Compass No. 503 July 2018

Friends come and go, like the waves of the ocean,

but the true ones stick like an octopus on your face.

Anonymous

Real friends stick. Just like the octopus on the face from the quote, true friends are sticky. Sticky not just in the sense that they are with you forever. Not all friends are friends you will have for all of your life. The reality is that friendships come and go. Depending on the phases and stages of your life and where you are at, some friends will come and go like the waves of the ocean. That’s OK. That happens in friendships.

True friends though are sticky in terms of being forgiving, helpful and faithful. That’s the wisdom on friendship from the Old Testament Book of Proverbs; whoever wants to show love forgives a wrong. But those who talk about it separate close friends…A friend loves at all times. They are there to help when trouble comes…and a person with unfaithful friends soon comes to ruin. But there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother or sister. (Proverbs 17:9,17 & 18:24)

Sticky friends forgive. Can you forgive your friends and forget the hurt they might have caused you? We have the statement “forgive and forget” but even amongst friend’s forgiveness might not necessarily mean totally forgetting a deep hurt. But forgiving a friend does mean not bringing it up on purpose as a weapon to hurt the person who originally hurt you.

Sticky friends help one another. Friendship proves itself when it is acted upon and you are helped when you experience trouble in life. Friends go out of their way to help one another and notice when their friends are going through a hard time and need a hand.

Sticky friends are faithful. Faithful meaning, honest, trustworthy and dependable. Friends who are faithful are not going to just do everything you do or agree with everything you say. Being a faithful friend does not mean that you are not going to “dob in” your mates. Everyone needs at least one friend who is so faithful that they are honest enough to pull up their friends and tell them when they are going off track and causing hurt to themselves and others. That’s a real test of a faithful friend. Someone who will stick with you through thick and thin but also someone who will tell you when you are doing the wrong thing in a way that they are still there for you.

Sticky friends show forgiveness, helpfulness and faithfulness. These are key ingredients to any healthy friendship. Wisdom from an octopus and Proverbs.

Ps Tim Jarick, College Pastor

Congratulations to the Year 5 leaders for this Term who were inducted and presented with their leadership badges at Monday’s assembly.

Thanks also to those parents who attended P-5 parent teacher conferences this week. As the learning journey at Pacific is a journey shared between parents, staff and students, these conferences play an important role in enabling parents to be a part of their child’s growth and development.  

As I entered the College yesterday one of the students greeted me with a hearty good morning.  Often, we undervalue the positive impact small acts-of-kindness can have on another person. A smile, speaking in a friendly voice, helping another or doing thoughtful or generous things for someone can brighten a dull day or invigorate our feelings and emotions.  Acting kindly towards another not only makes the receiver feel good, the person performing the actions finds their endeavors fulfilling and satisfying. In giving, we receive.

Are such behaviours innate or do they need to be learnt? Recent scientific evidence has found that surprisingly, our brains are actually wired to be benevolent. Our social environment is however often much directed towards an “every man for himself attitude” based upon success at the expense of others.

Like any skill, how to speak and act with kindness towards another person is something that can be taught. At the College the development of social and emotional competencies in students is a major focus. Research regularly reaffirms the ideas that happy, confident and resilient children perform more successfully academically.

Each year students study the You Can Do it program which includes lessons on Getting Along, Persistence, Confidence, Organisation and Emotional Resilience in students. At assembly on Monday I will discuss the importance of persistence and the notion that to achieve success, effort must be expended both at school and in life in general.

Students also work within the framework of Restorative Practices and the Christian Studies and Devotions program. At the core of  all programs is the development of the concept of kindness.

The concepts translate easily from school to home. As a parent we all want our children to be happy, confident and resilient. We also want our children to act with thought and kindness without the need for extrinsic forms of motivation (prizes). A quick internet search reveals there is a great variety of interesting material available on the topic. The following site which contains a program used successfully in the Colorado Schools District in the United States acts as a great starting point if you are interested in the topic. http://www.randomactsofkindness.org/

Mr David Druery, Head of Staff and Students P-5

It’s one of many parent’s worst fears.

