Translate

Columba Catholic College Newsletter Volume 25 No. 12 - 11th August 2022

A MESSAGE FROM THE PRINCIPAL

Dear Columba Families,

The term has got off to a busy start with students preparing for Bookweek celebrations next week and the upcoming Charters Towers Eisteddfod which is scheduled for Week 6. There is so much to be thankful for as we reflect on the events of the last couple of weeks.

Last Thursday and Friday our students participated in the Charters Towers Interschool Secondary Athletics Carnival. Special thanks to Callan Newman and Cecilia Louk for all of their hard work and preparation to ensure that the day ran smoothly. There were some outstanding individual student performances and we congratulate our students on their efforts and the spirit with which they represented the College. Thanks also to the parents and community members who joined us across the two days.

On Sunday Bishop Tim Harris joined Father Emmanuel, Father Sylvester and members of our school and Parish community to celebrate the sacraments of First Holy Communion and Confirmation. Congratulations to our candidates on this special day. Thank you to Mr Ryan O’Connor and Mrs Leanne Brandis who prepared and presented our students. Thanks also to Brooke Stevenson for her support and assistance. It was wonderful to see so many of our community members in attendance to support and pray for our students at this special time.

This week we welcomed Mr Nathaniel Staples to the Mt Carmel teaching team. Nathaniel has a long history with our community and has a depth of experience in teaching ICT in our diocese and in leading ICT initiatives at a system level. We wish Nathaniel all the best in his new role and we look forward to working with him.

This week our Year 11 students engaged in a three day retreat at Bluewater. Special thanks to Ms Christine O’Sullivan, Miss Elena Donohue, Mr Haydn Champion and Mr Jordan Broomhall for supporting our students across the three days. The students participated in a range of spiritual and leadership activities and are to be congratulated for their commitment, enthusiasm and positive energy during this retreat. Our Year 11 students are currently engaging in leadership experiences as we move towards preparing them to step into a variety of student leadership roles in 2023.

Today and tomorrow we begin our secondary transition program for 2022 with the college hosting a Taste of Boarding and a Taste of Secondary. Special thanks to Mr Dan Kyle, Mrs Caroline Jarmey, Mrs Michelle Burns and our Residential Captains Constance Holden and Hayley Zadow who will be supporting our families with a presentation regarding boarding life at Columba. Thanks also to our residential staff for nurturing and supporting our new boarders as they join us for the first time. Thanks is also extended to Mrs Maria Peck, our Curriculum Leaders, teaching staff, our wonderful Office Admin Team, and Miss Madeleine Carter for their work in preparing for a Taste of Secondary tomorrow. The students will participate in a range of learning sequences across the day. Special thanks to all involved in this two day program and for the support of our new students and families at this very important time of transition. We look forward to meeting you all and embarking on this new journey together.

Academic, Sporting and Cultural Bursary applications are now being accepted for 2023. Information regarding these can be found here. This term we have welcomed a number of new students and families into our community and we are continuing to grow. Enrolments are currently being accepted for now and the 2023 school year. If you or someone you know is interested in securing a place for the 2023 school year, please encourage them to contact the office on 47871744 or via email at office@columba.catholic.edu.au

Tomorrow is International Youth Day. Over half of the people on our planet are actually aged 30 or younger and this is expected to reach 57% by the end of 2030. With this in mind, it is now more important than ever to nurture, educate and support the young people in our care as they will become the custodians of our future. Bless them with the commitment to learn and grow and vision a future filled with opportunity, hope and love.

A Prayer for Youth

Loving Father

We thank you for young people,

the energy, enthusiasm and potential that they have.

We pray that the obstacles that can hold them back

such as poverty, ill-health, and discrimination, will be removed.

We ask that, inspired by your Spirit, young people will have courage to speak out for justice,

find solutions to poverty and love their neighbours with word and action.

May you strengthen them with joyful hearts,

give them a vision of your Kingdom here on earth, and embolden them to act.

Amen

All the best for the fortnight ahead.

Many blessings,

Melissa Turner
PRINCIPAL

FROM THE DEPUTY PRINCIPAL - ADMINISTRATION

Dear Parents and Caregivers

Term 3 has provided students with many opportunities to be actively involved in the many academic, sporting and cultural opportunities to date. A special welcome to all of the new students who have joined our College community this term.

