Dear members of the MLMC community

Welcome to the month of August, the last month of winter as we make the journey to Spring. Still the cloudy grey days have not dominated and skies of blue occasionally peak through to lift spirits. These days help to build our resilience and persistence to the task at hand as we must remain committed.

So, too, this is true for our College Musical which, after four years in the making, is being performed this week, with opening night held last night. There were also two matinee performances shown to primary schools earlier in the week. It, too, is a testament to persistence and the building of resilience.

You would not have to travel far to find out that I am a big fan of the concept and production of the College Musical. I believe it to be an essential part of the life and culture of College life and the community that is Mount Lilydale Mercy College.

Firstly, there are academic benefits to musical productions with research showing growth to the development of the left side of the brain, language processing and cognitive development, as well as improvement in concentration, creativity and self-esteem.

Although all of these are important, to be honest they do not surpass the real reasons that I have great belief and faith in College Musicals and, to put it simply, College Musicals build community. They build community by differing groups of people bringing their talents to a common purpose. They build by differing year levels coming together and older students modelling to younger students. They build community by the development of talent and not boxing students into a predetermined role as anyone can perform in a College Musical. I take great joy in the fact that a musical performance bridges the divide between sportspersons, poets, actors, musicians, mathematicians, scientists, technologists, historians and artist., recognising of course that no divide ever really did exist.

This College Musical, Matilda, in particular is community building with several Old Collegians coming back to tread the boards in performance, in stage management, in set construction, in musical direction and in technical support.

Besides the building of community, musical productions help to build aspects of our student’s lives that is essential and that is a love of the arts and performance that is life giving. It is my hope that we build a fascination for the arts that will see our students develop a love for theatre and performance, that will see them enjoy musicals and plays, bands and orchestras, films and arts for the rest of their lives, for indeed, these will help to sustain them.

Indeed, College Musicals help to build resilience and persistence.

So, to our Musical crew of 2022 (and 2021 and 2020), we say: “break a leg” and enjoy.

Yesterday as Charlie and I walked through speaking to the cast and I said "break a leg", it seemed to perplex some students. They asked why I wanted them to break a leg. Of course, I did not. “Break a leg” is a phrase that means “good luck”, typically said to actors on opening night. It is believed to be rooted in the theatre community who are deemed to be highly superstitious and who believe saying “good luck” will actually bring “bad luck”, so instead they wish the opposite. It’s believed to have originated in the American theatre scene in the early 20th century. Some believe it was adapted from the German saying “Hals-und Beinbruch,” which means “neck and leg break”. While others believe it derived from the Hebrew blessing “hatzlakha u-brakha”, which means “success and blessing”.

Similarly, there is a belief that you should never whistle in a theatre as this will bring bad luck. as will saying the word “Macbeth”.

Let’s hope a black cat does not walk across the stage.

Anyway, we are grateful to and for our College Musical production team for the College Musical, Matilda, for 2022. Let us all support it and participate by being audience members.

Break a leg and thank you one and all.

Community Forum Group (CFG)

Last term in the last newsletter I highlighted to you a group forming at the College, which is to be called the Community Forum Group (CFG), whose role is to be a consultative group in matters around College policy and curriculum initiatives to be introduced. I am grateful to the three parents who have joined this group as permanent committee members.

The first meeting will be held on Tuesday 9 August at 7.30PM, with the topics under discussion being:

• the VCE Vocational Major (new structure)
• Year 10 curriculum 2023 (proposed changes moving forward)
• the Respectful Relationships initiative
• changes to the College Uniform.

Up to 10 other parents can join this group on a casual basis depending on agenda, so if you would like to attend this or any other meeting please email me at principal@mlmc.vic.edu.au

I will publish a formal agenda with a venue once final numbers are set. I will email the final agenda to all registered attendees. Please consider participation as this is key way in which the College consults with families about policies and issues at MLMC.

In the spirit of Catherine, stay warm, safe and COVID-free.

God bless
Philip A Morison

August is the month traditionally dedicated to the Immaculate Heart of Mary. It commemorates the joys and sorrows of the Mother of God, her virtues and perfections, her love for God and her Divine Son and her compassionate love for mankind.

