Surf Coast Term 2 Week 6

They have been experimenting with the correct use of punctuation, making sure they have finger spaces between their words, and that their sentences start with a capital letter. 

The Preps have loved reading over their writing to ensure it makes sense and are so very proud of their achievements. 

Next term, our budding writers will learn how to write a different text types, narratives and information reports. 

God wants us all to live together in peace, to love one another and consider each other better than ourselves. We are created equal.  

Galatians 3: 26-28  So in Christ Jesus you are all children of God through faith, for all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ. There is neither Jew nor Gentile, neither slave nor free, nor is there male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus. 

This week 4T has been looking at helping First Nations Peoples for National Reconciliation Week. 4T has made a giant Rainbow Serpent out of colour. 4T also chose their own totem (which is an animal/plant that is special to an indigenous person)  – we researched about all sorts of Australian animals and found out their facts. We worked with a partner and wrote an acrostic poem about Reconciliation. We also wrote our own Dreamtime stories like how the wombats got short legs and how the snails got their shells. We have discussed that to achieve Reconciliation in Australia, we need to acknowledge what happened to the First Nation Peoples. Reconciliation is important because we need Aboriginals to feel loved and cared for. This is especially important for young people because they are the next generation, and they are going to change the perspectives of First Nations and us.  

James O’Shanassy 

Reflections from 4T 

To me it means to be sorry of what happened in the past. It also means to me that we should try and help fix what happened in the past. 
Thomas Burnell 

To me it means that we acknowledge that the Indigenous were first here and we took their land and what happened to them was horrible and we should say sorry for what happened to them. 
Blake Hunter. 

Reconciliation means to be respectful and say sorry to the Aboriginals and think what else we can do to make a change. I think that giving back Uluru was a great start, and people flying over to the Northern Territory to talk to the Indigenous people, but it makes me wonder, what else can we do to make a change?
Georgia Griffin 

It means to me to look after the First Nations and to care and respect their land, and to acknowledge what we did to them, and to also say sorry. 
Lachlan Walters. 

Off your Back 

The response to the Off Your Back initiative has been amazing. We already have over 50 jackets that we will be able to send into Geelong to help people who are unable to purchase their own jackets, especially as the weather turns so cold. I will be taking the jackets at the end of next week, so if you still have one at home that is in good clean condition, please bring it into the multipurpose room at our campus.  

Thank you again for your support of our Project Care program at school. What a wonderful school family we are a part of!  

However, it can be difficult for parents to be across every platform or app and to know what’s age-appropriate and what’s not. Where a young person sets up an account on their own without parent involvement, it can make it difficult for parents to ensure safety and be confident that the content being sent and received is suitable and safe. 

For all the potential value and benefit these tools provide, they also often pose the risk of cyberbullying, exposure to inappropriate content or unwanted contact from strangers. It is an unfortunate but true reality that there are some people online who seek to connect with young people for the wrong reasons. 

Discord, Tik Tok, Snapchat, Instagram, Facebook… Are they right for my child? Should I allow this app’s use? What are the safety and privacy features? How can I support my child in using this app? 

Parents, be reassured that there is support and guidance for navigating the full range of apps and platforms that are popular with young people on both our own Online Safety Hub and from eSafety. 

• Messaging and online chat (from eSafety 
• Discord – parent advice (CCG Online Safety Hub) 
• Snapchat – parent advice (CCG Online Safety Hub) 

• Tik Tok – parent advice (CCG Online Sagety Hub)

Parents are encouraged to be aware of the minimum age for any platform and understand that many of these platforms are intended for adults and older teens. For many apps, the age recommended by cyber safety experts is older than the listed minimum age because of the potential risks. 

At school, we prevent access to messaging and chat apps on our network. Access to messaging and chat is also prevented on College devices during school days for all students to support them with their learning and wellbeing. 

Undertaking a career as a new teacher can be both exhilarating and overwhelming. The excitement of working in a dynamic and hugely rewarding profession is often complicated by administrative demands, professional development responsibilities, and the intricacies of a classroom. Further to this, a graduate teacher is developing their craft, building relationships with colleagues and families for the first time, learning new processes, the Australian curriculum, navigating the 37 professional teacher standards and undertaking a teacher inquiry for registration as a proficient teacher. Victorian Institute of Education’s Linda Blakis likens learning to teach with learning to drive, ‘When you get behind the wheel for the first time, it is daunting. Everything is new, you must consciously check everything before turning on the engine and there is so much multitasking required, but with practice, good coaching and time, these things become intuitive.’ 

At Christian College we are privileged to have a selection of graduate teachers on each campus, each are supported fortnightly by an experienced mentor teacher. Our mentors are intensively trained to assist these graduates through one of the most critical phases of their teaching career.  

 To complement this ongoing mentoring, we were fortunate to have the expertise of Jackie Macreadie – Principal Consultant from ISV and Linda Blakis – Professional Practice Manager from VIT run a full day seminar for all graduates and mentors this week. This is a new initiative, one that few other schools offer, and we were immensely grateful for the time and expertise of our guest speakers. There was much engagement in the sessions, with collaboration and a buzz of ideas for their inquiry projects. The feedback was overwhelmingly positive for the value of this day for all who attended. We hope that it can become an ongoing opportunity for our staff development. A huge thank you to our leadership for supporting such a pivotal opportunity for our staff.