Open Day Success

On the 14 March we held our Open Day; a day that simply encapsulated what it means to be part of the Scotch community. Why? The answer is simple. Our boys took front of stage through speaking, hosting and conducting information tours about their School. Since Friday we have received lots of feedback from current and future parents. The atmosphere of the day and the way the boys represented our College was simply outstanding. I would particularly like to thank the three Heads of Schools, Mr Stewart, Mr Ledger, Dr McEwan and all of their staff for doing what they do best; that is, deliver a world class curriculum and provide numerous co-curricular opportunities for all of our boys. At Scotch, Open Day is not a special show and tell. It simply reflects a normal day in the life of the College.

While it is primarily an opportunity for current and future parents we have noticed that some Old Scotch Collegians also take the opportunity to visit the College on Open Day. We were pleased that Mr Lance Clark (94) who attended Scotch from 1933 to 1936 decided to visit us on Open Day to 'take a walk around'. I would also like to thank Ms Di Moran and Ms Kim Quinlivan in Admissions for their planning of Open Day activities.

Last year we commissioned a sustainability report through the generous support of our Parents' Association. The reason for this is to identify sustainability strategies from a holistic perspective. We are currently completing a whole of school analysis of power usage and costs.

A new initiative resulting from our review of sustainable practises is that of Electronic Fee Statements. Like most businesses today, Scotch College is moving towards reducing our carbon footprint. Consequently, commencing with the April fee billing you will receive your fee statement electronically rather than a hard copy in the mail. The fee statement will be sent to the usual email address as provided by you. If you would like the fee statement to be sent to a different email address, please let us know by email to accounts@scotch.wa.edu.au. In time we will also be introducing the ability for parents to review their statements on line via Parent Connect.

On the weekend we participated in what is one of the premier events on the sporting calendar, the Head of the River. While there is a lot of public focus on the Head of the River and its connection with the First VIII race, the Hamer Cup is a true representation of how a whole rowing club performs. The consistent performance of all crews was reflected in our club taking out the 2014 Hamer Cup. On behalf of everyone I would like to congratulate Mr Ford, Master in Charge of Rowing and all of his coaches, parents and rowers. The boys were outstanding in all sense of the word.

At the same time many of our boys were representing the College in a range of sporting fixtures over the weekend, we also had 8 teams compete in the World Scholar's Cup regional event. The Scholar's Cup is a global event that brings some of the brightest young minds together in a team based event where students compete in collaborative writing, team debating and a Scholars' Bowl. With strong performances from our boys, three teams from the regional event have now qualified for the global round to be held in Singapore in June of this year. Congratulations to teachers Mr Sam Sterrett, Ms Deb Mullins and Dr Rob McEwan for taking up this initiative which I am sure will go from strength to strength.

Once again, the array of weekend sporting and academic activities reinforces why it is so important to maintain a balanced programme for our boys.

Have a great fortnight.

Dr A J O'Connell

Headmaster

Community and Service

A Disabled Surfing Event

Last Saturday three Scotch boys turned up at Leighton Beach to experience Disabled Surfing, for the first time, while the first time is always a little daunting the boys handled themselves extremely well.

The Disabled Surfers Association (DSA) increasingly relies on these young volunteers to run the event. It is not easy to manage over 80 disabled participants. The volunteers are organized in teams, each with one large, 'malibu' surfboard and a Team Leader. The disabled participants are ensconced one by one with a team who work with carers to provide the best experience that individual. The youthful teams provide the exuberance to make it all work.

Seeing the thrill and excitement on the faces of participants makes all stress of the effort to get there melt away and be replaced by an intense satisfaction of knowing that you have been part of something BIG. It is a big event with big outcomes but most of all it is a big step towards understanding disability and dismantling the barriers we all tend to construct between difference and us.

The Rocky Bay Connection

Scotch College has been assisting Rocky Bay for some decades now. Over the years, boys have gone across to the Mosman Park site to help out, usually in the Recreation Centre. Many boys have been involved in fundraising, most recently through the 'Walk With Me' event. Always, Scotch boys are received with enthusiasm and are cared for exceptionally well by Rocky Bay staff while interacting with residents.

This year is no different, boys have been assisting with setting up for the Rocky Bay Ball at Burswood and conducting a letter drop to promote a fundraising event. All the while, they are learning a little about the need for an organization like Rocky Bay in our community. This is powerful learning. Our boys who work there are all ambassadors for Rocky Bay. This year we hope to make the appointment of Rocky Bay Ambassadors official and have our organisations work even more closely.

North Balga Primary School

Last week Scotch boys were given an award in recognition of their contribution to the Early Childhood Learning Programme at North Balga Primary School. As the primary school with the most diverse student background in the state, North Balga has considerable challenges. However, there is an enthusiasm for challenge on the part of the staff and our boys are learning to be a part of the learning experience for some of the most vulnerable and needy students in our community.

Round Square

The annual Heads and Reps meeting of the Asia Pacific region of Round Square took place in Singapore during the long weekend. Scotch was represented as Regional Member. The meeting reinforced the links between member schools across our part of the globe and affirmed the importance of the IDEALS (Internationalism, Democracy, Environment, Adventure, Leadership and Service) within our schools.

