Rick Geall, Acting Vice Principal
From the Acting Vice Principal
As Term 1 draws to a close, if you were to look back over 10 weeks of Vine editions, scroll through the CCG Facebook and Instagram pages, or glance at the College calendar for the term, you will quickly realise that a lot of really, really good things happen on all our campuses. There are incredible learning opportunities in classrooms, excursions and camps, House competitions and other sporting events, music performances, parent morning teas, picnics and welcome evenings, learning conferences, community service initiatives and much, much more.
None of this would be possible, of course, without the enthusiasm, dedication and capabilities of our wonderful teaching staff at Christian College. They are not only committed to helping young people learn and grow, but willing to enhance their own skills as teachers in order to do so. A large proportion of staff, for instance, are this year undertaking the Christian College Professional Growth Program, our internally-developed framework for goal-setting and ongoing professional development. I am grateful for the work of Ingrid Staggard, Director of Learning Design and Teacher Development, who is guiding staff through this important process.
We also have a number of teachers involved in opportunities beyond our College to extend their capacity for exemplary teaching, including:
- Nicola Morrish (English), Emma Workman (Food Studies) and Julie Shutie (Prep) who have been selected to participate in the Victorian government’s Teacher Excellence Program (TEP) for 2023, a year-long professional learning program for highly skilled teachers across Government, Catholic and Independent sectors. We are excited about the journey that Nicola, Emma and Julie are taking this year and look forward to the far-reaching benefits such a program will have for our teaching and learning program at Christian College.
- Lori Ruplal (Visual Arts) and Sarah Nailer (Learning Support) are engaged in the Independent Schools Victoria Teacher Fellowship Program which brings together high-performing educators to design, implement and evaluate innovative models of professional learning to benefit schools, staff and students. The focus of this year’s program, Diversity in Action, uses an inquiry approach to develop resources to support the diverse needs of students. Lori’s team project focus is on identifying students' Zone of Proximal Development to diversify teaching and help students learn better, whilst Sarah’s project aims to understand and nurture the wellbeing needs of students through exploring engagement and collaborative practices.
- Tim Wright (Humanities) recently presented at the Social Education Victoria VCE conference. Presenting alongside educators and academics from institutions such La Trobe University, Monash University and Caulfield Grammar, Tim inspired dozens of teachers from around Victoria with his presentation, “Using Visible Thinking Routines in VCE Global Politics”.
- Ingrid Staggard, mentioned above in her role leading staff development at Christian College, is herself undertaking the Nationally Accredited Lead Teacher qualification with Independent Schools Victoria.
These are just some examples of Christian College teachers committed to student growth, self-growth and collegiate growth. Collectively, we are focused on ensuring our community flourishes through quality teaching and the best support for our young people.
Our Mandate
This final day of Term 1 happens to fall on the day before Good Friday, known in many church denominations as Maundy Thursday. The word “maundy” comes from the Latin mandatum, or “mandate” in English. The night before his crucifixion, Jesus not only partook in the Last Supper with his disciples, but, according to John chapter 13, he washed their feet. A humbling, yet incredibly powerful example of servant leadership. After washing their feet, Jesus gave his disciples a new commandment, or mandate: “that you love one another as I have loved you”.
The love that Jesus modelled for us throughout his ministry was one of selflessness, serving others and, yes, sacrifice. As teachers, parents and carers, we know how important it is for young people to have good role models – in the home, in the classroom, in their sporting clubs, workplaces and community in general.
This Easter, may we all be reminded of Jesus’ call to love one another, just as he loves us. He demonstrated what it is to love. We, in turn, can demonstrate that love toward others. That is our mandate.
Finally, I hope that your child’s Term 1 experience has been a positive one and pray that the holiday break brings rest, refreshment and rejuvenation for them and for you. And may you have a safe and blessed Easter!
