2021 Term 1 Week 04 19 Feb 2021
Upcoming Events
From the Principal
From the Acting Principal
From the Deputy Principal
Dear Parents and Guardians,
This week is a special time for Lindisfarne Anglican Grammar School as we celebrate the beginning of Lent — the 40-day period leading up to Easter. From the start on Ash Wednesday until the conclusion on Easter Sunday, Lent has been a traditional time of solemn observance and preparation inviting us to make our minds and hearts ready for remembering Jesus’ life, death and resurrection.
Whilst we would usually gather for a special Ash Wednesday service, this year, due to restrictions, we took a slightly different approach. Reverend Dway Goon Chew from St Cuthbert’s Parish joined Principal Stuart Marquardt for a discussion about the holy traditions of Ash Wednesday and why it’s an important celebration for our school. The online video was then shared across each of our subschools, a link of which is provided below.
Preceding Ash Wednesday, is one of our favourite calendar days, Shrove Tuesday, also known as Pancake Day. Traditionally, Shrove Tuesday would be our last chance to use up all the richer, fattier and more luxurious foods in our pantries before the ritual fasting of Lent. In this light, Principal Stuart Marquardt joined a class of Year 8 students and for an episode of Lunch with Le Ping to share in the creation of a special pancake recipe from a 1993 alumnus.
This week, our Year 9 students were due to begin The Rite Journey program — a journey which assists these students in reflecting on their childhood, acknowledging the positives together with the challenges and giving thanks for the significant people in their lives. Unfortunately, due to wet weather conditions, the Calling and Departure Ceremonies were postponed until next month. However, we are very much looking forward to gathering on 17 and 18 March to begin this important component of our year-long pastoral care and personal development program where our Year 9 students will be supported to take that step forward to becoming resilient, self-aware, responsible young adolescents.
It was wonderful to see parents taking the opportunity to attend our Year 7 Meet the Homeroom Teacher evening on Monday and our first Parents and Friends (P&F) meeting for 2021 on Tuesday. Our P&F committee is very generous in giving their time to support our school, so it was pleasing to see many new faces attending for the first time. By supporting the P&F, you are directly supporting each student at Lindisfarne. You can support the P&F in two main ways. You can volunteer to join the Committee by nominating prior to the Annual General Meeting to be held on Tuesday, 30 March. Or you can attend a P&F event, with the first opportunity being the Trivia Night on Saturday, 27 March. Led by Ramesh Sivabalan, our P&F are role models for our students, living our school value of compassion through the gift of service. I urge you to support the P&F as they support our school.
Thank you also to those Stage 3 parents who joined us on Thursday evening for the Online Guardians Parent Workshop. This parent information session centred on sharing important information about cybersafety, online presence, cyberbullying, and online and offline life balance. Again, we thank Nathan Verinder from Online Guardians for providing Lindisfarne parents with evidence-based information and strategies for communicating with and supporting our students. These Online Guardians sessions have been recorded and a link to the session will be provided via Parent Lounge very soon.
In closing this week, I’d like to share with you two important staffing announcements on behalf of Principal Stuart Marquardt.
We extend warm congratulations to Mrs Kellie Douglas on her appointment as Head of Boarding at St Mary’s Anglican Girls’ School in Perth, Western Australia from the start of Term 2, 2021. This is a major appointment in one of Australia’s foremost schools and recognises Kellie’s significant attributes as an educational leader.
Mr Mark Douglas, who also works at Lindisfarne as our esteemed Head of Junior School, will remain with us through to the end of the 2021 school year prior to relocating to Western Australia for the 2022 school year. We will advertise nationally for a Head of Junior School early next term with the view to announcing an appointment in Term 3, 2021 in preparation for the 2022 school year.
Our Director of Careers and VET, Mr Barry Woods, has also advised that after 10 years of outstanding work he will be leaving education as of Friday, 19 March to take up a business opportunity. Barry is held in very high esteem at Lindisfarne and we wish him every success as he pursues this new venture. We will be immediately advertising nationally for an outstanding replacement to continue the work of Mr Woods.
Charlotte Lush
Deputy Principal
From the Acting Deputy Principal
Chaplaincy
Important Information
First Nations
Parents and Friends
Notice of Annual General Meeting
The Lindisfarne Parents and Friends Association Annual General Meeting will be held on Tuesday, 30 March 2021 at 6.30pm at the Mahers Lane campus.
Ramesh Sivabalan
President
P&F Trivia Night - LIMITED TICKETS REMAIN
If you can support the night by being the major sponsor, or by donating prizes for the raffle, then please contact Ramesh on 0439 039 888.
ONLY A HANDFUL OF TICKETS REMAIN. Ticket Booking Link
Parent Facebook Groups
Facebook groups for year level Preschool to Year 10 are provided and supported by the Lindisfarne Parents and Friends (P&F) through the Parent Representative program and supported by the Lindisfarne Community Engagement team. These groups allow parents to share, collaborate and get to know each other in a friendly and supportive manner. Please join the relevant group for your Lindisfarne student.