The networking opportunities have created links for students exchanges and it is hoped to promote the process of applying for exchange to current Year 9 and Year 7 parents next term. 2015 should see our first students in both Middle and Senior Schools attend Round Square conferences.

Year 10 Exchanges

Expressions of interest are requested from Year 10 boys interested in going on exchange to either New Zealand or Austria during the second half of the year. The exchange period would be 5 weeks and involve hosting a boy for the reciprocal visit. For more information and to register interest please contact Mr Cordner wjcordner@scotch.wa.edu.au.

Serventy Memorial Lecture

The Naturalists' Club of WA is hosting the annual Serventy Memorial Lecture at UWA on March 26. The guest speaker is Kevin Coate OAM, who will speak on the flora and fauna of the Kimberley Coast. Proceeds of the lecture will go towards funding scholarships in four Western Australian Universities. For more information see the flyer attached.

Parenting Ideas

To further support the Scotch community the College has subscribed to Parentingideas, a leading provider of parenting education resources to Australian schools.

One of their latest articles is entitled- Team Sports.

Also available is the Parenting Ideas Magazine; visit the following link:

www.parentingideas.com.au/Parents/Parenting-Magazine

Student Wellbeing: Mental Health - What's the Problem ?

Walking through the school grounds you see smiling faces, boys letting out their bottled-up boy energy, larking about, kicking a ball, reading, munching their carefully prepared lunches, chatting in groups or sometimes sitting silently, happily bunched over their laptops. Mental health? What's the problem? It looks like most of the boys are coping well, thriving even, most of the time. Well, they are… most of them, most of the time.

Yet we know that youth mental health in general is in poor shape. Nearly one in five 13-17 year olds have a mental health problem and this rises to over one in four between ages 18 and 24. Ironically for a generation sometimes referred to as the 'tribal generation' because of technology's gift of constant social connection, loneliness and depression are increasing.

The word 'mental' still carries residues of stigma so it should be stressed that having mental health problems is not a decision but an affliction, like measles or a broken toe. It refers to a person's emotional and social wellbeing. When his mental health declines it can affect his feelings, thoughts and actions, spilling over into day-to-day life and participation in school, work and relationships. Psychology pioneer Carl Jung wrote that 'about a third of my cases are suffering from no clinically definable neurosis, but from the senselessness and emptiness of their lives'. This is certainly no less true today.

Mental health problems, mostly understandable reactions to personal and social issues, aren't usually too extreme or long-lasting. But when they persist and start affecting everyday life severely - when it's becoming an illness - it's time for early help (your GP is a great place to start).

Parents, of course, are crucial in identifying this transition point. Ideally, a parent is a boy's mental health coach … helping him find the right words to express his feelings, helping him 'regulate his emotions' when he gets too angry or sad.

Promoting good mental health involves keeping the communication lines open, hard as that can be sometimes, especially in middle adolescence! Be available without being pushy and let him know you love him. He may not always admit it, but this is likely to be very important to him. Pick your time. Boys tend to talk more when they're busy doing other things or don't have to look you in the eye, like driving in the car or washing dishes together.

About one in five experiences a depressive episode by the end of year 12. Many more will suffer from high levels of symptoms that don't meet the diagnostic criteria for Clinical Anxiety or Clinical Depression, but that certainly interfere with their academic achievements and how they get on with other people. Depression is bad for many reasons, apart from the fact that it feels awful. We know that depressed adolescents are less competent academically, at greater risk of being suspended, expelled or dropping out, and more likely than their peers to abuse drugs and alcohol. And we know that major depression is the strongest predictor of suicide for this age group.

This is a tough call, but give your son lots of reasons to want to be like you. Be the model not only for the balanced and happy of life you would like your son to have, but also for the way you'd like him to behave, ideally being compassionate to others, developing grit and perseverance, having the courage to have a go even if it means making mistakes, and bouncing back after disappointments. You have a marvellous opportunity but awesome responsibility to inspire him to live well.

Headspace is a youth-focused mental health service for young people aged 12-25. Eheadspace provides online counselling and telephone support; https://www.eheadspace.org.au/ or 1800 650 890.

Shauna Lipscombe

Senior School Psychologist

Music Department

"Music is everybody's possession. It is only publishers that think that people own it" Lennon

In the last issue of The Thistle, the Headmaster and I mentioned the success of our second Symphony by the Lake in association with the Perth Symphony Orchestra. More than 2100 Scotch College and community members joined the audience which showed the level of support held for such an event. The evening provided an opportunity for many of our students to perform alongside professional musicians or volunteer to assist with the logistics. The student musicians performing on stage included members of the Scotch College and Presbyterian Ladies' College Vocal Ensembles, the Scotch College Big Band One with Past Students and Staff and the Scotch College Pipe Band. At one point in the evening there were more than 140 musicians performing at the same time. A fantastic event that will be presented again on the second Saturday evening in March 2015.

As I write this article, the Friends of Scotch Music (FOSM) are preparing to host a Quiz Night for all Musicians in Years 8 - 12 to be held on Friday, 21 March. PLC music students are also invited and more than 130 students have booked a ticket. This event has been steadily growing over the last few years, probably because of the outstanding prizes on offer - plus the opportunity to socialize at a fun event with friends from different year levels and schools. I hope to publish some results and photos in the next edition of The Thistle.

