School of Leadership
News from the School of Leadership
Dear Parents and Carers,
It is with great pleasure that I look back on the incredible success of Book Week 2024. This year's theme, "reading is magic," truly captured the imagination of our students, staff, and families. From the moment the festivities began, our school was abuzz with the enchantment that only books can bring.
Book Week has always been a special time for us, but this year felt particularly magical. Our students embarked on literary adventures, transforming our classrooms and hallways into worlds filled with wizards, spells, and stories that come alive on the page. The creativity and enthusiasm on display were nothing short of inspiring.
A definite highlight of the week was the costume parade. Students and staff alike stepped into the shoes of their favourite characters, bringing to life the books that have sparked their imaginations. From Harry Potter to Alice in Wonderland, the diversity of characters represented showed us just how vast and wonderful the world of books truly is.
Other memorable moments included the Year 6 and 7 author visits, the Year 5 illustrator visit and Write a Book in a Day. Students were fortunate to host talented authors who shared insights into the writing process and the magic of creating worlds with words. The students were engaged, asking thoughtful questions and learning that the magic of reading is not just in the stories we read, but also in the stories we create.
Our hub was transformed into a "magical realm," thanks to the hard work of Mrs Camilleri and Miss Wong. Students were invited to participate in a range of activities, including a colouring competition, Where’s Wongy and Literature quizzes that encouraged them to discover new books and explore different genres.
I want to extend a heartfelt thank you to our teachers and leaders who made this week possible. Your support and enthusiasm helped us create an environment where reading truly came alive for our students. To School of Leadership students, thank you for embracing the magic of reading with such passion and curiosity.
As we close the chapter on Book Week 2024, let's remember that the magic of reading is something we can carry with us every day, and as I say to my own three children, “a book is a present you can open again and again.”
National Literacy and Numeracy Week
Literacy and Numeracy Week is an annual event to encourage and celebrate literacy and numeracy and is a great time to celebrate our achievements in developing literacy and numeracy skills through the curriculum.
This year, SOL students will participate in SpellingBees and MathBees at recess and lunch. Many thanks to Mrs Camilleri and Mr Sultana who have taken the lead to facilitate these opportunities.
Parent Learning Walk
As always, it was a delight to welcome parents and carers to the College to see the learning and growth that happens in School of Leadership classrooms. Our SOL Ambassadors did a wonderful job of leading the learning walk. Mrs Camilleri and I might be out of jobs soon!
Mrs Kate Kelly - Head of School, School of Leadership
A Note from The SOL Assistant Principal
SOL Soccer Tournament
Our 2024 SOL Soccer Tournament culminated in our Semi-finals seeing Ninjas FC beat The Legends 2-0. Our House and Brazillian DNA were 3-3 at full-time and went into penalties, with Brazillian DNA progressing to the finals.
Our Grand final game attracted many SOL/E students who came to support and cheer on their peers. It was a close match between the teams, both fighting hard to win, ending with Ninjas FC defeating Brazilian DNA (a retake of our grand final from 2023).
Congratulations to Ninjas FC:
Ronith B., Chimdi U., Dani A., Jett G., Jayden D., Jhayrell S., Addiraj S., Rufeal A.
Well done to Brazillian DNA who fought valiantly:
Joel W., Zac T., Devansh K., Ebube U., Grace P., Isaac B., Jefferson O.
Book Week
Week 5 was a wonderful celebration of the magic of reading. I thoroughly enjoyed playing The Trunchbull and seeing our SOL students dressing up in role as their favourite characters. We had many initiatives throughout the week including Write a Book in a Day, author visits with Marc McBride, Mark Greenwood and Lisa Nicol, competitions, lunchtime quizzes, and Blind Date with a Book. You may have noticed that our Hub is slowly but surely getting filled with wonderful books for our students to access and I thank our Library staff for processing the many books we have been ordering. To wrap up Book Week, we are very excited to share our new bookcase staircase, allowing SOL students to continue their love of reading while they travel to their classrooms each day!
Congratulations to all of our competition participants who received their prizes this week.
Guess the Bookshelf:
Mithili J. (Year 6)
Maeli J. (Year 6)
Aarshia A. (Year 7)
Where's Wongy?
Seeret T. (Year 6)
Yoshima G.(Year 4)
Charles M. (Year 6)
Dominic R. (Year 6)
Lexie S. (Year 8)
SOL Spelling Bees
As part of our celebration of Literacy and Numeracy Week, our SOL students have been busy bees studying for our second inaugural SOL Spelling bee. The teams have been selected and will compete in their year groups this week and next week. Stay tuned to see what Year 6 class and Year 7 and 8 English class dominate the competition.
