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It is that time of year again when members of the school community can submit nominations for the National Excellence in Teaching Awards (NEiTA) for Inspirational Educators. This is an opportunity for our school community to publicly recognise and encourage our great teachers.

The National Excellence in Teaching Awards program was established in 1994 to honour exemplary teaching throughout Australia and New Zealand.

We know that parents value the efforts of our teachers and there are very few opportunities for a public expression of this appreciation and support. One way of doing this is by nominating a teacher for this award. Nominated teachers receive a congratulatory NEiTA Certificate of Nomination and become eligible for NEiTA State and National Awards.

Nominations are quite straightforward and can be completed by accessing this link.

Thank you for considering nominating a member of the St Margaret’s teaching staff.

Nominations close on the 17 July. 

Ros Curtis

Aunty Sandra gave an incredibly moving address, telling us all a story of her family and the affect of the Stolen Generation on them. She was incredibly generous with her time, spending the day with some of our students and classes. The secondary rock bands also played ‘My Island Home’ and ‘Beds are Burning’ for us. I’d like to thank all students and staff involved in this event, but particularly Bella, Gina, Winnie, Charli and Sienna for their spoken parts in the ceremony, with Sienna introducing our guest speaker using some of her first language. The whole school joined in placing messages on cardboard hands that they then placed in the ground on Circular Drive. It was lovely that the forecast rain for that day ceased and allowed us all to participate in this activity.

I was so pleased to attend Classics in the Cathedral on Friday evening. This was a beautiful evening that showcased a number of our primary and secondary ensembles, including a guest appearance from Old Girl Xanthe Lowe-Brown (’18). All ensembles played or sang beautifully and it was so lovely to see all participants take part in the finale – O Fortuna.

I would like to wish all our cross country runners the best of luck for the rescheduled QGSSSA competition this weekend. Information for both athletes and spectators has been forwarded to families from the Director of Sport – I look forward to seeing everyone there on Saturday morning.

Karen Gorrie

National Reconciliation Week concludes with Mabo Day on Friday, when we celebrate Eddie Koiki Mabo and remember his work in overturning the fictional concept of Terra Nullius (land belonging to no one). We marked Mabo Day today with a special whole school assembly.

Although National Reconciliation Week is only one week of the year, reconciliation is ongoing work.

“Christians, I believe, are called to model this commitment to reconcile with others through our own life and witness. James reminds us that we ‘are to be doers of the word and not merely hearers ...’ (James 1: 22). Paul says we are ‘... ambassadors for Christ, since God is making his appeal through us ...’ (2 Cor 5: 20). We are called by our very nature as Christians to be reconcilers: people who are committed to living and acting in the presence and power of God’s reconciling love.”

(Bishop Chris McLeod, National Aboriginal Bishop – Anglican Church of Australia)

A reminder of our Confirmation Service on Friday 10 June. If your daughter would like to be confirmed, please complete

Rev’d Jazz Dow

A few examples of how we practice gratitude in the boarding house:

1. We have a new ‘gratitude garden’ in the breezeway outside Boarders' reception. Each boarding staff member (including our kitchen and laundry teams) has a labelled envelope. Girls are able to write a note of gratitude and thanks to a staff member, plant it in the staff members envelope and watch gratitude grow.
2. 

Our Year 7’s have a ‘warm and fuzzy’ jar in their common room. Students are able to write something nice about their peer, or note a kind act that they witnessed, and place it in the jar. When there are several warm and fuzzies in the jar, the cohort gathers to read the warm and fuzzies together.

1. Our Year 8’s have a ‘Random Act of Kindness’ display. Girls can write something kind about a peer on a post-it note and stick it to the wall. We often see girls standing at the wall, marvelling at the stories of kindness displayed.

Hannah Calcino

On Friday, some of our students of Torres Strait Island descent shared with us some songs and dances from their culture while other students painted faces. On Tuesday, a delegation of students visited St John’s College at The University of Queensland to hear from Dr Jackie Huggins who encouraged our girls to be the face of change. Today we wrapped up our Reconciliation Week celebrations with our Mabo Day assembly. This was an opportunity for some of our students to share the significance of Eddie Mabo’s story with our greater school community as well as other students to share what their home means to them. This week has provided many opportunities for our school community to come together and celebrate our differences and recognise our journeys. I feel blessed to be able to be part of such authentic experiences and generosity of spirit.

Learner Agency and Feedback
This week, all Years 9 and 10 parents and guardians will have received an email from me regarding a research project we are assisting with. Jennifer Levitt from The University of Queensland is investigating Learner Agency and Feedback. This will include the collection of work samples and some small group interviews. This is an exciting research opportunity as our English teachers will regularly be working with Jennifer Levitt and her supervisor, Cam Brooks, gaining valuable professional development on Cam’s research on student feedback. I strongly encourage parents to return the signed consent forms (or an email consenting to involvement) to me to enable sufficient data collection for Jennifer’s research.

