2022 Term 2 Week 4 20 May 2022

Dear Parents,

Over the last week, there have been three incidents of students being approached by strangers on their way to or from school across the region.

Two students in Horseshoe Drive were walking home from Terranora Primary Public School, one student in Illawong Crescent, walking to Lindisfarne Anglican Grammar School, and a student from St Joseph’s College was approached late afternoon at a bus stop in Salt. Each time we have written to the school community and also advised the Tweed/Byron Police.

Over the last 20 years, much of the Child Safety training in schools and other organisations has been focused on protective behaviours training and mandatory reporting requirements. A royal commission has been held on Institutional Child Abuse, and Child Safe Standards introduced in Australian Schools.

This sadly came about as research revealed that the majority of children and young people who are victims of child abuse are harmed by someone known to the child or family.

The emphasis has shifted over time from ‘stranger danger’ to protective behaviours and for good reason.

However ‘stranger danger’ remains a threat to children and young people as indicated by the three incidents of the last week. Resources to support families are more limited than they once were, however, the Daniel Morcombe  Foundation - Keeping Kids Safe fact sheet (here) is helpful. There is also an extensive resource bank on the Daniel Morcombe Foundation website (here) established by Daniel’s parents Bruce and Denise Morcombe.

Keeping messaging simple is powerful and I was drawn to the points - Recognise, React and Report.

When teaching travel safe skills it's important to remember the following general safety advice for children and young people.

Recognise - What’s happening around you? Are you safe?

React - What can you do if the situation is not safe?

Report - Tell an adult at home or school if something is not ok or you don’t feel safe

I would add a fourth point.

Remove - Remove yourself immediately from a situation that does not feel safe and if required with as much noise as necessary.

Given the recent incidents, I’d ask all members of the school community to remain vigilant and report any suspicious or concerning behaviour in your local area to the Tweed/Byron Police and the School.

This week we completed the NAPLAN literacy and numeracy testing for students in Years 3, 5, 7 and 9 for 2022. I greatly appreciate the work of Dean of Studies, Caroline Jeffries and Assistant Head of Junior School, Laura Gallagher, our dedicated Learning Enrichment team and our school staff for ensuring that the Naplan program was successfully completed, especially given the ongoing challenges with Covid-19.

Yesterday afternoon a representative group of community leaders, staff, school parents and students met at the Minjungbal Aboriginal Cultural Centre to facilitate the development of a School Reconciliation Action Plan. We were warmly welcomed to the centre by Nicole Rotumah who shared some of the Bundjalung people's history and culture with us. If you haven’t visited the Minjungbal Aboriginal Cultural Centre yet it really is a ‘must do, see and hear’ experience. You’ll find the Minjungbal Centre at the end of Kirkwood Road, Tweed Heads.

Today we hosted the NCIS Cross Country. Unfortunately, the weather didn’t quite cooperate but it was wonderful to host this event and to witness some outstanding athletes from across the North Coast region in action.

This week our boy's soccer team travelled to Sydney to play Newington College in the CIS Soccer competition. They performed incredibly well and after a strong performance were narrowly defeated. If you love football, Newington was kind enough to film the game. You can watch a replay here. Go to the 36:00 mark and watch for 60 seconds to see the build-up for our goal.

Finally, as we approach camp week for Years 7 to 12 next week I thank all of the staff for the incredible work they do to support our camp, adventure and outdoor education programs. This was clearly evident as I attended the Year 4 camp last night and saw the extraordinary work of the staff and the support and encouragement given to the Year 4 students who thoroughly embraced the learning opportunity at Camp Goodenough. This local camp venue at Carool is world-class and owned and operated by the Tunstall family who have had a long association with Lindisfarne Anglican Grammar School.

Camp week each year is an extraordinary week of learning for our students beyond the classroom and beyond the school. The challenge and enjoyment of new experiences are essential to our holistic development. Over the years as I’ve attended school reunions held at the schools I’ve taught at, the number one area that I have constantly heard students reminisce about has been the relationships built, the character developed and the experiences shared through engagement in the learning provided through the camps and outdoor education programs of the schools.

To our students - enjoy your week of building capacity and growing stronger together.

Stuart Marquardt
Principal

Dear Students, Staff, Parents and Guardians,

There’s so much good being done by our staff and students on a daily basis that sometimes go unnoticed. It’s these beautiful acts of kindness and generosity that make Lindisfarne tick. I would like to thank each and every one of you for all your care, compassion, kindness and dedication in these challenging times.

