FROM THE ACTING DIRECTOR OF THE JUNIOR SCHOOL, GREG HARRIS
Prayer of the Week: Mary Help of Christians
Thursday 24th May, we celebrate the feast of the Virgin Mary under the title of Help of Christians, patron of Australia.
The church in Australia had a special reason for turning to Mary. No priests were sent to the colony in its early days and Mass was not allowed except for one brief year until 1820. It was largely the Rosary in those early days that kept the faith alive.
The Australian Catholic community remained faithful to Mary and Australia was the first nation to choose her under the title, ‘Mary Help of Christians’ as principle Patroness.
Let us pray for all Australians.
Mary, Help of Christians, you listen with a Mother’s love
to all who look for your guidance. I ask you to keep all those I love
in your tender care. Give me the strength to face up to life’s difficulties
and protect me from all spiritual and bodily harm.
Grant me an abundance of love so that I too, may be a help to others,
sharing with them in their times of need,
and caring for them in their moments of distress.
Amen.
Let us now pray the Hail Mary together
Mary, Help of Christians: Pray for Us
Blessed Edmund Rice: Pray for Us
Live Jesus in Our Hearts: Forever
Thinking of You – Julie Williams
We are always very grateful to the wonderful ladies who man our Canteen each day and who keep the Waverley Junior School army well fed with sustenance each day. So, it is always a concern when either Sharon or Julie find themselves in difficult times.
This has been the case for Julie of late. Julie has had her appendix removed and had to stay an extra day in hospital due to the anaesthetic not agreeing with her. Luckily, she is now home, but cannot drive for two weeks so Sharon will be holding down the food fort. We wish Julie a speedy recovery and hope she is back with us soon. We hope any mums rostered on can assist as much as possible in the Canteen over this period.
Purposeful Professional Learning – JS Staff Meeting
On Tuesday afternoon (Week 3) the teachers from the Waterford Campus met to work collaboratively on student Personalised Learning Plans as prescribed by the Nationally Consistent Collection of Data. This national data collection on students with disability reinforces the existing obligations that schools have towards students under the Commonwealth Disability Discrimination Act 1992 and the Disability Standards for Education 2005. It counts the number of students who are supported under these obligations based on the professional judgement of teachers and their understanding and knowledge of their students. Our Learning Support teachers Katrina King and Margaret Fitzgerald expertly led the professional learning of the staff and we thank them for their time and effort in assisting all to keep up with the extensive administrative demands being placed on all staff in the 21st Century world of education.
Mother’s Day Gift Organisation Thanks
The staff and boys of the Junior School would like to pass on a great debt of thanks to Stephanie Van Dam who co-ordinated all the mum’s who helped make this Mother’s Day a special one for our boys and their mums, grandmas, aunties and other significant women in their lives.
The annual sale of Mother’s Day Gifts provides an opportunity for Year 5 and 6 boys to purchase a classic, reasonably priced gift for the favourite women in their lives. It’s not intended as a significant fundraiser- rather a local community service to promote local businesses which support the school and to facilitate the boys purchasing a great gift.
Special thanks must also go to:
- Milla Palacio- for her guidance, support and mentoring
- Jade Stapleton- for her calm patience, hard work and being our communication guru
- Soo Coughlan – our creative genius who designed the fabulous flyer and booking form
- Nikki Bowman – for her kind donation of the fragrances- and her marketing ideas
- Audrey – our boys ‘other mum’!
- Jennifer Divall – for creating our Try Booking online ordering- we got there!
- Our suppliers – Dimmy Mormanis from ‘Opa Designs’, Sally Kenny from ‘Fresh from the Markets’ and Georgina Gaussen from ‘One Reason’.
Year 5 Class Captains and Vice Captains Named
Last week the Year 5 Classes finally got their chance to vote for their class leaders for the next 13 weeks. Now that the boys have had a chance to get to know their fellow classmates we always feel this is an appropriate time for this to take place. Before the end of the year each Year 5 class will have a second vote to allow another group of boys the same opportunity to show leadership in their class for the remaining 13 weeks of the year. In Year 6 the Class Captains are appointed for the whole year.
