Teaching and Learning

Boarding

MS MARGUERITE DUNNE, HEAD OF BOARDING

Fairholme College continues to be a leader in providing residential care for girls from Years 5 to 12 as it is one of the largest all-girls Boarding Houses in the nation, with 2021 seeing all available boarding places filled and a waiting pool for enrolment.

In January this year we welcomed over 50 girls from Years 6 to 11 into Fairholme Boarding. The modern facilities, the beautiful views from the Boarding House of Webb Park and down the Toowoomba Range escarpment, and the manicured gardens and grounds are very attractive to new students and their families. The girls value the refurbished contemporary rooms, having their own vanity units, large storage and study spaces, and access to common rooms and kitchenettes on each floor. The Fairholme Health Centre, with a registered nurse on duty 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, is very reassuring for families. The school doctor runs surgery appointments there three mornings a week and a physiotherapist visits one afternoon a week for consultations. In 2021 our boarding students comprised 35% of Middle School enrolments and nearly 40 % of the Senior School. Three Boarders were in Year 6 in the Junior School, so students in the Boarding House ranged from 10 years of age right through to a 19-year-old in Year 12. As in previous years, most of the Boarders’ hometowns are in South-West Queensland and North-Western New South Wales; however, many girls also hail from Central and North Queensland, with a few from as far as the Northern Territory and Western Australia and a couple of girls whose parents reside overseas. This mix of girls brings wonderful diversity to the Boarding House which benefits all.

Fairholme Boarding offers our girls a positive life experience. They become independent and more responsible in taking care of themselves and their belongings. The girls develop flexibility and resilience as they negotiate and collaborate with the other girls with whom they share a room, bathroom, common room and breakfast or dinner table. Boarding staff observe how they develop and mature in their ability to cooperate with others and become organised and independent in their daily routines and tasks. The girls also learn essential time-management skills, balancing their studies and their many cocurricular and extra-curricular commitments. Proximity of the Boarding House to the Fairholme day school offers many benefits to the boarding students. Many of the girls use the sporting and performing arts areas after hours and take advantage of their easy access to before- and after-school sports training, rehearsals and other academic and cultural cocurricular activities. Boarding presents an academic advantage for the girls through supervised ‘Prep’ or homework and study sessions. Teachers from the day school are rostered on to support the girls while they do their academic work each week night and on Sunday afternoons. This regular, quiet and supervised time is another plus for boarding students as it assists them in developing the routines required to meet the challenges that their schoolwork provides and achieve their academic goals. The Boarding Co-ordinators of the Junior, Middle and Senior sub-schools oversee and support each girl’s academic progress throughout each term.

The girls also benefit from the positive and reassuring messages at weekly Boarders’ Chapel and Devotions time each Sunday evening. This is further enhanced by the opportunity offered to attend Bible Study meetings during the week, facilitated by our Head of Wellbeing (Boarding) and the Assistant to Pastoral Care (Boarding). These proved very popular this year as the girls enjoy the time together and supporting each other.

The Boarding House is a busy and vibrant place with a huge variety of activities and excursions on offer for the girls to participate in during the week and over the weekends. Morning and afternoon walks and runs, Speed Strength and

Power sessions and use of the College gym and pool keep the girls active before and after school. On the weekends, shopping at Grand Central, visits to local parks and playgrounds, and trips to Willows Lifestyle and Fitness Centre, Bounce Trampoline Centre, Bowling and Laser Tag, Putt Putt, and Lawn Bowls (to name a few) proved popular with the girls. Other regular activities included Boarder Baking (and eating), a large variety of art and craft activities and various games in Daisy Culpin Courtyard, on the College oval or in the Fairholme pool.

The Boarding House committees chaired by the Head Boarder and the Prefects for Boarding were active in organising numerous Boarding House events including themed dinners, tidy dorm competitions, games and activities, and service opportunities. The Big Sister Program continued in 2021 and was instrumental in assisting the new and younger Boarders to transition successfully into Boarding, with the Year 12 girls providing wonderful support to their ‘little sisters’ throughout the year. Year Level ‘etiquette’ dinners were held throughout Terms 2 and 3 and these allowed each year level to plan and run activities that contributed to the overall wellbeing of the Boarding House. At the end of Term 3 another successful Orientation Weekend was held for the new 2022 Boarders and their families to ensure they would be ready for their start in the upcoming year, with over 50 families being welcomed overnight into the Boarding House. Many parents (and girls) commented on how enjoyable and helpful it was to attend Orientation Weekend and learn the information that they needed for their daughter to transition successfully into Fairholme College Boarding in January 2022.

This year the experienced and dedicated boarding team of floor supervisors and office staff continued to be exceptional in their care and support of each individual boarder. In addition, numerous ancillary staff members worked very hard on a daily basis to ensure the smooth and efficient operation of the Boarding House. Our Facilities, Laundry and Cleaning staff ensured that on each day, the Boarders’ uniforms and clothes were washed, all rooms and areas in the Boarding House were thoroughly cleaned and all necessary repairs were attended to promptly. The Catering Team prepared nutritious tasty meals for the boarding girls and staff, with a menu planned each week to suit their needs and choices, based on information gathered through our regular student surveys. This year the choice of two main meals at dinner was introduced and this provision was well received by the boarding students.

