News from the School of Leadership

Dear Parents and Carers,

As I perused through the multitude of vibrant photographs capturing the vast array of activities and events our students have been engaging in, I couldn't help but be struck by the sheer vibrancy and energy that exists in our school. Students have participated in excursions, debating, eSports, the Bring it On! dance troupe, science experiments, cultural immersions, representative sport, university visits, Parent Learning Walks, incursions, specialist art, technology and physical education lessons. In short, our school is a bustling hub of creativity, innovation, and learning.

At the heart of this vibrant tapestry are our dedicated teachers whose expertise and energy fuel the rich and varied learning experiences our students enjoy each day. Their commitment to fostering a dynamic learning environment is truly commendable.

In this edition of The Net, I am excited to showcase the multitude of experiences our students undertake on a daily basis. From academic achievements to extracurricular triumphs, each section of this newsletter is a testament to the depth and breadth of our school community.

In the following pages, you will find stories of collaboration and teamwork, as students come together to tackle complex challenges and pursue their passions. You will also discover firsthand accounts of the transformative impact of learning opportunities, both within and beyond the classroom and some advertisements for opportunities for students to be involved and be supported.

Happy reading!

Study Centre

The St Luke’s Study Centre opened its doors for the second time this week. This is an excellent opportunity for students in Years 7-12 to receive additional support with flipped and consolidation tasks and assessments. We encourage students to set aside the hour on Tuesday afternoons to come and benefit from teacher workshops and assistance, and to collaborate with their peers.

Parent Learning Walk

A highlight of this term so far has been Wednesday’s Parent Learning Walk where School of Leadership Subject Matter Experts guided our visiting parents on a tour of the Years 5-8 learning spaces, our specialist spaces and answered questions about what being a learner at St Luke’s looks like and feels like.

Congratulations to the School of Leadership ambassadors for their displays of leadership, knowledge and skills. We are proud of you!

Choose Your Own Adventure

Year 8 students will soon begin the exciting process of selecting learning areas for Year 9, 2025. This marks the first real opportunity for you to tailor your education to your interests and passions.

Choosing your subjects isn't just about filling up your timetable; it's about shaping your educational path in a way that resonates with your strengths, interests and motivations. This is our students’ chance to delve deeper into subjects that ignite their curiosity and fuel their enthusiasm for learning.

By selecting subjects that align with interests, students not only enhance their academic experience but also lay a strong foundation for thier future endeavours. Whether thier passion lies in science, cooking, performing arts, or technology, this is the time to explore and pursue thier interests wholeheartedly.

Parents, we invite you to join us at our inaugural Insight Night where you and your son/daughter will have first hand experience of the subjects we will offer for study in 2025. This is an invaluable opportunity to ask questions, meet teachers and see our state of the art resources. We look forward to seeing you!

Thank you for your continued support and involvement in our school community. Together, we will continue to inspire and empower the leaders of tomorrow.

Mrs Kate Kelly - Head of School, School of Leadership

A Note from The SOL Assistant Principal

SOL Soccer Tournament

Our SOL Soccer Tournament has continued over the past few weeks. This lunchtime initiative was first created last year to support positive student interactions on the playground. We have found that since implementing this program, the students have been able to demonstrate their soccer skills, and collaborative and communicative skills but also showcase the support they show for their peers. Our Year 9 and 10 students have also assisted with refereeing the matches. I am very excited to see how our two pools of teams pan out and who will progress to the semi-finals.

Uniforms

A quick reminder that ties for the boys and any girls who wear the pants and shirt combination are compulsory for Terms 2 and 3. Ties cost $23.10 and you can purchase them through this link. Your support with this is appreciated.

Mrs Josephine Camilleri - Assistant Principal, School of Leadership

Stage 3 Stories…

School Athletics Trials

On Monday 27th May Stage 3 had a number of students attend the School Athletics Trials at Tamplin Oval in Hobartville. Here are some of the experiences from the day:

I did shot put, discus, long jump, 800m, 200m, 100m races. I came 1st in the 800m and 200m race. I came 4th in the 100m race. The day was really fun and it will be my first time going to the zone athletics carnival for my achievements.

