Junior School: 2017 Term 3, Week 1

From the Director of the Junior School, Anthony Banboukjian

 

 

Welcome

Welcome back to the second half of the year. I hope everyone had an opportunity to a have a relaxing break and some quality family time together. Term 3 is a busy and exciting time at the Junior School with the Wakakirri team in full rehearsal mode, the completion of our winter sports competitions and the commencement of our athletics season.

I hope the reports you received at the start of the holidays gave you an accurate guide to your son’s performance for the first half of the year. Please remember that this report is a snapshot of five months of work. The challenge is for the boys to make improvements in as many areas as possible by the end of the year. If you have any concerns please contact your son’s class teacher.

 

Prayer for the Week

During the holidays, NAIDOC Week was celebrated around Australia.  NAIDOC Week celebrates the history, culture and achievements of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.

An Aboriginal Prayer

Holy Father, God of Love, 

You are the Creator of this land and of all good things.

We acknowledge the pain of our history and the sufferings of our people, 

And we ask Your forgiveness.

We thank You for the survival of indigenous cultures.

We pray for Your strength and grace to forgive, accept and love one another.

Give us the courage to accept the realities of history

So that we may build a better future for our nation.

Teach us to care for our land and waters.

Help us to share justly the resources of this land.

Help us to bring about spiritual and social change,

To improve the quality of life for all groups in our

Communities, especially the disadvantaged.

Help young people to find true dignity and self-esteem.

May Your power and love be the foundations

On which we build our families and communities

And our nation through Jesus Christ our Lord.

(Source: Wontulp Bi-Buya, Indigenous Theology Working Group, 1997)

This week marks the beginning of Term 3.  We thank the Lord for keeping us safe and for giving us the opportunity to rest and spend time with our family and friends.

We ask you to send your Spirit upon us all, so that we can make the right choices this term to be the people you want us to be.

Amen.

Blessed Edmund Rice: Pray for us.
Mary Mother of God: Pray for us.
Live Jesus in our Hearts: Forever.

 

Resilience

The final examples of Michael Grose’s language of resilience, the coping skills each reflects, and the types of situations in which they are applicable.

7. “Don’t worry – relax and see what happens!”

Strategy: Acceptance

Good for: Kids who worry about exams or performing poorly in any endeavour; pessimists.

If you’ve ever been driving to an important event only to be stuck in traffic then you would know that there are some situations you just can’t control. The only way to cope is to accept what’s happening because worrying and fretting won’t get you anywhere. Similarly, parents with a resilience mindset can help kids understand what’s worth worrying about and what’s not, and that some things won’t change no matter how much kids fret or beat themselves up!

8. “This isn’t the end of the world”

Strategy: Maintaining perspective

Good for: Kids who catastrophise or blow things out of proportion.

While most of us catastrophise at times, jumping to the worst possible conclusion, it is a habit that only exaggerates anxiety. When kids constantly think the worst case scenario, challenge their views. “Yes, you could end up not knowing anyone at camp but you won’t be the only one. Besides you’ll probably end up making new friends like you generally do.”

9. “You could be right. But have you thought about … ”

Strategy: Flexible thinking

Good for: Kids who catastrophise; experience extreme feelings; who exaggerate.

Many children and young people talk in extremes – ‘awesome’, ‘the best’, ‘the worst’ and ‘gross’ roll off their tongues easily these days. Unfortunately, their extreme language leads to extreme emotional responses. Develop the habit of winding back their language by introducing shades of grey, rather than black and white. Replace “I’m furious” with “I’m annoyed”. “It’s an absolute disaster” with “It’s a pain”. “I can’t stand it” with “I don’t like it”. Realistic language leads to realistic thinking, which helps kids handle many ordinary situations that they have blown out of proportion.

10. “What can we do about this?”

Strategy: Taking action

Good for: Kids who mope; who experience disappointment; who feel inadequate.

