Student & Parent Matters

• From the Business Manager - Payment of School Fees
• Information for Year 7 Parents and Carers
• ​From the Head of Student Services:   
• -   2018 Pastoral Care Student Diary-Planners
• -   Australian Catholic Youth Festival December 2017
• -   Edmund Rice Education Australia National Student Leaders Conference Melbourne 
• -   Christian Brothers Cricket Carnival, Nudgee College Brisbane
• Public Speaking & Debating
• Kokoda Track Expedition 2018 – Participants Training Hike
• Year 11 Snowy Hike 2017​

From the Business Manager

Payment of School Fees

School fees for each term are due on the first day of that term unless other arrangements have been made with the Fees Office.  If you have not already done so please pay your son’s Term 1 fees this week.

The College appreciates the efforts of all parents in meeting these important obligations to enable the provision of quality learning opportunities for our boys.

Mr N Carson - Business Manager

Information for Year 7 Parents and Carers

Welcome to the 2018 academic year.

The Year 7 Parent Information Evening will take place next week on Monday 5th February at 7:00pm in the School Gym.  Limited parking will be available in the school grounds. 

During this information session you will be welcomed by the Principal Mr John Couani and hear from other key members of staff. You will also have the opportunity to meet your son's homeroom teachers.

Mr J Lynch - Year 7 Coordinator

From the Head of Student Services

2018 Pastoral Care Student Diary-Planners

I hope by now your son has shown you his new Student Diary-Planner which was an outcome of our Pastoral Care Review last year. St Pius X College has been acclaimed for being at the forefront of leading positive practices in Pastoral Care and Wellbeing through the leadership of our Year Coordinators, Pastoral Care staff, Wellbeing Teams, Counselling Staff lead by the inspirational Mr Rick Russo, and wellbeing Coordinators for 2017, Ms Alex Foord and Mr Joe Lynch.

The new Diaries represent the ongoing integration of positive education and wellbeing practices in the daily routines and thinking and learning patterns of our students.

You can support your son's ongoing development and learning in these areas by reading and signing his diary each week, along with PC staff, to acknowledge the recording and prioritising of tasks to consolidate his learning, the maintenance of a reading log to support his exposure and development in literacy techniques, and stimulate conversation around wellbeing, goalsetting and personal growth and development strategies.

While there is a growing contemporary protest from some students of: “I can do that online”, the muscle memory and concrete organisation achieved by consolidating planning, learning and recording by hand is irrefutable, particularly in the context of extended written expression such as that required in the HSC.

More to come as we continue the discussion over coming weeks.

Australian Catholic Youth Festival December 2017

The diversity of learning, thinking and performance was evident for all to see as our students shone brightly over three days of performance in partnership with Mercy College Dance and Drama students at the Australian Catholic Youth Festival in December. Through powerful performances on Thursday and Friday at Homebush, and culminating in a pre-Bishops Mass performance at the Domain on Saturday 9th December, the students demonstrated a renewed hope for the role of Faith and core Catholic values in contemporary society. The emotional energy and strength of conviction were evident for all to see and I urge anyone interested to watch a copy of the streamed four part performances entitled “Mary of Now”.

Thanks go to Ms Amy Gill (inspirational Mercy College Drama teacher), and our own staff - Ms Sarah Fernando, Mr Adrian Brannan and Mr Justin Donnelley - who facilitated our students' involvement as well as the students involved - Sam Schyvens, James Bleasdale, Lachlan Donlevy, Tim McLachlan and Taylor Alan - on great performances. No doubt they worked hard to make the Mercy Drama students look as good as they did. Thanks boys.

Edmund Rice Education Australia National Student Leaders Conference

Melbourne 17th - 19th January  2018

After St Pius X College co-hosted the 2017 EREA Student Leaders Conference at Mary Mackillop Place last January, College Captain Dan Hall had the opportunity to back up from his outstanding bowling performances at Christian Brothers Cricket Week Tournament at Nudgee College Brisbane,  to attend the 2018 EREA Student Leaders Conference hosted by the Melbourne Schools.

Over 50 EREA and Associate Colleges in our network were represented at the Conference including remote Bindoon Co-Ed Agricultural College in WA and St Virgil’s in Hobart Tasmania. By all accounts Dan added greatly to the reputation and standing of St Pius X College in our national network of schools. He is a well-rounded thoughtful leader whose humility and ability to communicate have been hallmarks of his tenure as College Captain. Well done Dan.  

Christian Brothers Cricket Carnival, Nudgee College Brisbane - 9th – 16thJanuary 2018

Apart from the accolades of winning a tournament undefeated, our 1st XI were great ambassadors of the College in the context of our status of a Lead School of Edmund Rice Beyond Borders initiatives. In matches against St Columba College Caboolture, Gregory Terrace, Brisbane, St Edmund's Ipswich, St Laurence's Brisbane, Nudgee College and Liston College Auckland, the team's cricket performances were only surpassed by their sportsmanship both on and off the field, and particularly towards our brethren from across the ditch including St Peter's Auckland, Rosmini College Auckland and St Thomas of Canterbury Christchurch as well as our country associates such as the Charters Towers Team.