We congratulate the following boys on being entrusted with the leadership of their class for this period:
- 5 Blue – Montgomery Armstrong and Ben Van Dam
- 5 Gold – Lachlan Marzol and Yannick Hott
- 5 Green – Dominic Schofield and Nicholas Hjorring
- 5 Red – Kayden Baker and Oliver Trosti
- 5 White – Archie Godby and Louis Agius
Stories in the Dark
Many thanks to Alison Jinga and the High School Drama staff for including us in an inspiring production of ‘Stories in the Dark’ on Tuesday.
The play tells the story of a terrified 12-year-old boy finds himself separated from his family in the unfamiliar streets of a war-torn city. He takes refuge in a bombed-out house and in the total blackness his bravado crumbles. Into his life steps Anton; older, street smart and scornful of his crying. He starts to tell him a story from his own childhood and so begins a journey into the shifting, shimmering world of ogres, princes, singing bones, foolish lads and wolf-mothers….
It was a great break for all the Year 5 boys from their NAPLAN testing and a much-enjoyed experience as the boys got to see a polished production by the High School Students and a glimpse into what is on offer for them when they take their step up into the High School in a couple of years.
Beanies for Brain Cancer – Digger Callander 5 Red
Digger Callander – JS Beanies for Brain Cancer Ambassador
The Year 5 boys in the Junior School were encouraged to support this mornings gathering on Bondi Beach at 7:30am onwards for the 8:00am record attempt. The boys made their own way to the beach. Staff from the Junior School were there to meet and gather the boys and walk them back to school after the event. It was great to see so many take part in supporting this worthwhile event, but also to support one of our own in Digger Callander, who lost his dad to this disease. Thanks boys for supporting one of your own. Sometimes the needs of the one outweighs the needs of the many. Well done.
MS Fundraising Success – Dom Rutter 5 Red
Last weekend Dominic Rutter, from 5 Red, participated in the MS 24-hour ‘Megaswim’ at Sydney Olympic Aquatic Centre in Homebush. This is a team event in which groups swim for 24 hours straight to raise funds to assist people living with MS. It is run from midday Saturday until midday Sunday. Dominic swam with a group of 4 others between 7.30am and 12noon last Sunday and completed 16 laps, raising $100 for this great cause. We would all like to congratulate Dominic for involving himself in such a noble cause. Well done on your great sense of community and the concept of doing for others. Well done.
Music Showcase
Good luck to all our Junior School performers in Friday night’s Music Showcase. This starts at 7:00pm at the PAC. Mrs Rollins has been working hard with the different ensembles to have them ready in between many interruptions caused by Canberra; NAPLAN and the busy start to the term so far. We don’t know how she does it but are very thankful to staff for releasing students when possible to squeeze in the all-important practices to make it all a success. Good luck Mrs Rollins and all boys and staff giving up there time to support, help and be in attendance. Thank you for your efforts.
Chess Champion – Tom Donaldson
Special Congratulations to Tom Donaldson from 5 Green who won all the games at last weekend’s Parramatta Chess Tournament where he came 1st – Great to see our students pursuing interests like this in their spare time – Well done Tom.
Confirmation – Charles Borromeo Parish – Mary Immaculate Church
The next Confirmation lesson will be on Friday 1st of June from 7:30am to 8:15am in the 6 Blue Classroom with Mr Gill in Week 5 – Mr Ghattas will take over on his return in Weeks 6 (Thursday) & 7 (Friday).
The Great Book Swap – NEXT WEEK – Donations required
ONE WEEK TO GO: This year I will be running the Great Book Swap on Week 5 Friday 1st of June. This is a new event for the Junior School and will run at lunch time. The idea is boys bring an old much-loved book from home and swap it for another one for the donation of a gold coin. Lacey House will also be running a cake stall on the day.
The purpose of raising funds from the Great Book Swap is explained here:
The Great Book Swap is a fantastic way to celebrate reading in our local community and raise much-needed funds for remote Indigenous communities. The idea is to swap a favourite book in exchange for another, for a gold coin donation. Last year, the Indigenous Literacy Foundation raised over $190,000 from the Great Book Swap and this year their goal is to raise $300,000 to gift 30,000 new books to remote communities who have few to none. After all, how can you learn to read without books?
