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Middle/Senior School Bulletin Issue 7 / 20 May 2016 Middle & Senior School News This month we have been focusing on being mindful and reflecting on our mindset in May. Mindfulness, taking a pause and a few deep breaths to simply check in on the present moment and our internal dialogue, is a wonderful technique for handling stress. It also enhances our wellbeing, our brainâ€™s ability to process information, and our relationships. As we head into the latter part of Term 2 and workloads begin to mount please encourage your son/daughter to practice mindfulness, to eat and sleep well and to seek support when it is needed.

Year 10 Geography students recently travelled to Burleigh Heads National Park to explore the human impact on the National Park, sketching aspects of the biodiversity, making notes to assist with their research assignment. Year 10 Hospitality students visited our local cafes - Parlour, Woodbox, Plantation House to learn about food preparation and legislation.

Learning Beyond the Classroom Our Year 8 students enjoyed glorious weather over their three day camp last week. They spent time developing their outdoor skills and their social-emotional skills through participating in the challenges Camp Kindness had to offer. Thank you to Mr Brendan Smith and the staff who accompanied Year 8 on camp.

Last Sunday was a truly active day for many of our students with the Kokoda Challenge teams completing a major training day starting at Numinbah Valley and our girls touch teams travelling to Brisbane to compete in the All Hallows Secondary Touch Carnival.

Kind and Thoughtful Acts This week we were visited by Helena Lambert, the Service Learning Coordinator at Faith Lutheran College, Redlands who presented a check for $1000 to the Year 11 students. Redeemer College raised $900 last Thursday night courtesy of a Music Concert they held in support of St Andrews and students at Peace Lutheran College, Gatton raised money through face painting the St Andrews logo on each other. Monies raised by students in our wider Lutheran Schools community will go towards replacing student items lost in the fire. The Early Learning Centre’s ‘Little Kids for Big Kids Raffle’ also raised significant funds to be put towards replacing our students belongings. On Wednesday, Year 3 students joined us for chapel and presented each student in the Senior School with a Freddo Frog to show they care.

This week, Years 11 & 12 Visual Arts students travelled to GOMA in Brisbane to view the Creative Generation exhibition and to gain an understanding of what is involved with creating works of excellence as they continue to work on their bodies of work for senior assessment. These and all of the other acts of thoughtful kindness continue to be most appreciated. The Carpark Carpark congestion is a challenge for all schools, and we certainly experience congestion for a relatively short period of time each afternoon (3.10pm – 3.25pm). All members of the community are asked to be vigilant, patient and focused on the safety of the students while driving in and around the College grounds. (Stay focused, observe general traffic rules and don’t respond to messages or calls on mobiles.)

Year 10 Japanese language students visited the newly renovated Pacific Fair to complete a scavenger hunt by reading instructions and directions in Japanese to locations within Pacific Fair Shopping Centre. Tuesday we held our Mufti Day for the term and raised money for East Timorese communities still impacted by the independence movement of last century. The $1398.05 raised will be put towards building houses in Bahareduk. A group of our senior students, accompanied by Mr Schache and Ms Faulkner will travel to East Timor during the term break on a special Service Learning Tour. On Mufti Day the Junior School took part in a walkathon and next Thursday afternoon Middle and Senior School students will have the opportunity to donate $5 and to compete in the ‘Amazing Race’; a scavenger hunt based on some very interesting fun facts about secondary school teachers. There will be prizes for the winners of the race and a fun time will be had by all. It would be great to be able to celebrate building two houses in Bahareduk.

Students should be collected from outside the Worship Centre and beyond the crossing. I strongly recommend a delayed pickup for our Middle and Senior School students. The afternoon bell goes at 3.10pm and, in general, it takes about 5 minutes for students to travel to the Worship Centre. All secondary students are also welcome to use the library (CRC) for purposeful study after school until 5.00pm daily. Afternoon tutorials and study assistance is available. Can I also ask parents to be cautious and considerate, by obeying the traffic rules around the College and in particular on Tallebudgera Creek Road. We are blessed to be nested into a residential area and our neighbours have expressed concerns about cars parking too close to driveways, and illegal right hand turns and U-turns performed while exiting the grounds. Whilst I appreciate that we are all busy, maintaining a sense of cheerfulness and patience when congestion occurs is best for all involved. Ensuring the safety of our children is our collective responsibility. Please contact me directly on virginiaw@salc.qld.edu.au if I can offer any assistance. Virginia Warner Deputy Principal Head of Secondary School

Chaplains Chat Everyone then who hears these words of mine and does them will be like a wise man who built his house on the rock. And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house, but it did not fall, because it had been founded on the rock. – Matthew 7:24-25 (ESV) Everybody knows that foundations are important. A house cannot be built unless there is first a solid foundation. Advanced English and Maths cannot be learned unless there is first a solid foundation of literacy and numeracy. Whatever comes after is built upon what came before.

