This week all Year 8 and 9 families and students were sent details as to the process for selecting elective classes for 2018. An information guide has been created for families to consult as they discuss the choice process with their son or daughter. A copy of the guide can be found on the Parent Information page of Moodle under the Year 9-10 Electives section. Students were emailed the link that they will need to follow to complete their selections on-line to their school email account. This will step students through the process. Once they have made their selections, students need to print a copy and have it signed by a parent or guardian. This then needs to be submitted in the box located in the Student Hub before Wednesday 6 September.

I have heard the question “How was your trip?” frequently this week and, it has led me to a state of deep reflection. Have you ever been able to experience the fulfillment of a dream? That was what my immersion experience was like.

This trip has been truly one of these greatest joys of my life.  Though challenging and confronting in many ways, it provided me with the perfect conditions and opportunities for growth.  I engaged and embraced each moment the best I could, and was honored to be included in a call to mission throughout the Northern Territory. With so many great stories and memories, it is hard to re-tell in a weekly newsletter, and therefore, I am going to share my journey with you over the next three weeks.

I was invited to join a team of extraordinary people within our Archdiocese to travel to Darwin and work, preach and share the love of God’s word with our young people. The aim of the mission was:

1. To support the development of Indigenous youth ministry programs in Catholic
secondary schools through conducting school visits and teacher formation workshops
throughout the Northern Territory.
2. To give young people the opportunity to engage with Indigenous youth in Australia
through Church community outreach.
3. To have a formation and retreat experience, whilst deeply immersed in Indigenous
culture.

On Sunday the 20th of August, I flew to Darwin with a group consisting of Mr. Nathan Galea, the Project Officer responsible for the development of the CSYMA Youth Ministry project in our Archdiocesan schools, Ms. Erica Drewsen, the Religious Education Coordinator at Carroll College, Broulee and four Youth Ministers who work in schools within ACT and NSW. One of these was Jazz Chalouhi, our very own Youth Minister from Holy Spirit Parish.

We landed to the shock of a hot and humid 35 degrees – in the midst of Canberra’s winter, this was the first big change to adapt to. Our first destination was St John’s Catholic College in Darwin, a co-educational boarding school that takes as its motto, “Strong in Faith”, and educates students from all backgrounds, abilities, faiths and cultures. I didn’t know what to expect, however as the Aboriginal Contact Teacher at JPC, I knew I was in for an exciting learning experience, to understand and acquire more understanding about how our country facilitates and accommodates the sharing of knowledge with indigenous students.

As a team, we spent the first two days of the mission building relationships with the students, and developing an aim to inspire and equip each individual to respond to the Church’s vision of our schools becoming centres of the new evangelisation. The Youth Ministers conducted workshops with students of all grade levels involving a range of activities such as interactive ice breakers, talks about God’s word, and personal sharing about what draws individuals to respond and walk with Jesus each day. The students of St John’s were incredible. Their response and involvement at each workshop was genuine and mind-blowingly beautiful. Even though many have been brought up with no faith, each and every student, gained an insight into respectful relationships and power of reconciliation, which embodies the heart of our country.

I look forward to sharing more insights with you about this experience, and how I hope to use the experience to further our own faith formation at JPC in the coming weeks.

Miss Elle Boller

It’s that time of term again – the Drama showcase is here to dazzle you! Both Year 7 classes, 9/10 Elective Drama and members of D2, have been working extremely hard to create and perform various pieces of theatre this term. The Showcase will consist of assessment performances and self-devised scenes. Students have self-nominated to perform and are very eager to share their acts with you.

Please join us to support our budding actors as they amaze you with their growing talents!

Miss Sarah Keane

The following students represented JPC at the High Schools Touch Football Gala Day on Wednesday 30th August

Boys 7/8
Josh Baldwin, Owen Hromow, Noah Marcantonio, Minh Nguyen, Fletcher Tarry, Zac Rolls
The boys finished 3rd overall after playing the day with no subs.  The boys went down in the semi final to a speedy Melba team in drop off.

Boys 9/10

Harri Mcleod, Mitch Robinson, Jake Thorpe, Ethan Small, Gage King, Jackson Palombi, JR Skinner, Austin Vowles, Tan Nguyen, Duot Manyok, Brenton Gare, Patrick “Hat-trick” O”Gorman, Alpha Viekune
Winner winner, Chicken Dinner.  The 9/10 boys went through the day undefeated beating Campbell High 5-0, Caroline Chisholm 9 -3, Stromlo 7-2, Campbell High again 6-3 and then beat Stromlo 1 in the final 4-3. 

Girls 7/8
Mia McGovern, Gabbie Jordan, Angel Skinner, Natalia Brankovic, Zoe Platt, Jorja Greenwood, Keeley Dunbar, Olivia Green
The 7/8 girls touch team went through the day undefeated as well but fell at the final hurdle, going down to Mackillop in drop off extra time.  The girls were clinical throughout the day, destroying the other teams.  Super Coach Miss Greaney had the girls firing on all cylinders. 

