Week 10 Term 3 2022
From the Principal
Dear Parents, Staff and Students,
Our Year 12 Graduation Mass and Prize Giving Ceremony, transferred at late notice to last Wednesday evening, was one of the first ‘normal’ Woodlawn celebrations I have witnessed in my three years at the College. The sense of camaraderie, pride, spirit and reverence evident on the night was palpable and a great credit to our Seniors, who have collectively overcome so many obstacles simply to get to this point in their educational journey.
The following is an excerpt from the College Captains’ Address delivered so eloquently by Alana Rojo and Finlay Buchanan:
‘Our journey through the College has been remarkable. From beginning with bags and uniforms double our size, we have changed and grown into these shoes, inside and out. We have found a sense of who we are. A high school graduation is often associated with a bittersweet moment. It is the conclusion of six years of growth from awkward adolescence into finding your place. One thing that each of us has been left with is some degree of an understanding of who we are and where we went. Amongst the confusing mix of emotions, one thing is certain. Once we settle into the upholstery of whatever car is driving us away, everything is going to change.
Upon coming closer to the conclusion of this final term, I noticed how present and aware I have become. I was drawn out of my head, my anxious ramblings of what’s due when and what I have for Period 4, and became mesmerised by the mundane transitions which I normally would float through unengaged. I found myself fixated on the microscopic parts of Woodlawn, like the cracks on the pavement of the quad or how the cement runs in-between each brick of this seemingly ancient building. Entering the school every morning on the bus I found myself ogling at the height of the balcony, even though I have passed all of these hundreds of times. As I loaded the last of my things into my undersized schoolbag, I had an epiphany, in which I related this hyper-awareness to the nostalgia my peers and I have been undergoing. The days of Canteen food, green ties and cumbersome textbooks are over. Nonetheless, we have all developed into such strong, confident and positive people and should all be extremely proud of who we are’.
We wish our Year 12 students all the very best as they now move into this final preparatory phase before their HSC Examinations commence mid-October.
Term 4 Dates: Students across Years 7 – 11 commence Term 4 on Tuesday, 11 October. The term concludes on Friday, 16 December for all year levels.
There have been no changes to COVID-19 advice over the past fortnight. Any potential holiday changes will be communicated to you prior to the commencement of Term 4.
As this fortnight’s reflection, I include the following thoughts taken from my address to our Year 12 Class of 2022 at their Graduation:
‘All associated with Woodlawn will, at some point, have drawn both strength and inspiration from our College motto, ‘Tenete Traditiones’ - to ‘hold fast to the traditions’ – that which is known – almost something of an oddity in today’s climate.
As Rabbi Lord Jonathan Sacks says, ‘As it takes a village to raise a child, so it takes a community to sustain a school, and communities are hard to find these days. A community is held together by shared beliefs, traditions, rituals, stories, convention and codes: the regular enactments of a sense of shared belonging. Communities last longer than any individual, so they preserve a respect for the past and responsibility toward the future’.
And tonight’s Graduation is indeed a great community celebration. A ritual. A rite of passage. An outward expression of our collective inner intentions. It’s but one example of what the world has seen expressed in the United Kingdom over the past fortnight. Rituals on the most grand of scales, marking this significant turning point in world history. As yesterday’s ‘Sydney Morning Herald’ rightly noted ‘(The Queen) ultimately embodied many instincts that are under threat in the contemporary world: grace, humanity and fortitude. So maybe the great lesson that she has taught each of us, albeit from afar, has been how an often hostile and divided populous has united. For once, ‘the silent majority’ has spoken through their reverence, and marks of respect, even if they may have been avowed Republicans; showing that in life, there is always a time and place…
Finally, can I thank all parents/guardians for your support of our staff across another busy school term. Working in partnership with you really does make a genuine difference to the lives of our students.
Enjoy a relaxing holiday spent in the fine company of your family and friends.
Sincerely
Aaron Beach
Principal
From the Assistant Principal - Mission
Over the past two weeks we have been celebrating the gifts that our students share within our community. We are challenged by Timothy's scripture to nurture and share these gifts. Our photos convey the significant moments in the life of our College over the past fortnight.
Transfer of Leadership Ceremony
This was celebrated with a whole school Assembly. Families of our incoming Student Leaders joined us as we affirmed the gifts of generosity, care, servant leadership and humility that these students presented us with.
The gift of a Catholic Education is something that we express true gratitude for. Our students are encouraged to live out the social teachings of solidarity, service and finding ways to assist the poor and marginalised through positive action. We are grateful for their support of the DAG DAY campaign aimed at raising money for our Cambodian connections. This is also an opportunity to dress down and forget about brands and labels. We were also blessed to have our Year 12 music students entertaining us in the quad. These photos sum up the energy around this day.
