SHARON BIRD, MP HELPS CELEBRATE THE OPENING OF CEDARS NEW (BER) HALL AND 30th BIRTHDAY
On Wednesday, 6th April Cedars Christian College on Farmborough Rd, was alive with excitement as they celebrated the opening of their new hall, the "Cedars Leadership Centre" and their 30th Birthday together with official guests Ms Sharon Bird, MP and CEO of Christian Schools Australia, Mr Stephen D’Oherty.
Cedars Christian College Principal, Julie Reynolds, is absolutely thrilled with the completed BER (Building the Education Revolution) funded new hall which is able to seat the entire school of 620 students. Julie said, "This project has dramatically changed our College. The Cedars Leadership Centre is already being very well used for events, sport, performing arts and leadership training. It is the first time in which we have had a facility which can house our entire school population – so that we can meet for assemblies and special events as a community out of the weather."
Julie went on to say, "We are excited to celebrate our 30 year anniversary this year. The opening of the Cedars Leadership Centre will be the high point of the 30 year celebrations for the community and past leaders, parents, students and community members have been invited to attend the opening. We had a large number of community members to join us for this event. It was a great celebration for the College community focussing not only on the magnificent Leadership Centre but also on the exciting development of the entire College community."
Jordan Stalker a Cedars Year 12 student and School Captain, has recently been selected for the NSW Under 18’s Gridiron Team which competes in the National Gridiron Under 18's in Sydney in April this year.
Jordan has always been a very talented footballer who represented NSW Country Rugby Union at the Nationals in 2010. Jordan was initially a bit sceptical about playing Gridiron "American Football," but was challenged to try out for the Illawarra team, Brumbies and loved it so much he hasn’t looked back since! "I really love the sport, Gridiron" said Jordan, "I never thought I would enjoy it so much!"
Cedars Sports Teacher, Tim Johnson says, "Jordan is a bright talent with a love of the game and a desire to achieve his dream of playing in the United States in the NFL. We wish him amazing success and congratulate him on all his achievements so far."
Cedars School Captain Selected for Prestigious Engineering Camp
Honeywell Engineering Summer School (sponsored by HESS and Engineers Australia)
By Joshua Lukies
From December 5-10 2010 I along with 100 other New South Wales students were selected to attend an engineering summer school that looked to educate, give first hand knowledge and practical experience within individual disciplines of engineering.
The week included many team building exercises, demonstrations, lectures and site tours that aimed to give a first hand feel to the everyday life and career of engineers. The University of Sydney accommodated the 100 NSW students in their student residential village. Students from the University of New South Wales acted as houseparents and provided supervision and wisdom should students have had questions throughout the week.
Each morning comprised of bus trips to universities such as Sydney Uni, Wollongong Uni, University of New South Wales and the University of Technology. Each university showcased their achievements and individual faculties tailored to the students desires. Demonstrations ranged from making ice-cream using liquid nitrogen to operating scaled robotic production lines to building cantilever bridges to playing with Ferrofluids.
Following each university session came site visits. Sites included the RTA in Pyrmont (construction of a new bridge), RTA materials labs, RAAF Richmond, Cochlear, Transgrid and Bluescope Steel. On site visits, company personnel would greet students and provide bus tours, presentations and hand on demonstrations which provided the opportunity to "be an engineer". These visits also gave students the opportunity to learn about scholarships and cadetships which are available each year.
In the evenings students were treated to specified team building activities, a careers expo which involved a formal dinner with professional engineers from Engineers Australia scattered amongst tables allowing for one on one question time and on the final night a graduation ball which aimed to conclude the camp and reflect on the week and in effect the future of each and every student present.
In conclusion, the week personally opened my eyes and left no stone unturned in the possibilities available to me after the HSC. The extensive hands on approach of each university and site tour opened my eyes further than ever before and allowed me to set goals for my final year of school. I would highly recommend this camp for anyone interested in engineering but be prompt as it is a highly sort after opportunity.
