12 June 2017

Newsletter Articles

Principal’s Message:

About ninety years ago the great English writer, G.K. Chesterton, did what a lot of us are doing now, as we continually are exposed to the ongoing incidents of terrorism in our world. He looked at his society and was troubled by what he saw and he wrote the following:

There comes an hour in the afternoon when the child is tired of pretending, when he is weary of being a robber or a noble savage. It is then that he torments the cat. There comes a time in the routine of an ordered civilization, when the man is tired at playing at mythology and pretending. The effect of this staleness is the same everywhere; it is seen in all drug taking and dram drinking and every form of the tendency to increase the dose. Men seek stranger sins or more startling obscenities as stimulants to their jaded sense. They seek mad religions for the same reason. They try to stab their nerves to life. They are walking in their sleep and try to wake themselves up with nightmares.

Whilst not all of Chesterton’s observations are still evident in our society, a number are and our society has added a few more. The illegal drug trade is one of the biggest industries in the world, internet pornography is one of the biggest addictions in the world, excessive use of alcohol is everywhere and drug dealers find a market among our school students. It would appear that many people in our society are trying to “stab their nerves to life” by increasing dosage of their particular addiction.

We live at a time when we have the most wonderful technologies available to us. We have the internet with its amazing breadth of interesting sites; we have phones, Ipads, games, Facebook, Twitter, that are linked to it. But with all this comes a problem: how to handle all this in a non-addictive way, how not to allow these technologies to control our lives.

Perhaps all this fits under the heading “Excess” about which Ron Rolheiser, columnist and author, has this to say:

Excess is a substitute for genuine enjoyment. We go to excess in things because we can no longer enjoy them simply. It’s when we no longer enjoy a drink that we drink to excess; it’s when we no longer enjoy a simple party that we let things get out of hand; it’s when we no longer enjoy the taste of chocolate that we over-indulge. Excess isn’t just a substitute for enjoyment, it’s the very thing that drains all enjoyment from our lives; every recovering addict will tell us that.

So, how do we prevent our children from slipping into the world of excessive behaviours? For the most part, children don't know what “excess” is, unless adults introduce them to it. If a child is excessively involved with computer games and the like, maybe it’s because of loneliness. Maybe it is because no one has the time or interest to provide options such as belonging to a sports team, music group, hobby club, being involved in home cooking, gardening, board games, maybe visiting the local library or local park.

As parents and educators, we should endeavour to ensure that our children learn about the dangers of excess through conversations with their families. This is by far a more suitable option than having our children learn about “excess” by observing the behaviours of adults who might have succumbed to the pressures of life and so consume more, buy more, drink more, spend more than they should and genuinely substitute excess for enjoyment. By endeavouring to educate our children about these dangers we hope and pray that our children can learn that for life to be enjoyable it needs to be simple and void of ‘excess’.

Perhaps the mantra of Author Mary Jo Leddy has wisdom to offer us:

“It’s enough.
I have enough.
I am enough.
Life is enough.
I need to gratefully enjoy what I have.”

This week we pray that the adults in our community can have a positive impact in protecting our students by educating them about the dangers of excessive behaviours.

The Prayer of Protection

The Light of God surrounds us.
The Love of God engulfs us.
The Power of God protects us.
The Presence of God watches over us.
Wherever we are, God is,
And all is well.

James Dillet Freeman

Have a lovely week
Kort

TERM 2 – 2017 DATE CLAIMERS

TERM 3 – 2017 DATE CLAIMERS

Pastoral Care News:

By Mr Craig Frattini, Deputy Principal

Building self-esteem away from the screens

By Martine Oglethorpe

As so much of a young person’s social world revolves around their online feeds and connections, it is no wonder that ‘likes’ and comments have become a social currency and a reflection of where young people see themselves amongst their peers.

Whilst social media has the ability to ignite a flourishing self-esteem with glowing comments, hundreds of likes and thousands of followers, it can also have a negative impact. A lack of likes, followers or comments, or even just a small number of nasty or negative comments, can do irreparable damage to a struggling self-esteem.

