Christian Brothers College Newsletter
Senior Campus 214 Wakefield Street, Adelaide SA 5000 P 08 8400 4200 F 08 8400 4299 Junior Campus 324 Wakefield Street, Adelaide SA 5000 P 08 8400 4222 F 08 8400 4220 CBC Community 178 East Terrace, Children’s Centre Adelaide SA 5000 P 08 8223 5469 F 08 8223 7803
A Birth-12 Catholic College for boys in the Edmund Rice Tradition
Email enquiries@cbc.sa.edu.au Website www.cbc.sa.edu.au
Term 1, Week 9
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Friday 28 March, 2014
CBC celebrates Harmony Day
From The Principal Dear Parents, Friends and Caregivers,
A Call to the Margins Deputy Principal Shaun Clarke led staff prayer on Tuesday morning with a song The Road Less Travelled that was presented at the Brothers Chapter which he attended in Nairobi. The stunning words below provide a beautiful Lenten reflection on how we are called to those on the margins. Last week I printed the very respectful letter from the Archbishop who is meeting with the Royal Commission regarding child abuse. This week let us pray for victims, perpetrators, commissioners and all who hold the tender heart of our children in their hands…
My friend walks the road less travelled An unsealed road of discipline She’s sometimes led and sometimes driven Sometimes hungry, sometimes fed While we, the many, walk a highway Lit so bright it must be true She walks lanes that too few enter Where tiny lanterns dot the gloom. My friend walks a track that’s stony An uphill climb to God knows where Sometimes she’s touched by an ache so poignant Sometimes she’s given to despair While we, the many, skirt the painful We, the many, anaesthetise My friend looks, she seeks her darkness She digs to find the better prize. (Coleman and Bartle, Sunrise after Tilling)
I am so deeply proud of the many ways our CBC students are ‘touched by an ache (to help those in need) so poignant’, one too deep for words. The photos published in last week’s newsletter of our students winning the Red Cross city school blood donation challenge were very poignant and highlighted a deep Lenten message in the sacrifice of our staff and students donating blood so that others may live. This is our 7th straight victory and one which we should all be proud of.
Liberating Education
We open hearts and minds, through quality teaching and learning experiences, so that through critical reflection and engagement each person is hope-filled and free to build a better world for all.
Faith Excellence Community Compassion
Welcome I am pleased to announce the appointment of Mrs Lauren Mazzachi who will commence employment at CBC on 24 March 2014 in the capacity of Payroll Officer (2 days a week). We also welcome new students Jack Hollis-Whiley Year 9 and Harrison Taylor Year 7 and Jayden Taylor Year 5.
Principal News Last Monday and Tuesday I attended a meeting of SA and WA EREA Principals together with our Directors from Melbourne and EREA Regional Director Mr Terry Roberts. The meetings provided an opportunity to showcase best practice in each of our Colleges and to discuss governance issues. Topics for discussion included Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Policy, Growth, Governance and Strategic Directions.
Junior Campus News Our Junior Campus celebrated St Patrick’s Day last week with a liturgy, assembly and festivities. The reception students made Irish hats and talked about the significance of the orange, white and green colours which signify peace and unity.
College Board The College Board met for our second meeting of the year with an emphasis on the Finances of the College. The Board has currently been undergoing an internal review conducted by Board Chairman Mrs Cate McGuire to discern future directions.
Br Michael’s Corner A Child is Born A new baby in the family is a time of celebration and joy but also of change. A baby in the family turns everything upside down and becomes the centre of things. Babies reveal the truth to us that life is precious. Caring for a baby is so demanding that parents realise, perhaps for the first time, what responsibility for another human being means. The new baby makes adults into parents and gives them a vital reason for living. A greater insight into the meaning of life comes with a baby. Hopefully the child will bring the parents closer together in their love for each other, for their child and for their God. The child invites parents to be child-like themselves. Witness a fully-grown man bouncing a child on his knee and making playful gurgling noises. The mother sings and tickles the child and the child blesses her with the ability to find the child in herself. At Christmas a child is born to Mary and Joseph and we realise how extraordinary are God’s ways. We keep thinking that God cares for us yet Mary and Joseph are caring for him! Caring for a child is the best way to discover what kind of God we have. A child changes the parent’s world. Joseph and Mary knew their child meant big trouble for them. Within weeks they are on the run into Egypt as refugees fleeing the violence of Herod. Mary knows the joys of having a child but also the suffering. Somehow Joseph and Mary did it and amazingly so do so many parents today. The joy of new life far outweighs the demands on parents. As the shepherds, the Magi and angels rejoiced that Mary brought a child into the world, we also rejoice and share in the true joy and peace, which a child brings to the family.
Head of the River On Saturday CBC celebrated the Head of the River Regatta -- the culmination of the 2013/14 rowing season. Over 8,000 spectators were present on the day. In one of our best performances since last winning the Head of the River in 1989 CBC made the finals in every division we entered and were victorious in the 9B crew. I congratulate all of our rowers who participated in the regatta and a special vote of thanks to the parent supporters, staff, students past and present and families who attended on the day. A special mention to coach Mr Jarrad Schar and to Mr Justin Wickens and the Water Sports Auxiliary who began the day at 5am setting up for the regatta.
Swimming Another sporting success was reported by Mr Hamilton who wrote in an email to me: On Monday the 17th of March 17 swimmers from Years 4-7 represented CBC in the Catholic swimming carnival in division one held at Marion outdoor pool. All students competed strongly and there were some fabulous results and personal bests which is what the day is all about. The highlight of the day was definitely the relay events and the open boys managed to get a bronze medal with a fantastic come from behind swim. Overall we finished 6th with teams from St Ignatius College and Sacred Heart College dominating the day. A huge thanks and congratulations to our students for all their hard work and effort on the day and to their families for their ongoing support for swimming at CBC. Also a big thank you to Mrs Kingham who attended and helped organise the boys on the day, along with the parents who came and supported the team.