If you would like to join the Friends of Scotch Music (FOSM) - a group of parents who enthusiastically support the work of boys and staff in the Music Department, the process is very straight forward via the FOSM email below. FOSM meets once or twice each term with all meetings beginning at 7.00pm. Meetings go for approximately one hour, and are held in the Senior School Music Room with everyone welcome. Please consider becoming involved in the FOSM Parent Support group as an excellent way to support your son and the Music Programme at Scotch College.

On Sunday, 30 March, the boys in the Combined Vocal Ensemble and the Combined Symphony Orchestra are performing as guests of PLC at the Quarry Amphitheatre on Reabold Hill. This lovely Proms Concert is followed a week later by the Scotch College Senior Summer Concert held in the Dickinson Centre on Friday, 4 April. This performance begins at the new time of 6pm. Please make a note of the new time. Details to musicians regarding the PLC Quarry performance have been emailed to those involved. Performance details about the Senior Summer Concert will be emailed to all performers during Week 8.

Other upcoming musical events organized for the term including the following:

Upcoming Dates

30 March, Wednesday, Quarry Performance for Combined Ensembles as guests of PLC

4 April, Friday, Senior Summer Concert

Contact Details

The Instrumental Programme is administered by the Senior School Music Department and all queries should be directed to the Music Administrator, Julia Robinson (9383 6841) music@scotch.wa.edu.au.

Alternately, please contact Mr David Coughlan, Head of Music, via email DGCoughlan@scotch.wa.edu.au or phone 9383 6842.

If you wish to become more involved in supporting the Music Department by receiving information about the work of FOSM, please contact FOSM@scotch.wa.edu.au.

David Coughlan

Head of Music

Uniform Shop

No appointments are necessary. The Uniform Shop will be open extra hours over and above the normal opening times, as follows.

Summer Term Extra Opening Hours

Wednesday 2 April 7.30am to 9.00am

Wednesday 9 April 7.30am to 9.00am

Holiday Opening Days

9 am to 4 pm (lunch: noon - 1 pm)

23 April Wednesday

24 April Thursday

28 April Monday

Boys need to be in winter uniform on Tuesday, 29 April (start of term).

Chaplain's Report - Lent

A week ago the Roman Catholic Church acknowledge the passing of one year since the appointment of Pope Francis.

Both the result of the election, the first Jesuit Pope, and the totally revolutionary approach to the task has marked him as a unique man for our time.

Right from the beginning his attire, and approach have been down to earth, a part of the people. He wears his regular footwear not the papal slippers. He travelled back to the guesthouse with the Cardinals in a bus. His first Holy Thursday was celebrated at the Juvenile Gaol where he washed the feet of young men and women, Muslim and Christian.

He takes on the mantle of his namesake, St Francis of Assisi, always to preach the gospel but only sometimes in words. He speaks of compassion more through gestures than words. In John's 1^st letter we are told 'our love should not be just words and talk; it must be true love, which shows itself in action.'

Lent is a time to reflect on how we should live so that we too might change the world.

Chas Lewis

Chaplain

Head of Junior School

The Best About Our Boys

The Junior School welcomed several hundred prospective parents to our School as part of the impressive turn out for Open Day on Friday 14 March. The day began with a presentation in the Dickinson Centre. I spoke about the mission of the Junior School to provide a high quality academic programme that is concept driven and presents learning through real life issues. I shared about the enriched education we provide through our specialist teaching subjects and our co-curricular programmes. I communicated to our guests how all boys make progress in our caring and nurturing learning environment. I made a special point about of our key goal to develop the boys' basic skills; that as a junior school we need to ensure that they develop their abilities in reading, writing, spelling and mathematics, and that these skills are essential to them accessing the broader curriculum as they move through our College. I spoke about our excellent academic support programme and how it challenges and engages all levels of ability through our commitment to providing the best education for all our boys, and the outstanding teachers who make all of this possible.

However, these are just words. The proof is in the pudding. The first opportunity to make this clear to our visiting families was through Ben Chapman, our Junior School Captain. Ben spoke brilliantly, in front of the 400 plus crowd, about why he has valued his time at Scotch. He spoke about his "amazing journey" and some of the highlights of his experiences both inside and outside the classroom. Ben did a fine job of setting the scene for our visitors as they began their tours.

The rest was left up to the boys and teachers in the classrooms. Parents were impressed with the confidence our boys showed as they talked about both their learning and experiences. They saw our boys engaged and eager to share. They saw passionate, dedicated teachers and education assistants working with the boys in challenging inquiry based learning and saw the boys embrace that challenge. While I talked for a while leading up to the tours, the proof of the outstanding education our boys receive lay with them. They are our greatest ambassadors. Their caring, confidence and communication skills were clear for all to see. They demonstrated, without anyone having to say a word, what qualities and skills the boys who attend our School develop.

John Stewart

Head of Junior School

Important Dates to Remember

2T News

A Great Start

Year 2T have had a fun and busy start to the school year and have already participated in so many exciting things.

The boys visited the Clay house for the second time last week to add final touches to their clay pieces. They left for the excursion with their art scrapbook full of photographs of deep-sea fish they had researched at home. This had the boys jumping on the bus buzzing with artist ideas. Many boys spoke about adding long spikey tails, huge teeth and fins to their clay fish characters. We are all extremely excited to see the final products of their hard work.

