De La Vida

SANTA MARIA COLLEGE

De La Vida EDITION 22, TERM 2, 2015

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'It's better to see something once, than to hear about it a thousand times'

anonymous.

College Tours & Immersion Programs

From the Principal In this issue of De La Vida the feature article focuses on College Tours.

Several years ago I surveyed parents on this topic asking for feedback on whether the College should continue making these tours available.

I was concerned with both the expense and the potential for students and families to feel pressured to take part. The feedback was mixed but the overwhelming majority of parents supported these tours, indicating appropriate decisions could be made at the family level.

In speaking to the students, I commented on the expense associated with these opportunities. I indicated that preparation for the tour is a very important learning experience and it would be wrong for any girl to expect their parents to simply pay for them to attend. I spoke about taking on part time work to help pay for the tour or asking for a cash present, in lieu of a normal present at Christmas or on their birthday. The more each girl does to finance the trip and spending money, the better the educational experience will be.

Our tours can be classified into three main groups:

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Associated with Learning Areas eg Music, Performing Arts, Visual Arts, Languages, Humanities and Social Sciences (Canberra Tour)

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Service eg Punmu, Cambodia and Mercy Secondary School (Papua New Guinea).

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Sporting eg IGSSA Combined Teams to China and Malaysia, Melbourne Volleyball and Gold Coast Cheerleading.

It needs to be pointed out that there is no compulsion for students to attend any of the above tours. Tours associated with Learning Areas will obviously have many benefits, but students not attending will not be missing an essential part of curriculum or be disadvantaged in required assessments.

Two new tours that have been added to our offerings are featured in this publication ie Music Tour to Ireland (2015) and the NASA – Science/Mathematics Tour to USA (2016).

I would like to thank the staff who are responsible for each tour. To be on duty 24/7 over the entire event and looking after significant numbers of young people, is very demanding and requires special skills. As I frequently comment, we are truly blessed with the calibre of staff at Santa Maria College.

Mr Ian Elder, Principal

De La Vida

Contents

Published Terms 1 - 3

From the Principal..................................1

Junior School.........................................19

College News.........................................2

Parent Community.................................21

College Tours & Immersions..................11

Old Girls’ Association.............................23

Senior School.......................................15

Archives.................................................25

Middle School......................................17

Front cover Music students on the inaugural College Music Tour to Ireland.

Published by: Santa Maria College Locked Bag 1, Melville WA 6156 T: +61 8 6330 0200 F: +61 8 9317 2838 Editor & Graphic Design: Karen Bickerton T: +61 8 6330 0230 E: delavida@santamaria.wa.edu.au Photography Students and Staff of Santa Maria College Printed by: Scott Print www.scott.com.au

Anzac Day

College News

2015 was the centenary of Anzac Day and the College commemorated this significant occasion with some special events.

The foyer of the College was home to a display of WWI era uniforms and military equipment for several weeks prior to Anzac Day. The uniforms represented the various arms of the services, including the Royal Australian Army Nursing Corp, which was the primary arm of the services through which women contributed to the war effort. The Art Department contributed some wonderful student pieces with an Anzac theme.

Our Global Studies students interviewed College community members with connections to the armed services and produced a short film that ran continuously on the large screen televisions in the Learning Plaza and Sawle Literature & Research Centre.

Anzac Day itself was commemorated with a solemn service, led by our Year 11 History class.

Guest speaker from the Special Air Service Regiment, Captain Travis Peet addressed the College but it was his mode of arrival that caused the greatest excitement. He and two colleagues from the Regiment arrived at the College in two special operations vehicles - large six wheeled reconnaissance vehicles used by

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the SAS on its deployments overseas. These impressive vehicles dominated the front of the College during the morning.

Anzac Day

Before leaving the College, Captain Peet and his colleagues, spoke with our History classes and gave our students a first hand account of the roles the Australian Defence Force plays and the careers it offers to young people, but especially the opportunities it presents to women.

Mr Stephen King, Head of Humanities & Social Sciences

Winter Appeal and Outreach Mass All students at Santa Maria College are involved in service in some form. Many are active members of our voluntary service groups and get involved by cooking for Shopfront, visiting the aged, preparing breakfast at St Pat’s, going on the soup patrol, cleaning up the foreshore, encouraging others to save power, organising fundraising drives, inviting refugee children for activities or donating goods.

As a College community we hold our annual winter appeal, collecting donations for the Sisters Place, St Patrick’s Care, Shopfront and St Vincent De Paul Society. In addition, on 3 June, we were privileged to host the launch of the St Patrick’s Care Winter Appeal, here at the College, coinciding with the launch of the Archbishop’s Lifelink Appeal. On this day we were pleased to have the Starlight Hotel Choir come and entertain students and staff.

Our Winter Appeal culminated in donations of food, toiletries, towels, blankets, sleeping bags as well as monetary donations, being distributed at our Community Outreach Mass on Thursday 25 June. On this day, we were once again entertained by the Starlight Hotel Choir at an assembly following the Mass.

Winter Appeal

College News Artist in Residence Program “We all have one. Just try to listen to your own”.

That was artist Hayley Welsh’s first piece of advice to our Visual Art students, that we should listen to our ‘little voices’ within and create artworks that are narrative, and that reflect what those inner voices are saying.

Hayley Welsh does exactly that in her own work, creating whimsical worlds with surreal wide-eyed characters that tell a story, whether it be an experience, a journey travelled or an emotional experience.

Hayley worked with students from Years 7-10 predominantly, adopting a technical approach, teaching them the intricacies of drawing and character development. Each student started by creating their own character from modeling compound, which they then worked from to complete very detailed observational

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drawings. Hayley demonstrated techniques in both paint and pencil about texture and how to create a variety of soft, furry and fluffy surfaces for their characters. Each Year group then had the task of creating a setting in which to place their character in a resolved artwork, exploring settings, such as around the College environment, to more edgy urban and cityscapes. The results of the students working with such an inspirational and talented artist will be featured in our annual Visual Arts exhibition in Term 4.

