The Lion's Roar - 10 March 2021

We're delighted to share some more good news from our students.

Hockey Stars

Bailey Dixon (W10.1) and Callum Inglis (W10.2) have been selected to represent WA in the Under 15s Boys Team for 2021. The National Championships are being held in Bathurst NSW from 9-15 April 2021.

Elyssa Melville (M11.2) was selected to represent WA in the Under 18s Girls Team for 2021. The National Championships are being held in Launceston, Tasmania from 8-16 April 2021. Elyssa has also been selected to play for The Outbacks in the 2021 Ric Charlesworth Classic starting March 5 to March 14 at Perth Hockey Stadium at Curtin University.

All three students play for Whitford Hockey Club. We are extremely proud of Bailey, Callum and Elyssa and their hockey achievements. This is very well deserved for all of their dedication and hard work.

Martial Arts Success

Ruby Ellis (6.6) attained her Black Belt in Tae Kwon Do after four years training at Joondalup Martial Arts. There were times she wanted to quit, but she was determined to reach her goal of achieving her Black Belt. Well done for your perseverance, Ruby! She has made some terrific friends and has had some interesting times. Through lockdown last year, training was run via Zoom. Congratulations, Ruby!

Kid Curator at Perth Zoo

Chloe Hart (6.4) was one of ten lucky kids to be selected as a Kid Curator for the “Wild Things” event at Perth Zoo as part of Perth Festival. Chloe participated in workshops through December and January, working in collaboration with Perth Festival and Perth Zoo staff, as well as the nine other Kid Curators, to learn and program a full day of activities to engage the public, the zoo animals, and convene stories of conservation to the community.

During the “Wild Things” event itself on Sunday 28 February 2021, Chloe helped facilitate selected activities with the children attending the event. Chloe even had the opportunity to be involved in a photo shoot at the zoo, with members of Perth Symphony Orchestra playing music to Tricia the elephant, and was featured on Channel 7 news! Great job, Chloe!

In the 24 February edition of The Lion's Roar, we featured a number of students who successfully participated in the Rottnest Channel Swim. We were subsequently delighted to receive even more news from our talented swimmers!

Jake Bueddemann (C12.1) also completed the 19.7km swim to Rottnest with four friends (all 17 and under). They completed the swim on 5.01 hours and came in at fourth place. Jake’s dad also supported the team by paddling the entire course!

Congratulations to Henry Miller (M11.2), who also completed the swim., as part of a team that included two Old Scholars, Callam Smith (2017) and Tom Rance (2019), along with Jake Shepherd.

Samantha Brigden (W10.1) and three of her friends from Sorrento Surf Club (all 14 years old) completed the 19.7km Rotto swim for their first time. They managed to do it in 5 hours and 13 mins. This placed them 7th in their category and 18th out of the 307 teams that made it to the finish. Well done!

The St Mark's Parents & Friends' Association cordially invites all members of our School community to join them for the annual Welcome Sundowner, which will be followed by the Annual General Meeting. The Sundowner will be held in the foyer and courtyard of the Barbara Godwin Performing Arts Complex, with the AGM taking place in the auditorium immediately following the Sundowner.

You can now book your place at the Sundowner and at the AGM online. To ensure we adhere to the required capacity limits, please use the link to RSVP separately for the Sundowner (6.30pm to 7.30pm) and the AGM (7.30pm to 9.30pm).

And don't forget, you can add two hours to your Parent Commitment Hours tally by attending the AGM!

What happens at the Annual General Meeting?

At the meeting, members will have the opportunity to:

• find out about the P&F activities and finances
• ask questions about the activities and finances of the P&F
• speak about any items on the agenda
• vote on any resolutions proposed.

At the meeting, members will be asked to vote to:

• accept the minutes of the last annual general meeting*
• accept the annual report*
• accept the auditor’s report*
• accept the annual financial statements*
• appoint and pay an auditor
• elect directors

* All documents are available on the St Mark's Documents Portal in SEQTA Engage.

Download the Agenda. Any items of General Business that may require consideration may be forwarded via email to secretary.pf@stmarks.wa.edu.au prior to the meeting, or should be noted on the General Business sheet as you sign in.

