There’s nothing worse than taking a wrong turn on a long trip when you’ve been on the road for hours or have to be somewhere by a certain time and you end up at a dead end! Groan… Despite the navigation tool telling you otherwise or the mud map Aunty Mavis gave you… all that …
“If only someone had trimmed that limb above the stable when it was small.” I recently dealt with a problematic limb from a large gum tree which was overhanging an old stable on my property. This tree had continually been dropping large branches with a thud onto the stable roof where I keep the ride …
This week, Year 7 students have been busy demonstrating their talking and riding skills, participating in the annual Physics Cup and Clash of Empires Debates. The Physics Cup Year 7 students have been and exploring the world of physical forces and machines this term, investigating the forces that make our world ‘turn’ and the simple …
It is no surprise that one of the first words children say is ‘No’. As a young parent, I found navigating this difficult because they did need to eat the food, go to bed, do an activity etc. However, in reality, children at the earliest of ages must have the ability to say no and …
Day for Daniel: Middle Schoolers and Personal Safety Read More »
Middle School Design Technology students have been exploring the way things work in the world of invention and innovation with car safety design and the amazing contraptions of Rube Goldberg machines. Year 9 students investigated the aerodynamics and hydrodynamics of powerboats, and then designed and created balsa wood prototypes, vacuum formed a plastic hull to …
Design and Technologies: I design, I create, I inspire Read More »
The grand prize winner of a recent National STEM competition was Year 8 student Madyson Pearce. The Girls Day Out in STEM (GDOS) program helps girls aged 10 to 14 aspire to a career in STEM through education, working with professional female role models, and through opportunities in STEM. A total of 863 girls aged …
Glasshouse Christian College’s Year 7 students have been welcomed into Secondary College with a whole new look super classroom space in L8. Variable and comfortable workspaces have been developed for students to use that are particularly suited to collaborative teamwork. The space’s focus is on student collaboration, helping to develop communication, critical thinking, conflict resolution …
Last Friday half of the Year 7 students were transported back to Ancient Egypt as we wandered around the Abbey Museum. The displays told the journey of humankind through history. We were able to imagine what it was like to be living as an Egyptian. We were introduced to a new interesting career and had …
Year 9 have created some amazing cakes in class. They made the cake and then decorated it to their choice. Even though icing and decorating the cakes was extremely challenging, the students didn’t give up and the results speak for themselves. What a great job they all did … definitely worthy of a celebration! Julie …
It’s often the ‘lasts’ that we look back on and realise they no longer happen – some time after they stopped. I remember having this moment several years after I no longer took my own children to ‘you-beaut’ playgrounds. It’s funny how it can be tiresome and then when you realise it’s no longer a …
There have been some great events, moments, excursions and opportunities for our students this term. GCC families will be able to see all the photos in Pixevety in the links below: Gold winners from 2020 (no RTCs) Cross Country Year 8 Geography Excursion Legacy Cup – Boggle Challenge Athletics Carnival – photos coming soon NAPLAN …
On Monday 8 March, the Year 7 students were treated to a French movie excursion to Brisbane. The purpose of the excursion was to compliment their studies of French speaking countries and cultures around the world. Each year, Alliance Francaise de Brisbane, the French cultural centre of Brisbane, organises the French Film Festival to offer Australian …
This year’s bible verse states “… be strong and courageous…” (Joshua 1:9). For each person, what they are being strong and courageous IN differs both circumstantially and psychologically. We know that one day ‘what can be shaken will not remain’ (Bible: Hebrews 12:27). What will remain is who we are, what we have done, and …
If you are a parent of a middle school-aged child this quote may resonate and encourage you. They’re capable of reasoning intellectually, interpreting emotions, and taking a moral stand, but they lack perspective or life experience. Sorting out social drama can consume large chunks of their time, and they tend to experience emotions in polarities. …
Seasons: We have already had several eventful weeks in Middle School with the Launchpads (a retreat day where students had the opportunity to get to know their classmates and teachers and reflect on important aspects that will direct their focus for the year), for our Year 9 leaders – a Leaders’ Retreat and Induction Assembly, …
Books: Are there lots of books in your home? A new study of 31 countries shows that ‘being surrounded by books in the home during adolescence may have as big an impact on long-term literacy, numeracy, and digital skills as a university education’. Reading and being able to learn about things outside of our physical world …
Reports and Grades: Interim reports will be sent out over the holidays and will be made available online through the Parent Portal. Please remember that for some subjects, in particular, this grade is not the final grade but rather a ‘ballpark’ figure of how a student is performing in a particular subject. The Australian Curriculum …
As always, the first week of Year 7 has been an incredibly busy one. It’s been a mad rush of new routines, timetables, rooms and getting used to many new teachers and expectations. It’s sure to have been a bit of a rollercoaster ride of excitement and nerves, both for students and parents. On the …
Welcome to a new year and especially to our new students and parents. Thanks for attending the Parent Information Night this week. Parents who were unable to attend are encouraged to email their child’s Pastoral Care teacher or even pop in after school one day as it’s of great benefit to a child’s academic progress …
STEM Well, the year has certainly started with a ‘bang’. In Year 8, students have been studying a program called S.T.E.M. which stands for Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics. These have incorporated the subjects previously referred to as Science, Business/ ICT, Mathematics, Foundations and Pastoral Care. The main change for teachers and students is that …
Celebrating the ‘Lasts’ Often the last time something happens is a well known event, other times it’s a year or so later and you realise sadly that ‘it’ doesn’t happen anymore. When we went on road trips with small children (or even shorter trips) we would schedule our stops around great parks they enjoyed (often …
Last week we had a lovely Nepalese speaker at our Tuesday Assembly. One of the comments from a student was how it made it more relevant to hear first hand from someone who has lived in such poverty – how blessed we are in this country and to go to GCC. It was impressive to …