Mrs Jan Withers, Head of Visual Arts

Below: Artist in Residence ProgramArt Encounter Day Right: Art Encounter Day

Art Encounter Day On 14 June, the Year 12 Visual Art students were given the opportunity to learn from local artist Susanna Castleden, about her life and works, at the second Art Encounter Day for 2015.

On the chilly Sunday morning, Susanna spoke to us about a common theme throughout her works, that being the world and travel, spinning us endless stories about her adventures, from globe trotting from Perth to Bermuda, spending each day in a different ‘surprise’ city, to her immense love for geography and weather patterns. After an inspiring talk, we had the opportunity to learn the sacred art of print making, university style, Susanna putting on her Curtin University Lecturer’s hat and teaching us one of her favourite media techniques.

After a tasty lunch under the trees, the day was finished off by a relaxing session of illustration, Castleden style, a new way of creating art. Overall, we were thoroughly inspired for the production component of our course.

Mrs Arianne Flora, Teacher of Visual Arts

College News Theatresports

During Term 2, Santa Maria College once again welcomed the Australian Institute of Theatresports to conduct the Interhouse Middle and Senior School Theatresports competitions.

Theatresports is an improvisational performance where the girls learn to think spontaneously and support each other as a team.

With a combined total of 120 girls taking part this year, the workshops were full of energy, excitement and true creativity.

The playoffs were incredibly entertaining with the action on stage ranging from operatic fairy tales to restaurant scenes

Brain Bees

Brain Bees

gone wrong. The Middle School competition was dominated by O’Donnell with their Year 7 and Years 8/9 combined teams both

Congratulations to the four Year 10 Science students who participated in the State Final of the Brain Bee Challenge at UWA on Tuesday 23 June.

taking out their competitions. The Senior School competition was a tight race with such high level performances from all teams that competed; however, the winner for the night was de la Hoyde. Thanks to all of the performers and those who came along to support this wonderful event.

The participants were: Jessica Brown (O’Donnell), Georgia Bertolini

Mrs Jessica Pacecca, Teacher of Dance & Drama

(Byrne), Mia Torquato (Corbett) and Aimee Kunnen (Corbett). Special congratulations to Jessica Brown, who progressed to the final round of the individual competition on the day. The students had been studying in their own time, over two terms, many facets of the study of

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Neuroscience to compete in the competition.

The Brain Bee Challenge is a national Neuroscience competition, and the State Final is coordinated by the Department of Neuroscience at UWA. It provides students with the opportunity to learn about the field of Neuroscience, improve their knowledge and understanding of the structure and functioning of the brain and the many conditions and environmental factors that impact on the functioning of the brain and nervous system. Whilst at UWA, the students listened to presentations from PhD students about the type of research being conducted at UWA, toured Neuroscience research and anatomy laboratories and met with other students from around the state who had shared in the Challenge experience.

SMC Cheerleaders Flying High

Mrs Joanne Priest, Teacher of Science

Theatresports

The Santa Maria Cheerleading teams recently competed in the CUA Rock n Cheer Championships at HBF Arena in Joondalup and once again had some fantastic results. The SMC Lil Rockets won the Primary Level 1 category, the SMC Gravity finished second in the Secondary Level 1 and the SMC Comets remained undefeated after four years in the Secondary Level 2 category!

Year 12 student, Jacinta Pelc (de la Hoyde), also competed in the secondary lyrical jazz solo and finished second.

Mrs Lisa Winkler, Cheerleading Coordinator SMC Cheerleading

College News Numeracy Booster

“The aim of the brand new Numeracy Booster elective was to expose Year 7 students to additional mathematical practice and opportunities to consolidate concepts in a fun and hands on environment.

Students spent their time solving problems on whiteboards, developing mathematical language through completing puzzles in teams, playing interactive games and competing in online competitions to reinforce mental maths skills. The elective is best summed up by the students themselves who gave the following feedback on their experiences:

During Numeracy Booster it is not just the teacher talking the whole time it is actually us explaining things to each other. Numeracy Booster is a great way to learn new things, help you on classwork, or just clarify how to do something. I love Numeracy Booster because we interact with each other and make new friends. Isabella Cameron (Year 7, O’Reilly)

The whiteboard game is a really fun game that is competitive which makes you work harder and makes you think faster. It is really good to practice quick sums in your head. Meg Hebiton (Year 7, Dillon)

I have understood more things such as fractions and they have become a lot clearer to me. Group work helps a lot as you hear other people’s opinions and how they would work something out. Madelaine Meek (Year 7, Frayne)

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I have made lots of friends and before Numeracy Booster, I wasn’t much of a teamwork person. I liked to do work by myself - but now I know that teamwork is the smoothest way to go by life. Ivy Millichamp-Parry (Year 7, O’Donnell)

Everyone is a teacher in Numeracy Booster and everyone will support and encourage you on your journey to get better at math.

Grace Kelly (Year 7, O’Reilly) Mrs Kirsten Hatch, Teacher of Mathematics

L & R: Numeracy Booster Activities

Follow the Reader

College News

This semester, Year 8 Media classes have immersed themselves in a new unit of work, ‘Follow the Reader Project’ that had them taking on the role of a Book Publicist.

Using a range of media programs and techniques, students created a promotional package for a chosen book currently available in the Sawle Literature & Research Centre.

The project began with the students taking promotional photography that captured the essence of their chosen book, editing the photos in Photoshop and then presenting them in a portfolio.

Following this, they used Photoshop again, this time to create a promotional poster. Finally, they pulled together all the marketing and creative skills they had gained to plan, film and edit a book trailer. The project culminated in an interactive display in the Plaza, which provided other students an opportunity to view their work, scan a QR Code to view the book trailers and even leave their own recommendations of books to read. “I really enjoyed Media this semester. It was really fun learning new Photoshop skills and

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learning how to put an iMovie together!” reflected Sophie Barclay (Year 8, Kelly).

What is great about this program is that it embeds a range of technical skills into the one project, that culminates in real-world application.