At the AGM, all Committee positions are declared vacant, and nominations for the 2021 Committee are presented. Attendees elect and appoint the new Committee at this time. If you would like to nominate for a Committee position, you can download a nomination form here.

Are you looking for new ways to get involved and add to your Parent Commitment Hours tally? We've compiled a list of some new opportunities that may be of interest to you, based on your skill set and/or your availability.

And don't forget to log your commitment hours here, and remember to add them as you complete an activity. Please contact the P&F's Parent Commitment Coordinator, Mrs Sam Bean, at parentcommitment@stmarks.wa.edu.au if you have any questions regarding the Parent Commitment Hours program.

Get your #DemocracySausage Sizzle on!

The OSA needs volunteers to assist between 7.30am and 2.30pm for the OSA's #democracysausage fundraiser at St Mark's Anglican Community School on Election Day - Saturday 13 March. All you need to do is register for a 90 minute slot here or email community@stmarks.wa.edu.au.

You don't need to be a member of the Old Scholars' Association to volunteer, as funds raised will support initiatives for current students - though we definitely would love to see some of our past students behind the BBQ! Parents (including Old Scholars who are current parents) can claim their volunteer time as Parent Commitment Hours.

Become an usher for The Addams Family

If you would like to assist in being an usher for the matinee performance of The Adams Family on Tuesday 20 April (first day of Term 2) from 9:30am to 1pm, please email your details to smckibbin@stmarks.wa.edu.au.

Alternately, you might like to usher for ANY of the 4 evening performances from Wednesday 21 April to Saturday 24 April from 6:30pm to 9:30pm. The volunteer hours for the matinee and the evening performances can go towards your P&F parent commitment hours.

Can’t make those times? Perhaps baking is your thing. If you’d like to bake a plate of home-made goodies for sale during intermission for the 4 evening performances only, please contact smckibbin@stmarks.wa.edu.au. One plate of home-made goodies is credited as one hour of P&F volunteer time. Please ensure there are no nuts in the items and that it is easy to serve and eat with a tea/coffee. Items supplied as single serve portions would be much appreciated.

Calling all Hairdresser or Barbers!

If you are a hairdresser, barber or simply good with the shears, you can help support the World's Greatest Shave!

St Mark’s is holding the annual World’s Greatest Shave event, in support of the Leukaemia Foundation, on 19 March. We are looking for parents and hairdressers to volunteer about an hour of their time to help the St Mark’s Superheroes taking part in the event.

If you are able to assist, please contact the Head of Year 12, Sandi Mlinar, at smlinar@stmarks.wa.edu.au directly. Any support would be greatly appreciated, for what will be an amazing day!

Art Show Helpers

The Art Show Committee is seeking volunteers to help in a range of ways. Some roles can be shared, so get together with a friend and get on board! The types of expertise we're looking for include:

• Volunteer coordinator - helping to assign willing hands to specific tasks
• Administration - keeping a log of artists registering to participate, and providing the artists with updates and reminders
• Publicity - help promote the event on social media, contact local art groups, provide info for the parent newsletter
• Sponsorship - help identify local businesses that may be willing to sponsor aspects of the Show
• Catering coordinator - ensure there are tasty snacks and drinks for the opening event
• Set up/pack down - we'll need plenty of willing helpers
• And more!

If one of these sounds like it might be the right fit for you, please contact Phil Knight at artshow@stmarks.wa.edu.au

Community Garden Revamp

If you'd like to help us 'revamp' the St Mark's Community Garden on Saturday 28 March from 9am until 12pm, please sign up here: Community Garden Revamp Sign-up Sheet

Call out for Parents using Coding Skills

We would like to build a collection of scenarios where programming/coding skills are used across a wide range of professions. It would be so very valuable to have real-world examples from parents to share with our students, to show relevance for areas outside traditional IT roles.

We'd like to do a call-out to parents who might use coding/programming skills as part of their job, but who are not "programmers". If this sounds like you, please can you write one or two sentences about what job you do, and how you use these skills in your role.

Please email Rob Blair at rblair@stmarks.wa.edu.au or Michelle Chomiak at mchomiak@stmarks.wa.edu.au with the subject line of "Real-world Examples" to share your stories and anecdotes.

