John Septimus Roe Anglican Community School - Co-curricular Activities

Co-curricular Activities

Co-curricular activities are a vital part of an education at John Septimus Roe Anglican Community School. In the Primary School, sporting teams are the most popular for students, with JSR fielding netball, football, soccer, softball and many other sports. Music and Drama are also available, with instrumentalists encouraged to join the Wind Band or Septissimo Strings, whilst vocalists are invited to join the Primary Choir. The St Paul's Chapel Choir, as mentioned before, is an exclusive group of talented vocalists who tour Perth, interstate, and internationally. Once a year, the Primary School put on a Pantomime, showing the upcoming talent in music, dance and drama. Primary School Students also have the option to participate in Wakikirri, a Junior Rock Eisteddfod festival.

In the Middle and Senior Schools, Art students can join the lunchtime Art Club, and participate in Interhouse Chalk-Drawing competition. Students who enjoy dance are invited to participate in the Dance Club, which meet once weekly, after school. Choreography Night, is a dance night planned and run by the Year 12 Dance students, which takes in over 120 performers from years 7-12. This is a hugely popular event amongst parents, staff and students. Dances are choreographed mainly by Year 12 TEE Dance students, and forms part of their assessment for this course. LOTE activities include cultural exchanges to Bali and Italy, as well as the Annual Harmony Week Fair, where different cultures are shown off and exhibited. The Debating Club runs during terms 1 and 2 and takes part in the Western Australia Debating League. There are 3 divisions, and as students gain more experience they move up a division where new rules are introduced. The School Magazine was started up in 2010 to a roaring success, and uses budding student journalists to provide a range of fun, informative and enjoyable articles for both staff and students.

In Year 11, selected students are invited into the smARTS programme, run by the University of Western Australia. This programme has students meet on campus at UWA and on-line, and take part in researching prevalent issues facing society. This research project is then submitted to a UWA panel who judge the best project. The research culminates in a Presentation Night, where the students summarise their 10,000 word projects into 5 minute videos, skits, speeches etc. JSRACS students have succeeded in the past, with teams in 2007, 2008 and 2010 winning overall.

All students are encouraged to take part in sporting teams at the secondary level. Years 7,8,9 and 10 are eligible to participate in ACC sport in terms 1 and 2, where students verse students from other ACC schools. JSRACS has won the Summer, Winter and Overall NWAS Series for the past 10 years. Students who excel in swimming, cross country and athletics are also selected into the JSR team for that sport and represent the school in ACC Inter-school Carnivals. Currently JSR are in C Division for Swimming and A Division for Athletics. JSR has finished in the top 15 out of over 100 schools in the Inter-school Cross Country for the past few year. Recently JSRACS has excelled in Athletics, advancing from C Division to A Division over 3 years. In 2009, their first year in A Division, JSR placed 2nd behind Sacred Heart College. In 2010, JSR cemented its status in A Division with a solid 3rd Placing.

Students have many travel opportunities with the school. There is a Sydney and Canberra trip, offered biannually, an annual Bali trip, biannual Italy cultural tour and annual Ski Trip, visiting Melbourne and Mount Hotham. There are also one off school trips, such as to China, Vietnam, New Zealand, Dubai, Germany, Austria and Singapore as well as Melbourne, Avalon and Adelaide. A religious trip is also planned to Israel in 2012. Future academic trips include Japan, America, France, the United Kingdom and South Africa.

As previously stated, Music forms a key area in co-curricular life at JSRACS. There are many ensembles, bands, choirs and groups to join. These include:

• Bagpipe Band
• Barbershop Quartet
• Beechboro & Mirrabooka Primary Choir
• Big Night In Events
• Clarinet Ensemble
• Guitar Ensemble
• Secondary Choir
• Senior Concert Band
• Senior Jazz Band
• Septimus Swing
• Septissimo Strings
• Sinfonia
• St Pauls Chapel Choir
• Wind Band
• Year 2 String Orchestra
• Year 5 Bands

These ensembles are very popular and involve some 250 students. Since 2008, music ensembles have begun touring, with the Senior Concert Band to New Zealand in 2008, the Secondary Choir to Germany & Austria in 2009, the Wind Band and Septissimo Strings to Singapore in 2010 and the Chapel Choir to the United Kingdom in 2011. 2012 will see the Jazz Band visit Mount Gambier, South Australia to compete in the Generations In Jazz Festival. Future plans include a combined JSRACS and other ASC schools orchestra to Eastern Europe, visiting Russia, Poland, Hungary and the Czech Republic for 2013.

In 2000, the school entered the Rock Eisteddfod Challenge for the first time, winning first place in the Perth Grand Final the following year. The school entered the Challenge every year and many students are involved in all aspects of the preparation, dancing and backstage tasks involved in the performance. The school only participated every second year until 2007.

Drama is the other major co-curricular activity. The Drama department puts on a number of shows over the year:

• Annual Musical Production & Play

2000 - Lockie Leonard: Human Torpedo
2000 - Away
2001 - Wolfstock
2002 - Two Weeks With The Queen
2002 - Hating Alison Ashley
2003 - Looking for Alibrandi
2003 - Boss of the Pool
2004 - Cosi
2004 - The Hunchback of Nostradamus
2005 - Gumshoe
2005 - Picnic at Hanging Rock
2006 - The Man of Steel
2007 - Oliver!
2008 - The Servant of Two Masters
2008 - The Sound of Music
2009 - Pride and Prejudice
2009 - How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying
2010 - Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street
2011 - A Midsummer Night's Dream
2011 - The Pajama Game
2012 - The Mikado
2012 - Stories from Suburban Road

• Choreography Night
• Dance Night
• Year 12 Original Solo Performance (OSP) Night
• Interhouse TheatreSports

The musical productions are done on a large scale, involving over 100 students in acting, orchestra or backstage. Musicals run for four nights to sell out crowds, whilst plays run for three full houses. Choreography Night runs over three nights, with the last two nights featuring a teacher's dance.