Huddle - Autumn 2019

Huddle St Aidan’s Anglican Girls’ School AU T U M N

E D I T I O N

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Cover

A U T H E N T I C C A R I N G C O N F I D E N T C R E AT I V E C O N N E C T E D

Huddle Editor Alice Tidmarsh

Graphic Design Annie Fanning

Contributors Lisa Adderson Kate Atkin Wendy Biggs Gaye Brown John Cantwell Giovanni Capello James Cuskelly Megan Daley Sue Figliano Glenda Hamilton Lily Hannaford Sarah Hodge Tim Kemp Caitlin McCluskey Andy McGregor-Lowndes Gillian Moses Toni Riordan Scarlett Rowe Claire Rush Sue Russell Rachel Sakurai Jennifer Teh

Photographic Contributors Marc Pricop Lynda Davidson Liesa Hogg Cover Healthy competition at the Junior School Interhouse Cross Country carnival held at Ambiwerra in March

Open Mornings Thursday 23 May 9am-11am Thursday 8 August 9am-11am Thursday 21 November 9am-11am

Visit our website to find out more: www.staidans.qld.edu.au

From the Principal

Welcome to the Autumn edition of The Huddle! I am proud to share this latest edition with you; I believe it captures a wide range of activities, community events and educational programs shared from teachers’ perspectives and student voices.

A national conversation is emerging around the purposes of schooling and a review of the National Goals of Schooling will be undertaken this year. There is clearly a broad envisioning of the nation’s future in a rapidly changing world.

How schools can best prepare students for that future is key to the conversation.

Ms Toni Riordon PRINCIPAL

B Ed, M Ed Le, MACEL, MACE, GAICD

We know that different skills will be required in order to thrive in the workplace of the future. A McKinsey report on the future of organisations and work noted growing occupations, which will include those with difficult to automate activities and those in unpredictable physical environments. Learning for a changed workplace includes balancing STEM skills with an emphasis on creativity, critical and systems thinking and adaptive and life-long learning.

My hope is that you will see the many ways that St Aidan’s is preparing students for the future of work and for a future of ‘always’ learning. Everyday music lessons, entrepreneurial thinking, digital technologies, design and STEAM projects feature within the following pages of The Huddle and of course in the daily life of our school.

My best wishes in this 90th year of the life of St Aidan’s. I look forward to sharing celebratory events with many of you throughout 2019.

Ms Toni Riordan Principal

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STUDENT LEADERS - 2019

Aidan’s Amplify turn up

the spirit!

M e et our 2019 S c ho ol Ca ptain s This year, as we celebrate the 90th anniversary of St Aidan’s, we believed that it was only fitting to introduce a school theme that encapsulated the extraordinary nature of our school community. Thus, we have created the theme: Aidan’s Amplify – turn up the spirit!

This theme aims to exemplify the energy and unity that are present within our school and wider community. Not only does it pay homage to the current nature of our school community, it also encourages the girls to strive for more; whether that be to attend more events, participate in more extra-curricular activities or being a more active member of the community. The particular focus of this theme was the idea of unity, as at St Aidan’s, we have the advantage of being a smaller school, thus making the connections between all members of our community that much closer and stronger. This year, we are encouraging girls to embrace these connections and unite, so that our school can grow and prosper throughout 2019. In St Aidan’s 90th year, we believe that it is only apt that we amplify what it truly means to be a member of our incredible school community and celebrate the privilege that we have of being a part of it.

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STUDENT LEADERS - 2019

Sarah Hodge - School Captain 2019

Lily Hannaford - Vice Captain 2019

Year commenced: 2007

Year commenced: 2013

House: Hartland

House: Cavell

What do you love most about being a St Aidan’s girl?

What do you love most about being a St Aidan’s girl?

The girls and teachers that I get to see every day; because the school is intentionally smaller I get to know everyone.

I love being part of a small community where everyone knows each other, thus, meaning we are all closer as a school and form deeper bonds with one another.

What subjects will you be studying in 2019?

Biology, Chemistry, Modern History, English, English Extension (only offered in grade 12, studied Maths C in 2018) If you could create any new product or service, what would it be?

What subjects will you be studying in 2019?

Maths A, Maths B, English, Accounting, Economics, Physics If you could create any new product or service, what would it be?

Something that would allow for all girls across the school (P-12) to connect on a more regular basis, rather than just at a small number of events throughout the year.

I would like to create something which could take the sea water or any dirty water and within seconds make it clean drinking water, therefore there will be enough clean water for everyone.

What is your best advice for managing life as a high school student?

What is your best advice for managing life as a high school student?

Work out when you are your most productive and try to dedicate that time to your school work, which will then allow you to find more opportunities to take time for yourself.

To make lists and not procrastinate, but if you do procrastinate remind yourself of how you feel when you have to hurriedly finish an assignment the night before which will get you motivated not to procrastinate.

Where do you see yourself in 5 years’ time?

Starting my last year of university or adjusting into my first post-uni job; dependent on what degree I choose to study next year.

Where do you see yourself in 5 years’ time?

I hope in 5 years I will be in the middle of a degree and have done some travel, gaining some hands on experience helping those less fortunate than myself in developing countries. huddle I autumn 2019 3

STUDENT ACHIEVEMENTS

Honours Students 2018 Each year we celebrate our graduates who have truly excelled. Our Senior students who achieved above and beyond. Our list of Honours recipients is an example of the St Aidan’s students who have put in the hard work and have been rewarded at the end of their school life by receiving an OP 1-5. They are an inspiration to their peers and younger students and we are proud to have played a small part in the lives of these remarkable young women, knowing they will go on to do amazing things.

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STUDENT ACHIEVEMENTS

Tertiary Destinations

100% of total applicants received an offer from QTAC in the January round.

13% Society and Culture (e.g. Law, Economics, Psychology, Sport & Recreation)

17%

Management and Commerce

3% Education

(e.g. Hospitality Management, Banking & Finance)

(e.g. Early Childhood, Primary, Secondary)

9%

Area of Study

32%

Creative Arts

(e.g. Music, Graphic Design, Communication and Media Studies)

Health

(e.g. Medicine, Pharmacy, Veterinary Science, Naturopathy, Speech Pathology)

8%

Architecture and Building

14% Natural and

4%

(e.g. Mathematics, Physics, Laboratory Technology)

(e.g. Chemical, Automotive, Civil, Aerospace, Biomedical, Surveying)

Engineering and IT

Physical Sciences

Tertiary Institution Destinations Institution Queensland University of Technology (QUT) The University of Queensland (UQ) Griffith University Other Universities TAFE

(e.g. Urban & Regional Planning, Interior Design)

Overall Position Results (2018) 2018 (%)

Result

St Aidan’s

42% 50% 4%

OP 1

9.5%

2.83%

OP 1 – 5

42%

21%

OP 1 – 6

51%

27.46%

OP 1 – 10

82%

54%

OP 1 – 15

99%

83%

4% 0%

State

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STUDENT ACHIEVEMENTS

QCE Distinguished Academic Achievement Award The QCE Achievement Awards are for students who graduated from Year 12 with a QCE at a Queensland school. The awards ceremony was held at the State Library of Queensland on Saturday 16 February 2019, celebrating the achievements of those who graduated in 2018.