Br. Michael Flaherty
Through this program the Stratco Score and Win competition was run and we are pleased to announce a CBC Student Joseph Tascione participated in a penalty shoot-out at Cooper Stadium on March 21st 2014 during the half time break of the Adelaide United v Sydney game for the chance to win a $1000 voucher. Joseph’s skill and composure under pressure in front of over 17,000 fans saw him beat 9 other strong competitors to claim the prize for his school - CBC. It would be great if Joseph was acknowledged at the school assembly or in a school newsletter… He did an amazing job!!
Harmony Day CBC celebrates boys from 42 different nations across the globe so it was very fitting that we celebrated Harmony Day across the Campuses with poster competitions, special lessons around the theme of racial harmony and flag flying. Every student was presented with a harmony wrist band promoting peace and unity. One tangible measure of our commitment to Harmony comes from our language program led by Ms Toni Riccio. CBC offers Mandarin and Italian from Reception through to Year 12. We are currently in the final stages of implementing a Mandarin language and cultural program in our Community Children’s Centre. 18 CBC students also study a variety of languages off campus through the SA School of Language Students. The following list provides a summary: Mojtaba Ahmadi Denzell Arevalo Santi Ago Enrique Bal Adrian Beesley Dylan Cordero Filip Gorczynski Tuan La Nathan Lobo Andy Ma Yaser Maqsoodi Mohammed Reza Noori Sohan Pramod Mohammad Qorbani Mozafar Rahimi Adian Smith Tomas Stansfield-Labrin Gabriel Torres Maximiliano Vazquez
Year 12 Persian Year 11 Japanese Year 1 Spanish Year 7 Italian Year 1 Spanish Year 12 Polish Year 9 Vietnamese Year 12 Japanese Year 12 Chinese Year 12 Persian Year 12 Persian Year 7 Hindi Year 12 Persian Year 12 Persian Year 11 Japanese Year 6 Spanish Year 12 Spanish Year 5 Spanish
News from the Christian Brothers Chapter: Election of New CLT
Term 1 School Fee Reminder Monthly Fees are due and payable immediately.
School Card Forms Please return these forms to the Finance Office promptly to ensure that you receive any discount that you may be entitled to. If you have any queries please contact The Finance Office on 8400 4207 2
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The 31st Congregation Chapter of the Christian Brothers in Nairobi, Kenya, announces this day, March 25th, the Feast of the Annunciation of the Blessed Virgin Mary, the election of a new Congregation Leadership Team:
Soccer CBC congratulates Joseph Tascione who has won a $1000 Sportspower voucher for CBC to purchase new soccer equipment. In a letter received this week: Stratco is a proud community partner of Adelaide United FC and through the Stratco Community Program; Adelaide United players have visited schools throughout South Australia and the Northern Territory running football clinics that promote healthy body and minds.
Congregation Leader: Deputy Congregation Leader:
Hugh O’Neill cfc Peter Dowling cfc
Councillors: Julian McDonald cfc John Casey cfc Richard Walsh cfc
Mr Noel Mifsud Principal
Christian Brothers Chapter 2014, Nairobi, Kenya
From The Deputy Principal Drawn by Mystery, Destined for Life Every six years the Congregation of Christian Brothers holds a Chapter to plan the future direction and vision of the congregation for the next six years. This year is the Thirty First Congregation Chapter in Nairobi, Kenya and I was fortunate to be one of eight lay people invited to attend the chapter on behalf of the Edmund Rice Network in the world. There were members of the Edmund Rice Network from South Africa, Argentina, Ireland, India, USA and Australia.
He goes on to say, “The spirit of this Institute is that spirit of faith, which inspires its members to view nothing but with the eyes of faith, to do nothing but with a view to God, and to ascribe all to God.” The theme of the 2014 Chapter was, Drawn By Mystery; Destined For Life, and had as its logo Moses’ encounter with the Mystery at the Burning Bush. Everything that subsequently happened in Moses’ life was seen through the lens of this experience. It was here that he realised God was real! Living by faith means accepting that God is real! It is this Moses story that is calling the members of the Chapter (Brothers and others) to think differently, relate differently, love differently and reach out to those on the margins in our world. The Chapter occurs for a whole month, of which the lay people are involved in providing input for discernment for the first two weeks. A Chapter is seen as encompassing the following: • Is an incarnational event that allows the divine to break through and touches an individual’s heart
brothers for each other and to reach out to the other in a way that is life giving for the giver and receiver. The two weeks experience at the Chapter gave me a wonderful insight into the challenges the Brothers have faced in the past and the importance of the congregation thinking anew as it moves into new directions to be with those on the margins in the developing world. While I was at the Chapter I was fortunate to have been involved in immersion experiences in the slums of Nairobi. I visited the Kibera slums which are home to over 1.2 million people. There in the slums is the Mary Rice Centre that supports children who are physically and mentally disabled. Prior to the centre the children were tied in beds and not allowed out of the home due to the stigma of having a disabled child. I met a woman who has nine children, three of which are disabled and now go to the centre to support her children. The African Christian Brothers are doing a wonderful job in very difficult circumstances providing not only education but feeding the children, providing therapy and skill development. Many of the young girls are victims of sexual abuse and the Brothers have sought support for these young women.
• Is an ecclesial event that brings the experience of the Church, the World and Universe raising our consciousness in this changing time? • Is a paschal celebration that calls us to conversion, to seek new directions and to let what happened in the past die, and • Is a way of hearing the Word of God together through communal search, reflection and prayer?
At the First Chapter in his 1832 Rule Edmund Rice wrote: “That which is of the utmost consequence in a Religious Society, and to which, in every community, the greatest regard should be had, is, that all who compose the body be animated by its peculiar spirit; that the Novices labour to acquire it, and that those who have made their vows, make it their first care and chief concern to preserve and augment it in themselves; for it is this spirit that should give life to all their actions, and regulate their whole conduct. Those who do possess it not are to be considered, and should consider themselves as dead members, since they are deprived of the life and spirit of their state; and all should be convinced, that without it, it will be extremely difficult to preserve the grace of God.”
