PHOENIX RISING
Term 2 2024

All Souls
St Gabriels School CHARTERS TOWERS






All Souls
St Gabriels School CHARTERS TOWERS
Throughout Term 2 we had many significant events and opportunities to engage with our community. In this edition of the Phoenix Rising you will find many examples of our people upholding our School values of integrity, resilience, respect and service.
Our ANZAC Day commemorations were among the best I have seen during my association with All Souls St Gabriels School. From the boys choir at the Requiem Service to leading the march, our students were outstanding.
Our Senior School Cross Country team led by Luke and Tyler kept the streak alive. It was an outstanding team performance which represented the culmination of months of consistent hard work. The future of our Cross Country team appears to be in safe hands with some excellent results from the Junior School team who also were successful in achieving the Champion School Shield for points average.
The much anticipated official opening of the Aquatic Centre was a huge success with Lewis Ramsay (Past Student, 1983-1987) cutting the ribbon. Lewis shared powerful words on the benefits of this investment for the entire community and the crowd enjoyed the skins racing as our best swimmers went head to head.
QISSN and QISSRL teams competed in Townsville with both teams experiencing the highs and lows of the tournament but always with integrity, respect and resilience. Whilst they may not have come home with silverware both teams had some victories they will remember for the rest of their lives. The QISSRL team were awarded the Spirit of Confraternity Award which was a prestigious achievement representing the dedication, commitment and values of the team.
The community consultation for the master plan renewal was well attended and we are making exciting progress in this regard. The new Prep playground should be installed during the Christmas holidays later this year ready for use in Term 1 2025.
The events and successes of Term 2 have filled me with hope and excitement for the second half of the year. As we look to the future our Orientation Program (August 1-3) is not to be missed for students joining our School in 2025. We can’t wait to welcome our new and returning families and prepare their children for what will be an exciting time of their lives.
LUKE KEOUGH & JACALYN ELLIOTT SCHOOL CAPTAINS
Term 2 has been another absolutely busy, exciting, 10 weeks filled with heaps of fun and significant memorable experiences. Straight up in Week 2 on the night before ANZAC day we had our Requiem Mass Chapel service. This is an extremely important tradition we hold at our School as we honour the 72 Past Students who fought and died in battle. Feedback was given that this was the best ASSG Requiem Mass ever conducted. ANZAC Day saw us participate in the Dawn Service and the annual march. This is one of our proudest moments at ASSG as we stand before our School with dignity and respect. As customary we rose high and beyond in the way we conducted ourselves respectfully as a School.
Another amazing experience and a once in a lifetime opportunity was the our involvement in the Official Opening of our Aquatic Centre in Week 4. We were very blessed to have Past Student Lewis Ramsay be a part of this major milestone as our Guest Speaker. This historic opening will provide an immense amount of opportunities for All Souls St Gabriels students, present and future.
Continuing on from the epic start to Term 2, many students have been keeping busy by involving themselves in our many sporting opportunities, with Inter-School Netball and Rugby League, and Club Touch. We have also had Inter-School Cross Country where we managed to bring back our 18th consecutive win, as well as Inter-House Athletics where the mighty Chad & Page House took out the win. Netball has been a shining spot this term as ASSG entered First Girls and our first ever boys netball team into the Townsville Vicki Wilson Cup. The efforts that every participant put into their sporting endeavours this term must be applauded.
Throughout the term, the Prefect team has been fundraising for a new School mascot. To raise funds, the Prefects have commenced Together Tuesday, where every Tuesday the senior cohort sells icy poles and organises inclusive games like touch on the oval, giant chess, cornhole and spike ball to help create a sense of inclusivity.
Lastly, ASSG participated in the Push-Up Challenge. Students decided to participate in this as we aim to educate people about mental health and the broader mental health issues faced by everyday people, as well as foster mental wellbeing and fitness. This is the second year the School has completed this challenge and everyone who participated should be proud of what they have achieved.