August still has three Marian feasts — the Dedication of the Basilica of St Mary Major (also remembering Our Lady of the Snows) on 5 August; the Assumption on 15 August and the Queenship of Mary on 22 August.

The litany gives us an insight into the many roles Mary took on during her life.

Litany of Mary

Widowed mother, Pray for us
Unwed mother, Pray for us
Mother of a political prisoner, Pray for us
Mother of the condemned, Pray for us
Mother of the executed criminal, Pray for us
Breaker of bondage, Lead us to life
Political refugee, Lead us to life
Seeker of sanctuary, Lead us to life
First disciple, Lead us to life
Sharer of Christ’s passion, Lead us to life
Seeker of God’s will, Lead us to life
Witness to Christ’s resurrection, Lead us to life
Woman of grace and truth, Empower us
Woman of wisdom and understanding, Empower us
Woman, pregnant with hope, Empower us
Woman, centred in God, Empower us.

— Joseph Haydn

Dates

• Saturday 6 August — Learning Profile Day for Year 7 students in 2023
• Monday 8 August-Friday 12 August — LOTE Week
• Wednesday 10 August — Year 10 2023 Subject Confirmation Interviews
• Thursday 11 August — Year 11 2023 Subject Confirmation Interviews
• Friday 12 August — O’Neill House Celebration Day
• Friday 12 August — Year 12 Formal
• Saturday 20 August — Tournament of Minds regional finals
• Monday 15 August — Feast of the Assumption Mass
• Monday 15 August-Friday 19 August — Science Week
• Friday 19 August — student free day (Staff Professional Development)

Re-enrolment for 2023

All families should now have received notification via SMS that re-enrolment for 2023 at MLMC is now open. Parents and guardians are able to access a letter from Principal Mr Philip Morison on the Parent Portal explaining the importance of this process.

Re-enrolment for 2023 will remain open until Friday 26 August 2022. It is of utmost importance that parents and guardians complete the re-enrolment process for EACH CHILD currently attending MLMC. Should you have any questions please contact the College on 9735 4022.

The Year 11 VET Sport and Recreation classes spent 19-22 July at Mount Hotham where they had two days of cross-country skiing, followed by two days of alpine skiing and snowboarding. The trip formed part of the students’ practical assessment in the subject in the areas of group leading, organising recreational activities, risk assessment and educational programming. We were blessed with 30cm of fresh snow, followed by three days of blue skies.

Below two of the students reflect on the experience:

We got to school bright and early at 5.45am. We left when it was still dark and arrived at Mount Hotham at around midday. We got our cross-country skis and played around on the hills for a few hours. It was very funny to watch everyone struggle at the start, but by the second day everyone had improved their skills. We skied for the whole second day, and got back to the cabin very tired from a big day. Over the next two days we snowboarded or skied from the first lift at the beginning of the day until the last. The highlight of the trip was the snowman competition. Overall it was the best experience and I had so much fun with all the students and teachers.
— Maxine Flamsteed (Year 11 White)

On Tuesday 19 July our two Sport and Recreation classes headed off for four days of bliss, skiing and snowboarding at Mount Hotham Alpine Resort. The Tuesday and Wednesday consisted of cross-country skiing and the Thursday and Friday consisted of downhill skiing and snowboarding. The students stayed at Koongala Lodge. We were lucky to have nothing but sunshine and snowfall during our stay.
— Alice McCormick (Year 11 Gold)

For the first time in three years our students have been able to complete a 3km cross country course along Warburton Trail and through the school grounds to earn House points. The House Cross Country Carnival, held on Friday 29 July, was the first carnival for all of our Year 7 to 9 students after two years of virtual events. The run was an optional event for Year 11 and 12 students, run during lunchtime. It was wonderful to see the smiling faces and effort across all year levels and we congratulate every student who completed the course.

House Cross Country Carnival results

This year’s Pi Day, held on Friday 22 July, was a great way to celebrate and explore one of maths’ most well-known numbers in new and exciting ways. Even the date provided a point of education and interest, with 22 July seeming random at first, but actually coming from 22/7 — the simplest and most common approximation for Pi.

It was through other simple but interesting activities that the magic of Pi was revealed, such as making paper chains to represent Pi’s digits through colour, or even just testing your brain on various Pi-centric picture riddles.