Kids can sometimes feel overwhelmed by events such as constant failure, constant rejection or always narrowly missing being picked for a team. They can be overwhelmed by feelings of inadequacy and helplessness. Action is often the best remedy. Help them take the first step forward. Set some goals. Make some plans. Identify the first step and hold their hand while they take it. Taking action is a quality shared by resilient communities, organisations and individuals.

 

 

Important Dates for Term 3

Week 1
Wednesday 19^th July – Blitz Day Queens Park
Saturday 22^nd July – Rd 8 Winter Sport

Week 2
Wednesday 26^th July – Athletics Carnival ES Marks
Friday 28^th July – Quinn House Mass
Saturday 29^th July – Rd 9 Winter Sport

Week 3
Tuesday 1^st August – ICAS English Competition – 8.00am start
Saturday 5^th August – Rd 10 Winter Sport (last round).

Week 4
Monday 7^th August – Wakakirri Heat – NIDA
Wednesday 9^th August – Class and Individual & Winter Sport Photos (all parents are asked to ensure your son is at school on this day as photos cannot be retaken).
Friday 11^th July – Musica Viva Incursion – Year 5 and 6 (9.15am Recess)
Saturday 12^th August – Athletics (selected squad)

Week 5 – Book Week
Monday 14^th August – Illustrator Visit
Tuesday 15^th August – Assumption Mass
Tuesday 15^th August – ICAS Mathematics Competition – 8.00am start
Tuesday 15^th August – Author Visit (Morris Gleitzman)
Thursday 17^th August – Book Week Character Parade (Parents are welcome to attend)
Friday 18^th August – Brothers Athletics Carnival (selected squad)
Saturday 19^th August – Athletics (selected squad)

Week 6
Friday 25^th August – Tevlin House Mass
Saturday 26^th August – Athletics (selected squad)

Week 7
Tuesday 29^th August– IPSHA Athletics Carnival @ Homebush
Friday 1^st September– Father’s Day Mass and Lunch starting at 12.00pm

Week 9
Wednesday 13^th September – Wakakirri Final (TBC)
Friday 16^th September – Walkathon

Week 10
Monday 18^th September – Year 6 Allwell Testing
Friday 22^nd September – Year 12 Graduation Ceremony.
Friday 22^nd September (Day F) – Classes Conclude Term 3

 

Congratulations – ICAS Digital Technologies competition

Well done to the following boys for their performances in the 2017 International Competitions and Assessments for Schools (ICAS) – Digital Technologies competition

Distinction Awards – Year 6
Xavier Schofield (top 3% of the state)
Samuel Fingleton (top 6% of the state)
Conor Black (top 9% of the state)
Jake Perks (top 9% of the state)

Credit Awards – Year 6
Edison Beswick                      
Darius Hall
Thomas Holroyde
Hugh McDonald
Matthew Wong

Merit Awards – Year 6
Hugo Heron

Congratulations – ICAS Science competition

Well done to the following boys for their performances in the 2017 International Competitions and Assessments for Schools (ICAS) – Science competition

Distinction Awards – Year 6
Conor Black (top 7% of the state)
Jack Crotty (top 7% of the state)

Credit Awards – Year 6
Ethan Fernandez
Hugo Heron
Thomas Holroyde
William Perkins
Matthew Wong

Credit Awards – Year 5
Freddy Maree

Merit Awards – Year 6
Evander Hudson

Merit Awards –  Year 5
Campbell Porteus

 

Class, Individual & Winter Sport Photos

Please note the date for the Individual and Class photos is Wednesday 9^th August. Can I ask you ensure your son is at school on this date as the photos cannot be rescheduled.  Boys will to arrive at school in their full winter uniform AND will need to bring in their Saturday winter gear on the day.

 

Athletics Carnival

The Junior School will be holding their annual athletics carnival at E.S. Marks Field on Wednesday 26^th July. All parents are welcome to join us for the day.

 

Photos

If anyone has photos from Saturday sport or any other Waverley College event that they would like to share with the rest of the College community could I ask you to send them in on a disk or memory stick to the Junior School office.