NEWSLETTER
Headmaster’s Message “Why Jesus Christ Superstar?” Head of Senior School Head of Junior School Issue 8 Term II, 2010
Academic • Christian • Caring
Chaplain
“Why Jesus Christ Superstar?” “Why did you say ‘yes’ to Jesus Christ Superstar?” I was quite surprised when I was asked this question. I was even more surprised to be asked this question a number of times. What is it about Jesus Christ Superstar that could require me to exercise my veto as Headmaster? When the intent of each questioner is unpacked, three areas of concern emerge. Isn’t Jesus Christ Superstar too hard for adolescent students? TIGS does not present ‘easy’ musicals. We sometimes forget that the TIGS production is part of an educational program and it is the learning that takes place for our students that is our focus. As with all teaching and learning at TIGS we don’t accept the ordinary when we can have the great. We choose the PYP in the Junior School as our curriculum framework because we believe it is the best way to structure learning. We choose ‘Restorative Justice’, with its focus on restoring relationships that are broken by poor choices, as the basis for our student discipline policy because it best captures our Christian values. It is not surprising then that we choose to perform the best musicals. The musical world is littered with ordinary musicals written for school students who are therefore doomed to achieve ordinary results. Our experience is that students always rise to the challenge and rarely fail to exceed our expectations. Whether on stage, back stage, in the orchestra pit or at the sound and lighting desk, students learn the most when they are given a challenge worth tackling.
Stephen Kinsella Headmaster
Do today’s adolescents connect with the ‘70s’ music of Jesus Christ Superstar? The thing that defines the musical genre of the current generation is that they are not defined by any distinct musical genre. Parents and grandparents who grew up listening to music on the radio and purchasing vinyl LPs tend to define their teenage years by the music of the period – rock ‘n roll, hippy folk, disco, punk, funk, hip hop, heavy metal to name just a few. The iPod has changed the way teenagers listen to music. Few now listen to the radio, preferring to download their own music. Music is a shared experience, not over the radio but by sharing the earphones of an iPod or a link on YouTube. Teenagers today listen to the music that interests them, be it the music of their parents or music downloaded from a garage musician. They are open to new types of music in a way that previous generations never were. Students have demonstrated that they enjoy good music no matter what the genre. They loved the music of previous TIGS musicals, Les Miserables (published in 1980), Footloose (1984), Oliver (1969) and The Sound of Music (1959), and they love the music of Jesus Christ Superstar (1970). How can an Anglican/Christian school like TIGS perform a secular musical like Jesus Christ Superstar? This is the most surprising question given that every musical that TIGS has performed is a secular work. Concern stems mainly from the central role of Judas in the musical, statements made by the lyricist, Tim Rice, denying the deity of Jesus and the exclusion of the Resurrection from the story. As educators we are skilled and experienced at using secular texts to deliver educational outcomes that include the consideration of a Christian world view. This occurs from Prep through to Year 12 and across all subject areas. It occurs in the teaching of English texts, interpreting history, testing a scientific hypothesis, in all that we teach. It is also an integral part of the learning that takes place through the musical production each year. The TIGS production of Jesus Christ Superstar is consistent with our approach to Christian education. It: • • • •
Asks questions about our understanding of who Jesus is. Challenges the assumption that Jesus was a ‘good’ man but not the Messiah. Clearly portrays the resurrection of Jesus. Calls us all to restore or strengthen our relationship with God because of what was achieved on the Cross.
We wish the 150 students and many staff every success for the season of Jesus Christ Superstar and hope they enjoy the challenge of performing a great musical, the music of one of the most popular musicals of the 20th Century and the privilege of telling the story of the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ.
