Secondary

Tournament of the Minds (STEM) International Final

Last weekend Campbell Riley, Josh Leong, Jack Brett, Tiffany Cesare, Gabriel Kaye, Cohen Rafiq & Akash Parekh represented Western Australia in the Tournament of the Minds International Final held at the University of Tasmania in Hobart. After arriving late on Wednesday evening, we settled in for an early night and headed off to the historical site of Port Arthur for a day long excursion. On Friday we had the Opening Ceremony and excursions to the Bonorong Wildlife Park and the Richmond town site. Saturday was taken up with the competition, and although the team improved upon last year, we were unsuccessful in winning this year. Then on our final day in Hobart the team visited MONA before heading home.

 

Parents' Association Liason 2020

It’s that time of year when the current coordinators vacate their positions and we seek new year group coordinators and we are therefore seeking new parents to take on these coordinators roles.

 

The role can easily be undertaken by a team of 2-4. It will only require 3-5 hours a term of your time in total.

 

I know you've heard it before,  it is really fun and doesn't take much effort. All you have to do is organise morning coffee dates and two adult functions throughout the year - normally mid-year and one at the end of year. Roster sheets for canteen duty, staff morning teas and anything else the school requires are prepared for you and all you have to do is place them out the front of the lecture hall in February on the night of your relevant parent information night, and send out reminders throughout the year.

 

On Friday 6 December,  we have scheduled a Welcome Lunch for all new 2020 coordinators.

 

I am always available and happy to take phone calls from anyone that needs my assistance along the way. Ric Del Pizzo our College contact has an open door policy and is always available for any matters that coordinators need help with throughout the year.

 

We have a fabulous website for coordinators that contains a toolkit with all the information you need to do the job. There are schedules, calendars and lists of functions by year Group, all precedents are in place, everything is well organised, even templates to aid you in requesting volunteers at the beginning of the year.

 

So please, grab a friend and have a go. It is a very rewarding experience and I can guarantee you will have a great time!

 

If you have any questions do not hesitate to call me on my mobile 0419 886 722 or email sharon@aquino.com.au

 

Sharon Aquino

Secondary Convenor

John XXIII Christmas Appeal

Please donate generously to the John XXIII College Shopfront Christmas appeal.

Please bring in money and/or items from the list below to provide the visitors at Shopfront with a Christmas meal and gift bag. Items need to be donated by Wednesday 13 November.

The following items are needed for the  male/female Gift Bags (please note, smaller sizes are more useful):

General ItemsFood Items
Razors, shaving creamSoapBody washShampooConditionerToothpaste ToothbrushLadies RazorsHand creamMake-upMake-up bagCleansing wipesMoisturiserSunscreenBody lotion Comb,  BrushSm pkt TissuesDeodorantBody lotion Nail polishUnderwearSocksCaps, Hats, SunglassesTorch and batteriesPacket BiscuitsLollies    Toffees    ShortbreadFruit JelliesMini Fruit CakeMini Christmas PuddingPkt Nuts    Pkt  Dried FruitPretzels    Chips    Christmas chocolatesChristmas lollies

Year 12 WACE ATAR examinations

Please note the final Year 12 examinations began on Wednesday and will continue until Friday 15 November. They are held in the Thomas More Exhibition Centre (TMEC) from 9:00am-12:10pm and from 2:00pm-5:10pm. As such the College community are asked to be mindful of the noise in the TMEC carpark, including tooting horns, car doors slamming and calling out. It is a great opportunity to demonstrate our support of the graduating students through our actions.

Year 11 end of year examinations

Our Year 11 students received their personalised examination timetable today. It is important this is stored in a safe place that is easily accessible for them as students need to bring this to each of their examinations. Students were spoken to yesterday about the need to prepare adequately in order to give themselves the opportunity to perform to the best of their ability. Students were also strongly encouraged to maximise their use of class revision time next week. It is a good opportunity for them to seek clarification from their teacher of any gaps in their knowledge and understanding as well as receive specialised feedback on practice questions or revision notes they have created.

Design and Technologies Week

This week was Design and Technologies Week, which is a whole week of celebrating all things Design and Technology including wood, textiles, engineering and food learning areas. Students enjoyed a range of activities during recess and lunchtime throughout the week including:

  • Creating their own fruit “caviar” using the process of spherification, a molecular gastronomy technique
  • A House robotics competition
  • The JTC Fashion Show where textiles students showed some amazing work they have produced
  • A Media movie viewing showing the high-quality films produced in Media this year
  • A performance by the band Junkadelic who uses salvaged/ recycled instruments. Students showed-off their dancing skills and joined the performance using tin shakers.

The week was concluded with a mini exhibition, displaying a selection of students work in the Circle of Friends Café, and a staff lunch prepared and served by the Year 11 Hospitality students.

 

Thank you to all the staff and students involved in making the week a success.

 

Kathryn Casey

Teacher, Design & Technology