The 2014 Congregational Chapter touched upon all these elements providing time for dialogue, individual reflection, group presentation and discussion and time for prayer and the sharing of Eucharist. As a member of the Edmund Rice Network, not only were we observers at the Chapter but had the opportunity to share our vision and dreams of the network working in partnership with the Brothers not only in the Oceania Province (Australia, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, Timor Leste and the Philippines) but on a global perspective. All provinces from around the world such as Europe, India, Latin America, Africa and North America also presented on what is happening in their region. The Christian Brothers have recently published a publication entitled, A Way Into The Future: Congregation of Christian Brothers – 2020. This publication outlines the vision of the Brothers for the next six years and focuses on building “Brotherhood and Community”, to be
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2014 School calendar Week 10 Mon 31 Mar
Liturgy – 8:35am (JC)
Tues 1 Apr
Year 11 Alert not Alarmed
Wed 2 Apr
Community Mass (8am SC) Smith WSA Meeting at 6.30pm
Thurs 3 Apr
Junior Campus Student/Parent/Teacher Interviews Commencing at 2:30pm
Fri 4 Apr
House Cross Country (Year 7 – 12)
Mon 7 Apr
Liturgy – 8:35am (JC) P&F Meeting Student / Parent / Teacher Interviews (SC) CBCCCC Advisory Committee – 6:15pm
Week 11
Tues 8 Apr Wed 9 Apr
Congregational Leadership Team (L-R): Peter Dowling cfc, Richard Walsh cfc, Hugh O’Neill cfc, Julian McDonald cfc, John Casey cfc Community Mass (8am SC) Walsh China Tour leaves
Thurs 10 Apr Year 10,11& 12 Year Level round tables Term One Concludes Year 11 & 12 Formal JC Assembly R-12 House Event Colour Day Egg & Bacon Breakfast Easter Liturgy
Fri 11 Apr
The Chapter is a four week process of discernment, reflection and dialogue visioning a new direction for the Brothers for the next six years. The Brothers have this week elected a new Congregational Leadership Team for the Christian Brothers. The program of the Chapter occurs in the following phases: • Forming a discerning community (March 3 – 6) • Deepening our sense of the current (March 7 – 11) • Creating the future direction (March 12 – 20)
Friday 11 April 2014 Year 11 and 12 Formal Sun 13 Apr
Palm Sunday – St Francis Xavier’s Cathedral – 11am
Full Term Planner is available at www.cbc.sa.edu.au
Uniform Shop Holiday Trading Hours 2014 April Trading Hours Tuesday 22 April 8.30am - 5pm Wednesday 23 April 8.30am - 5pm
• Discerning and electing leadership (March 21 – 25) • Finalising the future (March 26 – 27) • Taking the message home and closing ritual (March 29 – 30) As we enter the final phases of the Chapter we prayer for the Brothers and their success in creating a new direction for the Congregation and that our schools, as part of the Edmund Rice Network , play an important part in supporting the mission of the Brothers and ensuring we are authentic to the ethos of Blessed Edmund Rice. Further information on the 2014 Christian Brothers Congregation Chapter is available at the website: http://edmundrice.net/chapter2014/
The Chapter calls us all to “Brotherhood”. This is a special calling to a unique way of being Christian. It is a relational term that avoids any sense of hierarchy or privilege. We are called to be brothers to each other, and therefore equally deserving of support and affection and equally challenged to offer the same support and affection. Hidden in the word “brother” is the word “other”, indicating that the call to brotherhood is a call to reach out to the other in a way that is life giving for the giver and the receiver. As a College community we are also called to “Brotherhood” for each other. CHAPTER PRAYER God of mystery Your love draws us unceasingly. As we come to know your life within us teach us to find a mystical heart within. Jesus, help us find our way, with times of silence, with honest reflection on our fragility and trusting acceptance that we are not in control. Holy Spirit, during this special time of Chapter, when we find ourselves facing choices about our future, fill us with openness to the new possibilities you offer. Teach us to move beyond our limited worldview, and take away our fears of sharing your compassion. Amen.
Thursday 24 April 8.30am - 5pm Monday 28 April 8.30am - 5pm (Pupil Free Day) Normal trading hours resume: Wednesday 30 April
Winter Uniforms All new students to the college are required to make an appointment with the Uniform Shop ASAP.
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Mr Shaun Clarke Deputy Principal
Time to Read for the Challenge! The Premier’s Reading Challenge is once again underway with students from Reception to Year 9 encouraged to participate. The challenge requires students to read 12 books before 5th September 2014, which for some may be a real ‘challenge’! However, we all know that reading is a life skill which contributes to lifelong learning and success.
In fact, recent scientific research has confirmed that reading literary fiction improves empathy which ultimately means a good book makes you better able to connect with your fellow human beings. The study by psychologists David Comer Kidd and Emanuele Castano, at the New School for Social Research in New York, have proved that reading literary fiction enhances the ability to detect and understand other people’s emotions, a crucial skill in navigating complex social relationships. If you are interested in further reading the article from The Guardian can be found by following this link: http://bit.ly/1dweJHO Both campus libraries are able to support the Premier’s Reading Challenge with a wide range of book titles, genres and formats. Students will receive their award in November. If you require more information please contact Junior School Librarian, Mr Oliver Harms, or myself. For more information visit the Premier’s Reading Challenge website: http://www.premiersreadingchallenge.sa.edu.au/prc/ Happy Reading! Mrs Sandra Mason Head Librarian/Teacher
Paul McGuire Library Musical Potential
Instrumental Tutor Profile
Matthew Kaesler
I like this quote from Beethoven: “Prince, what you are you are by accident of birth; what I am, I am through my own efforts. There have been thousands of princes and will be thousands more, but there is only one Beethoven!”
Beethoven attributes his skill and ‘talent’ to work ethic. In fact, when you read about men and women of expertise, they all do. They rarely go on about genetic giftedness – which is interesting because much of the public does just that. More than any other subject area, music is assumed to come from a genetic disposition. But there is no evidence for this. A ‘music talent’ gene has not been found. How we attribute our skills and achievements is called Attribution theory. This asks the question “Why am I good at what I do?” For musicians the question might be “Why am I good at music?” Let’s look at three possible responses. 1. I was born this way. I got lucky in the genetic lottery and have a special innate musical gift. 2. I have a really good teacher. In fact my teacher once told me, “I will make you a fine musician.”
