This Sunday’s Gospel reading is John 14:1-12, which sees Jesus begin to farewell his disciples prior to his crucifixion. Within the passage, Jesus says to the apostles “And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back again and take you to myself, so that where I am you also may be” (Jn14:3). Not only is he predicting his upcoming death and resurrection, but also inviting his disciples to continue their commitment to his work and to remain faithful. Some 2000 years later, as a faith community, we are also being called to continue his work. To live lives as Christ would through our daily lives demonstrating  commitment to prayer, forgiveness, empathy, charity and continued spiritual growth. At Mount Carmel Catholic College we endeavour to promote a “Christ-like” environment through a range of initiatives. Be it in our Catholic Studies and Studies of Religion classes, Youth Ministry, rosary, daily prayer, support of charities, respectful relationships, staff and student spirituality days and celebration of our founders, we are continually looking at ways that we can promote and act out lives that reflect Blessed Marcellin Champagant’s dream to “make Jesus known and loved”.  

Earlier today our Year 9 students participated in their annual “Encounter Day”, which involved a Year Group Mass at Our Lady of Mount Carmel Parish followed by a range of activities and presentations centred around a theme of “Healing the World”. Thanks to Ms Borg and Mrs Meharg for organising the day and to the supervising staff and presenters from Marist 180, Caritas, St. Vincent de Paul and CatholicCare who provided valuable support and insight into making the day a success. Thanks also to the students of Year 9 for their participation throughout the day.

As mentioned in last week’s newsletter, Mrs Murphy conducted a presentation to Year 7 parents regarding the importance of literacy as a tool for academic success, some different perspectives on how literacy skills can be presented to students in ways that encourage creativity and engagement, as well as the launching of the “Parent Library”. Thanks to Mrs Murphy and Mrs Gramellis for their organisation and assistance for the evening that was presented to a small but passionate group of parents and carers.

On Tuesday we hosted a group of Early Career Teachers from our local Macarthur diocesan high schools. This was an important part of their ongoing professional development in their first year of teaching, and a number of our staff provided some insights into the wonderful vocational opportunities that exist as a teacher, the importance of a growth mindset and relationship building, the need for collaboration with peers, students and carers and the opportunity to visit some classes and see some experienced teachers in action. In turn, our Early Career Teachers visited other local schools. Many thanks to the staff who opened the doors to their classrooms, who provided great insights in the Q and A session and to the staff at the Catholic Education Office for organising the day. It is just one example of the success that can be gained through a collegial and shared approach to learning and teaching.

Earlier in the week we were informed of the sudden passing of an ex-student of the College, Luke Stephenson. Luke was enrolled at Mount Carmel in the mid 2000’s and was a current member of the NSW Police Force. His funeral will be held at Our Lady of Mount Carmel on Monday May 8 at 11am. Our condolences go out to Luke’s family. May he rest in Peace.

Finally, we welcome Mr Lo Cascio back on Monday after his 5 week sabbatical. We hope that he is well rested and re-energised after his visit to the lands of the Bible and the home of Blessed Marcellin.

Ite In Veritate

Mr Simon Huntly

Wednesday evening saw the continuation of the Mount Carmel Home-School Literacy Partnership program – a collaborative venture which recognises and values parents as the primary and continuing educators of their children. This week’s Literacy Conversation was held for parents and carers of our current Year 7 cohort and focused primarily on the critical role of reading in maximising student learning outcomes.

Wednesday’s Literacy Conversation provided parents with the opportunity to explore the various books studied by Year 7 students as part of their English course. It also allowed for a demonstration of some of the processes which support reading and writing in the secondary classroom. In considering the distinction between fiction and nonfiction, Morris Gleitzman’s 2005 novel Once was discussed along with Elie Wiesel’s 1958 memoir Night. Once, set in Poland in 1942, traces a young boy’s quest to find his parents and search for understanding in a world full of conflict and racism. In the process of writing this fiction text, Gleitzman immersed himself in many real-life stories – diaries, letters and memoirs – of people who had experienced the Holocaust. One such story was a book about Janusz Korczak, a Polish doctor who had set up an orphanage for two hundred Jewish children. In 1942, when the Nazis killed these young people, Korczak chose to die with the children rather than abandon them. Korczak’s life story sowed a seed in Gleitzman’s imagination and resulted in the fictional character of Barney in his popular narrative. Another person who influenced Gleitzman was the writer Elie Wiesel whose memoir Night tells the harrowing account of his own experiences in German concentration camps during the Second World War. On Wednesday evening I read a chapter from Wiesel’s nonfiction text. I have included here a very brief extract:

I woke up at dawn on January 29. On my father’s cot there lay another sick person. They must have taken him away before daybreak and taken him to the crematorium. Perhaps he was still breathing…

            No prayers were said over his tomb. No candle lit in his memory. His last word had been my name. He called out to me and I had not answered.

