@Grammar - Winter 2018

@Grammar

ISSUE 15 | WINTER 2018

We are grateful

CONTENTS

@Grammar

WINTER EDITION 2018

U p front 2

FROM OUR PRINCIPAL

4

WESTPAC YOUNG TECHNOLOGIST

6

NEWS

EEC

9

10 11

Principal and CEO Dr Peter Britton on what makes a school great.

Julia Casa, IGGS Old Girl, awarded prestigious Westpac Scholarship.

9

Play space collaboration

The latest in community engagement and our technology offerings.

FROM OUR EEC DIRECTOR

Mrs Kirsten Edols on play space collaboration.

FEATURE

Sharing Spaces – an intergenerational learning experience.

STAFF Q&A

A glimpse into the life of Pre-Prep teacher, Mrs Houwen.

Junior School 13

FROM OUR HEAD OF JUNIOR SCHOOL

14

BRIGHT SPARKS

15

ASSESSMENT FOR LEARNING

16

FEATURE

18

JUNIOR GRAMMAR SPORT

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JUNIOR GRAMMAR CAPTAINS

Mrs Eiby explains Junior Grammar’s “Attitude of Gratitude”.

How the University of Boston is impacting our E-STEAM Workshop.

An evidence-based practice improving teaching and learning.

Challenging gender stereotypes.

Introducing the Britton Shield.

An insight into Ben and Alice’s year of leadership.

IGGS

21

20ATeam!

Editor Mrs Stacey Hennelly Marketing & Communications Coordinator PO Box 16, Ipswich, Qld, 4305 T: +61 7 3454 4447 E: marketing@girlsgrammar.com.au www.girlsgrammar.com.au | www.juniorgrammar.com.au

21

2018 HEAD GIRLS

22

IGGS FEATURE

24

IGGS NEWS

26 27 28

20ATeam!

Deputy Principal Ms Nolan on navigating healthy relationships.

The musical… Kennesaw State Basketball…

NASA… so many achievements!

BOARDING

The latest in news from our on-site boarding facility, Cribb House.

OLD GIRLS ASSOCIATION

Past students celebrated their 70 and 50 year reunions in 2018.

SOCIALS

The Music Soirée and Parent Welcome.

@Grammar is published by the Enrolments & Community Relations Department at Ipswich Girls’ Grammar School including Ipswich Junior Grammar School. CRICOS provider number 00533D. Copyright 2018.

FROM OUR PRINCIPAL

Life-long benefits of quality education We must ensure that the future is not delivered to us, but created by us.

Globalisation, inter-cultural tolerance, technological advancements, changing work patterns, population growth, disadvantage, environmental and food sustainability, and war and terrorism are some of the challenges of the 21st century. They bring with them change and uncertainty. It can be daunting. It can be overwhelming. It can also provide opportunities for progress.

The difference between embracing and overcoming challenges or being defeated by them is a good education. The purpose of an education is to empower students to become active participants in life, work and citizenship. Government leaders, businesses and tertiary education institutions are calling for today's students to show a mastery of broader and more sophisticated skills so that they can solve real-world problems, and a sense of social responsibility and cohesion so that they can actively influence success in life, work and citizenship.

The Queensland Curriculum and Assessment Authority (QCAA) has identified a set of skills based on national and international research that students will need to flourish in the 21st century.

Along with literacy and numeracy, these skills will help prepare Queensland students by equipping them with the knowledge and confidence they need to meet the demands of higher education, work and life, and to participate effectively in the community and the economy in a complex and rapidly changing world.

Regrettably, there are still large numbers of young people not completing school and being disconnected from education and work.1 This reduces Australia’s human capital with negative consequences not only for the present, but also for the future.

This relates not just to the individuals and what they risk in terms of gaining secure employment, adequate income across a lifetime and flexible career paths. It also has implications for economic growth, productivity, creativity, innovation, social progress and wealth. Lost opportunity creates both fiscal and social costs.

A 2010 UNESCO Report2 claimed that during the first few years of their lives, children of illiterate parents probably have few opportunities to learn communication codes, or to learn to read and write.

The educational capital of the child’s household is essential to their physical and social development. Parents’ or caregivers’ duties are not limited to food, shelter and protection. Children require their parents or caregivers to teach them knowledge and character and prepare them to face the real world. The main goal is to provide children with the best possible education. A child’s parents are their primary educators. Their attitudes about education can inspire their children and show them how to take charge of their own educational journey.

There are few other professions which “touch” almost everyone’s life. After the impact of parents or caregivers, the teacher

is the next critical piece in the puzzle of child development. There has been a

major international emphasis on improving the quality of teachers and teaching since the 1980s. For well over a decade now, teachers have been recognised as the

single most important school-level factor influencing student achievement.

In Australia, the federal and state

governments have made significant financial investments into quality

teaching projects to assess and improve teacher effectiveness. Research3 shows

that effective teachers are the most

important factor contributing to student

achievement. Teachers account for 30% of the variation in student achievements, with Home accounting for 5 – 10 %,

School 5 – 10 %, Peer effects 5 – 10% and the Student 50%.

Teachers can change students’ lives. They help instil in them good values, develop basic skills, and cultivate young minds so that they are well placed to be productive citizens of the world.

It is my view, that being a teacher is one of the greatest and most responsible professions in the world!

Children and schools also need effective leaders. Effective leaders apply strategies in ways that are sensitive to school history and traditions, student background characteristics, nationally defined needs and to their core educational ideals for maximising students’ achievement across a range of academic, social and personal competencies. Principals must focus on the academic, personal and social advancement of their students.

The challenge is to make things happen in a school and to penetrate often closed classroom doors. While principals are important leaders, they are not the only leaders in schools. Other leaders, formal and informal, through distributed leadership, also play important roles in facilitating student learning.4

We need to remain in front of the change wave and not be overcome by it. Education is valuable: a good education is even more valuable. Ipswich Girls’ Grammar School including Ipswich Junior Grammar School has been providing a superior class of education since 1892 and we remain committed to this original objective. Much has been achieved over these years, and there is still much to be done to ensure our School remains at the forefront of education.

Life may not be fair and change and uncertainty might be the only constant, but good parenting, good teaching and good schools are the best means we have of creating our future, overcoming disadvantage and opening doors of opportunity for young people, their communities and our world.

– Dr Peter Britton

Principal & CEO

References

1 Lamb, S., and Huo, S. (2017) Counting the costs of lost opportunity in Australian education.

Mitchell Institute Report. No. 02/2017.

2 Martinez, R., and Fenandez, A. (2010). The Social and Economic Impact of Illiteracy: Analytical Model and Pilot Study. United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation. pg 5.

3 Hattie, J. (2012). Visible Learning for Teachers. London: Routledge.

4 Dinham, S. ‘The Relationship Between Distributed Leadership and Action Learning in Schools: A Case Study’, in Harris, A. (Ed). (2009). Distributed School Leadership: Different Perspectives.

Netherlands: Springer Press.

@GRAMMAR. ISSUE 15. WINTER 2018. 3.

