Term 1 Week 5 26th February 2016 Issue No. 5
From the Principal most encouraging. The level of team spirit and support for each other, great parent attendance and the commitment of the staff and non-swimming students to the smooth running of these days made me very proud of our school community. Well done to all involved!
As we approach the halfway point of Term 1, things are in full flight at school. It is exciting to see so many excellent things happening on a daily basis. Out and About News This week we welcomed Mr Craig Voysey as the new ICT manager for our school. Craig joins us with a lot of experience in local Christian Schools and we are looking forward to his wisdom, impact and skills in this area of the school.
The Secondary Touch Football Gala took place on Monday with our teams showing excellent camaraderie. We were thrilled to have four of our students selected to represent the Hunter Zone at the State Gala Day later in the year. The Primary Zone Swimming team also represented the school well on Tuesday. There are some great pictures of many of these activities on our school Facebook page, (where you can now add your emojis of choice to these postings).
On the sporting front there has been much activity. Last Friday’s High School Swimming Carnival followed the Primary Carnival from the week before. Both were excellent days that I took great delight in visiting. To see so many of our students giving their best was Page 1
Congratulations also to Lily Sanders for winning the Zone competition in Lions Youth of the Year. We wish her all the best as she heads off to the Regional competition next month.
starting later in the term as a senior area is put in place. Extra storage facilities near the tennis courts will also allow more expedient access to sports equipment. Work on this should commence by next term as well. Increased study space in the library is also being finalised as we look at engineering requirements and best use of spaces in the library as well.
Learning News This week our staff have been training again with Donna Dressman, whom many of you met at our parent information evening in 2015. Donna is helping with the implementation of the Novel Ideas literacy program in Primary, which we’re looking forward to embedding and developing over the next few years.
Dedication Service This Sunday the Staff and Board of the school will come together for our annual dedication service at the Metford Community Baptist Church during the 9:30am morning service. It is always a blessing to have members of the school community come along to join in prayer for the year ahead for our Board and Staff. The guest will be Mr Ken Dickens, who is an excellent speaker and will remind and encourage us about the value of Christian Education. Please join us if you are able to on Sunday morning.
The diversity of our learning programs and extra-curricular activities also fill the pages of the newsletter, as the curriculum is brought to life and students are given the opportunity to develop their gifts in many areas. I trust you’ll see, not just the student’s skills developing, but also the hard work our teachers are undertaking to shape student thinking and their passion to understand more about our great God, His world and also His love for us.
Apart from the dedication service on Sunday, would you be able to commit to praying for our school more regularly? There are many, many positive things happening in the school. Yet when we are blessed with times where things are going well, there is a danger that we can try to do too much in our strength and not be looking to the Lord as we should every day.
Board/Church News Monday evening was the first Board meeting for the year. Our school is blessed with a group of passionate and diligent board members who are developing an excellent governance model for the school. They have invested much of their time into bringing this into place over the last few years.
As we move forward into this year, we want to be able to encourage our students to grow more and more in their faith, in their understanding and also in their ability to impact God’s world. Your time invested in prayer to ask God’s blessings on the work of the board, staff and students would be much appreciated and is an invaluable part of the effectiveness of the work and ministry of Maitland Christian School.
Many of you may not be aware that we have a record number of senior students in our school this year, which is a real blessing to us. However, our traditional upstairs veranda areas are not able to cope with the 80 students during break times. After planning work at the end of the 2015 year, approval for extra facilities to accommodate our senior students was given the go ahead at Monday’s Board meeting. We look forward to work
Rich blessings Geoff Peet Page 2
Year 9 Devotions You have your back to a whole bunch of people with your arms linked together. You have to all stand up at once, so that no one is left behind. It might sound easy but the Year 9 devotions class found it was harder than it seems.
The students learnt an important lesson in cooperation and what it sometimes takes to achieve something as part of a team. They found that it is easier to achieve something if you help each other and if you communicate.