We wish to congratulate our Dux, Phoebe McAuliffe, who received a Distinguished Academic Achievement Award at this ceremony.

Phoebe has accepted an industry scholarship to study a Bachelor of Mining Engineering at the University of New South Wales in Sydney.

Phoebe shared her excitement and anticipation of the year ahead: “What I’m most looking forward to is moving into college and the social aspect of university”. Phoebe has been a very active member of the community, in 2017 she shaved her head for a cause close to her heart, raising over $10,000 for cancer research. “My little brother died from cancer when he was three and he is my biggest inspiration. He’s taught me what is important in life — family over material possessions, or achievements even, and that relationships with other people are incredibly important. He had mantras like ‘brave me’ that he would say before he got needles and I used those to help me through tough times.

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STUDENT ACHIEVEMENTS

HELPA at the Women in Digital Awards In October last year, St Aidan’s students Anouk

The 500+ tech industry attendees were

Johnson, Alexandra Spalding and Gabrielle

enthralled to hear about the girls’ adventures

Preston, were invited to be guest speakers at the

pitching their app at NASA Kennedy Space

inaugural Women in Digital Gala Awards night at

Center in Florida and numerous tech companies

the W Hotel in Brisbane. The event was billed as

throughout Silicon Valley. In presenting their

‘a celebration of incredible women, companies,

story, the girls highlighted the tremendous

disruptors and advocates within the Digital and

support of the St Aidan’s community as well as

IT industries’ and the girls shared the stage with

the Tech Girls Movement and founder, Dr Jenine

the Executive Program manager at Google, Sally

Beekhuyzen.

Ann Williams, Minister for Innovation, Kate Jones, and CEO & Founder of the Ivvy Marketplace, Lauren Hall.

By the end of the night, numerous comments had been posted on social media by attendees who were amazed at the achievements of these

For twenty minutes, the girls spoke passionately

young women, many commenting that the HELPA

about their tech entrepreneurship journey

presentation was a highlight of the event. The

through the development of their app, HELPA.

experience of mixing with so many influential

Gabrielle shared the story of her grandmother’s

women in tech and entrepreneurship was one

ongoing friendship with a homeless man which

that will stay with the girls. Not only do they now

became the inspiration behind the idea of using

have an impressive list of contacts but they

an app to help connect homeless people with

have also seen the value of networking and

other members of the community and break

celebrating the achievements of women in an

down stereotypes.

industry in which they are still under-represented.

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A U S T R A L I A N M AT H E M AT I C A L S C I E N C E S I N S T I T U T E

Australian Mathematical Sciences Institute (AMSI) International Women’s Day Mathematics Conference To celebrate International Women’s Day, a delegation of six Year 10 students represented St Aidan’s at the Australian Mathematical Sciences Institute (AMSI) International Women’s Day Mathematics Conference held at QUT. The day showcased a series of inspiring speakers working in maths related fields, raising awareness and helping students to understand and hear about the endless opportunities choosing Maths can offer.

The first speaker, medical researcher, Lyndal Henden’s work focusses on studying the DNA of people affected by malaria and identifying patterns of natural selection that are associated with drug resistance. One of the inspiring things about Lyndal is that she has found Maths really challenging at times but managed to work through it and find a career that she is passionate about and that makes the world a better place.

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Laura McMahon is a chemical engineer who has applied her skills to improving life for many people in different walks of life. After earthquakes in Nepal, she went and helped to design and construct a stove for remote rural communities.

Most recently, she has helped reduce the carbon footprint on offshore oil platforms by designing a miniature desalination plant to provide a supply of fresh water rather than shipping in bottles. Laura says that one of the most important things she has learned is that it is okay to not know everything straight away.

As well as listening to some inspiring individual stories and a panel discussion, the girls were even able to ask some of the presenters their own questions and meet the presenters one-on-one, enabling some enthusiastic discussion.

The students found the experience eye-opening and discovered that Maths is everywhere including jobs you never knew existed!

BUY SMART COMPETITION

Buy y S ma r t Bu C o mp etitio n The Buy Smart Competition, run by the Office of Fair Trading, endeavours to assist students to become more informed consumers who can better identify consumer-related risks. Business students in Years 9 and 10 took an entrepreneurial thinking approach in preparing entries for the competition. They empathised and researched the risks associated with scams, limited financial capability and inadequate knowledge of consumer rights to build and develop solutions to educate a variety of audiences to become more informed consumers. Projects included videos, websites, board games, brochures, interactive quizzes and children’s books.

Three teams from Years 9 and 10 were selected as finalists in the statewide competition and attended a ceremony at Parliament House in November. Awards and prizemoney were presented by Attorney-General Yvette D’Ath who commented on the “impressive knowledge of consumer issues” showcased by our students.

Congratulations to the following students on their outstanding results: 1st Place: Paris Teevan, Eloise O’Donnell and Taya Kesby 2nd Place Elisa Tamai, Rose Ringelstein and Gabby Christou

Highly Commended Lily Ji and Tiana Tong Certificate of Distinction An-Ky Matzaris, Emily Pell, Isabella Burridge, Isabel Lin and Christine Yang

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MUSIC

Ma kin g the C o nne ctio n Classroom Music and Instrumental Performance Students at St Aidan’s are privileged to have the options of classroom music, private tuition and the choice of over 20 different extracurricular music groups over the duration of their education.

There is evidence of a clear link between the intensive classroom music education program, particularly the Every Day Music program, and superior musical outcomes in terms of instrumental performance.

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MUSIC

The ability to sing confidently and in tune directly affects a student’s ability to play with assurance on an instrument. The use of breath to sustain and control the sound is paramount to the success of both activities.

The musical thinking required to sing from memory is the same thinking that enables students to hear and play melodies accurately and in tune on their instrument.

The development of part-work through classroom music is a skill which is used frequently during ensemble playing. There are up to 30 parts in a full concert band and students are required to listen to multiple parts simultaneously and make their contribution accurately and spontaneously.

