What’s Happening at Middle School
Week 6
- Mon 21 Aug – Sun 27 Aug – Vic Interschool Snowsports Championships
- Mon 21 Aug – Year 5 & 6 Book Week Parade – Students to dress as a book character
- Tues 22 Aug – Staff Development Day – Student Free day
- Wed 23 Aug – Year 7 & 8 GISSA Sport
- Wed 23 Aug – GEOS Excursion Common Ground Project
- Thurs 24 Aug – Deakin District Athletics Championships
Week 7
- Tues 29 Aug – Learning Conferences
- Wed 30 Aug – Year 7 & 8 GISSA Sport
- Thurs 31 Aug – Deakin District Basketball – Year 5 & 6
- Thurs 31 Aug – Choir Performance Carmina Burana – Senior & Middle Choirs & Percussionists
- Fri 1 Sept – GISSA Golf Championships
- Fri 1 Sept – Senior Ensembles Performance Festival Day – Bands
- Sun 3 Sept – Tues 5 Sept – Year 9 GEOS Hike Program 1
Year 9 Update
Our Year 9s will soon be heading to Senior School to finish the last three years of their educational journey at Christian College. As excited as I am for the students, I am also starting to feel a little bit sad, I will miss their smiling faces, their amazing energy and the joy that they bring to Middle School.
Early in Term 3, our Year 9s and their families attended Senior School for a very informative Transition Information and Subject Expo evening. Our students were given information they will need to make choices this week around what subjects or pathways they might take in 2024.
All the feelings our Year 9s are experiencing are all well known to us here at Middle School. We have been supporting students with this transition for a long time and the process really is seamless for families and students.
We have also loved seeing our Middle School Prefects take over our Chapel services this term. On Tuesday, the Prefects ran a service and had a performance of the story of David and Goliath. It was great to see student participation and engagement. The message of David and Goliath is relevant at this time of year as our Year 9s prepare to take on new challenges. The reminder that God is on our side always is an important message, as is knowing that God calls His people to achieve great things in this world.
We are looking forward to continuing to support the Year 9s to finish well here at Middle School.
If you require any further information, please email [email protected] or [email protected]
Nicole Riddle
Product Design Innovation
Year 9 students enjoy two sessions of Product Design Materials each week for one term. This is a fast-paced course in which students research, design, plan and build a project. Featured in this article are brief descriptions of three projects.
Retro Clock – Belle Moore
Belle has a keen eye for design, and this is evident in her plywood/jarrah clock. She has upcycled and glue-laminated several pieces of tongue and groove jarrah floorboards. She is combining this beautiful material with a scrap piece of marine plywood that she cut into a semicircle and sanded to a pleasing, light-coloured finish. This combination of materials is aesthetically pleasing, and I look forward to seeing this project complete. She will finish off her clock by laser-cutting numbers and installing the clock mechanism. Additionally, Belle has designed a digital file of her signature, which she will laser-engrave onto the clock’s face.
Coffee Table – Ashton Nelson
Ashton has demonstrated confidence and an eye for quality and craftsmanship in his custom-designed coffee table. He brought some wood in from home, which was either cypress or pine. Again, this material is upcycled flooring that Ashton machined to reveal the knots and features of the material. He has looked at a range of joinery techniques including dowel joints for the support frame of the table. This will be a nice addition to any décor and space in his home!
Circular Shelf – Greea McKeegan
Greea attached a circle-cutting jig to a router and confidently cut circles out of scrap plywood. The result is a pleasing set of circles that meets her design ambition of an organic-looking wall shelf. Pictured here are the parts that Greea will be combining when she has finished sanding and preparing them for assembly.
I have been very impressed with the students’ focus on upcycling and original design work. They are producing folios alongside their projects preparing them for pursuing this subject in Year 10 if they choose to do so.
David Kehler
National Day of Action against Bullying and Violence
On Friday August 18, at Middle School and across our campuses, we joined together to say; ‘Bullying. No Way! The National Day of Action (NDA) is Australia’s key bullying prevention initiative for schools, encouraging whole-school communities to work together to implement evidence-informed positive and proactive solutions to prevent and address bullying.