In addition, because many of the social networks kids are using centre around the sharing of visuals, this can lead to an over representation of aesthetics as the yardstick of popularity. Instagram, Snapchat and musical.ly are some of the popular networks right now and all are based on photos, video and performance. Which is all well and good if you have a good sense of who you are and are not relying on the feedback from these networks to decide your worth. But for many, putting themselves out there can mean they open themselves up to judgement and even ridicule. And even if they get hundreds of likes or lots of lovely comments, it is often the one nasty one they remember the most.

We need kids to know they are worth more than their likes and followers. We need them to know their sense of self is not based on what others, and even strangers, may think of them.

But how do we do that in a world that sees kids so attached to their screens and their online social connections?

Well, like all things in parenting today, there is no one simple solution. However there are certainly ways we can help ensure that a sense of self-worth is based on the achievements, the values and the qualities that make each and every child unique.

Build their independence and resilience early

From a very early age, provide them with opportunities to build their independence, have responsibilities, learn to fail, make mistakes and problem solve when things don’t go to plan. These skills will become invaluable in a world that sees constant comparison and the inevitable negative interactions of the online world.

Stay relevant

Don’t resort to the “in my day we…”. We may well reminisce about the more carefree days where we got to switch off and hangout with mates in the neighbourhood oblivious to what the rest of the world thought of our latest picture. But that’s not particularly relevant to our kids today. And shutting down their account, turning off their computer and walking away from social media altogether is really not an option for most. Be sure your kids know that you understand the role the technology plays and the challenges they face. That way you put yourself in the best position to have the right conversations and put in place the right boundaries.

Provide other role models and community

Getting involved in outside pursuits and interests away from the screens can help them form connections with other parts of the community. Coaches, youth leaders and other role models can all play a part in mentoring a child about the importance of balance whilst reminding them that there is a life beyond the screens.

Give them opportunities to help

There is no better way to feel better about oneself than to feel useful. Helping at home, helping in the community and volunteering can be great ways for kids to build self-worth away from the screens. It may be helping coach some kids at the local sports club or getting involved in a cause or issue that matters to them. This will give them a sense of purpose that revolves around their actions and their input and not just what others perceive about them.

Family rituals

Regular meals and time where no devices are present can be crucial to providing the stability and security young people need. Mealtimes have been proven to be an effective way of letting kids know they always have a place that is familiar, secure and unconditional. This may not be a reality for every family every night, but trying to incorporate any sense of ritual into a family, especially one where screens are not involved, will certainly provide a positive impact.

We know that the technology and the devices are going to continue to play a huge role in the social and emotional lives of our children. Therefore we need to ensure that we are doing all we can to give them a balanced, true and positive view of themselves that continues to flourish both in real life and online.

APRE News:

By Mrs Kate Cullen, APRE

Events Next Term

Families are invited to help celebrate with us the following:

• Catholic Education Week Liturgy – Monday the 24th of July at the McKillop Centre for a 12:30 start. This Liturgy of the Word is a combined celebration to mark Catholic Education Week as a school community and parents and families are welcome to attend on the day as well.
• Feast of the Assumption - 15th of August- St Mary’s Primary School and Assumption College join together with the Parish to mark this Holy Day of Obligation. Mass will start at 9:30 and parents and families are welcome to attend this Eucharistic Mass. Information below to explain significance of the day.

Centenary of Fatima 1917-2017: Prayers

Mr Ian Hall contacted the school with information about the Centenary of Fatima and has asked for you to become involved in the prayers being made to focus on this event on the 13th of May, June, July, August, September and October. By praying the rosary on these days you can contribute in acknowledging the centenary of Fatima.

1917-2017 You are invited to join a million people around the world who will be praying the Rosary on 13th October 2017.

A million Rosaries offered to celebrate the centenary of the apparitions of Our Lady at Fatima.

