College Newsletter Issue 4 / 3 November 2017 •
From the Principal How “Green” is St Andrews The “tip of the iceberg”, of course, is a common expression. How often do we arrive at a familiar destination, though not see it beyond what is immediately familiar to us. For a parent and in the context of a school, that may be Reception/ Administration, your child’s classroom, perhaps the library and the assembly hall. In contrast, we rarely see or even know of what’s happening behind the scenes. At St Andrews, it is easy to identify that we operate in an idyllic environment, surrounded by bushland and the majestic backdrop of the hills of the hinterland, all within not much more than a stone’s throw from the ocean. How blessed we are! What is not so readily identifiable is the initiatives and infrastructure that underscore our operation. A visitor recently reflected that we are such a “green” school. Whilst she meant that as a comment on our physical surrounding, it equally occurs to me that we have also consciously become a “greener” school in terms of ecological conservation and sustainability. The following, notes things we have achieved in the period 2015-17 in that regard. Personally, I think we are rating a B+, well on the way to an A! I hope you find it interesting. In future editions of the Newsletter and Bulletins, we hope to make a column of ‘Did You Knows…?’ a regular feature. •
•
• • •
Installation of a 200kw solar system which will save the College over $70,000 per annum. The outcome of this system will be evaluated to see if the installation of a solar fed battery system is feasible to take several buildings off the grid completely. More significantly, the system provides us with the software for students to analyse real-time data on the production and consumption of energy, significantly enhancing learning experiences. Maximised the power factor correction to the electrical supply to the College. This effectively ensures that most (if not all) of our equipment runs on clean power, thereby reducing the draw from the grid that our equipment needs to operate. Paper and cardboard recycling equating to 156m3 of paper waste per annum. 10 Water tanks – collectively hold 210,000 litres of water which is used for filling toilets and irrigation of the ovals. Carpet in J Block made from 79-80% recycled content (recovered fishing nets) and using 100% carbon offset program for the entire lifecycle of the product.
Automated processes which have reduced our “snail mail” consumables by more than 50%. • All redevelopment and renovations have been built to current environmental building codes to ensure that the lighting, heating and cooling requirements are minimized. • Installation of 90 street bollards that are recycled from 2,500 recycled plastic shopping bags each, which have effectively taken at least 225,000 bags out of landfill. • During renovations, the College has installed LED lighting to replace existing fluorescent lighting. • Air Conditioning systems are being retro fitted with temperature and timing limiting devices. • Use of sustainable and accredited waste disposal services for chemicals, paints, herbicides, and pesticides. • Huntergreen Cleaning Chemicals – • Huntergreen is a program originally developed to assist businesses to build, implement and manage a green cleaning program whilst maintaining a high cleaning standard. • The Huntergreen program is proactive and purchasing decisions and care for the environmental impact on the College site has been carefully considered. Peace and Grace David Bliss Principal
Chaplains Chat Protestant Christianity around the globe has been celebrating the 500th Anniversary of the reformation during the month of October. Lutheran Colleges across South East Queensland have joined in the festivities in various ways. Here at St Andrews we were blessed to be able to display a private collection of historical Biblical transcripts and other associated artefacts from the time of the Reformation and before. Some of these items dated back to the 1200s and were remarkably well preserved - to the point where the students wondered if they were really from 800 years ago. What we fail to realise in our modern time is just how precious books were before the printing press was invented. This would be one of the factors that has led to the incredible preservation of very these old manuscripts. The power of words and in particular God’s Word - the Bible, is immeasurable. Martin Luther reflected that he did not personally bring about any change or reform! It was all
