Mercy Messenger - Term 3 Week 10, 18 September 2020

Do a quick straw poll of students and the majority will say they like Maths, or at least are OK with it. They realise that Maths is important for their future and what’s more, if they want to succeed then some homework is a must.

For a small number of students, however, Maths is pure gobbledygook; makes no sense at all and is anything but enjoyable. These students may be living with a disability called ‘Dyscalculia’. 

Miss Nicole Martin our Head of Department, Maths who is an unapologetic Maths nerd, when interviewed on this subject was of the opinion that a very small percentage of Mercy students exhibited dyscalculia symptoms. Miss Martin went on to explain how strategies used in Year’s 7 to 9 instill good habits and dispel anxiety caused by confusion and uncertainty. Virtually nothing that makes a useful connection is off limits. Counting with fingers, drawing a diagram, manipulate a model, ask a question, go to tutoring (after school on Mondays in Room D04) to name but a few ways of making Maths sense. 

Student confidence along with competence is strongly supported. Work habits such as setting out Maths problems to show your thinking, revisiting past work in homework sheets, and working with an ‘expert’ partner are all sound practice that helps overcome anxiety. Regular revisiting of past concepts, and frequent consolidation make a big contribution to learning progress.

Maths is the language of the Universe, many a student who grasps the beauty of the subject simply can’t stop chatting about it.

Mr Jim Ford

Cultural Night - Thursday Week 2, 15 October.  Combined Mercy/St Patricks event in the Mercy Pavilion. COVID safe procedures apply (limited capacity)

Sports Evening - Date TBA reduced format, barbecue.  Venue: Mercy Pavilion

Speech Night - Tuesday 24 November at the MECC for Year 10 Students and one parent and limited staff. Lived streamed for others unable to attend due to Covid Restrictions.

Year 10 Semi-formal - St Pat’s Hall Wednesday 25 November. 6:00 to 9:30pm.

Orientation Day Year 6 students - Thursday 26 November, Mercy Hall. A Parent of each child is welcome. Covid procedures apply.

Year 10 Graduation mass - Friday 27 November, Year 10 students and parents only in the Pavilion. Live stream to classrooms for all other students and staff.

Year 9 Leadership Camp - Monday 30 November - Thursday 3 December.

Prot: 20443:MMsp_1102 

8 September 2020 

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ 

Statement from Queensland Bishops – The Common Good in a COVID World 

The Bishops of Queensland have issued a statement – The Common Good in a COVID World.  This statement was released on September 7, 2020.

I write to each one of you to ask that you read, reflect and pray about the statement as it has been given to you as a resource leading up to the State Election on 31 October 2020. 

It is a concern for me, as your Bishop, that many decisions are made in parliament that affect our lives and those of our fellow human beings. 

The Queensland Parliament enacted the Termination of Pregnancy Bill in 2018, which is in opposition to Catholic teaching on life.  I ask you to consider the statement from us, the Catholic Bishops of Queensland. 

Over the four Sundays of September our focus is on the issues of life.  These notes and prayers have been prepared by my Bishop’s Advisory Panel on Sanctity of Life issues.  I am grateful to Father Don White, Dr Ciara Ross and Michael Otto for their wisdom, scholarship and prayer as they have produced an excellent resource for you and your parish communities. 

On Sunday 4 October, the Diocese of Rockhampton will release a Pastoral Statement.  I ask all Catholics and Christians to dedicate this day to prayer for all life issues.  In our planning, ensure a COVID safe prayer gathering. 
Some of the ways you can join in prayer include: 

• Prayer before the Blessed Sacrament
• Rosaries
• Prayer gatherings online (Zoom, Facebook etc)

I ask the whole Diocese to pray on Sunday 4 October and for our politicians to make pro-life decisions in our Parliament. 

It is not good enough for us to stay silent.  Our Catholic voice and our Catholic faith – pro-life – must be heard.  To stay silent now does not resonate with being a Catholic or Christian. 

Again, I ask you to contact your local member and candidate and make your Catholic views known.  I also ask you to remember the unborn in your prayers – this is human life, like you, like me, created in the slip-stream of God’s love. 

We cannot afford to allow any more deaths of our people by our silence. 

The Euthanasia debate may also soon be before us and for us who are moving towards the autumn years of life, I would hope that good palliative care will be in place so that all of us, including me, will be able to die with dignity.  Euthanasia is not a Catholic teaching.  Again, please do not be silent and have your views made known. 

I gift you with this excellent formation material and I am asking our priests and sisters who are in leadership roles to assist you, and together we will begin to reclaim our Catholic and Christian faith as the marvellous gift we share and gives us hope. 

