Edition 14 31 August 2020

Our Annual Singers’ Trophy was held in Old Hall on Wednesday 19 August. All boys

performed beautifully with Ruben Kruger (centre above) being awarded 1st Place,

Alby Galbraith (right hand side) was awarded 2nd and James Dixon (left hand side)

was awarded 3rd Place. Congratulations boys! The boys are standing on stage in

Old Hall with the stained glass windows behind them.

From the Head of Junior School Dear Parents Given the first item featured in most news bulletins, be it with your online feed, on television and on the radio is not a particularly happy one, it is nice to start the Junior School newsletter with a joyous item. Mr Ben Woolacott, one of our Year 6 teachers, and his wife Bopha celebrated the birth of their first child, Eric Benjamin on Monday 10 August. It has been wonderful to see the boys in 6W celebrating this occasion with Mr Woolacott. Congratulations to Ben and Bopha at this special time in their lives.

Mr Ben Woolacott with his class, 6W.

COVID-19 Update We continue to keep the boys and staff in touch with online learning, particularly as there have been COVID-19 cases in South East Queensland in recent weeks. Our weekly staff meetings commence online in Microsoft Teams and the boys continue with their online lessons once each week. Our recent ‘ramped up’ trial highlighted the need for the youngest boys, Prep to Year 2, to have further simulated lessons away from their class teachers, ensuring these boys are well in touch with what is required with the technology. Once again, I would like to reinforce the hygiene message. If your son is unwell please keep him at home. Boys will be sent home if they become unwell during the day. If your son has been tested for COVID-19 please inform your son’s class teacher and the Junior School office. Obviously, your son is to remain at home until a negative result is returned. Progress This year we are working on three pilot projects, helping to guide our decision making for the future. Please note, this has nothing to do with COVID-19, although there are some associated benefits from projects number 2 and 3. These pilot projects are as follows: 1. Classroom Furniture Pilot Project This trial involves the purchase and use of quite different classroom furniture in two of our Year 6 classrooms, 6J and 6C. In addition, students are able to select their placement in their classrooms based upon their learning style and furniture preference. This was featured in our most recent social media post. There is sufficient evidence already that indicates many of the boys work more effectively when there is greater variety of options with their classroom furniture.

A picture of 6J showing the different types of seating arrangements available for the boys.

Cooper Head and Tom Jaquet are very comfortable with their selections.

2. Interactive Flat Panels (IFP) Pilot Project In the past few weeks, Interactive Flat Panels (IFPs) have been installed in each of the three Year 6 classrooms, along with one in the staffroom. These devices are essentially large touch screen computers and are quite sophisticated and expensive products. Staff and students can mirror their laptop screens onto the IFPs and teachers can display their lesson content with ease. The staffroom IFP is being used to train staff, with the longer-term plan being to add these devices to all our classrooms.

Will Tzannes and Param Singh, both in 6C enjoy working on the

new Interactive Flat Panel.

3. Technology Pilot Project The Technologies curriculum is broad and complex. At a basic level, this involves working with technology and designing with technology. The boys view this primarily as coding and robotics but it is far broader than just these areas. Mr Alastair Bain, our IT Co-ordinator and one of our Year 4 teachers, is currently leading a pilot project building capacity with staff and extending students’ capabilities. Mr Bain works alongside several class teachers and their classes including Prep G, 1O, 1G, 2T, 4K and 4G, implementing an intelligent and challenging program for the students using the Junior School’s Makerspace. This program will move across to other classes next term.

Harry Spencer, Thenul Ratnayake and Leo Stafleu, all from 1G, enjoy these technology lessons each week.

Liam Fels (1G) obtaining some technical advice from Mr Bain in his technology lesson.

Book Week

Book Week is promoted by the Children’s Book Council of Australia (CBCA), which was established in 1945, and is a not for profit, volunteer run organisation that aims to engage the community with literature for young Australians. The CBCA presents annual awards to books of literary merit and for outstanding contribution to Australian children's literature. As a result of COVID-19, the Children’s Book Council of Australia (CBCA) moved Book Week to October, which is in term 4. At school, we took the decision to retain Book Week in its usual place in August. This allows us to have a celebration this term and also avoids the potential log jam of events and activities in term 4.

