From the Principal - Mr Chris Caldow Vol 9

AJASS Conference
I was fortunate to attend the annual AJASS Principal’s conference in North Sydney this week. One of the sessions was on the Sisters of St Joseph Works, Formation Framework. They have identified 4 key values as part of this Framework which are:

  • Creative Courage
  • Mutual Respect
  • Conscious Compassion
  • Intentional Inclusivity

The mission statement reads as “We are a ministry of the Sisters of St Joseph. We strive for positive transformative relationships with Earth and her people. We work in collaboration as in mission to create opportunities for generational change.”

Steve Todd who is a recently retired AJASS Principal spoke about reigniting the Josephite heart through his paintings which depict key events in the lives of St Mary MacKillop, Fr Julian Tenison-Woods and St Joseph. Steve has been principal in three different Josephite schools spanning over 29 years.

Also included was a visit to another AJASS school, Mount St Joseph’s College in Milperra and a pilgrimage and walking tour around the Rocks in Sydney.

Annual report
The Annual report for 2021 is available on the College website. It provides an overview of the 2021 year for Penola Catholic College with reports from the five key areas of the College namely: Education in Faith, Student Wellbeing, Learning and Teaching, Leadership and Management and Community. It also includes a report from myself as Principal and Mrs Alfina Astuto as School Advisory Council Chairperson.

Year 9 City Experience
The Year 9 City Experience Program concluded last Friday 3 June. The program itself is a great opportunity for students to see the day-to-day functions of their capital city as well as learning about its inhabitants, history and infrastructure. This program can only be successful if staff support it through their involvement and supervision. Many thanks to Penny Tully and Katherine Jones for their organisation of such a massive project also, to the vast numbers of staff who assisted throughout the week.

STEAM Project
Much planning has been completed for the projects that are on offer to our Years 7 & 8 students in the last week of Term 2. Students have had the opportunity to look at the projects that are being offered and make a selection about which projects they would most like to be involved with.

Staff News

  • Mrs Giusi Graziano is taking 4 weeks of long service leave commencing at the start of next term. I have advertised for a replacement for her Italian teaching role and hope to interview in the next fortnight.
  • There are a range of staff taking short periods of long service leave (2 weeks or less) around the Term 2 holidays and we will try to cover these classes internally.
  • Mr Chris McBrearty has resigned this week and we have advertised his role externally to take his Senior English and Years 9 & 10 EAL classes.
  • Mr Nick Laleas is taking all of Term 3 as long service leave and he will be replaced by Mr Christian Montesano.

Year 10 Work Experience
The Year 10 Work Experience Program took place last week from Monday 6 June to Friday, 10 June. Staff were required to visit some students at their placement, I thank the staff who took on this task. Many thanks to Jenn Doan, Terry McGann, Maria Rullo, Felicity Fox, Elena Natoli, Peter Carpenter and the Careers Office, as well as Steve Woodburn and Emily Hastie for their work in finalising placements for students.

Grade 5 visits
Thanks to Mr Stuart Harrison and Mrs Sandra Warren for all of their organisation of the Grade 5 visits from our Primary Catholic feeder schools. There will be over 450 students in attendance and our staff will take these students through a range of activities on the day. To facilitate the day, our Years 7 & 8 students will complete a Remote Learning Day at home to enable enough room on the Glenroy campus and release teachers to host these students. It gives students in our feeder schools a taste of secondary schooling and provides them with an insight into the facilities on offer at Penola. It is a great marketing and promotional day, and it is great to be able to re-instate this, being 3 years since we last hosted Grade 5 students.

Prayer for the next fortnight
Our country has just celebrated National Reconciliation Week and our world has celebrated International Children’s Day. There are many things to celebrate this week, but in particular, I would like to offer a brief prayer of thanksgiving that I have relied upon heavily, especially throughout the past year as we have suffered as a community, and as a nation, and as a world, in so many ways:

Loving Creator,

We asked for strength, and you gave us difficulties to make us strong.

We asked for wisdom, and you gave us problems to solve.

We asked for prosperity, and you gave us purpose and brains to use.

We asked for courage, and you gave us fears to overcome.

We asked for patience, and you gave us situations where we were forced to wait.

We asked for love, and you gave us troubled people to help.

We asked for justice, and you called us to be just and lead with integrity.

Lord, we have received nothing that we asked for or wanted.

And yet, we receive everything that we needed.

For this we give thanks.

From the Head of Campus Glenroy - Mr Stuart Harrison Vol 9

It has been a very busy time at the Glenroy Campus with Wellbeing Day, Grade 5 visits and STEAM week beginning in the last week of term. Amongst all this, students have been completing assessment tasks and semester reports written.

Our very first Glenroy Wellbeing Day was a huge success. The day started with a presentation from Luke Kennedy about resilience and being true to yourself. The day continued after recess with homeroom groups activities and physical coping strategies. Students chose from a list of activities including:

  • Christian Meditation
  • Art Theraphy
  • Yoga
  • Lego Masters

Our final activity included a guest speaker from The Butterfly Foundation who had discussion around body image and its portrayal on social media. (images below)

STEAM week
From Tuesday21 to Friday 24 June, students will be participating in STEAM (Science.Technology.Engineering.Art.Maths) week. Each student has chosen an activity that they are interested in and will spend time investigating, creating and exploring their chosen area. The activities are designed to inspire creative thinking and curiosity, while also being collaborative in nature.

Have a well-deserved break

From the Head of Campus Broadmeadows - Ms Erin Bonavia Vol 9

It has certainly been a busy fortnight for the senior campus students.

Our Year 9 students participated in city experience and shared their research findings with their parents at our Project Based Learning presentation night last week. It was wonderful to see so many families in attendance. The Year 10 students completed exams followed by a week of Work Experience. Visiting the students and witnessing them confidently working in diverse settings was a highlight. Our Year 11 students completed their exams and English orals last week. The Year 12 and VCAL students were busy finishing assessments and competences for Unit 3 and Semester 1. Congratulations to all students on their efforts. I would also like to extend my thanks to the staff for their work over the past fortnight which has allowed these activities to take place quite smoothly and to all our families for their support of their child. For some students a change to routine can bring about feelings of angst and given the reduced opportunities for excursions and exam over recent years I acknowledge that for some students the past fortnight may have been a challenging time. I hope all are proud of their achievements.

Change of Semester
Semester 2 began on Tuesday 14 June. For our Year 9 and 10 students this results in a change of elective subjects. The new Semester is a chance to reflect on what worked well and what could be even better in Semester 2. Whilst Term 2 is only 9 weeks long I know many students are very much looking forward to the break and the chance to rest and re-charge.

College uniform
With the holidays approaching some students may be considering personal grooming changes such as piercings, new haircuts, and SNS/acrylic nails. I remind all students and families about our college uniform policy and ask that you please make choices that will allow the student to be able to return to the College in Term 3 without any uniform breaches.