Above: Follow the Reader Project

Miss Kimberly Maslin, Technologies Teacher

Yabbies Year 11 Biology students are currently studying the biology of freshwater yabbies through research and scientific investigation.

The focus of their research is to identify adaptations for living in an aquatic environment and to describe their life cycle. The students are responsible for feeding the yabbies, monitoring the water quality in their tanks and recording their growth in terms of their mass and length.

The yabbies have become an integral part of the biology laboratory, providing all students with the opportunity to observe their biology and behaviour.

Mrs Joanne Priest, Teacher of Science Year 11 Biology Measuring Yabbies

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College News

College News Music Camp On Thursday 25 June at 2.30 pm, an excited group of eighty Santa Maria musicians headed up to New Norcia for two and half days of choral and ensemble rehearsals.

The weather for the weekend was picture perfect and warmer

Music camp would not be possible without the involvement of

than usual which meant the girls kept excellent health, ensuring

extra staff and so a huge thanks to Helen Shanahan for taking

they made the most of every session. On Sunday, the girls sang

the Guitar Ensemble and sharing her enthusiasm and love for

beautifully at Mass, which was held in the historic Cathedral

music with the girls. Our vocal tutor, Kelly Read has been the

in the centre of town. The concert followed at 11.00 am in St

Camp Choir and Years 5-8 Choir conductor for the past six

Joseph’s Hall and featured performances by The Symphonic

years and always injects such energy into the choral rehearsals

Orchestra, Years 5-8 Choir, Years 9 and 10 Choir, Years 11

and performances. Sadly for us, Kelly will be leaving at the end

and 12 Choir, Camp Choir and the Guitar Ensemble. The large

of this term to pursue some other facets of her musical career.

audience of parents, relatives and friends responded very

Kelly has made a huge contribution to the success of the vocal

positively and were full of praise for the talent on display. Many

program during her years at the College and has been such a

families stayed after the concert to picnic in the grounds of St

loyal and respected member of the Music Department. I would

Gertrude’s College and soak up the sunshine. A special thanks

like to wish her every success for the future in all the new and

to our Principal, Mr Ian Elder and Deputy Principal, Mrs Jen

exciting challenges that are certain to come.

Oaten who both made the trip up to watch the girls perform.

Our College Coordinator, Mr John Wray and his wife, Jan made

I would also like to thank Miss Rebecca Waterhouse for her

a special trip up on Saturday to visit the girls and listen to them

tireless efforts across the board in relation to this event. Her

rehearse. The girls really appreciated their interest and support

commitment to the Santa Maria music program is absolute and

and managed to convince them to stay for lunch!

so valued and appreciated by the music students and myself.

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Thanks so much, Rebecca!

I would like to extend my sincere thanks to the wonderful mothers who attended the camp and helped supervise and care

Finally, a huge thank you to all the girls who attended the event

for the girls. Mrs Terri Coombs, Mrs Michelle Linn, Mrs Antonella

and worked so hard over the weekend. We could not have

Zaninovich, Mrs Kelly Gibson, Mrs Jane Nolan and Mrs Philippa

asked for a more wonderful group of students to work with.

Page not only assisted the music staff and students, but proved

Congratulations on a fantastic performance and thank you for

to be brilliant performers in their own right as they put on a

all of your efforts – well done!

hilarious act at the talent show on Saturday night. A special

Mr Paul Kinsella, Director of Music

thank you to Philippa as her five years of service unfortunately ends this year with her twin daughters, Hannah and Georgia being in Year 12. Her contribution is very much appreciated by the staff and students and she will be sorely missed next year.

Top Left: Guitar Ensemble Bottom Left: Trumpet Section Below: Symphony Orchestra

College News Outdoor Education

Shark Bay Sea Trek Expedition In April of this year, ten very excited Year 12 Outdoor Education students, Miss Barter and Miss Gamble boarded the College bus during the Term 1 holidays and set off on an eleven-hour journey to Shark Bay for their Sea Trek Expedition.

After a day of naps and sing-a-longs on the bus, we finally arrived in Denham, Shark Bay ready to complete some final preparations for our four days on the water. We met Rod Marton from the Marine Education Boatshed at Denham Seaside Village. Our sail boats were anchored and our equipment was ready to be checked and loaded. We discussed in detail the weather forecast for the next four days and the girls planned our journey accordingly. We woke early the next morning, ready for our adventures and keen to impress with our awesome skills and knowledge. Each day we would have different leaders who would decide on and plan a route for us to take, leading us to our beach campsite for the evening.

Every day was full of new adventures; sailing, swimming from our sail boats in the middle of the ocean, fishing, playing beach cricket and watching dolphins surf the wake of our boats. Our evening activities included setting up our tents and the communal kitchen hoochie, cooking meals, fishing, braiding our salty hair,

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completing two hours of night watch duties, and catching shovel nosed sharks!

It truly was an amazing experience and one that we will reflect on for years to come. We were extremely proud of the girls’ impressive sailing and boating skills, as well as their boating practices and knowledge of the outdoors. A local Marine Safety Officer even commented on how well the girls skippered our vessels in to the jetty to unload our rubbish on the last day!

College News

Above & Below: Shark Bay Seatrek

College News

South West Sea Trek Expedition

South West Seatrek

To begin with, the girls were a little nervous about the four-day adventure in our small sail boats off the coast of Fremantle, but they quickly developed their sailing and boating skills and knowledge of the outdoors!

We spent our first night tucked into our sleeping bags under the shelter of the Marine Education Boatshed, after a journey on the river to check that our bow stern anchoring was up to scratch for the trip. After a night sleeping in the boatshed we quickly adapted

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into ‘camp mode’ as it was time to set sail! We participated in our final briefing where we checked the latest weather forecast and logged on with the Water Police over the radio. We motored through East Fremantle and out through the Fremantle Heads to the open ocean. We visited many beautiful locations during the expedition and camped at some fantastic camp sites. Herring Bay was a favourite lunch spot, where we had some delicious picnics, snorkeled in the crystal clear waters and enjoyed beach strolls. We were all blown away by the girls’ sailing and boating skills, and they also learnt a lot more about camping and the outdoors. Each night, the girls cooked wonderful meals on the trangia stoves and the leaders planned the route for the next day. This adventure will be one the girls will remember for years to come. The students not only developed many relevant skills, but have also fostered many new and old friendships.