Elie Wiesel, Holocaust survivor, author, teacher and nobel laureate, wrote: “My goal as a teacher is to humanize, to sensitize.” He told his students, “Whatever you learn, remember: the learning must make you more, not less, human.” Professor Wiesel argues that through education we have to help our students take responsibility for societal problems and transform the world for the better.

At Lindisfarne we take this to heart, and encourage and challenge our students and indeed our whole school community to see the needs in our world and to do something about them, as St Mary McKillop aptly said.

In light of Elie’s view about education, I’m encouraged this week that our students helped me pack two boxes of stationery to be sent to Timor Leste and Port Moresby, PNG for poor and needy students. The stationery are unused items which staff and students donated for the needs of others.

Doing something for others, particularly for the poor and marginalized, is one of the ways we can assist our students become the best version of themselves. Because, “life’s most persistent question is”, Martin Luther King Jr. said, ‘what are you doing for others?”

Jack, Billy, Ben and Wyatt helped me put together the boxes for Timor Leste and Moresby.

Winter Appeal in aid of the Tweed Shire Homeless

In week 6 please remember to bring jumpers, socks, tents, sleeping bags, ponchos and non-perishable food and leave in the designated areas in the Chapel or in front of the Chaplain’s office to assist our homeless brothers and sisters this coming winter. Thank you in advance for your usual support.

Pentecost Sunday Service on Sunday, 5 June 2022

On June 5, over 2 billion Christians around the world will gather to remember the day of Pentecost when the Holy Spirit descended on the disciples of Jesus, and inaugurated the birth of the Christian Church. I'd be delighted if you could join the Tweed Anglicans at our Mahers Lane Chapel to remember this event and to pray for a new outpouring of the Holy Spirit upon us, our children, our communities and families.

Please come along and bring your friends and let me know if you're able to attend.  Refreshments start at 4.30pm followed by Service at 5pm. We'd be finished by 6pm.

May God continue to bless you and yours, and grant you your good heart’s desires this weekend and always.

Rev Constantine Osuchukwu
Chaplain

Travelling to school by themselves is an opportunity for children to develop confidence and new skills.  However, this independence requires some careful planning and not all children will be ready to take this opportunity at the same time as their peers.

The Daniel Morcombe Foundation has a handy Parent Fact Sheet called ‘Travel safe’ to support parents and carers in preparing their children for a safe transition to independently getting to school.  They note that when teaching safe travel skills, it is important to remember the following:

Recognise – What is happening around you? Are you safe?

React – What can you do if the situation is not safe?

Report – Tell an adult at home or school if something is not ok or you don’t feel safe.

The Tip Sheet also has some specific ideas for travelling by bus, walking, or by bike and is well worth a look  https://danielmorcombefoundation.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2019/05/DMF_FS_Travelling_to_School.pdf

One great safety tip for any family is to create a ‘family password’.  This word needs to be used by anyone who is picking up your child.  If they don’t have the password, your child does not go with them.  Teaching your child to ask for the password and helping them plan what to do if the person doesn’t have it is a great way to have the discussion about safety.  Perfect for use at the beach, theme park or shopping centre as well as on the way to school.

If your children don’t walk to school unaccompanied then you don’t need to bring the recent local incidents to their awareness. Rather, it is best to take this opportunity to talk in a general way about their safety and about having a safety plan for the future.  More direct information should definitely be provided to those children who do walk to school independently, so make a time to have the discussion and make a safety plan.

When discussing safety, it is important to stay factual, approach it as ‘just in case’ learning, and where possible make it fun (what will your family password be!) to avoid increasing children’s anxiety.  If your child already has a specific anxiety disorder, consider discussing how to have this discussion with their GP or psychologist to ensure the information is presented in way that does not cause more distress.

For younger children Safety4Kids is a bright and engaging interactive website that provides some lovely resources to help introduce the safety message www.safety4kids.com.au

Julie Henry and Emmalene Wells
School Psychologists

On Wednesday, 15 June the first Lindisfarne Business Network Breakfast event at Club Tweed will be held. Details of the event are shown below. Seats and tables can be purchased via this link. We're really excited to welcome Mr Ben Roche, Vice President (Engagement) at Southern Cross University as the featured speaker for this first event. Tickets for the breakfast are on sale now, with further details about how organisations can get involved in the Lindisfarne Business Network to be shared in the coming weeks.

