Co-Curricula

SPORT

Stella Maris College offers co-curricula sport participation in numerous local competitions.  These include basketball, volleyball, waterpolo, tennis and soccer.  Training for these sports takes place before and after school.

Girls are also offered the opportunity to participate in numerous All Schools events.  These inclue futsal - indoor soccer, touch football, surfing, basketball, volleyball, fun runs, invitational swimming carnivals, beach volleyball, biathlons and triathlons.

The College is also part of the Broken Bay Sports Association (BBSSSA) which is our school sporting pathway for higher representation.  We attend gala days throughout the year during school times.  We have team selections for these gala days, which include basketball, athletics, swimming, soccer, touch football, surf lifesaving, surfing, cross country, biathlon and netball.
 

FITNESS CENTRE
The Stella Maris College Fitness Centre is a facility for the students and staff of the College. The Fitness Centre is equipped with cardiovascular equipment and free weights and offers daily group exercise such as Pilates, circuits, boxing and aerobics.

The Fitness Centre is open mornings from 7.30 to 8.30, lunch for the year group that has sport on that day and afternoons from 3.30 to 4.30. During these periods the Centre is supervised by qualified staff.

DEBATING

Debating improves three fundamental academic skills that are invaluable to learning. It teaches critical thinking, research and presentation skills. The competitive motivation to do well while debating encourages students to think more clearly, research thoroughly and prepare their remarks carefully.

Debate improves self-esteem and self-confidence and also teaches students to understand the opinions of others. Most of all, students enjoy the interaction with their peers and become great friends whilst representing their school.

Stella Maris College enters two debating competitions during the school year � the Independent Schools' Debating Association competition and the Schools� Debating Network competition.

PUBLIC SPEAKING

Public speaking involves delivering prepared and impromptu speeches to an audience of peers and judges. It teaches students to plan, sustain and develop an argument or idea; extends their vocabulary; improves self confidence and articulation. Students enter competitions throughout the school year with great success.

WRITERS' GROUP 

Writers� Group is an excellent co-curricular activity for those students who enjoy writing for fun and entering competitions, who have ambitions towards studying Extension English or pursuing a career in writing or journalism, or who just want to work on their writing skills. Students have the opportunity to work on their creativity and share ideas as we do �10 minute topics� to start each Writers� Group meeting. Students then work on projects such as short stories, articles or poetry for various competitions and publications, or just for their own personal writing portfolios. Years 7 � 9 meet with Mrs Han and Years 10 -12 meet with Mrs Tedman. This allows students from different year groups to meet new friends and share ideas, and also establishes a real �workshop� atmosphere in the Writers� Group meetings

Over the past few years many students have enjoyed Writers� Group on a personal level, yet also on a formal level the group has achieved remarkable results in external competitions. Some of our achievements include:

• University Medal for top placed student in UNSW Writing Competition 2003.
• High Distinctions in UNSW Writing Competition 2004 and 2006.
• Winner
  First Place
  Senior prose division in Mosman Youth Awards in Literature 2004 and 2005.
• Shortlisted Students in Mosman Youth Awards in Literature in Senior and Junior divisions 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006.
• Students have also achieved excellent results and have won certificates and prizes in many other competitions. 

The introduction of Insights on WebCT has allowed us to regularly publish stories or articles written by Writers� Group � have a look at the �student storytellers� section! Students� work is also published each year in the College Yearbook. Writers� Group is an important part of the community at Stella Maris, and provides interested students with a rich opportunity to develop their writing skills and talents, meet other like minded students and to have an outlet to develop their creativity and literary potential.
 

PEER SUPPORT 

The Year 10 students undertake Peer Support Leadership roles through Term 1, working closely with the new Year 7 students.  The Peer Support sessions provide a positive environment for the new Year 7s to adjust to High School life in a supportive and caring manner reinforced through their interactions with their Year 10 Peer Support Leaders.  In turn, the Peer Support Leaders begin to develop many skills through their session work with the younger students as they facilitate and guide the sessions in a dual leadership role with a fellow Year 10 Peer Support Leader monitoring a group of 10 Year 7 students under their care.

The Year 10s are provided with a full day's training on how to become positive leaders.  They undertake an intensive training session in order to be able to run peer support sessions independently with the responsibility of working and caring for a group of 10 Year 7 students.  The leaders assist with the Year 7 students' transition into the High School environment and through the sessions they help to build strong friendships with the students enabling the Year 7s to feel confident and supported if they encounter any situations that they are unsure of.  The leaders begin to develop leadership skills, interpersonal relations and facilitation skills as they organise and prepare for their sessions.  In addition the Leaders develop organisational and prioritisation skills and effective communication skills and strategies for running each session successfully.

Visual Arts Studio Time

Open access to the Senior Art Studio is available one afternoon a week. Students may work on school-based projects or on any art-making activity they like - just for fun!  This access gives younger students an insight into professional arts practice. For senior students this time allows for more extended and sustained activities that are not always practically achieved in timetabled lessons. Senior students are able to use the studio during their study periods to catch up on or extend their practical achievements. This space offers senior art students a creative place to be when in need of inspiration! The Art Department also offers HSC Art students studio days in the holidays so that every student is able to achieve her highest potential in the presentation of her "Body of Work".