The Second Half of the Year is Here
Welcome back to the second half of the year, and a particular welcome to our new families and students who have begun with us this term. I pray the first few days and weeks of school for your child has been welcoming and positive as they begin their time here with us. It feels like it was just a newsletter or two ago we were saying that sickness and COVID cases were dropping away, but as we know, they’re right back on the increase again. As we head through the expected peak of cases in the next couple of weeks, we once again strongly encourage students and adults alike to wear face masks when they are going to be inside with others, or when social distancing is not possible. Thank you for your consideration of our community and one another once again.
Staffing
Over the semester break we have had a number of staffing changes. Beginning with us recently, we warmly welcome:
- Alexandra Butler – Counsellor/Defense School Mentor (as Kathryn Price moves into a more full time HR and administration role)
- Kyle Engelbrecht – Middle & Senior Campus teacher (replacing Mr Norm Russell who is on leave this term)
- Alannah McTaggart – Junior Campus teacher (Yr 2)
- Scott Miers – Facilities
- Kristi Williams – Junior Campus teacher (Yr 5)
- Allison Blake – Middle & Senior Campus teacher
- Katrina Voss – Middle & Senior Campus teacher
- Katie Devine – Finance Officer
We also are farewelling staff, several of whom are moving onto leadership roles or new careers! We thank these staff for their committed, time and service to the College, and wish them well in their new endeavours.
- Emma Spring – Middle & Senior Campus teacher & Yr 9 Coordinator
- Alison Kelly – Administration Assistant – Middle & Senior Campus
- Megan Danslow – Middle & Senior Campus teacher & Yr 7 Coordinator
- Colleen Leslie – Middle & Senior Campus teacher & Maths Curriculum Leader
Pastor Mark will also be on extended leave for the duration of Term 3. During Pastor Mark’s absence, please contact your child’s Pastoral Care teacher, or the Deputy Head of Campus, if you or your child have any need for urgent pastoral support.
We ask that you keep all our staff and their families in your prayers.
Buildings and Facilities
We are now about one final step away from beginning the Multi-Purpose Building on the Middle & Senior Campus. Our tender process has effectively been completed and we now just await final sign-off by the District Church and LEQ so we can commence with builders arriving on site. Stay tuned!
Also something that the College has been slowly working toward for the past year, we have also just appointed an architectural company to work with us over the coming year to create a full masterplan for the College, across both sites. The Junior Campus is nearing 40 years of age and therefore some of the buildings on site are also heading for that exciting birthday number. The Middle & Senior Campus is, of course, younger, but has yet to have a detailed, finished masterplan completed. Finally, and possibly most importantly, no single masterplan for the entire College has ever yet been created, including a current-day review of our stormwater and carparking overlays. This process will take 6-12 months, and will involve a wide range of consultations with all our various community stakeholders. Master planning is a process that considers the long-term direction of the College, and quite often can be a document that takes 20 years to become a finished reality. But, as we gradually plan to refit or replace older classrooms and build new ones over that time, it is vitally important to know the end product so we don’t start in the wrong place and make life more difficult down the road.
Simon Hughes
Head of College
Introducing Our College Counsellor & DSM, Ally Butler
My name is Ally Butler and I am the new College School Counsellor and Defence School Mentor at Prince of Peace!
I have worked for over 10 years in the Child and Adolescent Mental Health Sector and bring to the roles a wealth of knowledge from assisting young people with behavioural issues, to developing healthy self-esteem, communication skills and resilience, and providing support around building a happy family environment.
I have spent most of my professional life overseas in Nauru, working with refugee children detained in the Nauru Immigration Detention Centre. I provided intense trauma-focused counselling services and learnt how to handle myself and others in high pressure situations.
I have also worked as a School Counsellor at an affluent International School in Bali, as well as within the child protection field in Albania.