Nevaeh

It was a very good day and experience! I participated in the 200m race and 100m race. I came 2nd in both races. I am proud of my efforts from the day.

Aiden T

It was really fun getting to socialise with other people from our school. It was a very tough day but I enjoyed it!

Emmanuel

My legs gave out but it was a good day!

Cameron.

Congratulations and a very well done to all students who participated at the Athletics Trials. We are very proud of all your hard work.

Decimat Game

In Year 5, over the last 2 weeks we have been learning about decimals. During this time students were introduced to the decimat game. This game was created by Anne Roche to help students make sense of decimal place value. Here is some insight into how students felt about learning decimals through the game:

I loved the decimal game that we played. It was fun and it was about our learning. I am really bad at decimals so it really helps me understand how it works. My understanding of decimals now is way better than it was before!

Kyra

I really enjoyed this decimal mat game. It was a very fun game and it required me to use my knowledge of decimal place value and chance. It basically covered every topic that we have learned. It helps with Fractions, Chance and Probability, Adding decimals and Conversion. Fractions, Chance & Probability

It helped with fractions by making me think of the chance I will get a tenth. The spinner was divided into six sections, and four of them were labelled “Hundredths” and the rest were labelled “Thousandths”.

Adding Decimals

We have to add decimals at the end of the table that we draw. For example, if I get 2 tenths and then 6 hundredths, I have to add them to get 2 tenths and 6 hundredths (2.6)

So, I really enjoyed this game, and I think anyone who is struggling with decimals should play this game. It might help!

Declan

Science Entry Task

This term in Science in Stage 3 we are focusing on exploring the concepts of plant and animal adaptations for growth and survival. Throughout this science unit, students will be given the opportunity to explore art elements. During our entry task, students explored different aspects that will be explored during the unit. Here is what some of the students said about the task:

For this science task we had to look at some animals and they were in different habitats and on a post it note we had to write where they really belonged. For example, if there was a monkey in the ocean we had to say the monkey had to be in another habitat.

Heet

Writing Competition

The ‘What Matters’ writing competition was introduced to students from years 5 to 12. This writing competition was inspired by Gough Whitlam’s commitment to involving young people in shaping Australia’s future. Those students that wanted to participate needed to write a 600 word fiction, non fiction or poetry to address the question and express their views about something they care about.

It was really fun and enjoyable to do. The most stressful part was getting 600 words done but in the end it all came together. I finished 17 days early! It was a wonderful experience.

Darcy

From Year 7…

Technologies

Downforce Racer

Students have applied their engineering knowledge and skills to produce a Downforce Racer. This year’s cars have easily been the fastest I have ever seen! Students had to design, analyse, re-design and test race their cars, making engineering decisions throughout the process around aerodynamics, weight, gear ratios etc. A big congratulations to the first group to complete this project in year 7 this year, I can’t wait to see how the next group of students match up to these impressive results!

Jewellery

Music

In week four, stage 4 students studying music this semester attended an African Drumming Incursion. Students learnt about rhythm through the approach of African drumming. Participating classes enjoyed the experience as they interacted in various musical activities that focussed on developing their understanding of music from another culture and content discussed in class.

7 Life Design

Congratulations to the Year 7 Life Design students in completing their Passion Projects this term. Every student in Year 7 had the opportunity to discover and learn more about one of their interests which allowed them the autonomy to pursue their own passions. The year 7 students rose to this challenge and revealed their wide range of amazing skill sets and knowledge that they presented to the year 6 students last week in The Hub. There were rockets, fashion design, camping, nursing, computer games, art, baking, sport and an endless variety of wonderful passions. Once again a tremendous well done to all our Year 7’s for such a high quality presentation in your first Term of High School.

From Year 8…

Students across Year 8 have been busy leading and engaging in a range of learning activities and ezra-curricular opportunities so far in Term 2. A few of our students have kindly volunteered their time to provide the below reflections of their Term 2 journey to date;

My term 2 at St Lukes has been a learning experience with many opportunities such as rep sport and the athletics trials. I am looking forward to the new things I will learn in my subjects such as tech as I will have the opportunity to make food in the unit, paddock to plate. I've been coping well as I've had friends to support me and help me throughout the term.

