15 February 2019

Newsletter Articles

Principal’s Message:

By Mr Kort Goodman - Principal

Dear Parents, Students and Friends,

Just recently I came across this interesting and thought-provoking information.

Scenario; It’s time to elect a world leader and yours is the deciding vote. There are three leading contenders;

Candidate A associates with crooked politicians, consults with astrologers, has had two mistresses, is severely disabled, chain smokes and drinks heavily.

Candidate B was kicked out of office twice, sleeps until noon, used opium at University, is an undiagnosed manic-depressive and drinks a bottle of whiskey a day.

Candidate C is a decorated war hero, vegetarian, doesn’t smoke or drink except for an occasional beer, is immensely popular with the common people and has never had an extramarital affair.

Who would you choose?

Candidate A is Franklin D. Roosevelt
Candidate B is Winston Churchill
Candidate C is Adolf Hitler

In reading this information it became very apparent to me that sometimes the best candidate on paper is the worst option in reality. I then started to ponder what circumstances, what experiences and what people did they have in their lives that led them to become who they were.

In last weekend’s Gospel reading we reflected upon the story of how Jesus chose his Apostles. Jesus did not waste money on management consultants when choosing the Apostles, he plucked the Apostles from obscurity. He had one ‘epic fail’ among them and plenty of errors from the others but, overall, they ended up doing a really good job. What at least eleven of them developed in abundance over time was faith, hope and love. It took them a while to grasp what Jesus was on about and they let him down more than once, but they stuck at it. They all had one big thing in common that nearly all great leaders experience in their formation: a mentor who knows they are not perfect, forgives their limitations, tells them the truth, brings them back to what they are actually about, and inspires them by what he says and how he lives. The characteristics that Jesus displayed as the mentor of the Apostles sets a great example for us as educators within our Assumption College Community. Each day we should strive to be genuine in our interactions with our students providing them with feedback and guidance and challenging ourselves and our students to be the best that we can be. In striving to achieve this aim we can be authentic examples for our students of how Jesus wants us to live our lives.

This week we offer a prayer for the staff of our College;

Assumption College P&F

The Assumption College P&F meets on the second Monday of each month and offers our parents and friends the opportunity to be part of a group that supports the students and staff of the College in many varied ways. The current executive members of the Assumption College P&F Association are;

Mr Bill McVeigh – President
Mrs Lara Farrell – Vice President
Mrs Tanya Gordon – Treasurer
Mrs Regina Henry – Secretary

All members of this executive committee intend to step down at our P&F AGM on the 4th March. We thank these generous people for their long-term support of our College. Any parents who wish to be part of the P&F Association or would like further information are encouraged to contact the College.

Assumption College Board

The Assumption College Board meets on the first Wednesday of each month and acts as an advisory and support group for the College on such issues as policy review and development, future planning and budgetary provision and forecasting. The current board representatives include;

Mr Terry Duggan (Chair of the Board)
Fr Franco Filipetto (ex – officio – Spiritual member)
Mr Kort Goodman (Principal)
Mr Craig Frattini (ex – officio – Administration Team member)
Mrs Jill Hume (Parent representative member)
Mrs Natalie Nolan (Parent representative member)
Mr Chris Malone (Parent representative member)
Mrs Lyn Irwin-Kelly (P&F representative member)
Mr Scott Clegg (Staff representative)

If you are interested in offering your services to be part of the College board and would like some further information, please contact the College.

Have a lovely week
Kort

TERM 1 – 2019 DATE CLAIMERS

Pastoral Care News:

By Mr Craig Frattini, Deputy Principal

Parenting Ideas Insight

Top five strategies to improve your parenting this year
By Michael Grose

The start of the year is a great time for making changes and improvements to the way you raise kids. But it’s difficult to know where to begin.

To assist with the change process we’ve carefully selected five practical strategies that will have a positive impact if acted upon. We’ve organised webinars in the first half of the year to assist you to implement each strategy.

1. Switch on your child’s strengths

Most of us have been conditioned to focus on what kids can’t do. There is a better way. The Positive Psychology movement lead by US-based psychologist Dr. Martin Seligman showed that when we can unearth kids’ strengths we are, in effect, unlocking their true potential for success and happiness. Three elements come together to make a strength and parents need to be mindful of all three: performance (being good at something); energy (feeling good doing it); and high use (choosing to do it).

2. Balance kids’ extra-curriculum activities

Alongside social media and news events, being busy is now recognised as a major stressor for many children and young people. The choice of activities to keep kids busy after school hours is mind-boggling.

Having so many options is wonderful but it does place a new set of pressures on parents and kids. The cost of loading kids up with scheduled activities is that many don’t get the chance for free play, or simply ‘vegging out’ on the couch.

