Well, as the Trial Examinations have finished and the teachers are all busily marking, the Year 12s are on a well earned rejuvenation break today, Friday. It is my hope that Year 12 all come back on Monday fresh and ready to dive into the final weeks of classes for their High School Careers. There is a great deal happening and a great deal for you all to stay on top of.

1. Jerseys are in (finally), make sure you have paid in full and pick them up from Mr Simpson.

2. Get your payment in for the Formal!

3. Coming in Week 8 - Year 12 Study Camp. More information to come on this.

4. Staff v Year 12 Basketball Match - More information to come and you will definitely need your A Game to beat Slimmo and his superstar teacher team.

5. Final Church Time, Final Formal SS Assembly, Graduation Ceremony all in the last week of term.

6. LOTS AND LOTS OF WORK STILL TO BE DONE.

Make sure that in all of these activities that you are not losing focus of what you all need to be doing in your classes and that you finish the term strong and are well prepared for the HSC Examinations. You will all learn a lot from your performance in the trials and it is important that you do not slacken off during this time but that you are hitting your peak performance. Remember to always communicate with your teachers and do it regularly! They are your best resource and are all there to help you as much as they can!

See you all next week.

Mr Simpson.

Operation Christmas Child

Operation Christmas Child is coming up soon and I would love to see as many people as possible getting involved. You all know the amazing feeling you get when you receive a special gift on Christmas. Wouldn't you love to know that children who are less fortunate than you  are able to experience the same happiness and joy by opening gifts on Christmas morning. It is up to us to put smiles on these children's faces by making them feel loved and cared for.

This year, we are aiming for 150 boxes to be filled in senior school. A total of 450 boxes will be our aim throughout our whole school community. We need as many people as possible to be passionate and help us reach this goal. Please bring in your boxes by Week 10.

Thank you, SLC.

Trial Examination Timetable

Welcome to Term Three!

There is a great deal going on for Year 12 this term, and you need to make sure that you are staying on top of all that you have going on and all that is to be expected of you this term. It is your last term at the college in classes and there is a lot to get done before the end of the term. Please make sure that you are not switching of and 'cruising', you need to make sure that you are doing all that your teachers expect of you. You should also be regularly communicating with your teachers.

As well as the items listed below, those of you who have major work assignments will need to be finalising them over the next few weeks according to the directives of your teachers. Make sure that you are on top of all of the work that you need to be doing for these so that you can produce work that you an be proud of. As well as this, you need to make sure that you are all lifting your game in all of your subjects. You all received your ATAR estimates from Mr. Camilleri and a large majority of you made indications that you have more you can do to achieve results that you can be proud of. I charge you to consider ways that you work smarter in your subjects, both at college as well as at home. Make sure that your study program is effective and giving you adequate time to review all of your subjects.

Week 3:

Tuesday 30th July - Parent Teacher Interviews
Thursday 1st August - The Works

Week 5 & 6:
Monday 12th August - Friday 23rd August - Trial HSC Examinations


Mr. Simpson

MPH Funtimes!

It has been great to see and hear some of the initiatives that are coming out of the Student Leadership Council this year, and one of them has been organising some play times with younger students in the MPH. This is a fantastic initiative as younger kids really get a great deal out of attention from our older students. I really hope that these kinds of initiatives can continue at MACC and that the SLC can continue to find new and exciting ways to create a greater college atmosphere and interaction among the students. Below are some photos of our Year 12's having a great time with this initiative. 

The Hub

Very exciting to see Year 12 Business Studies using the new learning spaces in 'The Hub'.

Keep up the good work guys.

Mr. Simpson

Mathematics in action

Now, I am often one to argue that English is a much more relevant subject when it comes to usability, but it was exciting to see Year 12 putting their measuring skills to work. Joel, how big is your face?

Keep up the good work guys!

Mr. Simpson

Local Library Sessions

Hi Guys,

There are some HSC Lectures being held locally that you all should have a look at. One of them is by Peter Skrzynecki, Advanced English Poet. There are also sessions on secrets to HSC success, all you need to know about the ATAR, the English Area of Study, the Trial HSC, Business Studies and Legal Studies. The link is below, I recommend you check it out.

http://www.campbelltown.nsw.gov.au/assets/5823/1/HSCLecturesFlyer2013.pdf

Mr. Simpson

hscLive

Hi guys,

Some things to be aware of this week:

1. hscLive is hosting a PDHPE workshop on the 25th May. It is Saturday, and it does run all day, but it will be immensely helpful!

https://www.hsclive.com.au/products/41

2. hscLive is hosting a Biology workshop on the 26th May. Like the PDHPE workshop, this also will be immensely helpful.

https://www.hsclive.com.au/products/43

There a whole bunch of seminars coming up in June that I will keep you aware of.

Mr. Simpson

Key Dates.

There are some key dates that you need to keep in mind for this term.

1. Your assessment tasks have been structured in such a way that you will have one task due pretty much per week this term, to make sure you stay on top of them.