I work two days a week in the Defence School Mentor role and two days a week in the School Counsellor role. I am based across both the Junior and Middle/Senior Campuses, and if you feel I can support you and/or your child in any way, please do reach out to your child’s pastoral care or class teacher.
All referrals to counselling will be made through your child’s pastoral care or class teacher, who will then complete a formal request for counselling. On receiving the referrals, I will make an informed risk assessment and prioritise those students of highest need.
2022 INTERNATIONAL COMPETITIONS AND ASSESSMENTS FOR SCHOOLS (ICAS) — Years 2-12
The College is offering an opportunity for students in Years 2- 12 to participate in the 2022 International Competitions and Assessments for Schools Competition (ICAS).
ICAS has taken place annually in schools throughout Australia, New Zealand, Singapore, Malaysia, Brunei, the Pacific Region and South Africa. Your child is invited to participate in 2022.
ICAS provides an opportunity for all students to gain a measure of their own achievement in an external testing situation, it provides teachers, parents and students with comprehensive reporting of results in the areas of Digital Technologies, Science, English, Mathematics, Spelling and Writing. In 2022 all ICAS Assessments are online assessments.
All students receive a printed certificate and an online results report indicating which questions they answered correctly and their score compared with the rest of the students tested. The student report is also useful for highlighting student strengths and weaknesses.
Certificates are awarded for each year level as follows:
- High Distinction Certificate to the top 1% of entrants
- Distinction Certificate to the next 10% of entrants
- Credit Certificate to the next 25% of entrants
- Merit certificate to the next 10% of entrants
- Participation to all other participating students. It is important to note that ICAS is a competition and is ranked according to the bell curve of participants who are assessed, rather than a standardised benchmark. The percentages allocated to awards are approximate and will vary according to the number of students taking each test and the distribution of their scores.
The test sitting period is officially set as one week (5 days). The College will determine which day of that week the assessment will be held. The entry fee per student per assessment is as follows:
If you would like your child to participate in any of the subjects listed above, please visit the online Parent Payment System to make a direct payment to UNSW Global. The Parent Payment System is a simple and secure online payment service specifically for parents to purchase ICAS Assessments. After payment is made you will receive an order confirmation email, please keep this for your records.
The web link is: https://shop.icasassessments.com/pages/pps
Our school’s unique access code is: VMM088
Online parent payment closes Sunday, 31 July 2022
Please ensure you enter your child’s name accurately into the System as it will appear on their ICAS certificate.
For more information please visit the EAA website at:
https://www.unswglobal.unsw.edu.au/educational-assessments/products/icas-assessments/
Chocolate Moments
During the school holidays, I spent some time in Melbourne. The primary reason was to attend a conference with other Lutheran educators from around Australia, but Melbourne is one of my favourite cities to explore. It is hard to go past the twists and turns of the interesting alleys filled with art or good food.
To keep those nearest and dearest happy as I returned from the workcation, I bought gifts of chocolate—good chocolates! These chocolates were new and different, unusual flavours but each with something special to offer. Sometimes I wasn’t so sure of the new flavour, but none were so bad that I couldn’t savour.
The start of Term 3 has been filled with many challenges—a whole new box of chocolates. We all know… “My mama always said life is like a box of chocolates. You never know what you’re gonna get!”
As parents, how we view and discuss challenges makes a big difference in the life of children and those in our family. So for now, as we’ve faced a number of challenges, I’m going to share some of the “chocolates” that I’ve seen in our community, and I’m sure you can think of many more:
- Children sharing spectacular holiday stories
- Our new teachers to the PoP Junior Campus: Mrs Kristi Williams (Year 5S) and Miss Alannah McTaggart (Year 2M), we warmly welcome them into our community
- The fabulous Prep to Year 2 Athletics Carnival earlier this week
- People working together to help when classrooms needed to move
- The name of the temporary Year 2 learning space: ‘Home of the McBirds’
- A movement-break space in the Learning Marquee
- A rather large crane that removed the old music boxes that sat at the end of the Shed—new music pods have been ordered.