Parenting Ideas expert Dr.Jodi Richardson will help you find the right balance of activity for your family in her webinar ‘Balancing extra-curricular activities‘.

3. Focus on friendships

Friendships are an important part of the road to adulthood for a child or young person. Friendships can also be problematic. Not every child is naturally outgoing and makes friends easily. If your child has difficulty forming friendships and is worried by that, then there are many ways to approach this including: encouraging kids to spend one-on-one time with others, making extra-curricular activities fit their interests, and coaching kids to develop friendly behaviours.

4. Give kids tools to manage anxious moments

Currently we have a childhood anxiety problem. A big one! And it’s mostly undetected as community understanding of anxiety is low. It’s our experience at Parenting Ideas that many parents are anxious and they don’t know it, and many children routinely experience anxiety, which goes unrecognised.

Parenting Ideas founder Michael Grose is conducting a webinar ‘Managing your child’s anxiety‘ to help parents on this challenging but important topic.

5. Develop rights of passage

Community changes have largely eradicated many traditional rights of passage, making it harder for a young person to know when they’ve become an adult.

Fortunately, many families are now creating their own to mark events such as the end of primary school, the move into the teenage years, and mark different stages of adolescence. These traditions are now becoming legitimate rights of passage for young people.

Internationally recognised expert on rites of passage Arne Rubenstein will outline practical ways you can recognise a young person’s important life markers in his webinar ‘Creating 21st century rites of passage‘.

APRE News:

By Mrs Carol Sharp, APRE

The RE Classroom

Students should be settled into their RE lessons by now. The RE curriculum can present some unique challenges for students depending on their level of experience and engagement. So, if your student is struggling with any part of the RE curriculum, please encourage them to talk to either their classroom teacher or myself.

A reminder that students should be receiving regular homework or completing revision of the skills and content taught in class.

Social Justice News

Request for Cotton!

A reminder that Mrs. Amanda Stevens is looking for any and all unwanted cotton fabric you may have lying around the house. Mrs. Stevens is trying to launch a new social justice initiative called ‘Dress a Girl Around the World.’ Dress a Girl Around the World is a Campaign under Hope 4 Women International bringing dignity to women around the world since 2006. They dream of a world in which every girl has at least one new dress – where girls know that they are worthy of respect, and that they are loved by God. Step 1 in this exciting initiative is to gather as much cotton as we can. Families can leave donations at the front office or give them directly to either Mrs. Stevens or myself. At this stage we are asking for cotton fabric only. Further details of this organisation can be found at link below or by talking to Mrs. Stevens.

Upcoming Events

• Plenary Council - Pope Francis has asked people around the world to contribute to the Plenary Council in 2020. For many months communities around the country have been listening to the Holy Spirit and answering the question ‘What do you think God is asking of us in Australia at this time?’ Over the coming term, I will be inviting students to join a discussion group that answers this question and provides them with the opportunity to reflect on the type of Church they would like to see.
• Caritas Just Leadership Day – Friday, March 1 at St. Joseph’s College. A letter will be sent home shortly inviting leaders and those interested in being a part of any social justice group at school to attend.

Prayer for Rain

God of compassion,
we wait and watch for your gift of rain
to water the soil and make the barren land come alive again.
We wait and watch for the gift of salvation
to free us from hatred, greed and fear
so that we may live again as people of faith, hope and love.
We make this prayer in the name of our Saviour who comes to be with us. Amen.

Curriculum News:

By Mrs Anna Hardy, Assistant Principal—Curriculum

Resubmission process

The College implements a plan to ensure that all students strive to achieve their best. The College has a resubmission process. This means that when a student does not attempt to make the advised changes to their draft for the final submission, or when the standard of the assessment is sub-standard, the teacher will be requesting the student resubmits the assessment along with an academic afterschool detention. The underlying belief of our teachers at our College is that assessment is not just about the mark at the end, but is about the learning inherent in completing the task. If the student does not complete a whole task, they may be missing integral skills in this learning. If your child is required to resubmit, you will be contacted by the teacher by SMS and a follow up phone call or email. The student cannot be graded on his/her resubmission but they will be expected to meet the minimum expectations of the task and give their best effort.

Assessments and Extensions

It is timely at the moment to remind all members of our College community of the requirements of our assessment policy. An assignment is due in the lesson of the day stipulated by the classroom teacher. If a student has a valid reason for extra time, they must apply for an extension by meeting with Ms Harris (senior students) or Mr Kirby (junior students) to discuss their needs. This must be done prior to the due date. An extension will be granted with the required documentation, such as a medical certificate (senior students) or a note (junior students), or in an extenuating circumstance.