The boys have enjoyed the introduction to the VCOP writing program this term. We have a growing number of connectives and WOW words on our display wall as we explore the program. The boys are making a conscious effort to improve their writing and they especially love marking themselves on the punctuation pyramid.

Our first unit of inquiry, Who We Are, has been very successful. The boys have demonstrated that they have understood the central idea. As a class we have explored Howard Gardner's Theory of Multiple Intelligences. With help from some parents, the boys completed an online survey to find out which of the intelligences were their strongest. We then converted this data into a pie graph. The boys really enjoyed finding out about themselves as learners and comparing their smarts to others in the class. We collated the data and discovered that 2T were mostly 'people smart'.

We have begun exploring our next unit of inquiry under the transdisciplinary theme of Sharing the Planet. The boys have experienced the provocation where they have shown some outstanding thinking skills. They viewed a photograph of a highly polluted waterway and completed an "I see, I think, I wonder" chart. This had the boys thinking about the effects that humans can have on our precious resources. It's going to be a great unit of inquiry.

Rebecca Tapscott

Year 2 Teacher

Performing Arts News

The boys in Year 3 have been exploring how different musical elements can create different feels and emotions in music. Using various percussion instruments, body percussion and their voices, they rehearsed and performed a piece called In A Dark Wood as a whole class, which focused on creating variety with duration and dynamics. One of their favourite activities was creating movements for the Oonka Chukka Haka. This activity focused on beat division, performing canon and teamwork. When thinking about how to present their work, the boys also had to think about the elements of dance, particularly the use of different levels to create visual interest. Here are some photos of their starting and finishing poses:

Phebe Samson

Performing Arts Teacher

Information Learning Technology

Cyber Smart

Cybersmart is a national cyber safety and cyber security education program that is specifically designed to meet the needs of its target audiences of children, young people, parents, teachers and library staff.

The Cyber safety website is designed to support and encourage participation in the digital world by providing information and education which empowers children to be safe online.

The website provides information, games and activities for 'Young Kids' (0- 7), 'Kids' (8 - 12) and 'Teens' (13 - 18) to explore how to be safe online, and has excellent information for parents.

All Junior School boys will be working with the site, with our Year 5 boys taking the "How cybersmart are you?" quiz as part of their "Who We Are" unit of inquiry beginning this week.

Interested parents can visit the site with their son: http://www.cybersmart.gov.au

Amanda Ritchie

ILT Coach

Physical Education News

With competitive swimming now over for another year the boys will be turning their focus solely on our JPSSA competition.

The Year 5 boys are continuing with their JPSSA sport. They have been competing strongly and have continued to show fantastic sportsmanship and have always given their best whilst striving for improvement.

On Thursday 13 March our Year 4 boys competed in the first of six JPSSA carnivals. They had a fantastic afternoon playing cricket against Christ Church and Hale. The boys competed well and showed great collegiality and sportsmanship throughout. The next Year 4 carnival is a soccer carnival and will be held here at Scotch. The date for this is Thursday 3 April.

Jason Caniglia

Head of Junior School Physical Education

Excellence Awards

The following awards will be announced at Assembly on Friday 4 April:

Year 3

Daniel Kerfoot

Ben Quarterman

Elijah Pretorius

Will Fairweather

Xander Dore

Arnaud McVicker

Hugh Chapman

M.K. Djauhari

Ryo Hiraiwa

Tom Corrie

Ross Whittome

Oliver Seitchik

Primary Years Programme (PYP)

International Baccalaureate (IB) Mission Statement

As a three programme IB World School, our Scotch College mission and vision align very closely with that of the IB. It is one of the requirements for being an IB school:

Standard A: Practice A1

The school's published statements of mission and philosophy align with those of the IB.

The IB is conducting a review of its mission statement through consultation with a range of stakeholders. The IB mission defines the purpose and cause of the IB and the organisation wants to ensure that the mission continues to resonate across the community and continues to represent those values that focus the IB's work. Information gathered from all of our stakeholders will inform the development of a revised mission in 2014.

Current IB mission statement:

The International Baccalaureate aims to develop inquiring, knowledgeable and caring young people who help to create a better and more peaceful world through intercultural understanding and respect.

To this end the organization works with schools, governments and international organizations to develop challenging programmes of international education and rigorous assessment.

These programmes encourage students across the world to become active, compassionate and lifelong learners who understand that other people, with their differences, can also be right.

If you feel there are key words or statements missing or key words or statements that need to be removed from the IB mission, please let me know. I will share your feedback as part of the global review.

Kathy Derrick

Deputy Head of Junior School - Curriculum

Junior School Resource Centre

Easter in the Junior School Library

The Easter Season is fast approaching and the Junior School Library will be holding its annual Easter Competition. It's time to decorate those eggs or design that poster to promote what Easter means to you. This has been very popular in previous years and gives the boys an opportunity to display their creative abilities and have some fun at the same time.

Should egg decorating not be your thing; then why not make a poster? It can be any size up to A3 and will be placed on the windows and walls of the Library.

Prior to painting, eggs will need to be hard-boiled or 'mouth-blown' and then decorated at home. If you wish to make an egg display, make sure it is not larger than an A5 piece of paper.

The Easter egg decorating judging will be performed in each class group and the Easter poster judging will be in year groups.

