Bulletin

 Monday 17 February:  Year 12 Parent Teacher Night - 3.30pm to 7.30pm

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Tuesday 18 and Thursday 20 February:  College Production Rehearsals - Strictly Ballroom - 3.05pm to 5pm

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Wednesday 19 February: Years 9, 10, 11 and 12 Elective 'Meet the Music' Excursion - 6.30pm - 8.45pm

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Friday 21 February:  Aikenhead and Cahill Houses Mass - St Vincent's Chapel - 7.45am  8.30am

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Dear Parents and Carers 

It has been an extreme week on the weather front and I am still feeling a little nervous about hosting an outdoor cocktail party on Saturday evening. Come rain or shine I am sure it will be a wonderful evening for parents to connect with their daughter's friend's, parents and, hopefully meet new people. It is so important that parents have strong networks ofencouragement and support during the more taxing times of parenting!

Last week we featured the wisdom of Stella Wailes who returned with her class mates of 2019 for the Academic Assembly. This week at year level assemblies we invited Stella back along with Charlotte Murray-Nobbs, Hannah Lawrence and Emily O'Brien to continue the conversation with students in all year levels about the culture of learning they  create by design or indifference. We of course are looking for very purposeful design in a learning culture that informs, transforms and empowers every day, every lesson. 

The students listened with great intent and their questions showed they are really interested in the special role they have to help themselves and others maximise their learning. I was also impressed with a panel of our year 12 students who also spoke with great empathy to our year 11 students about making a good start to the HSC preliminary year. The first weeks of year 11 can be overwhelming and the current year 12s were both reassuring and generous in sharing what strategies had worked well for them last year.

Our value of service of the poor was both celebrated and challenged by different pieces of correspondence I received this week. One was a very celebratory note about the heroic actions of Miki Bianchi-Foo who was instrumental in a dramatic Surf life saving rescue at Bronte Beach on February 1st. I congratulate Miki and all our other students who volunteer to patrol beaches through the Surf Life Saving Clubs. This is a true expression of our values in action. Please see the link below. 

https://brontesurfclub.com.au/club-news/bronte-mass-rescue-after-hours-saturday-february-1st

I also received correspondence through the week that I found hard to read, and hard to recognise the behaviours described as befitting a College whose stated value for the year is Service to the Poor. The correspondence referred to behaviours observed on trains and buses of girls not giving up their seats to the elderly, to pregnant women; of incessant loud noise and of leaving rubbish on carriages. These behaviours do enormous reputational harm to the College and I ask your support in educating your daughter on how to use public transport safely and courteously.

As you will see in the photo the beautiful Mary Aikenhead building is slowly disappearing beneath scaffolding and hoarding. When she emerges in 2022 she will again look spectacular with all the stone work and architraves restored. The disruption to the Victoria Street footpath will continue again this week and students are asked to enter through the St Dominic's gate.

I look forward to seeing you on Saturday, perhaps under your umbrellas!

Yours sincerely

MRS ANNE FRY
PRINCIPAL

Condolences

The College extends our condolences to Mrs Vicki Lavorato (Board member) on the death of her mother, Mrs Concetta Caristo. May she rest in peace.

In our Year of Service of the Poor, the College is committed to continuing to invigorate our vibrant learning culture that supports each of our girls to achieve her fullest academic potential, as a whole young woman, ‘every lesson every day’. To help her achieve this, assessment is a purposeful and valid measure of the teaching and learning cycle and through our school-wide feedback model, students are constantly growing their learning in a cycle of improvement. At SVC we pride ourselves on Knowing our Students and thus goal setting from each assessment performance in partnership with each student’s teacher, is an integral part of our feedback model that aids student growth.

Feedback, both formally (summative) and informally (formative) is powerful in learning and our Common Assessment and Feedback Model empowers the learner by;

• Informing each student of the outcomes they have achieved on each assessment activity
• Transforming the students’ learning through concrete, skills-specific advice about how to improve on areas of weakness 
• Empowering our students to reflect on and action their teacher’s feedback to set their own new goals for learning growth

Therefore, this reflective cycle of assessment and feedback, in partnership with each student’s teachers, maximises each student’s academic potential throughout the year. 

I am somewhat surrounded by food in my family life with a husband in the hospitality industry  and a brother-in-law chef, not to mention my own very healthy appetite and so if you are like me and food is often on your mind, you may like this anecdote to explain the difference between formative and summative assessment.

Yesterday all students and parents/carers were emailed an Assessment Activities  Calendar that outlines all of your daughter’s assessments for the 2020 Academic Year. You can also access this doc on the College website here. The College’s Assessment Policy is found in each student’s Assessment Handbook for your reference and hers, with specific advice about our Illness/Misadventure Policy in the case of illness or misadventure in assessment periods. Assessment Handbooks will be emailed to all students and parents/carers by the conclusion of Week 4. 

