A Term of Flexibility
Flexibility has been the flavour of the term. While cases of COVID have dropped right away, it has been replaced with equal or greater amounts of other colds and flus across the College. This has meant limited staffing capabilities at times and we do appreciate your patience when it has come to delays in speaking with particular staff, or unavoidable rescheduling of meetings or events. Hopefully we are coming to the end of it! Speaking of flexibility, thank you to our wonderful staff for their continued flexibility to be able to run our Year 3-6 Athletics carnival on the Junior Campus yesterday. Ongoing issues with weather, then wet and soggy tracks and uncertain timeframes for outside sources to get line marking done meant the only way we were going to be able to run the event this term was to be on site, and with only one day really available between now and the end of the term! Thank you to MJ, the facilities team and the Junior Campus staff and volunteers for being able to quickly change the day to run so successfully.
Governance — Expressions of Interest
As you may know, Prince of Peace, like all Lutheran schools in Australia, has governance oversight from the ‘College Council’ — who are appointed and work on behalf of the Lutheran Church of Australia (Queensland District). The College Council also has several sub-committees under its oversight, with each one helping the council in a particular focus area. From time to time we are on the lookout for people with particular skillsets, professional background or experiences, who are practising Christians connected to a worshiping community. Schools are always looking for a broad range of skillsets and experiences — areas like education (obviously!), finance, legal, general corporate, engineering, construction and facilities, ICT, strategy, risk, marketing and others.
If you would ever be interested in being considered for a role in one of these spaces and volunteering your time to assist, please let us know by sending through a short expression of interest, addressed to the Council Chair (collegechair@princeofpeace.qld.edu.au), perhaps noting any particular experiences or skillsets you may have that could be of benefit to a governance council and our College.
General Works
Those of you driving down through the Junior Campus would have noticed the bunting placed all around the internal driveway down to the lower carparks. Being well past its used by date, the retaining wall along these roadways is being replaced with sandstone edging. This will give a slight facelift, and more secure edge, to the roadway. But, it will also allow for relatively easy realignment, or changes to driveway shapes in the future if longer term master planning and traffic design comes up with a better solution.
The classrooms that were damaged back in February on the Junior Campus have nearly been cleaned, fixed and put back together. While we wait for the final few pieces of work to be done and signoff to be completed so we can take possession of them once again, they are looking great and hopefully our students will be back in them in the near future.
Blessings,
Simon Hughes
Head of College
Research Opportunity
Hi Prince of Peace, hopefully you haven’t all forgotten me yet! I’m on one year’s leave, conducting research into the way that Maths Pathway evaluates student knowledge and understanding, while here at the University of Queensland. Basically I’m interested in the relationships between the different ways that we benchmark or diagnose mathematics performance, in particular, PAT-Maths and Maths Pathway.
I’ve prepared this short video to remind you who I am and introduce the project. If your child(ren) are in years 7-9 and you are willing to have their results form part of my dataset for analysis, the consent forms, along with information sheets about the project can be found here >
If you’d like to find out more, I’m very happy to answer any questions, my email at UQ is joel.scott@uq.edu.au.
Have a fantastic week!
Mr Scott
Upcoming Open Mornings
Existing Prince of Peace families are welcome to book in for a tour at one of our upcoming Open Morning dates. We will be hosting our next Junior Campus Open Morning tomorrow (Thursday 9 June), while our next Middle and Senior Campus Open Morning will be held on Tuesday 9 August. Both Campuses will also host an Open Morning in October 2022.
We ask that existing parents encourage interested family and friends to book in via our website.
Why Do You Worry?
Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? Can any one of you by worrying add a single hour to your life? Matthew 6:26-27
When did you last stop and look at the birds or smell the roses? Why does it seem that so many people you meet use words like overwhelmed, exhausted, tired, stressed, flat, frustrated, depleted or burnt out to answer your question — how are you?
We seem to have gone from a society that was busy, to being way past busy, and now living in the space of the result of being too busy for too long—a tired, burning out, stressed and exhausted community.
When we add the everyday life worries to our tired selves—you know the ones that come with our work commitments, our parenting responsibilities, our challenges, our deadlines, our finances and our health—where does that leave you?
Our world seems to be out of control with spiraling costs and a more uncertain future. So worry is something that seems to come naturally to us all, as humans, as we face each day. But it is Jesus who Himself was fully human while fully God who speaks to us today with love.
