Issue 9 2023
“So it is with Christ's body. We are many parts of one body, and we all belong to each other.”
Romans 12:5
From the Principal
It is report writing season! Over the last two weeks there has been a buzz of frenetic activity as the teaching staff collate feedback for families about student progress and development throughout the first half of the year. One adage that always comes to mind during this time is that success, growth, and achievement are the fruits of sustained application and effort. We are reminded that developing good work and study habits are the foundation upon which learning is built.
Reports will be distributed at the end of term and often at this time of year parents will ask how they can support students with their learning. In response to that question, I thought I would share with you something about the work of Professor Carol Dweck from Stanford University and the findings of her extensive research into the mindset of individuals and how what we value about learning impacts on their approach and success as learners.
Her studies highlighted that using praise that focused on effort and the process of learning, rather than the outcome, created better learners who achieved more of their potential. Praise focused on effort created an understanding in learners that:
- success in learning comes from hard work,
- making mistakes is an important part of learning,
- persistence is a core component of learning new concept,
- the ‘struggle’ associated with learning is important in the process of mastery, and that
- taking on a challenge is the fun part of learning.
She highlighted the fact that all of the great achievements in human history were made by people that worked incredibly hard, made lots of mistakes, failed many time but persisted and eventually achieved.
Her studies found that praise centred on results (Well done you scored perfect marks!) or ability
(Well done you must be really good at maths) created a fear of failure, identified having to work
hard to solve problems as a weakness and that learning is only difficult if you are not smart. The high
expectations of success impacted negatively on their desire to take risks as a learner and therefore
they achieved less of their potential.
Her advice to parents and teachers was to applaud hard work, celebrate effort, encourage students to keep struggling and working with difficult challenges and to acknowledge mistakes and failure as the first step towards learning and understanding.
Some tips for talking to children about learning:
- Ask about the process they used to develop a project
- Praise the strategy used to tackle a problem
- Acknowledge the effort they put into an assignment
- Encourage them to keep working at something they haven’t mastered ‘yet’ (Professor Dwerk spoke a lot about using the word ‘yet’ as it suggest possibilities and potential)
- Congratulate their persistence
- Talk about what they have learned from their mistakes
Praising effort and valuing the processes of learning creates a love of learning and individuals who love learning achieve more of their potential. Important food for thought as parents prepare to discuss the feedback provided in the Semester One Reports with their children in the coming week.
Mr Robert Tobias
Principal
What's On
CALENDAR
For your personalised Calendar of Events, simply log in to Parent Lounge HERE.
Stay up to date with EAC announcements and news by following us on Facebook HERE.
SchoolStream APP
Canteen orders, absentee notices, important notifications and more can all be found on EAC's app, SchoolStream which you can find out more about HERE.
WEBSITE
The EAC website is a treasure trove of valuable information including forms, publications and in depth information, all of which are available HERE
WHAT WEEK IS IT?
To help clarify our College weeks, we've created a printable quick reference guide available HERE.
Off The Deputy's Desk
This week the College hosted another in our series of ‘Cards and Cuppa’ with members of the Ballina community invited to have a cuppa, play cards and have a chat with our secondary students. It is always a lively relaxed atmosphere as the visitors share tales of their time at school, pass on some life lessons and learn a few new card games.
Our Year 12 Advanced Maths students enjoyed a day creating a Trigonometry Treasure Hunt. Travelling between Lennox Head and Alstonville they applied their learning to real life applications of Trigonometry to participate in the treasure hunt. Bring purpose to learning is what makes it so much more engaging.
Our primary and secondary EAC chess players took part in round two of the Gardiner Chess Competition. Battling teams from schools across the region our Primary B team won their section, and the secondary team were also victorious. It was a terrific opportunity for the students to work on their strategy, calculation and pattern recognition skills in a fun filled environment.
It is so important that the opportunities we provide our students are challenging, purposeful and real world application as we teach them the skills they will require to navigate the challenges of their ever evolving world.
Dia dhaoibh
Mr Francis McGuigan
Deputy Principal
Mind Matters
CHECK THIS OUT
This week EAC was once again the host venue for the Gardiner Chess Northern Rivers Inter-School Tournament. Hundreds of students from schools across the Northern Rivers came together to play multiple rounds of chess to determine the winners.