In band repertoire, students often encounter difficult rhythmic combinations. The use of rhythm-names in the classroom program gives the conductor a way to make connections between the known and unknown.

The discovery-based approach used in classroom music can be extended during the band session. Often the students will encounter a music problem or new concept during the band rehearsal; and by drawing on prior classroom music skills, students are able to combine their ideas to solve musical problems and enhance their understanding of more complex musical repertoire.

Students in the band program at St Aidan’s can play so much more than just the rhythm and notes. From musicianship developed through classroom music, they are able to extend their performance to include expressive elements such as articulation and dynamics to accurately communicate the composer’s intent.

With evidence strongly suggesting that music participation supports overall academic performance, it is wonderful to see that at the start of 2019 over 300 students are enrolled in private tuition and over 200 participate in the extracurricular music groups offered at St Aidan’s.

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COMMUNITY CHOIR

St Aidan’s Community Choir The St Aidan’s community choir was first formed in 2006 by Jen Teh. As a new music teacher at St Aidan’s, Jen noticed many parents commenting on the fact that, whilst they loved attending the school concerts their children sang in, they missed singing in choirs themselves. Several parents had not sung since they were at school. Jen formed the community choir, inviting past students, parents, staff and past staff to attend. Sixty people joined the choir that year and a number of them are still in the choir today, thirteen years on.

The choir is now open to members of the broader community as well as those in the immediate St Aidan’s community. Rehearsal is weekly on Tuesday evenings in the second half of the year and no auditions or past singing experience are necessary. The choir sings a range of music, from classical to popular, and performs at school concerts, public events and at the school’s Annual Awards Ceremony held each November.

The first rehearsal for 2019 will be on Tuesday 16 July at 6.30pm in the Auditorium. If you are interested in joining, please visit: www.staidans.qld.edu.au/community/community-choir

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STE AM PROJECT

STEAM Project

Bringing Art, Science and Engineering together, the STEAM Project recognises that in dynamic cultures, these disciplines must be combined to imagine future possibilities. Our Year 8 STEAM students are learning about how to visualise and enclose space in 3-dimensional forms in the urban environment. They are carrying out experiments on the Engineering concepts of what shapes best support structures and are looking at the basic spatial concepts of Sempers’ 4 Elements of Architecture.

The girls are taking a quantity of planed timber laths to different locations around The Link and are creating structures to enclose notional “spaces”.

They are considering how their structures are relating directly to, and transforming, the physical conditions of The Link around them.

Next, they will be making a series of drawings (to scale) and models based on their observations and manipulations (abstraction) of the built project. They will learn about the concepts of volume and mass and carefully observe the patterns, sequences and voids that are being produced in their models and drawings. Using their new awareness of architectural space, the term will end with the students designing a sitespecific structure that will have scale, proportion, and humanitarian function and will respond to its surroundings.

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C R E AT I V E A R T S - G L O W

Creativity comes in many forms Sir Ken Robinson the famous English educator defines creativity as ‘putting your imagination to work’. Our students, across a breadth of arts and design subjects, personified this at their first Glow event. Little wonder, there was so much to acknowledge and celebrate on the night, as our students showed through the diversity of their work, charity contribution and performances, the value of fresh thinking, determination, collaboration, thoughtful problem solving and resilience. We witnessed skills that are life-long and passions that will be great companions in the years ahead. Creativity comes in many forms; it is often characterised

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by invested research, energetic focus, risk taking and playful discipline especially when facing tasks and challenges that have no rigid pathway or correct answer. Above all Glow showed how these are insignificant unless they are accompanied by that paradoxical trait of ‘creatives’ - perseverance!

Glow coincided (deliberately) with the anniversary of the 2017 official opening of The Link. Not only did it provide a rich platform to reflect on what has occurred in the space during the year but also to ponder the best way forward to optimise its impact on creative and innovative student learning and experiences in the future.

C R E AT I V E A RT S - G L O W GLOW showcased and celebrated student work and we ‘hear’ from some of the participants...

I was extremely grateful to have the opportunity to perform as part of Stage amongst our school’s community in a non-competitive environment, where together we could share and celebrate our group work and flare.

Avalon Ormiston Year 11

For music students, performing at GLOW allowed us to experience being immersed in another layer of creative content. It was a wonderful opportunity for us to not only showcase our chamber music groups, but also to admire the art students’ creations. As the art and music programs rarely cross over, many students would not have had the chance to experience this if not for GLOW. Ella Lau Year 11

As someone who has a passion for art, it really was an amazing feeling to see the school community immersed in its many forms at GLOW. Particularly, it was a rewarding opportunity for all the grade 12 art students to showcase the visual art that we’d worked hard to produce throughout the year. I know that as a younger student I would have been immensely inspired by an event like this, so it was an honour to be involved with GLOW in my final year at St Aidan’s.

Lilly Van Gilst Year 12

At GLOW I modelled in the fashion display with my best friend; we wore vintage-inspired garments that we made by ourselves. The girls in the show were given the opportunity to get their hair and makeup done by a professional make-up and special effect’s artist.

This was an experience I very much continue to value and hope to build on.

Alita Reihana-Smyth Year 9

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R EE AATTI IVV OW CR E EA A R TRST S- -G LGOLW

Performing at GLOW was an amazing experience we still smile about. The Year 10 drama class spent Semester Two working on a full-length play and GLOW gave us the opportunity to perform a snippet to a live audience. It showed us that we were ready to perform on the big stage. GLOW has such a welcoming and supportive atmosphere that it boosted our confidence to know we are part of something beyond our classroom, part of the Arts at St Aidan’s.

Emily Pell Year 10

For GLOW, I was a member of the cooking classes. Cooking for over 200 people was very daunting; we only had the experience of making food for less than 20 people. Although we put 100% effort and care into what we did, it was still very nerve-racking to see people actually eat our food. I was so happy to hear people compliment us, saying how much they enjoyed our cooking and the presentation.

Ella Woodman Year 9 GLOW was a unique experience, it had an especially friendly and open-minded atmosphere. It was a great way for parents, teachers and the rest of the school to see what the Creative Arts and Design community at St. Aidan’s has to offer. Showcasing our artwork by ‘wearing’ it allowed us to be proud of what we had been working on and showed us the importance of thinking of alternate ways of displaying our work and allowing the audience to interact with them. There was a joyful ambience of sharing and appreciation!