He says to us to look at the birds of the air, and do not worry. Jesus reminds us that our Heavenly Father feeds the birds who don’t worry, they don’t store up nor plant and harvest. They are fed because God looks after them providing them food and water, with nature to inhabit and with places to lay their eggs and have young.
Then Jesus blows us away with this—are you not much more valuable than they? You are valuable and Jesus knows your struggles, your fatigue and your needs. He cares for you no matter what. Worrying cannot even add a single hour to our life so be at peace and lean on Jesus. Take a rest in Him. Let Him refresh you in His word. Take a break today, look at the carefree birds and smell the beautiful roses and know that God knows you are more valuable, and that He cares deeply for you. Chat with Him today and He will strengthen you and give you peace to face everything you do each day.
Pastor Mark Gierus
College Pastor
Global Academic Challenge Results
Last term several students from Years 4 and 6, along with more than 2000 students from 75 schools across Australia, competed in the Global Academic Challenge. This challenge is a new initiative designed to stretch high-performing students by applying their skills and knowledge beyond the traditional curriculum.
The competition challenges students in Years 4, 6 and 8 in Mathematics, Reading and Science over three days. There is no barrier to entry and the Global Academic Challenge is open to any school keen to help students measure themselves against national and international performance benchmarks.
According to ACER’s Manager of School Assessment Services, Dr Jarrod Hingston, results exceeded expectations despite recent disruptions to schooling.
‘We were incredibly impressed by the performance of participants given the turbulence of the past two years,’ Dr Hingston said. ‘It was heartening to see such strong results across the board.’
The Global Academic Challenge is based on ACER’s International Schools Assessment (ISA), a progressive achievement assessment used by schools in more than 70 countries to pinpoint student learning and target teaching to meet their needs. Twenty years of ISA administration has resulted in reliable international benchmarks and a longitudinal picture of student achievement trends, allowing participants in the Global Academic Challenge to compare their performance against a worldwide measure.
Many of the high-performing Australian students achieved results that align with the performance of the top 5 percent of the international comparison group, with the results for Year 6 and Year 8 Reading particularly strong.
Additionally, a detailed report on each student’s results allows teachers to identify potential stretch opportunities for future learning.
We are so proud of the results that our students achieved with several distinctions and high distinctions in Reading and Mathematics. We would like to particularly acknowledge Edward Burrows who received a medal in Mathematics. This award recognises that Edward obtained the highest marks in Australia for a Year 6 student. There were only 5 medals for Mathematics given out across Australia, so this is a significant achievement for Edward.
We would love to see students taking up this opportunity when it is offered again in 2023!
Rebekah Bruyn
Learning Coach
Thankfulness in the Midst of Change
The weekend arrived and provided a great opportunity to get out and about without getting wet! It gave me pause to consider the many things I’ve been thankful for over the past few challenging weeks.
- The dedication of staff as they have managed teaching and learning through a season of illness that has been unprecedented.
- The excitement of children sharing their learning, and parents having the opportunity to join in that journey.
- The joy of gathering for chapels and hearing God’s message of love and forgiveness. Thank you 6H, your class band and Year 2 students who recently shared a message at the Sunday Together@5 service.
- The Athletics Carnival and the work of Mr Barben and the Facilities team, making it happen amongst difficult constraints.
- The new Prep playground. The creative way children are using it and growing in their co-operative play skills both at Prep and in other areas of the Junior Campus.
- The storm-damaged classrooms getting closer to being restored for use.
- Tuck shop—for those moments of anticipation and excitement when the orders arrive!
- The planning that ensures the Year 6 Canberra Trip is proceeding next week, especially at a time when many school have cancelled camps.
This list in not exhaustive, and behind each point is a team of dedicated PoP people and others who have problem-solved and worked hard for the students and families at the College. I am deeply thankful and know that PoP is a great place to be.
Year 3 – 6 Athletics Carnival
Student Reports – SEQTA
Not long now until semester report cards will be sent out to parents. The report provides a point-in-time update on your child’s learning and achievements, and is a reflection of learning and assessment from the previous semester. We continue to use a 5-point scale showing student achievement across the learning areas. The letters used for this are as follows:
Along with the bold letter indicating your child’s performance against the standard, you will now see a graph displaying results data across the cohort. This information gives you an indication as to where your child is sitting in a particular subject, within his/her year level. For example: if your child received an S – At Standard, you will be able to see how many other students also received At Standard for their result, and therefore see where your child sits in the year level cohort.