2. Deposit money for Jerseys is due back Monday 13th May.

3. Permission note for Careers Expo is due back Monday 13th May.

4. There is to be a Year 12 Study day on the last day of Week 9, so if you have organised to work in the sport time that you would normally go home or if you have some other activity organised, you have plenty of time to change it. This day will be geared towards preparation for your Trial HSC Examinations.

There will be more dates coming for you to be aware of.

Mr. Simpson.

Welcome Back!!!

Welcome back to another term at College. As you are all now embarking on the Second Semester of your HSC year you are really getting towards the business end of your time at the College. This will be the term that your major works are getting very close to being finished and it will see you near the end of content in most of your subjects. It has been encouraging to see the majority of you return to College this week motivated and ready to work, but I still there is more that can be given. Remember, regular study and focus in class will put you on the path to achieve your goals this year.

I am looking forward to a great term and seeing you all continue to work to the best of your abilities.

Mr. Simpson.

Ag Plot

Below are some images of some of our Year 12 students helping out in the Ag Plot. It is wonderful to see students getting their hands dirty to improve the college and, in turn, benefiting the learning of all students that use that space. Simply click on the images to see an enlarged version.

Excellent work guys!

Mr. Simpson.

Year 12 Parent Committee

A note went home a short while ago regarding the Year 12 Parent Committee for organising the end of year festivities for Year 12. Please get these expression of interest forms back to me by Monday so that the committee can be organised and get the ball rolling.

Thanks.

Mr. Simpson

hscLIVE

There is a fantastic new resource that is available for a range of subjects called hscLIVE. Essentially, it is live streaming videos presented by an expert in the specific subject presenting on a specific theme/topic.

https://www.hsclive.com.au/

If you miss any you have the ability to purchase them. Once you register you can flick through all of your subjects and diairise when the videos will be showing. A great feature of the videos is that there are students in the studio while they are being filmed that have the ability to ask questions. Generally, these questions are really good and address issues that, I am sure, will have.

Check it out!!!

Year 12 Church Time

It has been very encouraging to see our Year 12's using their gifts serving us through Churchtime. It has been wonderful to see you grow in these and I hope that you continue to look for ways that you can honour God through acts of service. Great work guys.

I hope you all have a good Easter weekend and that you take some time out to meditate on what Christ did some 2000 years ago. Enjoy this time, spend it with your family and worship God.

Year 12 Sports Stas

It was excellent to see Year 12's being honoured for their God given sporting abilities and it is great to see such a good display of sportsmanship in the representation of our college. Great work guys.

As well as this, there have been encouraging reports from the PDHPE class pictured as well as some very positive examination results. Excellent work.

More Writing Comps

There are still a number of writing comps running that we have been plugging at school. Here is another one that is specifically for Christian teens.

http://www.spcka.org.au/AwardsTeen.html

It closes at the end of May so you will need to get moving should you wish to enter. For more information please see Mr Simpson or Mrs Rodriguez.

Mr Simpson.

Year 12 Half Yearly Exams

Today sees the end of the Half Yearly Examinations for Year 12. It has been really encouraging to see the commitment and effort put in by the students. My hope is that the experience is useful in revealing areas of weakness both in content as well as exam and study techniques. Every student is able to learn from the experience and take away a number of things to improve on.

It should be our combined goal to lift the standard across Year 12 and to break away from the past and set a new standard for the College.

Overall, well done with the effort you displayed during this exam period.

Mr Simpson

Camden Show

I got the opportunity to get down to the Camden Show this afternoon and it was wonderful to see our Year 12 students taking time out of their Half Yearly Examinations to represent our College at the Camden Show. They were fulfilling a variety of roles from showing cattle to working with the local SES. Great job guys.

Mr Simpson

 



Half Yearly Examinations!

The half yearly examinations are here! While not many students will feel this excitement, I was very encouraged by what I saw yesterday. The majority of students appeared ready, well equipped eager to start these exams on a good note. It was good to see the rigour with which students were approaching this exam and I was encouraged to see a large majority of Year 12 working right up until the end of the exam session time.

 
Going forward, you can put the notes for English, Ancient History, SDD, Geography and Visual Arts on the shelf for the time being and focus just on the remaining exams. This should mean that you will have more of your study time to allocate to your other subjects. I really hope that you continue to approach the remainder of your exams in the same way that you have approached the first two.


I pray that you can continue to study effectively and that you can remain calm through the remainder of the examination time.

 

Mr. Simpson.

Missions Trips

Below is the flyer for the Mission Trips Information Night. There are a number of trips happening this year and it is a great opportunity for you. If you are even just thinking about going, can I encourage you and your parents to get along to the information night. For more information, speak to Mr Sales.

Year 12 Major Works

It is really encouraging to see the work currently being carried out by our Year 12's. Over the next week I will be getting around to have a look at some of these works. Keep up the good work guys. Below is an example of Jessica's impressive artwork.

Remember, if you are doing a subject that has a major work component, it is important to get on top of these projects sooner rather than later. You need to continue to work with your teachers in order to complete these tasks and DO NOT leave them till the last minute.