Team EAC triumphed on the day achieving first place in both the Primary B and Secondary competitions as well as a slew of merit awards and commendations.
Congratulations to the whole Chess Team and thank you to Ms Amanda Middleton for her strong support of chess at EAC.
PERSUASIVE PRIMARY POWER ON
This week Team EAC participated in another round of the HICES Debating Championships, this time against Newcastle Grammar School.
Negating the topic, 'Streaming Password Sharing is Stealing', EAC's thorough preparation and nimble thinking saw them comprehensively win the debate and progress through to the Preliminary Finals (top 16 teams in the state).
The next round will take place in Term 3 against the winner of Bishop Tyrrell Anglican College and Northholm Grammar School.
Good luck to Emily Evans, Stella Du Plessis, Banjo Holt and Freddie Rawlings.
Mr Daniel Walsh
Teacher of Year 6
Sports Report
Far North Coast Primary School 7's Finals
Tuesday 6 June brought with it some gloomy weather over Lyle Park in Wollongbar, but that didn't dampen our Primary Rugby 7's team's spirits.
The Year 5/6 Boys side kicked off the day's games with a challenging draw ahead of them. St Carthages were our first contenders. They presented a competitive mixed side that were strong in their attack, but they were no match for EAC's sturdy defence and fast footwork, with the boys seeing their first win of the day.
The second game, against Lindisfarne, also resulted in a proud win from the boys side.
This put us in first place going into the semi final game against Broadwater. Confidence to take the win was high! Unfortunately, the boys did not come out on top, going down to Broadwater, 1 try to nil.
The girls side found themselves with only one contender for the day, Holy Family, Skennars Head. The girls played the best out of three games, coming out on top with 2 wins and a draw.
A big thank you to our coaches Mr Tod Falvey and Mr James Pearson for their thorough preparation of these young players for the carnivals. Their dedication and enthusiasm for the game is commendable, and the students have taken away so much knowledge from them.
Ms Ellese Morrissey
Assistant Sports Coach and Duke of Edinburgh Leader
EAC POWERS AT STATE NETBALL CHAMPIONSHIPS
Our EAC community was well represented at the NSW Senior State Netball Championships in Newcastle last weekend.
Charlize Hughes, Maddie Jewell and Olivia Rose, all from Year 9, were part of the U15 Ballina Representative Netball Team and played an exhausting 17 games of netball over 3 days, all under the guidance of netball coach extraordinaire and our Secondary Japanese teacher Ms Brigette Campbell.
Well done!
CIS CROSS COUNTRY
On Thursday 8 June, 28 EAC students from Primary and Secondary attended the CIS Cross Country Championships in Sydney.
The weather was kind to our Secondary runners in the morning, but the weather did turn in the afternoon for our Primary runners who made a valiant effort in less than favourable conditions.
All up, Team EAC celebrated 8 Top 30 performances - an excellent result of which we can all be proud.
Jett Beck, Year 10, achieved first place for the 15 Years Boys group and Robbie Mumford, also in Year 10, achieved seventh place with both boys now set to compete at the All Schools Cross Country Championships, also in Sydney, at the beginning of Term 3.
Congratulations to all on your efforts!
Ms Heidi Craig
Sport and Lindsay Walker Centre Duty Manager
Top of the Arts
All the World’s a Stage…
Team EAC touched down in Sydney at 7am on Saturday 10 June for the 2023 Shakespeare Carnival Finals. From the airport students headed to the Seymour Centre at Sydney University for a day of masterclasses with teaching professionals from the National Institute of Dramatic Art (NIDA) and industry experienced Shakespearean actors. After a night of local eateries, glimpses of Vivid and 'uber eats', the drama crew settled down for some well earned shut eye. Next up was the competition itself on Sunday.
The competition was of a very high standard with schools from Sydney and regional New South Wales earning their final place against 100 students who entered the competition back in April. Our EAC Drama students performed strongly at the York Theatre stage to an appreciative audience.
Our Year 9 Ensemble team placed 3rd with judges commenting "precision work and contagiously joyful spirit; stood out as exceptional".
Our Year 10 Group Devised team were runners up with judges describing their performances as "sharp ensemble work and very funny".