Wishing everyone a well deserved break and looking forward to seeing you in Term 3!

Enrolments

Where will you be in 2023?

Do you have family or friends looking to join the College in 2023? Applications for 2023 closed back in August 2021.

We have limited spaces available for Year 7 in 2023.

Visit the enrolments page to submit and online application or collect an enrolment pack from one of our campuses.

Junior Campus
35 William Street, Glenroy

Senior Campus
29 Gibson Street, Broadmeadows

Learning at Penola

Year 9 Curriculum

Congratulations to all Year 9 Students on their significant achievements during City Experience and Project Based Learning presentations. It was wonderful to see parents back on campus again to support the students and hear the fantastic group presentations. Thank you to Ms Penny Tully, Ms Katherine Jones and the Year 9 Homeroom teachers on a job well done! English, Religious Education, Learning Enhancement and Humanities teachers worked collaboratively to support the students in this vital part of the curriculum.

‘Is Australia Fair?’ is the Project Based Learning that Year 9s completed in conjunction with City Experience. The project combined the subject areas of English, Humanities and Religious Education, and there were two main elements that students focused on:

  • Social justice issues in Australia
  • Persuasive language and presentation skills

Throughout the unit, students explored the idea of what it means to be ‘fair’, and investigated different issues within Australian society that may or may not be ‘fair’ for all people. During City Experience, as well as during English and RE lessons, students examined a variety of current issues within Australia and investigate whether or not they are ‘fair’ for those involved.

Students have developed a range of skills that include:

  • Researching
  • Public Speaking
  • Forming a point of view
  • Analysing language and argument
  • Creative and critical thinking.

Student Leadership

College Captains Report from Angus and Jordan

Fight MND Beanies
The Big Freeze beanies are such an important part of the FightMND story. This year the Fight MND Beanies have been sold across both Campuses to Students and Staff during Weeks 5 and 6 (Monday 23 May to Friday 3 June). The beanies were permitted to be worn by students on the school campus, aside from in class time. This fundraising opportunity has allowed the school to raise $3,750 going towards Motor Neuron Disease (MND) Research. We would like to give a huge thank you to the Penola Catholic College Student Leadership Team for volunteering their time to help sell the beanies, and to all those who gave to the cause.

Casual Clothes Day Term 2
On Tuesday 14 June, Penola held it’s Casual Clothes Day for Term 2 across both Campuses. The event was held, along with the launch of House Appreciation Week 2022, and as so, all students were encouraged to wear their House Colours with pride and represent their Houses. All students brought in a Gold Coin Donation, raising money towards their Year Level Charities. The Year Level Charities are:

  • Year 7’s: Mackillop (Peru)
  • Year 8’s: KADASIG Aid and Development
  • Year 9’s: Vinnies
  • Year 10’s: Asylum Seeker Resource Centre
  • Year 11’s: Christmas on the Streets (C.O.T.S.)
  • Year 12’s: Hope Centre (Glenroy)

Class Captains and Vice Captains
Class Captains and Vice-Captains can be an essential way for Student Leaders to be immersed through the College, as well as provide a great many Students with the opportunity to step into our Leadership Program here at Penola, where they can gain insight into skills that can hopefully serve them for many years to come. The Year 7s and Year 8’s have been given their Class Captain and Vice-Captain Badges. In terms of the Broadmeadows Campus, the Year 12s have also received their respective Badges, we aim to have each year level’s Class and Vice Captains acknowledged and presented with their Badges by the end of Term 2.

Captains of Sport Report from Joulia and Tara

SACCSS Junior Girls AFL
On Tuesday 31 May, the SACCSS Junior Girls AFL team, coached by Mr. Dean Bird, Mr. Dyson Bell-Warren and Ms. Isabelle Carlon, travelled to Royal Park, Parkville to compete in the SACCSS One Day Tournament. In game 1 of the day, the Girls came up against a very strong Salesian outfit, going down by 31 points, 5.1.31 to 0. Game 2 of the day, the Girls bounced back quickly and were able to overcome the CRC North Keilor Side by 12 points, 3.2.20 to 1.2.8. In game 3, the Girls took on a skilful St Monica’s outfit, the game of the day thus far with the Girls being able to hold on, coming away as 1-point victors, 0.2.2 to 0.1.1. The Girls took on Thomas Carr in their next match and breezed past them with Penola coming away by 29 points, 4.6.30 to 0.1.1. In game 5, their final game of the Round Robin matches, the girls took on Mackillop in a hotly contested and highly skilful match. Penola made it through and came out on top, coming away 10-point winners, 3.2.20 to 1.4.10. With 4 wins out of their 5 Round Robin matches, the girls had advanced and took on Salesian in the Grand Final. In a highly competitive Grand Final, the Girls tried their very best from start to finish, however, they were no match for the classy Salesian outfit, going down by 27 points, 4.3.27 to 0. Commiserations to the Girls, who represented Penola with pride throughout the entire day, with their skills and teamwork enhancing with every match they played! A huge thank you to all the Coaches for their work and assistance in developing and enhancing the Girls’ skills throughout the event!

Year 7 Premier League
Round 5 of the Year 7 Premier League Season took place on Wednesday 25 May, with the Boys AFL and Girls Netball Teams making the trip to Sunbury to take on Salesian, Boys and Girls Soccer Teams travelling to South Morang to take on Marymede and the Boys and Girls Basketball and Volleyball teams making the quick trip to Craigieburn to take on Kolbe. Commiserations to all the Teams who were no match for the very strong and highly skilful Salesian, Marymede and Kolbe Teams respectively.

Round 6 of the Year 7 Premier League Season took place on Wednesday 1 June, with the Boys AFL and Soccer Teams as well as the Girls Netball and Soccer Teams hosting CRC Melton, the Boys and Girls Basketball Teams hosting Caroline Chisholm and the Boys and Girls Volleyball Teams hosting Thomas Carr. Congratulations to the Boys AFL, Basketball and Volleyball and Girls Basketball Teams on their respective Round 6 Victories. Well done to the Boys and Girls Soccer Teams on their hard-fought draws against CRC Melton. Commiserations to the Girls Netball and Volleyball teams who were no match against CRC Melton and Thomas Carr Teams respectively.

Round 7, the final round of the Year 7 Premier Season, took place last Wednesday the 8th of June, with the Boys AFL and Soccer Teams as well as the Girls Netball and Soccer Teams hosting St Monica’s, and the Boys and Girls Basketball Teams as well as the Boys and Girls Volleyball Teams hosting CRC St Albans. Congratulations to the Boys Basketball and Volleyball teams, as well as the Girls Basketball Teams on their respective Round 7 and final round Victories, Commiserations to the Boys AFL and Soccer as well as Girls Netball, Soccer and Volleyball Teams who were bested by the St Monica’s and CRC St Albans Teams respectively.

