Magis Report 

Shakespeare Incursion

“All the world’s a stage, and all the men and women merely players”. “To be or not to be: that is the question.” “Now is the winter of our discontent.” “Oh for a muse of fire that would ascend. The brightest heaven of invention!” 

These were just some of the famous lines delivered by the Bell Shakespeare Actors at our incursion last Monday. A key aspect of our GATE program is providing opportunities for our students to learn 'more', to be stretched academically, and to extend beyond their year-level curriculum, and our Shakespeare incursion is a wonderful example of this.

Students began the incursion by taking part in a quiz prepared by Isabelle Greenwood Hayes (Year 10), one of our Shakespeare Club members. The Players then performed the play ‘Shakespeare is Dead’ – which follows a group of teenagers trying to answer the age-old question: if Shakespeare is long dead, why are we still performing his plays? The incursion covered romance and tragedies to histories and comedies. Students were introduced to a host of Shakespeare’s characters, explored some of his most iconic scenes, plot devices, language techniques, and even learnt about the world Shakespeare was from. Following the performance, students participated in a Q&A session with the actors. It was an enriching experience for all those who attended.

Magis Awards Breakfast 

Our annual Magis Awards Breakfast was held yesterday in the Thomas More Exhibition Centre. It was wonderful to have so many students, staff, friends, and family there to celebrate the outstanding achievements of our Magis students. The Magis Champion Scholar Awards are the highest awards in the Magis Gifted and Talented Program at John XXIII College. The top students in these awards are recognised for their academic excellence, as well as their outstanding contribution to the Magis program. Our 2024 scholars are: 

We are delighted to announce that the Overall Champion Scholar for 2024, with the highest combined academic and competition score, was Luke Nicol. The Magis Spirit Prize, which is awarded to the student who has best embodied the College values and the Magis spirit of ‘doing more’, was awarded to James Sommerfield (Year 8) for his outstanding service and leadership within the Magis program. 

Magis Camp Update 

A group of Years 7 - 9 Magis students departed this morning for our annual Magis Camp to Point Walter. This camp is designed to meet the needs of gifted and talented students, providing them with an opportunity to extend and enrich their learning further. We look forward to hearing about their camp experience in next week’s College newsletter. 

What’s happening next week?

On Monday, 28 October, we have the State Grand Final of the British Parliamentary Debating Competition, which will be held at Perth Modern School. We wish Luke Nicol and Zachary Sartorello (Year 8) the best of luck with their debates. Round 1 of the International Debating Championships will be held on Wednesday, 30 October. This competition is held over the Zoom platform to allow students to debate with schools across Australia, New Zealand and at various International Schools. Our Junior Ethics Teams will also be busy preparing for their upcoming Olympiad, which will be held in Week 16.

MAGIS: OPPORTUNITIES TO DO MORE!

StarGirls STEM Camp

Are you interested in pursuing astronomy, engineering, or data science as a career path? Join high school girls for a free Astronomy Day Camp hosted by the International Centre for Radio Astronomy Research (ICRAR). This camp is open to all high school students in Years 9-12 whose gender identities are underrepresented in astronomy, engineering, or data science. Highlights include: 

• Meet and talk with women who have made their careers in astrophysics, engineering and data science; 
• Use research-grade telescopes to take and process your own deep space images and take part in a night-time stargazing event; and 
• Visit leading space research centres, including our Curtin and UWA ICRAR campuses, along with a visit to the Pawsey Supercomputer Research Centre. 

The next Stargirls+ camp will be held during the week of 27 January 2025. Stargirls+ is hosted at ICRAR in Perth, Western Australia, at UWA and Curtin locations. This is a day camp, which will require transport to and from the site each day. Food will be provided throughout the event. Places are limited, so early applications are encouraged. What’s it like to do the Stargirls+ STEM Camp? Click on the link here for a video. Further information, including the application form, can be found here. Please note applications will close on Sunday 1 December 2024. Please notify the Head of Magis once you have submitted your application.

Chevron Nature in Focus Photography Competition 

Entries are now open for the 2024 Chevron Nature in Focus Photography Competition – so grab a camera, get outdoors, and start photographing Australia’s natural wonders and unique biodiversity. It could be as simple as some spring wildflowers or capturing a native lizard having a crawl. Include a short caption with your photo and submit it online – under one of the following categories: Oceans, Wetlands and Rivers; Sustainability; or Species and Habitats. For further details please visit Chevron Nature in Focus Photography Competition! - Conservation Volunteers Australia. 

Photographs must be submitted in digital format and should not be digitally altered beyond standard optimisation (e.g., colour correction, cropping). The competition closes at midnight on 1 November 2024, AEST. There’s over $10,000 worth of prizes up for grabs across five age categories – head to the website for details of prizes on offer for students and their schools. 

Ethics Olympiad Case Writing Competition

Ethics Olympiad are holding a case writing competition with prize money to be won. Submissions should follow the general format for Ethics Olympiad cases: a scenario, between 400 and 800 words long, which highlights a clear moral issue and is appropriate for middle or high-school students and is written in a way that encourages civil discourse. The scenario should be framed so the central issue is clearly moral and not simply or primarily legal or professional. Knowledge of the structure of the Ethics Olympiad competition is important, and it is for that reason that we would recommend the case writing competition to students who have previously participated in an Ethics Olympiad. For more information, please click on the link here or view the flyer below.

Harvard Crimson

The Harvard Crimson Global Essay Competition provides a platform for young, ambitious high school students to exercise their writing skills and compete with students from all over the world. This competition encourages students to challenge themselves and explore different writing styles to ultimately strengthen their writing skills. The competition features two key rounds, the regional qualifiers held throughout five regions, followed by the global finals. To compete in the global round, participants must go head-to-head with local participants and place in the top 15 of the regional qualifiers. The top 12 submissions of the final 75, will be recognised in the global final and will win awesome prizes. As Harvard registration opens 1 October 2024 and closes 31 January 2025, we asked that students (aged 13-18) submit their expression of interest to the Head of Magis by Monday, 9 September 2024. This will be followed by a series of meetings and training seminars in preparation for the competition. Regional qualifiers will be held in February 2025, with Globals held in March 2025. For more information, please click the link below or speak with the Head of Magis. 

Daisy Farley

Head of Learning Areas – HASS & Magis