Caroline Chisholm College Newsletter

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

Our students are in the middle of a very busy time of learning and assessment at the moment. It is great to go from class to class and see students deeply engaged in their work and their efforts to master new knowledge and skills. For students in Years 7 - 9, our assessment program is ongoing and does not feature exams. This means that your daughter’s learning is being constantly observed and evaluated by her teacher. While this can sometimes look like receiving a mark on a quiz or a grade on a piece of writing, it can take many other forms as well. For example, in my Year 10 class today, while students were working in small groups, I interviewed students in pairs and asked them to explain their understanding to me. By asking questions of the girls I was able to assess which areas of their learning were really strong and where they needed more detailed knowledge. I could then, in real time, point them in the direction of their next learning. The students themselves could easily answer the question “Are you confident in all aspects of this topics? If not, what do you think you need to do next?”. Our teachers know that this sort of assessment and feedback can be even more valuable than taking a pile of marking home for two weeks and returning it long after the learning has happened. This is quite different from when I went to school and everything came down to the mark a teacher gave me. Our program of ongoing assessment is designed to ensure that students can take ownership of their learning and become self-reliant, so that they can take the necessary steps to manage their learning. This supports the three areas of student learning that we call the Personal Profile on our reports: managing learning, taking opportunities to extend learning and relating to others to enhance learning. These are our goals for the students.

Last Friday night the community enjoyed the Caroline Chisholm Dance Showcase. This will be the last time the Showcase is held at St Dominic's College, because we will have moved into our new performance centre next year. The students presented pieces representing their work from across the year in a range of styles, both solo and ensemble, and the standard of their performances reflected the fact that, as a college, we were very successful in eisteddfods and competitions throughout the year. In fact, Caroline Chisholm was named the winning school of the Parramatta Diocesan Secondary Schools Dance Competition for the year. Congratulations to the girls and to Mrs Brooke Hughes for her tireless work with each ensemble and her many evenings and weekends dedicated to our dance program. I would also like to thank St Dominic's for the generosity in providing this venue for our Dance Showcase over many years. 

If you have driven past the college in the last few weeks you would have noticed a great deal of progress on our building project. The school is now surrounded by building sites on three sides of the Covered Outdoor Learning Area: the new building, the new canteen and the refurbished art rooms are all well underway and on track for completion in January ready for the new school year. In the meantime, life is a bit cramped and uncomfortable on the college grounds. I want to thank the students and the staff for the patient way they have gone about learning and teaching in less than ideal conditions. I promise it will be worth it when we move into these beautiful spaces, and students, ex-students and parents will have the opportunity to tour the facilities in the new year.

Our bishop has asked us to pray for all the Australians affected by the drought. The harsh climate has caused untold damage to businesses, individuals and families. Please join with us in prayer that communities will receive both the support and the rain that they need.

Eternal God,

In wisdom and love

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

 We turn to your 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 on 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

Skirt Lengths
Over the next few newsletters, I will be reminding parents and carers about the uniform requirements to make sure all students are set up for the start of next year.

Generally, the uniform is worn well but there have been a number of students who have grown over the year and whose skirts no longer meet the required length. Over the next few weeks, students whose skirts are too short will be given reminder notes for parents to acknowledge. If it is not addressed before the end of term, 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.

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.

Doing the Right Thing
Congratulations to Emerson Fairley (7 MacKillop), Charlotte Wood (7 Macarthur), Krystal Daley (7 MacKillop) and Carolina Dudley (8 Kenny). 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 student who has handed an item in over the last fortnight: Victoria Mashiri Yaconi (9 Wright).

Mr Greg King - Assistant Principal

STUDY SKILLS TIP FOR NOVEMBER

How to stay positive as exams (or any challenging situations) approach.

It can be difficult to stay positive or ‘be up’ as exams approach. The more important we perceive the exam to be, the more stress we can feel. Whilst feeling some stress can be positive and help us get motivated to study, we all have a tipping point. When our stress levels reach our personal tipping point, this higher level of stress can lead to inaction, where we avoid doing the work necessary to be prepared and feel even more overwhelmed. If not dealt with, the stress can build and lead to anxiety and depression.

