home you can say something along the lines of, “You’ve shown great perseverance in working on that problem!” or “That’s taken a lot of self-control to sit and work on that for so long, great strength!”

Gratitude

• Words and actions include; readiness to show appreciation, return kindness, to say thank you and to acknowledge the good work of others.
• Examples; Encourage boys to greet others as they walk around the College, to be well behaved, to smile, to thank parents for various opportunities and to be inclusive of others in games.

Consistency

• Words and actions include; persistence, love of learning, always making good choices and being fair.
• Examples; Acknowledging small changes that boys have made to acknowledge consistent effort; getting dressed on time, wearing the uniform well or cleaning up after themselves.  Acknowledging some success may bring about further consistent positive behaviours.

The boys have responded well to these themes and we hope to continue to develop them as they move throughout the year.

Thanks for your support of what we consider to be an important initiative here at the College.

Senior School, Stage 4 Team – Mr O’Brien, Mrs Ursino and Mr Wilson

Handwriting Club

It was with great enthusiasm that a select number of Year 7 boys participated in the first week of the extra-curricular handwriting support group. With a program uniquely designed by Dr Lin Meeks (director of Ants in the Apple Pty Ltd. and literacy expert), remediation was provided and delivered. These students represent the initial trial group for St. Gregory’s College and it is hoped that, with time, we can extend the offer of support to more students across more year groups. In spite of our current, unique situation, handwriting remains an integral part of the learning process, yet is consistently sited as being an issue for many within our community. In an era where there seems to be an ongoing battle between the keyboard and the pen, the pen still proves mightier because of its relationship to deeper learning opportunities. Recent neuroscientific research into the topic found that drawing each letter by hand substantially improves subsequent recognition, and in a learning landscape where working memory is already overloaded, such automatic recognition is of paramount importance.

Ordinarily, the boys would have had two sessions per week with guided activities and tasks. Having checked in with the selected students in our remote learning capacity it appears that they are continuing on with their work and are diligently making every effort to work on letter formation and letter accuracy.

Mrs Lee Ursino

Senior School Academic Coordinator (Years 7 & 8)

Group 5 Judging Competitions

Wednesday 11 March, saw seventeen of our young men represent St Gregory’s College at the Group 5 Region (South Coast and Tablelands) Sheep Judging Day at Camden Showground. This is a qualifying round for the State Finals which were to be held at the Sydney Royal Easter Show in April. The students competed in 3 competitions – Meat Sheep Judging, Merino Sheep Judging and Merino Fleece Judging.

I am pleased to announce that Thomas Andersen (Year 9), competing in the Junior age group, achieved 1st place in all three competitions! Unfortunately, Thomas was a few months too young to qualify for the State Finals. Beau Gilbert (Year 12) also had a terrific show, placing 2nd overall in Merino Fleece Judging, and was selected as a reserve for the State Finals.

Other notable achievements include:

• Ryan Saggers (Year 11) – Finalist in all 3 competitions
• Adam Fordham (Year 9) – 2nd place in Fleece judging, 3rd in Meat Sheep judging
• Elliot Power (Year 9) – 2nd place in Meat Sheep judging (Junior class)
• William Hackett (Year 8) – 3rd place in Merino judging (Junior class)
• Riley Keogh (Year 10) – Finalist in Meat Sheep judging
• Nicholas Cozma (Year 10) – Finalist in Fleece judging

On Friday 13 March, eleven students competed at the Group 5 Fruit, Vegetable and Grain Judging competition at the Robertson Show. This competition was also a qualifying event for the State Finals.

The following students achieved fantastic results:

• Harry Stuart (Year 12) achieved 1st place in Grain judging and qualified for the State Finals
• Adam Fordham (Year 9) – 1st place Fruit and Vegetable judging, 3rd place Grain judging (Junior class)
• Jonah Abra (Year 8) – 2nd place Fruit and Vegetable judging, 2nd place Grain judging (Junior class)
• Logan MacBeth (Year 8) – 3rd place Fruit and Vegetable judging (Junior class)

It is such a shame that our students will not have the chance to compete at the State Finals this year, but their results are no less notable, and they should be very proud of what they have achieved.

Edward Stefanski

Agriculture and Science Teacher