Eve Limboro and Erin Sullivan Year 10

We had so much fun celebrating the joy of art, design and technology at GLOW. The Link was alight with creativity that night. We were able to perform our pitch for Speechability, a jobseeking platform for people with Autism. It was an exciting experience sharing our innovation with the wider St Aidan’s community.

Lily Sullivan And Aeshlein Ralston Year 10

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HISTORY - UNCOVERING THE PAST

Un c ove r in g the Pa st The Year 7 History students stepped back in time in February. As part of their study of Ancient History, they visited Abbey Museum and had the opportunity to literally uncover the past in an Archaeological dig in search of Egyptian artefacts. They also participated in a re-creation of a mummification as they learnt about the Ancient Egyptian funerary process. It was a great day out for the students and a terrific opportunity to see History come alive.

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DRAMA

Home: a suburban obsession is about the allure of home and the stories found within, inspired by one of the largest digitised photographic collections of Queensland houses.

It explores the social and emotional foundations of our houses through ephemera and artistic responses, capturing the places we call home.

During the 1960s and 70s, Frank and Eunice Corley roamed the suburbs photographing houses in South-East Queensland. Fifty years on, the legacy of their efforts is an extensive collection of images that indiscriminately capture Queensland homes.

Our Year 10 Drama students visited this exhibition to explore and respond to the Corleys’ photographs, the immersive virtual reality streetscape, art installations and to interact with the incredible untold stories of home-owners who were captured through the Corleys’ viewfinder. Students will respond to this wonderfully nostalgic exhibition through the development of a series of performances which imagine the lives inside the thousands of homes on display and will present these as part of the exhibition to members of the public.

Information supplied by State Library of Queensland 2019

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DRAMA

Triplets separated at birth.

Their only connection; a recurring nightmare.

People are going missing in the small outback town of Darrimie.

Who or what is to blame? Crocs? Sink holes?

The unforgiving landscape? Or is it something more sinister?

Three sisters, haunted by the same nightmare, try to understand the missing pieces of their past. The characters are catapulted into the land of the lost and found, where reality and legend begin to blur.

Never Never Alone is a relevant, funny, gripping, and contemporary ghost story, best told around the campfire, where the missing are found, and the found go missing.

2019 will be an incredibly exciting year for the St Aidan’s Drama Club as we begin rehearsals for our production of Never Never Alone by esteemed Brisbane playwright, Natalie Nunan. An original commissioned work written especially for our students, Never Never Alone will be sure to engage audiences in the strange and tangled tale of Alexandra, Larissa and Clara; separated sisters adrift in the world. Enhanced by ghostly cinematic scenes directed by our 2017 Old Girl, Talia Newton, with a dedicated student production team, Never Never Alone will take audiences on a journey through loss, anger and connection to discover the true meaning of family.

Keep an eye out on our social media channels for details of dates and ticket availability.

Natalie Nunan Natalie Nunan is a Brisbane based playwright, poet, teacher and director.

Natalie has been a drama teacher in Queensland for thirteen years, writing, directing and producing several original musicals, including, ‘Brent Street’ (2013) and ‘The Scarlet Emerald’ (2015).

She has worked with senior school students and teachers to create and produce cinematic theatre performances, aligning with QCAA syllabus requirements for many years.

In 2016, Natalie wrote, directed and produced, ‘Russo’s Run’, a cinematic live theatre production, that premiered at Metro Arts in a sell-out season run, receiving critical acclaim for its originality and authentic characters.

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J UENS II O SW IMMING CARNIVAL D GRN SCCHHAOLOLLE N GE

Ur aut laboris expedi audae praecep rovides torehen ihitatemposa corem et undaestio voluptur?

Bit ut etur simusanis et pelesedi inusam quid ut qui dit, simpe non restrum venis velitatium ut viti cuptatet, atiis dignis re la dolende moditaestius evere, idit quodi doluptaerem faccaborit aut hit, tent, optatis esed maxim volecul luptius, odi ut et ipsandite sit quiae

Athlete Performance Centre (APC) In 2016 the planning and fit out commenced to redevelop the St Aidan’s gymnasium into a state of the art Health and Fitness centre. At that time the gymnasium contained basic gym equipment which included benches, Indoor rowers, spin bikes, leg press and smith machines. Over the following three years the gymnasium was transformed into the Athlete Performance Centre (APC), which has been tailored to the health and fitness requirements for the development of female students. Some of the fitness equipment that was added to the APC includes bands, medicine balls, dumbbells, cable machine, boxing bags, sleds, battle ropes and kettlebells. In addition, rubber flooring, artificial turf and a matted stretching area has been laid. The APC is equipped to accommodate girls in Year 7-12 of all strength and fitness levels, and whom may perform introductory bodyweight exercises to more advanced exercises such as the back squat and deadlift.

In 2019 the APC has grown into a well utilised facility within the school, providing health and fitness training to girls over a number of different programs. These include strength and conditioning sessions, group fitness and learn to box classes, before and after school. The APC is also used to deliver the Year 7 Health and Physical Education curriculum, Fundamental Movement Skills unit and fitness classes for all Year 11 students in core PE.

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S E N I O R S C H O OALC AS D WEI M M I CI NE G X CCEALRL N EN I VCAEL

Ur aut laboris expedi audae praecep rovides torehen ihitatemposa corem et undaestio voluptur?

Bit ut etur simusanis et pelesedi inusam quid ut qui dit, simpe non restrum venis velitatium ut viti cuptatet, atiis dignis re la dolende moditaestius evere, idit quodi doluptaerem faccaborit aut hit, tent, optatis esed maxim volecul luptius, odi ut et ipsandite sit quiae dolupta

Club Sport: Touch Football and Netball Touch Football and Netball continue to be two of the most popular sports at St Aidan’s. Recently we have been looking at ways in which we can further support the development of girls who represent St Aidan’s in these sports.

In 2016, St Aidan’s affiliated with Brisbane Metropolitan Touch Association (BMTA) at White’s Hill. Each season we have had up to five teams playing on Thursday nights during Semester One. Playing together in a strong club competition, the girls have gained valuable playing experience and have become more competitive in the QGSSSA competition. In 2015, St Aidan’s won 25% of QGSSSA Touch games with no teams placing in the top 5. In 2018, St Aidan’s won 50% of QGSSSA Touch games, including a premiership for the 8A team and six top five places.

Last year St Aidan’s joined the Western Districts Netball Association (WDNA) competition at Graceville. Starting with three teams, the St Aidan’s club was formed to provide opportunities for girls to develop skills and most importantly gain playing experience.

In 2019, St Aidan’s will field six teams in the WDNA competition (3 x Year 7, 2 x Year 8 and 1 x Year 9) where the girls will play ten rounds of fixtures before the commencement of the QGSSSA season.