Middle School News NAPLAN and Year 8 Camp The past week has seen two significant events in the regular running of the College. Enormous thanks should go to Mr Smith and his team for their participation in, and organisation of, the annual Year 8 Camp to Tyalgum. I visited the Camp last Tuesday afternoon and I was barely noticed in the enthusiasm for the activities that were underway. Thankfully some unseasonal warm weather appeared for a few days although a strong northerly change on Monday evening made for an interesting camp out for one of the two groups. I was particularly impressed with the number of students who stepped beyond their comfort zone across a whole range of activities throughout the three days.

The recent fire in the Senior School – as awful as it has been – is an opportunity for us as a community and as individuals to review the foundations upon which we have built. If, for example, we have built a foundation based around the possessions we have then the fire, for us, is a reminder just how quickly possessions can disappear. So it can’t be that. We need something else. We need a foundation that can survive fire, flood, rain, hail or storm. We need a foundation that can survive anything. The Bible tells us that such a foundation does exist and that this foundation is found in Jesus – not Jesus generally – but faith and trust in the words He spoke. Without a doubt, Jesus entered our world and spoke a message that it had never heard before. He turned things completely upside down. Jesus said that we don’t come to the kingdom of God, the kingdom of God comes to us. Jesus said that we don’t please God through good works (we are not that good) but we please God when we come to faith in Him. Jesus said that a person’s life does not consist in the abundance of their possessions but in the greatest treasure of them all – a right relationship with God. Jesus said the last shall be first and the unhappy shall be made glad. In many other words Jesus turned the conventional wisdom of the world upside down. He proclaimed a new basis for life and even eternal life that the world had not heard before. These He said, are the basis of a good foundation. Believe these, He proclaimed, and you will be able to survive whatever comes your way. The College as we know it today is built on the foundation of Jesus and His words. This was the starting place of the congregation who established the College and it continues to be the foundation that supports our programs and achievements. Fires may come. Other challenges may arise but the College is able to continue teaching and learning because we are built on a firm foundation. Nathan Glover College Pastor

On a slightly different theme, Year 7 and Year 9 students took part in the annual NAPLAN testing schedule. The College views the data gained from these tests as a rich source of information for our teaching programmes. Of course while in some educational sectors there is still debate about the amount of preparation and ‘pressure’ applied to students for this testing we prepare our students for the tests in line with ACARA guidelines and use the results as feedback on our regular teaching and learning programmes. In fact, sitting in silence and facing an unseen paper is, in itself, a learning experience which we seek to normalise through the participation in this type of testing. I look forward to the feedback from the testing later in the year. Jumpers and Tracksuit Tops Please assist with the maintenance of our uniform standards by ensuring that your son or daughter leaves each day with a warm top that matches the remainder of their uniform. The College tracksuit top should only be worn with the sport uniform and the formal jumper with the regular day uniform. As always please contact me should you wish to discuss anything further. Tom Casey Head of Middle School

Senior School News Flourishing in the Senior School As our students get to the point of the term when they are studying for exams it is timely to list some simple study tips: •

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Plan your study time into 40-50 minute blocks. Take a break. Reset your brain for maximum concentration. Write a study schedule. Know when your mind is at it’s best (morning, afternoon or evening). Schedule what you will do during break times. Refresh your mind by moving your body - walk the dog, dance, go for a run. Focus on understanding rather than memorising. The more you understand the less you have to remember. Write practice questions, use flash cards, explain your answer to a friend, teach someone else about your topic. Make posters of important dates, equations or summaries and stick them up in your room or on the bathroom mirror. Attend study tutorials and make a list of questions of topics, points, concepts or strategies you do not understand. Use wordle.net to create word clouds of key themes and topics. Use Concept Maps to list your main topics and add notes as you understand. Visit Khan Academy online. Khan will tutor you for free with online videos. Sleep between 9-10 hours per night for optimum brain function. Keep a notepad on your bedside table to stop the “monkey mind” and take notes if you can’t sleep. Know the schedule of exams and allow plenty of time to get there. Avoid the early morning rush. Make sure you have all you require for the exam ready the night before. When it all gets too much, go sit under a tree or beside the ocean to get a fresh perspective. Be Positive. A positive mindset will not only create talent but release it.

