Key Messages Week 7 - Term 3Dear Parents and Carers, I am writing to let you know that I have accepted a short term secondment position in Catholic Education. This will be from October 28 until the beginning of the 2021 school year. The position is as Consultant to the Director and its objective is to work with the Director to provide him with advice regarding key issues that affect schools and student outcomes. Whilst I am very sad to be away from the community during this time, I am also very committed to working to improve the system as a whole with regard to our service of students and families. We are privileged to have an expert and committed staff at JPC and I am totally confident that our JPC goals of excellence and the care we have for our students will continue to be at the forefront of all that we do. We are currently running a process to appoint an Acting Principal and I will inform you of the outcome as soon as I am able. Whilst I am very sad to be away from the community that I love during this period, you can feel very confident that the school will be in good hands during my absence. As always, I thank you for your support and your commitment to working together in partnership to enable your sons and daughters to flourish. I will keep you all in my prayers and continue to follow the positive development of the College in my absence. Catherine Rey Device Use! A research letter published in JAMA Pediatrics in February that said only 5% of teens are meeting recommended guidelines for screen use, sleep, and exercise. Those guidelines for screens are less than 2 hours of exposure to screen-based digital media in a 24-hour period. If you think it’s time to seek professional help for teens in your life, experts recommend starting with your pediatrician or family doctor or seeking out a therapist, counsellor, or psychiatrist. Experts agree that when teen screen use is out of control, changes have to be made at home. Experts say parents need to be mindful of the family environment and monitor stress in the household. “When things get heated, try to step back and do something about it. Is there too much tension or fighting or anger? Because all of those are potentially toxic factors that might encourage a child to retreat to a screen.” Fornari says. To create some boundaries with technology for your teens, experts recommend that you:
At JPC we are a bring your own device school which means they can use their mac laptops and iPads in the classroom. We have workshops available for students to help them better manage their devices. We utilise terms such as ‘apples up’ so students are aware of when it is and isn’t okay to use their devices in the learning space. Helpful sites: https://www.beyondblue.org.au/get-support/national-help-lines-and-websites https://www.betterhealth.vic.gov.au The Wellbeing Team ACT Children and Young People Review Have you participated in the ACT Children and Young Person Review yet? Your voice is the most important! We want to hear your thoughts on the current state of mental health and well-being (including prevention, education and services) for children and young people 0-25 years in the ACT. We are collecting feedback via THREE online questionnaires targeting specific groups. It takes only 8 minutes to complete. Children 17 Years and under - Click Here (parental consent required) Parent/Carer/Service Provider - Click Here For more information on the project Click Here Heidi Prowse Defence Legacy Week This week is Legacy Week. Legacy Week is the major fundraiser for Legacy and they rely on donations to support the children and spouses of injured and deceased veterans around Australia. Make sure you support Legacy’s good work by buying a badge or bear If you see Legatees out on the weekend. Battle for Australia Ceremony On Wednesday, some of our Defence Students attended the Battle for Australia Ceremony at the Australian War Memorial. Our students were joined by Defence Students from Holy Spirit School and several of them were selected to participate in making a wattle wreath with other students from around Canberra. The Ceremony recognises the courage and sacrifice of Australian and our Allies in the Pacific during World War II. Dr Brendan Nelson, AO, gave a memorable address about the sacrifices made not only by the enlisted men but by the families left behind. It was a moving and heartfelt service and it was particularly special to see so many WWII Veterans attend. After the Ceremony, our students were taken on a guided tour of the AWM and learnt some interesting facts about our military history. As usual, our students behaved with respect and reverence and I believe some of them even learnt something.