Many of our Primary families will be familiar with the Story Dogs program. Our much-loved Story Dog, Maverick, retired from his duties at the end of 2020. We wish him plenty of pats, tummy rubs and casual strolls in his well-earned retirement.

We are delighted to introduce our new Story Dog, Pluto, who joined the team this year, and who has already begun making friends in the Primary Library. This year, we have our friends at The Travelling Coffee Bean to thank for Pluto's involvement. The coffee van's owners, Matt and Shona, thoroughly enjoyed meeting Maverick last year, and offered to sponsor Pluto in 2021! Thank you very much for your support.

Story Dogs is a not-for-profit reading support program, whose mission is to make reading fun for children, so they become confident lifelong readers.

Our young readers relish having Pluto's undivided attention as they read out loud. We have yet to hear if Pluto has a favourite book, but we think he will enjoy ALL of the stories our students choose to share with him.

St Mark’s is supporting yet another World’s Greatest Shave, with the 2021 event coming up on Friday 19 March. Our Service Prefects, Monique Lanham and Isabelle Matthews, are taking the lead with raising awareness to the impact blood cancer has on many Australians and their families and fundraising to support the cause. A number of Year 12 students are already registered for their hair to be cut, coloured or shaved.

We are inviting students (and staff!) from Years 6 to 12 to get involved, by signing up for a cut/colour/shave, or by donating to the St Mark's Superheroes Team! You are also welcome to donate to students' individual fundraising efforts - it will all be tallied together at the conclusion of the fundraising period.

As an example of our Team's efforts, one of our Year 11 students, Shannon Paulson, has been growing his hair for the last twelve months in order to have it all cut off for the cause! He is also offering the opportunity to shave him to the highest bidder! Please speak to Shannon, the Service Prefects, or Ms Mlinar for more information. We look forward to hearing more stories from our St Mark's Superheroes Team!

On the day of the Shave, there will be a Sausage Sizzle held to raise additional funds on 19 March, as well as a Bake Sale on 11 March.

PLUS! If you are parent with hairdressing or barber skills, we invite you to donate your time to help with the cutting and shaving. More more information, please email smlinar@stmarks.wa.edu.au.

The Head of Careers, Mrs Linda Whiteside, has provided a summary of key information relevant to Senior School students as they consider their options for the years ahead.

Applications for ADF Gap Year open now

An ADF Gap Year is a unique opportunity to experience life in the Navy, Army or Air Force, without needing to make a long-term commitment. The skills obtained through the ADF Gap Year program will provide valuable work and life experience and are completely transferable. It will enable students to develop the confidence for their next endeavour.

Students who take part in the ADF Gap Year program:

• Gain valuable skills and work experience
• Enjoy a great salary package plus free healthcare
• Live a varied, active and healthy lifestyle
• Make friends with like-minded people
• Have the opportunity to see more of Australia

Whatever their interest, there are a variety of roles to select that will provide young Australians valuable life skills. These include experiences as an officer, in management, engineering, logistics and warehousing, combat and security, and administration. Learn more.

Considering a Career in Medicine or Dentistry?

UCAT: University Clinical Aptitude Test for Australia and New Zealand

To help students register correctly and pick the best date and venue, we've compiled a quick guide to 2021 UCAT registrations that includes the full instructions (with links), as well as advice/recommendations based on the experiences of students in past years.
Read the Guide

For students who are planning to sit UCAT in 2021, they will need to complete the two-step registration process.

1. Create Pearson VUE account
2. Seelect appropriate date and venue to secure their UCAT test day now.

Test allocations are available on a strictly first-come, first-served, so students need to book as quickly as possible to get their ideal test date.

Important UCAT Dates 2021

Candidates taking the UCAT ANZ in 2021 for entry to universities in Australia and New Zealand in 2022 should note these key dates:

• Concession Scheme opens/ Access Arrangements open: 1 February 2021
• BOOKING OPENS: 1 March 2021
• Concession application deadline: 10 May 2021
• Access Arrangements application deadline: 17 May 2021
• BOOKING DEADLINE : 17 May 2021
• Late booking deadline: 31 May 2021
• Cancellation deadline: 7 June 2021
• Testing begins: 1 July 2021
• Last testing date: 11 August 2021
• Results delivered to universities by: early September 2021

Sail the Young Endeavour in 2021

Sail the Young Endeavour in 2021. Spend eleven days with 23 other young Aussies aged 16 - 23 years, learning not only how to sail the ship, but how to work together as a team. You also get to see spectacular parts of Australia that many others never get to see.