achieved by God, through the words He has shared with us in the Bible. It was the Bible that brought about the changes in Christian Doctrine and understanding. Luther simply was the conveyor of the truth within God’s Word. He did not attempt to construct new and novel ideas, rather he endeavoured to convey and teach what is within the Bible. It is this fact that has led to the Lutheran denomination being known as the church most reliant on the Bible for all that is pursued in church life. Martin Luther transformed the practices and teachings of the church but the view of some scholars is that the most important work he did was to bring the Bible to the masses in a language that they could understand. This contributed enormously to the transformation of society, as individuals and families were suddenly able to have God speak directly into their lives as they read the Bible. God creates faith in our hearts and minds as we read His Word. This gift of faith is then able to take hold of His promise of life with Him forever. This brings peace, hope and love into our lives and provides security and sure foundation in the toughest and best of times. Thank God for the work of Martin Luther and others like him such as William Tyndale. These men brought God’s love and mercy to millions of people 500 years ago through translating the Bible into local languages. Their work has carried on down through the centuries to us today. What an awesome thing it is to be part of God’s work here at St Andrews Lutheran College as we continue to share the Bible in our community. Graeme Schache College Chaplain
up for tea parties or building a house out of lego are wonderful opportunities to spend time with your children. You will laugh with them, they might get upset at losing a game or they may even trip over and graze a knee but these times spent together create memories and help children to develop some resilience as they roll with the ups and downs of life. In those times there are so many teachable moments that will prepare your child for life. 3. Encourage your children to express themselves orally. With the ever increasing use of technology in the home, anecdotally we are noticing that children are losing the ability to express themselves orally. We believe that this is having an impact on Reading and Writing when a child starts school. As mentioned above in play, provide opportunities for your children to express themselves. 4. Allow your children to develop their independence. As a parent the temptation is often to do things for your children, like carrying their school bag or tying up their shoes or tidying up their toys. Providing opportunities for children to sleep over at Grandma’s house or a friends place is a great way to build self-confidence. Building their independence can go a long way to helping them to be successful at school. 5. Help with daily life. When you go shopping, ask your children to help put the apples in the bag and get them to count them into the bag. When hanging out the washing, ask them to pass you the blue pegs. When driving in the car sing with them. When you are putting together one of those flat pack pieces of furniture, allow them to help you. All of these things can help children to see the importance and the relevance of what they will be learning at school. The time invested with your children when they are younger will help them to be loving, resilient and creative students who are willing to take educated risks.
Junior School News Last Monday night we welcomed our Prep 2018 parents to an Orientation Night and today welcomed the students at the annual Teddy Bear’s Picnic. It was great to see the enthusiasm in the children and their parents as they begin their formal education journey. One of the questions I often get asked is “How can I get my child ready for school?” I believe there are 5 main things that families can do to get their children ready for school. 1. Provide an environment that is rich in books. Make that space inviting where they can access the books on their own and have some quiet time with a book. Reading to your children daily is essential. (Even when you are tired and have been on your feet all day, it is a special time for you and your family.) Parents should role model the enjoyment that can be gained from books and read regularly. 2. Allow your children to play alone and with you. Throwing and catching a ball in the back yard, playing a game of soccer, running on the beach, swimming in the pool and time at the playground are all invaluable for a child’s development. Playing board games, dressing
Darrin Schumacher Deputy Principal Head of Junior School
Middle & Senior School News ‘The Spirit of Character’ At St Andrews education focuses on developing the whole person and it is an honour and privilege to journey with our young people each day. Our task as educators is to partner with parents and to encourage our students to develop as learners, to foster their growth, and to help them as they develop the spirit of their character. We strive to intentionally develop young men and women who are caring, compassionate, ethical, moral, resilient, courageous, disciplined and respectful. I recently spoke at Chapel about learnings of the heart as well as learnings of the mind and encouraged students to nurture a ‘growth heart-set’ as well as a growth mind-set.’ To triumph and joy in all good things, but also to allow themselves to feel the