OLD GIRL FEATURE

Julia Casa Westpac Young Technologist

IGGS 2017 graduate, Julia Casa, has always had an interest in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics) as a future career pathway, and this year was accepted into the Queensland University of Technology (QUT) dual degree Bachelor of Information Technology/Bachelor of Mathematics.

Since beginning her university studies, Julia has been awarded one of 35 prestigious national scholarships through the Westpac Young Technologists program.

Julia was shocked but thrilled to have been awarded the scholarship in April.

“All QUT students studying an IT undergraduate degree were eligible to apply for the Westpac scholarship, so I had certainly hoped when applying that I would get it, but wasn’t expecting it.

“The scholarship provides $5,000 of funding for each year I undertake my undergraduate degrees and I am saving it for something important, perhaps to pay over half of my HECS fees once I have graduated,” Julia said.

Aside from the generous monetary reward the scholarship provides, each Young Technologist Scholarship recipient receives membership to the Westpac 100 Scholars Network, which Julia says has been invaluable in helping her through the first semester of university life.

“We are all added to a Facebook page specifically for scholars to communicate with each other. I feel like I have so much support and so many people to fall back on, being part of this group. Many of us are friends - we sit together in lectures and study together too.

“Westpac really want to know us, and know what we do, and as part of that they also offer paid internships to scholarship recipients, where we can travel to Sydney to work with their IT team on projects during the university holidays.”

Julia’s interest in the STEM field began way back in Year 8, when she had her heart set on becoming an engineer. Her subject selections throughout Middle and Senior School were geared towards a career in engineering and it was only mid-way through Year 12, around the time QTAC applications were being finalised, that Julia decided to change her proposed university studies.

“I really loved engineering and had always wanted to study it after finishing school, but when I really thought it through, the component of engineering that I most enjoyed was mathematics.

“So at the last minute, I changed my application to Mathematics and IT, knowing the dual degree would also lead to the best employment opportunities when I graduate from university.

“I was fairly certain I’d enjoy Maths and IT, and if I didn’t, I knew I could change or somehow make it work.

“The risk paid off. I was accepted into my first preference through QTAC and have loved my first semester of uni.”

In terms of career outcomes, undergraduate degrees in Mathematics and IT are quite broad and have scope for endless career choices. Julia went in unsure of her final destination, but knowing that with the two degrees, she would be highly employable and would hopefully really enjoy the learning process along the way.

“I have looked at encryption in both my IT and Maths classes and I’m interested in possibly pursuing that when I graduate,

but I have certainly not decided yet.

“If writing mathematical algorithms to keep people safe makes me the happiest then I would go with that, but I still have a few years to work out what field I’d like to work in and I’m in no rush to decide.”

As for Maths and IT being traditionally male-dominated fields, Julia says that her classes are probably 30% females, but that she has a great circle of girlfriends she met in Orientation Week and they’ve stuck together ever since.

“The driving force that motivated me to study within the STEM field was that it makes me happy and I genuinely enjoy it.

“I don’t know where I’d be if I hadn’t gone to IGGS ...”

“None of us (girls) even notice that we are still in the minority in our classes and we certainly aren’t bothered by it.”

At IGGS, we focus on preparing young women for higher learning, leadership and life beyond the School gates. For Julia, whose favourite teacher couldn’t be narrowed down to just one (she instead chose all of her Year 12 teachers), she said that the support she experienced throughout her studies at IGGS is unparalleled.

“The community and support at IGGS is great and you won’t find that anywhere else.

Encouragement to pursue STEM and areas where there aren’t as many girls helped me follow my dreams and pursue what I was genuinely interested in."

“I remember in Year 8, Ms Chandler told our class that she is an engineer and went on to share some of her experiences, and that really set me on the path I’m on right now.

“All the teachers were so invested in us and our success, and still are.

“I don’t know where I’d be if I hadn’t gone to IGGS; I love the School so much and I’m grateful for my experiences as a student there.”

@GRAMMAR. ISSUE 15. WINTER 2018. 5.

NEWS

Australian Captain Guest Coach

Former Australian Hockey Captain, Mark Knowles, coached two hockey sessions for Ipswich Girls' and Junior Grammar students during Term 2.

The School is very grateful to Mr Knowles for the time he volunteered and for how encouraging he was to our budding hockey stars. The students learned new skills and had renewed enthusiasm for the game following the coaching sessions.

tips were fantastic and really helpful for

IGGS 2018 Hockey Captain, Sarah D’Castro, was excited to participate in the sessions and said Mr Knowles' coaching

getting the basics right and we could all

improving players' skills.

"The coaching sessions were amazing and really helpful with improving hitting and defence. He really helped us with hit the ball further after just one coaching session," Sarah said.

Baton Relay

The sessions were offered to students at

no charge and included a warm up, drills, goal shooting, dribbling, tackling, tricks, demonstrations, game style activities, a Q&A session and photos with Mr

Knowles. The sessions were great fun

and we appreciate Mr Knowles sharing his experiences and expertise with our students.

As part of the Gold Coast 2018 Commonwealth Games, the Queen’s Baton Relay made its way throughout Australia, passing by Ipswich Girls’ and Junior Grammar School on Friday, March 29. Plenty of School pride and national pride was on show, as students from Kindy to Year 12 cheered on the athletes as they travelled past the School.

Tech Update

Our Director of Technology, Mr Paul Murrin, has implemented significant, positive changes to the Ipswich Girls’ and Junior Grammar School technology offerings since he began working at the School a little over one year ago.

“Implementing BenQ technology is one of the biggest projects we are currently working on in the IT Department.

“We have installed ten new 65-inch interactive panels throughout the Early Education Centre and the Junior School, and will replace a further 11 smartboards by the end of 2019.

“In the Assembly Hall, we have upgraded the projector system to a laser BenQ, which was one of the first of its kind installed in Australia and produces cinema quality visuals,” Mr Murrin said.

Aside from new screen technology, Mr Murrin and his IT team of six also replaced the campus-wide wireless network, installing 90 brand new access points to ensure fast, reliable internet in all classrooms.

“The upgraded wireless technology allows students and teachers to seamlessly connect their laptops to the interactive panels throughout their lessons, enabling us to use this newly installed technology to its fullest potential.

“Students and teachers can instantly display their work on the large screens for the entire class to see and interact with,” he said.

New Acer laptops were also rolled out to all students in Years 4 to 6 at the start of the year.

“The new devices for our Junior School students were selected specifically for their suitability in an educational setting – they are spill and dust proof, and robust enough to cope with the general wear and tear you would expect in a school environment.”

In addition to the BenQ and Acer rollout in the Junior School, several students in Years 7 to 9 are currently trialling Acer laptops and their feedback will be considered when the decision is made on the model that will be selected for distribution next year.

“A student trial is ideal to detect any bugs or capability issues before we purchase sets for the entire cohort.

“It’s beneficial to include the students – they give honest feedback and because they are the ones using the technology each day, giving them some ownership of the decision making process makes sense,” said Mr Murrin.