There was a lot of hard work happening in the Junior School in Term 2. We all worked really hard to perfect our ANZAC Day marching so we could showcase our School and show our highest level of respect at the Charters Towers ANZAC Day Parade. Year 5 & 6 played their best at each game of Inter-School Touch Football, with some very insightful coaching from Mrs Walsh, Mrs Nicholls and Mrs Thompson. Junior School came home with the Overall Average trophy at our Inter-School Cross Country Carnival and we are so proud of the effort that each student put into their training and their performance on the day.
This term wasn’t all hard work though – there was a lot of fun to be had too. Year 5 & 6 had a great evening at the Reader’s Cup in Townsville, with our greatest results yet. This was thanks to the dedication from Mrs Turner in making sure the teams were ready to go. The Junior School joined the Senior School students for National Simultaneous Storytime and we were grateful for the opportunity to spend some quality time with the Senior School students in their house groups. Year 4 had their first overnight camp to Billabong Sanctuary and there were so many great reports about the exciting things they got up to. Our Junior School looked amazing at the Country Music Parade and we were so impressed with the fantastic dancing that our students were doing as they followed the Country Music float down Gill Street. Mrs Snelling and Miss M did another amazing job with our float.
We are excited to finish our term with the Inter-House Athletics Carnival and recover while we enjoy a well-deserved break. We are looking forward to Term 3 and the Year 6 class is already counting down for their Canberra trip that is just around the corner.
Throughout 2024, we have been working closely with The Resilience Project to support the wellbeing of our School community.
Our Partnership Program consists of an evidence based teaching and learning program which contains online presentations and weekly lessons for students, professional development for staff and a Parent and Carer Hub for our wider community.
This program is an important part of our School’s effort to support the mental health of our community and promote proactive measures to develop resilience based on the development of emotional intelligence, gratitude, empathy and mindfulness.
During the term a number of our Senior School girls attended the 2024 Zonta Women in Science Breakfast at the RSL. The girls listened to 5 guest speakers from all different sciencerelated careers, two of which were ASSG Past Students (Paige 2000-2012, & Clancy 20102011). We thank the Zonta Club of Charters Towers for giving our students an opportunity to listen & learn from like minded women.
In Week 4 we were joined by some ladies from the University of Queensland for a presentation on Women in Engineering at UQ. This was a fantastic opportunity for the girls to talk to women in the industry and get an insight into what a career in Engineering could be like for them.
This term, our Year 9, 10, 11, and 12 students attended the 2024 Careers Expo at the Charters Towers PCYC.
The event featured a diverse array of career trade stalls, giving students the chance to talk with industry experts and start envisioning what their future in the workforce may look like.
The students really enjoyed the opportunity to explore different career paths and make connections.
In Week 5 a number of our students from The Arts got to participate in the Scene Project. The Scene Project is run by the Queensland Theatre Company and is their largest educational offering, encouraging drama students throughout the state to engage in the creative process of performance, from rehearsal through to presentation.
Each year Queensland Theatre commissions a playwright to pen a new work. Our participating drama students are tasked with the challenge of creating their own unique 15 minute version of the play. During the rehearsal phase, Queensland Theatre artists visit participating schools to facilitate workshops, ASSG was fortunate enough to be joined by Lennie Donahue who helped guide us through the process & our ideas.
We look forward to seeing what our students have come up with!
And just like that, 10 weeks of Term 2 has flown by! It’s hard to believe we’re already halfway through the academic year. We’ve achieved a lot over the term, from the opening of our new Aquatic Centre to celebrating National Boarding Week and the Agricultural Show season with our Cattle & Horse Clubs. Additionally, our students participated in events like the ASSG Campdraft Clinic and the QISSN & QISSRL Confraternity week in Townsville. We’re consistently proud of our students and how they manage their diverse commitments. Congratulations to everyone!
I’d like to take a moment to recognise our Year 12 boarders. With just one full academic term left for the year, things are becoming very real for them. They’ve been exceptional leaders within our School, and their support has been invaluable to our boarding community.
The term was packed with recreational activities, including our participation in ABSA’s National Boarding Week, attending Cowboys games in Townsville, and enjoying activities like Laser Tag, KingPin Bowling & Arcade, shopping at Stockland, relaxing on The Strand, Tors Drive-In Cinema, Park Runs, exploring the Charters Towers dining scene, House Games, and the Charters Towers Youth Festival.