The 2018 Great Book Swap will be running in the Junior School Friday 1st June. Please also feel free to support the event by donating any good quality books you may have at home (The cut off for books to arrive at school will be Thursday 31st May – please deliver them to the Library where they will have a slip with your details inserted).
NAPLAN
This week saw the Year 5 boys managed to get through the final stage of the NAPLAN testing for 2018. While the tests aren’t a real indication of the students’ progress at Waverley they play an important role in identifying any students who may require assistance.
We thank all the staff who trained and administered our first attempt at the ONLINE version of the tests. Special thanks to David Parnell (The Head of Learning Support), Elizabeth Watson (Deputy Head of Curriculum), Katrina King and Simon Potter and all the IT staff for all their assistance in making sure all ran smoothly and any glitches were quickly sorted.
Year 6 Canberra Trip
By now all our staff and boys should have all arrived safely back from another epic Canberra trip. We do have to thank Mr Meadley for the outstanding job he does every year ensuring this excursion is timed and planned to the minute with all boxes ticked, ensuring a wonderful experience for our boys. Thanks to staff for giving up their time from family and friends as they take on a 24-hour supervision role with the boys to ensure all are cared for at the highest level.
Homework Club – New Booking Procedure
At the moment there is no way of tracking what boys should be at Homework Club, so there is a new booking option available to parents to allocate the days you wish your boy to attend Homework Club. There will also be an email address listed should you need to make last minute changes. The two ways of booking are through:
- Skoolbag App: If parents open Skoolbag and go to ‘Forms and Letters’ and then follow the link to the Homework booking form
or
- Parent Portal – Sentral: Once parents have logged in and clicked on their sons photo they choose ‘Resources’ from the left-hand menu and the form is listed under ‘Junior School’
Homework Club will continue in the Junior School Library in Term Two, with a minor change. Hours of operation are Monday, Tuesday and Thursday, BUT NOT WEDNESDAY due to the fact that all boys will be involved in Sports Training on each Wednesday throughout the term. Parents are asked to strictly adhere to the 4.30pm pick up time.
The expectation of the boys attending the Homework Club is that they study quietly on work required to be completed for school. There will be a teacher on duty each day.
Winter Training goes until WEEK 3 of TERM 3. At this point Homework Club will run again from Monday to Thursday inclusive.
Chess
Learn to be a chess champion! Coaching for students at Waverley College (Junior School) is held on Tuesdays from 12:30pm to 1:30pm, starting on 8 May 2018.
Learning and playing chess helps children develop their logical thinking and problem-solving skills, improves their concentration and focus, while also being a great source of enjoyment. Activities include group lessons on a demonstration chess board or interactive whiteboard, puzzle solving and fun practice games.
Students earn merit awards by making checkmates, or by displaying skills and positive qualities, which all good chess players strive to develop.
If your child is interested in taking part, you can collect an enrolment form from the school office, or email enrol@sydneyacademyofchess.com.au for a copy. For all enquiries, please contact Sydney Academy of Chess on (02) 9745 1170.
Team App for Winter Sport
Sport at Waverley College is an exciting activity that involves every student at all different levels. We are now up to our third game of our Saturday Winter Sports Program and the excitement and energy is clearly visible.
Waverley College’s Co-Curricular Directorate is using a free app again this winter for all football and rugby teams and their supporters. ‘Team App’ is a platform that will allow our football community to improve communication by integrating everything one needs to know about football at Waverley College including: News, Fixtures, Competition Ladders, Selection News, Player Profiles, Live Scores, Photos
So if you would like to access this information on your device or smart phone simply download this free App. Team App is available on both Apple and Android devices. Once you have done this search for Waverley College Football or Rugby. The College will then authenticate you giving access.
Congratulations to our Representative at the PSSA State AFL Championship
Henry Kidd and Nate Smith
Well done to Nate Smith and Henry Kidd who travelled to Bateman’s Bay to represent the NSW CIS AFL Team in the Primary School State Championships. Results can be found on the PSSA website.
