Principal’s Log

The preparations of the College for the potential effects of Ex-Tropical Cyclone Alfred required considerable work by our grounds staff and IT team. We appreciate their attention to detail and their willingness to go the extra mile to ensure that preparations allowed the normal operations of the College to continue as they maximised safety and continuity for our community. We also appreciate the way staff and students assisted and adjusted to changed routines. Thank you to Operations Manager Mr Mark Ackerman and his team and ICT Manager Mr Steve Rattey and his team for their care of this community and to all staff, students and parents for their support.

The College has a strong focus on supporting students to be aware of their thinking skills and to enhance their capacity to direct their thinking from Kindergarten to Year 12. Parents play an important role in the growth of students' ability to develop these metacognitive skills which are critical for their growth as learners. Research shows that the dispositions of curiosity and metacognition are the most impactful in the growth of people as learners.  I encourage all families to read Head of Learning K-5, Mrs Sue Zweck’s Making Thinking Visible article later in this newsletter. The article provides simple strategies that parents and students can use to enhance their thinking.

Year 3, 5, 7 and 9 students have engaged well with the NAPLAN testing as it has unfolded this week. The test provides important information for parents and students about progress in the areas of literacy and numeracy. As a college, we use the data alongside other data to track both individual student and cohort progress. We thank Mrs Jo Belchamber and Mrs Sue Zweck for their leadership and our IT team for their capable support.

We congratulate Kate and Angus on their strong performances as part of the Caloundra Lions Club round of the Lions Youth of the Year competition. Both students performed well with Kate winning the public speaking and overall competition. We wish Kate and Franklin, (winner of the Lake Currimundi-Kawana Lions Club competition), all the best as they now compete at the regional level at Bribie Island over the weekend.

Our swimming teams performed well at the recent Independent District competition with some very strong individual and age group performances. The Year 3-6 team came 4th and the Year 7-12 team 6th out of 11 schools. We congratulate all members of both teams and wish those students selected as part of the Independent District Team all the best at the regional carnival.

Our cricketers also performed well in the StreetSmarts Secondary Schools T20 Challenge which involved teams from Noosa to Redcliffe. The Pacific team remained undefeated to reach the grand final. In a tightly contested match, they lost to Matthew Flinders by 9 runs. We congratulate all players and thank Mr Stuart Pohlner, for his coaching and management of the team.

We say a prayer of thanks to God for keeping us safe and for the many blessings He gives us each day. We pray that God would provide for all those who have been impacted by Ex-Tropical Cyclone Alfred and hold them in His care.

Dr Bronwyn Dolling, Principal