Term 4 | Week 6 | 20 November 2019
"I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full."
John 10:10
From The Principal
Last Friday evening, I had the delightful opportunity to join with the Class of 2019 and their families for the Year 12 Formal. It was a wonderful evening and the students presented themselves with great elegance and style. It is always lovely to see the students present themselves in such a dignified way and a great opportunity to share their excitement about the next instalments in their young lives. The celebration was held at Summerland House Farm, with Rev Sally and Mrs Mellissa Evans doing a wonderful job as MC’s for the evening and Mr Mitchell Raguse and Mr Joel Jukes speaking of their experiences journeying with this group through their senior years. Matilda Winchester and Joshua Mumford fulfilled their final duty as Captains with a heart-felt thank you to the parents and teachers of Year 12 for all that they have done to support the students through their final year of learning. They also paid tribute to each of their peers, thanking them individually for the contribution they have made to the year group. As they depart, I ask that you keep them in your thoughts and prayers as they await their HSC results and embark on the next stage of the journey.
With great excitement, Year One have moved this week into the new classrooms that have been added to the Primary Hub in readiness for the refurbishment of the Gunundi building. I visited each class to ask about their new accommodation and was very pleased to hear that they all love it! Ella Rose told me “It is so much bigger than our other room!”, Jack said, “It is good because we have 3 air conditioners” and Violet said she liked the new room as "The carpet smells so new!”. Kindy will join them later this week and the builders will move in on Friday. The work will be completed in time for the commencement of the 2020 College year.
As the Christmas season approaches, I just wish to mention a couple of things about saying thank you to the teaching staff for all their work throughout the year. Teachers love what they do and treasure the young people they have the opportunity to work with. They do not expect to receive a gift and can sometimes feel quite uncomfortable when people purchase gifts for them. A simple hand made card or even a gift from the student can say more and be of more value than something purchased. I would ask that families do not arrange for groups of parents to pool money to buy a collective gift as each year there are issues around this and people can end up feeling obligated or excluded and the good intention is lost as people end up hurt or disappointed and the teacher may feel that they have been a source of division. I always think that the adages ‘it is not the gift, but the thought behind it that matters’ and ‘a gift made is a gift of yourself’, give good guidance about how to say thank you. I appreciate your support with this matter.
Mr Robert Tobias
Principal
Off the Deputy's Desk
Secondary Assembly was held on Tuesday and it was wonderful to have the Secondary Concert Band play 2 pieces for the rest of the students. The students were very appreciative of the Concert Band's efforts. The assembly enabled us to acknowledge secondary student achievement in academic competitions, debating, sport and service. I wrote last week about the value of service learning and was thrilled to be able to announce the names of a large number of students who had achieved Bronze and Silver Lighthouse Service Awards. This was fantastic to see and I got the distinct feeling that we are making progress in promoting a culture of service and character development in our students. Well done to all those students who achieved Lighthouse recognition this week.
On Tuesday evening we were treated to a great night of musical entertainment by the various Primary bands and ensembles. Thank you to Mr Holmes, Mr Cleverley and all the music staff for the work that they do in promoting the cultural development of our students.
As the College year draws to a close, I wish all of our Year 9 and Year 10 students all the best for their examination block next week. May they do their best in this final round of exams. Our Year 10 students will then be involved in a variety of transition activities designed to prepare them for the rigours of the Pre-HSC program. Thanks to Mrs Campbell and all the staff who are involved in the running of sessions for this program. We are trying to offer the students a variety of experiences including study skills, academic sessions, finance education, spiritual retreat activities, school and community service and a fun activity to conclude the program.
Finally, a reminder about some of our upcoming end of year events. The College community will be able to take the opportunity to sing as one at the Christmas Concert on Tuesday 3 December. Held at St Mary's, the Christmas Concert is a community event where we present our donated hampers to Anglicare and showcase our Christmas spirit. Admission is $5 per adult, which will all be donated to an Anglican charity. I hope to see you there and there are also rumours that there will be a special visitor dressed in red.
The other significant event coming up is the Year 6 Celebration on Thursday 5 December here at EAC. I am positive that the Year 6 students are looking forward to their night of nights and it promises to be a great way for the cohort to say goodbye to Primary School.
Mr Darren Parks
Deputy Principal
Term 4 Week 7
Monday 25 November
Year 9/10 Exam Block-Periods 1, 2-9, 10 PDHPE; Periods 5, 6-9 Science Exam.
Year 2 Beach Excursion
Year 5 Interrelate
Tuesday 26 November
Year 9/10 Exam Block-Periods 1, 2-Year 10 Science Exam; Periods 3 and 4-9HSIE Exam; Periods 5 and 6-Year 10 HSIE Exam.
