"Happy the peacemakers; they shall be called the sons and daughters of God."
Matthew 5:9
From The Principal
Congratulations to Year 12 Drama students Jade Felsch, Taylor Mattock-Golding and Jemima Grigor who each received a nomination for their individual performance for OnSTAGE 2020. OnSTAGE is the HSC Drama Showcase and a nomination indicates an outstanding performance piece. The performance is worth 50% of the student's HSC Examination mark and a nomination indicates a piece that has achieved a perfect or near perfect score. Special mention must go to Mrs Sue McLintock for her work with the group as their teacher and mentor.
Approximately only 250 of the more than 6000 individual performance HSC Drama pieces are nominated for consideration for OnSTAGE. It is an outstanding achievement for three of our students to receive a nomination. We now wait in anticipation to see if their piece is one of the 20 selected to appear in the Showcase, which takes place in February next year and runs for a week at the Seymour Theatre.
Next week, the Class of 2020 will conclude their formal schooling. I wish to commend all of Year 12 on the level of maturity, commitment and patience throughout this very disrupted year. We will hold a special virtual assembly for all the College to farewell them next Tuesday. On Wednesday they will enjoy a special breakfast together, prepared by the Year 11 Hospitality students and on Friday they will attend their Year 12 Retreat. Year 12 will then enter a ‘HSC Student bubble’ to ensure they all remain well as they head into their HSC Examinations. Please keep them in your thoughts and prayers in the coming weeks as they complete their studies and prepare for the next phase of their lives.
Mr Robert Tobias
Principal
Off the Deputy's Desk
The term is nearing its end and it has certainly been a big one as we have readjusted to full time face to face learning again. The disruption to this year has certainly challenged each of us in different ways and we have continued to learn how to respond to challenges that have been placed in our paths. I wish each of our families a happy September break and hope that our students take the opportunity to get some fresh air and take a break. Year 12 students excepted as they will be undertaking holiday sessions with teachers here at the College.
Last week there was a horrendous video doing the rounds on social media platforms. I sought some advice from eSafety which is printed below:
eSafety Commissioner, Julie Inman Grant, and National Suicide Prevention Adviser to the Prime Minister, Christing Morgan, have today urged all Australians to avoid viewing or sharing a disturbing video currently circulating on social media platforms.
The deeply distressing content has gone viral across global online platforms, and is currently being shared by Australians.
Ms Grant confirmed that contact has been made about the reports with the major social media companies. "We will continue working closely with them to get the video removed expeditiously and to prevent re-upload. We continue to monitor the situation", Ms Grant said.
"We urge Australians who encounter this content to report it immediately to the social media platform they've seen it on, or to eSafety at esafety.gov.au/report/illegal-harmful-content.
"This is yet another example of social media platforms struggling to incorporate safety protections at the core of their product offerings. To prevent this from happening in the first place, they need clear processes and procedures, including the technology tools to detect and remove harmful content much more quickly. In situations like this, it becomes even clearer that safety by design and cross-platform sharing of hashes of harmful content is critical.
"We advise parents, carers and educators against drawing young people's attention to the issue unnecessarily, so as not to peak curiosity - once you see this horrific content, it's impossible to unsee. Instead, keep an eye on those who are more vulnerable and at-risk, and check in with them about their interactions on and offline, help them build their digital resilience and let them know they can come to you for help if they see graphic or distressing content online."
eSafety has developed a series of tips for parents to help limit young people’s exposure to harmful content online:
- Engage in your child’s online activities – ask what apps, sites and games they’re using and make sure they’re age-appropriate
- Use parental controls on devices to help limit what your child is exposed to
- Help them report and block upsetting content they see on social media sites or apps
- Let them know they can come to you about anything upsetting they see online
- Head to esafety.gov.au to find out the latest advice on apps, social media and online safety issues
Christine Morgan added that international research has revealed that content which includes explicit descriptions, images or footage of suicide, especially where methods are shown, have been linked to increases in suicidal thoughts, suicide attempts and suicide deaths.