Clarinet and Saxophone Matthew started playing clarinet aged 8, switched to saxophone as a main instrument at 14 and went on to complete a Bachelor of Music in Jazz Performance from Elder Conservatorium in 2009. He performs regularly both locally and nationally with Adelaide-based swing band Lucky 7, in which he is also musical director, as well as work in other bands. Matthew also works as a freelance composer and arranger. Matthew’s area of interest is jazz and associated music however he is also able to teach classical to a high level.
3. I work at it. I practise hard, I seek advice, and I learn from my mistakes. My effort is the primary reason for my progress. The first two responses attribute competency to factors outside of the self. This mindset undermines autonomy, which in turn undermines intrinsic motivation. The third response supports autonomy and an internal locus of control. This is a growth-intelligence mindset that fosters positive learning behaviours. Mr Michael Griffin Head of Music
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Wal sh Hous e Walsh House Leaders (L-R): Brian Wilson, Siddarth Rajagopal, Jayson Withworth, Yash Giri, Daniel Petrilli, Leon Kasperski, Callum Leaney, Maxwell Ryszawa, Natawood Janthet, Frazer Lathey-Owen, Michael Cutufia, Lawrence Rigon, Darcy Thompson-Bagshaw, Michael Petrilli. Absent: Jack Owens, Stefan Ryschka, Ryan Santos, Jovan Bojovic, Jonah Byrnes
Walsh House Assistants and SRC at the Senior Campus Congratulations to all the students below. Their enthusiasm in propagating the Walsh House name and our causes are excellent. I thank them all and in particular Captain of Walsh House, Brian Wilson and Michael Petrilli who is responsible for Junior Campus affairs. The team members for Walsh House 2014 are:
SRC Year 7 Year 8 Year 9 Year 10 Year 11
Year 11 TG House Assistants Daniel Petrilli Jayson Whitworth Siddarth Rajagopal Leon Kasperski Liam Cullinan
House Assistants Year 7 Year 8 Year 9 Year 10 Year 12 Year 12
WEWO WWBE WDMC WNKA
Frazer Lathey-Owen Michael Cutufia Ryan Santos Semester 1: Jovan Bojovic Semester 2: Jonah Byrnes WGWA Gogo Janthet WGJA Jack Owens
Yash Giri Maxwell Ryszawa Callum Leaney Stefan Ryschka Darcy Thompson- Bagshaw Lawrence Rigon
They have all already contributed to all of our activities and I look forward to their continued commitment to our Walsh House family.
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Red Cross / Head of the River Assembly On the 14 March Marks and Walsh House combined to hold a school assembly. From the Walsh perspective, we acknowledged the rowers; however we also paid an equal attention to the presenters from Red Cross which is our nominated charity. We were honoured to receive the Red Cross prize for blood donation for seven years running thanks to the enthusiasm and drive generated by our Deputy Mr Shaun Clarke. Adam De Pierro our College Captain accepted this on behalf of CBC from Ms Pamela Cornes. She reiterated to the students the need to register and family members can also be involved. Ms Cornes also introduced Ms Jane Every who shared her remarkable story of her personal family journey and emphasised, in very personal terms, how blood donations helped. She was a very inspirational speaker who touched many hearts. Walsh students wore their Red Cross shirts to acknowledge both speakers.
Red Cross Calling Collection Day Walsh House has proudly continued the tradition of collecting for Red Cross on Friday 14 March in the CBD. It was a proud moment for the House as it also involved the Year 5 and 6 Junior Campus students. This connection with the Junior Campus is one of the priorities for Walsh House this year. There will be other initiatives that the Walsh student leadership team are already considering to put in place in the coming months. My sincere thanks to the Junior Campus teachers particularly Mr Chris Gann and Mrs Caroline Clarke in addition to the Senior Campus Walsh teachers (Ms Emma Woehle, Ms Wen Ben, Mr Dan McMahon, Mr Noel Karcher, Mr Greg Ward, Mr Brad Genner, Ms Rose Chambers, Mrs Sandra Mason, Mr Alex Ly and Mrs Sonia Rechichi) who supervised the students in the CBD. We thank Red Cross for providing the T-shirts, collection containers and badges. We also thank Ms Nicole Baker, Senior Community Development Executive, for her support, encouragement and continued interest of Walsh House and indeed Christian Brothers College’s commitment.
Year 9 and 10 Retreat Days
It was wonderful to see the students and teachers getting into the spirit of the occasion for such a worthy cause. On reflection it was also a wonderful opportunity for Walsh House to support our charity but also to develop a real sense of community within the House and be outreaching.
I led the Year 9 retreat with the theme “The Socially Just Life”. We explored the influences in our lives (Road of Life), shared in group work, respectful relationships, how we at CBC outreach to the world where Mr Dan McMahon presented the Vietnam pilgrimage and I the Philippine pilgrimage. We concluded with affirmations and prayer.
I am impressed with the commitment and selflessness of the staff and students to this cause. We are proud to report that (after the enthusiastic counting of public donations) Walsh House will be able to contribute approximately $3,300.00 to Red Cross. The extraordinary thing is that we as a House raised this amount in 45 minutes.
I congratulate students in both year levels on their behaviour, contributions to discussion, general participation, respect for each other and their maturity.
Walsh Barbeque I thank the Walsh Leadership students for contributing their organisational skills and time to this event to raise extra funds for Red Cross and Walsh initiatives, such as raising funds to for our mascot.
Harmony Day We participated in making anti-bullying posters and videos in addition to links of orange peace messages on the day. The videos will be shown in House and school assembly. My thanks to all staff and students for their effort in promoting this important cause.
Year 9 and 10 Retreats The Year 10 retreat was led by Mr Greg Ward with the theme “Youth and Spirituality” focusing on scripture which complemented the theme of the retreat. He lead the students through the power of prayer, the Beatitudes, humility, the important things in life, looking after one’s spiritual self and explored the important areas of good and bad choices in their lives.
