Illalong Newsletter 18 August 2023 | A.B. Paterson College

Benefits of School Camps

Year 6 students have returned from The Winton Tour filled with a sense of accomplishment and many memories that they will cherish for years to come. During the tour, students visited many places including Charleville, Longreach, Winton, and Emerald. They gained valuable skills such as setting up tents, handling stretchers, and participating in a diverse range of activities as well as many connections to the local communities. Year 5 students are set to embark on a leadership camp later this term. This camp will immerse them in activities aimed at fostering teamwork and resilience, ultimately preparing them for the upcoming leadership application process upon their return. Such school camps offer a range of wellbeing benefits for students, encompassing physical, mental, emotional, and social aspects of their development. Some of these benefits include:

Outdoor Exploration: School camps take place in natural settings, allowing students to disconnect from screens and experience the outdoors. This exposure to nature has been linked to reduced stress, improved mood, and enhanced cognitive functioning. Experiencing nature firsthand can lead to greater appreciation for the environment and a sense of connectedness to the world around them.
Physical Activity: Camps involve physical activities such as hiking, team sports, and adventure challenges. Engaging in physical activities can improve fitness levels, boost self-esteem, and promote a healthier lifestyle.
Team Building: Camp activities require teamwork and collaboration, fostering a sense of camaraderie and teaching students how to work together effectively. This can lead to improved interpersonal skills and the ability to adapt to different group dynamics.
Personal Growth: Being away from home and routine encourages students to step out of their comfort zones. Facing new challenges and overcoming them helps build resilience, self-confidence, and a sense of accomplishment.
Social Skills: Camps provide opportunities for students to interact with peers outside of the classroom setting. These interactions improve social skills, communication, and the ability to make new friends. Interacting with students from different backgrounds can broaden students' perspectives and enhance their understanding of diversity and inclusivity.
Problem-Solving: Camp activities involve problem-solving and critical thinking, which help students develop these skills in real-world situations.
Stress Reduction: Camps offer a break from academic pressures, allowing students to relax and recharge. Reduced stress levels can positively impact mental health and overall well-being.
Independence: Being away from home encourages students to be more self-reliant and responsible. This newfound independence can contribute to personal growth and readiness for future challenges.
Positive Memories: Camp experiences often create lasting memories and positive associations. These memories can serve as sources of comfort and inspiration during challenging times.
Boost in Self-Esteem: Successfully participating in camp activities and accomplishing challenges can boost students' self-esteem and belief in their abilities.

In summary, school camps provide a holistic approach to student well-being by promoting physical activity, personal growth, social skills, and mental health through outdoor experiences and diverse activities.

Sara Bakanay | Deputy Head of Junior School: Pastoral

Gold Coast Eisteddfod News

In Gold Coast Eisteddfod news this week, we are delighted to report that The Roktobers, featuring Chloe Ward, Aidan McIntrye, Daniel Wang and Ethan McIntyre, were awarded a Platinum Award and second place overall in the Secondary School Age Jazz/Rock Combo section! What a fabulous achievement for our Year 7 students who competed against much older musicians in this category.

Special thanks to our Senior Rock Band students for their support and encouragement of The Roktobers!

In other news, we are very happy to share the successes of Sunny Liu of Year 10. Sunny won a silver medal in the individual Woodwind/Brass Solo 13-15 years section, accompanied his brother to success in the Woodwind/Brass solo 12 years and under, and then the boys performed together to win a gold medal in the Duet 16 years and under section! Well done Sunny on all your saxophone and piano achievements.

Congratulations also to William Wang of Year 5 who has had a very busy eisteddfod schedule this year! William has been awarded multiple prizes including 3rd place in Clarinet Trio, 3rd place in Piano Solo 9 Years and under, 1st place in Piano Duet, 3rd place in the Piano Championship 12 Years and under and an amazing 1st place for Clarinet Championship 12 Years and under! Well done William, we are very proud of all your efforts.

In what has been an exciting week of Band competition, we are also delighted to announce that the Year 5 Band, Year 6 Band and Intermediate Big Band were all recipients of Silver Awards in their individual categories!

Well done to all the bands and their directors. We hope you really enjoyed the opportunity to play and compete in such a lovely venue, whilst listening to and encouraging other bands at the eisteddfod. We cannot wait to see your confidence and musicianship grow.

Speaking of which! A huge congratulations must go to our senior concert band, Wind Symphony, who in their very first A grade eisteddfod competition, took out a Gold Award and 1st place!

We are so incredibly proud of your dedication to rehearsals, your true team approach, and of course your persistence in developing into the best ensemble you can be. The adjudicator used words including ‘impactful and brilliant,’ to describe aspects of your performance but most importantly, commented on the engagement that you provided for both him and the audience. I know your director Mrs Reynolds was especially proud of the leadership, creativity, care, sense of community, integrity, and respect that you demonstrated throughout the afternoon and evening, and that is worth more than any ribbon or award could ever be. Thank you for being the embodiment of what it means to be A.B. Paterson College students. Special thanks to Ms Reynolds for her leadership, wonderful musicianship and encouragement of our young musicians.

And news just in! The Senior Big Band has just returned from the A Grade Big Band Section with a Gold Award and 2nd place overall.

Well done to these students and Mr Montfroy on this fabulous result. We are so enormously proud of all our bands and our directors including Mr Fletcher, Mr Montfroy, Mr Whitaker, Mr Jack and Ms Reynolds.

