Today we dressed in orange clothing to mark the National Day of Action against Bullying. The theme for this year's NDA is Kindness Culture. Kindness is one of our key values at TMC. On Wednesday next week, Years 7 to 9 will participate in a range of activities to increase awareness of all the many ways we can be kind to each other and kind to ourselves. 

We are looking for members to join our 2022 P&F and we would love to have you join us!

The P & F plays an important role within our school, helping throughout the year on many functions such as: Mother/Father's Day stalls, helping with BBQ's at sporting events held here at the College and at the Long Rd Sporting Complex, and other functions held at the school. We also coordinate rosters for volunteers to help out in the reading programs.

To our new parents it's a great way to meet other Primary/Secondary families and get involved in our school community.

Our first meeting of the year is being held at 2pm on Tuesday, March 29 at the admin building, please come along for tea/coffee and cake and meet our  members. The outgoing President and Vice President will be resigning their positions and we will ask for nominations for these roles.

Nominations are open to Primary and Secondary parents to apply for these positions. As a P-12 school, it's great to have a parent from both camps on board.

We look forward to meeting you at our meeting at 2pm on Tuesday March 29. Any questions you can email us on pandf@tmc.qld.edu.au or ring our Secretary Wendy Schonfisch on 55453644  for any information. 

Under QLD Government Legislation, all volunteers are required to show evidence to the College to verify their COVID-19 vaccination status.

Evidence of your COVID vaccinations (or exemption) must be provided to the College prior to your first volunteer session with the College. Please provide evidence by:

(a)           completing the TMC COVID Vaccination Register form (electronic certificate); or

(b)           visiting reception with a copy of your printed certificate.

We hope to see you at the meeting. 

Our staff will maintain the privacy of any child who tests positive, so please respect that they can not discuss private information with other families. The College does not identify if particular cases are in a VIC or VAL class, as all cohorts spend time together learning inside, eating and playing outside, as well as for privacy reasons. Specifying VIC or VAL could detrimentally reduce the awareness of the other class.

Given the current outbreak it is to be expected that cases will occur from time to time, and the staff at the College are following all guidelines to create the safest environment possible. As always, please monitor your child for any signs of the following and perform a PCR or RAT. If they have any of these symptoms, do not send them to school:

• fever
• coughing
• sore throat
• shortness of breath.

Other symptoms may sometimes include:

• runny nose or congestion
• headache or fatigue
• muscle or joint pains
• nausea or loss of appetite
• diarrhoea or vomiting
• temporary loss of smell or altered sense of taste.

If you or anyone in your family tests positive please report this to us so we can record this information. Under the current Health Directive we must keep a record of any students who test positive or are isolating as a close contact.

As today is the National Day of Action Against Bullying, it's a great opportunity for parents to have a conversation with your child about how they can spread kindness and have positive interactions with their peers. 

Most of the student social issues I've dealt with in my 20 years of teaching have been a result of students having conversations about others who are not present. My advice for students is always, "If you don't have something overly positive to say about someone who is not present, do not discuss it with your peers. Instead, speak to a parent or member of staff about your concern so we can support you."  

Our teens feel strongly about their friends and want to support and protect them. Unfortunately, that desire to "protect" their friend can turn a minor situation into a much bigger one. This is why it is so important for children know they can confide in their parents and in the teachers at TMC. Together, we can strengthen our culture of kindness. 

Last week, our Year 7 and 11 students embarked on an experience of a lifetime. Every year, the 7 and 11 students go on a joint camp. This year, they went to Bornhoffen, just a short ride from our beloved TMC. 

When asked why experiences such as these are positive, Mr Haskins, Year 11 and 12 coordinator said that “by the end, they had developed an understanding that they could overcome hardship and work with others to achieve goals that they thought were beyond them”. Furthermore, he says that this camp helps Year 11 students to develop independence, maturity, leadership and integrity, which are all traits senior students need as they head towards completing school. He believes that every student should take advantage of the opportunities this camp provides. 

At the camp, students completed many different team building activities and participated in crucial activities for building independence and skills. For the senior students, their camp consisted of a high ropes team building exercise, followed by the beginning of an overnight hike and camp. The students started at the base of Numinbah valley, continuing towards Springbrook. After 3 hours of hiking uphill with 20-35 kg packs, everyone set up tents and settled down for the night. The final day, students hiked more than 1.5 km in length, rising over the height of the Q1 building. 