“While there may be differing opinions about the role of media and social media in suicide prevention, the sector is united in the view that this type of content being widely shared online is unsafe,” Ms Morgan said.
“It is not uncommon for people experiencing acute distress to want to communicate that with others and even seek support online. While we cannot fully understand the reasons why the person depicted in the clip live streamed their death, the content is now being shared and re-shared for the sole purpose of harming others.
“This kind of detailed content could have an impact on anyone who views it, but we are especially concerned about children and young people, people who may be feeling vulnerable or isolated at the moment or anyone with a past experience with suicide. We can never un-see some of the things we are exposed to and we must get the message to all people that there is absolutely no ‘fear of missing out’ when it comes to content like this.
“I applaud the work of the eSafety commissioner and her team who are working to have the content removed when it resurfaces and collaborating with Everymind, headspace, and a range of other services and online social media organisations to mitigate harms where they can.”
Anyone who may be upset or overwhelmed by information being shared online, to:
- Talk to someone you trust about how you are feeling
- Take a break, including physically stepping away for a while, logging out of your social media accounts or engaging in a different activity
- Take control of the content that you see by hiding certain posts on your feed or unfollowing content that may cause you distress
Ms Morgan said she was heartened by actions already taken by many schools, parents and individuals online who have been warning others to take a break from social media.
“I would ask every organisation and every community member to check in on the people around them to ensure anyone who has been exposed gets the immediate and ongoing support they may need,” she added.
Resources are available to support young people regarding suicide-related online content online through #ChatSafe (orygen.org.au/chatsafe). Media guidelines are available at Mindframe (mindframe.org.au).
Advice for parents and children have seen or are impacted by the content:
Kids HelpLine – For ages 5 – 25
Free 24/7 phone and online counselling service for young people aged 5 to 25.
CALL: 1800 55 1800 (Available 24/7)
CHAT: Chat with us online (Available 8am – 12am AEST)
VISIT: kidshelpline.com.au
Lifeline – For all ages
Provides all Australians access to crisis support and suicide prevention services.
CALL: 13 11 14 (Available 24/7)
CHAT: Chat with us online (Available 7pm – 12am AEST)
Visit: lifeline.org.au
Suicide Call Back Service – For ages 15+
Provides immediate telephone counselling and support in a crisis.
CALL: 1300 659 467 (Available 24/7)
CHAT: Chat with us online (Available 24/7)
Visit: suicidecallbackservice.org.au
Headspace
Visit: headspace.com.au
Reachout
Visit: reachout.com
Mr Darren Parks
Deputy Principal
Term 3 Week 10
Monday 21 September
College Cross Country - Rescheduled from 4 September
Tuesday 22 September
Year 12 Assembly - 9.08am - Ezzy Centre
Year 12 Contactless Walk of Honour - Around the College - 9.30am
Wednesday 23 September
Primary Netball vs Richmond Christian College - 11.45am-2.30pm - Courts
Thursday 24 September
Year 12 Breakfast - 7.30am - Ezzy Centre
Friday 25 September
Year 12 Retreat - St John the Baptist Anglican Church, Lennox Head - All day
Secondary Sport - Periods 5 and 6
Term 3 concludes - 3.00pm
Term 4 Week 1
Monday October 12-
Student Free Day - Staff Professional Learning Day
Tuesday 13 October-
Term 4 commences
Whole College Assembly - Filmed and sent out via Screencast
Years 4,5,6 Swimming Intensive - Alstonville Pool until Friday 16 October
Friends Meeting - Via Zoom - TBC
Friday 16 October
Secondary Sport Years 7-10 - Periods 5 and 6
FROM THE OFFICE
School photos have arrived from The School Photographer. Front desk staff will be collating and distributing to Class Teachers in the Primary and Pastoral Care Teachers in the Secondary. The aim is to get photos home to families as soon as possible and no later than the end of this term.
Sports Update
Interschool Primary Netball
On Tuesday this week, the EAC Primary netball teams played a series of matches against Holy Family from Skennars Head. EAC had one boys' and one girls' team, Holy Family had two boys' and two girls' teams. It was fantastic to see our students playing some interschool sport when they have missed out on so many opportunities this year.