Bus Safety

The safety of our students is always at the forefront of our minds and needs constant reminders and reflection. Recently we have had a couple of incidents reported involving Junior School students’ behaviour on the Surfside buses. Which has been disappointing to hear.  Although we have spoken to this group of students directly, and we have addressed the entire Junior School at our Assembly, if your child catches a surfside or Lindisfarne School Bus could you please speak with your children about the importance of bus safety and appropriate behaviour. At our next Junior School assembly in Week 6 we have invited a representative from Surfside who will run a session about the importance of bus safety in our community.

Parent Lounge and After school activities:

To ensure the safety of our students, we also need to know where they are while they are in our care. This includes where they need to go at the end of the school day. To assist us with this, please ensure that your child’s Parent Lounge pick up arrangements are up to date each day. If your child attends any after school sport or activity, it is very important that that is indicated on Parent Lounge, no later than 2pm, so that we know they are meant to be attending the activity instead of catching the bus or showing up to the turning circle or the Arkinstall Park gate. 

We continue to address students and parents at assemblies about the school’s unashamedly high standards and expectations regarding our standing within our community. The Lindisfarne school uniform is an important part of our demonstration of these standards and we are proud that so many families choose our school because of this. The expectations are clearly articulated in the Parent and Student Guide. Recently, we have noted a number of students wearing black joggers with formal uniforms. In accordance with our policy, formal shoes are to be of the black, polishable leather or leather-like variety. In other words, traditional school shoes. We have also discussed “how” the uniform is worn with a focus on the simple notion that, when in uniform, whether it be in the classroom, in the playground, on the bus or at the shops, the uniform is to be worn completely and correctly. This includes shirts tucked in for the Yr 3 and 4 boys, appropriate hair ties and earrings for the girls and ties for Yrs 3 and 4 with formal uniforms in terms 2 and 3. These are parts of our school culture that we can easily improve. Our “world class basics” give us a great platform to build upon. 

Support from families on matters such as these is greatly appreciated. 

Laura Gallagher
Assistant Head of Junior School

Dates for Term 2

Please find below some Junior School key dates to add to your calendar: 

• FUN Athletics Carnival P - 4 Friday, 3 June
• K-6 Athletics Carnival Friday, 24 June

Total Football Academy Afterschool Sessions

The Total Football Academy sessions will continue for the rest of this term. Sessions will run on Monday afternoons from 3.15- 4.15 pm on the back oval and Arkinstall park. 

Students are to meet Mr Croft on the Basketball courts after school to have a roll marked. Students will have time to change into training gear and boots if they would like, have a snack and be ready to start at 3.15 pm. 

At the end of each session, we need some assistance to coordinate the parent pick up. 

We have asked the Total Football Academy coaching team to sit the students down at the end of the session in a group and identify that there is someone ready to pick up each child individually. They have been asked not to let students go until their carer has been identified. 

Can you please assist us with this by waiting until each child has been released by the Total Football Academy coaches prior to taking them home.

The dates for this term are as follows and can also be found on the flyer attached. 

Sessions will be run on Monday 2, 9, 16, 23, 30 May and 6, 20 June. 

*** PLEASE NOTE THAT MONDAY, 13 JUNE IS A PUBLIC HOLIDAY AND THERE WILL BE NO SESSION ON THIS DAY***

AFL Auskick

The AFL Auskick program kicked off this week with ver 90 students from Sunshine Avenue attending. This is an amazing result for both the AFL and our school. The program will run for 6 weeks on Wednesday afternoons. Anyone wishing to join can do so by registering online. Details are in the flyer attached and have also been sent home with students as well as being put on SEESAW. 

Fun Athletics Carnival

The Junior School FUN Athletics Carnival will be held on Friday 3 June. The day is all about FUN and participation. The students will dress in house colours on the day to support their house and get into the spirit of the day. We are so lucky this year that the parents and families are welcome to attend as spectators. So come along and cheer the next generation of super athletes as they show off their talents and have a great time. 

The P&F in conjunction with a sponsor for the day will be providing a free sausage sandwich for every student on the day for lunch. 

More information about times and activities will be sent home in the coming weeks and on SEESAW. 

Nathan Croft
PE Specialist P-4

Camp Week is upon us. This weekend will see the majority of our Mahers Lane students and staff packing their bags ready for an early morning departure on Monday to various destinations in both Queensland and New South Wales.