Stephen Kinsella Headmaster
Chaplain’s Connection “Any publicity is good publicity.” It’s one of those quotes we’ve heard so often it’s become part of the furniture. Nobody seems quite sure where the saying originated. Maybe it has its origins with P.T. Barnum, who is reported as having said “I don’t care what they say about me as long as they spell my name right”; or Rhonda Farr who said in 1933 “Publicity, darling. Just publicity. Any kind is better than none at all.” Wherever it came from; is it true? I suspect that Andrew Johns probably disagrees. You can probably think of an example of your own where to have attention drawn to yourself and your actions is not desirable. But more often than not it is true that having attention drawn to you provides an opportunity to sell yourself, your product, or your message. At the very least it allows you to invite people to come and investigate further. And so it was with Jesus. At the level of one’s personal response to his message, he said: “He who is not with me is against me” (Luke 11:23; Matthew 12:30). He demands a response and there is no sitting on the fence. However, there was an occasion when his disciples complained that someone else had been going around doing things in Jesus’ name. He responded: “Do not stop him, for whoever is not against you is for you” (Mark 9:40, Luke 9:50). That is, whatever the person’s motivation, if the effect is to draw attention to our message, they are doing us a service. Jesus Christ Superstar is a classic example of that. It may have been written by men who didn’t profess to be Christian, and who consequently hold and present a limited understanding of Jesus; but they have provided us a wonderful opportunity to talk about Jesus. We can take their material and use it in our own way to promote and encourage understanding and discussion about Jesus, his person, and his message. I hope that many will come away from the TIGS production not only impressed with the talent of our students and staff, but with a fresh interest in looking at Jesus.
John Reed Chaplain
So where do you go to find out more? The best place to start is reading the Gospels in the Bible. Luke wrote: “Many have undertaken to draw up an account of the things that have been fulfilled among us, just as they were handed down to us by those who from the first were eyewitnesses and servants of the word. Therefore, since I myself have carefully investigated everything from the beginning, it seemed good also to me to write an orderly account … so that you may know the certainty of the things you have been taught.” (Luke 1:1-4). What better place to start than a well-researched and carefully prepared account? If you have further questions about Jesus, the Bible, or the Christian faith in general, talk to someone: your local minister, the School Chaplain, a Christian friend. Or go online and check out this wonderful website: www.christianity.net.au
Senior School The Musical is taking up a lot of our attention and time, for there are over 150 students involved in the Production, not only on stage but also in the orchestra, in the TIGS Tech Crew, in front of house, with props, costumes and make-up and all the allied support needed for such a massive undertaking. But there are so many other activities happening and some wonderful personal successes and School firsts being achieved both within the School and beyond in the wider arena. Here is a snapshot of this week so far (and at the time of writing this article it’s only Tuesday!) The Future Problem Solving team of Olivia Wallace, Renate Kuntz, Katrina McMahon and Carna Feldtmann have won their section of the competition being held at La Crosse Wisconsin University, USA. Is that the 6th time we have been World Champions? Year 10 Science students have been placed first in their round of the Engineering and Science Challenge at Wollongong University. Our girls’ Tennis Team won the ACIES Competition. The Girls’ Intermediate Netball team came 1st in the Diocesan Gala Day. Emma McKeon is off to the Youth Olympics and David McKeon has just returned from the Australian Schools’ Championships with 7 Gold Medals. How good is all that? At Assembly the Headmaster detailed the above successes and also commented on the outstanding reports that he has just read. The great majority of students are making a serious effort to study and ‘be the best they can be’ while only a few are Deputy Headmaster merely ‘passengers.’ With so many opportunities within their grasp in a caring and supportive community, our students acknowledge that it is not ‘all about me’ but that our community is about ‘us.’ They show that every day in supporting each other, supporting their team and supporting their School.
Monica Watt
So let’s continue this wonderful tradition of support and in building each other up by encouraging and congratulating those representing the School and by attending and congratulating those involved in the musical. It has been a great week in the life of the School.
Junior School
I am writing the newsletter this week to the background noise of scaffolding being dismantled and can I say that it is music to my ears!! This week the landscaping around Rees Hall was started in earnest and the paving etc on the access stairs almost completed. The facilities are looking fabulous and we are all very excited at the move about to occur.
It is important to remember however, that buildings, while wonderful, are not guarantees of optimal learning outcomes for children. Our children benefit from the thoughtful provision of learning opportunities by our skilled and expert teaching staff. The implementation of the PYP program has seen us as a school make increasing links between disciplines as we harness the power of inquiry in enthusing children to learn. I anticipate even better outcomes for our children in Stage 1 when we team this expert care with purpose built learning areas. I would like to thank all of those families who ventured out on a very cold evening to tour our new buildings. The sense of community excitement is wonderful. Next week we will move classrooms. This will occur on Tuesday and Wednesday and I understand that Tracey Jansen is coordinating the offers of assistance from our Karobran parents. The assistance of extra adults is most appreciated in setting up new storerooms and getting organised for a flying start to Term 3.