The club also facilitates an umpiring program which provides girls with an opportunity to gain a deeper understanding of the game, and to appreciate different roles, operations and responsibilities surrounding Netball. It also helps them develop confidence and earn some pocket money!

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JUNIOR SPORT

Junior School Cross Country Congratulations Cavell!

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SENIOR SPORT

Senior School Cross Country Congratulations Austen!

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SKI TRIP

S k i Tr ip In early January, 33 girls set off from Brisbane, ready for a fun (yet chilly) week of skiing in Canada. After a long day of travel, we arrived at Panorama Mountain Resort; a stunning location near Banff. The next morning, after a delicious, hot breakfast, we picked up our ski gear and headed off for our first skiing lesson.

Being in the beginner group, it was quite difficult to get started as many of us had never skied before. However, after the first session, we were all snow ploughing down the beginner slope with only a few minor falls on the way. As the week went on, our skiing really improved, and we started learning how to ski more difficult slopes thanks to our amazing instructors.

Throughout the week, we participated in many other exciting activities at the resort, including s’mores around the campfire, swimming in the hot pools, tubing and night skiing. It was hard to say goodbye on the last day, but we were all excited to stop off in Banff for some sightseeing, souvenir shopping and trying the famous Beaver Tails!

We had such an amazing time and learnt so much about overcoming challenges when pushed to our limits. I recommend this trip to any girl who wants to learn something new, overcome barriers and have a good laugh. I will never forget Mr Baker’s first-time skiing down the beginner slope, somehow ending up skiing backwards and crashing directly into the orange mesh on the way down.

But thanks for catching me when I did the same thing!

Scarlett Rowe Year 12

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DUKE OF EDINBURGH

Duke of Edinburgh Bronze Camp As part of our work towards developing the school’s Reconciliation Action Plan (RAP), our Bronze Duke of Edinburgh participants recognised an opportunity to further understand and acknowledge Indigenous culture, history and contributions within South East Queensland. This became the focus for the Adventurous Journey component of their awards. The inaugural Bronze exploration was held at the end of the September holidays where 24 students from Years 9 – 11 spent 4 days camping at Ambiwerra and exploring various locations to learn about Indigenous culture.

The camp began with a local Elder sharing her experiences with the girls and challenging them to think about our “culture” and how we identify as Australians. This set the tone for the camp and provided a different lens for the girls to view the subsequent activities. The participants led a walk-on-country past places of cultural significance to the traditional owners.

This took them through the suburbs of Indooroopilly, Chelmer, Graceville and Sherwood and allowed the girls to gain a new appreciation for sites they walk or drive past on a daily basis.

Nyanda Cultural Tours took the girls on a tour of their traditional lands showing them the many plants that were edible or could be used to fashion tools or fabric. The participants reflected that had they not been shown, many of the plants or spaces that they found so interesting would not have been noticed. This summarised their key findings for the journey; the culture and history of indigenous people are all around us, but a lack of awareness still exists.

The girls developed a new appreciation for Indigenous Australians’ deep connection with the land and look forward to continuing to respectively acknowledge Indigenous history and culture, actively working towards reconciliation and acknowledgement of our first peoples.

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DESIGN CHALLENGE

Changing the face of kid’s parties Kids’ parties are extremely fatty places, containing large volumes of energy-dense foods. The Year 9 and 10 Food Design Technology students were given a group challenge of designing a plate that could be served at a children’s party that had low volumes of fat and sugar. Students had to evaluate their recipes to justify why it was a healthy choice that would be appealing to young children. Junior class students were invited at the end of the lesson to taste the food and vote for their favourite group’s plate.

The results were shared and the group that won were able to choose either next week’s recipe to be cooked or set a new class design challenge.

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RAISING READERS

Ra ising

Rea d e r s

Written by St Aidan’s Anglican Girls’ School teacher librarian, Megan Daley, ‘Raising Readers’ is being called a must-have guide for parents and educators to help children of every age and stage to fall in love with books. Here she shares with us some of her thoughts on the academic benefits of reading.

Creating a culture of reading in your home and school is one of the best ways to help children get a head start and achieve their academic potential.

Reading also encourages self-awareness and empathy, reduces stress and opens up new worlds and ways of thinking.

Many of us know from anecdotal evidence that sustained and regular reading, as well as reading for pleasure, contributes to positive academic outcomes and this is backed by research examining how reading correlates to academic progress. We want young people to be highly literate and critical consumers of words, from the novels they read to environmental signage on the streets to the reading of marketing images and the deep reading required for understanding complex ethical issues. Deep and meaningful reading contributes to language acquisition and the ability to use language in a way that is empowering.

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As children move into the upper primary years of schooling, their reading, by necessity, becomes more purposeful and strategic. The demands of the school curriculum are such that there is a large volume of reading which needs to occur, and this only increases as students move into high school. Those who have read with enthusiasm from a young age and have built up a powerful armoury of reading comprehension strategies are in an ideal position to cope with the demands of reading for academic gain. These students build on prior knowledge, drawing on the reading they have done over the years.

They use this as a springboard for rich and thought-provoking analysis and skilled extrapolation of knowledge, using techniques such as skimming and scanning, highlighting passages, taking notes, summarising and locating credible supporting sources. Readers understand sentence structure, they know where

in a paragraph the important nugget of information will be and they read widely in order to extend their general knowledge, build an extensive vocabulary and achieve mastery in what they read and in the tasks they complete. Those years of reading for pleasure and racing through novels at an astonishing pace pay dividends when high school arrives and the reading volume increases.

Pick up a signed copy of Raising Readers at the Uniform Shop from 15 April.

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MINDFULNESS

take a breath Practising Mindfulness Junior School staff and students have been enjoying the benefits of mindfulness, helping us all to improve attentional focus, lessen anxiety and stress and increase resilience in children. Mindfulness empowers children to manage feelings of being overwhelmed and teaches life-long skills to manage stress and our whole school practices are a time of calm and brain training in a busy week. The Junior School library has a large selection of resources on mindfulness and anxiety which are available for student, staff and parent borrowing, including the new book by Peter Carnavas, ‘A Quiet Girl’ and ‘Hey Warrior’ and ‘Hey Awesome’ by Karen Young. Junior School teacher librarian Mrs Daley is launching ‘A Quiet Girl’ at Riverbend Books on Saturday 20th April. Tickets for this free event can be booked on the Riverbend Books website.

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THE LIVING ROOM

Please join us in The Living Room for an informative evening with

KAREN YOUNG an award winning author, psychologist and mother of four.

