Dear Parents and Caregivers

It is very affirming to see so many families in attendance at various College events and information sessions. Some of these events have included Parent Connect Meetings, the Year 8 into Year 9 Information Evening, the 2021 Futures Expo and supporting the “Words and Wine” artist in residence function. Please don’t hesitate to contact the College if you require further information or support in either the subject selection or careers expo events hosted in Week 3.

Week 4 will see our Warwick and Hume Street campuses welcome our 2022 Prep students and their families to our Prepping for Prep transition program. Transition visits for our 2022 Year 7 students and their families have also begun as we begin to scaffold a smooth transition to high school for these students. These transition visits also allow us to get to know each new learner a little better as well as planning for any differentiation to welcome and set up each learner for future and ongoing success. Please join me in welcoming these students and their families to our wonderful College.

There are a number of different concepts of truth out there - there is scientific truth, there are philosophical concepts of truth, including the post-modern concept of all truth being subjective, and so on. For Christians truth is, in fact, a person: Jesus says of himself I am the truth…  (John 14:6).

He invites us to build our lives on him, on his love and his promise to be there for us always, through the joys and sorrows of this life and beyond.

Jesus also said that the truth shall set you free (John 8:32). Indeed, Jesus lived his life, gave his life, and was raised to life, so that we, humans, might be set free from fear and from all forces that seek to oppress and control us.

We ask that all members of our community become aware of the important Child Protection Policy available on the College website. It is important to note that Child Protection is everyone’s business, and any inappropriate behaviour that relates to Child Protection will be dealt with by the College using the stated guidelines. Any questions that relate to such matters should be directed in the first instance to the Head of College.

LYQ are offering plenty of opportunities to get back on camp in Spring and Summer. Their team are already preparing for Spring camps (see below for details about our CQ CLW, Junior Springboard and Replenish Women's Retreat):

Spring Holiday Fun

Registrations for both the Spring Central Queensland CLW and Junior Springboard camp are now open!

Junior Springboard (Years 3-6) is the perfect taster for holiday camping! It's a jam-packed three day camp, giving campers a sample of the fun, challenge and adventure of holiday camps! It will be held at the beautiful Luther Heights, Coolum...so be prepared for some incredible high adventure activities and fun at the beach! 

REGISTER HERE FOR JUNIOR SPRINGBOARD

Replenish Women's Retreat 2021

Sometimes you need to take a moment...or a weekend...to stop, unwind, and step away from the chaos that is your daily routine. This September (17-19), our Replenish retreat is just for you...no cooking, no cleaning, no pressure, no mess.

REPLENISH - REGISTRATION

We have rescheduled the information session for our Year 6 Parents so that you can learn all about our Year 6 Trip to Cairns. We will be completing an induction for the parent helpers that are going on camp. The new details of this meeting will be:

Date: Tuesday 10 August
Place: Year 6 classroom, WSC
Time: 5.30pm-6.30pm

For COVID-19 purposes, please register your attendance here. Your previous registration will be carried over to this night.

As part of their studies, the Year 3 students from Hume Street Campus and Warwick Street Campus will be visiting the Cobb + Co Museum and Queens Park on Monday 9 August 2021. The students will enjoy lunch and some free play before coming back to their Campus for school pick up. 

We are very excited to let you know that on Friday 13 August, we will be going to Lone Pine Koala Sanctuary for our 2021 excursion. This will enhance the students’ knowledge and understanding of our studies and research of Australian animals as set out in the Australian Curriculum for Year 1 students. Teachers in Charge attending will be Lee-Anne Millett and Angela Norley.

Travel Arrangements 
WSC students – we ask that you arrive at WSC at 7am for a 7.15am departure. 
HSC students – arrive at HSC at 7.10am for a 7.30am departure.

We will leave Lone Pine at 1pm and arrive at Hume Street Campus at around 3pm. Any student who attends OSHC from Warwick Street Campus can depart at HSC.

WSC students should arrive back at their own campus by 3.20pm to 3.30pm.

We have thoroughly enjoyed welcoming Mr Anton Prinsloo, our new Head of College, to our Hume Street Campus. Anton has visited all classrooms, been a presence in the drop off and pick up zones and enjoyed meeting many of our parents, staff and students. Anton’s schedule at HSC is: 

• Tuesday 9.30am-12pm
• Wednesday 8am-12pm
• Thursday 12.15pm-3.15pm

Click here to view HSC's Events for Term 3, Week 4.

Have a wonderful weekend and please feel free to join us at Emmanuel Lutheran Fellowship at 9am on Sunday if you have time.

Mrs Juanetta Priest 
Director of Campus

At HSC, tuckshop is held on a Thursday. All orders are to be completed online at My Student Account by 3pm each Wednesday. Please notify Reception by 9am on Thursday if your child is absent and we will cancel their order. Tuckshop will finish in Week 9.

We will be beginning our Prepping for Prep program on 5 August. If you know anyone who is requiring Prep next year, please let them know we only have a couple of spaces left! 

Anyone who is interested in securing a spot for their child should contact Mrs Bianca Coleborn, our Director of Marketing and Enrolments, to start the process.

HSC has always had a strong sense of community. During 2020, the COVID-19 restrictions changed the way we were able to interact but we are very blessed in Toowoomba, that for all intents purposes at this point, we are able to operate as normal. Thursday mornings at HSC are a celebration of our community and being able to be together. 