Your child’s Effort and Personal and Learning Qualities in each of the identified areas is reported as follows:
Parents are encouraged to read their child’s report card very carefully, including the second page, which outlines the scale for student grades, effort and social and emotional capabilities.
Students will continue to receive a comment which will speak to their strengths and areas to develop in Literacy and Numeracy, as well as a comment on their social and emotional development. As always, parents are encouraged to speak with their child’s classroom teacher should they have any questions.
Be blessed
Anne-Marie Schmidt
Head of Campus – Junior
Windy Weather
Have you noticed that when its windy outside, your children (and sometimes your pets) act a little differently? At certain times of the year, Brisbane is subjected to windy and even cold days that makes our kids a little unpredictable and their behaviour out of character.
Some may say that it is the unpredictability of what the wind could do to, the pollen and dust that is swept around or just the change in weather. Others say it is the impending isolation that remaining indoors brings. Information provided by a research project conducted in New Zealand suggests the following:
- There is a school of thought that dry winds cause positively charged electrons that can cause irritability in some children.
- A ‘low’ in the weather patterns can have a ‘cause and effect’ of human mental activity particularly ‘impulsive behaviours’.
- Windy days are exciting, different, and interesting to children – it could just be a release of adrenaline.
Your Local Family Magazine suggests the following tips:
- Pay attention to weather forecasts so that you know when the ‘crazy’ days are coming.
- Plan your outings and trips accordingly – for example a family movie at the cinema.
- If you decided to stay home – try to keep the environment calm. Board games, warm baths, calm music.
- Avoid high sugar, food with ‘E numbers,’ food and artificial colours/flavours – these can be triggers for some kids. Eat well for calm kids. Trying cooking something healthy.
- Keep calm yourself. Role model the behaviour you wish to see in your children using a calm voice and gentle words.
- Wait it out. Now that you know that there is a reason behind the behaviour, just hunker down and bear it. Tomorrow will be a better day.
So, as this unpredictable term heads into the downhill run to holidays, and you don’t think you can face making one more lunch or dredge through the lost property looking for that lost hat, remember to reflect on how far your child has come this year and how much they have grown.
Remember to say thank you to a staff member or parent who has helped you over the past two terms or just been there to share a smile with you on a tough day. Remember that we have a strong community because of what you do and say as part of PoP every day.
Blessings,
Coreta Lennon
Deputy Head of Campus – Junior
A Time to Reflect on Student Learning and Growth
Our staff collaborate to create meaningful and rich learning experiences where the skills that students develop can be transferred across all of their learning areas. At this time of the term, our teachers come together to moderate evidence of student learning across the year level. Through this process we see the deep connections and growth that our young people are making in their learning journey. We are certainly seeing the capabilities of our young people shine through this collaboration.
We encouraged parents to keep viewing SEQTA weekly with your child to see upcoming assessments and results and feedback on assessment tasks that teachers have given. We encourage parents to use some of these questions to help guide conversations with your child:
- Can you show me a piece of your learning that you are proud of?
- What is your top priority on your to-do for list this week and why?
- What tasks do you find challenging and why?
- What are the list of questions you need to ask, or to find the answers for, to help you tackle these challenges?
- How is your study time going in school and out of school hours? Are there some changes you need to make?
- What concept in your learning do you find makes you think deeply?
At the end of Semester 1, students will receive an End of Semester Report that will have a Pastoral Care Teacher comment, an overall grade, and work habit results for each subject. These reports will be available through SEQTA on the final days of Week 10. If you have any troubles accessing SEQTA with log in or passwords, please contact the IT Support Services at the College.
Parent/Student/Teacher Interviews will occur in Term 3 on Tuesday 19 July (Week 2) from 3:30pm-7:30pm. Bookings will be made available through SOBS online booking system and will be communicated via a direct message on SEQTA. These are the last formal interview times for the school year; however, parents are always more than welcome to contact teachers for feedback over the phone or in person.
