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Last week I contacted Mr Eamonn Pollard to congratulate him on gaining the principalship of St Aloysius from 2021 onwards. I have known Eamonn on a professional level for many years and know his skill sets in leading St Aloysius into the future will be invaluable. I look forward to working with him to make his transition seamless. I will pray for his success and that of the Parish and College.
On a personal level, thank you for your kindness, prayers and best wishes to me especially over this last week. I have received many emails, phone messages, texts and conversations of gratitude and affirmation. I appreciate them very much. Please continue to keep me in your prayers as I work towards what 2021 and beyond has in store for me.
Let us pray:
God our creator, you call us into being and we recognise your presence amongst us.
We gather in joy and thanksgiving to remember the life of Mary Aikenhead.
In the spirit of Mary Aikenhead, we respond to your call to service the poor and to be co-workers in your mission.
May we be enlivened and nourished by the Holy Spirit who breathes life and love into our hearts and calls us to the service of others.
May the amazing grace of Christ cover us, the enduring love of God encircle us, and the pure friendship of the Spirit inspire us, both today and evermore.
Amen.
Venerable Mary Aikenhead, Pray for and with us.
Congratulations to Fr Steven Smith, an old scholar of St Aloysius, who was ordained to the priesthood by Archbishop Porteous on Friday, 23rd July and celebrated his first Mass in his Parish church on Saturday. I had the opportunity to attend the ordination in person with our College Captains, Harrison Henry and Nicola Brcic.
We wish Steven every blessing as he commences his priestly ministry in the Archdiocese of Hobart.
STAFF NEWS
Welcome back to Mrs Simone Skinner to her home at the Front Office at Huntingfield Campus.
During the last week of Term 2 we finalised the Maths Science teaching recruitment process which was run earlier in the term. This position was to replace Mrs Belinda Molann's 2020 teaching load. We welcome Mrs Bronwyn Turner to the College. Bronwyn will be a familiar face to many of you as she has undertaken relief days at Huntingfield Campus throughout Term 2.
This week we welcome the following staff who were successful in the interviews for the two Teacher Assistant positions: Mrs Rosemary Cann and Mrs Amanda Lovell.
At the end of last term I accepted the resignation of Mr Samuel Howell from his ICT Technicians role at the Huntingfield Campus. Mr Brett Butterworth has been appointed as a casual replacement for Sam. Brett will work Wednesday to Friday at the Huntingfield Campus.
Mr Joseph Sandric
Acting Principal
ALLIANCE FRANCAISE COMPETITION
This year, our students at St Aloysius had the opportunity to participate in a modified version of the Alliance Française competition. The Alliance Francaise itself is a world-wide organisation which aims to represent and promote French culture and language throughout the world.
In Tasmania, each year, this organisation holds both a poster and a poetry competition in Hobart. Schools take part in the competition, which usually occurs in June. In the past, St Aloysius have only previously entered in the poetry competition (Grades 6-10). This year, due to restrictions imposed by COVID-19, the poetry section of the competition was unfortunately cancelled. In its place, I gave students from Grades 3-6 the opportunity to create a poster to be entered in the poster section.
This year the themes were:
Grades 3-4: Un banquet à la française (A French Banquet) and Grades 5-6 : Un restaurant français (A French restaurant). The College entered 11 posters into the competition, and I would like to congratulate the following students whose posters were selected as entrants:
Grades 3-4:
Mitchell Norris, Denni Vakrinos, Elly Royce, James Crayford, Annie Knott
Grade 5 - 6:
Katelyn Johnson-Glading, Jessy Hayes, Annabel Jones, Charlie Carmichael, Freya Clark, Brydie Cordwell
It was with great pleasure that we were informed at the end of Term 2 that the following four students received the award of “Mention Honorable” (Honorable Mention) in recognition of their efforts. These students are as follows:
Grade 3: Denni Vakrinos
Grade 4: Elly Royce
Grade 5: Annabel Jones
Grade 6: Jessy Hayes
We are awaiting receipt of the certificates acknowledging this wonderful achievement, and these will in turn be presented to the students. The other entrants will also receive certificates of participation for their wonderful posters. Fèicitations, les enfants!