Some students are incredibly excited about this outdoor educational experience while other students may be feeling somewhat anxious about the unknown. This range of emotional responses are completely normal. As teachers, we are always supportive and caring of how our students are feeling. Camp is a terrific opportunity to develop social skills and cultivate independence by separating in a healthy way from parents. Camp activities can assist children build confidence by demonstrating mastery of new skills that stretch their learning experiences. We look forward to a great week and fun and adventure and hope to have some great photos to share. Please remember Friday 27 May is Camp Recovery Day. There will be no classes.

As you may be aware, the School has a subscription to Safe on Social. This is an online safety education and training tool that both parents and teachers can access. This week they have posted an excellent article about consent. Please read this below and I encourage you to engage in these important conversations with your children.

It’s Never Too Early To Start The Discussion Around Consent - Tips For Discussion At Home

The topic of consent is a discussion that every parent needs to have at home and we want to help guide this conversation and ensure our parents feel comfortable and confident raising this critical topic with their children.

The increased usage of technology and exposure to social media means that we are seeing more and more stories of children exposed to issues such as online grooming and sexualised behaviour at an early age. For that reason, we are using tools like the Safe On Social Schools Toolkit to ensure student’s online safety education and safety is a priority at school but the conversations must also extend into the home.

Together we want to ensure children are educated, supported and prepared to safely navigate these circumstances. We wanted to pass along some tips from Safe On Social about what you need to be talking about at home when it comes to the important topic of ‘consent’. From primary age all the way up to high school, open and honest conversations between kids and their parents can do wonders to build trust and pass accurate information along to your children. Here’s some ideas to get started.

6 Tips for Sparking Discussions At Home:

1. Empower your kids from a young age to practice body autonomy and allow younger children to understand they can say no if they don’t want a hug, tickle, kiss etc.
2.  Encourage children of all ages to speak up if any behaviour they see or experience online makes them feel uncomfortable in any way. Start the conversation about following their ‘gut’ feeling and why if something feels off then it’s never silly to speak up.
3. Educate yourself - make sure you know and understand the games your kids are using as a very first stop. Is it age appropriate, what is the rating? Remember the average age of a gamer is actually 34-36yrs.
4. Discuss that they need to tell you or another trusted adult if anything happens online that makes them feel uncomfortable. Some examples are: Playing Roblox against someone that they have met online and they are asked to be their boyfriend or girlfriend, asked to move platforms (from Roblox to follow the person on TikTok for example), being asked for photos or being sent inappropriate images.
5. Be brave enough to have uncomfortable conversations with your child - being proactive now is far more important than feeling like you could have done something earlier. A great conversation starter is watching TV or movies together and talking about the situations the characters are experiencing so you can get a dialogue going with real-time scenarios.
6. Young people also need to know that just because they have agreed to do something in the past, this does not mean they have to agree to do it again. They have the right to change their mind at any time.....even part way through an activity.

Talking about consent is not a one-off conversation, it’s an ongoing educational journey to help fully prepare our students to feel empowered. We hope these tips provide a way to start the discussion at home. If you’d like more advice or have any concerns about online safety or issues that your child may be facing in or out of school please let us know, we are here to help. 

Cathy Cox
Head of Middle School

Throughout the first semester, Year 6 students have been engaging in a theory unit developed by the Gold Coast Suns called Play to Your Strengths. The unit utilises both self-directed online lessons, including videos, quizzes and interactive activities as well as collaborative group work and games.

Students begin by finding out their own personal top 24 personal strengths in order of relevance and then begin to delve more deeply into their top 5 strengths, discovering how they can “Know, Show and Grow” those strengths.

As a culmination of this program, students worked in groups to develop a presentation summarising what they have learnt. 4 players from the Gold Coast Suns who also work as ambassadors for the program (Ben King, Jack Lukosius, Lauren Ahrens and Bess Keaney) visited the school on Thursday 19th May to watch these students presentations and engage in a Q & A session with students.

The players were blown away by the high standards and dedication that each group showed throughout their presentations. They were able to treat the students at the conclusion by giving up their time for signatures and discussions over recess.

A big thank you to the Gold Coast Suns for their support, not only of the program, but providing students with the thrill of meeting some of their AFL heroes in person.

Mrs Thompson & Mrs Topper
Year 6 Coordinator & Teacher

You Choose - Youth Road Safety

On Wednesday our Year 11 and 12 students attended an important presentation by Melissa McGuinness from ‘YOU CHOOSE – Youth Road Safety’, Australia’s youth-led mission to change driving culture.

