Junior School Bulletin, Issue 9, 13 June

Junior School Bulletin Issue 09 / 13 June 2014

From the Head of Junior School Honour Inspirational Teaching – ASG National Excellence in Teaching Awards (NEiTA) Parents may like to consider nominating a member of College teaching staff for a NEiTA award. For 20 years, these awards have given communities the opportunity to formally thank their hard-working, inspirational teachers, principals and directors in early childhood, primary and secondary school education. ASG NEiTA Chief Executive John Velegrinis says: “These awards recognise the important role of teachers and educators in our communities. I encourage communities to nominate their teachers—by nominating a teacher for an award you are showing them how much you value and appreciate the work they do.” Nominations for the awards close on 31 July 2014. To nominate go to: www.asg.com.au/nominate School Absences From the commencement of Semester 2, the College will be implementing an SMS messaging system for notifying parents if their child has an unexplained absence. As per usual, parents are asked to notify the College if their child is sick or absent from the College via phone or email. If we have not received notification and a child is absent without explanation, an SMS message will be sent.

Year 5 Camp The students in Year 5 returned home from camp, exhausted after having a wonderful time at their camp. Highlights included a 200 metre long flying fox, adventure games, surf lessons on beautiful Coolum Beach, nature walks, bush dancing and spending time with their friends. A big thank you to all of the parents and teachers who attended and assisted with supervision. A special thank you to Mrs Atkins, Ms Lange and Mrs Browne for their organization of the camp.

Commonwealth Games The Commonwealth Games is about to kick off in Glasgow, Scotland, which means that the Gold Coast is one step closing to hosting this prestigious event. Schools have been invited to participate by sending in pictures which can potentially be used in Scotland’s closing ceremony. Saoirse Harding in Year 5 has been invited to audition for the part of Gold Coast Kid. St Andrews has been invited to send greeting messages to our adopted country Anguilla.

Junior School Reports I would like to take this opportunity to thank and congratulate the teachers on their efforts in producing the Junior School reports. The reports give a very detailed account of your child’s progress so far this year. You will receive them during the school holidays. Your child’s portfolio will be sent home at the end of next week. Please return this portfolio after the holidays so that it can be updated with Semester Two’s work samples.

Traffic Safety Please remember to follow the instructions of the Traffic Safety Attendants (TSA). We have had some people who have driven around the stop sign in the afternoons and have driven off before the car door is closed. Talking on the mobile phone also causes distractions. Please remember that the Traffic Safety Attendants are helping to get your children to the car safely.

School Holidays Just a reminder that the last day of Term 2 is Friday 20th June and the students return on the 14th July. This is an important time for the children to recharge the batteries and prepare themselves for the second semester. It is imperative that the children read on a daily basis and also have time to get outside and enjoy the outdoors. I would encourage families to have ‘screen free’ days where children have a full day away from ipads, computer games etc. I hope you enjoy the break from the school routine.

Darrin Schumacher Deputy Principal/Head of Junior School

From the Deputy Head of Junior School & PYP Coordinator Last week the Junior School hosted a brief visit from Steve Wishart who is the IB Associate Regional Manager Asia Pacific (School Services PYP). He is based in the IB Singapore office and has the privilege of visiting many IB schools throughout the Asia Pacific region. It was wonderful to engage in a conversation with him about the PYP journey our College has experienced over the years.

In our PYP classrooms, we strive to encourage our students to learn to make good choices, to think for themselves and to take responsibility in a realistic and appropriate way. At St Andrews we see evidence of student initiated action that has been taken as a result of the learning process. Actions are verbs and it is the things students do as a result of their inquiry that reflect the learning that has occurred. It could incorporate any of the following: • Doing – Have you done something? Helped? Picked up? Turned off? Given?

• Thinking – Have you thought differently? Changed your mind? Wondered? Inquired?

• Feeling – Have you felt differently? Empathised? Felt inspired? Worried? Admired?

• Having – Do you have more of something? More knowledge? Respect? Determination?

• Saying – Have you said something? Informed? Explained? Discussed? Debated? Asked?

• Being – Have you been a different person? Changed behaviours? Been more patient?

“Dear children, let us not love with words or speech but with actions and in truth.” 1 John 3:18NIV Jacqueline Faulkner Deputy Head of Junior School PYP Coordinator

The Action Cycle

Chaplains Chat Celebrating the Gospel It is assessment and reporting time! Junior School students have worked furiously to complete units of inquiry while Middle and Senior School classes have put the finishing touches to assignments, sat tests and Year 11 and 12 are in the middle of exam block as you read this.