Both EAC teams performed very well, with the girls winning all games except a one point loss to the top Holy Family girls' team. The boys played well also and won all games except for two, including a narrow loss to the EAC girls. Best and fairest players as voted by their team mates were Martha Atkinson and Harrison Hunt. There was good teamwork and sportsmanship on display from both schools.
Thanks to our student referees: Elise Edmiston, Lola Saul, Lucia Mitchell, Sophie Lawson and Taylah Ledingham. Thank you to Mr Evans, Mrs Sculley and Miss Coghill for coaching and thank you to the maintenance team for their help with set up and pack down. The teams are looking forward to playing against Richmond Christian College next week.
Mr Graham Walker
Sport and Coaching Administrator
Secondary News
World Peace Day
This week during Pastoral Care students recognised the International World Day of Peace. International World Day of Peace is held on 21 September and is a day devoted to strengthen the ideals of peace, through observing 24 hours of non violence and cease fire.
The theme for the 2020 International Day of Peace is “Shaping Peace Together.” This year it has been clearer than ever before that we are not each other’s enemies but rather our common enemy is a tireless virus that threatens our health, security and very way of life.
True peace depends on societies being inclusive, healthy and economically stable. It is a day that we reflect on spreading compassion, kindness and hope. Engaging in acts of kindness with our peers and the community around us is a way of expressing our support for peace.
Research has shown that people who are kind and compassionate are more satisfied with their lives, have better physical and mental health and have stronger relationships. Being kind and compassionate can help other people and make them feel good.
Almost everybody feels good when someone is kind to them. During Pastoral Care today students reflected on a range of gestures of kindness that they can do and created a ‘link of kindness’ chain. Each person was also given a kindness card and encouraged to write a compliment or message to someone they would not normally spend time with. The library also has a Kindness Tree where students have the opportunity to write kind messages to others and place it on the tree. Hopefully by the end of the week the tree with be blooming with messages of kindness and kind gestures.
Kindness costs nothing but means everything. It is a gift everyone can afford and makes others feel included.
Mrs Amanda Middleton
Director of Secondary
Silver Award Winners
Congratulations to the following students who have achieved their Silver Award:
| Lily Awad | Jett Beck | Stuart Blair-Hickman |
| Luke Bond | Laylan Bradbury | Amber Ivers |
| Valentina Mulé | Franceska Payne | Hannah Vidler |
| Felicity Walker | Lillian Whitby | Marlie Koenen |
| Anya Grant |
Space Lander Mission
Mission Brief: You have been selected as part of an astronautical engineering team to help develop a new space lander that will stabilise the spacecraft's re-entry into Earth's atmosphere and also help to reduce the impact of the shuttle's landing on solid ground.
Using only the provided materials, Year 8.3 were required to design a shock-absorbing landing platform for the cup to securely bring the astronauts (two marshmallows) home safe and sound.
Their teamwork and design concepts are very innovative and impressive. I am very proud of their achievements.
Mrs Julie Beavis
STEM Teacher
Primary Update
Year 1 Mathematics
Year 1A had fun last week learning about volume and capacity. After reading the book Mr Archimedes Bath, the students enjoyed recreating their own water displacement experiments outside.
Year 6 Camp
Like many events this year, the COVID pandemic and subsequent border closures have forced the cancellation of the annual Year 6 Camp to Fraser Island, Queensland. This will be of great disappointment to our Year 6 students. The College is working on a local two-day excursion during the camp week of 24-27 November. Secretly we have had the students involved in the planning of this day during a math investigation to design a two-day adventure that takes in local attractions. Whilst not the same as a camp, we will endeavour to deliver a fun filled program to celebrate the completion of their primary years.
Similarly, the Year 6 Transition Service and Celebration evening will look different, depending on the health advice and guidelines at the time. Current plans are to still hold the afternoon/evening as a student only event on Thursday 3 December, with a Chapel Service, light dinner and trivia night. Photos, clips and highlights of the night will be shared virtually with families, to ensure your involvement in the event is not missed.