Caitlin McCluskey

As girls from Years 7 to 12 have been part of the Continuous Reporting process, there are no comments for each subject. For specific comments please refer back to Curricular Activities in Parent Lounge. Girls in all year levels are encouraged to read their comments carefully. These remarks contain advice designed to assist the girls to develop their skills and improve their future outcomes. Ideally, students should review their reports with their parents just prior to beginning Semester 2. In this way, they can use them to set some specific learning goals.

The GPA graph contains a number which is rounded down to the nearest 0.2 increment. It is also important to be mindful of the fact that curriculum becomes more demanding from year to year and that a decline in outcomes in Semester 1 can be quite usual. This is particularly the case from Year 10 to Year 11. The most significant information about a student’s learning progress can be gained by comparing outcomes from Semester 1 to Semester 2, within a calendar year.

Should you have any questions regarding your daughter’s report please contact the Dean of Studies’ office on 3862 0703 when school resumes in Term 3.

Chris Dunn

Many parents have reported excessive screen time as the number one health concern affecting kids, especially now in the hyperconnected world we live in. The World Health Organisation (WHO) recommends that there should be less than two hours for 5 to 17 year olds. However, these guidelines have been disputed by experts and often ignored by families. Parents must play an important role in modelling a positive approach to using screens, and assisting children to navigate the content they access.

The most popular social media platform amongst our students is TikTok. Tik Tok is an entertainment platform that lets people create and share short videos. Students love using the platform’s tools, filters, and special effects to combine video, music, and graphics into funny sketches, informational videos, and creative short stories.

TikTok trends and challenges are a popular part of the app that change often. Users can re-create content from dance challenges to memes about current events. While many are harmless and fun, there are others that need to be monitored closely. Parents are encouraged to talk to their daughters about practising good judgment around these dangerous trends. The Heads of Year will also be discussing this with their students during their year level assemblies in the coming weeks. For more information please visit:

Nikki Townsend

The 1990s is regarded as the decade of the brain. Advances in technology at this time provided the capacity for researchers to learn about the function of the brain. It is now commonly known that, in the first 1000 days of life, 80 per cent of a child’s brain develops. Brain research also identifies the strong relationship between cognition and emotion and dyadic relationships. The evidence-based findings have implications for the classroom.

For students to learn, they need to be calm. Activities such as mindfulness, controlled breathing and singing help centre and ready students for learning. Alongside controlling emotions, students need support in developing dispositions such as effort and persistence.

Secondly, a positive relationship with the teacher is paramount to learning. Nathan Wallis, a conference keynote speaker, suggested the quality of the relationship with the teacher is the most important aspect of learning - more important than the content area. We are fortunate at St Margaret’s that our teachers understand and value the relationships they form with their students and are committed to each girl’s educational and social wellbeing. Coupled with that, our students know their teachers like them, care for them, and want them to succeed so that each child feels connected and can learn.

Angela Drysdale

In order to achieve this goal, set each term, students are required to engage in a minimum of 15 – 20 minutes of AR reading each day. They then complete a quiz on each book they read. Teachers monitor the students' comprehension of books read, the number of words read and help them reach their targets. Congratulations to all students who have contributed to the 97,244,020 words read to date this year.

Kate Frewin

Rock Band Performances

Thank you to both the Monday Rock Band and Tuesday Rock Band for the performances provided at the Sorry Day assembly last Thursday. The Monday Rock Band performed Island Home made famous by Christine Anu and the Tuesday Rock Band performed Midnight Oil’s classic Beds Are Burning. The performances were greatly appreciated by all in attendance.

Stage Band Workshop

A workshop was held on Monday afternoon for Stage Band members. Several professional musicians worked with the students throughout the afternoon preparing and presenting a variety of stage band repertoire. Thank you to all those involved. The afternoon was very valuable for all those in attendance.

Practice-a-thon

Thank you once again to all students who participated in the Music Support Group’s Practice-a-thon fundraiser. Approximately $3000 was raised, which is a wonderful effort. The winners of the prizes have now been drawn by the Music Support Group and will be announced at the end of term assembly on Thursday 16 June.

Music Support Group

Thank you to all those who attended the last Music Support Group meeting. The next meeting will be held on Tuesday 14 June at 5.00pm in M’s Cafe. Parents from both the primary and secondary schools are welcome to attend.

Brad King

Event proceedings are as follows:

Event: 33^rd Annual QGSSSA Cross Country Championships

Date: Saturday 4 June

Location: John Paul College - Cec Munns Sports Centre

• 8:30 am 17 Years & Over
• 8:40 am Open Multiclass
• 9:10 am 12 Years & Under
• 9:40 am 13 Years
• 10:10 am 14 Years
• 10:40 am 15 Years
• 11:10 am 16 Years
• 11:40 am Presentations

With spirit being a defining feature of the culture at St Margaret’s, we are excited that all our Year 8s & 10 students will be in attendance as spectators and supporters. Student spectator expectations and logistics have been emailed to all parents and guardians of students involved. Additional St Margaret’s community spectators are very welcome throughout the day. Unfortunately, dogs are not permitted at the venue.  