Term 3 brings timetable changes for most of our students from Year 7 to 10 with term-by-term specialist subject rotations and semester electives. Please note that there is limited change for elective subjects in Years 8 to 10 due to how the timetable is structured in the previous year, and most subjects have wait lists. If you have any questions the first point of contact is your child’s Year Level Coordinator.
If we think back to the start of 2022 and the rollercoaster-journey of the COVID pandemic, school closure due to floods, moving from face-to-face to online learning from one moment to the next, and in recent weeks, COVID and Influenza has caused families to be in isolation. It is important that we recognise the challenges that this ongoing journey can cause us all; but also, to recognise the relationships that are deepened through struggle and challenge.
Thank you to all parents who continue to work with us in the support of your young person to not just survive these times, but to develop mindsets and skills of resilience, positive risk-taking, creativity, agency, and independence.
The weather was very kind to our Year 7s who had a blast at Camp Northpine in Joyner. Year 7 generally commences the school year with this camp, however it was postponed this year during the January COVID Lockdown, but it was worth the wait!
Our Middle and Senior Campus had the pleasure of hosting our annual Rhythms Riffs and Refrains concert, being the first event this year to showcase our ensemble groups. Thanks so much to Mrs Brady for all her hard work in organising the event, and to our very appreciative audience who came along to support our students.
Last Friday in Miss Denning’s Year 7 HPE class, Hudson, Elijah and Ethan presented and refereed their modified game called, “Scrugby.” The boys created this game to overcome the problem, “a player always passes long, yet it falls short or gets intercepted.” The boys did a fantastic job at justifying their change of rules to Rugby, giving instructions on their game and placing students into fair teams. Through their rule changes, students began to run into space more effectively and pass closer . . . busting their problem!
In Worship we have been coming together as a Middle or Senior School and have been singing the song Testify Love by Avalon. We know as a Christian community that the Love of Christ gives us hope to live through challenge and we can testify to this love and give thanks even in the hard times.
May the chorus from Testify Love stay with you in the coming weeks of Term 2:
For as long as I shall live,
I will testify to love.
I’ll be a witness in the silences
When words are not enough.
With every breath I take,
I will give thanks to God above.
For as long as I shall live,
I will testify to love.
Sarah Hoff-Zweck
Head of Campus – Middle and Senior
Careers @ PoP
After a successful Year 10 excursion to the Careers Expo, we are looking to further develop the opportunities for our Year 10 students. We will be finishing the term with all things to do with creating a brand. This will include how to read and interpret job applications, how to create resumes and finishing off with interview skills.
Which is where you can assist. If you are able to contribute some time, we are looking for some volunteers that can come into the Middle and Senior Campus and conduct some interviews with Year 10 students. This would be valuable experience for the students. If you think you could help, or have any questions regarding what we are doing please message me via SEQTA. Or email me on jgrosas@princeofpeace.qld.edu.au. You will need the relevant VSC certification and a current volunteer or paid blue card, and be available on the afternoons of Wednesday 20th or 27th July.
Thank you for your continuing support of this area.
Blessings,
Mrs Julie Grosas
Careers and VET Leader
Music Room Concert
Congratulations to the students who performed at the first Music Room Solo night last week. Featuring the string & piano students, it was a lovely evening and enjoyed by all. For some it was their first time performing, for other more ‘seasoned’ performers, it was lovely to see how far they have progressed since the last concert. Thank you to Mr Mitchell Dormer and Ms Joanne Leask for their expert tutorage.
Juniors “Arts” Night – New Date Wednesday 22 June.
All Prep to Year 3 students, parents and caregivers are invited to our “Arts Night”. On display will be artwork created during Term 1 and Dance repertoire in Term 2 (so far), both have been developed during lessons with Mrs Rebecca Rees. This will be followed by performances by The Junior Choir, Junior String Ensemble, and some special guests.
This will be held in the Shed on Wednesday 22 June, from 5:30pm to view artwork, and the concert will begin at 6pm.
Should you have any questions about the instrumental, choral or classroom music program on the Junior Campus, please don’t hesitate to contact me.
Sherree Cudney
Junior Campus Music
Worship
Sunday 12 June
9am Worship
Youth@PoP — Sunday 12 June:
‘Small Groups and Games (Green Room)’
Questions? Email youth@princeofpeace.org.au
5pm Together@5 – Year 5 Cohort Service – followed by supper and fellowship
Please keep an eye on the Prince of Peace Church Facebook page for service updates.