The Year 7, 8, 11 and 12 retreats will occur in the terms to follow. Information to parents and students will be forthcoming as the events get closer. I wish to thank these senior students for their input to these retreats, taking their time off studies which most certainly contributed to the success of the retreats: Adam De Pierro, Brian Wilson, Michael Petrilli, Darcy Thompson-Bagshaw, Calum Philps and Rhys Nihill. I encourage all students to participate in the retreats as it offers an opportunity to share and self-reflect on their lives. Our students lead such busy lives and this one opportunity (of many) to explore their own spirituality and get in touch with what are the important things in their lives at this stage of their journey. The other critical aspect is the sharing of their stories, in confidence with others. This builds trust and relationships which can extend back to the school and their families. Perhaps Br Pinto is more succinct when he said, “The difference between a stranger and a friend is merely a story”. Mr Gary Jalleh
Head of Walsh House
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and healthy living within a meaningful, engaged, and participatory environment.
Director Junior Campus, Vision and Innovation The Case for Camp — Why Kids Need Them More Than Ever Dear Parents and Caregivers, As you would be aware due to the educational leadership of Christopher Gann, Melanie O’Leary, Marti Madigan, Kate Younie and Oliver Harms our Year 5 students had a wonderful opportunity to participate in the Active Education Camp at Aldinga Beach. Shaun and I had the pleasure of sharing just a snapshot of this experience with staff and students when we visited the campsite Tuesday evening. What struck me in the conversations we shared were the joy, excitement and sheer delight of the boys. In reflecting upon this moment what resonated for me, was that even those boys who at times struggle with school life were shining in this context and had a strong sense of success, connectedness and belonging. In their stories, they conveyed so naturally the risk taking and the successes and failures that come when they learnt something new. This brought me to think about change and how we often see it as something to fear, something we need to shelter our children from, something that we often associate with anxiety, but this was not what I was seeing or hearing, this was the joy of a new experience, creating challenge and new learning. This was about a celebration, a celebration of what is right and the realisation of new achievements. This was about opening their eyes and seeing the opportunity to try something new and with both their love and courage engaged, immersing themselves in this learning experience and what it had to teach them. Change is a part of life. It is often directly related to survival and can enrich one’s life in ways unexpected. Childhood is in essence a time of profound change and development. It is exciting and disquieting at the same time. Yet more and more we sanitise our children’s world and so heavily scaffold change that our protective actions sometimes contribute to the fear and anxiety rather than allowing them to look at a situation with open eyes and find the opportunity, for the challenge to grow. Every instinct in us as parents is to protect our children, but is there a need for us, at times, to step back and know within them is an ability to manage and come out the other end shining. Current research speaks strongly and conclusively about the constant risk factors that are eroding our society and general wellbeing. It consistently speaks of the importance to be active, to have balance, to develop a strong sense of identity, of belonging and connectedness, to take risks and to build character and resilience in challenging situations. Camps are a natural place in which these protective factors are grown and CBC throughout its history and the legacy of the brothers has always strongly advocated for the benefits of outdoor education, co-curricular sport, camps and excursions. A quality camp experience provides our children with the opportunity to learn powerful lessons in community, character-building, skill development,
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Camp, through its construct, promotes community. It creates a great learning space that allows children to explore how to live together and care for one another. There are norms and negotiation of boundaries; there are rules. Camp is a place where children can “practise” growing up, stretching their social, emotional, physical, and cognitive muscles in a safe space outside the context of their immediate family. It provides our boys with a context to explore what it means to be part of the Christian Brothers family and to practise inclusivity as a community, where everyone belongs, everyone has a place and sense of identity. To practise being ‘brother’ to each other, to show love and respect for each other, to grow and develop each other and to ensure at journey’s end everyone shines. As this is a learning environment in which our boys can further develop their ability to be critical and creative thinkers, it involves the boys actively in the learning process. The future, more than ever, demands that our children will be able to wield knowledge and come to any given situation as a problem solver. We need the science, maths, and biology, but without the ability to relate, connect, empathise, or inspire innovation, how will our children be able to liberate the world they live in and make a difference. Camp has the potential to develop these skills and capabilities and in doing so fosters the creation of future leaders. Camp provides an authentic context in which children will often experience compassionate leadership. Thus, by its construction and life giving opportunity, camp so beautifully addresses universal childhood needs, not specific to a particular racial, ethnic, or socio-economic group.
be experienced to be appreciated. Children still need the experiences of catching tadpoles in the creek, wandering among the trees in the parklands, or for our Reception-Year 2 student next week wondering what will hatch out of those ‘living eggs’ and how long it will take. It still is about breathing in that fresh air and feeling the sun on their faces to understand the importance of creation and all living things. One of the greatest gifts we can give our children is a belief and confidence in them to embrace life, to walk outside their comfort zone and maintain a thirst and courage to learn and experience new things each day. What I hope for each and every one of our boys is that through their camp experience, and as they jumped on the bus to return home, they were able to place in their pocket an “I Can Do It” attitude and a large slice of love and courage, that will push them to life’s edge and in that moment they find their wings and fly. In closing I leave you with this beautiful quote to reflect upon: “Come to the edge, Life said. They said: We are afraid. Come to the edge, Life said. They came. Life pushed them... And they flew.” Guillaume Apollinaire, French Poet
Mrs Caroline Clarke Director Junior Campus, Vision and Innovation
Camp embraces the natural environment. While children have fewer and fewer opportunities to be outdoors, the camp experience advances the outdoor learning environment. As we become more concerned about saving the planet, we run out and make DVDs and videos about it. But the environment needs to
Carrol is coming to Christian Brothers College. Carrol our School Banking Specialist is coming to talk to us about the Commonwealth Bank School Banking program. The School Banking program includes an exciting and exclusive Rewards Program that encourages students to get into the habit of saving regularly. Every time your child makes a deposit at school they receive a silver Dollarmites token. Once students have individually collected 10 tokens they can redeem them for an exclusive School Banking reward item in recognition of their continued savings behaviour. Your school gets rewarded too. Every new account earns CBC $5 and CBA pays a 5% commission on all deposits processed via the School Banking web‐site. Carrol will be available from 2pm Thursday April during parent /teacher interviews to assist in opening accounts and answering any queries you may have. Remember, School Banking day is every Tuesday at CBC.
ALDINGA
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No. 6. It is clear who is in charge Families do not work well as democracies. In fact they seem to work best as benevolent dictatorships in which the parent or parents consult a lot with their children but at the end of the day, the parent has the final say.