SRC in the NED Zone
Last week, our Primary SRC students held a week of fun and games in the NED Zone. The NED Zone stands for:
Never Give Up
Encourage Others
Do your Best
Each day, the SRC welcomed year levels and guided them through a variety of activities such as hula hooping, target shooting, ball scoop and ring toss. On Friday, the week culminated with the Primary Captains, Eva and George, hosting a dance party. The crowd loved the modern tunes selected by George and Eva, though the highlights were still the Macarena and the Chicken Dance!
The NED Zone is a new initiative to promote positive relationships between students at EAC. This week, I've included a great article that focuses on friendships in a school setting from Juliet Small, a Principal in Auckland. The original article can be found here.
Mr Wayne Cross
Director of Primary
Friendships in a School Setting
What can we do to support our kids and their friendships at school?
We all know the pain of missing out on the party invitation. They have even created a fun term for this – FOMO (fear of missing out). We all love to be included. So how do we help our kids do friendship well? To have friends, you have to be a friend. For our kids, school is where they dive into the deep end of navigating friendships in what is completely unfamiliar social territory for them. As they are working this out, they need us as parents and educators to get behind them and support and equip them at home and in the classroom.
What are realistic expectations for parents to have around their children’s friendships at school?
Children should be happy at school. They should have a friend to sit with at lunchtime. But every child is different, so depending on their personality, some will love having lots of friends and others will be happy with a just couple – and that’s okay!
A special note – encourage your child to be inclusive and have more than one friend. Having a best friend is great but it’s too easy for it to all fall apart if that one friend is sick one day or changes schools. Setting your children up for success means encouraging them not to have an exclusive set-up. Getting them involved in teams and activities both in and outside of school is a great way to get them connected to other children who enjoy the same things they do.
We also need to remember to allow time for settling and to find their way in new friendships. For example, your child may feel out of sorts for a little while if they start in a new classroom and find their two friends from last year are in a different classroom. At this point, giving their teacher a heads up is a great idea so they can keep an eye on them as they find their feet.
How involved do teachers get in navigating friendships? What should parents do when their children are going through a hard friendship situation?
One of our goals as teachers is to empower our students to be resilient and independent. We want them to leave school with a ‘toolbox’ of social skills. This works especially well if parents and teachers are on the same page, supporting the children.
This means actively teaching them friendship skills like taking turns and being kind with our words. One thing I’ve seen work well is using a class agreement at the beginning of the school year to set expectations of behaviour. For example, “In our classroom we treat each other with respect”, “In our classroom we use build-ups, not put-downs”, and we can refer back to it throughout the year.
However, hard friendship situations are inevitable and it can be painful to watch your child hurting at school. The most important thing to do is listen. Your understanding will help them know that you are in their corner.
The other important thing to do is encourage your child to take the lead in overcoming the challenge. Talk with them, explore options on how to work through it, and the possible outcomes. This supports the development of their independence and resilience. This could sound like –
“What could you do?”
“I could go play with someone else.”
“Yes, that could work. ”
“Can you think of someone else you might like to play with?”
“Can you think of a game you’d like to play with them?”
“What could happen if you did that?”
Or
“What could you do?”
“I’m going to hit them.”
“What would happen if you did that?”
And so on. Also encourage your child to take the lead in approaching their teacher for help. “I’ve let your teacher know you’re having a bit of a hard time with your friends. She is looking forward to chatting with you and helping you tomorrow.”
Keep in mind that young ones don’t always do the best job at communicating the whole story to us so it’s important to get a bigger picture – for our sake as well as theirs. For example, your child might come home saying, “Someone is bullying me. They’re making me move my bike.” When we hear the word ‘bullied’, it’s only natural for parents to rush to the defence of our child. But it’s helpful to take a moment to gather the whole story, which might throw some light on what happened. For example, the whole story could actually be that their bike was in the pathway and tripping others up. Helping your child understand the bigger context might be a helpful way to reframe their experience.