Year 6 boys, Ben Constable, Cooper Head, Daniel Matoki, Will Tzannes, Joe Logan, Jake James and Charc Franey joined together to create the characters from ‘The Three Little Pigs’.

George Clifford and Henry Thurbin enjoyed dressing up for their last Junior School Book Week.

Mr Thomas and his class 2T created a doorway based on the short listed book “Three’. 2T also had fun dressing as their favourite book character pictured above. Mr Thomas is dressed as Fern from the book and Mrs Newton is dressed as Brittney from the book ‘Chicken Divas’.

The celebrations around Book Week last Thursday included boys and staff dressed in costume, our annual Doorways Competition, with doorways and classrooms decorated, two Book Week assemblies (Prep to Year 3 and Years 4 to 6), visiting authors and a celebration of books and reading. This is one of my favourite days of the school year! This was a most wonderful occasion and I congratulate boys, staff and parents for the fantastic effort that went into all that occurred. Regards Scott Campbell Head of Junior School

From the Deputy Head of Junior School

Co-curricular Clubs In a recent newsletter I briefly described some of the Junior School Co-curricular Clubs that the boys are involved in during this term. As mentioned, all clubs have been very popular including Homework Club, Woodwork Club, Speech and Drama Club, Art Club, the two Fitness Clubs, the two Reading Clubs, Junior MasterChef, Robotics Club, Running Club and the Senior and Junior Chess Clubs. I believe that in Speech and Drama Club the boys have been recently working on improvisations, monologues and duologues. The finished product of the collage work that each of the boys did in Art Club last week was very impressive. There are two Fitness Clubs operating for the boys. Emphasis is placed on cardio work, skill development and enjoyment. The two Chess Clubs has produced some very fine players who have competed and achieved a high standard in some of the Toowoomba competitions. Some of the Year 6 boys participate in some friendly matches against some Senior students each week which is a great experience for them. Homework Club occurs on four afternoons each week and is always supervised by a teacher. The boys have the opportunity to receive some added assistance when working on homework. We are all looking forward to continuing these clubs in Term 4.

Lachlan Van de Beld and Param

Singh experimenting with improvisation and adapting a new

character’s persona through costume.

Liam O’Mara and Oliver Wells also having fun improvising in

Drama Club.

Hats Akubras must not be out of shape and the top of your son’s Akubra must extend past his hat band. Akubras with holes in them may need to be replaced. Hair Your son’s hair must not be over his collar and must be neatly shaped at the back of the neck; his ears must not be obscured. The fringe must not extend below his eyebrows. Extremes of hairstyles and lengths are not permitted (including very short haircuts or “fresh” cuts). Shoes Ensure that school shoes are always polished.

Mike Sharpe Deputy Head of Junior School

From Head of Teaching and Learning Book Week What a week it has been! I know many people will be writing about Book Week in this newsletter, but there is a very good reason for it – it is an annual highlight on our calendar. I wrote recently about how it has been nice to have some normality in a very abnormal year and our Book Week celebrations epitomised this sentiment. Seeing the vibrant doors and costumes was a wonderful example of how we are making the most of this year despite the ongoing situation, however, not having parents being able to come in and enjoy the spectacle was an unfortunate necessity. From a curriculum perspective, Book Week has many highlights. The language and discussion that goes on in each of the classes around reading, deciding on a book for the door display, judging nominated books, discussing themes and simply enjoying reading is such a positive thing. Many schools celebrate Book Week, but the efforts of Ms Worthington, the constant promotion of reading by Mr Campbell and the hours of work by all of the staff really make this week a highlight on the curriculum calendar. Some of the ways that this occurs is through Ms Worthington organising visiting authors, reading each short-listed book with each class, sending out Book Week quizzes each day and generally promoting Book Week as a whole promotes further discussion around books. Similarly, many teachers choose to structure their literacy program around their Book Week book each year, others try to select books that might compliment the work they have done or will be doing in class while others still work with their class to select a book that really appeals to them. Regardless of how the text is selected, these books are a key part of learning that occurs and what a magical and fun way to do it. ‘Reading Only’ homework always brings out a big cheer from the boys, but similar to our DEAR time, being provided time to just read and enjoy is very precious and I hope your sons have enjoyed a good book or two over the course of the week. This year, one of our visiting authors was Angela Sunde. Angela has written a number of humorous stories for school-aged children. When she presented her workshops to each of the classes, her focus was not just on reading, but also provided your sons with a thoroughly enjoyable workshop on how to write comedy. This again highlights the inextricable link between reading and writing and as Angela said, “Writing shouldn’t be a chore, but a fun way of expressing yourself.” She worked with the boys to see that sometimes the obvious gross jokes aren’t what make something funny, but putting your characters in situations that scare them, they hate or they find embarrassing. This formula allows an author to really know their character and develop scenarios that can create humour rather than forcing it. I know a lot of the boys found her session really insightful and hopefully can support our boys to see these links between reading and writing.