Unfortunately, this is the digital challenge that many parents are facing today. Even if your child is not actively looking for pornography, it is possible to be exposed while doing online research for an assignment at school, playing a game, or visiting at a friend’s home. The rollercoaster of emotions that follow a child’s unwilling exposure to pornography are hard for any parent to process: Shock, blame, anger, and disbelief – these are all valid feelings, and parents can find some emotional release by reaching out to a good friend. It’s better to vent to another adult rather than your child!

Click on the link below to learn more:  https://protectyoungminds.org/2018/07/24/8-questions-ask-child-has-seen-porn/

Mrs Annie Williams, College Counsellor

To see all of the rides and amusements on offer, visit Flexischools or OCEANfest 2018 on Facebook.

RAFFLE TICKETS – over $15 000 worth of prizes must be WON! 

Visit Flexischools online to pay for your Raffle books or to order additional books. Did you know we also have loads of prizes for booksellers and buyers?  Don’t miss your chance to WIN a Weareco Uniform Gift Voucher or a lunch at La Maison du Patissier, plus more!

CENT AUCTION BASKETS

We sincerely thank our wonderful PLC community for the many gifts received for the Junior Cent Auction. The response has been overwhelming as are the basket displays. In the coming days, we will begin to showcase the amazing creativity and generosity of our families. Our PCG Cent Auction Collection for Years 7-12 is also coming along very nicely with some very thoughtful gifts on offer. Collection for the PCG items has been extended until Friday 3 August.

SIGNUP.COM

All families in the College will receive an invitation from PLC Admin to volunteer at OCEANfest via Signup.com. When you receive the email, simply click on the link and book a time slot to help your year level stall. 

CARWASH FOR CAMBODIA

Thank you to all who supported the Car Wash for Cambodia last Saturday. The team is heading to Cambodia in December.

MIDDLE/SENIOR SPORTS DAY CANTEEN - USC

We also thank Mrs Allyson Sarvari and her team for organising and hosting the FoP BBQ at USC on Monday. The BBQ and drinks were much appreciated by both students and staff.

NEXT FOP MEETING: Tuesday, 21 August 2018

Our next Friends of Pacific meeting will be held on Tuesday, 21 August from 6.30pm in the College Library.  All welcome to attend.

Mrs Jenny Lee, FoP Chairperson 

Welcome back to Term 3. After a busy fun filled Vacation Care the children and staff are back into the swing of Before and After School Care.

The children have already started a number of projects including:

• Learning about compost and beginning to start a compost area
• Developing their own little fairy garden
• Putting together a band and making their own instruments

Our program for our September/October Vacation Care is already underway. From the feedback from our children, families and staff, we have put together the days we will be having but would also like your contribution to the activities that we hold on these days. We really appreciate your input as it helps us to provide activities and experiences that you would like your children doing and also that your children are interested in.

We love meeting new children and their families so please drop in anytime to our service to have a look at what we do.

Mrs Natalie Sorbello, Educational Leader

Last week, 48 students from Years 4-10 attended the Voices on the Coast Literature Festival. Held at the University of the Sunshine Coast, the students had the opportunity to see authors, poets, illustrators and performers such as Tristan Bancks and Lynette Noni. It was great fun, with students able to ask questions of the authors and get books signed, all while experiencing life at the University.

Mrs Nell Keen, Head of Library

Key dates are listed here for the University Open Days and expos https://www.qtac.edu.au/courses---institutions/open-days-expos:

• ACU Open Day is this Saturday 28th July
• QUT is this Sunday 29th July
• CQU Noosa campus is Tuesday 31st July 5-8pm.

Check the link for further dates and the Uni websites for program details and to plan your day.

