From the classroom to the job site: Ned finds his spark

His average day at work mostly consists of doing ceiling fans, power points and running cables through walls for the other electricians As he’s not yet qualified, he can’t do switch boards but can pretty much handle anything that’s cut off and has no power to it

Ned told the Crier that he is enjoying the scope of work at Auselec and enjoys getting to the bigger construction sites such as Cobram Primary School, with Auselec doing all their electrical work as part of the school’s redevelopment

“It’s really good because if you’re not as academic, doing a SBA gets you in the door to see whether or not this is something you really want to do You pretty much have two years to figure out if this is the right pathway for yourself and even if it’s not, you still have the chance to obtain your VCE at the end of those two years and you can choose a different pathway.”

After a promising start to life as an electrician, Ned is now looking forward to getting stuck into the theory side of the job as well as the hands-on stuff, with his TAFE studies commencing in May

For Year 11 student Ned Bugge, undertaking a School Based Apprenticeship (SBA) this year has further sparked his passion for electronics and reassured him that he is on a career trajectory that best serves his skills and interests

For his SBA, Ned is currently completing a Cert III in Electrotechnology, working one day per week at Auselec in Cobram. The opportunity arose at Auselec as Ned does pistol shooting with the business owner, Damien Sfetcopoulos So far, Ned is loving his time on the tools

“I enjoy it, it’s really good I like being outside and I like it because I’m in different spots all the time and doing different things all the time. My favourite thing about the job besides the work itself is probably moving around and meeting new people,” Ned told the Crier

For Ned, the idea of pursuing a career in an electrical field has always seemed logical

“I’ve always liked electronics and in my free time I’ve done little robotics and wiring and stuff like that,” he said

With workplace safety paramount in a field such as electrical, Ned told the Crier that he is learning plenty about the compliance side of the job, saying that he has to do a safety induction at the big construction sites where there is higher risk

“They (Auselec) are really good and make sure you know where the hazards are, tell you what is going on for the day and stuff like that ”

Ned said applying for a SBA was relatively simple and involved a meeting with Cobram AGS Careers Advisor Jade Drew, who guided him through the process

Ned told the Crier that opting to do a SBA has proven to be a perfect fit for him and he mentioned some of the advantages he has noticed which other students may wish to consider when assessing their pathway options

Ned will do his TAFE in blocks which will amount to one week of study every six weeks

P&F pop up uniform shop proves popular for Cobram AGS community

Over the summer holidays, our Parents and Friends (P&F) Committee devised a brilliant plan to run a 'pop up uniform shop' at the Welcome Evening and family BBQ early in Term One The idea was to collect donated uniform items and sell them at heavily discounted prices

Such was its success in raising over $500 for the school, they decided to run another two pop up shops over the course of the Parent Teacher Interviews at the end of term, raising another $500!

The P&F did a brilliant job coordinating these pop up shops and a lot of work went into ensuring there were plenty of uniform options for our school community to choose from

The P&F would like to thank everybody who made these pop up shops possible by donating uniform items The P&F is planning to run another shop later in the year to allow new families to buy uniform items for the 2024 school year.

Get to know Elissa Raco

Early in Term One we welcomed aboard Elissa Raco Elissa is our new Science Laboratory Technician and she was kind enough to take part in a Q&A.

1 Tell us three facts about yourself (interesting or otherwise)

Cobram is my home town

I attended the local Primary School and Secondary College

I like to bake

2 What does your new role at Cobram AGS entail?

As the Science Laboratory Technician, I’m essentially the backbone of the Science department (or behind the scenes as the students say)

I make sure the relevant equipment is ready for practical lessons for students in Years 7 to 12 I'm also responsible for doing stocktake and ordering consumables, products and experimental equipment that is required to ensure each practical lesson can run smoothly

3 Please educate our readers about your past professional experiences What has led you to working at Cobram AGS?

I worked for the food manufacturing company Kraft for 17 years Kraft produces foods such as Vegemite, peanut butter, cheese sticks, cheese slices, Philadelphia Cream Cheese and many more!

I worked at the Strathmerton Plant for eight years from 2000 and then transferred to the Port Melbourne Plant in 2008 and stayed for a little while longer. At the Strathmerton Plant I worked as a Laboratory Technician I started in the chemistry lab and worked together with the packaging and QMP labs as well as the microbiology lab When I transferred to the Port Melbourne Plant, I was in the R&D department and microbiology lab as a microbiologist, forming part of the quality team

4. What is the one thing you enjoy most about your job here?

The flexible work hours and I love being part of the lab environment

5. What qualities did you most admire in your favourite educator when you were a student?

(Either secondary school or primary)

In primary school I had two beautiful teachers who were very caring towards all the students and one liked to have a little chuckle which made the classroom a fun place to be

6 Since you have started your employment here, has anything about the school surprised you?

The day-to-day running of a school and what's involved has been fascinating to discover

Harmony Day unites school community

At the end of term we celebrated Harmony Day. This is always a special day as we come together as a community to celebrate the diversity within our school.

As part of the festivities, we were lucky enough to hear from Father Victor Adams, who spoke about his experience of moving from South Africa to Australia.

To really get in the spirit of the day, students were encouraged to bring a dish from their culture to eat at lunchtime. After the formal part of the day, students participated in a range of cultural games from around the world, which were organised and managed by our Year 8 students who did a magnificent job.