Junior Campus Counsellor Ten Hints for Creating Resilient Families Resilience is the fine art of being able to bungy jump through life. The pitfalls are still there but it is as if you have an elasticised rope around your middle that helps you to bounce back from hard times. No. 1 Promote Belonging Resilience is the happy knack of being able to bungy jump through the pitfalls of life. It is the strongest antidote we know of for self-harm, depression and drug abuse and it’s built on our sense of belonging. No. 2 Have some mooch time We live in a world that suffers from attention deficit disorder. We rush children from activity to activity, from lesson to lesson and from one organised event to another. Then we wonder why, when there is a lull that they say “I’m bored”. Be a counter-revolutionary. Find some time each week just to be at home without anything structured happening. No. 3 Rediscover some family rituals It doesn’t matter whether it is the family walk after dinner, the Sunday roast, the Friday night pizza or the Saturday morning clean up, rituals are highly protective. The best rituals often cost nothing. These are the activities you hope that later on your children will reminisce and say “Mum always made sure we did” or “Dad always made sure we did.”
Some parents fear that if they take charge that they will lose the friendship of their children, but often the reverse is true. In families where parents fail to take their own role seriously, children may feel that to express their independence. No. 7 Consistency Consistency is the ideal. Having parents who agree on rules and standards and who convey the same sorts of messages and who value compassion over coercion, clearly has the best outcome in terms of children’s well being. It is also important that parents not be open to manipulation and work together as a team. Life however is not always so simple and we all know from sad and sour experience that parents cannot always be consistent. Sometimes parents have different value systems or can’t come to a consistent way to handle particular areas. In these situations, a second possibility is for one parent to take charge of a particular area. This is not the most desirable solution but it is better than having parents in conflict over management issues or worse, undermining one another. In single parent families or where parents are separated the same principle applies. No. 8 Teach the skills of Self-esteem Families that work well seem to praise one another a lot. Compliments are made, positive efforts are commented on. Optimism is in the air. Even in these families, teenagers still shrug and say, “yeah Mum” or “yeah Dad” whenever a compliment is made. Teaching the skills of self-praise is useful. One way of doing this to ask questions extensively about any
No. 4 Spontaneity and curiosity Spontaneity and curiosity are the building blocks of good mental health. You cannot tell someone how to have better mental health and you can’t give it to them by getting them to read a book.
achievement or accomplishment. Asking questions that like “how did you do that?”, “How come you did so well at that test?”, “What did you do?” and “have you been doing homework behind my back?” No. 9. Know how to argue Families that work well know how to argue. It seems strange to say this because we all have the sense those families that work well don’t have conflicts. The family is really where we learn to resolve disputes fairly. The way that parents teach children to resolve differences of opinion with their brothers and sisters provides the basis for sharing, negotiating and problem solving in the world beyond the family. While differences of opinion should be allowed to be expressed, children also need to learn that they will not be able to win at all costs. 10. Parents are reliably unpredictable With young children it is important to provide consistency and predictability. This allows them to feel sure of you. After a while though, a bit of unpredictability can go a long way. To many children, most parents are about as predictable as a washing machine cycle. It is important to have structure and consistency but it is also useful to act in ways that your children wouldn’t expect. This keeps them interested in learning from you or least wondering what you are up to. Perhaps the most important feature of parents in healthy families is that they realise that all of the above is desirable but not always possible and so they look at how to promote good functioning while not wasting energy on blaming themselves for the times when things don’t quite work out as they had planned. www.andrewfuller.com.au Ms Fiona Dunstan Junior Campus Counsellor
How to Talk to Children About Tragedy Sadly bad stuff happens in life. In fact every day as the news is broadcast across television, internet and other news media sources children are seeing and hearing about events that may have them asking questions. As parents we naturally want to protect our children from tragedy
How to Children About Tragedy So the really hard message here isto thatTalk if you want to ,however rather than avoiding explanations, or brushing them off with “you don’t need to worry about that“, it’s important to begin raise your children to have mentally healthy lives you are conversations with children by focussing on making children feel safe in their immediate world , rather Sadlytime bad yourself. stuff happens in life. going to have to have a good If you wantIn fact every day as the news is broadcast across television, internet and other news media sources than their fears associated with the events they may have seen or heard. your children to succeed you need to show them that children are seeing and hearing about events that may have them success is worth having. asking questions. Some of the best advice I have heard in this area was by a man called Fred Rodgers (an American No. 5 Love kids for theirAsdifferences parents we naturally want to protect our children from tragedy ,however than avoiding When families function well peoplerather are allowed to be explanations, or brushing them off with “you differences. don’t need to worry about that“, it’s important to begin different and to be loved for those
educator) who once said , “When I was a boy and would see scary things on the news, my mother would say to me ,”look for the helpers, you will always find people helping”. So following on from this valuable advice - looking for the helpers amidst the tragedy, is a good way to begin conversations with children about bad stuff. Initially try and find out what your children already
conversations with children by focussing on making children feel safe in their rather know, theyimmediate may know world a lot or, very little about the event, either way it’s a good starting point for fears associated children than take their on different roles. Awith the events they may have seen or heard. conversations. Children may be experiencing a whole range of emotions ranging from fear, anger, or
