麻豆国产AV

Catholic Education Week

Next week is Catholic Education Week and the theme for 2023 is forming lives of faith, hope and love in the light of Christ. Representatives from our schools gathered together today to celebrate Catholic education at St Patrick鈥檚 Cathedral. Many Catholic schools conduct their Open Days during this week and Aquinas is no exception, with our College on display this Sunday.

Open Day

A reminder that this Sunday, March 19, is Open Day from 12pm to 3pm.  Tours will be conducted of the College, with the last tour departing at 2.20pm. Bookings are not required. Parents with a child in Grade 5 are reminded that the enrolment period for the 2025 Year 7 class closes on Friday, August 18, 2023. Please note that we do not presume that you are enrolling your child at the College and that an application is required. Current families are also welcome to attend and tour the facilities. 

Harmony Day - Friday, March 24

Next Friday is Harmony Day at Aquinas. Harmony Day is an opportunity to celebrate our cultural diversity with an emphasis on inclusiveness and mutual respect. It marks the end of Harmony Week, with March 21 being the United Nations International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination. Thank you to those who are working on planning this day so that we can bring many different cultural experiences into our school. Note that we will not have the food vans as in previous years and that students will either need to bring their lunch from home or purchase through the canteen as normal.

Middle Years鈥� Athletics Carnival

There was great spirit at the Middle Years鈥� Athletics Carnival today with some special efforts from our athletes and fine cheering support from their House teams. Thanks to Sports Coordinator, Mr Brummell, and his team on staging a day of great fun and challenge.

EISM Swimming Championships

Well done to our swimmers on their performances at the swimming championships on Tuesday night at MSAC and congratulations to those who have qualified to compete on the championship evening. Our team finished third overall and only 31 points behind second place. Thanks to the many staff members who are making our participation possible by providing training and attending the carnival, especially Ms Lemieszek, who is the team manager, and 2022 graduate, Juliet Postill, who is our coach.

Aquinas Honour Roll

On Friday, March 24 we will induct two new members onto the Aquinas Honour Roll. Professor Shez Cairney and Mr Paul Desmond are past students who have demonstrated outstanding leadership over many years in their chosen fields. We look forward to welcoming them back and will profile the achievements of each inductee in the upcoming edition of Illuminare.

Advance Notice

The last day of Term 1 is Thursday, April 6 and school resumes on Wednesday, April 26. We commence Term 2 with Parent Teacher Interviews on Monday and Friday this week. To allow for these interviews, there are no classes on Monday, April 24 and Friday, April 28. Parent Teacher Interviews will be conducted online. Information about Parent Teacher Interviews was circulated via email earlier this week.

Darren Atkinson
Principal

Parent Student Teacher Interviews concerning student progress in Term 1 will be held online and are scheduled for Monday April 24, from 9am-4pm (student free day) and Friday, April 28, 9am-3pm (student free day).

The decision to conduct Parent Student Teacher Interviews for two full days is an attempt to address concerns about the availability of interview times and will create additional places for each full time teacher. We appreciate that conducting interviews during the school day will create challenges in working families; however, with the meetings online, we hope that these are not insurmountable. 

Conducting Parent Student Teacher Interviews during the school day also assists the College in supporting our teachers with their workload and their own family obligations.

The Professional Learning Day that would normally be conducted on the first day of term will be deferred to Term 3.

Interviews can be booked through the Parent Access Module and bookings will open after 6pm on Sunday, April 2 to allow all parents access.

Bookings are made through the Parent Access Module (PAM) using the username and password you have already been issued

These Parent Teacher interviews will occur by video conferencing using Google Meet. 

All details are explained in the Parent Teacher Module in PAM. The process for booking interviews remains the same - that is, to log onto PAM and book through there.

Michael Box
Deputy Principal Learning

Celebrating Harmony Week

Harmony Week is a celebration held annually in March across Australia. It is aimed at promoting diversity, respect and inclusiveness, key areas that form part of our School Improvement Plan. This event is an excellent opportunity for parents to teach their children about different cultures, traditions and customs. The goal is to encourage everyone to appreciate and celebrate differences and promote a sense of community and belonging for everyone.

During Harmony Week, there are a number of events and activities held to bring people from different cultures together. At Aquinas, this includes a day of celebration in which students will experience cultural performances, presentations and workshops. Participating in these events helps children to gain a deeper understanding and appreciation of the diverse communities that make up Australia.

As a parent, you can engage your children in discussions about multiculturalism and our rich history as a nation. Promoting a more harmonious and inclusive society, we can all help children grow up with a greater appreciation for the richness and diversity of Australia's cultural landscape.