Angela presenting to 6J A story by Angela and 4K

5L engaging with Angela

Rob Jeffries Head of Teaching and Learning

Sports News

Congratulations to all boys for their continuing efforts in sport at the weekends. Despite some less than glorious weather, efforts and performances have been consistently high. As a coach, it is a positive feeling when seeing boys and teams improve. The end of term 3 will be a busy one as well with the Junior School Track and Field carnival, the Prep - Year 3 swimming carnival, the Staff versus Students football match and the remaining fixtures for tennis, basketball, rugby and football. Track and Field Carnival The Junior School Track and Field Carnival has been re-scheduled for Wednesday 16 September. It will be held on the TGS campus. Boys are currently practising for their events during PE classes. An event program will be sent electronically to all families before the carnival. The 800 metre event will be held on Wednesday 9 September during sport time for boys in age groups Under 9 - Under 12. Prep - Year 3 Swimming Carnival The Prep – Year 3 Swimming Carnival will be held on Friday 11 September, 11.15am – 2.30pm in the P.B. Hauser Aquatic Centre. This is an opportunity for the boys to showcase the skills learnt during their weekly swimming lessons. PE Homework This week’s task is to throw and catch. How far can you and your son stand apart from each other, throw a tennis ball (or similar) and catch it? Let me know your results. Brendan Doherty Sportsmaster

Sports Reports Rugby Report Saturday 15 August was another great day for rugby. The weather wasn’t always on our side. Some played in the rain and others, in the sun. The U7s had 3 great games in pouring rain on Saturday against Souths. Man of the match for the gold team was Arthur Sengaroun and for the Blue team, Takumi Inoue. The U9s Blue unfortunately lost. Man of the match was Max Lynam. U9 gold also lost their game with Man of the Match was Cooper Brennan. The 11As won 19-10 against TSS. Two tries to Alby Galbraith and one to Jake Woodhead. Man of the match was Alby Galbraith. Good luck for next Saturday. Cooper Head Captain of Rugby

Football On Saturday 8 August, the 5A soccer team went down to Ipswich to play. Straight after the bus trip the 5As played Ipswich with a very close 2-2 all draw, with Lachlan Hyslop scoring both goals and man of the match going to Hugo Williamson. On Saturday 15 August, the 6B and 6A soccer teams played Southport at home. The 6Bs fought very hard but they just couldn’t put the ball in the back of the net, losing 6-0. Man of the match going to Hudson Dowling. The 6As fought back against Southport just not being able to get the win with a very close 1-0 loss. A joint man of the match going Xavier Thompson and Kurt Seckler. Good luck to all boys for the next games. George Clifford Captain of Football Basketball After starting our day off with a long bus trip to TSS, we were all excited for the game with our full team. We were ready to win! TSS put up a good fight, but we pulled away to win 34-17. The MVP going to Banjo Seaniger. The Darling Downs Basketball trials were held on Tuesday, 18 August after being delayed from Term 1. Amand and I both trialled and made the DD team. We will compete on the Gold Coast in October at the State Championships. John Tinkler Captain of Basketball Tennis So far we have been extremely unlucky and we have only played one round in the entire season and that as BGS. All the other matches were either rained out or a bye. The last match we were supposed to play was against TSS but that got rained out as well. Hopefully we can play this weekend against Nudgee at home because on the weather it says it should be sunny and no rain but pretty windy so let’s try to get this win and if we do we are basically undefeated. Oliver Shelton Captain of Tennis