We all know that sadness. Using age appropriate language the focus needs to be kept on building their sense of safety father of three said “it’s as if they have a planning Some of the best advice I have heard in this area was by a man called Fred Rodgers American and security and (an making sense of the world around them, whilst at the same time acknowledging their meeting once a year and say ‘you be the good kid, I’ll educator) who once said , “When I was a boy and would see scary things on the news, my mother would emotions. be the sick kid and the other one can be the troublesay to me ,”look for the helpers, you will always find people helping”. maker!’ And then just when you think you’ve got it So for example a discussion regarding the recent airline tragedy might be: “A very sad thing happened a country called Malaysia. A plane has gone missing with passengers on So following the tragedy, is a goodinway to figured out they change roles again”. on from this valuable advice - looking for the helpers amidst
board. Many people from different countries are out helping to look for the plane. Planes fly all the time begin conversations with children about bad stuff. Initially try and find out what your children already
this was a very unusual event. Usually planes are safe and fun to travel on. The people who own Having children who are strongly individual anda lot or very little about the event, either wayand know, they may know it’splanes a goodare starting point for the now looking at ways to make flying on planes even safer, so that no more planes will get Children may be experiencing a whole range of emotions lost.”ranging from fear, anger, or who have a sense of who conversations. they are is a sign of good sadness. Using be agethat appropriate parenting. The problem may, of course they willlanguage the focus needs to be kept on building their sense of safety It’s important focus on all thetheir people who do help to keep us safe. You could mention police, and security and making sense of the world around them, whilst at the same timetoacknowledging then express their independent spirit in ways that you ambulance officers, teachers, and football or netball coaches, even babysitters all keep us safe in emotions. don’t like. The ideal is a mix between someone who different parts of our life. Talking to children about the people who keep them safe and then doing some preserves their own uniqueness and is able to workregarding the recent airline tragedy might So for example a discussion be:“what ifs” there was an emergency, who would keep them safe, can reassure and help your child develop “A very sad thing happened goneresilience. missing with passengers on with others without becoming dictated to by them. in a country called Malaysia. A plane has board. Many people from different countries are out helping to look for the plane. Planes fly all the time Someone who has their own independent nature but see this blog with others and this was a very unusual event. Usually planes are safe and fun To to travel on. Thealong people who own such as: How Do You Know if Someone is Suicidal, Talking to is comfortable enough with to allow interthethemselves planes are now looking at ways to make flying on planes even safer, so that no more planes will getPractical Talk Parenting website at Your Child About Anxiety, visit our lost.” dependence. http://www.parentingtalk.org.au
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INSIGHT
It’s important to focus on all the people who do help to keep us safe. You could mention police, ambulance officers, teachers, and football or netball coaches, even babysitters all keep us safe in different parts of our life. Talking to children about the people who keep them safe and then doing some “what ifs” there was an emergency, who would keep them safe, can reassure and help your child develop resilience.
To see this blog along with others such as: How Do You Know if Someone is Suicidal, Talking to Your Child About Anxiety, visit our Practical Talk Parenting website at http://www.parentingtalk.org.au
OSHC April Programme Book Now! Details on www.cbc.sa.edu.au WHAT’S ON THIS VACATION CARE? Monday 14th of April
Thursday 17th of April
Willy Wonka Day
Easter Day
Join us as we explore Willy Wonka’s Chocolate Factory. We will create, invent and taste our way through a range of delicious creations.
Come in and join us as we hop into a day of fun Easter activities. We will take part in a range of fun craft, cooking and active experiences based around the Easter Celebration.
Tuesday 15th of April
Harry Potter Day Today we celebrate one of the most popular children’s book characters of all time. Join us in a game of Quidditch and help us make cauldron cup cakes. Wednesday 16th of April We will be heading to the Adelaide Zoo to spend the day talking with the animals. Please remember to bring a packed lunch, drink bottle and comfortable shoes! Departing: 9:30am Return: 2:00pm
Friday 18th of April Good Friday Holiday Monday 21st of April Easter Monday Holiday
Wednesday 23rd of April
Slam dunk! We will be heading over to CBC Stadium to perfect our basketball skills. Join us for a day filled with fun and exciting basketball themed activities. Thursday 24th of April
Little Ninjas We will be exploring anti‐bullying, stranger danger and basic self‐defense through games, team building exercises, safety and self‐defense drills with the Little Ninjas team. Friday 25th of April ANZAC day Public Holiday
Tuesday 22nd of April
Pirate Island Come aboard our ship to Pirate Island. Find the pirate within as we explore a range of activities from a pirate adventure course to exciting craft based activities. Prepare for a swashbuckling adventure! ARCADE GAMES WILL BE AVAILABLE FROM MON 14/4‐THURS 17/4
BADMINTON Open C Badminton 22 March 2014
CBC 12 defeated Pedare 0 The team had another exceptional Saturday winning all games in two sets. We were short two players this week, but as we knew this at Thursday’s meeting everyone was prepared to play extra games wherever the need arose. Christian D’Addario played an additional two singles while Chris Mathew and Jacob Sunter played an extra doubles match. Other players this week were John Neindorf, Marek Wojcik and James Rojas. A reminder to please check the starting times carefully for future games and be prompt in arriving. Well played everyone! Mrs Anna Memma Coach
CRICKET First XI Cricket 22 March 2014
PAC 5/213 defeated CBC 10/48 With showers clearing on a bright day we arrived at the PAC Main Oval resplendent in blazers and caps looking very much the part and anticipating a challenging match with relish. The boys looked sharp in the warm-up with Mr Yates priming them for a solid start in the field. Jack Strange opened the bowling with support from Michael Cotsios at the other end. Both looked to trouble the batsmen but were unable to break through. I must commend Jack Strange on
