7 NOVEMBER VOL.14 NO.33 NEWSLETTER t: 3354 3422 w: www.hillbrook.qld.edu.au e: [email protected] From The School Leadership Team This is a summary of Geoff’s speech last night at Celebration Evening. He talked about the less obvious beliefs and actions that make a huge difference to our students’ learning through the metaphor of Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon. The movie ‘Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon’ is a classic. A study of shifting allegiances, love and hate and the mystery of life’s purpose. But tonight I wish to use it, amazingly enough as a metaphor. An educational metaphor about Hillbrook in fact. The title of the movie is based on a Chinese idiom that can be used to describe a place full of talented people who remain hidden and undiscovered. However, it is comforting to know that behind this Crouching Tiger face of education there lies a Hidden Dragon of great value - the more subtle learning and development of young people. Not a forced march, but a journey of discovery made with a light step and the wind at our backs. Let’s start with our Rights and Responsibilities. Crouching Tigers believe everyone needs to be told or forced to do the right thing. This Hidden Dragon believes the opposite - that people will always strive to do the right thing! It therefore provides guidelines, not rules. It provides for individual choice and with this choice comes understanding, responsibility and commitment. An important Dragon indeed! “Everyone can lead” is a mantra of ours and we pursue it in many ways. We don’t focus on a small group of people to develop as leaders. Our Hidden Dragon is a balanced approach that allows everyone to contribute, to belong. As one Year 12 put it “There’s a place for me here”. It’s not an excuse for accepting all behaviours and viewpoints in some post-modernist community. It’s more about gauging our actions against the belief that we are each unique and full of worth. “Making a positive difference in the lives of others”, not just ourselves, is a really big Hidden Dragon. Crouching Tigers run organisations narrow in leadership and confined to a few, they invest in these few and say to the rest, you’re not capable of making a difference sorry, better luck next time. On the other hand Hidden Dragons highly value collaboration and cooperation. They believe that better decisions are made together, that real worth comes from and through others. That all truly great human endeavours are collaborations. I said at the start, that education and by implication life, is not a destination via a forced march but, a journey of discovery filled with excitement. We recognise that the journey has only just begun by the time your sons and daughters leave Hillbrook; a great OP is fantastic, hard work and is rightly praised for the achievement it is, but it is not an end in itself as many would have us believe. The deeper message is that a liberal education, engaged with and well taught, is the best foundation for each person and our world (another Hidden Dragon). It’s designed to challenge individual’s ideas and understanding of the world, and over time, to extend our capacity to do what is right, necessary and beneficial especially when the way is not clear or the journey is long. In other words, “To Know What To Do When, We Don’t Know What To Do”. There’s our biggest Hidden Dragon; we see evidence of this Dragon in the views of parents, lecturers, employers, when they comment on Hillbrook students. The Crouching Tiger is all about a short term, results driven culture where competition centres around measurable things like overall OP results, bigger and better facilities and is ‘image’ driven. We see this short termism everywhere. Our Mr Big is a powerful Crouching Tiger. Dragons on the other hand focus on the individual. We need to encourage our Dragons to be a visible part of our lives; in school, in the workplace, in our relationships. Once we see our own Dragon thrive and grow, the Tiger will run and we can be more easily who we wish to be, and what is this I hear you say?! The world needs people who are: • • • • • • • • Active, healthy, optimistic with a clear sense of self Caring, empathetic and inclusive Courageous, spirited, resilient and resourceful Self-aware and honourable Reflective, respectful Collaborative and contributing Open, broadminded and questioning Imaginative, creative, curious and with a sense of wonder A sense of wonder; I’ve never seen that