“In short, there are three things that last: faith, hope and love; and the greatest of these is love.” 1 Corinthians 13:13
From The Principal
As you would mostly likely be aware, I have spent the last ten days in China and Japan visiting schools and meeting students who plan to visit EAC later in the year. The schools included Longyou Kema Senior High, Kasukabe High School, Tachibana Elementary School and St Margaret’s Elementary School. At each school, I had the privileged opportunity to meet with the Principal, speak with teachers, observe lessons, tour the school and most importantly, talk with students. Each school is quite unique and it is always fascinating to learn more about their different approaches to teaching, the use of teaching spaces, the different structures and systems school use and the special programs that individual school deliver. One thing that all four school have in common is a well developed English language program that is compulsory for all students.
There were many highlights of the trip but I just want to share a couple with you. Longyou Kema High School in China is located about 600 south west of Shanghai. The school has developed a significant focus on technology and in particular the application of 3D printing. The students have developed their use of software that allows a series of digital photographs to be converted into a three dimensional shape that can be printed and displayed. The students can also print objects from two dimensional images by using software to manipulate the images. The school has developed a number of significant display. One display consists of 3D models of many of the famous human made structures from around the world which included the Pyramids, Taj Mahal, Blue Mosque and the Sydney Opera House.
Another highlight was the wonderful experience I had when I attended the Primary School Chapel Service at St Margaret’s Elementary School in Tokyo. St Margaret’s is an Anglican girl’s school founded by an American missionary in the 1870s. All the students commence each day with Chapel. The Chaplain leads them in worship, which includes readings from the Bible and the singing of hymns. The school has a student choir who lead all the formal singing during the service. While it was all in Japanese, the familiarity of the hymns and the ritual made me feel very much at home. It was quite a moving experience and reminded me that our Christian faith really is universal and does extend to all regions of the globe.
Once again, the welcome I received was only surpassed by the praise that those schools that have visited EAC previously had for the students, staff and families of the College. Longyou, Kasukabe and Tachibana will all send students for a fourth year in a row and continue to do so as each year they have such a wonderful experience and feel genuinely welcome in our community. It is such a privilege to represent our community when visiting these schools and to hear how much they love the EAC community.
With confirmation that students from all four schools will visit EAC in late July and early August this year, I invite all our families to consider offering to host a student(s) and provide them with a Home Stay during their one to two week visit. Australian Student Accommodation (ASA) manage the Home Stay program on behalf of the College and pay families $45 a night for single homestay and $40 per night per student for multiply home stay to cover any additional costs and for the provision of meals and accommodation. If you would like further information please contact Mrs Karen Bergan at the College Office.
Congratulations to the 50 staff and students who participated in the Bronze and Silver level Duke of Edinburgh expeditions that took place over the weekend. The Bronze expedition involved a 40 kilometre walk from Angourie to Minnie Waters carrying packs, sleeping bags, food and all other essentials. While the Silver expedition involved a two day canoeing trip on the Clarence River. Both events presented participants with a demanding challenge and all students and staff successfully completed their journey. This first journey is designed to be a practice to help students understand what is required in planning and safely completing such an expedition. Mr Graham Walker has been preparing the trips with the students and modelling to them how to plan for such an event. The next challenge is for the students to plan and undertake their own challenge. While adults will accompany the students, the purpose of the second challenge is for the students to demonstrate their learning and independence in designing a similar task. The second journey will take place in August. Special thanks to Mr Jules, Mr Pryor, Mrs Payne, Ms Baker and Mrs Regan for acting as guides for the expedition and Mr Walker for his extensive planning of the event.
The College Council held the AGM on the evening of May 15 and presented the annual financial and business reports for the 2017 year. After many years of great service to the College both Mr Bob Torrens and Mr Bill Adler stepped down from the Council. All members of College Council are volunteers and give very generously of their time and talents. Mr Torrens had been a member of Council for the last five years and had brought much experience and wisdom to our discussions from his wonderful career as a Principal. Mr Bill Adler had been a Council member since 2005 and had been Chair of College Council for the last five years. Mr Adler has extensive experience in International Education and business administration. His leadership of the College as Chair over the last five years has been outstanding and has seen the College grow and prosper educationally, pastorally, spiritually, strategically and financially. Our community has been greatly blessed by the commitment and contribution of these Council members and for this our community says thank you.