Posters will be accepted from Wednesday the 2^nd of April whilst the egg displays will be accepted from Monday the 7^th of April.

Judging will take place on Wednesday 9^th of April, prizes will be awarded and every boy who enters the competition receives a hen sized chocolate Easter Egg and Year group winners will receive a large Easter Egg.

Further information will be given to the boys at school in Weeks 8 and 9.

Kaye Turner

Junior School Teacher Librarian

Headmaster's Commendations

Congratulations to the following boys who met with Dr O'Connell and received Headmaster's Commendations on the 21 March.

Year 1

Reece Macdonald

Nicholas Lovegrove

Soichiro Ogawa

Year 2

Owen Clark

Noah Lisle

Will Howie

James Winch

Year 3

Levi Lawson

Callum Fairweather

Mehki Lucerne-Knight

Marco Ghiselli

Year 4

Henry Vaughan

Jensen Blok

James Mahaffy

Henry Cooper

Rory King

Year 5

Zavier McGillivray

Noah Embleton

Ethan Frankle

Jack Kapinkoff

Respect, Courtesy and Manners - Fundamental Requirements for Life

At Assembly last Friday we celebrated the news of a successful Open Day by sharing a glowing email from a visitor who attended the event. Over seventy Year 7 boys were involved as tour guides on Open Day, escorting parents through the new building and explaining our culture, ethos and the opportunities on offer at Scotch College. Overall the general feedback we have received from visitors on Open Day has been extremely positive. In particular, highlighting the courtesy and manners, the depth of knowledge and the obvious passion for their school our boys demonstrated. In an ever changing and increasingly complex world young people need a range of skills and talents as prerequisites for a happy and successful life. It is both interesting and pleasing to note that respect, courtesy and good manners, as acknowledged by our guests at Open Day, clearly remains at the top of that list of fundamental requirements for life.

Pied Piper of Hamelin

This year the Middle School drama production, 'The Pied Piper of Hamelin' hits the stage for three captivating performances on Thursday 3, Friday 4 and Saturday 5 April. The cast of 30 students has been rehearsing since the start of term and the excitement is now hard to contain. The Foundation Theatre stage is being built this weekend with a major dress rehearsal scheduled for Tuesday 1 April. Tickets for 'The Pied Piper of Hamelin' are on sale via Book an Event on the College website.

Scholarships into Year 7 2015

Each year the College offers a number of scholarships for boys moving into Year 7. Testing for these scholarships is scheduled for Saturday 10 May in the Dickinson Centre. If you wish your son to sit this testing please visit the College website www.scotch.wa.edu.au and follow the Scholarship prompts to register. Applications close on 24 April.

Year 7 International Immersion Week - Winter Term

The Year 7 International Immersion Week was featured at the Year 7 Parent Information Evening at the start of term. This programme offers Year 7 boys a choice of four week long opportunities to explore in depth the history, language and activity of another culture other than our own.

The four options are:

• Year 7 Singapore Tour - 40 places
• Singapore @School Tour - 70 places
• French Immersion Week - 30 places
• Indonesian Immersion Week - 20 places

As the planning for the tour to Singapore requires a longer lead time, we are holding a Parent Information Evening in MacKellar Hall at 6.30pm on Tuesday 1 April to present details for families and boys interested in this tour.

Richard Ledger

Head of Middle School

Important Dates in Middle School Summer Term

7W - We can change the world…a little bit at a time.

A cliché I know but I believe we can! This is the focus for our class this year, we want to change the world and make the lives of others better than they were before we met them. Well, we will try!

There are many examples within our class where we have already shown a willingness to help each other. We had been charged by Mr Ledger to keep the lockers outside our room looking neat and tidy. After discussing this small action in class I then encouraged the boys to help each other and not just look after their own locker. To start with the boys themselves became more careful about making certain their lockers were tidy because they wanted Mr Ledger to feel proud of their efforts. However in addition I saw several boys at different times putting the straps of other boys bags into their lockers…keeping the area tidy. Changing the world…a little bit at a time.

But this is just one of the many actions undertaken by the boys in our class. In a recent science experiment this was made obvious again in many ways, as shown in the image below. In marching, even though we have not been specifically mentioned in assembly, every time we have a new leader our class members always congratulate each new leader as if we were winners.

Perhaps our biggest efforts have been to help others we do not even know. Many of boys from our class, as well as all other classes in the Middle School and in other areas of Scotch College, recently raised money to help the Leukaemia Foundation for research. They gave of their time and money selflessly, and not only at school. They organised events, helped teachers by cleaning for a small donation, they developed table tennis tournaments, they sold sweets that they bought with their own money, they busked on the weekend and they also gave their own money to help, just to name a few of the activities. As a classroom community our boys are making a difference, they are changing the world…a little bit at a time.

Ms Vicki Ward

7W Teacher

JPSSA Inter-School Swimming Carnival

On Thursday 6 March of group of boys from Year 6 went to Challenge to compete in the JPSSA Inter-School Swimming Carnival. It was a fantastic afternoon with some great swims by all the boys involved.

All the Year 6 boys who attended gave their absolute best. It was pleasing to see the fantastic sportsmanship shown by all. Scotch finished the afternoon in 6^th place and should be extremely proud in the way they conducted themselves throughout the afternoon.