Music News

Singers’ Trophy Last Wednesday 19 August Singers’ Trophy was held in Old Hall. Congratulations to the following boys who participated: Archawin Charoensuk (2T), Isaac Tebbut (2T), Harry Constable (3W), Suhaan Chowdhury (3W), Jack Elmes (4B), Austin Irving (4G), Alby Galbraith (5S), Praj Gupte (5S), James Dixon (5L), Hugo Tebbutt (5L), Mitchell Wilkes (6C), Ruben Kruger (6J), Oliver Shelton (6W), and Zac Brown (6W). All boys performed well and both parents and boys should be very proud of their achievements. We were fortunate to have Mr Matthew Collins as our adjudicator this year. Mr Collins conducts the Toowoomba Philharmonic Society choir, has sung in numerous choirs in both Australia and the United Kingdom and has performed in many musicals. In addition he has a Bachelor of Creative Arts (Music) degree and as Master of Learning and Teaching. Mr Collins has a depth and breadth of knowledge and experience and I thank him for his time at our school Mr Collins awarded the following places:

1st – Ruben Kruger 2nd – Alby Galbraith 3rd – James Dixon HC – Oliver Shelton, Isaac Tebbutt, Hugo Tebbutt

Singers’ Trophy participants, they all performed beautifully. Congratulations boys!

Musicians’ Concert Our Term 3 Musicians’ Concert is open to all instrumental and singing students from Years 3-6 and will be held on Thursday 3 September. Nominations were due yesterday (Thursday 27 August). Unfortunately due to the current health restrictions parents will be unable to attend on this occasion, however, we will live-stream the Concert so parents can still watch their son perform. Details of the live-streaming will be emailed home to parents of boys performing closer to the event. Brass and Woodwind workshops I am extremely excited that our brass and woodwind students will have the opportunity to work with two very high calibre musicians on Friday 4 September. Our brass students in Years 5 and 6 will be involved in workshops with Mr Phil Ryan, while our woodwind students will partake in online workshops with Mr Mark Walton. We are extremely fortunate that Mr Ryan and Mr Walton have made themselves available to work with our young instrumentalists. A letter with all details regarding the workshops will be sent home with the relevant boys. Musicians’ Cup Musicians’ Cup is an adjudicated competition for instrumentalists in Years 4-6. Unfortunately due to the current health restrictions we are unable to have a live audience. This year Musicians’ Cup has been moved to Wednesday 14 October commencing at 8.30am and will be live-streamed to ensure parents can hear their son’s performance. To nominate, boys should have been learning their instrument for a minimum of 2 years, or be at a minimum standard of Grade 2 AMEB (or equivalent). A note with all details and nomination form will be sent home in the near future. Nominations for Musicians’ Cup are due on Tuesday 15 September. I encourage your son to discuss the possibility of nominating for Musicians’ Cup with his instrumental teacher. Kellie Dixon Head of Junior School Music

Book Week Celebrations 2020

Reading Captains 2020 Throughout term two, students from our Junior School participated in the Readers’ Cup competition. Every boy from Year 4-6 compete in the team competition and boys who enjoy reading are encouraged to compete in the individual competition. The boys in Year 6 who compete in the individual challenge who place first, second and third then go on to compete in the Regional Readers’ Cup (which wasn’t held this year due to COVID-19) and become our Reading Captains for the year. Our reading captains for 2020 are Singyuan Xue, Harrison Brown and Nethul Manamperi. Being a Reading Captain is very similar to being a captain of a sporting team. The boys are expected to lead, support and inspire their peers and younger boys, not in a sport but reading. The boys exemplified what it means to be a reader. Singyuan, Harrison and Nethul are the faces of reading in the Junior School and I am delighted to be working with the three boys and I know they will be excellent role models for our younger boys. As part of their role the boys are expected to help the younger boys choose books to read. Please seek the boys out if you would like help selecting books for your son/s. The boys love to talk about their favourite books and would be happy to help.