Finally, a plug for our 20th Anniversary Dinner on Saturday 30 June at Ballina RSL. Please gather some friends together to join with me at this wonderful celebration of our College. Please see the website and our Facebook page for more details.
Mr Robert Tobias
Principal
Off the Deputy's Desk
As we near the halfway point of the term I again reflect upon the wide variety of opportunities that our students receive here at EAC. These opportunities very much reflect the College’s commitment to developing the whole student.
On Thursday night I had the pleasure of attending the Primary Concert Band Evening. There were some wonderful performances from the students in front of a packed house in the Discovery Centre. The night certainly was entertaining even when one unnamed Deputy Principal was very generously provided with the opportunity to conduct the Senior Band. Knowing that the lark was on, I dutifully played along much to the delight of all those in attendance, especially Mr Holmes and the students in the band. On a more serious note, I thank all of the Music staff for their commitment, the students for their efforts and the parents for their support of what was a great night.
Peer Support provides our Primary students with a wonderful opportunity to work together to promote cooperation, harmony and provides our Year 6 students with practical leadership opportunities. On my Friday rounds I could not help but be impressed by the spirit of camaraderie that I noticed among the groups. Well done to all of our Year 6 Peer Support Leaders and the staff for their supervision and guidance. One of the major challenges of a program like Peer Support is knowing when to step in as an adult and when to let the leaders have the space to grow their leadership skills.
I wrote in my last article about the benefits of the Duke of Edinburgh Award and last weekend we had over 50 students involved in a substantial beach walk for the Bronze level students. The Silver level students paddled a significant distance along the Clarence River in the area around Grafton. By all reports the practice journeys were successful with students and staff working together to solve problems that may have stood in their way. Thank you to Mr Walker for the considerable logistics work that goes on in planning these expeditions. I also thank all the staff who attended to support the students in their endeavours.
NAPLAN Online has now been completed and this is a large operation involving coordination or teachers, rooms and students. Well done to Mrs Boyd on her organisation of NAPLAN online and thank you to all the staff involved in the computer based administration of the tests. We should hopefully receive our student results much earlier than in the past. This will enable us to engage in some rigorous data analysis and review of our literacy and numeracy program across the College.
This week sees our Years 4, 6, 8 and 10 students sitting ICAS testing in Science. The results of ICAS testing from these ‘even’ year levels allows us to gather data in the non NAPLAN years so that we can track student progress across subject areas. I hope that we will score a pleasing level of Credits and Distinctions in these tests.
I am nearing the end of my introductions to the Habits of Mind. This week’s habit that I am introducing you to is that of finding humour. Laugh a little! Find the whimsical, incongruous and unexpected. Being able to laugh at oneself is important.
Why we laugh, no one really knows. Laughing is an instinct that can be traced to chimps, and it may reinforce our social status (Hubert, 2007). Humour is a human form of mutual playfulness. Beyond the fact that laughing is enjoyable, it may have medicinal value as well. Laughing, scientists have discovered, has positive effects on physiological functions: blood vessels relax, stress hormones disperse, and the immune system gets a boost, including a drop in the pulse rate. Laughter produces secretion of endorphins and increased oxygen in the blood. Humour has been found to have psychological benefits as well. It liberates creativity and provokes such higher-level thinking skills as anticipating, finding novel relationships, visual imaging, and making analogies. People who engage in the mystery of humour have the ability to perceive situations from an original and often interesting vantage point. They tend to initiate humor more often, to place greater value on having a sense of humour, to appreciate and understand others' humor, and to be verbally playful when interacting with others. Having a whimsical frame of mind, they thrive on finding incongruity; perceiving absurdities, ironies, and satire; finding discontinuities; and being able to laugh at situations and themselves. (Costa, 2007)
Mr Darren Parks
Deputy Principal
Week 6
Monday 4 June
NCIS Touch Football @ Blue Hills College
Tuesday 5 June
Whole College Assembly-9.00 am-Undercover Area
Kindergarten Open Afternoon
Wednesday 6 June
Shakespeare Carnival Regional Finals
Thursday 7 June
Chess Tournament
NSW State Netball Cup-Primary@ Lismore
Friday 8 June
Kindergarten 2019 Experience Day
Week 7
Monday 11 June
Queen’s Birthday Public Holiday
Tuesday 12 June
College Photo Day
Secondary Chapel
Primary Assembly
Primary Netball Trials
Athletics Training
Wednesday 13 June
Years 7-10 reports due
Secondary Netball Trials
Thursday 14 June
NSW CIS Cross Country
Friday 15 June
Athletics Training
Sports update
NCIS Netball Program
The College will soon be commencing our NCIS Netball Program. Please find an outline of the program below. Students need to attend trials to be considered for selection.
