A big thank you from the needy

Our very sincere thanks for your continued support.  Your very generous donations of blankets, food and clothing for the poor and homeless are very much appreciated, both by us and those who receive them.  We would also like to say a big thank you to Mr Wermuth and the E.R.S. boys who help with the serving of soup and bread at the Church each Monday evening.

May God bless you all.

HIGH SCHOOL – Mrs Pat Fitzsimons

“There are few if any jobs in which ability alone is sufficient. Needed also are loyalty, sincerity, enthusiasm and team play.” William B. Given.   The above statement certainly applies to the job of teaching. We are very fortunate at C.B.C. to have teachers who are not only very able but who are extremely, loyal, sincere and enthusiastic about what they do and who make up a great team.   Good as we are we are always looking for ways in which to improve and grow in the area of teaching and learning and are to this end in the process, once again, of evaluating where we are and what our strengths and weaknesses are in this area [the classroom].

Over these past two weeks class visits have been carried out in order to identify and share good practice. We now require the help of you the parents and boys to continue with our quality assurance exercise.

To obtain feedback we will be asking you to complete a short questionnaire and in the 3^rd term will be asking for volunteers to take part in focus groups [similar to our process last year]. Once all feedback has been obtained a report will be written and will be made available.  The students’ questionnaires will be given to the boys this week and the parents’ questionnaires will be sent home on Friday with a covering letter. Thank you in advance for you input. 

ACADEMICS

All Year 8,9,10 and 11 boys should have received their Mid –Term reports. The marks from these were generally pleasing with most boys improving their marks. That is as it should be and these can be used as a good indicator as to whether proper preparation for examinations has been done.  STUDYING should have been going on all term, and REVISION should already be started. These terms studying and revising tend to become confused. Study is what should be happening every night all through the year as work is consolidated after each lesson. Revision is what happens a number of weeks before exams when work is gone over again.

My concern is that for some boys the study part of the preparation is sorely lacking and that when we say we study we mean only revision as we only go over work just before a test or exam.  Mrs. Ruthven has worked tirelessly with many boys helping them with time management and to create study timetables and their teachers have day by day built their skills and knowledge.   Our boys have been given all the tools to perform well. I now encourage them to use these gifts and their God given ability to perform well in their exams which start on the 10^th of July.   Matrics, although not writing formal examinations at this time, are continuing with their assessments and will also be receiving an end of term report, but their chance to shine comes a little later, in the 3^rd term, when they write Prelims. 

SPORT AND SUPPORT

As the winter sports season comes to and end I thank all of the sports coaches for their efforts. A special thanks to all the boys who with great enthusiasm play their sport every week.  As a school we believe that this participation in sport, especially at an all boys’ school, is an essential tool for character building. Many life lessons are learned on the sports field. The boys build relationships and learn what it means to use their talents in the service of others. When they play their sport, they do not play for themselves alone but for their team members and their school and I thank them for that.  To all who have come faithfully to support at each of the games, thank you, it is noticed and appreciated.  [A reminder that there will be no sports periods on Mondays and Wednesdays from the week beginning the 7^th of July.]

CONGRATULATIONS

Well done to Marc Martinho who has been selected to the Easterns Under 16 Squash team.

HOUSE REPORTS

Good luck to “Borat”, “Vernon Koekemoer”, “Matsilocks” and “Tim” for tonight’s Cultural Evening—break a leg!  Congratulations to Liam Westgate and Reece van der Poel on achieving Provincial Colours for Hockey.

Enjoy the mid-term break and don’t abuse the TV remote too much.                                           

Aquinas  (Mr Rindfleisch)

Exams are starting in about two weeks time.  This means the mid-term break is more of a study break rather than a holiday.  Mid-term reports went out last week.  These marks should guide the boys in their exam preparation.  Best of luck for the exams!  Congratulations to Kyron Woolley on his hat-trick for the Under 14A hockey team over the weekend.  Good luck to both our soccer teams for their first inter-house match on Thursday.  Also, good luck to all the boys involved in the inter-house cultural evening this evening.

Enjoy the mid-term break.

Founders  (Mr Muller)

Everybody is talking about the coming mid-term break.  The reason for this excitement is because of the hectic pace of Term 2.  We hit the floor running from day 1, and I can’t see us stopping any time soon.  But the mid-term break is a welcome time to just gather strength to complete the term.  I wish everybody a good and restful break and I pray that all will return safely in a week’s time.    There are, unfortunately, some boys who cannot afford the rest, for they have to study to make up for lost opportunities during the past term.  We start exams the same week we return form the break, so nobody will have an excuse for not having time to do some studying.  Congratulations to all the boys who have reached their mid-term report goals.  The marks are looking good and the boys must now strive to keep the marks up during the exams.    Remember what Ralph Marston said about rest, “Rest when you’re weary.  Refresh and renew yourself, your body, your mind, your spirit.  Then get back to work.”

Revill  (Mr Phiri)

The mid-term break is looming on the horizon and all of us are eagerly looking forward to it.  The boys have worked extremely hard in all facets of the College in the past seven weeks, and they deserve a break to “recharge their batteries”.  The boys received their mid-term reports last Friday and it is my sincere hope that they have looked at their achievements objectively and are busy mapping out ways of either maintaining outstanding results or improving in those areas they did not achieve.  I must commend all boys whose reports reflected hard work and I urge them to continue on this footing.  To those whose marks were not pleasing, they must know that success is a process and not merely an event.  The fact is they must work extremely hard and nothing will stop them from achieving their goals if they have the desire.  This assertion is highlighted by Oma Edoja when he alludes to the fact that, “Success is something you must work hard and long to earn, for yourself.  It has a price, sometimes a very high one.”  Well done to all the boys who have taken part in the winter sports and other activities this term.  The boys will showcase their soccer skills and cultural talents today and all the best to them.  Enjoy the mid-term break and remember, long before you settle down in the second half, it will be exam time.  PREPARE ADEQUATELY!