Behind the scenes there is a great deal of future planning happening, with our ICT Strategic Management Committee meeting fortnightly to ensure the IT requirements of the whole School are being met and all decisions are made with the utmost consideration of longterm benefit and cohesion.

@GRAMMAR. ISSUE 15. WINTER 2018. 7.

Early Education

From the Director

The Early Education Centre (EEC) is at full capacity for another year. We have cherished the opportunity to get to know our families and children throughout the first semester and have been inspired by their engagement in our program and the EEC family.

The EEC continues to stay strong in our belief that children learn through play.

In addition to this, we believe the depth of play deepens as we offer natural play spaces for the children to engage in and loose parts that they use to hypothesise and extend their own learning.

All classes have regularly visited the frog pond this semester, especially Kindy A who were involved in saving our frog family.

During one of their visits, they noticed that the water had dropped in the pond and the leaves from the tree had fallen and filled it with debris.

The children worked with Mrs Kramer and Miss Murphy to clear away the leaves, being very careful not to disturb any tadpoles that may be trying to swim.

Mrs Kramer then asked the School's groundsmen to fill the pond with some water. At this stage we were concerned that we may lose our frog family. Each class carefully checked and ensured

the leaves were removed during each visit. After two weeks of checking and observing the environment, the children in Pre-Prep C noticed frog eggs. They were very excited and were very keen to report this information to the Kindy classes. We are very happy to say that we currently have tadpoles back in the frog pond. The mission to save the frogs was a success!

The playground has been a big topic of conversation for both the children and educators. The educators have attended two separate professional development workshops on outdoor spaces, which included visits to other nature play centres.

The information gathered has supported our understanding about the importance of children having a voice in their play space and that all learning environments inspire thinking, collaboration and creativity.

These workshops also emphasised the imporance of creating environments of beauty for our children and ensuring our play spaces represent the children, their families, educators and wider community.

This is at the forefront of our minds when we talk with the children about what they would like to see in their play space.

EEC

We are gradually adding items to our play space, allowing enough time for the children to explore and engage in the new equipment and then asking them if they are happy with it or would like to change it.

A perfect example of this is the dirt hill.

The children spend a lot of time playing on this hill; however, it started to wash away at the side, so we have sat down with them and they have come up with a new design. They talked about adding plants so that the soil doesn’t erode on the hill (thank you Pre-Prep B for your project on looking after our environment) and they are very excited at the prospect of adding a slide.

When designing this space, we could have easily asked a big contractor to come in and build a new playground.

However, we have seen a beautiful connection with the children and this space and we question if this connection would have been as strong if they did not have a voice in its design.

So, watch this space as it continues to grow and develop as the ideas and concepts are shared between the children and their educators.

—Mrs Kirsten Edols

Director of Early Education Centre

@GRAMMAR. ISSUE 15. WINTER 2018. 9.

EEC

Sharing Spaces

Intergenerational Learning Program

Each week, the Pre-Prep children at our Early Education Centre eagerly await their “special visitors” - the residents of Bundaleer Lodge Nursing Home.

Between five and eight residents, along with two carers, arrive on our Junior Grammar bus, ready for a morning filled with storytelling, gentle interactions and laughter with our Pre-Prep children.

Our Sharing Spaces program began earlier this year, an initiative that EEC Director, Mrs Kirsten Edols has been planning since 2017.

The goal of Sharing Spaces is to build relationships across generations that foster a love of learning and opportunities to share stories, celebrate and engage with each other, while creating a sense of belonging for all.

“I really noticed on Grandparents Day last year that we have many children at the EEC whose grandparents have passed, or live interstate or overseas, so some children really have minimal contact with older generations.

“Initially, some of the children were a little apprehensive; however it wasn’t long before they were sharing stories and loving the interaction and attention,” said Mrs Edols.

The benefits of participating in an intergenerational program are numerous for both the young and elderly.

Intergenerational programs can benefit emotional, social, cognitive, physical and sensory aspects of participants’ lives. For young people, some benefits include improving their understanding of elders and their limitations, developing friendships in a safe environment with people outside of their family, increasing social skills and learning to accept illness and death as a natural consequence.

Mrs Edols is the driving force behind the Sharing Spaces program and said both the children and residents enjoy the shared time. She has seen the immense benefit first-hand.

“We see the biggest impact on our quiet children - those who don’t normally

engage in long conversations with adults they are the children who become very comfortable and love chatting with our special visitors.

“In terms of interaction, the children and special visitors can choose to read books, do arts and crafts, build playdough creations or simply sit and have a chat.

“We see some genuinely beautiful moments between the children and our visitors, where they will be sharing a story and holding hands. Even our most energetic children will sit quietly and interact with our Bundaleer visitors,” said Mrs Edols.

Equally, for the Bundaleer Lodge residents their visits to the EEC are a highlight of their week. Jock, Janet, Evelyn, Lila and Maureen are some of the regular visitors who come along to the EEC with Cindy Lindh, their Diversional Therapist.

“The residents enjoy their visits to the EEC, they look forward to it and often ask me when the next visit is happening," said Ms Lindh.

Th e Q & A

Mrs Jessica Houwen is one of the Early Education Centre’s beloved Pre-Prep A teachers and has been educating our Pre-Prep children since 2015.

Mrs Houwen has been a teacher for six years.

Q: What did you want to be when you grew up?

A: A lawyer - I’ve always been good at talking!

Q: Married? Children? Pets?

A: I’ve been married for seven years, have two children, Blake and Oliver and one German Shepherd, Dex.

“Intergenerational learning transfers knowledge from one generation to the next and also helps develop social cohesion, allowing people of all ages to learn together and from each other.”

Q: Favourite part of your day at the EEC?

A: Our morning group time. We sing, we talk, we smile, we collaborate - we start the day the Pre-Prep A way!

Q: If you had a superpower, what would it be and why?

A: It would be super cool to be able to fly!

Q: Most memorable moment as a teacher?

“We have seven residents who attend the EEC Sharing Spaces sessions regularly, one of whom, Maureen, is from our dementia unit and is always particularly happy after visiting the children at the EEC. “Maureen previously worked in childcare, so the experience provokes happy memories for her and she relays stories of her visits to her family.

“For many of our residents, they don’t have family close-by so the interactions they have with the EEC children are a wonderful experience for them,” said Ms Lindh.

Sharing Spaces has been such a success, Mrs Edols said they have no plans to change the program anytime soon.

A: There are too many memories to pick just one, but my favourite event to witness is a child achieving success, whether it be writing their name, finishing a puzzle or acquiring a new skill.

Q: Three things we don’t know about you?

A: I LOVE horses - but I’m allergic to them.

My favourite food is nashi pears. My favourite book is I Need My Monster.

“We welcome our special visitors and it’s a really important part in our week now, so we will continue to run the program each term.” @GRAMMAR. ISSUE 15. WINTER 2018. 11.

Junior Grammar

From the Head of Junior School A school environment plays a key role in the social and emotional wellbeing of children. (Barnes, 2014) At Junior Grammar, the staff, students and wider School community have much to be thankful for. As a staff, we have the daily opportunity to deliver teaching and learning programs in state-of-theart environments - classrooms, facilities and playground - to boys and girls who arrive ready and enthusiastic about their learning.

