From the Principal

The Spirit of Giving

The commitment and the generosity of the Tintern Grammar community last Sunday at the Cathedral Service was humbling. The numbers who attended St. Paul’s on a lovely summer afternoon was a testament to our community’s commitment to Tintern. I know that it must have been attractive to stay at home in the sun. I was pleased that this year we ensured we were aware which students attended the service, as for too long this has gone un-noted and unrewarded. I must say I did get a little concerned at one stage that we might be lacking sufficient seats, which would have been a good problem, but a problem nonetheless!

The spirit of the service was also wonderful and I thank particularly the Alisons; Reverend Alison Andrew and Mrs Alison Bezaire for constructing a service of colour and movement, wonderful music and student involvement, but also one of significance – no mean feat! Many other staff also contributed significantly and on all our behalves, I offer our thanks to all contributors and to the Archbishop for allowing us to hold our annual service of significance in his cathedral.

The research of Prof. Martin Seligman, the father of the science of Positive Psychology, draws clear conclusions about the positive effects of doing things for other people – not only on the receiver, but for the giver also. The generosity towards the collection was amazing, it is clear that the leadership shown by our senior students in framing this as something we must do as a community has been supported by the congregation in a most tangible and meaningful way. On Seligman’s evidence we will all be feeling very positive in deed after this afternoon!

Factis non verbis

Brad Fry
Principal

Please watch the above Video Blog from our Principal, Mr Brad Fry.       

Music Matters

Musicians shine at Annual Cathedral Service

On Sunday 21 February, the school community came together at St. Paul’s Cathedral to offer their support and welcome to our new Chaplain, Reverend Alison Andrew. There were a number of music groups and students involved, all of whom performed wonderfully and filled the space beautifully. The theme of the service was ‘Building a New Future’, that from Tintern’s rich foundation and history, new and exciting things are happening in and throughout the school. This theme carried through in the collection for the The Conscious Collective, an organisation which aims to help build a better future for the people of Nepal, by building new schools that are environmentally friendly and are able to withstand earthquakes. It was a lovely service for everyone to be a part of, marking another step in Tintern Grammar’s story.

by Grace Edwards, Choral Captain 2016

Welcome to our newest Music Teacher at Tintern

We are pleased to welcome Mr Alexander White to Tintern Grammar as our new Violin and Viola teacher in 2016. Mr White replaces Miss Oppedisano who has taken up performing and teaching opportunities in Europe. He comes to us with a Master of Arts in Music Performance, some impressive prizes and awards for his performances and a range of performing experience, including the Royal Melbourne Philharmonic Orchestra and the Chamber Strings of Melbourne. He also has a wealth of experience teaching, running instrumental classroom music programs in schools and directing both junior and senior string ensembles. Those students who already have had lessons with Mr White have found him to be a friendly and approachable teacher. We are sure he will enjoy working with our Music Team and teaching our hard working musicians at Tintern.

Magical music at Parent Welcome Event

Many thanks to the members of the Kelson String Quartet (Alison Yang, Gavin Choong, Siobhan Muirhead, Tara McAsey) and harpist, Adele Bicknell, for providing such beautiful and appropriate background music at our recent Parent Welcome Cocktail event in the Compass Gallery. Your talents were greatly appreciated by the parents and staff at the event and your music certainly added to the ambience of the evening.

Pure Talent Showcase 2016

Three of our talented VCE Performing Arts students from 2015 (Zoe Stephenson, Brendon Green, Bailey Pyman) will be appearing on stage at the Karralyka Theatre on Thursday 28 April . The Maroondah Youth Program is hosting a showcase of VCE Drama, Music (Solo & Group), Visual Communication and Design Work, so mark the date in your diaries. Doors will open at 6.00pm for a 6.30pm start. Tickets will be $10. Further details regarding booking tickets online will be available in the next week or two.

Concerto Festival 2016

Full details of our Concerto Festival were outlined in last week’s edition of Aspectus. The preliminary event will be held in the CM Wood Centre on Wednesday 25 May. To enter the Concerto Festival, students should complete the entry form (available from the Music Office) and return it to the Tintern Music Office by Friday 11 March.

Music Dates 2016

Music Concert Dates for the Secondary School for 2016 were outlined in last week’s edition of Aspectus. Parents and students should note relevant dates in their diaries and calendars.

Sport Matters

Gary’s win at the State Finals Athletics

Gary Haasbroek competed in the U/18 Decathlon at the State Finals Athletics over the weekend and won 1st place! Gary’s efforts in the 10 events gave him a maximum score of 6670 giving him the Gold Medal by a convincing 807 points in the State Finals event. We congratulate Gary on this huge achievement which is a testament to his dedicated training efforts in the build up to such a demanding range of track and field events. Gary also managed to set 6 P.B’s during the competition. Gary heads to the Nationals later in the year.

by Adam Klan, Outdoor Ed & PE

EISM Swimming

The Tintern Grammar swimming team has been training for the next Tuesday nights EISM division 1 swimming carnival since October last year. Under the guidance of Coach Graeme Stephenson, swimmers have been training up to three times a week at school and should be commended for their commitment to the team. A special mention to Matt Evans from year 9 who has attended the most training sessions this season. We wish the swimming team best of luck for Tuesday nights carnival and look forward to reporting back on a successful event. The following swimmers have been selected to represent Tintern Grammar. Under 13 Girls Team, Jade Hutchinson, Madison Edwards-Turner, Harriet Rasmussen, Lily Donoghue Under 14 Girls Team, Ashleigh Dowling, Tess Power, Georgia Hargreaves, Darcee Mccallum, Under 15 Girls Team, Cassidy Van Gelderen, Jocelyn Ch’ng, Angel Tully, Ella Ritchie, Under 16 Girls Team, Ella Donoghue, Bella Wright, Daniella Cosentino, Rosie Addison, Senior Girls Team, Sophie Paul, Emily Cowin, Louise Smith, Chloe Pearce-Schmidt, Sophie Horvarth, Under 13 Boys Team, Kaidin Dalzotto, Ash Smith, Lochie Graham, Riley Turnbull, Under 14 Boys Team, Matt Xu, Will Paul, Mark Simounds, Ben Apsey, Under 15 Boys Team, Augustus Lever, Brayden Stokes, Mitch Wooller, Joel Pearce-Schmidt, Under 16 Boys Team, Victor Tran, Ciaran Davidson, Matt Evans, Chris Yuen-Love,  Senior Boys Team, Hugh Dugan, Nick Elliott, Jack Church, Joel Williams  