Miss Rosie Barter, Outdoor Education Coordinator South West Seatrek

Feature

Tours & Immersion Programs 'It's better to see something once, than to hear about it a thousand times' anonymous.

Students have the opportunity to go on a number of cultural immersions and study tours during their time at the College. College tours enhance students’ learning by providing them with opportunities to see and experience life outside their own environment. Tours are usually curriculum-related activities that aim to maximise students’ learning. Santa Maria College tours involve national and international travel, allowing students to immerse themselves in local culture. The world has never been more globally connected or as multicultural as it is today. Through these school tours, students develop knowledge and skills that support them to develop into global citizens.

College Immersion Programs focus on service and cultural understanding. Students engage in activities in needy communities, by ‘getting their hands dirty’ in projects of great importance or necessity to the people in these areas. From digging wells and building toilets, to playing with orphaned children, students can be guaranteed to take away from these experiences, far more than they give.

2015 Tours Visual Arts Tour This year’s USA Visual Arts tour saw us visiting two very different cities with two very different visual offerings. Starting in sunny California, Los Angeles did not disappoint with its offering of palm trees, beaches, gorgeous weather and stunning galleries. The Museum of Latin American Art was a highlight, as was the stunning Getty Centre and Norton Simon Museum. And of course no trip would be complete to LA without a walk down Rodeo Drive or the famous Hollywood Boulevard. On the east coast, New York offered a visual feast of a different kind with its brash, loud and larger than life atmosphere, which left the girls wide-eyed at every corner. Every

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major gallery that NYC had to offer was visited and the students saw so many famous and important paintings come to life after only ever seeing them in print.

Sketching in Central Park and under the Brooklyn Bridge, whilst eating the famous Gromaldi’s pizza, was also an amazing way to soak up the NYC atmosphere and take in all that was going on around. New York is without a doubt ‘the city that never sleeps’ and the view from our hotel room of the Empire State Building and Madison Square Gardens reminded us of that on a daily basis! It was an incredible trip that saw us visiting some of the world’s most famous galleries and that, coupled with the visual backdrop of LA and NYC ensured us the trip of a lifetime.

Mrs Jan Withers, Head of Visual Arts

Feature

Above & Below: 2015 Visual Arts Tour

Feature Ireland Music Tour After a year of rehearsals and preparation, the Performance Tour Chorale of thirty-six students and three staff departed on 30 March, 2015 for a two-week tour of Ireland, travelling to Dublin, Kilkenny, Waterford, Cork, Cobh, Blarney, Killarney, Limerick, Galway, Newgrange, London and Paris. The Chorale spent three days in Dublin, with students taking part in a variety of workshops at the Mercy International Centre, the original House of Mercy. Our time at the centre commenced with a tour of the buildings and grounds and the students were very excited to be able to see the bedroom of Catherine McAuley as well as a number of her personal possessions, which are now housed in the Heritage Museum. The tour was followed by two days of study sessions with the Sisters of Mercy residing at the Centre, who provided a very real insight into the relevance of Mercy today. We gained a wonderful understanding of the legacy of Catherine McAuley and the scale of her work on an international scale.

Our first formal performance of the tour was held in the Chapel at the Mercy International Centre, where Catherine herself spent much of her time. It was a wonderful experience to be in Ireland over the Easter period and the students led the singing for a number of Masses at St Mary’s Cathedrals in both Dublin and Kilkenny and at the Montenotte Care Facility in Cork. We were also invited to participate in The Way of the Cross procession in Kilkenny, with our students being chosen to carry the cross through the streets of the town. Other performances included St Stephen’s Green, the Waterford Cathedral of the Most Holy Trinity (the oldest Catholic Cathedral in Ireland), busking in Grafton Street, Dublin and High Street in Galway, an outdoor performance at Slane Castle, Powerscourt Gardens Ballroom, Newgrange Lodge and workshops and performances at the Irish World Academy of Music in Limerick.

The performance schedule was demanding and the students did themselves

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proud at every opportunity. There was of course time for some sightseeing as well and we visited a number of famous attractions. We then travelled to London and saw ‘Wicked’ at the Apollo Victoria Theatre, performed a flash mob in Covent Gardens and had our Farewell Dinner at Jamie Oliver’s Italian. The tour concluded with a day trip to Paris, with the chance to climb the Eiffel Tower forming a real highlight and before we knew it, it was time to depart for home. The Performance Tour was an unforgettable experience and provided the Chorale with so many wonderful performance, faith development and cultural opportunities, all whilst being able to travel across three beautiful countries of the world.

Miss Rebecca Waterhouse, Teacher of Music Above & Below: 2015 Music Tour

Feature Cultural Tours Performing Arts Santa Maria College offers a Performing Arts tour to New York City for Dance and Drama students in Years 11 or 12 every two years. New York City is the global centre for the arts and offers our students a vast array of opportunities and experiences in the field of Performing Arts. Students who participate in this tour will see a variety of Broadway and off-Broadway musical and dramatic performances, and participate in a number of workshops and activities that will develop performance skills and enhance the students’ understanding of the Performing Arts. Students have the opportunity to explore many of the New York City famous landmarks including backstage tours to Radio City Music Hall, Lincoln Center and Broadway Theatres. The tour also includes visits to some of the famous galleries in New York City including The Met and The Museum of Modern Art (MOMA).

We ensure the itinerary for the tour is both extensive and varied, offering students an amazing and enriching opportunity to experience what New York has to offer the Performing Arts, and the opportunity to explore the famous city. We make it a priority to find workshops that link directly to the senior curriculum studied at the College and as a result, past students have been able to use what they have learnt on the Performing Arts Tours in their classwork and had a better understanding of drama and dance theory in practice. This tour will run again in 2016.