On board you learn to sail a 44-metre-tall ship on the open sea. You need not be a sailor! It is not a leisure cruise, but you can use your sense of adventure and willingness to push yourself to the limit, to discover new reserves of character, commitment, confidence, teamwork, and leadership. Find out more here.

Women in Data Science

If you’re a female student interested in learning more about studying data science and where a career in data science can take you, join us for this informative event. The session will include information about courses and pathways, you’ll get to hear from current students about their experience studying data science, and take a tour of the UWA campus. Following the session, you will have the opportunity to attend our annual Women in Data Science (WiDS) Perth 2021 event where you’ll hear from industry leaders and UWA student clubs making their place in data science. Register here.

St George's College Open Day 2021 on Sunday 28 March from 9am to 2pm

It will be an opportunity for interested students and families to discover and experience the St George’s College community. It doesn’t matter if you’re still undecided on which uni you’re planning to attend, St George’s College welcomes students from UWA, Notre Dame, Murdoch, ECU, WAAPA and Curtin. Find out more here.

The deadline for enrolments or withdrawals for Term 2 is Friday 19 March. The Music Department will not be accepting withdrawals after this date.

You can view the Music Handbook online here.

If you would like to enrol your child in the Instrumental Music program in Term 2, please complete this form.

If your child no longer wants to be a part of the program, withdrawals can be lodged here.

If you have any further questions on the Instrumental Music Program, encourage your child to speak to the Music teacher, or email ethomas@stmarks.wa.edu.au for further information.

Applications to participate in the 2021 ASC Piano Competition close next week, and we encourage all our pianists to get involved. Entries need to be submitted to Mrs McRae by Monday 3 May.

This highly successful annual Piano Competition will be held at Peter Moyes Anglican Community School, in the Allan Shaw Centre, on Wednesday 2 June.

Any student enrolled at St Mark’s can sign up for this competition and are highly encouraged to join in, no matter whether you learn piano at St Mark's, or through an external provider. All entrants must, however, be under the guidance of a piano tutor. Please ask your child's teacher to read the instructions and decide which section is appropriate for your child.

Once this is done, with assistance from their piano teacher, contact Mrs Cathy McRae at cmcrae@stmarks.wa.edu.au with the following details:

• Full Name
• ASC Category – section
• Score title/composer
• Duration
• Diversity Section (if chosen) – short description
• If the student will be buying lunch on the day.

All this information must be submitted to Mrs McRae no later than Monday 3 May 2021.

The ASC Concert is back this year, coming up in September 2021. This biennial concert is one of the highlights of our music calendar and brings all fourteen ASC schools from across Australia together in the Perth Concert Hall to make amazing music.

If your child would like to sign up for Concert Band, Massed Choir, String Orchestra, Percussion Group or Indigenous Student Performance Group (no auditions required), please use this link.

If your child would like to audition for Orchestra, Select Choir, Stage (Jazz) Band, Rock Band, Electronic Ensemble and/or solo parts, please read the Audition Information handbook and follow the instructions. They will need to record themself playing or singing at their best and upload it online before completing an online application form.

The audition deadline has been extended until the end of Week 7 this term, to allow everyone enough time to prepare. Successful applicants will be notified early in Term 2.

The ASC Concert is on Friday 3 September, and if you are successful in gaining a place, there will be two weeks of intensive rehearsals from Monday 23 August – Friday 3 September, including the weekend of 28-29 August and all day at the Perth Concert Hall on Thursday 2 and Friday 3 September. Rehearsals leading up to this point will be during normal ensembles (e.g. if you gain a place in the Massed Choir, we will learn the music in Secondary Choir).

If you have any questions, please don't hesitate to contact Mrs Grubb at pgrubb@stmarks.wa.edu.au.