For the younger students, their time at camp involved many hands-on activities including high ropes, low ropes, abseiling down rock faces, stomping through creeks and completing fun activities in the evening which were set by the Year 11 students. Mrs Garnar, Year 7 and 8 Coordinator had the wonderful opportunity of guiding the students through this camp. She says, not only did they learn new skills like high ropes and abseiling, but they also learnt to overcome their own barriers to success, teaching them mind over matter. For Mrs Garnar, her favourite parts of this camp were the memories she made. She followed up by stating that she loved witnessing the friendships and memories that the students are making at the same time. 

Finally, when asked what Mr Haskins’ favourite part of the camp was, he said “The high ropes were a lot of fun and it was great to see the students achieve success. Dinner, cooked by the students on Thursday night was really tasty and it was nice to sit back whilst the students did the cooking and the dishes.” 

All in all, it is wonderful to hear about the extraordinary time that the students and teachers had at camp and even more special to be able to gain insight into what type of activities and experiences the students and teachers got up to. Well done to everyone who participated in the camp for your efforts and we can’t wait to see what next year's camp brings!

By Chloe Cross, Year 11

We’re excited to announce that parents of our school have exclusive access to Elevate Education’s Parent Webinar Series this year. Elevate works with our students, delivering high impact workshops on study skills, motivation, wellbeing, and exam preparation. By tuning into their webinar series, you will learn how to better support your children at home through reinforcing the skills they learn at school.  

Wednesday 23rd March @ 7pm (AEDT)

Managing Technology & Focus

 Register for free here

In Managing Technology & Focus, Elevate will show you: 

How to help your child manage social media and reduce technology dependence 

Practical strategies and apps to minimise procrastination 

How to help your child use technology productively to enhance their learning 

The webinar is run live online from 7-8pm (AEDT) where the presenter will share Elevate’s key research and skills, and will conduct a live Q&A so you can ask them questions directly.

Register for free here

Should you have questions or would like to contact Elevate directly, their details are listed below.

 1300 667 945

 aucoaching@elevateeducation.com

 https://go.elevateeducation.com/e/891981/au-schoolwebinar/8w651/191498890?h=bOiUTOIi6fBvYxvxutJOJffKqxbhCUeuBupgaI7T50I

Year 2 have been working both individually and in small groups to design, create and evaluate their ideas and design solutions using various materials. We have communicated design ideas through collaborating with our team members and using models and simple drawings. We followed sequenced steps and demonstrated our ability to problem solve, share ideas and work cohesively within a team. We have had lots of fun!

Ms Jodi Byron & Miss Darby Kenyon

On Wednesday the 16th March, Year 6 took a trip to Parliament House in Brisbane. While 6 Vic entered Parliament, 6 Val took a trip around the city looking at all the sights and getting some food on the way. The city was alive with people using their democratic right to protest! When 6 Val entered the building they got an introduction about the legislative assembly. Then they got to have some biscuits and poppers while the adults had some tea. When they finished their food and drinks, they did a mock debate about students having to do a minimum of one hour of homework. In the mock debate, the Labor Party won their request to legislate that students should do a minimum of one hour of homework each night. But that was just a bit of fun, students, so you don’t actually have to do a minimum of one hour of homework… (your teachers may say otherwise!).  Finally, the students had the chance to observe the day’s ‘sitting’ and listen to speeches about the recent floods.  

Overall, Year 6 was very lucky to go to Parliament because not many people do.  We have learned that the speaker has all the power in debate, and the premier has quite a bit of power too, but in the end, it’s the power of the people that matters the most - that is, after all, what democracy means!  

By James Haskins 6 Val

You can lean on us! National Day of Action Against Bullying

This week in Year 6 we have been talking about ways to stop or take action against Bullying. Bullying is never okay. It's hurtful and can have an impact on someone for a long time. Bullying can be in many forms: verbal (hurting someone with words), physical (hurting someone with your body), social (stopping someone from having friends), and - the worst one yet - cyberbullying. 

The students in Year 6 have made lots of posters and put them up around the school to raise awareness about the National Day of Action Against Bullying. Our posters have our names on them, as well as the promise, “You can lean on me.”  We want all primary school students to know that they can go to any Year 6 student for support when they need it.  We’re so excited to see all grades from Prep to Year 6 singing the song, “Lean On Me”! We’ve been learning this song as a way of coming together as a primary school, and making sure that we all know what it means to be a great friend. 

