Volume 16 2024

A warm welcome back to Rosebank to all members of our community for the start of Term 4.

With a week of HSC exams already behind us, we continue to keep our graduates and their families in our prayers as they navigate the last stretch of the high school road.

Photo: Year 12 2024 after their final assembly.

In their wake, the rest of the student body are certainly keeping busy. This week, students in Years 7 and 8 are involved in the ‘Festival of the Creative Spirit’ (FoCS), an initiative that serves as an opportunity for students to discover and develop their passions by stepping beyond the four walls of the classroom to work on a variety of academic and creative projects. These include a number of exciting excursions around the city and local area, as well as guest presenters and specialists in their field on-site to workshop with the students.

Photo: FoCS Week activities

Year 9 students are participating in ‘Discovery Week’, which is structured to enable students to develop skills and confidence across a range of areas outside of their regular learning. The week will incorporate the always popular Year 9 Camp in Colo, the Duke of Edinburgh experience and the Figtree Program. As our Year 7 students discover at the start of the year, although it may be daunting to spend time away from home, in a strange environment, trying new and often challenging activities, the reward that comes from just ‘giving it a go’ with the support and guidance of College and camp staff, is always significant.

A number of our Year 10 students will join the workforce this week as they complete their work placement. This program remains a valuable opportunity for our students to learn more about how to present themselves in a work environment, how to work as part of a team and how to fulfil the responsibilities of the role they are assigned. This is also an opportunity to represent the College in the local community and we have every confidence that our students will do us proud.  

The annual Senior Retreat is also running this week, both onsite and at offsite venues. This significant event is an opportunity for our Year 11 students to step outside the normal busyness of life, to take a break from the ‘noise’ and be still, without the pressures of school and family and engage on a deeper level with self, others and God.

We wish all our students an engaging week of diverse learning and self-discovery.

As some families are no doubt already planning holidays for next year, please make sure you have updated your diaries with the following information:

2025 SCHOOL TERM DATES

Term 1

• Start: Thursday, 30 January – Year 7 and Year 12, plus Year 10 Peer Support Leaders   
• Friday, 31 January – Years 8, 9, 10 and 11
• End: Thursday, 10 April

Term 2

• Start: Tuesday, 29 April
• End: Friday, 27 June

Term 3

• Start: Monday, 21 July
• End: Thursday, 25 September

Term 4

• Start: Tuesday, 14 October
• End: Friday, 5 December

Parents are reminded that the College cannot approve an extended period of leave for families to take a holiday. The NSW Educational Standards Authority (NESA) is very clear on what can be classified as ‘justified leave’, which includes participation in elite sports teams e.g, representing Australia at an international tournament/event and employment in the entertainment industry. Guidelines for Exemption from Attendance can be found on the Parent Portal.

I wish you all the best for the last seven weeks that remain of the 2024 school year.

Welcome to Term 4, and time for a few more InspirED activities to finish off the school year.

First, the most exciting news: our Future Problem Solvers once again competed in the national finals. The group has been developing their "Vaping Awareness" project all year, which is currently being delivered through EmpowerED. The five members of the group, Lauren Burrello, James Davis, Sophie Wan (all Year 8) and Jasmine Taylor and Amelia Marques (Year 7) gave it their best, representing the College with pride and enthusiasm.

We are overjoyed to report that we WON the nationals against some stiff and more experienced competition. Our "Vaping Awareness" project was well received, and the judges could see how it contributes to ongoing wellbeing.

As part of winning the Nationals, we received an invitation to the International Finals in Indiana, USA, in June 2025. Students and parents are over the moon about this opportunity to represent not only our College, but Australia on the global stage. 

Term 4 is the time to turn attention to Year 10 and the opportunity to apply to complete a university-level course at Macquarie University over the summer break. This is all done online with support and mentoring from the College provided over Zoom. Achieving a Distinction or High Distinction in this course is a useful addition to early entry applications to university, which are completed part-way through Year 12. It is also a great boost to academic confidence when students know that they have already completed a university-level course as the hard work of Stage 6 becomes a reality. However, make no mistake, this is a challenging course. It is compressed from 12 weeks into six; students must be committed to hard work and self-managed study over the summer break when the sun and the surf beckon. Any student interested in knowing more should contact Ms McArthur via email. They will be offered the opportunity to attend an information session in Week 3 when Year 12 students who successfully completed the course in January this year will speak to interested students and answer questions about their experience.