Our Junior Grammar students enjoy their school experience with like-minded peers while being supported by caring and loving parents and carers.

Junior Grammar teachers and support personnel have a supportive network of colleagues with whom to work.

Our parents and carers, along with our wider School community, actively work in positive partnership with Junior Grammar.

In 2018, the Junior Grammar staff and students are actively practicing gratitude.

Junior Grammar has an “Attitude of Gratitude”.

Junior Grammar is a great school, and great schools continue to improve when they are reflective and focused on a continuous cycle of growth and improvement. Our Attitude of Gratitude plays a pivotal role in a major strategic priority for Junior Grammar in 2018 - a full review of our Pastoral Care Program.

This strategic priority has been informed by, and is a direct result of the constructive feedback provided by the 2017 ACER School Review and the Whole School Survey of 2017. Throughout 2018, a pastoral care review team is collaboratively developing a whole Junior School approach to social and emotional learning. The social and emotional learning framework development (Pastoral Care Program) is embedded in the Junior Grammar focus on providing

each child with a personalised and holistic education. Our holistic education is based on the premise that students need opportunities to find their sense of self through diverse academic, cultural, sporting, personal growth and community experiences.

The Junior Grammar Values - Diligence, Excellence, Respect, Integrity and Care will form the structural and philosophical framework for the Junior Grammar Pastoral Care Program, while our Attitude of Gratitude will be one of the strategies utilised by the School to embed the program and make it both meaningful and tangible for our students.

Dr Robert Emmons defines gratitude as having two dimensions. Firstly, gratitude is an affirmation of goodness. An affirmation that there are good things in the world, gifts and benefits we’ve received.

Emmons explains that the second part of gratitude is recognising that the sources of this goodness are outside of ourselves. Gratitude has the potential to have a powerful impact on a child's life by engaging their brain in a virtuous cycle (Korb, 2012).

In 2018, we are focusing on actively practicing gratitude as part of whole School activities and each classroom's daily practice. Teachers guide their students through mindfully being grateful in relevant and age appropriate ways; Prep creating 'A Heart of Gratitude'; Year 1 singing A Beautiful Day and Take a Minute to be Grateful; Year 2 constructing a GRATIPILLAR; Year 3 sharing their 'Motivating Giraffe- for Good Days and Bad' each day; Year 4 'BEEing Grateful' charts; Year 5 'Gratitude Conversation Starters’ and 'Gratitude Jars'; and Year 6 'Chain of Gratitude'.

The research supports that academic and learning outcomes are closely connected to social and emotional outcomes.

Guidelines to promote children’s

emotional health and wellbeing, and

resilience, will in turn promote academic care and outcomes (National Safe

Schools Framework, 2003 and 2014).

In remaining mindful of all we have to be

grateful for at Junior Grammar we aim to allow our boys and girls, staff and families the opportunity to reap the extensive benefits of this positive and thankful mindset. Positive psychology research (Pennock, Alberts, et al. 2017) outlines some of these benefits to children as follows: • Experience higher levels of positive emotions like optimism, enthusiasm, love, and happiness • Superior sense of connectedness to school, home and the community • Improved resilience with an enhanced ability to cope with change and new experiences • Better overall health, quality of sleep and sense of wellbeing • Increased self-esteem and energy • Strengthened friendships and relationships, through greater kindness and generosity to others • Improved learning opportunities and goal achievement Each day our staff, parents and carers are modelling to the students of Junior Grammar how to exercise gratitude. As educators, we know and understand that happy children are open and ready to take risks, accept challenges, and maximise their learning opportunities. I encourage all families to engage in daily discussions about gratitude and I look forward to sharing our reviewed Junior Grammar Pastoral Care Program with our School community in the coming months.

I am grateful your family has chosen Junior Grammar!

—Mrs Nicolee Eiby

Head of Junior School

@GRAMMAR. ISSUE 15. WINTER 2018. 13.

JUNIOR SCHOOL

Bright Sparks: Engineering is Elementary The Junior Grammar Bright Sparks Workshop is leading the way in E-STEAM curriculum for schools in Australia, proven by the recent partnership between with Australia’s National Science and Technology Centre, where Junior Grammar was selected to be a pilot school for the Engineering is Elementary program.

Our Bright Sparks Workshop is an exciting, innovative and imaginative learning space where our students build skills, knowledge and passion for E-STEAM (Entrepreneurship, Science, Technology, Engineering, the Arts and Mathematics) in their lessons each week.

We continually strive to enhance the education of our students through refining, evaluating and implementing new programs. Junior Grammar’s Head of Digital Innovation, Mr Luke Wild, discovered a fantastic program available through the University of Boston in 2016.

“When I initially discovered the program, I creatively had the resources purchased and collected from the University of Boston and eventually brought to Ipswich Junior Grammar School, where we have

implemented the innovative program since then.

“I initially purchased six units of the program, so each year level has a specific unit of work they focus on for the year, which engages the students and gives them a real-world problem to focus on solving through E-STEAM solutions,” Mr Wild said.

This year, Raytheon Australia and Questacon, Australia’s National Science and Technology Centre have marked ten years of partnership by announcing the development of the Engineering is Elementary program for Australian schools.

The program that Raytheon Australia and Questacon chose is the same that Mr Wild found and implemented in 2017. As

Become a Bright Sparks Sponsor

The Bright Sparks Workshop is an amazing learning space for students from Pre-Prep to Year 6. Thank you to our first sponsors of 2018, Computer Alliance and New Hope Group, for your support. Businesses and individuals interested in partnering with the Bright Sparks Workshop should contact Luke Wild at lwild@juniorgrammar.com.au.

a result, Ipswich Junior Grammar School was approached to act as a pilot school, offering support to teaching staff rolling out the program in their own schools across the state.

“As a pilot school for the Engineering is Elementary program, we have hosted state, independent and catholic schools here at Ipswich Junior Grammar School and have provided assistance and training for others implementing the program, alongside Raytheon Australia and Questacon.

“The program has been exceptional for us. Being a pilot school has allowed us early access to the latest resources and shows we are leading the way in E-STEAM curriculum for schools across Australia,” said Mr Wild.

Feedback and Assessment for Learning In recent times education has benefited from rigorous research into best practice. This research has allowed educators to use evidence-based methods to improve student outcomes. Junior Grammar utilises this research to further refine teaching practices to enhance learning outcomes.

The Assessment for Learning framework, with the pedagogies of feedback and self-reported grades embedded within it, is a key focus of teachers' professional learning in 2018.

In the classroom context, our Junior Grammar teachers are incorporating a range of pedagogical approaches to embed Assessment for Learning including:

During the semester, teachers have explored how to sensitively provide feedback to enhance learners’ confidence, enthusiasm, motivation and understanding of how to improve.

• Displaying learning goals and success criteria. At Junior Grammar students know the WALT - "We Are Learning To" and the WILF - "What I’m (the Teacher) Looking For" in each lesson. This helps students reflect on their learning and seek assistance.