Commitment
Training is compulsory for all team members. There will be a commitment of two training sessions per week for all teams. Please consider carefully before committing to the program as students who do not attend training will be withdrawn from the team (except in the event of illness).
In the event of wet weather trials may will be postponed. However training will always be held regardless of the weather with activities in the undercover area and video work in the class room.
Please give permission to attend trials and training on the parent lounge.
Coaching
We are fortunate this year to have Mrs Elizabeth Shaw coming on board to coach our teams. Mrs Shaw is the current North Coast Academy of Sport Coach. Mrs Shaw will be work with our regular team of teaching staff to deliver the program.
NCIS Netball Trials 2018
Primary: Tuesday 12 June and Tuesday 19 June 7.15 am to 8.30 am
15 and Under: Wednesday 13 June & Wednesday 20 June 7.15 am to 8.30 am
Open: Thursday 14 June & Thursday 21 June 7.15 am to 8.30 am
NCIS Netball Training 2018
Training sessions will commence on Tuesday 26th June and continue until the NCIS Netball on Wednesday 5 September as follows.
Primary: Tuesday 7.15 am to 8.30 am: court systems, team tactics and specialist area skills.
Under 15 & Under and Open: Wednesday 7.15 am to 8.30 am: court systems, team tactics and specialist area skills
Primary, 15 & Under and Opens: Thursday 7.15 am to 8.30 am : skills, fitness, speed and agility.
The Duke of Edinburgh's International Award
Bronze Adventurous Journey Part 1
Last Friday and Saturday a group of 24 Students and 3 staff took on the challenge of the Yuraygir Coastal Walk. This was the first part of the Duke of Edinburgh's Bronze Award Adventurous Journey. The walk goes through the Yuraygir National Park, along the coast from Angourie to Red Rock. This are of coastline is one of the most pristine in NSW.
The group met at the College in the early hours of Friday morning to travel to Angourie to commence their trek. At Angourie the students were introduced to the significance of the area we would be walking through to the Aboriginal people by a Yeagl Elder Uncle Ron. Uncle Ron who is also an archaeologist and anthropologist shared his knowledge of bush foods, medicines, tools and the indigenous way of life in the area. Uncle Ron also gave the group some good advice for their walk about how to look after each other, family and teamwork.
The first day of the walk went from Angourie to Brooms Head. Starting at Mara Creek the trail passes through a variety of coastal plant communities including with and dry heathlands, paperback and tea tree. There are spectacular views from the rocky coastal platforms. Spectacular red and grey clay cliff headlands near the freshwater lake Arragan are also interesting features. Brooms Head Camp Ground was the end of the walk on Day 1.
Day 2 of the walk was 19km from Brooms Head to Minnie Waters. The second day is mostly beach walking with a river crossing by boat at the pristine Sandon River. With a low tide the sand was firm to walk along the long stretches of deserted beach. The day ended at Minnie Waters with a well-earned ice cream and a bus ride back to College.
The students and staff were physically and mentally challenged by the journey. All had a chance to reflect and grow through our shared experience. I would like to compliment the students on their excellent behaviour and positive attitudes while on the trip. Thank you to Mr Jukes and Mrs Baker and Mr Pryor who took the students on the trip.
In September the Bronze group will be completing the second half of the Yuraygir Coastal Walk from Minnie Waters to Red Rock.
Silver Adventurous Journey Part 1
While the Bronze group were walking a group of 25 students who are completing their Silver Award and 3 staff took on the challenge of a Canoe trek down the Clarence River. Leaving early in Saturday morning we traveled to Newbold on the upper Clarence.
The first day was training in safety, paddling technique and rescues, followed by a paddle to our overnight campsite at Lillydale. There were a few small rapids along the way to keep us entertained. The scenery was spectacular along the route with crystal clear water and lots of wildlife including turtles, fish and numerous bird species. At the camp ground we enjoyed our campfires and warm meals after a long day on the river.
