Last week Father Michael Moody and Parish Secretary Margaret Cassar filmed Mass in our beautiful chapel.

You can follow the link below to watch the Mass. Our lovely artworks inside the chapel and from the surrounding school grounds feature at the beginning of the clip.

In his homily, Father Michael spoke of the difference between wishful thinking and hope.

“Hope imagines the real.”

As we plan for the return to face-to-face teaching, staff and students alike are full of hope. They can see the real possibilities this will bring and look forward to the friendly smiles and laughter of students that we have all missed so much.

As the countdown continues, let us all remain as hope-filled people.

Mass CRC Melton Chapel Sunday 17 May

COVID-19 update

Some students may be feeling anxious about the return to school. I wish to assure parents and students that the College is working on several strategies to support a safe return to school.

A student guide sheet will be distributed soon. What remains consistent is the advice to maintain good hygiene practices to reduce the risk of transmission. The College has arranged hand sanitiser in every classroom and all toilets have been fully stocked with soap and dryers.

Students are encouraged to bring their own water bottles. Drinking fountains will be turned off with water only available from the taps.

Students will be advised of separate areas dedicated to recess and lunch breaks.

Parents are asked not to gather around entrance points but to remain in the car during drop-off and pick-up. Students travelling by bus should practice hand hygiene before and after catching transport. Several gates will be open at the front of the school to avoid crowding on entry and departure.

Extra cleaning routines have been established at the school to reduce the risk of contamination. These will be undertaken both throughout the day and again after school.

Most importantly, students who feel ill or have any symptoms of COVID-19 must remain home until they feel well.

Any student who demonstrates symptoms of illness will be isolated in the College sick bay and parents and guardians will be contacted to collect them.

McDonald’s and our students

The recent announcement of the closure of several McDonald’s outlets may have implications for our students.

As we approach the first phase of opening the school for increased student numbers, I seek vigilance and caution on everyone’s part. Any student who works at one of the closed McDonald’s outlets is asked to seek out testing for COVID-19 and to self isolate for 14 days or until test results are received.

This self-isolation from the College would also apply to any siblings of the McDonald’s staff member or parents who may work at the College. Year Level Coordinators have today emailed all students to make contact with those who may be affected.

College assembly

This week our student leaders arranged a virtual assembly for our students which will be viewed during our usual assembly time on Thursday.

I’d like to thank our student leaders who have worked so hard to maintain our connections and ensure that while we are physically apart, we remain very much connected.

Student free day - Monday 25 May

A reminder that Monday 25 May is a student-free day to enable staff to prepare for the first stage of transition back to face-to-face teaching.

Year 11 and 12 students will return to the College on Tuesday 26 May. This includes students in Year 10 who study a Unit 1 / 2 Subject but does not include Year 10 Religion and Society. Year 10 students undertaking VCE studies, including VCE VET and VCAL studies, should also attend school for those classes where practicable. Year 10 students unable to travel home at the end of their scheduled VCE/VET classes may be supervised at school for the remainder of the day.

As the College community moves towards returning to the classroom for face-to-face teaching, there will be both excitement and feelings of anxiousness.

I would like to thank all teachers and student support officers who have supported our students through Distance Learning Mode (DLM). This has not been experienced before, and as a result, everyone has been on an enormous learning curve.

On return to the College we have asked our teachers to use the first week for consolidation and checking for gaps in learning. This will be based on the learning that has occurred for the majority of our students.

Students who have not engaged in learning during DLM will be required to catch up on significant class tasks and assessments during lunchtime Homework Club, running in the first week.

Teachers will advise Year Level Coordinators which students they are concerned about and the work required. It is then the student’s responsibility to ensure this is achieved, with the usual College policies in place.

Due to the impact COVID-19 has had on learning, there will be no examinations this semester. Teachers will use the extra time to complete the curriculum requirements this semester.

Teachers will reflect on learning and teaching practices used during DLM and identify strategies that may enhance learning on return to the classroom environment.

Differentiation and e-learning strategies have continued to grow across the curriculum. This is aligned with the College’s Strategic Improvement Plan.

To provide a sustainable schedule during the last few weeks of DLM, students in Year 8 and 9 have moved to 60-minute lessons with a 15-minute ‘brain break’ between classes. Year Level Coordinators have sent out information to students and parents about this change.

