NewsBites - Term 3, Week 8, 2024

The Epitome of Service 

As many of you would be aware, Faith is celebrating its 25th anniversary this year. Over this time, nearly 2,000 students have graduated from the College, each leaving their mark on the world, in part due to the education they received here at Faith. Many of these contributions have been achieved thanks to the love, care, and support each graduate received during their time at the College. I am confident that many past students would still recall staff members who positively shaped their lives and futures during their time at Faith.

One such staff member, who many students and families may not have known personally, but undoubtedly have benefitted from, is one of the most humble, hardworking, and genuinely positive people I have ever known. This person is Cheryl Pisani, and I feel compelled to publicly thank and acknowledge her to the entire Faith community—both past and present.

This week we tried something different in chapel. Instead of one large chapel group, we split into smaller groups with students being able to choose what activity they joined. The activities they could choose: creative art response, drama presentation, guided mindfulness walk, shine worship session, yarning circle or “normal” chapel in the Sports Hall.

The initial feedback we have received has been positive so we may yet do this again! When I visited the creative art group, I was amazed by the beautiful works that were created.

Recently, a Student Ministry project group has been created. They are discussing BIG questions about Christian ministry in the College. Stay tuned next term and next year for what they produce.

God bless,

Nathan Glover
College Pastor

Intergenerational Project Wrap Up

For the past 13 weeks, students in Year 7 have been completing their Project-Based Learning unit, Intergenerational Project. 

When the project wrapped up, many buddies reached out to thank the teaches and students for their experience in the program each week. Some very kind words were shared, and it was affirming for our students to see that while they were learning, they were also teaching as the buddies were learning from them. 

One buddy shared their gratitude to students for teaching her that she had a story to tell. More than one buddy asked to be a part of the program again in the future. We are so grateful for the buddies who came each week to spend time with our students, and grateful to the students too for making the most of this opportunity to learn from others.

From Lily and Lola:

This year in Term 2, the Year 7s started their Intergenerational Project which finished in Term 3. If you didn’t know already, The Intergenerational Project is a very successful program where two generations get together every Monday for 6 weeks to learn and share.

We were in teams of about five. Every week we teamed up with our older buddies and shared lots of fascinating stories along with laughter and surprises. 

It was an awesome project as we got to explore all sorts of experiences and be in the shoes of our older adults. So many interesting things were shared and the bonds between us all grew stronger.

As we learned about them, they learned about us. We heard about exciting and hard times through life and all the different traditions and cultures.

Both generations had a blast as we completed many activities such as tile painting and fun games which everyone loved, but the best and worst part was the last day of the project. Saying goodbye was so hard, but before that we got to show off our homemade food cooking skills with a picnic. There were cakes, sandwiches, everything you could imagine. Cakes were rated a 10/10.

We couldn’t just let them go to forget us, so we created a 3D printed gift along with a card and memoirs to remember each other forever.

This is an exciting new experience which we hope to continue through more years of generations of school to come.

Thanks to all who made these Mondays so special!

At Faith, Project-Based Learning is an important part of our pedagogical approach where we embed curriculum and teaching of important 21st century skills (like collaboration, communication, and personal and social skills), in an authentic and engaging way. We look forward to seeing how this project continues to develop at the College.

Lisbeth Goldston
Head of Learning - Foundation Phase

End of term and attendance
As we approach the final two weeks of the term, the Exploration team would like to remind students and families of the importance of staying engaged until the very end. Our courses are designed to cover content throughout the entire semester, so teaching and learning will continue as usual up to the last day. It is essential that students attend all classes, including during the final (half) week of term, as these sessions are crucial for reinforcing key concepts and preparing for any final assessments.

We understand that the end of the term can be a busy time, but maintaining full attendance and active participation is critical for a successful conclusion to the semester. Missing these last days could impact a student's understanding and overall performance. We appreciate the continued dedication and commitment from both students and families as we work together to finish the term on a strong note.

Midway Courses
The end of term offers an excellent opportunity to reflect on the success of our second semester in the Exploration Phase curriculum. Although this approach represents a significant shift from traditional methods, the data indicates that it has had a profoundly positive impact on our students' learning outcomes. As a result we’ve observed notable increases in both student engagement and grade point averages compared to previous years, underscoring the effectiveness of our new program.

The maiden voyage of Rocket Science’s experiments in space flight are launching on Monday. Students have delved into the fundamentals of physics, rocket propulsion, and space survival. Through building their rockets they have conducted hands-on experiments to explore distance, speed, and acceleration. Through their investigation students have been exposed to newton’s Laws of Motion, momentum, energy, and efficiency in rocket propulsion, deepening their understanding of these crucial concepts, while meeting the Australian Curriculum’s Year 9 science standards. Good luck on your launch team!

In Real Estate Matters, students have been working with real-life examples of land usage and housing to make decisions on improving land value. Last week, they had the opportunity to hear from Kent Idle, a real estate agent from CPT Properties in Gatton. Kent provided practical advice on becoming a real estate agent and walked them through the property selling process, covering everything from appraisals to marketing strategies. With this insight, students are now ready to take on their next task: developing a marketing campaign for their chosen property. We're looking forward to seeing how they apply what they've learned!

Jabez Castray
Head of Learning - Exploration Phase