2014 Perorming Arts Tour

Miss Amanda Huxtable, Director of Performing Arts Mathematics/Physics Tour A Mathematics/Physics tour to the United States is being offered to selected students studying high-level mathematics or physics in Years 10 or 11. The aim is to provide a meaningful and purposeful experience that may act as a catalyst to ignite students talents and

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interests in Physics and Mathematics. The tour provides opportunities for the students to witness excellence in the sciences and includes visits and workshops to NASA at Cape Canaveral and the Smithsonian Institute in Washington. The inaugural tour will take place in 2016.

Canberra Tour Each year the College offers a cultural tour to our nation’s capital, Canberra, combined with skiing on Perisher Valley Snow Fields which is run by the Humanities and Social Science learning area. Highlights of the tour include the new and old Parliament House, High Court of Australia, National Gallery of Australia and National Museum, St Christopher’s Cathedral, Government House, Australian Institute of Sport, Museum of Democracy, the Electoral Commission, Anzac Parade and the Australian War Memorial. The academic and cultural value of the tour enhances our courses in Civics and Citizenship education and Politics and Law studies here at the College.

Language Tours Italian and Japanese Language tours are an opportunity for students to immerse themselves into the culture and life of the country and experience its day-to-day living. It gives students a chance to use the language learnt in class and to apply it to everyday situations, along with visiting cities, places and monuments that have also been spoken about in class. On these tours, we also ensure students attend organised classes, where they learn and use new vocabulary and phrases to benefit their studies. Our Japanese tour also allows students to reconnect with their host sisters and their families through the homestay program. Study Tour itineraries are comprehensive and students enjoy a variety of activities in the various cities they visit. Tour guides help make the experience at many of the countries interesting and enjoyable – giving students an insight into the history of the various monuments and places of interest. Students also get to savour many culinary delights, indulge in a little retail therapy and attempt to speak the language in a variety of situations.

2014 Italian Language Tour

Sporting Tours IGSSA Sporting Tours IGSSA Sporting tours are offered every second year to students in Years 10 and 11 (in the year of travel), currently playing IGSSA sport at any of the eight IGSSA schools. The next tour will be to the China and Malaysian Friendship Games in April, 2016.

IGSSA will be taking representative teams in basketball, hockey, soccer, tennis and water polo to China, and netball which will tour to Malaysia. Events are run if there are sufficient interest and nominations. Students nominate themselves for their chosen sport and must be endorsed by the Director of Sport and the Principal, and then attend trials at which time students are selected in the various teams. Santa Maria College is also well represented with a number of our staff coaching and managing some of these teams.

Melbourne Volleyball Tour During 2015, the College will be particpating in the Melbourne Volleyball tour. Staff member Miss Lauren Watson will be travelling with two teams to Melbourne for the Australian Schools Cup in December. The girls have been training hard and playing with the Perth Coastal Volleyball Club during Term 2. With a number of lead-up tournaments in Term 3, the teams will be well prepared for this tour.

Ms Emma Wood, Director of Sport Cheerleading Tour - Aussie Gold International The cheerleading program at the College has grown dramatically over the past four years. This is mainly due to the success of our first competitive cheerleading team, the Comets. The Comets have been ranked number one Scholastic Cheerleading Team in 2012, 2013 and 2014. As a result of this, they have won bids (entry) to compete in various competitions nationally. In 2014, the first cheerleading tour took place. This tour provided a chance for the girls to not only compete against national and international teams, but also work with skilled coaches and choreographers from America and the East Coast of Australia. The success of the Comets has continued, so we will continue to offer this great experience to the girls who are part of this team in the future.

Mrs Lisa Winkler, Cheerleading Coordinator

Feature

Immersion Programs Punmu

An Immersion Program is an opportunity for students to interact and engage in a real-life situation, in this case an Indigenous Community. Santa Maria College has created a partnership with Rawa Community School at Punmu in the Pilbara Region of Western Australia. The Punmu Immersion Program, for Year 11 students, endeavours to foster a respect for the people, history and cultures present in remote Indigenous communities; a recognition of God’s presence in the lives and cultures of people they encounter; and a willingness to be challenged personally by the stories, experiences and relationships that are encountered on the journey. Each year a program is created by Rawa Community School staff. Activities in the past have included working within the classroom, participating in the sports program, completing service tasks and being involved in many cultural programs.

Cambodia The inaugural Immersion to Cambodia occurred in 2013 as an alternative to attending ‘Leavers’ for Year 12 students. This Immersion takes students into villages in Cambodia where the focus is on service and cultural understanding, such as building wheelchairs, helping with food preparation for the other guests at a reflection centre and going out into the wider community to build toilets and a house for those in need.

Students experience the culture of Cambodia while learning about the history of this country. Some of the places visited include an orphanage in Phnom Penh and local historical sites like the Killing Fields. This is a once in a lifetime experience and an opportunity to live out the Mercy values.

Papua New Guinea Immersion Mercy Secondary School, Yarapos, is a boarding school with 700 girls, mostly boarders. Helen Chaffer, Deputy Principal, Mission, and Jim Watkins, Business Manager, have visited Yarapos and assisted the school in gaining financial support through Mercy Education and Mercy Works. Santa Maria College is currently investigating future service opportunities for our staff and students at Mercy Secondary School, Yarapos.

Mrs Helen Chaffer, Deputy Principal, Mission

Punmu Immersion

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Around the Senior School Year 12 Mother Daughter Breakfast On 7 June, Year 12 students and their mothers attended the Mother Daughter Breakfast at the Fremantle Sailing Club. In our final year filled with many tests and assessments this was a wonderful opportunity to spend time with our mothers. Students Jacinda Lombardini (Year 12, Frayne) and Melissa Hall (Year 12, Dillon), along with their mothers, shared the experiences they'd had together. After our stomachs were full from breakfast, a PowerPoint presentation with baby pictures of us with our mums was played, much to the surprise of our mothers. Nearing the end of the breakfast, we gave our mothers a letter, resulting in many laughs and some tears. This gave us all an opportunity to tell our mothers how much we love them and appreciate everything they do for us. The morning was a huge success, filled with laughter, joy and happiness with everyone thoroughly enjoying the breakfast with their mothers.

