Promoting and celebrating collaboration and community…

At Northern Christian School, we seek to create a learning culture that celebrates and promotes collaboration and community, reflecting the nature of the Body of Christ and enhancing learning. As I reflected on why community and collaboration are vital at Northern, I have been reminded in scripture why community and collaboration are essential. God has made us for community and to work with others.

In Ecclesiastes 4:9-10, we are reminded of the strength and support found in community:

"Two are better than one because they have a good return for their labour: If either of them falls down, one can help the other up. But pity anyone who falls and has no one to help them up."  

What a great reminder this is that God has not made us to be alone but to support and help one another! This is the complete opposite of what picture our culture often paints, which is a picture of individualism! We are so connected via technology but, in many ways, so isolated and have limited community. What a joy it is to share with our students the truth that God has built us for community, and we are called to learn and work together, even when it is hard, with God’s help and strength.

So what does this look like at Northern?

Our teachers actively work with one another and parents to support students and their needs. We do this by developing teaching and learning sequences, professional learning communities, buddies, sharing resources, being supportive, moderating work samples, regular communication with parents regarding students' needs and progress, and many other strategies.

We model collaboration and teamwork to our students and emphasise the importance of expressing their creativity and initiative. Circle Time, the arrangement of table groups, letting students have a voice, allowing constructive feedback and classes working together on a shared goal are some of the many ways we seek to foster and grow a positive community. We celebrate students’ learning by displaying their work, using their work as exemplars (WAGOLLS), and rejoicing when they achieve their learning goals.

At Northern, I’m so thankful that learning is not just contained in the classroom, and I was reminded of this as our Years 5 and 6 students venture off to camp this morning. This will be a great three days of being in community with one another, which will not always be easy but such a rich learning experience where our students will be working together, developing their self-confidence, resilience and appropriate risk-taking as they go fishing, kayaking, try the flying fox and many other teams building experiences as they learn more about God and His world. 

Let us pray that this school year will continue to be filled with moments of genuine connection with others, rich collaboration and that we continue to grow in our appreciation for the blessing of community. Let us honour God with the great and important responsibility of partnering together to nurture and educate your children in community.

Bethany Armstrong - Principal

Here’s the stories we’ve posted, just in case you missed them. Don’t forget to like our page and posts:

Discover Emmanuel Secondary
Extra-Curricular Activities: Music
Prep Excursion to Kingston
Year 3 Tells Time

Year 6 worked on ‘What makes a house a home?’, discussing the physical and emotional elements that make a house a home, then building their dream home out of cardboard and Lego.

Year 5 went through the process of designing and building a fidget spinner from scratch. Collecting and drawing their ideas on paper and then printing them on the 3D printers.

Prep, Year 1 and Year 2 completed weekly challenges where they had to draw a plan and follow the plan to build their final creation. These challenges included building robots, trains, bikes and food.

Year 4 had Lego robot challenges that included building, testing, and coding their robots to complete challenges, including mazes, races and robot battles.

Year 3 designed and printed nameplates for the classroom. They had to choose a font that was readable and could be printed with the 3D Printers.

Peter Humphrey - STEM Teacher

Friday, 7 July - Free Dress and Pizza Day

On the last day of Term 2, we will be holding our Aussie Bush Dance! This is a great opportunity for students to showcase the skills they have learnt as part of their Dance unit in PE.

Parents are welcome to join the students as they kick their heels up to the ‘Heel and Toe Polka’, ‘Strip the Willow’ and many other bush dance favourites while enjoying some ‘Dancing Food!'

This will be a bush dance-themed free-dress day for students, so get your dosey-doe on and come join us:

Prep - Year 2 from 11.30am - 12.10pm
Years 3 - 6 from 12.10pm - 1.00pm

You can also find the event on Facebook.

Please contact the Office prior to the day if you would like to book a disabled parking spot to attend this event.

Peter Humphrey - Physical Education Teacher

Community Engagement Committee - Pizza Lunch

The CEC will be taking pre-orders for 2 slices of pizza (variety on the day - GF options available) and a juice box for $4.50 via QKR! No cash/food will be able to be purchased on the day, and no late orders will be accepted, so please get your orders in by 4.00pm Wednesday, 5 July.

We would love some help with serving the lunch from 12.30pm onwards. Please email the Community Engagement Committee if you would like to help. All volunteers must have a valid Working With Vulnerable People card.

Anita Halse - Community Engagement Committee

Wednesday, 21 June
Students are encouraged to wear their pyjamas

The Student Council will be baking delicious caramel slice treats and preparing hot chocolate for students to enjoy while they watch ‘The Fantastic Flying Books of Mr Morris Lessmore’, which will be played in the Performing Arts Centre at lunchtime. Orders for a caramel slice and hot chocolate treat will be available for $3.00 for pre-order via QKR by 4.00pm Friday, 16 June. No cash payments on the day, and no late orders will be accepted.

Monday, 26 June - Kinder to Year 2

Students in Kinder to Year 2 will soon have the opportunity to experience Bravehearts’ personal safety education program Ditto’s Keep Safe Adventure Show.

Ditto’s Keep Safe Adventure show has been educating Australian children since 2006, providing them with personal safety tools and strategies while supporting positive self-esteem and resilience-building.

Parents and carers are invited to come and watch the show on the day and see for yourself what a fantastic and worthwhile program it is.

What your child will learn:
The show is underpinned by the following six principles of personal safety:

• Differentiating ‘yes’ and ‘no’ feelings

• Recognising the bodies ‘warning signs’

• Identifying ‘private parts’ and ‘privacy’

• Helping children identify language and feelings associated with secrets.

• Reinforcing that there is no secret that children cannot tell someone.

• What to do if you feel unsafe or unsure

Please refer to the email which was sent recently for further information regarding the program and the resources available to assist you in talking with your child about personal safety.

Please contact the Office prior to the day if you would like to book a disabled parking spot for this event.

As part of the celebration for Naidoc Week in Week 11, the Student Representative Council are fundraising for Indigenous people in the Northern Territory to have the Bible translated into their heart language. Students are encouraged to bring a coin/coins on Monday, 3 July and we will put our coins together to make a picture of the Aboriginal Flag. All funds will go directly to the Australian Society of Indigenous Languages.

With the end of the 2022/2023 financial year drawing to a close, we are pleased to announce the return of the Christian Schools Tasmania Annual Giving Program.

Each year we will be inviting members of our community to partner with us financially to further our Founders’ vision for Christian education. This year, with strong enrolment growth, there has never been a better time to invest in our school and its future. You can make a tax-deductible donation via bank transfer.

BSB - 067 105
Account - 1004 4632
Reference - Your Name (so we can confirm your project preferences and issue a tax receipt)

We’re excited about the possibilities of what we can achieve together with your generous financial support. Please see our website for more information on how you can partner financially with us.

After receiving valuable feedback from parents and staff about the possibility of having a painted white line on the edge of the turning circle to remind students to walk on the cement path outside the PAC, Mr Baines has painted a white line. I encourage you to speak with your children about the importance of walking on the cement pathway and not on the road. Your support is greatly appreciated.