full array of emotions that come with times of challenge. The encouragement was to not let failure, hurt, anger, disappointments and grief linger but rather to allow their faith to be bigger than their fear, knowing that our greatest growth comes from times of challenge. For our graduating class of 2017 this is acutely the case as they prepare to graduate and reflect on both their journey and a future yet to unfold. This week, they also farewell a classmate, Benjamin Fitzsimmons, following his battle with cancer. Benjamin was courageous, caring and true to himself as a young man of character throughout his difficult journey. His passing touches all of our hearts and his memory will continue to journey with all members of our community. His service will be held at the College at 9.00am on Saturday. In a little under two weeks the graduating class of 2017 will begin the next exploration of their life journey. Once the dust settles on their end of year celebrations, they will start to redefine who they are and how they see, understand and shape the world. As the Year 12s move through the final chapter of their journey at St Andrews I’d like to acknowledge them both as a cohort and individually. We are thankful for the gifts, talents and contributions; the legacy they leave as they graduate. Their Christian Studies sessions this term have focused on Good Leaving and reflecting on the legacy they leave at St Andrews. The spirit of their character and their collective resilience, determination and sense of community will remain their legacy. Our Year 9 students have been working through ‘The Edge’ program this term and it was a pleasure to listen to the boy’s reflect on their learning and growth last Thursday night. The common themes of appreciation, teamwork and pushing through fear to grow as young men, reinforces the importance of this significant rite of passage through their schooling years at St Andrews. This experience; beyond the activities, is about building resilience, and self-belief, pushing through boundaries and taking a break from the things of the material world, like technology. With a focus on service, challenging perceived limitations, and community it is a transformational experience. At the start of 2017, we welcomed our new College Principal, Mr David Bliss and an additional class of Year 7 students and they have respectively greatly enhanced our community and helped to shape a year of innovation and creativity. We were blessed to have the new Ruth Butler Theatre facilities reopened this term as the final upgrade to the J Block facilities and our Architects have been working alongside senior staff to develop new plans for an extension and upgrade to our Middle School classrooms, Science facilities and Middle School ablutions block which will see an additional two stories of classrooms built next year. Indeed, 2018 will be a year of celebration for our College as St Andrews celebrates its 25th Anniversary year. At St Andrews we are always exploring the landscape of learning and adjusting to the contemporary learner’s needs. I’d like to express my gratitude to the wonderful staff at the College who continue to embrace changes and challenges, who inspire minds and hearts, and who intentionally focus on developing young people of character with inquiring minds and who embrace working in the challenge zone. Our
teachers continue to innovate and support students to work in that growth zone, exploring new ideas and growing their heart-sets, mind-sets and self-talk about their ability and success criteria as individuals. Our focus on hope and agency, promoting resilience and embracing struggle; investing in being academically tenacious has not only helped our students to be resilient but also to expand their horizons and thoughts around their learning. As we approach the end of the year and start to look ahead to what 2018 will bring for St Andrews we do so with confidence in God’s plan for this amazing community and a deep appreciation for everyone who comes to learn, grow and explore here. He calls us to stretch and to embark on new chapters, new beginnings and new adventures so that we stretch ourselves, explore and grow our gifts to fulfil our potential and to leave our fear behind through a growing faith in Him. Virginia Warner Deputy Principal Head of Secondary School
Science News This week Year 11 Biology students attended an excursion to the headwaters of Currumbin Creek to study a temperate rainforest. Students collected both abiotic and biotic factors that characterised the forest. Students are now engaged in comparing the rainforest to the dry sclerophyll eucalypt forest that can be found above our College. Students are required to investigate how the non-living components of these forests affect the composition of plants found. Students will also research how human activity over the past century has adversely affected these forests and how protection policies can help manage these forests into the future. It is vitally important that our students learn the importance of our local environment and consider how they can help protect this natural asset now and into the future.