by Natalie Upjohn
Teacher of Mathematics
EISM Swimming Team Manager

Community Matters

2016 Movie Under the Stars – Inside out – book your ticket now for Saturday 5 March!

Bookings are now open for Inside out. Book your tickets through: http://www.trybooking.com/KGEV 

This event will be held on the Tintern Oval from 6pm, offering a variety of stalls including sausage sizzle, popcorn, Choc tops, drinks, lollies, fairy floss and glow in the dark novelties.

If you would like to find out more please email Jessica Adam at jessicaladam@gmail.com phone 0423 223 296 

If you would like to advertise your business on the big screen or sponsor one of the community groups please download a form here and send to the Community Relations office. Alternatively you can email Amanda McKenzie at amckenzie@mcbe.com.au or phone 0419 313 279

2016 Parents Welcome Evening

A lovely night was had by all at our recent Parent Welcome evening. Approximately 70 new and current parents and guardians joined our Principal, Mr Bradley Fry, in the Visual Arts Centre to enjoy drinks and nibbles whilst listening to the wonderful music of our Kelson String quartet and harpist, Adele Bicknell. One of our 2015 School captains, Alfred Kouris and vice captains, Chase Young shared their Tintern experience with the group highlighting the many opportunities Tintern had offered them over the years and how confident and ready they are to take on university life. Thank you to representatives of our community groups who also attended to share and promote their cause to the new and current families.  Members of our Executive and level coordinators were also on hand to welcome our families to the new School year.

Friends of Equestrian (FOE)

Our wonderful Friends of Equestrian have been working tirelessly on their 16^th Victorian Horse Trials to be held on Saturday 23 and Sunday 24 April at the beautiful Wandin Park. The FOE are also very proud to announce that we are now an official qualifying event for the Australian Interschool Horse Trail Championships. Please share and like the Facebook event by clicking here. This prestigious event attracts nearly 300 competitors and around 500 plus families and spectators from all over Victoria. The FOE group invite you to come along and support the Tintern Grammar Equestrian teams and enjoy a day out at one of the Yarra Valley’s finest estates: Wandin Park, Victoria Rd. Wandin North (Melways Ref. 119 G7). Full canteen is available both days.

Entries are now open and will be received online through eventsecretary.org.au or click here to begin your entry.

If you or child is interested to find out more or you would like to be involved with this event please contact the event secretary, Mrs Sandra Garland on 0425 735 577 or email FOE@tintern.vic.edu.au

Ella and Lilly Trevorrow represented Tintern Grammar last Friday at Ayr Hill for Round 1 of the ISJ Interschool Show Jumping Series. This event is a large event where more than 50 schools are represented with over 70 riders in some sections. Both girls jumped extremely well completing the first 2 rounds successfully. Ella and Lilly aim to continue at a future event to complete the series. Well done girls.

Equestrian Display day Friday 18 March

The Friends of Equestrian with the support of the school will be hosting an Equestrian display day on Friday 18 March. This is a fabulous opportunity for the Tintern Equestrian team to demonstrate their sport to the school and to promote Equestrian at Tintern. If you are free please come along at lunchtime (from 12.30pm) on Friday 18 March to support our Equestrian team.

Community Groups AGMs

Look out for the dates and times for all the Community groups’ AGMs. This is a wonderful chance to meet fellow parents and become involved with the School community. The AGM is the official meeting for the year and provides the committees with office bearers and a direction for the year. Visitors attending the AGM are given a broad understanding of the wonderful contribution these groups make to our School. The events and activities run by the various community groups represent a vital contribution to the enhancement of the school experience for our students and in fostering a community atmosphere across the school in support of parents. Everyone is welcome. For more information on how to be involved please contact the Community Relations Office, Mrs Amanda McKenzie on 9879 1543 or Mrs Loraine Allender on 0417 592 064. We look forward to many new faces joining the committees.

AGM’s for FOYF and FOM

Two of our special interest groups are having their AGM’s in the next couple of weeks and you are invited to attend if you are interested to join these dynamic groups or would just like to find out more.

FOYF – Friends of Young Farmers AGM will be held on Tuesday 1 March @ 7.30pm in Kennedy cottage, Community Relations office (double storey cottage beside the tennis courts and behind the pool)

FOM – Friends of Music AGM will be held the following week on Tuesday 8 March @ 7pm in the CM Wood common room. (staff room in the CM Wood centre)

Parent Representatives and Community Volunteers

Thank you to those parents in our community who have already put up their hand to be Parent Representatives and Community Volunteers. This year we are introducing a volunteer parent representative coordinator, Mrs Jessica Adam, who will be on hand to assist and guide you with your events. If you would like to discuss to find out about the rewarding Parent rep role please call the Community Relations Office on 9845 7877 or call Jessica direct on 0423 223 296 . Parent Representatives and Community Volunteers are a vital link between the parents in your year level and other community groups. The work that Parent Representatives and volunteers do for the School is very highly valued by the School Board, Principal, staff and students. Parent interest and involvement in the life of the school has a very positive effect on your children. We thank all those parent representatives and volunteers who give so generously of their time and talents.  If you would like to register to be a community volunteer or a parent representative please download a form here  and return via your child’s class/ form teacher or email directly to communityrelations@tintern.vic.edu.au