High-Stepping Hip Hop Happening Here!!! Tuesday is the day when the Primary students move and groove with the instructors from Dance Fever Multisport. They are learning the elements of dance as part of the NSW Personal Development, Health and PE syllabus. As well as Hip Hop, the students are learning Cha Cha, Ballroom and Jazz dancing. It’s wonderful to see the students developing their gross motor skills and carefully following the directions that are given by the instructors. By the time they complete this unit at the end of term, they will have an extensive repertoire of dances and a greater understanding of the skills required. Page 3
What’s on the Schedule 2016 Term Dates
Kindergarten to Year 6 Assemblies
Term 1: Wed 27/01/16 - Fri 08/04/16 Term 2: Tue 26/04/16 - Fri 01/07/16
Term 1
Date
Week 7
11 March
Endless Praise
Week 9
Thu, 24th March
Easter Service
Week 11
8th April
5G
Week 3
13th May
6H
Week 5
27th May
4P
th
Class
Term 2
Term 3: Mon 25/07/16 - Fri 23/09/16 Term 4: Tue 10/10/16 - Fri 9/12/16
Weekly Events Monday Lunch
Recess
After School
Primary Art/ Mural Club in C1
Tuesday MiniSALT in M2
SALT in E8
Years 3/4 Computer Coding Club in E3
Secondary TOPS Meeting in M1
GIFT in E15
Wednesday Years 3-7 Choir in M2
Thursday
Friday
Years 5/6 Drama Club in D5
Secondary Boys Bible Study in E8
Secondary Tops Rehearsal in M1
Years 3-6 Chess Club in the Hope Hub
Children who remain at school after 3:15pm (apart from organised activities) need to be collected from the school office
Mexican Food is on the Menu Stage 5 Food Technology have been studying how multiculturalism has impacted our food choices. Yesterday the students made chicken burritos and enjoyed the outcome! They were encouraged to focus on the visual presentation and certainly excelled with this.
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Our Students Achieving Their Best
Moving Forward
Lions Youth of the Year Quest Carrying on from her success last year at the local branch of the Lions Club, Lily from Year 10 competed in the Zone competition of the Lions Youth of the Year Quest. With the grace and confidence that she has shown us so many times with her activities at the school, Lily won the overall event, as well as the public speaking prize. She will now go on to compete in the Regional final at Newcastle in March. Many of our Year 12 students from 2015 started university courses this week. Among them was Emily Wanganga, who has commenced studying for a Bachelor of Arts (majoring in Psychology). Emily works in the Kids Church at H2O Baptist and she loves helping people; especially children. As a result, she wants to help children through clinical psychology. The advice that Emily would give our high school students is to study gradually and build your knowledge, so that you don’t have to cram just before the exams.
Bowler of the Year 2015 was a great year for Heath from 5S. Heath loves playing ten pin bowling and his skill in the sport is outstanding for someone so young. In recognition of his achievements, he was named Bowler of the Year at Maitland Superstrike under 12s.
maitlandcs.nsw.edu.au Page 5
Secondary Swimming Carnival Participation was the name of the game at the high school swimming carnival last Friday. House points rose rapidly with so many students competing in each event. The students also got into the spirit of the day by wearing interesting costumes in their house colours. Notably, our school captains, Brodie and Thomas, were definitely recognisable as Watts supporters. The novelty events were a chance for the house teams to work together, with Wesley taking out both the War Cry and the Tennis Ball Challenge. However, it was Year 12 who clinched the Boat Race, beating teams from each house and the staff. To view a video of this exciting event, please go to http://bit.ly/24quYCJ At the end of the day, the winning house was Crosby with 534 points, followed by Newton on 357, Watts on 356 and Wesley in 4th place on 265.