The Aquinas community is rich in history and it is important to ensure that each student values their uniqueness as a gift. Each person brings diversity that forms the fabric of our local and extended society. 

There is a special report from School TV which may assist you in exploring with your child the importance of the week, and more specifically, the day of celebration at the College. The special report hopes to instil positive values and create an opportunity to start a conversation with your child about understanding diversity and multiculturalism. I hope that you are able to take a moment to reflect on the information offered. If this raises any concerns for you, a loved one or the wellbeing of your child, please let the College know and consider seeking professional help if needed.

Click on  to view the Special Report

Key staff at the College have worked together to reshape the way in which the celebrations will take place so that it is reflective of our global and cultural learning and provides students with the opportunity to celebrate their uniqueness and our collective diversity. 

Nap Rodezno

Deputy Principal

Living Lent Daily

When we think of lent we often think about fasting or sacrifice. Ever since my primary school days the first question asked on the topic of Lent is, 鈥淲hat are you giving up?鈥� We often focus on ourselves, our sacrifice and not on reconnecting with God or helping others in our community. 

There are three practices in Lent - prayer, fasting and almsgiving. At Aquinas, students have daily opportunities to pray. Our current participation in Project Compassion is a part of our almsgiving. Finally, we have fasting - Pope Francis has created a list of fasting that is not what we traditionally know - yet something that we can use to live Lent daily.

Tania Grace

Assistant Principal Mission

Senior Years Report

Tuesday evening I attended the Youth and Family Centre parent forum 'Riding the Rapids of Adolescence.' Catherine Manning, CEO of SEED Workshops, spoke to parents about the importance of raising conversations with our children. Particularly exploring the benefits of early conversations regarding sexualisation of women, navigating friendships and gender stereotypes. 

One discussion relating to the gender stereotyping of boys caught my attention. Have you ever wondered why girls are often thought to develop their emotional intelligence earlier than boys? It is just what naturally happens, doesn鈥檛 it? Catherine questioned this gendered stereotyping and asked us to reflect on how boys are encouraged to manage their emotions from an early age compared to girls and the impacts of this on emotional development. 

Girls are given permission to react emotionally at a young age, express their feelings and recover. Whereas boys are often encouraged to stop crying, being told in a manner of ways that there is 鈥榥o need to cry.' Catherine suggested boys are given this message throughout their early childhood and through adolescence, to be brave, strong, and not to show weakness. A message that it is important to be tough and that emotions like anger are acceptable 鈥榤ale鈥� feelings to express. 

Why is it that there is no difference between an adolescent male and female brain, yet one is more emotionally developed? Research by The Man Box project supports this concern. Two-thirds of young men surveyed for project said that since they were a boy they had been told a 鈥榬eal man鈥� behaves in a certain way and felt that there was pressure to adhere to these behaviours. Additionally, the survey found that adolescents who subscribe to this way of thinking are twice as likely to have mental health difficulties and are just under ten times more likely to perpetrate violence compared to boys who do not think this way. 

Breaking gender stereotypes is important for the growth and development of all people. The whole community benefits from improved mental health and relational outcomes. Breaking gender stereotypes starts with raising awareness of the stereotypes occurring, and how they are perpetuated throughout life, and then having conversations about gendered perspectives on what are male and female colours, clothes, toys, emotional responses, interests, pursuits and behaviours. 

Thank you to all the parents who attended the evening. Not only did I gain new perspectives from the guest presenter, but I valued the discussions raised by our parents, parenting tips and advice other parents provided. I hope all people went away with a new idea or parenting technique that will make a difference to their parenting experience. Our next parent forum will occur in Term 2. Look out for an invitation from the YFC after the term break.

Rachel Crawley

Head Senior Years

Middle Years Report

As students transition through secondary school, they are expected to take on more responsibility for their own learning, manage a larger workload and potentially more extracurricular activities! In this regard, organisational skills become more and more important as they progress through school (and life!) But they aren鈥檛 so easy to just turn on in Year 12 if they have not made it a priority or focus for their previous five years. For decades now, I have practiced misplacing my keys, wallet and in later years, glasses, and now have losing them down to a fine art. I can鈥檛 just switch that superpower off!

So we want to help them to 鈥榣earn to organise鈥� at the earliest opportunity. 

Some of the key reasons why good organisational skills are important in secondary school (and life!) are:

• Reduction in stress
• Improved efficiency
• Generally just making the most out of each day
• Value the process of learning and not just the accomplishment
• Be prepared for lifelong learning
• Deal with increasing workloads over time
• Form strong habits and mindsets about completing work

Ways that we want to help them 鈥楲earn to Organise鈥� is by providing different scaffolds at different year levels.

