Dear Friends of the College,

I had the pleasure last week of being at the Grade 7 camp. You’ll see lots of photos of the wonderful things that were done. In talking to the staff who run the camp site, they were mighty impressed by the manners of our students. A thank you and please is a great thing.

OUT AND ABOUT

• Great work by the staff who attended the Grade 7 Camp at Camp Clayton.
• The Grade 10 staff for the Retreat Day which was well received by our students.
• Ash Wednesday Liturgies were diverse, from Camp Clayton in Ulverstone to Christ the Priest Church.
• Wonderful to see Peter Mitchell talking Spirit of Jesus to our Kingston students.
• Our Grade 4 Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students have been out to an excursion to TMAG.
• As I go around both campuses one of the things that is clear to me is that the staff did such a great job of splitting classes that does justice to goals we set out.  It might be seen as a little thing, but it really had made a difference.
• Staff, Board members and TCEO staff have begun the process of actioning our Strategic Plan’s Leading Teams. 

LEARNINGS FROM THE COLLEGE HANDBOOK

Often family members are unsure who to get in contact with about any issue. Our College Handbook, found in one of the top tabs of our website, gives the following
information.

If a concern or query arises in relation to your child and their wellbeing or education, please refer to the following tables as to whom it is best to make contact with:

LOVE IT WHEN A PLAN COMES TOGETHER

Thank you to the staff and Board members' who have taken up the invitation to be part of Leading Teams in our Strategic Plan for 2020 and came to our first meeting. The focus was around beginning the discernment around building an Explorers to Grade 12 College.
If you are interested to know what I said, have a look at the links below:
Part 1: https://youtu.be/wMuVuVYTjzc 
Part 2: https://youtu.be/ZEa2CoIi9H8 
In summary, we met to go through these three things.
To introduce the why we are doing this Senior Secondary thing

• Explain the process of phases in the discernment process for each Leading Team
• The mechanism for collecting staff and Board members ideas via the Team Google Drive
• After that we had a look around the third site.  

COMMISSIONING MASS FOR STAFF

Thank you to families that joined us for the Staff Commissioning Mass this year. What a vibrant and faith filled community we are part of.

2021 KINDERGARTEN ENROLMENTS

Any current families looking to enrol their child in Kinder for 2021, or know of families outside of the College, are asked to complete an expression of interest form from the College Office or complete the form on our website.  Enrolments are due 1st May 2020.

2020 STUDENT RESIDENTIAL ADDRESS AND OTHER INFORMATION COLLECTION NOTICE

Please click on the attached document for further information

The 2020 College and Parish Fair will be held on Sunday, 1st November at the Huntingfield Campus.  The first meeting to progress organisation for this year will be held in the meeting room under the church on Thursday, 19th March at 7:00pm.

Anyone interested in getting involved is most welcome to attend.   If you are unable to make this meeting but would like to be involved you can contact Caroline Woolley at the College on 62290200 or Rod Street 0407 296 205

The first meeting of the Community Group will be held on Monday, 23rd March at 7:00pm in the SOCC.  All are invited to attend the meeting which will include a welcome and update from Acting Principal Joe Sandric and discsussions around fundraising, upcoming events and any new ideas.  We look forward to seeing parents there.

The Qkr (pronounced 'quicker) app is used for online payments of various College activities and events including canteen and cafe, without the need to send money through to the College Offices.  The app is avilable via the App store or Google Play.

Click on the link below for the guide to using the app 

GRADE 4 

Term 1 in Grade 4 has started with a grand adventure. We have delved into the deepest oceans, climbed the highest peak in Africa, and even evaded crocodiles on the Nile River (all from the comfort of our own chairs!). Although we are currently exploring the continent of Africa we will soon venture over the Atlantic Ocean into South America. Pictured are some examples of activities we have done, and what we have learnt so far.

In religion students have been learning about Lent. The learning task required students to develop specific prayers related to the three practices of Lent. Therefore, the students wrote prayers about almsgiving, prayer and fasting. These prayers will be used throughout the year in the classes when we have our daily prayer.

KINDER GREEN

The students in Kinder Green had a lot of fun making pancakes as part of Shrove Tuesday celebrations.  They then enjoyed decorating and eating the pancakes they helped to make.

CANTEEN

The new canteen providers have proven to be very popular with students.  The canteen is open recess and lunch on Wednesdays and Fridays. 

A reminder to families that the new providers do not accept brown paper bags/steaky beak bags, all orders are to be placed via the Qkr! app.  Click on the link below for instructions on how to download the app.