David Wyatt Head of Science
Sport News Prep - Year 3 Swim Program Our Prep - Year 3 swimming starts on Monday 13 November so please make sure that you have returned the Rackley Swimming Survey and visited Parent Lounge to accept the Prep - Year 3 Swimming event. We are supplying all swimmers with a cap this year on which we will be writing each child’s name and swimming group. This will improve both the efficiency and safety of our program. Jump Rope For Heart Prep - Year 6 students have enthusiastically embraced our Jump Rope for Heart Program this term. It is fantastic to see the levels of enthusiasm being displayed by students from Prep through to Year 6. We will be conducting our ‘JumpOff’ on Thursday 9 November. Parents are welcome to attend and watch, however it will be very busy and crowded with hundreds of skippers involved. Please check the program information which was emailed home recently. As I write this, we have already raised over $10,000 for the Heart Foundation with Cruz Judge from Year 3A already reaching his target of $2000. Well done Cruz! Our present total amount was raised by only 71 registered students out of a possible 600, so I would ask EVERY student in Prep - Year 6 to register and contribute at least $10 so we can make a big team effort to push our fundraising ‘sky high’! Touch Good luck to our representative Junior School Mixed Touch team, which is competing in the Queensland Primary Schools Touch competition on Saturday 4 and Sunday 5 November. Thank you to Mrs Sue Rawlings and Mrs Leanne Pett for coaching the team every Friday morning and going with the team for the weekend of competition. We know you will all make St Andrews proud. Andy Manion PSPE Teacher Junior School Sports Coordinator
a sophisticated clapping version of “A Sailor went to Sea” showing off their ability to sing and clap with a partner. Finishing the concert with a Christmas finale “I’m a Little Star” where they sang with actions and played percussion instruments with a specific rhythm in between the verses. They delighted their audience indeed, especially as most of them dressed in a Christmas costume for the occasion. Julie Catherwood PAT Teacher End of Year Concert Series
END oF Year Concert series YOU ARE INVITED
November 6th - 24th Support your friends while having fun at our concerts. CONCERT SERIES When
Concert
Time
Venue
Monday 6th Nov
Evening of Song
Ruth Butler Theatre
Monday 6th Nov
JS Vocal Concert (Kristine A Group) JS Vocal Concert (Kristine B Group) JS Vocal Concert (Linlee A Group) JS Vocal Concert (Linlee B Group) Animi Dance Concert
4:00 – 5.30pm 6:00 – 7.30pm 11.00am 11.00am
JS Music Room
11.00am
JS Music Room
Wednesday 8th Nov Thursday 9th Nov Friday 10th Nov Saturday 11th Nov
Performing Arts News Makin’ Mini Music Concert Beautiful singing and playing of instruments was observed at the Makin’ Mini Music Prep Christmas concert on Thursday afternoon. The students from each class got up and performed in front of their parents and classmates with tremendous enthusiasm and excitement. The first number was “Colours of the Rainbow” where they sang and demonstrated their movement talent with rainbow ribbons. The second was
Monday 13th Nov Wednesday 15th Nov Thursday 16th Nov Thursday 16th Nov Tuesday 21st Nov Tuesday 21st Nov Wednesday 22nd Nov Friday 24th Nov
Prisiclla Scott Performing Arts
JS Guitar Concert JS Guitar Concert Piano Concert (John) Piano Soiree (Learne) Year 4 Speech and Drama Year 5 – 11 Speech and Drama Year 3 Speech and Drama Year 1 & 2 Speech and Drama
JS Music Room
11.00am
JS Music Room
4pm (Years 1 - 4) 6:30pm (Years 5 - 12) 11.00am 11.00am 11.00am 3:15pm and 4pm 11.00am 4:00pm
Ruth Butler Theatre JS Music Room JS Music Room JS Music Room MPH JS Music Room Ruth Butler Theatre
11.00am 11.00am
JS Music Room JS Music Room
ELC News Grandparent’s Say was a wonderful event recently held in the ELC. We value your feedback and input into the program in the ELC. A big thank you to all the Prep and Year 1 families for not parking in the ELC carpark. This contributes to fast and effective drop off for families of the College with under aged children. Thank you from the ELC! Bronwyn Waters ELC Director
Student Development World Teachers Day World Teachers Day was celebrated during October around the world. It was a chance to focus on ‘appreciating, assessing and improving educators around the world’. Many St Andrews students went out of their way to celebrate, thank and honour teachers who’d already had a positive and symbolic impact on the student’s lives and learning. As a faculty and community we continue to celebrate the passion and professionalism of our teachers at St Andrews and are buoyed by their interest in growing professionally. We celebrate the reflective practices focussed on improving student engagement; we celebrate the commitment above and beyond the call of their jobs for several teachers to be engaged in professional learning around their impact and team leadership; we celebrate numerous teachers who are engaged and even leading professional networks to stay ahead of the trends in education and student wellbeing.