Jill Britton
French Teacher
COMPASS
With the move to Compass for student reports, we considered it timely to remind parents of the need to access Compass (either through desktop or via the Compass app) with the log in details sent home earlier in the year.
Should you have any difficulty with accessing or using Compass, please email compasshelp@staloysius.tas.edu.au
CRICKET NETS
The College is excited to announce that the new cricket nets at our Huntingfield Campus, that commenced construction in Term 2, have now been completed.
With participation in cricket growing across both genders, these cricket nets will be utilised by our students from both campuses for team training and skill development.
The College would like to acknowledge the assistance of the Australian Government, who through the Local Schools Community Fund program, provided $11,254.00 to the College towards the overall cost of the project.
The College would also like to thank Federal Member for Franklin, Julie Collins MP for her support in our application to the Local Schools Community Fund and Haydn Dodge and his team at Synthetic Grass Solutions Tasmania who undertook the construction.
BUSH SKILLS
During Friday lunch time club Bush Skills, Oliver Burton came up with a fantastic idea for the children participating in these weekly sessions to plan them so as to create more ownership over each session from the chld's perspective. Oliver planned the last few weeks of these sessions in Term 2, where we could go out into our school context to find 'art in nature', and photograph this. Alice Baldwin was kind enough to bring in some charcoal and children chose an element of nature which inspired them the most and recreated this through black felt pen and charcoal illustrations.
GRADE 3 ART
GRADE 7 PHOTOGRAPHY
Students in Grade 7 Photography elective classes have started a new unit on Abstract Urban Photography. Classes have had the chance to explore the school grounds and photograph the Campus in a new way. Aiming at capturing images of St Aloysius archiecture that explore angles, light and shadow and interesting details.
GRADE 8 SCIENCE
Grade 8 students have been looking at the geology of the Earth this term. In this activity, students were able to used crushed minerals to make tempera paints. Students were able to investigate and discuss how the different ratios of pigments and binder affected the quality of paint produced.
GRADE 9/10 EXTENDED SCIENCE
Students have continued their investiation into Newton's Laws of Motion. Students investigated 'that for every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction' by creating balloon rockets and measuring their distance and speed.
HIIT FITNESS
On Friday, 24th July the Grade 7 HIIT Fitness class tackled the Ninja Warrior course at Eastside Activity Centre. The obstacles were indeed a challenge and left students with a feeling of accomplishment. The inverted wall, the swinging hoops, chimney shuffle and swinging ropes were favourites. This was a great prelude to the mud run later in the year.
On Monday, 27th July Grade 8 students attended F45 in Liverpool Street to put their strength to the test. Students engaged in a cardio workout that involved all parts of the body. This interval training was completed to a very high standard by our students and they certainly earned their recess!
NEW SAFER ACCESS
During the holidays work took place to create a safer access for students accessing the campus from Guardian Place, Huntingfield. A footpath was created for students entering and exiting the College below the Grade 5/6 playground.
A reminder to students if they need to cross Nautilus Grove they are to utilise the pedestrian crossing by the entry driveway.
WOODWORK
Students in Grade 5/6 are creating their own money box. They first came up with a design and then used tools including a vice and a coping saw to make their creations. We can't wait to see the finished products.
The next Community Group Meeting will be held on Tuesday, 4th August in the Sisters of Charity Centre at the Kingston Campus from 7:00pm. We welcome families to come along, meet other parents and help discuss ideas for fundraising options.
A cultural landscaping garden project is underway at the Huntingfield Campus.
When Europeans first started exploring Australia more than 200 years ago, many botanists such as Joseph Banks were amongst them. They studied some of the native plants, but very few learnt about their traditional Aboriginal uses. Today, there is growing interest in learning more about how native plants can be used for food and medicine, as well as practical craft.
The bike track area in the Grade 5/6 playground has recently been landscaped. We are planting out many Tasmanian native plants that have been used by Aboriginal people for thousands of years. These include plants known as 'bush tucker' as well as plants used for crafts such as basket weaving and canoe making. Once the plants are all established we can start learning about their traditional uses.