The scavenger hunt, which involved investigating circles situated around the school area, was a big hit and allowed for a more active and engaging discovery of the wonders of Pi, with the promise of circular lollies at the end, too. Finally, the digits of Pi contest was the highlight, with students showing off their love for the number, and memorisation skills, by writing out as many digits as they could remember, edging on one hundred in some cases.

Overall, the day was a big success, and allowed for the concept of Pi, and all things related to it, to be explored in a fun and engaging way that hopefully gave all those who attended a new and different understanding of the number. Hopefully, through the rest of the term, we’ll be able to host similar events to explore other mathematical concepts and skills in fun and interesting ways.

On Monday 1 August our Year 11 and 12 Italian students went to North Melbourne to participate in a Model United Nations Assembly with 10 other schools. The students were allocated a country to represent (Ecuador, India, Iraq and Portugal), where they had to debate the topic of ocean conservation in Italian.

This required students to gain an understanding of the topic and research their allocated country's stance on the issue, then represent their questions, concerns and ideas in the Italian language.

Our students did an excellent job, speaking confidently and fluently. It was a great opportunity to practice their Italian in preparation for the oral exam in Year 12.

Our very talented Lucy Bourke (Year 11 Jade) has been playing guitar for only two years and joined the Instrumental Music program at MLMC in Term 2. Lucy initially started playing the acoustic guitar in her Music studies and has now progressed to the electric guitar. Her short-term goal is to join a band where her music skills can grow even further through the support of her band peers and by playing in front of a live audience.

Lucy is currently a second-year VET Music Industry and Performance student at MLMC and hopes to pursue a career as a guitar technician or luthier (a guitar luthier is a skilled craftsman who makes and repairs guitars).

Pictured is Lucy with her first handmade guitar, completed over a weekend, which she now brings to her weekly private guitar lessons with Mr Pattison. Well done, Lucy!

Lambing season is in full swing on the College’s farm, McAuley Park. Agriculture students from VCE and VET classes as well as the College’s Young Farmers program have been enjoying learning about animal husbandry. At this point there are six lambs “on the ground” with more to come in the next few weeks.

Students enjoy the opportunity to care for these new animals in a range of ways, from tagging and weighing the lambs, through to stewardship of the farm environment. Students have plenty of time to get hands-on experience, spreading fertiliser, planting trees, checking feed and water, as well as simply bonding with these precious new lambs.

The range of activities across classes and within the Young Farmers program not only builds the skills of the students, but their character as well. Agriculture programs at MLMC are comprehensive and engaging thanks in no small part to the wonderful facilities that the students enjoy as part of their daily activities.

A paper plane competition was held as a lunchtime event on Thursday 28 July. I hosted the event with Perry Leane (Faith and Ministry Prefect) the announcer. The House Prefects marked attendance and gave out the paper in their House colours. The purpose of the event was to engage our peers in competing for prizes and points for their Houses and generate House spirit. The fine weather permitted an outdoor event and the atmosphere was terrific.

Congratulations to Jacob Avery (Year 12 Red) for winning the distance event with a flight of 24 metres and well done to Leim Sawyer (Year 8 Gold) for the most accurate shot. I thank those who participated and attended. 

The Terry Dunn House celebration, held on Friday 29 July, was a great day. It was amazing to be able to connect closer with the House and its history. It was also great to see many members of Terry Dunn House take the time out of their day to come and listen to the presentation and learn more about the House they are part of. We were even fortunate enough to be welcomed by Terry Dunn himself, who was able to share with the students many of his life stories and accomplishments. Mr Dunn definitely inspired us to continue on our own sporting journeys and to never hold back on achieving our own goals. Afterwards, students enjoyed a sausage sizzle.

The Yellow Ribbon Program aims to teach young adults to understand their place and worth in the world and begin to let it be known that ‘it's okay to reach out and ask for help. 

Last week, from 25 to 29 July, the College’s Yellow Ribbon Ambassadors spread awareness through an empathy workshop to Year 9 students, teaching the fundamentals of what the program aims to achieve and what it can do. Activities such as writing out and talking about support systems and naming and describing simple and complex emotions were discussed among the Homerooms.

Alongside the empathy workshop, all ambassadors were required to bake and sell their baked goods as a fundraiser for Kids Helpline. Each lunchtime during the week, cupcakes and other goods were sold and a total of $362.92 was raised. All donations and purchases were greatly appreciated.