You can now access all your favourite ForceNet features whenever and wherever you like via the new free mobile application. Keep up-to-date with news, events, and information. Stay involved with your unit group, other specific interest groups, group discussions and never miss that important notification again. ForceNet Families is also available via the ForceNet mobile app at Google Play and the App Store. Holy Spirit Families – Holy Spirit Remembrance Day Project We are looking for photos of your Holy Spirit family members who have served in WWI, WWII or other campaigns. If you had someone who served for their country, we want to know about it. See the flyer below. Please let me know if your family is being posted onto a new and exciting place for next year, so I may best support your child. As usual, if you have any concerns about your child, please contact me. Vicki Walsh In and Around the School JPC MOCK Trial Team Last week, the JPC Mock Trial team won their Quarter Finals of the Legal Oratory ACT 2019 ACT Schools Mock Trial Competition in just their second year in the competition, following the conclusion of the 4 Round series of Preliminary Trials that took place at both Hawker College and Radford throughout May and August. The team have finished the season in 3rd place out of 19 teams and went up against Hawker College in the 3rd v 6th Trial. They will be competing in the semi-final next week. Congratulations to the team for all of your hard work and dedication! Pictured - Chloe Bartlett, Monica Cougar, Stephen Sisavanth-Norman, Finn Salisbury, Jarrod Koenig, Oliver Kiogora, Bronte Froome, Phoebe Nguyen Missing from Picture - Bella-Clare Thom, Laura Cantlie Swoop Into Spring Senior Hospitality Restaurant Night Our senior hospitality students outdid themselves planning and preparing the restaurant for their assessment task this term. They aptly chose the “Swoop into Spring" theme and decorated the restaurant with Spring blossoms and beautifully crafted napkin flowers. The year 11 and 10 hospitality students performed very well under their instruction and with the guidance of Hospitality Assistants Megan Hajduk and Kate Parker. The evening flowed smoothly with only a few ‘Blue Swallow’ mocktails flying through the air! The menu featured some native bush tucker flavours, which we always try to incorporate, including Lemon Myrtle, smoked chicken breast and duck with Tasmanian Mountain Pepperberry. The lavender bavarois dessert was a highlight and fitted the night’s theme beautifully. The restaurant was fully booked and it was lovely to see all the staff and families attending and supporting the students, especially Drexel House! Keep your eyes peeled for an invite to our fund-raiser High Tea next term! Annie Daley Junior Ensembles Concert On Wednesday 4th of September, JPC had another music concert in which the Junior Concert band had their very first performance ever! They were supported by most of the other junior bands at JPC. As guests arrived, the JPC Jazz Band welcomed everyone into the theatre. I still can't believe that the people in the Junior Concert Band, at the start of the year some couldn’t play an instrument. We wish to thank Miss Robinson and Mr. Lyon for teaching and supporting these young musicians. Over the night there was a lot of talent on display showing the students hard work and dedication. We’d also like to thank the other students, parents, carers, families and teachers that came to watch. Jacob Molloy (Year 7) Dragon Dance Workshop Our Year 7 students had an ecstatic experience in dragon dancing. On Wednesday 4th September, our school Languages faculty engaged a professional team to give a workshop to our students about basic skills of dragon dancing. Students had so much fun working in teams to manoeuvre the majestic dragons and they learnt fundamental martial arts techniques that they could use while performing dragon dance. Sarah Lim Grove Excursion On Wednesday the 4th of September, the JPC Junior Vocal Group went to The Grove (which is a retirement village across from the School) to sing, to have morning tea and to talk to the residents of the village. During this visit we learnt to overcome our stage fright, we would firstly like to thank all the students who went to the Grove for their commitment and hard work, secondly we would like to thank the residents at the Grove for having us there and lastly we would like to thank Miss Robinson for her hard work preparing us for this opportunity and all her dedication to work with all the music groups. On behalf of us and the rest of the vocal group, it was a pleasure to sing and have a chat with the residents of the Grove. Delanie Simmons and Greg Thompson (Year 7) Cafeteria Corner This week our school community was spoilt with another wonderful selection of tasty morsels from our College Canteen ‘Master chefs’. Of specific note were our Wednesday ‘mouth-watering ‘ Chock-chip cookies- that the cookie monster would have been eager to nibble! It had a crisp outside with a soft centre and I was met with an explosion of flavours that tempted me to eat more. The chocolate chips