There seems to be a slight shift in the weather as we reach the middle of Term 3 with the days seemingly that little bit warmer, despite the frosty starts. It has been great to see so many of our students outside enjoying the scattered sunshine during recess and lunch after having been unable to do as much due to the colder winter weather.
Year 9 Camp
Our Year 9s have returned from their very successful Winter Camp where they engaged in activities such as white-water rafting, mountain biking, hiking and cross-country skiing. The effort and commitment of all students was fantastic as many of them were doing some of these activities for the very first time. There was a lot of fun at the end of each day where all Year 9 students came together for dinner and evening activities such as trivia, guest speakers and minute to win it games. This camp is another great activity for helping to bring our boys and girls closer together in order to assist their transition into Senior College at the end of the year. I would like to express a huge thank you to all staff who were on the camp as this is also massive commitment by all of them to be away from their family for the week.
Subject Selections
With subject selections now completed, I’d like to thank all students for ensuring their selections were in on time which certainly assists in this lengthy process. There will be a number of meetings between students and our careers department to ensure that their chosen pathways are both suited to their interests and strengths, and also to their current ability. The School will always look to guide each student to what we believe to be the best possible outcome for them.
Volleyball tournament
On Friday 29 July to Monday 1 August we had in excess of 70 students representing Tintern in the Volleyball Victoria Four Days School Cup at the State Volleyball Centre in Dandenong. Our volleyball squads have been training for this since the end of last year under the guidance of our Head of Sport Mr Viney, Mrs Petchell, Miss Vine, Ms Thomas and Ms Nguyen. They have worked incredibly hard and improved significantly over this time. Congratulations to all students for their effort and participation in the tournament.
SEL in the Middle School.
Social Emotional Learning (SEL) is the process through which students develop and apply the skills necessary to understand and manage their emotions, set and achieve positive goals, understand and show empathy for others, establish and maintain positive respectful relationships. Fostering SEL by nurturing strong interpersonal relationships, developing the whole person and providing opportunities for students to develop independence are some of the aims of the Middle School Pastoral Program. Students learn aspects of life which are not necessarily present in the academic curriculum through the Pastoral Program.
An obvious question would be “How is this achieved in the Middle School at Tintern?”. The answer is: in multiple ways. One example would be through the The Resilience Project (TRP) – our ‘go-to’ as well as tailored programs relevant to their age and stage. Programs completed so far (study skills and confidence and body image) give the opportunity for students to reflect on goals and their behaviour, and also on messages they receive and send – including to themselves – about their personal worth and value. Year 7 and 8 students are about to begin their third program: positive digital behaviours, which is also the focus for GEM Day later this term.
Another way SEL is developed is through providing many opportunities for student involvement within classes and year levels, across the school and alongside other schools. Year 7s have recently celebrated 100 days of Year 7, with games and activities across both the boys’ and girls’ classes being run by our Middle School leaders. Academic enrichment opportunities have also been reinstated this year through the Horizon program. Recently, Year 7 and 8 students participated in SLAM Poetry at an interschool event, with Tintern students being awarded 2nd place for their poem on ‘School’. In May, 54 students across the Middle School were invited to attend the Melbourne University Mathematics Competition. Congratulations go to Sophia Richards (Year 7) and Jacob Beard and Chunting Li (Year 8) for achieving Merit Certificates in this very challenging competition. Other enrichment events currently underway include Have Sum Fun Online interschool maths competition, and Write A Book In A Day fundraiser for Kids Cancer Project.
Annual Music Concert
On Friday 5 August we held our Annual Music Concert in the CM Wood Centre with over 120 students participating in the incredible concert. We are so fortunate that we can run events like this again this year following the last few years, and even more fortunate with the amazing level of talent and skill that our students exhibit. There is so much work that goes into preparing for events like this with many of our ensembles, bands and choirs rehearsing since the beginning of the year. I would like to express a huge congratulations to all the students, and also a massive thank you to all the music staff who work incredibly hard with our students for many, many hours.
Vardos Incursion
On Thursday 11 August, all the Year 7 and 8 students were able to watch and listen to the vibrant, energetic and sometimes unusual sounds of the ensemble called Vardos at a performance held in the CM Wood Performance Centre. Read the full report in Music Matters
House Singing
One of our major House events each year is House Singing across Year 7 – 12. This is where in each House students learn and perform two songs following a particular theme. This year the theme was “70s” with Waterloo by Abba being the common song that all Houses do, and the second song is left to the choice of the House. This is a challenging leadership experience for our House Captains as they lead the members of their House through learning the songs at first, developing a band to play live, introduce dance moves and props to add aesthetic value to their performance. The competition is on Thursday August 18 during Periods 2 & 3.
Student Progress Meetings
Our Semester 2 Student Progress Meetings (SPM) are fast approaching and are an opportunity for students, parents and teachers to collaborate on how they are going in their subjects. There will be interim reports provided that highlight areas such as effort and behaviour however, the meetings allow an opportunity for these to be discussed in greater detail. This year they will all be conducted online with information on how to book times to be communicated shortly.
The three sessions are:
- Session 1: Tuesday 23 August, 9am – 4pm. Students will work asynchronously from home on that day.
- Session 2: Wednesday 24 August, 4pm – 8pm.
- Session 3: Monday 29 August, 4pm – 8pm.
Mid-term Break – Friday 19 August
A reminder that our mid-term break is Friday 19 August. There will be no school on this day.
Brett Trollope | Head of Secondary
