Volume 12 Issue 3

Volume 12 Issue 3
5th February 2010
Thank you to the parents and students who attended our Year 10 Information
Night on Monday. During the evening the School Certificate and its
requirements were discussed, with input from Ms Hartfield our Curriculum
Coordinator. The implications of the increase in the leaving age to 17 were
explained. Part of these changes mean that Year 10 is no longer an ‘exiting’
year and most students will progress into Year 11. As a result there will no
longer be a Year 10 Graduation Ceremony and classes for Year 10 students
will continue after the School Certificate, with Year 10’s last day coinciding
with that of the rest of the school. Many schools have removed the Year 10
formal from the calendar and at Xavier this was our intention, but a number
of students and families raised the valid issue that there will still be some
students leaving at the end of Year 10 and they wanted an opportunity to say
goodbye to their friends. As a result we will be holding a Year 10 social
evening, no partners, no cars but an opportunity for the year group to
celebrate together.
On Tuesday evening the AGM for the P&F was held. I congratulate the new
office bearers for 2010 and acknowledge and thank them for their continued
efforts.
President
Mandy Marshall
Vice President
Tracey Newman
Treasurer
Donna Paton
Secretary
Karen McGann
I take this opportunity to give a big thank you to Abdool and Theresa Outim
for their role in fundraising over the past few years. Their coordination has
resulted in airconditioning being enjoyed throughout much of the school. The
position of fundraising co-coordinator is yet to be filled. If there is a parent
willing to take on the role we would be very pleased to hear from them.
Drafts for the Australian Curriculum courses in English, Mathematics,
Science and History have just been made available for consultation on the
ACARA website. Between March and May each state will phase in these
documents with a view to having the Curriculum implemented by 2013. At this
stage there is no further information on the NSW implementation. At Xavier
College the school staff will be examining these documents and preparing for
their implementation.
Last night I attended the Installation Mass for Bishop Anthony Fisher OP.
The Mass was held at St Patrick’s Cathedral, Parramatta. Bishop Anthony
was installed as the third Bishop of Parramatta. I attended this celebration
with two of our school leaders, Christopher Micallef and Hannah Guilfoyle. It
was truly a memorable occasion.
Yours in Xavier
John Ley
Acting Principal
Postal Address: PO Box 98 Cranebrook NSW 2749
Phone: 4777 0900
Fax: 4777 0930
Address: Ninth Avenue, Llandilo 2747
Email: [email protected]
Website: www.xavierllandilo.catholic.edu.au
From the Acting Assistant Principal
“Routine” is a word that is often used around schools as it describes the everyday events, rules and expectations a student
uses to make their learning as easy as possible. The more a child is in a positive routine, the more quickly and able they are to
take on life’s challenges.
Being on time to school each day is part of that routine. Lateness to school is becoming an issue, with some days in particular
having a large number of students arriving late. This is disheartening. Students who start late often have a disrupted day as
they are less organised, miss out on the announcements for the day, do not know what is going on in the College, and can be
socially limited as they do not have the same normal interactions with peers and teachers. As parents, making sure that your
child is at school on time (before the 8:30am bell) is one of the most important things you can do to encourage a positive
routine.
The road signs in the car park and in the drop off zones at the front of the school must be obeyed for everyone’s safety.
Parking in a no-parking area or stopping to let children into or out of your car in a no-stopping zone limits traffic flow, increases
frustration for fellow parents and increases the chance of accidents. At the crossing, drivers must not stop within 20m of the
crossing as doing so limits visibility and puts children at risk. Parking along the service road to the bottom car park limits this
road to one lane and forces other drivers, including our senior students, into dangerous situations. The local police have been
invited to patrol the front of Xavier College on a random yet regular basis, and they will not hesitate to fine drivers who ignore
the signs around the front of the school.
Yours in Xavier
Paul Hocking (Acting Assistant Principal)
GIFTED & TALENTED
SCIENCE STUDENTS
Last year the following Xavier College students were recognized through our Gifted and Talented program and were invited to
enter a competition run by the University of Sydney: Jason Johnston, David Kennedy, Jessica Landrebe, Samantha Newman,
Jacqueline Pace, Danielle Rayner, Aaron Sharman, Adam Suter, Nicole Vella and Jessica Walker.
We have just received the results for this competition and are very excited to announce that Jason Johnston has been selected
to participate in a 3 day workshop at Sydney University as part of the Gifted and Talented
Program. Our students performed extremely well in this competition with 60% of the participants
scoring above average results compared to all other Gifted and Talented students who sat the
qualifying exams for the G&T discovery program. Jason will have the opportunity to attend a
program of various workshops over a 3 day period in April or July. Jason’s results place him in
the top 13% of Gifted and Talented students.
Other extremely pleasing results are :
Adam Suter top 18%
Danielle Rayner top 23%
David Kennedy top 26%
Jessica Walker top 26%
Many thanks to all the students who were prepared to give this very challenging exercise a go,
and to spend some of their time in preparing for it. All students will receive certificates for their participation on assembly.
Mrs Louise Wakeling and Mrs Jan Payens
Year 11 Biology Excursion
Last week Year 11 Biology went to the ‘Longneck Lagoon Environment Education Centre’, as part of our ‘Local Ecosystem’ area
of study. We participated in a variety of activities to help increase our knowledge of the Longneck Lagoon ecosystem and also to
give us a firsthand experience of field work – to see the importance of field work and what it involves.