A million Rosaries prayed in response to the request of the Mother of God, who asked for conversion, prayer and penance.

Further information can be found at the link below to register and receive rosary beads.

Junior Religion Reporting

For parents reading their student reports on Junior Religion results please note that your students complete two types of tasks. Student’s reports will have a Routine and Inquiry result and an overall semester result.

Routine Tasks are completed in class and are awarded a C, D, or E result. These can be working on timelines, cutting and pasting research information into summary tables, matching glossary terms etc. A students result is averaged from across the Semester of up to 6 different activities.

Inquiry Tasks are assignments which include a drafting or check stage and a final good copy due date. These are more challenging tasks asking students to design, evaluate or analyse in their responses and students receive a A to an E result. When students obtain a C+ or higher as the average for these inquiry assignments in the semester they receive that grade overall. It is possible for students to fail their Inquiry Tasks but still receive a C if they have passed the majority of their Routine Tasks.

As students participate regularly in prayer and meditation within class – as part of routine assessment and overall course content, staff may comment on students level of appropriate respect for and participation in these activities as part of student’s performance in the reports. As a Catholic College we would hope all students are respectful at times of prayer and liturgy as well as in class covering: sacred texts, beliefs, Church History, and Christian Life.

God's Breath Given to Us

Being the living Christ today means being filled with the same Spirit that filled Jesus. Jesus and his Father are breathing the same breath, the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit is the intimate communion that makes Jesus and his Father one. Jesus says: "I am in the Father and the Father is in me" (John 14:10) and "The Father and I are one" (John 10:30). It is this unity that Jesus wants to give us. That is the gift of his Holy Spirit.

Living a spiritual life, therefore, means living in the same communion with the Father as Jesus did, and thus making God present in the world.

Curriculum News:

By Ms Jen Smeed Assistant Principal - Curriculum

Year 12 QCS: Mighty Minds workshop

The second Mighty Minds workshop for all students QCS is scheduled for Thursday 15th June (this has changed from Monday 19th June). Please note that all QCS students need to be in attendance for this workshop.

QCS Practice tests:

The QCS simulation tests for all Years 12 sitting QCS will be sat on Monday 19th and Tuesday 20th June (dates have changed from Wednesday 14th and Thursday 15th June). These are the final practice tests before the actual QCS Test is sat in August. It is therefore, essential that all students are present on these days.

We ask that appointments are not made during school time on June 15th, 19th and 20th on these essential QCS preparation days. If you have questions about these days please do not hesitate to contact me at Jen.Smeed@twb.catholic.edu.au or by phone via the College reception.

ICAS Tests:

The ICAS Science Test was sat last week for students from Years 7-12. We congratulate these students on their efforts. The ICAS Maths test will be sat on 15th August and the ICAS English test on 1st August. Entries for these exams have now closed.

Semester reports:

These will be posted home to parents at the end of the last week of school. Please ensure that if your postal address has changed our College office is aware of your new address.

Careers News:

By Mrs Ali Porter, Careers

ASSUMPTION COLLEGE STUDENT PATHWAYS NEWS

Items of interest:

• Students can enrol NOW to complete the white card course. Please note the date of this has been changed to Wednesday 21st of June
• Year 10 students should have their work experience agreement forms signed and returned by June 15th
• Expressions of interest for the Ag Inspirations program are due for return
• The Tertiary Studies Expo is coming up soon!
• More comprehensive careers newsletters are available at www.acwcareers.com.

Defence Forces Visit

On the 29th of May we had representatives from the Australian Defence Forces visit the College to talk to interested students from Years 10, 11 and 12 about careers in the defence forces. Representatives from both the Army and Navy were on hand to outline the types of careers available and entry requirements and processes for job or study application.

Year 10 Work Experience

Year 10 students are in the final stages of organising their work experience placements for the first week of Term 3. A big WELL DONE to Year 10 students for the organisation that has taken place! In this last stage of organisation, Year 10 students have been asked to meet with their placement providers to finalise details and have the work experience agreement form signed off. This form, drawn up by The Department of Education & Training, is highly important as it ensures that students are covered by relevant insurance whilst attending work experience. The form requires student, parent and provider signatures before its return to the college by Thursday the 15th of June.

