Congratulations to the overall winners of the School Swimming Carnival. Students participated in swimming, volleyball and waterslide fun. Overall, a great day at Brimbank Aquatic & Wellness Centre.

The winners for the day were:

Interim Reports will be accessible through the Parent Access Module (PAM) on Tuesday 28 March.

Student/Parent/Teacher interviews will take place in the hall on Wednesday 5 April from 3:30 – 8:30pm and on Thursday 6April from 9:00 am – 3:00pm. 

Interim reports will indicate whether an interview with subject teachers is requested. The College will endeavour to accommodate interviews that are requested.

Families are asked to book sessions with their children’s subject teachers through the Parent Access Module by Tuesday 4 April. The booking system will open on Tuesday 28 March, and is accessible through the College website or the SIMON Everywhere App. 

Instructions on how to book interviews are available via the links below. 

Early Dismissal

Students will be dismissed at 3pm on Wednesday 5^th April and there will be no classes on Thursday 6^th April as all teachers will be involved in the interviews.

We look forward to meeting with families and students to discuss their academic progress, achievement and goals.

Pastoral Care Program - Current Concepts and Themes

Catholic Regional College Pastoral Care program provides a sequenced curriculum from Years 7 to 10 using a multimodal approach designed to develop the achievement and wellbeing of the whole person (spiritually, intellectually, morally, physically, socially and emotionally).

Our Pastoral Care program centres around the social-emotional learning (SEL) model, a school-based organisational framework through which students learn to become lifelong learners who recognise, reflect and manage their emotions and empathise with others.

Our Pastoral Care program fosters the development of positive relationships. It provides opportunities for students to grow from challenging experiences to contribute positively to their community and flourish as responsible global citizens.

Current Concepts and Themes

Year 7 – Trust and Transition: Belonging

Year 8 – Understanding Myself through Wellbeing Knowledge

Year 9 – Courage – Honesty/Emotional Intelligence

Year 10 – Relationships and Themes

Child Safety Committee

Our Child Safety Committee provides input and support to Catholic Regional College St Albans (the College) to ensure the College considers all views, insights and opinions while meeting its legal and moral obligations to ensure students feel safe and secure while in the care of the College.

This term our student representatives supported by members of our Peer Support and School Representative Council have constructed a Conflict Resolution and Complaints Flowchart for all students to utilise, when they have a conflict and/or concern. Our students have delivered a Conflict Resolution Workshop to all students, to provide them with an understanding of what steps to take if confronted with a difficult situation. The workshops have been received positively and our workshop student leaders have enjoyed educating their peers.

Please see our ‘Resolving a Conflict Respectfully’ and ‘Raising a Concern’ flowcharts for your own reference and understanding.

Mindful March

Please see attached our Mindful March calendar for all members of our community to reflect upon with each other.

Mindfulness can help us respond more calmly, even in difficult times. This month we encourage you to pause, breathe and notice, so we can respond more mindfully.

Remember: Inner peace can contribute to outer peace too.

Weekly Wellbeing Pulse Checks

We hold the care, safety and wellbeing of young people as a central and fundamental responsibility of our school. We, as a College, are fully committed to the safety and wellbeing of all students, and we understand that every student has the right to feel safe. We strive to do this by ensuring that all staff are able to proactively ensure the safety of students at all times. Therefore, we have introduced our Weekly Wellbeing Pulse Checks for our Year 7 and 10 students, to check in with the mental, social and physical wellbeing.

Weekly Wellbeing Pulse Checks makes it safe and easy for students to ask for help. Teachers get a clearer understanding of how individual students are feeling so they know who needs their help most. It provides deep insight into wellbeing and sentiment data to improve the whole school experience.

For further information, please do not hesitate to contact your child’s Year Level Leader or Mr. Dale Marshall (Wellbeing for Learning Leader).

Extra-curricular Activities at CRC St Albans

Participating in extracurricular activities in secondary schools is important for students to grow both academically and personally. These activities offer students the opportunity to develop a range of skills, including leadership, teamwork, time management, and communication, which are essential for success in the future.

Extracurricular activities also provide students with a sense of belonging and the chance to pursue their passions and interests outside of the classroom. These experiences can lead to meaningful relationships, new perspectives, and opportunities for personal growth. Extracurricular activities are a central aspect of CRC St Alban's education that provides students with a well-rounded experience, helping them to develop their full potential and achieve their goals.

We have a vast range of activities for students to participate in during lunch-time or after-school. If you would like further information, please do not hesitate to speak to the supervising teacher identified below or check our daily bulletin for further information.

eSafety: Term 1 Webinars for Parents and Carers

Online social platforms and gaming may seem confusing to many of us and yet it is an important part of our young people’s lives. If you would like more information about the online and gaming world, please sign up for one of the many free webinars offered by the eSafety Commission.

eSafety 101: How eSafety can help you (March)

For parents and carers of young people in primary and secondary school.

• who eSafety are
• what you can report to eSafety
• helpful advice and resources for parents and carers.

Setting your child up for success online (February & March)

For parents and carers of young people in primary school.

• age-appropriate expectations and boundaries online
• risks and strategies to keep your children safe
• where to find support for you and your child when things go wrong.

Getting the most out of gaming (March)

For parents and carers of children aged 7 to 14.

• when gaming can be beneficial and strategies to promote better in-game experiences
• how to keep children safe online – using safety and privacy settings in games and platforms
• strategies to promote more balanced gaming and how to create smoother transitions from game-play to other activities.

Navigating online friendships (February & March)

For parents and carers of young people in secondary schooI.

• how to support young people to have safe and respectful online relationships
• what to do when something happens at school and ends up on social media or private messaging apps
• how to report to social media platforms and eSafety.

‘How you are’ is everything

Your career won’t thrive if you don’t – your physical and mental health is the most important thing so put time aside to nurture it (and watch your results skyrocket).
Pressure to study hard and get good results can mean late nights and early mornings (and not enough sleep), poor food choices, a lack of exercise, and social media pressures and dramas. Oh, and being bent like a pretzel over your smartphone for hours each day doesn’t help either. So regardless of where you’re at with your studies, you need to take the time to chill out and look after your wellbeing as regularly as you can. Chat with friends, eat some more vegetables, snack on some fruit and down a few litres of water each day. You’ll feel better for it.

CONVERSATION STARTER
How do you spend your time each week? As a student’s priorities and schedules change with more extra-curricular activities, part time work, or family commitments, the need to manage the increased workload becomes more important. Finding a balance between doing the things we want to do and the things we need to do is key for a successful and fulfilling life.

Over the next two weeks we encourage families to find a time and space to ponder the following question :

CAREER SPOTLIGHT - Landscape Gardener

Do you love the outdoors, and want a career that will see you building and maintaining beautiful green spaces? You might like to consider a career as a landscaper and one of the best ways to get your foot in the door is by completing an apprenticeship. As part of a landscaping apprenticeship, you will be doing real work for an employer while completing study with a TAFE or RTO. A landscaping apprenticeship can take anywhere between 3-4 years to complete, depending on whether you work and study full or part-time. There are tons of benefits to an apprenticeship, rather than just work or study alone, including:

• Getting paid while you learn.
• The opportunity to get hands-on experience.
• The potential to connect with an employer and continue working with them after your apprenticeship is finished.
• Your qualification will be nationally recognised, meaning you can work anywhere with it.

For a career related to horticulture, watch the videos below and find out more:

BECOME A GARDENER:

BECOME AN URBAN PLANNER:

BECOME A PARK RANGER:

Good news is we about 65% done – you will notice that the outer metal frame and roof are beginning to take shape.