End of Term Note
As this term ends, I would like to take this opportunity to thank our incredible staff for the care, love, and the amazing teaching opportunities they provide our children every day. I would also like to thank you, our families, for your ongoing support. Term 1 this year has been a wonderful term, filled with many opportunities for our children both in their classrooms and out. Students have been encouraged to build their capabilities in their learning while developing more skills, knowledge and understanding. During sporting events, and especially our House Sand and Surf Carnival, our children demonstrated perseverance and determination. Our children’s love for music has continued to grow this year. We have two strings ensembles a 60-piece choir and our Year 5 students are thoroughly enjoying their brass and woodwind classes. We have approximately 95 students learning an instrument. Next term we have many more opportunities for all our students from Prep – Year 5. We will be welcoming more new students to our campus next term; I know we will make them, and their families feel very welcome.
As we look toward Easter we recognise it as a celebration of love and life. God loves us so he sent his son Jesus into the world because he wants us to become truly alive in his love. When the world offers us stress about the cost of living and interest rate rises, Jesus offers us peace. When the world seems full of hate and devastation, Jesus extends love and wholeness. Jesus says, “I came that they may have and enjoy life and have it in abundance.” This is the essence of Easter. Jesus’ life, death and resurrection are all for our sake, so that we can have life in all its fullness – both now and for the future.
I hope and pray you all have a wonderful holiday break with your families and we will look forward to seeing you all at the beginning of next term.
Debbie Riddle, Campus Coordinator
Easter at the Surf Coast
What a perfect way to end a perfect term. The warm Autumn sunshine and our beautiful environment were the perfect backdrop for our annual Easter Bonnet Parade. Our children were extremely creative this year, their bonnets were brightly coloured and very original. The children had the opportunity to dance, sing and have a wonderful time together. A highlight of the morning was a visit from the Easter Bunny. Following the parade students, family and friends gathered to celebrate Easter at our Easter Service. Easter is a very special time of the year on our Christian calendar, and it was wonderful to celebrate all that Jesus has done for us during our Easter Service.
Debbie Riddle, Campus Coordinator
What’s Happening at Surf Coast?
Is an up to date list of planned activities at Surf Coast Campus that you can use for planning purposes. Please be aware that these dates are set early in the term and occasionally items may need to be cancelled or dates/times altered. This itinerary is altered each week to reflect any changes – please check this list of events EVERY WEEK carefully when you read the weekly VINE newsletter.
TERM 2 2023
Week 1
Tuesday 25 April ANZAC Day – Public Holiday
Wednesday 26 April Students return to school
Wednesday 26 April ANZAC Day Service 2.45pm Multipurpose Room – please refer to letter sent
Thursday 27 April District Winter Sports Carnival – more information to come
Friday 28 April BLP Club Sign Up-Prep – Year 4
WEEK 2
Tuesday 2 May Campus Day – 9.30am – 11.30am
Tuesday 2 May Discovery Learning Bush Prep
Thursday 4 May District Cross Country – Selected Year 4 and 5 students – more information to come from Sports Department
Friday 5 May School Assembly – 2.45pm Multipurpose Room – all welcome
Friday 5 May Year 5 Art Face Painting – please refer to EdSmart
From the Chaplain
Hi all! Well we made it to the end of the first term! It’s been an absolute thriller! Well done to our Preps who completed their first term of school and our Year 5s who completed their first term of Middle School!
As we go into this Easter weekend and school holidays, filled with chocolate eggs and hot cross buns, it would be remiss of me not to take this moment to reflect on why we have this wonderful time each year.
Over 2000 years ago, Jesus came to earth as a baby and lived a life without sin, revealing the heart of a good God who loves His creation, us.
And while the story of Easter often focuses on Jesus giving his life for us on the cross, what separates him from all the other great people in history is that, not only did he fulfill every prophesy spoken of the Messiah, but he rose again! And the evidence was so overwhelming of his resurrection! Many saw him alive, and many believed. The story of Jesus went throughout the known world and transformed many lives, cities and nations.
But the key question is this, why did Jesus come and give his life? Why did he go through all that pain and agony? Why did he allow himself to be falsely accused?