ANXIETY IN CHILDREN & TEENS Anxiety is a very normal part of being human, but for as many as one in five children and adolescents, it can reach

T H U R S DAY

intrusive levels, interfering with family

13 JU N E

life, friendships and school performance.

This transformational session will provide parents and carers with the

6.00pm for 6.30pm

essential information and powerful, practical, research-driven strategies to help their children and teens thrive

The Living Room,

through anxiety, whether it’s everyday

St Aidan’s Anglican Girls’ School

levels of anxiety or more intrusive.

ABOUT KAREN YOUNG

In 2017, she published ‘Hey Warrior’, a book for children to help them

Cost: $25

As a psychologist, Karen has worked

understand and manage anxiety and

extensively with children, teens and

find their ‘brave’. The book has been

families. More recently, she founded

translated into four languages. More

Tickets are available at

the popular website, Hey Sigmund, after

recently, Karen published her second

eventbrite.com.au

realising the power of solid information

book for children about anxiety,

when it is placed in the hands of

‘Hey Awesome’.

parents, children and teachers. The website attracts millions of readers each year worldwide.

Includes drinks & grazing table

Karen has two children and two stepchildren, and lives in Brisbane, Australia.

Karen’s work has been published on various international sites including The The Mighty, Yahoo Health, and Parenting Magazine. Karen can often be heard on Australian radio. She is a sought-after speaker, both at home in Australia and

LIVING ROOM

THE

Good Men Project, The Huffington Post,

internationally.

huddle I autumn 2019 13 29

EARTH ANGELS

Junior School Earth Angels

The Junior School Earth Angels are stepping it up for the year now that Autumn has arrived and the seedlings will survive the harsh Queensland elements! Dr Tobias Smith of Bee Aware Kids visited the Junior School recently to talk to keen Earth Angels and inspect and split our native stingless beehives. He also conducted a talk and workshop with Year Two students, who are learning all about life cycles in Science. Our annual visits from Dr Smith are an opportunity for students and staff alike to learn more about the importance of bees to our ecosystem and to increase our community beekeeping skills.

So why are bees so important?

Put simply, bees pollinate our plants, which means they carry pollen between plants of different sexes to fertilise them, or even between different parts of the same plant, which help plants reproduce. Bees even help plants survive by preventing inbreeding.

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ki ee n

d

b

Our hives at St Aidan’s are perfectly positioned and clearly enjoying the visits, talks and occasional read aloud story in library lessons from Junior School beekeepers. Dr Smith was very happy with our hives’ progress as they are increasing in both honey and wax weight at an impressive rate.

T EC H M AT E

tech

ate

The inaugural TechMate event was held in March, an evening for girls and a significant male in their lives (dad, grandad, brother, uncle) to share experiences and create memories over technology. Mrs Child prepared an evening of tinkering, creating and playing with electronics, technology and raw materials. The participants were delighted by sumo wrestling with Sphero, riddle solving with drones, bursting balloons with Blue Bots and finishing the evening off with a team race. There were squeals of delight all evening and not just from the girls!

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F O U N D A T I O N

From the Foundation Chair

This is my first newsletter in the capacity as Chair for the Foundation Board and thought it might be an opportune time to tell you a little bit about myself and share the strategic focus of the Foundation this year.

What an exciting year to be able to lead the Foundation Board! As you may know, 2019 marks our 90th year anniversary and the Foundation’s primary focus is our Signature Ball scheduled for 20 July 2019. No doubt you’ve all got the night locked away in your diary and pulling together your table of ten already. The Signature Ball is a wonderful way to connect the St Aidan’s community and support our emerging female leaders of tomorrow. The strategic direction of the Foundation is to raise capital for projects that support the delivery of quality education embedded deeply in the Sisters’ ethos. We are in the process of setting funding targets and linking these to sub-committees to assist our schools’ future growth. I am very much looking forward to sharing our success with you over the coming months.

My Background I’m an old girl who finished Year 12 in 1999 and left the school believing I was born to fly. The confidence and key competencies St Aidan’s helped me build on is partly the reason why my two daughters (Sarah – Year 6 and Yumi – Year 5) will proudly be commencing their St Aidan’s lives next year. I am a passionate supporter of the Brisbane Roar Football Club and serve on their Advisory Committee. My day job sees me serve over 1,000 listed entities as a National Executive General Manager for Computershare – a company I am very proud to work for and one that has presented many opportunities. Those who know me well will know that my true purpose in life is to support disadvantaged communities in need, with a major focus on a region in Nepal that I first visited as a 17 year old.

I am actually visiting Nepal twice this year – the first for the Jamie Young Cup in May and the second in November to trek the Himalaya’s to raise funds for the school I support.

I want to take this opportunity to thank my fellow Foundation Directors for their passion, dedication and tremendous support to date. I am so fortunate to be surrounded by such a high calibre of talent and together we are going to achieve amazing things this year.

I look forward to meeting more of the St Aidan’s community in my capacity of Chair and welcome discussion around our focus.

Thanks in advance for your support!

Rachel Sakurai Chair

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b a l l 2 019

celebrating 90 years

Saturday 20 July, 6pm

Rivershed, Howard Smith Wharves Tickets $200 per person Includes three course dinner, premium beverages & entertainment www.eventbrite.com.au RSVP 10 July

huddle I autumn 2019 33

F O U N D A T I O N

Signature

PARENTS AND FRIENDS

Pa re nt s & Fr iend s May saw the legendary Trivia Night held in the CHC, with a theme of Commonwealth Games and a record 23 tables sold. Guests embraced the theme and dressed themselves and their tables extravagantly!

All funds raised on the night were put towards the purchase of a new Ptula the Penguin mascot costume.

After 22 years loyally supporting the school at every QGSSSA event as well as endless internal school appearances, Ptula is a little worse for wear.

A massive $17,000 was raised which ensured the P&F would be able to cover the full cost of a new costume. A huge thanks must go to all of those who supported the event and came along on the night.

Pa re nt s & Fr ie n d s

Cocktail Party and Art Exhibition Thank you to all our wonderful supporters who joined us for an evening of art and entertainment.

The night was a great success, raising over $20,000 for the newly established Artist in Residence Program. This year will see funds support our upcoming drama production, Never Never Alone. We have commissioned a local playwright, Natalie Nunan, to create a unique script for our drama club girls and have engaged Tahlia Newton (2017) to direct the filming and new media component of the play.