A huge Congratulations and Best of Luck to the following Teams who have advanced to the Semi Finals:

  • the Girls Basketball Team coached by Mr. Tim Ganderton taking on CRC North Keilor
  • the Boys Basketball Team coached by Mr. Stuart Harrison
  • the Girls Volleyball Team coached by Mr. Peter Phan
  • the Boys Volleyball Team coached by Mr. Brendan Smith

All of whom will be taking on CRC St Albans.

SACCSS Senior Boys AFL Match Reports from Mr. Griffin
Penola hosted Kolbe Catholic College in beautiful sunshine for their Round 4 clash. PCC got off to a fast start thanks to some wonderful ruck work from Anthony M giving our midfielders first use of the footy out of the centre. The on-ball brigade dominated with quick forward 50 entries allowing Marcus R and Alex S to compete one-on-one and mark the ball most of the time. The forwards had their kicking boots on and kicked straight to open up a handy six goal lead at quarter time. The goals kept on flowing in the second and third quarters with Anthony M and Samuel C constantly getting the ball out of the centre. By three quarter time, the game had won beyond doubt and PCC were able to rest a number of players for their next game which was only three days after the match against Kolbe. Penola won by 27 goals.

Penola travelled to Pascoe Vale South to play Antonine for their rescheduled Round 2 clash, and right from the outset we knew we were in for a challenge. Antonine came out strong but once again, our midfielders were able to get on top and win the arm wrestle providing our forwards with some good entries into the forward 50. Penola missed a few opportunities but still led at quarter time. Marcus R and Alex S once again proved to be dangerous up forward and Ryan B presented strongly and made a contest. Penola extended their lead at halftime but would be in for an almighty scare as Antonine kicked a few goals in a row. The backline was under immense pressure but stood up extremely well. With a place in the grand final on the line, Penola was able to repel Antonine and kick away in the last quarter to record a handsome victory. Penola eventually won by twelve goals.

Penola will now play Marymede in the grand final on Tuesday 21 June at Highgate Reserve. Good luck to all players and to the Coaches, Mr. Reynolds, and Mr. Vraca.

SACCSS Senior Boys and Girls Soccer
The Season for the SACCSS Senior Boys Soccer team is commencing on Thursday 23 June, they will be travelling to South Morang to take on Marymede in their Round 1 Fixture. The SACCSS Senior Girls Soccer team will have their first match of their Season with their Round 1 fixture on Tuesday 12 July, taking on Thomas Carr in Truganina. We wish both Teams the best of luck with their opening Round 1 matches.

Year 9 Premier League
The Season begins on Wednesday 13 July for all Year 9 Premier League Teams with Boys AFL and Soccer, as well as Girls Netball and Soccer teams travelling to Melton to take on CRC Melton for their Round 1 Fixtures. Boys and Girls Basketball teams will be travelling to Braybrook to take on Caroline Chisholm and Boys and Girls Volleyball teams making the trip to Truganina to take on Thomas Carr for their Round 1 Fixtures.

Performing Arts

Term 2 has been a very busy and exciting time for the Performing Arts Department. Here is a snapshot of what our Performing Arts students achieved this term:

College Production
Throughout this term our cast continued to rehearse High School Musical Jr with the same level of excitement and determination as our very first rehearsal. This week, our Backstage Crew commenced attending rehearsals and are working productively to seamlessly move props, sets, staging and lights. Sets and costumes are also in their final stages and lighting designs are being discussed.

Our cast and crew cannot wait to present our production of High School Musical Jr to the College community in early Term 3. This year, we are running two casts to cater for the overwhelming number of students who auditioned for this production. Below is a list of the casting allocations. If you are purchasing tickets to support a student cast member, please check with them first to see which shows they are starring in. Please see the promotional poster in this newsletter for more information.

To purchase tickets, please click here.

  • Thursday 21 July (evening) - CAST 2
  • Friday 22 July (evening) - CAST 2
  • Saturday 23 July (matinee) - CAST 1
  • Saturday 23 July (evening) - CAST 1

Performing Arts Camp
On Friday 20 May, 88 enthusiastic students and staff attended our annual Performing Arts Camp, at Rutherford Park, Blampied. Performing Arts Camp is essentially two camps in one – Production Camp and Music Camp. Our Production students, as well as Senior Concert Band and Junior and Senior Voices attended camp this year. We had a very productive weekend of rehearsals - students rehearsed from Friday Night until Saturday evening! On Saturday night students hosted their own concert and on Sunday morning we performed all the music and scenes we rehearsed over the weekend. Every year, we are amazed at how much we achieved over a weekend of intense and focused rehearsal time. A big congratulations to all our students and staff who attended the camp and dedicated their time and energy to a wonderful weekend of performing arts.

Year 10 Theatre Studies Performance
On Tuesday 24 May, our Year 10 Theatre Studies class performed Café Murder to our Year 7 Drama students in the morning and then to a public audience in the evening. Audiences participated in an interactive ‘who dunnit?’ play, with some audience members even taking part in the play on stage. As part of the theatre studies course, the Year 10 Theatre Studies class took ownership of their play by designing their own sets, lights, costumes and make up. Congratulations to the Year 10 Theatre Studies students and their teacher Mr Maddocks for an entertaining and successful performance.

Performing Arts Variety Night
On Wednesday 25 May, we held our first Performing Arts Variety Night. We had 24 wonderful performances, ranging from the Junior and Senior Vocal Groups, Senior Concert Band, a Year 7 Music Performance, Year 8 Monologues, Year 9 Drama performances, Year 9 and 10 Dance performances, Senior Rock Bands and several solo and duet music performances. It was an entertaining night, with a sell-out audience. Thank you to all our wonderful student performers, the teachers who prepared them and to our audience of staff, family and friends who came to support our students.

VCE Music Night
On Tuesday 14 June, our Year 11 and Year 12 VCE Music students performed in our Semester one VCE Music Night. It was an entertaining night featuring a diverse range of performers including vocalists, guitarists, drummers, flautists, saxophonists, trombonists, and pianists. For some students, this was their first public performance to a live audience. Congratulations to all the students who performed on the night. It was a wonderful celebration of VCE Music!

Instrumental Music Lessons: Enrolments are still open to students who would like to learn a musical instrument. We are very fortunate to have a dynamic and passionate team of instrumental music tutors who make lessons fun and engaging. Enrolment Forms can be collected from the Music Department on either campus or alternatively please email Mrs Dianne Lee (Music Administration) for an enrolment form.

Term 3 Performing Arts Dates

  1. College Production – High School Musical Jr. Please see the promotional poster below for more information.
  2. Rock Band Night: Friday 9 September. Tickets on sale soon!

Thanks for a great term of Performing Arts!