We are looking forward to a great day and hope that our team can finish the season strong.

Sporting Achievements

It’s with great pleasure that we can recognise the outstanding sport performances and representation of St Margaret’s students at a national and international level. I would like to highlight and congratulate the following students on their recent achievements:

• Sophie Martin (Year 11) who has been selected for the Australian Junior Dolphins Swim Team to compete at the 2022 Junior Pan Pacific Swimming Championships in Honolulu, Hawaii. This opportunity will include experiencing a staging camp on the Gold Coast to best prepare for the championships ahead.

• Bless Daly (Year 8), Lucy Stuart (Year 8) and Taylah Nash (Year 8) who have been selected to represent Queensland in the U14 Maroon State Team at the Interstate Challenge.

We would like to continue to recognise the outstanding achievements and representation of students participating at a national level, outside of the school sport pathway. I look forward to continuing to hear from our community regarding such outstanding achievement. Please directly contact myself via email lknight@stmargarets.qld.edu.au.  

GO MAGGIES!

Lloyd Knight

Students in Years 5 to 8 are invited to join our school holiday Art program with Glen Skein, our resident artist. Glen will guide participants through a variety of print making methods and each participant will have the opportunity to create artists books using traditional and contemporary book binding methods. Download this flyer  (PDF 1.1MB) for more information. For all enquiries, please contact Claudia Mazotta in the Art Department by phoning 3862 0791 or emailing CMazzotta@stmargarets.qld.edu.au.

Adrian Walker

Head of Faulty - Arts

Emerging Artist Competition

A reminder that Bernborough Ascot is supporting emerging artists at St Margaret’s through an Emerging Artist Prize as part of the MAYO Arts Festival. Students in Years 7 to 12 are invited to enter an original work that reflects this year’s MAYO theme, ‘reconnect’.

Submissions can be 2D static artworks on paper or canvas using paint, pastel, pencil or mixed media.

First prize (acquisitive prize) will receive $500 and the opportunity to have their artwork permanently on display within the Bernborough Ascot Village near Doomben Racecourse.

Entries close on Friday 8 July 2022. For any questions or assistance, please see Lucy Hulme in the Art Department – lhulme@stmargarets.qld.edu.au.

Sponsorship

Each primary school year level hosts a stall at the festival. St Margaret’s is offering sponsorship of these stalls for $350. This includes the following benefits:

• Company branding displayed on sponsored stall
• Company name listed on festival webpage
• Company name published in festival program

Thank you to those families and businesses that have already sponsored a stall at this year's festival. For anyone who might be still interested, we have availability to sponsor the Pre-Prep and Year 4 stalls. Please contact Pru Reed preed@stmargarets.qld.edu.au if you'd like to take up this opportunity.

Heidi Cooper is the CEO of CCIQ and is passionate about driving Queensland’s strategic growth. Throughout her career, Heidi has worked extensively for the advancement of business in Queensland. With over 20 years’ experience in law, corporate affairs and policy making, Heidi has successfully driven strategies for major ASX companies. She has specialised in leading sustainable business initiatives with a key focus on economic growth, job creation, education, sustainability and community engagement. Heidi is currently a member of the Jobs Queensland Board and Brisbane Festival Giving Committee. She also has a longstanding commitment to community and not-for-profit initiatives and is a member of the St Margaret’s Foundation Board and the St Joseph’s College Gregory Terrace School Advisory Council. 

Date: Thursday 18 August 2022

Time: 6.45am arrival for 7.00am - 8.45am

Location: Arts Centre Foyer, Ó£ÌÒ¸£ÀûÊÓƵ Anglican Girls School, 11 Petrie Street, Ascot

Format: Sit-down breakfast 

We also invite you to enjoy Barista Coffee from the Wolff Coffee Roasters cart, before and after the event!

Tickets: $85 Adult, $40 Student (Years 10-12/Tertiary).

Corporate tables: $850 (10 seats), includes company logo displayed on table and acknowledgement during event.

Book now via the Try Booking link:      

We thank our series sponsors for their support. Major Sponsor: Pitcher Partners, Associate Sponsors: Programmed Property Services and Wolff Coffee Roasters, and Supporting Sponsors: Downer, Clear Insurance, Westpac, O’Reilly Shaw Lawyers and Uniform Link.

Reunion Weekend 2022

St Margaret’s warmly invites graduate students from 2012, 2002, 1992, 1982, 1972, 1962 and VIP graduates from the years 1961 and prior to return to the school for their reunion weekend in July.

The reunions will be held at various locations at St Margaret’s over the weekend of Saturday 23 and Sunday 24 July.  The Old Girls’ Day Chapel Service and morning tea will be held from 10.30am on Sunday 24 July, and is always a wonderful opportunity to reconnect, remember and share personal histories with one another. For more details and to purchase tickets, please visit the Reunion Weekend event page.

Lara Pickering