It’s Ok to Fail
Every time I facilitate competitions and tournaments for SOL students and beyond, I do this in the spirit of being proactive in providing spaces for students to flourish and thrive within our St. Luke’s school community. With any competitive context, there is a likelihood of failure or missing the mark. This failure is ok. It can be hard to accept and saddening, perhaps even disappointing but failure is a normal part of life and it is in failure that we can pick ourselves up and come to learn about the strength of our character. If your child is not selected to be on a team, if they don’t win a competition, or if their team loses an important match, this is ok. It’s ok to fail. It is what we do following failure that counts. Do we try harder? Do we seek support from trusted adults and friends? Do we talk about it with our loved ones? And as I always say to my students, if we do nothing, nothing changes, so what will you do? What changes can you put in place? The best way to fail is to not try at all.
Riding bicycles to school
We have had recent feedback from members of the public about our students who ride their scooters and bicycles to school and the absence of helmets. Many of our students abide by NSW law and wear a helmet when they ride to school. According to BITRE data collected from 2010 to 2018, 23.0% of cyclist fatalities in Australia were due to riders not wearing a helmet at the time of their crash. I have been in a school community where a student had a bicycle accident that resulted in brain damage due to not wearing a helmet. The impacts of such trauma are far reaching, beyond the injured student and their family. Please ensure your child is safe by providing them with an approved helmet so they can get to school safely.
If you could please emphasise this with your children, that would be appreciated.
NSW traffic law states that “bicycle riders must wear an approved helmet and follow the rules on using mobile phones, riding on footpaths, shared paths and other lanes”.
If you are caught riding without a helmet (or are using an unapproved helmet which does not meet these safety standards), you can face on-the-spot fines of $344.
Mrs Josephine Camilleri - Assistant Principal, School of Leadership
Stage 3 Stories…
Voice of Youth Competition
Voice of Youth is a public speaking competition for Year 6 students across Parramatta Diocese. We were lucky enough to represent St Luke’s at the Schofields District Cluster Final. Mia’s Topic was about ‘How social media negatively affects pre-teens and teens’ while Irene’s was about ‘Peer pressure.’ We had an amazing time presenting our speeches with the support of our entire grade.
- Mia M and Irene U
Creative Arts - Dance
Our Year 5 students have been diving into the world of Hip Hop, exploring its evolution through the decades. They are now beginning to choreograph their own dances, drawing inspiration from the rich history and dynamic energy of this genre.
In Year 6, students are broadening their horizons with World Dance by exploring a range of styles from multiple cultures. They’ve been experiencing the vibrant rhythms of Salsa, the energetic moves of Samba, and traditional dances from Africa.
From Year 7…
Our Year 7 students have truly risen to the occasion, thriving in the Leadership Challenge. It's been inspiring to see them embracing each mission, demonstrating leadership, kindness, and a strong sense of responsibility. Their commitment to stepping up as leaders is evident, and the positive impact on our school community is starting to be felt. With only two weeks to go, these are their remaining challenges:
In addition to the Leadership Challenge, our students have been broadening their horizons with exciting excursions. A highlight was our visit to the Chau Chak Museum, where they engaged with fascinating exhibits and deepened their understanding of history and culture. It was a memorable experience that complemented their classroom learning.
This term also brought the excitement of Book Week, a much-anticipated event. Our students had the chance to meet a talented author who shared insights into the world of writing and storytelling. The week was filled with creativity as students dressed up as their favourite book characters, adding to the vibrant atmosphere. It was a wonderful opportunity for them to celebrate their love of reading and connect with literature in a fun and meaningful way.
In our mentor sessions, students worked together to create a powerful visual reminder of the importance of standing up against bullying. They made a chain, each link featuring a message about being an upstander and supporting their peers. This activity reinforced our commitment to fostering a safe and inclusive environment for all.
Year 7 are truly showing us how to BEE a leader 🐝!
Miss Rowena Chand- Year 7 Wellbeing Coordinator
Technologies
STEM MAD
Students from the School of Leadership were provided an opportunity to participate in the STEM MAD (Make a Difference) event organised by the CSPD at CathWest. The day was jam-packed with STEM based activities, as well as a showcase that demonstrated students’ projects from all over the diocese. The project was to develop a STEM-based solution to a problem of their choosing, in order to Make a Difference to our lives, community and world. Students worked during term 2 to create ideas, plan, build a solution and prepare a display to explain how their solution solves their chosen problem.
Students also were able to participate in a range of activities hosted at the event, including Bridge Breaking, Bottle Rocket Launching, Aeroplane Chasing and Coding Robots. St Luke’s students represented our community by demonstrating their ability to develop innovative solutions to a range of dynamic problems, and had a great time. We look forward to attending the event next year, and having more and more students become involved.
Creative Arts - Art and Music
Our Year 7 students are enthusiastically exploring the creative and performing arts, honing their skills across various disciplines. In Music, our young musicians have started learning how to play the keyboard, drums, guitar, and bass guitar to perform pop songs. Just recently, they worked together to create a lively in-class rendition of Bruno Mars' "Uptown Funk."
Similarly, our budding artists are deepening their understanding of the elements of art and channelling their creativity into designing skateboard decks adorned with symbols that reflect their personal identity. We can’t wait to see their finished products later in the term.