Fairholme Friends of Boarding, a subgroup of the College Parents and Friends Association, has been very active in 2021 in their ongoing support of the Boarding House. The Parent Ambassadors assisted and supported many new families in their transition into the boarding community. Another very successful Boarders Cent Sale was held at the College Spring Fair and raised significant funds that will benefit the College community in 2022. 2021 was another successful year for Fairholme Boarding.

The Arts

MRS KAREN HAYWARD, HEAD OF THE ARTS

‘The Arts are an intellectually engaging intersection of lateral thought and practice. They interrogate the human experience and challenge our understandings by encouraging and provoking alternative ways of seeing, thinking and doing. They enable us to know and observe our world collectively and as individuals. They reveal a sense of who we are and might become as we make connections and new meaning of the world around us and our place in it.’

(QCAA – The Arts Senior Syllabus 2019)

Despite some continuing challenges presented by COVID-19 restrictions, The Arts at Fairholme College in 2021 have excelled in offering students a fantastic array of intellectually engaging and highly creative experiences. The Arts have served to challenge, develop, extend and empower students through the delivery of rigorous academic programs and an array of exciting co-curricular opportunities. The resilience and dedication displayed by both our professional staff and our talented students speaks extensively to the enjoyment, passion, creativity and strength of Fairholme Arts.

DANCE

Dance is offered as an academic subject in Years 8 – 12. The Senior Dance course is a QCAA academically-rigorous General Subject that contributes to the ATAR system.

Dance fosters creative and expressive communication. It uses the body as an instrument for expression and communication of ideas. It provides opportunities for students to critically examine and reflect on their world through higher-order thinking and movement. It encourages the holistic development of a person, providing a way of knowing about oneself, others and the world.

EVENTS & ACHIEVEMENTS

• Contemporary Dance Choreography Performance for Year 12 choreographed by Jen Murray • ‘Women of Strength’ Luncheon – Dance Troupe Performance • Dance Photoshoots for Dance Promotions • Toowoomba Eisteddfod rehearsals • ‘The Show Must Go on!’ The CoProduction Musical with Toowoomba Grammar School • Co-Production Specialist Dancers performance at the Walton Stores • Pre-Eisteddfod Concert • Dance Showcase • Opening Night Concert • Spring Fair Fashion Parade Performances • Interhouse Dance Competition – won by Black House • Co-curricular Offerings • Dance Collective (Open Years 7 – 12) • Dance Troupe (Auditioned Group Years 10 - 12) • Troupettes (Auditioned Group Years 7 – 9)

DRAMA

The study of Performance is offered to students in Year 7 and Drama is offered as an academic subject in Years 8 – 12. The Senior Drama course is a QCAA academically-rigorous General Subject that contributes to the ATAR system.

Drama fosters creative and expressive communication. It interrogates the human experience by investigating, communicating and embodying stories, experiences, emotions and ideas that reflect the human experience. It engages students in imaginative meaningmaking processes and involves them in using a range of artistic skills as they make and respond to dramatic works.

EVENTS & ACHIEVEMENTS

• AMEB Drama & Performance Examinations • Year 9 Drama students performed scenes at ‘A Box of Chocolates’ Middle School Arts Concert • ‘The Show Must Go on!’ The CoProduction Musical with the Toowoomba Grammar School

CO-CURRICULAR OFFERINGS

• Individual Tuition – Speech & Drama • Sound & Lighting training workshops led by Empire Theatre staff on two occasions, focusing on developing skills in operating equipment in Lighting and Audio. • Sound & Lighting Crew (Years 8 – 12) – students involved in this group provide invaluable sound & lighting technical support, backstage assistance and equipment set-up for myriad College events, assemblies and performances throughout the year and are an integral part of the fabric of The Arts Department.

MUSIC

Music is offered as an academic subject in Years 7 – 12, with Music Extension being offered as an additional course of study for Year 12 students. The Senior Music and Music Extension courses are QCAA academically-rigorous General Subjects that contribute to the ATAR system.

Music fosters creative and expressive communication. It allows students to develop musicianship through making (composition and performance) and responding (musicology).

EVENTS & ACHIEVEMENTS

CHORAL & VOCAL MUSIC • Commencement and Induction of Leaders Assembly – Vocal Performance • Annual Choral Music Camp – Alex Park Conference Centre – Alexandra Headlands • Founders’ Day Assembly • ‘Extensions in Music’ Recital • SHEP Darling Downs Vocal selection – Lucy Farquhar, Elizabeth McCollum, Caitlin Mohr and Isabelle Watts • Anzac Day Duet Performance • ‘Autumn Tones’ Concert – Year 8 Performance Music and Year 11 Music • ‘The Show Must Go on!’ The CoProduction Musical with Toowoomba Grammar School • Interhouse Choral Competition 2021 – won by Stephens House