Our St Peters Kindergarten
In the brightly coloured building, in the middle of College grounds, is our St Peters Lutheran College Kindergarten. Each day there is an energetic buzz as the students enjoy the spacious indoor and outdoor environment.

Mrs Carmen Evans, our Kindergarten Director, and Ms Casey Olver, our Kindergarten teacher, work together with their experienced team of educators to provide a high-quality early childhood education program. They also place importance on creating links with the College and the local community.  A high percentage of our Kindergarten students move into our Prep so it is important to make these connections and develop relationships.

Year 4 Buddies
Each Friday, Year 4 visit our Kindergarten as part of our buddy program. They spend 45 minutes interacting with the Kindergarten students – playing, reading stories, completing puzzles, working on craft projects, having conversations. It is a wonderful way for our Year 4 students to be a positive role model for our younger students.

Prep and Kindergarten Chapel
Our Kindergarten and Prep classes join together each term in our Hub to have a combined Chapel Service. Pastor Matt, who is well known to the Kindergarten students for his weekly devotion visits, leads the Chapel service. It is a special time where the story and songs have an early childhood focus for this age group. We recently met on Monday 18 March.

Year 11 Work Experience
At present, we also have two Year 11 students completing Community Service in the Kindergarten, as part of their Senior commitment. They support the Kindergarten staff in any way they can – it could be interacting with the students, helping with preparation or organisation. There is always so much to be done.

We are blessed to have this excellent service attached to our school. Mrs Evans and myself meet on a regular basis to share information as well as create connections where ever we can.

Blessings to all our Community

Debbie West-McInnes
Head of Primary

Last Friday the Year 4 students visited Moreton Bay Environmental Education Centre where they investigated the tools, techniques and methods of daily life and survival of local Aboriginal people during a presentation by Matt, a Quandamooka man from Stradbroke Island. The students demonstrated teamwork, cooperation and communication as they built a hut together.

Cathy Jeffries
Year 4 Teacher

This week the Year One students became sound engineers tasked with the mission of designing a never seen before musical instrument. This task required our young learners to apply their understanding of the principals of sound, learned in Science this term, to a real-world situation. 

The little engineers worked industriously over the day, to draft a design, then make and appraise their musical instrument. A symphony of glorious noise was also made in the process. They then created a video explaining how to play the instrument and highlighting ways they overcame problems and made improvements. 

Throughout the day they utilised the critical skills of collaboration, communication, problem-solving, and resilience. Project Based, STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Maths) activities are an integral part of the Year One St Peters experience where our young learners are provided with the opportunity to wonder, critique, inspire and innovate.

“There is a time for everything,
and a season for every activity under the heavens”  Ecclesiastes 3:1

My duties as a cricket dad finished last weekend with my son’s last game for St Peters. The fact that he drove me to the game highlighted the passing of time. It won’t be the last game of cricket I’ll watch him play, but it is the end of an era.  

This weekend we pick up our daughter from Ironbark, the fourth and final time we’ll make this trip as parents. We won’t again go through the excitement and nervous anticipation of preparation, the wondering how they are going during the program, and the looking forward to the homecoming.  Again, it is a time in life that has passed.  

It is such a joy to see our children seize the moment and embrace these opportunities. These opportunities are where lasting memories are made. There is also a touch of sadness as these wonderful moments in our children’s lives pass by and we know we cannot get them back.  

But what is far sadder than one part of life finishing is clinging to the past. The letting go and moving forward to the next opportunity is essential for our children to grow and mature.  It is essential for parents to let go and move forward also.  It is tempting to live as though the best is behind us, rather than live with the expectation that there is a greater joy yet to come.  

The writer of Ecclesiastes knew this well:

“There is a time for everything,
    and a season for every activity under the heavens”  Ecclesiastes 3:1

God has given us things to do each day, each year, and in each season of our lives. It is fitting and right that we do them in season.  

The secret to fulfilment and joy is to recognise the time and season we are in and to appreciate this for what it is. Every day is a gift for which we thank God. Every moment is a celebration of life if we choose it to be.  

In the days and weeks to come we have opportunity to celebrate the foundation of all faith and hope, and the source of all true joy, in the life, death and resurrection of Jesus. Jesus seized the opportunity to do what was his to do – to defeat sin and evil, and rise to eternal life. In the coming Easter season, may Jesus help you to make the most of every opportunity in your life and to live your life to the full, trusting that there is more joy ahead of you than behind you!  

Pastor Matt Wilksch
Springfield Chaplain

Harmony Day is celebrated each year on 21 March and it recognises Australia’s cultural diversity. In schools we celebrate inclusiveness, respect and a sense of belonging for all Australians, from the traditional owners of the land to those who have come from many countries around the world. 

Last Thursday, our Primary students joined together for a special Assembly to celebrate the diversity of our school.  Many students dressed in their cultural clothes with other students wearing an accessory of orange to support the day. For many classes, this was followed up with a shared cultural lunch as well as participating in Harmony Day activities.

Our school tuckshop also participated in the day by adding a range of cultural foods to the menu.

The Australian Youth Aerospace Forum (AYAF) is a five-day conference providing Year 11 and 12 students the opportunity to investigate careers and pathways in the aerospace industry. AYAF will be held between 8 and 12 July at the University of Queensland St Lucia campus. AYAF will include activities, lectures and industry site visits, allowing students to experience the cutting-edge aerospace technology being developed in Australia and build networks for their future employment.

Applications open from 1 April – 5 May.

For more details visit: www.ayaa.com.au/AYAF-Bris
or follow the AYAF Facebook page for more information about the Forum.
 

EXAM CONGRATULATIONS

Congratulations to Mitchell H for achieving a Credit for his Gr 4 AMEB trumpet examination. Mitchell is a busy member of several of our school bands, and his contribution is appreciated.  Mitchell is a student of Mrs Jodie Brighton, our Multi-Instrumental Tutor.

AWARDS EVENING

The annual Awards Evening for the Australian College of Music was held on Saturday 23 April. The purpose of this evening is to recognise examination candidates who receive Gold Awards (highest mark) and Silver Awards (second highest mark) for each grade and successful diploma candidates. Two of our students received Silver Awards at this event - Jonathan R for Prep 1 and Mikayla B for Grade 3. Jonathan is a student of Ms Alison Pomerenke and Mikayla is a student of Ms Sally Grennan.

Congratulations to Jonathan and Mikayla on this significant achievement.