Graduation
Our Year 12 Graduation Mass and Prize Giving celebrations embraced the words of Timothy. It was a rich celebration of tradition, faith and acknowledgement of students developing and sharing their gifts. We are thankful for the Woodlawn community and the families and friends who joined us on this evening. Our official photos will be released early next term as the official photographer was still processing them as we go to print. Thanks to everyone involved for your time and care. This short film pretty much sums up the feelings of pride and accomplishment on the night.
We hope that you all have a safe holiday and look forward to continuing our good works next term.
Annette Reen
Assistant Principal - Mission
annette.reen@lism.catholic.edu.au
Ministry Matters
I start this week by adding to the chorus of praise and gratitude for our graduating class of 2022. It has been so pleasing to be able to see them experience a somewhat ‘normal’ end to their schooling at Woodlawn with this week’s Graduation Mass. We will miss the devotion and generosity of these students, but wish them well for a very bright future. Witnessing the joy and unity on Wednesday evening was certainly a living example of our students experiencing the fullness of life that we strive for at the College.
IGNITE Conference
As this goes to print, Mrs Karen Davies, Mr Luke Flynn, Miss Natasha Wotherspoon, Mr Luke Rowling and twenty-one students are enjoying the experience of IGNITE Conference. Having left the College at 6:45am this morning they are certainly in for a full day!
First reports are that the stop at Chinderah was well received as a breakfast stop after such an early start.
We wish our delegates all the very best for a wonderful Conference and look forward to delivering a full report of the experience in the first Newsletter of Term 4.
As always, please don’t hesitate to get in touch with me for any matters of faith or worship for your family.
Have a wonderful holiday.
Nick Jones
Leader of School Evangelisation
nick.jones@lism.catholic.edu.au
Year 9 Geography Excursion
In Week 4 of Term 3, all Year 9 students travelled to Shaws Bay, Ballina to participate in their mandatory Geography Fieldwork Excursion. Breaking into three teams, the year group and their teachers walked a 6km circuit around the bay and beach, making observations on weather, biophysical features and environmental change and management. The weather was kind and spirits were high as students and staff alike enjoyed a day of learning in God’s classroom. This reflection from Annabelle Taylor and her peers, sums up the success of the day:
“Last week, Year 9 had the opportunity to travel to East Ballina to partake in an excursion observing the geographical features and waterways of Shaws Bay, Pop Denison Park, the Breakwall and Lighthouse Beach. In studying these locations we were able to observe the environmental, social and economic factors surrounding these environments. This excursion gave us great insight into the factors that contribute to the environments in our local area. It also taught us about tide changes and the movement of water in Ballina. This excursion was very valuable in practically applying knowledge learnt in our Geography classes.”
The HSIE team thanks Mr Matthew Bailey, Mr Jesse Hayden and Mr Luke Collings for the hard work that went into the planning of the Field Trip.
Time for sand turtle
Observations on north wall
Year 7 Geography Incursion
In Week 7, the Year 7 cohort completed their Geography Fieldwork Activities onsite at the Woodlawn rainforest and Wilsons River. Despite a gloomy forecast, the weather was, once again, kind to us, allowing the classes to split into groups and complete evaporation tests, water samples and field sketches on the river bank, rainforest and ovals. These activities allowed students to make observations about the water cycle and water management. The HSIE team thanks Mr Luke Collings, Ms Stefanie Darke and Mr Joel Saye for their work in preparing and supervising this valuable Incursion.
Year 8 History - ‘Night of the Notables’ Year 8 History Expo November 9, 5.30pm-6.30pm
In Week 5 of Term 4, Year 8 History students will display their historical research skills at the ‘Night of the Notables’ History Expo. This is a research task that allows students to explore any person of historical significance, and create a presentation about their life and its contributions to the human story. In past years, we have had visits from Genghis Khan, Xerxes, Amelia Earhart, Elizabeth I, Julius Caesar, Rosa Parkes, Cleopatra, Agrippina, Winston Churchill and the like. Students dress in costume and prepare a folio of models, diagrams, essays and images to demonstrate the significance of their chosen personality. On the night of the Expo, parents are invited to the College to enjoy refreshments with staff before wandering the halls of history for an hour. Put it on your calendar!
Night of the Notables: Historical figures from years gone by.