HSIE
Year 7 Excursion to Chau Chak Museum
In early August, our Year 7 students embarked on an educational adventure to the Chau Chak Museum, where they had the unique opportunity to delve into the rich histories of Ancient Rome, Greece, Egypt, and China. The students explored various artefacts, some thousands of years old, providing a tangible connection to the past. One of the highlights of the day was the opportunity to touch and examine artefacts directly. They learned how to analyse historical sources by examining the materials, craftsmanship, and context of the objects. Through these interactions, they were able to draw conclusions about the purposes and significance of different artefacts, gaining deeper insights into the daily lives and cultures of these ancient civilizations.
We’re proud of our Year 7 students for making the most of this valuable learning experience and look forward to seeing how it enriches their understanding of history in the classroom.
Italian
Si mangia, food time…
Students started their Italian menu, pretending they own an Italian restaurant in Australia or Europe!
They included the food price in the menu so the task can relate to the real world of Italian hospitality.
They have learnt about the Italian cultural and typical food and how Italians love to eat too much, in fact we have a five meals course!
The only struggle students and teachers had during these lessons, is how much we got hungry while talking about Tiramissù or Boscaiola in class!
Students always improve their pronunciation when presenting their menus, learning and applying new Italian vocabulary, showing their creativity that leads to their authentic work and effort.
From St Luke’s ristorante!
From Year 8…
Students in Year 8 are eagerly awaiting the announcement of their subject selections for 2025. These should be forthcoming towards the end of term. Furthermore, our end of Year camp is on the horizon and there have been lots of questions coming for this. Parents will soon receive information about a Zoom for students and families to attend on the 4th of November where further information will be provided.
Over the past few weeks, students have been stretching themselves across all KLAs, diving deeper into their learning journey. Students have engaged with Book Week, where some excellent costumes were designed and worn with pride. I want to congratulate our Year 8s who celebrated and respected this day with true SLCC spirit. Our students have continued to demonstrate excellence and leadership as part of our Peer Companions program. Year 8 really is a great place to be!
I am looking forward to what the remainder of Term 3 has in store for our wonderful Year 8s. Keep chasing your dreams, not people!
Mr Zaccaria - Year 8 Wellbeing Coordinator
8 Life Design
Students have now formed groups based on their initiatives they would like seen implemented at St Luke’s. SOme ideas range from new backpack designs, lockers, new timetable structures, more outdoor shade and sign language in all classes!
As groups develop their initiative proposal using the 6E Leadership framework, they are developing evidence of how they lead themselves first them others using:
Envision
Enlist
Embody
Empower
Evaluate
Encourage
In week 9, students will present their proposal to College leaders for an authentic experience of the process of leading change.
Science
Science Week: A Spectacular Journey into the World of Discovery
Science Week was a resounding success, filled with thrilling activities and fascinating experiences for students of all ages. This year’s event, held across various venues, provided an engaging mix of educational and interactive exhibits designed to spark curiosity and ignite a passion for science.
The HUB was transformed into a vibrant science display area, showcasing an array of scientific models and phenomena. Students marvelled at the engaging displays that included everything from interactive models to informative posters about various scientific concepts. The highlight of this venue, however, was undoubtedly the reptile talk conducted by Ms. Ranger Wong. Her special guest, Genghis the bearded dragon, stole the show. Ms. Wong’s captivating presentation allowed Stage 2 students to get up close and personal with Genghis, fostering a deeper appreciation for reptilian biology and behavior.
Over in the MarketPlace, optical illusions dazzled onlookers with their mind-bending effects, providing a hands-on experience with visual perception. The interactive displays in this area allowed students to engage directly with scientific principles, making learning both fun and memorable.
The Practical Lab Spaces hosted mini science lessons that proved to be a hit with all attendees. These sessions were packed with activities such as making bath bombs, preparing microscope slides, and observing exciting Bunsen burner demonstrations. Each activity offered students a chance to dive into the practical aspects of science and see the principles they had learned in action.
Stage 3 students enjoyed a unique experience with Mrs. Kohnertz, who guided them through an intriguing exploration of the contents of ‘Whale Snot.’ This hands-on activity allowed students to analyse and understand the scientific significance of this unusual substance, further enriching their Science Week experience.
In addition to these exciting activities, teachers embraced the spirit of the week by dressing up as scientists, adding an extra layer of fun and immersion to the event. Their enthusiasm was contagious, inspiring students to explore and question with renewed vigor.
The species hunt proved to be a great success and congratulations went to Riley Vella of 9Navy for finding the most species in the shortest amount of time. Well done Riley!
Overall, Science Week was a jam-packed celebration of science, full of engaging activities and learning opportunities. The blend of interactive displays, practical experiments, and memorable talks ensured that students had a fantastic time while deepening their understanding of the scientific world. It was a week where curiosity was celebrated, and learning was truly brought to life.
Ms Natacha Warnant (Science Teacher)