As we settle into term and Assessment Activities start to be distributed, it is good for our students to remember the support they have in place to assist them to manage their weekly schedules. In the first instance each teacher will establish expectations about homework and study that is conducive to a balanced approach to study and socialisation. Each year group has a recommended amount of study/homework hours per day and these are relevant for all students Year 7 to Year 12. Our complete Homework Policy can be found on p:25 of the Student Diary.

This year our learning mantra is ‘every lesson, every day’ and at our Year Assemblies last Wednesday, our older students informed their younger peers of the most effective strategies for keeping this balance that they themselves have found successful. At SVC we will continue to explore connections between student cohorts to offer workshops and study support which is mutually beneficial for our collaborative model of student learning.  Incidentally, collaborative students learning was a highly successful strategy employed by last year’s HSC students.

I am often asked by parents how they can better support their adolescent child in homework and study. The attached link contains a series of effective strategies that have proven successful that may be of interest to you.

Yours sincerely

MRS JASMIN MANO
DIRECTOR OF TEACHING AND LEARNING

Tuesday was a gift.  We took advantage of the break in the rain and headed out with Year 7 for Charism Day.  Heads of House lead the way and our students engaged in all the activities with energy and a delightful sense of fun.  We played some ‘getting to know you’ games which revealed that a member of the year 7 cohort has indeed sheared an alpaca.  

Sr Anne Taylor, our college companion, told us the story of the Sisters of Charity; their beginnings in the new colony in 1838, the work they undertook, the hardships they faced, and their extraordinary achievements.  Sr Anne made the lives of these exceptional women real and accessible through story and images, opening up the work of Mary Aikenhead Ministries. Our students recognized images and could link the story to what they can see around the College and later, the local area.  We spent time in the chapel, doing some detective work to find information about its history, extensive artwork and the personalities remembered there. 

We walked together up to St Canice’s Parish Church where Fr Paul Fyfe told us the story of the work of his parish community - their soup kitchen, their ‘accommodation’ ideas for the homeless, the connection with the Sisters of Charity, and our current connections with the Parish through our boarding community.  Back at school we learned about the life of St Ignatius of Loyola, and how his spirituality came from his own life experiences, his suffering and his success.  We finished off the day back in our Chapel, for an experience of Ignatian Prayer in an Examen, and some imaginative reflection on Mary Aikenhead’s favourite gospel story, Lazarus and the Rich Man. 

Mrs Fry joined us and gave each year 7 a copy of our history publication: St Vincent’s College, Potts Point 1858 - 2008.  Her challenge was that our Year 7s must write the next chapter in the history of this great College, with their work, their talents, their energy and their desire to serve the poor. 

Given our students’ energy and positivity on Tuesday, I believe they have begun.  Ask your Year 7 to show you her copy of the book and also her Charism Day Journal.  This is a record of great learning and fun.

MRS JO KENDERES
DIRECTOR OF FAITH AND MISSION

Monday brought about a school closure for St Vincent’s College. The SCEGGS boarders found it very difficult going to school that morning knowing that the Vinnies girls were still in bed!! I personally would like to thank the following staff who gave up their time on the day to spend a while with the boarders whether it be watching a movie, playing a game, supervising the library or chatting about life and school, it was much appreciated. Thank you to Jane Ashcroft, Robert Bielinko, Elizabeth Brooks, Mary Crotty, Maria Geracitano, Joseph Hekeik, Simone Lock and Jasmin Mano. 

Once a month we have Theme Night for dinner where the boarders come up with countries or cuisines to celebrate. This month was Chinese New Year – the Year of the Rat. With an amazing menu of dumplings, fried rice, satay skewers and the list continued. The boarders didn’t need supper!! Thank you to Selina and Martin for their creativity and culinary skills.

MS MARYANNE O'DONOGHUE
DIRECTOR OF BOARDING

Dance ensemble is a great way to learn new skills and choreography while developing meaningful connections with other students in the college. We are so very lucky to have so many talented students at St Vincent’s College. The 2020 auditions took place this week where we had 40 students audition for the SVC Ballet Ensembles and 133 students audition for the Jazz Dance Ensemble. The girls who auditioned showed a great display of talent, enthusiasm and motivation. Congratulations to the students who were successful this year. These students will be issued with a 1 year contract in our program to allow them to continually build upon their technique and performance quality while working towards our end of year concert.  

We welcome back Miss Laura Fishwick our Ballet ensemble teacher and co-curricular contemporary dance teacher, and Miss Thomasina Buchner, Ms Chloe Wong and Ms Kayla Jomaa who will be teaching jazz dance ensemble. We also have two new teachers joining our team this year, Ms Morgan Anderson and Ms Jamila Grace who will also be teaching a jazz ensemble class. 