A big thank you must go out to West Coast Swimming Club who has been instrumental in training our swimmers throughout the season. I would also like to thank the teachers who helped train the boys and who assisted on the day.

We as a school must continue to strive together to improve and look forward to the swimming season in 2015.

Congratulations to the boys who competed:

Final standings for the afternoon:

1^st Aquinas 607

2^nd Wesley 574

3^rd Hale 536

4^th Guildford 526

5^th Christ Church 512

6^th Scotch College 501

7^th Trinity 485

Jason Caniglia

Head of JPSSA Sport and Junior School Health and Physical Education

Headmaster's Commendations

Excellence Awards

Announced at Assembly on Friday 21 February 2014

Announced at Assembly on Friday 21 March 2014

Student Achievements

Student Achievements

Congratulations to Oskar Beadell (7M), who has been selected as one of 30 Scout Leaders from WA to attend the Ticket to Life Camp in the Philippines that aims to raise awareness and assist the Youth in Need project in May this year. Oskar will spend six days helping and supporting underprivileged children in Manila.

Congratulations to Jean-Marc Boyce (7W) who has been selected to represent Australia at the Taekwondo International Open European Championship in Davos Switzerland this month.

Qualities for Life

Passion, dedication, perseverance and self-belief, four qualities that featured strongly in the lives and experiences of each of the three guest speakers that visited Scotch College in the past two weeks; Corporal Mark Donaldson VC, John Hughes and Professor Barry Marshall Nobel Prize for Medicine 2005.

In each of these presentations, this group of highly successful men spoke of their personal and professional journeys. Journeys that included overcoming challenges and responding to failure. Their stories were inspiring and importantly their successes easily attributed to their personal qualities. Whether it is Corporal Donaldson's determination and commitment to be the best soldier he can be, John Hughes attention to detail and genuine care for customer service or Professor Marshall's inquisitive mind, our boys will have left each of these presentations with a lesson that will help them carve their own path into the future.

It is no coincidence that high achievers, regardless of the field, share similar attitudes and qualities. It was these same qualities that were clearly on display from all of the boys competing in the Head of the River regatta last Saturday. To watch boys in the 10As, for example, who have been sitting in the middle of the field for much of the season, perform a best of season performance as they closed in on first place approaching the line speaks volumes of the effort and 'never give up' attitude that was a feature throughout the regatta. All boys and coaches in the rowing programme can be justifiably proud of their effort and discipline shown throughout the season. As the results of each race fade, the boys will be left with strong memories of those they shared the season with and the personal qualities that they developed as a unified and committed team.

Dr Rob McEwan

Head of Senior School

2014 Cambodia Tour - Community Service

Expressions of interest for the 2014 Cambodia Community Service Tour are currently being sought. The tour will involve participating in service work at the primary school in Soun Sah Village, as well as travelling to Phnom Penh (to visit Khmer Rouge era sites) and Siem Reap (to visit ancient cultural sites such as Angkor Wat). The tour will run in the December school holidays and will be open to all current Year 10, 11 and 12 students. If you require more information, please contact Miss Kate Gooding in the English Department on 9383 6715 or kgooding@scotch.wa.edu.au. Please see the form attached for expressions of interest.

School Production AUDITIONS, Years 8, 9 and 10

I would like to extend an invitation to boys in Years 8, 9 and 10 to audition for this years production, Two Weeks with the Queen, by Mary Morris. Adapted from Morris Gleitzman's bestselling novel, it is about a boy on a mission - Colin wants to speak to the Queen about his brother Luke, who has cancer. His cousin Alistair would like to help, but stress brings on his dandruff. Colin takes the lock off the back door and goes out alone…

Auditions will take place in the Foundation Theatre on Wednesday and Thursday afternoon, 2 and 3 April. Sign up sheets will be in the foyer of the theatre one week prior. Please contact me with any queries.

Mr Andrews

Careers

Medicine, Dentistry & Podiatric Medicine 2015

Medicine is offered at UWA and Notre Dame as a graduate-entry study option only and dentistry and podiatric medicine is offered as a graduate-entry study at UWA. This means that there is no longer a requirement for students to sit the UMAT (Undergraduate Medical Admission Test) as following the completion of an undergraduate degree, students who are intending to complete graduate studies in either medicine, podiatric medicine or dentistry will be required to sit the GAMSAT (Graduate Medical School Admission Test).

However, UWA offers limited assured entry places to highly qualified school-leaving (Year 12) students when they commence at UWA. To secure one of these places, a student must sit the UMAT, attend the structured interview, achieve a 99+ ATAR and complete an undergraduate degree with a Grade Point Average of at least 5.5 (approx. 65%).

Students who are intending to study medicine or dentistry at an interstate university (except University of Melbourne) are still required to sit the UMAT to gain entry into undergraduate medicine or dentistry.

UMAT applications closing date: Friday 6 June 2014

UMAT date: Wednesday 30 July 2014

Mr Frusher has recently distributed to interested students, information regarding the UMAT. Any students who were unable to attend this meeting and parents who may have further questions are asked to contact Mr Frusher at Scotch. For more information please see http://umat.acer.edu.au/.

University Information

Have you ever wanted to know what it's like to study Music at UWA?