measured or talked about in educational research. I wonder why? Geoff Newton, Stephanie Munday-Lake, Craig Merritt & David Briggs Traffic Congestion & Student Safety You may have noticed the increased traffic and reduced parking around Hillbrook. The building works and more Year 12s driving has meant things are busier than normal. At assembly this morning students were asked to be especially mindful of safety when crossing Hurdcotte Street. We would appreciate that students are dropped off and collected from a safe location. Double parking and parking across driveways is causing a safety concern at the front of the school. Thank you for your help with easing this congestion. School Backpacks The use of backpacks by young adults has been the subject of much research and debate. At Hillbrook, we have always had a range of options at the Uniform Shop that meet the standards which allow students to sustainably carry material to and from school. Over the last few years we have seen the proliferation of ‘off the shoulder’ bags and bags that do not support healthy spinal development. Therefore we are introducing the requirement for all new students to purchase a school backpack from the Uniform Shop. There are new models and sizes for all ages so if you are replacing an old one this year, you can replace it at the Uniform Shop. Physiopaks (above left) are $80 and Smartpaks (above right) are $67.50. Thank you in anticipation of your support. 2 of 9 HILLBROOK ANGLICAN SCHOOL WEEKLY NEWSLETTER 7 NOVEMBER 2014 Sustainability Day 30 May 2015 WE WANT YOU! Our bi-annual Sustainability Day is on 30 May 2015 and we need a Convenor to oversee the organisation of the event. Those who have been involved before know that preparation for Sustainability Day needs to start early as there are so many things to organise! If you are interested in this role, please contact P&F President, Grant Starkey, on 0417 716 744 or starquay@ hn.ozemail.com.au Uniform & Stationery Online Stationery Orders These will be available again this year. Just log onto the Hillbrook website, click on About Hillbrook, go to Uniform and Stationery and then to Online Orders. Orders placed before 16 November will be available for pick up and payment on our sales afternoon on or after Wednesday the 19th from 3.30pm-6pm. We will endeavour to pack any orders placed after that date in time for collection by the end of term, however, as this is our busy time this may not be possible. Any outstanding orders will be available for pick up on our first sale day in January. Extra End of Year Sales’ Days for 2015 Saturday 8 November from 9am-4pm ~ Year 7 students Wednesday 12 November from 3.30pm–6pm ~ Years 7 & 8 students Saturday 15 November from 9am–4pm ~ Year 8 students Wednesday 19 November from 3.30pm–6pm ~ All students Advertise Your Second Hand Hillbrook Items Now! If you have second hand items to sell, now is the time to register on www.sustainableschoolshop.com.au as the Uniform Sale Days start this weekend, and new families to the school will be actively looking to purchase both new and second hand items in the next few weeks. Remember that you can also list secondhand school backpacks, musical instruments, music books, computers, calculators and outdoor education gear as well! Still Standing by Basement Arts Basement Arts is proud to present its final production of the year, Still Standing by Margery Forde and Michael Forde. The play takes us back to the days of Countdown, when records were the norm, and music was generated purely by instruments. Oh, those were the days! I remember when I was young, when the world had just begun, and I was happy. Enough said! Hillbrook teacher Ben Behan makes his acting debut for the company alongside past students Jenn Keil and Ben Trigger. The play also features a live band on stage starring current students Mitch Starkey, Jed Stoll, Dom Machen and special guest Mike Dunlop (Mrs Dunlop’s husband!) This play is going to rock! Two shows only on 7 and 8 November at 7pm. Tickets are $15 adults and $10 students/concession and can be purchased from the drama department or reserved at http://www.trybooking. com/108710 Holly O’Sullivan Williams & Sue-Ellen Taylor - Directors Family Day Thank You A very special thank you to Julie, Rosemary, Rob, Mark and all the parent helpers for their assistance and enthusiastic support of Family Day 2014. Thank you also, to Sue-Ellen Taylor and her organising committee; the support and admin staff; David Jones