ConcordiaLutheranCollege

Monday 28 February to Friday 4 March 2022

From the Head of College

Head of College Update

Dear Parents and Caregivers

I can hardly believe that this week’s edition of The Week Ahead will bring us to the half-way mark for Term 1. So much has already happened in the short period of time which the students have been back at school.

Both the students and staff must be commended on how they have adjusted to several events continuing in an online platform. This past week we received the wonderful news that masks will no longer be mandatory at schools from Monday 7 March and that parents and caregivers can once again access school life.

The lifting of restrictions will allow for the ongoing growth of the quality working partnership which we endeavour to achieve with every family. Details regarding these new arrangements will be made available to you once they become available from the State Government in the coming days.

Given the pending changes, I would like to share with you what teachers want you to know:

Don’t be a stranger - Talk to your student’s teacher early when you feel the need and as your first point of contact. Parent-teacher interviews shouldn’t be the only time you connect.
Learning doesn’t stop at 3:30pm - You can help your student’s teacher do a better job by encouraging your children to show you something they are working on at school.
Let your child make mistakes - Teachers don’t want perfect students. We want students who try hard and make mistakes. It’s important for teachers to see what students don’t know so that a growth journey for learning can be put in place.
Stay involved – Give support and be your child’s cheerleader no matter how well or poorly you did in a certain subject. Just knowing that you are paying attention will be very motivating for them.
Teachers are on your side, give them the benefit of the doubt - If your child complains about something at school, speak to the teacher involved as they can provide further insight into the matter. Unfortunately, our children will mostly bring home their version of events and tell us only what they want us to hear. When our daughter did this as a high school student, she provided us with further details and her role in the matter when we indicated that we would go into the school the next day with her to speak to the teacher and hear their side about the matter. This is where a good relationship helps, as a quick email or text can usually sort things out before it all escalates.
If the teacher deserves a good grade, give one – Teaching isn’t easy, so it’s incredibly uplifting when someone takes the time to say thank you. Why not email when your chid has had a positive experience at school. Please let me know too if a teacher is doing a good job.

[Acknowledgement: Lisa Collier]

Congratulations and thank you to our Year 10 students who have been outstanding ambassadors for the College as they have been out and about on work experience this past week. From all accounts these students have been a credit to both their families and the college. Thank you to Mrs Leah Bowes, Mrs Jo-Ann Tessmer and Mr Jamie Pukallus for touching base with each of the students and their “current employers”.

Thank you for your ongoing support of and loyalty towards the College. I look forward to doing and enjoying the second half of the term with you.

Keep well, stay safe and connected.

Yours in Christ,
Mr Anton Prinsloo
Head of College

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From the College Pastor

Hearing God's Voice

This week’s Chapel explores the story of the Samuel, the prophet, who came to live with Eli the priest as a young boy to learn to be a priest and become a leader in Israel. His name means “God heard” – and he was given this name by his parents who had pleaded with God for a child through many years of childlessness.

Samuel (you can read the story in 1 Samuel 3:1-10) heard God calling him – and it took the much older and more experienced Eli to recognise what was happening. From this initial call, Samuel grew up into prophet and leader of his people. He truly “heard God”, even as he himself was an answer to the prayers of his mum, which God heard…

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Community News

International Women's Day High Tea

You're invited to attend the inaugural International Women's Day High Tea taking place at the Concordia Function Centre on Tuesday 8 March from 5.30pm to 7pm.

Enjoy a delicious range of savories and sweets prepared by our professional chefs, along with an assortment of gourmet teas, coffee and juice. You will also receive a gift bag on arrival.

Tickets are $30 for adults and $25 for school-aged students. Tables of 10 are available for $250.

It's been great to see a an excellent response to this event with half of the available seats already sold! If you'd like to join us, please make sure book your tickets as soon as possible by clicking this button. Ticket sales close on Friday 4 March, if not sold out sooner.

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Lots of Socks – World Down Syndrome Day – 14 March

On Monday 14 March we are asking students to wear their craziest socks to school and bring along a gold coin donation to help support World Down Syndrome Day.

Project Based Learning at Concordia

Junior College

Sports News

Congratulations to the 30 Concordia students that competed at the Toowoomba Central Zone Swimming Trials at The Glennie School on Wednesday 16 February 2022. This year's carnival had a different format, with many new restrictions imposed due to COVID-19.

It was an impressive effort by all our athletes with many achieving new personal best times. We had many CLC students qualify in over 50 individual events. These students will compete at the Darling Downs Regional Swimming Championships on Wednesday 2 March 2022 in Gatton. Selected students from the Central Zone Swimming Team will also represent Concordia at the QCIS 10-19 Yrs Swimming Carnival in Dalby on Wednesday 9 March 2022. Great work to all involved in preparing our swimmers and congratulations to those students who put in the individual effort in their training.

Thank you to Mrs Riehl, Mrs Lynch, Mr McCullough and Troy Chandler for their smooth managing of the team on the day, having swimmers ready to go for the races and timekeepers. I must also say thanks to our parents for supporting and encouraging our awesome students in their sporting endeavours and their understanding of the rules imposed at these meets. As a representative of Concordia it is always rewarding to see our students do their best and to hear glowing feedback from members of the organising committee involved in the events.

Well done to all concerned and we wish our Central Zone Representatives all the best in their next challenge.
Representative Team - Manshi Bhardwaj, Chloe Chettle, Eloise Chettle, James Rice, Jonathan Rice, Ollie Dunlop, Connor Gadsby, Emily Holding, Emma Walkington, Evi Purchase, Milla Cronje, Anya Vermeulen, Parun Benham and Miles Plumb.