In 2022, 68% of Australian schools joined together to say Bullying. No Way! The NDA is an opportunity to create a shared understanding of what is bullying, outline our bullying prevention policies and show support to students who may be experiencing bullying.
The NDA theme for 2023 is ‘growing connections’. This theme supports research findings that strong school community connections and social skills are protective factors in the prevention of bullying and help enable positive, help-seeking behaviours in students.
At Middle School, our students shared a devotion and presentation during wellbeing around what the day stands for. In addition to that, the Year 9 students played against some of our teachers in a student versus teacher netball and basketball match at lunch time. There may be a few questions over who was victorious but either way, we were all winners!
These activities are a great way to grow connections amongst our community!
Nicole Riddle – Year 9 Coordinator
Student Learning Conferences
It is a priority of ours to communicate regularly and comprehensively with you, about your young person’s learning journey. In addition to regular updates on student progress via our ‘in-time reporting’ program and our end of Semester summative reports, both accessed through your Parent Portal (SEQTA Engage), our twice-yearly Student Learning Conferences provide the opportunity to briefly meet your young person’s Homeroom and Subject teachers, including to discuss their academic progress.
We are holding our Semester 2 Student Learning Conferences on Tuesday, August 29 from
4:00pm – 9:00pm. As with last semester, these will be held on-line via Microsoft Teams.
Learning Conferences run for 10 minutes in duration, however if any parent/guardian requires a longer conference time, please discuss this with the relevant teacher prior to selecting your timeslot online.
Please note: We are asking all students to accompany their parents/guardians to the Learning Conferences this year. Research suggests that student learning can be impacted positively through the teacher providing direct feedback to individual students. It also provides opportunity for reflection, questions, and discussion pertinent to goal setting. We feel that parents/guardians will also benefit from these opportunities for discussion and feedback.
Online Learning Conference Bookings will be available by clicking on the ‘School Interviews’ tile on the Parent Portal or by going to www.schoolinterviews.com.au Simply enter the school event code (wcud2) and book the teachers and times requested. A more detailed explanation of how to make conference bookings is attached for your convenience.
Bookings:
Opened: Monday, August 14 at 5:00pm
Close: Friday, August 25 at 5:00pm.
Information pertaining to accessing Microsoft TEAMS on your home device is also attached for your convenience.
We look forward to continuing our partnership with you and your child/ren through these conferences.
Learning Conferences Flyer Sem 2 2023
Student Learning Conferences Microsft Teams Instructions for Families
Natasha Troop
Prepaid Tuition Fee Discount
The College is offering a 4 per cent discount to families who elect to prepay their 2024 tuition fees in full by September 8, 2023. Taking up this offer means you will receive a 4 percent discount on the 2024 tuition fees less sibling discount.
For further details please refer to the email sent to you earlier this week.
Please contact the fees team via [email protected] or (03) 5241 1899 if you have any queries - our team will happily explain the details and arrange a quotation for you.
LEAD Parent Survey - Now Closing September 1
Each year, Christian College participates in the LEAD School Effectiveness Surveys conducted by Independent Schools Victoria (ISV). These surveys provide valuable insights into a school’s performance from the perspectives of students, staff and parents and are therefore an essential school improvement tool.
LEAD – Listen, Evaluate, Act, Deliver – succinctly describes the way in which this process enables our College community to grow and flourish through consultation with our valued stakeholders.
You will have received an email from ‘ISV Research Programs [email protected]’ inviting you to participate in the ISV LEAD Parent Survey. It includes a unique survey link that can only be used once and therefore cannot be shared or forwarded to others. Thank you to all parents who have completed the Parent Satisfaction Survey - we have received more than 300 responses to date. ISV has extended the deadline for survey responses - closing date is September 1. We invite any parents who have not yet participated to contribute your feedback via this year's survey. You are an integral part of our school community and your voice matters.
Rick Geall, Acting Principal
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
