Term 1 Week 6 4th March 2016 Issue No. 6
Learning how to row a canoe at the Year 7 Camp From the Principal Are you getting enough sleep?
Looking at a healthy level of 9 hours sleep for children and young people, only 69% of 6 – 11 year old children, 29% of 12 14 year old children and 10% of 15 – 17 year olds are sleeping this long. This means that 31%, 71% and 90% of these respective age groups are under sleeping. It’s only sleep some will say. Does it really make a difference? Isn’t life short? Shouldn’t we play hard? There are a number of physical, social and emotional consequences when we don’t get enough sleep.
Last week, Christian School principals from across NSW gathered for several days of professional learning and spiritual input. Philip Riley, from the Principal Health and Wellbeing Survey, spoke about some strategies for looking after our health and wellbeing. One of the key strategies was ensuring we all get enough sleep. For school age children the recommended hours of sleep are 9 – 11 hours, 8 – 10 hours for teenagers and, for adults, 7 – 9 hours. While an hour below this will work for some people, the majority will need the amount of sleep mentioned above and others will require an hour above these levels.
One of the differences where sleep will contribute positively in children will be in the area of avoiding obesity. The amount of exercise completed each day was a measure that was looked at in the Page 1
sleep study. However, irrespective of the amount of exercise a child did, the obesity rate was almost halved when children slept for more than 10 hours as opposed to less than 9 hours.
▪▪Getting up at the same time each day ▪▪Exercise for 20 minutes per day ▪▪Avoid caffeine after midday ▪▪Avoid sleep in the day (20 minute naps are okay)
One other important factor was the impact of our sleep cycles throughout an 8-hour adult sleep cycle. With five 90-minute sleep cycles in an 8-hour sleep, our bodies and minds are resting, repairing and restoring, ready for our next day. The deep sleep elements occur for the longest times in the first 3 sleep cycles and a little in the fourth, giving us about 1.5 hours of deep sleep during these 6 hours. This is the phase that brings our physical restoration. So within five hours, most of us have completed our needs in this area.
▪▪Smaller meal at night and don’t eat too close to bed time ▪▪Deal with the issues of the day before bedtime ▪▪Set an alarm an hour before bed so we can wind down ▪▪Ensure the bedroom environment is conducive to sleep (dark, keep technology out of the bedroom) ▪▪Avoid screen time near bedtime – the light from the screens plays havoc with the natural rhythms of day and night
The REM (Rapid Eye Movement) phase of our sleeping is where our brain and mental health recovers. Small amounts of REM sleep occur earlier in the evening but, most significantly, it occurs at the 6th hour and the 7th hour of sleep. In fact the 7th hour contains a large portion of the sleep that we need to look after our minds and to be functioning well mentally the next day.
We serve a God who said it is a good thing to rest. He did this on the seventh day of creation and asks us to do likewise. He didn’t just suggest this to His people – it was something He commanded them to do for their own good. In the rush-rush, 24-hour, go-go-go society that we live in, are we looking after ourselves and our children with enough rest and sleep?
Looking at the quality of life measures in 6 – 7 year olds, physical, emotional and social functioning was around 10% better for normal versus short sleepers. In teenagers, students not sleeping enough were twice as likely to have problems at home, school and with peers. There was also a 2 - 3 times greater risk of depression. Of the 50 countries, Australian children were the 5th most sleep deprived in the world.
God reminds us to be still and know that He is God. Do we allow enough time to rest, relax, renew and refresh physically, mentally and spiritually, so that we can effectively serve the Lord in the tasks He has called us to? I pray that we will all be able to rest in God’s goodness daily.
Some things which may help to look after our health via good sleeping include:
Rich blessings Geoff Peet Page 2
Red and Yellow and Pink and Green, Purple and Orange and Blue In their Science classes, Prep have been investigating colours. In one experiment they made ‘colourful dancing milk’ and in another they made rainbow clouds in oil and water. Prep students visit the library as well. In Term 2, they will start borrowing books.
Around the Classrooms In their computer class with Mr Hughes, yesterday afternoon, 3/4L were learning how to use Microsoft Publisher to present their History work. 2H were reading books that they found interesting and Year 1/2C were working on flow charts to describe a process in their Science class.