Photo Albums; New and Old for your children’s School photos

The Tintern Association have a limited number of Navy and Maroon old style Photo Albums to offer at a reduced price of $60. These albums feature the old School name printed in gold on the front cover and come complete with 10 transparent 30cm x 30cm sheet inserts albums and are large enough to hold the school photos provided by SchoolPix. The Tintern Association are currently upgrading the album design to reflect the new Tintern Grammar name and logo and these will be available in Term 2 to purchase.  Download an order form here  and forward to the Community Relations Office for processing

Community Committee dates

• The Tintern Association (TTA) – Next meeting: Thursday 17 March 7.30pm Kennedy Cottage, Community services President: Amanda McKenzie
• Southwood Parents’ Club (SPC) – Next Meeting: Monday 21 March 7.30pm Southwood centre, Boys junior school President: Loraine Allender
• Friends of Music (FOM) – Next Meeting & AGM: Tuesday 8 March 7pm CM Wood Common room President: Tim Oldmeadow
• Friends of Young Farmers (FOYF) – Next meeting & AGM: Tuesday 1 March 7.30pm Kennedy Cottage, Community services. President: Joy Ashfield
• Friends of Equestrian (FOE) – Next meeting: Please contact the Community Relations office for next meeting details. President: Kevin Jones

House Swimming Carnival

On Friday 19 February the Girls’ Junior School held the annual Years 3-6 House Swimming Carnival.  It was a fantastic day with all of the girls showcasing their swimming ability and how much they had improved during the Intensive Swimming Program. The girls displayed excellent house spirit and participation through the day. The scores were close all day amongst a number of the houses.

The results for the carnival were:

• 5th: Watt 94 Points
• 4th: Gordon 142 Points
• 3rd: Mansfield 154 Points
• 2nd: Somner 188 Points
• 1st: Cross 202 Points

Congratulations to Cross for winning the House Swimming Competition for 2016.  Thank you to all the teachers, and the newly appointed house captains for all their assistance (as well as the House Captains from 2015 now in Year 7). A special thank you to Mr Viney for all his hard work to organise the carnival and the swimming program.

2016 Junior School Leadership

Recently we selected our Leadership team for 2016. Our new captains Kelsey Paterson and Amber Wild gave a most polished speech at the Investiture Assembly.

Congratulations to all the Year 6 girls who presented themselves so well when receiving their Year 6 badge. They have already proven to be excellent role models and support to the younger girls in the Junior School. Given the quality of our Year 6 girls this year, it is fortunate that there are still other opportunities for others to take leadership roles during the year. Special congratulations also go to the Semester 1 Years 3-5 Class Captains and Fantastic Friends for 2016. 

2016 Year 6 Leaders

• School Captain – Kelsey Paterson
• School Captain – Amber Wild
• Music Captain  – Annabelle Guscott
• Information & Technology Captain  – Georgia Norton
• Flag Captain  – Keira Vandenbroeck
• Cross Captain  – Lucy Fairhurst
• Gordon Captain  – Alex Kavanagh
• Mansfield Captain  – Tilli Fry    
• Somner Captain  – Tahlia Oldmeadow
• Watt Captain  – Mia Jones

Semester 1 Class Captains

Year 5A        Mayunie Munasinghe
Year 4A        Jessica Fettell
Year 3A        Monica Shi

Fantastic Friends

Year 6  Fantastic Friends

Elise Barlow
Emma Drew
Lily Hoorn
Madeline Hupfield
Millie Jensen
Charli Kilworth
Amelia Roberts
Reese Stephens
Mellyn Sun

Year 5 Fantastic Friends

Rachel Adam
Zara Bicknell
Ava Cassidy
Ruby Crowe
Alana Endall
Natasha Gillam
Genevieve Gough
Saskia Jackson Smith
Ella Jones
Nia Laragy
Jade Marshall
Mayunie Munasinghe
Brooke Ritchie
Ciana Rogers
Chelsea Tonna

Fantastic Friends’ Program

Fantastic Friends is a peer support program we are offering for the eighth time to the girls in Year 5 and 6. A group of girls are selected and trained as ‘Fantastic Friends’.  The girls are trained in conflict resolution strategies and peer support skills involving the use of role play, group brainstorming and personal reflection. 

Our experience is that our girls enthusiastically and selflessly give up time to assist fellow students, particularly the younger girls, by helping students develop resilience and self-confidence. The girls also help resolve minor disagreements as well as offering friendship and care for the girls in Prep to Year 3.

Our Fantastic Friends show tremendous initiative and maturity in undertaking this special responsibility. As a result of being involved in this program the girls grow in confidence and develop skills which will be valuable and worthwhile for many years to come.

Invitation to a Letterland Information Morning

All parents of children in the Early Learning Centre, Prep, Years 1 and 2 are welcome to the Letterland Information Talk on Monday 29 February.  Helen Kirkland, our local Letterland guru, will speak about the Letterland program and how it fits in with the literacy program taught in the Junior Schools and ELC. Helen will fill you in on the various characters and how they link together to form different sounds such as sh. Helen will be happy to answer any questions related to Letterland.

Date:                Monday 29 February

Venue:             I J Day Multipurpose Room (Prep-Year 2 building /same venue as ASC)

Time:                8:45am – 9:30am

 We look forward to seeing you there!

