Coming Up Week 6
As one of our three pillars, service, is a vital component of our holistic education. It was wonderful to see so many students presented with a gold certificate for going above the required hours set for each year level. With 150 gold awardees presented and another 150 students who will receive a silver or bronze award, the numbers are a great reflection of the role service plays across the ATC community. Thank you to Mr Andrew McCrohon for leading this important aspect of the College.
Year 12 STEPS Program
Mr Simon Martin and his team have developed an exceptionally good program to support the senior students who do not have a heavy external exam schedule. The program includes defensive driving course, barista and coffee art, first aid certificate, financial literacy, and car maintenance. This excellent array of courses will provide skills and qualifications that will benefit our seniors as they move into the workforce.
Co-curricular Awards
As our co-curricular program winds down for the year, we took time at assembly today to acknowledge the outstanding musicians and sportsmen across semester two. The MVP and Warriors were presented to the Middle school and the Junior School cohort assemblies. I warmly congratulate all these award winners and thank the coaches and coordinators for continuing to provide such a wonderful collection of opportunities to the students.
Celebration of Excellence
This is our formal celebration of the achievements of 2023. All families are invited to join us at Riverlife on Tuesday 14 November, as we reflect on the year we have had. The students who are receiving an award at this year’s Celebration of Excellence have had an email sent to their parents and caregivers from Mrs Tammy Sleeth. Please check your emails and note that rehearsals will be held on Monday 13 November in the Nudgee Junior Hall. During rehearsals, students will be informed of their specific award. Award recipients will be required to wear their full formal uniform at both the rehearsals on Monday 13 November and the Celebration of Excellence on Tuesday 14 November.
COLLEGE 1:1 LAPTOP PROGRAM
As part of the College 1:1 Laptop Program, each student has given a College laptop at the beginning of the year. During the last week of the school year, every student will be required to hand in their laptop. This will allow a full audit to be completed and general maintenance to occur. Students in Years 4, 7 and 10 in 2024 will receive a new College issued laptop. All other students will receive their current laptop on day one of the new school year.
Year 12 Laptops
The Year 12 cohort will be on a different timeline and process. Following the conclusion of each Year 12s final exam, students will need to hand in their laptop and charger to the IT Department. It is important that Year 12 students back up any files on their laptop that they wish to keep to a USB or external hard drive.
After auditing the current laptops and the needs for 2024, a decision has been made to offer the 2023 Seniors the opportunity to purchase their College laptops. After consultation with our IT partners, ATC has been offered $125 for each of the devices. If a family wishes to purchase the College laptop, they will need to pay the market rate of $125 via Parent Lounge, under Events and Payments. Purchase of the laptop must be completed by COB Friday 17 November 2023 and will be returned in the same physical condition as they were handed in. The laptop can also be repaired but will incur an additional charge per the Acceptable Technology Use Policy (Students). Laptops will be available for collection from the IT Office from Monday 4 December 2023 after the laptop has been wiped and come with the default Windows 10 setup as if you purchased it from a retail store.
Please read on for more upcoming events to ensure you are up to date.
UPCOMING DATES
Sunday 5 November | QLD Primary All Schools Touch Championships
Monday 6 November to Friday 10 November | Year 12 External Assessment
Tuesday 7 November | Melbourne Cup Day
Tuesday 7 November | Summer Music Concert
Thursday 9 November | Clontarf Awards Night
Friday 10 November | Remembrance Day Liturgies
Saturday 11 November | Remembrance Day
Personal Details in Parent Lounge
Have you moved house, got a new mobile number, or changed email addresses? Parents and caregivers are reminded to update their contact details and their child’s medical details in Parent Lounge over the December/ January holidays.
Lost Property
We have a large amount of lost property in Senior School Reception and Main College Reception. Please ask your child/ children to check for any missing items by THURSDAY 23 NOVEMBER. Any remaining items at the end of term will be disposed of over the holidays. We strongly advise caregivers and students to carefully label all items with the student's name. If items are labelled, they can easily be returned to the student or retrieved from College Reception.
Office Hours During December/January School Holidays
Please note that College Reception will close at 3.00pm on the last day of Term 4, Friday 24 November 2023. The College will be closed for the Christmas period from Monday 18 December and will reopen on Tuesday 2 January 2024. At all other times, College Reception will be open from 8am to 4pm.
