SBC Dictionary
St Bernard's College, like every school, has a range of words which are known to everyone who has been at the College for a number of years, but are a mystery to newcomers. Some of the more common terms are explained below:
Redeemer - an after school session where your son has the opportunity to complete work or re-do unsatisfactory work. These sessions are issued by subject teachers and relate to a specific piece of work. Your son will be given a form containing information at when, where are why the redeemer has been issued. This form needs a parent signature to indicate your knowledge of the redeemer and then needs to be returned to school on the day of the redeemer. These sessions are compulsory, failure to attend may result in a Saturday Detention.
Detention - an after school session given to your son because his behaviour has been concerning. These sessions are issued by homeroom teachers, subject teachers or the Year Level Coordinator. These sessions are compulsory, failure to attend may result in a Saturday Detention.
Homeroom Teacher - the teacher who is your main contact with the school. The homeroom teacher marks the roll every morning and is primarily responsible for your son's pastoral care while at school. They go on camp with their homeroom, attend retreat days with their homeroom and often teach their homeroom for at least one subject.
Year Level Coordinator - the teacher who is responsible for the whole year level. The Year Level Coordinator has less contact with individual students than the Homeroom Teacher and is responsible for organising year level events and coordinating issues involving more than one homeroom. They also become involved in pastoral and discipline issues if they are serious or ongoing.
School Attendance Office - if your son is late or needs to leave early, he needs to use the School Attendance Office. If your son if late and misses homeroom, he should go straight to the School Attendance Office to get a late slip before going to class. If your son needs to leave early, he should take your note explaining his early departure from school to the School Attendance Office before the school day begins to get an Early Dismissal Slip. If your son is absent, you will receive a text message from the School Attendance Office to let you know he is not at school. Please get in touch with the School Attendance Office to provide a reason for his absence.
House Sport - a fun, participation orientated session occurring every Thursday afternoon for Year 7 students. Students are grouped into their Houses instead of Homerooms and participate in a range of sports. Participation, team work and fun are emphasised as opposed to competition. Students involved in ACC sporting teams miss House Sport during their sport's season to represent the College.
iTeam - a lunchtime club for students interested in developing their IT and computer skills. Members of the iTeam are trained to assist teachers with IT issues which may develop during class and to assist their friends with their computer based problems. This is a great way for non-sporty students to become involved in the College.
ABLT2 Group - an anti-bullying group which meets at lunchtime. The group looks at the main bullying issues present in their year level and develops posters, videos and strategies to combat bullying. This is a great way for non-sporty students to become involved in the College.
ACC Sport - the competitive, inter-school sporting teams from St Bernard's College represent the College in ACC (Associated Catholic Colleges) events. These teams are competitive and non all students who try out make the team. Swimming and Athletics training begins at the start of the year and competition occurs during Term 1. Term 2 sports are Football and Soccer. Term 3 sports are Basketball, Table Tennis and Hockey. Term 4 sports are Tennis, Volley Ball and Cricket. Students can only participate in one sport each term, but may compete in multiple sports over the year. Students who are selected onto an ACC sporting team in Terms 2, 3 or 4 do not participate in House Sport for that term. There are also Golf, Cross Country, Badminton and Chess competitions throughout the year.
Home Study - the term used at St Bernard's College to encompass both assigned homework and regular study to prepare for tests and exams. Students in Year 7 should be doing between 1 and 1.5 hours of home study a night and the same amount over the weekend. Tips for helping your son with his homework can be found on the 'Helping with Homework' page. Throughout his time at St Bernard's College, your son will experience both formal and informal sessions designed to help him organise his time and complete home study more effectively. His homeroom teacher can provide more details on this.
SchoolBox - the College's online Learning Management System (LMS) which includes a parent portal displaying your son's results and relevant upcoming events. Each subject will have an information page providing information about assessment tasks, criteria sheets for assignments and projects and extra content.
Retreat - a day long program with a spiritual and religious focus. For Year 7, these days run at the start of Term 4 and are conducted in homeroom groups. These days are compulsory although casual clothes may be worn.
Downball - THE game played during recess and lunchtime at St Bernard's College. Any hard surface may be turned into a downball court and many disagreements, arguments and friendships are formed around downball. A bad showing may put your son in a bad mood for the rest of the day, a good showing may elevate his mood for a couple of days.