What can parents do to help support their kids and their friendships?
A few of the teachers in our school sent in their ideas in response to this question. Here are some of their thoughts.
Ask positive questions at the end of the day
Kids are great at moving on from small things and it’s often us grown-ups who look for or dwell on problems. What we focus our attention on is what our kids will focus their attention on. So instead of asking, “Was there any bullying today?” Try, “What went well today? What was the highlight? Tell me about your lovely friends today.”
Model how to be a friend
It is really important for children to see their parents and teachers being good friends. Take them with you when you’re taking soup to a friend who is sick. Let them see your gestures of friendships like bringing home baking or doing someone a favour. Let them hear you give a friend a compliment. Let them catch you showing kindness even when no one else is watching.
Allow time for children to just play
Our children’s social skills are in development, particularly for the little ones who are brand-new to their school career. A simple way to support this is to set up play dates for them – but not ones that are structured and organised from drop-off to pick-up. Try putting some games out on the table and simply letting the children hang out together and enjoy each other’s’ company.
Author: Juliet Small - Principal, Saint Kentigern Girls’ School, Auckland
Mini Netball Carnival
On Tuesday we held a mini netball carnival. We invited Holy Family, who brought four teams, and with our two teams we had a round robin. It was a very good experience for us all and it was played in a friendly way with good sportsmanship. It was a good opportunity for us to socialise with another school.
Both teams played well with our first hit out together as teams. The boys won two and lost two. The girls won three and lost a game by only one goal so it was nice and close.
Our last game ended up being the EAC girls playing the EAC boys. This was the one both teams secretly wanted to win. It was very competitive and the girls ended up ahead at the final whistle.
Thank you to the umpires, coaches and Mr Walker for organising.
Gisele Edmiston and Charlize Hughes
Early Learning Centre News
Farewell Mr Hickey!
The youngest member of the ELC team is leaving us for a preschool Educator role at another service. This new preschool is very lucky to have him join their team. Max is a popular Educator, evident as young children climb all over him, ask to play with him and draw pictures for him. Max has been a reliable, engaged and committed team member and we wish him all the best in his new role. We will all miss your presence at the ELC Mr Hickey but as Shaw says, "progress is impossible without change, and those who cannot change their minds cannot change anything". We know you will continue to support young children to believe in themselves and value their uniqueness.
Mrs Natasha Livock
Early Learning Centre Coordinator
Friends of EAC Business Directory
The EAC Community Business Directory seeks to provide you with a comprehensive listing of businesses and services offered by members of the College community. This community initiative serves to connect families, staff, alumni and supporters of our College throughout our community in a practical and mutually beneficial way.
Friends of EAC understands it has been a very difficult and challenging year for all our community and we would like to offer complimentary entry to the directory for 12 months.
If you would like to take up this opportunity, please contact friends@eac.nsw.edu.au or click here. The directory is updated annually and is normally $50 per entry per year.
To view current listings in the Business Directory, click here.
Canteen
Important Reminder:Primary students need a separate bag for drinks.Please refer to the Term 3 Menu when ordering.
The Canteen menu for Term 3 is below for your information and is also available on the College website.
Please note: burgers are not available at the moment.
All orders must be received at the canteen before 9.15am.
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 lunch please provide two (2) bags. Please write the information on the LOWER half of the bag. If money is short we will substitute items to the value received.
REMEMBER, if ordering RECESS, you must have a separate recess bag.
RECESS: Name, Teacher, PC Class, Recess Order
John Smith, Mr Falvey, 3A
Recess
Cheesymite Scroll
Pack Sultanas, Small
LUNCH BAG 1: Name, Teacher, PC Class, Lunch Order
John Smith, Mr Falvey, 3A,
Lunch
1 Snack Pie
LUNCH BAG 2: Name, Teacher, PC Class, Drink Order
John Smith, Mr Falvey, 3A,
Lunch
1 Orange Juice
Any change required will be placed in the bag for return with the lunch order.
Christine Hall
Canteen Coodinator
Community News