1st XI Captain James Brown led the way with a ‘ton’ in the final, supported by 50 from Liahm Williams, while Opener Tom Colgan won selection in the Australasian Merit Team. Coaches Mr Pat Rodgers and Mr David Reay and parents Mr Andrew Williams and Mr Michael Brown who drove the kits to Brisbane deserve our thanks as do EREA Flexi schools Brisbane staff who generously lent us a team mini bus for the week. Thanks also to all the parents and staff who supported including Ms Jill Greenwood.

Mr S Brannan - Head of Student Services

Public Speaking & Debating

CSDA Public Speaking Competition

Training for the CSDA Public Speaking Competition Round 1 will commence in Week 3 this term.  Watch Daily Notices and the Woodchatta for details on where and when our training will take place.  The competition runs on the following Friday evenings in Term 1.

Term 1 Public Speaking

• 2nd March - Round 1
• 9th March - Zone Final
• 16th March - Grand Final

Students from Year 7 to Year 12 are invited to participate this event. The venues are still to be determined but training will commence in Week 3. Everyone is welcome!  You don’t have to be familiar with public speaking, nor even confident with public speaking to participate.  We have time to train and build our confidence before the Round 1 event.

Debating Competitions

St Pius X College competes in two debating competitions:  the Catholic Schools’ Debating Association (CSDA) Competition http://www.csda.nsw.edu.au/, and the Schools Debating Network (SDN) Competition http://www.sdndebating.com.au/ . Enrolment forms will be available for students to collect from the front office and/or the verandah from Monday 5th February.  Forms need to be completed by students and signed by parents before being returned the verandah notices box marked “Public Speaking and Debating”. Training will commence in Week 7 of Term 1 with ‘friendly’ debates taking place in the last weeks of Term 1.  Dates for the CSDA Debating Competition are listed below.  The SDN Debating Competition dates, as well as more information on the structure of both competitions will follow in weekly Woodchatta posts.

Term 2 Debating

• 4th May - Round 1
• 11th May - Round 2
• 18th May - Round 3
• 25th May - Round 4
• 1st June - Round 5
• 15th June - Round 6
• 22nd June - Elimination Final 2
• 29th June - Quarter Final

Term 3

• 27th July - Semi Final
• 3rd August - Grand Final

St Pius X also competes in the Legacy Junior Public Speaking Competition and the

Plain English Speaking Competition and details will follow.

Mrs M Waterson - Debating and Public Speaking Convener

Kokoda Track Expedition 2018 – Participants Training Hike

The third of our training hikes is locked in for Sunday 4th February 2018 when we will be walking from Cowan to Brooklyn, 13.4km (one big hill).  This is an opportunity for all participants to meet, prepare and to discuss all aspects of the Kokoda Track Expedition 2018.

When:  Sunday 4th February 2018

Meet:    Hawkesbury River train station (Brooklyn) 7.35am (Train to Cowan at 7.55am; arrive 8.04am)

Finish:   Hawkesbury River train station (Brooklyn) 1.00pm (approx.)

Need:    3 litres of water (no water on route), hat, sunscreen, snacks, OPAL card, sense of humour

In the event of track work we can do a car shuffle to Cowan. In the event of track closures due to controlled burns we will decide on an alternate route.

All members of the College community are welcome to attend these hikes.

Next Hikes

3.           Sunday 4th February 2018

4.           Sunday 4th March 2018

5.           Sunday 8th April 2018  (date change due to Easter)

6.           Sunday 6th May 2018

7.           Sunday 3rd June 2018

Please note that I will confirm the following hikes as we move closer to the dates.

Mr P de Silva - Outdoor Education Coordinator

Year 11 Snowy Hike 2017

What does 300mm of rainfall in a 24 hour period look like? This was something we really didn't want to find out. As such, after a delay to our departure and modifications to our route plan, 40 students and 6 staff assisted by Ben Cunneen and Kyle Ewart embarked on our annual Snowy Hike Expedition. 

The weather remained cold and wet but this did not dampen the spirits and experience that was gained. As the rain continued to drizzle and the temperature remained low, "times of growth" rang out to the groans of many. All groups used Whites River hut as a base with excursion both back into Munyang (Guthega) power station and up onto the main range. Time was spent exploring Schlinks pass and the surrounding ridges. Horse camp hut was another highlight where some were able to demonstrate their fire building and wood chopping skills, or lack of them.

Snowy Hike is open to all Year 11 students and takes place in the last week of Term 4. After preparation and training, students and staff spend 5 days hiking 100km through the Kosciusko National Park.

Many thanks to the staff involved for your time, patience and expertise. A big thank you must also go to the P and F for their ongoing support with equipment purchases and encouragement. Special thanks must also go to the College Leadership team for providing these opportunities and for understanding the enormous benefits that these experiences provide for our students. Not to be forgotten are the parents for their positive support and to the students themselves.

Congratulations to our two Duke of Edinburgh Gold Award participants James Spencer and Nikita Papastamatis for completing their Gold Adventurous Journey as part of this activity.

Mr P de Silva - Outdoor Education Coordinator