From the Head of Campus
I hope this message finds you keeping warm and well. As we have excitedly stepped back into the landscape of being on site together as staff, students, and parents something that we may not have given much thought to before the pandemic is ‘connection’.
Before the pandemic we were automatically connected through family, friends, sporting teams, clubs, playgroups and so on. However, for the past two years, most of these connections were curtailed and perhaps even removed from us. Post-pandemic, much of our society’s focus has been on connection and this is no different for us at our Junior School. 2022 has, and continues to be, certainly about the learning for our students but equally about providing intentional and explicit ways to reconnect with one another, our families and our students. I wonder if you’ve experienced a conversation with someone recently in which you really connected. Have you ever had a conversation in which you feel that you’ve really bonded? Occasionally when talking with someone else, it’s almost as if your souls open up and you connect. You move beyond the “Hi, how are you?” You’ve connected. Or, have you ever had one of those conversations where you just don’t connect? No matter how hard you try, you feel that you just can’t get through to that person. Usually you can connect but, for whatever reason, it’s just not happening at that moment. The opposite of connection is disconnection, and this sense of disconnection can negatively impact our mental and physical health. COVID has been a huge source of disconnection in so many ways for all of us. To quote a study reported by American Department of Mental Health “if you’re disconnected to other people or there is no one in your life that you really feel understands you. You are: So human connections are good medicine because they provide so many positive impacts for you both mentally and physically! This shouldn’t surprise us. In the Bible we read Proverbs 27:9 which says, “A sweet friendship refreshes the soul.” There’s something about connection that refreshes us spiritually. Connection is also related to kindness and friendship and here is our challenge to ask ourselves how do we develop strong and meaningful connections with one another and with God? I pray that as a community we can continue to grow and strengthen through opportunities to connect and reconnect.
Ann-Marree Weigl, Head of Junior School
School Photos
Our 2022 class photos and individual student portraits will be taken on Thursday 26th May. All students are to wear full College winter uniform on this day in line with our College uniform policy. Please be aware that items from the original uniform cannot be mixed with items from the new wardrobe. Some key reminders include shoulder length hair being tied back, hair cut neatly, navy blue or maroon ribbons only, small gold or silver, sleeper/stud single piercings.
Students who would normally have a Physical Education class on this day are not required to bring along their sports uniform. Instead, please send along runners for students to change into for their Phys Ed session.
A note on glasses – All students who wear glasses will receive individual portraits with glasses on. However, to enable the photographers to provide the best possible quality shot, your young person may be asked to briefly remove their glasses.
Thank you for your support with this.
Ann-Marree Weigl, Head of Junior School
A Delicious Side to Procedural Texts
This term in Year 1 we have been learning about the structural features of a procedural text. The children have participated in some language experiences to create purpose for their writing. We have drawn pictures, played games, washed dogs, made paper plate pizzas and this week we made smiley face biscuits.
The children enjoyed using the icing, jellybeans, smarties, snakes and 100s and 1000s to create their biscuit, then wrote a procedure all about how they did it. They focused on using a title, goal, list of materials and clear steps to recall how their biscuit was made.
There were many wide-eyed, excited, and happy faces in our classroom before, during and after this activity. Yum!
Lisa Johnson
AFLW’s Mia and Abby Visit Preps
At the end of Term 1 we were blessed to have AFLW star Mia and AFL Victoria coach Abby run a two-week football clinic for the Junior School Preps. We had so much fun learning different types of marks such as the teddy bear, superhero and zombie mark. We also learnt how to kick, handball, tag and chase ground balls. Mia and Abby also played lots of fun footy games, with a crowd favourite being Angry Ogre. The Preps were absolute superstars and participated with great enthusiasm and enjoyment over the two sessions. A huge thank you to AFL Victoria and especially Mia and Abby for running such a fun clinic.
Nick Rice
Our Year 4 Aths Stars
Congratulations to the following students who earned the highest points for Year 4 in the Middle School Athletics Carnival in Term 1. Students were awarded points in three running events and four field events. 10 points for first, 6 points for second, 4 points for third and 2 points for fourth.
| BOYS | GIRLS |
| 1st Ethan Cahill – 54 Points | 1st Amalia Keller – 32 Points |
| 2nd Tom Burnell (SC) – 28 Points | 2nd Chloe Williams – 22 Points |
| 3rd Guy Sossin (SC) – 24 Points | 3rd Edie Cooper – 18 Points |
| 4th Luke Hobbs – 22 Points | 4th Amelie Thomson – 16 Points |
| 5th Will Duggan – 15 Points | 5th Ava Fitzclarence – 14 Points |
The top three students received their medals at assembly this morning.