Friends of the Arts
Safe on Social
ParentEd
Harmony Week
Student Voice
Upcoming Events
FunFest
Whole School News
Staff Bio
Teaching and Learning
Junior School
Head of Junior School Report
Last Friday, our Year 3s, 4s and a handful of Year 2s joined the Middle School students for our annual House Swimming Carnival at the Tweed Regional Aquatic Centre. As always, our students had a great deal of fun whilst competing for their House. This year, St Barnabas House continued their winning streak and took home the championship - well done to all St Barnabas House competitors.
You will have read about the wonderful feats of our highest performing swimmers and I look forward to presenting our Age Champions with their badges next week. These athletes have trained countless hours for their chosen sport and this carnival is an opportunity to showcase the results of their dedicated efforts. Parents and students should rightfully be very proud of their achievements and I look forward to seeing our stars shine at the next level of NCIS swimming next week.
For every highly tuned swimmer standing on the blocks at the Swimming Carnival, engines rumbling and ready to launch on the buzzer, there are many others whose hearts are racing in nervousness as they peer at the end of the pool, a frightening long distance away. These swimmers cheer and support their peers and when it comes time to swim themselves, show great courage in taking to the pool knowing full well that they are unlikely to end up the winner of the race. Our competitive students show the resilience to give it a go, leadership in taking on the challenge as well as service to their House by claiming valuable points. I would like to thank all swimmers who participated in the 2021 Swimming Carnival and made it such a success.
Mark Douglas
Head of Junior School
Green Team
Middle School
Year 6 Report
Oz Harvest
Over the past few weeks, the Year 6 students have been taking part in the Oz Harvest Feast Program. The FEAST program will run for Term 1 and is a STEM project-based learning program that explores the food system, food waste and nutrition. This program aligns with our Integrated Unit focusing on Sustainability. It enables students to gain a better understanding of how food is produced and what we can do to minimise food waste and our impact on the planet. Students have been immersed in hands-on cooking activities in the classroom. Towards the end of the program, the students will be tasked with exploring and designing their own recipes for a ‘Year 6 Cookbook’ to address food waste prevention and healthy eating.
If you would like more information on the program and how OZ Harvest is helping build a more sustainable future then visit their website at https://www.ozharvest.org/education/feast/.
Online Guardian
On Thursday, 18 February, Nathan Verinder from Online Guardian held an information session for the parents of Stage 3. This followed on from the successful and engaging workshop that Nathan delivered with the students the previous week. Our students were actively involved in the sessions and learnt many strategies that they can use to be responsible digital citizens and be more aware of their safety online. Nathan made a strong point for us all to remember. Being online is the one space where our children are unparented and unpoliced. It is up to us to develop an open relationship with our children, monitor their activity and set up necessary restrictions to protect their wellbeing.
Some of the main strategies that Nathan outlined for you to use at home were:
Delay the age of children being online for as long as possible.
Set accounts up properly by adjusting settings and restrictions on phones and platforms.
Know what platforms your child is using, be aware of age restrictions of different platforms and monitor what they are doing.
Develop an open relationship and be able to discuss and show you what they are doing online.
Restrict time online.
No devices in bedrooms after 6.30pm at night (a lot of the damage on devices is done after 7.00pm at night)
The balance between school, hobbies, sports, art, music. Physically engaging in other activities takes the child away from the phone and can help lessen the addiction.
Charge devices outside the bedroom.
Watch the Social Dilemma- how they use the psychology of addiction to ensure their platform keeps being used.
If your child does need a phone for various reasons, Nathan has recommended the G-mee phone. It is designed for children and does not let them access platforms and social media accounts.
Here are some useful sites that Nathan has recommend for parents to view
- Tik Tok – What is TikTok? https://youtu.be/xvq0gI3q7o8
- What is Snapchat? https://youtu.be/Skp-k92CHtc
- What is Roblox? https://www.commonsensemedia.org/blog/parents-ultimate-guide-to-roblox-0
- The Suicide of Dolly Everett (Lessons learnt: Giving our kids a break from devices – Device-free bedrooms – time to heal). https://youtu.be/7UPYE8grP7o
- Parents Guide: Overview of all topics: https://parentguides.com.au/?gclid=EAIaIQobChMInvvpmryD7gIVlxsrCh10qgpDEAAYASAAEgK6HfD_BwE
If you feel you need guidance and support with managing your child’s online behaviour or need to report something you can reach out to:
Kids Help Line — 1800 55 1800
The video from the session will be available on Parent Lounge for those of you who could not attend the session.
Kylie Thompson
Year 6 Coordinator
Middle School Electives
Dungeons and Dragons Club
For the very first time at Lindisfarne, we have introduced a student-led elective. Owen Browne in Year 7 is doing a wonderful job in running the Dungeons and Dragons Club under the support, supervision and guidance of myself, Mrs Jacqui O’Sullivan. Students have come to the D and D Club with a wide range of knowledge and experience. For some students, it is an absolute passion and for others, it has been an introduction and will, hopefully, open the door to new friendships and interests.