Emma Gooderson (Year 12, Byrne)

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G4G Day

Year 12 Mother Daughter Breakfast

57 million children around the world do not have the opportunity to attend school and the vast majority are young girls. This distressing figure is only set to grow.

Once each year, Santa Maria College dedicates a day of laughter, compassion and sincerity to less economically fortunate young girls so that they may have the chance of receiving an education. This day is known as Girls4Girls Day. The Year 12 SLC ran the day, which consisted of nail painting, being allowed to wear the much beloved sports uniform, sausage sizzle, hair braiding and the infamous teacher karaoke. Unfortunately, there was no round two from Mr Morris’ angelic voice, but we did witness the Physical Education Department’s hidden talents as well as Miss Gasper’s inner ‘Salt-n-Peppa’.

Girls4Girls Day allowed the students of Santa Maria to reflect on how lucky they are, blessed with the luxury of education in an environment of such fantastic facilities.

The record breaking donations will be handed to the School of St Yared in Ethiopia and a Mercy school in Yarapos, Papua New Guinea; two schools who are devoted to fighting the plight of young girls education in developing countries.

Senior School Angie Penna-Li (Year 12, Dillon)

Hair Braiding for Girls4Girls Day

Senior School

Year 12 Retreat For young girls about to undergo a major transition in life, one of the most powerful experiences is to be affirmed by those around her, especially adults. It is empowering and uplifting for someone to acknowledge the good things about them.

The Year 12 Retreat is an important event in the Year 12 calendar. This year the retreat took place from Wednesday 1 July to Friday 3 July. During Retreat, students take time out from the demands of their busy academic year to reflect on their high school journey. The retreat allows students spiritual development and furthers their understanding of self.

Retreat leaders Mrs Michelle Carrick, Mr Ben Court, Mrs Lisa Winkler and Mrs Helen Chaffer were joined by a number of other trained staff members in facilitating the retreat experience for the girls. This year the retreat was held at the Swanleigh Conference Centre, Middle Swan.

The retreat is a reflective process for students, focusing on the individual and collective journey from childhood to the end of their Year 12 schooling. It is also about preparing girls for entering into womanhood after high school with a focus on Gospel values.

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Around the Middle School Year 9 Social You could feel the excitement amongst the students as the date for the Year 9 social was approaching. When 15 May finally arrived, the students from both Santa Maria College and Aquinas College joined together for a night filled with dancing, music and great food. The start of the night saw all the boys on one side of the hall and the girls on the other, but as soon as the lights were dimmed everyone interacted and socialised together.

The girls looked amazing in their outfits, as did the boys who also made a huge effort to impress.

All the students enjoyed the great music played by the DJ, which saw everyone up on the dance floor dancing the night away, only stopping when the food and refreshments were served.

The dancing and socialising continued until it was time to leave, much to the disappointment of the students. As everyone was leaving, many commented on what a fun night they had, and wished that they could do it all over again. The next Santa Maria and Aquinas College social can not

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come soon enough!

Mikayla Alex (Year 9, de la Hoyde)

Year 9 Social with Aquinas College

Strive9

Middle School

The Year 9s have been spending time this term planning their Strive9 Social Action Projects. The planning so far for each group is listed below.

Year 9 Byrne

Year 9 Kelly

Byrne will be having a High Tea and making gift packs for St

We are supporting a soup kitchen by providing this organisation

Vincent de Paul Society in Fremantle. ‘We have created a menu

with food we are making at a cook up. We are continuing

for the afternoon tea and have sourced sponsorship money

to contact organisations to ask for donations of products or

from family businesses. We are creating gift packs for all the

money for our project. We have also spoken to two different

people who will be coming to the event.’

organisations who would really appreciate the gift of hygiene bags for homeless youth, which includes pamphlets we are

Year 9 Corbett

making on how to use the hygiene bag.

We will be helping the Zonta Women’s Refuge. To better understand the work of this refuge, we invited Angie Perkins,

Year 9 O’Donnell

Head Coordinator from the refuge to talk to us. We learnt so

Our focus is on helping the elderly. We are going to the St Ives

much from Angie about why such refuges are needed and

Retirement Village. We will take along a morning tea for the

how we can help the women at the refuges. We are helping

people at St Ives and while there we will also play board games

the refuge by collecting some items they desperately need

and paint nails. We are also going to interview a resident and

and by donating our time on Strive9 implementation day to

then create a booklet for each one about their life story. In

assist with any odd jobs in and around the refuge. We will

order to get sponsors we have been making some phone calls

also be preparing a lunch for the women at the refuge on our

and have been successful with some great responses. Big W

implementation day.

are donating nail care products and photo supplies and Enjo is donating $100. We are all really excited about our Strive9

Year 9 de la Hoyde

journey and cannot wait to implement our project in August.

We have established a link with St Vincent de Paul and will be raising money for them by providing a ‘Mini Mercy’ day at

Year 9 O’Reilly

Attadale Primary School. We will run a book stall, food stall,

We decided we wanted to help a school that didn’t have the

games and activity stalls at the school during their recess and

same opportunities available to them as students at Santa

lunch on implementation day.

Maria. We took on board the advice that what we think someone needs, isn’t actually what they might need, so we

Year 9 Dillon

offered to do whatever the school wanted us to do. Hence, we

We plan to host twenty-three female students from Clontarf

are going to Hilton Primary to do a busy bee where we will be

College on implementation day. We will provide lunch for

helping with gardening and general maintenance.

our guests and organise games to play. Clontarf College have accepted our invitation and we are now busy planning the

I am looking forward to the Strive9 Social Action Project

details.