EDMUND RICE SOCIETY  (Mr Wermuth)

This is another group in which the boys use their talents and give of their time in service of others. Their continued presence at the soup kitchen at St Dominic’s church on a Monday night, their visits to children’s homes and old people’s homes, their collection of blankets and food for the needy, is testament to their selflessness.  On Sunday 22 June our ERS members represented CBC Boksburg at a Mass to celebrate the unveiling of the Community Hall at St Francis Care Centre in memory of Father Nicholas Nemoto Akio.  Thank you, boys.  These young men are great ambassadors for the College and live our Ethos through all the good work they do. Thank you to Mr Wermuth for his guidance and encouragement of these boys.

SCIENCE EXPO

The Science Expo held on the 12^th of June was a tremendous success!  The day was a hive of activity with much to see and do.  I must say that our science boys really excelled themselves this year and I was very proud of them.  Thanks to all of you for making such a superb effort, lads – you did a terrific job!  I would like to thank our science teachers, Mr Friedrichs, Ms Ramhith & Mr Stoop most sincerely for driving and promoting this effort.  The work produced by their students was excellent!  Thanks also, to Mr Connell for adjudicating and to Mrs Peebles for putting up with all our requests for science equipment, her general assistance and for adjudicating.  Finally, I’d like to thank all the parents and other  guests who supported this event.  It was greatly appreciated.

The results were as follows—

PIPE BAND    (Mr N. Askham)

The Pipe Band competed in the Pretoria Boys High Gathering on Saturday 14 June 2008.  This was our sixth gathering so far this year and is a graded gathering - one of the most important gatherings in our competition season.  I am happy to report that our combined CBC, Boksburg / Jeppe Band came 2^nd overall on the day, having achieved a 1^st place in the March, Strathspey & Reel and a 3^rd place in the March Selection.  Well done to the following boys (and girls) who participated on the day—Damian Maher; Sharon Maher; Jared Vorster; Sheldon Joubert; Edward Verrall; Warwick Vorster & Monica Vorster.

Gatherings remaining are—

St Benedict’s—5^th July 2008

Benoni High—26^th July 2008

Any support would be greatly appreciated!

DATES TO REMEMBER

PREPARATORY SCHOOL – Mr Stephen Bryan

ACADEMICS

The Prep. School is busy with exams which conclude tomorrow.  Remember that continuous assessment will take place after mid-term.

YEAR 7 LEADERSHIP EXCHANGE PROGRAMME

Congratulations to the following boys who have been chosen to represent us as Exchange Students from 2—9 August in Cape Town, Kimberley, Pretoria and Bloemfontein—Angus Bezemer, Kingsley Botes, Joshua Datnow, Ryan De Kock, Nathi Gumede, Matthew Lavis, Michael Pienaar, Cameron Prutton, Brandon Ramnath, Marciano Teixeira and Mandla Zwane.

SPORT

Congratulations to the Under 11A Rugby Team on reaching the final of their league.  They lost 17—5 to Unica last week.  Well done on your excellent season!   The Open A Squash team is still unbeaten in the league and the boys play their final game tomorrow—good luck!

Boys can participate in Hockey, Squash and Tennis until the end of term as the Rugby and Soccer seasons have finished.

The Athletics season starts with internal practices during the school day from 8—17 July, culminating in the Inter-House (Friday 18 July) and Inter-CBC (Monday 28 July) meetings.

UPCOMING TOURS

The Grahamstown Cultural Tour takes place from 28 June—2 July.  We wish all boys and Mrs Luiz and Mr Croukamp all the best for this exciting trip.

Details for the Bloemfontein Soccer Tour (25—27 July) for the Under 11A and Open A team, and the Inter-CBC Winter Festival in Pretoria ( 31 July—2 August) for the Open A Soccer and Open A and B Hockey teams will follow shortly.

SCHOOLBOYS OF THE WEEK

DATES TO REMEMBER

PRIMARY SCHOOL – Mr Henry Moolman

I am happy to report that Mr Maree is back with us after his stay in hospital.  He is almost back to full health for which we are all very grateful.

The extra-mural programme will resume on Tuesday 8 July after we return from the mid-term break.  Please note that all extra-murals, etc. will end on Thursday 24 July.

NB—We will continue with our efforts to arrange more matches for the Under 7s and Under 8s.

Last Wednesday, 18 June, two football sides enjoyed a very active day at the St Dunstan’s Winter Tournament.  Each team played a total of seven matches, and although the emphasis was on participation and the joy of playing, the players were very pleased to announce their teams’ results to me.  Well done boys!

Thank you to Mr Maree for being Team Manager and to each coach who attended. Thank you to Mrs Stoop who saw to the transport arrangements.

This week of entrance assessments has proved very encouraging with regard to the number of applications for 2009.  The staff and I have enjoyed the experience of interacting with both the parents and the boys.

I wish each family a very restful mid-term break.  May your energies be recharged for the final month that lies ahead once we return.

ASSESSMENTS

We have already begun with the individual assessments of our current pupils.  A request—please avoid taking your child out of school during this time.  The staff work to a very tight schedule and should pupils be absent, it hampers their work and programme.

SPORT

Parents are reminded of the upcoming football tour to Bloemfontein for the Under 9 team (25—27 July).  Details to follow.  The Year Threes will be included in the Prep. School athletics programme which culminates in two athletic meetings, one of which is the inter-house meeting (Friday 18 July).

MERIT SASH AWARDS

SPECIAL AWARDS