Judi Nealy
Head of Junior School
Year 1 Excursion
Year 1 went on an excursion to The Sydney Children’s Hospital at Randwick on Tuesday 8 June. We met Dr Paul who let us use a stethoscope and listened to Irene talk about play therapy. We visited the Fairy Garden and ate cheese, crackers and dried apricots. At the Starlight Room we danced with Captain Starlight and his friends. We saw x-rays and an x-ray machine, physiotherapy equipment, met the dietician and visited the Hospital School. It was fun and we learnt a lot.
Junior School Sports
We had a beautiful sunny day for our Athletics carnival last Thursday. Events are still being finalised and results will be published in the next Newsletter. Congratulations to Jack Mackenzie-Wood for making it into the CIS Rugby Team.
JUNIOR SCHOOL AWARDS
KM
Charlotte Atkinson
KP
Taylan Arapali, Hasnain Aly
1D
Hugo Parrish
1S
Xia Lian Wilson, Krishnendu Gupta, Sana Zafar, Isobel Kinnear,
Alexis Belsito
2A
Lincoln Tut, Vincent Qiang
5/6W Jin Won Kim, Cynthia Tian 5R
Callum Wall, Thi Hung Trinh
4M
Alexander Grundy
6C
Jessica Evans
4R
Miles Denison-Pender
6M
Mackenzie Roberts
4B
Samuel Shalala
TIGS EXTENDED
As you can see from the photos this week, the children love to dress up and do Drama at TIGS Extended. TIGS Extended Vacation Care will be operating during the coming school holidays. This is only 1 week away!. The children will have so much fun! So don’t delay, book your child in now for a fun week! For further information please email the Director Karen Buckley on kbuckley@tigs.nsw.edu.au or go to the TIGS website for further information, booking sheets, permission forms and an enrolment forms. Remember without the numbers this will not go ahead.
UOW Year 7-10 Evening for Students and Parents The University of Wollongong is holding an information evening for years 7-10 students and parents. Guests can expect to gain information on subject selection for year 11 and 12, admission into university and information on how the ATAR is calculated. There is also an opportunity to talk one on one with UOW faculty staff and speak to current students at UOW. Bookings are essential. Please call UniAdvice on 1300 367 869 to reserve your place or Book online now Dates and Venues.
Tuesday 29 June 2010
University Hall, University of Wollongong Northfields Ave, Wollongong 6.30 - 8.30pm
School Fees Notice The latest Statement of Account has now been forwarded to you by mail this week. Thank you to those parents who have chosen Option B on the 2010 Fee Commitment Form as their preferred payment method. This option allows the School to automatically direct debit your nominated account at a payment frequency of your choice. Parents that are still self-managing their fee commitment to the School will need to take note of the payment due dates below: Quarterly (Term III): Monthly: Fortnightly: Weekly:
19 July 2010 10 day of each month Friday, per fortnight Friday, of each week
Parents will need to ensure that their payment is submitted to the School, in full, by the date you have specified on your 2010 Fee Commitment Form. If you have any questions relating to your Statement of Account please contact the Finance Department on 4220 0215. The office will be operational during the school holidays between the hours of 9am to 3pm.
Wednesday 30 June 2010
Ray Cleary Lecture Theatre University of Wollongong, Shoalhaven George Evans Rd, West Nowra 6.30 - 8.30pm
Creative Arts The Works Exhibition 2010
We are really pleased with the response so far to The Works Exhibition 2010 which will be held over the weekend of the 27 August. We will have work from many of the artists who exhibited last year and from some new parents and friends of the School. If you are an artist, designer or photographer and would like to submit some work for the exhibition or if you would like to help, please contact Wendi on wleigh@ tigs.nsw.edu.au. Pencil in the date of the opening night into your diaries - Friday 27 August, as this year’s The Works is promising to be a great night.
Visual Arts and Photography News
Congratulations to Stella Crick in Year 10 who received a Certificate of Merit for her entry in the Ilford School Photo Stella Crick, Year 10 - Automobile and Digital Imaging Competition. Her Photo entitled Ilford School Photography & Digital Competition Automobile was chosen from many entries around Merit Certificate Australia as one of the most successful entries in Term I, 2010. The following senior school students were successful at the recent TIGS Great Fete Fun Photo Competition and will receive their prizes on a school assembly early next term. They are Angus Cochran, Nicola Xanthopoulos and William Harrison. There are many more competitions and events available to students Please click here to view the updated Creative Arts Competition timetable which includes information on competitions currently available to students.