GRADE 10 REFLECTION DAY

Grade 10 recently had a reflection day with Dave Jorna from Project Hatch. Dave Jorna has studied Psychology, was a Campus Minister, is an Emotional Intelligence consultant and has been working with young people for over 16 years. Since Project Hatch’s first program, he has facilitated more than 640 retreats, workshops and leadership training programs to help young people do life better.

Dave provided our students with affirming experiences and opportunities for reflection, while building community. Dave displays a real passion for working with young people. Students were able to look at where they are headed, who they want to be, and who will help them get there. They were also able to learn strategies that will assist them to be mindful and emotionally intelligent.

It was very rewarding to see the Grade 10 students take part in the day and grow as individuals and as a group. A big thank you to Dave Jorna for coming to visit us from Brisbane. A big thank you also to the Grade 10 students for taking part in a positive and mature manner and the teachers who supported them on the day.

GRADE 7 CAMP

Monday, 23rd of February, five classes of Grade 7 students set off on a long bus trip to Camp Clayton near Ulverstone. We stopped at Campbell Town on the way, so we could eat our packed lunches.

A couple of hours later we arrived at Camp Clayton where we quickly gathered in our activity groups eager to get started. In all, there were 11 groups and they were called Foxtrot, Hotel, Alpha, Bravo, Charlie, Delta, Echo, Golf, India, Juliet and Kilo. Even though we were very tired from the long bus trip we got straight into the activities, doing three before dinner. Each group did their activities at different times on a rotation system. The activities we took part in were the flying fox, high ropes course, the giant swing, archery, rescue, team challenge, maze and climb, bike riding, scavenger hunt, frisbee golf and beach. All these activities kept us very busy.

Dinner was absolutely amazing for a small group of staff that was cooking for over 140 students and 15 staff as well.

After dinner, we had our fourth rotation activity for the day and then we played the survival game. About half of us completed this very complicated game successfully. It is too complicated to explain but we knew what to do. Apex predators needed lots to eat as well as water. Carnivores could eat herbivores but not Apex predators. Herbivores were vulnerable and had plant as well as water stations to find. The game went for nearly an hour with lots and lots of running and hiding. After this we still had the energy to eat some supper and have a bit more of a run around before lights out. As we were getting ready for bed we were all excited and talking about the adventures we had had so far and the ones we would have the next day.

The next morning we were all up bright and early, but some were not so happy to be woken up so early, and straight after breakfast we were into the activities. After a busy morning of fun, we all met for lunch to catch up with our friends. We had an amazing hot lunch of fish and chips before we headed off again for more activities. Throughout the camp we could earn camp money by participating well, supporting others, conquering our fears and for lots of other things. On our last night we had a big auction where we were able to buy with our camp money real products. These included $20 takeaway voucher, blocks of chocolates, mints, Uber transport deals and so much more.

The next morning we had to pack all our bags ready to head home and on the trip home we were all busily talking about our fun experiences. Even though we really enjoyed going to camp we also couldn’t wait to go home for a sleep. Having camp so early in the year was a great way for those who are new to our College to bond and make friends with the other students as our cabin and activity groups are mixed.

Some of the student’s highlights were:

• The giant swing, where some students enjoyed the thrill of being upside down- Rhys.T
• Watching Hannah.T almost fall off the high ropes course- Hannah.C
• Bribing Hannah C with food to go on the high ropes- Makaylah.C
• Archery- Eli.C

Finally a big thank you to all the teachers who left their families behind to come to our camp and make it possible, and an extra mention to Mr Mac who organised the whole camp and making it possible for us to relax and have a great time.

Lucy Willis and Rhys Tomlin.

LOCAL SCHOOLS COMMUNITY FUND

The College recently had Julie Collins, Senator Catryna Bilyk and Dr Bastian Sidel visit the Huntingfield Campus to view the plans and the site for the new cricket nets. The participation in cricket is growing across both genders and it was wonderful to receive the Local Schools Community Fund Grant to help install the cricket nets for the College and Community use.

STUDENT CROSSING

The Kingborough Community Safety Committee including Deputy Mayor Jo Westwood and Rod Street visited the Huntingfield campus to view the new student crossing. College mum Natalie Rider was heavily involved in organising the crossing after her daughters were involved in a bus accident in 2019.

The crossing has greatly improved the safety of students at the College as well as those from neighbouring schools.

Select students from Grades 4-9 recently went on an excursion to TMAG (Tasmanian Museum and Art Gallery) to attend the annual Aboriginal cultural program. This year's program is entitled: ngamala panupiri tapilti malukana: (where the sun goes to sleep) and focuses on the west coast of Tasmania. Students learnt about the petroglyphs at preminghana (Mt Cameron West) and walked through the current exhibition ‘West on the Edge’. A highlight of the program was a trading activity. Students were allocated to one of the nine nations of lutruwita (Tasmania) and then much fun was had trading resources such as stone tools, kelp baskets, spears and possum fur. They learnt a lot about Tasmania’s natural resources and how Aboriginal people would have needed to give gifts in order to access or walk through another’s Country. While the day involved a lot of learning, they also took time to relax, eat and play at Long Beach in Sandy Bay.