It has been a pleasure to watch four of our students, Owen Browne, Oscar Drysdale, Cruz McKinley and Liam Reardon, take on the leadership roles of Dungeon Masters. They have mentored their fellow D and D members through character creation, terrain building and role-playing. It is certainly not an easy feat to let go of inhibitions and try new things. It has therefore been equally as lovely to observe students that usually shy away from attention and risk-taking, jump into the game wholeheartedly, stepping out of their comfort zone to embrace their avatars.
What a wonderful student-led initiative. Well done, Owen!
Jacqui O’Sullivan
Learning Enrichment Teacher
Senior School
Lions Youth of the Year awards
Neave Butler and Daniel Green both competed in the Coolangatta and Tweed Heads Lions Youth of the Year Quest on Tuesday, 16 February. As part of this competition, each of the participants had to complete a 40-minute interview with a panel of judges. They also had to present two spontaneous impromptu speeches and deliver a five-minute prepared speech to a dinner audience at the Tweed Heads Bowls Club.
The impromptu topics were:
If you were marooned on an uninhabited island what three things would you have?
What do you see as the implication of solar power for the home and industry?
In their prepared speeches, Daniel spoke about “The Power of a Break” whilst Neave focused on “Natural Rhythms”. They were both poised, articulate and engaging.
Both our students ably represented Lindisfarne and should be proud of their efforts. However, there could only be one winner in the event. Neave Butler is commended for being awarded the Public Speaking Award and also winning the Club Heat.
Daniel Green and Neave Butler
Neave will now represent the Lions Club of Coolangatta and Tweed Heads at the Lions Youth of the Year Competition Region Final on Saturday, 13 March. We wish her every success during the next round of this competition.
Suellen Walker
English Coordinator
Careers
Please click below to read this week's news from Options.
Head of Senior School Report
I have often heard Principal Stuart Marquardt say, “If we want our students to do remarkable things, we must first give them remarkable things to do.” Needless to say, the Senior School strives to deliver such opportunities to the students regularly. To that end, I wrote to all Year 10 to 12 male students during the week inviting them to become involved in a Youth Male Summit in March. This event will take place at The Southport School and will provide a wonderful opportunity for our students to develop their leadership skills and to engage in meaningful discussions about issues that affect the lives of young men. It has been pleasing to see that a number of boys have indicated their interest in attending this conference — I look forward to hearing their feedback on their return.
Further exciting opportunities will be afforded to Senior students in the coming weeks to participate in the Model United Nations Assembly (MUNA). MUNA is a Rotary District project designed to create an awareness of the role of the United Nations in mediating international issues. The purpose of MUNA is to encourage young people to learn about other nations and to understand and appreciate the workings of the United Nations (UN) while they develop debating skills and gain self-confidence in public speaking. The debates reproduce genuine UN debates often with a fine flow of rhetoric, points of order, motions of dissent and bloc walkouts! Lindisfarne’s Round Square Coordinator, Mr Mike Lush, will be speaking to all Senior students in the coming weeks about how to get involved.
Kate Cornell
Head of Senior School
Pastoral Care
Sport
From the Sports Desk
Swimming
A very sincere thank you to all of our community for your contributions in making both our swimming carnivals a resounding success. Based on the close proximity of next week's NCIS Primary event, and the wet weather we are experiencing, we were truly blessed to have such wonderful weather.
Congratulations to the following Age Champions:
Age/Gender | Age Champion | Runner Up |
8 Year Girls | Esther Dorr | Edith Warren |
8 Year Boys | Jack Sewell | Ned Simmonds |
9 Year Girls | Hunter Gaffney | Ella Clark and Araminta Dusseldrop |
9 Year Boys | Dean Arghyros | Maxim Harmsworth and Isaac Lloyd |
10 Year Girls | Isabelle Daniel | Zahli Bruhn |
10 Year Boys | Hunter Whitrod | Charlie Pollard and Maxson Larsen |
11 Year Girls | Skye Campbell | Eira-Grace McGilligan |
11 Year Boys | Riley Johnston | Koa Stotz |
12 Year Girls | Kaimana Lowien-Britt | Matilda Daniel |
12 Year Boys | Jack Ingham | Lachlan Arghyros |
13 Year Girls | Tiggi Groves | Sloane Bryant |
13 Year Boys | Wil Anderson | Noah Roseverne |
14 Year Girls | Isabelle Popov | Zoe Campbell |
14 Year Boys | Koa Lowien-Britt | Jules Loemker |
15 Year Girls | Claudia Arghyros | Poppy Burdekin |
15 Year Boys | Ryan Muggeridge | Brodie McDowell |
16 Year Girls | Emily Kearney | Jesse Starling and Tahlia Evans |
16 Year Boys | Flynn Southam | Baxter Fitzgerald |
17 Year Girls | Lily O’Sullivan | Ginger Allen |
17 Year Boys | Finley Neylan | Sven Loemker |
18 Year Girls | Nilaya Cannon | Charli Le Boutillier |
18 Year Boys | Kai Albert | Oliver Churchill |
Age Champion and Runners Up
Please see link - here - for full point disclosure.
House point score
Please see link here. Well done to St Barnabas House, yet again!
