Compass No 469 - August 2017

Our neighbours surround us every day. They include all of the people in our learning spaces, the people we encounter in our neighbourhood, at work and in the school yard, those we walk or drive by and even those in far away places we see on the news. In response to a question of who is our neighbour, Jesus told the story of the Good Samaritan, which is timely for us today. Like the priest and Levite, we can sometimes be too busy to see the need in others or even walk away from those in need because they are not part of our group or clan. 

The choice of the Samaritan, an outsider, to be the one who was the ‘good neighbour’ is a powerful reminder that God’s love and grace extends to all people. Where people have differences, we are reminded to walk with them in compassion and love, in response to God’s grace and forgiveness for us. The simple acts of inclusion and listening can make a difference in our local context. Seeing all people as part of God’s creation and our commonality as human beings lifts us above religious and cultural differences. We begin with a respect for the dignity of all people. We respond with love to the needs of our fellow travellers who share the tiny blue dot in space at this time in history.

At Pacific, care in education has been a central aim from the beginning. As a school, we see care as a non-judgemental attitude, which extends in a number of directions: self, others, our environment and so on. Care is linked closely with empathy, the ability to feel as others feel and take on their perspectives. It is at the core of friendships and relationships.

Recently, our Pastoral Care teachers have had individual care conversations with students in their group. The purpose of these discussions is for students to reflect on their mid-year reports and how they are travelling on their educational journey. This process involved self-reflection by the students as well as goal setting for the future. These conversations happen formally twice a year, but in an informal way, teachers and students are continually having care conversations.

As students experience the day-to-day life of the College, it is hoped they get a sense of compassion and community, which are central to a life well lived. The philosopher Heidegger saw a rich sense of care as bringing humans back to their essence. Care is not just important when we are under pressure; it is the continuous process of mastering the art of living a good human life, one that is aimed primarily at human flourishing.

On Monday, a number of students across Years 4-6 represented the College at the Sunshine Coast Schools Chess Tournament. All students played well and represented the College with pride and maturity. A special congratulations goes to Christian who placed first in the Open B division. In the teams divisions (which included over 20 teams in each division from Novice to Open A), Pacific achieved great results, which are detailed later in the newsletter. Thank you to Mr Scott Crompton and Mr Norm Stone for supervising and assisting students on the day.

As the popularity of chess continues to grow at the College, in Term 4 students will be offered the opportunity to participate in chess lessons after school on Tuesdays with Chess Mates. Following is a link to news feature that Channel 7 did on Chess Mates last year: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rYnGPD1wjz0&t=2s.

Further details about Chess Mates will be forwarded to families next week.  

We congratulate the winners of this year’s CBC Book Week Awards:

• Older Readers: One Would Think the Deep – Claire Zorn
• Younger Readers: Rockhopping – Trace Balla
• Early Childhood: Go Home Cheeky Animals – Johanna Bell
• Eve Pownall Information Books: Amazing Animals of Australia’s National Parks – Gina M Newton
• Picture Book of the Year: Home in the Rain – Bob Graham

We’ve had a fabulous response to our Book Week celebrations in the library this week! Lunchtimes have been buzzing with excited students taking part in a range of literary-related activities and enjoying the fun of ‘escaping’ in all kinds of ways! Friday will be the close of our celebrations and students are invited to dress up as their favourite book characters.

Picture this: it is 2045. Pacific offers innovative subject choices including echolocation of water/plants/animals, 3-D printing foodstuffs, extra-terrestrial communications, holographical chemistry, space elevator technology and a Certificate XXXXV in Travel Agency for space travel. However, a dark cloud descended upon the College when one of our own was found deceased in the car park. The question is, WHODUNIT?

To solve this mystery, students were provided clues through Schoology each day last week. These included everything from trying to work out who the four suspects were from their silhouette, to reading police witness statements as well as additional pieces of evidence collected along the way.  Finally, the person who was charged with attempted murder was revealed in the encrypted clue below. Can you crack the code?

Fortunately for us, detectives Astrid Williams and Lachie Buchanan were on the scene and managed to piece the clues together. Their solution is below.

1. Mrs Empson wrote the note about how to get amygdalin and left it in Mr Pohlner’s room;
2. Mrs Empson gets the amygdalin from the apricot seeds;
3. Mrs Empson baked the banana bread and gave it to Mr Pohlner, laced with amygdalin;
4. Mr Pohlner takes a Panadol out of his backpack for the headache (caused by the cyanide);
5. Whilst in the car park he sees Mr Hooper driving towards him and tries to run away, but he exhibits signs of cyanide poisoning, including dizziness;
6. Mr Hooper swerves (tire tracks on grass) and runs over Mr Pohlner (accidentally), gets a dent in his car, whilst also leaving a fingerprint on Mr Pohlner’s backpack as he checked for signs of life;
7. Mr Hooper immediately takes his car to the body shop to get it fixed;
8. He calls his wife to get her car;
9. Mr Hooper drives back to school in his wife’s car as they live just five minutes away; and
10. Mr Hooper ‘discovers’ the body and calls the police while Mrs Empson covers her tracks.

Case closed!

Miss Rebecca Ross, Head of Science

In Week 5, Pacific held its annual Japanese Speech Contest. Students were judged on the content of their speech, fluency in pronunciation, appropriate cultural gestures and their ability to answer questions in Japanese. The standard from all participating students was very high.

This year, Mayumi Katayama and Akito Iwase, our two inbound exchange students from Seishin, joined the Japanese Department to judge the speeches. We are very pleased to announce the following results:

Senior students Liam and Keaton Dines have successfully completed their first semester of tertiary study through the Headstart Program at the University of the Sunshine Coast. Liam and Keaton used their evenings to attend lectures and workshops on campus and to complete course work whilst also juggling the demands of their senior school studies. Both students not only passed their courses, but gained a Distinction and High Distinction – the highest grades that you can achieve at university. We congratulate both Liam and Keaton for their commitment to life-long learning and further education and for their outstanding academic achievements.

How’s that! This was the call from 30 Pacific students who played T20 cricket at Sunshine Coast Grammar School last Friday. Pacific had four representative teams, including an all-girls team, and competed against other independent schools from the Sunshine Coast. Participation, involvement and ‘having a go’ were the main aims of the day and every student had an opportunity to field, bat and bowl. The students can be very proud of their efforts and successes. Congratulations to those who participated.

The Pacific Running Club had more than 30 students and 15 adults enter the Sunshine Coast Marathon last Sunday. Participants ran a range of distances, from 2km, 5km, 10km and 21km. The atmosphere on the day was sensational, as was the determination of all Pacific entrants. The Pacific Running Club was so successful that we won the ‘Love & Partners Corporate Cup Challenge’ – a great effort. Thank you to all parents and students for their spirit and commitment throughout the year and to Mr Stuart Pohlner for his leadership of this group. 

• Upcoming Events
• Support Our U11 Eels!
• Adermann Awards 2017
• Pacific Soccer Sponsors
• Daffodil Day 2017
• Volunteers and Canteen Helpers 
• Six-A-Side Summer Competition
• 2018 Season
• Pacific Soccer App
• Pacific Soccer Contacts

Click here to download the Pacific Soccer newsletter for this week.

Mr Matt Gigney, Secretary – Pacific Soccer Committee

Junior Oztag is a fun, safe and fantastic way to make new friends! Click here to download the flyer, which includes details on how to sign up for the approaching season.