A Year 11 Leadership Program ‘Elevate’ Xavier Hollis and Beth Sweeney from Year 11, enjoyed their second day at Wollongong University attending ‘Elevate’, a leadership program which involves about 150 students from Nowra to the Shire in Sydney, listening to speakers and undergoing activities to develop and understand the role of leadership and how to approach leadership opportunities in life. They enjoyed a great day of bonding with other students around the community and taking the valuable life experience of being able to sympathise/empathise for people in a less advantaged community and truly appreciate the situation we live in every day. These activities improved their proactive attitude towards working with others and creating a better future in our world.
Senior School Sports AICES Tennis
Last Friday two Senior School Tennis Teams gave up their pupil free day to represent the school at the AICES Schools Championships at Cintra Park Concord. The boys team of Mark Perri, Adrian Haise and Fred Newman were given a bye in round one. Round two they played Pittwater House. The sets were four all and it came down to games. Pittwater House won 37 games and TIGS won 30 games. On the day we were beaten by an older team who marginally got ahead in games. All the boys played well considering they are all under 15 years and it was an open competition. Nothing for them to be disappointed about, it looks great for the coming years. The girls team of Kirsty McRae, Stella Crick, Hannah Muirhead and Lily Tuivaga had a successful day. Round one they played St Columbias from Port Macquarie and won 6 sets to nil. Round two they played the winners from 2009 William Clarke College. Once again they did not loose a set and won 6 sets to nil. A fantastic effort by the team and the girls were announced as AICES Schools Tennis Champions for 2010. First time TIGS have won this event. From here the girls will progress to the next stage where we will play an IGSSA school. It was an enjoyable day and congratulations to all of our tennis players.
Senior School Athletics Carnival
The Senior School Athletics Carnival is on Thursday 24 June at the Kerryn McCann Athletics Field. It is a compulsory school event where all students compete for their House to win the House Shell Shield. If a student cannot participate it is important for them to come along and help with the various jobs that need to be done and assist their house patrons. Students can make their own way to the venue. Supervision will be available from 8.15am. Buses will also run from school down to Beaton Park from Western Avenue at 8.30am. The carnival is expected to finish at 3pm and all students must stay for the duration of the day. An Athletics Program for the day is available on Narradan. During the next week at school the javelin events will be run prior to the athletics carnival.
Hockey Diocese Carnival Monday 7 June
The boys played 3 games, the first being a bit of a shock to the system. Holy Spirit came out firing and we were caught on the back foot losing our first game. The next 2 games saw a massive improvement, the boys playing more cohesively and having a narrow loss to Magdalene. The last game saw an impressive display of team work and effort displayed by the boys playing who played a much older more aggressive St Josephs team. Congratulations must go to Ross Sharpe, Mungo Skyring and Adrian Whitehall for their outstanding performances in this last game.
Congratulation Taylor Martin and Julian Caruana on their contributions to TIGS Hockey over the last 6 years, they will be sorely missed when they finish Year 12 at the end of this year, and we wish you the best of luck with your future endeavours. The girls played short and put up a valiant attempt to stay in their games; they lost two games, drew one and won one. This team was a very young fairly inexperienced team and it is due to their perseverance and hard work that they performed so well. Ccoaching by Gary Wilsmore also helped. Special mention goes to Teagan Richards and Lilli Bennett who did not stop running, as well as filling in for the boys on the day. Great effort girls.
Swimming Success
Last week David McKeon (Year 12) competed in the Australian Schools Swimming Championships in Brisbane. He had an outstanding meet winning 7 gold medals and 2 silver medals in the 17-19 year age group. 1st 100m Freestyle 53.1 1st 400m Freestyle 4.04.8 2nd 50m Freestyle 24.47 1st 200m Freestyle 1.54.7 1st All Age Relay 1st Medley Relay 1st 4 x 50m Freestyle Relay 2nd Best of the Best Relay David trains everyday and normally twice per day. He has worked hard and through his dedication and diligence produced these fantastic results. Congratulations from all the TIGS family.