I hope all our students return refreshed and ready to tackle the last semester with renewed enthusiasm. Thank you once again for entrusting us with the care of your sons and daughters.
Week 1 of the Term 2 holidays saw our First Netball & Rugby League teams travel to Townsville to participate in the annual QISSN & QISSRL Carnivals. The ASSG teams played very well, coming up against some tough competition. Our girls walked away with four wins and six losses, finishing 5th in Pool 8. The boys finished the week with four wins and two losses, placing 6th in the Confraternity Plate Division.
The ASSG First XIII Rugby League team were awarded ‘The Spirit of Confraternity’ award at the presentations. ASSG was selected for this award out of all of the teams who competed at the Carnival - a huge achievement for our boys!
A big congratulations to our students who were recognised for their efforts by coaches, managers, & their peers:
Kyannah Stafford (ASSG Netball Best & Fairest)
Corey Musk (ASSG Rugby League Best & Fairest)
William Blennerhassett (ASSG Rugby League Spirit of the Carnival)
Yasmin Musk (ASSG Netball Player’s Player)
On 22 May we held the annual National Simultaneous Storytime celebration conducted by the Australian Library and Information Association. As part of this we read this year’s chosen story ‘Bowerbird Blues’. The story was thoroughly enjoyed by all community members of our School, including both senior and junior students, along with staff. Junior School students were also given the opportunity to read a story of their choice with a senior student. This day was a great opportunity for all members of the School to interact with each other.
On Tuesday 11 June, 10 of our Year 5 and 6 students traveled to Townsville to compete in the 2024 North Queensland Readers Cup Competition.
The students read 5 books over the term in preparation and competed against 32 teams, answering a total of 50 questions. Our students had a wonderful night and achieved some great results.
33 students represented All Souls St Gabriels School at the Inter-School Cross Country Carnival hosted by Richmond Hill State School. Several of the races had very close, competitive, nail-biting finishes. Our top placings were in the 11 Years Boys and 12 Years Girls age groups, where Cody Snelling and Lilly-Ann Hensler each placed runner up in their respective age groups, and the 9 Years Boys age group, where Jack Price was named Age Champion. All students’ efforts were rewarded when they won the Inter-School Average Champion School Shield for the 3rd consecutive year.
Eight students were selected to represent Charters Towers at the NQ Cross Country trials in Townsville based on their placings at the Inter-School Cross Country Carnival.
Cody Snelling 11 Years Boys
Lilly-Ann Hensler 12 Years Girls
Jack Price 9 Years Boys
Early mornings, cold weather, determination, hard work and commitment were all things that the Inter-School Cross Country team experienced going into this year’s event. With our team of dedicated runners, coaches, supporters and the “Believe to Achieve” attitude, we were able to win our 18th InterSchool Cross Country in a row. Taking out all trophies for both girls, boys and of course overall. We are extremely proud of all our runners who encouraged each other and other competitors throughout the day. We are also thankful for those that volunteered their time to help train our team.
On 28 May, the top 6 from each age group headed to Townsville for the NQ Trials, with 26 ASSG runners. Everyone tried their hardest and there were many stand out performances. A special congratulations must go to Darcy Cameron (1st in 15 Years Boys), Esme Butcher (3rd in 13 Years Girls), and Lynisa Kennedy (5th in 17 Years Girls). These achievements mean they have qualified for the NQ team.
Bruno Bennetto 12 Years Boys
Mackenzie Jonsson 13 Years Girls
Eve Crozier 13 Years Boys
Max Elliott 14 Years Boys
Tahira Groth 15 Years Girls
William Elliott 16 Years Boys
Tyler Godfrey Opens Girls
Luke Keough Open Boys
Blaze Peddle 13 Years Boys
Lexi Butler 14 Years Girls
Pattison Fink 15 Years Girls
Darcy Cameron 15 Years Boys
Jade Cowan 16 Years Girls
Lynisa Kennedy Opens Girls
The Inter-School Rugby League season kicked off early in the year with first round games played against Blackheath & Thornburgh College (BTC). Throughout the season the 13 Years came a long way from where they began at the start of the year and the whole team improved over time. The 15 Years boys had a great season with some very convincing wins however unfortunately the for and against points led them to missing out on a grand final.