The reduction in screen time, and the opportunity to take a mental break between classes will support our students’ engagement in their learning. This has been well received by our Year 7 students, for whom it was implemented two weeks ago.

Throughout DLM the support from parents and guardians has been invaluable. We thank our community for providing a viable learning environment at home and supporting our teachers and student support officers while they delivered quality curriculum and positive learning experiences.

Year 7 Science students used household objects to create models of the water cycle during their classes last week.

The task called for creativity and enabled students to gain a better understanding of how water moves through the planet and why the water cycle is so important to life on earth.

Some of their work is pictured below.

Lydia Fus

Science Teacher

Uniform

Now that we have a date for the return of students to school, it is time to ensure they are prepared with their full school winter uniform.

The requirements are set out below and in the student diary. A reminder that the College Blazer is the external garment to be worn to and from school.

Girls

Blazer - Compulsory - it is the required external garment worn to and from school

Winter Kilt - CRC Tartan - length to knees

Tailored Slacks - CRC slacks

Shirt - White long sleeve shirt with CRC monogram

Jumper - Can only be worn to and from the College if under the blazer

Tie - The College tie is compulsory

Tights - Navy blue

Socks - Long navy blue

Shoes - Black leather lace-up school shoes

Scarf - Navy blue

Boys

Blazer - Compulsory - it is the required external garment worn to and from school

Trousers - Navy blue with CRC monogram

Shirt - White long sleeve shirt with CRC monogram

Jumper - Can only be worn to and from the College if under the blazer

Tie - The College tie is compulsory

Socks - Long navy blue

Shoes - Black leather lace-up school shoes

Scarf - Navy blue

The PE uniform is only worn when the student has a timetabled PE or Drama/Dance class, or when otherwise specified by the College Leadership team. CRC sports socks are compulsory for all year levels. Excessive jewellery and facial piercings must be removed, and boys must be clean-shaven.

We would appreciate your support to ensure your child is wearing the College uniform correctly to and from school. A reminder that Academy Uniforms is open with normal trading hours. They are fully stocked and adhering to social distancing and disinfecting all surfaces between sales. Their online service is also available at all times.

Elevate Education

Elevate Education will run its final webinar Independent Learning and Smart Study on Thursday 28 May at 6pm for parents and guardians who want to help their children study smart.

As COVID-19 restrictions are gradually lifted, these tips will help students transition back to a normal routine and set them up for the rest of their academic lives. One strategy to begin this process is to have a weekly planner, available here.

The webinar is free and you can sign-up by following this link Elevate Education webinar

The second week of the Social Justice Team’s Gratitude and Positivity competition has just passed, and it was a spectacular one.

Students uploaded many images or quotes to express their gratitude and spread positivity among the school community.

The initiative will run all term, and each week students in each year level will receive house points for their positive contributions.

The Social Justice Team is also considering other ways for students to share uplifting and inspiring messages in the coming weeks. Backyard tourism videos, end of ISO bucket lists or photos and videos of hobbies and interests students are missing (e.g. sport) are among the ideas.

A big thank you to all students and staff who contributed images last week. The winners of house points were:

Year 7 - Emma Presnell, Jordan Fleming, Michael Nair and Olivia Hains

Year 9 - Olivia Kastoriadis and Ryan Ellul

Year 10 - Abby Timms, Holly Megne and Illyiana Baraci

Year 11 - Ayla Williams and Nathan Furtado

Year 12 - Madlen Hill and Sophie Hine

Staff - Belinda Brown, Jo Clinton, Justin Farrugia and Shanelle Sertic

House tally

Fitzgerald - 90 points

Glasheen - 80 points

Daffey - 70 points

Reed- 70 points

Madlen Hill

Social Justice Captain

To ensure the ongoing health and safety of all our students, staff and families during the COVID-19 pandemic, we encourage any payments to the College to be made either by EFTPOS over the phone or direct transfer to the College Bank Account.

Account Name: Catholic Regional College Melton

Account Number: 537792351

BSB: 083347

To make an EFTPOS payment phone 8099 6000 between 8.30am and 4.30pm Monday to Friday.