I have seen evidence of a group of Year 5 girls who have taken action by ‘doing’ something. They saw a need for our school environment to be cared for by removing rubbish from play areas and the creek bed (to prevent plastic wrappers from entering our waterways). When the girls were in Year 4, they learnt that all living things are interconnected and dependent on sharing the Earth’s resources through their Sharing the Planet unit of inquiry. The understanding they gained through the unit inspired them to take the action that they did. What has been amazing is their on-going commitment to regularly check the area to ensure it continues to be free of rubbish which could be potential hazards for living things. Well done to the girls for their own initiated action!

Schooling is such an important part of life for young people and it is taken very seriously by the staff here at St Andrews, along with parents who work so hard with us to provide the very best possible educational experience for the young people here – whether they are 5 years of age or 18.

At St Andrews we are blessed with great staff, modern facilities and overarching curriculum that ensures students receive a coherent, positive education. Along the way it can sometimes appear that our first part of the mission statement – Celebrating the Gospel, is lost amongst all the busyness of PYP, Australian Curriculum and QSA….

But thankfully, God’s Spirit continues to be active as we are obedient to His leading. In the past few weeks there have been wonderful examples of celebrating who God is and

his role in our lives here at St Andrews. Examples include students seeking out opportunities to sing praise songs together in class. This is part of normal proceedings in Junior School but on one occasion this happened in a Year 9 class! Another example has been seen in the honest, sensitive responses constructed by Year 10 students in Christian Studies tasks.

Gala Concert As a culmination of our Junior School Arts Week, the Arts Department presented our first Junior School Gala Concert, featuring almost 200 Junior School students. It was a wonderful concert. Congratulations to all who performed.

As we finish up the semester and head off to holidays it is good to celebrate all the positive things that occur and assess how we are going with fulfilling our mission statement. We are obviously nurturing the individual. We are empowering life-long learning in everyone who participates in College life. And it is great to report that we are celebrating the gospel in obvious ways and that God’s goodness is quietly working away in young people’s lives where we are barely aware of it.

Graeme Schache Chaplain Priscilla Scott Head of Arts priscillas@salc.qld.edu.au

Art News PAT Fee Increase Semester 2 As of the start of Semester 2 2014, our PAT Fee structure will increase. This is the first increase since Jan 2011 and still provides families with an affordable and convenient option for Private Tuition at school.

The PAT Fee structure will be as follows: · Individual $30 · Pair $17.50 · Group $11 (Group Size determined by the teacher) Please note that it is up to the Individual PAT Teacher whether they charge GST. In line with these changes, Animi Dance Fee Structure will also increase as follows: · 1.5 hour classes $17 · 1 hour classes $12 · 45 min classes $11 · 30 min classes $9.

Any enquiries regarding this increase can be directed to Head of Arts at priscillas@salc.qld.edu.au

Sport News Futsal Success Congratulations to all of our Futsal teams who competed at the Northern Rivers Championships recently. St Andrews had major successes with all four teams taking out their respective age group Championships. Those teams were the 13, 14 and 19 years Boys and the 19 years Girls. Mr Tanguy Northern Futsal, 2014 and Mr McGilveray did an Rivers amazing job over the 2 days of the tournament.

St Andrews Lutheran College

FISAF - Federation of International Sports, Aerobics and Fitness St Andrews students Alexandra (Allie) and Stephanie (Stevie) Clark recently competed in the Queensland FISAF Championships. Allie competed in a Solo Sports Aerobic event and achieved 1st place. Allie also teamed up with Stevie and their friend Bella to compete as a Trio and they also achieved 1st place.

Thanks to their outstanding performances, Allie and Stevie are now both off to Melbourne for the FISAF National Championships in July.

Chess News Congratulations to the students from Year 6 who performed very well at the recent Chess tournament. Aiden Campbell was the overall winner in the A division and the team consisting of Aiden Campbell, Ethan Chant, Peter Thomas and Ryan Sergi came 3rd overall.

Congratulations on your efforts boys and we are very proud of you.

P&F News Gold Coast Suns Cup Our Year 6/7 AFL team will compete at Coomera on Wednesday 18th June in the Gold Coast SUNS Cup competition. We hope all players have a great day. They have been training under the coaching of parent volunteer Mr Shane Wilson and are very keen to do well.

NRL Challenge Day St Andrews will be represented by two 12 years Girls’ League Tag teams at the Annual NRL Challenge Day at Dalley Park, Helensvale on Tuesday 17th June. We wish the girls all the best under the experienced guidance of Level 2 NRL Coach Mrs Leanne Pett and experienced coach and player Ms Carmel McHenry.

Success In BMX Ben Castle (3A) has achieved huge success in BMX this year.