his efforts in often opening both the batting and bowling throughout the season. Rhys Nihill bowled superbly early; on the spot with good sharp turn but incredibly couldn’t hold a couple of hot chances from his own bowling. I say incredibly because Rhys has been catching brilliantly wherever he fields, and to prove that he took an outfield catch later that while catchable, was swirling in the breeze and may have been dropped by a less experienced player. James Gates had them on the back foot and watchful early. After his maiden over he was 0/3 from 4 and with a couple of wickets in his second spell he looks the likely strike bowler to carry our hopes next season. Harrison Rogers struggled for control but put some balls right where he wanted, then Patrick Aplin took a wicket in his first over for CBC Firsts. Long-time stalwart John Escleo broke through in his 5th over then backed up with another wicket in his 6th with the score out to 3/188. With Gates’ late wickets we restricted them to 213 with solid pressure at the end but the middle overs let a few too many runs through. In our innings we started solidly but once we lost Cotsios in the 7th there was a rush of falling wickets. Escleo played sensibly, leaving good balls and attempting to score from looser deliveries but ultimately only he and Cots succeed in the challenge issued by Graham Yates in anticipation of this game. I would like to thank Graham for all his guidance with the boys. His experience and passion made a huge difference in their cricketing development technically and philosophically, and with their confidence on the field. I would also like to thank all the parents for their support throughout the season, especially in the home games where Tea was served beautifully. Sincere thanks also to Mr Carrieri for umpiring so professionally, and Mr Buttfield for his tireless work in overseeing the cricket program. Best with Ball: J Gates 2/30 (9), J Escleo 2/34 (7) Best with Bat: J Escleo 13, M Cotsios 10 Man of the Match: J Escleo Mr Josh Roach Coach
Tennis Drive Tennis Round 5 12 March 2014
Pembroke 7 defeated CBC 2 Another tough assignment for our boys. We played well below our best and squandered chances. We must learn to fight for every point and to stay mentally strong. Often we gave up points when we could have played that extra defensive shot to stay in the point and make the opponent play one more shot. George Wong had a very convincing 6-2 win against a very competent player. He showed the advantage of staying in the long rallies without panicking. The other win came from Alex Stefanopoulos 6-3 who is beginning to show some good form. Jack Owens, Stefan Mittiga, Brad Graham and Pierce Hynes all had unforgettable matches for all the wrong reasons. Round 6 15 March 2014
CBC 5 defeated Blackfriars 4 A great morning’s tennis played on the stadium No. 1 and 2 courts at Memorial Drive. The courts, the atmosphere and the conditions were a recipe for some high quality competitive tennis. We started brilliantly going up 4-1 with excellent doubles wins to George Wong/Jack Owens 6-2 and Alex Stefanopoulos / Brad Graham 6-2 and then sensational singles wins from Jack Owen 6-0 and Alex 6-2. Especially pleasing was the way Jack played against a dangerous but one dimensional opponent. Just goes to prove that a smart player will always beat a flashy one! The morning’s result came down to the showcase matchup of the No. 1’s when George absolutely blitzed his opponent INSIGHT
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6-1 with some devastating tennis. Brilliant stuff to record our first win of the year. Well done to all members of the team. Mr Paul Horgan Coach
Senior C Tennis 22 March 2014
CBC 7 sets (56 games) defeated St Ignatius As 5 sets (46 games) Saturday’s encounter against St Ignatius proved to be our toughest challenge yet. From the beginning, the signs were ominous and to secure a win, the lads had to dig deep and play their best tennis. To their credit, that is exactly what they did. Christian Tarzia/Matthew Dell’Orso (2-6) came up against hard hitting opponents and were early causalities in their doubles match. However, Thomas Signore/Gogo Janthet (6-0), Matthew Italiano/Luke Zounis (6-2) and Brandon Shunmugam/Adrian Niscioli (7-5) performed impressively to give us a handy lead before the singles. A formidable St Ignatius team came out fighting, determined to make a contest of the rubber. After taking three early sets from us, Tarzia (0-6), Dell’Orso (2-6) and Signore (2-6), the opposition was clearly gaining momentum. Fortunately, Janthet (6-0), Zounis (6-1) and Shunmugam (6-2) played confidently and easily dispensed of their opponents to put the team ahead and closer to victory. But the highlights of the day come from Italiano (6-7) who played magnificently but went down 5-7 in the tiebreak and Niscioli (7-5) who came from behind after losing the first four games to post an absolutely rousing victory for himself and the team. Well done to all the players! Mr George Caretti Coach
Middle B Tennis 22 March 2014
CBC vs Nazareth Our Junior Middle B Tennis team had their final match for this term against Nazareth on Saturday. With a resounding win of 10 games to 2, our boys played extremely well. Bryce Kosters and Nivin Kovukunnel spent just over an hour battling their doubles team, but finally, after many “sudden deaths”, won 7 games to 6. This was reminiscent of Adrian Best’s singles game last week, where he spent a record one hour, 20 minutes to finally record a victory over his opponent. Kevin Liao also faced a challenge in his singles game, but managed to achieve a win of 7 games to 5. Well played, boys! This was a great term’s effort, with more to look forward to in Term 4! Ms Liz Tidemann Coach
Water polo Senior Water Polo 14 March 2014
Pembroke 16 defeated CBC 4 Goal Scorers: Tyson Sarunic 3, Laurence Giannetta 1 We were off to a flying start with an early goal and the first quarter was very tight. We trailed by two goals at quarter time and the scene was set for a tight match. Unfortunately when Pembroke lifted their effort in the second quarter we were unable to match them. Pembroke were harder at the contest than us and they kept their positions far
more effectively. It was a tough night in goals for Andrew Nguyen and he received little support from our defence. Tyson Sarunic fought hard all night and was constantly under pressure whenever he went near the ball. This was probably our worst performance for the season and the boys are keen to atone for it in our last match next week. Mr Rick Mackereth Coach
Middle Water Polo 14 March 2014
CBC 7 defeated PAC 4 2 Goal Scorers: Henry Barker 2, Isaac Giannetta 2, Tyler Cappelluti 2, Laurence Giannetta 1 We fought hard in the first quarter and trailed by one goal but we were destined for a great result in this match. It was tough in the first half when we were competing with the sun in our eyes and to lead by one at half time displayed our effort. In the second half we had total control and credit must go to the PAC goalie who made many fine saves to let them get closer than the match really was. Isaac Giannetta had been monstered in the Senior game and his controlled aggression was a highlight for our team. Our goalies in Henry Barker and Cooper Lienert were also excellent making many fine saves. Laurence Giannetta was excellent as the midfield marshal and Mitch Starr played his best game ever setting up goals in the first half and switching to defence in the second half to keep it very tight. It was an excellent whole team performance. Mr Rick Mackereth Coach
Canteen Volunteers Needed! For further information, please contact Penny on 8400 4240 or Lisa on 8400 4222, ext. 118.
Watersports 5 April 2014 Presentation Night The CBC Water Sports Auxiliary warmly invite you to celebrate the achievements of the CBC Rowers at the 2014 Watersports Presentation Night.
Venue CBC Gymnasium 214 Wakefield Street, Adelaide
Cost Adults and Water Sports students: $30 Children under 12 years: $15 Tickets are available from the CBC Finance Office.
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Tickets must be pre-purchased by COB on Friday 28th March for catering purposes.
Date 6.30 for 7pm start, 5th April 2014
For additional information please contact Mirella Kakogianis on 0438 815 061
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