melted in my mouth and the overwhelming experience was tremendous. We also had the pleasure of eating the Salami Turkish Roll – that was not only fresh but also well balanced with meat, and fresh, crisp vegetables. This roll should be called the Gungahlin ‘Gigantor’ for the amount of wholesome goodness you receive! Thanks once again to our Cafeteria Ladies Alex, Emma and Aimee, (Year 10) Congratulations Congratulations to Harry Rowley, Tanatswa Bvirakare and Joshua Milicevic (Year 7) who have all made the U13 ACT State Squad for Soccer and will be traveling to Coffs Harbour for the Nationals at the end of September. We wish you all the best in your upcoming competition. Good Luck Boys! UN Youth Debating We (Bridget and Amisha from Yr 10) had the pleasure to represent JPC at the 2019 Evatt Debating Competition. The Evatt Debating Competition involves school teams to represent a country on the United Nations Security Council and discuss global matters just like at the UN. As it was JPCs first time, we had a lot of pressure; we were up against schools that had done it for years and years prior that had fully established tactics with students who were fully prepared for whatever came their way. Some schools involved were Canberra Grammar, Radford college, and Narrabundah College. The competition was fierce and everyone gave it their all, fully investing themselves into their country to try and make the proposed resolution work for their country. It was tough to compete in! However, we reached the grand finals which was held at the Supreme Court on Saturday (24th August). Not only did it open us to seeing so many enthusiastic people from all around Canberra in years 10-12, it has broadened our minds about current global issues, and how the UN security council works to respond and resolve issues to the best of their ability. The majority of the teams were in Yr 12, a few in Yr 11, and we were the only ones in Yr 10 - we had a lot to live up to! All in all, to best, describe this event we would use three words loud, exciting and challenging! We had an amazing experience and we would recommend it to any students who are interested in debating. This experience has not only made us a better team but has made us more confident with public speaking skills. Amisha Sehgal and Bridget Shelley (Year 10) Sport School MTB Championship Last Friday, we attended the ACT schools mountain biking championships. The race is a relay format over 4 hours at Stromlo Forest Park. JPC was able to register 3 male teams; 2 in the senior competition and 1 in the college comp. It was a competitive day out with 700 competitors across the ACT and NSW, some as far as Wagga Wagga. All the boys rode hard, stayed up right and had an outstanding day out. Luke Hewitt clocking the fastest lap time of all our boys at 19:39 minutes. Our college males; Andrew Robens, Banjo King and Michael Woodman placed 12th overall. Luke Hewitt, Finlay Johnstone and Rohan Ahern placed 25th and our youngest boys Brody Kitto, Harrison Greenwood and Ben Parkes placing a solid 53rd place. Well done to all the riders. A successful day of mountain bike riding. Looking forward to doing it all again next year. Ms. Jessie Thearle GRAND FINAL TIME! Congratulations to all students who are in their respective sporting finals in the upcoming weeks! We would love to hear about what you are involved in and how you go! Good luck! Coming up - AFL Under 12’s Girls Grand Final on the 15th of September - featuring Rachel Carroll, Bree Wilson, Taya Lyon and Ava Wood for the Gungahlin Jets! ASC BASKETBALL This Thursday we entered 2 teams into the ASC Girls Basketball Competition, travelling over to the Southside for a long, competitive day. The 7/8’s had a tough day coming up against some very difficult competition. Although they didn’t come away with any wins, they were supportive of each other and consistently improved as the day went on. The majority of this team was in Year 7, so it was a great learning experience for them to come up against some talented Year 8’s. Moment of the day goes to Lauren Watt who scored her first three point shot of the day, fell over and gave the sideline the biggest smile we have ever seen. The 9/10’s kept hearts racing the whole day, starting the event with a one-point loss to CGGS. They went through the next two games with wins against Burgmann and St Clare’s that put them 1st in their pool and into the finals. They came through with a win against Radford which put them into the Grand final, coming up against St Clare’s for the second time. The game was tense, and coach Keeley almost couldn’t handle it, but the girls pushed through for the last 24 minutes of the day and came away ASC CHAMPIONS (our second ever ASC trophy at JPC)!! A huge thanks go to the parents who came out to support us on the day, Archie Phillips for jumping on board to help as an ACT referee, coach Keeley for providing advice and strategy to both the teams and Mr Duddy and Miss Zorzi for getting the teams together. What A Day. Miss Turner Careers Work Experience Thank you again to those families offering to accept JPC students for Work Experience (WEX), the list is growing and we really appreciate how much is involved in accepting a student. Information for parents/carers on the process of how to arrange Work Experience can be found on the JPC website From the College OfficeWANTED: Ties! Do you have any ties you no longer wear that are clogging up your cupboard space? The ties will be put to good use for a Year 12 Textiles project. Donations can be dropped off to the front office, clearly labelled ‘Textiles’. Thank you! A reminder of the new process for contacting your child during the day If you need to contact/collect your child unexpectedly during school hours, the following process is to be followed:
