From the Acting Principal
Despite some chilly weather this week, the sun shone brightly on the start of this new term. It was a pleasure to get to many of the campus commencement assemblies on Monday and to witness the buzz of excitement among the students as they reconnected with their peers and teachers after the holidays. These first day gatherings, coming off a three-week midyear break for students, provided a wonderful opportunity to set a positive tone for the second half of the year. Our College Captains, Molly Cooper and Seth Wilkinson, shared an encouraging message around the importance of self-care, not only at the Senior Campus assembly, but in visits to Highton, Bellarine and Belmont assemblies as well. We are blessed as a community to have two such leaders as Molly and Seth, who show such genuine care for the wellbeing of all students, no matter what age or what campus they are from.
Last week, staff returned for our annual Staff Retreat. Held over Thursday and Friday, this year’s theme, “Here to Serve”, gave us an opportunity to look outward, and we did so in practical and meaningful ways on Thursday afternoon through a range of organised community service activities. These included, just to name a few, beach cleanups along our beautiful coastline, blood and plasma donation, knitting blankets for bereavement support, biscuit-making for Bellarine Foodbank, meal preparation for the McKellar Centre Palliative Care Unit, working with various Landcare groups and Op Shop volunteering. The Christian College philosophical statement expresses our desire to apply Christ’s teaching of love, justice and compassion and to experience an afternoon where over 300 committed and caring staff of Christian College were able to outwork this was truly incredible. Here’s just a few examples of the positive feedback given by staff about this day: “It was a fantastic opportunity to give back to the community”; “Every part of the retreat fostered a great sense of community and fellowship”; “it was a real out of my comfort zone experience”.
At the Staff Retreat each year, we have an opportunity at a formal dinner to acknowledge those staff who have milestone years of service at the College. This year, we recognised 25 staff with 10 years of service, twelve with 15 years and four with 20 years of service. The loyalty and faithful service of so many staff, be it teachers or professional support staff, over such a long period of time in our relatively short 43 years of history, is a wonderful blessing to this community.
I would like to acknowledge our Dean of Christian Culture, Mia Kafieris, for her instrumental work in not only organising and leading the Staff Retreat, but also for her continued care for and spiritual nourishment for our entire community.
With spring approaching and the new life that it brings, I pray that our students will, throughout Term 3, find new opportunities and new experiences in which to grow their knowledge, their skills, their character, their friendships and their faith.
Rick Geall, Acting Principal
From the Head of Campus
A warm welcome back to the current and new families that have joined us at Junior School this term. We are looking forward to a wonderful term ahead and it has been a delight to see the students settle back into learning and friendships this week. At our Commencement Service on Monday July 17, our College Captains Molly Cooper and Seth Wilkinson encouraged staff and students with a message about motivation and passion. They encouraged the students to think about the words ‘motivation’ and ‘passion’, what these words mean and also asked students to consider how these concepts are connected.
I wonder if you might have had a chance recently to consider these concepts. To think about what motivates you and what are the areas in your life that you are passionate about? Motivation in essence refers to the internal or external factors that stimulate individuals to act, initiate, and sustain certain behaviours. It can be intrinsic (coming from within oneself) or extrinsic (arising from external factors). Intrinsic motivation involves doing something because it is inherently rewarding or enjoyable, while extrinsic motivation involves doing something to obtain external rewards or avoid negative consequences. Do you have a spring in your step heading into situations or is it a challenge to simply consider the task or event ahead? Is your motivation linked to your passion?
Passion is described as a strong emotional connection or intense enthusiasm towards a particular activity, interest, or cause. It goes beyond mere interest and often becomes a central part of a person’s identity. Passion drives individuals to invest significant time, effort, and energy into what they love, even when faced with challenges or obstacles. When our motivation is linked to our passion it can be the fuel we need to excel, thrive and experience success, joy and satisfaction. Not because it is easy but because we are prepared to challenge ourselves and put in the necessary effort. Additionally, when we have purpose in our passion it can help motivate us to persevere and maintain our commitment.
My encouragement for you is to take a minute, as we did on Monday, to reflect on your purpose, your motivation and your passion and find ways to nurture this for yourself and for those around you.
Matthew 6:21: For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.
Stay warm.
Ann-Marree Weigl, Head of Campus
What’s on at Junior School
Term 3
Week 2
Tuesday July 25 – Student Learning Conferences, 4:00pm –7:00pm (Refer to EdSmart) Wednesday July 26 – Hoop Time, selected Year 3 and 4 students (Refer to EdSmart)
Thursday July 27 – Student Learning Conferences, 4:00pm – 6:00pm (Refer to EdSmart)
Week 3
Wednesday August 2 – Prep Discovery Learning Session
Thursday August 3 – College Piano Performance, Year 3 & 4 Students. 9:00am – 1:30pm
Friday August 4 – Assembly, 1G Class Item
Friday August 4 – Jeans for Genes Day, Casual Dress – Wear Your Denim! Gold coin donation
Week 4
Monday August 7 – Middle School Electives evening, 4:00pm -7:00pm (Year 4 Students are encouraged to attend)
Monday August 7 – Discover Prep Week @ Junior School visit the website for more information https://christiancollege.vic.edu.au/discover-prep-week/
Tuesday August 8 – Prep 100 days of school
Tuesday August 8 – Discover Prep Week Information Session, 4:30pm – 5:30pm
Wednesday August 9 – Naga High School Visit
Friday August 11 – Year 3 & 4 Chapel Service, 9am
Friday August 11 – Year 1 Excursion to Melbourne Museum
Week 5 – Science Week
Monday August 14 – Emergency and Lockdown Drills
Wednesday August 16 – Prep Discovery Learning Session
Friday August 18 – National Day of Action (antibullying)
Friday August 18 – Assembly, 1B Class Item
Making the Right Choices in Prep
This week we have been talking about The Ten Commandments. There have been great conversations around the importance of treating other people the way we would like to be treated. We have read the Bible story and discussed why God needed to give us rules to live by. There have been lots of conversations about what happens if there are no rules and people just do whatever they want.
