Last week Year 5 went on their Wellbeing Day to Winmalee Christian Conference Centre. The weather was picture perfect and we were all very excited.

Throughout the day we all had a go at throwing boomerangs, and many of us were successful! We then discussed how just like a boomerang is thrown with a purpose, so are our words.

We then tried our hand at hilarious teamwork activities. Our favourite was the t-shirt game. It was so much fun trying to pull the shirt on and off each other in the fastest time possible.

As many of you would be aware Mrs de Villiers has gone on maternity leave and now has a beautiful baby girl; mother and baby are doing well.

Mrs de Villiers was overseeing the Educational Support programs at PCS and she was also teaching some of our students in small group settings. Whilst she is on maternity leave, Mrs Jenny Mahoney has taken on an additional role as Head of Educational Support. She has been meeting with teachers to discuss the needs of students, and how we can best support them.  In addition, Mr Brian Cavanagh has taken on the face-to-face teaching role with Junior School students and he has quickly come to know the students that he is supporting during Reading groups.

Our students also receive support from our wonderful Education Support Assistants (ESAs): Mrs Nicole Colbourn works with students in Early Stage 1 (Kindergarten), Mrs Lisa Payne works with Stage 1 students (Years 1 and 2), and Mrs Vanessa Renny works with students in Stage 2 (Years 3 and 4). Our ESAs provide support to students in a variety of ways including running Minilit program sessions to boost Reading skills, sight word and phonics practice with students, and supporting students in class during Writing and Mathematics lessons. Another important role they fulfil is to support students in the playground. The ESA staff have a great understanding of student needs, and they work hard to build relationships with the students that give them a safe, understanding, and empathetic adult that they know they can go to when they are experiencing difficulties that may range from a learning need to a social/emotional need. They also watch out for students who may require assistance during school events such as carnivals.

A few weeks ago, all of Year 7 English took part in a workshop exploring how we ‘see, hear, taste, smell and feel’ the world around us. This term we have been studying how Shakespeare used his writing to convey feelings to his audiences, so during the workshop it was over to the students to use their writing to convey their feelings.

Students tasted popping candy and grapefruits and wrote using different language techniques to describe what they were tasting, including; ‘Have you ever imagined you were a taste bud, small and hidden away, but one day you soar like fireworks? Well this is what it’s like tasting popping candy’.

Students also got to smell a variety of smells ranging from the delightful to the dreadful, then they wrote a dialogue between two characters describing one of the smells:

Wesley graduated from Penrith Christian School in 2017. He showed incredible talent working with wood in Design and Technology with his amazing major work.

He started his own business, Wesley Inglis Custom Furniture, making beautifully crafted wooden items such as breadboards, boxes, toys, and coasters. At the same time he went to TAFE to gain his Certificate III in Cabinet Making. He currently runs his business and works for TTK Kitchens and Joinery.

Wesley admits that most of what he knows about hardwood solid timber is self-taught and from his dad.

We’ve all heard of bingeing, and the latest use of the term has been associated with describing our TV-watching habits. In this interesting article by Ben Dolnick entitled ‘Why you should start binge-reading right now’, the author advocates the notion of binge reading, suggesting that by adopting this kind of approach can serve to foster a greater love of reading, which we of the iCentre staff, and the overwhelming majority of PCS staff, would agree, is a great thing.

Within the article he states, ‘Now this may all seem a bit rich, coming from a fiction writer. You aren’t enjoying reading? Then read longer! Read faster! The problem is you! But the corollary to this way of reading — of taking books down in gulps rather than sips — is that you will discover much more quickly when a book isn’t for you, and you can then set it aside without the nagging suspicion that you might have sabotaged it by your method of ingestion.’

I would encourage you to follow the link below and read the short article to see what Ben has to say about reading habits and the effect that these have upon the love of reading. Enjoy.

Year 9 student, Elise Ginger, recently trialled at the AFL All Schools day, and was selected in the NSW All Schools U15 AFL Team to compete at the School Sport Australia AFL Championships. Elise will be competing in Tasmania for a week-long carnival (Friday 27 July to Friday 3 August) against other Australian states.

Elise loves her AFL and has been playing for four years, progressing each year as her skills get better and better. Elise played her best game yet at the AFL All Schools day, and she is tipped by her coaches to have the ability to play in the AFL womens competition in the future. This is an amazing opportunity for Elise to be recognised and maybe even be given a signed contract to progress to a National level.

Congratulations on an amazing achievement Elise! 

