The Week Ahead - Term 3, Week 6
Monday 19 August to Friday 23 August 2019
From the Head of College
What a busy week across the College! Learning was at the forefront of what occurred, but of course there was much more happening around Concordia.
Channel 7 News Toowoomba filmed a story on ‘Bush Prep’ this week which will feature our Warwick Street Campus Prep students – stars in the making! Keep an eye on tonight's broadcast to see them in action.
Along the same lines, I enjoyed seeing Mrs Juanetta Priest making a wonderful difference to our environment through the student Gardening Club at Hume Street Campus. Congratulations – managing our Australian environment and sustainability is a critical element of learning that should be embedded in school programs worldwide.
In the past week, our students were involved in some Book Week activities, Science Week activities, year level excursions, Track and Field Carnivals and QCS Practice. Many thanks to all of our dedicated staff who ensure that these and many other learning experiences are offered for the benefit of our Concordia students.
This week opens up a new array of activities that are of equal importance in the life of the College. Open Morning across the College (Monday 19 August) is a new event that will show off all three Concordia campuses ‘in action’. Please encourage new families to contact the College, or at this stage to arrive at 8.30am for tours, and the opportunity to see classrooms and the College on a normal school day.
Warwick Street Campus Trivia Night will be held on Friday 23 August. It is a great night of fun and entertainment – please get your table together and register (details available in this newsletter). The prizes look amazing and the cause is very worthwhile. Thank you to the WSC Parents and Friends for the work that has occurred behind the scenes.
Kindest regards
Mr Adrian Wiles
Head of College
From the College Pastor
Surprise!
Have you ever been to a surprise party? It’s great as everyone gets into position and then the person whose birthday it is walks through the door. It is priceless to see how startled and surprised they are. They weren’t expecting it. They are in joyful shock.
The Easter story is like this. In Mark’s Gospel (16:1-8) we see the great surprise of the women who went to the tomb expecting that Jesus would be dead. They were going there to anoint his dead body. Yet they left in shock. What a surprise to see he wasn’t there! He had risen, just as he said He would.
Jesus has overcome death. He has delivered it a fatal blow. Now in the face of death, there is hope for us. In death there is life. May you be comforted in knowing that Jesus did this for you so that you can live in the sure hope of knowing that death has been swallowed up in victory.
Christ is risen!
Pastor Mark Blackwell
College Pastor
Community News
Important Upgrades to Parent Lounge
Concordia staff members have been working to develop our use of Parent Lounge to enhance our communications with parents and guardians. It is our aim to make Parent Lounge a convenient, efficient and user-friendly tool for families and we are looking forward to releasing these enhancements over the coming months.
We are pleased to advise that Tours & Excursions are transitioning to the Parent Lounge platform. We have already had two activities organised through Parent Lounge and we have been delighted by the positive feedback we have received from the parents. In particular, they have informed us that the process was quick and easy to use.
When the time comes for you to complete a Tours & Excursions form on Parent Lounge, you will receive an email prompting you with clear instructions on what to do. We anticipate that you will find the process fairly intuitive and easy to use, but if you experience any problems please do not hesitate to contact us.
Another recent implementation has been the ability to notify the College of student absences. Again, this has been implemented to make the notification of student absences a quick and easy process for parents. Instructions can be found by clicking on the following links:
Mrs Bianca Coleborn
Director of Marketing & Enrolments
SSC P&F Cookie Dough Fundraiser
Stephen Street Campus P&F is holding a Billy G’s Gourmet Cookie Dough drive this term. Funds raised will be used to purchase umbrellas for the Student Council’s Quad improvement project.
There are ten delicious flavours including their NEW Strawberry Cheesecake and NESTLE® SMARTIES® cookie dough. There’s even a cheese flavoured Doggie Dough for your special furry family members! The delicious cookie dough is only available through fundraising and is not sold in stores, so stock up.
Order your cookie dough online on or before 26 August. The current scheduled pick-up date for orders is 16 September.
Click here to place your order. You will need to create an account and then select Concordia under organisations, and away you go!
Upcoming Event
Bible Scene Art Competition
WSC Trivia Night
One of the highlights on the Warwick Street Campus calendar each year is the P&F Trivia Night. Each year we have seen this event grow in numbers as our community comes together for a night of fun, laughter and friendly competition. I encourage everyone in our community to come along to enjoy the fun. Family and friends from outside our community are also most welcome to attend.
2019 Calendar Updates
The following event dates are now available or have been amended:
Project Based Learning at Concordia
Junior College
JC Year 2 Queensland Museum Excursion
On Thursday, the Year 2 students had an early morning start to their school day and travelled to the Queensland Museum in Brisbane. Students explored the SparkLab Centre first and participated in different experiments that sparked their creativity and curiosity in the area of STEM. After watching the Mix It experiments and designing an exploding mixture, students engaged with the many exhibits showcased in the Museum.
The afternoon enhanced the student’s creativity in the area of The Arts as they viewed the magnificent artwork displayed in the Gallery of Modern Art. Many students created their own wearable art to take home and share with their family.
JC Year 6 Canberra Trip
Preparations for the Year 6 students from WSC and HSC to participate in the 2019 Canberra Trip are well and truly underway. Over the next few weeks students from both campuses will meet to discuss aspects of the trip as well as share their learning.