New Records
- 8 Boys 50m Freestyle - Jack Sewell 41.76
- 16 Boys 50m Freestyle - Flynn Southam 24.07
- 16 Boys 100m Freestyle - Flynn Southam 52.98
- 16 Boys 50 Butterfly - Flynn Southam 26.93
- 17 Girls 50m Freestyle - Lily O’Sullivan 27.74
- 17 Girls 100m Freestyle - Lily O’Sullivan 102.24
- 17 Girls 50m Butterfly - Lily O’Sullivan 32.78
March Past
- 1st - St Barnabas
- 2nd - St Stephen
- 3rd - St Cuthbert
- 4th - St Andrew
Updated full list of results for Junior, Middle and Senior - here.
Year 3 Wrap Up of the 2021 Swimming Carnival
I thought the Swimming Carnival was great! It was so much fun! I went in the Freestyle and Backstroke and I came first in both of them. My favourite part of it was the 50m Freestyle because it was fun doing it. It felt really long. I liked the canteen. I am most proud of coming first in all the races I went in. I thought I would not come first in Backstroke. I would describe it as fun, amazing and hard.
Mila Sampson 3A
I am so happy I came third in the 50m Freestyle for 9 years. The swimming was so awesome. I got a lemonade and an icy pole from the canteen. It was awesome seeing my older brother win the Breaststroke for the 10 years. At the end of my race I was really tired because I swam as fast as I could. It was so noisy and loud that I missed Breaststroke.
Charlie Cairncross 3A
The Swimming Carnival was the best day ever! My favourite part of the day was having fun with my friends and winning Backstroke. I am very proud of facing my fear and getting ribbons. I achieved swimming in a seeded race. It was very loud and fun!
Charlie Crow 3A
Hockey
Lindisfarne hosted the NCIS Hockey trials on Tuesday at Murwillumbah. A massive thanks to Sharon Buchanon, Allison Sands, Isabel Topper and for the services of Matt Bartell (Boys selector).
Congratulations to the following players who were selected to travel to Sydney to represent NCIS in the NSWCIS Hockey Tournament:
16 and Under Girls
- Bridie Bedford
- Chloe Latham
- Elke Clauson
- Gracie Crimson
- Hester Clark
- Kate Sands
- Olivia Forde
- Sienna Little
- Sofia Clauson
And Shadow representatives; Zoe Marshall, Hannah Ellis and Bonnie Crimson
16 and Under and Open Boys
- Brodie McDowell
- Callum McNicoll
- Flynn Howarth
- Jack Furness
- Rupert Fahy
Congratulations to Bridie Bedford and Brodie McDowell on their selection in the Queensland U15 Hockey team. They will travel to Bathurst in April to play at the Australian National Championships. We wish them well in their representation for Queensland.
Southern Gold Coast Independent Schools Sport Association
We were very excited to launch the Southern Gold Coast Independent Schools Sport Association this year. It was supposed to be running in Terms Two and Three; however, a prudent decision was made by all associated schools to schedule games only in Term Three, for 2021. The dynamic nature of the NSW/QLD border is concerning for all schools, and we were seeking a more reliable set of health circumstances and government directives before rolling out this association.
This association will allow for regular sustained inter-school competition within our allotted sport time, and we are very much looking forward to getting involved. All schools involved will convene at the end of Term One to assess whether we proceed this year or not.
Lindisfarne Lions Basketball Club
This week we have 10 teams taking the court at Carrara representing our school in the inaugural launch of the Lindisfarne Lions Basketball Club.
Spotlight on Sacha Melrose Cripps
On the weekend of the 6 and 7 February, Jack Stafford and Sacha Melrose Cripps were selected to represent the North East Upper Region (Tweed Heads to Coffs Harbour) in a teams event vers the North East Lower Region (Coffs Harbour to Forster) in Tennis. The event was held in Sawtell, and each team was represented by four boys and four girls in U11, U13, U15 and U17. Jack and Sacha represented the U13 age group and played a combination of Singles, Doubles and Mixed Double matches over the two days.
They both played some fantastic tennis and in the end, their team, the North East Upper Region prevailed over the Lower region 106 sets to 84.
Spotlight on Benji Dickens
Benji competed at regionals athletics championships this weekend. He competed in 5 events and received the following place:
- Silver for Shot Put,
- Silver for Discus and
- Silver for High Jump
- Gold for 60m Hurdles
Congratulations on some amazing results, and good luck to Benji as he prepares for the State Championships in Brisbane on 20/21 March.
Spotlight on Kiara Denny
Last weekend Kiara was part of the Queensland Touch Football, Q-Academy, in the Titans permit. The Q Youth Academy is a three-day intensive touch football training camp for athletes aged 12-17 years.
Participants who attend the academy are selected from the QLD Junior State Championships to represent their NRL Touch Premiership permit, Junior Broncos, Cowboys and Titans.
The regional coaches come together to coach the permit teams and are supported and assisted by high-performance touch football coaches and players.
It was a big weekend of back-to-back training and games with Kiara absolutely revelling in the activities.
Spotlight on Riley Johnston
Over the weekend Riley competed in the 2021 RMHC Queensland Sprint Championships for Lawrence Swim Club. A great achievement to be top ten in QLD in all 3 strokes.
