Category: Community

Parent Symposium Success

August 8, 2017

More than 170 parents came to listen to special guest Melinda Tankard-Reist speak on Friday night at our Parent Symposium.

Thanks to all for attending and making this a fantastic event!

YEAR 10-12 MENINGOCOCCAL ACWY IMMUNISATION PROGRAM 2017

July 27, 2017

The free YEAR 10-12 MENINGOCOCCAL ACWY IMMUNISATION PROGRAM 2017 is conducted at St Stephen’s School by the City of Joondalup Immunisation team (9400 4938). Consent forms were completed by parents at the end of Term 1 and over Term 2. Please contact the COJ team if you didn’t sign a consent form but now wish to have your child vaccinated.

The date of the Meningococcal ACWY vaccination is AUGUST 17th. Students will progress through in Year Groups.

Starting at 0830 and finishing at around 11.00.

Thank you.

Alice Fern and Erica Doody-Burras

School Nurses

9243 2419

Bethany Home Tour

July 24, 2017

Students on the Bethany home tour have made a flying start! They have helped improve Bethany students’ fine and gross motor skills by doing craft activities, jumping through hoops and even an amazing race activity. They have started a mural as well as visited a Muslim School.

St Stephen’s School in the news – Synthesis Film Festival back!

July 24, 2017

Thank you to the  Joondalup-Wanneroo Times/Weekender for showcasing this event.

Photo courtesy of the Joondalup Times.

Read the full article here:

http://www.communitynews.com.au/joondalup-times/news/joondalup-synthesis-film-festival-is-back

Don’t forget if you are a secondary student attending school in the City of Joondalup and interested in making short films then there is still time to submit your entries. Just under $1500 worth of vouchers are up for grabs.

Farewell

July 5, 2017

Please join us in farewelling three amazing SSS servants, Mrs Diane Loan, Mr Richard Davies and Mr Paul Acutt. Every departing staff member will always have a special place in our hearts and none more so than Di! She has served our community for more than 28 years and will be missed by all. Enjoy retirement, Di and all the best.

WORK EXPERIENCE AND SERVICE LEARNING

July 1, 2017

I have enjoyed being able to visit many of our Year Ten students as they have participated in Work and Service Learning this week. Every one of our students told me how they were enjoying their time in the workplace or service learning, and many said this had helped them make decisions about their career path. One of the very special elements of the week were the past students who I encountered along the way. Their positive feedback about the long term impact of our school community were delightful to hear. There are also a number of our parents supporting this week and I thank all of you for the support you have given to the Year Ten cohort. The week was obviously of great value to the students. A special thank you to Cathy Trethowen who coordinated the challenging logistics of the week so successfully.

My best wishes for a relaxing and peaceful term break.

Dr Liz Criddle

Deputy Head of Secondary.

Year 10 & Year 11 2018

July 1, 2017

Dear Parents and Students

At the moment we are building the timetable for the next academic year (October 2017 to December 2018). It has been interesting and challenging to accommodate the changing desires of students. Subjects that didn’t exist in schools several years ago, such as ATAR Marine and Maritime Studies, Cert lll and lV in Business, Psychology etc. have grown in popularity while certain more “traditional” subjects have shrunk. Changes in the workplace are strongly influencing the subject choices that students and their families make.

Many Certificate classes (e.g. Certificate ll in Hospitality; Certificate lll in Design; Certificate ll in Sport and Recreation – Fitness; Cert ll in Outdoor Education) are chosen by both Year 11 and 12 students who enrol in a particular certificate depending on their needs. This mixture of students in Certificate Courses has been common for many years.

As we endeavour to keep other subject pathways open into the future, some very small Year 11 classes which have a significant practical or oral component do lend themselves to merging with small Year 12 classes. In 2018 fewer than 4 students have chosen ATAR French and this will be run in conjunction with the Year 12 class. The same will be true for Drama and Media. Students choosing these three subjects need to understand that they will be working with older students and that they will be required to work at a high and self-disciplined level.  I am pleased that there are still bigger numbers of students choosing subjects such as Economics, Modern History and Visual Art.

Our timetable is constructed “from the top down”: we start with Year 11 and 12 simultaneously. Initially student choices give us an indication of how many classes might be possible. We use a very advanced program to satisfy the needs of as many students as possible. Some subjects exist on one grid line only and this complicates things. Subjects such as ATAR English and Mathematics Applications are spread across as many “grid lines” as possible in order to create as many choices for students as we can. Decisions around the viability of classes are based on numbers, the historical number of students who drop particular subjects in favour of a private study in Year 12 as well as whether a subject is a university pre-requisite.

Over this last week of term, almost every prospective Year 11 and 12 student will finalise their subjects for upper school. While Year 11s chose 6 subjects, by the start of next year over 60% of year 12s on an ATAR pathway, will have only 5 subjects and will have a private study as their 6th “subject”. We are in the process of constructing the Year 9 and 10 “electives” gridlines and fitting those into the complicated matrix that makes up a timetable. This timetable will be in place until December 2018. After that timetables will be constructed later in the year and run from February to December each year.

I would like to wish every family a restful time over the extended mid-year break.

 

Regards

Bruce Titlestad

Head of Secondary School

Melinda Tankard-Reist is coming to St Stephen’s School

June 26, 2017

We are thrilled to announce renowned author, speaker, blogger and media commentator, Melinda Tankard-Reist will present at St Stephen’s School this August. 

In her special guest appearance, Melinda will explore how the proliferation of sexualized images and messages contributes to a distorted view of bodies, relationships and sexuality in young people, hampering their healthy physical, emotional and social development. 

In this toxic culture, how can we raise happy, healthy and resilient kids? 

If you would like to attend, please book your place now! Tickets are limited and will sell fast.

When: Friday 4th August 6:30 – 8:30pm (presentation commences at 7pm)

Where: St Stephen’s School Duncraig Theatre

Tickets: $18 (limit of two per customer)

Cheese, wine and coffee will be available on arrival with seating allocated on a first come, first served basis. 

We look forward to seeing you there.