Implementation Day to be able see the Homerooms work together to make the lives of others a little brighter.

Year 9 Frayne We have been sharing many ideas in our discussions in Pastoral Care time and have now arrived at the idea of creating a fairy garden, veggie garden and running some general activities with children at a school that does not have the financial support that we have at Santa Maria.

Mrs Anne Fisher, Head of Year 9

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Around the Junior School The Junior School regime continues at a feverish pace and the girls are always glad of a break from the usual routine. This term has seen them involved in Colonial Day, Camp, Musical Evenings, Ecumenical Service, Performing Arts Festival, NAPLAN, Speakers’ Challenge and Winter Games Days as well as their ‘normal’ school endeavours and their commitment to the co-curricular program and Homework Club.

Year 6 Camp The buses departed for Dare Adventures in Dwellingup with the Year 6 students highly excited and a little anxious about the days ahead. Arriving at the destination the girls disembarked, checked out their accommodation and then started on the first of the activities which would challenge and delight them. Archery, flying fox, bike riding on the Bibbulmun Track, abseiling and confidence course all tested the girls’ sense of adventure and persistence. The weather was incredibly kind during the three days and the food was tasty and plentiful. The Junior School staff members and the camp helpers were delighted at the commitment and courage the girls showed. Many returned exhausted but very glad they had taken the opportunities to push themselves to do something they had not tried before.

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Above and below: Year 6 Camp

Junior School Colonial Day As the culmination of the Humanities & Social Sciences unit of History on the Australian Colonies, Year 5 students and staff celebrated with a Colonial Day. During their study of the History unit, students developed a knowledge and understanding of the lives of people in Australia’s colonial past, how the colonies developed over time and the reasons for this development. They also looked at how the settlements changed the local environment and what were the significant events and people that shaped the colonies. The students chose a character from the past to research and developed the story of this character into a presentation. They became the character for the day even dressing in appropriate garb. Students experienced life as a pupil in colonial times with all seventy-five of them jammed into a small space for their first lesson of the day. The teachers personified the strict disciplinarians of the bygone era, including having straps and dunce caps. Later in the day the students were taught bush dancing and played games which students of the colonial time would have enjoyed.

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Year 5 Colonial Day

Service in the Junior School In the year of Compassion, the Mini Vinnies students have come up with some novel methods to raise awareness and funds to support the more needy in our society. This year they ran a Pop-up Shiny Shoe Booth on Catherine Common each Monday and Friday at recess. For a small fee the students were able to have their shoes expertly polished and shiny and the funds raised assisted the School of St Yared in Ethiopia which is a cause close the heart of many at Santa Maria College.

Mrs Andrea Dopson, Head of Junior School

Pop Up Shoeshining Shop

From the Parent Council The Parent Council are proud of the College community events and activities that have been organised and made available for parents to attend this term, in this section are write ups about some of the activities that have taken place. These are just some examples of the many activities organised by the Parent Council and Special Interest Groups, I invite parents to join in and become involved in the College community.

I would like to extend a special thanks to Michael Mogridge (Mozzies Rep) and Maria Taylor (Boarding Rep) who have recently resigned from their positions on the Parent Council, for their time and involvement this year.

Mrs Sue McLennan-Atkins, Parent Council Chair

Santa Ministry Mother’s Retreat The annual Mother’s Retreat held in conjunction with Aquinas College mums, was on Friday 22 May in the Boarders’ Recreation Centre.

The Retreat gives the participants an opportunity to be away from the normal stresses of day to day life and be able to relax, refresh and renew amongst friends. This year, the ladies listened to two amazing guest speakers who inspired, enthused and educated. Additionally, Sister Marg lead a reflection time including time for general discussion and sharing.

The first speaker, Vicky Burrows has had a strong interest in reconciliation and is passionate about people and social justice. Vicky currently works for Reconciliation WA and is also a Chaplain at Banksia Hill Juvenile Detention Centre and Bandyup Women’s Prison. The second speaker was Mary-Louise Bertram, a consultant and teacher to families with disabled children who require support with communication, particularly specialising in children with Angelman’s Syndrome.

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A very special thank you to Mrs Karen O’Connor, Santa Ministry Coordinator, for her wonderful work organising the day’s program, including the outstanding guest speakers. Karen set the tone for the day by sharing her experiences and articulating her spirituality thus encouraging others to do the same.

Mrs Helen Chaffer, Deputy Principal, Mission

Parent Council

Mother’s Retreat

Parent Council Mozzie Breakfast Forum On Friday 3 July, the Mozzies hosted the annual Breakfast Forum for the ‘Men of Santa’.ng.

This year’s guest speaker was Jon Bennett from the Fathering Project (FP) The FP is a group whose aim is to help fathers realise how important their role is in a child’s life and to give them advice and skills to encourage their children and develop these relationships.

The pressures families face these days are increasing, but the pressure on kids is even greater, with research showing that more children than ever are engaging in risky behaviours. It has been shown that when families have strong parental or significant role model involvement in place, children are less likely to engage in risky behaviours.

Today’s topic encouraged dads to ‘really be present’, even when away from home. Jon spoke about the busy roles dads have today and the pressure this can have on family relationships. The forum gave dads the opportunity to share how they currently connect with their daughters and discuss new ways to be present in their daughter’s lives. Some of the suggestions included putting notes into your daughter’s

Junior School Mozzies Bowling Night There was a buzz in the air at Super Bowl Melville on Friday 12 June as the Junior School girls faced off against their dads.

The annual Mozzie competition saw 102 bowlers take part in an action night of fast bowling frames and there were lots of laughs, plenty of energetic screams, but in the end very few strikes.

Rock ’n’ roll high-energy music together with the latest music videos, kept the action furious and competitive, and the fluro lights maintained everyones retro experience.

Chips, hot dogs and ice creams were popular which added to the fun of the supercharged night.

The 2015 bowling night was another fantastic Mozzie event for Junior School dads and daughters with numerous opportunities for dads to meet old friends and make new ones as the girls enjoyed loads of fun with their school peers. We were all left aching from the laughter and thoughts about the strike we just missed. We can’t wait for the next one.