We look forward to updating everyone with Choral and Dance results in the coming weeks!

Sharyn Walker-Joyce | Head the The Arts

Empowering Change: Year 5 Students Shine in The Global Innovators Program

We're excited to share the incredible journey our Year 5 students have embarked upon through the inspiring Global Innovators Program. This initiative has ignited a spark of creativity, collaboration, and social awareness within our young changemakers.

Exploring the 17 Global Goals

Throughout the program, our students have delved into the 17 Global Goals, learning about the crucial issues our world faces and the positive changes that need to happen. This was brought to life through enlightening guest speaker presentations from local organisations passionately striving towards these Global Goals. We had the privilege of hearing from remarkable individuals such as OzHarvest, Dr. Dinesh Palipana, LIVIN, Baby Give Back, and Rosies, whose stories and insights have deeply resonated with our young minds.

Voices from Our Future Leaders

We wanted to share a few inspiring statements from our students, showcasing their dedication and passion:

Ivy - Group 3

"Our Global Goal is No Poverty. We're striving to create equality, ensuring that homeless individuals have access to essential resources. Working together in our group has been an amazing experience. Working together has been the best part of helping to achieving our goal."

Stirling and Ayham - Group 4

Stirling: "What I loved most was how, despite starting the day not knowing everyone well, as we collaborated and brainstormed, we evolved into a highly collaborative team."

Ayham: "I enjoyed the opportunity to work together as a team. Our discussions about tackling food waste have already brought exciting ideas for solving this issue."

Chelsea - Group 7

"Our team, the 'Best Ones', has been brainstorming different ideas. We're crafting bracelets, designing posters, scripting messages, and promoting the 'No Poverty' goal with passion. We are offering unique ideas to the young kids who come to our booth at the trade show to raise awareness.”

Makena - Group 6

"Our group is exploring the idea of establishing a charity campaign for enhancing well-being. We're determined to lower medication costs for those who genuinely need it but might struggle to afford it."

An Invitation to the Trade Show

As this transformative journey continues, we invite you to join us at the Trade Show where our Year 5 students will proudly showcase their innovative prototypes. This event is a culmination of their dedication and hard work, demonstrating the impact of their creative problem-solving skills.

Emily Charter, Kate Lawrence, Sophie Wager & Sarah Burr | Year 5 Teachers

Year 4 Excursion to St Helena Island

Year 4 students have been learning about the First Fleet as part of the current Humanities and Social Sciences unit. To help students gain a stronger understanding of what challenges and experiences the convicts faced upon their arrival in Australia, at the end of Week 5 we headed off on excursion to St Helena Island. The Island is located just four kilometres away from the Brisbane CBD, in Moreton Bay.

We travelled to and from the island on the Cat o’ Nine Tails Ferry, on which our guides informed us that we were all now prisoners! We then spent a fantastic day roaming the island and engaging with its rich history via role play.

We learned so much about what life was like on St Helena Island, whether you were a prisoner or a guard!

We found out that each prisoner had a different job to do. Some prisoners were the bakers who baked bread, salted and smoked meat and made hominy porridge. If you were a trusted prisoner, you could have, what was described as the best job: a domestic servant for the warden. To become a trusted prisoner, however, we learned that you had to be on the island for a minimum of 14 years with a good record! If you misbehaved on the island, punishment was harsh, varying from being whipped with a cat-o-nine tails by your own cellmate, to being locked in solitary confinement for up to 28 days.

We had a fascinating day learning about the past.

Below are some quotes from our Year 4 students, commenting on this amazing experience:

Saint Helena Island was great. The angry guard was funny how he was yelling at us, and our group made a nickname that was Santa Claus. It was cool how Prisoner 31 got lashed and it was also funny how Prisoner 31 did slow motion lashes and then Santa Claus got angry and made Prisoner 47 lash him instead. Then Ronnie came in and showed them how it was done, then they were scared. - Jackson, Henry, Benjamin and Aran

When you are in one of the cells you have two buckets one for drinking and one for doing your business. Punishments were harsh and you could get 50 lashes, or you could be in complete darkness for three days and it would make you go bonkers. It even made someone want 50 lashes. We learned that you could die from 50 lashes. - Dex, Jude and Luke

The cat o’ nine tails was a whip with nine pieces of rope attached to the handle, with knots tied each 10 centimetres. The prisoners said solitary confinement was the worst punishment. It was hated so much the prisoners would beg 50 lashes instead of solitary confinement. - Jayden, Kenneth, and Ronnie

On the trip we learnt that the warden’s kids mostly died from diseases caused by spitting. You could go to jail for 7 months if you were caught spitting. - Evan and Lucas

The prisoners had to whip their cell mates with this whip called the cat-o-nine tails that had knots tied on the strings so that it will hurt a lot. Also, they had to pick up a big cannon ball that weighed 24 pounds and walk a long way that cuts into their breaktime. Someone called Charles was one of the first ones to escape the prison by simply calling a friend to bring a boat and pick him up. If the prisoners were good the guards would give them tea, sugar and salt. - Eddie and Miles

Life as a convict was harsh but pretending to be one was fun. Apparently, 12 people had to be in one tiny cell. In each cell there was one bucket to do your business in. There would be hooks for each convict to hang their hammocks. Each convict would get a kit with clothes, blankets and a hammock. - Phoebe, Nina, Wenxi and Nina

Tiffany Henry, Tim Collins, Leanne Clark & Nitasha Dhawan | Year 4 Teachers