Melissa  is a mother of three children who lives with the loss of her 18-year-old son, Jordan, who died in a car crash in 2012 in which his choices also killed four other innocent young people.

The  messages are confronting, though extremely important for young people and their decision making as drivers and passengers. Many students were moved to profound introspection about their own families, which is the intent behind the mission's motto - Own the Choice Own the Outcome.  

Melissa challenged the students to consider how they will personally seek leadership in road safety, live life to its fullest, protect their loved ones; and be truly accountable in situations where they need to place their safety and wellbeing at the forefront of decision making.  

We have asked students to share the YOU CHOOSE mission with you; and to discuss what they have taken from the program. We strongly urge you to engage in this conversation with your teen; and to encourage them to complete the (anonymous) survey link accessed via the QR Code below:  

Kate Cornell
Head of Senior School

Service Learning is an amazing opportunity run each year for students in Year 10. The program encourages and enables students to become active and engaged citizens in their community and the wider world. Julie McDowell has been hard at work this year arranging a variety of volunteering opportunities for students to choose from including working with organisations such as Fred’s Place, Agape and Team Lemonade.

For one lucky group of students, Service Learning has meant the opportunity to connect with students at our Junior Campus. Some spent time helping out in the preschool, while others assisted student learning in our Year 2 and 3 classes. 

Students in Mrs Arnold’s 3A class were in awe of the incredible artistic abilities of Year 10 students James Campbell and Thomas Chong.

Year 3 and Year 10 students alike were encouraging of one another, and a fun filled art afternoon was had by all.

It was great to see our Year 10 students exercise their leadership skills, and step up as role models- but most of all it was great to see friendships blossom!

Miss Emily Brewer
Teacher

The annual Dare to Dream event will be held on Wednesday June 1st for all female year 10 and 11 students. Built on the pillars of inspiration, aspiration and motivation, our future leaders will have a day to share in conversations around opportunities, ideas and pathways.

Permissions and payments can be made through Parent Lounge. Please also note dietary requirements.

Please note: we kindly ask that all students attend school for roll marking before travelling to Osteria by school bus. If students wish to make their own way home from the venue at the conclusion of the event, this can be arranged prior to the event by emailing Kylie Wharton (kwharton@lindisfarne.nsw.edu.au).

You can view the highlights of the 2021 event here.

Kylie Wharton
Dare to Dream Coordinator

UCAT Preparation Workshop

For those students who are interested in studying medicine, there is a  live online intensive UCAT Preparation Workshop, which will take place on the 22nd of May 2022.  While this workshop is ideal for any Year 10, 11, and 12 students who are considering sitting the UCAT, it is super important to attend for Year 12s. UCAT 2022 is approaching fast and this workshop will help current Year 12 students to fast-track their UCAT preparation.

Live online workshop date: 

• Sunday - 22 May 2022

In-person attendance is also available:

• Adelaide (UniSA, Adelaide) - 11 June 2022
• Sydney (Chatswood) - 18 June 2022
• Brisbane (UQLD St Lucia) - 26 June 2022
• Melbourne (Richmond) - 2 July 2022

Natalie Marriott
Acting Director of Careers & VET

On Wednesday 11th May, Year 7 completed their Masterchef Challenge. Students created a dish that they thought would be suitable for the school canteen. They did an excellent job creating many marvellous dishes that appealed to all the sensory needs of teenagers! Our two winning dishes were Crispy Sticky Chicken with Rice and Honey Chicken with Rice. Safe to say our judges loved these winning combinations. Congratulations to our two Year 7 classes on completing their Master Challenge, and our two winning teams from each class. 

Prue Smurthwaite & Rhiannon Archer
Teachers of TAS 

This week, I would like to showcase two of our debating teams who have been awarded wins for all their debates so far this season. Both teams, on Wednesday 11 May, had a limited time to compose an argument to the following topic: Schools should teach more about how our government works.

Mrs Treacy’s Junior A team (pictured below) successfully debated the negative side of the above topic against their opposition, an A.B. Paterson team. 

Nicolas Leotta, James Cunnah, Ryder Green and Tessa Ford

Our Open B team (pictured below) also acquitted themselves very well against their opposition Assisi College arguing the affirmative side of the topic. 

Zia Mowbray, Bailey Keay, Trishul Sivabalan and Amity Chaffey

They are all commended for their commitment, enthusiasm and effective teamwork. 