- Seeded 11th for Backstroke and achieved a new PB 39.24 with a new seed as 9th in QLD
- Seeded 13th for Freestyle and achieved a new PB 32.46 with a new seed as 6th in QLD
- Seeded 4th for Breaststroke and achieved a new PB 42.43 and Riley maintains his spot as seeded 4th in Qld.
Spotlight on Indiana Grey
Indi has immersed herself in Rugby and her club, the Casuarina Baa Baas.
She is always trying to promote rugby in the community and be proactive in her actions, including being on the Casuarina rugby committee, recruiting and giving confidence to new players, helping develop the game within school, helping to coach the younger grades, watching games and encouraging from the sideline and of course to help promote girls rugby in the newspaper!
She was asked to be on the committee to be a voice for girls in Rugby, and for a 15-year-old girl, that was a big undertaking. The club has made it clear they want to be a club that is inclusive of all involved in the game. The Gold Coast Bulletin will also be doing a special story just on Indi for this reason (this week's paper), as it is unheard of a young girl being on a committee at her age and it is exactly how a club should be to grow the game.
Indi has also been asked to take up her assistant coaching role again with the Juniors in the club. It is something she once again did of her own free will and enjoys every minute of it. She has the respect and rapport of the players and coaches alike, showing maturity beyond her years.
In the newspaper photo, Indiana was the first one called upon and was proud to represent the Casuarina club and womens rugby.
She met up with some girls that she has played against from other clubs and that’s what the game of rugby is all about, making friends and as Indi said, "ripping in!"
Damien Clucas
Head of Sport and Activities
Netball
Monday Night Netball
Great match between the Lions and Golden Lions this week … and lots of laughter too!
Good luck in Round 4 on Monday, 22 February. As you can see, we have a couple of Lindisfarne “Derby” matches this week!
Time | Team | Opposition | Court |
6pm | White Lions | Cudgen Crew | 1 |
6pm | Gold Lions | Hot Shots | 10 |
6pm | Red Lions | Centaur Sixers | 8 |
6pm | Blue Lions | Centaur Magic | 2 |
6pm | Golden Oldies | Glitter Bombers | 9 |
6pm | Glitter Bombers | Golden Oldies | 9 |
7pm | Lions (Mixed) | Silver Lions | 1 |
7pm | Silver Lions | Lions (Mixed) | 1 |
Please be at the courts in time to warm-up and sign on.
Dates for the Diary
Team Selections for anyone who would like to play for the School on Saturdays will be held at Arkinstall Park, starting at 4.30pm, on:
Thursday 4 March and
Thursday 11 March – for all Middle and Senior School players (Years 5 to 12)
Tuesday 9 March and
Tuesday 16 March for the Junior School players.
Tweed Netball Association are running a Beginners Umpiring Course on Saturday 6 March. Registrations are due by the end of the month. Please see the flyer below.
Please also note that this will be the only course run for new umpires in 2021 so if you are thinking of learning more about the game - and earning $10 every match (even as a beginner!) then please register ASAP. See the flyer below for more information
Netball Centre of Excellence
The Netball Centre of Excellence Induction Evening will take place on Thursday, 25 February.
Strength and conditioning training with Rory continues on Mondays during school time.
If you have any questions regarding netball, please do not hesitate to email me.
I’m here if you need!
Gay Maynard
Teacher in Charge of Netball
Outdoor Education
Agriculture
Business, Entrepreneurship and Enterprise
Join the BEE Hive
Last week, I had the opportunity to present at the Australian Centre for Entrepreneurship Research Exchange conference to a national and international audience. The title of my presentation was 'Entrepreneurship through Deeper Learning' and I spoke about our department's main focus of developing what is commonly known as the deeper learning skills Six Cs — Creativity, Critical Thinking, Collaboration, Character, Communication and Citizenship. I spoke about the range of programs the Business, Entrepreneurship and Enterprise Faculty will be offering this year including the BEE (Business, Entrepreneurship and Enterprise) Hive.
The BEE Hive is a network currently being developed by the BEE faculty and a group of conscientious Year 10 students. The BEE Hive will have two major aims:
1. Build awareness and support of entrepreneurship throughout our school (P-12)
2. Support initiatives of entrepreneurship in the wider community through mentoring, startups and seeding.
The group is currently writing a constitution and in coming weeks the network will open up to:
1. All Students P-12
2. Mentors throughout our community and members of our community with a passion in entrepreneurship.
If you are interested in joining this network as a community member/mentor, please contact me at bmalone@lindisfarne.nsw.edu.au. We are looking for anyone that has the entrepreneur spirit, business owners or people with skills in areas such as technology, the arts, sport and sustainability. From time to time community members will also meet separate from the student members to network and share ideas on entrepreneurship in our community.
A network such as this is about developing the Six Cs of deeper learning and preparing students for their future but also building community links.
Bryan Malone
Director of Business, Entrepreneurship and Enterprise
English
Writing and Poetry Competitions
What Matters?
What Matters? is a “catalyst for young thinkers and young writers to develop a perspective, a point of view, on where we're heading as a society.”