The next Parents and Friends Association meeting will be held on Wednesday 27 May at 7pm. Deputy Principal Learning and Teaching Mrs Joanne Holmes will give a short presentation about her role at the College and the vision for Learning and Teaching at CRC Melton.

Due to COVID-19, meetings are currently being held remotely through the Microsoft Teams platform. If you did not attend the last meeting but would like to be part of the next one, please email kmatthews@sfcc.vic.edu.au to receive the information required to join the meeting. All families are welcome to attend.

As we have all been experiencing the challenges of distance learning, I think it would be safe to say that we are all life-long learners.

Students face many challenges, as do the staff and families that support our students. We take on these challenges with open arms and hearts, placing students at the forefront of our planning and implementation of their classes via remote learning.

In the Humanities Domain, we strive to provide the best opportunity and learning platforms in an ever-evolving educational world.

We are intrinsically driven by the expectations of our students - their desire to learn, their enjoyment of education and their continuous goal of self-improvement.

To achieve this, we take on new, varied and refined strategies to ensure they meet the standards and expectations of all our stakeholders - the school, our students, our staff and our wider community.

We have been using various platforms to deliver curriculum and assessment tasks that give students multiple opportunities to connect with their class and teachers.

At VCE level, we have already assessed Unit 1-4 Legal Studies and Unit 1-4 Business Management.

In our Unit 3-4 History classes, Revolutions students are working towards completing a Historical Inquiry SAC, where they formulate their question, research it and write an essay.

Some topics for this task include the Civil War, War Communism, the Kronstadt Uprising and the New Economic Policy.

Our Australian History students will write an essay on making a people and a nation. We have examined the visions people had for Australia before Federation, and the legislation put into place following 1901 to fulfil these visions. The impact Australia’s involvement in WWI had on the realisation of these visions will also be considered. Given our current circumstances, I wonder what will be in the Australian History curriculum in years to come.

Our Accounting students are busy learning how to “crunch” the numbers – a very relevant skill in this current climate. And of course, all students across the year levels are preparing to complete tasks that will provide the opportunity for formal assessment to take place across a variety of curriculum areas within the Domain.

While our planned excursions and incursions have not gone ahead, the Year 7 Ancient China Expo was displayed via our social media platforms, and I think you will agree that the work of the students was amazing. You can view the virtual expo on our College Facebook page by following this link. Year 7 Ancient China Virtual Expo Some of the work is also displayed below.

In Humanities, we cover the following four domains: Civics and Citizenship, Business Economics, Geography and History. All are relevant to our current lives and play a part in our education during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Civics relates to government and parliamentary policy at both Federal and State levels. Our Unit 1-2 Legal Studies classes are preparing a legal argument for a fictional case related to the COVID-19 outbreak as part of their civil law outcome.

In regards to Business Economics, the conversations could be endless in class. In our senior levels, we have had an opportunity to talk about unemployment, underemployment, government economic stimulus and the list goes on. Our Unit 1-2 students have been assessing the impact of COVID-19 on the environments in which a business operates.

In Geography we are considering the positive outcomes on our natural environment such as less pollution due to fewer cars on the road.

And of course, we all live in a time where significant history is being made. Some students have created historical diaries. In years to come, I am sure this pandemic will be written into the curriculum and may be taught by some of our students who decide to become Humanities teachers.

We look forward to returning to face-to-face teaching and hearing the students’ voices and seeing their faces. We look forward to busy classrooms and the chit chat that goes with them, to the greetings and the goodbyes and to the successes and the self-improvement we witness at school.

We look forward to our student’s return and to catching up with parents and guardians at parent/teacher interviews.

Daniela Harrington

Humanities Domain Leader

Career planning is often described as fluid, multidirectional and evolving at the best of times and in light of COVID-19, this has never been more true for our students considering their future pathways.

In the media terms such as ‘pivoting’ and ‘adapting’ are used frequently, and we have seen universities and TAFE’s doing this as well.

Even though the environment has changed, students are still completing their studies and looking toward their future. Tertiary institutions continue to plan for open days, albeit virtually, to prepare for 2021.

We would typically be approaching the time when Year 10 students participate in a week of Work Experience. Due to COVID-19 and distance learning for the majority of Term 2, the Work Experience program for 2020 has been changed.

