We are delighted to announce the appointment of Mr. Saidi as the new principal of Holy Cross High School. With a wealth of knowledge and many years of experience in the Catholic school environment, Mr. Saidi is a valuable addition to our school community. He is passionate about education and dedicated to providing the best learning experience for our students. We look forward to his leadership as he guides Holy Cross High School to new heights.

🌟 Enroll Now for 2024 at Our Girls-Only Catholic School!🌟

Term 2 Newsletter – 2023

Dear Parents

Walk in the light … walk in the light ……walk in the light of the Lord’ echoed the cheerful singing of the learners as they dismissed from the final assembly at the end of the last day of the second term. Phew! We had made it! We had got there, working our way through eleven full weeks covering a diverse range of duties, demands, moods, joys and challenges. And here we were - still smiling as we bid each other goodbye for the long-awaited and well-earned holidays. Appropriately the topic for that final assembly was ‘gratitude’. First and foremost, to Almighty God for bringing us this far, then two-way thanks - from learners to staff and vice versa - for a fulfilling term. 

Here we add a sincere thank-you to parents and guardians for your support and co-operation during this interim time when the school was under the leadership of Miss Keeson as Acting-Principal together with the School Management Team (SMT). It has to be our most exciting news that in the new term we welcome to the helm of Holy Cross High our new Principal, Mr Saidi.
If you remember, in the last newsletter when we were still looking ahead to term 2, we remarked it was eleven weeks long, punctuated by public holidays, and within about six weeks we would be settling down to the serious business of the mid-year examinations. Those short six weeks was the time our multi-tasking teachers had to juggle picking up the threads of term 1, covering the content for term 2, carrying out formal tasks, setting examination papers ….. And then the exams were upon us, a tough time indeed for learners and teachers alike. It is another of our thank-you’s that on the whole exam-time co-operation from all quarters was very good, resulting in a smooth operation of this busy and demanding period. 

How satisfactory was the level of academic performance, remains to be determined through analysis and report in the new term. In addition to issuing the individual learner reports, we will be giving you a date for a term 2 intervention meeting (please see under dates below), similar to the one we held for the term 1 intervention meeting on 18 April. For an intervention meeting we identify underperforming/at risk learners and contact their parents personally with an invitation to attend.

Happily, we regained our full staff complement and have been able to work full steam ahead with curriculum catchup. We allocated extra time to a ‘maths recovery programme’ and made up outstanding formal tasks. This and more was done with grade 12 in particular. They attended extra classes not only in the last week of term 2 but also for a ‘winter school’ of the first two weeks of the holidays. We hope and pray that these considerable efforts invested in our learners will reap reward, whilst at the same time we offer our sincere thanks to the teachers for their generosity.
ETHOS

Liturgically we were in the fifty days of the Easter Season when we returned to school for term 2 on 12 April. Our penitential Lenten observances of extra prayer, fasting and almsgiving, and praying the Stations of the Cross, gave way to celebrating the resurrection of our Risen Saviour, as we prayed the Regina Coeli (‘O Queen of Heaven rejoice……’) with rhythmic alleluia’s, a ringing cry of praise and joy indeed.
Collectively, we engaged in the resurrection passages of the last chapters of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John. Each grade was assigned a scripture passage to present to the rest of the school, assisted by their Religious Education teacher and some ‘big sister’ matrics. 
We were happy with the variety – song and dance was popular, as was poetry and drama, and, of course, prayer.

In addition, a day was set aside for the pure fun of an easter (egg) hunt without the eggs, doing things, you might say, our own Holy Cross way. We made it a civvies day in blue jeans with white tee shirt, free, so that all could participate. During the two break times only (academic time was not disturbed), the girls hunted for the fifty numbers per break that were hidden in the grounds. Presentation of a number earned a prize, donated from their possessions by staff. One hundred gifts – from key rings, to fuzzy toys, to notebooks, to earrings & jewellery, to packets of chips….. Only a hundred girls could win a prize, but everybody received a muffin on that day. It was such a sight to see girls cautiously peering into bushes, up trees, under rocks….. and hearing the shrieks of delight on finding a number. Rain that day certainly did not dampen exuberance!
Father Paul Taylor, from neighbouring Brooklyn parish, was the celebrant for Holy Mass on 21 June. Thank you to all who participated in our efforts to give it an African and youth flavour. 

We were mindful of Africa Day 25 May, Youth Day 16 June, World Youth Day in Lisbon, and of the treasured qualities of youth, such as, energy, vibrancy, and cheerfulness; resourcefulness, resilience, passion, generosity, compassion and service …… the list goes on.
OUTREACH, HOUSES, OUTINGS

For term 2 Mr Francis and the House Heads, who oversee our outreach programmes, opted to support the NGO Nonceba Centre in Khayelitsha that assists abused women and children. Each House was challenged to raise R1 000. An interesting development is that the Houses decided not to compete but to co-operate in reaching the total target of R3 000. Fundraising included teacher car washes, individual donations of R5 or thereabouts, offering up cash birthday presents and office-bearers served ‘Winter Warmth’ to others at R10 per mug of hot chocolate/coffee. In fact, an amazing R4 000 was handed over. A marvellous effort. Thank you!