This competition was inspired by Gough Whitlam and is currently open to Year 5-12 students from Australia. Entrants are free to express their views on any matter they care about.
This competition is now open until 14 May 2021.
Competition Guidelines
1. Submit an original written work between 400-600 words in prose or poetry, either fiction or nonfiction
2. Start with an issue of significance to you, and express your views with conviction
3. Ensure correct grammar, spelling and punctuation
4. Acknowledge your sources if using case studies, media reports or statistics. References and bibliographies will not be included in the word count however references should not include substantive content. All shortlisted entries will undergo a plagiarism check and word count check.
5. Essays are marked anonymously. Hence, the student’s name must not appear in the body of the essay or essay title.
6. There is a limit of one entry per student. If multiple entries are received only the most recent will be accepted.
7. Submit your entry online at: whitlam.org/whatmatters.
More information about this competition can be found at the link above.
Poetry and Short Story Competition 2021
Entry is now open for the 2021 Schools Poetry and Short Writing Competition. Students are invited to enter their poems OR short stories. There is no theme and entrants are encouraged to let their imaginations run wild and write on any topic and in any style.
Students from Kindergarten to Year 12 are eligible to enter. Entry is free and entries must be received by the 31 March 2021.
Please visit https://www.write4fun.net/competitions/68 for the competition rules.
Suellen Walker
English Coordinator
Spotlight on Reading
My name is Kylie Rossington and I am delighted to be leading the English Faculty as the new Head of Department. One of the initiatives I want to see up and running is a renewed focus on reading; reading for pleasure, reading to improve comprehension and vocabulary, reading for empathy. Just. Plain. Reading.
But I am aware that if we want kids to get excited about reading, we need to model and direct them. So… I am introducing some new opportunities in this domain. At assembly this week, I will be launching the first in a series of Staff Book Reviews. Our newest staff member, Ms Emily Brewer, will kickstart our review with the video below.
Each fortnight we will release a new review from different members of the faculty. Eventually, we want to bring students on board to showcase what they have been reading. In addition to this, we are going to introduce competitions and prizes that aim to celebrate and promote positive reading choices. We will also be advertising upcoming writing competitions so be sure to keep checking the newsletter and Facebook.
Any reviews that are presented at assembly and in the newsletter can be followed up by seeing your friendly English team. We are also happy to provide recommendations and reading lists. Don’t forget the lovely library ladies as well – they are more than happy to point your child in the direction of a good book!
Stay tuned for further updates. But for now, enjoy this week’s review by Ms Emily Brewer.
Tips to promote and/or reignite reading in your house:
- Trial and error is key – supply a variety of options and encourage students to keep an open mind – not all books have to be boring or punishing; test out different authors and genres.
- Switch the device for a book to establish positive bedtime routines.
- Start a family book club – read what your child is reading and ask questions.
- Try to avoid making reading punitive – reading for pleasure is not the same as reading for analysis. Encourage reading for pleasure.
- Model habits – take a book on holidays with you and talk about what you are reading.
- Don’t judge a book by its cover! Or rather by its form – all reading is beneficial so be open to magazines, graphic novels, audiobooks, non-fiction, blogs etc (Just try to limit the amount of unsupervised screen time).
- Ask us for recommendations — we are here to help!
Kylie Rossington
Director of English
Creative Industries
Robotics Club
The three laws of robotics:
- A robot may not injure a human being or, through inaction, allow a human being to come to harm.
- A robot must obey the orders given it by human beings except where such orders would conflict with the first law
- A robot must protect its own existence as long as such a protection does not conflict with the First or second laws.
Isaac Asimov first wrote these laws in the 1940s as a science fiction writer. Today in 2021 our students get to play with robots that were pure fantasy and they have been loving it!
Over the past three months, the School and TAS Department has been working tirelessly to develop a robotics lab for our students. This is the first purpose built robotics lab in the Northern NSW region and will provide students with an extensive range of opportunities including a state wide competition.
VEX is an international robotics company that supplies students with equipment and each year they provide a challenge for students to enter. Every May, the competition is released and our students will compete against other students in October. Last year, two teams were entered into a state wide competition for the “Rise Above” VEX IQ challenge.
As a teacher, I was most impressed with the level of grit and determination our students demonstrate and how engaged they were with learning complex concepts.
The wonderful part about the Robotics Club is you don’t only have to be a programmer. If you’re good at gaming, we have xbox controllers that have to be mastered to play the games. If you’re good at lego, we have extensive builds that need to be created. If you’re good at designing/engineering, we need creative brains to think of practical solutions to our problems. If you like being involved in a team environment where you get to learn about STEAM in a practical meaningful way we offer a warm and welcoming environment.
It was a fantastic opportunity and the School is determined to provide more opportunities for our students. This year, we have increased our commitment to providing students with more equipment and more opportunities. A detailed map of activities has been created for our students to build micro projects before the competition game is announced. The first micro project that our teams will be building will be two robots to compete against each other.
The robotics lab is in PE13 and will be open every lunch time on Mondays, Tuesday, Wednesday and Fridays. If anyone is interested, they are more than welcomed to come in to see what we are doing.