We wish the dance students and teachers all the very best in their classes this year and look forward to seeing all the groups perform at our annual concert on Saturday 7th November at the Seymour Centre.

CONGRATULATIONS!

Last Sunday Gabrielle Umbrazunas in year 10 auditioned for the Sydney Dance Company Senior Youth Ensemble and was successful. The Youth Ensemble has been developed by Sydney Dance Company to challenge, extend and nurture future contemporary dancers. Gabrielle will have the opportunity to work with esteemed Industry Specialists, choreographers and Teaching Artists throughout the year.  

Gabrielle has been an integral member of our dance program since year 7. It is rewarding to see the progress she has made through hard work and determination. Congratulations on your offer Gabrielle; we are so excited for you and look forward to viewing some of the work created in the session. 

MS ALANA SANTI
PERFORMING ARTS DANCE

STRING ENSEMBLE

The String Ensemble will commence rehearsals on Monday from 7.30am till 8.30am in the Garcia Music Room (top floor). If you have not already signed up but would like to come along please contact Ms Peoples via email peoplesb@stvincents.nsw.edu.au

The ensemble will be led by our new tutor Dr Irina Andreeva. Irina is a very talented violinist and teacher who has played and taught all over the world. Irina will also be tutoring violin and viola, if you are interested in learning either of these instruments please sign up via the College website https://www.stvincents.nsw.edu.au/performing-arts-co-curricular-enrolment/

To find out a bit more about Irina, please read below.

MEET THE TUTOR

Dr Irina Andreeva began her musical studies in Novosibirsk Russia. At the age of 11 Irina performed Lalo’s ‘Symphony Espagnole ‘ with Novosibirsk Academic Symphony Orchestra and later became the youngest member of this orchestra at the age of 18.

Her teaching career began over 25 years ago and during this time she has taught and worked with youth orchestras in Europe, New Zealand, the Kingdom of Tonga and Australia.

In 2010 Dr Andreeva was awarded the Order of the Member of the Royal Household of the Kingdom of Tonga for her services to Music; one of the many highlights of her career. 

Dr Andreeva holds various degrees in violin and viola including Postgraduate Diploma in Performance and Music Pedagogy, MMus First Class Honours in Performance from Auckland University and Doctor of Musical Arts from Victoria University of Wellington New Zealand.

ENGLISH DEPARTMENT

The English Department would like to welcome to our staff Ms Leigh Bedbrook, who returns in a part-time position, teaching Stage 4 and 5. Ms Bedbrook is an experienced teacher who has long been associated with SVC. 

We would also like to congratulate Ms Anita Playoust, who takes up the position of Assistant Head of Department. Anita will have special responsibility for all things Stage 4 (Year 7 and 8) and already she has contributed a number of new programs to our teaching with a special interest in the Wide Reading program, explained below. 

The Department has launched an invigorated Wide Reading program for Years 7-10. The new English syllabus places importance on students engaging personally with texts and what better way than to foster a habit of reading for pleasure! The new syllabus also requires students to be more independent readers and use their wide reading as inspiration and models to become ‘craftier’ writers. The wide reading program will allow students the opportunity to not only read for enjoyment but interact with their reading through reflection. Parents and carers are invited to read the introductory information in the attached materials (Years 7 to 9 link here; Year 10 link here) and support students in their reading of challenging fiction.

CREATIVE WRITING COMPETITIONS 

• Write the World is a community of writers 13-18 from around the world. A number of competitions in a number of forms and genres are listed here 
• Nakata Brophy Prize for Young Indigenous Writers closes 16 February 2020. In 2020, the prize will be awarded to the best poem (up to 80 lines in length) by an Indigenous writer who is 30 years or younger at the closing date of the competition. Arrangements here.
• Poetry in Action monthly poetry writing competitions open on the first of each month. Cash prizes and publication of the winners. Details here.
• Bell Shakespeare Shorts Festival: Create a film in one of these two categories - retelling or re-imagining. The details are here.
• Poetry Writing Competition jointly run by Reading Australia and Red Room Poetry opens 21 March. Write a poem of 20 lines or less about a favourite object of your choice. Details here.

What the English Department has been reading/viewing/listening to over the holidays

Dear Parents and Carers,

The first P&F meeting for the year on Tuesday 24 March at 6.00pm. All meetings for the year are held on Tuesdays in Bethania from 6.00pm: 

• 24 March (AGM) 
• 19 May 
• 11 August 
• 10 November   

Please do not hesitate to contact me if you would like to know more about our P&F. 

KATHERINE AITKEN
PRESIDENT P&F