The Second boys had an amazing season going undefeated with 4 big score lines to finish out the season. The First 13 however had a rough season with a couple of wins to start off then doing it tough with some injuries and losing the next couple games and finally going down to Columba Catholic College in the last game. Overall it was a good year for the All Souls St Gabriels School footballers. We would like to give a big thank you to all players, coaches and volunteers.
The Inter-School Netball season kicked off with ANZAC round games played against Blackheath & Thornburgh College (BTC). This year, the 13s, 15s, Second and First VII teams had the chance to play against the other 4 Secondary Schools. The 13s girls had a great season, where they proved they are not to be underestimated. They didn’t let their losses get to them and their defensive pressure led them to come 1st overall.
The 15s also came out on top as they showed fast-paced attack down court and communication in play. The Second team bought experience, great defense and attack to each game and they finished the season as undefeated premiers. The First VII girls were met with good competition this year and had an even amount of wins and losses, winning 3rd overall, missing out on 2nd by 1 point. Thank you to all players, coaches and umpires for a great season.
Our Senior School boys jumped at the opportunity to head out for a hit at the Town Courts for Inter-House Tennis this term. There were both social & competitive categories as well as a doubles competition. Congratulations to Ramsay House who were the overall winners.
Well done to all of the boys who got involved, and a big thank you to Mr Single & the staff who made it possible.
The annual Charters Towers Netball Carnival was held on the 11 & 12 May. ASSG entered 7 teams into the competition across a range of divisions.
Congratulations to Gabes Scorchers (14s) who finished on top of their division, and to Nate Musk & Ella Thomson from Gabes Embers who both received MVP of their division.
The Country Music Parade is always a highlight in the calendar of our Junior School students and this year they were joined by a number of our Senior School students & Prefects!
In 2024 the theme for the parade was ‘Aussie Bangers’ and our students & staff nailed the brief!
AGE AGE CHAMPIONS RUNNERS UP
6 Years Pippa Walsh Daphne Fry
7 Years Darcy Hilditch Claire Berryman & Layla Price
8 Years Frankie Fry Laynie Hamlyn
9 Years Phoebe Wallis Harper Crane
10 Years Sarah Hardy Georgia Johnson
11 Years Ella Thomson Pippa Tait
12 Years Lilly-Ann Hensler Ella Scanlan
AGE AGE CHAMPIONS RUNNERS UP
6 Years Daniel Groves Archie Salmond
7 Years Beau Thomson Hunter Woods
8 Years Lewis Walsh Bodhi Butler
9 Years Jack Price Lucas Bensemann
10 Years Archie Kennedy Lucas Fry
11 Years Mason Storey Samuel Shun
12 Years Kayd Barr William Knight
Overall - Feetham & Becket
AGE AGE CHAMPIONS RUNNERS UP
12 Years Macey Elliott Lainee Heading
13 Years Lilah Plant Alyson Elisala
14 Years Lexi Butler Mikayla Kennedy
15 Years Pattison Fink Hollie Laffin
16 Years Jade Cowan Stevie Williamson Opens Georgia Gostelow Tyler Godfrey
Girls - Chad
AGE AGE CHAMPIONS RUNNERS UP
12 Years Ilikena Dabea Bruno Bennetto
13 Years Mathias Laza Damien Pedersen
14 Years Lianidas Yamashita Lachlan Bonner-Chookie
15 Years Darcy Cameron Joel Pearson-Walsh
16 Years Xavier Lord Ian Lamont Opens Darby Linton Clancy Stretton
CHAMPION HOUSES
Overall - Chad & Page Boys - Page
This year, Cattle Club students started the show season off with a bang. Our first chance to show off our skills was at the Cattle Handling clinic held at School. We were able to learn a variety of new skills that would help us in the upcoming showing events. Soon after, five ASSG Cattle Club students had the exciting opportunity to take part in Beef week. This event was a great opportunity for the students to represent the School in such a large event in Rockhampton.