LEARNING NEWS
Year 12 Textbook returns
A reminder that following the completion of Year 12 exams, we ask that you please check your Parent Lounge account to ensure that your child has no outstanding textbooks from 2023. Please return all textbooks by Friday 17 November, 2023. All 2023 textbooks still outstanding by COB 17/11/23 will incur a replacement cost. If students are attending school for the Year 12 graduation assembly and farewell on Thursday 16th November, this is a good day to drop all textbooks back. We wish you all the very best at this exciting time in your child’s schooling journey!
Year 4 Raft Regatta
The annual Year 4 Milk Bottle Raft Regatta is held on Thursday 23 November. Working in teams, students will make rafts out of plastic milk bottles and race them in the ATC Pool. Parents are welcome to attend from 11:15am to 12:15pm at the pool. Students are to wear sports uniform this day and bring swimming togs or boardshorts, Sun-shirt and towel. Students will be racing the rafts they constructed for three laps of the ATC pool. On completion of the races, they will be given the opportunity for a free swim. A reminder that bottles are to be brought in week beginning Monday 13 November along with rolls of packing tape. Please email Mr Degenkamp if you think your son would find this activity difficult.
Books
Year 4 students will be bringing books and work home from school throughout the last week of the year. Laptops and chargers will remain at school from the Tuesday of the last week.
Stationery Lists
Please note that all stationery lists are on the ATC App and ordering closes in December if you need delivery of items in early January.
AROUND THE CLASSROOMS
Maths in the Junior School
Making chocolate crackles is a fun and tasty way to explore measurement and as Ms Conlan's students mixed cocoa, rice bubbles and icing sugar, they enjoyed a maths lesson with a twist! This hands-on activity of weighing ingredients and understanding the importance of precise measurements demonstrated that a slight change in mass can affect the taste and texture of chocolate crackles. #Maths has never been so scrumptious!
Sport & Recreation
In Term 4, Sport & Recreation students are putting into practice the subject’s objective of “transitioning from consumers, to providers of sport and recreational activities”. In Week 6, they will embark upon their final assessment for the course - a day long expedition.
They have been learning about canoeing, weather and navigation and will travel down the Brisbane River to a chosen Council park at Tennyson. The class will then participate in a variety of student led activities followed by lunch and a paddle home. The day is entirely student led and allows students to demonstrate their personal and interpersonal skills in leadership and teamwork. It will be the highlight of the year.
HPE
Year 7 HPE students to the rescue! Students have been learning all things Water Safety and Rescue. In their HPE classes students have been practicing staying alert and aware, demonstrating their knowledge and ability to stay focused and calm in stressful scenarios. Tasked with swimming to their subject and bringing them back to safety with rescue tubes. Well done Year 7!
FORMATION
Year 11 Semi Formal & Year 12 Formal Photos - Downloads
With the end of the school year fast approaching, a reminder that photos from the 2023 Year 11 SociABLE and Year 12 Formal are still available for free download but will expire at the end of the year. Please CLICK HERE for YEAR 11 PHOTOS and CLICK HERE for YEAR 12 PHOTOS to access the free downloads. We encourage you to browse the images, download the ones you want to save and action this in the coming weeks, before the gallery closes.
LINK Year 11: https://justphotography5.shootproof.com/gallery/22189943/home
LINK: Year 12: https://justphotography5.shootproof.com/gallery/22189943/
FAITH & MISSION
Christmas Carnival
The last day of school, Friday November 24 will be the Christmas Carnival. On this day, the students have an opportunity to participate and help at a stall/activity with other students in their class to raise money for charity as part of our Christmas Charity efforts. Each class is organising an activity for the morning. As part of that organization, we need some small donations to hand out as prizes. We encourage all students to bring up to a maximum of $20, made up of some small change, to participate in the many fun and engaging activities that will be organised by all classes. Students are to wear PE uniform. Food and drinks will be for sale on the day. The tuckshops are closed on the last day of term.