Bruce Willett, Dad of Georgia (Year 5, Corbett)

lunchbox and daddy daughter dates, with one parent, one child. You might like to schedule one of these with your daughter.

Left: Mozzie Breakfast Forum Below: Junior School Mozzie Bowling Night

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Old Girls’ Association Reunions

Class 1985

Class 1995 23

Do you live overseas?

Upcoming Events Class 1975 Reunion Saturday 8 August

Class 2010 Reunion Friday 4 September

Golden Girls’ Lunch Thursday 24 September 2015

Class 1965 Reunion Friday 13 November

Mercy Day Mass and Morning Tea Sunday Sunday 13 September

For enquiries about any of these events, please email smcoga@santamaria.wa.edu.au

Consilii Building Walk Through Sunday 13 September

We would love to see where you read the De La Vida magazine.

Send us a photo of you reading the magazine so we can see the interesting places our old girls are located. We will print them in upcoming editions.

Email your high resolution photograph to delavida@santamaria.wa.edu.au

Old Girls’ Association

Congratulations

Hayley Pettit (2013) Congratulations to Hayley on her recent nomination for an award

Genevieve Vetten (2011)

from Diabetes WA. Hayley has been nominated for her commitment

Congratulations to Genevieve Vetten who was invited to deliver

to fundraising for Diabetes WA through the Santa Maria Run for

the Valedictory Address at her Graduation Ceremony at UWA

a Reason team, in memory of her classmate and friend, Laura

on 1 April. Genevieve graduated with a Bachelor of Science,

Gray, who passed away in 2011. Hayley and her classmates started

majoring in Engineering Science. There were approximately 320

participating in the run in 2012, hoping to create something good

students graduate.

‘out of something bad’. The girls continue to be involved today and have raised over $40,000 for Diabetes WA.

Lauren White (2008) Congratulations to Lauren White (2008) who married Peter Vrankovich on 10 January 2015 in the Santa Maria College Chapel.

What are they up to now?

Briony Clark (2011) Briony finished her Bachelor of BioMedical Science at UWA in 2014. This year she is doing Honours through Curtin University (Health Sciences) in conjunction with world renowned Breast Cancer Oncologist, Dr Arlene Chan, at the Mount Hospital.

Briony has been awarded a Research Scholarship from the Cancer Council of WA. Briony’s research is a culmination of ten years worth of data that Dr Chan has collected relating to ‘Luminal B’ type breast cancer. Briony also plays hockey for Melville and Under 21 state squad training and is also involved in tutoring.

Aimee Clark (2011) Aimee commenced studying Engineering and Finance at UWA, last year. She is really enjoying it so far and doing very well. She has also been a member of the WAIS hockey squad since the beginning of 2014, with approx. eight to nine sessions per week and has just been named in the twenty-five member Hockey Australia National Junior Squad (Under 21 age group).

What are you up to now? We would love to print your story?

Email your story to delavida@santamaria.wa.edu.au.

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Archives Former staff member, Mrs Betty Smith-Gander, arranged the first extra-curricula international student tour when she took a group of Santa Maria College students to England, Europe and the Holy Land. The tour left in early December 1976 and returned at the end of January 1977, and included a two-week Mediterranean cruise with 900 other students from all over the world. The students travelled through Italy, exploring all the cultural sites, spent Christmas Day in Bethlehem and enjoyed five days skiing in Austria. In December 1977 Mrs Smith-Gander escorted a second tour this time to the Fijian Islands on a Pacific cruise.

Twelve years after the first visit in 1977 to the Vatican, students from Santa Maria College once again visited, this time including an audience with Pope John Paul II, as part of the Italian tour of December 1989. This was the start of the language/cultural/art tour program at the College. In 1990 the New Horizons French Tour was run between September and October involving fifty students and four teachers. This tour covered the sites of Paris, the Côte d’Azur, Mount Blanc, Chamonix with many other places in between. In April 1996 a combined tour with Wesley College and Penhros College took place with students taking part in an immersion program with primary school children in the south of France.

Italian group study and cultural tours were run in January of 2003 and 2005 with

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a combined Visual Arts/Language tour to Italy being run in 2008. From this time Italian tours have been run regularly on a biannual basis .

Archives Art & Italian study tour to Italy 2008

Italian Tour in 1989

Archives As a result of the work begun in 1998 by Mr Robin Teese, a former language teacher at the College, a sister school relationship has been forged with the Wayo Konodai Girls’ High School, Chiba Prefecture, south of Tokyo. This has led to regular exchange student visits which have grown from two to three students to group tours from the College going to Ichikawa to become immersed in Japanese culture and family life (image 2008). The tours are led by the Japanese language teachers at the College. Reciprocal tours from Wayo Konodai Girls’ High School to the College also occur on a regular basis

New York was the tour destination in 2009 for a group of Visual Arts students and in 2012 the Drama Department commenced making biannual tours to New York.

There have been tours which were not associated with languages, culture and the arts. In 1991, a group of students walked the Milford Track and toured much of the South island of New Zealand.

A second New Zealand tour was run in 1996, this time a ski trip to the South Island. In 2005 the senior hockey squad were among the finalists in the Buchanan Cup and were chosen to attend the International Stellenburg Sports Festival in South Africa.

Some of these tours continue today, with new tours and immersion programs introduced.

Dr Roberta Cowan, Archivist

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International Stellenburg Sports Festival in South Africa

An illustration of Betty Smith Gander with a group of students in Paris from the 1977 Yearbook

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Santa Maria College

A Ministry of Mercy Education Limited ABN 69 154 531 870 Established in 1938 A Catholic Day and Boarding College for Girls, Years 5 - 12 Stoneham Road, Attadale WA 6156 | Locked Bag 1, Melville WA 6956 Tel: +61 8 6330 0200 | Fax: +61 8 9317 2838 | www.santamaria.wa.edu.au