If any year 11 student wishes to put forward an application, please see Mr Matysek.
Cedars Christian College introduced Masterclasses in 2007 and saw some very exciting results from our students including Lego creations made by some of our very bright students. An exciting opportunity to expand this area of interest has come up in the holidays.
A local team has just won the National championships in the FIRST LEGO League. This is a very challenging competition that combines lego and robotics. In the holidays Cedars Christian College was approached by this team to be a host venue for a weekly Robo Club which would train students in the discipline and would also provide the team with much needed fundraising for their trip to Europe for the International Competition.
Cedars has offered the Robotics team a venue every Thursday and/or Friday afternoon, beginning this Term. Students from other schools will be invited to be a part of the exciting Robo club also. In addition to this their coach has agreed to help us form a team and give advice to our coach to enter the 2011National Championships.
The information afternoon for the Robo Club held here at Cedars Christian College, Waples Rd, Farmborough Hts,
will be on Friday, 4th February at 3.30pm.
State Member, Ms Noreen Hay Presents Award to Cedars Yr 11 Student
Our Middle School and Senior College were privileged on the 17th of November, to welcome our local State Member Ms Noreen Hay to award Year 11 student Matthew Arnold with first place for the Wollongong Art Competition for his photographs of Wollongong harbor. Ms Hay commended Matthew for his interest in learning and taking risks to develop his own art and for the way in which he presented a unique view of our city. It is inspiring to see our students stepping outside of the classroom to embrace challenges and opportunities. We congratulate Matthew on his success.
Cedars Christian College Student Signs Contract with Dragons
Alex Mammone a Cedars Year 12 student has recently been selected by the Dragons Under 20’s and has also been chosen for the Australian Institute of Sport Rugby League Team. The Team is leaving on the 12th of November to tour France and Britain for 3 weeks playing 4 games against English and French teams.
Alex is a very talented footballer who has played rugby league for a number of years at a very competitive level. He represented Italy in the Junior World Cup and has also signed a contract with the Dragons for the next 2 years. He is already in pre-season training for next year’s competition. He was selected for the Institute of Sport tour to Europe after he narrowly missed out on a spot in the Australian Schoolboys side that was picked at the National Carnival held earlier this year in Qld. Alex was nominated in the first game as the outstanding front rower and put himself in the mix for selection with consistently strong performances throughout the tournament. Unfortunately, his team struggled to compete which hindered his push for selection.
Cedars Sports Teacher, Tim Johnson says, “Alex is a bright talent with a love of the game and a desire to achieve his dream of being a First Grade Rugby League player for the Dragons. We wish him luck and congratulate him on all his achievements so far.”
Alex’s parents, Suzanne and Silv Mammone had this to say about their son, Alex, and his journey through schooling and sport at Cedars:
“We would like to thank the staff of Cedars for the support they have given Alex in his sporting pursuits over the years. In particular we would like to thank Cedars for the l support offered for Alex to attend the Australian Schoolboys Under 18`s Rugby League Championships this year and last year. Alex received the `man of the match` award for the first game and had the award presented to him by David Gallop (the head of the NRL)
We would like to commend the commitment of the teachers at Cedars in providing opportunities for children to pursue their talents. Sport is valued and students are encouraged to progress through to State representation. Every year Alex has represented the school at CSSA for Shot Put and Discus and there is one school record remaining. Alex has had every opportunity to pursue his talents and has been provided a great academic education.
We couldn`t be happier with our decision to send our children to Cedars and as Alex`s High School education draws to a close we would like to pass on our appreciation.” Silv and Suzanne Mammone
At Cedars we have a commitment to inspired learning so our Masterclass Program is very important to us. For the last three years at Cedars we have run a variety of Masterclasses in English, Maths, Science and in Leadership, Outdoor Education and other cocurricular pursuits. Our Masterclass Program is set to expand this year with the possibility of offering classes for parents in particular subjects or pursuits.