While things are not always as we expect, I encourage you with the words from Psalm 34:8: Taste and see that the LORD is good; blessed is the man who takes refuge in him.
If you happen to spot what I am going to call a “Chocolate Moment”, can I ask that you encourage the people in that moment and seek God’s hand of refuge?
Morning Drop Off on the Junior Campus
The new Learning Enrichment marquee on the hardcourt is proving to be a good space for some of our children to take sensory breaks and do small group work. However, the marquee has reduced some of the driving space for cars during morning drop off. For the safety of all concerned if you are dropping your children off on the Junior Campus to use the Kiss and Go Zone outside of reception, please:
- Ensure children get out of their transport on the footpath side
- As parents, stay in your cars when dropping off unless you are parking and walking children to classrooms
- Encourage independence with bags and belongings
Afternoon pickup on the hardcourt is still appropriate as our staff will walk your child to the car.
Prep to Year 2 Athletics Carnival
How good was the Prep to Year 2 Athletics Carnival? The weather was great, the smiles were huge and it was so nice to be outside participating and having a go. A huge thank you to Mr Barben, our Year 6 leaders, staff and parents for making it an awesome event.
Year 6 Canberra Trip Government Contribution
Prince of Peace Year 6 students undertook an education tour of the national capital at the end of Term 2. They were given the opportunity to participate in a variety of educational programs with a focus on Australia’s history, culture, heritage and democracy.
The Australian Government recognises the importance of all young Australians being able to visit the national capital as part of their Civics and Citizenship education. To assist families in meeting the cost of the excursion the Australian Government is contributing funding of $90 per student under the Parliament and Civics Education Rebate program towards those costs. The rebate is paid directly to the school upon completion of the excursion and has been taken into account when calculating camp charges for families.
Parent Teacher Interviews
This week you will have received information about Term 3 Parent Teacher interviews. This is a time to touch base with your child’s class teacher and discuss the next steps in the learning journey. At PoP we value partnering with you in this journey and look forward to connecting at these times.
Science Incursion
On Tuesday morning our younger students enjoyed a fascinating and fully hands-on incursion, learning all about the science of sound, light and movement. They even made their own UV-detecting wrist bands that change colour when heading outside under sunlight.
Be blessed
Anne-Marie Schmidt
Head of Campus – Junior
The Importance of Story
There is something special about the beginning of term excitement! Coming back from a long break and seeing the multitude of smiles and enthusiastic chatter warms your heart and opens your mind to the possibilities of the term ahead. We sometimes forget how resilient children are and when faced with adversity and challenge they see it as an adventure. We are so blessed to have such amazing students at PoP who rise to the challenge set before them and flourish.
When entering classrooms during Week 1, the excitement was palpable, and the students had so many stories to share. It reminded me of the importance of story. During the holidays, a number of staff had the privilege of attending ACLE (Australian Conference on Lutheran Education) held in Melbourne. The theme this year was ‘One Voice, Many Paths’ and seemed very apt for our educational setting. We all come from many paths with our own stories, but we join together in one voice to share our knowledge and skills with our PoP community. One of the keynote speakers was renowned educational futurist, Louka Parry who places great emphasis on story and how understanding story can lead to greater social and emotional awareness within our community.
“I’m really interested in developing leadership skills, particularly around Australia. We need to focus on social and emotional aspects of development to create the right balance to our cognitive capabilities. These are the skills for the new economy and the only way to have students, employees and communities that thrive.” – Louka Parry
We share stories with everyone, not just our families. Everyone includes our community and others’ communities. Telling and listening to stories across different communities can shape who we are.
However, to tell a compelling story, you must have someone to listen. Knowing how to listen to others’ stories is just as important as being able to tell your own story. When we listen, truly listen, to someone else’s story, we understand who they are in a new and different way, we hear their perspective, their interpretation, their understanding of the world and of themselves. Closely listening to others’ stories creates a shared moment of compassion. Learning how to tell your story is a critical social tool for individuals; listening to others’ stories builds community.