Suellen Walker
English Coordinator

Stage Band and Middle School Stage Band at Club Tweed

On Thursday 16 June our Middle School and Senior School Stage bands will be performing once again at Club Tweed as well as a selection of our Year 12 Music students

The evening concert will showcase a variety of Funk, Jazz and latin repertoire. The performance will start at 6.30pm and entry is free. After the popularity of our last concert at Club Tweed it is recommended to arrive early to get a good seat.

Big Chill 

Auditions have started this week for the Big Chill concert being held on Thursday 9 June. With over 45 acts auditioning, our judges will have a tough time deciding which students have the opportunity to perform on Thursday 9 June. Auditions resume in week 6 after camp week and a final announcement of acts will be posted in the Music department on Friday 3 June.

Congratulations to Cruz Kill and his band “Da Manager”

Year 9 drummer Cruz Kill and his band “Da Manager” were invited to play at the Wet Mess flood fundraiser event held in Murwillumbah on Saturday, 30 April. The band received high praise in an article published in the Tweed Daily News and assisted in raising over $25,000 as part of the event.

Todd Hardy
Director of Performing Arts

Top story in science this week globally 
The American space agency NASA has released sounds it created with data collected from black holes. The sound production process is called sonification.NASA says that sonification was based on X-ray data collected by Chandra, light captured by the Hubble Space Telescope, as well as radio waves from the Atacama Large Millimetre Array in Chile. Here’s what it sounds like: https://youtu.be/ioR5np1fmEc

Top stories in science in Lindisfarne

Year 7 
As part of a Science creative writing task - some year 7 students undertook a RAFT activity on States of Matter. See below one of my favourite entries from Zoe Nixon- Hind - who chose to write from the perspective of a liquid to police officers about the topic - I wish you knew where you belong. The focus of this activity was to get some creative juices flowing whilst incorporating new words learnt in this science unit. Year 7 science students are now looking at a unit called Separating Mixtures. Feel free to ask them all about it. Well done to those students who elected to be involved in the BIG SCIENCE COMPETITION. The results should be out next week. We look forward to competing in this next year again so feel free to join us. Crystal Growing Competition is starting this term, meeting at lunchtimes on Friday and Monday in S11. Ask Mrs McCann for more details. 

Year 9
science students have embarked on a new unit on Ecosystems this term. We’ll be working on this for the next few weeks. This unit looks at our local environment and how we might manage it. We will also explore relationships within the ecosystem and the impact of different factors on ecosystems including humans. As part of that study, some techniques in measuring abundance of plant and animal life will be explored. To kick start the unit, students explored our local area around the grounds of Lindisfarne. We are grateful to have this wonderful space to explore so close to the school.  

Year 10
Students are engaging in their prospective units of Chemistry, Biology and Physics. This model was introduced to Lindisfarne this year. So far the rotation model where the student explores the unit with a specialist teacher (Chemistry, Physics or Biology) has received positive feedback. The Biology students are looking at DNA and evolution. The Chemistry students are focussed on Chemical reactions and the Physics students are exploring motion. This week, the Physics students were looking at graphs and linear relationships. The photos show an exploitation of the relationship between number of elastic bands and distance travelled. As a challenge students designed a bungee jump for barbies to drop some 415 metres in the Breezeway. Careful calculations were involved and as such no barbie was harmed during the process. Have a look at some of the photos below from this semester. 

Caitriona McCann
Teacher

Olivia Grosser & Olivia Sweetnam
International Prefects

Club Netball

Saturday Netball Competition

Due to the inclement weather, Round 4 was cancelled last weekend.

Good Luck this Saturday. Roar Lions!

Round 5 - May 21

Training

Next week is Camp Week from Monday 23 May to Friday 27 May for all year 7 - 12 students. Therefore, there will be NO training for Years 7 - 12 players from any of the Lions teams. Junior School teams - Pink, Purple, Crimson, Lavender and Orange Lions on Thursday's 3.15 - 4.00 are under the guidance of the team coaches as there will be no senior students to assist them.

Wednesday morning training for the Aqua and Bronze teams will continue with Head Coach, Suzanne Evans. 

Stage 3 Friday Sport will continue as normal but shooting practice on Friday morning is cancelled.

Netball Centre of Excellence 

Due to Camp Week there will be NO training for the Centre of Excellence Gold, Silver, Navy, White and Red Lions. This includes Strength and Conditioning, Speed and Agility, and Thursday sport and after School Opens training.