"A Day in the Life of a Music Student" gives Year 11&12 students the opportunity to explore the different ways Music can be incorporated into your degree, and experience some of the classes you would take as a music student. You are encouraged to bring your instrument with you (note: the School of Music offers tuition on all orchestral instruments, piano, organ harpischord, fortepiano, classical guitar, classical voice and composition). Online registrations will open in March; in the meantime, you are welcome to register your interest in attending. Follow the URL below for further details.

Location: UWA School of Music

Contact: UWA Prospective Students Office <admissions@uwa.edu.au> : 08 6488 2477

URL: http://www.studyat.uwa.edu.au/about/events/year-12-students/DITL

Monday 14 Apr 2014 08:45am - 4.00pm RSVP is required.

Are you interested in undertaking a Bachelor of Design, or simply wish to find out more about studying Landscape Architecture at UWA?

"A Day in the Life of a Landscape Architecture Student" gives Year 11 and 12 students the opportunity to participate in design studios, and work with staff and current Landscape Architecture students. Don't miss this exciting opportunity to gain an exclusive insight into your future life as a uni student at UWA! Online registrations will open in March; in the meantime, you are welcome to register your interest in attending. Follow the URL below for further details.

Location: Faculty of Architecture, Landscape and Visual Arts (ALVA)

Contact: UWA Prospective Students Office <admissions@uwa.edu.au> : 08 6488 2477

URL: http://www.studyat.uwa.edu.au/about/events/year-12-students/DITL

Monday 14 Apr 2014 08:45 - 4.00pm RSVP is required

ADF Careers Expo

ADF Careers Expo Friday, 2 May 2014, 9am-3pm and Saturday 3 May 2014 10am-4pm

Irwin Barracks, Stubbs Terrace, Karrakatta

Australia's Navy, Army and Air Force can give you experiences money can't buy - a career that not only improves you personally, but means doing something worthwhile for your country. The ADF offers fully paid university degrees, graduate entry schemes, rewarding trade and technical careers as well as support and administration roles. Find out more about careers in; Aviation, Business and Administration, Combat and Security, Communications, IT and Education, Engineering, Health Care and Science, Logistics, Hospitality and Support, Officers and Management, Trades and Apprenticeships

Attend an information session:

10.15am Careers in the ADF (general information)

1.00am Army Reserve

11.45am Trades

12.30pm Careers in the Navy

1.15pm Careers in the Army

2.00pm Careers in the Air Force

2.45pm Australian Defence Force Academy

3.30pm Careers in the ADF (general information)

Revision Courses

Academic Task Force

To enrol at courses offered at Churchlands SHS, Rossmoyne SHS and Perth Modern School during the April holidays ring 9314 9500 or visit www.academictaskforce.com.au (10% early bird discount ends 28 March).

Year 11 and 12 April holiday course with Academic Associates at University of Western Australia. For more information visit the website www.academictaskforce.com.au, call 9314 9500 or email learn@academictaskforce.com.

ATarget

To enrol at courses offered at Christ Church Grammar School or Hale School during the April holidays ring 9486 1377 or email admin@atarget.com.au (10% early bird discount ends 28 March).

ISC Learning Group To enrol at courses offered at Scotch College through ISC Learning Group see attachment for more details.

Career Tips

Confused? Unsure? No idea? Want more information?

Try this newly launched website Hobson Course Finder.

www.hobsonscoursefinder.com.au will provide you with the ability to:

• search for a range of institutions - universities, TAFE institutes and private education providers
• explore links between courses and careers
• search for scholarships across Australia
• access helpful information about tertiary study, from getting in, to graduation and beyond.

Boy's Achievements

Lach Pethick (Year 12, Alexander) and Tom Prior (Year 11, Stuart) have been selected in the Western Australian Under 18 State Squad for the National Water Polo Carnival to be held in Perth in mid April 2014.

Lachlan Mackenzie (Year 10, Anderson) and Tom Prior (Year 11, Stuart) have been selected in the State School Boys Water Polo team to play on the Sunshine Coast (Qld) in June.

Mac Hanlin (Year 11, Stuart) has been selected in the WA state debating team and will be going to Melbourne on 25 May.

Alex Milligan (Year 11, Brisbane) set a new record at the PSA Swimming Carnival in the U17 100m Breaststroke with a time of 1:08.00.

Sean Szalek (Year 8, Ross) won the silver medal in high jump at the National Athletics championships with a PB of 1.79m.

Grant Szalek (Year 11, Ross) won the bronze medal in high jump at the National Athletics championships with a PB of 1.98m

Unwell Students

Under no circumstances are boys to make their own arrangements to have parents pick them up if they are feeling unwell. Boys should go to the Health Centre if they are unwell, preferably during recess or lunch time. Nursing Staff will decide whether they need to go home. If necessary to go during class time, the relevant section of the Diary must be completed by the teacher. Thank you to students and parents for your assistance with this.

2014 WACE Year 11 and Year 12 Examinations

Students who have a permanent or temporary illness and/or disability that may disadvantage them in demonstrating their knowledge, skills and understanding, may require special provisions when undertaking timed assessments such as in-class tests and essays, semester examinations and external WACE examinations.

In certain circumstances, the School Curriculum and Standards Authority offers special examination arrangements to candidates in their final WACE examinations. Students who feel they may qualify in 2014 and who do not already have this provision in place, should contact Ms Lee, Dean of Curriculum.