YEAR 7‐10 ASSESSMENT DATE CALENDARS

Years 7‐10 Term 3 assessment dates are now available in the year level assessment calendars in Compass. Please take the time to carefully look at when assessment drafts and final submissions are due as well as exam dates. Encourage students to record their assessment dates in their College diary. This will assist students to plan study time effectively and meet all deadlines. A reminder that all assessment is due on or before the due date.

HOMEWORK HELP AND ASSESSMENT SUPPORT

Years 7-12 students are able to attend Assessment Support and Homework Help to assist them with their studies.

ASSESSMENT SUPPORT

Assessment Support will be held on Wednesday afternoon from 3:05-4:05pm in M4. Teachers will request that students attend Assessment Support if they require additional assistance with their work, are not on track to complete their assessment or have not met checkpoints identified on their assessment task sheets. Teachers will contact the parents of students who are required to attend Assessment Support and arrange for students to attend.

Please note that Assessment Support will not be held on Wednesday 17^th August.

HOMEWORK CLUB

Homework Club takes place on Thursday afternoon from 3:05-4:05pm in the Library on the Mount Carmel Campus. Year 7-12 students are invited to attend Homework Club to complete homework, assignments, revise for exams and gain assistance from teachers to help understand subject content. Teachers volunteer to assist students at Homework Club in subject areas such as English, Maths, Science, Humanities and Social Sciences, Religious Education and Health and Physical Education.

YEAR 8 AND 9 SUBJECT SELECTIONS

This term, we commence the process of elective subject selections for Years 8 and 9 students. For Year 8 students it is a time to choose subjects that may lead to a pathway in the future, while Year 9 students should be starting to narrow a future direction with their subject selection.

YEAR 10 SET PLAN INTERVIEWS

Year 10 students are currently undertaking subject selections and SET Plan interviews to map a pathway, whether that be ATAR, Vocational or fulltime work/apprenticeship. This is an exciting time for students as they select subjects for next year.

SET Plan interviews are being conducted this week. All Year 10 students and parents / caregivers are required to book a SET Plan interview in Compass with a member of College staff to plan and discuss pathways and subject choices as students move forward into Years 11 and 12. If parents / caregivers have not booked an interview yet, please do so as soon as possible.

YEAR 10 QTAC PRESENTATION

On Tuesday 2^nd August Year 10 students attended an ATAR presentation conducted by the Queensland Tertiary Admission Centre (QTAC) via Zoom. Topics covered during this presentation included:

eligibility requirements
subject prerequisites for university study
VET
ATAR calculation
scaling.

Students were provided with important information that will assist them in making informed future pathway decisions. Students have also been given a copy of the 2025 Year 10 Guide to Career Pathways and Tertiary Prerequisites.

ATAR INFORMATION

If parents / caregivers and students would like to find out more information about the ATAR please refer to the resources available on the QTAC website.

YEAR 12 TRIAL EXTERNAL EXAMS

Year 12 students have just completed their final piece of internal assessment in General subjects. For some this represents 75% of their course and others 50%. Students in General subjects will now begin to focus on preparations for External Assessments. In Weeks 8 and 9 of this term, students will complete trial external assessments. Please note that the final assessments will be held on Thursday 15^th September. Students can expect to have 2 assessments timetabled each day. The trial external assessments will prepare students well for the rigors of the actual external assessments and provide them with valuable feedback. Students will attend school as usual, coming out of class to undertake the assessments. Attendance until the end of term is important as students will have trial external assessments as well assessment items in applied and certificate courses to complete. Please take this into consideration when making travel arrangements at the end of the Term 3. An assessment schedule will be distributed to students and parents in coming weeks.

2022 EXTERNAL EXAMINATION TIMETABLE

The QCAA has released the 2022 External Assessment Timetable. A copy of the timetable can be found on the QCAA website.

YEAR 12 QTAC PRESENTATION

Year Twelve students will be attending a presentation by the Queensland Tertiary Admission Centre (QTAC) Presentation via Zoom. Students will be informed about:

how to apply through QTAC
entry requirements
ordering preferences
pathways
important dates and deadlines
responding to offers
EAS scheme and other adjustment factors
ATAR calculation and notification.

Please contact Mrs Lynch if you would like assistance with making your application.