Last week, Year 9 and Year 10 Physical Activity and Sports Studies classes had a visit from the Wheelchair Roadshow, an interactive session involving Wheelchair Basketball and some education about various sports for people with disabilities.

It was a great session with the students all participating in some games of Wheelchair Basketball, and Ava Edwards from Year 5 also joining the group to show her moves in her own chair. Students learnt of the various challenges facing people in wheelchairs as well as the increasing opportunities that are being developed for people to be involved in a wide range of sporting activities.

Some of the games were hard fought between the Year 9 and Year 10 teams and the games got faster and faster as they became used to moving in the wheelchairs.

Term 2 has been a whirlwind of learning and fun! The students built stamina and skill as they participated in NAPLAN preparation and testing. Upon reflection, some students said they enjoyed NAPLAN, while others were glad it was over. 

Many thrived while performing a song for Mother’s Day, finding new air guitar talents, and storytelling in music. 

History saw the students exploring their cultural backgrounds, and prompted them to be thankful for the many great things that others contribute to our community. What a blessing it was to have Nonno George come and tell them of his firsthand account of migrating from Italy to Australia. The homemade salami and olives were a real treat! 

This year, PCS entered into two divisions of the da Vinci Decathlon, held at Knox Grammar School. On Tuesday 28 May (Years 7 and 8) and Thursday 30 May (Years 5 and 6), our teams braved the early morning to meet at Penrith Station to catch the 6.41 am train to the city; the first of three trains that our teams would catch both to and from Knox.

Upon arrival, we were greeted with the sight of approximately 1300 students, from many different schools, all eagerly awaiting to begin this year’s challenges. Over the course of each of the days, out teams completed tasks in the categories of English, Mathematics, Science, Art and Poetry, Ideation, Creative Producers, Cartography, Engineering, Code Breaking and General Knowledge.

Despite the immense challenge of the vast majority of the set challenges, Mr Gee, Mrs Brady and myself, along with our wonderful parent helpers, witnessed both of our teams actively engaged in all tasks, demonstrating fantastic teamwork and camaraderie. At each break, we were greeted with an enthusiastic re-telling of the challenges which they had just completed. The smiles (and chatter) remained all throughout the day, even until our return to Penrith Station at 5.30 pm.

One of our goals at PCS is to encourage our students to go out into the world to make a difference. Congratulations to these amazing Year 4 students on having a great heart for Missions:

Alicia ran 3km on the weekend, and with her family, helped to raise over $3,000 for 'Run to Cure Neuroblastoma'

Ethan was so moved by his Class Reader that he is doing his own fundraiser to ‘Help Restore Sight’ through the Fred Hollows Foundation

Elliott generously brought many small gifts to give to the students at Divine Junior School Uganda.

Last week, PCS had four students representing NSW at the National Christian Schools Games. The Games are held every two years (for Under 16 teams), and this year they were held on the Gold Coast. The students competing from PCS were:

Basketball - Jessica Harrison and Ella Edwards

Netball - Isabella Hall

Tennis - Thomas Nelson.

Last Monday we were honoured and proud to have a past graduate of PCS offer to come and speak to our Senior Science students. Dr Martin Stewart (B.Sc maj. Nanotechnology, Biology: Cell Biophysics/ Mechanics), graduated from PCS in 2001 and has travelled the world studying and researching in Dresden Germany, Zurich Switzerland and the United States. He has finally come home to lecture and continue his exciting research at UTS.

The students and staff thoroughly enjoyed his visit, and found his talk very helpful. For some, it confirmed that they wanted to pursue a path to a Science career, and some Year 10 students stayed back to ask questions about what subjects would be helpful to choose.

‘My current research interests are in cell manipulation and analysis, specifically in the areas of intracellular delivery and cell biophysics. Intracellular delivery is a foundational technology for cell engineering applications such as gene and cell-based therapy. Prior to joining UTS in 2018, I completed postdoctoral fellowships with the Swiss National Science Foundation (Switzerland) and the Life Sciences Research Foundation (USA). Grants from the American Australian Association and the Broad Institute of Harvard and MIT gave me the opportunity to pursue my interest in cell response to membrane-based intracellular delivery methods, such as microfluidic cell squeezing and electroporation. Currently, I am a research Group Leader and Lecturer in the Faculty of Science, School of Life Sciences.’ Martin Stewart

Our School Captains attended a School Leaders Reception hosted by the Mayor of Penrith, Councillor Ross Fowler OAM at the Civic Centre on Wednesday 29 May.

Councillor Fowler congratulated the School Leaders from various schools in the Penrith area in which PCS was well represented by Julian Fernandez and Zoe Green.