Listed below are his achievements to date: Current Rankings: Top 20 in the 2014 Australian titles out of 70+ riders held in Shepparton VIC 2nd in Northern Territory 6th in Queensland Regionally is ranked 3rd.

CONGRATULATIONS BEN! Andrew Manion Head of Sport andrewm@salc.qld.edu.au

The General P & F meeting for Term 2 was held on Wednesday 11 June 7pm in the CRC. For those unable to attend, the minutes will be posted on the Parent Lounge under school links. We hope you can make the Term 3 meeting. If you have any agenda items for discussion please email the Secretary at pandf@salc.qld.edu.au It is a great opportunity to have input into school projects which the P & F fund. Everyone is welcome.

We will soon be looking to form the Fete Committee for next year’s Fete, so if you are interested in helping out, please come to the next meeting. There are plenty of subcommittee positions and the more assistance we have the more successful the Fete will be.

If anyone has any suggestions or comments and cannot make the next meeting please email the P & F at pandf@ salc.qld.edu.au Grants We are very fortunate that Kim Allen has agreed to take on this important role. Kim has applied for grants from Coles for Junior Landcare, which could be used for a vertical garden for the new Tuckshop.

Kim has also applied for a grant from the Cancer Council, which could go towards much needed shelter up at the top oval. Further, Kim has met with Daphne McDonald and her Grants Officer who will advise her of any grants which may be available to the school.

If you have anything you wish to discuss do not hesitate to contact a member of the P & F. President: Daniel Renneberg, Vice President: Julieanne Andrews, Treasurer: Michelle Brown, Secretary: Nicole Ainger.

P & F Executive Daniel Renneberg

Year 3 and Year 9 Cooking Year 9 and Year 3 students made banana muffins together as part of Year 3’s how the world works unit of inquiry into food production. This is what they thought.......

Ben: “Lots of fun! It was interesting because I’d never been in the Home Ec Kitchen before.”

Misha: “Working with the Seniors was excellent! They were very helpful.”

Ainsley: “Entertaining! My Year 9 friend let us do it all.”

Michael: “We made delicious banana muffins! I felt like I was a chef for the day.”

Jorja: “I got to meet some Year 9 students and it was really enjoyable cooking together.”

Charli: “It was fun to go to the Senior School and work with new people.”

Sam: “I got to do most of the cooking and it was a really great experience.”

Ethan: “I liked making the muffins with the Seniors - it was fun!”

Phoebe: “It was really exciting and the muffins were delicious!”

Ella: “The kitchen was interesting and a great way to learn.”

Nixon: “It was great getting all the ingredients together. It was interesting following the recipe and making delicious muffins.”

YEAR 3 LOVED WHAT WE COOKED!!!!!! THANK YOU MRS BARTEL AND YEAR 9. WE LOVED THIS EXPERIENCE!

Uniformshop News Customer Service Assistant The St Andrews Uniform Shop is seeking expressions of interest for a Customer Service Assistant to work in the Uniform Shop on a casual basis. Please see flyer at the end of this bulletin for more information.

Volunteer Needed The Uniform Shop is still looking for a volunteer on Wednesday mornings from 8am. You can usually leave by 8.45am but if you can stay later we have plenty of things you can help us with. Please phone, email or drop in if you can help.

Jacqui Desfosses Uniform Shop Manager uniformshop@salc.qld.edu.au

‘Take 3’ is a not-for-profit organisation formed in 2009 that aims to raise awareness of marine debris by encouraging each visitor to the beach, waterway or...anywhere to simply take 3 pieces of rubbish with them when they leave. They also encourage everyone to reduce their unnecessary plastic consumption - and make our lives a little less plastic!

Students from Year 4B started this initiative on 25th May with the first beach cleanup. We encourage St Andrews families to join us in our next cleanup morning.

Where: Currumbin Alley.

When: Sunday 22nd June.

Time: 9am – 10am.

What to bring: Reusuable gloves (gardening or rubber). Hat, sunscreen and water bottle.

All students attending must be supervised by an attending adult. School staff are not able to provide supervision of children throughout the activity.

Dates to remember June Sunday 15 Year 1 Family Service, 9am Worship Centre Monday 16 ICAS Writing Tuesday 17 ICAS Spelling Friday 20 Last Day of Term 2

We are selling the Entertainment Books again this year!!

Entertainment Memberships contain thousands of valuable up to 50% off and 2-for-1 offers from many of the best restaurants, cafés, arts, attractions, hotel accommodation, travel and much more!

