Red Shield Appeal
The Salvation Army’s annual Red Shield Appeal is an opportunity for students from Years 5 to 9 to get involved with, and actively support, the wonderful work the Salvation Army does in our community. Through a sacrifice of a few hours on Sunday 29th May, 17 Bellarine Campus students took part in the door knock appeal through Drysdale and Clifton Springs. This was a real joy for these students, knowing that by giving up a little of their time they were having a real and meaningful impact on the lives of many of our neighbours that the Salvation Army provides assistance to right here on the Bellarine. Along with the door knock collection on Sunday and proceeds from last Wednesday’s Year 9 Food Studies Pop Up Café, students were really excited to hand over a combined total of $1768.00 to Salvation Army Ministry Assistant, Tahnee Parsons. We commend these students and wish to thank those parents and staff that supported them on the day.
Nicholas Watson, Head of Campus
National Reconciliation Week
This past week, the 27th of May – 3rd of June, we have observed ‘National Reconciliation Week’. This has been a time for our students and in fact all Australians to learn about our shared histories, cultures, and achievements, and to explore how each of us can contribute to achieving reconciliation in Australia. National Sorry Day, which precedes Reconciliation Week, recognises the negative impacts of Australian policies, practices and attitudes on Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.
The National Reconciliation Week 2022 theme is “Be Brave. Make Change.” This is a call to action for all Australians to be brave and tackle the unfinished business of reconciliation to make change for the benefit of every Australian.
On Wednesday morning the Junior School students joined together in multi-age groups to participate in a range of activities that brought meaning and understanding to our youngest children. It was wonderful to watch the students working side by side and to listen to their conversations around the wrongs of the past and the wonders open to us in the future, if we choose to set our minds on adopting a caring, compassionate and conciliatory attitude to all peoples.
Pam McKeeman
Exploring Traditional and Contemporary Digital Art Creation Techniques
The students in Prep Art drew a portrait of themselves in close-up view. We focused on facial expressions and in particular, happy expressions. The students examined how their eyes changed shape, along with eyebrows, mouths, and cheeks. It was so much fun pulling faces. The background involved creating interesting textures with a paint brush. New words are often explained during art activities to describe different techniques. Dabbing, dragging, and stippling were demonstrated to describe the different ways to use a paint brush. It is wonderful to hear our Prep students use new art vocabulary as they talk together about their art making. Finally, the students’ hands were roller painted with different primary-coloured paints. Blue and yellow made different green tones. Yellow and red mixed into delightful oranges and red and blue magically produced purple. Squeals of surprise and then laughter filled our art room when their hands were covered with cold wet paint. What fun!
In Digital Technologies this term, students have been exploring the use of hardware and software for different purposes. They reflected on their project in Art and discussed different ways to create art and organise ideas with and without digital technologies. They explored the use of the software program Paint 3D as a tool to express their thinking and tell a story in a safe environment. Students have many tools to choose from and Paint 3D offered them yet another tool in their repertoire. Prep students then learned to access their class OneNote to use a different sort of digital drawing tool. The advantage of OneNote is the privacy of their individual work data and access to class resources data. The OneNote drawing allows the students to save their work, as we begin to develop thinking around creating a folio of work and progress over time.
Anne Young
Tom Hartley
Year 2 Camp
The Year 2 students had a fantastic time at Camp Wilkin in Anglesea. We were blessed with beautiful weather and the students were able to complete all activities with fun and smiles aplenty.
The students enjoyed challenging themselves by climbing on the rock wall, riding on the giant flying fox, participating in initiative activities and balancing on the low ropes course. It was pleasing to see them taking the opportunity to have a go at all the activities presented. As the camp progressed it was good to see the children developing both their independence and ability to work together as team. A huge highlight for the staff present was to watch the students enjoying the natural environment in both bush and beach settings, including sightings of many creatures.
A big thank you to our Chaplain Mr Gary Crole and Pre-Service Teacher Mrs Sarah Gustavsson who assisted us on camp.
Sam Kennedy
Jessica Chakir
Junior School Open House
On Wednesday evening, after a very cold and wet first day of Winter, the Junior School welcomed families on site to visit classrooms and enjoy a specialist subject display. It was wonderful to watch the children leading their parents into classrooms and around the different displays in the open learning space, excited at the thought of sharing their work with them. It was also wonderful to have some students from the Choir share a couple of songs with the enthusiastic audience.
This was a great opportunity for parents to see for themselves the amazing learning that continues to take place throughout the Junior School.
Pam McKeeman, Deputy Head
Year 3 Christian Education – Abraham and Sarah
God said, ‘Count all the stars in the sky. The number of descendants you will have, will outnumber them.’