Our Year 11 Physical Theatre team were also runners up in their category with judges saying their performances was "full of strikingly powerful images".
Congratulations to Harper Ainsbury, Angus Bohn, Summer Campbell, Macey Elliott, Eva Gallagher, Maddie Jewell, Ivy Riley, Holly Hemsworth, Emmie Asbey-Palmer, Maya Bright, Elly Collins, Ellen Miller, Valentina Mulé, Ava Walheim, Indi Barron, Cassidy Curnow, Zoe Latimer, Koko Le Roy, Emerson Leyden and Shyanne Wilkins.
Thank you to our organisers Sport for Jove, to Mrs Merilyn Mulé for joining us, and to Mr Mitch Raguse and Ms Sue McLintock for their continued support. A special thank you also to Mr Francis McGuigan, Ms Debbie Newton and our Administration and the Finance teams for getting us there.
The Shakespeare Carnival is such a worthwhile opportunity and open annually to all Year 7, 8, 9, 10 and 11 students to showcase their acting, dancing, song writing and film making, all in appreciation of the Bard!
Mrs Mechelle Anderson
Teacher of Drama
Library Lowdown
BOOK BORROWING BONANZA
Can you guess how many books you have been borrowed from the Joan Pickup Library this year? It is an astonishing number - over 5,700 books, and that doesn't even include renewals!
The Junior Non-Fiction collection is undergoing a fantastic transformation thanks to the dedicated efforts of our Year 5 Library Monitors who help enormously in making it easy for students to discover and locate valuable resources for research projects.
On the topic of research, Year 1 students have been doing an incredible job taking notes and writing reports on various animals. They have been using a range of Library resources to gather factual information, including physical books, EPIC!, the Britannica School database, ClickView and more. Their enthusiasm and hard work are truly inspiring.
As the winter holidays approach, why not cosy up, keep warm and binge on a book series? Some recommended reads include:
- Wolf Girl by Anh Do
- Rangers Apprentice by John Flanagan
- Wings of Fire by Tui T. Sutherland
- Geronimo Stilton by Elisabetta Dami, and
- The Chronicles of Narnia by C. S. Lewis.
These gripping series will transport readers young and old to thrilling worlds and keep students entertained throughout the break. Make sure to explore the Library's shelves and the hundreds of eBooks and audiobooks available on ePlatform. There is no shortage of reading adventures awaiting you!
That's all for now from the Library. Enjoy your reading adventures, and remember to return your library books on time. Happy reading!
Ms Jasmine Jordan
Library Resource Centre Manager
Sustainability Central
WASTE FREE LUNCHES
Encouraging students to bring waste-free lunches is an important part of EAC's sustainability education. By participating, students will have a better understanding of how we can take action to reduce our waste and actively participate in sustainability. Waste-free lunches also save money and promote healthy eating.
If everyone brought 5 pieces of rubbish or recycling in their lunches imagine how much rubbish that is each day and each week! A waste free lunch with the use of reusable containers means no rubbish or recycling.
Ms Kate Ashdown
Leader of Curriculum - Technology | Teacher of Science and STEM
Friends of EAC
How To EAC
EXTENDED LEAVE TERMS CHANGED TO +5 DAYS
Whether it be for family commitments or an otherwise unmissable opportunity, many students will require an absence from school. In keeping with State and Federal legislation, all student absences must be documented. Short absences are considered to be between 1 and 5 school days. These short absences can be simply recorded by parents and carers by contacting the College by phone, text, email or even through our SchoolStream app.
For planned absences of 6 school days or more, an Application for Extended Leave must be completed and submitted for approval by the College. For planned absences of more than 20 school days due to travel arrangements, travel documents such as an itinerary or tickets must accompany the application.
There are different application forms for Primary and Secondary - both are available on our website.
CLICK HERE FOR THE PRIMARY EXTENDED LEAVE APPLICATION FORM
CLICK HERE FOR THE SECONDARY EXTENDED LEAVE APPLICATION FORM
If you have queries regarding leave arrangements, please email enquiries@eac.nsw.edu.au or phone the College on 02 6681 5054.