The answer is really simple. At the beginning of time, God created the earth and us for relationship. He wanted to talk, to walk, to be known, to love His creation. And because Adam and Eve sinned, this became damaged, but it also put a plan into motion, and Jesus was the key to that plan. Jesus knew the role he had in coming to live and give his life was to restore that broken relationship and be the bridge in that gap.
Simply, Jesus came for you. He came for me. He came so we could experience again a loving relationship with a good God!
I pray that over this break, you have a wonderful rest and time with your family and loved ones. I pray that you may experience the love and peace of God over this break!
Blessings
Pratty
Nathan Pratt
Pyjamas, Picnics and our First Performance!
To celebrate our word of the week “bed”, our Preps wore their pyjamas to school and performed the song “10 in the bed” in front of the entire Surf Coast campus and our special school community. We were so proud of our Preps in their first ever assembly performance; it was a delight to see them on stage singing and performing the actions, as well being able to remember which number was coming next in the countdown from 10 – 1.
After the performance, we made fairy bread and took our teddy friends up to the basketball court for a teddy bears’ picnic, as well as a mega dance party and a fun game of duck, duck, goose!
What a truly wonderful first term of school for our Preps. We have loved watching them flourish over the past 10 weeks and grow from kinder kids to fully fledged primary school children.
Congratulations Preppies and enjoy your special Easter break with your families.
Caitlin Maher
Easter Fever in Year 1
What a jam-packed term it has been in Year 1! We have done some amazing learning and made awesome memories this term. Due to how busy it has been, we decided to finish the term with some cool Easter activities. We have been busy making bunny masks, colouring wreaths, making chicken hatching plates and we finished off with a fun Easter Egg Hunt. We wish everyone a wonderful and restful break. We look forward to having another amazing term in Year 1.
Nick Hogan
Year 3s Finish a Busy Term!
The Year 3 students have had a very full, fun, exciting and challenging term and they are to be congratulated on their enthusiasm, resilience, and persistence. They have enjoyed reading and exploring the crazy, wacky world of Willy Wonka and his Chocolate factory; they have melted chocolate and crayons in Science, and whipped up concoctions of sticky, slimy, fluffy stuff as they investigated how the states of matter changed depending upon different variables. They tackled NAPLAN assessments with awesome attitudes; they have unpacked the stories of Samuel, Saul and David in Christian Ed; they have measured all manner of things by metres, centimetres and millimetres; they have written interesting accounts of holidays and their Chocolaterie excursion; and they have continued to develop friendships with one another inside the classroom, out in the school yard, at the beach and on excursions. Congratulations, Year 3s – we look forward to working with you on some new and exciting challenges next term!
Leanne Crole
Adam Stewart
Year 5/6 Girls football
On Monday April 3, 22 Year 5 and 6 girls from the Bellarine and Surf Coast Campuses travelled to South Barwon Reserve to participate in the Interschool Girls’ Football competition. We were one of 14 schools that participated on the day and the girls did an amazing job, finishing the day with a couple of wins. It was great to see all of the girls grow in confidence and skill as the day progressed. We took with us, a group who did not know how to play football. By the end of the day, it was fantastic to see how much the girls had improved. One of the best parts of the day was watching the students from two different campuses come together to forge connections and friendships. The students displayed excellent teamwork and sportsmanship and were a credit to our school.
Caitlin Hoiles
Claire Deretic
Hot Cross Buns!!
To help bring in our Easter joy, the Surf Coast Campus held a Hot Cross Bun drive in the last week of the term.
Our aim was to help raise money and awareness for the Good Friday Appeal. This is a fantastic charity, helping so many families with sick children. It was amazing to see the support we received from our school community. We will be donating over $650 to the Good Friday Appeal.
Thank you to everyone who ordered a packet of hot cross buns through our Project Care.
We pray everyone has a safe and fun Easter and a restful break for the school holidays.