During Christian Education lessons recently, Year 3 have been studying the story of Abraham and Sarah and the faith they had in God, as depicted in Genesis (see YouTube links below).
We read the story and completed a sequencing activity, where we filled in what the characters in the story were saying, to show our understanding.
We each drew a portrait of one of Abraham’s descendants, which we framed and added to the gallery wall in the corridor, to remind us of all the important people in his family.
Finally, we used what we had learned to make our own puppet show about the story. Everyone was excited to share their play with the class and show their knowledge of the story with the audience.
YouTube Links
Part 1 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tYjQf1SXW_8
Renee Cunningham
Mark Jacobi
Marty’s Moments
Just in time for Winter to really bite, Marty had his first trip to the grooming salon. Seeing his new haircut for the first time Mr Mac kindly shared that apparently there is only a week or two 2 between a good haircut and a bad one! As you can see from the photos Marty felt the need to rug up a little, wearing his coat and beanie to school on the really cold days.
Since graduating Marty has been training very hard. With the help of some extremely industrious Year 5 students he can now touch, sit, drop and roll. Marty has continued his visits to classrooms just to check in on how the ‘kids’ are going. Last week he spent a day with Ms Huber, where he joined in on a couple of ensembles, some instrumental lessons and even slept through a meeting with Mr Watson. On Wednesday evening he stayed up a little later than usual to help out at the Junior School Open House. I think he’s very much looking forward to a well-earned rest over the weekend.
The Bellarine Middle School Chess Tournament
Day 1 of the Christian College Bellarine Middle School Chess Tournament saw two rounds of action and all our participants having an enjoyable time socialising and playing competitive matches.
We currently have four undefeated players heading into the final rounds today (June 3) and we look forward to seeing how the rest of the tournament plays out. Our players will continue to battle it out to earn valuable house points and contribute to the potential victory of their house.
Individual winners and house champions will be announced in next week’s Vine. We would also like to thank again our wonderful players for being involved and showing that there is a strong interest in chess at the campus. We really hope that this tournament will be the first of many and that it will grow each time.
A reminder also to all students that everyone is welcome to visit the library during the second half of lunch times play some friendly games and meet other students with a shared interest in chess.
Liam Monagle
Adam Reidy
Year 5 Music Performers Program Update
The Year 5s are continuing very well on their journey in our Music Performers Program.
The beginner concert band students are going from strength to strength as they learn to master the basics on their instruments with their tutors and then come into the band setting to play with the larger group. This week they started a new piece in Concert Band and should be busy at home practising their new parts. Pieces like this help the students to learn how to play independently within the ensemble and allow us to have moving melodies and leadership roles within a piece.
The Music Workshop students have been busy playing together as well as learning about the skills of composing and arranging with Ms Lawrence. Understanding the construction of melody and song form is vital to our budding young composers and we encourage students to use the Musescore program to express their creativity in this area.
We hope Year 5 students can enjoy some productive time with their instruments these coming holidays on their new class projects.
Sharon Huber
Year 7 Super Healthy Stir Fry Design Brief
Students have been working towards planning a ‘Super Healthy Stir Fry’ design as if it was to appear in a supermarket magazine. Certain criteria had to be followed, including ensuring it reflected the recommendations of the Australian Guide to Healthy Eating. This task also incorporated some cross curricular links to the Health unit they are currently studying in HPE where students will be investigating ingredients for and producing a healthy smoothie that also meets the same recommendations.
Fiona Wright
Our Science Studies
It has been a busy term in the Science laboratories where students across the Middle Years have been developing their scientific skills of gathering data, making observations, and frequently asking the question, ‘why?’
Areas of study have covered topics from the areas of biology, geology, and physics. Year 5 students have been studying animal adaptations, Year 6 students have been studying natural disasters, Year 7 students have focused on forces and simple machines. Meanwhile, Year 8 students have investigated plate tectonics and the rock cycle and our senior Year 9 students have studied how our bodies are controlled and regulated, with an emphasis on the workings of the endocrine and nervous systems.
Sophie Maye, Jorge Viegas, Kelly O’Neil
Creating our own Ultimate Civilisations
Throughout the semester, students in Year 7 have been exploring ancient civilisations, with the focus in Term 1 being Ancient Australians. Throughout Term 2, the focus shifted to other ancient civilisations including Egypt, China, Rome and Greece. The aim of our learning is to understand what it means to belong to a society, and how each of these ancient civilisations contributed to the world we live in today. Students have explored each of these civilisations through the lens of TRIBEL (trade, recreation, infrastructure, belonging, environment, and laws / governance).
