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What's On

Issue #7

Dated: 24 April 2024

PRINCIPAL’S MESSAGE

Dear Students, Parents and Carers,

Students received their progress reports last term and have the opportunity to engage in our Student Learning Conferences along with their families on Thursday 2 May. We encourage students to begin the new term by setting some goals for improvement and to work closely with their teachers. As a school, we continue to focus and align our structures and processes with our school vision “to empower all students to reach their full potential”.

Enrolments for the 2025 school year open on 30 April, and our Transitions Team has been working hard, communicating and visiting schools in the Gungahlin region. Families can apply online. Our college website is an important source of information for all interested prospective students and their families.

We have some staff changes going into Term 2, we farewell Emily Appleton and Richard Nolan taking up new opportunities. We welcome to our teaching team Adrienne Beddis in Science, Steve Brown in the Arts and Sonja Vaughan working in Inclusion Support. We welcome back Alfred Del-Pin to our Maths teaching team.

On the subject of staffing, as we move into the winter months we are expecting to see a higher number of staff away due to illness. This, combined with very limited casual relief teachers available and a national and ACT teacher shortage, it is likely we will see an increase in ‘flexible’ delivery of lessons to maintain continuity of learning for students when a teacher can’t be onsite in the classroom. This means that online work is set on the relevant Google Classroom for students to engage in, complete and submit. Teachers will monitor the completion of online work. Students are able to work on ‘flex’ lessons, assessment items and other work in our library, where we have a teacher on duty during Study Support.

We appreciate your support and understanding as we navigate our way through this term. Please be assured of our continued commitment to the learning and wellbeing of every young person at Gungahlin College.

We hope all our students and families have had a safe and restful mid-semester break, and we look forward to seeing our students back for College classes on Tuesday 30 April, which follows the Pupil Free Day on Monday 29 April.

Kind regards,

Priscilla

ANZAC DAY - THURSDAY 25 APRIL

The Canberra 2024 ANZAC Day commemorative program includes a Dawn Service at 5:30am, RSL ACT Branch Veterans' March at 9:30am and Last Post Ceremony at 4:30pm on Thursday 25 April at the Australian War Memorial.

The day is a national commemoration of the Gallipoli landings in 1915, as well as all Australians who have served and died in military operations. The event marks 109 years since the landing of the ANZACs at Gallipoli.

Our students paused in House groups in the last week of Term 1 and listened to students reflect on what ANZAC day means to them.

STUDENT PROGRESS CONFERENCES

Students, Parents and Carers are invited to participate in Gungahlin College's Student Progress Conferences (previously known as Parent Teacher Evening/Interviews), which will be held on Thursday 2 May 2024 (Week 12) from 3:30-6:00pm. This is an opportunity for parents and students to meet with teachers and discuss academic progress.

You should have received an email with Parent Teacher Online (PTO) details and information on how to book appointments. Please note that PTO bookings are open throughout the term break, and close at 10pm on Monday 29 April 2024.

If you are unable to use the PTO system, please contact the IT section at the college as soon as possible to be sent logon information: itsupport.gngc@ed.act.edu.au.

If you have any questions or need further assistance, please do not hesitate to contact the college: gungahlincollege@ed.act.edu.au.

We look forward to seeing you at Gungahlin College's Student Progress Conferences.

REMINDER:  Monday 29 April 2024 is a Pupil Free Day

A friendly reminder to all parents and carers that there are student-free days on the first day of each school term for ACT public schools in 2024. The remaining days are:

Student-free days are for staff development, enabling teachers and schools to plan in a student-free environment. The increase in student-free planning days from 2024 is part of our Teaching Staff Enterprise Agreement, which prioritises better teacher workloads for educational leadership, teaching and learning.

CONNECT DAY 2 - MONDAY 13 MAY

Dear students & families, as part of the next Connect Day for term 2, we will be organising a ‘Can Drive’. The theme for Connect Day is supporting local and global communities. Students and families are encouraged to bring in a can or two or three, to help contribute to this initiative.

All cans will be donated to Oz Harvest to help stock their pantries for the winter season. Students can drop off their cans in the NEXUS each school day during break 1, and students are asked to deposit their can/s in the appropriate coloured House trolley.

There will be prizes for the top three students who bring in the greatest number of cans. We will keep a running tally.

The ‘Can Drive’ commenced in Week 11, and we will be furiously collecting as many cans as possible right up until the afternoon of Monday, 13 May, which is when we will be running the Connect Day event.

If you have any spare cans at home, please send them in with your young person.

With much gratitude, Gungahlin College and community.

EXPRESSIONS OF INTEREST: SINGAPORE TRIP

We are now offering our upcoming Singapore excursion to ALL GUNGAHLIN COLLEGE STUDENTS!

Dates: 13-20 July 2024

Expression of interest forms and brochures are available from the Front Office during school hours. Please hand in your Expression of interest form to the front office by Friday, 3 May (Week 12 - first week back).

A video containing full details about the excursion has been uploaded to students' House pages.

For more information, students are asked to please see Amanda Kabaila in HO.37 on a Monday, Wednesday or Friday during Week 12.

ISLAMIC RELIGIOUS EDUCATION IN SCHOOLS

For our families who observe the Islamic faith, in 2024 we have been offering an Islamic Education program for students at Gungahlin College. Much like the Christian Education in Schools program which is in many ACT schools, this program is being delivered by ACT Islamic Education Services (ACTIES) through volunteers to teach Islamic studies. The program will be held once a week for a half-hour lesson, on Wednesdays from 3.05pm to 3.35pm, as a co-curricular activity. If you would like your child/ren to participate in this program, please submit the registration form Islamic Education Student Registration Form.

WELLBEING SUPPORT RESOURCES

In these times of increasing uncertainty, mental health challenges will affect most young people.  Please see the list of external Vital Contacts that students and parents can access whenever they feel overwhelmed or simply in need of support.

CALENDAR

Year 12 students and their families can view the 2024 Year 12 Important Dates online

WEEK 12

Monday 29 April

Tuesday 30 April

Wednesday 1 May

Thursday 2 May

WEEK 13

Monday 6 May

Tuesday 7 May

Wednesday 8 May

Thursday 9 May

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