Big Day Out

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Today saw the boys have their first big day out with the whole school when they attended the AAGPS Head of the River. This is always a big day and although not a super long day, the weather always adds its own challenges.

And so we gathered on the back ovals early this morning where the boys donned the sunscreen and met up with their Year 11 buddies again. Having met their buddies a week earlier, traveling with them on the bus to Penrith was a great chance to get to know them a little better.

When everyone was successfully paired up, we headed to the Sydney International Rowing Centre at Penrith – the rowing course that was purpose built for the Sydney Olympics. The Head of the River this year was held a few weeks earlier than usual and as a result there was always a risk that the day was going to be a warm one. We certainly weren’t left wondering and the sun was in full strength.

To the boys’ credit, they were superb in many ways. They were dressed impeccably, contributed to the cheering and behaved exceptionally well. With mixed results on the course the boys maintained the Joeys spirit that many of us have become accustomed to and showed great support to the boys competing, no matter the results of the races.

As you can see from the photo, although only on the banks for a few hours, the day certainly took it out of the boys – let’s just say a quieter trip home than that on the way there! I’m not complaining about that!!!

Back at school, the boys had a little bit of free time before heading down to their first sports rally. Although backing up from a hot and tiring day on the banks of the river, the boys put in a very pleasing effort to welcome the rowers back to the school.

Well done to all for an excellent effort in very warm conditions.

Photo 1: Lucas Mendez (Beecroft) and Liam Hamilton (Drummoyne) on the banks of the Sydney International Rowing Centre.

Photo 2: Oscar Skinner (Roseville), Tom Small (Willoughby) and Charlie Nicholas (East Ryde) make the most of some down-time on the bus.

Our Oratory Stars

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For many, one of the hardest things that they have to do in life is speak in front of large groups. I know many very successful people who can not handle the thought of getting up and speaking in front of others. What makes this even harder is when the group you are speaking to is a group of your peers.

Today, we saw six Year 7 boys take up this challenge in the finals of our oratory competition. Each boy in Year 7 prepared and were judged on a speech in their English class. Each teacher then chose one representative from their class to go into these finals

I was very luck to be invited to be an adjudicator at this competition and I was accompanied by Mr Ross Tarlinton (Headmaster) and Mr Paul Brooks (Director of Teaching and Learning). In speaking with these men both during the competition and afterwards, we all agreed that the quality of speakers was superb.

Today’s final included the boys doing their prepared speech and then after that being given 1 minute to prepare a 1 minutes impromptu speech. In particular, this second challenge was a huge ask … remember … in front of 150 other boys!

A huge congratulations to all six of the boys who represented their classes. They really did a fabulous job.

There does, however, have to be a winner in such a competition and while it was extremely close between the boys, full credit has to go to Matthew Toomey (Lane Cove) who won the competition for 2012. He spoke about his hobby of cricket in his prepared speech and showed great creativity in his impromptu.

Second place went to Ethan Annesley (Tennyson Point) who spoke about Table Tennis while third place went to Lachlan Champley (Umina Beach) who spoke about the Wests Tigers. These boys were exceptionally good but got pipped at the post by Matthew.

A big congratulations to all the boys in Year 7 who each gave it their best in their clsses.

Photo 1: Alec Mackinnon (North Bondi)

Photo 2: Matthew Toomey (Lane Cove)

Photo 3: Our six finalists, Joe Lawman (Seaforth), Luke Hodgson (Ryde), Matthew Toomey (Lane Cove), Lachlan Champley (Umina Beach), Alec Mackinnon (North Bondi) and Ethan Annesley (Tennyson Point).

Our First Few Weeks

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I am continually amazed as I watch the boys grow in confidence each day. To think that only five weeks ago they were full of nerves and as they headed off on their first day is truly remarkable. An awesome display of this confidence was the ability for Year 7 boys to get up in front of the whole school and speak. Just over a week ago, this happened and rather than me introduce the speakers … I’ll let them do that and give you their account of their first few weeks at Joeys! Enjoy the video.

Click here to view the video

Well done guys! A fantastic effort in front of over 1000 boys and staff – you certainly represented Year 7 exceptionally well!

The Rock-Climbing Challenge

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One of the commonly asked questions by not only parents but also the other boys in the form is “what do the Full Boarders do when they stay at school all weekend?”. Well the answer is that they have a lot of fun! This is not to say that they don’t love getting an invite out as well – but certainly if this is not possible then they are well looked after here at Joeys.