The second day of the trip was a 20 km paddle from Lillydale to our finish point at Copmanhurst. The weather was kind with warm conditions and gentle winds. We stopped for morning tea and lunch breaks along the river way to refuel. Everyone found the last 5 km of the paddle challenging but we all managed to finish in good spirits.
I would like to compliment our students on their behavior, positive attitudes and teamwork on the trip, they were fantastic from start to finish. Thank you to Mrs Regan and Mrs Payne who came with me on the trip. Thank you to also to Mr Ian Hale and the team from Scouts NSW, who were our facilitators for the trip, providing equipment, instruction and plenty of encouragement.
The students will complete Part 2 of their Adventurous Journey in mid September.
Mr Graham Walker
Duke of Edinburgh Award Leader
Commerce News
Lismore Court House Excursion
The Year 10 Commerce classes ventured off to the Lismore Court House on Monday 14th of May. Through this experience, both classes gained vital knowledge and experience about laws in society, which was obtained first hand.
We observed cases, processes, court layout, and various legal terminology, which supported and illustrated the content learned in class.
This valuable experience was one that everyone thoroughly enjoyed allowing us to appreciate the trials and tribulations that occur in court. We also developed a sense of empathy for those seeking justice within our community. Discovering the aspects of court life, even the negative ones such as cases being a very tedious process, was an interesting eye opener.
We were also incredibly lucky to have a one on one opportunity to ask a Magistrate any questions we may have had. Although daunting at first, it was a great position for pressing questions to be answered by an esteemed expert.
Thank you to the teachers, Mr Kelly and Mrs Regan for organising and involving the Commerce classes, in going to court.
Caitlyn Seamer
Year 10 Commerce Student
Music Notes
Primary Concert Band's Performance Evening
Concert Band Land
Library News
Library Monitors are responsible for helping to keep the library a safe, welcoming place where people can come to work, read a book, play a game or be with friends.
Students in Year 5 were offered the opportunity to become Library Monitors and have undertaken training to learn new skills. They have rostered duties in the Library at lunchtimes and shelve books, keep the Library tidy and provide assistance to other students to find resources and use games.
Mrs Wilson-Jones
Library Resource Centre Manager
The following students were presented with their Library Monitor Badges by our Principal, Mr Tobias, at the Primary Assembly on Tuesday. Congratulations!
Lilla Blackman
Laylan Bradbury
Maya Bright
Flynn Creighton
Ava Delaney
Elizabeth Laverty
Ellen Miller
Ishaan Mishra
Eden Saul
Olivia Van Zwieten
Felicity Walker
Teal Wijeyekoon
20th Anniversary Gala Dinner
Canteen
EAC Canteen operates 4 days a week: Monday, Wednesday, Thursday & Friday, with special lunches on Tuesdays, canteen is open on Tuesdays for general sales at LUNCH only.
Butter Chicken, Chicken Mornay Pie & Quiche - NO LONGER AVAILABLE
Banana Milk - NO LONGER AVAILABLE
Canteen opens at 8.30am and the Menu is available here:
Sushi Dates: 15 & 19 June
Noodle Box Dates: 12 & 26 June
Subway Date: 3 July
Sushi – Tuesday 5 June
Sushi from IGA will be available from the canteen next Tuesday 2 May. If you would like to order Sushi for your child’s lunch next Tuesday please complete the order form then attach your order to a paper bag with your payment enclosed. This should then be put in the canteen basket on Monday morning, 4 June.
Order forms will be sent home but are also available at the canteen, office or online.
PRIMARY LUNCH ORDERS
Please place the money in a paper bag of sufficient size to fit all of the lunch items. If you are ordering a drink with your child’s lunch please provide two (2) bags. Please remind your child to place their lunch/recess bag in the class tub NOT directly to the canteen.
PLEASE DO NOT STAPLE / TAPE BAGS CLOSED, FOLDED IN 4 APPEARS TO WORK WELL
BAG 1: Name, Class, Teacher, Lunch Order (John Smith, 5A, Mr Falvey, 1 Junior Pie)
BAG 2: Name, Class, Drink/Cold Order (John Smith, 5A, Mr Falvey, 1 Orange Juice)
Any change required will be placed in the bag for return with the child’s lunch order.
Christine Hall
Canteen Supervisor
0414 811 668
Can you help in the canteen?
Community News