Note - the mobile phone policy has not changed and phones are to be kept in lockers during the day. Thank You My Way Cards The Student Office have received a number of lost MyWay cards. Unfortunately, there is no way of checking who these belong to so our process is to return them to Transport Canberra’s Lost Property. If they are not registered the card is cancelled. If they are registered Transport Canberra have advised us that they post them back to the owner. We appreciate that our students need these cards to travel and that money may be lost if they are misplaced. To help us return lost MyWay cards please:
Leaving JPC? If you know that your child will be leaving JPC at the end of this year, please email the college office (office.jpc@cg.catholic.edu.au) as soon as possible. We are already planning for 2020 and also have a waitlist for most year groups. Year 10 families - if you have not confirmed that your child is staying/leaving, please do this immediately. Students should have had there subject selections interviews, if not please contact the college office to organise an interview with an Assistant Principal. Year 12 families - There is no need to respond. Thank you to those who have notified us already. The College Office For the latest CELEBRATE Edition Click Here Canteen MenuThe Canteen menu is now available to view for Week 8, Term 3 (9-13 September) on the JPC website - or Moodle under Canteen Menu Diary DatesMusic performances - Term 3 We have a lot of upcoming music performances which is very exciting. Monday 9 September all our Vocal groups will be performing at Sing Fest and in week 10, 25 September we are heading to Floriade! If your child is performing in any of these groups, please fill out the Qkr! form asap. Thank you, we look forward to seeing you all there. DANCE FEST Dance Fest rehearsals for our 2019 performance piece is well underway. Parents, please note that the tickets for Dance Fest are on sale now. JPC is performing Thursday the 12th of September 2019. See you there! Assessment Calendar Assessment Calendars are now available for each year level on the JPC Website and through Moodle under Parent Information/Assessment Calendar. These calendars summarise key assessment dates for students. As our first trial, there may be some elective dates missing and some dates may indicate a week. Please note that there may be changes to the information as specific due dates are set or for other reasons negotiated with the students. Students will be informed of specific dates when the tasks are handed out. A reminder that assessment tasks are also available in Moodle under the relevant subject. If you have any feedback with regards to the Assessment Calendar, email either myself or the college office. Regards, Dr Ann Cleary For the latest Parish Bulletin Click Here Community NewsGungahlin Little Athletics Come and join in the fun at Gungahlin Little Athletics Centre. Fun and friendly athletics in a safe and enjoyable environment. There’s something for everyone: running, jumping, throws, hurdles, walks. Who: for the 2019/20 season we welcome athletes born between 1 January 2003 and 31 December 2014 (athletes must be turning 6 or older in 2020) Season Dates: The 2019/20 season commences on Saturday 19 October 2019 (season runs across Term 4 and Term 1 of school). Weekly meets are held at Amaroo Oval, Horsepark Drive (behind Amaroo and Good Shepherd schools) on Saturday mornings from 9.00am. Registration Details: Registration and Come & Try day will be held at Amaroo Oval on Saturday 12 October 10.00am - 12.00pm. On-line registrations are open and available through the following link - https://registration.resultshq.com.au/CentreRegistration/CentreInfo/5a6bd707-5368-4923-bba2-b1445420a0d4/ Bring a copy of your on-line payment receipt along to the Registration / Come & Try Day to collect your registration pack. Cost: Online registration costs - $140 = 1 athlete, $270 = 2 athletes, $390 = 3 athletes, $490 = 4 athletes. It’s easy to register so come and have some fun with us. For more information please go to our website at www.gunlac.org and/or visit our Facebook page or email enquiries@gunlac.org.au
Canberra Short Film Festival comes to Gungahlin Are you a young person wanting to make films? Come along to the Canberra Short Film Festival in Gungahlin and get inspired! For more details, go to the Eventbrite page, Facebook All ages or 16+session pages or the website page |