Source: http://thehopefullinstitute.com/top-10-tips-studying-smart Congratulations to: • Bailey Scott on his selection in the QLD AFL Under 16 squad. • The Leos who at all times embody what it is to be involved in a caring community. Last week ten Middle and Senior School students visited the residents at the Aged Care. The positive comments and commendations we received about the fantastic attitude and nature of our young people was truly humbling. They are a credit to themselves, the College and their families. Aged Care resident Alice appears on one of our service postcards with College Vice-Captain Khali Robins and we presented Alice with some flowers as a way of thanking her for allowing us to use her image. She

is pictured receiving her flowers with myself and her daughter and was tickled-pink. Sara Allan, Year 7, has offered to organise some artwork to brighten the walls at the home for our next visit in Week 7. Thank you Leos – as always it is a pleasure to spend time with you.

Upcoming Events 1. Unfortunately the Deportment and Grooming Course has been postponed until next term due to lack of registrations. Many apologies and hopefully we can offer it in Term 3. 2. If you are interested in developing your leadership skills and are in Years 10, 11 or 12 there is a fantastic opportunity to attend a National Leadership Camp near Sydney over the holidays. From July 3-6 Grip Leadership will be running a life changing program for young people at a cost of $490 at Stanwell Tops (50km south of Sydney). For further information see Ms Stewart or to register go to: www.gripleadership.com.au 3. Year 11 after-school study session is in Week 7 on Wednesday from 3.30-5.00pm in the CRC. If you have any queries or concerns please do not hesitate to contact me on tanias@salc.qld.edu.au Tania Stewart Head of Senior School

Visual Art News This past few weeks in the Visual Arts we have been busy...... and having so much fun! Year 10 have been hard at work on their Clarice Cliff inspired ceramic pieces. Such an absolute delight to have these kids hard at work and continually inspiring each other (and me!) with their willingness to be creative and just go for it. The beautiful and sometimes frustrating thing about glazing ceramics is that you never can be 100% sure what is going to happen in the kiln. And the Year 10s have been pleasantly surprised with the outcome of their glazing efforts! A special mention must go to Savannah Merrick, who has spent hours on glazing her mug with a stellar result, and to use such intricate detail is a credit to her patience and persistence!

Year 11 have been working away on their Book of Kells designs, and although many of these students lost their visual diaries and watercolour images in the fire, they picked themselves up and kept going with dogged determination.....an inspiration to me everyday! As I write, Year 12 are placing the final touches to their first body of work, ready for submission. This has been a long 15 weeks and I look forward to their many and varied creations. From etching to photography, reflections, digital imaging, painting and film, I love seeing how these young people interpret the concept of Power; what it means to them, how they see power used in society, who has power, who is powerless and how they can represent their own thoughts and feelings.

In the Middle School, students are hard at work on 2D works of art exploring many different techniques and media. Screen printing has been a huge focus this term, and students have demonstrated patience as they cut out their stencils and have figured out which colour to print first. They will be starting to consider their options for display of their work and we look forward to having their work on display in the CRC very soon. The SCOPE competition is now closed and the entries are with the judge. Please watch this space for the details of the digital exhibition and the announcement of the winners. More Visual Arts news next bulletin, with reports from GOMA, SCOPE and all things Visual Art! Ngaire Harman Visual Art Coordinator

Sport News “Somewhere behind the athlete you have become and the hours of practice and the coaches who have pushed you, is a little girl who fell in love with the game and never looked back… play for her.” (Mia Hamm professional female soccer player) This quote is all about harnessing passion and playing sport for the love of it. St Andrews is so fortunate to have staff who foster this in our students and still exemplify the true spirt of sport. This was clearly evident last week at the Northern Rivers Futsal Titles where our students not only achieved outstanding results but played with conviction and for each other. I would like to acknowledge their exceptional results. Northern Rivers Futsal Titles St Andrews was represented by 13 teams in this competition with almost 50% making it through to the final. A further 5 teams made it through to the semi-finals. 1st place: 12 boys, 13 boys and 13 girls 2nd place: 15 boys blue, 16 boys blue and 16 girls This combined with previous tournament results now means we have 8 teams who have qualified for the Champion of Champion Title being held in Brisbane in late July. Those teams are: 12 Year Boys 13 Year Boys 14 Year Boys 15 Year Boys 16 Year Boys 19 Year Boys 13 Year Girls 16 Year Girls I would like to acknowledge the hard work of the coaches: Mr Schache, Mr McGilveray, Mr Tanguy, Matthew Fedden, Jamie Stanton and particularly Mr Hibbs for driving these wonderful opportunities for our students.