The Yellow Ribbon Program has been running at our College for 20 years. The College hopes for many more students to become Yellow Ribbon Ambassadors in the years to come.

On Tuesday 2 August, our Year 11 VCAL students held their Personal Best Showcase in McAuley Hall. Parents and friends were provided the opportunity to come to the College to see the students’ work on display and enjoy a hot drink from the Catherine’s Cafe van. Proud students took the time to share the purpose behind their project and chatted happily with guests.

The Personal Best projects are run throughout Term 2 for the Year 11 Applied Learning students (VCAL). The Personal Best project allows students to undertake an activity on something that is important to them. They are given the opportunity to work with a mentor to assist them to design, plan and produce a project of their choice. These activities also enable students to refine interpersonal and employability skills by creating a presentation to be delivered to the cohort and creating a visual folio.

This year some projects included resin tables, a cubby house, dog kennel, recipe books with videos, re-built motors, a handmade guitar, tennis racquet and many more amazing projects. Well done to all the students for their time and effort put into these projects.

Library and Information Week, held at the College from 25-29 July, celebrated the importance of libraries in society. Libraries provide opportunities for communities to grow and connect on local, national and global scales.

This year's Library and Information Week theme was 'rewrite, renew, reimagine'. The theme encourages Australians to reconnect with their libraries, rewriting, renewing and reimagining their knowledge, perspectives and stories. The College celebrated Library and Information Week with a range of exciting activities for students, families and staff.

The Monday night creative writing session with author Kirsty Murray (pictured above, second from left) encouraged students and their families to connect with and reimagine their personal stories. It provided families with the opportunity to explore creative writing with discussion and a mini workshop activity. You can read more about Ms Murray’s visit in the Star Newspaper article HERE.

Tuesday’s creative journaling workshop with expert Tamsien West offered students a chance to rewrite and translate their thoughts and experiences onto the page through exploring their creativity with artistic journaling. The creativity flowed through to Wednesday with a book craft session where students could make something simple or complicated by renewing, reimagining and repurposing books.

The week culminated with a Percy Jackson library quiz. Students came together to see who had the most knowledge about Percy Jackson and the Olympians. Well done to all the teams who participated.

(1) Student Achievements

Karate
Congratulations to Casey Cameron (Year 9 Silver) and Stephen Cameron (Year 11 Bronze) (pictured), who have both been selected to represent Victoria in the state karate team at this year's national titles in Queensland, beginning today. Best wishes to both students!

Baseball
Congratulations to Ryder Wilson (Year 10 Bronze) who is currently playing baseball for Australia in the Senior League World Series. At the time of publication, the team has won four matches, lost one and is due to play Panama in the semi-final tomorrow (Australian time). For results, check the World Series Website: https://www.littleleague.org/world-series/2022/slbws/

Cross Country
Congratulations to Rori Jones (Year 12 White) who finished eighth in the Under 20 girls’ event at the Victorian All Schools Cross Country Championships in Bundoora on Saturday 23 July. Well done, Rori!

If you have any other student achievements, please email them to me at dwebb@mlmc.vic.edu.au

(2) Cross country training

Cross country training is held on Monday afternoons (3.30-4.30pm) and Wednesday mornings (7.00-8.00am). Students should meet at the Doyle Centre. Training is held to help students to improve running and fitness levels and everyone is welcome, whether a student has qualified for the EISM Carnival or not. Breakfast is provided on Wednesdays. Students should email me or see me in the Doyle Centre for more details.

You can read about the House Cross Country Carnival, held on Friday 29 July, HERE.

(3) EISM results

Year 9 (21 July)

Senior (27 July)

Year 9 (28 July)

Senior (3 August)

Will Austin, a Peek Woorroong Keerraay Woorroong man and founder of Yarn Bark, visited MLMC last week to speak to our Year 8 Product Design and Technology students. Will discussed the use of materials from the cultural perspective of First Nations Australians, sharing the concepts of Country and how he would approach the collection of resources in a respectful and sustainable manner.

The students were then given a demonstration of how the materials are used for traditional crafting and a short performance of the yidaki. With this information, the Year 8s will produce an item using materials representing First Nations Australia and sustainability in a culturally respectful way.