Hughenden was the next show that the ASSG Cattle Club participated in. This event helped students build on judging skills they had been taught at the clinic. Hughenden was awesome for this as the cattle section at the show was small allowing new students to get a feel for what the larger shows would be like. Hughenden was a huge success, students seeing plenty of ribbons and winners. Then before we knew it the following week students headed to Northern Beef Expo and Winton in what was an exhausting weekend. Northern Beef Expo took place at the sale yards where students judged stud bulls before loading back onto the bus to travel to Winton. On Saturday the Cattle Club participated in young paraders, weight classes, stud and commercial judging. Students saw plenty of success in various events.
I would like to say a huge thank you to Lionel Hartig, Keith Hanson and Mrs Hare for taking us to all of these events, supporting us and making it possible for us to further our knowledge in the cattle industry.
For many of our team, this season was their first experience playing touch football, and the rules can be quite overwhelming, especially for those who play rugby league. Despite all the training, the first few boys’ games were almost played in slow motion as we reminded them that there is no marker, no tackling, no kicking, and you do not pick the ball up and play on after it touches the ground. In Round 4, the boy’s touch football team tasted victory for the first time, which really brought the team together. They finished the season strongly with a 1-1 draw, ending 5th on the ladder. The girls picked up the rules a little quicker; they opened their season with a draw and went on to win in Round 2; they then finished with a draw to end the season 4th on the ladder.
During Term 2 in Pre-prep, we have enjoyed many new experiences that extend on the children’s interests, including The Arts. The Arts not only helps the children strengthen the muscles in their hands and fingers for fine motor development, but it also allows them to explore the mixing and changing of colours and experiencing the sensory enjoyment of paint directly on their hands. The children often create their own stories or learning during these experiences.
The Pre-prep children show a love of music and movement and naturally enjoy singing, dancing, exploring sound sources, listening and being creative. The children enthusiastically join in with Miss Alanna and Miss Miliauskas during their music lessons. Extending their love of music, we have been incorporating music into the children’s learning. They are eager to apply and develop their literacy and numeracy skills through music, especially with number rhymes.
Outdoor play is another popular activity among the Pre-prep children. Through outdoor play, the children can explore the natural environment and have adventures. The Pre-prep children love to use this time to play games, test their physical limits, express themselves and build their self-confidence.
In Science in Prep, we have been learning all about what animals and plants need to stay healthy. As part of this unit students looked after a plant and an animal, which was a fish. The students worked together to think of different names, and we voted on our favourite which was Shelly. Each day a different student got to feed Shelly some fish food. We decided on three ways we will look after Shelly:
1. Make sure Shelly has a clean home.
2. Keep Shelly in the water so she can breathe.
3. Give Shelly food each day.
We were all very excited to look after and take care of this new member of our class. To finish off our unit, students got to create a home for an animal of their choosing, ensuring it had everything it needed to stay alive, as well as some things it might like or enjoy. The students got very creative!
We can’t wait for what next term brings!
Heuir’s Hearts enjoyed creating a digital poster to educate others about the threats to green sea turtles. As part of this project, they made their own superheroes to help spread the message. The superheroes were assembled by selecting, colouring, dragging and grouping shapes one step at a time, until an image was formed. They then cut and pasted their superheroes into their posters. WOW!
Year 1 started to get really clever with technology this term! To help us learn where the keys are on the keyboard, the class used Dance Mat Typing. We got better at logging onto the computer, finding PowerPoint, and starting a new page. Some tricky bits included learning to right-click our mouse so that our new page could be blank. Did you know that computers are not that smart? It was our job to tell the computer what it needed to do. That meant if we wanted to type on the screen, we needed to insert a text box first. To change the font size or colour, we had to highlight the typing with our mouse. Otherwise, the computer did not know what we were trying to do. We put all these skills together to design a digital portrait of the future. Reardon’s Retro Groovers worked so hard this term.