We had our first Explorers session with the Grade 10 Early Childhood Education and Care students. We had positive feedback about their presence in the program from the families attending, particularly those who had more than one child and enjoyed having an extra set of hands to help out. Last week's theme was Teddy Bear's Picnic. We iced teddy bear biscuits and saved them to take outside with us, along with our shared fruit, for our picnic. 

VINNIES

Congratulations to the Vinnies team who helped to raise $218 for the Vinnies Bushfire Appeal. That’s over 400 pancakes cooked and consumed! What a ‘flippin’ good effort! Thanks to all involved, especially those who brought their money and helped devour them!

ASH WEDNESDAY AND LENT

Ash Wednesday liturgies were held at both campuses, the ash crosses on our foreheads a visual representation on the outside of the positive changes we are trying to make on the inside. At the Kingston Campus students were blessed with “Remember God loves you and try to be good” while the Huntingfield Campus were reminded “Turn away from sin and be faithful to the Gospel” as they received their ashes. Special thanks to Father Chris and Deacon Michael for assisting with the distribution of ashes at each campus.

We now begin the period of Lent, preparation for Easter, where we focus on prayer, fasting (giving something up) and almsgiving (donating to charity). The main charity we support at this time is Project Compassion and all classrooms/homerooms as well as both campus offices have a Project Compassion box where donations can be made. Why not pick one up for your own home or workplace?

https://lent.caritas.org.au/donate/

SACRAMENTAL PROGRAM

Thanks to those who attended the Information and Enrolment Session on Tuesday evening. If you would like to be involved it’s not too late and open to any student above Grade 4! Whether starting from the beginning with Baptism or continuing from wherever you are on your Sacramental Journey, please contact Mrs Polly Marriott at Pauline.marriott@catholic.tas.edu.au. Questions and Queries welcome!

COLLEGE - PARISH YOUTH GROUP

Kingston Channel Parish are looking to set up a new Youth Group on Wednesday afternoons/evenings in the Sisters of Charity Centre. Anyone from Grade 5 and above is welcome to attend. Our first meeting is to get together, have some snacks and hear your ideas!

COMMENCEMENT MASS

The College Commencement Mass will be held on Thursday 12^th March at 9:30am in the gym at Huntingfield. Grade 4 Leaders and SRC will be commissioned at this Mass and families and friends are more than welcome to attend.

COMMISSIONING MASS

On Sunday 1^st March the first College Parish Mass for the year was held at the Church of Christ the Priest. At this Mass the staff were officially commissioned for 2020 and members of the Parish then pledged their support for the year ahead. Thank you to all staff and students who attended and contributed, particularly the Grade 10 Leaders Nicola Brcic, Harrison Henry, Joe Ramage, Darcy Willis, and also Lucy Willis, Simon MacFarlane, Laura MacFarlane and Madeline Brough. There was a wonderful feeling of community and togetherness with the parish.

Thank you to Grade 7 Green and 9 Green students who have already prepared Masses at Huntingfield. Father Chris and College staff commented on the particularly respectful behaviour of our Grade 7s, especially as we have such a large cohort this year, many of whom are new to Catholic Education.

WORLD'S GREATEST SHAVE

One of our Grade 8 students, Dilana Stott, is participating in this year’s World’s Greatest Shave. Inspired by her aunt and her friend’s mum she will be bravely shaving her head not only to raise money for the Leukemia Foundation but also to donate her hair to make wigs for those going through chemotherapy. You can make a donation to her here:

http://my.leukaemiafoundation.org.au/dillystott 

We are happy to share some relevant parenting topics in each newsletter for parents and families to watch or read and reflect.

Parenting in the age of disruption

KINGBOROUGH BICYCLE TREASURE HUNT

Click on the link for more information 

PLAY AFL AT THE KINGBOROUGH TIGERS

Click on the link for more information

YOUTH ACTION KINGBOROUGH

Click on the links for more information

WHATS ON MARCH - KINGSTON LIBRARY

Click on the link below for more information

CULINARY KITCHEN - COOKING CLASSES

Click on the link below for more information

KINGBOROUGH LIONS UNITED FOOTBALL CLUB

Click on the link below for more information 

For All College events you can access the College Calendar via this newsletter, or by this link: College Calendar