Applications to the School Curriculum and Standards Authority close on the 16 May 2014, and eligible students will be provided with further information from the Academic Support Team over the coming months.

The School follows the School Curriculum and Standards Authority policy for Year 11 and Year 12 internal examinations.

Parents' Association

The Year 7 Parent Dinner held on 7 March in the Scotch College Dining Room was a great success, with 151 parents attending. Head of Middle School, Richard Ledger, gave an introductory speech and attended with his wife Sue. Year 10 student Hamish McLean was the Piper who "piped" the parents in to sit down at their tables. The event was organised by Year 7 Parents' Association representatives Karen Azzopardi and Sue Moffat, who paid tribute to Scotch Catering Manager Gregg Wild and functions coordinator Claire Tuffin for providing "fantastic" food on the evening. The door prizes were won by Katrina Chalmers and Debbie Newport. Thanks to the following parents who helped set up on the day: Peter Law, Katrina Chalmers, Hamish Moffatt, Bernie McIlheney, Ari Harold and Jo Gale. Flower arrangements from the dinner were taken to Wearne Hostel by Scotch College boys.

Recent Funding Requests Approved:

1) 6 sets of each book in the Dandelion Launchers and Readers Series to help support the guided reading programme in the Junior School.

2) Maggie Dent, who will speak at the Dickinson Centre on 20 May 2014 about 'raising boys, who will become tomorrow's men'.

3) A series of clay workshop sessions for Year 2 students to attend Clay House in Fremantle under tutelage of international ceramicist Fleur Schell.

Michelle Barrow

President

Scotch College Parents Association.

Mothers' Auxiliary

We still require a Vice President, anyone who enjoys meeting new people and assisting in organising events is ideal for the role. Please contact clairstanley@iinet.net.au

Our new guidelines booklet will be available shortly. It contains all necessary information for organising all events at Scotch and a complete list of all our class and Year Representatives. We welcome our new members and look forward to their involvement through 2014.

· Year 11 Coffee Morning: Naked Fig: Wednesday 2 April at 9am

The Year 11 Reps are looking to organise a social get together at someone's house in early May. If you can volunteer your place can you contact either Danielle Newman at moose115@bigpond.com or Stephanie Fairbairne at jandsfairbairn@hotmail.com

· The Year 11 Dance Committee is underway with preparations for the Après Ski theme. The Year 11 boys have been asked to design a poster to advertise the Dance and these can be submitted to Peter Burt before 31 March 2014.

We warmly welcome you to our next meeting on Monday 7 April 2014 in the Gooch Pavilion at 9am.

Please also remember to check Mothers' Auxiliary events and updates on the Parent Support page at home.scotch.wa.edu.au for all latest news and upcoming events.

Clair Stanley

President

Scotch College Mothers' Auxiliary

Cricket Support Group

Scotch College Cricketers (Years 7-12) and their parents invited to an 'End of Season Celebration' on Wednesday 2 April 2014.

· Years 7, 8 and 9 : At The Gooch Pavillion, 5.15-6.15pm with a sausage sizzle for all cricketers. Boys can wear sport or school uniform. Presentations will be made by coaches. No need to book, just come along. BYO

· Years 10, 11 and 12 : In the Scotch College Dining Room Annexe, with a sit-down dinner at 6.30pm. Boys will be required to wear Winter uniform. The evening will include dinner, coach's awards and reports. BYO. Please book early as places are limited. To book your ticket online please go to the Scotch College website www.scotch.wa.edu.au and click on "Book a Scotch Event" icon.

Enquiries : to Jennifer Simpson at cricket@scotch.wa.edu.au

Pipe Band Parent Support Group

The Scottish Banquet for 2014 being held Friday 2 May 2014 in the Dickinson Centre. Tickets will go on sale to the Scotch Community on Monday 31 March from 8pm. An email from Scotch College will be sent closer to the booking date with purchase details.
As this is a very popular event, we have restricted ticket sales to the Scotch College community only.

Thank you for your support of the Scotch College Pipe Band.

Stephanie Debnam
Pipe Band Parent Support Group

Reminders

A reminder to book your tickets for the following events:

· Water Polo Dinner - Thursday 3 April 2014 in the Dining Room Annexe.

· Basketball Dinner and Awards Presentation - Wednesday 9 April 2014 in the Scotch College Dining Room.

To book your tickets online please go to the Scotch College website www.scotch.wa.edu.au and click on "Book a Scotch Event" icon.

Year 12 parents coffee morning

The first monthly coffee morning for the year will be held on Friday 28 March 2014 at the Swanbourne Book café.

Hope you can make it!

Enquiries: Contact: Lyn Walsh 0407773932

Year 10 Parents Evening

POSTPONED - Year 10 Parents Evening on Friday 28th March, due to lack of numbers.

Instead we will be holding a Year 10 Coffee Morning from 8.30am on Friday 4th April at Book Cafe, Swanbourne.

We hope to see you there.

Relationships Australia - K ids and Today's Technology

This two week course (Thursday 3 and 10 April, 6.30-9pm) is for parents of kids between ages 2 and 18 years. Technology is now being used by very young children and most teenagers are proficient users of many aspects of technology. Your knowledge of what's out there, how it's being used and how you manage it in your home will have a direct impact on your kids' learning and safety. For further information see the attached flyer or phone 9489 6322.