Gabriela. T

So far, Term 2 has been great. There were many things to look forward to, especially the Athletics Carnival. The Athletics Carnival was a great way to test our skills, especially since we were focusing on it during PDHPE. Something that I am looking forward to later in the term is Food Tech. Food Tech will be fun and there are some great skills I can learn from it.

Taylor. N

Term 2 so far has been good as we have done many things in school. In term 2 so far we've looked at some cool things in science, english, PE and more. Like for example science has been, we've looked at cells, renewable energy and the human body. In English we've been looking at dystopian worlds and how we can write a world where people are being controlled, which might sound weird, but is really fun looking at the different ways the author's write about the world. And in PE we are looking to improve ourselves in a certain skill in athletics like 100 metres, shotput and more. So far term 2 has been really fun and I'm looking forward to more.

Parv. S

Term 2 has been a really good, exciting and fun filled term so far. Some of the subjects that I enjoyed during this term were PDHPE and Food technology. Food tech has been really fun and exciting, especially learning new baking and cooking skills and making food. PDHPE has been really exciting and helpful as it helped me improve my athletics and gave me opportunities to practice and train. Rep sport has been an extremely fun time as well as I can have many new experiences.

Sia. V

Mr Zaccaria - Year 8 Wellbeing Coordinator

8 Life Design

Term 2 sees our Life Design students engaging with a variety of fast, immersive experiences in 16 different Career Clusters.

Recently, they have taken on the role of CEO of a company, preparing a speech to ‘shareholders’ explaining the Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities & Threats (SWOT) for the company. Each team has then presented to the class who have voted for keeping their ‘investment’ in the company or deciding to sell. All of this has led to some wonderful discussions about what makes a good presentation and how to persuade an audience in a particular direction.

Another Cluster that has been of interest, was the Government and Public Administration where groups were asked to nominate a MP for their Political Party. They had 20 minutes to choose a problem impacting their electorate, pitch a solution and then vote for the most impactful parties. Some examples include the Voice for Western Sydney party who were aiming for more green spaces for young people to use. Another stand out was the Best on Shelves campaigning for a library space in Elara. Some wonderful displays of collaboration, communication and problem solving.

Technologies

Year 8 - Time Craft

In an engaging Year 8 project, students participated in a creative endeavour to develop and build distinctive and practical wall clocks that harmoniously combine innovation, aesthetic charm, and functionality. This project presented a challenge for the students to conceive timepieces that not only fulfil their primary purpose but also enhance the visual allure of the living spaces where they are displayed. By engaging in meticulous planning and sketching, the students transformed their imaginative ideas into intricate designs utilising Adobe Illustrator. This method allowed them to explore a range of shapes, colours, and materials, ensuring that each clock exemplified their creativity and technical proficiency. The outcome was a series of unique wall clocks, each serving as a demonstration of the students' adeptness in blending artistic ingenuity with practical utility.

Year 8 - Food Technology - Paddock to the Plate - Mystery Box Challenge

The Mystery Box Challenge offered students an opportunity to showcase their learning throughout the topic in both theory and in practical components. Students applied skills learnt such as time management, forward planning, communication with team members, accurately measuring ingredients, using various cooking methods and the importance of cleaning up after cooking and hygienic practices. Students were given a Mystery Box containing the ingredients for one of four recipes (as pictured); Chicken Caesar Focaccia, Orange Sunshine Muffins, Minestrone Soup or Falafel and Hummus Wraps. Students worked really well as a team and showcased their skills learnt across the Food Technology Course.

HSIE

On Friday students from Year 7 attended the Water in the World Excursion which saw students investigate the development of water use in Sydney from 1788 to the present day. Students had a wonderful time, and were great ambassadors for the College.

The Net

Term 2, Week 6 2024

Issue 4 · 07 Jun 2024

In this issue