Thank you to our sponsors for their support: Lexus Indooroopilly, Ray White Sherwood & Graceville, Promogear, Sequel Books, Airrite, Honey & Bear, Clovely Estate, Oxley Nursery and the Boyd and Sherlock Families.

We look forward to seeing you all again in 2020!

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PARENTS AND FRIENDS

Saturday 5.30pm10.00pm

25

May 2019

CHRISTINE HARTLAND CENTRE

$25 per person or $250 per table (tables of 10) Purchase your ticket via Flexischools by 22 May 2019.

huddle I autumn 2019 35

UPCOMING EVENTS

St Aidan’s UPCOMING EVENTS

NEW ROWERS TRY DAY Saturday 4 May Lake Kurwongbah

Open Morning

OPEN MORNING

Thursday 23 May 9.00am SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY CENTRE St Aidan’s Anglican Girls’ School

BLESSING OF THE BOATS & 30 YEARS OF ROWING CELEBRATION Saturday 18 May Gregory Terrace Boat Shed

Gala Instrumental Concert GALA INSTRUMENTAL CONCERT

Thursday 23 May 6.00pm CHRISTINE HARTLAND CENTRE St Aidan’s Anglican Girls’ School

Reunion Week Saturday 25 May 5.30pm CHRISTINE HARTLAND CENTRE St Aidan’s Anglican Girls’ School 36

huddle I autumn 2019

Sunday 19 May 12.00pm Burbury Terrace Canberra

St Aidan’s

St Aidan’s

TRIVIA NIGHT

CANBERRA REUNION

REUNION WEEK

Saturday 25 May - Saturday 1 June St Aidan’s Anglican Girls’ School See Alumni section for details

JUNIOR SCHOOL MORNING FOR GRANDPARENTS & SPECIAL FRIENDS Friday 24 May 8.45am St Aidan’s Anglican Girls’ School

St Aidan’s

Performing Arts Recital PERFORMING ARTS RECITAL Thursday 6 June CHRISTINE HARTLAND CENTRE St Aidan’s Anglican Girls’ School

UPCOMING EVENTS

St Aidan’s UPCOMING EVENTS TERM

TERM

concludes

commences

2

KINDY SPORTS MORNING

Friday 21 June 9.00am AMBIWERRA St Aidan’s Anglican Girls’ School

Signature ball 2019

SIGNATURE BALL

Saturday 20 July 6.00pm Howard Smith Wharves

TERM 2 CONCLUDES Friday 21 June St Aidan’s Anglican Girls’ School

MADD Night

3

TERM 3 COMMENCES Tuesday 16 July St Aidan’s Anglican Girls’ School

Open Morning

MADD Night

OPEN MORNING

ST AIDAN’S DAY CELEBRATIONS

SYDNEY REUNION

Friday 26 July 5.00pm CHRISTINE HARTLAND CENTRE St Aidan’s Anglican Girls’ School

Thursday 8 August 9.00am SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY CENTRE St Aidan’s Anglican Girls’ School

Science & Technology Showcase JUNIOR SCHOOL SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY SHOWCASE Tuesday 13 August 1.30pm THE LINK St Aidan’s Anglican Girls’ School

Friday 16 August AMBIWERRA St Aidan’s Anglican Girls’ School

Saturday 17 August 2.00pm The Lobby Bar, The Westin Sydney huddle I autumn 2019 37

ARCHIVES AND ALUMNI

1929 St Aidan’s opens its doors

From the

ARCHI V ES

90 YEA R S

St Aidan’s across the decades 1939 Our new Kindergarten building

In 2019 we celebrate 90 years of educating young women (and some young men). Since St Aidan’s opened its doors in 1929, we have celebrated nine decades of birthdays, educated over 8,000 students and had 11 women lead the school as Headmistress or Principal.

We look forward to you joining us throughout the year to help celebrate our 90th birthday.

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1949 St Aidan’s enters Girls GPS swimming for the first time

ARCHIVES AND ALUMNI

1959 Tennis belts or hatbands?

1969 Girls GPS Athletics carnival

1979 Golden Jubilee Cathedral Service

1989 Sixty years celebrations

1999 Glorious stained-glass windows completed our Chapel

2009 Celebrating 80 years

huddle I autumn 2019 39

ARCHIVES AND ALUMNI

ALUMNI News

Engagements Meg Russell (2007) to Simon Waren Rani Marks (2007) to Tarka Bodiam Emma Nowlan (2012) to Pranav Soni

Marriages Anne Smith (2009) married Alex Woodland in February

Bronwyn Theobald

Stephanie Tupicoff (2008) married Nick Spiller in March

Bronwyn Theobald a much-loved art teacher, Year Coordinator and Deputy Principal passed away on 10 December 2018. Bronwyn commenced teaching at St Aidan’s in 1985. She was appointed Deputy Principal, Pastoral Care in 1997 a position she held until July 2001. Bronwyn returned to School later in 2001 to teach in various roles until 2005. Meghan Francis, School Captain 2001 said on Bronwyn’s retirement “Mrs Theobald has indeed been that angel that embraced this little flock of penguins and allowed us to fly”. Bronwyn’s family has a long association with St Aidan’s, her daughter Stephanie (1986) and son Jonathan were both students while her husband Philip served on School Council.

Births Rosie (Singer 1998) and David Kaye welcomed Olivia Jean Kaye on 11 May 2018 Michelle (Hoyer 2007) and Brett Kronk welcomed Harrison Darryl Kronk on 18 April 2018 Matilda Greene (2007) and William Rosie welcomed Isabella on 21 September 2018

Deaths Norma Noack (Crookall 1948) 27 September 2018 Barbara Conachie (Marshall 1949) 1 December 2018

Celebrate with us

Ascension Day 2019 Ascension Day this year will see a celebration of St Aidan’s 90-year history.

All Old Girls are warmly invited to join us for lunch at the Brisbane Club followed by a Eucharist at St John’s Cathedral, Thursday 30 May. For more details email paststudents@staidans.qld.edu.au or phone 3373 5961.

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Bronwyn Theobald - Teacher 10 December 2018

ARCHIVES AND ALUMNI

ALUMNI News Where are they now Lara Perkovic (2014) graduated from the Australian Defence Force Academy (ADFA) in 2018, and the Royal Military College – Duntroon in 2018 commissioning as a Lieutenant into the Corps of the Royal Australian Engineers. She is currently posted to the Royal Military College - Duntroon completing her fourth year of a Bachelor of Engineering (Civil).

Congratulations Anne-Marie Rice (1991) was named the Leneen Forde AC WLAQ Woman Lawyer of the Year.

Christine King (Angel 1966) on being elected as the State President of the Queensland Country Women’s Association.

