Dear Parents and Carers,

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1 Term 4 Issue 3 6 November 17 November 2017 In this Issue: Page 1. Principal s Message 3. Message from Religious Education Co-ordinator 5. Mercy Girls Inspire 6. Message from Youth Ministry Co-ordinator 8. Students News 13 Co-Curricular Activities 14. Parent News 18. P & F News Upcoming Events: TERM 4 Week 7 20 November Year 9 Maths Excursion 24 November Year 9 Excursion for Pastoral Care Week 8 28 November Volunteers Cocktail Evening 6pm-8pm 30 November Year 9 Commerce Market Day 1 December Year 10 Reflection Day Dear Parents and Carers, Years 9 and 10 students have completed a week of exams. Part of the reason for them having formalised exams outside of the usual classroom test is to give the girls practice in sitting and writing for an extended period of time. More important however, is to provide feedback to students, parents and teachers about the learning that is occurring in the classrooms at Mercy. Exams can give both students and teachers the opportunity to analyse where the learning is occurring and where there may be some gaps. This in turn provides an opportunity to work on these shortfalls. Parents and students must however keep exams in perspective. They are a snapshot of your daughter s learning at a certain point in time and only one aspect of her learning. It is also important to see them as a measure of her learning progress over time, so if improvements have been made, even if small, they should be celebrated. P&F FUNDING: In the last Mercy Voice I wrote about how your funds were being used to make improvements to the College, for instance the plantation shutters in the library. The Executive of the P&F passed a motion at the last meeting for P&F funds to be directed towards air conditioning of a few of the classrooms. This will occur over the Christmas holidays ready for the heat in Term 1. It s pleasing to see that parents contributions are making Mercy a better environment for learning for all students. ROTUNDA SITE: As I write about improving our environment, the Rotunda site is being upgraded with a new double storey demountable building which will give us ten classrooms. With this improvement of classrooms will come an upgrade of the facilities and paved area, making this a much more pleasant space, which is conducive to learning. MERCY HERITAGE HONOURED: Your daughters may have come home to tell you of the wonderful new graphics we have on 6 of our walls. Two teachers (Mrs Delia Russell and Mrs Jane Lennon) were given the task of providing a graphic representation of our..pto Strive Page 1 for Better Things Mercy Catholic College, Chatswood mercy@dbb.catholic.edu.au 101 Archer St, Chatswood NSW 2067 Telephone: mercychatswood.nsw.edu.au

2 Message from Principal MERCY HERITAGE HONOURED CON T: College values and to connect them to our Mercy charism. They enlisted the students in the task with Jenny K s (Year 10) work being chosen. You will see in the following photos the graphics illustrating our values of Excellence, Compassion, Integrity, Hospitality and Respect. To demonstrate these values, words used by Catherine McAuley in her letters to other Sisters have been added. Thank you to Mrs Lennon, Mrs Russell and Jenny for such inspiring works of art. Best wishes Principal Page 2