In Years 7 and 8 we have:

• A paper homework book for English, Science, Humanities, and Maths planning
• Pathways accessed online and completed in a Maths book
• LOTE setting homework when appropriate
• Other subjects covering the curriculum in class

In Years 9 to 12 we have:

• Cycle Planners: they are designed to direct work for students

Another focus that we have had this year is on student planners. We hope these planners are getting some kilometres up travelling to and from Aquinas each day. They get very lonely living at the back of lockers! At Years 7-9, the student planner is a weekly homework task on SIMON that homeroom teachers monitor and mark off each week. With upcoming parent-teacher interviews, this weekly task could well be a point of discussion with homeroom teachers! A description of how we would like our students to utilise this is on SIMON. All of these steps we feel help set our students up to be more organised, and feel that if students utilise these tools, it can really help set them up for an efficient, organised schooling (and life!) experience.

PS. If anyone sees the second set of keys for a 2006 Honda Odyssey, please return them to me. I can鈥檛 keep blaming my dogs!

Phil Box
Head Middle Years

Clean up Australia Schools Day

Students participated in Clean Up Schools Day last Friday afternoon. It was a beautiful day to participate in positive work towards improving the environment. Many hands and small actions resulted in big impacts, with more than 24 bags of rubbish collected.  

Student reflections:  

The clean up of the school was a really good idea and put into perspective how much rubbish people don鈥檛 throw out the right way. -Bella Ritchie, 9 Red

We need to clean up the environment because it is our school property and we need to take care of school grounds. -Catherine Vail, 9 Red 

Clean up Australia day is where our school comes together and cleans the school grounds so that rubbish doesn't end up in the ocean. It gives people the chance to try and help clean up our school. -Milly Hartelt, 9 Red

Karyn Myers

Environment & Sustainability Coordinator

We would firstly like to congratulate each and every student for their strong start to the year. School sometimes seems like a daunting place, but we need to make sure that we are around for our friends and peers. 

Next Friday, we will be holding our annual Harmony Day. This day is for the entire school community to respect and learn about different cultures and how they come together in harmony at 麻豆国产AV. On this day, the school will also hold its annual Senior Athletics Carnival, following the Middle Years' Athletics Carnival that was held today. The athletics carnivals are great days for all students to step outside their comfort zones and bond with their peers, whether that be through participating in events or cheering each other on from the sidelines. 

As the year continues, we would love to see the motivation kept to a maximum. We would also like to reassure everyone that there are lots of others in similar boats and they will happily listen to your issues and attempt to help you in whatever way they can. 

Keep up the good work!

Brooke Tudor and Thomas Scutt- College Vice Captains

Congratulations to these students who have been selected as the senior EISM team captains for season 1, 2023.

As a Catholic College, we are involved in many Social Justice and Outreach programs in our local community and globally. Each term there is also a College-wide focus on one specific fundraising initiative. Our focus for Term 1 is 'Project Compassion', an annual charity fundraiser run by Caritas Australia. 

Project Compassion began on Ash Wednesday, and will continue up until Easter. If you are unfamiliar with the work of Caritas Australia, I encourage you to have a look at their website and find out more about what they do. We鈥檝e set up an on their site, which is a great place to start if you would like to know more about what we are fundraising for during Project Compassion. Then from there, you can further explore the work that Caritas Australia does throughout the rest of the year.

So, how have we been 鈥渄oing鈥� Project Compassion? 

For the last few weeks during pastoral classes, students have been learning about the work of Caritas Australia, hearing stories from some of the people and communities that have been helped by Caritas Australia, and making preparations for our own fundraising activities. 

A couple of these fundraisers have already taken place, but our main event is still to come. It will be held on Friday, March 24 during Harmony Day.

Our Harmony Day celebrations will include an array of carnival games and activities for the students to engage in, as well as a stall selling Fair Trade goods. For most of the activities, payment by card will not be possible, so we ask that students plan ahead and bring cash. All the proceeds raised will be donated to Project Compassion.

We would like to invite you and your families to join us in giving to this worthy cause. Some fundraising ideas students could try at home have also been shared with them through slides presentations in class. Perhaps some of these could be done together as a family project. Any funds raised can be placed into either the donation boxes in their classrooms, or transferred online via the QR Code provided.

As the year progresses, there will be further opportunities available for students and families to become involved in Social Justice and Outreach at the College. Below is a short description of three key groups that students can be involved in. 

Students for Social Justice and Outreach Group

This group is open to students from all year levels. It has been developed over the years at the College to provide a greater platform for students to show initiative and be animated in Social Justice and Outreach. This may include offering new programs or identifying areas of need in our community, developing activities and resources to educate our community and also to run and organise key events throughout the College Calendar.