2020 Reading Captains after receiving their badges (L – R back row) Mr Scott Campbell, Head of Junior School, Mrs Michelle Worthington. (L – R front row) Singyuan Xue, Harrison Brown and Nethul Manamperi.

Michelle Worthington Librarian

Assembly Awards Weeks 6A and 7B

REACH Awards for Awareness (W6)

Riley Warby (4B) Harrison Dow (2T)

Prep G

Peter Donovan Zac Lintott Will Dewar

Gursaanj Randhawa

1G Arthur Sengaroun

Xavier Terrey Zackaidyn Fleming William McAllister

1O

Jeremy Cook Elliot Paynter

Taha Ali Aarav Desai

2T

Riley Bransdon Will Duddy

Gursawan Randhawa Neo Charoensuk Aarav Kansagara

Sam Stains

3H Cody Fitzgerald

Emerson Kerle-Taylor Tom Murray

Jaxson Parker

3W Cooper Chappell Sonny Gibbons Smith Waring

Austin Brooker Kyran Brown

Frank Loughlin Will Romero

4B

Lachlan Cherry Hamish Popple

Jake Decker Cooper Wilkinson

4G

Joshua Applebee Cayden McKim

Joseph Fernando Luke Beddoes

4K

Hamish Brown Zac Tucker

Marcus Crane Ethan Shepherd

5L Finn Brady

Ellord Panta Lachlan Hyslop

Liam O’Mara Leo Alexander James Dixon

5S

Angus Kues-Sales Ardelan Murphy

6C

Bryce Lindemann Daniel Matoki Yohann Kang

Bradley Schultz

6J Will Gilshenan

Sam Taylor Xavier Thompson

Lachlan Van de Beld Sam Heinrich

6W

Joe Logan

House Points

Boyce 111 Mackintosh 110

Groom 102 Stephens 99

Taylor 94

Junior School Two Weeks Ahead: Week 8A Monday 31 August

Tuesday 1 September

Wednesday 2 September Staff Meeting, 3.30pm - 5.00pm

Thursday 3 September Blazer Uniform

Musicians' Concert (Years 3 - 6), 8.30am – 9.30am

Friday 4 September Woodwind workshop with Mark Walton and Brass Workshops with Phil Ryan, selected boys from Years 5 and 6, Blues, Music Room 8.30am – 12.30pm

Saturday 5 September Basketball vs BBC (away) Rugby vs BBC (away) Tennis vs BBC (away) Football vs BBC (home)

Club Rugby

Club Football

Sunday 6 September Fathers' Day

Week 9B Monday 7 September

Tuesday 8 September

Wednesday 9 September Track and Field Carnival pre-run events, 800 metres Under 9 to Under 12s, Old Boys’ Memorial Oval, 1.35pm – 2.45pm. No parents allowed

Staff meeting, 3.30pm - 5.30pm

Thursday 10 September Blazer Uniform

Newsletter

Assembly: P - 3 (Year 1 presenting), 2.00pm - 2.40pm

Friday 11 September House Uniforms

Junior School Swimming Carnival, U5 - U8 incl. Housemaster and House Captains, P.B Hauser Aquatic Centre, 11.15am - 2.30pm. No parents allowed

Saturday 12 September Basketball vs ACGS (home) Rugby vs ACGS (home) Tennis vs ACGS (home) Football vs ACGS (away)

Club Rugby

Club Football

Sunday 13 September

Junior School Contact Details

• Office: 07 4687 2555

• Email: gjadmin@twgs.qld.edu.au

• Web: www.twgs.qld.edu.au

• After School Care: 07 4638 7965

• Aquatic Centre Bookings: 07 4687 2631

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