District Swimming

Congratulations to all the girls selected for the District Swimming.  They did a fabulous job representing Tintern at the Ringwood District Primary Schools Sports Association District Swimming at our Tintern Pool on Monday. ( please click here for the list)

District Swimming Results

Congratulations to the boys and girls who competed at the District Swimming Carnival at Tintern Grammar on Monday 22 February. They all swam very well and achieved some fantastic results for the school. Congratulations to the following students who progress to the Divisional Carnival at Ringwood Aquanation on Monday 29 February.

• Charlotte Collins 
• Ruby Crowe
• Emmy Horman
• Ella Jones
• Mayunie Munasinghe
• Max Adam
• Elise Barlow
• Tahlia Oldmeadow
• Lucy Fairhurst
• Aleisha Paul
• Madeline Hupfeld
• Georgia Norton

There were many girls who also placed in the top 3 in their races.

German Exchange

At the end of November last year myself, five other exchange students and Mrs Chitters travelled to Erkelenz, Germany. We couldn’t have wished for a better trip. I feel like I have developed into a much more independent, global citizen after being able to experience an entirely different culture over in Germany. It is very important for students doing German to have this experience because there is no better way to learn than six wonderful weeks of practise, laughs and embarrassing moments!

As a group we went to several different cities including Maastricht, Aachen, Köln and Trier; which was an overall favourite. Every city seemed to have an amazing cathedral to visit, some being so big we couldn’t even see the top and others being so colourful we were overwhelmed by their beauty. Some other group activities we did were going to school, visiting Kaufland (similar to coles), adventuring through creepy graveyards, celebrating Christmas, going to the disco and wandering the streets. We were very lucky to have such a great group and such a long flight for all of us to bond!

Over Christmas and New Years we all had different experiences. My family, like many others, opened their gifts on Christmas Eve. Afterwards we went to the church for midnight mass where Sienna and I sang in the choir with our host sisters until it was officially Christmas day. On the second day of Christmas (Christmas day) we visited extended family for lunch. We ate many different traditional foods, my favourite was Knödel, which is a starchy potato bread ball; it tastes a lot better than it sounds. It was greatly different to my normal Australian Christmas, especially because it was so cold but unfortunately there was no snow. For New Years Eve many of us went to parties with our host siblings or to a family friend’s house but one common theme was the extreme amount of fireworks, which you can buy at the local shops. Rachael Merritt said “The sky was so full of light, it was beautiful.” The holiday period was definitely the best part of the trip because we got to spend time with our host brothers and sisters and travel to different places.

Overall, our exchange to Germany was a huge success. Each student definitely benefitted from it by learning new words and phrases, experiencing a whole new culture, making new friends and memories and learning what to do when your smoothie explodes in the airport! I’d like to thank Blathnaid Murray, Mitchell Lacey, Myles Carew, Rachael Merritt, Sienna Gerin, my host sister Judith Lesmeister and our wonderful teacher Mrs Chitters for making this trip so extraordinary. I couldn’t have had a better six weeks.

by Isabella Vecchio, Year 10

Invitation to a Letterland Information Morning

All parents of children in the Early Learning Centre, Prep, Years 1 and 2 are welcome to the Letterland Information Talk on Monday 29 February.  Helen Kirkland, our local Letterland guru, will speak about the Letterland program and how it fits in with the literacy program taught in the Junior Schools and ELC. Helen will fill you in on the various characters and how they link together to form different sounds such as sh. Helen will be happy to answer any questions related to Letterland.

Date:                Monday 29 February

Venue:             I J Day Multipurpose Room (Prep-Year 2 building /same venue as ASC)

Time:                8:45am – 9:30am

 We look forward to seeing you there!

2016 Flag Captain trained up!

Kiera Vandenbroeck, our new Flag Captain, was very pleased to learn about the protocols of the flag. Together with her assistants, two students who helped with the flags last year came to lunch on Monday to ‘show her the ropes’!

It was lovely to stand back and watch the knowledge being passed on, all girls were very appreciative of the time spent with them and the Year 7 girls knew exactly how much to show, and how much to stand back and let it happen.

by Kelli Green
Year 6 Teacher

Invitation to a Letterland Information Morning

All parents of children in the Early Learning Centre, Prep, Years 1 and 2 are welcome to the Letterland Information Talk on Monday 29 February.

Helen Kirkland, our local Letterland guru, will speak about the Letterland program and how it fits in with the literacy program taught in the Junior Schools and ELC. Helen will fill you in on the various characters and how they link together to form different sounds such as sh. Helen will be happy to answer any questions related to Letterland.

Date:                Monday 29 February

Venue:             I J Day Multipurpose Room (Prep-Year 2 building /same venue as ASC)

Time:                8:45am – 9:30am

 We look forward to seeing you there!

Matilda the Musical

We are pleased to be able to offer an opportunity for our Junior School boys and girls to attend a performance of the acclaimed “Matilda”.

Whilst some families may already have plans to see Matilda, and others prefer not to, we believe that offering this matinee performance through our school provides a cheaper and more practical opportunity for those who may still be considering their options. This opportunity will see the cost of tickets $80 for children and $90 for adults (including transport to and from).

Seating will be in the upper level of the Dress Circle. Please click here for ticket order forms.

 We do need to confirm final numbers with Ticketmaster, so a prompt reply with payment is appreciated.

• Matinee Performance  WEDNESDAY 7 SEPTEMBER 2016  
• The performance lasts approximately 2 hours and 40 minutes including an interval.
• A Crown bus will transport us to and from the Regent Theatre.
• We will depart from the Tintern Bus bay at 11.30am, returning approximately 6pm

Please return your Ticket order form by Friday 4 March to Tintern Junior School Reception.