The Year 4 input for activities and donations is:
4 Nolan , Lucky Dip , $1-2 prizes ( toys, lollies, handballs)
4 Treacy , Bean Bag Throw , Packet of wrapped lollies or chocolates
4 Bodkin , How many...? Game , Packet of wrapped lollies or chocolates
The Year 6 input for activities and donations is:
6 Nolan - "Choc Drop" - Blocks of Chocolate
6 Lynch "Choc Toss" - Blocks of Chocolate
6 Treacy "Spin the Wheel" - Lollies, blocks of chocolate, soft drinks or any drinks
6 Bodkin "Soft Drink Stall" - Cans of soft drinks
Check the ATC App for other year level donations and activities. We encourage all students to bring up to a maximum of $20, made up of some small change, to participate in the many fun and engaging activities that will be organised by the homerooms across the college. Food and drinks will be for sale on the day. If you have any questions about this initiative, please do not hesitate to contact your son's Homeroom teacher. Thank you for your ongoing support.
Year 12 Retreat and Reflection Day
The Year 12 Retreat and Reflection Day is being held Wednesday 15 November at the Riverside Conference Centre Chelmer. This day plays an important part in the final week at the College for our Seniors. Please see the letter from Matt Warr, Dean of Faith and Mission, outlining the details and importance of the day. If you have any questions, please contact the Faith and Mission Office.
Year 6 Transition Retreat
The purpose of the Retreat on Wednesday 22 November is to provide a reflective opportunity for the students at this significant time of transition from Junior to Middle School. There will be three key components to the day: storytelling and sharing, affirmation and appreciation and preparation. Students are asked to print out and bring with them on the day a collection of 5 photos that represent different stages of their life. These can be photos prior to Year 4 and/or Year 4 to Year 6. During the day, they will reflect and share stories on their Junior School journey. It will be a day which engages students in looking back and in preparing for the new journey ahead. Students are to bring 5 photos (to be printed on paper separately) and their morning tea, and should wear their ATC Day Uniform.
Year 4 End of Year Celebration Liturgy
Parents and caregivers of Year 4 are invited to attend a breakfast and liturgy to celebrate the conclusion of their son’s first year at ATC on Thursday 23 November. All details are contained in the letter from Michael Stewart which is on the ATC App. Parents are asked to RSVP via Parent Lounge to indicate the number of family members attending. Please contact Paul Degenkamp, Head of Year 4, or Michael Stewart, Head of Formation and Administration – Junior School, if you have any queries.
SERVICE
Christmas Appeal St Vincent de Paul Homeroom Hampers
This year ATC will support the St Vincent de Paul Society Christmas Appeal. Homerooms have been tasked with filling a hamper with Christmas goodies and groceries. A list of items required has been supplied to homeroom teachers and students will be given an item to add to their homeroom hamper. Please ask your child to bring this item into their homeroom no later than 17 November so that delivery can be made to those in need prior to Christmas by St Vincent de Paul Society. Please contact Andrew McCrohon, Head of Service and Clubs, should you have any queries.
St Vincent de Formal
Clashing patterns, a rainbow of colours and gregarious outfits are the trademarks of the annual St Vincent de Formal and last week the event ignited the social conscience of the Year 10 cohorts from ATC and Brigidine College. Introductions, conversations, celebrations and dance turned Thursday afternoon into a platform for building new friendships and connections. The event is aimed at increasing awareness and promoting advocacy for the plight of the most vulnerable in our society whilst strengthening relationships with Brigidine students. Outfits had to be purchased from the mobile Vinnies Pop Up Shop on campus and dressed in their finest vintage finds, students jumped into a fun afternoon of trivia, speed meeting and war cry competitions. This event raised over $2,500 for a worthy organisation doing great work.
SPORT
This week we have teams competing in the Qld Primary Schools Touch Football competition from 3 to 5 November. We wish all players and their coaches the best of luck for a great tournament. We also have the first swimming invitational carnival v BBC on Friday at BBC. Full details of sport and training are on the ATC App so make sure you have your summer subscriptions set correctly.
Aquathlon
Instead of racing one sport… why not do two! Year 4 student Thomas, has done just that, competing at the All Schools Aquathlon, running and swimming his way to a top 10 finish for Met West. This also means he has qualified for the State Championship in February 2024. Well done Thomas what an awesome achievement!