Term 1 Reports

As mentioned in previous newsletters, Term 1 interim reports will be posted home during the last week of this term. Parent/teacher interviews will be held early in Term 2 – Monday 29th April, Tuesday 7th May. While teachers can request interviews on the Term 1 interim report, it is strongly recommended that parents also request interviews with teachers. We understand that families have busy schedules; however we would really appreciate an opportunity to discuss your child’s education with you. These parent teacher interviews are a great opportunity to meet your student’s teachers. All appointments can be made using our SOBS online booking program, instruction sheets for Year 7 parents will be sent home with reports. If you have any queries about the booking process please contact Karen Upton at the College office for assistance.

Tutorials

It is great to see that students are using the tutorial time to access their teachers for extra help with assessment and homework. A reminder for those who have not been before that they are on each Thursday 3:15pm-4:15pm in Room 311 and everyone is welcome!

University of New South Wales ICAS

Students from Years 8-12 have been selected based on 2018 results and will be invited to attend via a letter sent home.

We would also like to call upon any Year 7 student who would be interested in sitting the tests as their 2018 results are not available to access and to select students, therefore invitations to students have not been sent.

Excursions

12SOR Letters went home this week regarding their Ethnographic Excursion to Brisbane on the 14th March. Please return asap to Mrs Cullen or the office.

10/11/12 Visual Art Excursion to GOMA Brisbane will be occurring on 26 February, students will receive letters in the next few days. Please return asap to Mrs Cullen or the office.

Student Pathway News:

By Mrs Alison Porter, Program Leader Student Pathways

Noteworthy items:

• Date claimer 20th of March – University Showcase for interested Year 12 students
• Expressions of interest for the ‘Trade Taster Program’ are being taken now
• GenR8 applications are due on Monday.

GenR8 Program

Last week a group of Year 11 & 12 students participated in a site tour for the GenR8 program. The GenR8 Program involves a number of local businesses involved in transport and logistics and gives students the opportunity to gain a certificate qualification and vocational experience. Interested students toured the businesses that are offering positions in the program, including Bunnings, Big W Distribution Centre, Southern Downs Regional Council, Warrego Waters, Grove Juice, Integria Healthcare, Hardy’s Haulage and Qube Transport. Student applications for positions in the program are due on Monday 18th of February.

Congratulations!

Students have already been signed up to school-based traineeships or apprenticeships this year. Congratulations and best wishes to these students and a big thanks to those local businesses that have provided these opportunities, are supporting these students in their pathways.

Congratulations to Hayleigh Cartwright, Jack Pike and Tiffeny Walker on their recent sign-ups. I offer them best wishes for success in their work and training.

Congratulations too to Georgia Walker and Christopher Henderson on the recent successful completion of their school-based traineeships.

Trade Taster for Year 10 Students

The “Trade Taster” program is funded and supported by The Department of Employment, Small Business and Training and offers interested Year 10 students a two-day TAFE workshop. The trade this year will be related to the repair and servicing of Heavy Vehicle Mechanical Technology. ie. Trucks/Large Engines/Tractors etc. Students will be exposed to working engines, as well as tools and equipment related to the Heavy Vehicle Servicing industry. These 2 days will give students a “taste” of the Heavy Vehicle Mechanical Technology, Agricultural Mechanical Technology and Mobile Plant Technology qualifications. This is a great experience for students interested in, or considering a career or apprenticeship in, heavy vehicle mechanics. Places in the program are limited and students who would like to participate should see me as soon as possible.

University Showcase for Year 12 Students

Year 12 students studying for an Overall Position are invited to attend the annual ‘University Showcase’ being held at Warwick State High School on the 20th of March. The showcase involves approximately four universities, plus other tertiary education organisations, coordinating a visit to Warwick. The showcase includes a panel of speakers delivering a 20-30 minute presentation on general tertiary information. Topics include pathways to university, costs, how to apply, accommodation, lifestyle and transition issues. Afterwards there is time available for students to visit tertiary exhibits, speak to exhibitors and collect relevant information. It is a good opportunity for students to get first-hand information regarding tertiary study. A permission letter will be going home to Year 12 students with those students wishing to attend needing to return the permission slip by March 13th.

Sport News:

By Mrs Julie Collins, Program Leader Sport

Swimming Carnival

Thank you!! To all students who attended the carnival, whether you competed, cheered or danced your participation was appreciated by your house members and staff.

Congratulations to all Champions and Runner Up competitors.