• Assessing using rubrics to provide students with further understanding of the success criteria to aid self-reflection and feedback conversations between teachers and students.

• Teaching students to self-assess so they can self-reflect on their learning and identify how they can improve.

Assessment for Learning is the process of seeking and interpreting evidence for use by learners and their teachers to decide how far learners have progressed in their learning, where they need to go and how best to get there (Assessment Reform Group, 2002).

It is an evidence-based practice that educators can use to significantly improve student learning and the quality of teaching in classrooms (Hattie, 2009).

Teaching and learning is interactive. Teachers need to ascertain students’ progress and their challenges so they can adapt their teaching to ensure students attain knowledge and skills. Assessment for Learning provides this link between teaching and learning. It encourages reflection by teachers and students on progress and challenges, the identification of how to improve and the teachers’ and students’ next steps to ensure students’ success. This feedback process ensures students know: 1. Where am I going?

2. How am I going?

3. Where to next? (Hattie & Timperley, 2007)

Teachers use the Power of Five questions to help frame their conversations with students to encourage Assessment for Learning: 1. What are you learning?

2. How are you going?

3. How do you know?

4. How can you improve?

5. Where do you go for help?

This process also encourages ownership of the learning process and self-reflection to ensure students set and achieve targets, helping them to reach their potential.

– Ms Lezah Semple

Deputy Head of Junior School

@GRAMMAR. ISSUE 15. WINTER 2018. 15.

FEATURE

Challenging Gender Ste

From birth, children are unwittingly exposed to cultural gender stereotypes – surrounded by information that communicates the beliefs and behaviours that are considered appropriate for each gender group.

So much so, that research shows that even before 30 months of age, some children understand concrete gender stereotypes, such as ‘dolls are for girls’ and ‘trucks are for boys’ (Ruble et al. 2006).

Children continue to amass and absorb a considerable amount of gender stereotype knowledge early in life, which left unchallenged, can shape attitudes and expectations into adulthood.

But if we are concerned about the reinforcement of gender stereotypes in the toy aisle of a department store, we should also be concerned about them elsewhere, and indeed, it appears the vast majority of us are.

A 2018 survey by Our Watch, Challenging gender stereotypes in the early years: the power of parents, shows 79 per cent of parents of children aged 0 – 3 years want their children to be able to explore their interests free from limiting gender stereotypes and in a way that reflects their personalities.

The challenge for both parents and educators is to think more broadly about how we as adults either reinforce these stereotypes or challenge them by critically examining their potential impact in any context.

At Junior Grammar, we support our students to challenge gender stereotypes and reach their full potential based on ability, as opposed to gendered expectations. Not just in the classroom, but throughout the whole school – in leadership, on the sporting field and in the playground.

Our School culture centres around children being empowered with choice and the knowledge that their gender does not define them, or their possibilities.

ereotypes

The attitudes and beliefs they begin to form in their primary years will carry with them into adolescence, then adulthood, helping to shape realistic expectations about future relationships based on mutual respect and equity.

Just as schools are important contexts for the socialisation of young children’s gender attitudes and behaviour, so too is the home.

We know most parents want to challenge the negative impacts of rigid gender roles and stereotypes on their young children (Our Watch, 2018), but how do we go about doing that?

We can start by being conscious of how we talk to and interact with our children.

Children are exposed daily to a wide range of comments and interactions that serve to subtly reinforce and perpetuate gender stereotypes. For example, a parent may direct their daughter’s attention towards a doll (“I think you’ll like this pretty doll”), but then question their son’s interest in the same toy (“Are you sure you want to play with that?”).

No one is suggesting we should take away dolls or trucks from our kids, but perhaps we consider how prescriptive we are about who might choose to play with what. By supporting strengths and interests in all activities, without regard for gender stereotypes, we can help children to foster positive personal identities.

Even comments such as “boys will be boys”, or “she’s a girly girl” can serve to instil in a child a sense of what activities, behaviours and characteristics society considers ‘gender appropriate’.

Just as some boys can be boisterous and active, so too can some girls, and vice versa. There are physiological differences between all children, and each develops their language and motor skills at a different rate.

We know that sitting quietly at a desk is not a comfortable learning condition for every child – particularly in the early primary years – but this is not gender-specific. By example, the flexible learning environments we create here at Junior Grammar, such as utilising stand-up desks in classrooms or incorporating movement in our learning activities, are gender neutral and popular with both boys and girls.

We actively expose our students to as many opportunities as possible to dispel stereotypes and explore a range of experiences to engage different neural pathways.

In the classroom, learning is not informed by gender; rather, it’s informed by the social, emotional and learning needs of the individual learner.

At Junior Grammar, we hold the intrinsic belief that boys and girls have the same potential. Our job as educators is to help each child realise their potential. We achieve that by adopting a personalised approach to teaching and learning that is based on the individual learner, not their gender.

By taking gender off the table, our boys and girls are empowered. They learn from each other’s perspectives and approaches. As they learn and grow together in these crucial formative years of childhood when they are at their most vulnerable, they are enriching their cognitive and social skills and developing a deeper understanding of each other – both their similarities and differences.

In fact, studies tell us there are more differences within each gender than there are between the genders, especially with regards to academic ability, which is why our philosophy of knowing the individual learner is so important.

This challenging of rigid stereotypes is not limited to gender – as educators, we encourage students to question all types of stereotypes that impact on social equity and inclusion. By doing this, we are developing inquiring minds that will challenge social norms and question bias on their own accord. After all, at the end of the day, education is about creating effective citizens who will contribute to the evolution and progression of society.

We are nurturing our young learners to become future leaders in a world that is going to be far more diverse than ever before.

Empowering them to identify and challenge stereotypes will give them confidence to pursue unbridled opportunities and reach their fullest potential.

– Mrs Nicolee Eiby and Mrs Kristie Welsh

Head of Junior School and Director of Enrolments & Community Relations References

Ruble, DN.; Martin, CL; Berenbaum, S. Gender development. In: Kuhn, D.; Siegler, R. editors.

Handbook of child Sex Roles psychology: Cognition, perception and language. Vol. 6th ed.

New York: Wiley; 2006.

Our Watch (2018). Challenging gender stereotypes in the early years: the power of parents.

Melbourne, Australia: Our Watch.

@GRAMMAR. ISSUE 15. WINTER 2018. 17.

JUNIOR SCHOOL Being competitive, performing at our best and a "never give up” attitude are key to being sucessful in life and while winning is the goal, more importance is placed on how we play the game. It is important to be humble in winning and gracious in defeat.

Participation and the pathway we took to get there are the reward.

Introducing the Britton Shield Ipswich Junior Grammar School has a long tradition of sporting success and providing pathways for boys and girls to realise their potential at all levels of participation. Our sports programs are designed to provide opportunities to grow and develop positive, lifelong habits while the qualities of commitment, teamwork and socialisation are encouraged through the enjoyment of being involved.