This week students in Years 8-10 will be invited to join in our latest Masterclass Program. Students in Years 5-7 will be invited at the start of Semester 2. This program is a little different from others in that it will be largely driven by the interests and skills of the students involved. Participants will be invited to take on a learning challenge which is designed to promote problem solving, high order thinking and both independent and interdependent learning.
The Challenge is a special extension project design based on educational research including the Habits of Mind and the Theory of Multiple Intelligences.
Here are the underlying assumptions that are driving this project:
Learning is a consequence of deep thinking.
People learn when they have opportunity and motivation to learn.
Knowledge and skills are acquired through clear information, reflective and abundant practice and informative feedback.
Effective learning requires the learner to pull together concepts learned in the subject matter, approach open ended rather than one right answer questions, complex projects and the like, taking into account that individuals possess many different styles of learning.
Effective educational systems support multiple intelligences.
Less subject matter and deep probing of selected subject matter results in better learning.
We believe that if we are able to prompt our young people to reflect on their actions, their learning and their thinking we will help to prepare them for their lives after school. We will give them the skills and the strategies to face dilemmas and to find solutions to problems both inside and outside the classroom. As a Christian school we are committed to prompting our students to weigh all their decisions in the context of God’s word and spending time reflecting on how to weigh up the challenges and problems is essential.
Students have been nominated to attend our Masterclass. If your son or daughter is in Years 8-10 and is interested in joining in our Habits of Mind Challenge please encourage them to come to the Library on Thursday at lunchtime to find out more information.
If your son or daughter joins in the challenge we expect parents will want to get involved in the learning process and seek to encourage them in the project. We are hoping that our students will also show initiative and seek to link with experts in their chosen field of enquiry both within and outside our school community. If you are interested in supporting our students in the Habits of Mind Challenge please don’t hesitate to ring me at school.
We are excited about the possibility of this exciting new project.
Cedars parents might have joined the millions of parents who have accessed the new My School Website. In looking at our local schools I am sure you will have joined me in feeling very proud of our students and teachers and celebrating the strong results our site shows. The staff and I have welcomed the publication of this material but I would like to offer a few comments about them. Firstly the information on this site is very minimal. Although we have done very well as a school I have reservations about a site that claims to compare schools on the data gathered from one test on one day. It is like evaluating the worth of a racing car by looking only at the tyres. Unfortunately the media makes stories out of minimal information and encourages sweeping statements for good and ill. Parents may not be aware that every school presents an annual report to the government with this information and much more. This is generally available on every school’s own website. You can access our Annual Report for 2008/2009.
I would urge parents to read these reports for much more information than the MySchool site will ever offer.
As of January 2010, New South Wales will have a new school leaving age, meaning students will complete Year 10 and then have a number of options in which to participate until at least age 17.
What’s New?
From 2010, all NSW students must complete Year 10.
After Year 10 and until the age of 17 students must be:
In school, or registered for home schooling OR
In approved education or training OR
In full time paid employment (average 25 hours/week) OR
In a combination of these
This applies to students who complete Year 10 in 2009 and to all subsequent years.
Cedars Year 10 students get hands on for a good cause
While Year 10 books are packed away for 2009, students from Cedars Christian College are out and about for their third annual community service program. With projects as varied as participation in Wollongong City Council’s Bushcare program, disability housing support and helping at Parameadows school, the students have an opportunity to give something back now that exams are over.
The Program’s coordinator, Brad Kelly says that the community service week has been a successful part of the schools program for the past three years. “Students are keen to get out, test their skills in a new and challenging environment. We want to instil values of service, hard work and giving back in our students.”
Mr Kelly said that it was not hard to find community groups to partner with. “There are just so many needs out there, and our students are discovering for themselves that for them to give a little bit can make an enormous difference for someone else.”
The community service program, which runs from Monday 16th November to Wednesday 18th November, will end with a fun day on Thursday so students from the various projects can come together and share their experiences.
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