This was the points position of the Houses at the end of term 2: third 5 260 to Red Phoenix, second 5 345 to Blue Gryphon, first 7 335 to Gold Dragon. With House spirit still very much alive who can predict whether Phoenix or Gryphon or Dragon will be in the lead next time points are read?
Business Studies, Tourism and History arranged outings for matrics. Business Studies outing, to Infinity Culinary Cooking School, was postponed to September.

It has become an annual event for Sister Flora to take the matric Tourism learners to iconic Robben Island and now each of them can say with the best of our South African tourists ‘I have been there’. They thoroughly enjoyed themselves particularly the boat ride. Again, acting like tourists but this time using a history lens, matrics enjoyed their outing to the District Six Museum and other places of historical interest in Cape Town.
Education alive, for sure!
EXTRA-MURALS

Soccer: HCH has competed with distinction, for our soccer team is still unbeaten! We played four league games and are tied at the top of the under-19 girls’ soccer league. Fairbairn, Parklands, and Goodwood Colleges are included in this league, as are Fairmont, Elkanah House, Good Hope Seminary and JG Meiring. There are three more games to go next term. A successful fundraising effort enabled us to cover the transport costs of our away games. We are very fortunate to have been sponsored with fabulous new kit, our sponsor being Rastheom Simons of Eagles Trading Academy Soccer Development South Africa. A great big soccer-filled thank you to you, Sir. Our talent and spirits are high as we look forward in eager anticipation of continued success next term. Our opponents had better beware. Here come the HCH players!

Netball: no outside matches were played because we are not in a league. We contacted many schools without success seeing that they were already committed to other matches. Our junior teams played against each other and against the senior teams to foster competition and improve their skills. The girls enjoy the camaraderie in the social and physical interactions this sports code engenders. In addition to development in physical training and sportsman/womanship, the sport quite naturally promotes leadership skills and team building. We are able to observe this. Viva netball!

GRADE 9 SYSTEMIC TESTING
Of course, all our girls and grades are important to us. Right now, we keep thinking of our grade 12s for whom their school years are running to an end but not before the huge hurdle – emotional, academic, psychological and every other way – of the last, last, last practise-run trials, to be followed by the dreaded thing itself – THE FINALS – at last, the endpoint towards which they had been schooling their school lifelong. Now, now they experience the yo-yo rollercoaster of eager anticipation to finish off and be done, it is high time to venture forth into the big wide world, and, on the other hand, the nervous trepidation at the thought of leaving behind the familiar, secure cocoon.
                                                                           
At the other end we watch our grade 8s with interest observing their adjustment to high school six months into it. The grade 11s are moving into position to take over as leaders in the school and the grade 10s, a bit like the grade 8s, are in a period of adjustment to the higher levels and expectations of FET, settling into their subject choice and curriculum with varying degrees of success. In term 3 grade 9s are nudged into a more serious and committed academic routine as they begin to consider their subjects for FET. They are encouraged to give their studies their best shot so that they can make a wise choice of subjects for grade 10 and ultimately for matric, the choice that will give them their best possible achievement level for matric and open the doors to their tertiary and career dreams. Two important things coming up for grade 9 are subject choice and systemic testing. A parents/daughter interactive workshop will be held on 16 September to guide subject choice.

Annually in October WCED conducts compulsory systemic testing for grades 3, 6 and 9. In the 2022 systemics Holy Cross High improved in both Mathematics and English
as follows:
Mathematics
- our pass rate was 23% compared with provincial 18.8%
- our result was 40,2% compared with provincial 31,7%
- in 2021 our pass rate was 15,7% and our result was 29%
English
- our pass rate was 94,6% compared with provincial 50,2%
- our result was 68,3% compared with provincial 50,5%
- in 2021 our pass rate was 83,1% and our result was 62,1%

We are keen to work at improving our academic performance. We wish to challenge our girls to reach for the highest standard of which they are capable and not to be lulled into being satisfied with simply a pass result when they have the potential for better. We believe that attainment of this is generally a slow-growth task over time and should be moulded in the early grades. To this end we will be striving to raise the bar with our grade 9s, doing extra work with them particularly in Mathematics. If this resonates with you for your daughters, we ask you to join hands with us. We will shortly unfold our plans for extra opportunities.