Since welcoming Mr Mike Duce as Head of Sport in mid-2017, sport at Junior Grammar has continued to grow and evolve at a rapid rate. Mr Duce’s background and extensive experience in primary education over the past 22 years in co-educational primary schools throughout south-east Queensland allowed him to join the School with fresh ideas and an abundance of enthusiasm.

“The concept of creating a competition for boys, similar to the Andrews Cup that the girls are able to compete in, was one of the first ideas I had when I started working here at Junior Grammar.

“In Term 4 last year I put together the plans for creating the competition, send out information and invitations to other schools, and received a really positive

response,” said Mr Duce.

In Term 1 this year, the Britton Shield competition kicked off with touch football. Clayfield College travelled to Ipswich to compete against Junior Grammar. In Term 3, both Clayfield College and Ambrose Treacy College will compete in a football competition to be held at the School’s Jacaranda Street fields, followed by T20 cricket in Term 4.

The competition is gaining momentum and Mr Duce hopes to have five schools consistently involved by 2020.

“We have had very positive interest from other schools and as they usually plan their sporting events one to two years ahead of time, we are expecting higher participation by 2020 as their schedules allow.

“We are really happy with how our first year of Britton Shield competition is going, and the boys are really enthusiastic about competing to bring the Shield home to Junior Grammar at each competition,” said Mr Duce.

The three sports selected to run this year – cricket, football and touch football, were selected based on the sporting interests of the boys. Mr Duce hopes to add individual sports to the Britton

Shield competition in future years,

including swimming, cross country and

athletics. The Britton Shield isn’t the only opportunity Junior Grammar boys have

to get involved in co-curricular sport, with Gala Sport days and recreational fixtures organised each term.

“Cricket is exceptionally popular here

at Junior Grammar, so Mr Millis - one of

our Prep teachers - coaches a group of

about 20 boys each week who just enjoy playing for fun.

“The boys are also looking forward to their Rugby 7s day in August, where our boys will compete in the Taylor

Bridge Carnival at the University of Queensland,” said Mr Duce.

Along with the introduction of the

Britton Shield, Junior Grammar has

also organised Gala Sports Days for all students in golf, cricket, rugby league, AFL and football where guest athletes and coaches are invited to the School to train our boys and girls for a day.

The School also offers a busy schedule of Interhouse activities including the

Athletics Carnival, Swimming Carnival and Cross Country.

Th e Q & A Mrs Leigh Spelleken is our friendly Junior Grammar Receptionist, who joined the School at the beginning of this year.

Q: Can you tell us about your family?

A: I am married, with one daughter (Year 10 at IGGS), one cat, one dog, one canary and one horse.

Q: You volunteered at the Commonwealth Games this year, how was that experience?

A: Exciting and interesting to witness so many cultures/nationalities join together so happily.

Q: Favourite part of your job?

A: Interacting with the lovely people I see each day – staff, students and families.

Q: Favourite movie?

A: A Dog’s Purpose

Q: How would the Junior Grammar students describe you?

A: Fun and helpful!

Q: What would your superpower be, if you could choose one?

A: Rid the world of disease.

Q: Three things we don’t know about you?

A: I was an extra in a mini-series, my favourite colour is red and I love Japanese food.

Junior School Captains

Alice Ferrando and Ben Fowler are our 2018 Junior School Captains, roles they were both excited to undertake in their last year of primary school.

“I’ve always looked up to the Junior School Captains, since I started here in Prep.

I’ve been Class Captain since Year 3, and I hope I’m able to be a Middle School Captain and Head Girl at IGGS one day,” said Alice.

Ben thought the role would be a great opportunity to inspire others.

“I’ve been at the School since Year 2 and when I saw the Junior School Captains, I thought it was a cool role. I wanted to be a Captain so I could make kids excited about school and make fun things happen,” said Ben. A major part of their roles as Captains is coordinating a fortnightly meeting with the Class Captains from Years 3 to 6, where they are encouraged to table ideas with the aim of continually improving the Junior School for the student body. Alice and Ben have also started to include the Class Captains in the weekly Junior School Assembly and have continued the wildly successful Mighty Mouse Award each week for the class 'caught' demonstrating the Junior Grammar Values.

So far this year the Captains have planned a Bravery Box fundraiser for Term 3, where Junior Grammar families can offer donated books to be sold, with proceeds going towards purchasing toys to lift the spirits of children who are unwell or who have recently undergone surgery.

The Captains have also organised a “Nude Food” day in Term 3, where each student is encouraged to think of the environment by bringing a lunch that is rubbish-free, with no cling-wrap or throw-away packaging.

Ben and Alice also have a weekly meeting with Mrs Semple, Deputy Head of Junior School, who helps them prepare for any upcoming tasks they have to complete, such as hosting the Junior School Assembly.

“I have less nerves with public speaking now and I’ve really enjoyed representing the School at events like the ANZAC Day march,” said Ben. Alice has enjoyed meeting students from other year levels and loves the vast opportunities provided at Junior Grammar, especially in sport and music.

Both feel that they are now competent at running meetings, setting agendas, and presenting information.

In terms of offering advice to any current Year 5 students considering applying for the role of Junior School Captains, both Ben and Alice said it’s important to be yourself and to make sure you smile during your speech! @GRAMMAR. ISSUE 15. WINTER 2018. 19.

Girls‘ Grammar

STUDENT SPOTLIGHT

From the Head Girls

Hannah Baden-Clay and Elizabeth (Lizzie) Slatter are our 2018 Head Girls. We discussed with them their plans for the year and what legacy they would like to leave at IGGS. Q: How did you decide on the Year 12 theme 20ATEAM? A: As Head Girls we both wanted to create a united School community and bond amongst the IGGS girls. We wanted our grade to have input on theme ideas for the year because the sense of community we were hoping to create starts with the cooperation of everyone within the Senior cohort. With the golden opportunity of having the Commonwealth Games close to home we used the inspiration of the Australian team to influence the mindset of the student body and lay the foundations for the 20ATEAM. We also wanted to highlight the importance of recognising everyone’s individual strengths and establish among the girls that everyone is valued and needed to ultimately create a successful team.

Q: Have you implemented at any new initiatives at IGGS this year?

A: Recently we have been working closely with the students in order to strengthen relationships within individual cohorts to develop united bonds between the Senior body and younger students.

In Term 3, we are hoping to implement a system that will allow Buddies and Big Sisters to frequently be in contact (every Friday in House Group). This will not just include Years 8 and 12, but the entire IGGS student body, ensuring our goal is achieved by all students being in contact and starting new relationships with one another.

Q: What have you learned so far in your roles as Head Girls?

A: We are lucky to be in such an encouraging environment that allows us to flourish with the support of those around us. Although leadership can be challenging, it is such a rewarding experience as we have been able to meet so many new people and encounter amazing opportunities.

Q: What advice would you give to the Year 11 girls considering applying for Head Girls in 2019?

A: Have faith in your own strengths and individuality.

Just be the best version of yourself that you can be. Be confident in your abilities. Be passionate about what you want to bring to the School and be passionate about others and the School community.

@GRAMMAR. ISSUE 15. WINTER 2018. 21.