As we move towards the end of term, students now have the opportunity to apply their learning, using the knowledge and skills they have developed to create and justify their version of an ultimate civilisation. As part of this creation, students may choose to present their learning using Minecraft Education. It has been fantastic to see some students willing to help upskill their peers by leading learning sessions using this digital tool.
Additionally, students are in the midst of creating an original character who exists in this place and time they are developing. Our learning in English will see students create a backstory narrative for this character, as well as a two-page graphic novel spread about an important moment or event in their life.
We see this learning as an opportunity for the students to be creative, critical thinkers, synthesise their learning, be reflective and continue to develop important writing skills.
The Year 7 English and Humanities Team
Messaging and Online Chat – Helping Parents to Keep Young People Safe
One of the most challenging aspects of young people’s technology use for parents is messaging and online chat. Where age-appropriate, these apps and platforms enable young people to stay connected, be in the moment with someone, meet new people and collaborate with others.
However, it can be difficult for parents to be across every platform or app and to know what’s age-appropriate and what’s not. Where a young person sets up an account on their own without parent involvement, it can make it difficult for parents to ensure safety and be confident that the content being sent and received is suitable and safe.
For all the potential value and benefit these tools provide, they also often pose the risk of cyberbullying, exposure to inappropriate content or unwanted contact from strangers. It is an unfortunate but true reality that there are some people online who seek to connect with young people for the wrong reasons.
Discord, Tik Tok, Snapchat, Instagram, Facebook… Are they right for my child? Should I allow this app’s use? What are the safety and privacy features? How can I support my child in using this app?
Parents, be reassured that there is support and guidance for navigating the full range of apps and platforms that are popular with young people on both our own Online Safety Hub and from eSafety.
- Messaging and online chat (from eSafety
- Discord – parent advice (CCG Online Safety Hub)
- Snapchat – parent advice (CCG Online Safety Hub)
- Tik Tok – parent advice (CCG Online Sagety Hub)
Parents are encouraged to be aware of the minimum age for any platform and understand that many of these platforms are intended for adults and older teens. For many apps, the age recommended by cyber safety experts is older than the listed minimum age because of the potential risks.
At school, we prevent access to messaging and chat apps on our network. Access to messaging and chat is also prevented on College devices during school days for all students to support them with their learning and wellbeing.
Brendan Vanderkley
Graduate Professional Development Day
Learning is for more than just our students - Christian College is building a strong career foundation for new teachers.
Teaching can be a tough job— as any veteran teacher will tell you over the past few years. Finding ways to make it sustainable is imperative for the strength of our profession, student learning outcomes and continuing to build the quality teaching in our College. Our targeted mentoring program is designed to support graduate teachers and was further enhanced by our recent seminar day with visiting speakers from Independent Schools Victoria (ISV) and the Victorian Institute of Education (VIT).
Undertaking a career as a new teacher can be both exhilarating and overwhelming. The excitement of working in a dynamic and hugely rewarding profession is often complicated by administrative demands, professional development responsibilities, and the intricacies of a classroom. Further to this, a graduate teacher is developing their craft, building relationships with colleagues and families for the first time, learning new processes, the Australian curriculum, navigating the 37 professional teacher standards and undertaking a teacher inquiry for registration as a proficient teacher. Victorian Institute of Education’s Linda Blakis likens learning to teach with learning to drive, ‘When you get behind the wheel for the first time, it is daunting. Everything is new, you must consciously check everything before turning on the engine and there is so much multitasking required, but with practice, good coaching and time, these things become intuitive.’
At Christian College we are privileged to have a selection of graduate teachers on each campus, each are supported fortnightly by an experienced mentor teacher. Our mentors are intensively trained to assist these graduates through one of the most critical phases of their teaching career.
To complement this ongoing mentoring, we were fortunate to have the expertise of Jackie Macreadie – Principal Consultant from ISV and Linda Blakis – Professional Practice Manager from VIT run a full day seminar for all graduates and mentors this week. This is a new initiative, one that few other schools offer, and we were immensely grateful for the time and expertise of our guest speakers. There was much engagement in the sessions, with collaboration and a buzz of ideas for their inquiry projects. The feedback was overwhelmingly positive for the value of this day for all who attended. We hope that it can become an ongoing opportunity for our staff development. A huge thank you to our leadership for supporting such a pivotal opportunity for our staff.
Ingrid Staggard
Sport Faculty Wrap
It has been an incredible fortnight for our CC Eagles Sport Teams.
Our Senior Male AFL squad and our Senior Female Netball Team both won GISSA Championships in the last two weeks.
Our victory in the Division One AFL Titles was a significant step forward for our Sport Faculty’s AFL Program, as it means our College will now advance to the next stage of the ‘Herald Sun Shield’ for the first time in many years.