You can find the statement and further information through our Diocesan website - 

https://rok.catholic.net.au/qu...

May God bless you all.

Yours sincerely

Most Rev Michael McCarthy Bishop of Rockhampton 

Term 3 Interim Reports

Interim Reports, detailing the current progress of students, are now available through Parent Lounge.

The Term 3 Interim Report is provided mid-way through the semester as a guide to parents/guardians and students. Please note that formal assessment for these subjects may not have occurred at the time of printing of these reports. The report is an indicator of a student’s current level of academic performance and, depending upon work habits and application to the subject, students may exit at the end of the semester with a grade which is different to their current achievement; clarification of details or concerns is best discussed with your child’s class teacher. 

Student/Parent/Teacher Conferencing. 

Parents/Guardians are able to make interview times for Student/Parent/Teacher conferencing with their student's teacher.  The student is required to be present at the conference with the teacher.

Wednesday 7 October (Week 1) - 3:30 - 7:30pm

Access to make a booking will be available until Tuesday 6 October 10:00am. Each interview will last for 7 minutes, with a 3 minute allocated change-over. Due to current COVID restrictions interviews will take place in classrooms throughout the College and not the Hall. Parents will be asked to comply with COVID safe requirements.

Interviews can be made through Parent Lounge by clicking on the Parent/Teacher booking button. Parents/Guardians have been issued with a Parent Lounge username and password, however, if you have a problem with logging on please contact the College Office. 

The Following staff will not be available on the night: Mrs Eddy, Mrs Ciantar-Schatkowski, Mr Bettington, Mr Crocker, Mrs Gracie

Subject Preferences for 2021

Reminder that all Year 7 and 8 Subject Preference are due now. Year 9 Subject Preferences are due by Wednesday 7 October. The first week of Term 4.

Mr Adam Skoczylas

I have been practicing yoga for seven years and I couldn’t count how many times I’ve heard the word namaste to conclude the yoga class. The word namaste (hah-mah-stay) is an Asian word, which, as mentioned, is commonly used in yoga and means “the divine in me recognises the divine in you.” Imagine what it might be like if, every time we encountered a person, we stopped for a moment to realise that they are created in God’s image.  What would happen if we thought this when someone was unkind to you or talked about you behind your back? What would happen if we thought this when we are tempted to do wrong against someone or thought unfavourable things about another person?

Some words say so much! 

We are called to be in solidarity with others by recognising the divine in them.  As the word namaste suggests, we also need to recognise and notice the divine in ourselves.  When we are in solidarity, we are able to see the world - a situation, a person, or even a problem - through another person’s eyes.  Standing in solidarity means standing together, side by side, facing forward, with each person having equal power and equal responsibility.

Today being the closest school day to Mercy Day (24 September) we acknowledge the feast of Our Lady of Mercy. It is a special day to give thanks to God through Mary for the gift of mercy. We also remember and give thanks for the life of Catherine McAuley, and remember the sisters who followed her mission to bring God’s mercy to those in need. The divine in Catherine and the Sisters of Mercy recognised the divine in the most marginalized people of their time and took a vow of service to perform works of Mercy to alleviate suffering.

We can live namaste when we live in solidarity with other people, when we take action for equality and by including them and their needs in our prayer instead of always asking for something we desire for ourselves. We strive to follow Jesus’ example in all that we do.

Mrs Jeanette Refalo

WEEKEND MASSES

Link for weekend Mass bookings: https://www.trybooking.com/BKA...  If you are unable to book online please phone the numbers listed below. Or to book for St Patrick’s, St Francis Xavier, St Mary’s and St Michael’s 0460 423 603 or 4957 4807 from 9:00am to 3:00pm Monday to Friday

PLEASE NOTE The online booking times: open Sunday evenings and close 9:00am Friday, the day prior to the weekend masses
 
MASS TIMES
Saturday:
5:15pm St John’s church, Walkerston
6:00pm St Mary’s church
6:00pm St Francis Xavier church
6:30pm Holy Rosary church, Marian
Sunday:
7:00am St Patrick’s church
7:30am St Francis de Sales church, Finch Hatton
9:00am St Francis Xavier church
9:00am St Michael’s church, Sarina
11:00am St Patrick’s church
6:00pm St Patrick’s church (only Sunday night Mass in Mackay)
Reconciliation is available by appointment only. Please phone the Cluster Office on 4957 4807.

A few years ago I trained as a companion with the Good Grief program. This has been an informative journey that I would like to share with others who may be navigating similar circumstances.
Grief is the human response to change and loss in our lives, such as the death of someone we love. Grief challenges the way we think about ourselves and the world and influences our spirituality and relationships.