Claire Deretic
Important Changes to Surf Coast Choir
As we approach Term 2, we look forward to welcoming new members to the Surf Coast Choir, including all students from Prep to Year 5!
To accommodate our ever-growing numbers, and to allow our older students the opportunity to extend their singing technique whilst pursuing more challenging repertoire, the following changes will occur:
The current choir will split into two rehearsal timeslots:
* 8.00 – 8.30am: Lower Primary Choir (Prep – Year 3 students) in the Multipurpose Room.
* 8.30am – 9.05am: Upper Primary Choir (Year 4 & 5 students) in the Music Classroom.
Year 4 & 5 choir members who have siblings in the Lower Primary Choir are most welcome to attend their younger siblings’ rehearsals – this may assist drop-off times. Students in the Lower Primary Choir will be dismissed to the playground from 8.30am until Homeroom, where they will be supervised by Yard Duty staff.
Both choirs will be led by myself (conducting) and Mr Brad Treloar (accompanying). The Lower Primary Choir will also be assisted by Mr Geoff Trevaskis. We anticipate some occasions in which our choirs will combine for performance.
Please note, Term 2 rehearsals will commence in Week 2 (Wed. 3rd May).
There will be no Choir rehearsals in Week 1 (Wed. 26th April).
Choir is a free extra-curricular activity offered by the College. It’s a great way for students to connect in a cross-year level environment and develop their confidence through performance and music-related activities!
If your child is interested in joining choir, or if you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact me directly: k.notini@ccg.vic.edu.au
Finally, we’d like to thank all current members and families for their commitment and enthusiasm during Term 1. It is always such a joy to sing together!
Kate Notini, Surf Coast Choir Director
Progressing Through Teaching and Learning is in Full Swing….
At our Surf Coast Campus, the teaching and Learning programs this term have been extensive and rich. It has been exciting to see the learning that has taken place in our Prep classrooms with the children learning how to read and then right up to our Year 5 classrooms with the students building on their knowledge and understanding. The subjects on offer to our Year 5 students have increased this year and they are thoroughly enjoying these new learning opportunities. All of our students have taken part in activities that have continued to develop both their academic and emotional growth either in the classroom or in the environment. During the term the students have spent time making social connections when visiting the local beach through discovery learning sessions. They have been involved in Campus Carnivals, House events, family events such as the family picnic, information sessions and more as well as continued development in intercultural understandings through our international guests from Indonesia. Each of these has seen positive engagement with our Teaching and Learning program. Students and staff have been excited to engage in a program that offers opportunities for our students to engage with critical competencies and real-life opportunities, develop learning area skills and knowledge in the breadth of classes available to our students.
You can view your child’s progress in each of their learning areas through our In Time reporting program via SEQTA Engage. Log onto the parent portal via the college website and select the Assessments menu to view your child’s progress. As a reminder, there is also the SEQTA App that can be downloaded to your phone. I have attached a couple support documents that highlight how to get the most out of SEQTA Engage.
Antony Benson, Executive Director of Teaching and Learning
Picnic at Hanging Rock – Tickets on Sale and Helpers Wanted!
The wait is over, tickets to see the Christian College Production of Picnic at Hanging Rock are on sale. Please come and support the work of our senior students and colleagues. A huge shout out to Kelly Clifford, who is no stranger to the role of director but as one of our newest staff members has embraced her students and this play with so much passion and energy. We are very lucky to have her, and the audience is in for a treat.
Picnic at Hanging Rock is a captivating and mysterious story that explores the disappearance of four schoolgirls and their teacher during a picnic at a local geological formation in Victoria, Australia, on Valentine’s Day in 1900. The novel by Joan Lindsay, published in 1967, was adapted into a film by Peter Weir in 1975, which became a landmark of Australian cinema and culture. The story has inspired many interpretations and adaptations, including the performances brought to you by our Christian College Senior School students.
This year’s production is being held at Platform Arts in Geelong, with three evening shows from Thursday May 11 to Saturday May 13. Tickets are only $30 and the cast and crew are looking forward to performing to a full house. Please note that Picnic at Hanging Rock contains mature themes, parental discretion is advised re the age of audience members.
