Wednesday 17 to Saturday 20 March - Year 8 Camp to Camp Cooby

P&F AGM is to be held at 6pm on Tuesday 23 March in the PAC

Thursday 25 March - Nolan Day

Thuirsday 25 March - NAPLAN Practice Tests

Friday 26 March - PUPIL FREE DAY

Wednesday 31 March - Prep to Under 11 years Cross Country

P&F AGM

On Tuesday evening, we had many parents attend the 2021 P&F Annual General Meeting to establish our sub-committees, hear reports from the president and treasuer as well as appoint our new executive of the P&F for the forthcoming year.  It was a fruitful meeting in considering the future direction for the P&F, and I encourage all interested people to come and get involved at the next general meeting on Tuesday 20 April at 6pm in the Boardroom.  I would like to gratefully thank Mrs Janelle Cronin and Mrs Clare Gibson for all they have given to the P&F over recent years in their respective roles on the executive.  Their contribution to the College and P&F has been significant and I would genuinely like to thank them for all they have given for the betterment of all students at the College.

Our new executive is:

              Mrs Peta Spies                               President

              Mr Stephen Barwick                     Vice-President

              Mrs Kelsie McKelvie                      Secretary

              Mrs Susan Sullivan                        Treasurer

Writing Improvement Strategy

This week we’ve enjoyed the expertise of Stew, an expert educator in writing.   He has been working with the Year 5, 7 and 9 students to increase their skills in writing in anticipation of NAPLAN testing, as well as the general classwork of the students.  Simultaneously, we have been completing our writing practice exams for NAPLAN and our teachers are reporting the significant shift in writing skill that has been developed by our students over the past 2 years.  While we have seen it in classwork throughout this period, watching the students perform in NAPLAN practice was excellent.  Stew has let us know that he is impressed with the great work of many of our staff who have made a significant impact on the writing ability of students, as well as the persistence of the students.  It is clearly evident that the staff engaging in the Writing Improvement Strategy are making significant impact on student outcomes!

I encourage everyone to have a reflective Easter with family and friends,

Peter Cuskelly

Principal 

This Sunday the Church celebrates Palm Sunday, which signifies the beginning of Holy Week. 

“They brought a colt to Jesus and threw their cloaks on it; and he sat on it.  Many people spread their cloaks on the road, and others spread leafy branches that they had cut in the fields.” (Mark 11:7-8) 

This gospel passage comes from the very beginning of Mass, read if there is to be a procession.  The main gospel text is the reading of the Passion, the story of Jesus’ betrayal, passion and death and is told at length.  If we reflect on this time last year, our whole country was entering a lockdown and fear, worry and anxiety was amongst us.  Consider Jesus at this time in his life.  He knew what God had planned for him and he walked willingly towards it.  He knew what his sacrifice would bring to the world.  May we take time this Holy Week to reflect on Jesus’s sacrifice and we pray that we too may have his strength and wisdom. 

You Son, Jesus, humbles himself to carry the cross.  

In this time leading up to Holy Week,  

let the same mind be in us that was in Christ Jesus.  

Enlighten us and draw us close to the cross of Christ. 

May we acknowledge him to be truly the Son of God  

and confess him as Christ the Lord.  

Amen  

EASTER MASS at St Joseph’s  

Reminder that parishioners must book in for Easter Mass due to restricted numbers.  Please see details below or look up St Joseph’s Catholic Church Dalby’s facebook page. 

Booking is essential for Holy Saturday Vigil Mass and Easter Sunday at trybooking.com by clicking this link https://www.trybooking.com/BPFGE. 

Please print your ticket is possible to help those helping with sign in at the door. 

Bookings close 12 noon Good Friday, 2 April so please book prior to then to secure a seat.

NAPLAN Online 

This week students in Year 3, 5, 7 & 9 completed practice tests for NAPLAN Online which will be conducted in May.  The aim of these sessions is for students to interact with the NAP Browser online platform and experience the types of questions that will be asked.  To assist Parents to have the same experience I encourage you to check out the NAPLAN website, in particular the NAPLAN Online page https://www.nap.edu.au/online-assessment. 

There is a great short video (only 2m 11s) called Understanding NAPLAN Online that outlines the move to the online platform.  The other place I would highlight on this website is the Public Demonstration Site – here you can click on your child’s year level and explore what the online platform looks like, sounds like and how they can interact with it.  Perhaps dedicate some time with your child to explore this together – let them show you around. If you have any questions about NAPLAN Online not answered by this site, I am always happy to meet with parents to discuss it further. 

Cate Brennan

Deputy Principal Religious Education

The way a community welcomes a newcomer says a great deal about its values. What says a great deal more about the community of Our Lady of the Southern Cross College is the way I have been welcomed as a newcomer. Staff, students and parents who I have met have welcomed me in a way that made me feel instantly that I was part of the community and I look forward to my time spent here with you.

Year 12 Provisional Results

Given that Year 12 results have not yet been passed through the rigorous state-wide confirmation and cross marking system, it is important to remember that all results on interim report cards remain unconfirmed at this point. Confirmed results for students in general subjects will be available in May 2021. A full report on Unit 3 will be provided to Year 12 parents in Term 2.

Rodney Spain

Acting Assistant Principal Senior Years

Year 8 Camp

While the wet weather last week may have hindered some of the scheduled sporting trials and a game of cricket against Dalby State High School, it had little impact on dampening the spirits of our Year 8 students on their camp. 57 students descended on Camp Cooby to participate in an outdoor educational opportunity with a science focus. Now they say that a picture is worth a thousand words so instead of a lengthy synopsis of the experience, please check out the photos to see their happy faces.

Year 6 Camp

In an effort to reduce the cost of the Year 6 Outback Queensland Camp, the College is applying for a subsidy through Tourism & Events Queensland. This subsidy is an effort to promote educational experiences in regional Queensland. Fortunately, many of the sites on the Year 6 Camp itinerary meet the criteria for the subsidy and we are very hopeful of being successful in our application. If successful, the price per student could be reduced by between $100 - $150 which would be a great support to our families. Stay tuned for more information.

Thankyou to the Early Years families for your enthusiastic participation in the Student Learning Conferences this week. In previous years, it was common practice for students to stay home while adults gathered together to discuss ‘how the kids are doing’. In schools that invest in principles of deeper learning, however, the student’s presence at the interview is absolutely essential. At OLSCC, we are working on developing ‘student agency’ to raise student achievement. This means that students move from being passive recipients to active participants in their learning. The aim of student learning conferences at OLSCC is to empower students to talk confidently about their learning and achievement as they review and discuss their learning and what the next steps are to continue progressing. The message is very clear – the students ‘own’ their learning and this is their moment to share reflections on achievements and challenges. All students spent significant effort reflecting and preparing for these conferences and as such, are integral to the conference itself. If parents are unable to attend with their child during the conference period, it is best to either make an alternative time or send the child with another significant person in their life rather than attending without the child.

Specialist teachers Mrs Garside, Mrs Lincoln and Mrs Walton were also kept busy with a steady flow of visitors to their rooms with students eager to discuss their learning in these areas.

Katrina Walton

Assistant Principal Early Years

Inter House Cross Country

The Prep – Under 11 Cross Country scheduled for Wednesday 31 March has been postponed. A new date will be scheduled early in Term 2. With the recent wet weather, the tracks are waterlogged, and students have been unable to run the course in PE lessons.

Bunya District Cross Country Trials

Any students in the Under 10, Under 11 and Under 12 Age Group who wish to attend the Bunya District Cross Country need to register their interest with either Mrs Lincoln, Miss McDuff or Mr Lincoln. A school trial will be held at lunchtime next Wednesday to select students to attend the Bunya District Cross Country on Friday 7 May. Under 10 students will run 2km and Under 11/12 students will run 3km. 

QCIS Swimming Carnival

Congratulations to all students who attend the Queensland Combined Independent Schools Swimming Carnival. This was the College’s first QCIS event and to finish in third place overall out of six schools (only 20 points off second) was a great achievement. Age group results from the day are listed below. A highlight of the day was winning the Girls All Age Relay.

State Swimming Championships

Congratulations to Macie Allen who competed in the 100m Breaststroke, 4 x50m Freestyle Relay and the 4x50m Medley Relay at the State Swimming Championships this week. Jennifer Nothdurft will compete this Friday in the Butterfly events.

Matt Hughes Charity Shield Rugby League

What a fantastic opportunity for our Open Boys Rugby league Team to play in the curtain raiser to the Matt Hughes Charity Shield. The team defeated Dalby SHS 26-18 to take the lead 1-0 in the Berwick / McCullough Shield. Game two will be held later next term.  Thanks to Mr Gillespie for organising this opportunity for our students.

Rugby League

The Darling Downs Secondary Schools Rugby League Competition will begin next term. Games will be played on a Wednesday afternoon after school with some games being held in Dalby and other week’s games being played in Toowoomba. Any boys wishing to play in the Under 13 and Under 15 Teams need to sign on via the Sports Notice Board. Year 6 boys who are turning 12 this year may play in the Under 13 Team.

Darling Downs Trials

• Any boys wishing to attend Darling Downs Under 15 Rugby Union Trials need to see Mr Lincoln for more information.
• Any students wishing to attend Darling Downs Orienteering Trials need to see Mr Lincoln for more information.

Mercy Shield Roma

Last weekend the Open QISSN and QISSRL Teams attended the Mercy Shield Carnival in Roma. Thanks to Mr Gillespie, Mr Fraser, Miss Nicholson, Mrs Biggar and Miss Creeley for attending with our teams and to Debby and Shaun Welsh for providing first aid and driving the College Coach. Thanks also to Erin Pascoe for her assistance with the netball coaching and Amy Pattison for scoring. All results from the weekend are listed below.

Rugby League

Loss to St John’s Roma 26-18

Draw with St Joseph’s Toowoomba 14-14

Loss to Assumption Warwick 18-10

Third Place Playoff

Win vs St Joseph’s Toowoomba 38-8

Netball

Loss to Marist Emerald 25-16

Loss to Assumption Warwick 1 29-21

Win vs Assumption Warwick 2 37-11

Qualifying Final

Loss to Assumption Warwick 1 27-14

5^th Place Playoff

Win vs Assumption Warwick 2 22-10

Laura Geitz Netball

Congratulations to the Year 7-9 Girls Team who won Division 2 of the Laura Geitz Shield Competition in Toowoomba. Thanks to Miss Harriet Nicholson and Miss Lucy Price for coaching the team. Game results are listed below. A fantastic effort from the team to go through the day undefeated.

Pool C Games

OLSCC defeated Mary MacKillop Highfields 23- 8

OLSCC defeated Warwick SHS 14-4

OLSCC defeated Pittsworth SHS 17 -3

OLSCC defeated Lockyer District SHS

OLSCC defeated Stanthorpe SHS

Cross Pool Games

OLSCC defeated Harristown SHS 10-2

OLSCC defeated Dalby SHS 10-3

Bunya District Touch Football Trials

Any Boys or Girls who wish to attend Bunya District Under 12 Touch Football Trials need to sign on via the Sports Notice Board. The Bunya District trials will be held in the first week of Term 2. A school trial will be held next week to select teams to attend the Bunya Trials.

Bunya District Rugby League

Congratulations to the following boys selected in the Bunya District Rugby League Teams to play against Inner Downs next Tuesday.

Under 11 – Innes Dellit, Noah Cook, Archie Martin, Austin Sinclair, Louie Machin

Under 12 – Chase Price, Ziggy Utz, Dylan Richards, Max Fleishfresser, Jackson Domjahn

Bunya District Netball

Congratulations to the following girls selected in the Bunya District Netball Teams to attend Darling Downs Trials next term.

Under 11 – Abby Zillman, Sophie Taylor, Charlotte Bennie, Molly Gibson

Under 12 – Olivia Ham, Miley Wilkins, Emmy Harms, Abby Zeller

Tennis

An Open boys team has been nominated in the Darling Downs division of the QLD Secondary Schools Tennis Competition. Any boys in Years 7-12 who would like to be part of the team to attend this event in Toowoomba on Friday 7 May need to see Mrs Simone Forbes. A school trial will be held at the Dalby Tennis courts next Wednesday 31 March from 3.30pm – 5.30pm.

Darling Downs Selections

Congratulations to students selected in Darling Downs Teams:

Girls Squash

Emma Cusack

Under 18 Boys Rugby Union

Hugh Clarke 

Tim Lincoln

Middle Leader Sport

Work Experience is fast approaching for our Year 10 cohort. Students will complete their week of work experience from 7 to 11 June which is Week 8 of Term 2. This year we have a new process for students which involves them completing an online questionnaire covering educational goals for the rest of Year 10 and for their work placement, as well as having a brief meeting with Mrs Baxter before they approach an employer. At the end of this meeting, students will be given a folder of information from the College to give to their intended employer. Students will then be expected have a resume completed for the employer to see. Students will complete an education program throughout Weeks 1 – 7 of Term 2 so that are fully prepared for their week. This program will include mock interviews, what is appropriate clothing and PPE and mobile phone etiquette. I am really looking forward to completing this program with our students and I hope that they will feel ready for their week.

Please save the date for the Industry and Careers Dinner which is happening on Friday, 14 May. Registrations close on Monday, 31 April. 

Libby Baxter

Careers Development Practitioner

The Confro Netball team travelled to Roma last weekend to compete in the 2021 Mercy Shield. The girls came home with some wins and some losses along with many things to improve on before the QISSN carnival this year. This competition was a great team building trip with lots of support from our staff and student families. Thank you to Mr Lincoln, Mr Gillespie, Mr Fraser, Miss Nicholson, Erin Pascoe and many others for organising a fantastic trip for the Confro sides. 

From the OLSCC Culture Club

We are very excited to announce that we are bringing our students the opportunity to perform in their very own talent show - Our Lady's Got Talent!

We know there are many talented people - including our staff, parents, and carers - that walk these halls, so don't be shy and come entertain us! You will have guest judges to impress and prizes up for grabs - as well as some fun activities for all on the night which we are keeping under wraps until early in Term 2. The talent show will be held after school on Friday 28th May in the PAC, with auditions to be held also in the PAC before school in the first week of Term 2. Details of times will be emailed to the auditionees. 

You must register by Tuesday 13th April - which is very soon! Be sure to get in quick as places are limited. 

• Please keep all acts G Rated!  Lyrics, costumes, and performances should be appropriate for all ages
• Utilise your hobbies and skills
• Music and performances will be screened at auditions
• All acts are limited to a max of 3 minutes.  No exceptions 
• All equipment needs to be provided by the auditionee  
• If your act requires a recorded accompanying music, it must be provided BEFORE the audition. More details closer to the day

ANY QUESTIONS?  Please note them in the last comment box on the registration form, or alternatively contact Jo Cuskelly jocuskellyartwork@gmail.com

Registrations remain open for both the Term 2 Critical and Creative Thinking Club and the Optiminds Challenge in Term 3. Please fill in a separate form for each child who wishes to participate. Team selections will be finalised mid Term 2. Click here to register:

OPTIMINDS EXPRESSION OF INTEREST FORM

Today was a significant day for our College as students in Nolan House gathered to celebrate together. Nolan House is named after Monsignor Thomas Nolan who was a past parish priest here in Dalby. Father Nolan was well known for his creativity and innovation, as well as his loyalty and commitment to his community. He was well regarded by those within his own parish, the town of Dalby and the wider community. Father Nolan consistently worked for the benefit of others and was integrally involved in significant cultural and sporting initiatives that we continue to benefit from today.

My name is Senior Constable Samantha Giles and I am an investigator at the Dalby Child Protection & Investigation Unit. I have a background in Information Technology and am passionate about child protection. Over the coming newsletters, I will be posting something different about online offences, general online social behaviour and current trends/issues that we are seeing regarding today’s youth to help educate students and parents about the good, bad and ugly of the online and physical world.

What is Cyber Bullying?

It is intentional and repeated cruel or hurtful behaviour that is carried out using technology such as SMS/text, email, blogs, chat rooms, social network and photo/video sharing apps such as Instagram with the intention to cause deliberate psychological harm.  It can include sending cruel and threatening messages, creating fake profiles that are mean and hurtful or sending unwanted messages online. Cyber bullying is against the law. Making threats or continually using a device to harass or menace a person is a Commonwealth Criminal offence and they have considerable fines and imprisonment terms as possible consequences.

What should I do if either I, or someone I know, is a victim of online bullying?

• Tell someone you trust. This could be a parent, teacher, older sibling, police or an organisation such as Kids Help Line or Headspace
• Take a screenshot to keep as evidence
• Don’t engage with the bully and leave the chat room or site immediately
• Report the bully to the website owner ie Facebook

If you have any questions or would like to contact me, please drop me an email: Giles.SamA@police.qld.gov.au 

* Resources: www.esafety.gov.au, www.kidshelpline.com.au.

Parking changes are scheduled to occur this week. This includes:-

10 parks in front of the Prep area to be zoned as a passenger loading zone (max 2 minutes) between 7:00-9:00am and 2:00-4:00pm.

This change has been made in conjunction with planning from Council and Transport and Main Roads Department and will come into effect as soon as signage is in place and will be actively patrolled by police and council to ensure it is used appropriately. This is a common practice at the College to ensure we continue to keep students safe at peak traffic times. Other parking issues that are commonly policed include incorrect u-turns, speeding and parking outside of a designated parking area. Simply adhering to the traffic rules will avoid unwanted intervention and fines.

As communicated previously, if parents wish to stop the car and walk into the College, they should park:

• Further along Nicholson Street in front of the staff carpark
• On the opposite side of Nicholson Street to the College
• Further along Nicholson Street in front of the Senior School (where there will soon be the new parks painted in). This is also a viable option for drop and go, as students can enter the College by following the cement path and heading towards the Early Years without having to cross a driveway or the road.

Firstly thank you to all who turned out for the AGM. It was lovely to welcome new members. We would like to thank our outgoing executive committee members Janelle Cronin (secretary) and Clare Gibson (treasurer) for their many years of dedicated service. Their contributions have been greatly appreciated.

This years executive committee:-

President - Peta Spies

Vice President - Stephen Barwick

Treasurer - Susan Sullivan

Secretary - Kelsie McKelvie

Next meeting Tues 20th April 6pm. Everyone welcome.

Many thanks,

Peta Spies

0408 675 315

A black school shoe was found last week outside the Prep area on the road. It is a Roc shoe in a size 6. If your child is missing this shoe, it has been handed in at the College Office.

From the Uniform Shop

Senior boys formal shorts in size 6 are now available from the Uniform Shop.

It has turned cold so everyone came into the Uniform shop chasing Jumpers. The following stock is currently on order and will be in at the end of April.

Fleecy Jumpers size 4 & 6

Micro Jackets size 3XS & Large

Student Address Collection Notice

The Australian Government collects some student information such as residential addresses, parent's names, secondary or primary status of students and whether students are boarders or day students. Please see the link below for the collection notice from the Australian Government for more information.