MRS AMELIA BUCHHOLZ
MRS JANE TURNER
MRS MELISSA NICHOLLS
Wow! What a term it has been. Year 3 have been working extremely hard this term. Whilst learning across a variety of subjects, a few key moments have stood out. In English, we read an amazing novel ‘Kumiko and the Dragon’ which took us on an adventure flying through the clouds and visiting the dragon city. In Mathematics, we learnt about several concepts, but our favourites have been money and chance. Our new favourite game is P.I.G, a chance game which involves rolling a dice and adding up our scores. You can either take the chance to continue rolling and get a higher score or sit down with your current score. However, if a number 1 is rolled scores go back to zero and the person with the highest score wins. At any free opportunity P.I.G is the game we play. Ask any Year 3 student and they will be able to teach you! It is a lot of fun!
The highlight of Term 2 for Year 4 was the Outdoor Education Camp at Billabong Sanctuary in Townsville. This was a great opportunity to extend our classroom learning in Science, develop some independence and enjoy an overnight experience with our classmates. Some memorable moments were had including touching, feeding and learning about a variety of animals, including some of Australia’s endangered animals; a first ever night tour of the park; sleeping on stretcher beds and sleeping bags in the Melaleuca Centre beside the lake and the great food we enjoyed throughout the trip. We would like to thank Mrs Nicholls, Mrs Turner and Mr Sweeney for accompanying Year 4 on this trip.
Year 5 have had a massive term academically, emotionally and socially. Successfully navigating a School day can be difficult for a child of this age, so this term our focus has been on becoming aware of our own behaviour and social dynamic. This has led into using our “Zones of Regulation” approach to facilitate conversations around our feelings and provide a framework and vocabulary to explore our ability to understand and effectively regulate our feelings. One tool we found useful is our colour coded cards we have placed on our desk which allows the teacher to check in with how the students are going, and which of the 4 zones they are in. Each colour signifies a specific zone so the teacher can initiate a conversation about how they are feeling at any specific time. Another tool we have used is feeling cards. The children had to choose three cards which they resonated with feeling lately. Then they had to talk about the feelings and the context in which they came up. The children were awesome at sharing and expressing how they felt at the time. It opened it up for the students to show compassion and understanding for themselves and their classmates. Term 2 has been a wonderful term with a class of magnificent and marvellous students.
Term 2 was a whirlwind of creativity and excitement for our Year 6 students. They poured their hearts into completing captivating Media Arts videos, showcasing their budding talents and storytelling skills. Under the enthusiastic guidance of Miss Vee, they dove into Drama, exploring new ways to express themselves and build confidence on stage. Their artistic journey didn’t stop there – they also began crafting stunning artworks for the upcoming Charters Towers Show. It was truly inspiring to see our Year 6 students shine and share their diverse artistic talents across various subjects.
Here is a poem capturing the best parts of our creative Term 2.
C- Crafting symmetry and rotation in art with flair,
R- Revealed our names in colours so bright and rare.
E- Every scene in drama, we improvised with zest,
A- Acting out stories, we gave it our best.
T- The camera rolled as we filmed on location,
I- Imagining we had the world’s best occupation.
V- Videos we edited, creativity on display,
E- Every moment captured are memories to stay.
PRUE CLARKE
Our Year 9 class spent two days at the Anabranch River on their overnight outdoor education camp. The students took part in many activities to demonstrate their skills in minimal impact practices such as campsite selection, cooking, navigation and canoeing. It was a great opportunity for students to get out of their comfort zone and was thoroughly enjoyed by all!
This term our girls entered an Under 15s, & an Open team into the Karyn Murphy Rugby League Cup in Townsville. They played three games throughout the day-long Carnival and both managed to walk a way with a win and two losses.
The girls took on some very strong and experienced competition, and gained some very valuable knowledge.
Term 2 2024 has seen the creation of the first ever ASSG Boys Netball team. The boys travelled alongside our First VII Girls to Townsville to compete in the annual Vicki Wilson Cup.
Both teams played well, with a special mention to the boys who continued to improve throughout the day after only a few weeks training in a new sport. Great job to all involved!