Photo above: Students at the Year 11 Camp.

Dear Parents and Families,

Welcome to Term 2 at Kennedy. I trust everyone had a wonderful relaxing holiday.

Kennedy prides itself on the outstanding extracurricular programs on offer and it was wonderful to experience these opportunities first hand in the last week of Term 1. Our Year 7 and 9 camps provided great opportunities for students to be challenged through a range of outsourced activities and also provided a great environment to form new friendships along the way. Year 11 camp was structured so students could reflect on their transition to Senior School and set goals for the future. I hope these experiences were appreciated by all students involved.

Semester Examinations

This term promises to be a challenging one for everyone as the end of Semester One approaches and assessments have a major impact on final grades. As examinations approach it is important to review the reason for such assessments at Kennedy. All assessments provide the opportunity for students to demonstrate their achievement so that teachers can review academic progress. The use of assessments as a diagnostic tool is vitally important to staff and strategies are then implemented in response to student performance. This may be in the form of support through additional instruction, tutoring or intensive remediation. However, it may also include extension or enrichment if this need is identified. Examinations provide a great opportunity to review the semester’s achievement and provide this analytic data.

A reminder to our Year 11 and 12 students about the importance of examinations:

• Year 11 examinations greatly impact semester grades required for WACE graduation.
• Year 12 examinations greatly impact on semester marks and grades that contribute to a student’s ATAR and WACE graduation prospects.

I trust everyone has a fulfilling and rewarding Term 2 at Kennedy.

Mr Mark Ashby
Principal

In recent newsletters I have been looking at Kennedy’s values and the fourth value Kennedy holds to is that of growth. Surrounded by teenagers, physical growth is visible and at times. My expectation, after every holiday break, is that many of our students will have had some type of growth spurt.

There are also those less visible forms of growth which take place as teenagers wrestle with finding their identity and place within a complex world. It is a different world to navigate than the one we grew up in. The access to news and views via different forums and the overload of information, whether true or not, has never been so instantaneous. The question of what to do in the face of this growing onslaught, has never been more relevant. Which is why, I believe that these words, written by a man who would later be imprisoned by a dominant power and facing possible execution, have never been more pertinent:

But the fruit produced by the Holy Spirit within you is divine love in all its varied expressions: joy that overflows, peace that subdues, patience that endures, kindness in action, a life full of virtue, faith that prevails, gentleness of heart, and strength of spirit. Never set the law above these qualities, for they are meant to be limitless. Galatians 5:22-23 (TPT)

In a world where we can all sometimes feel overwhelmed, even anxious, would it not be wonderful for an over abundance of this type of fruit to grow? Within our families, our neighbourhood, our College, our city, our country, and may it be limitless.

Darkness cannot drive out darkness, only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate, only love can do that. - Martin Luther King, Jr.

Term 2 brings a number of significant Curriculum events including:

• Year 10 Curriculum Information Evening (Tuesday 7 May)
• NAPLAN for Year 7 and 9 (Weeks 3 and 4)
• Examinations for Year 8 - 12 (Weeks 6 and 7)
• Externally Set Tasks for Year 12 General students (Weeks 3 and 4)
• 2020 Course selections for current Year 10 and 11 students.

All Year 10 students and parents should attend the Curriculum Information Evening on Tuesday 7 May from 6:15pm in the Auditorium. Representatives from tertiary institutions will provide information about qualifications and career pathways for students after Year 12. I will also be covering information pertinent to making appropriate course selections for Year 11 and 12. Year 10 students have received a Course Information Booklet which is an excellent reference for the information provided during the evening. I look forward to seeing all Year 10 students and parents at this event.

NAPLAN will be an on-line assessment again this year, meaning that students will be completing the assessment using their computers. Parents (and students) can complete preparation tests via the public information website. This is a terrific site for students to become test literate: that is to gain a better understanding of how to navigate the test questions; the different ways to answer the questions and how to use their headphones. Students can utilise their headphones and listen to all questions, except in the reading assessment.

Examination preparation should begin now. The best preparation is practice, therefore I would encourage all students to begin summarising curriculum notes and complete questions from textbooks and worksheets. Tutoring is a fantastic opportunity to reinforce skills and further develop an understanding of the concepts presented. Examination schedules will be distributed early in Term 2.

SEQTA Engage access. Parent Engage usernames and passwords will be changing shortly. The username will be based on each parent/guardian email and passwords can be personalised. This means that each parent/guardian will have individual access to appropriate student information.

At Kennedy Baptist College one of our goals is the pursuit of excellence in all areas of life. As such we have a special award known as the College Colours Excellence Award that recognises student achievement and contribution across many aspects of College life including Attitude and Behaviour, Leadership Roles, College Representation and Academic Standing. The criteria for the award includes the following.

• Attitude and Behaviour: Students need to demonstrate the attitudes and behavior which reflect the values of Kennedy.
• Leadership Roles: Students are required to contribute to College leadership in a significant manner such as being a Student Councillor, House Captain, 11/7 Mentor, or other positive roles.    
• College Representation: Students should represent the College in the community through sport, drama or dance or involvement in the College Community Outreach Program involving local sustainability projects, supporting the homeless or animal welfare activities.
• Academic Standing:  Students are required to maintain good academic standing in all their studies with a minimum of a C grade across their courses.                                    

At our first Assembly in Term 2, 52 students received a certificate recognising their achievement of this award, a badge was given to wear on their blazer for the rest of their time at the College. The College Colours Excellence Award is one of the highest individual awards that can be achieved at the College and can be applied for at the end of  Year 10 or Year 11. Please click here for Assembly photos.

We would hope it is something all our students would aspire to as they continue to pursue excellence.

On the last day of Term 1, two Easter Bunnies made a surprise visit to the College. The bunnies walked around the campus during recess time, distributing Easter eggs and bringing some joy to the students. One of the bunnies even visited the staff morning tea. It was great to have our furry friends join us again.

This will be a fun filled morning so please come and join other Kennedy Mums over a cuppa and some tempting treats at our annual Mother's Day morning tea. Our guest speaker this year will be Yvette Cherry. She is the Women’s Leadership Pastor at Baptist Churches WA. Yvette has the great privilege of supporting, training and mentoring women in pastoral and ministry leadership. She is a wife and mum to four daughters. Aunties and grandmothers are also welcome!

Date: Thursday 9 May 2019
Venue: Staff Lounge
Time: 9.00am - 10.15am

For catering purposes, we would appreciate your RSVP to Mrs Janet Hair via email before Friday 3 May 2018.

We value the support of our volunteers who contribute to the College community! Co-ordination of all our volunteers is managed through the easy to use automated online system SIGNUP.com. Current volunteer opportunities are available with:

• The Kennedy Prayer Group - Wednesdays at 1.45pm
• Beedawong Volunteering Term 2
• Book Covering

​​Please click here to sign up and volunteer.