The key to being positive and managing negative emotions such as anxiety and feeling down and depressed in any pressure situation including exams is to ‘fuel up’. It goes without saying that if we are exhausted, tired, worried or stressed it is very difficult, if not impossible, to deal with the pressure of exams. ‘Fuelling Up’ is about boosting wellbeing factors in your life. You need to boost the wellbeing factors in your BODY, MIND and EMOTIONS.

BODY: Put your health first and eat healthily, exercise regularly and get enough sleep. We all know what to do, but we need to make the decision to prioritise our own well-being. Without the right fuel, you will feel exhausted and depleted and it is very hard to be positive when you aren’t feeling your best.

MIND: To think more positively, challenge your perceptions. Write down your top five fears and worries. What’s the worst thing that can happen? How valid are these fears? Usually fears and worries are not based on reality but on imagined scenarios that have little to no evidence. If it’s something that can’t be changed bring acceptance to it, but if it can be changed, take action!

EMOTIONS: To help yourself feel more positive every day think of three good things that happened that day and how they made you feel. Also, take the focus off yourself and do three simple but deliberate acts of kindness every day. It might be a kind word, a compliment, helping someone or surprising someone with a kind act. You will be amazed at how making other people feel better lifts your mood as well.

Learn more at www.studyskillshandbook.com.au.

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Ms Deborah Scollard - Assistant Principal Learning

So far, apart from my tendency to judge myself and perhaps overreact slightly in my mind, my experience has been amazing! There are some downfalls, like the fact that I cannot understand most of the classes so far. However, when I reflected on myself today I noticed an improvement in my Japanese already. I was able to write a list of at least 30 new words that have stuck in my brain easily, and I’m continuing to learn more every day. Furthermore, listening to my teachers, even for just parts of the lesson, has helped me to pick up on intonation, pronunciation and even grammar.

Tuesday (22nd) was a public holiday to celebrate the enthronement of the new emperor, so my host sister, Norika, invited her friends over to have a ‘party’. Her friends were super kind and accepting of me, and I almost felt like I was one of them. We made bread with Norika’s mum, as she likes to cook bread, and then we made a cake and decorated it with the 100’s and 1000’s (sprinkles) I brought over as a gift to my host family.

I enjoy seeing the Junshin student’s faces light up when I remember their names or say something small in Japanese. Every time I say “hai” they giggle and repeat it, often followed by a symphony of “kawaiiiiii!” They also like to ask me if I have a boyfriend, and scream when I say yes, so that’s really funny to watch.

My host father is quite interested in me and has been trying to do something with me every night. He has shown me Japanese card games, hand-written games (like noughts and crosses, or bulls and cows), as well as origami. He also tries to teach me new words and encourages me to help him and my younger host sister, Sari, learn English.

Although I am still struggling a little with the language barrier, I believe that I can continue to overcome this obstacle and work on improving my communications with my Japanese host family and friends. 

Written by Emily Farrell - Year 10 Student

The following students represented Caroline Chisholm and the Parramatta Diocese at the NSWCCC Athletics Carnival on the 20th September. Mia Gleeson, Rapaila Idris, Emma Matthias, Kailah Stapleton and Katelyn Smith. Some of their results were as follows:

Katelyn Smith – 3rd in discuss
Mia Gleeson – 2nd in javelin
Raphaila Idris – 1st in triple jump with NSWCCC record, 2nd in 100m, 200m and long jump. All personal bests.
Emma Matthias – 2nd in shot put.

Congratulations to all of our competitors.

The following students represented Caroline Chisholm at the NSW All Schools Athletics Carnival from the 26th to the 28th September.

Mia Gleeson, Raphaila Idris, Emma Matthias and Clare Roser.

Some of their results were as follows –

Raphaila Idris – 1st in triple jump with NSW All Schools record.

Clare Roser – 1st in Pole Vault

Raphaila will be travelling to Perth in December for the Australian All Schools Championships.

 Congratulations to all our competitors.

Congratulations to Raphaila Idris of Year 8 who was awarded the Penrith Valley Sports Foundation Junior Sportsperson of the month for August. She received this award for her amazing development and skill in Athletics. Raphaila has represented at high levels including NSWCCC and NSW All schools, achieving great results. She recently achieved four personal bests at the NSWCCC Athletics Championships where she placed first in the triple jump. Raphaila is to be praised for her efforts in athletics. 

Mr McIlveen - Sport Coordinator