Students in Years 6 to 8 will be working on the plastic vex gear known as vex IQ. The teams from last year have all returned and we are looking to expand in this area to have four teams in total. These teams will meet each Monday to be given a weekly challenge to complete.
Students in Years 9 to 12 will be working on the metal vex gear known as V5. The coding and construction of their robots are slightly more extensive compared to the IQ systems. At the moment, we are only offering two teams to enter the competition. Our Senior teams will meet each Tuesday to be given a weekly challenge to complete.
On Fridays, our team members will be learning C++ starting next week. This is one of the more challenging languages to learn, but will give our students an edge against our competition.
Our short term mission is simple: to get to the national finals held in Adelaide. Vex is an international tournament and the strongest teams in the world are invited to compete in the USA. Our long term aspiration is to get a team to compete in this interatinational competition, once the borders open.
Spaces are limited and we will be having trials over the rest of the term to put forward our best teams to enter into the competitions. If you are interested in robotics, this is a wonderful opportunity to get involved in a real world, hands-on experience.
Come along to PE13 any lunch time to join in with the fun. For further information, please do not hesitate to contact me at stephen.henderson@lindisfarne.nsw.edu.au
Stephen Henderson
Director of Technological and Applied Studies (TAS)
Debating and Public Speaking
French
HSIE
Languages
Dance
Mathematics
Maths
Performing Arts
Germinate Records
PDHPE
Traditional and Cultural Games
During practical lessons this term, Year 8 students are looking at participating in traditional and cultural games. It is a chance for students to experience sports that they might not have yet had a chance to play or have even seen.
Whilst we are familiar with many games that Australians would consider “traditional” or part of our “culture” like AFL, cricket and rugby league, how many could say they know about Kenntan, Buroinjin or Jillora which were games played by Indigenous Australians?
Looking outside of our own backyard at sports like Pelota, Lacrosse and Sepak Takraw, help Lindisfarne students make connections with other cultures and develop an understanding of where a number of the games they like to play, such as Handball, originated.
This term, students will also complete a research task on a traditional game of their choice. Hopefully, our practical lessons are a great link and inspiration to some new ideas and games to be investigated.
The PDHPE Faculty
Photography and Digital Media
Science
Science Matters
Too Hot to Handle
Did you enjoy the Swimming Carnival last week? Did you remember to drink lots of water? The Junior and Middle School Swimming Carnival on Friday was exciting but it was really hot. When you get hot, your body works hard to maintain a constant temperature and it does this by sweating. When you are exercising hard on a humid day, you might sweat a staggering two litres per hour. This is okay as long as you drink enough water to replace the fluid you are sweating out. In fact, you should be happy that you are sweating because it means that your body is doing what it is meant to do in order to keep you cool.
It would be a different story if you couldn’t sweat and were unable to cool down.
One of the consequences of climate change is an increase in the number and duration of heatwaves in various countries around the world. With records being broken annually, the inevitable question is: How much heat can a human tolerate?
Like so many questions we tackle here at Science Matters, this one takes a bit of explaining. As long as sweating is occurring, humans can tolerate remarkably high temperatures. The highest temperature recorded in Australia is 50.6 degrees celsius at Oodnadatta, South Australia and the world record is a sweltering 56.7 degrees celsius at Death Valley, California. However, some people just can’t seem to get enough heat and exposed themselves to temperatures as high as 90 degrees celsius in Saunas. This is extreme heat and you can’t remain in a place as hot as that for very long. Besides, the sauna is traditionally followed by a plunge through a hole in the ice into frigid water which has the effect of making you forget very quickly how hot you were!
The critical thing is that you are able to sweat and that brings us to how we measure temperature. There are two types of thermometers, “dry bulb” and “wet bulb”. A wet bulb thermometer has a little piece of cloth over the end of it that is dipped in water. The thermometer is usually whirled around on a string before the temperature is read and it is always cooler than the temperature recorded on the dry thermometer.
There is a clearly defined point where the temperature becomes unsurvivable: 35 degrees celsius on the wet bulb thermometer. At this point sweat is unable to evaporate from your skin and your body stops shedding heat and begins to absorb it from the air which is quickly fatal.
The really alarming thing about climate change is that a 35 degree wet bulb reading has already been recorded at the city of Dhahran in Saudi Arabia. This was a brief, localised event but, even so, anyone caught outside without shelter would have been in real trouble. Dhahran may become the first city on earth to be rendered uninhabitable due to temperature in the future.
So, next time you find yourself feeling hot and sweaty, remember that your body is taking care of you as best it can. Just drink plenty of water and stay in the shade or, best of all, jump in the pool.
As for the people of Dhahran, the best thing we can do for them is to get our collective act together on climate change as quickly as possible.
Enjoy your week in Science and never stop asking questions.
Hamish Inksetter
Science Coordinator
Visual Arts
Learning Enrichment
Homework Club
Learning Enrichment is looking forward to welcoming the students back to Homework Club on Wednesday 24 February. Our Homework Club is open for students in Years 5-12 and runs from 3:30-4:30pm every Wednesday. Students are required to bring homework, study or assignments to work on during this time. Parents are to collect students from the carpark (near main administration) at 4:30pm.