Mrs Ramona Arney
Head of Performing Arts
Instrumental Music Coordinator

Science

As Semester 1 draws to a close we look back at all the work completed by our students in the various subjects undertaken.

Year 9 students have been actively engaged in a range of practical activities from the production of bioplastics in Energy matters to maglev engineering projects in Stem in Action. The students in Solve the mystery finally used their scientific testing to discover the culprit in the murder of Humpty Dumpty!

Year 10 Genetics students have been working on extraction of DNA and engaged in an investigation using DNA Gel electrophoresis.

Year 10 Forensics students have completed fingerprint and shoe impression analysis, psychological analysis of criminals along with a variety of different practical activities.

Year 10 Chemistry students designed practical investigations on the impact of Surface area on reaction rate along with a variety of practical activities on temp and reaction rate and metal analysis using flame tests.

Year 10 Immunology students engaged in an investigation on bacterial growth on surfaces and completed a travel vaccination project.

Year 10 Force, energy and motion students engaged in a variety of practical activities including energy in bouncing balls and ramps and dynamic karts.

Year 10 Psychology students have engaged in an investigation involving the senses where they completed taste testing.

Our VCE students have been involved in a variety of practical activities which have enhanced their learning and after two years of continuous interruption, they have finally managed to learn important skills required to complete scientific investigations.

This Semester we have been actively promoting hands on learning with the aim of building teamwork, communication and problem-solving skills. We couldn’t provide these learning opportunities to the students if it wasn’t for the support of the Penola Catholic College Executive. They have provided us with the most up to date resources which has enabled us to fully engage student learning. We are also very grateful to our support staff Lisa O’Hare, Julie Tatam and Bethaney Warren for the extra time and effort they have invested in the education of the students. They go above and beyond their job description and we, the Science staff of Penola, are incredibly grateful to have them working with us.

Looking forward to Term 3; Science week will be held from August 13-21 and the theme this year is Glass: more than meets the eye. We will keep you updated so that you are aware of the variety of activities that will be held during this week across both the Glenroy and Broadmeadows campuses.

Thank you to all the parents and caregivers who have worked with us this year, we look forward to your continued support throughout Term 3 and 4.

God Bless,

Leanne Attard,
Head of Science Broadmeadows.

Visual Arts

During Year 9 Art in Semester One this year and as part of an Indigenous focus in the curriculum, Students undertook a pottery task following in the style of The Hermannsburg Potters.

The Hermannsburg Potters bring the vibrant landscape and spirit of Central Australia to life with their hand-crafted terracotta and underglaze pots. Taking inspiration from the Australian bush, the Potters depict family, birds, animals, bush tucker, mission days, stories of Country and life in Ntaria (Hermannsburg) which is based at the remote foothills of the MacDonnell Ranges, 130 kilometres west of Alice Springs in the Northern Territory.

Students were asked to create a sculptured pot in their chosen style. They were to choose an Australian landscape and an Australian native animal to paint on the outside of the pot. Their chosen animal was then sculptured and attached to the lid of the pot.

Students successfully used a coiling technique and terracotta clay to build their pots. They then painted the landscape and lid with acrylic paint.

A significantly beautiful collection of pots was created by our students. Congratulations to all!

Ms Francesca Pascalis
Visual Art Teacher

Work Experience

From June 6-10, the Year 10 students participated in either Work Experience or the alternative program held at school. We heard many positive reports with some employees even wanting to keep our students. We hope that this week has allowed the students to explore a career in which they are interested in and given them some very important insight about their future. Below are some reports from our students in Year 10.

My work experience was an amazing experience because I got to work with many hair styles including blow waves, washing hair, drying hair, and dying hair. I got to spend time with a lot of my co-workers since I did my work experience at my current work placement. I fortunately got the opportunity to really understand and be educated in the way things are run, even more than I already would have from just one day a week. Work experience was a fun and educational benefit for me.
Michelle C (10J)

The year 10 alternative program for Work Experience held at school was organised very thoroughly. Each day we had interesting lessons and activities that were prepared by Mrs Fox and delivered by Mrs Graziano and Mrs Georgievski and LSO’s through the week. Michael, Landry and I felt pretty upset about not finding a placement outside, however we felt the internal experience theory and practical activities have prepared us for the real world. It highlighted our personal qualities and characteristics that make us employable, and it helped us establish our desirable pathway and goals for our future.
Michael W (10D), Landry B (10K) and Anthony S (10D)


Highlights

Anthony: My highlight of the week was Friday’s activity, the Nasa moon landing analysis. This helped me exercise my leadership, negotiation and teamwork skills. It allowed to get a feel in how job interviews may be held in the future for me.

Michael: My highlight was receiving gifts for our participation; we all received a mug with chocolates and during our movie day we received popcorn and chips.

Landry: My highlight was exploring all the different careers and courses, which expanded my knowledge about what the job that I want is all about.
On behalf of the year 10 cohort at PCC.

Canteen

To all our wonderful students, parents, and teachers: we at the canteen have been very grateful for all your support over the past several, difficult years. We had just taken over running the Canteen when Covid hit, and things went a little bit off track. This year, we have been hit with very large increases in our costs due to increased transport, supply, and production costs. Generally, we try and absorb these increases, however, this year they have been too large.

Therefore, we regretfully announce we will need to lift our prices effective from Term 3. Many (but not all) of our food and drink items will increase by around 50 cents. We apologize for this situation and hope you will continue to support us here at the school canteen. Thank you for your support and understanding.

Regards,
The Canteen Staff.

Library

Camps, Sports and Excursion Fund (CSEF)

Eligibility Dates:
For concession cardholders CSEF eligibility will be subject to the parent/legal guardian’s concession card being successfully validated with Centrelink on the first day of either:

Term 1 (31 January 2022) or Term 2 (26 April 2022)

Please note that Parent Applications Close on: 24th June 2022

How to submit a CSEF Application in 2022

If you have applied for the CSEF in a previous year, you do not need to complete an application form in 2022. The school will apply for the CSEF on your behalf, unless there has been a change in your family circumstances.

You will ONLY need to submit an application form in 2022 if any of the following changes have occurred:

  • New student enrolments: Your child has started or changed schools in 2022 or you did not apply at the same school in a previous year.
  • Changed family circumstances, such as: a change of custody, change of name, concession card number or new siblings commencing at the school in 2022.

