I foolishly took a misstep over the weekend and broke my foot while walking to my seat at the movies. Thankfully it was dark and my most ungraceful fall wasn’t witnessed by many, except perhaps the popcorn which sprayed across the theatre. From that moment, I have been shown such compassion by people around me: the nurses, doctors, family and colleagues. I only have a minor injury, but I have been staggered by the generosity of so many people. Compassion is our College’s theme in 2021 and we have spent a great deal of time talking to students about how compassion doesn’t have to be a grand gesture, but a gentle touch, a friendly smile, an open door or an offer to carry someone’s books. We have so many examples in our Bible of Jesus showing compassion to others, especially to the stranger or someone on the fringes of society. As Christians, we are called to show compassion and love to one another - to pay forward the good deeds that are done to us. So, like Jesus, our Good Shepherd, let’s make that our commitment as we approach the end of term.

A special thank you to Mr Schofield and the whole staff for the fantastic work putting together our revised Athletics Carnival this week. Attendance was high and the spirit on the day was great. Days like this are important community building events and we especially love having our parents attend. Unfortunately, due to the change in date I missed the day as I was in Townsville attending Principals’ Meetings.

These meetings are held four times a year and are an opportunity to have professional development in leadership and to network with other Principals. I am always proud to share with other Principals the great things we are doing at GSCC. I talked about our Time to Shine program which has been a great success and also how we are implementing the Teaching and Learning Cycle and Reflective Practice. Over half of our teachers recently provided their students with a Pivot Student Survey based on the Australian teaching standards. Teachers were given feedback from their classes about their strengths and possible areas for growth. Teachers are also working more collaboratively now to know their learners and plan their lessons accordingly. This ‘responsive approach’ ensures that individual student’s needs are being met in the classroom.

As we approach the end of term, we encourage our students to keep focused on their studies, attend school every day and come ready to learn. 

Have a blessed week.

End of Semester 1

The end of the Semester is fast approaching, and the assessment schedule for students has reached its peak. It is important that students continue to apply themselves fully to their classwork and assessments in order to achieve their very best.

Students in Years 11 and 12 should be spending approximately 2.5 to 3 hours on either homework, or assignment and exam preparation per night. Students in the Junior School should be following these guidelines: Year 10 (2 hours); Years 8 and 9 (1 – 1.5 hours) and Year 7 (1 hour). 

Please don’t hesitate to contact your child's teacher, or the relevant Curriculum Leader for more support.

Semester 1 Report Cards

Report Cards will be distributed as normal at the end of Semester 1. They will be accessible through your Compass Parent Portal on Friday, 25 June. If you do not have access to your Parent Portal, please contact the College Office and we can assist.

Parent Teacher Interviews

Parent Teacher Interviews are on the calendar for Wednesday, 28 July (Week 3, Term 3). More information regarding booking will be distributed in Week 10 of this term. Bookings will open once report cards have been published.

Year 10 Senior Subject Trials

Next Monday, Year 10 students will be asked to select senior subject trials for next semester. They will trial subjects in 4 core curriculum areas, these include:

• English - General English & Essential English
• Maths - General Maths, Maths Methods & Essential Maths
• Science - Chemistry/Physics, Biology & Science in Practice
• Humanities - Modern History/Legal Studies, Geography & Social and Community Studies.

Please note that because there are only 3 classes in Year 10, Chemistry/Physics and Modern History/Legal Studies will be grouped together.

If you have any questions about the senior trials, please contact the classroom teacher or Curriculum Leader.

Year 10 Exam Block

A reminder that Year 10 Exam Block commences on Tuesday, 15 June (next week).

This 3 day block concluding on Thursday, 17 June will be the first experience of Year 11 and 12 for the Year 10 students. 

Exam Block is a privilege and all assessments must be completed in all subjects in order to have the flexibility of exam block. If assessment is not complete, students will be required to attend school as normal for the three day block.

Furthermore, to prepare for Year 11 & 12 Exam Block Requirements, if students are absent for an exam in exam block you must:

1. Contact the College office ASAP, your parents can contact the College office on your behalf.
2. Have a medical certificate.

These requirements are in accordance with the GSCC Assessment Policy “If a student is absent from a Senior Exam Block exam, the student will complete an alternate paper in the next available session and a medical certificate must be provided upon their return. If a medical certificate is not provided the student may not be allocated a result for that internal assessment piece, resulting in no credit for the piece / unit studied."

Organisation - keys for success

As we move towards the end of Term 2, it is important that students are organised, and prepared to learn each day. This time of term is always busy with assessment and exams and students remain up to date with their work, they will be able to minimise stress around these busy times.

Here are some tips from Kids Health to help to improve your overall organisation:

Organize Your Stuff. Being organized makes everything else easier. It helps you get to work faster without wasting time looking for stuff.