 ONCE IN A BLUE MOON, A SHOW COMES OUT BLAZING AND RESTORES YOUR FAITH IN BROADWAY. MATILDA THE MUSICAL IS THAT SHOW.” – New York Post

‘EASILY THE STANDOUT MUSICAL OF THE DECADE’ – Sunday Times, (UK)

Chinese New Year in the ELC

The children in the ELC have embraced the celebrations of Chinese New Year this year. We have read books on the topic, watched videos of dragon dances, created Chinese paper lanterns and made our own ‘red packets’. These small red envelopes contain coins (paper ones for us) and are given to friends and family as a way of wishing them wealth and happiness. The red colour is to offer good luck and ward off evil spirits. Our foyer area is currently decorated with the children’s drawings and paintings of Chinese New Year dragons and the 2016 New Year monkey. We ended the New Year celebrations on Monday with a lantern parade. Many families came to join us and brought a range of traditional Chinese New Year treats for the children to sample. Thanks to all who contributed to the celebrations throughout the New Year period.

by Amanda Cooke
ELC Coordinator
Pre-Prep B Teacher

Dr Seuss and Resilience

In our most recent Boys’ Junior School Assemblies, we have discussed Resilience. I really enjoy Andrew Fuller’s definition of this critical characteristic: “Resilience is the happy knack of being able to bungy jump through life. When the inevitable pitfalls and setbacks of life occur, it is as if you have an elasticised rope around your middle that helps you to bounce back from hard times”

The phrase that we have used with our boys in our discussions is “Shake It Off”. In our latest Dr Seuss-ish type book, “Taylor the Resilient Donkey,” (not available at all good bookstores) we tell the story of Taylor, who fell down a well, only to have his mean farmer try to bury him with shovels of dirt. Instead of giving up and becoming despondent, Taylor decided to Shake Off the dirt, and step on it once it was on the ground. By shaking off and stepping up, Taylor freed himself from the well. He lesson of course being that rather than letting problems bury us or overwhelm us, we can Shake Them Off and overcome the challenge. The problems may be finding instrumental practice hard, or homework difficult, or a losing in a game, or just something not going as planned….whatever it is, by remembering ‘Shake It Off’,  we hope that our boys can practise resiliency. Dr Seuss describes it as “And I learnt there were troubles of more than one kind, some come from ahead, some come from behind. But I’ve bought a big bat, I’m already you see. Now my troubles are going to have troubles with me!”

Tintern Grammar Junior Boys take a look at the Gramophone

“So was the Gramophone called that because it is as old as my Gramma”…asked Brayden from Year 3. “Not quite … but yes, your Grandma may have a Gramophone,” I replied.

In the boys Junior School Music classes this week we have been very interested to learn about the evolution that portable music players have gone through in the last 150 years!

We discussed and looked at some of the devices and machines that our Grandparents used. The boys loved looking and seeing an original Gramophone play an old 78” which Mrs Casey brought to school. We even learnt that many, many years ago a hand crank was used to operate it!

In Year 5 and 6 we learnt that Thomas Edison invented the phonograph as well as the light bulb! We also loved listening to some old vinyl records played on an old record player.

by Jacquie Casey
Boys Junior School Music Co-Ordinator

Club Tinwood

Yesterday afternoon saw 100 of our Junior Schools’ girls and boys gather together for the first Club Tinwood event for the year, a Pool Party and BBQ.

The fun and energy levels of our children never ceases to amaze me…at the end of a school day, they still ran and jumped and dived and laughed…ate at least two sausages,…and then continued to run and laugh and have fun.

It was a wonderful event.

Matilda the Musical

We are pleased to be able to offer an opportunity for our Junior School boys and girls to attend a performance of the acclaimed “Matilda”.

Whilst some families may already have plans to see Matilda, and others prefer not to, we believe that offering this matinee performance through our school provides a cheaper and more practical opportunity for those who may still be considering their options. This opportunity will see the cost of tickets $80 for children and $90 for adults (including transport to and from).

Seating will be in the upper level of the Dress Circle. Please click here for ticket order forms.

 We do need to confirm final numbers with Ticketmaster, so a prompt reply with payment is appreciated.

• Matinee Performance  WEDNESDAY 7 SEPTEMBER 2016  
• The performance lasts approximately 2 hours and 40 minutes including an interval.
• A Crown bus will transport us to and from the Regent Theatre.
• We will depart from the Tintern Bus bay at 11.30am, returning approximately 6pm

Please return your Ticket order form by Friday 4 March to Tintern Junior School Reception.

 ONCE IN A BLUE MOON, A SHOW COMES OUT BLAZING AND RESTORES YOUR FAITH IN BROADWAY. MATILDA THE MUSICAL IS THAT SHOW.” – New York Post

‘EASILY THE STANDOUT MUSICAL OF THE DECADE’ – Sunday Times, (UK)

Semester 1 Theme “GRIT” – The Significance of Grit: Research by Angela Lee Duckworth

People who can set long-term goals and stick to them have a leg up on success in school and life.

For the last 11 years, Angela Lee Duckworth of the University of Pennsylvania has been conducting groundbreaking studies on grit—the quality that enables individuals to work hard and stick to their long-term passions and goals.

How do we use this concept to help our students?

Angela Lee Duckworth introduces this theme through a Ted Talks YouTube clip.  She gives us a much better understanding of students and learning from a motivational and psychological perspective.

Leaving a high-flying job in consulting, Angela took a job teaching Mathematics to 7th Graders.

She quickly realized that IQ wasn’t the only thing separating the successful students from those who struggled. Here, she explains her theory of “GRIT” as a predictor of success.

In education the one thing we know how to measure best is IQ but what if doing well in school and life depends on much more than your ability to learn easily and quickly?

Let’s learn more….

https://www.ted.com/talks/angela_lee_duckworth_the_key_to_success_grit?language=en

As Angela indicates…someone who shows GRIT is someone who demonstrates passion and perseverance. They have stamina day in day out, not just for the month but for years!  “You need to live life like it is a marathon, not a sprint” says Angela.