If you have time, come and join us on the Hume Street Oval for a play, a coffee/hot chocolate (our Encouraging Cup Coffee Van) or curl up and read a story with your child. Students can bring their bags with them and come straight down to the Oval for a play.

Our Student Council (SC) have met and will work on three main projects this term:

• Hosting a fun celebration day of the Olympics. They would like to invite all students to come dressed as your favourite Olympian (or sport) Thursday 5 August. This is not a fundraiser, just a fun dress up day.
• Gluten Free Donut and Hot Chocolate Day – date to be confirmed
• Charity support for Term 3 will be Rio’s Legacy – date and more information coming soon.

We have trialled joining these two meeting times and in Term 2 we seemed to get it to work but this term we are consistently running overtime. So we have decided we are going to back to two separate events. 

• Wednesday 8.30am needs to remain our Chapel time as it is the time that Pastor Thomas is available. 
• Friday 8.30am will now be our Assembly. 

Sometimes it is good to try new things but it is always best to recognise when things are not working and need to be readjusted. Thank you for your patience and support while we have trialled this one.

A question that a child will inevitably be asked at some stage in their life will be, “What are you going to do when you grow up?”. The responses always range from a princess right through to a neurosurgeon, with many variations in between. 

This week we’ve had the pleasure of former student, now author and illustrator, Kathleen Jennings visit us at Concordia. Not only did Kathleen present workshops to our students, she also entertained us at a community event at WSC last night. Kathleen spoke about her career which began as a lawyer and has now evolved into a prize winning author with her book Fly Away. Kathleen is the perfect example of what someone can do if they are motivated, persistent and resilient. All the traits that we instill in our Concordia students.

Each Monday we have Assembly at WSC where we announce events for our week ahead as well as discussing important things to remember for our school day. For the next few weeks, Mrs Smith will be talking about how we would like our WSC students to show respect to others. Her focus this week was manners and how to greet someone respectfully. Parents are most welcome to join our Assembly whenever they are available. It is held at 1.30pm each Monday in The Shed.

Click here to view WSC's Events for Term 3, Week 4.

Blessings for the week ahead.

Mrs Jackie Minnikin
Director of Campus

At WSC, Tuckshop is held on a Wednesday. All orders are to be completed online at My Student Account by 3pm each Tuesday. Please notify Reception by 9am on Wednesday if your child is absent and we will cancel their order. Tuckshop will finish in Week 9.

As you have no doubt read or heard, I am moving on from Concordia at the end of the year. Not an easy decision but the right one for myself and my family. It has been a tough but lovely week as the news was shared with the community and the messages of gracious understanding, thanks and best wishes flowed in. As I shared with the Stephen Street Campus teaching faculty on Tuesday, I leave knowing that the College is in incredibly safe hands. The work that is being done by our staff is extraordinary and I will enjoy watching the College continue to take on the challenge of delivering innovative, engaging future-focused education.

This week, we have thoroughly enjoyed having Kathleen Jennings, author and artist in residence, working with various groups of our students over this week. As I watched Kathleen weave her magic with our Year 11 Visual Art students, I was aware of the extraordinary journey that Kathleen has been on in the years since her time as a student here. We are so grateful to Kathleen for making herself available to invest her time and experience into our students. It has been been an incredible week. Many thanks, Kathleen!

Finally, to all the students who are involved in the Toowoomba Eisteddfod, all the best. Enjoy the opportunity to bring all of your practice onto the stage. 

Mr Jason Smith
Director of Campus

Many of our younger people engage with social media and online platforms. The following resources are available through the e-safety commissioner's website to support our parents/caregivers to help their children navigate the online world in a safe manner. There are different webinars that you can register for that explore the latest research. 

 Please click here to view the different webinars available.

In Year 9, students are learning to apply more specialised movement skills and complex movement strategies and concepts in different movement environments. They are also exploring movement concepts and strategies to evaluate and refine their own and others’ movement performances. Students are analysing how participation in physical activity and sport influence an individual’s identities and exploring the role participation plays in shaping cultures.

Mr John Mathews
HPE Teacher

• This week saw the new combination posts go up on the South Street oval! This will now allow our Football team to train and play on a full size field. 
• Congratulations to Selina Richards who competed at the Queensland Schools Sport Orienteering Championships at the weekend. She received two 4th places and a 6th place. Well done!
• Who sparks your confidence?

• If you would like to nominate to trial for the Darling Downs Track and Field Championships please see notes in Student Café and Parent Lounge or contact Jana Anderson (Sport Coordinator) for more information. 
• This week we have our two Football teams competing at the Red Lions cup on Tuesday 3 August at Highfields. 
• The QCIS Track and Field Championships are being held at Downlands College on Friday 6 August. Click here to view the day's program.

Mrs Jana Anderson
SSC Sport Coordinator

Congratulations to Selina Richards for successfully making the DD Orienteering Championship team this week. Selina placed 4th in a tremendous effort as the track was very slippery, wet and muddy. Selina returned to boarding with some unwanted scratches over her arms and legs.

Congratulations also to Damon Zelinski for making the Western Zone Clay Target Team. Damon travelled to Condamine with the support of the Allsop family. Families looking after families!

Under 13 Years Club Rugby League was cancelled on the weekend due to the weather, however, our U18 years Mason Watson played a massive two games. Well done, Mason!