Keep your assignments and class information organised by subject. Put them in binders, notebooks, or folders. If you find yourself stuffing loose papers in your bag or grabbing different notebooks for the same class, it's time to stop and reorganize!

Clean out your school bag regularly. Decide where to keep returned assignments and things you want to hold on to. Offload things you no longer need to carry around.

Organize Your Space. You need a good workspace — someplace quiet enough to focus. It's best to work at a desk or table where you can spread out your work. Have a place set aside for homework. That way, when you sit down, your mind knows you're there to work and can help you focus more quickly.

Organize Your Time. Use a planner or organization app to keep track of your schoolwork.

Write down all your assignments and when they're due. Break big projects into parts. Note the dates when each part needs to be completed. Mark in your planner when you'll work on each part. Mark the dates you'll have tests, then make a note of when you'll study for them. 

Don't leave things until the last minute. You'll only end up working twice as hard to do half as well. One sure way to reduce test anxiety is to prepare by studying (really!).

Avoid Distractions. When you multitask you're less focused. That means you're less likely to do well on that test. Park your devices and only check them after your work is done.

Positive Behaviour for Learning (PB4L)

During our staff professional development week in January, we had Ms Linda Llewellyn -  Behaviour Support Consultant, come to speak with our staff about reviewing our behaviour management process and initiating PB4L at Good Shepherd.  Linda was able to set the foundation for our PB4L process to begin through the following:

• SET data collection of RTP from Principal, Staff and Students.
• Whole staff workshop on PB4L and how it is implemented in other like schools
• Establishing “buy-in” from staff Establishment of PB4L working group who meet on a fortnightly basis

Where are we up to in our PB4L journey?

PB4L Working Group 

The implementation of PB4L within the College requires regular consultation and input from our PB4L Working Group which is made up of staff, student and parent representatives. Our Working Group meets on a fortnightly basis and are hoping to have PB4L established and ready to implement at the start of the 2022 school year.

The working group has managed to work on the following:

Identified 15 locations around the College and the minor and major behaviours that may occur in each of these locations; and

• Drafted our new College expectations (the 4 Be’s) and sought feedback from all staff and our Student Representative Council. A copy of our proposed expectations are as follows:

 Over the coming weeks the working group will continue with developing the following: 

• Positive reward system for students;
• Condensing the locations and establishing a behaviour matrix; and
• Referral system for behaviours that do not conform with our expectations.

 If you have any questions regarding the PB4L, please do not hesitate to contact me.

A Crippled Bird or Angel with Bent Legs

Do you look at people who are perfect and want to be them? Over the years I have learned that what you look like has no bearing whatsoever on how well you play; genes may affect appearance but not ability.

Bart Cummings, the greatest trainer in Australian history, used to say, “Everyone is looking for the perfect horse so they overlook the horse that doesn’t look like champion or have the right breeding.  What a horse looks like doesn’t win them the race; what’s inside their heart is what wins them the race.”

As it is with horses is as it is with humans. The pretty-boy with the bulging muscles and rich parents may be the embodiment of perfection and success but it means nothing in a contest.

Take for example Manuel Francisco dos Santos; the crippled Brazilian Soccer player. He was born into abject poverty in Pau Grande, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil with a series of defects that left him with a deformed spine and a left leg six centremetres shorter than his right.

Certified a cripple by one doctor he was so small his sister Rosa nicknamed him “Garrincha” the Portuguese word for Wren, a small bird in Pau Grande.  

Corrective surgery left him with a left leg that turned in and a right leg that turned out. Three professional teams rejected him because of his abnormal physique but his desire was stronger than their will to knock him down. 

Garrincha was invited to a trial with Rio de Janeiro club Botafogo in 1953 on the recommendation of one of their players, Gentil Cardoso, who was humbled by the youngster in a practice game.

In his debut game he scored a hat trick and it wasn’t long before he was exhibiting his full repertoire of tricks on the wing; beating rivals for fun with meandering runs and unbelievable changes of pace.

After losing the 1950 World Cup that they hosted Brazil had disappointed so for the 1954 tournament it was felt that they needed to follow Europe’s emphasis on tactics, discipline and physical prowess; so Garrincha was passed over for a spot in the side. 

The same criteria was in place for the 1958 World Cup in Sweden and potential squad members also had to undergo an IQ and psychological profiling tests. Garrincha failed both but was chosen anyway along with a gifted 17 year-old named Pele.

Pele and Garrincha were first used in Brazil’s final pool game against the imposing Russian side. French legend Gabriel Hannot described the first three minutes of the game as the greatest three minutes in the history of football.

In the space of 180 seconds Garrincha beat his opponent four times, left another flat on his back (to the amusement of the 50,000 spectators) and hit the post with a shot. Pele then hit the bar as the Brazillians kept attacking until Vava scored.