3 Message from Director of Student Wellbeing Page 3 Teenage Daughters The 2016 Mission Australia Youth Survey which surveyed youth aged years totalling 21,846 young people in 2016, showed the following results of the top three concerns by females. For around six in ten females, coping with stress was a major concern (extremely concerned: 28.1%; very concerned: 30.4) Females were also more concerned about school or study problems with 48.3% (extremely concerned: 20.6%; very concerned: 27.7%) Concerns about body image were considerably higher among females, with 41.3% (extremely concerned: 17.6%; very concerned: 23.7%) This survey has led me to think about stress and how it is seen through the eyes of teenagers. At a recent 2018 Year 7 information evening I spoke about stress and how we all have felt stress due to the unknown factor we are about to experience, or the fact we do not really want to do the task or be at the event so we build ourselves up to an extent at times where we can feel unwell. Before a performance people will feel butterflies, they will be thinking constantly about their performance. It has been said that feeling a little nervous means you care. To experience stress is normal, however; it is how we handle the stress which is the important issue. When your daughter talks about feeling stressed, listen to what she is saying and then ask her questions such as: What makes you feel that way? What do you feel could happen? What could you do to make the situation better? By asking your daughter questions you are finding out why she is feeling that way and giving her ownership of her feelings and what she could do, without jumping in with solutions. It is important to start giving her the tools to build resilience and work through situations so she is able to face events with courage. We all want our daughter to be able to handle situations and thrive. Another strategy to use if your daughter feels overwhelmed, is to have her stop and sit down, putting aside all the technology and taking a few minutes to regroup. I talk to the students about using this technique in a test. In a test if a student goes blank, then they are to stop, put down their pen and take a few minutes to regroup, not worrying about those around them, then they are to pick up their pen and start writing. At Mercy we want your daughter to be happy, be able to work out situations without teachers intervening straight away. If she has the tools and confidence to sought out friendship issues, she will be more confident. Friendships are wonderful when everything is happy but once there is a breakdown of the friendship it becomes difficult. We all need to remember nothing can be perfect all the time, and not everyone will like everyone all the time, there will be the hiccups but again it is how it is handled and spoken about that will make all the difference. It is natural to change groups in high school because of maturity and interests, unfortunately, this does make some students feel hurt and jealous and they show their unhappiness by being nasty. If your daughter is ever in the situation of changing groups, it is important she does not gossip about her old group. She could always send them a note saying thank you for the time together or just start sitting next to the other group, believe me this does work. It is also important when friendships change, the word bullying is not thrown around. A breakdown of a friendship is not bullying. We need to acknowledge change is good but it can be hard and often time is needed before things feel better.

4 Message from Director of Student Wellbeing Gemma McDermott Director of Student Wellbeing Page 4

5 Mercy Girls Inspire Congratulations to Matilda K from Year 10! A true Mercy student who demonstrated the College values in keeping with the teachings of Catherine MacAuley, by handing in a car key to a teacher last Thursday 9 th November. The key was then taken to the Police Station and later reunited with its grateful owner. Well done Matilda. Ms McDonald Year 10 Coordinator Page 5

6 Message from Youth Ministry Co-ordinator Dear Families, It is the time of year again for the Christmas Hampers which will be donated to St Vincent de Paul this year. With 2.2 million people currently living below the poverty line in Australia, including over half a million children, your donation allows the St Vincent de Paul Society to provide more than immediate help, it provides something much more valuable the opportunity for a better life. This year, each Tutor Group will be receiving a box from St Vincent de Paul to place items in. The boxes will be given out on Monday and you will need to finalise all the items by Wednesday, November 29. In addition to the items in the boxes we thought each Tutor Group might like to purchase a gift voucher for the family. Families know what is on their child s wish list this Christmas, but many are worried about how they are going to afford to put any gifts under the tree this year. We can uphold the dignity of these families, by allowing parents to choose the gift their child will receive on Christmas morning. Gift cards from local toy shops and department stores give the parents plenty to choose from when selecting their child s present. Gift cards are a great idea for parents and other adults as well. Thank you Mrs Helen Thomas Youth Ministry Coordinator Religious Education teacher Page 6

7 Message from Youth Ministry Co-ordinator Page 7

8 Student News Year 9 & Year 10 Textiles Technology class This semester the Year 9 Textiles Technology class completed a comforting cushion unit. They were asked to design, produce and evaluate a furnishing item suitable for use as a floor, bed or couch cushion. The cushion needed to include at least TWO decorative techniques and incorporate the elements of design. The students were inspired by nature, music, fashion, geography and hobbies. They created some excellent cushions, demonstrating skills in beading, fabric dyeing, patchwork, applique, crochet work, digital transfer printing and piping. This semester the Year 10 Textiles Technology class completed a unit on costume design. Their task was to design and produce a costume inspired by a musical or theatre production or a film. The students spent time researching costumes from different fashion eras and productions. They watched the movie Marie Antoinette to have an insight into historical costume design. The students costumes were outstanding. Ms S. Holman TAS Teacher Year 10 Textiles Technology That s Entertainment Costume design project Page 8