CSEF Flyer Attachments: English, Arabic and Vietnamese

https://www.education.vic.gov.au/Documents/about/programs/csefflyer.pdf

https://www.education.vic.gov.au/Documents/about/programs/health/CSEF_Arabic_csefflyer.pdf

https://www.education.vic.gov.au/Documents/about/programs/health/CSEF_Vietnamese_csefflyer.pdf

CSEF Application Form Attachment

https://www.education.vic.gov.au/Documents/about/programs/CSEF_application_form.pdf

PCC Newsletter Volume 9 - 16 Jun 2022

From the Principal - Mr Chris Caldow Vol 9

AJASS Conference
I was fortunate to attend the annual AJASS Principal’s conference in North Sydney this week. One of the sessions was on the Sisters of St Joseph Works, Formation Framework. They have identified 4 key values as part of this Framework which are:

  • Creative Courage
  • Mutual Respect
  • Conscious Compassion
  • Intentional Inclusivity

The mission statement reads as “We are a ministry of the Sisters of St Joseph. We strive for positive transformative relationships with Earth and her people. We work in collaboration as in mission to create opportunities for generational change.”

Steve Todd who is a recently retired AJASS Principal spoke about reigniting the Josephite heart through his paintings which depict key events in the lives of St Mary MacKillop, Fr Julian Tenison-Woods and St Joseph. Steve has been principal in three different Josephite schools spanning over 29 years.

Also included was a visit to another AJASS school, Mount St Joseph’s College in Milperra and a pilgrimage and walking tour around the Rocks in Sydney.

Annual report
The Annual report for 2021 is available on the College website. It provides an overview of the 2021 year for Penola Catholic College with reports from the five key areas of the College namely: Education in Faith, Student Wellbeing, Learning and Teaching, Leadership and Management and Community. It also includes a report from myself as Principal and Mrs Alfina Astuto as School Advisory Council Chairperson.

Year 9 City Experience
The Year 9 City Experience Program concluded last Friday 3 June. The program itself is a great opportunity for students to see the day-to-day functions of their capital city as well as learning about its inhabitants, history and infrastructure. This program can only be successful if staff support it through their involvement and supervision. Many thanks to Penny Tully and Katherine Jones for their organisation of such a massive project also, to the vast numbers of staff who assisted throughout the week.

STEAM Project
Much planning has been completed for the projects that are on offer to our Years 7 & 8 students in the last week of Term 2. Students have had the opportunity to look at the projects that are being offered and make a selection about which projects they would most like to be involved with.

Staff News

  • Mrs Giusi Graziano is taking 4 weeks of long service leave commencing at the start of next term. I have advertised for a replacement for her Italian teaching role and hope to interview in the next fortnight.
  • There are a range of staff taking short periods of long service leave (2 weeks or less) around the Term 2 holidays and we will try to cover these classes internally.
  • Mr Chris McBrearty has resigned this week and we have advertised his role externally to take his Senior English and Years 9 & 10 EAL classes.
  • Mr Nick Laleas is taking all of Term 3 as long service leave and he will be replaced by Mr Christian Montesano.

Year 10 Work Experience
The Year 10 Work Experience Program took place last week from Monday 6 June to Friday, 10 June. Staff were required to visit some students at their placement, I thank the staff who took on this task. Many thanks to Jenn Doan, Terry McGann, Maria Rullo, Felicity Fox, Elena Natoli, Peter Carpenter and the Careers Office, as well as Steve Woodburn and Emily Hastie for their work in finalising placements for students.

Grade 5 visits
Thanks to Mr Stuart Harrison and Mrs Sandra Warren for all of their organisation of the Grade 5 visits from our Primary Catholic feeder schools. There will be over 450 students in attendance and our staff will take these students through a range of activities on the day. To facilitate the day, our Years 7 & 8 students will complete a Remote Learning Day at home to enable enough room on the Glenroy campus and release teachers to host these students. It gives students in our feeder schools a taste of secondary schooling and provides them with an insight into the facilities on offer at Penola. It is a great marketing and promotional day, and it is great to be able to re-instate this, being 3 years since we last hosted Grade 5 students.

Prayer for the next fortnight
Our country has just celebrated National Reconciliation Week and our world has celebrated International Children’s Day. There are many things to celebrate this week, but in particular, I would like to offer a brief prayer of thanksgiving that I have relied upon heavily, especially throughout the past year as we have suffered as a community, and as a nation, and as a world, in so many ways:

Loving Creator,

We asked for strength, and you gave us difficulties to make us strong.

We asked for wisdom, and you gave us problems to solve.

We asked for prosperity, and you gave us purpose and brains to use.

We asked for courage, and you gave us fears to overcome.

We asked for patience, and you gave us situations where we were forced to wait.

We asked for love, and you gave us troubled people to help.

We asked for justice, and you called us to be just and lead with integrity.

Lord, we have received nothing that we asked for or wanted.

And yet, we receive everything that we needed.

For this we give thanks.

From the Head of Campus Glenroy - Mr Stuart Harrison Vol 9

It has been a very busy time at the Glenroy Campus with Wellbeing Day, Grade 5 visits and STEAM week beginning in the last week of term. Amongst all this, students have been completing assessment tasks and semester reports written.

Our very first Glenroy Wellbeing Day was a huge success. The day started with a presentation from Luke Kennedy about resilience and being true to yourself. The day continued after recess with homeroom groups activities and physical coping strategies. Students chose from a list of activities including:

  • Christian Meditation
  • Art Theraphy
  • Yoga
  • Lego Masters

Our final activity included a guest speaker from The Butterfly Foundation who had discussion around body image and its portrayal on social media. (images below)

STEAM week
From Tuesday21 to Friday 24 June, students will be participating in STEAM (Science.Technology.Engineering.Art.Maths) week. Each student has chosen an activity that they are interested in and will spend time investigating, creating and exploring their chosen area. The activities are designed to inspire creative thinking and curiosity, while also being collaborative in nature.

Have a well-deserved break

From the Head of Campus Broadmeadows - Ms Erin Bonavia Vol 9

It has certainly been a busy fortnight for the senior campus students.

Our Year 9 students participated in city experience and shared their research findings with their parents at our Project Based Learning presentation night last week. It was wonderful to see so many families in attendance. The Year 10 students completed exams followed by a week of Work Experience. Visiting the students and witnessing them confidently working in diverse settings was a highlight. Our Year 11 students completed their exams and English orals last week. The Year 12 and VCAL students were busy finishing assessments and competences for Unit 3 and Semester 1. Congratulations to all students on their efforts. I would also like to extend my thanks to the staff for their work over the past fortnight which has allowed these activities to take place quite smoothly and to all our families for their support of their child. For some students a change to routine can bring about feelings of angst and given the reduced opportunities for excursions and exam over recent years I acknowledge that for some students the past fortnight may have been a challenging time. I hope all are proud of their achievements.

Change of Semester
Semester 2 began on Tuesday 14 June. For our Year 9 and 10 students this results in a change of elective subjects. The new Semester is a chance to reflect on what worked well and what could be even better in Semester 2. Whilst Term 2 is only 9 weeks long I know many students are very much looking forward to the break and the chance to rest and re-charge.

College uniform
With the holidays approaching some students may be considering personal grooming changes such as piercings, new haircuts, and SNS/acrylic nails. I remind all students and families about our college uniform policy and ask that you please make choices that will allow the student to be able to return to the College in Term 3 without any uniform breaches.