Brazil then edged out Wales 1-0 in the quarter final with Garrincha’s direct opponent champion defender Mel Hopkins. "When he stood and faced you his legs went one way and his body the other, there's no doubt about it, he could have been declared a cripple. But my God could he play. 

Brazil’s 5-2 win in the final against Sweden was their first World Cup win. So enjoyable was the brand of football that Swedish fans embraced the Brazilian win as if it was their own.

Four years later in Chile, Pele was injured after two games in the World Cup. Most experts thought without him Brazil could not win but Garrincha’s will took over and he became the team's heartbeat. 

He scored two goals in the quarter final against England and two goals in the semi final against Chile. With a fever of 102 degrees Garrincha took the field and helped Brazil hold off Czechoslovakia to claim their second consecutive World Cup. Garrincha was named the tournament’s best player.

At the 1966 World Cup Garrincha struggled with a knee injury and so Brazil did not advance out of the pool games. His final game at the tournament was a 3-1 loss to Hungary- the only time Garrincha was on a losing Brazilian side in 50 appearances. 

So when you look in the mirror and don’t see the perfect figure looking back don’t despair. Think of Garrincha “the angel with bent legs” and remember that what is in your heart is more important then what is in the mirror.

This term in Media Arts, Mrs Whitehouse’s Year 9 students have been studying The Art of How to Make a News Program. They have participated in pre-production (planning), production (filming) and post-production (editing). We have explored the local Indigenous Culture of the Kalkadoon people and the significance of family, spirituality and walking together.

Last week during Reconciliation week we were fortunate enough to have two guest speakers come to the class to be part of students’ news program interviews. Mrs Valerie Craigie from Mob FM spoke about the importance of access to Indigenous News and positive representations in news stories. Mrs Craigie provided a fantastic insight into the workings of a real news radio station as well as bringing in resources for the students to study. 

Another group interviewed Mrs Tammy Webber, discussing the significance of family and connections to Aboriginal culture and Aboriginal people. This interview was moving for students and proved to be extremely inspirational for all. Both guests spoke about how students should seek out information and help to shape perspectives in the media.

Mrs McCarthy kindly joined us as well to answer some questions regarding the proposed Cultural Garden here at Good Shepherd. She provided students with an overview of the plan which began with the beautiful Indigenous Art of Kalkadoon artist, Sheree Blackley, on the water tanks in the school. Mrs McCarthy also spoke of the connection between Indigenous Culture and Catholicism especially here at Good Shepherd. 

Year 9 Media class and guest speakers.

Mrs McCarthy with Charlotte, Rachel and Audrey.

Guest speakers Mrs Tammy Webber and Mrs Valerie Craigie. 

Term 2 College Fees were due on the 8th of June 2021. 

By now you will all have received, via email, a copy of the new look Fee Statement. Please note we will no longer be sending Statements in the mail. Each person who signed the Enrolment Contract is liable for the payment of fees (as stated in the Contract). Those who signed will now receive an emailed copy of the Statement. Statements will still be sent out each term.

Features of the new Fee Statement and new Finance System:

• BPAY is now the preferred payment option for Fees.
• BPAY reference numbers have taken over Family Codes.

We encourage families who pay via Direct Deposit (set up by yourself to be transferred from your bank account to the College) to please change over to the BPAY option.

BPAY ensures that deposits are made directly to your account, with accuracy and without delay. 

Thank you to those families who have already made the change.

Families who pay via Direct Debit do not need to make any changes.

Please note that it is an expectation that accounts are paid by the due date. Thank you to those of you who have paid your account in full or who are currently on a payment plan. If you are experiencing financial hardship and wish to make an appointment to speak with the Principal to see how we can best assist you to manage your account, please email jdavis@goodshepherd.catholic.edu.au

If you have any questions or concerns regarding your account please email accounts@goodshepherd.catholic.edu.au.

Where are they now?

If you know of a former GSCC graduate who would be interested in being a part of this section please let me know. 

Career Snapshots

Aquaculture Science & Technology 

Interested in Australia’s Marine Environment?  Click below….. 

Tickets on Sale Now

We are celebrating 200 Years of Catholic Education with a Ball on Saturday, 24 July. Purchase your tickets from the GSCC office before the end of Term 2 (25 June). $130/ticket - tables of 10. We're looking forward to a great night, with a 3 course meal catered by 2Seas and awesome entertainment from Pacific Groove

Every Wednesday morning from 7.00am - 8.30am. Parents and Friends are invited to The Arili Thina Cafe to purchase your morning coffee and breakfast.

By doing so you are supporting our Hospitality students to achieve their competencies towards their Certificate ll in Hospitality and all profits go towards their Hospitality Camp to the Gold Coast in August. 

There are a range of coffees, cold drinks and breakfast food available. Please see our Menu. Our students are becoming fantastic baristas. Come see for yourself how good they are.