9 Student News Year 10 Textiles Technology That s Entertainment Costume design project Year 9 Textiles Technology Comforting Cushion Page 9

10 Student News Creative Arts Showcase The Creative Arts Showcase held last Friday night was a spectacle of drama, dance and music. From 125 singing Sia s, as Year 7 donned blonde and black wigs to perform their Sia mashup to fabulous dancers, talented musicians and moving drama pieces. The night was certainly a celebration of the immense talent of our students. In watching our soloists perform the audience couldn t help but reflect on the dedication it must take to reach this level of skill and finesse. In the Mary of Now performance more than one audience member was brought to tears. Later those same parents were laughing at the antics of a crazy Christmas feast. A night like this is a demonstration of the dedication and perseverance our students show to reach the high level of performance skill. Thanks must go to the incredibly dedicated Creative Arts teachers, Michelle Thomson, Kathryn McGreal, Matthew Robertson and Amy Gill and to our Band conductor Mark Strykowski, Music ensemble tutors Valerie Dart, Zachary Coombs and Jacinta Mikus and Dance teacher Cathy Hansell. Without their imagination, skill, humour and creativity these events would not be possible. We would also like to thank the Willoughby City Council for their support of this event. Jane Lennon Creative Arts Coordinator Page 10

11 Student News CREATIVE ARTS SHOWCASE EVENING Page 11

12 Student News REMINDER FOR PARENTS Can you please ensure that State Transit are advised of any changes to your address as soon as possible to enable your daughters Opal Card to have the correct details. When updating your details the students will continue to use their Opal Card as normal and will not be issued with a new card. Only new students to the College will receive a new Opal card. Please contact state Transit if you need a replacement card. Please Log on to or call Opal Customer Care on Page 12

13 Co-Curricular Activities Page 13

14 Parent News A reminder to please RSVP to the upcoming Volunteer Cocktail Party if you have not already done so. We look forward to sharing the evening with all who have contributed to our wonderful community in Page 14

15 Page 15 Parent News

16 Parent News Come along to unique family celebrations of faith Families are invited to join in two unique celebrations of faith in Sydney as part of the Australian Catholic Youth Festival. 1. LIGHTS OF CHRISTMAS at St Mary s Cathedral Sydney s favourite Christmas tradition. Celebrate the season at Sydney s most popular Christmas lights show. Join us at the Lights of Christmas at St Mary s Cathedral Square, in the heart of Sydney s CBD, for a spectacular sound and light show every night from Wednesday 6 December until Monday 25 December Starting each evening at 7.30pm with a choir performance, the free sound and light show will commence at 8:30pm and continue through until midnight. For more information visit 2. MASS IN THE DOMAIN - The Australian Catholic Youth Festival 9th December will close with a massive celebration of the Eucharist in a public Mass in the Domain at the Royal Botanical Gardens. Starting from 5pm with a concert, the Mass will begin at 6:30pm and conclude by 8:30pm. Page 16

17 Parent News FRIENDLY REMINDER From the Business Manager Dear Parents/Caregivers, The year is winding up quickly and planning for 2018 is underway. IMPORTANT NOTICE Just a reminder that your Application for Sibling Discount and Payment Arrangements 2018 is now due All families will receive an Application for Sibling Discount and Payment Arrangements 2018 via post. This form is used in determining sibling discount on Tuition Fees and Building Levy Discounts. A response is required for each question asked and both parents/caregivers are required to sign the form. NB: No discounts will be given unless the completed form is returned by the due date. FEES 2017 A reminder to all families, the payment of fees is now due, unless a prior arrangement has been made with the Principal or Business Manager. If families are experiencing Financial Difficulty or Hardship, I ask that you please contact the College Finance Department to discuss. Mrs K Parker Business Manager Page 17

18 P & F News Thank you I would like to Thank all Year 9 students and parents, who volunteered at the Year 7, 2018 Welcome BBQ last Friday evening. Your help and support was greatly appreciated and helped to make the night a wonderful success. With best wishes, Phillipa Sobb President P & F perrysobb@gmail.com Page 18