The price is $55.00 per book and $11.00 from each book goes to fundraising for the College. Books are available from Reception, Junior School Administration and the Uniform Shop. *CLICK HERE TO PURCHASE NOW* It’s that time of year to update the interest earned on your LLL account that is credited annually on the 31st May. Please send your books in by last day of term, the 20th June. They will be sent to Adelaide for the interest update and will be returned to you on the first week of Term 3.

Uniform Shop Customer Service Assistant The St Andrews Uniform Shop is seeking expressions of interest for a casual Customer Service Assistant.

The role of the Customer Service Assistant is to support the Uniform Shop Manager in the running of the service. The successful applicant will initially be offered 1 x 2 hour shift each school week but must be available to work any day (sometimes on call) during shop opening hours. This includes the 2 week ‘Back to School’ period in January and occasionally during school holidays for new student fittings.

Duties include • • • • •

Day to day running of the Uniform Shop either working with the Manager or independently, following set daily procedures and tasks as set by the Manager; Providing exceptional customer service; Maintaining good presentation of the shop which includes cleaning duties; Stock management including helping the Manager with ordering and receiving stock, restocking shelves and conducting stocktakes; Other duties under the guidance and direction of the Manager;

Requirements The preferred applicant would ideally have some retail experience but must: • • • • • •

Enjoy working in a retail environment with a customer focus; Support the uniform standards of the College; Be able to work independently and as part of a team; Have good computer, organisation, and communication skills; Represent the College in a professional manner supporting it’s ethos and values; Maintain confidentiality of all information;

Pay will be in accordance with the relevant award.

Any questions regarding the position should be directed to the Manager, Jacqui Desfosses on 0412 904 520 or email uniformshop@salc.qld.edu.au Please email your Expressions of Interest detailing any previous experience to the College’s Business Manager, Mr Stephen Cooke at stephenc@salc.qld.edu.au no later than Friday 27th June 2014. _______________________________________________

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INSIGHTS Building parent-school partnerships WORDS Michael Grose

Reading your child’s report

Reports can mean anxious times for children. Will my parents be disappointed or proud? This is the main concern of most children.

Could try harder . . . always does her best . . . lacks concentration. . . easily distracted . . . a pleasure to teach . . . Do these comments, taken from a batch of student reports sound familiar?

Student reports bring mixed feelings for parents. Pleasure and pride if they are performing well but considerable angst when children are not progressing as you hoped.

Reports can mean anxious times for children too. Will my parents be disappointed or proud?

This is the main concern of most children. Kids of all ages take their cues from their parents, so your reaction to their school report can affect the way they see themselves as learners and as people.

Before you rip open the sealed envelope containing the report do a little self-check to see if you are in the right frame of mind: Are your expectations for your son or daughter realistic and in line with their ability?

1

Expectations are tricky. If they are too high then kids can be turned off learning. Too low and there is nothing to strive for. Pitch your expectations in line with your child’s abilities. A quick check of your child’s last report cards may provide you with a good yardstick.

2

Do you believe that children learn at different rates?

There are slow bloomers, late developers and steady-as-you-go kids in every classroom, so avoid comparing your child to siblings, your friends’ children and even yourself when you were a child.

Instead look for individual progress.

3

Are you willing to safeguard your child’s self-esteem rather than deflate it?

Self-confidence is a pre-requisite for learning, so be prepared to be as positive and encouraging as possible. School reports come in different formats.

Some are prescriptive while some use grading systems such as A, B, C, etc. with room for teacher comments. Regardless of the format school reports should provide you with an idea of your child’s progress in all subject areas, their attitude and social development.

Here are some ideas to consider when you open your child’s report: Focus on strengths Do you look for strengths or weaknesses first? The challenge is to focus on strengths even if they are not in the traditional 3Rs or core subjects.

Take into account your child’s effort and attitude to learning. If the report indicates that effort is below standard, then you have something to work on. If your child is putting

in the required effort, then you cannot ask any more than that, regardless of the grading.

Broaden your focus away from academic performance to form a picture of your child’s progress as a member of a social setting. How your child gets along with his or her peers will influence his happiness and well-being, as well as give an indicator to his future. The skills of independence and co-operation are highly valued by employers so don’t dismiss these as unimportant.

Take note of student self-assessment Kids are generally very honest and will give a realistic assessment of their progress. They are generally very perceptive so take note of their opinions.

Discuss the report with your son or daughter talking about strengths first before looking at areas that need improvement. Ask for their opinion about how they performed and discuss their concerns.

After reports are read and discussed celebrate your child’s efforts with a special activity or treat. In this way you will recognise progress and remind them that the holidays are just around the corner when they can forget about assessment, tests and reports for a while.

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