2023 QTAC GUIDE

All year twelve students have been issued a copy of the 2023 QTAC Guide. The guide provides prospective applicants with information about tertiary courses and how to apply for each course. It also includes information about other courses and pathways (to further education) that don't necessarily require a "traditional" ATAR entry. The Guide is compiled by the Queensland Tertiary Admission Centre.

ASSESSMENT POLICY AND PROCEDURES

A copy of the Columba Catholic College Assessment Policy and Procedures is available on the College website. This document should be referred to by all Year 7-12 students and parents / caregivers. The document includes details about:

Submission of assessment.
Access arrangements and reasonable adjustments (AARA)
Drafting, scaffolding and response length.
Academic integrity.

YEARS 7-12 ACCESS ARRANGEMENTS AND REASONABLE ADJUSTMENTS (AARA), INCLUDING

ILLNESS AND MISADVENTURE

Columba Catholic College recognises that some students have disability, impairment and/or medical conditions, or experience other circumstances that may be a barrier to their performance in assessment. Access arrangements and reasonable adjustments (AARA) are designed to assist these students.

AARA are provided to minimise barriers for eligible students so that they can demonstrate their learning, knowledge and skill in assessment. These barriers could be permanent, temporary or intermittent. Students may also be eligible for AARA where illness and misadventure (i.e. unforeseen circumstances) or other situations may prevent students from demonstrating their learning, knowledge and skill.

Students are not eligible for AARA on the following grounds:

unfamiliarity with the English language
teacher absence or other teacher-related difficulties
matters that the student could have avoided (e.g. misreading an examination timetable, misreading instructions in examinations)
matters of the student’s or parent’s/carer’s own choosing (e.g. family holidays).

Application forms for AARA can be obtained from the College Office.

YEAR 7-12 APPLICATION FOR EXTENSIONS / CHANGE OF DATE OF AN ASSESSMENT ITEM

Year 7-12 drafts and assessment items are due on or before the due date. If a student knows they will be absent on the day that an assessment item is due, then they must organise themselves to submit it on or before the due date. Extensions or sitting an exam on an alternative date will not be granted for planned absences such as family holidays, attending rodeos, social events, leaving early at the end of term etc. If a student is absent on the day that an assessment item is due, it must be emailed to the teacher of the subject by 3.00pm. Application forms to apply for an extension are available from the College office.

QCAA LEARNING ACCOUNT

All Year 11 and 12 students have a Learning Account that provides information on their subject enrolments and Queensland Certificate of Education (QCE) credits. Students need their LUI number to access their personalised account. Each student’s Learning Account can be accessed via the myQCE website. It is each student’s responsibility to notify the College if any personal details have changed or their subject information is incorrect.

To receive a QCE, students must achieve the set amount of learning, in the set standard, in a set pattern, while meeting literacy and numeracy requirements.

Students are at risk of not receiving a QCE if:

Their QCE is projected to be less than 20 credits.
They do not pass all subjects they are enrolled in Unit 3 and 4. Units 3 and 4 are studied as a pair and students must achieve a C for all summative assessment completed to achieve 2 credit points for each subject.
They do not successfully complete all competencies in a certificate course they are enrolled in.

If students are not currently achieving a passing grade in any of their subjects, it is important that they contact their subject teachers to discuss the steps that are required to meet a C level or above in any upcoming assessment tasks. If students are not on track to complete all competencies in their certificate, they need to discuss this with their trainer so that a plan can be put in place to support the student to do so.

Students who do not meet the QCE requirements at the end of Year 12 can continue to work towards their certificate after finishing Year 12 through the completion of additional learning such as vocational education and training courses or traineeships. Once eligible, students will be issued a QCE in the following July or December.