To purchase tickets please follow this link:
https://events.humanitix.com/ccg-picnic-at-hanging-rock
Can you help?
We are also seeking willing parent volunteers to assist with preparing sets for the performances. If you are available on Monday April 17 between 2 and 4pm and would like to assist, please contact me at: d.martin@ccg.vic.edu.au
Dianne Martin, Producer, Picnic at Hanging Rock
Uniform Shop Clearance Sale!
Lots to Like at Back Creek Café!
Christian College’s Back Creek Café in Meredith is a vital part of our Year 9 residential farm experience. Located 15 minutes south of Back Creek Farm, the café is open six days a week (not Sundays) from 8:30am to 3pm. The school holidays are the perfect time to pay a visit!
While you’re there, enjoy the best coffee in town – or choose from a range of other beverages – indulge in an all-day breakfast or one of the other scrumptious light meal/snack options on the menu. There is also a variety of sweet or savoury treats to enjoy while you’re there and delicious home-made produce to purchase and take home.
Coming up on Saturday May 6, the Café is staging two craft workshops. Come along and discover how to create your own vertical garden. One session gets underway at 10:30am, the second at 1:00pm, conducted by Kathy from Coburg nursery, TD2M. Build your own standing or hanging frame, create a vertical garden to take home and learn about soils and mosses used in the process along the way.
Cost for the workshop is $90 per person with all you need provided. While you’re there, enjoy some of Back Creek Café’s delicious fare!
You can check out the latest from the café via its Facebook and Instagram pages.
Back Creek Café is located at 1/27 Staughton Street Meredith. For enquiries and bookings, including bookings for the May 6 workshops, call 5286 1166.
Open Hearts, Open Minds, Open Days!
All Christian College campuses will open their doors on May 2 in the first of our Open Days for 2023.
This is an opportunity for parents/guardians and families who are considering Christian College as an option for their young people to visit one or more of our campuses, meet students, teachers and campus leaders, tour facilities, visit classes in progress and have their questions answered. It provides an authentic insight to how our College operates on a day-to-day basis. For those considering either Junior School-Belmont or Surf Coast Campus, please note our Early Learning Centres - Williams House in Belmont and Butterfield House in Torquay - will also be open for visitation at the same time as the campuses.
No booking is required, with campuses open at the following times:
Junior School-Belmont: 9:30 – 11:00am
Bellarine Campus: 9:30 – 11:00am
Surf Coast Campus: 9:30 – 11:30am
Middle School-Highton: – 11:15am – 12:45pm
Senior School-Waurn Ponds: – 11:30am – 1:00pm
If you have friends or acquaintances who are considering schooling options at any level, from Prep through to Year 12, please encourage them to take this opportunity to visit our campuses on May 2.
Any interested families who are unable to attend on May 2 can book a tour at any campus at a time that suits them by visiting our website and clicking on ‘Book a Tour’.
Independent Schools – Meeting Needs of all Families
In recent weeks Independent Schools Victoria has been working with Independent Schools Australia on advocacy and information material to highlight the diversity and changing face of the Independent sector.
This material includes a short and engaging video that features Aitken College, one of ISV’s rapidly growing Member Schools on Melbourne’s outer urban fringe, and a new low-fee school in regional New South Wales.
ISV says that while the schools featured are localised, the message is nationwide. showing that Independent schools reflect the breadth of Australia, with every kind of school serving the needs of every kind of family.
The video is timely in light of Federal Education Minister Jason Clare’s announcement this week of an expert panel to review the National Schools Reform Agreement.
A MYTERN Thought for This Week
When you are on a rough road, people often tell you to get a grip and drive on.
Try not to judge yourself harshly if that feels too hard.
Sometimes it's not as simple as just shaking it off and moving on.
Slow down, take a deep breath and know that no road lasts forever 🙏❤️
Discover more about MYTERN here