Telling your story is an important skill; listening to others’ stories is a lifelong process of understanding yourself and others. Perhaps, especially at this turbulent time, sharing our stories helps us process and understand our experiences in new ways, and build new connections.
Challenge yourself to listen to someone’s story this week and see how it can impact your perspective.
Blessings,
Coreta Lennon
Deputy Head of Campus – Junior
Creating an Enriching Pathway for Life at Prince of Peace
Term 3 in every year of a young person’s learning journey at Prince of Peace, marks the beginning of strengthening further their emerging pathway into life. For Year 7s they start to feel a sense of belonging and connection to the peers and teachers they have met in their transition. For Year 8s they embark upon the creative process through the Year Level Musical, which encourages risk taking, collaboration and presentation skills for each individual student in forming a work of art. For Year 9s they will encounter their transformational Mt Binga Camp experience for a month away from their home and school life. For Year 10s they start to envision their future pathway as they make subject selections for Year 11 and 12 through the SET plan process in Careers. For Year 11s they respond to the call of leading and serving the school community as we install new College Captains, Ministry and House Captains. For Year 12s, they engage in their first rites of passage event of their final year of education, through celebrating their Formal with their peers, parents, and teachers.
Term 3 Parent, Student and Teacher Interviews
Thank you to parents who connected with teachers in Parent, Student and Teacher Interviews this week. We know that there were a few unexpected staff and parent absences on the evening, so we encourage connections to be made when all parties are well through phone or Zoom conferences. Teachers will continue to give progressive feedback through SEQTA throughout the term and we encourage parents to contact teachers if there are any concerns.
Subject Preference Process for 2023
Over the last three years, due to COVID restrictions, subject selection processes in learning communities have occurred through digital presentations, online curriculum guides and Zoom meetings. This year we will be providing information to students and parents through a variety of methods for each year level for 2023. This is in response to emerging COVID cases in the wider community that is currently predicted by the Queensland Government.
Year 8 for 2023
The curriculum offerings for Year 8 for 2023 is very similar in structure to what students experience in Year 7. We believe that students should have a solid and deep grounding in all learning areas that are required to be studied in the Australian Curriculum before making selections in specialist areas such as: The Arts, Technologies, Humanities and Social Sciences and Languages in Year 9 and 10. More information will be shared with parents and students later in Term 3.
Year 9 and 10 for 2023
The curriculum offerings for Year 9 and 10 provide an opportunity of choice in The Arts, Technologies, Humanities and Social Sciences, Languages and Science (Year 10 only). Students will engage in information sessions from Curriculum Leaders and an online curriculum guide for parents and students to explore together, assisting them in making their subject selections. Students and parents moving into Year 10 for 2023 will have an opportunity for a course counselling interview with a member of the leadership team. More information will be shared with parents and students later in Term 3.
Year 11 for 2023
Year 10 parents and students are invited to attend the Subject Selection Expo on Thursday 28 July where there will be a presentation from the Head of Campus, Deputy Head of Campus, and Careers Coordinator, and then the opportunity to speak with specific Curriculum Leaders. During the evening we will share the expression of interest process, pathways, subject offerings, and course counselling interviews.
There are two session times where the presentation/expo will be repeated. You are invited to attend either the 5:30pm-6:30pm or the 6:45pm-7:45pm session. Bookings can be made online through SOBS at this link. If you are attending this evening, under the guidance of the Queensland Government we encourage you to wear masks.
In closing, please keep a close eye on SEQTA for direct messages that will be sent to parents and students in each year level with updates of exact dates and times for subject selection processes throughout the term.
We thank you for your support as we endeavour to work in partnership with parents, students, and staff in guiding the enrichment pathway for each year level of our students.