Lyn Jagger

Parents, family, friends and Elective Music students, interested in higher level performance, are invited to our HSC Performance Night. 

This event is an opportunity to showcase the talents of our Year 12 Music students as they perform two of their HSC pieces.

When:                  Thursday 13 June 2019

For the past few weeks, Junior Missions have focused on acknowledging the efforts of OTHERS in our school. Year 3 and Year 4 students have given up their play time at lunch to type words of encouragement and make cards to recognise people who serve in our school. These students enjoyed taking their cards to give as gifts to a variety of people at our school.

They are grateful for our amazing leaders, like Mr Nevill and Mrs Woods, who make our school a better place; they appreciate the help of our Canteen Ladies who prepare delicious food; Mr Clark and the 'builders and fixers’ who work around our school; patient bus drivers, clever sports teachers, and as the students call them, ‘First Aid Ladies’ who are kind and caring, and many more.

Who do you know that needs a random act of kindness?

On Thursday 23 May, Year 10 and Year 12 students attended the Western Sydney Careers Market Day.  Students interacted and chatted with the stall holders from Universities, TAFEs, Colleges, Trades, ADFA, and more about careers and further education that they can pursue.  The students came away informed and with bags full of information about courses and careers that are of interest to them.

Year 10 students are now well-prepared for their Information Night about subject selection this week, and Year 12 students found it helpful for their applications to Tertiary study which are due over the next few months.

Lyn Jagger Head of Senior School And Year 12 Wellbeing Mentor

Thank you for the opportunity to introduce myself. My name is Katrina Baines, the new Head of Early Childhood. I am so excited about this role at PCS and look forward to working with the youngest members of our school community. I have worked in early childhood for 14 years as a teacher and director in child care.

I have been married to my husband, Stuart, for 16 years and we have three beautiful children. Caleb is in Year 5, Jonah is in Year 2 and Eden is in Prep. We have been so blessed by the support and encouragement that PCS has provided as our children have moved through the years. We are members of Imagine Nations Church where I am a key leader with the 1-3 year olds. For children to know, from infancy, that there is a God who loves them and that He has a purpose for their life, is what drives me to do what I do. It is the purpose God has placed on my life and I am so excited to see it in action on a daily basis.

I am so blessed and honoured to have joined the PCS school community this year. God has opened the doors for me and I am so grateful for the opportunity He has bestowed upon me. The early years are crucial to a child’s development and the quality of experiences in the first five years of life shapes how a child’s brain develops; 90% of a child’s brain is developed by the age of 5. I believe that quality interactions and learning through play are fundamental in developing a child’s ability to succeed in school and life.

Last week, twenty Year 11 and Year 12 students from Studies of Religion visited the Emanuel Synagogue and Jewish Museum to learn more about Judaism.

At the Synagogue, they were able to look at an old Torah scroll worth around $80,000, handwritten in Aramaic with ink on  parchment. They heard about Synagogue services and all the symbols of Judaism from Rabbi Sam.

At the Jewish Museum, Year 12 toured the holocaust section and were affected by the terrible war crimes against European Jews. Their question was “Why didn’t the world do something to stop it?” Year 11 were taken through the religious section and learnt about Shabbat, and the Jewish way of life.

We are so proud of our Alumni and what they’re achieving since they’ve left PCS.

Sarah Morley has just graduated from WSU with a Bachelor of Health Science (Sport and Exercise Science). For a long time she dreamed of becoming a Physiotherapist but didn’t achieve the ATAR needed straight from school. Through a different pathway, Sarah has managed to achieve her goal to study her Masters of Physiotherapy at Sydney University.

Awesome job Sarah and well done!

For those I haven’t met yet, let me introduce myself. My name is Daniel Favretti and I am the Wellbeing Mentor for Year 8, Missions Coordinator for Middle School and Ancient History Teacher.

I began at Penrith Christian School at the beginning of 2018 in a temporary position, which became permanent at the end of the year. I knew from the beginning that God had opened the door to this amazing school, and my prayer was that I would be able to stay, which He has answered in such a beautiful way. I have taught at numerous primary and high schools throughout the Macarthur area, yet arriving at PCS has felt like a homecoming.

I am also newly married, having tied the knot to my beautiful wife Sarah, in May 2018. We met whilst studying a Diploma of Ministry and the rest is history. Sarah is currently studying a Masters of Counselling and Psychotherapy at Western Sydney University. As for me, I studied at the University of Sydney, completing a Bachelor of Education, and a Bachelor of Arts majoring in Ancient History.