Lisa Johnson
National Simultaneous Storytime 2022
Next Wednesday, May 25, our Junior School will be participating in the nationwide Storytime along with over 1 million children across Australia.
National Simultaneous Storytime is an important annual campaign that aims to encourage young children to read and enjoy books as well as teach them the value of literacy. Every year a picture book, written and illustrated by an Australian author and illustrator, is read simultaneously in libraries, pre-schools, childcare centres, family homes, bookshops and many other places around Australia, New Zealand and the world.
The story this year is Family Time written by Josh Pyke, illustrated by Ronojoy Ghosh, and published by Scholastic. This book is a heartfelt celebration of family, community and the seasons of life. We have introduced this book to many of the Junior School classes this week in readiness for the event. Some of the classes have had the opportunity to draw their family inside a frame to be displayed on a giant family tree in the Library. The remaining classes will have this opportunity next week.
Monet – Brightening Things Up in Art
As we move into the chillier months its time to brighten things up.
Our Artist focus this term is the work of the French Impressionist Artist, Claude Monet. He is largely known as the father of Impressionism and was truly innovative for his time. Monet was also a keen naturalist and a keen conservationist.
I asked my students what they liked about his work and a common thread in their responses was the use of colour and generous paint.
With that in mind students are being given the opportunity to learn techniques and use the expressive qualities of colour.
There is great research showing the importance of utilising colour to help convey feelings and ideas. Colour can communicate meaning just as importantly as words and images. Students have been exploring colour using oil pastel and paint.
We analysed Monet’s Waterlily paintings and noticed his use of light purple, green and blue. Light purple is said to result in a peaceful surrounding. Green is a restful colour and there is some science linked into this as it is said to be less strain full on our eye muscles. Blue is said to promote relaxation and calm and studies show that this colour can help lower blood pressure. Students were keen to explore colour and respond to it
Students also noted that Monet used bright colours to contrast the cool colours. Our young learners particularly enjoy using the bright colours. Research has shown that bright colours like orange and yellow can stimulate the mind and research shows that the eyes must work harder looking at these colours.
With all this experimentation and knowledge at hand I look forward to our students creating more colourful art works.
Jennifer Beck-Carlson
East Timor Independence Day
Our assembly was a special one as the students were able to reflect on our special connection with the people of East Timor. Students shared poems and we were able to get an insight into what a school is like there as well. It was a service to remember as we continue to aid our close neighbours and remember them. Thank you to our college community for raising funds for the students to return to school after a challenging couple of years. We have enjoyed hearing and seeing the people of East Timor flourish from our help and hope to see more in the future!
Christian College Junior School celebrated the 20th anniversary of the restoration of independence for the second newest nation on Earth: Timor-Leste. Service men and women from our country, Australia, helped the Timorese to independence from 1999 to 2002, and also during short periods of civil unrest since. Now, people from Geelong support our friends in Viqueque. Christian College has faithfully supported this community for most of their independence. We are both proud and humbled to have developed strong friendships in Viqueque.
We’re Hiring!
As is currently the case in many workplaces Australia-wide, there have been staffing challenges for our College. We currently have a number of vacancies, including for casual Bus Drivers, an Assistant Café Manager at Back Creek Café (full or part-time), Basketball/Netball Coaches and various teaching roles.
While we regularly advertise positions on Seek, our social media platforms and in a range of other outlets, we also want to spread the word among the many connections within our College community. If you are suitably qualified/experienced for one of our vacant roles and are interested in the possibility of working with us or feel that someone you know may fit that description, please visit the Employment page on our website – or encourage friends/neighbours/other acquaintances to do so (Homepage > Join > Employment). A link to it is here. Thank you
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
A MYTERN Thought for This Week
No matter what road you are travelling down, there is one decision that only you can make....to either take control or to blame others. Your perspective has the power to change your life. Your wheel, your choice 👍👏
Discover more about MYTERN here
