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’.
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 1 2023
Week 8
Monday 20 Mar Naplan – Year 3 and Year 5 Students – Reading component -9.30am
Monday 20 Mar Naplan – Year 3 and Year 5 Students – Maths component -9.30am
Tuesday 21 Mar Beach Excursion – Year 1 and Year 2
Tuesday 21 Mar Prep Excursion to MOPA
Wednesday 22 Mar Willy Wonka Excursion – Year 3 students
Thursday 23 Mar House Cooking Competition Senior School – Year 4 and Year 5
Friday 24 Mar BLP Clubs – all students
Friday 24 Mar End of Naplan
Week 9
Tuesday 28 Mar Regional Swimming Championship – selected students only – more information to come
Wednesday 29 Mar Sand and Surf Carnival – Year 1 to Year 5 – more information to come
Friday 31 Mar Assembly
Week 10
Wednesday 5 April Preps at school
Wednesday 5 April House Athletics – Year 4 and Year 5 – more information to come
Thursday 6 April Easter Service and Bonnet Parade – all students – more information to come
Thursday 6 April End of term 2 – 2.30pm dismissal – all students
Fun Down at the Surf Coast
What another fabulous week our Surf Coast Preps have had this week!
The beautiful sunny week started with a wonderful afternoon down at Cosy Corner for our discovery learning session. The Preps loved examining the different rocks that were scattered along the beach and loved digging trenches and building sandcastles.
In Integrated Studies, they explored different types of materials and discovered what their main purposes are and how they are used in our everyday lives. They are very excited to start their big project next week where they will plan and design a teddy shelter.
A huge highlight of the week happened on Thursday, when we had a visit from Rachel the Paramedic and her ambulance! The Preppies loved learning about the role of a paramedic and enjoyed asking many questions about all the different things that were inside the ambulance. By the end of the session, the Preps felt safe and familiar with the important roles that paramedics and ambulances play in everyday life.
Caitlin Maher
The Easter Season
The Easter Season is well underway in Year 1. We have started telling the story of Jesus by using the Resurrection Eggs. The students love opening a new egg each day and discussing the different elements of the stories we learn. The students love to respond to these stories in their Easter Journal and have meaningful conversations with their friends about all they know about Jesus. We cannot wait until we get to the last egg!
Nick Hogan
Manipulating Materials
For the Year 2 Integrated Studies unit, Chemical Science: Materials, the Year 2s have been exploring and manipulating materials. They altered pieces of paper to see how far they could fly across the room. The students scrunched, folded, tore and twisted the paper to see how far it would travel. Often, the scrunched paper balls flew further than the paper aeroplanes!
In Maths, we have been measuring and comparing the area of objects in the classroom, using informal units. Year 2s were careful to place the units side by side with no gaps or overlapping so that the measurements were accurate.
Sharon Sutton
Year 3s and Preps Head to Cosy Corner
This week the Year 3 students accompanied the Preps to Cosy Corner for Discovery Learning. It was a wonderful afternoon of building sandcastles, digging trenches, creating structures with rocks, pebbles and shells, and working together across the year levels. The children collaborated with each other, sharing ideas, and discussing designs. There was much laughter and joy as the Year 3 students worked together with each other and with the Preps. At the end of a fun afternoon, they headed back to the buses, sandy, sun-kissed, and just a touch exhausted. Who doesn’t love a trip to the beach on a sunny day?
Leanne Crole
Adam Stewart
Historical Walk in Geelong
Last week the Year 5 students immersed themselves in the history of Geelong with an excursion into the city of Geelong. They visited the Wool Museum where they learnt about the early history of our city, the impact of the farming of wool in our region and the First Nations Peoples who were here before the farmers. We got to look around the museum at some of the original artefacts of this time and learnt all about how wool was processed into the fabric we use today.
The students then had the chance to walk along the Eastern Beach waterfront and look at the Bollards. These are always a big hit. We looked at the life savers, the swimmers and the marching band.
Next it was a walk up the hill to the Old Geelong Gaol. This is a place that oozes history. The tour guide was full of stories from the old inmates that were there and the way they had to live while in the Gaol. This was such a rich day of learning for the Year 5 students. We got to listen to stories and create our own memories as a class. We are now taking these experiences and new knowledge and using that to create new stories and narratives of our own.