We have also talked a lot about how sometimes making the right choice is hard. Everyone is faced with choices, big ones, and little ones every day and we have to think about our decisions. Sometimes these decisions are easy, but sometimes they test us.
We set up a red path and a green path in our room to show the wrong choice and the right choice. The children took turns standing behind the Bible and when asked a question they had to think about which choice would match God’s rules.
Some of these situations included:
Your Mum asks you to turn off the TV, do you hide the remote and keep watching or turn it off?
A friend falls over in the playground, do you walk away, or do you help?
There is a basket of cars to play with, do you take them all, or do you share?
Your Dad asks you to clean up your toys, do you say no, or do you say yes?
The Preps then went and drew pictures and wrote sentences to explain the good choices they have made. These included having a shower when asked, eating their dinner, sharing toys, caring for friends, listening to their families and teachers, not taking things that don’t belong to them and saying please and thank you.
There were lots of conversations that followed later when the children were engaged in their investigations. They were excited to tell me they were not being selfish, but they were taking turns and sharing the resources. They were sharing the blocks and building together. They were including everyone, when playing with the cars. They were making good choices!
Julie Shutie
MYTERN and Empathy
In 3R we are learning about empathy. Empathy is being able to know how someone else is feeling, even when you aren’t in the same situation. Sometimes, in more simple words, we call empathy being able to “put yourself in someone’s shoes” and see things from their view. Why is empathy important?
In MYTERN, we discuss how we are feeling and which road we are travelling on, however, part of being a good citizen is the ability to recognise how others are feeling in a given situation. We use this information to guide how we behave and care for others.
If someone is hurt or upset, we can help them by caring and using kind words. When someone is scared, we can reassure them. When we see someone who is happy, we can feel happy as well. When someone is sad, we can invite them to play with us.
During devotions this week we discussed how we can read faces, words and body language to understand more about others.
Lisa Johnson
Scholastic Book Club News
Issue 5 of Scholastic Book Club has been distributed to students and orders should be placed online or returned to school no later than Friday, 28-7-2023.
Our preferred payment method is via LOOP either via the mobile app or the desktop site which can be found at https://mybookclubs.scholastic.com.au/Parent/Login.aspx
Please do not send cash as we are unable to process cash payments.
Thank you for your assistance and ongoing support of Book Club.
Camp Australia Newsletter
Discover Prep Week
During Discover Prep Week, August 7 – 11, three CCG campuses are offering interested parents, families and guardians the opportunity to get a firsthand view of Prep at Junior School-Belmont, Bellarine Campus and Surf Coast Campus. Our Prep programs are unparalleled and we invite anyone interested in enrolling children in Prep in 2024 and beyond, to come and visit, join a class, see our facilities, speak with teachers and campus leaders and have their questions answered. There are multiple opportunities at each of the three campuses to participate.
We would encourage our College community to spread the word about Discover Prep Week to anyone who is considering school choices for their children in 2024 and beyond.
All details, including booking information for sessions, can be found on our Discover Prep Week webpage – hit the hotlink on our homepage or click here to access it.
Scholarship Applications are Now Open!
Each year Christian College offers Academic Excellence Scholarships for entry at Year 5, 7 and 10 levels. Applications are now open for this year’s scholarships, which apply to entry in 2025, at three campuses – Middle School-Highton, Bellarine Campus and Surf Coast Campus.
Year 10 entry applies to Senior School-Waurn Ponds only.
To find out more, and to apply, visit our website and look for the homepage hotlink, or click here.
Scholarship applications are open to students who do not currently attend Christian College, as well as those who are currently enrolled here. Scholarship examinations will be held at Christian College on Saturday October 7. Closing date for applications is Thursday, September 28.
Foundation Golf Day 2023
Following the success of last year’s inaugural event, we are delighted to announce the Christian College Foundation Golf Day tournament for 2023.
Save the date: Thursday November 9.
We are seeking prizes for this event – if you own a local business and are interested in creating partnership opportunities with Christian College, please contact Fiona Provan on 0400 477 467, or email [email protected]
Uniform Shop Clearance Sale!
A MYTERN Thought for This Week
It’s easy to rush through a cup of tea or coffee and forget to stop and appreciate the moment.
Take time out now to simply appreciate being able to breathe in fresh air. Take a long slow breath and feel it rejuvenate every cell.
Make that your intention and watch your body smile from the inside 👍❤️
Discover more about MYTERN here
