Year 7 & 8 - Varsity College

Wishing all our students and families a restful summer break - have fun and stay safe!

Please go to the link for advice on how to manage screen time during the holidays for your child/children - Island time sounds great!

Tips for managing screen time on the school holidays – Internet Safe Education By Paul Taylor / 20/11/2023 As school holidays approach, it’s natural for kids to get excited about having more free time to spend on their favourite screens. However, as parents and caregivers, it’s important to encourage healthy screen time habits to ensure that our children maintain a healthy...

A very important message from Stymie. Remember, in a world where you can be anything, be kind.

What a proud moment it was this morning to see our 11 "Top Blokes" graduate from their semester-long program. These young men have engaged in a weekly mentoring program that focuses on empowering young men to reach their potential and to become positive role models to their peers. Their Top Blokes mentors, Zhalin and Sam, and their school-based mentor, Mr Scott, have been working with these 11 students for 6 months and have been thrilled with their progress. Congratulations to Sunny, Josh, Owen, Dyna, Chase, Astin, Noah, Tyson, Jacob, Henry and Clark!

Bubble Soccer has now been added to our week 10 alternative program. This is free for students; however they do need to return permission forms to participate. Notes have been emailed to parent s and students.

The eSafety Commissioner website is full of expert advice on how parents can keep their children safe online. Check it out here

Parents | eSafety Commissioner Find advice for parents and carers to help children have safe, enjoyable experiences online.

The year 7 & 8 art classes have been busy creating cultural head pieces. Here is just a small sample of their beautiful creations.

We had the absolute pleasure of attending the Leadership Masterclass Breakfast yesterday at Bond University’s Princeton Room. Staff and student leaders from all year levels attended, and were fortunate to hear from the keynote speaker, Evangeline Wood, Southern Cross University alumni, volunteer firefighter, Founding Member and President of Coolamon Community.

Staff and students from schools across the Gold Coast heard of Evie's journey from volunteering as a firefighter, graduating Southern Cross University, to helping First Nation mothers and babies.

Evie recently completed a Bachelor of Laws with Honours, is a volunteer firefighter, a founding member and President of Coolamon Community, a group dedicated to connecting Aboriginal mothers with culturally safe healthcare. Evie started Coolamon Community in 2021. The first Crib gifts were delivered in 2022 and in the last financial year, Evie has been responsible for providing the Crib gift to over 250 First Nations Mothers.

I was extremely proud to accompany our year 7 and 8 student ambassadors to the event - it was an inspirational way to start our day!

On Tuesday, four of our year 8 students, Alexander Earwicker, Sienna Earwicker, Saskia Knevitt and Amelia Witkowski, along with four year 10 students, attended the Asia Education Foundation 2023 Global Youth Summit in Brisbane, supporting global competence in Queensland. Hundreds of students attended the summit from around 20 schools in South East Queensland for the final face-to-face summit day which followed four online workshops and five asynchronous learning activities the students have been involved in this year. Students have been exploring topics such as the United Nations' Sustainable Development Goals; effective communication and collaboration; global and local challenges; 'solutions' and actions for inclusive and equitable communities, and presentation skills. Students experienced guest speakers, collaborative learning activities and breakout room opportunities which allowed them to meet and discuss topics with peers from other schools. It was amazing to see the deep level of problem-solving our students were able to engage in. Sienna and Alexander Earwicker spoke at the opening address and we are so proud of all our students who have been involved in this program.

Teen phone monitoring - keep them safe and help regulate sleep. Parental controls allow adults to set limits on their child’s app access and overall phone use, and they serve as “training wheels” to help kids and teens build healthy tech habits.

Parental controls | eSafety Commissioner How to use parental controls and other tools to maximise online safety in your home.

Are you concerned about your child va**ng?

Take part in our research study which aims to prevent va**ng in adolescents aged 12-15.

This study is run by researchers the University of Newcastle and will test how effective text messages are at stopping va**ng in adolescents.

Want to take part with your child? Sign up here: va**ngpreventionstudy.com

We are excited to announce our annual end of year celebration is a Movie World. Permission notes have been emailed to parents and students today.