Each weekend there is a “Sunday Activity” which is run by Br Anthony Boyd (Deputy Headmaster) or Mr John Reading (Head of Boarding). This activity is an opportunity for the boys to get out of school and experience a whole host of things. Already this year, the boys have been to Manly Beach, Darling Harbour, and the movies. Today they took up the challenge of Rock-Climbing.

“Climb-Fit” is in St Leonards and, after completing a short safety session, the boys have open access to all the challenges on offer for two hours. This includes walls for climbers of all abilities, an electronic speed climbing machine and a favourite challenge for the boys, “The Table”.

Indoor climbing is an experience that offers the boys a great deal. First and fore-mostly, it is great fun. It was wonderful seeing the boys enjoying the challenges and giving each of the different walls a go.

Another great thing about climbing is that it places great responsibility on the boys who have to look after each other and their safety. The team-work involved was very evident as I walked around different pairs of boys. They were communicating with each other, trying to help them out by pointing out which “holds” to use, encouraging them to go further and of course, keeping hold of the belay to ensure their mate’s safety. The boys showed impressive team work skills and it was superb to see them in this somewhat different but positive environment.

So what’s “The table”? This is exactly what it says it is … a table. The challenge is to start on top of the table, work your way around under it and then back onto the top without touching the ground. It requires great strength in both the upper body and legs as well as flexibility.

Another of the challenges was the giant ladder … a super-sized ladder with the rungs over a metre apart. It is a great climbing challenge and it was fantastic seeing Binban Jaffer-Williams (Hanging Rock) make it all the way to the top.

With a short break mid-way through the afternoon, most of the boys spent the whole time on the climbs and exhausted themselves attempting the various challenges, coming out of the centre having had a great time!

Photo 1: Jack Webster (Kensington) just manages to hold on.

Photo 2: Aidan Porter (Dubbo) makes his way up one of the many walls available.

Photo 3: Damian Sevil (Narrabri) starts his attempt on “The Table”.

Ancient Words … A Great Celebration

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Today the boys celebrated the Eucharist together for the first time as a year group at the Year 7 Mass. The College Chapel is an amazing place where many important events in the lives of our boys and “old boys” take place. It is the place where weekly masses, graduations, funerals and weddings all take place and I am sure that today’s mass is an event that will be remembered by all the boys when they reflect on their time at Joeys a little later in life.

This was a also a very special occasion for the boys as Mr Tarlinton and Fr Andrew presented them with their new College Bibles. This passing-on of the good news is very symbolic and important for us as a Catholic school and both Mr Tarlinton and Fr Andrew spoke to the boys about the importance of not only what is in the bible but also looking after their own bibles.

We are very lucky at Joeys to have Fr Andrew as our College Chaplain. He has an incredible ability to deliver his homilies in a way that the boys can understand and relate to which makes their faith very relevant and meaningful for them. Today was no different and the boys were encouraged to continue working on their spiritual life, as they do with all other areas in their lives.

It was excellent to see many of our boys contributing to the liturgy through music and readings and certainly the way that all the boys joined in the singing and responses was very pleasing. It is a great sign of the importance that the boys place on their faith here at Joeys.

Photo 1: Liam Hamilton (Drummoyne) is presented with his College Bible by Mr Tarlinton.

Photo 2: Stephen Matheson (Longueville) reading at our mass.

Buddying Up

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Today we launched our buddy program for 2012 and this was an exciting time for the boys as they met up with the Year 11 buddy.

The buddy program has been running at Joeys for more than 20 years and is an opportunity on many levels. First and fore-mostly, the buddy program allows the boys in Year 7 to get to know an older boy in the school who has been through the same experiences that the Year 7 boys are currently going through. The experience of transitioning into high school is not easy and I know that the Year 7 boys greatly appreciate being able to speak with older boys who have been through the experience themselves. Every one of the buddies in Year 11, at some stage or other, was a new boy at Joeys and their own personal experiences and advice from a youthful point of view is invaluable to the Year 7 boys.

For me, I really enjoyed watching the Year 11 boys interact with the Year 7 boys as the current Year 11s were my first group of Year 7 boys that I looked after and I clearly remember this same day four years ago. It is incredible to observe how far they have come and I know from working with them that they experienced all the challenges and difficulties that the Year 7 boys have and will be experiencing throughout this year. Seeing how much the Year 11 students have matured in this time is quite incredible and it was wonderful to see them working so well with the Year 7 boys.