Rural and Agricultural Pathways

Students interested in rural and agricultural pathways and careers should consider attending the Ag Inspirations career awareness program currently on offer through AgForce Queensland. For those students who registered their interest in this program, more detailed information and expression of interest forms have been provided. Places are limited in the program so it is advisable that students return their expression of interest form as soon as possible. Letters for parents have also been provided to interested students.

Pathways Highlight!

Congratulations to Simone Gard, Alexis Haggar, Chris Henderson and Mya Pitts for their recent participation in the Health Aspirations program. These students enjoyed the day at Warwick Hospital and learnt much about careers in medicine and allied health services. Thanks to Queensland Rural Medical Education and The Department of Education & Training for making this opportunity possible.

Queensland Conservatorium Tertiary Preparation Workshop

For any students considering applying for entry to a university music degree, this program can help them to better prepare for the theoretical and practical requirements of the audition process. The Queensland Conservatorium Griffith University's Tertiary Preparation Workshop (TPW) program prepares students to approach the theoretical and practical aspects of their university audition process. The workshop runs Monday 26 to Friday 30 June and provides prospective instrumental and vocal students with an opportunity to work closely with Queensland Conservatorium staff and music industry professionals in state-of-the-art facilities at South Bank in Brisbane, Queensland. Places in Tertiary Preparation Workshop 2017 are limited and only open to those in years 10, 11, 12.

QUT STEM

This school holidays QUT will be offering STEM workshops for students in Years 7 – 12. Covering a range of interesting topics, from aeronautical engineering to astrophysics, the workshops provide students with the opportunity to apply their STEM knowledge in a real-world context. Registrations are now open and places are limited.

BE THERE! Tertiary Studies Expo

Students and families are encouraged to attend the Tertiary Studies Expo in July. More information has been provided to students. This is a great opportunity to find information about all organisations and options around tertiary studies. Highly recommended for students in Years 10, 11 and 12.

Bond with Bond: Toowoomba

Tuesday 11th July from 6:00pm-7:00pm @ Toowoomba Grammar School

Students and families are invited to attend the Bond with Bond event in Toowoomba, where you can find out more about studying at Bond.

Sport News

By Mrs Julie Collins, Program Leader Sport

Foxtel Broncos School Challenge

Congratulations to all teams who played in the Gala days at Goondiwindi and Warwick. Both Netball and Football teams played at a very high standard and should be proud of their conduct during the Challenge.

Congratulations to the following students who were acknowledged as Player of the Match –

Tom Bell, Felicity Parsons & Kiah Murray. Well done!

Athletics Carnival

The College Athletics carnival will take place this Friday and next Thursday. A program for both days is available on the website.

SPORTS DATES

On Wednesday the 7th of June ACW/STJ played St Joseph’s Toowoomba in the 1st of the semi-finals. In a game that could have gone either way, the scores were locked at 14 all with 15 minutes to go. St Josephs showed composure to run out winners 30 -14. Prior to this game ACW/STJ defeated Goondiwindi State High at Assumption 38 – 36. Thank you to all spectators. The team can be proud of their achievements being in the top 4 schools in the Darling Downs region. We now look forward to the Confraternity campaign in Brisbane.

Business News:

By Mr Scott Clegg, Business Manager

School fees are due Friday 9th June. If you have a Direct Debit please disregard this due date, but if you only pay the minimum amount and have a student attending a camp next term, you will need to make extra payments so you pay this off before the departure date. If you have any concerns please contact the Business Manager Mr Scott Clegg on 07 4660 4000.