To record short absences of 1 to 5 days, please advise the College using any of the following methods;
- Click on 'Attendance' in our SchoolStream app
- Email attendance@eac.nsw.edu.au
- Phone 02 6681 5054
- Text 0416 906 263
- Via Parent Lounge
HERE TO HELP
MORE PARENTING RESOURCES FOR YOU
Thank you for your great interest in our practical parenting resources that we have been publishing of late. Thank you also for turning up in great numbers to our Parent Workshops. Our most recent workshop held on Tuesday 30 May focused on attention deficit disorders (ADDs) and provided attendees with an overview of symptoms and an introduction to pathways of support. A copy of the presentation on ADD is available HERE. One of the key handouts from the workshop is available HERE.
Our next Parent Workshop will focus on autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and will be held on Tuesday 20 June in the Ezzy Centre. You can register for the workshop via Parent Lounge HERE.
Staying safe online and understanding bullying have also featured in our newsletter this term. Here are some more resources to help parents and carers navigate these tricky topics.
National Day of Action Against Bullying and Violence
You may have heard of Amy 'Dolly' Everett, a 14 year old girl from the Northern Territory whose suicide (blamed on online bullying) in 2016 rocked our nation.
To help bring awareness to the serious consequences associated with bullying, the Australian Government, through their 'Bullying No Way!' campaign, has introduced Australia’s leading bullying prevention initiative - the National Day of Action against Bullying and Violence - which will be held on Friday 18 August 2023.
Schools are being supported with resources for this day and inspiration for various projects and initiatives designed to help students learn the impact their words and actions online, and in the real world, can have on other people.
For Primary students, focus areas will include:
- Protecting your personal information
- Respectful relationships
- Understanding the connected world
- Developing critical thinking skills, and
- Help-seeking strategies.
For students in Kindergarten to Year 3 in particular, a popular resource that parents and carers can also reference is 'Hector's World', an animated video series that addresses bullying concerns. To find out more about Hector's World, CLICK HERE.
Consent
Recently our Year 10 students participated in a workshop on consent facilitated by NSW Police. The workshop shared insights on understanding and implementing consent in teenage / adult relationships. A great resource to help continue discuss in this area is the SBS documentary 'Asking For It'. To view and find out more about the documentary, CLICK HERE.
A new resource for parents and carers to be aware of is 'Creating Consent Culture'. The program supports teachers in empowering young people to develop and maintain safe and respectful relationships. The program explores consent, unpacks language and gender stereotypes, and highlights safe online practices.
Another tip is to connect with the eSafety Commission's Young People Resource Hub which includes resources parents and carers can share with teenagers to help spark meaningful discussions about staying safe online. Resources such as Unsafe or Unwanted Contact allow students to learn about consent and setting boundaries online and include a series of short videos that have been created by young people for young people.
As parents and carers of EAC students, if you have a concern about cyber safety, matters of consent, navigating neurodivergence and more, please reach out to our student support team who are here to help.
Mr John Noble
EAC's Consulting Guidance Counsellor
Early Learning Centre Corner
WELCOME MR PETER!
Peter Hansen, equipped with a Diploma in Early Childhood Education and Care, has become a valued addition to the Early Learning Centre team on a permanent basis. With his expertise and passion for nurturing young minds, Peter has seamlessly blended into the educational environment, leaving a lasting impact on the children. His endearing and goofy sense of humour brings immense joy and delight to the little ones, fostering an atmosphere of fun and learning. Peter's ability to connect with children on their level, understanding their needs and interests, has made him an invaluable asset to the team, further enhancing the Early Learning Centre's commitment to providing exceptional early childhood education.
Director of the Early Learning Centre
Primary Pulse
MARVELLOUS MUSIC
As we look forward to the Festival of Music next week here at EAC, I’d like to highlight the importance of music education in schools. You may have fond memories yourselves of your own music education, whether it be as part of a band program, a role in your school musical, sitting on the rug and exploring the sounds of instruments for the first time or singing the latest Kylie Minogue pop hit from the ABC Sing books! Side note: Kylie herself recorded the Locomotion because it was her favourite song in the Sing books when she was a young girl at Erinsborough Primary!