and the Music department; the Sports Council; the Year 8 helpers; the IT support team and the P&F and Parents.Connect volunteers. What an achievement - the welcoming of two year levels on one day! It was a warm day, and a very warm welcome that families received. Thank You From The P&F Verification day was on Monday 20 October and Hillbrook hosted a number of external teachers at the school to moderate and verify Year 12 work. The Tuckshop provided morning tea and lunch and the catering was a great success with a lot of positive feedback received by the school. The P&F would like to thank all those parents who either baked something or helped out on the day. It was great to see a few new faces too. Thank you also to Rob Cameron and Mark Garvey who did a great job cooking steak and chicken on the barbeque. Thank you to Rosie and the various class liaisons who put the message out there and drummed up a fantastic response to help out on a pupil free day. The P&F also received a very generous donation of prawns from David and Kim Cooper of Princess Charlotte Seafoods to supplement the lunch. The prawns were very well received and the P&F would like to take this opportunity to thank Princess Charlotte Seafoods for its very generous donation. Congratulations Congratulations to Keely Sayer and Sarah Brownscombe who have been selected to take part in the Wesley Hospital Internship Program. Keely and Sarah were selected from over 400 applicants and will have the opportunity to work and learn at the hospital for a week in December. They will be introduced to a variety of health care professions and have the chance to visit parts of the hospital that the general public never get to see. The internship takes place in the first week of the holidays and we hope they find the time rewarding and inspiring. Sue Forbes Hillbrook Creche - Casual Relief Work The Hillbrook Creche is in need of casual relief workers. They need to have a Blue Card and a first aid certificate. They can contact Di Shannon at the Crèche on 3354 6424 if they would like to go on the list. Year 8 2015 Vacancies Due to the half-sized cohort of Queensland students commencing Year 8 in 2015 Hillbrook now has a limited number of vacancies. Interested families can contact our Enrolment Officer, Liz Laws, on 3354 6440 or [email protected] for further information Hillbrook 2015 Perisher Ski Trip Thank you to everyone who has paid the $200 deposit to secure the place for their child. As of today, there are now only 7 places left! Get in quick if you’re interested. 3 of 9 HILLBROOK ANGLICAN SCHOOL WEEKLY NEWSLETTER 7 NOVEMBER 2014 COMING EVENTS EVENT DAY/DATE Year 12 Block Testing 10-17 November G20 Public Holiday Friday 14 November Year 11 Block Testing 17-20 November TIME VENUE Year 12 Wet n Wild Day First Day Term 1 2015 Years 7, 10 & 12 Tuesday 27 January First Day Term 1 2015 Years 7, 8, 9 & 11 Wednesday 28 January Whole School Resumes Thursday 29 January MAJOR EVENTS IN 2014 EVENT DAY/DATE TIME VENUE Year 12 Graduation Dinner Thursday 20 November 7pm - 10.30pm Royal International Convention Centre Year 12 Farewell Day Friday 21 November Year 8-11 Final Day 2014 Friday 28 November TUCKSHOP ROSTER MONDAY 10 NOVEMBER TUESDAY 11 NOVEMBER WEDNESDAY 12 NOVEMBER THURSDAY 13 NOVEMBER FRIDAY 14 NOVEMBER Nicole Hughes Andrea Crofts Kathleen Pattison Sue Budge Debbie Bolland Chris Paul Claire Loomans Pam Wrigley Kerry Darton Linda Chu Penny Travis Julie Preece Kathryn Girling Jo Wilson Elizabeth Favel Sue Fraser Marion Crowther Juanita Wrigley Judith Meiklejohn Katerina Glassock Leanne Pringle Sandy Jamieson UNIFORM AND STATIONERY MONDAY 10 NOVEMBER WEDNESDAY 12 NOVEMBER FRIDAY 14 NOVEMBER 12pm - 2pm 8am - 10am 8am - 9am Christina Nash Jessica Hazlewood Leanne Pringle Alison Hatchman Jill Stoll Elizabeth Wighton Julie Preece Katerina Glassock Marion Crowther 4 of 9 HILLBROOK ANGLICAN SCHOOL WEEKLY NEWSLETTER 7 NOVEMBER 2014 10 Blue Camp 10 Green Camp 10 White Camp HILLBROOK CHORALE presents An afternoon of sensational music, filled with classic American tunes, music from Germany to Africa, and concluding with a little bit of Christmas! Conducted by Kylie Los Accompanied by Judy Collins featuring guest artist Margie Cottrell (flute) Join us for an uplifting afternoon of music set in the peaceful and tranquil surrounds of the Hillbrook Anglican School Chapel, Hurdcotte Street, Enoggera. Sunday 23rd November, 4:00 till 5:00pm Share complimentary afternoon tea with us afterwards $5 entry