Dear Parents & Friends,

The end of another very busy term at St Francis is upon us, I look back at all that has been achieved with pride. Students will receive their Semester 1 academic reports which, for the vast majority, demonstrate the strong commitment they have shown to their learning. This term has seen many growth in our MISA sports teams and several great sporting achievements, the pinnacle of which was Bella G qualifying for the Olympic Swimming Trials in Adelaide. We have seen our Senior Mock Trial team beat Hurlstone Selective High School. Our debating teams competing strongly. Our MISA Dance troupe starring and our choirs supporting the local community at the Opening of Ed Square.

I look excitedly ahead at Term 3. Our new Hall and Middle Years Block will transform the school. Finally, we will have a venue large enough to celebrate whole school events, assemblies, Masses & liturgies. The Hall will provide an important boost to our sporting facilities with indoor basketball, netball, volleyball, futsal (soccer) and many other sports being able to be played in an all-weather arena. The Hall will also provide a comfortable wet weather space for students who will no longer be confined to classrooms when it rains.

The Middle Years Block provides greater flexibility in the delivery of lessons with highly visible classrooms that can open, to allow team teaching, class collaboration, year meetings and so forth. It also has several small group rooms to support group work, intervention and break out space. The Middle Years Block has 18 classrooms, 360 student lockers, two specialist spaces to support practical work in Art, Science & Technology. It also has a large undercroft to offer further sheltered space.

I can’t wait for students and parents to see these new facilities as it will transform operations at the College. We will be providing opportunities for you to have a tour of these new spaces early next term.

Thank you for your ongoing support. May God continue to bless you throughout the student vacation period.

Mr Abernethy
College Principal

Bronze Awards

Congratulations to the following students on acheiving their Bronze award at our recent assembly:

Year 1
Jordan J
Juna Y

Year 2
Sanvi R
Cooper L
Lucas F

Year 3
Annalise A

Year 4
Jade M
Avisi B

Silver Awards

Congratulations to the following students on achieving their Silver award at our recent assembly:

Year 2
Lucas Fazio

Year 3
Savannah M
Zoe H
Izabela P
Sebastian L
Divyesh H

Year 4
Taline E

LIVE is a fantastic opportunity to develop, learn and express faith whilst enjoying a range of activities and singing with friends. LIVE is run by CYMW (Catholic Youth Ministry Wollongong), who aim to encourage students in the Diocese to build stronger relationships with God. They create accepting and comfortable environments to discuss experiences of one’s faith, as well as learn about the faith of others. LIVE afternoons are one of many functions organised by CYMW, and are held after learning hours (2:45pm - 6:00pm). It involves unique and creative activities, inspirational talks, chances to express faith, and lots of singing and performances by CYMW’s amazing band. Each LIVE afternoon also follows a particular theme. The most recent LIVE afternoon focused on the theme ‘Connected - He’, which related to how each person is always connected to God no matter the circumstance. A key moment from that afternoon in particular was when a guest speaker from the CYMW team compared God to Google Maps, which not only implied that God guides us through life, but also made that message a lot more understandable, engaging and even humorous. Overall, the LIVE afternoon was a great and enjoyable experience to partake in.

On the 8th of June Year 6 went to Mary Immaculate Primary School in Eagle Vale. After we got off the bus, we entered the school hall to be welcomed by Catholic Youth Ministry Wollongong. We were welcomed, and two other schools and ourselves started singing Catholic songs together. The three schools were Mary Immaculate,  Holy Family and us (St. Francis). Later after singing a few songs, we started playing a game and it was called the Extreme Scissor Paper Rock. It was a game where all of the schools got a chance to interact with one another and have fun together. 

After a few more songs, there were three youth ministry members who had explained to us how the game was related to three of the Sacraments which are Baptism, Holy Communion and Confirmation. One of the Youth Ministry members had explained to us that we should appreciate the gifts that we had received and use the gifts in our everyday life instead of leaving them on the shelf. We all received a number and were formed into groups with other students from other schools. There was also a team leader who was either a high school student or one of the Youth Ministry members that led the group and asked questions to us about the gifts of the Holy Spirit and the Sacraments that we will later receive in life. 

The second game was that all the students in all three schools were formed into two circles. One circle in the middle and another circle outside. We had gathered together with the number that was called out. Once we were in our groups we had to use the points in our body to form the number of contacts that were called out. The main reason for playing that game was to interact with students in other schools and work together with them.  

Overall, it was a great experience to interact with new people and learn in a fun and creative way to learn about the Gifts of the Holy Spirit and the sacraments.

Written by- Jiya K

On the 8th of June, Year 6 took a short trip to Mary Immaculate to learn more about Confirmation. They learned through discussions in small groups, games, songs, speeches and reflections. The experience was beneficial for their learning and understanding of Confirmation. Everyone learned the way to deepen their relationship with God and how to help others do the same. What made the experience even more fun was that they got a sausage sizzle and we can all agree that it was delicious. Overall, everyone had a great time and most importantly learned that once you open the door to God and let him into your heart, he will always be by your side and never ever leave you alone.

The SFCC MISA Debating team should be so proud of themselves. We still have many rounds to come but I am sure you have been anxiously waiting for an update. I would also like to congratulate our amazing debaters who have been practicing very hard and learning more skills at each practice! 

Here is a summary of our MISA match-ups so far:

Congratulations to our awesome teams!

Year 7: Athena J, Nik K, Lucy T, Alansa S, Miles W

Year 8: Aina A, Joban K, Irene D, Sneha S, Thalia S

Year 9: Ebony C, Samara M, Sienna M, Honey P, Cheryl S

Each and every debate was remarkable and every team has done such an amazing job so far!  As you can see, we’ve had some difficult and challenging topics to argue about. Overall the 2021 Debating season has been exciting to watch, with moments of drama, action and sometimes quite funny.  It has been so much fun! Best of luck to all teams for their next MISA Rounds coming up in Term 3. 

Until Next time! 

Sophia A - Debating Publicist 

MISA DANCE 

On Tuesday 15th June, Mrs Bryan and I accompanied 19 dancers to attend and perform at the Mcarthur Independent Schools Association showcase of dance. As a teacher who had not seen or been involved in MISA Dance before what was extremely impactful was not only the inclusive nature of the event but the strong sense of community. This sense of community resonated throughout the audience as I heard students cheering other schools on. As well as students wishing other schools good luck. This doesn’t always happen at dance competitions so it was delightful to hear this awesome sense of sportsmanship.

This was a momentous occasion for many of our dancers who had the opportunity to enjoy their first performance, whilst being supported by the community. We have worked hard on our piece “Street Dance from around the world” since the start of term 1 so it was awesome to witness the students on stage in sleek stage make up with ambient lighting, commanding the audience with their movements and story telling. I was very proud of them and their hardwork! 

My hope is that the memories the students will have from this expeirence will last a life time and that dancers will return to get involved in MISA Dance next year. Well done, dancers!

Yours in Creativity, 

Ms Allen 

The dancers posing after their big performance

The dancers getting ready in the dance studio.

The aeroplane that took the dancers on a trip around the world.

On Thursday in Week 9 we emptied and counted the cans and bottles in the Vinnies bins.  The winning house was Clare with 114! The counts for each house will be converted to house points. We had lots of people helping even some teachers that got their hands dirty. Thank you to Miss Messina, Mr Fitzpatrick and Mr Siskas.

From
Avana.T and Rachel.A