How do young people express grief?

Each young person will experience grief in their own unique and personal way. However, it is common for young people to retreat privately into their grief and they may withdraw from friends and family. They may believe that the intensity of their grief is much greater than that of those around them and can fear they are losing control. Some of the reactions young people may experience are below;

Emotions that young people may feel 

• Angry, frustrated or disillusioned 
• Confused, anxious and overwhelmed 
• Lonely and isolated from peers 
• Feel consumed by their sadness 

Thoughts that young people may have

• Feel tormented by their thoughts 
• May worry about the future 
• If bereaved by suicide they may be more susceptible to suicidal thoughts 

Behaviours that young people may show 

• May engage in risk-taking behaviour 
• May distance themselves from family or ‘lash out’ 

Physical reactions that young people may experience 

• Trouble sleeping 
• Tired, distracted, lethargic, and unable to concentrate 
• Experience anxiety and panic attacks 
• Experience digestive problems 
• Feel physical aches and pain 

In thinking about how best to support them, it can be helpful to understand the grief response as a journey. Young people are unlikely to want an adult with them every step of the way, but they need opportunities to reflect on how they are travelling. Most importantly they need adults who proactively and regularly check they are heading in the right direction. 

Young people need:

• a strong, loving relationship with a parent or primary caregiver who they can rely upon and trust 
• opportunities to talk through and make sense of what has happened
• space to express a wide range of emotions (such as sadness, anger, fear, guilt and humour).
• help to talk through and make sense of their emotions and reactions
• security from their usual boundaries and expectations
• opportunities to be involved in decisions linked to their loss or any further changes

As a parent, don’t be afraid to ask other trusted adults to help support your child. Some young people may find it easier to speak with someone outside the family. Encourage young people to talk over their feelings with the school counsellor if they are feeling overwhelmed.

Mrs Lynn Wirtz

VOLUNTEER OPPORTUNITIES 

WHITSUNDAY STEM CHALLENGE – HUMAN POWERED VEHICLE EVENT

If teachers and parents volunteer, they will be provided with a wrist band to enter the race area.

The Whitsunday STEM organising committee is calling for volunteers to assist with various duties at the Human Powered vehicle race on Saturday 10 October at Palmyra Dragway.
Email Leanne Williams – l.c.williams@cqu.edu.au with name and volunteer role you would like.

The list of duties is as follows:
COVID-19 - Health Check In for competitors - Check In of competitors for race, registration and handout of wristbands.
Gate Keeper between Spectators and Racers – This position needs to ensure people moving from the spectator area to the race area have a wrist band.
Race Marshalls – 4 on the track at each time.  All competitors and race crews are to sign in with an app and then complete a form and have their temperature checked.  There will be two temperature guns.

Friday   3:00 – 5:00pm – 2 volunteers required
Saturday 7:00 – 9:00am - 2 volunteers required
Saturday 7:00-9:00am – 2 volunteers required
Saturday 9:00am-4:00pm – Volunteers Required for 1-2 hours – 5 volunteers required
Saturday 9:00am-4:00pm and 1 hour per station and you can go into the pit area.

Race Marshall Role Description
A Marshall is present to ensure that the race runs smoothly and safely. The Marshall’s first role is to provide first response to safety issues or accidents and to indicate to riders any safety concerns using the following flag system.

Blue – be aware traffic is around you, slow traffic moves out of the race lane.
Yellow – Slow down! There is an incident just up ahead.
Black – there is something wrong with your vehicle, or you are penalised, go to pit.
Red – extreme danger, stop right now!
Green – clear to race.
(Only used by Chief Marshall or Race Director)

(Only to be used Chief Marshall or Race Director)
Marshalls should be looking for all participants to have all safety equipment on.

Each vehicle should be checked for safety equipment as they leave the pits, lights, horn, seat belt, helmet, gloves, and eye protection.
Bike speed through the pits area should be no more than walking pace.
Please be dressed in a sun safe manner, with closed in shoes and have a water bottle handy.  Walkie Talkies will be provided at each stand.

All infringements or penalties are to be referred to the Chief Marshall for review and action. At NO stage is a Track Marshall allowed to stop a bike.
After an accident the attending Track Marshall is to contact the Chief Marshall with a report of any damage to the crashed bike or bikes and if a penalty could be awarded to the bike at fault or if re-scrutineering may be needed.

Each school will need to provide a teacher or adult volunteer to perform Track Marshall Duties for their given time slot. Please be 5 minutes early for a hand over brief from the retiring person.