If you wish to discuss your child’s progress in regards to their QCE eligibility or future pathway options, please contact the College to arrange a meeting with one of the following staff:

Maria Peck, Deputy Principal Administration
Christine O’Sullivan, Senior School Program Leader

Maria Peck
DEPUTY PRINCIPAL - ADMINISTRATION

ST. MARY'S CAMPUS AWARDS

Term 3 Week 3- Taking responsibility for all my actions

Prep - Sophie Shaw
Year 1 - Maegan Yule
Year 2 - Lochlan Grant
Year 3 - Kayla Ranleigh
Year 3/4 - Ryley Brown
Year 4 - Archie Webb
Year 5 - Bathandwa Simelane
Year 6 - Alex Zhao

Term 3 Week 4 - Treating yourself and others with kindness

Prep - Mia Cooper
Year 1 - Annabelle Sproat
Year 2 - Harry Webb
Year 3 - Nash Bryant
Year 3/4 - Noah Hermann
Year 4 - Hudson Brumby
Year 5 - Molly Sproat
Year 6 - Will Scholes

YEAR ONE NEWS

Term 3 is a massive term of growth for us as we consolidate all of the skills that we have learnt earlier in the year. This week we completed our Early Years Post Test which tracks the growth of our students from Prep and Year 2. It’s so rewarding to see just how much they’ve learnt already. It also gives us data on what we may need to spend more time on before we become big Year Two students.

We’ve hit the ground running for another busy term. When asked about what we have been learning so far this term the kids told me:

“We learnt that shape is an element of Art. I loved making a Queen out of shapes.” Jacques Thomas

“In HASS we have learnt about how farms like Brookdale are managed, buildings are constructed and creeks, beaches and mountains are natural features in our environment.” Lachlan Griffiths

“We are improving our writing by using capital letters and full stops. I know we need to spell our sight words correctly, leave finger spaces between our words and we need to check that our writing makes sense.” Charlie Barnes

“I love doing Art because it’s fun. We are getting ready for our big Year 1 Art Show!” Madeline

“Reading is the best because you can learn new words and what they mean. You can also learn lots of cool facts in Non-fiction books.” Bill Couper

We are excited for all the fun things that are still to come this term like Book Week in Week 5 and our Art Show coming up in Week 8.

Marisa O'Connor
YEAR ONE TEACHER

Showing images 1 - 8 of 10

YEAR THREE NEWS

Year 3 has made a great start to Term 3! We have enjoyed being back at school, learning and spending time with our friends. We have welcomed Jesse into Year 3 this term and we are excited to have her with us.

We have begun our term learning about celebrations and commemorations in HASS, information texts in English and Time in Maths. We are also very excited to be learning about space in Science.

We are looking forward to competing in the Eisteddfod and dressing up for Book Week this term.

We are ready for a big term of learning and fun in Year 3!

Shae-Kia Carroll
YEAR THREE TEACHER

FATHER'S DAY LITURGY - SM CAMPUS

INSTRUMENTAL MUSIC PROGRAM

In 2022, Columba Catholic College is continuing the Instrumental Music program on both the Saint Mary’s and Mount Carmel Campuses. There is a variety of instrumental music lessons available, as well as choirs and ensemble groups.

General Information

Instrumental lessons will occur in 30-minute time slots.
Lessons will be conducted before or after school to minimise disruptions for class time.
Ensembles will run either during lunchtimes (CAD Choir), or after school (Guitar/Ukulele Group).
The goal of the program is to develop student’s musical skills and expose them to opportunities for performance throughout the year.

Attendance and Commitment

This program requires commitment and relies on regular attendance, participation, and practice at home. Prior notice must be given if your child is unable to attend a lesson for any reason. No make-ups for missed lessons will be offered. Once a student meets an appropriate level of practical skill, they are expected to participate in one of the College ensembles and in musical events throughout the year.

Instrument Hire

If your child requires a brass or woodwind instrument, you may loan these from the school - at no cost (subject to availability) - please indicate this preference on the form below.
As part of loaning the instrument, students will be instructed on how to care and maintain their instrument.
Should an issue arise, it is expected that the student (or parents) will contact the instrumental teacher immediately.
We are pleased to offer instruments at no cost to families, however, if an instrument is severely damaged or misplaced, then parents will incur these costs.
Parents/Guardians will be required to sign a musical instrument rental agreement before an instrument is given to your child.
It is an expectation that students will buy their instrument (when feasible) after a period of time.

A letter has recently been sent home to all parents/caregivers. If your child would like to take part in the instrumental program at Columba Catholic College, please return the reply slip by the 22nd August 2022 to the College office. A schedule of lessons and further information on ensemble times will then be supplied - once numbers are confirmed.

We are delighted to offer these cultural experiences to students and families at no cost, and look forward to many individual and group successes throughout 2022.

Thomas Andersen
MUSIC TEACHER