The triangular AFL series involved our CC Eagles Team playing two full-length, stand-along games on different dates against Kardinia International College and another against St Ignatius College.
The first test came against Kardinia at Queens Park.
Despite some wayward goal-kicking, our Eagles were generally dominant in general play and broke free in the second half to register a comfortable win.
Year 12 student Ethan Grills was named our Team’s MVP for that game, using his running power and strength at ground level and in the air to amass a stack of possessions in the midfield.
After St Ignatius defeated Kardinia in their first-round match, the stage was set for what was essentially a ‘grand final’ between our Eagles and the boys in red, white and blue.
The showdown did not disappoint, with our College grinding out a two-point triumph in what was a classic game of schoolboy football.
Year 11 student Harley Anderson was named our Team MVP for the second outing – an amazing effort for a ‘bottom-age’ student in a game where there was plenty of older talent on display.
But truly this was the quintessential ‘team effort’ from our boys, with the even contribution across the whole magnet board proving to be the deciding factor in the game.
Speaking of the magnet board, our Sport Faculty wishes to say a massive thank you and congratulations to Senior School Campus Staff Members Mr David Harmer and Mr Andrew Tucker, who have taken extra time during a busy start to 2022 to Coach our Senior AFL Male Team.
Their leadership and commitment, coupled with that of a group of Year 12 students who have assisted the coaching staff during the preparation phase, was undoubtedly a driving force behind this milestone achievement.
Speaking of milestone achievements, that is also a perfect way to describe what happened at the Geelong Sports Hub on Tuesday.
Our Senior Female Netball Team clinched the GISSA crown for the first time in many years - also knocking of perennial contender St. Ignatius in the Grand Final - in what was another giant step forward for our Sport Faculty.
After losing to St. Ignatius in the qualifying rounds, our CCG Eagles went into the decider as the underdogs, and the task appeared even more challenging when we fell behind half way through the second half.
However our girls showed enormous heart, rallying in the final three minutes to pull out the victory, punctuated by gritty defensive efforts that turned potential opposition scores into two-goal turn-arounds.
It was a thrilling contest for those lucky enough to watch it, with the difference between the two teams just a couple of nets.
Our Sport Faculty would like to congratulate every member of this squad - especially a pair of Burrows Bears, Year 12 Ava Bourke and Year 10 Isabelle McKinnis, who were drafted into the Team at late notice after two of their team-mates became unavailable.
The medal for Team MVP went to Year 12 Penman Panther Kiera Green for her consistently high level of play throughout the whole tournament.
Although, given our girls had to play multiple games over the course of this one-day, round-robin competition, this stunning achievement could not have occurred without all girls stepping up at different times.
That was the feedback provided by the Team’s Head Coach, Ms Olivia Cameron, who herself deserves a ton of credit for leading yet another CCG Eagles Sport Team on a successful mission.
Ms Cameron works tirelessly to provide our students with the best coaching possible, and it is no coincidence how often the teams she leads end up coming home with silverware.
A huge thank should also go to our Team Manager, Mrs Flora Murdoch, whose expertise and behind-the-scenes work in the build-up ensured this group was primed.
As exciting as it was to see our current Senior teams overcoming the other independent schools in the region, there are also bright signs for the future in both the AFL and Netball Programs.
Our Inter Male AFL Team fell just one game short of matching the accomplishment of their Senior counterparts, advancing to the Grand Final of the GISSA Championships held at St Joseph’s Football and Netball Club.
Our Eagles won both their qualifying games comfortably, and then ran St Ignatius all the way in the final before ultimately coming up short to cap off an otherwise encouraging display in the single-day titles.
Our Inter Female Netball Team also had a successful campaign at the GISSA Titles, winning three games and finishing fourth out of 13 teams at the single-day, round-robin Championships held at Geelong Sports Hub.
The action is far from over for both our CCG Eagles AFL and Netball Programs.
Next week it’s time for Female AFL, with our Junior and Inter girls gearing themselves for the GISSA Championships, while our netballers have the Netball Victoria Schools Championships to look forward to in Term 3.
Our Senior Male AFL Team, meanwhile, doesn’t have much time to bask in the glow of their GISSA Titles victory, as their next challenge will come next term when they take on the winner of the Australian Catholic Colleges competition in late July.
Matthew Murnane
Golf Tournament
The Foundation Golf Tournament is set for Thursday, 27 October 2022. Join us at 13th Beach Golf Links from 8:00am for a shotgun start. Tickets are $190 each ($150 for members) or $750 for a group of four. RSVPs close on Thursday, 6 October 2022 at 5:00pm.
Funds raised from this event will be allocated to our Foundation Scholarship Fund, supporting current students who are in need of financial assistance.
Book online at: The Foundation Golf Tournament