We got the chance to speak to Year 4 students about bullying and how you can stop it!  We told them that if something happens with a bully, then they should say, “No” or “Stop”, and calmly walk away.  We told them that they should try not to get involved, because it’s best to walk away and ask an adult for help.  

We are so proud of the action we have taken against bullying!  

Ava Hall and Ivy Jamieson, Year 6

One of the best gifts any parent can give a child is the love of books and the joy and benefits of independent reading for fun.  Children who read at home, or are read to, have a head start on reading success in school.

Our School participates in the Scholastic Book Club.  Up to twice a term, catalogues containing a selection of books for all ages, are sent home with children.  Each order helps earn free books and teaching materials for our classrooms.

It is easy to order.  The Book Club Loop platform for parents allows you to pay by credit card.  Your child’s order is submitted directly to school and the books will be delivered to class.  You can place your child’s order at scholastic.com.au/loop or by using the LOOP app, which can be downloaded from the App Store or Google Play.

Thank you to everyone who has volunteered to be a Support A Reader volunteer in Term 2. It's not too late to join! Mrs Pavey will be contacting all volunteers next week to arrange a time for training.

If you are interested, please fill in the following Google Form.

Support A Reader Volunteer Form

Our Year 4 students were incredibly excited to receive their instruments last week! While the start-of-year excitement is always one of my favourite parts of the year, our Year 4 students were even more enthusiastic than usual after a few unforeseen delays. I loved hearing their squeals of delight and seeing their giant smiles as they were given their very own instrument to take home. 

In their first two lessons students have learnt how to set up their instrument, play their first few notes, and clean and care for their instrument. The first term is always the hardest part, but as students persevere through the initial coordination challenges and master their first five notes they are able to more fully enjoy the musical experience. 

Looking forward to a great year ahead - now practise, practise, practise!

Ms Kristy Jewell, Instrumental Music Teacher

Today the Early Learning Centre along with the College  took part in the National Day of Action against Bullying and Violence.  We wore orange themed clothing and participated in orange experiences:

• Hand print artworks. 
• Stories of friendships 
• Discussions - ‘What it means to be kind to each other.’  
• We even had Ariah’s orange-fur puppy visit!  

At the ELC we use every opportunity that arises to talk with children about how people behave in various social situations and how people get on with each other.

Thanks for everyone’s involvement, it has been a fun day, with a great message for us all! 

https://bullyingnoway.gov.au/teaching-about-bullying/talking-about-bullying

If your child tells you about things at school or you see things in public that involve conflict or bullying, and if it is appropriate, take the opportunity to talk about what bullying is. Avoid describing a child as a 'bully' or a 'victim'. Although these words are often used in research and in the media, they are not very helpful for finding positive and lasting solutions.

Mrs Fernandez, Director -  Early Learning Centre

8 VIC finished their portrait drawings this week creating some amazing artworks. Artworks by Emma Anderson and Harmony Corden.

Mrs Jenny Radley

Last weekend Ashlee Lowe competed in the Fairholme College Dressage and Show Jumping. In the Intermediate Novice dressage, she was the Reserve Champion on her horse Montezuma RPH and in Secondary Show Jumping 110cm which is the 2nd highest level available in Interschool, she was the Reserve Champion on her horse Rainbow Magic. She also placed 9th in the Secondary Show Jumping 100cm on Montezuma RPH. A massive congratulations to Ashlee who did an outstanding job representing TMC at the event. Ashlee was also a finalist for Junior Athlete of the Year at the 2021 EQ Awards. We are very excited to see what Ashlee can continue to achieve this year. 

Miss Chanel Fletcher

Every day, thousands of Australian children suffer the effects of eczema, and families struggle with managing eczema and children’s behavioural and emotional adjustment.

Healthy Living Triple P is an adaptation of the successful Triple P - Positive Parenting Program, offering practical ideas and support for parents of children with eczema. This innovative online program is designed to help parents manage their child’s eczema more easily, help children cope with their eczema and emotions, prevent and manage difficult child behaviour, and reduce the impact of eczema on families. 

Over the next few months, parents of 2-10 year old children with eczema are able to access Healthy Living Triple P free of charge as part of a research project through the Queensland Children’s Hospital, Griffith University, and the University of Queensland. For more information, please visit us at https://exp.psy.uq.edu.au/eczema/, contact Dr Amy Mitchell on (07) 3735 6462, or email healthyliving@uq.edu.au. 

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