Unfortunately, our Year 9 - 12 players from the Gold, Navy and Silver Lions did not get the opportunity to contest at the Downey Park Club Carnival on Sunday due to the rain.

From the UK 

To all Year 7 - 12 players, enjoy camp week … no injuries please! … and remember you have a game on Saturday!

I hope that playing netball answers the Top 5 things players want out of sport:

1. To have fun

2. To do something they’re good at.

3. To improve their skills.

4. To stay in shape.

5. To get exercise

Source: Clark, M. A. (n.d.)

If you have any questions re: netball, please do not hesitate to email me.

“I’m here if you need!” - Even though I am on the other side of the globe atm!

Gay Maynard 
Teacher in Charge of Netball

We are well and truly into the swing of Term 2 which means rugby season is going full steam ahead. While the weather has disrupted our training program the last few weeks, our squads have been busy in action.

Miami 7’s

In Week 2, our girls and boys squads took part in the Miami State High School 7’s Tournament. This is a high calibre tournament, with schools travelling from as far as North Brisbane to take part. This year we sent our 1st 7, Under 15s team and two Under 13’s teams.

A shift in focus at training was required to prepare us for Sevens rugby after a term of 15-a-side rugby. All squads arrived prepared for a big day of open and fast rugby. On a hot Thursday, our teams battled some large and well skilled opponents and achieved some great results.

Our 1st 7 after finishing 3rd in the final playoff game at the Miami 7s

• 1st 7 - 3rd place overall
• Under 15s - 6th place overall
• Under 13 Navy - 3rd place overall
• Under 13 Blue - 4th place overall

Overall this was a very successful day out with the highlights being the performance of our Opens Squad and the final battle in the Under 13s between our two Lions teams.

Len Diett Cup - Rd 1

On Tuesday 17th May our 1st XV had their first Len Diett Shield match against Xavier Christian College in Ballina. Although we were short on numbers with some injuries in key positions, our boys scored first and showed excellent defence in the first half to go into halftime with the scores tied 5-5. Unfortunately, the weight of defence and territory wore the team down in the second half and Xavier ran out winners by 5-25.  We will be re-matching Xavier Catholic College on the 7th June at Casuarina Beach Rugby Club and hopefully we can turn the tables in the return fixture.

Girls Rugby Update

Our open girls recently competed in the Miami State high School 7’s tournament on the Gold Coast. A prestigious tournament, and the first full day tournament for our girls had the nerves at an all time high. The girls knew they were up against teams who had been playing much longer than them. Despite the nerves they took to the field for each game with a great attitude and a willingness to learn. 

First game was a loss to a very experienced and eventual winners Miami High but from that point they took huge leaps and gains forward in both their tackling and defending. A close loss to Mt Margaret  was followed by a win against St Joseph and a play off game for 6th position.

For a team that has played together for such a short time they are showing huge gains in their game performance. Their ability to work together as a team, make the most of each others strengths and support each other on the feld became more evident with each game.Coach Mike Elliston is doing a wonderful job in guiding our girls on their journey and they look forward to the commencement of the GC School 7’s

Upcoming Fixtures

Unfortunately the weather wrecked havoc with the first round of the GC Schools 7’s tournament this week with the afternoon washed out. We look forward to seeing out Under 13, Under 15 and Girls 7’s squads in action in Week 6.

There is lots of rugby still to be played this term. Please see the updated Rugby Competition Schedule HERE. It is important to check in regularly, as we are picking more fixtures up - there are a few more planned for Term 2. This includes XV-aside games for our U15 and U13 squads against Bishop Druitt on the 10th June. More information will be provided as soon as details are confirmed. 

We hope all squad players have a wonderful time at Camp Week. We look forward to seeing everyone back at training on Tuesday 31st May.

Scott Lewis
Manager - Lions Rugby

Another fantastic week of basketball in the GCJBL. Many teams faced some adversity in being short on players due to the movement of venues and game days. However, every team pulled through and had a very competitive game while learning more about the sport. A big thankyou to all the players who filled in for other teams and also to parents for their flexibility in game days and venues, especially to those who travelled on Mothers Day. 

In addition to the success at games, this week also saw some high quality training sessions across all teams.

