Senior Stories

The Final Word

By Michael Francis Email this article

Recently in the Mercy Vine I highlighted the opportunity for our Year 11 students to be engaged in community building by enjoying a BBQ lunch together in our Rose Garden. These past few weeks have seen our Year 12 cohort involve themselves in some similar activities.

Buddies

One of the significant benefits of having an R-12 campus is the chance for our Year 12 students to engage with our R-2 students in a buddy programme. Each Year 12 student is partnered with a Junior School student so they can enjoy some time together, sharing games, activities and fun. The enjoyment experienced by all students involved is wonderful to see and often remembered as one of the most relaxing and beneficial opportunities by our Senior Students in a hectic year.

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Mixed Netball for Caritas Day

Also over the past week, students engaged in what has become a little tradition of a netball match between the Open Footballers and Open Netballers in Year 12. This has been able to aid in the fundraising for Caritas Day and certainly is a hotly, but fairly, contested match.

Congratulations this year to the boys who were able to overcome some early jitters in the shooting circle to triumph in the end. The skill, speed and precision on show by the girls was hopefully a sign of things to come when the winter sports season commences in the coming term.

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Babysitting

On occasion, parents may be in need of some assistance in securing babysitting services for their children. If you would like to email me, I have a register of interested and responsible Senior students who would like to offer their services for this purpose. I am happy to forward details of interested parents to those on the babysitting register for arrangements to be made.

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Camps and Retreats

In the first week of Term 2, Year 10 camps will be operating at a number of different venues around the state. These experiences are wonderfully organised and provide students with a fantastic opportunity to learn new skills and engage with their peers in a different environment.

I encourage all students to give new experiences a try and remind them that part of our beginning of year messages was about being open to growth – whilst camp may sometimes present some challenges, it almost always is a rewarding and valuable experience.

This year is the first year that some of our Year 9 and 10 students will be venturing to the Generations in Jazz weekend in Mt Gambier during this time. I wish all of the students involved all the very best in their performances, but also hope that the experience is an inspiring one to encourage their development in their musicianship. Well done to Ms Jennifer Trijo for all of the work she has invested in preparing the students for this experience.

Simultaneously, Year 12 students will be engaged in their final Retreats. These have traditionally been highly anticipated and students have regularly recalled these experiences as one of the highlights of their year. Again, these are opportunities to grow and can be challenging at times, so I encourage all students to be open to new experiences and to developing new relationships with their peers over these three day Retreats. Thank you to Mr Pat Terminello for his work in arranging these Retreats.

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Paul Dillon

As has been recently advertised, Mr Paul Dillon spent a day this week speaking with students in the Senior School about the risks, safety procedures and legislation around drugs and alcohol. As always, his presentation was informative and honest, leaving some challenging questions for our students to consider in this area.

Certainly, we encourage parents to discuss this presentation with your children and too, as a family, come to an understanding about the expectations that you have in regards to drugs and alcohol. Having frank, open discussions about this may assist in ensuring that the safety of our young people is protected and I would like to remind parents about the guidelines regarding hosting parties that have been communicated to you over recent months.

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Open to Growth

As mentioned above, some experiences in early Term 2 are going to challenge students in the Senior School to be open to growth. This is a message that was shared at the beginning of the year as an important element of being a member of the Senior School.

As the first term draws to a close, I ask every student and family to reflect on the term and consider how future challenges may be approached and how being open to growth may lead to new possibilities. Whilst I acknowledge that this process can be difficult, it is worth remembering that some of the best learning can come out of situations of adversity, and that we as a Senior School will support students through these challenges.

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The Final Word!

Thank you to all families for your support and involvement throughout the term. In the last week we have been able to socialise through the successful Mix and Mingle (thank you to the Telford family for your hospitality), and then be able to gather in the interests of reviewing the term at the Learning Reviews for Year 12 students on Tuesday 12 April, 2017. We value your input and thank you for working with us to deliver a rich and detailed educational experience for your children. Learning Reviews for students in Years 10 and 11 are scheduled for early Term 2 and I look forward to seeing you at this time.

I hope that all families enjoy a safe and reflective Easter period and that the term break proves to be energising, relaxing and rewarding for you all.

Michael Francis
Head of Senior School