Students, teachers and attending parents are eagerly awaiting a variety of educational programs and tours which focus on Australia’s history and democratic processes, as well as visiting the Snowy Mountains and enjoying the snow.
The Australian Government recognises the importance of all young Australians having the opportunity to visit the national capital as part of their Civics and Citizen Education. To assist families in meeting the cost of the excursion the Australian Government is contributing funding for each student under the Parliament and Civics Education Rebate program towards those costs.
Mr Paul Baker & Mrs Allison Busiko
Year 6 Teachers
Every Family – Triple P Parenting Programs
Click on the flyers below for further information about upcoming Triple P Parenting Programs.
Year 3 Koojarewon Youth Camp Open Afternoon
An invitation is extended to our Year 3 families to attend an open afternoon at Koojarewon Youth Camp on Monday 19 August from 3.30pm to 5pm. This is an opportunity for parents and children to visit the campsite in readiness for the Year 3 Camp to be held later in Term 3. Koojarewon Youth Camp is located at 26 Borghardt Road, Highfields.
JC WSC Year 5 & HSC Year 5/6 Brisbane Space Excursion
The WSC Year 5 and the HSC Year 5/6 class Brisbane Space Excursion will take place on Tuesday 3 September 2019. All parents have been emailed the relevant information regarding this trip. If you have not received this email, please contact your child’s teacher. All permission forms are due back by Monday 26 August 2019.
Outside School Hours Care
Stephen Street Campus
Responding to Feedback
What do we need to do more of and/or differently?
I first stumbled across this simple question during a Project Adventure high ropes facilitation workshop many years ago. The notion behind it is simple. Identify what you are doing well and do more of that. This action of building capacity and effectiveness based on strengths has the immediate effect of minimising the impact of our weakness. The second, equally important task however, is to identify what you are not doing well at and work out how to do that differently.
At the risk of giving my inbox indigestion, I would like to invite you, as our community, respond to that simple question. What do we (Concordia) need to do more of and/or differently? As we plan for 2020 and beyond, it will be these open, honest conversations that will continue to inform and drive change.
I look forward to hearing from you. So please don’t hesitate to email, call or catch me when I am out and about and please be assured that I won’t be offended by robust feedback.
QAMT Maths Quiz
During Week 5, we had three teams participate in the QAMT Years 7 and 8 Maths quiz. Teams competed on Tuesday and Wednesday evening against students from schools in and around Toowoomba. The competition was fierce, and the Maths kept everyone on the edge of their seat. Our teams should be proud of their achievement and how they approached the competition. There wasn’t much between schools when it came to scores, but in the end, we had one team who made it through to the next round. Congratulations to Brady Cullinan, Charlie Pietsch and Morgan Meadows on moving on to the next round. The boys will compete in the regional final on Tuesday 20 August. If triumphant, they stand a chance to move through to state finals.
Next round information:
Tuesday 20 August
6pm for 6.30pm start
Centenary Heights State High School, School Hall
Please bring full stationery including protractor, ruler and calculator.
Mrs Karin MacKenzie
HOD - Mathematics
Student Council Service Project
Please collect as many bread tags as you can. There are collection points located outside classroom B5 and in Reception.
Parent Information Evening
STEM Cup
The STEM Cup is an after-school STEM competition hosted by Griffith University for students in Years 7 and 8 over a period of seven weeks. Each week the teams score points for the challenges they complete with the top scoring teams earning a place at the STEM Cup Grand Final held at Griffith University. All challenges aim to link learning to real world applications, putting what the teams are doing into a larger perspective.
If you are interested in participating, students will be required to attend St Ursula's College on Thursday from 3.45pm to 4.45pm. Own travel is required and the cost is $60 for the seven week competition. There are three members per team. Students can either form their own team, or be allocated into a team. Competition begins on 26 August. Click here for further information.
If your child is interested, either email Mrs Karin McKenzie or Mr Dennis Wolbers, or ask your child to come and see them.
Get Songwriting Prize
Congratulations to Year 12 students, Meg Kirby and Holly Yarrow on their recent success in USQ's 2019 Get Songwriting Prize. Meg was awarded the Grand Prize Winner with her entry 'All We Want' and also a Highly Commended for 'My Love'. Holly received a Highly Commended award for her song 'Eyes on the Innocent'.
Student Council Fundraising Project
Forms to Complete - SSC
Boarding
Weekly Update
We have had another busy week in boarding! In saying a busy week, just look at this schedule that groups of boarders participated in:
- Thursday 8 August: QUT’s (Brisbane) interactive tour of their Gardens Point and Kelvin Grove Campuses for University Experience Day
- Friday 9 August: CLC Drama students tour to the QPAC Playhouse Brisbane
- Saturday & Sunday 10-11 August: AAG Cup Basketball Challenge in Toowoomba
- Monday 12 August: QCIS athletics at the University of Queensland (Brisbane)
- Wednesday 13 August: TSSS Track & Field Carnival in Toowoomba
On top of this, our visiting Wuxi Experimental School group of Chinese students departed for home. (And we won’t mention the regular sporting and music and … training).
The boarding staff are tired just looking at the schedule of events, but we are happy and proud of the participation and achievements that our students have done over this time.
We are now coming into Week 6, so time is evaporating.
We hope you have an excellent week!
Mr Ross McKeown
Boys' Houseparent