SOME DATES TO NOTE IN TERM 3
• Term 3 runs for 11 weeks from 18 July to 29 September
• Public holidays: Wednesday 9 August National Women’s Day and Sunday 24 September Heritage Day (since this is a Sunday, Monday 25 September is a public holiday)

• Extra murals for all from 15.00 to 16.00 will continue on Tuesdays and Thursdays as usual, with the following exceptions:
- grade 11 CAT learners assigned to afternoon classes on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays, and grade 10 Design learners who have afternoon classes Mondays to Thursdays. They are reminded that these lessons are compulsory. Any report of ‘bunking’ will be strictly followed up.

Matrics, who are facing their last period of full tuition for roughly 6 weeks before starting their trial examinations around 23 August, will be extra classes at this time. In addition, they will gradually be handing over the reigns to new student leaders to be elected from grade 11 early in the term.

• Thursday 27 July: 16.00 to 19.00 intervention meeting for term 2 academic performance and meeting Mr Saidi

• Wednesday & Thursday 2 & 3 August: grade 12 Tourism PAT

• Monday 14 August: Catholic Schools leadership day for grade 10. Approximately 15 learners to be selected from each school.

• Thursday 14 September: liturgically Feast of the Exaltation of the Cross, observed by Holy Cross Sisters and their schools all over the world as their feast day.

• Saturday 16 September: grade 9 interactive workshop for daughter and parents around subject choice for grade 10.

• Wednesday 27 September: grade 12 Business Studies outing to Infinity Culinary Cooking School.

Amidst the trials, toils, troubles, and tribulations of our modern day lives, it is still a wonderful world in which to be alive, if we heighten our awareness by opening our eyes, ears and attention to its wonders. Take for example the following thoughts that might accompany the months of July, August, and September of term 3:

• 18 July international Mandela Day. Mandela month of July, 67 minutes of service in compassion.

• August - Women’s month. We are educating young ladies who will grow into womanhood and pursue the Good, the True and the Beautiful, we pray.

• September – Holy Cross Feast Day, spring, heritage month. We celebrate the bedrock foundation on which our Holy Cross schools are built. All around us God’s goodness, bounty and endless variety is revealed in the amazing tapestry of life.

• 1 September to 4 October: Season of Creation. What footprints are we leaving as we tread gently upon Mother Earth our common home?

• 30th September – Tourism Derby Day.

Back to the beginning of this newsletter where we mentioned our final assembly and its theme of ‘gratitude’. We said goodbye to our learners putting them back into your parental hands while we took a break for the holidays. Rachel Godfrey in grade 9 recited this poem on ‘Family’ for us, her own composition:


FAMILY
The people who listen
The people who care
They hold all your secrets
And burdens you bear
They take care of you daily
They hold all your tears
They make sure you are happy                                                                  
They dispel all your fears
They help release worry
For they don’t want you to suffer
They make your path smoother
To avoid it getting rougher
They hold your hand on the bumpy road
To guide you to the right path
They sometimes feel apart from you
But they continue to live in your heart
So never feel like you are alone
For there are people with you
They watch you smile and fall and cry
And are ready to hand you a tissue
It might seem silly at first to hear
But this is how much they really care
So cherish them with all your heart
For they are the people who are always there.
O God, we thank you that you are our Father, and we are your children. Our hearts are full of gratitude. Above all we thank you for our families and loved ones.
May our gracious God bless you and your families with His Goodness, Truth, and Beauty
Holy Cross Management Team.

PRAYER CAMPAIGN FOR SOUTHERN AFRICA

“We, your Bishops, invite you, Brothers and Sisters, to join us in reciting this prayer daily in your homes, schools, at gatherings and at the end of Mass especially on Sundays. We ask that this prayer campaign be launched on the solemnity of the Assumption of Our Lady – 21 August – until further notice.” – Southern African Catholic Bishops’ Conference

Merciful Father, send forth your Spirit upon us the people of Southern Africa.

May we hear anew the voice of Jesus Christ, inviting us to walk with him across the turbulent waters of our time:

“Courage, it is I. Do not be afraid.”

By the grace of the Holy Spirit empower us to bring comfort to the restless, hope to those who despair, healing to victims of violence, and reconciliation where there is division.

May the Holy Spirit heal our families and communities.

Grant us ethical and courageous leaders who put the good of the people before their own interest.

In the Name of the Father, and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit

we commit ourselves to speak the truth with courage, to act justly in all we do, to share with those in need and always and everywhere to respect your gift of life as we strive to proclaim the values of the Kingdom in solidarity with all people of goodwill.

Amen.

Congratulations to our Grade 12 Top performers 2021

Bontle Jubeju Distinctions: English Maths Physical Science Life Orientation Religion Studies History

Saskia Jacobs Distinctions: Afrikaans (FAL) Life Orientation History Tourism Mathematical Literacy

images and information shared with permission of learners pictured here

iframe src=”https://calendar.google.com/calendar/embed?src=holycrosscloud%40gmail.com&ctz=Africa%2FJohannesburg” style=”border: 5″ width=”1000″ height=”600″ frameborder=”0″ scrolling=”no”>