AGCC SPORT Week 5 was the last round of competition played for semester 1 AGCC sport. St Andrews has had a very successful season with approximately 50% of our teams making it through to the top 4 play offs. I look forward to reporting on the final series and hopefully listing several premiership winning teams. Semester 2 AGCC will commence Week 2 next term. This means that all the students will soon have to make a choice about what sport they would like to play. Students can select their first and second preference from the list below: BOYS

GIRLS

Cricket

AFL

Futsal

Basketball

Oztag

Soccer

Tennis

Touch Volleyball

Each child from Years 7-12 will receive a survey where they can submit their choices. Libby Wood Secondary School Sports Coordinator libbyw@salc.qld.edu.au

District Sport News District Sport Carnivals and Trials All 10 to 19 year old St Andrews students now trial via the Hinterland District. This applies for Carnivals (Swimming, Cross Country and Athletics) and Sports Team selection trials. Don’t forget to email or see Ms West if you are interested in competing at District Sport Carnivals or attending District Sport Trials in 2016. All of the dates are listed on the College Website and on various notice boards around the College. Reminders will be in student notices and various College News sites as trial dates approach, but it is every student’s OWN responsibility to research the dates and contact Ms West if they are interested in such events. Upcoming trials include 12yrs & under Softball and Rugby Union on May 31, 12yrs & under Girls Rugby league June 14 and 18yrs & under Surfing on May 26. Nominations must be to Ms West a minimum of two weeks prior to the trial date. Hinterland District and South Coast Sport Trials St Andrews continues to have numerous students achieving selection in Representative teams through the Hinterland District and South Coast Regional School Sport trials. Latest achievements include: District Team for Boys 12s Hockey – Tim Hornsey and Dylan Franklin-Platt District Team for Girls 12s Hockey – Aimee Franklin-Platt, Caylin Nel, Brigette Newing and Miko Savory District Team for Girls 15 Football – Georgia Eller and Zoe Cunningham South Coast Team for Boys 12s Hockey – Tim Hornsey Casey West Acting Junior School Sports Coordindator/PSPE Teacher

LOTE News Which skills will my child need to get a job? According to research conducted by the Foundation for Young Australians, bilingualism ranks 3rd in a long list of essential skills for the ‘new work order’. This is necessitated by the shift away from manual roles towards jobs involving high interpersonal contact. More more information please visit: http://www.fya.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/TheNew-Basics_Web_Final.pdf Rebekah Hill Head of LOTE

P & F News We hope all the Mum’s had a great Mother’s Day, and enjoyed the presents received from your children. The P & F would like to thank all the parents and students that helped to organize the wrapping of the presents and the manning of the stall on the mornings before Mother’s Day. Some special thanks have to go to Trina, Jillian, Courtney, Dale, Abby, Jessica, Jodie, Peta, Natalie, Ella, Phoebe, Jenna, Summer and Ella for making the Mother’s Day stall possible. Thank you to Nicole Ainger for her coordination and helping the mothers of St Andrews to get something a little special from their children. Prizes for the Mother’s Day Raffle were donated by JFK Pizza, Beauty Bar Burleigh and The Body Shop. With special thanks to Jess Gisler and Kristyne Bauman. Raffles were won by: 1st Megan Corfield 2nd Phil Buddee 3rd Charlie McMahon The number of gifts sold this year was outstanding with the stall being sold out on the final day. P & F meetings are a great way to meet other parents from all age groups throughout the College and to find out more about what is happening at the College. There is a Principal’s Report which gives you an overall summary of the College’s performance in all activities from education, the arts and sport. At the meeting parents are able to voice ideas on what might enhance St Andrews Lutheran College. We look forward to seeing you all at the next meeting Wednesday 8 June 7.00pm with an update on all the events and projects the P & F are involved with around the College.

Volunteers Induction Our next Volunteers Induction will be held at 10.30am Friday 17 June in the Junior School Library. Everyone who volunteers in the College is requested to have attended this workshop which covers such issues as Valuing Safe Communities, Child Protection, Privacy and Fire Evacuation. Please register with Karen Deacon either by emailing: jsadmin@salc.qld.edu.au or by phone 5568 5901. A reminder to all existing volunteers we request that you sign in and wear your name badge at all times while volunteering in the College. If you do not have a current name badge then once again, please contact Karen Deacon. This course needs to be attended every three years. We value highly the wonderful support all Volunteers offer the College in their various roles either in the classroom, on excursions, in the Library, Tuckshop, Uniform Shop or as Traffic Safety Attendants. These are just a few of the places where we find you helping out and we thank you for all you do.