Throughout 2017 the focus on teacher professional growth has continued and a few examples of the excellent work and curiosity that teachers are doing to assess and improve the quality of the education students experience, are as follows: Our teachers have reflected on and planned for improved approaches to literacy in response to student engagement; Teachers and leaders have collaborated around the embedding of wellbeing as curriculum; Teachers have restructured lessons to make skills more explicit, so that students can improve their thinking skills and approaches to learning; Teachers have deepened their understanding of how to teach emotional regulation with extension classes and at whole class level, to help nurture students struggling with difficulties and setback in their learning. James Nelson Director of Student Development
Saturday 11 Years 7-12 Qld All Schools Weightlifting (Selected
Dates to Remember
Students) Animi Concert Years 1-4 (Selected Students) Animi Concert Years 5-11 (Selected Students)
NOVEMBER
Sunday 12
Saturday 4
Years 7-12 Qld All Schools Weightlifting (Selected
Years 5-6 Primary All Schools Touch (Selected
Students)
Students)
Monday 13
“Energies” Exhibition (Selected Students) The Arts
P-3 Swim Program (Selected Students)
Centre Gold Coast
Trinity College London Drama Exams (Selected
QPST Competition (Touch) (Selected Students)
Students)
Sunday 5
JS Musical Rehearsal (Selected Students)
Years 5-6 Primary All Schools Touch (Selected
Tuesday 14
Students)
Year 11 Halogen Leadership Development (Selected
QPST Competition (Touch) (Selected Students)
Students)
Monday 6
SS Presentation NIght Rehearsals
Year 12 Exams (to Friday 10 November)
(Selected Students)
Year 9 Girls Reflection Day
Year 10 Surfing (Selected Students)
JS Musical Rehearsal (Selected Students)
JS Chapel P-6
An Evening of Song Concerts (Selected Students)
SS Presentation Night, The Arts Centre Gold Coast
Year 11 Hospitality Class Buffet Dinner (Selected
Wednesday 15
Students)
Year 4 Excursion to GOMA Exhibition
Tuesday 7
East Timor Tour Info Afternoon
Year 9 Girls Reflection Day
Thursday 16
Year 10 Surfing (Selected Students)
New Year 7 Students Orientation Morning
Year 10 Visual Art Excursion (Selected Students)
Years 7-11 Rec Sport (Selected Students)
JS Assembly P-6
Piano Soiree
Wednesday 8
Valedictory Dinner for Yr 12’s at Bond
Year 9 Girls Normal Classes
Friday 17
Year 11 Visual Art Excursion (Selected Students)
Year 12 Finish College
Thursday 9
Year 12 Students Last Day/Final Assembly
Middle School Parent 2018 Morning Tea
Years 5-6 Interschool Summer Sport
Prep - Year 6 Jump Rope For Heart in the MPH (Selected Students) First Break JS Vocal Concert Series (Selected Students) Years 7-11 Rec Sport (Selected Students) Year 9 Girls Presentation “The Edge”
Lutheran Youth Queensland School Holiday Camps
Friday 10 Years 7-12 Visual Arts Students Insursion (Selected Students) First Break JS Vocal Concert Series (Selected Students) Years 5-6 Interschool Summer Sport 9 (Selected Students) Animi Concert Rehearsal (Selected Students)
Escape the boredom these school holidays on an LYQ Summer Camp! 6 epic week-long camps across December and January covering Years 3-12. Check out lyq.org.au/summercamps to book your Summer of Fun!