Girls 9/10
Jasmine Kelley, Makayla Stevens, Brooklyn Curran, Bella Hubbard, Emilia Hromow, Emily Sajler, Sarah Prior, Selena Gutierrez, Abbie Forrester
It was a tough day at the office for the 9/10 girls.  The girls showed great ticker across the 3 games only narrowly missing out on a finals birth.  Mr Yanu was instrumental in devising some trick plays to see the girls cross for a couple of plays and leave the opposition wondering what just happened.

Mountain Biking
Last Friday 25th August the following students represented JPC at the Schools Mountain Biking Championships at Stromlo Forest Park.

Kieran Sullivan, Gabe Kingsley, Saxxon French, Andrew Robens, Nathan Simkus, Logan Russel, Jacob Brassington

The boys had a great day representing the College in their respective categories.  The Senior boys finished inside the top 50 with 10 laps in the 4 hours and the Juniors finished just outside of the top 60 with 8 laps.  There were over 700 students participating on the day and the boys should be proud of their efforts.  It wasn’t until after the race was finished that one of the boys decided to stack it ☹
Fastest rider on the day was Andrew Robens with 20:59.

Soccer

In week 6 St John Paul II College fielded two Year 7/8 boys’ soccer teams in the ACT Northside school’s carnival. The strength and depth across Year 7 and 8 was impressive with over 30 boys trialing to represent the school. The teams had four training sessions and trials in the lead up to the competition and were coached by Mr. Robertson, Mr. Whatman and Year 11 student Jacob Kite. A big thank you to all the parents who came along to support the boys on what was a successful day for St John Paul II College. 

The A team
The A team started with a 0-0 draw with Canberra High School but then went on to win all of their matches in the group stage, beating Burgmann 5-0 and Harrison 4-0 with goals from Nicholas K, Jacob B (2), Aiden M (3), Petro K and Oliver C. In the second round the team faced Campbell High School where they won by 5-0; this time two new scorers, Jakov M and Kristian T, made the scoresheet. In the Semi-final JPC came up against a much tougher opposition in Lyneham High School but still ended up as victors with a final score of 1-0, Petro K with the winning goal. In the Grand Final JPC faced St Francis Xavier College and produced arguably the best performance of the day winning by 3-0 with goals from Nicholas K, Jakov M and Aidan M. It was a fantastic effort from all of the boys and they are congratulated for their focus and professionalism, their positive team ethic and fantastic sportsmanship throughout the tournament. A remarkable achievement to remain unbeaten and to not concede a single goal throughout the tournament. The boys now head into the ACT finals to play against the top sides from the Southside of ACT on the 15th of September.

The B team
The B team were handed a tough group and started with two tricky fixtures against Melba Copland and Lyneham. After two defeats the boys responded in superb fashion with a stunning victory against neighbours Gold Creek, goals from Griffin A, Ante B, Darby L, Kyan R and Chris O. In the consolation round JPC defeated Harrison School by 4-1 Goals from Ante B, Kyan R, Chris O and Griffin A. Well done to the boys for a fantastic effort and for the resilience they demonstrated after two difficult fixtures. Student coach, Jacob Kite, demonstrated fantastic potential making several key tactical decisions to turn the team’s fortunes around. Well done to all involved!

This term, the Year 7 students were provided with the opportunity to create an exhibit about our current topic of study, Ancient Greece. By utilising the inquiry process, the Year 7 students set out to present an exhibit that is both engaging and informative. There was minimal instruction about what students were required to present – the executive and creative decisions were his or her own.

It was heartening to see the fantastic work that many of the Year 7 students put into his or her exhibit. Some are truly spectacular. An exhibition hall has been established as a way of acknowledging the good work of our students.

If you would like to view some of the truly incredible displays from our Year 7 Students, the exhibition hall is open in the JF building after school for all students and parents. The exhibition will be showcased for a week. I warmly invite you to come along and examine what the inquiry process inspires our young people to create.

Patrick Wood
Integrated Humanities Facilitator

Changes to the Transport Canberra Bus Network, Saturday 7 October 2017

On Saturday 7 October 2017, Transport Canberra will be introducing a revised network and timetable. This change is the first of a series of improvements towards an integrated public transport system in 2018 with the introduction of light rail to the nation’s capital.

This information including new timetables and maps are now available for parents and students to view on the Transport Canberra website – transport.act.gov.au

Have you taken part in the JPC College Council Survey?

It’s not too late – for more information head to the JPC Webpage

https://www.jpc.act.edu.au/community-council-school-survey/

The University of Melbourne would like to invite students to attend their Information Day for interstate students and their families at their Parkville campus on Monday 2 October 9:00am – 5:00pm.

The day will focus on aspects of the university that are of greater concern to interstate students such as the application process, scholarships, student services, the student experience and accommodation options. Participants will have an opportunity to ask current University of Melbourne students who have come from interstate about their experience and how they managed the transition. The program will also include a campus tour and residential college tour. Lunch will be provided on the day.
 
EVENT DETAILS

Date: Monday 2 October 2017

Location: University of Melbourne, Parkville, Victoria 3010

REGISTER NOW
 

Learning music can help students’ self-confidence, self-discipline and team work. Music helps students progress in other important learning areas such as Maths and English. Indeed, countries with a strong focus on music education tend to have higher scores in literacy and numeracy. Engaging music programs have been shown to help with attendance and can be particularly beneficial for students who are not achieving well in school.