FEATURE

Navigating Healthy Relationships The campaign for equality for women has been a long one and schools like Ipswich Girls’ Grammar School have always been at the forefront, providing education that opens doors to careers that might otherwise remain closed for women.

My journey as a feminist began when I read Germaine Greer’s The Female Eunuch while I was still a school girl in the 1970s. There was much in that treatise that I didn’t really understand at the time, but it set me on a path that led me to a career in girls’ education.

The feminists from my generation to the present have fought for social, economic and political equality and, while there is more to achieve, significant gains have been made. But, to paraphrase Jaws 2’s, “just when we thought it was safe to go back in the water”, just when we thought we were gaining some ground in the quest, a new front in the campaign has opened. This is a front with a huge impact on our young women – the way in which girls navigate

and control their relationships and the impact of pornography. While this is an uncomfortable topic for most of us, it is a one that we, as teachers, parents and society, need to begin to talk about.

Recently I attended the Alliance of Girls Schools conference, the theme of which was Fearless Girls Strong Women. Keynote speaker, American journalist and author, Peggy Orenstein highlighted the need for parents to speak openly with their children about sex and relationships to give them the confidence to know what a healthy and consensual relationship looks like.

Orenstein warned that if parents don’t speak to their teenagers about sex, mainstream media and pornography will fill the void, and this will lead to unequal

relationships and risky behaviour.

Orenstein’s message was reinforced by Maree Crabbe in her presentation, It’s time we talked – pornographers, young people and sexuality today. Crabbe is a writer, producer, director, and coordinator of the Australian violence project, Reality and Risk: pornography, young people and sexuality. Crabbe argues that the influence of pornography is pervasive in popular culture. It is highly gendered, reinforces profound disrespect and, increasingly, violence towards women, sending a message that violence is sexy, and it is hard for young people to avoid. Further she argues that, in the absence of conversation with young people about healthy relationships, pornography is

creating a perception of a “new normal” – a highly distorted and disturbing view of sex.

In her books, Peggy Orenstein has cast a light on some of the disconcerting truths impacting on young women in western society during the last decade; long before these conversations were triggered by the #MeToo movement.

For her 2016 book, Girls and Sex, Orenstein spent three years interviewing girls aged 15 to 20 about their sexual experiences. She found that while teenagers were not engaging in sexual behaviour at younger ages or more often than 25 years ago, there was evidence of a growing disrespect for girls, fuelled by both mainstream media images and pornography, leading to engagement in risky behaviour. Girls were doing things that they didn’t like or made them feel uncomfortable because they feel pressured to do so. This has led Orenstein to ask what is happening to our strong, smart and confident girls?

Why is there such a disconnect between the entitlement that girls feel about their futures and their sense of entitlement around sex? They demand equality in “life” and yet they are submissive in their relationships.

In her latest book, Don’t Call Me Princess, a collection of 30 years of Orenstein’s essay writing, she writes about what it means to be a girl in an America (and an Australia) dominated by a pop culture that uses sex to sell everything from cars to teen fashion and where pornography is freely available to even the youngest of technology consumers. (Crabbe puts the figures at 90% of high school boys and 60% of high school girls who have seen pornography online, either intentionally or unintentionally.) Highlighting the hypocrisy of a society which promotes “princess culture” and “girl power” at the same time as sexualising ever-younger girls, Orenstein argues that girls feel misunderstood, abandoned and isolated by a system that values appearance and sexiness over everything else, including hard work, compassion, confidence and intellect.

In this environment, Orenstein and Crabbe argue that it is incumbent on parents to educate their children

about sex, relationships and what appropriate behaviour looks like. When parents fail to talk to their sons and daughters about consent and nonconsent, she says, we fail to give them an important lesson about behaving ethically and responsibly. Children need to understand from a young age what appropriate personal contact is and when to ask for consent.

Despite this, say both Orenstein and Crabbe, many parents only talk to their daughters about the biology of conception, sexually transmitted diseases and the risks they may encounter, placing the onus on them, as girls, to act responsibly. What we should also be doing is talking to our sons and daughters about equality, respect and healthy relationships.

As Orenstein points out, parents often shy away from talking to their children about sex because they want to protect their innocence and let them be children for as long as possible. However, she argues, talking to children about their bodies and sex does not lead to kids becoming sexually active younger. In fact, it may prevent them from taking risks at a young age.

Schools too have a role to play, ensuring their own networks are secure, teaching cyber safety and media literacy to equip and encourage young people to critique what they see and initiating conversations which encourage young people to value respect, mutuality, consent and love.

We have raised a generation of girls to have a voice, to expect equality at home, at school and university, in sport, and in the workplace. Now it’s time to demand that in their personal lives as well.

–Ms Rhonda Nolan

Deputy Principal

References

Orenstein, P. (2016). What young women believe about their own sexual pleasure. TED Talks: TEDWomen 2016.

Retrieved from: https://www.ted.com/talks/peggy_ orenstein_what_young_women_believe_about_their_own_ sexual_pleasure Orenstein, P. (2018). Don’t Call Me Princess: Essays on Girls, Women, Sex and Life. New York: Harper (Harper Collins Publishers).

Raz, G. & Orenstein, P. (2018, April 6). Peggy Orenstein: How should we talk to our kids about sex? KUOW News and Information. Retrieved from: http://kuow.org/post/peggyorenstein-how-shouldwe-talk-our-kids-about-sex Alliance of Girls Schools Biennial Conference, Fearless Girls Strong Women, Adelaide, May 2018

Th e Q & A

Joey Saunders is a Science and Psychology Teacher, who has been at the School since 2017.

Q: What did you want to be when you were in primary school?

A: A Ninja ballerina and a doctor.

Q: What do you like most about your job?

A: Seeing the “Aha” moment when students get a concept after struggling for some time.

Q: What is the highlight of your teaching career so far?

A: Being part of the implementation of the Psychology Syllabus in Queensland including writing the syllabus and also having the opportunity to write a textbook.

Q: What did you do before teaching?

A: Eons ago, I worked in hospitals running medical trials in IVF and neuroscience trials.

Q: Favourite movie and why?

A: Pitch Perfect and Infinity war… Pitch Perfect because it gives me an excuse to sing as loud as I can, and Infinity War because I am a true geek at heart and I love it.

Q: What are three things we don’t know about you?

A: I can speak another language, I have lived in four different countries growing up, and I love coffee!

IGGS NEWS

Kate heads to Kennesaw State One of our talented 2017 graduates, Kate Head, has been recruited to the Kennesaw State University (Georgia, USA) freshman group for basketball.

Kate was our 2017 QGSSSA Basketball Captain and showed amazing talent.

Kate was among three young women recruited to the Kennesaw team, but the only Australian in the mix. It is an impressive feat for an Australian basketball player to be recruited to an American university, considering the popularity of the sport and the talent pool available in the USA. Kate plays in the point guard position and her new coach stated that she possesses terrific court vision and good ball-handling skills. She has a great defensive game and is tipped to be a future team leader.

Legally Blonde the Musical

In March this year, our talented musicians and performers (along with IGS) were part of a spectacular sell-out production of Legally Blonde.