Sunshine Coast Technical Trade Training Centre (SCTTTC)

The SCTTTC Information Evening for courses on offer in 2019 will be held Thursday 16th August at 6.30 – 7.30pm.  The evening will be an opportunity for students moving into Years 11 and 12 and their parents/carers to gain an overview of SCTTTC and gain further information about the courses on offer, along with an opportunity to talk directly to the Trainers.  We would kindly request that any interested students please RSVP by 13th August to SCTTTC directly tttcadmin@caloundrashs.eq.edu.au

Courses on offer include Cert II Automotive Services (AUR20716), Cert I Construction (CPC10111), Cert II Electrotechnology (Career Start) (UEE22011), Cert II Plumbing (52700WA), Aviation Start University Now (SUN) Studies – CQ University and Built Environment & Design Program (SUN) – CQ University.

Subject Selection Information Evening years 9 into 10 2019.

A reminder that the subject selection evening for Year 10, 2019 commences at 6pm on Tuesday 31st July. Please join us to hear about selecting subjects for the senior phase.

Mrs Natasha Purcell, Careers Counsellor

Karla Represents Queensland!

Karla Lowe had the trip of a lifetime at the 2018 Pan Pacific Water Polo Festival in Auckland last week. Karla represented Queensland in the U18 Girls team who played against other teams from Australia, New Zealand, Canada, USA and South Africa. To receive a Bronze Medal - the Queensland team played South Africa in a very physical and open flowing game. The Queensland girls came out on top with an 8-5 win.This was Karla's first International tournament and a great achievement to be selected.  Winning the Bronze medal was her reward for her hard work and dedication over the last twelve months.

7-12 SCISSA Wednesday 25^th July

RESULTS

Year 7-12 Athletics Carnival:

What a fantastic day! The sun was shining and there wasn’t a cloud in the sky plus Mumba took out the day to make it three carnival wins from three! Well done to all students who created the exceptional atmosphere, especially at the end of the day when all 500 students converged to have a war cry battle. Wow!

Age Champions:

12 Yrs – Luca Turney, Lachlan Woodward, Katie Graves, Gabrielle Rattey,

13 Yrs – Thomas Johnson, Cody Proeger, Laura Callaghan, Imogen Hiley

14 Yrs – Jason Wulff, Ethan Prosser, Carter Costa, Alicia Woods, Yasmin Richters

15 Yrs – Luke Farrell, Sam Larsen, Cosi Winter, Astrid Williams

16 Yrs – Michael Curreri, Riley Boaza, Brooklyn Graves, Georgia Harle

Open – Ethan Hall, Liam Heidrich, Isla Gear, Olivia Papallo

14 Years Boys Futsal- Champion of Champions:

On Tuesday morning seven dedicated Futsal players from Year 7 and 8 travelled to Oxley, Brisbane, to play against some of the best teams in Queensland. The boys were AMAZING and won their way through to the Quarter Finals beating Soccer Excellence Schools along the way. They were unlucky to be beaten by Toowomba Grammar School in the quarterfinals but should be very proud of the way they played in all of their matches. A huge thank you to Mr Matthais Schlotterbach and Mrs Leah Croke for taking the team. Players: Jack Connors, Jack Miller, Deepal Maharaj, Ethan Daley, Matt Becker, Ethan Prosser and Harrison Whitelaw

Mr Brett Kersnovske, Head of Sport

Calling all parents, grandparents and friends of the Pacific community! If you can volunteer for only 45 minutes, (from 12.45 to 1.30pm) then we'd love to hear from you! We have volunteer positions available to serve at the front counter.  We would love to see some new faces at the Tuckshop this term! Your time and effort will be most appreciated by staff and students. If you are unsure about what is involved, please feel free to pop in, meet our Tuckshop Convenor and have a look around. There are jobs to suit everyone and it’s a great way to meet new people and lend a helping hand. Click here to download the Volunteer Form.

Ms Carrie Dickson, Tuckshop Convenor

Ps Ray Morris, St Marks Lutheran Chruch Caloundra