Angela argues that studies have shown that when students learn about the brain and how it changes and grows in response to challenge, they are much more likely to persevere when they fail. They do not believe that failure is a permanent condition.

Grit seems to be related to Carol Dweck’s work on a growth mind-set, says Angela. Carol has studied the benefits of teaching students that intelligence is not fixed, but is something that can develop. Do you think the same is true of grit? And should we help young people see that they can develop grit, that it’s not just something you’re born with?

We have to be willing to fail and to be wrong and start over again with lessons learnt.

 “In other words we need to be gritty about getting our children grittier”.

Boys’ Middle School News

The energy levels in the Boys’ Middle School is amazing at the moment. For people who question why as a teacher I would want to spend my days looking after 12 – 15 year old boys, all I can say is come and spend some time in our Middle School and see for yourself why this age group is by far the best to be around. Yes there are issues of course, at this age there will always be issues, but the positives far outweigh any of those issues. Our boys are great young men; they’re kind, respectful and polite. They’re learning through the guidance predominantly from you as their parents, as well as us here as their teachers, what their place is in this world and how to become positive contributors. There are times, and there will be more times, when they don’t act in the way we expect them to, when they do make mistakes and make a wrong choice – if they do, it’s our job to help them to understand why this choice was wrong, what a better choice could have been and hopefully educate them to be able to make better choices in the future.

On Friday 12 February the Year 9 boys went to Scienceworks for an excursion and following on from the positive start mentioned above, the staff at Scienceworks commented to our teachers how wonderful our students were.

 On Tuesday 16^th as part of Challenge the Year 9s were involved in activities organised by Supreme Incursions. These were a lot of little team orientated challenges and also a lot of little fun activities.

Our Year 8s are working really well at the moment and the reports from teachers is that the level of effort in their work has been exceptional. They will be challenged by the work load but will be guided well by their Pastoral Mentors as they year progress through the year. 8E boys in PE were working on their fitness testing recently with activities such as stair runs, skipping, punching bags, bikes, rowers, etc.

The Year 7s have settled really well into their classes and have adapted to Middle School really well. The boys this week have recently sat the Middle Years Ability Test (MYAT). The MYAT is a test of general ability designed to assist teachers in assessment of students aged 10–15 years. As well as verbal and numerical reasoning items, MYAT includes non-verbal (or abstract) reasoning items, giving a more complete picture of students’ general ability. This assessment has been used over a number of years at Tintern Grammar, providing staff with information which enables us to cater in a more targeted way to student ability, thereby enhancing student learning.

Finally it was great to see our community at St Paul’s Cathedral on Sunday 21 February for our annual Cathedral Service, it really was a lovely service filled with beautiful singing and music.

Girls’ Middle School News

Family School Partnership

At Tintern we place great importance on the partnership between families and the school. By establishing valuable connections and emphasising the importance of community we hope to truly foster a culture that enables effective communication in our school. In my conversations with parents this week, I have encouraged a united and ‘team’ approach to motivating, empowering and nurturing our girls. Communication between students, parents, teaching staff and support staff is essential in order to work together to support students, whether looking at their academic progress, co-curricular commitments and opportunities, social interactions, or organisation.

Sometimes the fast pace of life and technology, use of social media and level of immediacy felt by young people, there can be little time for thoughtful decision making or care in their approach or interactions with others. A photo or comment, once posted online or sent to someone can be passed on and viewed by an audience it was not originally intended for. As teachers we work with your daughter’s to navigate through this, develop strategies and consider their actions and the implications of these actions/interactions. As parents you can help your daughter’s by calmly unpacking the events of the day and offering an adult perspective. Monitoring their use of social media, being aware of what ‘Apps’ or accounts she has access to (snapchat, Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, KiK etc) and knowing when and why she is using it – to post photos, share interests and ideas or to keep up to date with subjects or people of interest – will help in supporting positive use of social media.

The Great Outdoors

Our Camp Programs are an important part of the overall education of students during their time in the Girls’ Middle School. The sequential program is planned and run by Tintern Outdoor Education staff and Year Level Co-ordinators who also work with residential camp providers such as Merricks (Year 7), Valley Homestead (Year 8) and Camp Howqua (Year 9) to create programs that are engaging, challenging, rewarding and valuable for students. Involvement in the outdoors provides girls with a range of activities outside their usual environment, so that they learn to face challenges in an atmosphere which requires self-reliance and independence. As students work in small groups they also further develop their co-operative group skills, communication and tolerance. The activities undertaken encourage them to use their initiative and to take responsibility for their own and the group’s actions.  Term 1 presents many challenges and opportunities for our Year 7s which includes spending 4 days together at Merricks in their final week of term. They will enjoy tree climbing, snorkelling, an introduction to bike riding and horse riding. Year 8s will begin Term 2 with much excitement as they swing, climb, slide and ride during 5 days at Valley Homestead in the picturesque Ovens Valley. The 3-camp program offered to Year 9 girls is, for many, a highlight of their time in the Middle School. The first of these camps, a three day bushwalk to Wilsons Promontory challenges students to become more familiar with their group, be self-sufficient and confident in their own abilities to experience and enjoy the outdoors. These bushwalks are currently taking place and all reports from staff and students so far has been positive – despite some challenging weather. Your support and encouragement of your daughter’s involvement in these programs is greatly appreciated.

Student writing Competition

The notJack Writers Prize recognises the significance of place for Australian writers. Accordingly, the theme of the prize is ‘writing from place’. It is a deliberately broad theme designed to encourage entrants from all genres, whose writing demonstrates creative engagement with place and/or shapes the significance of place for their audience. Short-listed entrants are invited to attend a masterclass with prominent Australian writers whose work is also centred on the theme of place. 

