Caroline Chisholm College Newsletter

Dear Parents, Friends, Staff and Students of Caroline Chisholm College,

Most of you will have visited our college at some point during this year, whether it was to attend a parent forum, an awards ceremony, or even to drop off a forgotten lunch or pick up a sick child. I wonder what you remember of the experience of visiting. If it was recently you may have had trouble parking your car and had to battle through rubble and construction vehicles. Thankfully, the end of our building program is approaching and the college will be beautiful once again. What was your experience upon entering the college? I truly hope it was positive and hospitable. I am delighted with the way our support staff make our school a place that is warm, welcoming and not at all threatening. As our partners, parents have such an important role at Caroline Chisholm. I want you to feel as though you are truly welcome and that we are pleased you have come to see us. Even when we need to have difficult conversations with support staff or teachers, I really hope that you leave feeling as though you have been truly listened to and respected. If we are truly Gospel people then every visitor should be recognised for their dignity and worth, regardless of the situation. If this hasn't been your experience, I am disappointed and I would like to hear from you. As the saying goes: if it is good news tell others, if it is bad news, tell us first. We know that most families will make a decision about what school they will send their daughter based on the feedback and stories they hear from people they know. If you have had a positive experience at the college, one way of telling the story is by leaving us a Google review. I know it might sound strange, like we're the new restaurant in the neighbourhood, but your good news makes someone else's decision a little bit easier. You can add a Google review by simply searching for us and clicking 'Write Review'.

So much has been happening in the College in Term 4: exciting learning, a significant design challenge undertaken by Year 10 Design and Technology and iSTEM students, our Drama Showcase, fascinating excursions. The students have been busy and immersed in learning that looks different from what we experienced at school. In this edition of the newsletter you will read of the wonderful successes of our Year 11 students who have completed the first year of their HSC studies. I wish to pay particular tribute to Molly Mitchell, who was our Year 11 Dux and Alanah Eisenhuth who was our Most Outstanding Student for Year 11. Alanah was awarded a significant scholarship to pay for her learning at Western Sydney University if she chooses to study there. We also acknowledged Courtney Hamilton who, while still in Year 9, came first in Year 11 Studies of Religion. Congratulations to all our award winners. In the coming days we will celebrate excellence in learning with students in Years 7 to 10.

As bushfire smoke becomes an almost daily reality, it is crucially important that we are caring for ourselves, and our young people with respiratory conditions. Please ensure your daughter has her asthma medication with her at all times and remind her regularly about her asthma plan. Over the past weeks I have been encouraging you to pray for the many people affected by the fires and drought. As I write this, our region, including Silverdale and Cranebrook, is once again being threatened by fire and affected by dense smoke. Our prayers and commitment to climate justice must continue.

Eternal God,

In wisdom and love

you created our earth to sustain us and give us life.

 We turn to you now in faith, hope and love, asking you to look with favour on our drought-stricken land, on our starving animals, on our failing crops.

 Strengthen, sustain and give new heart to our farmers and to all who are affected by drought; be with those who support them.

In your loving providence, send abundant rain and restore our parched earth.

Father of all compassion, hear our prayer through Jesus Christ your Son, in whom the promise of new life: Renew your faithful people; Renew the face of the earth.

Our Lady of the Southern Cross, Mary, Help of Christians - Pray for us.

 St Mary of the Cross MacKillop - Pray for us.

Mr Greg Elliott - Principal

Finishing Times for Classes for 2019

• Year 11 will finish formal lessons and school for the year on Friday 13 December.

• Year 10 will finish formal lessons and school for the year on Wednesday 11 December.

• Year 9 will finish formal lessons on Wednesday 11 December. All Year 9 will be undertaking Peer Support training on Thursday 12 and Friday 13 December.

• Years 7 and 8 will finish formal lessons on Friday 13 December. 

We normally run an alternate program for Years 7-9 on the Monday and Tuesday of Week 10. However, we will not be able to do this in 2019 because of the start of clearing out and rebuilding of the North Block which commences that week. 

Wednesday 18 December is the optional Parent/Teacher/Student interviews and students only have to be at school for the interview, if an appointment has been made. 