Canteen Roster Week 10, Term II
Week 1, Term III
Week 2, Term III
Monday 19 July
Monday 26 July
Monday 21 June
Sonja Forte Julie Chiaverini
Rose Dragutinovich Susie Wynn-Jones Lauren Cunio
Tuesday 22 June
Jolanda Noel-Gough Roslyn Saddi
Wednesday 23 June
Tuesday 20 July
Barbara Mandelson Janice Ethridge-Brown
Pat Calchi Pene Mortimer
Thursday 24 June
Wednesday 21 July Anne Kelly Alison Mc Kenzie Kim Gibbs
Susan Cooper Senior Athletics CARNIVAL
Thursday 22 July
Friday 25 June
Friday 23 July
Christine Flint Chris Bridger
Susan Cooper Help Needed
Kylie Mill Christine Flint Chris Bridger
Sonja Forte Julie Chiaverini
Tuesday 27 July
Jolanda Noel-Gough Roslyn Saddi
Wednesday 28 July Pat Calchi Pene Mortimer
Thursday 29 July Kerryn Mura Ann Thompson
Friday 30 July Lynda Webb Kim Mc Learie
Year 8 2010 – Parents Catch Up
Karobran Update
Tuesday 22 June – 10.00am Café Grand Piato (Cnr. Market & Corrimal)
Thank you to all of our community for supporting Karobran run events this term. It has been wonderful to see so many get involved. A special thank you to Lisa Kitely for running the Mother’s Day Stall! Thank you.
All welcome to come along and join this very informal morning tea. Hope to see you there. For further information or questions please contact on Angela Paine via email on paineka@bigpond.net.au
2010 Great Fete
Our 2010 Fete Day was a huge success; raising in excess of $60, 000 as well as allowing our School to showcase our many talented students and hard working parents to the community. The funds from the Fete will be used to complete the schoolwide communication system, with some funds left over for projects currently in discussion.
Term II Meeting
At our Term II meeting we listened to a presentation about the PYP in our children’s classrooms. It was wonderful to see the passion and enthusiasm of the staff for this program. The group also passed a recommendation for the Headmaster to review the timing of our winter uniforms.
Rees Hall
It was wonderful to tour the new Rees Hall and classrooms. What a fantastic learning space and hall area. During Week 10 particularly Tuesday 22 and Wednesday 23 June, we are asking for parent helpers to assist in the moving of light items around the Junior School. If you can assist, there will be morning tea and light lunch provided, please contact Tracey Jansen on 0402007446 or email traceyjansen@internode.on.net.
Karobran Upcoming Events
AICES TENNIS
1. Classroom reshuffle 2. Kidsfit - Kidsfit will have its final session for Term II on Monday 21 June. It will begin again on Monday 19 July (Week 1, Term III). There will be an increase of $10 per child next Term due to the increase of an extra week. Please get a copy of the registration form from the website or contact Tracey Jansen on either 0402007446 or traceyjansen@internode.on.net 3. Pupil Free Day Monday 30 August 4. Karobran Meeting Tuesday 31 August 5. K-4 Disco Friday 17 September 6. Big Day In Thursday 23 September Tracey Jansen Karobran President
SAVE TIME, ORDER ONLINE! We now have a great new online system to make the ordering of lunches easier.
Order from home or in the office
Order at a time convenient to you. In the morning, the night before or even weeks in advance!
No searching for cash on the day, you pay online!
An exciting NEW and fun way to encourage healthy eating
It’s so easy! 1) Go to www.flexischools.com.au www.flexischools.com.au 2) Click “Register Now” to create account 3) Place your initial credit onto your account, using your Credit Card 4) Then, place your order.
How Does It Work? Go to www.flexischools.com.au www.flexischools.com.au and click “Register Now” in the Login Box. Then enter your student’s
name, school and class, and add funds (say $50) into a pre-paid account. You can log into the website at any time to place orders, up until 9:00am on the day of the order. As purchases are made, the funds are taken from your pre-paid account. The account can be topped up again in the same way, or set to automatically top-up via credit card when the balance falls below a pre-set minimum. Each order is sent automatically to the kitchen, where an easy-to-read label is produced with the student’s name, class and order details.
To view a demonstration www.flexischools.com.au website and in the “Find Your School” box, enter our school name, Go to the www.flexischools.com.au “The Illawarra Grammar School” and click to proceed.
What does it cost? The online menu is the same price as the usual menu. However, there is a 20c fee for the online orders to help pay for the labels and the website system. So why not order your next lunch online!
What if I don’t have a credit card? If you do not have a credit card, you can still use FlexiSchools. Simply register as shown above and when it asks for your credit card, click the link that says “What if I don’t have a credit card?” and you will receive the instructions on how to top-up your account without a credit card.
To keep up-to-date with the latest news and events that are happening in and around our School, we encourage you to subscribe to the email Newsletter. Simply visit our website: www.tigs.nsw.edu.au and sign up on the home page.
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