Congratulations Touch Football Representatives
The following boys were selected into the IPSHA Touch Football Squad for the NSW CIS selections in the coming weeks. Well done to: Monty Armstrong, Thomas McKenna and Ethan Ginnane – We wish them the best of luck at the next stage of selection.
Waverley Sport on Facebook
Please remember the details to get pictures on the Waverley Sport Facebook Page and Waverley Sport Messenger.
You can contact Lindsay through the Facebook Page; Facebook Messenger or at his website: lindsayjordan1122@hotmail.com This email is best to use if you have many photos to share with him – Please let him know via Messenger if you have emailed him as he only uses this address for photos. If you have just small numbers of photos then attach them directly to Messenger Service with a message.
It would help if as many parents as can LIKE the page as Lindsay wants to put a lot more focus on the Junior School teams this year. He will also add any reports we send about games.
Code of Conduct
Our Saturday Sports Program is a competitive and extremely well run under the umbrella of IPSHA . We have and always will take pride in the way that our students participate and behave both on and off the field. We do not apologise for expecting high standards of students. We stress continually the need to accept the referee’s decisions and to value sportsmanship.
Very simply we ask all involved to show respect to your opponents and the officials. Remember without them there would be no game.
I’ve included below the Code of Behaviour that we follow at the Junior School. It would be appreciated if you could take the time to read through it with your son before the next Saturday game.
Codes of Behaviour for School Sport – (Based on IPSHA Aims and Principles of Junior School Sport and Aussie Sport)
The role of the host school / convenor is to be clearly defined (i.e. responsibilities re provision of umpires, referees, sportsmanship, barracking, courtesy etc.) Host School (i.e. staff, children and parents) should welcome visitors to the school grounds.
Coaches’ Code of Behaviour
- Basic skills should be taught to all team members. Children should be encouraged to play hard and win fairly.
- Teach your players that rules of the sport are mutual agreements, which no one should evade or break.
- Children should participate for fun and enjoyment and winning is only part of their motivation. Never ridicule or yell at the children for making mistakes or losing a competition
- Coaching during games should not interfere with the control by the referee or umpire, nor should it be offensive to opponents.
- Ensure that equipment and facilities meet safety standards and are appropriate to the age and ability of the players.
- Develop team respect for the ability of the opponents as well as for the judgment of officials and opposing coaches.
- Make a personal commitment to keep yourself informed of sound coaching principles and the principles of growth and development of children.
- Make it positive experience for the children.
Players’ Code of Behaviour
- Play by the rules.
- Never argue with an official.
- Control your temper. Verbal abuse of officials or other players, deliberately distracting or provoking an opponent is not permitted in any sport.
- Work equally hard for yourself and/or for your team. Your team will benefit, so will you.
- Be a good sport. Applaud all good plays, whether they are by your team, opponent or the other team.
- Display modesty in victory and graciousness in defeat.
- Treat all players as you would like to be treated. Do not interfere with, bully or take unfair advantage of another player.
- Co-operate with your coach, teammates and opponents. Without them there would be no competition.
- Place in proper perspective the isolated incidents of unsporting behaviour rather than make such incidents the ‘highlight’ of the event.
- If a player is sent off during the game, a one-week suspension is recommended.
- Thank the opposition and officials at the end of a game.
Spectators’ Code of Behaviour
- Children play organised sports for fun. They are not playing for the entertainment of spectators only, nor are they miniature professionals.
- Applaud good performances and efforts from each team. Congratulate all participants upon their performance regardless of the game’s outcome.
- Respect the officials’ decisions.
- Never ridicule or scold a child for making a mistake during a competition.
- Positive comments are motivational and encourage continued effort.
- Condemn the use of violence in any form, be it by spectators, coaches, officials or players.
- Show respect for your team’s opponents. Without them there would be no game.
- Encourage players to follow the rules and the officials’ decisions.
- Demonstrate appropriate social behaviour by not using foul language, harassing players, coaches or officials.
- Comments should not interfere with the running of the game.
- Focus on the efforts and performance of the children rather than the result.
Praise
- Praise is encouraged at all levels
Complaints concerning the conduct of games should not be made during or after the game. They should be referred to one’s Head of Junior School and any action should be left to his/her discretion. UNDER NO CIRCUMSTANCES should parents contact schools directly.