Thursday 19 and Friday 20 December are designated Staff Professional Learning days by the Catholic Education Office, Parramatta Diocese. 

Uniforms

Please check over the holidays to make sure your daughter’s uniform meets requirements. It is a strong expectation of the parent body of Caroline Chisholm College that uniform standards are maintained.

In particular, every girl must start the year with her skirt worn to the bottom of the knee. If this is not the case, please arrange for the hem to be taken down or a new skirt bought. Please check also that the skirts fit properly around the waist. Some girls have skirts which are too loose and their solution is to roll it at the top, making it a little tighter around the waist. The problem then is that a skirt which appears to be the right length when purchased becomes too short.

As you would know from previous newsletters, the uniform shop procedures have changed. From March 2020, Lowes, Penrith will be our uniform supplier and families will be able to purchase uniform items at any time that is convenient to them without being restricted to certain days of the week and limited hours. More information about this will be provided next year.

Between now and next March, the process for purchasing uniforms is a little convoluted. The process applies to all parts of the uniform, including socks. Until Lowes commences selling the uniform next year, The School Locker is the only place which stocks our uniform, unfortunately.

At this point, uniforms can no longer be purchased at the college from The School Locker. Parents can place orders online at https://theschoollocker.com.au. Use the search bar to search for Caroline Chisholm. Parents can select 

• to have their order delivered directly to them

• to collect the order from the Liverpool store

• to collect the order from the school on our collection days (9:00am – 1:00pm Monday 20 January or 1:00pm – 4:00pm Tuesday 21st January). 

Orders placed after Wednesday 15 January will need to be collected from Liverpool or delivered directly to families’ homes.  Online ordering will cease on Wednesday 12th February 2020. Any outstanding ‘pickup’ orders that have not been collected will be considered abandoned after Friday 14th February.  

We are absolutely committed to maintaining the uniform standard. Given the warnings that have been made, both generally and individually, throughout this term there is no reason for a girl not starting 2020 without the correct uniform. Students who do not have the correct uniform at the start of next year may be asked to remain at home until this is remedied. 

Please assist us in starting the year with all girls in perfect uniform so we can present a strong and proud image of the college and allow staff to focus on the teaching of your daughters.

School Backpacks

All students from Years 7-12 must bring a college backpack each day.

Shoes

Shoes must be black, polishable, leather and lace-up. The college shoe expectation is that shoes

• must be black, lace-up, polishable and cover the top of the foot. 

• must have heels or moulded soles (no flats) but of a reasonable height (no more than 3 cms)

• must be lace-up, not slip-on

• cannot be gym-style Converses or the like, even if they are black leather.

These expectations are for both uniform and WHS requirement. Please do not buy an expensive but incorrect pair of shoes as you will be required to purchase a new pair. If a store does not have the correct type, try a different store. Local shoe stores have been advised about Caroline Chisholm College shoe requirements. I would also advise not leaving it to the week before school starts as they are often in short supply by that time.

Please see below the following styles which are not acceptable:

Doing the Right Thing

Congratulations to Grace Rowan (7 Wright), Tori Wilson (7 Wrigth) and Jacqueline Lam (8 Gilmore). They have been selected to receive a $5 canteen voucher for college service.

Appreciation of Honesty

Students at Caroline Chisholm College regularly display outstanding honesty in returning items they find on the college grounds. Often these can be of quite substantial value. Students handing in found items receive a certificate of appreciation. I would like to congratulate the following students who have handing items in over the last fortnight: Amelia MacDonald (7 MacKillop), Alysha Finn (8 Kenny), Piper Bruce (8 Macarthur), Olivia Youssef (8 Macarthur), Kyra Newman (9 Wright) and Jaeann Clifton (10 Kenny).

 Mr Greg King - Assistant Principal

Report from Japan

Sujin

It has now been four weeks into our eight-week exchange program at Junshin and already, we have experienced so many new and exciting events that we would not have been able to experience had it not been for this exchange program.

We have been trying out the many club activities that are available at the school since the first week of attending school. Club activities are divided into two categories, physical educational clubs (e.g. badminton and dance) and cultural clubs (e.g. Koto and Tea ceremony). The clubs we have tried so far are Kyudo (Japanese archery), Badminton, Softball, Dance, Baton, Kendo, Koto (Traditional Japanese instrument), String Music, Brass Band, Home Economics and Tea Ceremony. 