Results this week:

Boys

U21 Kings vs Celtic Clovers (33-29 win)

U17 Hunters vs Central Stars Platinum (52-31 win)

U17 Scouts vs Heat Blazes (14-38 loss)

U15 Kovus vs Blades Samurai (31-28 win)

U15 Mohatus vs Varsity Lakers (25-38 loss)

U15 Attilas vs Spartans White (25-24 win)

U15 Ahadis vs Blades Swords (forfeit loss)

U15 Mufasas vs Varsity Pythons (20-23 loss)

U13 Lokis vs Varsity Mambas (19-22 loss)

U13 Fangs vs Amigos (28-21 win)

Girls

Open Girls Queens vs  Celtics Shamrocks (18-30 loss)

U15 Sarafinas vs Blades Daggers (6-16 loss)

Upcoming fixtures

Fixtures for next week for all divisions can be found HERE

Damien Clucas
Head of Sports and Activities

NCIS Cross Country

This newsletter was finalised well before our Cross Country athletes took to the undulating hills out the back of Mahers Lane. 

The normal carnival atmosphere of a Lindisfarne sport event has been planned with the music and food etc.  Hopefully our athletes used the home ground to their advantage and broke their competitors' hearts and dropped them on the hills.

FULL REPORT next week when the results can be finalised.

Futsal

In Week 2 we had 12 Mahers Lane teams converge on the high class Coomera Indoor Sports Centre for the Regional Futsal titles. The training and preparation that we would normally like to complete in advance was a hard logistic to counter this year with the school musical needing Ngahriyah to remain in setup mode. Plenty of outdoor football training however was already in the locker, so we just went there to have fun and see what results we could muster.

Four teams made the semi-finals and qualified for the grand final berth which was the U13 Girls team. Unfortunately they went down in a nailbiter 5-6 in the Grand Final - having played the entire tournament with no reserves! 

Athletics

It won't be long until the Athletics Carnivals are on our doorstep. I have commenced my planning already. Please note that this year we have a split carnival:

• Primary (K-6) - June 24
• Secondary (7-12) - June 23

As per usual, all carnivals at Walter Peate, Kingscliff.

The athletics program is underway and has three streams: sprint and jumps, throws and distance running.  This program will be based around preparing students to compete in our school carnival, the NCIS Championships, the NSWCIS Championships and NSW All Schools Championships this year. The full 2022 competition schedule with dates and locations can be found HERE.  The training schedule for the athletics program can be found HERE.

Please make use of this service if you want to take part in some advanced training.

Football 

On Tuesday the Open Boys Football team had their 3rd round clash in Sydney against the top ranked GPS school, Newington College. 

I’ve never seen a Lindisfarne team put forward a better performance. On paper, this was David vs Goliath, but with 15 minutes to go, it was 1-1. The teamwork and intensity they held the whole match was incredible. Toby Shapland fired home an excellent team buildup goal and keeper Jet Vonhoff saved two penalties. After a tough decision went against us, we fell behind and didn’t recover - with the score blowing out to a 1-4 loss.. 

I’m extremely proud of the effort of the boys. 

Wishing our Open Girls and U16 Boy NCIS representatives all the best of luck down in Sydney next Monday and Tuesday. The NSWCIS tournament is an out and out blast furnace of high competition football. 

John Cadman
Coach

Spotlight on Sian and Eira - Grace McGilligan

Sian and Eira Grace competed at the Gold Coast Open for Taekwondo recently, the first tournament for the year after the Sunshine Coast Open was rescheduled to September due to recent floods.

Individually Sian won a Bronze Medal and Eira Grace won the Silver in their Age Category.  The girls also entered the Pairs Category winning a Gold Medal.

Damien Clucas
Head of Sports and Activities

"Gus and the Starlight" by Victoria Carlss

A spine-tingling and heart-warming story about friendship and finding your special place in the world.

Gus doesn't want to make friends. She also doesn't want to be intrigued by the cat-lady teacher at her new school, or the Riley's Comet project that she and her seaweed-eating science partner are working on together.

And she definitely doesn't want to fall in love with her job as the projectionist at the Starlight, a drive-in movie theatre that her family is reviving.

Because, knowing Gus's luck, she and her family could be moving on in a day, or a week, or a month. When the ghosts that haunt Mum catch up with them. Or if the Starlight doesn't succeed.

Then she'll have to say goodbye. Again.

And saying goodbye is too hard.

A magical middle-grade book with a feather-light fantastical touch that wonderfully helps the young protagonist figure out their complex and confusing family; the hope they have in their heart for a fresh start, and the ways that the past can haunt and help us. Just - stunning!

Gail Dessmann
Mahers Lane Librarian