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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
Primary Art/ Mural Club in C1 SALT in E8 Secondary Vocal Group in M2
Recess
Secondary TOPS Meeting in M1
After School
Tuesday MiniSALT in M2 Years 3/4 Computer Coding Club in E3
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
GIFT in E15
Children who remain at school after 3:15pm (apart from organised activities) need to be collected from the school office
Praying for Our School
Upcoming Events Mon 7/03
Pri
Fri 11/03
Pri
“Now this is the confidence that we have in Him, that if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us.” 1 John 5:14
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
We know that the Creator of the universe listens to our prayers. So we have such a wonderful opportunity to bring our requests and our gratitude to Him. You are invited to join with other parents to pray for God’s blessing on our school community and the effective operation of the school. Come along each Monday morning from 8:30 to 9:00 am. Page 4
Two Wheels and Determination
Moving Forward
At the NSW State Track Cycling Championships in Dubbo last month, Noah from 3/4L achieved some great results in the Under 11 division. In a time trial, each competitor rides one lap as fast as they can and results are determined by the time it takes. Noah came 6th in the state in this event. Four riders in each heat of a Sprint Derby compete for 1st place in order to progress to the next round. After two heats and a semi-final, Noah made it to the final and came 4th overall.
Madeline Pauley was one of our school captains last year. This year she is on a Rotary exchange trip to Finland, where she is living with a Finnish family, learning to speak Finnish and also back at school. She sent through this message for us.
It is the first past the post who wins the Scratch Race. After coming 3rd in his heat, Noah progressed to the final and came 3rd there as well, winning the bronze medal. Great work, Noah!
“I’ve tried many Finnish things such as traditional sauna and avanto (where you run from a 90o sauna into an ice hole in a frozen lake and back to the sauna), ice fishing, cross country skiing, salmiakki (salty liquorice) and many many different foods. I’ve watched my first ice hockey game and walked on a frozen lake, sledded down a snow slope and felt my eyelashes and hair freeze on a -24o night. “I could go on and on because I am absolutely loving every moment of the 45 days I’ve been on this exchange. I am extremely grateful for such an incredible chance to grow in maturity and independence as a young adult and experience life on the other side of the world, as well as learn a second language and represent our magnificent country.”
If you have any questions regarding careers or tertiary education, please contact Mr Coller and Mr McLaren at careers@maitlandcs.nsw.edu.au
Hyviä uutisia, Maddy! Hyvin tehty! Page 5
Adventures at Port Hacking Youthworks brings the power of Christian Outdoor Education to young people at their different venues across NSW. On the shores of Port Hacking, our Year 7 and 8 students extended their boundaries and faced some amazing challenges. The Year 7 program included indoor rock climbing, abseiling, archery, canoeing and water sliding. Year 8 tested their orienteering skills in the Royal National Park and went sailing on the beautiful river at Port Hacking.
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Year 7 Immunisation
For the health and safety of all students, no glass drink bottles are to be brought to school. Plastic or metal bottles are recommended.
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. Parent Information Kits for Year 7 students have been sent home to parents and 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.
Writers’ Retreat 2016 Once again a group of keen writers will gather at Tahlee to learn about writing from professional authors, to do some writing in a beautiful, quiet setting and to have a great time with friends. The Retreat will be held from June 8th to 10th at the Tahlee Ministry Centre and students who love writing are invited to attend. This year’s writers include Mary Hawkins, a fiction writer from Tasmania, Ray Hawkins, a retired minister who has published devotional books, Geoffrey McSkimming, a children’s novelist and poet, and Cameron Semmens, a poet from Melbourne. The students will be taken through a series of lectures, workshops and tutorials, as well as being able to book time to sit with a writer and discuss aspects of their writing. There is also lots of time for fun at the Tahlee centre. For further information, please contact by Mr Stephen MicKinnon by email at s.mckinnon@maitlandcs.nsw.edu.au Page 8
6S Assembly, 26th February At the assembly last week, 6S explained and acted out the different sport rotations they are doing this year and they taught us about the best way to resolve conflict. Students who had achieved places at the school swimming carnival were given ribbons and the age champions received certificates and medals.
Congratulations to the following students who received awards at the assembly KB KG 1T 1/2C
Ashlin, Caleb, Eden, Isabella, Jenna Daniella, Joseph, Kaleb, Sophie, Willow Bailey, Kyla, Logan, Oceana, Sarah H. Amelia, Eloise, Jorja, Seth, Xavier
3/4L 4P 5G
Brett, Isaac, Isabel, Sean, Xander Grace, Jayden N., Jessica, Stevie-Lee, Zac L. Bayley, Daniel, Grace C., Grace H., Oscar, Toby
5S
Grace, Isaac C., Lucy, Michael
2H
Cooper, Emmi, Jye, Shyla, Teyla
6H
Clementine, Corey, Diesel, Hannah, Montanna, Oliver
3O
Elisabeth, Josephine, Katie, Levi, Zoe
6S
Amica, Ashley, Ella, Luke
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Community News
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What’s Happening at Metford Community Baptist Church?
Metford Community Baptist Church 83 Chelmsford Drive, Metford
Friday, 11th March, 7:00 pm www.metfordbaptist.org.au
Free Admission 02 4934 5350
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
News From the Careers Advisors!
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