Emergency
Race medics are on site to deal with any medical issue or injury. Contact race control via two-way to alert medical staff of situation. They have a medic vehicle to come to your point on the track.

Race Conduct
Please ensure each person carrying out marshaling duties is aware of the acceptable race conduct, infringements and penalties as pointed out in the Live Event manual 2020 WSC Rules and Regulations handbook. 

Mr Michael Duggan

Students studying SC730 Investigating Science and GE723 Geography, learnt about our Great Barrier Reef, the animals that live and interact with the reef and the impacts caused to the reef by human interactions, including global warming and coral bleaching by attending the Great Barrier Reef excursion on Friday 11 September. 

The students all had an amazing time and collected data to help with the University of Queensland's Coral Water Program.

Ms Tania Attard

Jackson Ziekenheiner, was lucky enough to have his application to join Dr James Udy on the research vessel ‘The Velella’ with the Science Under Sail Australia program accepted. Below is Jackson’s review of his trip.

The Science Under Sail Experience was amazing. We surveyed many places around the Great Barrier Reef including Brampton Island, Goldsmith Island, Cape Gloucester, Magnetic Island and more. Each day we collected data to analyse. The first way of collecting the data was diving down ourselves to the bottom of the sea and analysing what was on the sea floor, whether it be seagrass, coral or algae. We videoed the dive so we could check our observations later in the day. The other way of collecting the data was lowering a camera apparatus into the water and videoing what was on the bottom of the sea as the boat towed it along. All the data was entered into data sheets when out in the field and transferred to an excel spreadsheet. We also did a coral watch; a citizen science project of analysing the health of reefs and many fun snorkels on the reef. We saw heaps of whales and often stopped for a while to watch them and turtles as well. We saw many marine organisms hiding in the coral and lots of awesome fish. I loved this experience very much and learnt heaps about the reef and seagrass habitats. I would definitely do this again when the next chance comes up. If you are passionate about marine science and like what you have heard, I recommend following Science Under Sail Australia’s social media pages to see things like this and apply for opportunities you see posted in them.

It was a beautiful sunny day and the Year 8 students were very excited about the field trip to Cape Hillsborough. The students enjoyed looking at the different types of rocks and learning a few more of their names. This was the perfect opportunity for them to make connections to their learning in class and applying that knowledge to the extraordinary landscape around the Cape Hillsborough area.

The students enjoyed walking along the tracks and spotting different examples of biological weathering and the stunning views from the lookouts along the track.

Below are some of the comments made by students after the excursion.

I really enjoyed the trip as it was a great learning experience and I had an awesome time with my friends. I enjoyed going up to Turtle Point Lookout, as the view was spectacular where we saw turtles and a whale. It was great to be able to see the natural process and really understand how it all works, as it was right there in front of us.  Evelyn O’Brien

My favourite part of the Cape Hillsborough excursion was definitely the hiking. We got to chat with friends and go at our own pace, so it was very relaxing while also being a great challenge. It made getting to see the sights at the destination feel even better as I felt accomplished afterwards. I’m just glad I didn’t forget my water!  Jake Rickards

I liked the Cape Hillsborough trip because I loved hanging out with my friends, the walks and having fun on the beach.  Olivia Neale

I enjoyed spending time outdoors with my friends. We saw turtles and a whale at the lookout. I loved the long bus trips looking out the window seeing the landscapes. Flynn Steindl

Ms Tania Attard

Mercy students competed in the Mackay Junior Robotics Competition this week across the areas of Soccer and Dance.  The students have been working tirelessly over the term giving up their lunchtimes and weekends to build and program their robots for the competition.  We were fortunate to host the event in our Hall and welcomed visiting schools to compete in the Rescue category.  With the support of local sponsors (BMA, CQU, Mackay Regional Council, SEW, RIN, Member for Mackay-Julianne Gilbert), the Whitsunday Festival of STEM has been formed to provide students with a variety of opportunities in a number of areas with the robotics competition becoming a part of this in 2020.  A big thank you to Mercy's Parents & Friends Association who supported the purchase of robotics kits so our students could participate in this event.  Congratulations to the following students who took out positions in their categories:

Dance – 1st Place – Nerida Hansen, Lorenzo Villon, Amy Ewart, Evelyn Ford
             2nd Place – Mia Ludwick, Lilly Axiak
Soccer – 1st Place – James Galea, Locke Forrest
             2nd Place – Jack Hillman, Jerry Yuan
             3rd Place – Xavier Grogan, Patrick Arbuthnot

Our winning Dance team also won the Spirit Award; nominated by competing teams for the team who demonstrated cooperation, team spirit and sportsmanship over the day. 