Library News

By Mrs Carmel Wooding

With the end of term fast approaching, it’s time to take stock of our text book hire program. With this in mind, we will be calling for the return of any textbooks associated with subjects that only last the first half of the year, such as electives and class novels. We would also ask that parents take the time to request to see their students’ text books for all subjects at this stage to check that they are not damaged and are being cared for appropriately. Often, a reminder at this point of the year can save a big bill for damaged texts when the end of the year rolls around. Thank you! The library team.

Notices:

Science and Engineering Challenge

On Friday 26 May, 29 Assumption College year 10 students attended the Science and Engineering Challenge at USQ Toowoomba. When we arrived, a number of different activities were set up for each group from our school. Some of the activities included building a catapult, designing a chair and making a tower built out of straws, paper and masking tape. Ben Fischer, Tom Spence and Sam Roche chose to build a bridge, which had to hold a trolley of weights. Another weight was added each time the trolley made it across the bridge successfully. The bridge lasted three rounds. Another activity that was quite challenging was ‘Electracity’. For this activity a number of scenarios had to be set up to try to light up the power board using different cables that transferred different amounts of power. This activity was challenging, however Kaitlyn Thorne, Simone Gard, Taylah Hoffman and Jade Moon completed all 10 scenarios and received medallions for being the winning team on the day. We competed against 7 other schools on what ended up being the most competitive day of the challenge. Assumption College came second on 982.33 points (the winning score was 1063.79). The day was fun and everyone had a great time. We all learnt new ways to work together and we were all proud of our achievements. On behalf of all the year 10 students who participated in the competition, a big thank you to Mr Schultz and Miss Slattery for making the day as fun as possible.

By: Alexis Haggar

Year 10 Drama Children’s Theatre

The year 10 Drama students performed their devised Children’s Theatre plays at St. Mary’s Kindergarten last Monday. The performances were entertaining, engaging and communicated a moral about making good choices. The Assumption College students performed brilliantly and had a lot of fun interacting with the Kindergarten children. It has been an enriching experience creating plays for young children. Thank you to St. Mary’s Kindergarten for welcoming us and for our lovely pictures we received. We look forward to collaborating with you again in the future.

Year 10 Art Excursion

Earlier in the term, the Year 10, Senior Art and Senior Arts in Practice students were given the amazing opportunity to visit art galleries in Brisbane. The students and accompanying staff visited the Queensland Art Gallery (QAG) and the Gallery of Modern Art (GOMA) respectively. Being able to visit galleries like this was a rare opportunity and one well worthwhile as during our visit GOMA was hosting the ‘Creative Generations’ exhibition. This exhibition displayed artworks created by high achieving senior visual art students from Queensland school in 2016. To see artwork created by other senior students served as a great inspiration to those of us involved in the excursion. After visiting GOMA, we visited QAG where we viewed a range of artworks including those in the ‘Making Modernism’ exhibition that featured impressive artists such as O’Keeffe, Preston and Cossington Smith whose art transformed the art world and was integral in the the modernism movement. Many of the works on display would not often be able to be seen by the public thereby giving us a unique experience. Overall, the day began with an early start and a late end, but filled with art and fun. All the students had a fantastic day and were very thankful for the opportunity.

By Isabella Elswyk

Year 12 Hospitality International Buffet Brunch

Parents, Grandparents and Staff were given a special treat when they attended an event hosted by the year 12 Hospitality class. 14 students spent a full term of planning and practical work, to produce a wonderful selection of foods from around the world to complete their assessment task. A big congratulations to all students for a job well done. A big thankyou to our guests for attending.

The One Million Stars to End Violence Project

Every Wednesday this Semester at first break interested Assumption College Students were assisted by Mrs Gillespie, Student Counsellor to weave paper stars as part of our school’s commitment to The One Million Stars to End Violence project. Assumption College students wove approximately 300 stars over 15 weeks and recently Ms Karina Devine, Warwick Art Gallery Director attended Assumption College to collect our stars.