The staff, students and volunteers put in an enormous effort to provide the School community with two evenings of fun, music, dance and theatre.

Houston, here we come!

Ipswich Girls’ Grammar School has four students who have been accepted into the International STEM Program at NASA for 2018 – Laura Carniel, Jennifer Cosford, Evangeline Sturges and Isabelle Wolvetang.

Tailored to develop leaders for the next generation, the NASA program aims to inspire and nourish ongoing interest in STEM-based careers; empowering and preparing students for the fastest growing and most sought-after occupations of the 21st century. Participants are given unique access to NASA facilities and training programs, whilst learning leadership skills to apply through their school years and beyond.

Head of Personalised Learning, Mrs Kathryn Randall, said this is a wonderful

and possibly life-changing opportunity for the girls who have been selected.

“Travelling with like-minded students and seeing so many mathematics and science skills being utilised in real life experiments and careers will open their minds to the incredible opportunities available to them after school,” said Mrs Randall.

This program comes highly recommended by both teachers and parents of previous attendees from schools across Australia. Aside from

providing students with an unforgettable experience, students come to recognise the importance of multi-disciplinary learning as well as the role imagination plays in critical thinking and problem solving. These are lifelong skills that our students will be able to adapt and use in any situation.

Space School is held at the NASA Space Center in Houston, Texas. Our four students will participate from 8 to 21 December.

Da Vinci Decathlon Engineering Winners

In Term 2, a team of our very clever Years 9 and 10 girls competed against 25 other teams from the highest achieving schools in south-east Queensland at the Da Vinci Decathlon, run

by Knox Grammar. Our team of eight won the Engineering event, and placed third in English.

Our team coordinator and Head of Personalised Learning, Mrs Randall, was thrilled with the girls' results.

"Our girls were well prepared and not only held their own, they excelled. It's a mentally challenging day for the students, so it's very rewarding when they achieve outstanding results that show what we are doing, we are doing well." @GRAMMAR. ISSUE 15. WINTER 2018. 25.

BOARDING

Out and About in Regional Queensland

Attending rural agricultural shows is often a great opportunity to interact with our boarding families and to ensure the growth of our Boarding House by meeting with prospective families and welcoming new students. This year so far, we have attended the Boonah, Charleville, Chinchilla, Mitchell and Roma Shows. It has been a wonderful experience for our staff to be out in the community, often hearing from past students and families.

National Boarding Week Celebrations From 13 to 19 May, we celebrated National Boarding Week: a week to raise awareness about the many benefits of boarding schools and the important role boarding plays in our School and wider community.

Boarding is an integral part of our School, with Cribb House, our on-site boarding facility, being a home-away-from-home for many of our rural Australian and international students.

National Boarding Week included fun activities for all students to celebrate and promote the benefits of boarding. For our girls, boarding forges lifelong friendships, fosters independence and personal growth, and creates a special sense of community.

The Australian Boarding Schools' Association encouraged each boarder in Australia to walk 1km throughout National Boarding Week, which, when totalled, would equal an entire lap of Australia. We thought it would be great to get all students involved, so our Years 7 to 12 students each walked a lap of our oval in support of our boarders. The students celebrated together after completing their walk, with delicious cake in the Breezeway.

Throughout National Boarding Week, Cribb House welcomed day girls wishing to trial boarding life. After an overwhelming response, the experience included 15 girls, with another trial week scheduled during Term 3 this year. The trial boarders joined Cribb House for four nights during their stay.

Feedback from the students was positive, with the day girls thoroughly enjoying boarding life. Jasmine-May from Year 8 commented, “It’s like a big family with big sisters.”

Indigenous Education and Boarding

In early June our Head of Boarding, Ms Lisa Wolff, attended the Indigenous Education and Boarding Regional Workshop in Brisbane as an invited panellist, joining Ian Mackie, Senior Partner at Austeur Enterprises; Mr Nick Byron, Head of Residence at Brisbane Grammar School and Mr Peter Linnegan, Principal Coach, Department of Education, State Schools - Indigenous Education.

Ms Wolff was invited by the CEO of Boarding Australia to join her fellow industry leaders on the panel following her input at the organisation's National Symposium in Canberra, held late March.

The Symposium and regional workshops brought together providers of education, boarding and welfare for Indigenous students to give input to the major issues facing Indigenous boarding students and their families.

Also providing their input were IGGS boarders Imarnie, Frances and Raven, who shared their unique student perspectives.

Information gleaned from the symposiums will be used to help improve outcomes for Indigenous boarders right across Australia.

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The annual IGGS Old Girls Association Luncheon was an exceptional event this year, with around 100 Old Girls in attendance at the School’s Phoenix Room. Two reunions were held on the day, for Sub-Juniors (Year 9s) from 1948 (70 year reunion) and Seniors from 1968 (50 year reunion).

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Old Girls Association

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Stories were shared from past boarding students, with many comments made about jam sandwiches, bacon being cooked in Miss Benson’s flat, being invited to day girls’ homes, listening to transistor radios on the grass outside the front of IGGS and wearing uniforms seven days a week.

Old Girls recalled having their uniform measured to ensure they were the correct length above the knee, black bloomers, white bloomers and catching jacaranda flowers as a forecast of good luck for exams.

50 Year Reunion

The 1968 50 year reunion included over 30 Old Girls. The picture on the right shows the 1968 Prefects, featuring several of the ladies who were in attendance at the reunion on 9 June.

70 Year Reunion

Pictured here is the 70 year reunion group. To the left is an image from their IGGS days, Mrs Barbara Hancock (nee McKelvie) is on the far left of both pictures, Mrs Shirley Larsen (nee Fox) is second from right in the back row of both pictures, and Mrs Gwenneth Beecham (Ingram) is on the far right of both images. @GRAMMAR. ISSUE 15. WINTER 2018. 27.

SOCIALS

' Music Soiree

Our annual Music SoirĂŠe is a popular event, showcasing the talented Music students of Ipswich Girls' and Junior Grammar School. The 2018 Music Captains, Hannah Grayson and Mai-Lien Olsson did a wonderful job hosting the event, as did the musicians, many of whom were performing as soloists for their very first time.

Parent Welcome

Our Parents & Friends Association Welcome BBQ is a wonderful event held at the start of each school year. In attendance we had both current and new parents, as well as School community members, getting acquainted over a relaxing BBQ and drink on our Grammar Green.

eneath the F B t s a e i F n g o L L A GG S unch gs I Saturday 8 September From 1pm to 6pm.

An afternoon of feasting and entertainment along the School’s Avenue of Trees. 18+ only.

Group or individual tickets available now, $50 per person.

Book at girlsgrammar.com.au/iggs-long-lunch

Thank you to our sponsors...

@GRAMMAR. ISSUE 15. WINTER 2018. 29.

P&F School Fete Proudly presented by the Ipswich Girls’ and Junior Grammar School Parents & Friends Association

Sunday 12 August 10am to 3pm Jacaranda Street Fields Rides, entertainment, show bags, food & drinks, stalls.