Redeemer - an after school session where your son has the opportunity to complete work or re-do unsatisfactory work. These sessions are issued by subject teachers and relate to a specific piece of work. Your son will be given a form containing information at when, where are why the redeemer has been issued. This form needs a parent signature to indicate your knowledge of the redeemer and then needs to be returned to school on the day of the redeemer. These sessions are compulsory, failure to attend may result in a Saturday Detention.
Detention - an after school session given to your son because his behaviour has been concerning. These sessions are issued by homeroom teachers, subject teachers or the Year Level Coordinator. These sessions are compulsory, failure to attend may result in a Saturday Detention.
Homeroom Teacher - the teacher who is your main contact with the school. The homeroom teacher marks the roll every morning and is primarily responsible for your son's pastoral care while at school. They go on camp with their homeroom, attend retreat days with their homeroom and often teach their homeroom for at least one subject.
Year Level Coordinator - the teacher who is responsible for the whole year level. The Year Level Coordinator has less contact with individual students than the Homeroom Teacher and is responsible for organising year level events and coordinating issues involving more than one homeroom. They also become involved in pastoral and discipline issues if they are serious or ongoing.
School Attendance Office - if your son is late or needs to leave early, he needs to use the School Attendance Office. If your son if late and misses homeroom, he should go straight to the School Attendance Office to get a late slip before going to class. If your son needs to leave early, he should take your note explaining his early departure from school to the School Attendance Office before the school day begins to get an Early Dismissal Slip. If your son is absent, you will receive a text message from the School Attendance Office to let you know he is not at school. Please get in touch with the School Attendance Office to provide a reason for his absence.
House Sport - a fun, participation orientated session occurring every Thursday afternoon for Year 7 students. Students are grouped into their Houses instead of Homerooms and participate in a range of sports. Participation, team work and fun are emphasised as opposed to competition. Students involved in ACC sporting teams miss House Sport during their sport's season to represent the College.
iTeam - a lunchtime club for students interested in developing their IT and computer skills. Members of the iTeam are trained to assist teachers with IT issues which may develop during class and to assist their friends with their computer based problems. This is a great way for non-sporty students to become involved in the College.
ABLT2 Group - an anti-bullying group which meets at lunchtime. The group looks at the main bullying issues present in their year level and develops posters, videos and strategies to combat bullying. This is a great way for non-sporty students to become involved in the College.
ACC Sport - the competitive, inter-school sporting teams from St Bernard's College represent the College in ACC (Associated Catholic Colleges) events. These teams are competitive and non all students who try out make the team. Swimming and Athletics training begins at the start of the year and competition occurs during Term 1. Term 2 sports are Football and Soccer. Term 3 sports are Basketball, Table Tennis and Hockey. Term 4 sports are Tennis, Volley Ball and Cricket. Students can only participate in one sport each term, but may compete in multiple sports over the year. Students who are selected onto an ACC sporting team in Terms 2, 3 or 4 do not participate in House Sport for that term. There are also Golf, Cross Country, Badminton and Chess competitions throughout the year.
Home Study - the term used at St Bernard's College to encompass both assigned homework and regular study to prepare for tests and exams. Students in Year 7 should be doing between 1 and 1.5 hours of home study a night and the same amount over the weekend. Tips for helping your son with his homework can be found on the 'Helping with Homework' page. Throughout his time at St Bernard's College, your son will experience both formal and informal sessions designed to help him organise his time and complete home study more effectively. His homeroom teacher can provide more details on this.
SchoolBox - the College's online Learning Management System (LMS) which includes a parent portal displaying your son's results and relevant upcoming events. Each subject will have an information page providing information about assessment tasks, criteria sheets for assignments and projects and extra content.
Retreat - a day long program with a spiritual and religious focus. For Year 7, these days run at the start of Term 4 and are conducted in homeroom groups. These days are compulsory although casual clothes may be worn.
Downball - THE game played during recess and lunchtime at St Bernard's College. Any hard surface may be turned into a downball court and many disagreements, arguments and friendships are formed around downball. A bad showing may put your son in a bad mood for the rest of the day, a good showing may elevate his mood for a couple of days.