To follow are two student reflections, one from two students who took up the opportunity to attend The Science Experience, hosted by Macquarie University, over the recent break. The other is from a student who was one of 35 who participated in the global, online Bebras Computational Thinking Challenge after school last week. Stay tuned for the results, expected in a few weeks. 
 
The Science Experience    

In the second week of the holidays, we went to Macquarie University for The Science Experience, which consisted of a three-day program showcasing both the incredible world of Science and Macquarie University's education opportunities. We learnt about many topics, from hands-on Chemistry and DNA extraction to physics challenges and outer space exploration. In addition to the activities, we had the chance to make lasting bonds with fellow young science enthusiasts. 

Our favourite activity was hands-on chemistry, which was engaging and allowed us to see examples of chemical reactions in real life. Some of our favourite experiments were the creation of synthetic nylon and seeing the change in pH when different chemicals were added to dry ice. Other interesting activities included creating a makeshift solar panel from raspberries and a careers expo, highlighting the many types of Science courses offered at Macquarie University. This experience helped us to see the many fields of Science that can be studied at university, including Molecular Biology and Astrophysics. 

Ultimately, we highly recommend this experience to anyone in Year 9 or 10 hoping to pursue a career in Science. The Science Experience is offered at various universities around Australia during the school breaks, including the coming summer break. Contact Ms McArthur if you are interested in finding out more.

Anastasia Macan and Charly Percival (Year 10)

Bebras Round 2

Our group, which consisted of Holly, Matea, Callum and Angelica, participated in two rounds of the Bebras Computational Thinking Challenge this year, with Round 2 held on Tuesday, 15 and Wednesday, 16 October. Bebras is a fun and engaging problem-solving challenge where we are given 45 minutes to answer 15 questions of increasing difficulty, each focusing on computational and logical thinking. 

After tirelessly practising over the holiday break, our group was ready to face the challenge head-on. To answer the questions to the best of our abilities, we had a quick snack provided by Ms McArthur and then worked together to complete the challenge. 

Through participation, we learned the importance of teamwork and collaboration by building problem-solving skills. This opportunity is open to students from Year 7 to Year 12. Let Ms McArthur know if you want to sign up for next year.

Callum Reeves (Year 9)

InnovatED

Coco has finally landed on all four planets: Planet Psych, Planet People, Planet Past & Planet Possible! The corresponding categories will be revealed in Week 3.                                                                                                         
Coco’s journey to the planets is just the beginning of his fun. Are you up for some hide-and-seek? The Coco Hunt is coming up in a matter of weeks! Throughout Weeks 4 and 5, Coco will be hiding in different places throughout the school. We heard that he brought back some exciting treats from his travels... If you find a picture of Coco, hand it to Mrs McA at the Diverse Learning Office to receive your mystery prize! 

Now’s the time to start reminding your teachers to sign up to come and see the InnovatED projects on Monday, 18 November. Trust us; you do not want to miss out on engaging with these creative projects! 

Year 10 InnovatED Organising Committee - Eliana Da Silva, Sofia Russo and Melina Scarcella

Year 9 students Isabelle Calleja (Dwyer) and Genessa Mieli (Brady) have exceeded their compulsory Community Service requirements, raising funds for the Starlight Foundation. Using their passion for crafting, they created over 300 character-themed pens, which they sold throughout the community during the holidays.

The girls delivered 10 Starlight Boxes to various local centres, including Abbotsford Family Pharmacy and Raising Stars Early Learning Centre, where members of the public purchased the pens. We congratulate Isabelle and Genessa on this fantastic initiative!

Donations can be made here if anyone in our community wants to support their efforts.

The train timetable will change on 20 October 2024, affecting most lines across Sydney and some regional and outer metropolitan services. Bus timetables in regional and outer metropolitan areas will also change to match the adjusted train schedule. 

This change is during the NSW Higher School Certificate and may also align with other important dates in the school calendar, so please familiarise yourself with what this may mean for travel to and from school.

When the train timetable changes, some of your usual connections may also change. We encourage you to plan at Transport NSW before travelling and allow extra travel time.