Dates to Remember MAY Saturday 21 East Timor Service Learning Training (selected students) Tuesday 24 Year 9 Japanese Excursion Wednesday 25 Junior Council GC City Council (selected students) Thursday 26 Regional Basketball Trials Friday 27 Years 7-12 Assembly, 8.30am Lending a Helping Hand at ROSIES Tuesday 31 ICAS Competition - Science JUNE Wednesday 1 Year 8 Debating Team, 3.30pm PBC High School Thursday 2 The Amazing Race for East Timor Friday 3 SS Mens and Womens Assemblies Year 12 QCS Prep Workshop Wednesday 8 JUNE P & F General Meeting - CRC 7.00pm

ELC News Thank you to everyone in the community for selling and purchasing tickets in the Little Kids to Big Kids Raffle supporting children affected by the fire. We even had the Year 6 Go team selling tickets in the bus shelter. We raised $2,368.00, a wonderful result. This money will be used to support the children. Winners: • $600 Premium Scratch Removal for Car - Jasper • Chanel Sunglasses valued at over $600 - Luxottica - Liz • $300 Billabong Suitcase - Marlow • Billabong Backpack, Towel & Headphones - Kade • $250 Pilates Voucher - Pilates & Co - Kylie • $110 Carpet Cleaning & Pest Control Service - PHJ Cleaning Services - Rick • $100 Event Cinemas Voucher - Kris A • 3 x $100 Myer Giftcards - Gisler Family, Debbie B & Lesley • $50 Manicure & Spa Pedicure - Melita • $15 Bakery Voucher - Foster’s Bakery - Marlow • Hamper of Goodies – Haydn

NCE CHA IN TO W LY K WEE s!! e Priz

Bronwyn Waters ELC Director

It’s that time of year to update the interest earned on your LLL account that is credited annually on 31 May. Purchase a book or digital membership for $60 www.entbook.com.au/14404l5 Raising funds for the Senior School restoration and furniture for the Junior School Library.

Please send your books in by last day of Term, Friday 17 June. They will be sent to Adelaide for the interest update and will be returned to you during the first week of Term 3.

INSIGHTS Building parent-school partnerships WORDS Michael Grose

The trick to being at your parenting best

Parenting is place of great joy, but it’s also a place of great struggle.

say stupid! Thank goodness for our lizard

We struggle with our role as it’s constantly evolving and changing.

pre-frontal cortex can do it’s rational thing

brain. When I’m safe and feeling calm my once more. This system has served us well,

We struggle with external factors such as the changing face of technology and it’s impact on kids’ daily lives. We struggle with factors we can’t control such as the messages kids get from the media and their peers that we rather they didn’t receive. But the biggest struggle for most of us happens within the grey matter between our ears. It’s the battle that goes on between our lizard brain (where the fight or flight response occurs) and our pre-frontal cortex (where reasoning and calculation) occurs. The pre-frontal cortex (put your hand on your forehead and you’re there) is a cool, calm and rational place. This article is being written from that space. The lizard brain sits way back in the middle of our brain and is programmed to take over from our pre-frontal cortex when we’re under threat or stress. If I took a phone call about an imminent bomb threat while writing this article my lizard brain would take over and I’d be out of my office in a heartbeat. Writing would become impossible, not to

keeping us safe for an eternity. Unfortunately our lizard brain, the simple creature that it is, can’t differentiate between a significantly stressful situation such as a bomb threat and an everyday stressor such as a noisy sibling fight that occurs right under our nose. Our limbic system responds in exactly the same way – the lizard brain takes over from our pre-frontal cortex so you’ll either fight (argue, yell, lash out) or flee (get away fast) regardless of the stress. Both situations would elicit the same type of physical response such as an increase in heartbeat, sweaty palms and shortness of breath. Only the severity and intensity of the response is different.

Just when we need to be at our parenting best So the great struggle for many parents, and also the great irony, is that when we need to be at our parenting best (when we’re responding to poor behaviour or a child’s genuine cries for help) our lizard brain often takes over and we’re at our parenting worst.

That’s why most of us know how we want to respond and communicate with our kids when we’re calm but when we are under intense pressure not only can’t we find the words we need but we lose our cool as well! The good news is your lizard brain can be tricked into working for you, not against you. It takes patience and practice. Here’s how:

1 Recognise the situations and the symptoms Self-knowledge is the best knowledge you can have. When you understand the situations that cause you stress and bring you quickly to high emotion then you can prepare yourself in advance for such situations. Also when you understand your typical physiological responses you are well positioned to control your responses. Our physical responses vary: I generally feel nauseous; become physically agitated and my breath gets very high in my chest when I’m under intense stress. Knowing this has been a huge help to me staying calm in situations where I used to over-react.