FIRE Carriers

FIRE stands for 'Friends Igniting Reconciliation through Education'. This is an opportunity for students to become leaders in reconciliation at 麻豆国产AV. When you become a FIRE Carrier, it is for your whole time at Aquinas, with involvement in multiple events throughout the year. Students who attend the Immersion to Arnhem Land will also be included in the program and share the wonderful experience with the wider College Community. 

Building Bridges

麻豆国产AV has been represented in the Building Bridges Program for over 10 years. We have extended the invitation to all Year 10 and 11 students to engage with students from other schools in the Eastern Region and to become animated in understanding and expressing faith in our current world. Students who take part will attend seven sessions over the year and the program will culminate in a presentation evening of recognition. Students are also offered the opportunity to volunteer as a facilitator of the program. 

The student voice is powerful in affecting change! So we encourage students to get involved in the Social Justice and Outreach programs we have on offer. These are the kinds of activities that will help you when applying for part time jobs, applying for tertiary education and other further educational programs, or even in entering the workforce, as volunteering in these groups allows you to develop a greater perspective and life skill set. Most importantly, each of these groups provides an opportunity to connect, make new friends, express your own spirituality, culture and identity and also to have fun.

We encourage students to look out for announcements in SIMON and ask their Mentors or Homeroom Teachers if they have any questions or would like to be involved, or contact me directly on mugamumn@aquinas.vic.edu.au.

Martha Mugamu

Justice and Outreach Coordinator

The Luna Park excursion was a great educational opportunity that provided our class with an engaging learning experience and gave us a chance to study physics based on real life scenarios. The clear favourite ride was the scenic railway. Despite the long wait times, it was definitely worth it. Going on each ride gave us a chance to further our understanding of circular motion and centripetal acceleration, helping us apply equations to practical questions we see in our SACs and exams.

Seeing other schools from Victoria with so many of our peers who share our interest in physics provided our class with a positive atmosphere throughout the day. Having previous student Matthew Chaston come along was extremely helpful to assist us with our calculations and understanding.

Jason Watts

Year 12 Physics

Our senior VM students spent the early parts of Term 1 preparing and planning for the VM camp at Wilsons Prom. We were blessed with some clear weather and students revelled in the challenge of planning their own itinerary, menu, shopping, equipment and activities.  Meal time was a highlight, as our budding masterchefs worked together to fuel themselves up for some challenging hikes around the Prom. Spare time was spent exploring the beaches and river, with some students taking the opportunity to sneak in a spot of fishing at Tidal River. The students were very impressive in their behaviour and attitude throughout the camp and learnt a lot about their capacity for independence and ability to effectively plan and implement a trip away.  

Michael O鈥橦alloran

VCE VM Coordinator

MacKillop camp

Year 7 MacKillop students enjoyed a three day camp at ADANAC, where they were given various opportunities to develop their sense of belonging as an 麻豆国产AV student. As students in grades 8-12 can attest to, a diet of chicken parma, kickball, waterslide and flying fox are staples of an Aquinas camp experience.

As well as belonging, students developed their resilience. Whether that was braving the waterslide at 9am or staying away from parents for the first time, students exposed themselves to important skills outside of the classroom. 

A huge thank you to all teaching and non-teaching staff for making the camp such a fun and rewarding experience for our students. Memories were made which will remain with them throughout their school journey.

Sam Storey 

Year 7 & 8 MacKillop Level Leader

Rice Camp

What a way to start the year of belonging by mingling and finding our sense of adventure in Yarra Junction.

We all had a wonderful time at ADANAC, swinging from the flying fox, screaming down the waterslide, learning new tricks in Mountain Boarding and testing our competition standards in Gaga Ball, just to name a few highlights. 

The weather was kind and our spirits were high, especially with the new introductions to Lip Sync Battles after meal times - who knew Mr Findlay and Mr Nguyen had such talent! 

Overall, with new friendships created, it was a great time to celebrate the Rice team! Thanks to all those in attendance for your leadership and guidance and for embracing the experience.

Elisa Bettiol

Year 7 & 8 Rice Level Leader

Using the elements and principles of Design, Year 11 students were asked to create a plant based energy drink or pinball machine. Students researched, generated ideas, developed and refined their best possible solutions, while navigating Adobe software, to come up with these fabulous final presentations for their first assessment.

Pina Perinetti and Dennis Sartory.