At the heart of Prince of Peace is our mission to nurture the God-given potential of each student, and that they can pursue their personal excellence utilising the talents and strengths that they have been given. It is our prayer that each student continues to find their pathway in this next semester of learning and growing; accepting the challenges that come their way with a positive and growth mindset.
Every Blessing
Sarah Hoff-Zweck
Head of Campus – Middle and Senior
Careers @ PoP
QTAC, TAFE, trade training courses and QTAC evenings. There is a lot going on in the world of careers for Years 10 to 12, so please read on for all the details.
TAFE applications are now open for those who wish to complete a TAFE qualification as part of their senior pattern of study. An online version of the course guide can be found at https://issuu.com/tafebrisbane/docs/sc_course_guide_2023_v11_issue . Year 10 students and parents can find more information regarding this by referring to their SEQTA messages. I will also put these links and how to apply on the ‘Careers Info’ TEAMS Page.
Brisbane North West Trade Training College (BNWTTC) Prospectus is now out for study options in 2023. This is specific for Year 10, 11, 12 in 2023. You can access this on the TEAMS page also.
QTAC books (Year 12) have arrived and been given out to Year 12 students. If your student has still not received one due to absence, please ask them to come and see me to collect a copy. Your student will need to start perusing this to look at post-school options.
A QTAC Information Night has been organised for 8 August at the Middle and Senior Campus, as per the article below.
If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to contact me via SEQTA.
Blessings,
Mrs Julie Grosas
Careers and VET Leader
QTAC Information Night — 8 August
An evening that will focus on all things QTAC has been booked for Monday 8 August. This will specifically be for Years 10, 11 and 12. A representative from QTAC will be covering topics such as;
- What is QTAC?
- Terminology in the QCE System
- Overview of the ATAR
- Calculation of ATARs
- Subject Prerequisites
- How to apply to university via QTAC
This evening will be held at the Middle and Senior Campus. More details to follow shortly.
Middle & Senior Campus Sport
Addie and Jonas take Home Gold Medals from the Queensland Cross Country Championships
Addison in Year 7 is still hitting the pool and the road in her grueling training schedule, and last weekend put up another outstanding result at the Queensland Cross Country Championships.
She won the 13yr age group—after winning the 12yr age group last year, so she’s back-to-back Qld Cross Country Champion; another Gold medal to add to her collection.
Addie is now preparing for three different national championship events in the coming months:
- National Cross Country Championships 26-29 August in Adelaide
- National Triathlon Championships 6-9 September in Hervey Bay
- National Cycling Championships 12-15 September in Wollongong
Jonas in Year 11 also competed on the weekend at the Queensland Cross Country Championships, running for Metropolitan North in the Cross Country Relay team, who were first over the line to take home the gold medal.
What an inspiration our sporting students are, who show such commitment and determination in their training and performances.
Gabby Collman
Sports Coordinator
HPE, Science and Mathematics Teacher
Middle & Senior Campus Music News
PoP Gala Celebration of Music
To all of our wonderful students and families, I hope that you enjoyed a blissfully peaceful holiday. Take time to restore.
This Year’s Gala Celebration of Music will be held on Thursday 18 August at 6pm in the Chapel on the Junior Campus.
And the theme is… We’re Living in the 70s.
We are SO excited. Choosing music has been a real hoot!
Please note that the concert is on a THURSDAY night. If any of students involved work Thursdays, there is time to make sure that they don’t have a shift that night, it is important that we have all of our musicians!
The preparation time for this concert is very short and with many families and students affected by illness, please help our children be disciplined to be at, and on time, for their rehearsals over the next month.
Appointments will be in SEQTA as normal, please accept these.
Let’s make music!
Linda Brady
Middle & Senior Campus Curriculum Leader of Music and Coordinator of Extra-Curricular Music
Worship
Sunday 24 July
9am Worship
Youth@PoP — 3:30 to 5pm. All-ages movie afternoon, watching Despicable Me.
5pm Together@5
Please keep an eye on the Prince of Peace Church Facebook page for service updates.