Claire Deretic
Music and the Art of Long-Term Relationships
Here we are… past the halfway mark of Term 1, 2023! We’ve settled into new routines and the seeds we’ve planted are beginning to take root.
For our instrumental students, perhaps the shine of their new instruments is still glaringly bright as they finally conquer the basics, like “Hot Cross Buns”, just in time for Easter!
In Year 2, students shared their first orchestral performance with families, showcasing short pieces, accompanied by Mrs Tammy Treloar (piano), Miss Catie Martin and Mr Martin De Marte (violin/conductor). It was terrific to see these students already cooperating beautifully in such a large-scale ensemble; listening to each other intently and coordinating their movements with great musicality… after only six weeks of playing!
Year 5 students have faced their own set of unique challenges, with many preparing for a full year of tuition on either flute, clarinet, trumpet and trombone. I’ve particularly enjoyed leading discussions with these students each week about the challenges they’ve experienced. Here’s what we know for sure: none of us are immune to such moments!
The Surf Coast Strings delivered an impromptu performance to the Preps, kick-starting their Thursday with a piece many recognised from the beloved TV show, “Bluey”! And our Choir has continued to grow, allowing many of our older students to take turns as co-conductors as we move into multi-part singing.
We can’t stress enough the important role parents and guardians play, alongside staff, in guiding your children through their relationship with music. This may be one of the first long-term opportunities your child has pursued – outside of learning to eat, walk, talk and read! And like any potential long-term hobby, or meaningful pursuit, they will need support to navigate the inevitable peaks (when things are easy); plateaus (when things are just ‘okay’); and valleys (when things are hard). Each of these stages come and go in an almost cyclical nature. Each play their part in developing essential life skills such as perseverance, resilience, patience and endurance.
By encouraging our students to uncover the value of moving through the peaks, plateaus AND valley moments, we can help guide them towards some incredibly rich and rewarding experiences. If/when your child finds any of these moments particularly challenging, be sure to contact our staff for extra guidance and support.
Kate Notini
Deakin District Swimming Championships
Congratulations to Leia Coleman and Darcee Dunoon on their efforts and achievements at the District Swimming Championships last Tuesday.
The girls were wonderful Surf Coast representatives in our College Swim Team, competing against students from schools in our Deakin District.
Leia placed tenth overall in her 11 Year Girl 50m Freestyle, and Darcee, together with Leia placed sixth in the 11 Year Girls Freestyle Relay.
Well done girls on making selection in our swim team! We are proud of your enthusiasm and participation.
Jo Richardson
Families with a Newly Enrolled Child This Year: Qustodio Parent App
Activate or add new students to your Qustodio parent account.
An important element of the College's Cyber Safe Schools Program is our commitment to supporting families and parents with managing their children’s digital devices in the home, especially the College laptop.
This week, families that have one or more children who are new to the College this year received an email invitation toactivate their Qustodio parent account or add newly enrolled students to their existing Qustodio account, as part of our school program.
Qustodio is a parental control and monitoring app that we offer our parents as part of our school program. This app provides parents monitoring on personal devices and the school laptop, as well as the ability to pause internet as desired outside of school hours. Use of Qustodio is optional, and parents can learn more information about Qustodio on our Online Safety Hub.
The Qustodio parent app is available to all College families, and families with existing students in 2022 were invited to activate their parent account in November of last year. Families that have not yet activated their account and wish to, can do so by using the College’s activate now link and entering the assigned primary email for the family (as detailed in the invitation sent last year).
More Information
- Parents can learn more about our broader Cyber Safe Schools Program that the Qustodio parent app is a part of, via this information brochure.
- Parents and guardians can access technical support for the use of Qustodio on personal devices at home, via Qustodio’s Help Center.
- For support with Qustodio and school devices at home, there is a useful help page on our Online Safety Hub.
Brendan Vanderkley, Director of Digital Learning
Make a Vertical Garden at Back Creek Café!
Back Creek Café in Meredith proudly presents the first of several planned craft workshops – come along and discover how to create your own vertical garden. Two workshops are running on Saturday May 6 – at 10:30am and 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!
To book for the workshop, contact the café on 5286 1166.
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