            I did not weep, and it pained me that I could not weep. But I was out of tears. And deep inside me, if I could have searched the recesses of my feeble conscience, I might have found something like: Free at last!...

After our discussion, parents were able to borrow Once and Night along with a selection of other popular novels. The thirty-five books borrowed included: C.S. Lewis’ The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe; George Orwell’s Animal Farm; Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol; Gary Paulsen’s Hatchet; John Boyne’s The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas; Kenneth Grahame’s The Wind in the Willows; Adeline Yen Mah’s Chinese Cinderella; John Marsden’s Tomorrow When the War Began; and Harper Lee’s To Kill A Mockingbird. It is so heartening to see parents eager to read with their children and share their literary encounters.

Clare Murphy

English Coordinator and Literacy Instructional Coach

Mary, the Undoer of Knots

This May, students are encouraged to partake in the Rosary Challenge. It is held every Monday, Wednesday and Friday at recess with Mr Martin and Miss Nguyen. Praying the Rosary allows us to encounter Mary and enter the mysteries of Jesus Christ. We are continually inspired to lead a life of discipleship.

Knit for a Need

This Thursday was the official beginning of MCCC’s Knitting Club. Ms Betty Roberts and the wonderful Learning Support staff are teaching students how to knit. As winter approaches, our end goal is to create some homemade winter items such as beanies and blankets for those less fortunate than ourselves. 

Vinnies Community Soup Kitchen (Staff, Year 11 and Year 12 only)

Our local Nagle Centre is in need of volunteers to help run the Community Soup Kitchen again on Wednesday evenings from 4-6.30 pm (approximately). The Community Soup kitchen provides hot meals to vulnerable individuals and families who are struggling to make ends meet. Volunteering at the soup kitchen is a great way to give back to our community and help those in need. I thank those staff and students who have expressed their interest so far. 

Year 7 have continued their exploration of Ancient Egypt, learning about a society from thousands of years ago who still captivate our imaginations today. Students are also learning how to analyse the reliability, limitations and overall usefulness of sources. This will help students think more critically about the information that is presented to them. 

Our Year 8 students are studying ‘Water in the World’ in Term 2, a topic that explores how this most precious resource impacts our lives and is managed through droughts and floods. This is an important understanding for Australian students to possess, exemplified by the floods in recent years and the prediction by meteorologists that we are heading into another dry spell over the next few years.   

This term Year 9 have undertaken a study of the World Wars and Australia’s involvement in these conflicts. On Monday 15 of May, students will be participating in an incursion; WWI - Fighting the Kaiser. This is a performance that incorporates songs, poems, letters, anecdotes and other sources to explore the experiences of the ANZAC soldiers fighting in World War One. The presentation covers experiences from Egypt and Gallipoli to the Western Front. This experience will enhance student understanding of WWI and Australia’s role within that conflict.    

In Geography, Year 10 have been studying coastal management and will also be attending an incursion presented by Professor Rob Brander, School of Biological, Earth and Environmental Sciences, UNSW. This opportunity will provide year 10 students with a better understanding of the geological processes that impact our coasts, and suitable strategies to manage them. We look forward to welcoming Professor Brander in week 5. 

Our seniors continue to work towards their HSC, with Year 12 students now more than halfway through their courses. With prelim and trial exams fast approaching, it is important that senior students are continuing to focus on their work at school and undertake study at home. Like many things, if students can effectively work together they can improve outcomes for the whole group. John Hattie, a leading researcher in Education, rates peer feedback and group work as having a large effect size on student performance. This of course needs to be facilitated in a constructive way but students in HSIE often get opportunities to work together, as seen in Legal studies below where students recently worked on providing peer feedback on an essay task undertaken in class. 

Some of our office staff were invited to the High Tea Experience yesterday during Period 2 as part of Hospitality for students in Years 9 & 10. The food, presentation and service from the Students was exceptional.