Round Square
Round Square News
SAI Global Debate
Congratulations to our Senior and Middle School teams that took part in the SAI Global Debate last Saturday. Students from 44 schools across the network took part with Lindisfarne being the only one from Australia. The competition was tough and it was a rewarding experience for all involved. Particular congratulations go to Sienna Williamson who made it through to the finals.
Upcoming Events - please email your interest to mlush@lindisfarne.nsw.edu.au.
Round Square Postcard series
Vidya Devi Jindal School, India
On Wednesday, 24 February at 4.30pm (NSW), we will be zooming over to Vidya Devi Jindal School, India, for a RS Postcard that invites us to “Be the Rainbow in Someone Else’s Cloud”.
On the call, our hosts will invite participants to share examples of the people, practices and new learnings that have brought cheer in difficult times to them and those around them. Through discussion, participants will explore what it takes to make a positive difference in the lives of others.
Colegia Gran Bretaña, Colombia
Join us on Thursday, 4 March 2021 at 10.00am (NSW) for a RS Postcard from Colegio Gran Bretaña, Colombia invite students aged 12 to 15 years to discuss the topic of ‘Adventures at home’.
On the call, participants will be invited to share new skills and talents that they have learned in the comfort of their homes.
Round Square Virtual Conference
This is the final call for the upcoming RS Virtual Conference to be hosted on 6 March (with a pre-meet on 2 March) by The International School of Kenya.
The conference is open to students aged 11 to 13 and the theme chosen by our hosts is 'Kustawi Alkebulan' - Thriving in Africa.
On Tuesday, 2 March a pre-conference meet and greet baraza will introduce delegates to one another and to their baraza leaders before sharing a brief for the pre-conference task to complete and submit by Thursday, 4 March.
On Saturday, 6 March at the Conference itself, participants will join a three-hour online experience in which they will hear from a panel of speakers, take part in interactive Baraza groups, share knowledge, and discuss practical solutions.
Mike Lush
Round Square Coordinator
International
Sustainability
Waste-free Lunchese
Lindisfarne Recording Studio
Digital Space
Chess Club
Co-curricular and Extra-curricular
Library
Alumni
Uniform Shop
OOSHC
Buildings and Facilities
Careers@Lindisfarne
Director of Faculty — Careers and VET
Full-time continuing position commencing 22 March 2021
We seek to appoint an outstanding educational leader as our next Director of Faculty - Careers and VET. The Director of Careers and VET is responsible for developing and implementing the delivery of a successful career’s program, vocation development and post-school options services that effectively meets the needs of the students and the School from Years 7 to 12 in a positive and future-looking focus and to assist students to design their vocational pathway(s).
The successful applicant will:
- Be experienced in delivering a high quality, comprehensive careers program for secondary students which prepares students well for post-secondary pathways.
- Have experience in promoting student participation in industry, university and tertiary institution career events; and pathways to University, Colleges and TAFE and private providers.
- Provide strategic leadership and manage the day-to-day operations of the School’s VET programs. Currently, these programs include Hospitality and Screen and Media and a range of TVET TAFE courses.
- Have experience in establishing and managing the delivery of School approved VET programs.
- Certificate IV in Workplace Training and Assessment desirable.
- Formal qualifications in Career Development desirable.
- Possess demonstrated experience as an excellent teacher, leader and administrator.
- Demonstrate high levels of professionalism, superior organisational and collaborative abilities.
- Demonstrate an ability to develop a positive, harmonious and constructive team environment.
- Have an understanding of and commitment to the Anglican Christian ethos of the School.
- Hold a current NSW Working with Children Check (or be eligible to apply for one).
Located at our Terranora campus in northern New South Wales, this is an outstanding opportunity to join a dynamic learning community in an aspirational School.
If this position provides the professional challenge you are seeking, please visit our website via http://bit.ly/LindisfarneEmployment for full details.
Applications close, 4.00pm Friday, 5 March 2021.
School Psychologist
We are seeking a qualified Clinical Psychologist/Psychologist to join our team:
The successful applicant will have:
- Professional qualifications in Psychology enabling professional registration
- Relevant experience in a school environment
- An ability to effectively deal with child, adolescent and family issues in an educational context
- Understanding of the academic and wellbeing needs of students as these relate to the learning and personal growth outcomes for students
- Expertise in identification, formulation and counselling of students
- An ability to work effectively with highly sensitive and confidential matters
- Demonstrate high levels of professionalism, superior organisational and collaborative abilities
- Demonstrate an ability to develop a positive, harmonious and constructive team environment
- Have an understanding of and commitment to the Anglican Christian ethos of the School
- Hold a current NSW Working with Children Check (or be eligible to apply for one).
Located at our Terranora campus in northern New South Wales, this is an outstanding opportunity to join a dynamic learning community in an aspirational School.
If this position provides the professional challenge you are seeking, please visit our website via http://bit.ly/LindisfarneEmployment for full details.
Applications close, 4.00pm Friday, 5 March 2021.