Thank you to the teachers and staff who support the student groups and helped make the competition day such a success. 

Mrs Sandra Bayliss

As Year 9 students, we have been discovering and looking into the social issue of housing affordability as part of our Math Assignment task. Upon research we have discovered that many people struggle to provide accommodation and living requirements to suit their needs. It is recommended by financial advisors that people only use 30% of their monthly income on housing, however in many cases this isn’t possible. 

As a year level we are taking action and have decided to donate basic necessities such as laundry products and toiletries. The aim is to relieve the stress of such purchases to people who need it most. We have also come to appreciate how privileged we are to live comfortably with enough money for luxury items and even items we would consider as basic necessities.

If you would like to add a contribution to our collection please drop off the off to Student Reception. We also encourage all Year 9 students to bring their donations to classes.

Goods will be passed on to community organisations working with the poor, the vulnerable and those in need, including C.A.S.A, (Community Accommodation and Support Agency), Vinnies and The George Street Neighbourhood Centre.

Olivia Price and Lexi Newman

Our Mercy College students have once again excelled in their wonderful performance Twelve2TwentyFive. Some of the people lucky enough to see the performance have labelled it outstanding! Below are some photos of the performance.

Miss Molly Rossetto

Planning a career path, weekly budgeting, choosing a credit card, investing in superannuation…adulting is a tough gig!  Lucky we’ve got your back.  

This year, students in Miss McCowan’s Economics and Businesses classes participated in the Suncorp ESSI Money Challenge; an interactive, online financial literacy game.  The Challenge is based on a ‘virtual reality’ where students experience and develop an understanding of how decisions over a period of time can have both positive and negative impacts on their financial situation.  The game encourages students to practice real life financial transactions in a safe and challenging way, exploring concepts in the areas of Earning, Saving, Spending and Investing.  These key learning areas address issues ranging from applying for jobs and managing a budget to buying and selling shares on the Australian Stock Exchange.  

Our College winners were calculated based on net financial position at the end of a 6-month period:

1st – James Galea $33,800.50

2nd – Abbey Landt $32,985.52

3rd – Jada Vassallo $32,136.31

These students receive a prize for their efforts on behalf of the College and we wait to hear whether they made nationals! 
See what they each had to say about the game…

James: The game has taught me to watch out for opportunities in life.  A lesson I learned from the challenge was to watch out for scams.  One thing I enjoyed about ESSI Money was it was a game.  I feel better prepared to deal with investment opportunities in the future.

Abbey: The game has taught me to manage my money better. A lesson I learned from the challenge was to look out for scams and not give any personal information to people you don’t know. One thing I enjoyed about ESSI Money was being able to get jobs and having full responsibility over it. I feel better prepared to deal with situations in the future like how to manage money correctly

Jada: The game has taught me to be smart about how I use my money.  A lesson I learned from the Challenge was that my economic situation can change at any moment.  One thing I enjoyed about ESSI Money playing against my friends causing me to try harder to win.  I feel better prepared to deal with my finances. 

Miss Susan McCowan

Word

Schmaltz – noun; exaggerated sentimentalism, as in music or soap operas.

Sentence

The schmaltz of shows like ‘The Brady Bunch’ was replaced with more realistic soap opera like ‘Home & Away’.

Quote

“For things to change first I must change.”
-JIM ROHN

Questions

1. Dr Keith Vivian Alexander is a New Zealand mechanical engineer. What backyard play invention did he release in 1999? Was it a) the Springfree Trampoline, b) the Super Soaker water pistol, c) spring-return cricket stumps, or d) the two-person swing?
2. Which New Zealander has an element named after them? Is it a) Edmund Hillary, b) G. H. Cunningham, c) Ernest Rutherford, or d) Jean Batten?
3. New Zealand is part of a giant, mostly undersea continent, half the size of Australia, but what is this continent called? Is it a) Aquarius, b) Kiwitropolis, c) Pacifica, or d) Zealandia?
4. The kakapo is a famous flightless bird from New Zealand, but what type of bird is it? Is it a) a kiwi, b) a penguin, c) a parrot, or d) a quail?
5. Flower farmers near Rotorua use geothermal energy to heat their greenhouses, but where does geothermal energy come from? Is it a) a form of solar heating, b) hot rocks underground, c) a fossil fuel similar to coal, or d) waste heat from air conditioning units?

Answers

1. Spring free trampoline
2. Ernest Rutherford
3. Zealandia
4. Parrot
5. Hot Rocks

Food technology students have undertaken their Instant Restaurants in the final weeks of Term 3. Above are some of the amazing efforts produced by the students for our Staff to enjoy.