CO-CURRICULAR MUSIC
Summer Music Concert
The Summer Music Concert is a beautiful celebration of the year for all musicians and families. Please join us from 5.30pm on Tuesday 7 November for a BBQ, bar and pre-concert entertainment followed by a great line-up of ensembles performing from 6.30pm in the NJ Hall. If you can assist with cooking the bbq, serving or bar please email music@atc.qld.edu.au All details for performing students is available via the ATC App.
2024 Co-curricular Music and Drama & Communication enrolments
ATC offers a Co-curricular program in Instrumental Music, Vocal and Drama & Communication for all students in Years 4-12. We welcome all new and continuing students wanting to participate in the program in 2024 to now enrol via the online form by Friday 22 November. The enrolment link includes vital information on tuition conditions, the program offered as well as the fees associated for each lesson type. If you have any questions, please contact Carla music@atc.qld.edu.au
CLUBS AND ACTIVITIES
2023 Golf – Come & Try Afternoon
We are pleased to offer our ATC students from years 4 - 11 the opportunity to meet up with our wonderful coaches Asha and Joe from Brisbane Golf Club for a ‘Come & Try’ Golf afternoon. Come along and try out the basics of Golf in a fun afternoon with our coaches on Thursday 9 November from 3:00pm – 4:30pm on Brothers Oval. Registrations are now open on Parent Lounge, closing at 6:00pm Tuesday 7 November. Further information can be found on the app under the Golf tag or your son’s year level tag. A reminder all remaining Term 4 clubs will conclude at the end of week 7.
TUCKSHOP NEWS
A reminder that the tuckshops will be closed on Friday 24 November and students can bring gold coins to buy food and drinks at the Christmas Carnival that morning.
COMMUNITY NEWS
Art West Community Gallery Group Opening Night
Art West community Gallery Group would like to invite you to our Opening Night Thursday 23 November 2023 6pm for 6.30pm to view our first exhibition at our new gallery at 34 Coonan Street, Indooroopilly, situated through the main ground floor entrance beside the ‘Horizon and Grind’ café and above Spotlight. Light refreshments will be available whilst viewing exceptional artworks from within your local community. Please RSVP for catering purposes to artwestcommunitygallery@gmail.com by Friday 17 November 2023.
Brookfield Bush Christmas
The annual free community event, hosted by NFP Brookfield Show Society, is set for Friday 8 December. Festivities kick off from 4pm and close at 10pm at Brookfield Showgrounds, 550 Brookfield Rd, Brookfield. Lots of entertainment, live music, market stalls and food galore for all. Plus, the Brookfield Bar will be open to grab a beverage, alcohol and non-alcoholic. A big hit with the kids will be free rides for the littlies and Santa Claus stopping by to say g'day! We look forward to celebrating the season of joy with Brookfield and surrounds.
P & F NEWS
A MESSAGE FROM MR GEORGE PATRIKIOS, ATC P&F PRESIDENT
Staff Christmas Lunch
We have an incredibly talented and dedicated staff at ATC and with the end of the year and the spirit of Christmas almost upon us, we are aware that some families are considering the idea of a gift for staff. The College and the P&F would like to emphasise the way for saying ‘thank you’ to our staff is by donating to the annual Staff Christmas Lunch which is coordinated by the ATC P&F. Contributions to assist with the catering costs are entirely voluntary and can be made via your Parent Lounge account. We also need helpers on Tuesday 28 November to set up, serve food and drinks and pack down after lunch. If you can assist please email Catherine Jackson. Further details are included in my letter on the ATC App and emailed to all families.
Planning Meeting for 2024
Please join me and the P&F Executive Team in the Mt Sion Library on Tuesday 21 November at 6.30pm for the last P&F meeting of the year, to plan our events 2024 – your opinions and suggestions are always welcomed and valued. We are looking for friendraising ideas and eager helpers to assist with coordinating 6 key events across the year.
Year 8 Parent Night
A message from the P&F Year 8 Parent Liaison to invite parents and caregivers to the final social event for 2023! Come for drinks and chats at The Kenmore Tavern, 841 Moggill Road in the Courtyard from 6pm on Saturday 18 November. For any enquiries, please email Julie Korpelainen. julie.korpelainen@hotmail.com
Enjoy Week 5.
Mr David Gardiner
Deputy Principal