Music stimulates the brain, it improves and develops language skills, exposes students to other languages and it is a way to build decoding and memory skills. Music education heavily relies on teamwork and collaboration. Each and every member of or bands and choirs need to develop listening skills to gauge their volume level, enter and exit a piece of music for their parts and be ready to lift as a section to implement dynamics. Hand eye coordination is developed as is multitasking. Being committed to a music group requires work ethic and discipline, and a growth mindset is especially installed in our EAC musicians with a large sign hanging in the band room stating ‘It’s ok to make mistakes’.
Starting next Wednesday, we will see our students perform at various events over the course of the festival. Highlights for the Primary include our Stage 3 Rising Voices Choir (Year 5/6) and the Junior Concert Band performing at the Opening Night Concert at 6pm on Wednesday 21 June, The Primary Talent Show during school hours on Thursday 22 June, the Primary Band and Choir Competition Day from 9:30am on Friday 23 June and the Finale Concert on Tuesday 27 June at 6pm starring our Mini Melodics (Years 3/4) Choir and the Winners of the Primary Talent Show. We are also fortunate to have a few young players featured at Monday 26 June’s Piano Recital at 9:30am. All of these events are open to the EAC community.
I love the variety of repertoire our groups perform and parents often leave our concerts commenting on how great the song selections were to keep not only the musicians engaged but the audiences excited. This week I was exposing our Kindergarten, Year 1 and 2 students to the world of classical music through its use in the ABC TV series Bluey. As we discussed the likes of Mozart and Tsiolkovsky, I was interrupted by a young musician how eagerly informed me that in fact Jack Black was the greatest musician of all time as he wrote not only the best song in the world, but also had a song in the new Super Mario Brothers movie. As someone who has the choir singing Guns and Roses next week, who am I to argue?
See you at the festival!
Mr Wayne Cross
Director of the Primary School
LESSONS IN RESILIENCE FOR YEAR 5
In Year 5, we are currently investigating Natural Disasters as part of our Integrated Unit. This week we were given the opportunity to visit the Northern Rivers Living Lab. We did some fun activities, one of which was building a structure out of spaghetti, marshmallows and a scotch finger biscuit. This was to represent a resilient house.
Then we went on a walk around the city of Lismore to see the businesses re-building. We observed some of the new materials and technologies that they are using to achieve this. We also saw the levy wall and talked about how significant the last flood was.
After this, we went to our classmate Darcy Lister’s house to see the damage caused by the flood. Darcy and his mum, Tracy, told us about the damage which occurred and how high the water level actually came up to their home. Tracy then explained how this has affected their lives and how they are rebuilding.
We then drove to the Rural Fire Service (RFS) Control Centre in Casino. Mr Ainsworth, the Station Manager, talked to us about how common fires can start in homes and what we can do to prevent these. He also explained how people could be building in bushfire prone areas. We also got to check out the fire truck and they even turned the hose and siren on!
This learning experience provided us with a greater insight into how to design resilient buildings for the future, which is a part of our Integrated Studies project. This day provided us with real life connections to a natural disaster and the resilience of a community to ‘Build Back Better’.
Darcy, Anna and Xanthe
Year 5 Students
IGNITING IMAGINATIONS
Great news! We have an exciting array of new playground construction equipment, games and cars designed exclusively for students in Kindergarten, Year 1 and Year 2. This equipment will be put to good use each break time and will ignite imaginations as students transform, construct and create.
Mrs Merilyn Mulé
Pastoral Care Leader (Kindergarten to Year 3)
FOR VACATION CARE BOOKINGS NOW OPEN
Our program for EAC's Winter Vacation Care has been released and it is jam packed with great activities to keep Primary students engaged and entertained during the upcoming winter break.
Places are limited and our programs are very popular so be sure to book early to secure your spot.
Bookings can be made by emailing enrolments@eac.nsw.edu.au
CLICK HERE to download the Winter Vacation Care program
Secondary Scoop
WHAT IS PHONE ADDICTION?
Phone addiction is the compulsive overuse of a mobile phone, where someone fears not having their mobile phone with them or not being able to send or receive messages.
Many of those addicted to their phones experience phantom vibrations – the phenomenon of thinking that your phone is vibrating from a notification when it actually is not. Studies have found that many students today display addictive mobile phone behaviour, where they spend a whopping average of 8 to 10 hours per day on their phones.