Broken Records

Caitlin Skaines – Open 50m Freestyle – 27.87
Caitlin Skaines – Open 50m Breaststroke – 26.94
Caitlin Skaines – Open 50m Backstroke – 32.56
Caitlin Skaines – Open 50m Butterfly – 30.80
Caitlin Skaines – Open 100m Freestyle – 1.01.00
4x50m – 14 Years – Girls – Romero – 2.19.97
4x50m – 12 Years – Boys – Rice – 3.35.28
4x50m – 12 Years – Girls – Romero – 2.51.43
4x50m – 16 Years – Boys – Donovan – 2.11.80

Summer Trials

Congratulations to Sean Bryson who has been selected in the Darling Downs team for Cricket. A number of students have been selected in Border District teams. We wish them success at their respective Darling Downs trials.

Sports Dates

Please check dates below for any updates or changes.

Library News:

By Mrs Mary-Anne Driver

Our Connect 4 Challenge was hotly contested last week with lots of fun and laughter. Things got a bit competitive with some of the boys, resulting in a win with the very last marker! Of course, there was a prize if any student won three games! Thanks to the seniors who made a special effort to come in and meet our new students.

The 2018 yearbook was handed out from the library, which resulted in plenty of page flicking, exclamations and comments on photos. We need to thank the Yearbook team who did a fantastic job of compiling it.

This week we made pony bead snake key chains, which involved reading and following the instructions and some fiddly fine motor work! Lots of fun to be had in the library.

Library

General Notices:

Year 11 and 12 Hospitality

This week the students have been diligently executing their precision knife skills performing precision cuts such as Julienne, Brunoise, Jardiniere and Macedoine.

Year 11 and 12 Hospitality

Year 8 Food and Textiles

Year 8’s designed and produced a savoury muffin – it had to include 3 vegetables, 1 fresh herb and additional flavouring such as bacon or salami.

Year 8 Food and Textiles

School Musical

This year Assumption College will be performing Legally Blonde JR the musical on August 7th, 8th and 9th at the Warwick Town Hall. Interested students have attended an information session and have commenced learning songs for auditions. Auditions will take place over Weeks 4-6 during student lunch breaks with a possible Wednesday afternoon audition for those students who have been shortlisted for lead roles. This afternoon will be confirmed in writing. With over 85 students interested we are very excited for the musical journey to begin.

Currently we are seeking old school hooded hair dryers for the scenes in the hairdressing salon. If anyone has the ability to source these for us could you please email Kristy.Searson@twb.catholic.edu.au.

Cert II Rural Operations

This is an exciting year for the College, as we have been able to offer the year 11 students two different strands; Agriculture Science & Cert II in Rural Operations. The Cert II course has proven to be quite popular with the class more than doubling in size in the first two weeks. The students have been working hard to establish our facilities at the College. So far, they have put new shade cloth on the shade house and also established some garden beds. In the future this class will have the opportunity to participate in many off-site practical activities. The students are very enthusiastic participating in the variety of activities that this course has to offer.

The year 11 AG Science class went on excursion to David & Julie Collins property ‘Tulllamore’ at Willowvale. The students were able to see the crippling effects of the drought and how deplenishing water supplies affects cropping and also livestock numbers. They also took a number of soil samples to perform tests on during our class time. The Ag students are very grateful for the opportunity provided by Mr & Mrs Collins for allowing us to use their property to enhance our learning outcomes.

Year11 Ag Science

Tuckshop Menu

Welcome New Staff

We welcome the following people who are joining us in 2019.

Mrs Melissa Baker (Curriculum Leader Humanities, Humanities and Religion teacher)
Mr Mark Baker (Science and Maths teacher)
Mr Sandy Mackay (Science, Maths and HPE teacher)
Mr Piers Dudin (Maths and Science teacher)
Ms Kellie Hughes (Agriculture teacher)
Mr Rory O’Brien (Science and Maths teacher)
Miss Eliza Harris (Program Leader Senior Schooling, Humanities and English teacher)
Miss Carly Cooper (Business and HPE teacher)
Mr Flynn Donaldson (Teacher Aide)

We look forward to these people bringing and sharing their expertise, skills and talents with our community in 2019.

St Mary’s Catholic Parish:

The St Mary’s Catholic Parish Debutante Ball is being held on Friday 7th June. Please see the Parish website below or contact the Parish office on 4661 1033 for further details.

Community News:

Zonta Young Women in Public Affairs Award

The goal of the Zonta International Young Women in Public Affairs (YWPA) Award Program is to encourage young women to participate in public affairs by recognising a commitment to the volunteer sector. For more information please contact the College Office.

Choose how to add this event to your calendar:

Apple Calendar iPhone, iPad, Mac - Download .ics file

Outlook Desktop Outlook - Download .ics file

Android Calendar Android devices - Download .ics file

Other Calendar Google Calendar, Yahoo, etc. - Download .ics file

Download Event