Wishing everyone a well deserved break and looking forward to seeing you in Term 3!

Enrolments

Where will you be in 2023?

Do you have family or friends looking to join the College in 2023? Applications for 2023 closed back in August 2021.

We have limited spaces available for Year 7 in 2023.

Visit the enrolments page to submit and online application or collect an enrolment pack from one of our campuses.

Junior Campus
35 William Street, Glenroy

Senior Campus
29 Gibson Street, Broadmeadows

Learning at Penola

Year 9 Curriculum

Congratulations to all Year 9 Students on their significant achievements during City Experience and Project Based Learning presentations. It was wonderful to see parents back on campus again to support the students and hear the fantastic group presentations. Thank you to Ms Penny Tully, Ms Katherine Jones and the Year 9 Homeroom teachers on a job well done! English, Religious Education, Learning Enhancement and Humanities teachers worked collaboratively to support the students in this vital part of the curriculum.

‘Is Australia Fair?’ is the Project Based Learning that Year 9s completed in conjunction with City Experience. The project combined the subject areas of English, Humanities and Religious Education, and there were two main elements that students focused on:

  • Social justice issues in Australia
  • Persuasive language and presentation skills

Throughout the unit, students explored the idea of what it means to be ‘fair’, and investigated different issues within Australian society that may or may not be ‘fair’ for all people. During City Experience, as well as during English and RE lessons, students examined a variety of current issues within Australia and investigate whether or not they are ‘fair’ for those involved.

Students have developed a range of skills that include:

  • Researching
  • Public Speaking
  • Forming a point of view
  • Analysing language and argument
  • Creative and critical thinking.

Student Leadership

College Captains Report from Angus and Jordan

Fight MND Beanies
The Big Freeze beanies are such an important part of the FightMND story. This year the Fight MND Beanies have been sold across both Campuses to Students and Staff during Weeks 5 and 6 (Monday 23 May to Friday 3 June). The beanies were permitted to be worn by students on the school campus, aside from in class time. This fundraising opportunity has allowed the school to raise $3,750 going towards Motor Neuron Disease (MND) Research. We would like to give a huge thank you to the Penola Catholic College Student Leadership Team for volunteering their time to help sell the beanies, and to all those who gave to the cause.

Casual Clothes Day Term 2
On Tuesday 14 June, Penola held it’s Casual Clothes Day for Term 2 across both Campuses. The event was held, along with the launch of House Appreciation Week 2022, and as so, all students were encouraged to wear their House Colours with pride and represent their Houses. All students brought in a Gold Coin Donation, raising money towards their Year Level Charities. The Year Level Charities are:

  • Year 7’s: Mackillop (Peru)
  • Year 8’s: KADASIG Aid and Development
  • Year 9’s: Vinnies
  • Year 10’s: Asylum Seeker Resource Centre
  • Year 11’s: Christmas on the Streets (C.O.T.S.)
  • Year 12’s: Hope Centre (Glenroy)

Class Captains and Vice Captains
Class Captains and Vice-Captains can be an essential way for Student Leaders to be immersed through the College, as well as provide a great many Students with the opportunity to step into our Leadership Program here at Penola, where they can gain insight into skills that can hopefully serve them for many years to come. The Year 7s and Year 8’s have been given their Class Captain and Vice-Captain Badges. In terms of the Broadmeadows Campus, the Year 12s have also received their respective Badges, we aim to have each year level’s Class and Vice Captains acknowledged and presented with their Badges by the end of Term 2.

Captains of Sport Report from Joulia and Tara

SACCSS Junior Girls AFL
On Tuesday 31 May, the SACCSS Junior Girls AFL team, coached by Mr. Dean Bird, Mr. Dyson Bell-Warren and Ms. Isabelle Carlon, travelled to Royal Park, Parkville to compete in the SACCSS One Day Tournament. In game 1 of the day, the Girls came up against a very strong Salesian outfit, going down by 31 points, 5.1.31 to 0. Game 2 of the day, the Girls bounced back quickly and were able to overcome the CRC North Keilor Side by 12 points, 3.2.20 to 1.2.8. In game 3, the Girls took on a skilful St Monica’s outfit, the game of the day thus far with the Girls being able to hold on, coming away as 1-point victors, 0.2.2 to 0.1.1. The Girls took on Thomas Carr in their next match and breezed past them with Penola coming away by 29 points, 4.6.30 to 0.1.1. In game 5, their final game of the Round Robin matches, the girls took on Mackillop in a hotly contested and highly skilful match. Penola made it through and came out on top, coming away 10-point winners, 3.2.20 to 1.4.10. With 4 wins out of their 5 Round Robin matches, the girls had advanced and took on Salesian in the Grand Final. In a highly competitive Grand Final, the Girls tried their very best from start to finish, however, they were no match for the classy Salesian outfit, going down by 27 points, 4.3.27 to 0. Commiserations to the Girls, who represented Penola with pride throughout the entire day, with their skills and teamwork enhancing with every match they played! A huge thank you to all the Coaches for their work and assistance in developing and enhancing the Girls’ skills throughout the event!

Year 7 Premier League
Round 5 of the Year 7 Premier League Season took place on Wednesday 25 May, with the Boys AFL and Girls Netball Teams making the trip to Sunbury to take on Salesian, Boys and Girls Soccer Teams travelling to South Morang to take on Marymede and the Boys and Girls Basketball and Volleyball teams making the quick trip to Craigieburn to take on Kolbe. Commiserations to all the Teams who were no match for the very strong and highly skilful Salesian, Marymede and Kolbe Teams respectively.

Round 6 of the Year 7 Premier League Season took place on Wednesday 1 June, with the Boys AFL and Soccer Teams as well as the Girls Netball and Soccer Teams hosting CRC Melton, the Boys and Girls Basketball Teams hosting Caroline Chisholm and the Boys and Girls Volleyball Teams hosting Thomas Carr. Congratulations to the Boys AFL, Basketball and Volleyball and Girls Basketball Teams on their respective Round 6 Victories. Well done to the Boys and Girls Soccer Teams on their hard-fought draws against CRC Melton. Commiserations to the Girls Netball and Volleyball teams who were no match against CRC Melton and Thomas Carr Teams respectively.

Round 7, the final round of the Year 7 Premier Season, took place last Wednesday the 8th of June, with the Boys AFL and Soccer Teams as well as the Girls Netball and Soccer Teams hosting St Monica’s, and the Boys and Girls Basketball Teams as well as the Boys and Girls Volleyball Teams hosting CRC St Albans. Congratulations to the Boys Basketball and Volleyball teams, as well as the Girls Basketball Teams on their respective Round 7 and final round Victories, Commiserations to the Boys AFL and Soccer as well as Girls Netball, Soccer and Volleyball Teams who were bested by the St Monica’s and CRC St Albans Teams respectively.