Throughout the year, the Year 11 Boarding Coordinator, Pat Rodgers, and I will work together to create as many opportunities as possible for the boys to catch up. The next time that we have an official get-together will be Saturday week at the Head of the River. The boys will travel to Penrith with their buddies on the bus and this will give them a wonderful opportunity to really get to know them.

Lunch leave has proved very popular so far this year and I would strongly encourage those who are regular lunch leave attendees to consider inviting your son’s buddy to one of the lunch leaves. Like their Year 7 peer relationships, lunch leaves provide a great opportunity for a short but quality time together away from the hustle and bustle of large groups.

I really hope that the boys get to know their buddies well this year and can continue this relationship into 2013 when their buddies are in Year 12.

Photo 1: Year 11 student Matt Johnson (Drummoyne) with Bailey Carrington (Balmain).

Photo 2: Year 11 student Henry Courts (Bourke) with his Year 7 buddy Harry Gosper (Corlette).

Photo 3: Adrian Ang (Artarmon) with his Year 11 buddy Joe Bokeyar (Gladesville)

Birthday in Bed

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Birthdays are wonderful times and a great family opportunity. One of the sacrifices that our boarders make is that often they spend their birthdays away from home. We do our best to help celebrate a birthday with the boys by organising some soft drink and special desert for them at dinner to share with their table.

For Rhys Orman (Narrabri) some sickness saw him spend his birthday in bed in the Health Centre. This, however, was not going to stop us from helping him celebrate this special day. Rhys’ parents had organised a surprise cake for the boys up in the dorm … with Rhys in bed, we took the cake to him. Seeing his face light up as the boys in Dorm 8 marched down the hallway of the Health Centre singing happy birthday was simply priceless!

So although not ideal, I suspect that with some presents and cards that arrived in the mail, a chocolate mud cake by his side and some great friends joining him at his bed-side, Rhys is likely to remember his 12th birthday for some time!

Photo: Joseph Canning (Wentworth Falls), Matthew Mackenzie (Sutton Forest), Mackinley Croft (Port Hacking), David Kidd (Connells Point), Bill Farrugia (Coonamble), Edward Fay (Castle Cove), Damian Sevil (Narrabri), Andrian Ang (Artarmon) and Andrew Rice (Oxley) help Rhys Orman celebrate his birthday.

Great Participation in the “Track and Field”

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Today we had our College athletics carnival at the park and we were lucky enough to somehow dodge the recent terrible weather, making it through the day without being hit with any rain.

The boys still attended the first two periods of the day and then the school moved to the oval for the annual event which pits mate against mate as they compete for their colour house.

Last week at our Division Meeting I had spoken to the boys about getting involved and making the most of the opportunities at the carnival. I pointed out that it would be very easy to just run the compulsory events and then sit and watch the others. I challenged the boys to try and compete as much as possible in the optional events and it was wonderful to see them take up this challenge.

The picture at the top of this blog is the start of the 800m race – an event which was open to all the boys. As you can see, there were lots of boys keen to give it a go and in fact more boys ran in the U13s 800m and 15000m race than any other age group. When it came to the field events, every single available spot was filled and very competitive. This is an indication of how committed the Year 7 boys were to getting involved and giving things a go!

Each boy in Year 7 ran in the 100m as well as the 400m and I was so pleased to see them being sensible and really giving it their best effort. We know (and are indeed very proud) that we have a diverse group of boys here at Joeys with talents in various facets of life. All we ask for is that the boys give things a go and do so with their best effort – I know that our boys in Year 7 certainly did this today!

When it comes to the boys who have a particular talent in athletics, congratulations go to James Hill (Abbotsford) who contributed the most points to his colour house in Year 7. Likewise, special mention should also go to Lachlan Champley (Umina Beach) who came in with the second most number of points for his team.

A big commendation to all the boys in Year 7 who arrived at the carnival impeccably dressed and contributed to the success of the carnival.

Photo 1: Fred Maher (Cherrybrook) clears the bar in the high jump.

Photo 2: Owen Vella (Chatswood), Joseph Canning (Wentworth Falls), Tyrone Janson Ho (Greenwhich), Matthew Sally (West Pennant Hills), Tom McGregor (Manly Vale), Matthew Mackenzie (Sutton Forest) and Felix Habib (Balmain) begin to stride out in the 100m heats.

Photo 3: Matthew Spillane (Hunters Hill), Ben Junee (Hunters Hill) and David Kidd (Connels Point) push each other in the 200m event.