We especially enjoyed the brass band as Shiori, who was my host sister during the two-week stay, was in the brass band! We were both so excited to see each other and she volunteered to teach me how to play her instrument, the trombone! Learning the trombone was incredibly difficult at first as there was a language barrier. Shiori tried to demonstrate how to shape the mouth to make different and I later realised that it was similar to whistling. When I was able to play a note, we played a couple of basic scales in ascending and descending order. I had a great experience having a go at the trombone together with Shiori.

Emily & I were also able to play the violin in the string music club. Akari, a classmate, taught us both an easy-to-play children’s song called ‘Kaeru’ (カエル) which means frog in Japanese. The members in the string club were very considerate to draw for us where to place our fingers on the strings so we could play the notes. 

Emily

My favourite clubs so far have been Koto, baton and dance. I really loved learning about the Japanese Koto and playing it with the girls in the club. They are all very close and loving, so it was nice to feel so welcomed and accepted. 

I also loved the dance club! I have been a dancer most of my life, so it was exciting to see the differences and similarities in Japan. My close friends in my homeroom are a part of the dance club, as well as my host sister from a previous year, Marika, so it was a wonderful opportunity to catch up and try to build my communication skills. 

I am quite interested in the baton club. I think that if I went to school in Japan permanently, I might’ve joined baton. I like watching the girls practise and was able to spin the stick in my hands without much trouble at all. The girls in the club all welcomed me in, as usual, and tried their best to make me comfortable. 

It can be very tiring to attend a club after school. I find it difficult to focus on the club often if I am tired, and on those days I rejoice in hearing my host sister say “Let’s go home!” Furthermore, I always have to check with my host sister before I go to my club, which can be exhausting if I can’t find her.  

Most girls are active in one club but there are some in two, and few who do no clubs at all. After school has finished we are allowed to get changed in our classroom if our club is a sport or requires an outfit change. Then we go to the place our club is hosted. 

Often, an older student (senpai) will run the club, sometimes with supervision from a teacher. Other clubs may have a hired professional or a school teacher to run the club. For example, the brass band has a senpai responsible for the running of practice on 4 school days. She will make sure every student is present for practice, designate classrooms, and find solutions to small issues any student might have. She also introduces the brass band at performances and holds any further tasks that might be required when necessary.

Once a week, a music teacher will attend a brass band club meeting and he will conduct the band for that day and make changes to meet his criteria. He also makes decisions about when and where they will perform and communicates with parents and the event organisers. 

A different example is the kyudo club, where the girls set up themselves independently and then await instructions from their teacher. They have a ‘senpai’ too. However, her role is simply to ensure the setting up and packing away of all equipment is done correctly and safely, whereas the teacher is there to oversee the actual shooting done by the students. 

Written by Emily Farrell and Sujin Park

Congratulations to the following young writers for their achievement in the Penrith Eisteddfod:

Under 16 poetry: Aalia Nasser (Year 8) ~ second place for her poem ‘Mother Nature’Monique Buksh (Yr 10) ~ first place for her poem ‘Sacrifice to the Sea’

Under 16 short story:Jorja Tabor (Year 8) ~ First place and overall winner for her story ‘Lost in Space’

To view the Winning entries click on the link.

Louise Wakeling - Learning Enrichment Facilitator

We all know the importance of reading and how a great book can spark the imagination and creativity in us all. These summer holidays, we are encouraging all students to take the reading challenge and read, read, read!

It’s simple! Students just need to read something they enjoy and tell us in 50 words or less why they loved it.

The more material a student reads, the more times they can enter the reading challenge and the more chances they have of winning one of two Chromebooks or one of thirty runner-up gift vouchers to the value of $30 each.

Thanks to our sponsors Teachers Mutual Bank. To learn more about their services please visit their website.

For more information, please contact Catholic Education Diocese of Parramatta by emailing competitions@parra.catholic.edu.au. or visit https://www.parra.catholic.edu.au/News-and-Events/Whats-On/EDSRC 

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