THE 3 DANGERS OF PHONE ADDICTION
Being addicted to your phone can negatively hinder all areas of your life, from physical wellbeing to your grades at school. These concerns are especially important for students, who are likely to have less self control than adults. Here are three reasons why students should use the mobile phone less…
1. Reduced concentration
Students become less attentive and perform worse when they are trying to multitask and use their phone whilst doing activities.
2. Poor sleep
Phone use every day for longer than 20 minutes at a time has been found to lead to:
- Shorter sleep durations
- Later wake up time on weekends
- Greater daytime tiredness
- Lower quality sleep
In fact, being on our phones within an hour before bed makes us almost three times as likely to get less than five hours of sleep. This is due to the backlight of the mobile phone tricking our brains into thinking it’s still daytime, suppressing the sleep hormone, melatonin from being released, making it more difficult to fall asleep.
3. Worse school performance
Research has found a significant correlation between phone use and reduced academic achievement. This is because constant interaction with their phone divides students’ focus, making it harder for them to study effectively.
So with the use of mobile phones in all aspects of life, how can we support this issue?
5 TIPS TO HELP STUDENTS MANAGE PHONE USE
When it comes to phones, just like everything, moderation is key. Here are five strategies that can help students become less reliant on their phone.
1. Put away your phone when studying
2. Turn off sound notifications
3. Put a timer on your phone use
4. Understand that multi-tasking is a myth
5. Turn down the phone backlight
As with all technology, it is not what it is but how it is used that ultimately defines whether phones will help or hinder someone.
Understanding the impact of constantly being on their phone and being reliant on it will allow students to make more informed decisions about their usage and end mobile phone addiction.
Source: Innerdrive.co.uk
Screen Futures - Pathways to Film and Television Careers Excursion
Senior students from across the Northern Rivers Region were given the opportunity to attend a Film and Television Careers industry seminar and workshop session in Lennox Head. Students heard from industry professionals and engaged in workshops such as special effects, make-up, green screen, drones, casting and more. Outside of the major cities, our region is a hot spot for the creative arts and entertainment industries, with emerging future opportunities in this billion dollar industry. Thank you to Mr Ben McRae and Mrs Mechelle Anderson for accompanying the students on this excursion.
"It was incredibly useful hearing about the experiences of people who were once in our shoes, and how they eventually settled on the career that was right for them. It was great hearing that there is no pressure to get it 'right' the first time and that with perseverance and curiosity, anything is possible. The workshops were informative and engaging, and I enjoyed every aspect of the experience immensely."
Zoe Latimer
Year 11 Student
CIVIL CONSTRUCTION INDUSTRY TOUR
Last week a group of students from Years 9 and 10 ventured out to gain a better understanding of the civil construction industry with visits to the Fulton Hogan batch plant near Ballina Airport and the Transport for NSW Ballina Depot. Both sites were of great interest to the students who enjoyed the opportunity to closely inspect sophisticated plant and machinery and witness first hand the operations of these busy work sites.
Mr Ben McRae
Student Services Officer - Pathways and Partnerships
COLLOSAL COASTAL CLEANUP
Our Year 10 students recently rolled up their sleeves and selected an area of Ballina's coastline to focus on cleaning up. Students were both fascinated and appalled at the variety of rubbish found and deepened their appreciation for preserving our natural environs.
Mr Christopher Lake
Leader of House Walker and Teacher of PDHPE
EAC STUDENTS SAY 'YES' TO TAFE
Our Secondary students have made their mark in the popular TAFE NSW Yes Program. The program is a great opportunity for students gain practical skills in a range of perspective fields.
PEER SUPPORT KEEPS IT TOGETHER
Our Year 7 and Year 11 Peer Support Program features a range of activities that break down barriers and ignite engagement. This week our students honed their skills of collaboration and coordination and proved there's never a dull moment in Peer Support.
Northern Rivers News
Football Fun Days with Wendy Britton
$40 per day | 10am to 3pm
Tuesday 4 July 2023
Wednesday 15 July 2023
Thursday 6 July 2023
Tuesday 11 July 2023
Wednesday 12 July 2023
Thursday 13 July 2023