Christopher Mason
Leader of HSIE
christopher.mason@lism.catholic.edu.au
Year 8 Book Expo
As proud sponsors of the Book Expo, Library staff were blown away by this year’s efforts. Year 8 English students excelled at this engaging and valuable term long assignment. There was a great variety of fiction chosen and the displays showcased this. How wonderful to be so engaged and creative with a book of your choice! Congratulations to all students and those who were awarded prizes for their displays. You have made your teachers and yourselves proud.
Catherine Graham-Smith
Leader of Learning Technologies
cath.graham-smith@lism.catholic.edu.au
Tournament of Minds
After two years of Tournament of Minds being conducted online, it was wonderful to have three teams represent the College at the Regional Finals held at Lindisfarne Anglican College on Sunday, 28 August. TOM involves students from a range of year groups working together to solve a long-term challenge from a range of disciplines: Language Literature, STEM, Social Sciences and Creative Arts. Face-to-face Tournament also meant the return of the Spontaneous Challenge where the teams have four minutes on the day to create a solution to a new problem, which the Woodlawn teams excelled at. It was a wonderful day spent at Lindisfarne with the teams, their parents and Mrs Tayla Tickle.
The Language Literature team comprised: Sienna Davis-Job, Kiara O’Brien, Ivy Roberts, Edie Stewart, Eliza Lamas and Mary Parry and the Creative Arts team included: Ellie McKay, Carmen Garcia, Molly Corcoran, Willow Degier, Hannah Newbold, Lara Carvahlo and Arna Lowrey. Both teams received Honours at Lindisfarne with the judges commending both teams on their efforts.
The STEM Team comprised: Oliver Pennisi, Noah Gallagher-Summers, Lila Pedley, Tess and Emily Maher, Lilly Cluff and Oxford Childs and were awarded First Place at Lindisfarne and invited to compete at the State Finals in Sydney. Less than two weeks later Oliver, Noah, Tess, Emily, Lilly and Oxford were at Ballina Airport accompanied by myself and Mr Luke Flynn, about to embark on what was for some a first trip to Sydney.
Sunday, 11 September, saw the team at the University of New South Wales, in lockdown (not COVID-related thankfully) for three hours, coming up with a solution to a brand new problem. The team also completed another Spontaneous Challenge during this time. The team did incredibly well and I look forward to working with them again in the years to come.
Before the flight home on Monday the morning was spent walking through Hyde Park in Sydney, catching glimpses of the Sydney Harbour Bridge while walking down King Street and then a trip to the Sea Life Sydney Aquarium. Highlights included seeing the dugong feeding and the short boat road through the penguin exhibit.
Stefanie Darke
stefanie.darke@lism.catholic.edu.au
NSWCCC Athletics Championships
Jacqueline and Nikki Andonov
Taj Doyle & Oliver Pennisi
Catholic Schools Parent Assembly
The Parent Assembly supports parents as they seek to improve their understanding of child development and parenting skills. Opportunities are provided for parents to enhance their knowledge and skills through seminars, topical workshops and expert guest speakers. Since its beginning in 1995, the Parent Assembly has provided parenting education opportunities for parents in the following areas:
- Prayer and family life
- Drug and alcohol education
- Christian personal development and human sexuality
- Cyber safety
- Bullying in schools
- Boys and girls education
- Parenting skills
- Nutrition
Uniform Shop
During the school holidays the Uniform Shop will be open on Saturday, 8 October from 9am-1pm.
The St John's College Woodlawn Uniform Shop is proudly managed by P&C Uniforms.
To ensure you have an easy and pleasant experience while ordering uniforms, we encourage you to order online ahead of time for easy click-and-collect in store.
Opening Hours: Monday 8.00am - 9.30am & Wednesday 11.00am - 2.00pm
Where: Colin Centre
Order Online: www.sjcwuniformshop.com.au
Book a fitting: www.sjcwuniformshop.com.au/bts-appointments
Second Hand Uniform Shop
When: Every Wednesday
Where: Colin Centre
Time: 11am - 2pm
Canteen News
The cash free way to pay! - REGISTER NOW
Paying for lunches is now safer and hassle free. With cashless cards there's no need for students to bring cash to school.
The College has Flexischools to allow students to pay at the Canteen using their existing student ID card. Paying for lunches and items at recess or lunch is now safer and hassle free. With cashless cards there's no need for students to bring cash to school. Parents can set daily spending limits and view transactions online. Parents can also top-up funds at anytime.
The Canteen has introduced a Fast-Track line for students who have pre-ordered to collect their lunches, making it much easier and quicker for students.
We encourage all students to register. This will allow for those days when your student may have forgotten their homemade lunches.
Please follow the link below to register now: