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Our school will continue to provide an educational program through to the 9th of December 2022. It is our expectation that students attend school every day and for the full day, and that they are engaged in the educational program on offer and are behaving in a manner that abides by our Student Code of Conduct. Sadly, a number of students have recently demonstrated behaviours that are not in alignment with our Student Code of Conduct. We are committed to providing a safe, supportive and inclusive environment where all students have opportunities to engage in learning experiences. If, on the occassion an incident occurs which infringes on a student's feeling of safety or well-being, we encourage students to report to staff for follow-up rather than 'taking matters into their own hands', so to speak.
This week I have been disappointed to hear rumours, gossip, speculation and untruths circulated by members of our community. These comments have caused unwarranted distress to members of our community which goes against everything we believe in as a College, and our SPIRIT values. Unfortunately, some of these have resulted in unnecessary behaviour incidents. We consider behaviour management to be an opportunity for valuable social learning and look forward to the positive growth of our College culture that will come from these learning experiences.
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- Are we the hero or the victim in our story? It is our responsibility to choose.
- Resilience - Be like the tiger! A tiger goes home hungry from a hunt, not defeated, not blaming anything and everything on why the hunt didn't work, rather, learning from the experience and growing.
Gratitude
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- Gratitude is a feeling, not a thought.
- Are we showing appreciation and not expectation?
- End each day by considering three moments that we are grateful for, perhaps while brushing our teeth.
Kindness
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- Science has proven that kinder people are happier people. A simple act of kindness has been proven to release serotonin and oxytocin in our brain, producing happiness.
- We can show kindness by being kind to others, being kind to our mind and being kind to the environment.
Cooper ended his address with a challenge for the audience. I would like to share this challenge with you, focussing on your children, our students...
- Show them that you are grateful. Give them a compliment, or tell them that you are proud of them.
- Show kindness to the environment by picking up that piece of rubbish, rather than walking by it.
- When frustrated by children, take a moment to breathe before responding.
Until next time...
Addison Newlan competed in the Arcus Edinburgh Cup for Classic Moths over the weekend. She had an amazing opportunity to sail a classic scow moth built in 1964. The day presented challenging conditions, with Addison recovering on Sunday with three race wins and an overall place of 2nd and 3rd. Addison was again the youngest sailor to compete. Congratulation!
Has your child recently had a significant achievement in their out of College pursuits? If so, email admin@foxwellssc.eq.edu.au to highlight them in upcoming newsletters and on our facebook page.
The Big Ideas Challenge is a fast-paced and hands-on day of listening, learning and doing. Culminating in teams of students pitching their own innovative solutions to a complex, local issue. We are proud to have hosted the Gold Coast Big Ideas Challenge for 2022, with a number of our students participating. Miss Shepherd was proud to join in as a panel member, judging the grand final.
The Sporting Minds Excellence program has been a part of Foxwell State Secondary College and the Coomera community since our foundation year, 2020. The driving aim is to provide a program that is unique and grounded in the strengths of the local community. We strive to develop the mind of an athlete: to think powerfully, with purpose and passion while persevering towards every aspect of their athletic development.
In the wind-up of our 2022 season, we are seeking to continue to build our connections with and access the support of local businesses. We will be celebrating our young athletes and are hoping you can help!
In Term 4, we are hoping to put our learning to the test with our Year 8 cohort at the Raw Challenge Course here on the Gold Coast. This is an 8-kilometre obstacle course that will challenge our young athletes' grit and resilience, and push their physical and mental fitness to the limit. This will be an incredibly rewarding experience for participants while extending our term focus on building teamwork, perseverance and self-accomplishment.
Our goal is to raise $3000 to fund this incredible opportunity for our students. As a show of gratitude, all contributing businesses will have exposure through posts on our college Facebook page, articles in our college newsletter and potential for exposure in Gold Coast news and bulletin articles. Below are possible partnership options we could offer to your business. We also seek your input in determining the ways in which this partnership may be mutually rewarding for your business:
Bronze Contribution: $250 – Business logos, information and branding included in our college's promotional material.
Silver Contribution: $500 – Bronze promotional access + representatives from your business are invited to attend and be involved in the event – supporting/participating.
Gold Contribution: $1000 - Silver promotional access, the official starter at the event + Naming rights of the event for 2022 – ‘Your business name’s’ Resilience Run 2022.
We look forward to hearing back from your team. If you would like to discuss potential sponsorship further, please contact Cameron Saye at csaye21@eq.edu.au or phone 5555 3333.
The half-time siren has sounded, and students are now setting their sights towards meeting their draft and assessment deadlines for term 4.
Year 7 HWO: Screentime Investigation
Final due: Research investigation final, Week 7
Year 8 HWO: Harm Minimisation Exam
Draft due: Investigation notes, end of week 6.
Exam: Week 7 theory class lesson.
Year 9 HWO:
Draft due: Parts A & B, Week 6 theory class lesson
Final due: Parts A & B Final, Week 8 theory class lesson
If there are extenuating circumstances that will prevent your child from meeting due dates for assessment, please contact your child’s HWO/HPE to support their learning.
A reminder for all students, parents and carers: to achieve well in Healthy World, students must be completing work outside of class. Just as athletes train for a game, students must train their brains by engaging in homework, practising skills and competencies, and completing assessment tasks. Our teachers are committed to our students learning at potential and provide the opportunity for tutoring and support outside of class. This is available to all students at their initiative.
Let’s go team!
Annually, the Gen STEM Up & Atom Fair is an opportunity for our Gen STEM students to pursue any STEM passion project they are interested in. In association with PhD students from Universities around Australia, and with our partner program the Wonder of Science, students questioned, researched, and explored their passion projects. They stepped out of their comfort zones, and presented this to parents, peers, and distinguished guests, to share their knowledge and to inspire others to join the conversation. On behalf of Foxwell State Secondary College, we would like to congratulate the following students:
Our Year 7 People’s Choice awards were awarded to Paige S and Eva Mikha. Paige investigated whether flowers affect one’s mental health, and Eva investigated whether antidepressants cause more harm than good to your mental wellbeing
Our Year 8 People’s Choice awards were awarded to Stella B and Amritha Ravipati. Stella investigated whether pea flowers can be used as a natural pH indicator, and went on to design a tea which would change colour with a changing acidity, whereas Amritha investigated how food affects mood, surveying her peers and physically constructing the chemicals that are present inside the brain such as serotonin and dopamine.
Our Year 9 People’s Choice award was awarded to Esther Rinatta and Mia Dos Santos. Esther investigated how music impacts your bodily reactions such as heart rate and mood, and Mia investigated how mental health affects the immune system
One student in Year 7, 8 and 9 was selected to receive this award, based on their thorough understanding of the STEM inquiry process, their project’s reflection of the global competencies of Citizenship and Creativity, as well as their unwavering display of the College’s SPIRIT values. The recipient of this award received the Spirit of STEM inaugural trophy, medal, certificate, and a $50 Westfield Coomera voucher.
Our Year 7 SPIRIT of STEM award winner was Wintana Cizic
Wintana investigated how thermal expansion causes sea levels to rise around the world. Thermal expansion is the tendency of matter to increase in volume and density as temperature rises. Wintana correctly hypothesised that water that was placed closer to a heat lamp would have a larger volume than water that was placed further away. Her results indicated that if changes aren’t made to reduce global warming, it can be expected that sea levels will continue to rise, creating issues such as erosion, flooding, and habitat loss. Throughout her project, Wintana showed perseverance as she worked through the STEM inquiry cycle to create an engaging presentation, communicating her research to a range of audience members including students, parents, and distinguished guests.
Our Year 8 SPIRIT of STEM award winner was Aleera Scherrenberg
Aleera receives this award for embodying the values of the Gen STEM program, remaining resilient through adversity and persevering through challenges. She has shown commitment, passion, application, and responsibility, relentlessly pursuing an STEM area of genuine interest. Aleera has been motivated all term from the inception of the project, maintained focus and self-determination, and created a product that was of extremely high calibre and clearly showed deep connections between Citizenship and Creativity. She exemplified the ‘never give up’ attitude throughout this inquiry. Through her study of a variety of different compost systems and their implementation in the real-world, she sought to bring a better future to our homes and our environment. Please join me in congratulating Aleera Scherrenberg.
Our Year 9 SPIRIT of STEM award winner was Qyn S
Qyn receives this award for displaying exemplary perseverance, integrity and respect and responsibility through her implementation of the scientific inquiry cycle. Qyn is a quiet and respectful high achiever who only joined Gen STEM this year and has overcome many challenges to be who she is today. Her passion project explored the difference in brain chemistry between extroverts and introverts. Using in-depth research, Qyn discovered that introvert brains are more sensitive to the chemical dopamine, which can lead to feeling overwhelmed in loud and busy situations. Introverts also use more areas of the brain when making a decision. Throughout her project Qyn went in and out of the learning pit and constantly stepped outside of her comfort zone to communicate her findings to others. We are delighted to acknowledge her journey.
The First Lego League Regional Conference will be held next Saturday 12th November, from 8:30am-3pm. Attendance is mandatory for all Year 7 and 8 Gen STEM students. Please see the email sent from Head of Physical World Nahdia McClymont to all parents on Thursday 27th October, with a permission note that needs to be signed and returned. If you are unable to find it, please check in your junk folder, or email nmccl31@eq.edu.au for another copy.
On the day, students are encouraged to dress as wacky, crazy, and fun as they would like. Think big colours, crazy hats, tutus, onesies, the sky is the limit! Students will need to pack their own morning tea, lunch, and possibly afternoon tea on the day. The canteen will not be open on the day. Parents and guests are more than welcome to attend on the day to observe the competition in action, but are not expected to attend.
Thank you for your continued support with this program, it is a delight to share the achievements of our incredible students with you.
Warm regards,
Nahdia McClymont
Head of Physical World
The Year 9 Blues to Rock [Music] students have been exploring Rock music through group performances this term and loving it! These students have been lucky to be some of the first to use the fantastic equipment and facilities in the Performing Arts Centre. Mrs Cardno has been so impressed with how the students have taken to performing. Students have already performed in front of the class and are enjoying the songs they are learning. Songs include; I Just Wanna Live (Good Charlotte), Do I Wanna Know (Arctic Monkeys), Seven Nation Army (The White Stripes), and Summer of 69 (Bryan Adams). Students will also create their own Rock songs using their knowledge of what they have learnt through the performances. It’s been a wonderful term so far of music making in the Performing Arts Centre!