Much to the delight of students in Year 4 Thomas and the Year 5 Robinson, they welcomed a group of Year 9 students to their Visual Art classes. Mrs Howards' and Mrs Gruber's Photo Digital Design students are working with the Year 4s and 5s on a collaborative art project. The younger students completed a quick sketch of a face, which the Year 9 students will now incorporate into a photoshopped work of art.

There was certainly a buzz in the classroom as our newest Senior School students chatted away with their younger peers. The Year 9s were excellent role models throughout their time in the classroom

We look forward to sharing the results of their combined efforts soon, along with another collaboration and photo shoot!

Notes of interest from the wider community. This week, we've been asked to share some information on sporting opportunities.

School Sport WA: State Team Trials

Trials for this year's State Schoolboys 12 Years & Under AFL Team will take place during 1st term and the April School holidays. The Championship will be held in Adelaide from 6-14 August. Any student born in 2009 or 2010 is welcome to trial for the Team. Please note that only players turning 11 and 12 years of age in 2021 are eligible to nominate via this link.

WA is also sending a 12 Years & Under Schoolgirls team to the inaugural National Schoolgirls championships being held in Adelaide at the same time. Details for both events are available here.

St Mark's Netball

St Mark's Netball is an independently run Netball Club which uses the St Mark's facilities for training. Registrations are now open for St Mark’s Netball Club Winter Season 2021. Please visit the St Mark's Netball website for the link to register Juniors (age 11 and under, 12 and under, 13 and under, 15 and under). For all Netsetgo and Year 5 (born 2011) please use the Mynetball App for registration. If you have any queries regarding St Mark’s Netball, please contact Naomi Cove at president@sm-nc.org.

Whitfords City Football Club

Please be mindful of our neighbours in the homes and businesses around the School. Parking in the Endeavour Business Centre (cnr of Banks and Endeavour) is restricted to clients of the Centre’s tenants. The parking areas next to the Whitfords Family Centre and Endeavour Child Care facilities are also strictly reserved for their clients.

The same applies to older students who drive their own vehicles to school. In addition, students who drive are not permitted to park on the School grounds.

On-street parking, including the Kiss and Drive facility on St Marks Drive, are subject to the City of Joondalup's bylaws.

The Australian Government Department of Education, Skills and Employment (the department) would like to advise all parents and carers that a request has been made for St Mark's to provide residential address and other information as required under the Australian Education Regulation 2013 (Cth).

Please read the Collection Notice for more information on how this information is collected and used.

Parents and carers are not required to do anything. St Mark's is responsible for providing the requested details to the department; however, you may wish to ensure that you have provided St Mark's with the most up-to-date and correct details for your family. If you wish to update your address details, please email reception@stmarks.wa.edu.au

If you require addtional information not covered in the Collection Notice, please visit the SchoolsHUB Address Collection help and support page.

A recent petition, instigated by a former school girl from Sydney, calls for young women to come forward if they have been subjected to sexual assault whilst still at school. It has since gone viral with thousands of young women signing the petition or sharing their stories.

The petition calls for sex education, in particular, consent, to be taught at a younger age in schools. Many parents have chosen to begin the conversations around consent sooner rather than later. Some teenagers may not fully know or understand what consent means and the implications surrounding it. It is important for them to learn about boundaries to enable them to respect themselves and their partners.

A great starting point is this short animation (3 mins long), which explains the concept quite well, using a simple example of offering someone a cup of tea. Many young people may have already watched this video, and last week, our Principal, Mr Steven Davies, encouraged staff to watch it as well. The video can act as starting point for a positive family discussion on this very topical issue.

The Special Report released on SchoolTV last week offers suggestions around normalising the topic of consent to ensure teenagers experience healthy and respective relationships. St Mark's is a SchoolTV subscriber, and parents can access this and other topics on our Parent Resources page.

The report includes a poll on consent education. To date, more than 1400 Australian parents and adult carers have responded to SchoolTV with their thoughts on when they would like to see education around consent conducted in schools. The results indicate that the majority would like to see education around consent taught at an earlier age, with appropriate ongoing discussions as children progress through adolescence. If you haven't done so already, we encourage you to explore the content in the report, and have your say in the poll.

If you have any concerns about the wellbeing of your child, please contact your child's classroom, homeroom or PCG tutor in the first instance, or seek medical or professional help.