TECHNOLOGY AND PARENTING
insights The role of parents and screen time by Martine Oglethorpe
These little devices that connect us, entertain us, provide us with information, show us where to go, keep us organised and allow us to indulge in retail therapy from almost anywhere, have become an integral part of our daily lives. Most of us won’t leave home for long periods of time without being tethered to a digital device. But when it comes to our children and their screen-time habits, we are often lamenting the role the devices play. These little screens that offer so much and answer so many of our needs also leave us wondering how much is too much for our kids, and how do we keep it under control? When parents ask me this I urge them to dig a little deeper and look at what else they could really be asking. We need to look at how each individual child is coping with their screen time. Are they still doing the things they always enjoyed before they had access to a screen? Are they able to put the screen away without a fight? What sorts of things are they doing on the screen? Is it a positive experience? Are they learning something? Are they interacting with it or merely consuming media? These are questions we need to be constantly revisiting throughout their adolescent years. At the same time, we need to make sure they are learning good habits from the beginning and gaining the skills and behaviours they need to stay in control of their screen time. To help form these habits, here are a few things you can do to keep screen time under control … without your kids resorting to techno-tantrums. Look at how you are role modelling screen-time behaviours We know our kids learn much more from watching what we do, as opposed to listening to what we say. So how is your technology use affecting you? Are you ignoring others because you are scrolling? Are you falling asleep with a phone or tablet landing on your forehead? Are you able to give yourself over to certain tasks and focus without being distracted by beeps and notifications? Are you giving yourself some time without a device to enjoy family, friends and activities that keep you healthy and balanced? Have rules that are ‘no brainers’ for your family When it comes to technology, the rules often change as our children develop and mature. But we can also make some universal rules for the whole family based on our individual family values and what is important to us. It may be that there are no phones in the bedroom at night. It may be that there is no technology after a certain time of the day. It should certainly be that devices never ever come to the table at dinner time. Aiming for at least a few meals where the family is eating together is crucial. Your kids need this time to talk, connect with family and have a break from being ‘switched on’ to a device. They need to get into the habit of not eating and
We're a Parenting Ideas school
parentingideas.com.au/schools
scrolling. So make your rules early and stick to them. Build a culture of balanced play in your home There is no doubt that we as parents need to work harder today to nurture all the many elements of a child’s development.When a small device appears to provide them with so much it is little wonder our kids have trouble putting them down and going outside to play. Unlike a book or a game there is often no end to what happens with a device. There is always something more to see or do, another level to reach, another city to build or another army to destroy. So we need to get better at providing lots of other ways for our kids to be entertained, informed and connected to others. This may mean we have to physically go outside and play with them rather than simply tell them to go out. It may mean we have to insist on visits to places where devices don’t come out. Kids still want to run and jump and play – they just need to be reminded and encouraged to do so even more today. By building other ways to learn, play and interact into our kids’ lives from an early age, we are helping these things become part of their daily lives – habits that in turn become behaviours. So while we often feel like the devices are taking over, all of these strategies rely on us – the parents. We need to be the ones to get in early and help show them the way. We need to take a look at what we are modelling to them in terms of our own device use and our own lifestyle. We need to be helping them form the right behaviours. There are many wonderful benefits that come with these devices, so ensuring we are using them in positive ways, and are in control, will go a long way to ensuring we are all reaping those benefits.
Martine Oglethorpe Martine Oglethorpe is a speaker, counsellor and educator with a passion for building resilient kids in a digital world. Martine is available for student workshops focused on positive online behaviours, for teacher professional development on how the digital world affects what happens in the classroom and for corporate and parent information sessions. For more information head to her website themodernparent.net. Contact details: info@martineoglethorpe.com.au, themodernparent.net, facebook.com/themodernparent
We're a Parenting Ideas school
parentingideas.com.au/schools