A sand circle with rocks for sitting on has been built. This circle is the same as the one established at our Kingston Campus last year. This gathering space will be used as an outdoor classroom. It will also provide us with a cultural space to host tutors who come in for music and dance performances and traditional workshops like weaving. Some classes have already started using the space for a 'yarn circle'.
The design of the garden has been carefully considered and plants have been selected with care. Grade 9 and 10 Duke of Edinburgh students, as well as some Grade 5 students of Aboriginal descent, have been busy planting out trees and mulching. The garden is starting to look fantastic! We ask all students to please stay out of the garden beds and be respectful of the entire area, especially while we continue to plant out different trees, grasses and bush tucker.
ABORIGINAL AND TORRES STRAIT ISLANDER STUDENTS AND FAMILIES INVITATION
SACRAMENTAL PROGRAM
We are looking to resume our Sacramental Program this term in order to complete the Sacrament of Reconciliation before the end of the year. This is open to all students (even those who are not Catholic but are thinking of becoming Catholic) particularly those in Grades 3 and above. Those who attended the first session earlier in the year do not need to reapply. Mrs Marriott will be contacting the Grade 3 families shortly, and if anyone else is interested, please get in touch at pauline.marriott@catholic.tas.edu.au.
YOUTH GROUP
We're back! Youth Group will return on Wednesday, 5th August (Week 3 of Term 3) from 4:00pm-5:30pm in the Sisters of Charity Centre (St Aloysius, Kingston Campus). Open to those in Grade 5 and above from any school or College. We will be running student driven sessions based on ideas such as Laudato Si’ and environmental sustainability, outreach in the local community, seasons and festivals, and Parish based music and liturgy projects as well as general socialising, games and activities. Keep up to date by joining our new private Facebook group by searching Facebook for Kingston-Channel Parish Youth Group, clicking the 'Youth' tab on the Kingston-Channel Parish website or contacting Polly Marriott at Pauline.marriott@catholic.tas.edu.au.
VINNIES VIRTUAL SLEEPOUT
Will you take up the challenge and sleep rough for one night? The Vinnies Sleepout allows participants to get a glimpse of the realities of homelessness on a personal level by sleeping rough for one night. The Sleepout provides a unique insight into the complex issues that people experiencing homelessness and disadvantage can face and encourages us to gain a deeper understanding. This is a semi-virtual event where students have the chance to sleep ‘rough’ at the back of the St Aloysius Catholic College Chapel and participate in various activities online. There will be a range of online guest speakers throughout the evening as well as recommended tasks to allow participants to achieve the full experience. The evening will be facilitated and supervised by Mrs Marriott and College staff. Together, we have the power to shape awareness and inspire action within our community. Those students who would like to take part please contact Mrs Marriott at Pauline.marriott@catholic.tas.edu.au and come along to a special Vinnies Sleepout meeting in the back of the Chapel at lunchtime on Friday, 31st July.
KINGBOROUGH HELPING HANDS
As part of the College's Outreach Program, for a number of years now the Kingston Campus has been involved in weekly donations of cakes and biscuits for Kingborough Helping Hands. Unfortunately KHH are unable to accept home baking at this time and so the invitation is being put out for families to donate dry store items. Due to the rise in need for these items we are extending this program to the senior students at the Huntingfield Campus.
Classes will be rostered for the remainder of Term 3 to bring in tins, biscuits or pantry goods. These will be collected and delivered to Kingborough Helping Hands at the end of each week to be distributed to those most in need in our community.
The roster is as follows:
Week 2 beginning Monday 27th July: 10 Blue
Week 3 beginning Tuesday 3rd August: 10 Green
Week 4 beginning Monday 10th August: 10 White
Week 5 beginning Monday 17th August: 9 Blue
Week 6 beginning Monday 24th August: 9 Gold
Week 7 beginning Monday 31st August: 9 Green
Week 8 beginning Monday 7th September: 9 White
Week 9 beginning Monday 14th September: 8 Blue
Week 10 beginning Monday 21st September: 8 Gold
We are happy to share some relevant parenting topics in each newsletter for parents and families to watch or read and reflect