Responsibility and Privilege are two words that generally go hand in hand. The more responsible a person is, the more privileges they are generally given. God rewards faithful stewards – with more responsibility. Such as in the parable of the minas (talents/money) found in Luke’s gospel in the Bible. The first faithful servant who doubled his master’s gift was told, ‘Because you have been trustworthy in a very small matter, take charge of ten cities.’ We trust our students to act responsibly in all manner of affairs including reporting of incidents of bullying, irresponsible behaviour, littering, use of poor language etc. This is not ‘dobbing’ – where we hope someone will get punished but this is from an intention to maintain the high standards we have in place at our school.

Our GREAT recognition merit awards are based on merits that are given by staff – not necessarily for specific behaviour, but more for ‘above and beyond’ acts that a staff member would like to acknowledge students for. If your child comes home with a green award voucher please sign and of course give them a big pat on the back as it represents three occasions that they have received a merit. Once returned, students may hand it in for a fun food item. A maroon award slip is the next level up – and will mean a student receives a voucher once it has been returned signed.

The term is well underway with assessments and tests beginning to come up on your child’s radar. Please remember:

1. If there are planned days where you know your child will be away – while not ideal – please give the PC teacher of your child as much forward notice as possible. Research has shown that more then 5 – 7 days away from school in a year can hamper your child’s progress.
2. The due date is the due date.
3. An after school detention will be given to students who do not meet the due date, unless an extension has been approved via a note from the parents.

Some more iPad info

1. We have asked all students to remove all social messaging apps off their iPads whilst at school and have recently reminded students that they are not allowed to play games while at school. Any student who does not follow this directive will have the ability to upload apps from the appstore removed prior to all non-educational apps removed. If a student needs to add another app after this – they will need to go to the IT department to organise this.
2. If your child’s iPad becomes damaged and it is the student’s fault, they can continue to use it until it becomes unusable. Once a report has been placed, the iPad will need to be handed in for repairs. If another student damages it, it will need to be reported immediately so that it can be followed up and then will go in for repairs.

Year 7 and 8 Camps are coming up in week 10 of this term. Camps are an integral and fantastic part of our curriculum and are compulsory for all students. The costs of camps and excursions are built into the school camp fees. Year 7 is heading off to Canberra for four days and Year 8 to Mary Valley to participate in an adventure camp with a one night camp out.  Later on next term, year 9 will go to an Emu Gully camp where they will camp out in one-man tents and cook their own food for a week. From Year 7 through to Year 9 there is a gradual progression of independence and outdoor Ed skill development that is built on each year. Please contact your child’s PC teacher if you need to discuss any related concerns.

Offsite activities

If your child is going to be on excursion, you will generally be informed via email. Please remember though the following permanent offsite arrangements are in place for Sport:

Wednesday afternoons – Year 9

Friday afternoons – Year 7 and 8

Jacqualina Vreeling, Head of Middle School