Any student in Year 10 that arranged a placement in line with their career plans is welcome and encouraged to reschedule this to the Term 3 holidays in September/October.

To make sure our students are kept in the loop, each week our senior cohort in Year 10 to 12 are emailed the Careers Newsletter, which covers tips and suggestions for career planning, course information, and links to events, programs and at times employment opportunities.

Universities and TAFE’s have embraced the change to online connectivity with students and are holding many information evenings via webinars in place of face-to-face programs.

Some universities have also released their applications for their early entry programs that can assist with early conditional offers and potential reduced ATAR requirements.

Here are some links that you may find useful to help your child with their career and tertiary study research:

Federation University link to webinar series: Your Federation Future

Victoria University link to webinars: VU Information Evenings

Monash University link to webinars: Monash Information evenings

Monash University: link to information hub “Destination Monash”: Destination Monash

University of Melbourne: link to webinars Meet Melbourne Information Sessions

RMIT: link to virtual expo Study at RMIT Virtual Expo

VU Guaranteed application link: VU Guaranteed

LaTrobe University Aspire early entry application: LaTrobe University Aspire

Australian Catholic University Community Achievers Program (CAP) early entry application: ACU Community Achievers Program

University of New England early entry application: UNE Early Entry Application

Victorian Tertiary Admissions Centre (VTAC): This is the site that our Year 12 students will use in August to apply for TAFE and university study in 2021. The link provides up to date information on the VTAC process as it stands with the COVID-19. VTAC - COVID-19 Update

I am available for careers appointments while in distance learning mode through Teams. If you would like your child to participate, all they need to do is email me at sdickson@sfcc.vic.edu.au to arrange a suitable time.

This week we continue our series introducing the new members of our Student Representative Council (SRC). The Year 9 students elected to the SRC for 2020 are:

Alannah King, Dakota Luckett, Georgina Bertsias and Ophelia Fernando.

The students were asked to answer the following question:

What are you looking forward to once the school grounds open again?

"Once school grounds open I am looking forward to regaining the ability to communicate with my teachers, classmates, and friends face-to-face, because right now I am longing for that and I am sure others feel the same way as I do. Also, I am hoping to receive education through the old-fashioned way of learning, since I prefer it and miss it." Ophelia

"I am looking forward to getting back into a routine, and a normal schedule like I had before. I am also looking forward to the social aspect of school, seeing friends, teachers, and peers in person. I hope we can all return to school with a positive outlook, and we can still manage to keep our distance to maintain good health for ourselves and those around us." Alannah

"Some of the things I am most looking forward to when we get to return to school are being able to connect and interact with my friends and teachers and having more visual and interactive learning approach compared to virtual learning." Dakota

Nirasha Pandi

Student Leadership Coordinator

Students from Year 7 to 10 have been turning plastic bottles into micro-herb planters as part of their studies in Design and Technologies Wood.

Students were encouraged to come up with creative and high-quality solutions to a design brief.

The research and drawing stage was critical to developing ideas. Students used the Internet to gather concepts, then presented original drawings to show a range of different planters.

Students also researched the mass production of plastic PETE bottles. They watched a video that showed a factory operating 24-hours a day, 7-days-a-week using robots and Computer-Aided Manufacturing.

The task helped students better understand how plastic is classified and that only certain types (mainly PETE) can and should be put into the recycle bin at home.

The design brief was tailored for each year level to ensure students were challenged depending on their ability and knowledge.

Photos of the drawings and the innovative finished products were delightful and can be seen below.

Robin Panousieris

Design and Technology Wood Teacher

House points continue to grow as students complete activities as part of the Move in May challenge.

A full list of tasks and bonus challenges for this week is available below.

As of yesterday (18 May) the points tally was:

Reed- 133

Daffey- 103

Glasheen- 92

Fitzgerald- 22

A celebration to mark the 40th Anniversary of CRC Melton will be held on Sunday 30 August.

More details will be provided closer to the date.

The Melton City Council Learning Directory is offering a series of 30-minute workshops online to help support the community and keep staff, students and their families engaged and connected.

You can access all of these classes from the dates pictured below at any time on the Melton City Council Learning Directory YouTube Channel