Sporting Schools Programs
Next week at our Junior College campuses we will be running both AFL and “Rookie to Rollers” Lawn Bowls Sporting School programs after school. Information has been advertised with these programs through parent lounge. As usual these programs are eagerly awaited by both students and parents alike and I am looking forward to running these programs over the next 4 weeks.

Cross Country
As our Cross-Country carnival will be held on Friday 1 April 2022. We will be start preparations for this event with training in both PE lessons and other sessions before school for those students who wish to attend and improve their fitness and have some fun with their mates. Please see below information for these sessions. This is for students from Years 1 to 6.

Training Times - starting 1 March 2022

HSC – Tuesdays 7.30 -8.00 am
WSC-Wednesday 7.30 – 8.00 am

Students will meet Staff on ovals and be in PE uniform, while they may need a spare pair of sneakers/socks depending on how wet the grass is each session. Also, they will need to bring a water bottle.

Cheers
Mr Fry

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Outside School Hours Care

Stephen Street Campus

Stephen Street Campus Update

Wow – how fast is this term going! Already we have hit the halfway mark of term, and the school year has quickly hit full stride.

As predicted in last’s weeks article, our Year 10 students have done themselves and the College proud in their work experience placements this week.

I have had the pleasure of visiting a number of our students across a variety of vocations. It has been fantastic hearing about the opportunities and experiences our students have been given by our gracious network of employers. From assisting with surgeries at veterinary clinics to assisting with company marketing strategies, our students have truly tasted the realties and rewards of their chosen field.

The feedback from both the students and employers has been overwhelmingly positive and continues to reaffirm the importance of the work experience program. I wish to thank Ms Jo-Ann Tessmer and Ms Leah Bowes for their efforts and hours of work coordinating the work experience placements and assisting with workplace visits.

Over the past two weeks our Years 7 and 8 students have participated in the “entry events” as part of the launch of our Project Based Learning approach in Technology and The Arts.

Our teaching teams have spent a great deal of time planning for these events and ensuring that student engagement and critical thinking is maximised from day one. Mr Prinsloo’s cameo role in the Technology fashion parade as Harry Stiles was, I’m sure, a treat for the students, not to mention a great photo for our end of year celebrations!

Congratulations to the Year 12 cohort who have been working with great commitment through a number of assessments since the beginning of term. As the year progresses and student workload and assessment demands increase, we continue to emphasise the need for students to look after their own wellbeing.

Part of doing this is being aware of one’s stress and having effective ways to manage this on an ongoing basis. Psychologist Andrew Fuller offers the following tips for students when faced with periods of stress:

Don't think about the end result, focus on the steps you have to take today to get to that outcome

Lots of anxiety is thinking about how future events will turn out. Will I pass this test? Will they like me? Do I have enough friends? Try to tame your mind so that you stop thinking about questions you can’t know the answer to. Instead practice narrowing your attention to what you can do right now.

Exercise

Being physically active lowers our stress levels. Exercise increases blood flow to the smart parts of our brains where problems can get solved. When we sit or lie still for too long the more primitive parts of our brain kicks in and our thoughts go around and around.

Movements where you move rhythmically are especially good for reducing stress. Dancing, drumming, roller-skating, table tennis, swimming, juggling, down ball, volleyball, boxing and gymnastics are all rhythmic movements.

Write it out

Get your worries out of your head. Write them down on a sheet of paper. Make a note or a voice memo on your phone.

Know that everyone has worries

All human beings worry at times so don’t feel strange or odd or different. Just learn that you can find yourself worrying at times, just like everyone else.

Talk to someone you trust

Now you know everyone gets stressed at times, tell someone you can rely on about feeling worried. Even if they don't have any suggestions for you, just telling someone makes a difference.

Breath deeply

When you feel stressed, take a moment to breathe deeply. Put your hand on your belly and take a big breath. Then slowly breathe out as you count to yourself, “one thousand, two thousand, three thousand”. Slowing down your breathing resets your body.

Drink water

Drinking water lowers the level of cortisol (a stress hormone) in your body.

Stop mind juggling, start doing

Lots of people when they get stressed freeze up and feel like they can't start anything.

Start somewhere. Your first attempt doesn't have to be the perfect answer. Getting started builds momentum and confidence.

Use a mood shift playlist

Music is a powerful way of lessening stress. Make a playlist of your best feel good songs and play when you find the worries are creeping in.

Next week marks the final week of the current COVID back-to-school guidelines. I look forward to having our families back on College grounds, and I will provide an overview of events ahead where this will be possible in next week’s edition.

Yours in faith,
Mr Jamie Pukallus
Director of Campus

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Boarding

Hello to our Boarding families

Full speed ahead! Five weeks until the end of term.

Our boarding houses have been buzzing this week with students coming and going to various sports and training sessions, School based traineeships and our Year 10 with work experience.

Not forgetting DD trials and trips to Brisbane for selective AFL and ABA games.

As our students have busy afterschool schedules, we are keeping a close eye on their eating habits. Missing meals and filling up on non-nutritional snacks is not advisable. Please remind your child to eat the meals prepared by our kitchen staff. There is always plenty of fresh fruit around for those who want a little extra.

For those who are not sports minded, Choir and Drama Club have started with morning and afternoon practices starting this week.

To all our new parents, thank you for choosing Concordia Boarding for your child as we in boarding find them all an absolute delight to look after and mentor. They definitely liven the boarding houses up! Personalities are starting to surface as confidence is growing. The boys, in particular, are definitely feeling a lot more comfortable as the days and weeks go by.

Those who are struggling with the transition into boarding are being supported and encouraged by our wonderful staff and teachers and most of all with your support. Any concerns please feel free to call Andrew or myself.

I have a few photos this week that I hope will be enjoyed by all.

Take care and stay safe.

Ms Maureen Taurima
Houseparent