Entries may be up to 3000 words or 40 lines of poetry. Entry fees are $10 per entry, and the Youth Category closes on 14 March 2016. The entry form, guidelines and other prize details are included on the website: https://notjackwritersprize.wordpress.com/. Interested writers are welcome to contact the prize at notjackwritersprize@gmail.com.

Any student wishing to enter this competition is warmly encouraged to discuss ideas with their English teacher.

by Chris Millgate-Smith
Head of English

Cathedral Service 2016

What a pleasure and delight it was to be part of the planning and the actual Service on Sunday 21 February at St Paul’s Cathedral. Our theme for the service was, ‘Building a new future’ and the school student leaders met many times to shape and create the service of worship we took part in. Our service began with Genevieve Barclay and Michael D’Addazio welcoming students, staff, families, Board member and Life Governors to the service.

Our preacher for the service was the Archbishop of Melbourne and Primate of Australia, The Most Reverend Dr Philip Freier who spoke to us about the foundations we build our lives on, and our year, and the place Jesus fits into all of that when we consider the ‘new future’ of our school Tintern Grammar.

The offering was taken for the Conscious collective and $2750 was collected to assist the people of Nepal through this very worthy cause. The Conscious Collective was set up by Tintern student Sophie Moore, Class of 2011. It is currently assisting and enabling communities in Nepal following the devastating earthquakes of 2015.

Finally, it was the supreme team effort of music students and staff, most ably led by Mrs Alison Bezaire who took us on a journey through song and music which added depth and texture to the worship. 

A particular standout was the performance from Heidi Ruckert who sung ‘Ce un Nuovo Diem’ (It’s a New Day), ably supported by Tara McAsey on cello. The song was written and composed by Lady Shaula Salathe, and it was specifically composed for our Cathedral service. A recording can be watched below. 

Thank you to all who came and participated in this service of worship and thanks.

Grace and Peace

by Rev Alison

Traffic Reminder

We would like to remind parents to be mindful of the traffic regulations around the school and to obey all parking signs to avoid a fine.

In particular, there are to be no right turns on Loma Street into the PE Centre. Instead, we advise families that they are to enter the PE Centre by coming down Morinda Street.

Oklahoma

Students are busily preparing for their upcoming musical, Oklahoma. Tickets will be on sale from Friday 4 March, please click the link below to order your tickets:

http://www.karralyka.com.au/Whats-On

Wednesday 16 March (Preview Performance) at 6.30pm
Thursday 17 March at 7.30pm
Friday 18 March at 7.30pm
Saturday 19 March at 7.30pm

Karralyka Theatre, Ringwood

Oklahoma!

In the Oklahoma territory at the turn of the twentieth century, two young cowboys vie with an evil ranch hand and a traveling peddler for the hearts of the women they love.

Rodgers & Hammerstein’s first collaboration remains, in many ways, their most innovative having set the standards and established the rules of musical theatre still being followed today. Set in a Western Indian territory just after the turn of the century, the high-spirited rivalry between the local farmers and cowboys provides the colourful background against which Curly, a handsome cowboy, and Laurey, a winsome farm girl, play out their love story. Although the road to true love never runs smooth, with these two headstrong romantics holding the reins, love’s journey is as bumpy as a surrey ride down a country road. That they will succeed in making a new life together we have no doubt, and that this new life will begin in a brand-new state provides the ultimate climax to the triumphant OKLAHOMA!

Year 10 City Experience

Year 10 students participated in a successful City Experience from Monday 22 to Wednesday 24 February. The venue for this camp at CYC City in Collins Street provided a high standard of accommodation and easy access to the CBD region. The camp incorporated a wide range of activities that aimed to develop personal skills and complement the school’s academic program while enjoying the experience of being in the city. Students visited the Old Melbourne Gaol and participated in a tour of the Watch House and an interactive courtroom drama. They also visited Parliament House and the Melbourne Star Observation Wheel. The staff from Urban Seed challenged stereotypes about homelessness in the inner city of Melbourne and the value of community. Students were also able to select from a range of electives including visits to the Digital Music Hub, Hardrock Climbing Centre, and the City Baths. Another highlight included the stage musical, ‘Ghost The Musical’ at The Regent Theatre.

by Heather Ruckert
Year 10 Co-ordinator and Careers Consultant

Year 11 and 12 Conference

Our Years 11 & 12 Conferences will be held next week with Year 11 students heading to Phillip Island for 3 days on Wednesday 2 March and our Year 12s attending their non-residential based Conference at Tintern Grammar on the evening of Thursday 3 and all day on Friday 4 March as per the information sent home by the respective Year Level Co-ordinators, Mr Nick Stefanac and Mrs Jennifer Tsai Bove.

Our Year 11 Conference has a focus on personal development and life in the Senior College. Our Year 12 Conference has a focus on preparing students for their future tertiary experiences and remaining motivated and focussed through Year 12 – it includes an evening session on Thursday with Dr Michael Carr-Gregg to which Year 12 parents have been invited to attend with their daughter or son.

I take this opportunity to remind all families of the School’s Camps Refund Policy should students not attend Camp (Conference): Please note that it is the expectation that students will attend their Year Level Camps as these enjoyable activities are important parts of the Year Level’s Academic and Pastoral Programs.

Illness: should your daughter/son be unable to attend due to illness, a medical certificate needs to be provided to receive a full refund.

Notice of inability to attend:

2 months or greater (without a medical certificate) – 75% refund

1 – 2months (without a medical certificate) – 40% refund

Less than 1 month (without a medical certificate) – 25% refund

1 week or less (without a medical certificate) – no refund

IB Awards Ceremony

On Wednesday 24 February, Mr Brad Fry, Principal, and I attended the Annual Victorian & Tasmanian IB Awards Ceremony at the Deakin Edge, Federation Square, Melbourne to see three of our Year 2015 IB graduates honoured for their outstanding IB scores, maintaining our reputation as one of the leading IB Schools in Australia and indeed the World. IB students from Victoria and Tasmania who achieve an IB score of 40 or above (which translate to ATARs of above 98.00) are invited to the Ceremony along with their parents.