I learnt how to work around a design brief and navigate the ins and outs of constraints from a client. -Chelsea Ebbage, Year 11

My poster would capture people's attention through its bright colours, which contrast greatly against the white background. The large and legible text is easy to see and read, whilst the flavour can be clearly depicted simply from the image. -Trinity Osborn, Year 11 

It鈥檚 colourful and looks appealing to a teen's eye. It also looks sugary, which is what a lot of teens like, but it鈥檚 actually plant based. -Alex Bakacs Year 11

I think my can could be sold and is marketable. The use of colour, shape and type makes it fun and an interesting design that stands out. -Josh Lubbers Year 11

Year 11 Dance VCAA Top Class Dance excursion

On Tuesday, March 8 the Year 11 Dance class attended the Top Class Dance excursion at the Melbourne Recital Centre, Southbank. The audience viewed samples of A+ works from 2022 Dance students who studied VCE and VET Dance and listened to presentations from the Chief Assessors.

Here are some comments from the Aquinas students about the day:

鈥淲e had the chance to learn more about the best performances for 2022 on the VCAA Top Class Dance excursion that the VCE dance class of 2023 participated in. This allowed us the chance to concentrate on the elements needed for a skill-based and cohesive solo. Overall, we all found this to be an incredible experience.鈥� Breeana

鈥淚 enjoyed watching the VCAA Top Class Dance performances as I was able to see what the examiners are looking for and how to execute the different criteria. I enjoyed watching the skill based solos. We were able to see the technique they used which was incredible to see. It was really nice to see other schools there to support dancers from their schools. Overall it was a really fun day.鈥� Ava

鈥淥ur VCAA Top Class dance was an amazing experience. It was highly inspiring and allowed me to gather ideas for my own solo. All dancers performed exceptionally, but my favourite was Bianca K, as her moves were sharp and rigid, and Olivia T had a beautiful costume and technical skills that were impressive.鈥� Kayla

鈥淭op Class Dance was an amazing experience to see. I loved it so much and I loved watching the amazing dance performances. They were so good and they used so many new dance techniques that I have never seen before.鈥� Lily Dw

鈥淚 enjoyed watching VCAA Top Class dance because it was great to see an introduction into VCE dance. It was also inspiring to see so many amazing dancers at the top level. It was great to see what to expect when it gets to the end of the year, and to also see how far you can go doing this subject.鈥� Indi

鈥淚 really enjoyed the VCAA Top Class performances, particularly the strength and costuming used in each item. It was inspiring to see what VCE dance is all about and the end goal of our performances." Tilly

鈥淭he VCAA Top Class-Dance inspired me after watching all the performers perform. This was a great introduction into VCE dance to see what it is all about!鈥� Lilly De

Gina Goss 

VCE Dance Teacher

Through practical experiences as part of Year 11 Physical Education Unit 2, students explore different types of physical activity promoted in their own and different population groups. They gain an appreciation for the level of physical activity required for health benefits and investigate how participation in physical activity varies across the lifespan. They explore a range of factors that influence and facilitate participation in regular physical activity and engage in activity to collect data that determines perceived enablers and barriers to physical activity and the ways in which opportunities for participation can be promoted in various communities, social, cultural and environmental contexts. 

This term, students were fortunate to visit Golf Athletics in Mitcham, a premium 24/7 indoor training and simulator golf facility that caters to all levels of golfers - rain, hail or shine!

The team at Golf Athletics spoke to the students about their vision and intentions behind establishing the Golf Athletics company and the initiatives/programs available to overcome barriers and increase access to and opportunities in golf for different demographics of our community.  

Students then had the opportunity to engage in three aspects of the facility - putting, chipping and simulators. With golf being an unfamiliar sport to most students, they found themselves out of their comfort zone but enjoyed the challenge and demonstrated rapid progress in just a short period of time. The technology and analysis that the simulators provide is quite impressive and adds an extra layer of engagement that was a highlight for many.

Steve McGrath 

HPE Learning Area Leader 

Last week, Year 11 Physical Education students attended Golf Athletics in Mitcham. It was a great experience, and although golf isn鈥檛 everyone鈥檚 favourite sport, everyone had a really good time being physically active. The staff were very friendly and encouraging, supporting us on how to hit, putt, chip and drive the ball better. At Golf Athletics, there are many great things to do such as the pitch area, the putting green and the bunker. My personal favourite spot, like most others, was the simulators. All you had to do was pick up a club, get a ball and smack it into the simulator screen. The simulators would then show you how far you hit, what direction the ball was heading and much more, while the friendly staff would give you great pointers to improve. This helped me hit the ball a lot straighter, and although sometimes it didn鈥檛 go very far, everyone had a go and had a good time. I would love to go back again, and I highly recommend checking it out. 

Michael Clarke

Year 11 student