Mr. Simpson

Writing Competitions

One of the things that Senior School is looking to focus on this year is to increase the level of which our student work is being presented within the college as well as throughout the community. This is so that we can praise our peers at a college level but also show the community some of the fantastic abilities Mount Annan Christian College students have at their disposal. One really good way to achieve this is through entries into the various local and state wide competitions. Not only do you have the opportunity to win prizes but constant writing will help you further develop your abilities, abilities that you will need for the only compulsory HSC subject: English.

The first one is Write4Fun. This is a fantastic competition that provides some really appealing incentives. You choose whether to write a short story or poetry and the prizes are impressive, an Xbox 360 as an example. 

http://www.write4fun.net/competitions/ 

The closing date of this competition is the end of March so you will need to act quickly. If you miss out though, they will most likely be running a second competition during Semester Two. Our college has had some success in this competition in recent years with a number of students short listed for the finalists.

The other writing competition going at the moment is one run by the Whitlam Institute. This competition is closing in May so you have a bit more time to get an entry in.

http://www.whitlam.org/the_program/what_matters_writing_competition

As well as writing competitions, there are a number of local History competitions running at the moment. For further information about all of these see Mr Simpson.

Have a great weekend and get writing!

Mr Simpson

Week 5 wrap.

It has been a great week this week and it is encouraging to see that the wet weather has not dampened the momentum of our Year 12 students. As we have our examination timetables it is the time to get stuck into some regimented study, ensuring that your study program is working effectively for you. I have collected exam study guides from teachers and started giving them out today, if you need one please come and find me and collect one. 

If you are struggling in where to start studying for these exams see one of your teachers AS SOON AS POSSIBLE! The sooner you get this sorted the better it will be for you. My hope is that every single Year 12 students approaches the Half Yearly Examinations with the intention of achieving their best possible result and doing everything in their power to be ready for them. 

Have a great weekend.

Mr. Simpson

This week we have seen some images coming out of a couple of Year 12 Science classes. It is very encouraging to see our students engaged and enjoying the learning that they are doing. As well as this, it is great to see some different strategies being used in order to achieve this. Thank you Mrs Huxley for the images and the blurb that accompanies them.

12 Biology made a model to show how the molecule DNA is responsible for making proteins in our body. It took just a little longer to make the model of this process than it did to eat it. Molecular Biologists in the making!

Making and Eating? DNA

Last week 12 Bio made a model of DNA out of lollies. This helped them to understand its structure and function. The best part was that they got to eat their DNA too! 

By all reports, the students enjoyed this activity and the hands on approach to learning about DNA really helped students to understand the content a lot better.

Great work guys, and thanks Mrs Huxley for the photo.

Mr. Simpson

Yr 12 Mathematics and Homework Club

Homework club is starting at the Library between 3:00pm-4:00pm for senior students Year 11 and 12 students wanting assistance with their Mathematics on Wednesday afternoon. Thank you Mr Ha for providing time to students this week to help them prepare for their HSC.

This is a very valuable resource for you all and I encourage as many students as possible to take advantage of this opportunity on a Wednesday afternoon.

Mr. Simpson

Examination Timetable

Below is a copy of the Half Yearly Examination Timetable for your reference. To build on the sessions that were run last year throughout Term 4, Mr Simpson and various other teachers will be using the Year Meeting time to bring you useful hints and tips to help you prepare for these examinations. Remember, you will all be receiving a document from all of your teachers that will outline what to study for these examinations.

Mr. Simpson

I had a wander around the College this week and popped into a number of different Year 12 classes. It was very encouraging to see that the majority of students are getting stuck into the work that they need to be doing. What I would like to see though is that all students are giving their all to their class work, homework and assessment tasks now rather than waiting till the Half Yearly's or even the Trials to get to work. The more momentum you build up now the more manageable your year will be.

Make sure you have regular channels open with your teachers and that you seek them out regularly so ensure that you are doing all that is required of you. They are also able to help you with how best to study and to make sure you are understanding things properly.

Mr. Simpson

12 Chem working with Sprite.

Year 12 D&T featuring the new 3D printer.

Year 12 2013

Now that we are back from the Christmas and New Year break it is great to see the Year 12's getting back into the swing of things. It has been encouraging to see many students ready to work and to build on the successes of 2012. 

My encouragement to all students at this stage is to be accountable. You need to be accountable to your subject teachers in order to complete the work set and the assessment tasks that you will encounter throughout the year. You need to be accountable to your classmates in order to support them in this educational journey and so that they can also support you. But, most importantly I think, you will need to be accountable to yourselves. You are here doing subjects that you selected because you want to obtain your Higher School Certificate. Many of you also want to obtain an ATAR. You need to be able to get to the end of the exams in November and look back and happily say to yourself that you worked to the best of your ability and that you achieved results that you are proud of. 

The best thing you can do at this stage to start to achieve this re-evaluate your study regime and you commitment to class time activities. If you wait until the trials to start a study program, you have waited too long. You should be communicating with your teachers on a regular basis, using the channels available to you to ask questions and to seek clarification. They can be your best resource. 

On top of all of this, pray. Pray that God can give you motivation, peace of mind and clarity during this time.

Mr. Simpson.