Last week’s Athletics Carnival was a great success. A big thanks to our expert and well-organised HPE Department, maintenance men for set up, teachers, teaching assistants and parents for helping run the events AND for our great students who participated to the best of their ability and with good sportsmanship and a positive attitude. The …
Great Camps All Middle School students have been on camp for the first week of this term. The Year 7s have been to Canberra and were able to attend the 100 years ANZAC Gallipoli service in the nation’s capital. The Year 8 and 9 students have been on Outdoor Education camps. If you chat with …
A picture can tell a thousand words. I hope you enjoy these few pictures taken of our middle school students engaged in a variety of school-related activities over the last week. End of Term 1 is a great point in the year. Students are in the routine of their classes and work, they know what is …
It is a privilege to work at our school – the dedicated staff, the hard-working students and with parents who are such an integral part of this community. Thanks for making the effort to come to our Middle School Parent Information evening last Wednesday night. It is always really helpful to meet at this point …
We change our behavior when the pain of staying the same becomes greater than the pain of changing. Consequences give us the pain that motivates us to change.” ― Henry Cloud If you haven’t read any of the ‘Boundary’ books from Cloud and Townsend – I highly recommend them. As parents and teachers we often …
Finishing well is a high priority at our school. As we come into the last few weeks of this school year please remind your children that coming to school on time and fully equipped is still important. At this time of year, assessments are occurring and even after the formal items are completed, teachers …
Congratulations On Tuesday night of this week we held our Awards Night and congratulated a number of students who have excelled academically, worked diligently and demonstrated consistently GREAT behaviour. The decision for the academic awardees is fairly straightforward as it is based on grade point averages; however, the diligent and GREAT awards require more input …
The Middle School GCCC 2014 Awards Louis Pasteur, famed microbiologist and inventor of pasteurization, once remarked in a university lecture, “chance favors the prepared mind.” There is very little chance in the final results for our awardees in two Tuesday night’s time, rather more evidence of students who have worked hard to prepare their minds. …
Our Year 8s Walked on Water last Friday … well not exactly. However, it is a good reminder to keep looking upwards and outwards. That was the disciple Peter’s (almost) fatal flaw – he began to look down. The end of the year is almost in sight. It is so important to keep looking ahead …
The recent Student Led Conferences were an excellent opportunity to discuss with your child their progress and goals for the future. If you were unable to make the Tuesday or Wednesday meeting times – please remember to still book a time with your child’s Pastoral Care teacher in the the next few weeks to discuss …
Privileged Our French teacher, Mrs Gordon, mentioned to me that recently she went to a meeting with several state school teachers; she came away from that with an overwhelming sense of gratitude for the amazing array of opportunities our students have at Glasshouse. I was reminded of this when I attended the dance excursion last …
The Nudge The Middle school years are an intense time of growth as a child transforms into the man or woman they are becoming. To be given the title of man or woman several characteristics and obvious changes must occur. Besides the obvious one of physical change, confidence, maturity and wisdom to make good decisions …
This term, Year 7 Geography is learning about the ‘liveability’ of different places in the world. In week three Year 7 Geography students went on an excursion in Beerwah. In this fieldwork-based excursion the students were involved in assessing the quality of the constructed or built environment of Beerwah. The excursion was mainly based on …
What’s New for Term 3? The holidays have given the GCCC staff time to pause for thought on how your children are progressing and where they may need support or help. Perhaps this has also been the case for you as parents and students. Our staff went to a two-day conference last week and were …
Legacy Cup – Challenge of the Minds The air was tense with excitement as our top GPA students contended for the Legacy Cup, Challenge of the Minds, during assembly last week. A collective breath was held as students waited to see if their team members would correctly state the name of Postman Pat’s cat. All …
This week our Year 7 and 9 students have sat their NAPLAN tests. These tests are intense and hard work for our students. They also give valuable data that helps our school evaluate our programs, curriculum approaches and individual student data that helps us to moderate our internal grading. If you know of a student …
I had the privilege of attending the Year 8 camp. The group of girls I supervised and their ability to work collaboratively, solve problems and encourage each other through some of the more difficult challenges greatly impressed me. This week, parents will have had an opportunity to meet with the teachers of their children at …
Easter serves as a reminder that we all need a saviour. It could probably be said unequivocally, that the lives of all our families and students are never straightforward. There are no exceptions to the fact that this sometimes involves times of great stress and difficulties. The only thing we can be assured of is …
How can people build self-esteem? “The answer is never to get them to feel better about themselves. The ‘self-esteem’ trip is a dead end. “The answer is to have people feel connected to love,” according to psychologists Henry Cloud and John Townsend. When people already feel connected and accepted, they do not have to try …
Christmas holidays are within our sights… Here are just a few reminders regarding end of year activities. Lockers, books, locks, iPads All Year 9s need to hand in their iPads on Friday of Week 8 (29 November). For all Year 7 and 8, we will be updating student iPads over a 24 hour period in …
Last week saw two big events in the Middle School calendar Orientation to Middle School was on Thursday for our Year 6 students and new students coming in next year. All Year 9 girls retreat/rites of passage camp left for an overnight camp last Thursday and returned Friday. This week: Dance Evening Performances – Friday …
These primarily assess a student’s abilities in the area of literacy and numeracy. Recent pedagogical thinking has expanded to an understanding and acceptance that “intelligence” can encompass more than literacy and numeracy. Gardner (a well respected educationalist) proposed a multiple intelligence theory based on an understanding of a wider range of gifts and skills. Your …