A huge Congratulations and Best of Luck to the following Teams who have advanced to the Semi Finals:

  • the Girls Basketball Team coached by Mr. Tim Ganderton taking on CRC North Keilor
  • the Boys Basketball Team coached by Mr. Stuart Harrison
  • the Girls Volleyball Team coached by Mr. Peter Phan
  • the Boys Volleyball Team coached by Mr. Brendan Smith

All of whom will be taking on CRC St Albans.

SACCSS Senior Boys AFL Match Reports from Mr. Griffin
Penola hosted Kolbe Catholic College in beautiful sunshine for their Round 4 clash. PCC got off to a fast start thanks to some wonderful ruck work from Anthony M giving our midfielders first use of the footy out of the centre. The on-ball brigade dominated with quick forward 50 entries allowing Marcus R and Alex S to compete one-on-one and mark the ball most of the time. The forwards had their kicking boots on and kicked straight to open up a handy six goal lead at quarter time. The goals kept on flowing in the second and third quarters with Anthony M and Samuel C constantly getting the ball out of the centre. By three quarter time, the game had won beyond doubt and PCC were able to rest a number of players for their next game which was only three days after the match against Kolbe. Penola won by 27 goals.

Penola travelled to Pascoe Vale South to play Antonine for their rescheduled Round 2 clash, and right from the outset we knew we were in for a challenge. Antonine came out strong but once again, our midfielders were able to get on top and win the arm wrestle providing our forwards with some good entries into the forward 50. Penola missed a few opportunities but still led at quarter time. Marcus R and Alex S once again proved to be dangerous up forward and Ryan B presented strongly and made a contest. Penola extended their lead at halftime but would be in for an almighty scare as Antonine kicked a few goals in a row. The backline was under immense pressure but stood up extremely well. With a place in the grand final on the line, Penola was able to repel Antonine and kick away in the last quarter to record a handsome victory. Penola eventually won by twelve goals.

Penola will now play Marymede in the grand final on Tuesday 21 June at Highgate Reserve. Good luck to all players and to the Coaches, Mr. Reynolds, and Mr. Vraca.

SACCSS Senior Boys and Girls Soccer
The Season for the SACCSS Senior Boys Soccer team is commencing on Thursday 23 June, they will be travelling to South Morang to take on Marymede in their Round 1 Fixture. The SACCSS Senior Girls Soccer team will have their first match of their Season with their Round 1 fixture on Tuesday 12 July, taking on Thomas Carr in Truganina. We wish both Teams the best of luck with their opening Round 1 matches.

Year 9 Premier League
The Season begins on Wednesday 13 July for all Year 9 Premier League Teams with Boys AFL and Soccer, as well as Girls Netball and Soccer teams travelling to Melton to take on CRC Melton for their Round 1 Fixtures. Boys and Girls Basketball teams will be travelling to Braybrook to take on Caroline Chisholm and Boys and Girls Volleyball teams making the trip to Truganina to take on Thomas Carr for their Round 1 Fixtures.

Performing Arts

Term 2 has been a very busy and exciting time for the Performing Arts Department. Here is a snapshot of what our Performing Arts students achieved this term:

College Production
Throughout this term our cast continued to rehearse High School Musical Jr with the same level of excitement and determination as our very first rehearsal. This week, our Backstage Crew commenced attending rehearsals and are working productively to seamlessly move props, sets, staging and lights. Sets and costumes are also in their final stages and lighting designs are being discussed.

Our cast and crew cannot wait to present our production of High School Musical Jr to the College community in early Term 3. This year, we are running two casts to cater for the overwhelming number of students who auditioned for this production. Below is a list of the casting allocations. If you are purchasing tickets to support a student cast member, please check with them first to see which shows they are starring in. Please see the promotional poster in this newsletter for more information.

To purchase tickets, please click here.

  • Thursday 21 July (evening) - CAST 2
  • Friday 22 July (evening) - CAST 2
  • Saturday 23 July (matinee) - CAST 1
  • Saturday 23 July (evening) - CAST 1

Performing Arts Camp
On Friday 20 May, 88 enthusiastic students and staff attended our annual Performing Arts Camp, at Rutherford Park, Blampied. Performing Arts Camp is essentially two camps in one – Production Camp and Music Camp. Our Production students, as well as Senior Concert Band and Junior and Senior Voices attended camp this year. We had a very productive weekend of rehearsals - students rehearsed from Friday Night until Saturday evening! On Saturday night students hosted their own concert and on Sunday morning we performed all the music and scenes we rehearsed over the weekend. Every year, we are amazed at how much we achieved over a weekend of intense and focused rehearsal time. A big congratulations to all our students and staff who attended the camp and dedicated their time and energy to a wonderful weekend of performing arts.

Year 10 Theatre Studies Performance
On Tuesday 24 May, our Year 10 Theatre Studies class performed Café Murder to our Year 7 Drama students in the morning and then to a public audience in the evening. Audiences participated in an interactive ‘who dunnit?’ play, with some audience members even taking part in the play on stage. As part of the theatre studies course, the Year 10 Theatre Studies class took ownership of their play by designing their own sets, lights, costumes and make up. Congratulations to the Year 10 Theatre Studies students and their teacher Mr Maddocks for an entertaining and successful performance.

Performing Arts Variety Night
On Wednesday 25 May, we held our first Performing Arts Variety Night. We had 24 wonderful performances, ranging from the Junior and Senior Vocal Groups, Senior Concert Band, a Year 7 Music Performance, Year 8 Monologues, Year 9 Drama performances, Year 9 and 10 Dance performances, Senior Rock Bands and several solo and duet music performances. It was an entertaining night, with a sell-out audience. Thank you to all our wonderful student performers, the teachers who prepared them and to our audience of staff, family and friends who came to support our students.

VCE Music Night
On Tuesday 14 June, our Year 11 and Year 12 VCE Music students performed in our Semester one VCE Music Night. It was an entertaining night featuring a diverse range of performers including vocalists, guitarists, drummers, flautists, saxophonists, trombonists, and pianists. For some students, this was their first public performance to a live audience. Congratulations to all the students who performed on the night. It was a wonderful celebration of VCE Music!

Instrumental Music Lessons: Enrolments are still open to students who would like to learn a musical instrument. We are very fortunate to have a dynamic and passionate team of instrumental music tutors who make lessons fun and engaging. Enrolment Forms can be collected from the Music Department on either campus or alternatively please email Mrs Dianne Lee (Music Administration) for an enrolment form.

Term 3 Performing Arts Dates

  1. College Production – High School Musical Jr. Please see the promotional poster below for more information.
  2. Rock Band Night: Friday 9 September. Tickets on sale soon!

Thanks for a great term of Performing Arts!

