Pastoral Academic Care (PAC)
Pastoral Academic Care (PAC) Focus - Feedback and Empathy / Feedback for Growth
Well Being Element - Relationships + empathy
Character Strength - Kindness
Parent Wellbeing: Aristotle once wisely said that “the most important relationship we have, is the one with ourselves.” Are you kind to yourself? Do you treat other people better than you treat yourself? And how often do you say yes to others, which really means you are saying no to yourself? Is there something that you are holding a grudge with yourself for, that you need to forgive yourself? What are your thoughts about these questions? Acknowledgement: Neff & McGehee
Year 8
Ms Natalie Mellowship
‘I succeed’
Welcome back to Term 3! We hope that you had a restful break and are feeling refreshed, ready for what Term 3 has to offer.
Student-Led Conferencing
Year 8 students have been busy working on preparing their portfolios for the upcoming Student-Led Conferences. In Week 3, students will have the opportunity to share with staff their successes in the classroom at Student-Led Conferencing. Students take the lead on sharing examples of their work, discussing next steps and setting goals to help them move their learning forward. The idea of the SLCs is that they help to create a partnership between the teacher, student and parents to act as a support network to build success capacity with students. This year, OCC will provide the opportunity and flexibility for parents and carers to choose whether they will attend via zoom or in person. Please keep an eye on Compass as the link for booking will be made available via there.
Online Safety
This week, in our Year Assembly, we discussed the use of social media and the negative impact it can have if used incorrectly. With most students now back at school after the holidays, the eSafety Commissioner is urging parents to be aware of and act upon any signs of cyberbullying. In comparison to the first six months of 2021, reports of cyberbullying are 80%. If you notice your child or young person in your care becoming anxious, withdrawn, secretive or not wanting to be around their friends, they may be experiencing some form of cyberbullying. The eSafety Commissioner provides a wide range of resources, support and training for parents and carers surrounding online misuse. They have some free, upcoming webinars for parents and carers which help to provide the knowledge, skills and tools to support their children to have safe online experiences. These webinars include a broad range of topics that will be delivered by expert education professionals.
Success
A huge congratulations to Lily Lorimer on her selection for the NSW Water Polo State State Squads. We really look forward to hearing all about this amazing opportunity! Congratulations Lil, we’re super proud of your achievements.
Natalie Mellowship (Leader of Learning Year 8), on behalf of the Year 8 PAC team
Year 10
Mr James Russell
At various points in our lives we all have the opportunity to make choices that influence and guide the direction that our life might take. While these moments can be exciting and filled with optimism and a sense of independence and control for some, choices such as these can feel stifling, confusing or overwhelming for others. Our Year 10 students have reached one of these ‘big decision’ moments as we commence Term 3 and they begin the process of selecting subjects that they would like to study for Yr 11 in 2023. These decisions are significant and I am sure students (and parents) have many questions dancing around in their minds as they attempt to make the best decisions possible at this point in time. Questions such as…what are my interests and strengths as well as what type of career path I would like to follow and many others, are likely and for some the answers are easy and clear. For other students these questions are really challenging. The inability to come up with answers is frustrating and causes them much anxiety. For these reasons Year 10 has begun the term with a strategic and structured approach to this process. This commenced with a Yr 11 2023 Parent Night last week that was very well attended both in person and via Zoom. As this was a Zoom session it has been recorded and the information presented is available to be watched at the following link.
Following on from the information presented to students and families at the parent night, Year 10 Students spent last Friday’s PAC period reflecting on their interests, strengths and preferred career opinions. They then used this info to begin to focus on subjects that aligned with these things. Students will then add their preferred subjects to an Edval survey emailed to them and this will help to determine the lines from which subjects can be selected. Further PAC periods will allow students to continue to consider their subject selections and discuss these with their peers and PAC Teachers.
Another important step in the subject selection process is the upcoming Student Led Conference nights in Week 4. The SLC’s will be a fantastic opportunity for students and their families to discuss and refine their subject selections with their PAC Teachers and other leadership staff. After all of these steps have been completed and students have had plenty of time to consider and many opportunities to discuss their preferences, subject selections will be made. It is also really important to remember that patterns of study can be changed into Year 11 and that nothing is set in stone after initial selections are made.
In all of this, please remember that college staff are here to help and are more than happy to answer questions. We are also able to organise additional support for any students who are feeling particularly anxious with selecting subjects.
James Russell on behalf of the Yr 10 PAC Team
Year 12
Mrs Vicki Channon
The last term of formal schooling has now arrived!!! Where did that time go???
I have been encouraging students to ponder the following thoughts as we approach the finish line.
A letter outlining some key dates for this final term is being finalised and will be emailed to all students and parents/carers, as soon as we lock in some of the major events.
The Trial HSC exams will take place in Weeks 5 and 6. Students should be making a really big effort to prepare well for these important assessment tasks.
Due dates for major projects are fast approaching. Students should be utilising the study day every second Wednesday to get these done.
The timetable for the HSC examination was posted recently. The link is here. HSC timetable. The NESA website has a plethora of information for HSC students and it is worth revisiting.
Congratulations to Tom Bible who gained 14th position out of 90 competitors in the 18 years 8km All Schools Cross Country event last week. Tom clocked a time of 29.52 which is super impressive.
After a few hiccups, Year 12 have commenced Brekky Club on a Friday morning from 8.15am. I would encourage everyone to get involved in helping with this fundraising activity by adding their name to the roster to help with cooking, serving or making hot chocolates. The roster is on google classroom and the order form is emailed each Monday to the whole school. See the advertisement in this newsletter for more details. I would like to thank all of those students who braved the foul weather last week to help with our first one.
