Principal's Message

It has been fantastic to see how the Year 7 students have begun their Marian College journey over the course of this term. There was a great deal of preparation over 2022 in readiness for their move to secondary school with "Get to know you" conferences happening in May, the literacy and numeracy testing in October and Orientation Day in December.

The first week of term in 2023 also heralded a number of activities to support the transition and pastoral care program. The introduction of students to their homeroom classmates, the handing out of laptops and lockers and induction to the new technology, and the first Marian school photo all contributed to the understanding of the new life as a secondary school student. in following weeks there were a number of activities designed to develop a sense of the differences between primary and secondary school. Furthermore, the students enjoyed hearing about the many clubs at Marian and were excited about putting their name on the list to participate in them. It was also great to have parents and guardians onsite for the Welcome BBQ and Information Night.

And to top it all off, what a special time was had over 15 to 17 March as the Year 7 students and staff went away and spent a wonderful time on Camp at Marysville. The opportunity to bond further with other members of the cohort was taken very joyfully by the group and new friendships were definitely formed. They also experienced a variety of activities which tested their courage, ( e.g. rock climbing on a climbing wall), as well as provided elements of fun and adventure which encouraged the students to face and accept personal challenges through trust, empathy and teamwork while strengthening their problem-solving skills. Through these challenges they discovered effective coping strategies and, in partnership with other students and staff, developed social and positive attitudes. Thank you to all the Year 7 students for the way they participated and cooperated on the Camp. It was a pleasure to spend this time with them. Also a very special thank you to Ms. Mandy Borg (the Year 7 Level Leader), Ms Shelley Smith (the Transition Coordinator) and all the Year 7 Team for all the support that they have given to students and families over the course of the term and also whilst on Camp.

It is also worth commending the VET Sport and Recreation students who went along to the Year 7 Camp and supported the running of the activities and encouraged the young students to get the most out of the experience. Congratulations goes to Mr. Nathan Kennedy (Learning Leader) who organised this element of the program and provided his senior students a realistic and hands experience of the classroom theory that they have been learning.

Raymond Pisani

Principal