Normally I begin my article with the most recent news last but we have had too much excitement for that to happen this time.

Over the weekend our boys won the Junior Schools Cup State Championships in volleyball!

Not bad for a little College in Beerwah against all the big Brisbane schools! Our girls came 7th which is excellent on a state level. You will find a more detailed report later on in this newsletter but this was too big of a win not to mention first up. Congratulations to all the students and thanks to Jarred Pienaar for giving up his weekend for this event.

Another huge win for GCC was our Primary Band who came second at the School Concert Band Spectacular at St Columban’s College. This is a very exciting win for our young musicians and there was much celebration when the bus arrived back at GCC Friday afternoon. Well done students and to Christine Walton our primary music teacher wonderfully assisted by Penny White. You can read more about this later on in the newsletter.

Last week we were privileged to have Bruce and Denise Morcombe speak to our Year 2 to Year 6 students. The Morcombes taught our students the “Three Rs” of staying safe: Recognise their own body signals; React by finding safety and Report the incident to a trusted adult. Students were also encouraged to sit down at dinner with their families and discuss what they learned and come up with a family ‘password’ which can be used in emergencies. I hope you had a good conversation with your child or children that night.

I would also like to thank the College P and F along with our Student Voice for the purchase and establishment of a new clock for the oval. This has been a project of the Student Voice (Middle and Senior Student Council) for some time now in response to concerns that sometimes the bells could not be heard on the oval. The P and F graciously contributed the money after the presentation by the Student Voice at the last P and F meeting. The clock is a practical and complementary addition to the oval landscape.

Speaking of changes to the landscape, you may also have noticed that our new entry signs are being erected after months of planning and getting them just right. In the same way that there has been unanimous agreement that the new signage of the College has been a very welcome and possibly overdue addition to our College, the new entry signs will give the College a more defined entry statement. The signs will also serve a practical purpose of better informing our parent and student community with an LED screen that can easily be refreshed from my office. At the moment it is very time consuming to erect messages on the old reader board and potentially dangerous. We are looking forward to these signs contributing to an entrance that the whole College community can be proud of.

Term 4 is a funny mix of activity-driven adrenalin combined with almost losing your mojo in the face of the hard end of year slog. At GCC we make it a point that every day is a learning day – right up until the last day of term.  It can be difficult to keep on keeping on so here are a couple of tips to help the whole family stay motivated until the next holiday.

The first tip is one that Nike coined for us some time ago; “Just do it”. When you are stuck or don’t feel like doing a particular task, just start it and within ten seconds motivation kicks in and the job becomes easier. Your brain switches from, “I don’t want to do this” to “I am doing this and it isn’t that bad so I may as well finish it”.

The second tip is do the small jobs first. It can be overwhelming when there is a lot on your plate. Tackling the small assignments or homework first can make you feel empowered to do the big job in front of you.

The third tip is to keep your eyes on the prize. For you, the prize may be the feeling of relief that comes when a difficult job is conquered or being free to spend more time with your friends. Long term prizes may include the goal of making your post school career pathway more of a reality. Think of all the good things that come with conquering obstacles and persevering to the end and then go back to tip one – just do it!

In the biggest journey of all – life, the Bible has its own excellent tip: Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. For the joy set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider him who endured such opposition from sinners, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart. Hebrews 12:1-12.

Mike Curtis, Principal