Year 6 Camp
Year 5 Interrelate
Secondary Advent Chapel -9.00am
Kindergarten Orientation Day
Wednesday 27 November
Year 9/10 Exam Block-Periods 1, 2-9 Maths A and B Exam; Periods 3 and 4-10 Maths A and B Exams; Periods 5 and 6- 9 and 10 Commerce Exam
Year 6 Camp
Thursday 28 November
Year 9/10 Exam Block-Periods 1 and 2-Years 9/10 IST; Periods 3 and 4-Year 10 PASS; Periods 5 and 6-9 and 10 Japanese
Year 6 Camp
Friday 29 November
Year 9/10 Exam Block-Periods 1, 2, 3-Music
Year 6 Camp returns
Secondary Sport
Term 4 Week 8
Monday 2 December
Year 10 Transition Week until Friday 6 December
Tuesday 3 December
Meitoku Visit
Christmas Concert-6.00pm-St Mary’s Anglican Church
Wednesday 4 December
Primary House Touch Football Cup
Meitoku Visit
Thursday 5 December
Primary Step up Day
Year 7 Experience Day
Year 6 Celebration-6.00pm-Discovery Centre
Primary House Touch Football Cup
Friday 6 December
Secondary Sport
Years 5/6 Rock Band Performance
Music Notes
On Tuesday 19th November the College hosted a Primary Concert Band Performance Evening. The evening featured outstanding performances by the Year 3 Development Concert Band, Year 4 Concert Band and the Senior Primary Concert Band.
The level of musicianship shown by our young musicians is a credit to each of them. I am very proud to be involved with such a great group of committed and talented students.
Adam Holmes
Concert Band Leader
Early Learning Centre News
The Early Years Learning Framework states 'learning outcomes are most likely to be achieved when early childhood educators work in partnership with families'. Partnerships are based on the foundations of understanding each other's expectations and attitudes, and build on the strength of each other's knowledge. Therefore, when a parent approached us with an idea, we listened and we embraced the skills and knowledge offered.
Rheneas' mum, Bec, kindly planned and organised bath bomb making with the children. Aligning with an aspect of our philosophy, sustainable thinking and practice, the bath bombs were made from all natural ingredients and fragranced with 100% essential oils. Our bath bombs will be packaged in recycled and upcycled containers, ready for the children to take home and place under the Christmas tree for someone special.
Primary News
This week Kindergarten explained how we use flexible thinking and persistence in our classroom. We used both of these Habits of Mind when we were designing, building and testing our ramps as part of our Inquiry unit. We enjoyed performing our song about persisting for our primary friends.
Mrs Christine Smith
Kindergarten Teacher
Secondary News
Last Wednesday, Year 10 students took part in the 'Rights and Freedoms' History Day. The day involved a trip to Ballina Cinema to watch the film 'Invictus' which tells the true story of how Nelson Mandela joined forces with the captain of the South African rugby team to unite the country after apartheid. This film tied in very well with the syllabus because we have been studying the topic 'Rights and Freedoms' with a focus on the Civil Rights Movement in the US and Indigenous Rights in Australia. The day concluded with collaborative discussion and group work on the main issues and questions raised within the study of this topic.
The students were fine ambassadors for the college and are commended for their outstanding behaviour and contribution on the day.
Mrs Jennifer Holmes
National Dance Championship
During the last school holidays, Rory Neaves (year 5) and Lara Neaves (year 3) travelled to the Sunshine Coast to compete in the Get the Beat National Dance Championships. Both Rory and Lara made top 10 in regional competitions to be eligible to compete at Nationals. There were over 2000 acts from Australia, New Zealand and Asia. Rory achieved a double platinum award for his classical ballet solo and platinum awards for his lyrical, jazz and demi character performances. Lara achieved third place for her tap performance and platinum awards for her classical ballet and jazz performances.
Congratulations to Rory and Lara on their incredible achievements for dance at a national level.
Canteen
EAC Canteen opens at 8.30am and 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.
Canteen opens at 8.30am and the Menu is available here:
Noodle Box: 26 November
Subway: 3 December
Noodle Box – Tuesday 26 November
Noodle Box from “Noodle Box” at Ballina Fair, will be available from the canteen next Tuesday, 26 November. If you would like to order Noodle Box 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, 25 November.
Order forms will be sent home but are also available at the canteen, office or online.
Canteen stock - end of year
With the college year coming to an end, I will be cutting back on my ordering so that excess stock is not being held over the Christmas break. This will begin next week, starting 18 November.
I will keep you posted of the availability of items through this newsletter and post which items are no longer available and which items are running low. There will always be fresh items (sandwiches, rolls etc) available as well as dino nuggets and junior pies.
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.
Thank you for your continued support of the canteen in 2019.
Christine Hall
Canteen Supervisor
0414 811 668
Community