Mrs Ramona Arney
Head of Performing Arts
Instrumental Music Coordinator

Science

As Semester 1 draws to a close we look back at all the work completed by our students in the various subjects undertaken.

Year 9 students have been actively engaged in a range of practical activities from the production of bioplastics in Energy matters to maglev engineering projects in Stem in Action. The students in Solve the mystery finally used their scientific testing to discover the culprit in the murder of Humpty Dumpty!

Year 10 Genetics students have been working on extraction of DNA and engaged in an investigation using DNA Gel electrophoresis.

Year 10 Forensics students have completed fingerprint and shoe impression analysis, psychological analysis of criminals along with a variety of different practical activities.

Year 10 Chemistry students designed practical investigations on the impact of Surface area on reaction rate along with a variety of practical activities on temp and reaction rate and metal analysis using flame tests.

Year 10 Immunology students engaged in an investigation on bacterial growth on surfaces and completed a travel vaccination project.

Year 10 Force, energy and motion students engaged in a variety of practical activities including energy in bouncing balls and ramps and dynamic karts.

Year 10 Psychology students have engaged in an investigation involving the senses where they completed taste testing.

Our VCE students have been involved in a variety of practical activities which have enhanced their learning and after two years of continuous interruption, they have finally managed to learn important skills required to complete scientific investigations.

This Semester we have been actively promoting hands on learning with the aim of building teamwork, communication and problem-solving skills. We couldn’t provide these learning opportunities to the students if it wasn’t for the support of the Penola Catholic College Executive. They have provided us with the most up to date resources which has enabled us to fully engage student learning. We are also very grateful to our support staff Lisa O’Hare, Julie Tatam and Bethaney Warren for the extra time and effort they have invested in the education of the students. They go above and beyond their job description and we, the Science staff of Penola, are incredibly grateful to have them working with us.

Looking forward to Term 3; Science week will be held from August 13-21 and the theme this year is Glass: more than meets the eye. We will keep you updated so that you are aware of the variety of activities that will be held during this week across both the Glenroy and Broadmeadows campuses.

Thank you to all the parents and caregivers who have worked with us this year, we look forward to your continued support throughout Term 3 and 4.

God Bless,

Leanne Attard,
Head of Science Broadmeadows.

Visual Arts

During Year 9 Art in Semester One this year and as part of an Indigenous focus in the curriculum, Students undertook a pottery task following in the style of The Hermannsburg Potters.

The Hermannsburg Potters bring the vibrant landscape and spirit of Central Australia to life with their hand-crafted terracotta and underglaze pots. Taking inspiration from the Australian bush, the Potters depict family, birds, animals, bush tucker, mission days, stories of Country and life in Ntaria (Hermannsburg) which is based at the remote foothills of the MacDonnell Ranges, 130 kilometres west of Alice Springs in the Northern Territory.

Students were asked to create a sculptured pot in their chosen style. They were to choose an Australian landscape and an Australian native animal to paint on the outside of the pot. Their chosen animal was then sculptured and attached to the lid of the pot.

Students successfully used a coiling technique and terracotta clay to build their pots. They then painted the landscape and lid with acrylic paint.

A significantly beautiful collection of pots was created by our students. Congratulations to all!

Ms Francesca Pascalis
Visual Art Teacher

Work Experience

From June 6-10, the Year 10 students participated in either Work Experience or the alternative program held at school. We heard many positive reports with some employees even wanting to keep our students. We hope that this week has allowed the students to explore a career in which they are interested in and given them some very important insight about their future. Below are some reports from our students in Year 10.

My work experience was an amazing experience because I got to work with many hair styles including blow waves, washing hair, drying hair, and dying hair. I got to spend time with a lot of my co-workers since I did my work experience at my current work placement. I fortunately got the opportunity to really understand and be educated in the way things are run, even more than I already would have from just one day a week. Work experience was a fun and educational benefit for me.
Michelle C (10J)

The year 10 alternative program for Work Experience held at school was organised very thoroughly. Each day we had interesting lessons and activities that were prepared by Mrs Fox and delivered by Mrs Graziano and Mrs Georgievski and LSO’s through the week. Michael, Landry and I felt pretty upset about not finding a placement outside, however we felt the internal experience theory and practical activities have prepared us for the real world. It highlighted our personal qualities and characteristics that make us employable, and it helped us establish our desirable pathway and goals for our future.
Michael W (10D), Landry B (10K) and Anthony S (10D)


Highlights

Anthony: My highlight of the week was Friday’s activity, the Nasa moon landing analysis. This helped me exercise my leadership, negotiation and teamwork skills. It allowed to get a feel in how job interviews may be held in the future for me.

Michael: My highlight was receiving gifts for our participation; we all received a mug with chocolates and during our movie day we received popcorn and chips.

Landry: My highlight was exploring all the different careers and courses, which expanded my knowledge about what the job that I want is all about.
On behalf of the year 10 cohort at PCC.

Canteen

To all our wonderful students, parents, and teachers: we at the canteen have been very grateful for all your support over the past several, difficult years. We had just taken over running the Canteen when Covid hit, and things went a little bit off track. This year, we have been hit with very large increases in our costs due to increased transport, supply, and production costs. Generally, we try and absorb these increases, however, this year they have been too large.

Therefore, we regretfully announce we will need to lift our prices effective from Term 3. Many (but not all) of our food and drink items will increase by around 50 cents. We apologize for this situation and hope you will continue to support us here at the school canteen. Thank you for your support and understanding.

Regards,
The Canteen Staff.

Library

Camps, Sports and Excursion Fund (CSEF)

Eligibility Dates:
For concession cardholders CSEF eligibility will be subject to the parent/legal guardian’s concession card being successfully validated with Centrelink on the first day of either:

Term 1 (31 January 2022) or Term 2 (26 April 2022)

Please note that Parent Applications Close on: 24th June 2022

How to submit a CSEF Application in 2022

If you have applied for the CSEF in a previous year, you do not need to complete an application form in 2022. The school will apply for the CSEF on your behalf, unless there has been a change in your family circumstances.

You will ONLY need to submit an application form in 2022 if any of the following changes have occurred:

  • New student enrolments: Your child has started or changed schools in 2022 or you did not apply at the same school in a previous year.
  • Changed family circumstances, such as: a change of custody, change of name, concession card number or new siblings commencing at the school in 2022.

CSEF Flyer Attachments: English, Arabic and Vietnamese

https://www.education.vic.gov.au/Documents/about/programs/csefflyer.pdf

https://www.education.vic.gov.au/Documents/about/programs/health/CSEF_Arabic_csefflyer.pdf

https://www.education.vic.gov.au/Documents/about/programs/health/CSEF_Vietnamese_csefflyer.pdf

CSEF Application Form Attachment

https://www.education.vic.gov.au/Documents/about/programs/CSEF_application_form.pdf