Ms Devine will add Assumption College’s stars to the approximately 7000 other stars created in our district and deliver them by July to Brisbane artist Maryann Talia Pau. These stars will form part of Ms Talia Pau’s One Million Stars art installation at the 2018 Gold Coast Commonwealth Games. The installation will be a collective statement against ending all forms of violence and will show how much can be achieved when we work together as a community.

Assumption College was proud to be involved in The One Million Stars to End Violence project and each star woven by our students represented our school’s commitment towards a bullying and violence free environment.

Darling Downs Squash State Championships

Congratulations to Sean Bryson who recently competed for Darling Downs Squash in the State Championships in Rockhampton May 25-28. Sean played 7 matches in his under 15 pool, winning all matches, only dropping 3 games (sets) along the way. This resulted in Sean finishing on top of his pool, despite playing 1 less match than the other competitors. Sean went on to play in the final on the last day of competition, which he won, 3 games to one.He also played 3 doubles matches, winning 1 of the 3 matches. Darling Downs finis hed the tournament 4th overall.

Australian Stock Exchange Game

In the Australian Stock Exchange game for schools which ended recently, students were given an imaginary $50000 to invest in the ASX and prices and gains were calculated in real time over a number of months.

Our students entered into the spirit by investing the imaginary money in the stock market and really enjoyed themselves. This game does real time trades and calculates all of your profits and losses as if you were an actual investor.

We have been lucky enough to have Pauline Pickering, the director of Globe Accounting, sponsor monetary prizes for our students and this kept the level of interest high – there were over one hundred students who participated and purchased a portfolio of shares.

Technical analysis, where you study the graphs of the stocks you want to buy, is a fine real world example of applied Maths and many of our students did a great job of purchasing the shares and then trading their way to profits.

Our winners were:

1. Nicholas Lane - $54831
2. Christopher Diaz - $54533
3. Harrison Elswyk - $53748

Congratulations to these boys and all students who participated.

Tuckshop News

By Mrs Ann O’Dea

Athletics Carnival Menu - Thursday 22nd June

The tuckshop will be providing a special menu for the second athletics day which is being held at Assumption College on Thursday 22nd June. The menu will comprise of various $5.00 meal deals, as well as special treats including donuts and chocolates for the day. An order form for meal deals will be distributed to all students closer to the date so the tuckshop can cater for numbers. These order forms MUST be returned to the school by Tuesday 20th June.

2017 Revised Tuckshop Menu

St Mary’s Catholic Parish:

Sacrament of Confirmation
Week 4 Workshop: Confirmation

The final workshop focuses on all the steps of the Confirmation ceremony, what is said and done by the Bishop and the candidate. The role of the sponsor is also addressed.

“Come, Holy Spirit.
Fill the hearts of your
Faithful; kindle in them
the fire of your love.”

Please say the following prayer for our Candidates:

Holy Spirit Prayer

Come, Holy Spirit.
Fill the hearts of your faithful
and kindle in them the fire of your love.
Send forth your Spirit
and there will be a new creation;
and you will renew the face of the earth.

Community News:

Kiah Park Horse Riding Camp

Winter is Coming – Initiative of the Southern Downs Community Health and Wellbeing Project 2017

Winter Cooking Classes @ Camp Leslie Dam

YMCA Leslie Dam Camp (Kitchen) 578 Leslie Dam Road, Warwick

Friday 16 June, 11am-1pm - $45

RSVP by Wed 14th June to: YMCA WIRAC – 4661 7955

10 Week Health & Well Being “Winter is Coming To The Southern Downs” Program

Starting the week 12 June

For more details contact Pam Burley/Hailey Cosh Rickard 1300 697 372 or YMCA WIRAC 4661 7955

Marriage Encounter

Worldwide Marriage Encounter:

4 to 6 August 2017: Worldwide Marriage Encounter weekend for married couples at Santa Teresa Spirituality Centre, Ormiston QLD (on Brisbane’s bayside)

For bookings/details contact: Maria and David Murphy, ph (07) 3342 1456, dandmmurphy@optusnet.com.au

WIRAC Squad Training

Messy Church

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