Anglican Grammar School

Wax Museum brings Gold Rush back to life!

Our Year 5/6 cohort enjoyed learning about the Australian Federation and Gold Rush era throughout Term One As part of their learning, each student was tasked with creating a diorama display relevant to a historical figure from that period of time These dioramas then went on display in the PAC as part of a 'Wax Museum'

For their assessment, the students came to school dressed in a costume reminiscent of their character and had to deliver an oral presentation to their teacher Mrs Rathbone/Mrs Williams, as well as other students and parents who were visiting the display

The students did an outstanding job with their attention to detail and it was obvious they put in a great deal of effort to bring their characters to life which enhanced the experience for those passing through the display. It was fantastic to see so many families come along to support the students

OpenDayshowcasesopportunitiesfornewstudents

Late in Term One we opened our doors to prospective students and families for our Open Day It is always a pleasure being able to showcase our school to both new and familiar faces and provide a small sample of what it is like being a student at Cobram AGS

We must make special mention of Colleen Rouse from our Education Support team who made a batch of delicious scones for morning tea with the assistance of Year 9 students Melissa Voeurn, Bonnie Bugge, Leah Willis, Talei Rickard and Evalee Royston. Year 10 students Lewis Brown, Abigail Brooker, Mackenzie Duhring and Ava Carlson also volunteered their time to assist with school tours which were very well received and provided great student insight

There will be further opportunities for prospective families and students to visit our school and learn more about the programs we offer including Information Nights and Taster Days, so stay tuned for details regarding those

Cadence does Cobram Lions proud at V6 Public Speaking Final

The final component of the competition which made up 20% of the participants score was a preprepared five-minute speech.

Cadence’s speech focused on the rising use of technology within schools and how this can have negative implications for students

“I said that even though technology is very helpful in the school environment, there are also a lot of bad points that come with it; for example, it can be distracting when used in schools, there is also some unsafe content on the internet that can be accessed and there are some health issues associated with a lot of technology use,” she said

During Term One, School Captain Cadence Pang had the opportunity to represent Cobram Lions Club at the Lions Public Speaking V6 District Final in Thurgoona

Cadence came up against four other students from the Hume region and had to present to five judges as part of the competition Firstly, she had to do an interview with the judges which made up 70% of her mark. She described this interview as largely conversational as the judges asked her questions about her life at school and the extra-curricular activities she participates in

Then came the most challenging part of the competition: Two, two-minute impromptu speeches which equalled 10% of her overall mark.

“They asked me for my opinions on world issues at the moment,” Cadence told the Crier

Making this part of the competition particularly challenging was the fact she only had two minutes to consider her responses upon the judges asking their question Cadence said that although it was challenging, the experience provided some valuable lessons which she could take forward and apply to other endeavours.

“It definitely got my confidence up a bit I learnt to talk in front of people with minimal preparation and also how to present myself properly for interviews The judges actually gave me feedback afterwards on my performance which will be helpful in the future when I’m doing formal interviews,” Cadence said.

Although she did not progress through to the next stage of competition, Cadence was grateful to receive support from the school community and Cobram Lions Club

“Janet Austin, the Cobram Lions Club Chairperson was actually present at the competition and she congratulated me afterwards and said it was good that I was having a go Mr Willett and Mr Thompson were also there on the day which was really nice of them as it was on a weekend ”

Cadence's good friend and fellow Year 12 student Natasha Smith was also there to watch her in action and support her Natasha is pictured with Cadence above

Anglican Schools Student Forum unites students from around the state

Below is a reflection written by Year 11 students Madison McDiarmid and Amelia Packer.

Midway through term one we were given the opportunity to participate in the Anglican Schools Student Forum held at Melbourne Grammar School, which we attended with Jet Munro (Year 8) and Ms Doyle

The day started with a Eucharist service in the Chapel of St Peter – a beautiful historical building within the grounds of the school.

We then enjoyed lunch in the dining hall After lunch, we gathered in the leadership centre with the other participants who were representing Anglican schools from across Victoria.

During the session, we discussed the significance of community within our schools, what we felt worked in an Anglican school, and what could be improved.

Out of these conversations, it was established that a sense of community was celebrated across all our schools The need for an inclusive and contemporary approach to Chapel was also discussed Another area for contemplation was the promotion of Anglican values within our schools

Of interest to us was the similarities and differences between the various schools, particularly comparing the larger city schools with our own smaller country school

We were proud to represent Cobram AGS and felt the experience was insightful and rewarding

Blast from the past: students return to the good ol' days

At the end of Term One our Year 1/2 students took a step back in time for their Immersion Day

During their History unit, the students learnt about some of the changes that have occurred in our local area in the past 100-150 years such as floods, new bridges and buildings, and also how technology has led to significant changes in our homes and at school

To fully immerse themselves in the experience of being a pupil from the olden days, the students and their teachers came to school dressed in clothing from a bygone era.

They also got to participate in several forgotten skills in modern times such as butter making, charcoal drawing and calligraphy, while also engaging in popular children's games from the day such as marbles and knuckles!

Foundation students feel the magic of 'big school'

The beginning of a new school year always brings with it a sense of excitement and anticipation for our students These feelings are even more pronounced for our Foundation students on their very first day of school - one of life's great milestones!