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Primary Zone Swimming Congratulations to our Primary students who attended the Zone swimming carnival on Tuesday. Those who went exhibited a wonderful team spirit all day long! Taylor from 2H came 4th overall in the 8 years boys championship and Benjamin from 5S was equal 5th overall among the 11 years boys. Matilda from 3O was 2nd in the 8 years girls age championship. She will be competing in the State Swimming Carnival for 50m backstroke and freestyle on Monday, 7th March.
Year 7 Immunisation NSW Health works in partnership with schools to offer the vaccines recommended for adolescents by the National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) in a school-based vaccination program.
For the health and safety of all students, no glass drink bottles are to be brought to school. Plastic or metal bottles are recommended.
Parent Information Kits for Year 7 students will be sent home to parents in the next week. Our first school immunisation day will be Monday, 14th March. To consent to vaccination, please read the information carefully, complete and sign the Consent Form and return it to school. Page 8
A Hot Day for the Touch Football Four teams from Maitland Christian School competed in the Touch Football Gala Day at Wallsend on Monday. Our students competed with great sportsmanship and four of our students were selected to represent the zone at the state level. Thank you to the parents who assisted with the barbecue/canteen, raising money for missions trips. It was such a hot day that we sold 180 bottles of icy cold water.
Canteen Helpers Needed
Do We Know Your Email Address?
On Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays throughout the term, a dependable team of volunteers prepares and serves food to our students at the canteen. However, there is often a need for more helpers than those who are currently available.
The school often contacts parents via email. This includes information about the newsletter and parent/teacher interviews. If you don’t receive an email about the newsletter by email each week, then either we don’t have an email address for you or the one we have is incorrect.
If you would like to help, either occasionally or on a regular basis, please contact Narelle McIver on 4933 7633 or email canteen@maitlandcs.nsw.edu.au to find out more.
To provide the school with your current email, contact the office on 4933 7633, email office@maitlandcs.nsw.edu.au or go to Parent Lounge to update your details. Page 9
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What’s Happening at Metford Community Baptist Church? Maitland Christian School Staff Dedication Service This Sunday, 28th February, 9:30am at Metford Community Baptist Church. Come along and pray for our School Board and Staff!
Metford Community Baptist Church is a community of Christian believers who love Christ, each other and their community. We have services every Sunday (9:30am and 6:00pm) and would love to see you there.
Our Contact details: Pastor: John Cook 83 Chelmsford Drive Associate Pastor: Andrew Sumpton Metford NSW 2323 (Next to Maitland Christian School) Phone: 4934 5350 admin@metfordbaptist.com.au
Church Services: Every Sunday 9:30am and 6:00pm Page 11
Upcoming Events Term 1 Mon 29/02
Sec
Year 7 Camp Commences
Wed 2/03
Sec
Year 8 Camp Commences
Thu 3/03
Sec
Secondary Zone Swimming Carnival
Mon 7/03
Pri
Fri 11/03
Pri
Primary State Swimming Carnival Sec
Visit from “Endless Praise”
Mon 14/03
Sec
Year 7 Immunisation Day
Mon 21/03
Sec
Secondary State Swimming Carnival
Thu 24/03
Pri
Sec
Prep to Year 12 Easter Service
Fri 25/03
Pri
Sec
Good Friday
Mon 28/03
Pri
Sec
Easter Monday
Wed 30/03
Pri
Sec
Parent/Teacher Interviews
Fri 1/04
Pri
Sec
School Photo Day
Mon 4/04
Pri
Sec
Parent/Teacher Interviews
Sec
Secondary Athletics Carnival
Thu 7/04 Fri 8/04
Pri
Sec
Last Day of Term 1
Mon 25/04
Pri
Sec
Anzac Day
Tue 26/04
Pri
Sec
First Day of Term 2
Thu 28/04
Pri
Year 3/4 Camp Commences
Wed 4/05
Pri
Year 5/6 Camp Commences
Fri 6/05
Pri
Mothers Day Stall
Tue 10/05
Pri
Term 2
Sec
NAPLAN Testing Commences Page 12