Geraldine Moses (1980) awarded a Member of the Order of Australia (AM) in the Australia Day Honours for significant service to medicine as a

Geraldine Moses AM (1980)

pharmacist, particularly through advisory and educational roles.

Lyndall De Marco (Teacher 1981-1986) awarded a Member of the Order of Australia (AM) for significant service to youth development, to the tourism industry, and to the community.

Imogen McCluskey (2011) directed and co-wrote the film “Suburban Wildlife” which premiered at the Cinequest Film Festival in San Jose, California. The film has already been warmly received by indie filmmakers across the country, as well as receiving glowing reviews.

Kate Miller-Heidke (1998) has been selected as Australia’s entrant for Eurovision 2019. Kate will perform her song “Zero Gravity” in Tel Aviv, Israel in May 2019. Kate was one of 10 finalists to compete in the National Final – Australia Decides in February. The winner was determined via the combination of a public televote (50%) and the votes of a professional jury panel (50%). Good luck Kate!

Kate Miller-Heidke (1998)

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Donations

ARCHIVES AND ALUMNI

We are proud to congratulate our Born to Fly Alumna Dord Burrough 2005 Artist Dr Deborah Setterlund OAM 1965 Community Service Dr Philippa Hall 1977 Anaesthetist Chelsea Higgins 2011 Equestrian Dr Laurie Delbridge 1942 Medicine & Athletics Meg Rylance 2007 Editor Dr Louise Rawlings 1997 Economist Pictured: (Back) Cae Ashton, Cate Begbie, Phillipa Hall, Kate Greenwood, Madeleine Swete Kelly (Front) Julia McKenna, Toni Riordan, Dr Deborah Setterlund OAM

St Aidan’s

born to fly

5

In October 2018, we launched the 5th edition of Born to Fly, our publication that highlights the varied achievements of our alumni. It was an honour to have so many of the women featured in the publication join us for the official launch.

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Kate Greenwood 1979 Barrister Emma Ishta 2007 Actor Cae Ashton 1980 Education Madeleine Swete Kelly 2006 Architect Rachel Sakurai 1999 Business Julia Mckenna 1990 Community Service If you would like to receive a hard copy of Born to Fly 5 or any of the previous editions, please email: paststudents@staidans.qld.edu.au

I N T E R N AT I O N A L W O M E N ’ S D AY

International Women’s Day On International Women’s Day we were privileged to have Julia McKenna (1990) share her inspiring story over our annual breakfast. Founded in September 2015, Friends With Dignity is a national not-for-profit community organisation providing assistance to men, women and children who have been displaced by domestic violence.

Friends with Dignity work with a network of refuges and community services to provide critical and practical services for people who are displaced due to domestic violence.

St Aidan’s will be running a kitchen drive in Term 2 for Friends with Dignity.

Please read the weekly newsletter for more information on items we are collecting and where to deliver them.

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ARCHIVES AND ALUMNI

2019 Re u n i o n s & E ve n t s

Celebrating 90 Years 10 Year Reunion Saturday 25 May 5pm The Link, St Aidan’s 20 Year Reunion Sunday 26 May 12 noon The Link, St Aidan’s 50 Year Reunion Wednesday 29 May 10am The Link, St Aidan’s Ascension Day Lunch Thursday 30 May 12 noon The Brisbane Club 60 Year Reunion Thursday 30 May 12 noon The Brisbane Club 70 Year Reunion Thursday 30 May 12 noon The Brisbane Club Ascension Day Service Thursday 30 May 2pm St John’s Cathedral Young Old Girls’ Reunion Friday 31 May 5.30pm St Aidan’s 20 Year Reunion Friday 31 May 7pm The Link, St Aidan’s 30 Year Reunion Saturday 1 June 5pm The Link, St Aidan’s 44

huddle I autumn 2019

Interstate and International Reunions Hong Kong Reunion Friday 3 May Time and venue to be confirmed Canberra Reunion Sunday 19 May 12 noon Burbury Terrace, Canberra Sydney Reunion Saturday 17 August 2pm The Lobby Bar, The Westin Sydney London Reunion Saturday 21 September Time and venue to be confirmed Melbourne Reunion Saturday 19 October 2pm The Tea Rooms, NGV

THE LAST WORD

The Last Word Turning 90 is a big deal for we humans. Although we can expect to live longer than ever these days, 90 is still well above the average life expectancy of 82-84 years, for Australians. My mother, who had refused to have a birthday party all her life, partied at 90. It is a milestone worth celebrating.

We also expect that 90 will not be like 30! It will be harder to get out of bed, and our eyesight and hearing might not be what they once were. Nana-naps become socially acceptable, and so does dinner at 5pm. Living to be 90, then, is a mixed blessing, although I hope it is still a blessing.

Schools are a bit different. At 90, a school like St Aidan’s is just hitting its stride. Far from bringing aches and poor sight, 90 years of experience brings St Aidan’s a sense of establishment, endurance and the getting of wisdom.

We have had time to build a story, beginning with the Sisters and Rev’d Barrett and their combined dream of an Anglian girls’ school in the western suburbs. The story has been added to over the years by teachers and students, the Society, the wider community and our alumni to flesh out that initial dream. The school has taken its motto to heart and has learned to fly upwards on the thermals of Anglican faith, academic rigour and attention to the whole person. There is every reason to believe the best is yet to come!

This does not mean that we need not celebrate fully, just because we expect many more years to come. It is always important to give thanks for what has already been received, even as we look ahead to future possibilities. Gratitude lies at the heart of the Christian story, and of our practice. Eucharist – the sharing of Holy Communion – means giving thanks and thanksgiving is the central act of the Eucharist and of our faith. It is appropriate then that one of our biggest events in this celebration year is the Ascension Day Eucharist at St John’s Cathedral. And the whole St Aidan’s family is invited.

Having given thanks for what has been, we are ready to notice all that will come in the future, and we are primed to expect there will be much to be thankful for.

What a perfect way to celebrate 90 years of our story!

Reverend Gillian Moses

Anglican Girls’ School

St Aidan’s

AUTHENTIC CARING CONFIDENT C R E AT I V E CONNECTED

11 Ruthven St, Corinda Qld 4075 Australia P +61 7 3373 5999 F +61 7 3379 9432 E reception@staidans.qld.edu.au www.staidans.qld.edu.au A School of the Society of the Sacred Advent ABN 71079817981 CRICOS Provider Number 01194k

Open Mornings Thursday 23 May 9am-11am Thursday 8 August 9am-11am Thursday 21 November 9am-11am