Throughout the day, we tested and calculated many things. By using the appropriate equipment, we were able to test a variety of
characteristics within both the terrestrial and aquatic environments; from measuring the vegetation to the soil pH in the terrestrial
environment and from the turbidity of water to the water temperature in the aquatic environment. One activity that was a ‘crowd
favourite’ was the testing of the biological indicators. We ‘caught’ organisms in the aquatic environment and then examined
them. When an organism was caught, the expressions on our faces were priceless.
Everyone learnt something new throughout the field trip and we found it very interesting. Our experiences and results from the
excursion will now be used as part of our assessment task. We would like to thank both Mr King and Mrs Michael for organising
the excursion and taking care of us. Also a big thank you to both group leaders from the ‘Longneck Lagoon Environment
Education Centre’.
Georgia Marshall, Year 11 Biology.
Please see over page for photos
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Biology
excursions
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CATECHIST’S AT WORK
Here are some photos of our Year 11 students being catechists at Henry Fulton Primary school. After settling their nerves as to
whether or not they would be able to cope with 13 infant students (with very short attention spans), and amazement at how tiny
their chairs were, our students were a credit to Xavier College. Many thanks to our Group A Catechists Hayley Birch, Jessica
Donald-Smith, Manell Abbas, Taylah Clark, Rachel Bohr and Jessica Douglas-Smith
Kellie Robinson
Religious education Co-ordinator
==============================================
As you are aware we are performing “Grease: The Musical”.
The members of the cast are seeking assistance with costumes for the era. If you
have or know of anyone that has any flared skirts or dresses from the 1950's/1960's
that we could use for the prom scene, we would love to borrow them. We are also
looking for men's suit jackets for the same scene. If anyone has any wigs that they
feel that they could part with, these are also needed.
We are appealing to anyone within the Community who may have a truck that we
could use during production week to assist with the movement of props etc to the
theatre and back again. (Production week runs from Monday May 17th to Saturday
May 22nd inclusive).
Thank you for your assistance. If you have any questions please feel free to contact
Trudi Barnes (Costumes/Stage Manager) on 4777 0900.
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On the 25th and 26th February, Year 7 went to
Winmalee Christian Centre for our Reflection
Days. The theme for each day was Noah’s Ark.
We were reminded that like the animals on the
ark we are all unique and special parts of God’s
creation. We participated in a number of fun
activities. Working in small groups and in
silence we had to create an ark using
equipment such as a balloon, newspaper,
straws, paddle pop sticks and elastic bands.
This was really difficult as we couldn’t speak. In our teams we also had to design and make paper aeroplanes, to determine
who made the most accurately flying planes and whose plane could fly the furthest We learnt that even though we are all
different, we are still important. We also learnt that we should be ourselves and that we shouldn’t try to change who we are just
to fit in. Over the course of the day we got to know some other students who we didn’t already know. We also played games
like tunnel ball, which helped us to communicate and work as a team. At recess and lunch we were able to make the most of
the beautiful weather, by going on the tyre swing, playing soccer or just enjoying our lunch with our friends. The day finished
with a meditation where we were able to reflect on what we’d learnt about ourselves and others. We enjoyed our first Xavier
Reflection Day and are already looking forward to our Reflection
Day next year.
Ethan Green and Nicholas Randall (7 Blue)
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Forget the rate rise.
Go to the movies! AND
Help raise money for
Air conditioning
Enjoy the latest release movies these school holidays
with a little help from Xavier College and these
fantastic HOYTS ticket packs.
Pass Pack
Contents (passes)
Price
Bargain Pack
5 General Admission $50
(Mon-Thurs only)
Child Fun Pack
5 Child passes
(unrestricted)
$50
Movie Lover
5 Unrestricted
$65
To get your movie passes, complete the order form
below and return it to the office, with full payment, by
Friday 19 March. Tickets will be available for
collection during the last week of Term 1,
just in time for the holidays!
Conditions:
• Each pass is valid for 9 months.
• Each pass may be exchanged at any HOYTS cinema box office Australia wide
• Passes may also be redeemed for both Xtreme Screen and The Halfpipe
• Child passes valid for children 15 years of age and younger
Homegroup
Name
Ticket Pack
Price (ea)
Bargain Pack
$50
Child Fun Pack
$50
Movie Lover
$65
Qty Ordered
Sub-total
Order total
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Important Dates
Term 1
2010
Thursday 11th March—17th March
Monday 15th March–
Wednesday 17th March
Year 12 Assessment Block
Year 9 Camp
Monday 15th—Friday 19th March
Year 11 Assessment Block
Monday 15th March
Vaccination Year 7 & 10
Tuesday 23rd March
Year 7 Core teachers/ Parent
Teacher Night
Tuesday 30th March
Cross Country
Thursday 1st April
Holy Thursday
Stations of the Cross
IMPORTANT INFORMATION
REGARDING THE
UNIFORM SHOP
The uniform shop will be closed
Thursday 25th March
It will reopen
Wednesday 31st March
UNIFORM SHOP
Xavier Uniform Shop
Opening Hours
Thursday 8am - 4pm
Phone 4777 4068
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