These Awards were initiated by Tintern in 2000 and we hosted them from 2000 – 2002 and again in 2014. The IB Awards Ceremony is hosted by rotation through the 15 Victorian and Tasmanian IB Diploma Schools and this year it was Carey Baptist Grammar’s turn to host the event.

Our three top performing IB students were: Maddison Read, Stefani Sharp (Dux of the School for 2015) and Eunice Tang.

Pictured after the Awards Ceremony are our top performing IB students from 2015, Eunice Tang, Stefani Sharp and Maddison Read with our Principal, Mr Brad Fry.

News from the Careers Department

CareerNews

The school subscribes to a publication called ‘CareerNews’ that collates information about tertiary courses, upcoming events and vocational insights that assist students with their career planning. Copies will be added to the Careers tab on the Portal. Senior College students are also emailed a copy of the CareerNews each fortnight so that they can easily access material from the hyperlinks. The first edition is now available.

Career Chats…. 

During the year the Careers Department will be holding regular Career Chats for Senior College students and the first one will be held at lunch time next Monday 29 February with a focus on Year 12 applications to the UK and USA. The second session will occur on Tuesday 8 March for Years 11 and 12 students to learn more about the application procedures for the Monash University Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery (Honours). A past student will provide insights relating to the Undergraduate Medicine and Health Sciences Admission Test (UMAT) and the interview process. Registrations for the UMAT are now open and close 5.00pm AEST on 3 June 2016. Further information can be found at https://umat.acer.edu.au/

Work Experience Program

Year 10 students will be participating in the Work Experience Program from Tuesday 14 to Friday 17 June. Students are required to organise a placement before the end of Term 1. If additional time is required then please contact Ms Julie Ennor (Work Experience Co-ordinator) or myself in the Careers Department.

Students are required to return the initial form no later than Thursday 24 March, which is the last day of Term 1. An official Work Experience package will then be prepared and returned to the student.

Changes to Obtaining a Tax File Number

A reminder that The Australian Taxation Office has altered the application process for obtaining a Tax File Number. Schools can no longer process applications for students. The following link provides details about the new procedures that are similar to applying for a passport.

Please select https://www.ato.gov.au/Forms/TFN—application-for-individuals/

by Heather Ruckert
Year 10 Co-ordinator and Careers Consultant

Year 12 Study Tips

During the most recent Year 12 Utility period, we were delighted to welcome seven past students back to our Campus. Ewen Doonan, Fraser Kenny, Alfred Kouris, Chelci Cox, Izzi Phillips  and Milly Ross (Year 12 2015) and Ellena Kouris (Year 12 2014) gave their own thoughts on tips to make the Year 12 year successful, and answered questions from our own Year 12s. Our ‘experts’ made comments such as “balance your study…keep doing sport and stay active so that you don’t over study’; “know what study style suits you best”; “use your teachers, ask them for extra practice exams, and follow up with them after SACs”; “Support one another…encourage one another”.

It was a most practical and valuable session, and gave our 12s an insight into what lies ahead for them from a student’s perspective.

It was wonderful to have a small group of our past students join us.

by Adam Kenny
Leadership Co-ordinator

Chaplain’s Corner

Psalm 121

I lift up my eyes to the hills—
    from where will my help come?
My help comes from the Lord,
    who made heaven and earth.

Here are the first two verses of Psalm 121, the School Psalm. Words said and sung throughout the year at Tintern Grammar. A Psalm repeated over decades of the schools past by generations of students. We even heard them sung by the combined Middle and Senior School choirs, accompanied by the Tintern Grammar Chamber Orchestra at the Cathedral Service last Sunday.

Psalm 121 was written as a travellers Psalm by a king in the Bible called David. It was written for those about to embark on a journey, people looking toward the future and the ‘hills’. We find the text raises concerns and then offers assurances. This text is 3000 years old and yet raises the relevant personal and communal question, ‘From where will my help come?’ In times of difficulty, danger, uncertainty and fear, where are we to seek help? Then verse two offers us the assurance, ‘My help comes from the Lord, who made heaven and earth.’ No less than the creator and sustainer of all things is where we are to put our trust.

As a school that sits at the foot of the hills, saying and singing this Psalm makes good sense. As we embark on this school year together – our journey as the Tintern Grammar community, I encourage you to consider the words of Psalm 121 and find assurance in it just as people have over the past 3000 years.

Grace and Peace

by Rev Alison

Key Dates Term 1 2016

Monday 29 Feb – Boys Year 3 – 6 Back to School Morning

Wednesday 2 – 4 March 2016 – Year 11 Conference

Thursday 3 – 4 March 2016 – Year 12 Conference

Friday 4 March  – Boys Prep – Year 2 Back to School Morning

Saturday 5 March – Movie Under the Stars ‘Inside Out’, 5.30-9.30pm

Monday 7 & 8 March  – Middle School Parent Teacher Interviews, 4-8pm

Wednesday 9 March  – Year 7 Information Evening, 7pm

Wednesday 9 – 10 March – Gateways

Friday 11 March – Grand Prix and Funky Hair Day

Monday 14 March – Labour Day Holiday

Tuesday 15 & 16 March  – Prep – Year 6 Parent Teacher Interviews, 4-8pm

Wednesday 16 March – Junior Boys House Athletics

Wednesday 16 March – Oklahoma Preview Performance, 6.30pm, Karralyka Theatre

Thursday 17, Friday 18 and Saturday 19 March – Oklahoma Performance, 7.30pm, Karralyka Theatre

Thursday 24 March – Term 1 Finish