TERM ONE WEEK EIGHT

www.acc.qld.edu.au ph 07 4725 2082 enquiries@acc.qld.edu.au

Last year the Year 5 and 6 students entered a competition run by Draffin Street Furniture.

Through the support of our amazing ACC community we got second place! Last week our prize

arrived. Thank you to our creative students and the supportive community! Design and

innovation in practice.

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from the principal I want to take this opportunity to update our ACC community on our latest

response to the coronavirus – COVID-19.

We have taken many steps in light of the announcements made by our Prime

Minister Scott Morrison and the advice from QLD Health. For the well-being,

health and safety of all our staff and students and from today, the following

have been cancelled:

Sport, interschool, local, state, national and international,

All non-essential assemblies and gatherings including meetings (Whole staff, P&F and TCEA)

Camps

Secondary Parent-Teacher Interviews

Competitions (Chinese Speaking Competition)

Clubs such as Chess and coding (unless otherwise stated).

All Kindy and Prep after school events.

NAPLAN testing

For more information, follow our ACC Facebook Community page, Our College website,

College weekly newsletters, SMS messages and emails.

If a student or their parent has a confirmed COVID-19 infection, please contact the college

immediately. I will then contact QLD Health for advice on our immediate college response.

While people may find themselves at home in the coming weeks, it doesn’t mean that quality

Christian education also has to be put on hold. There may be many wonderful opportunities to

pray, open the Bible and study God’s word as a family, learn memory verses (primary) and to

spend time with your immediate family.

If we close, our teachers will be working from home to help your child to learn in an online

learning environment or by providing hard copy materials. I am pleased to see our LMS

“Canvas” being used so well by our secondary school.

I believe that God is using this time to strengthen our faith and to build us as a community of

believers whose foundation is rooted in the integrity of scripture. Our mission is to provide quality

Christian education through a partnership of parents, teachers and students and which

recognises the Lordship of Christ and the integrity of Scripture. And that doesn’t change in

these times.

We need to do this to strengthen our partnership and to work together as we did last year for

the flood.

The apostle Paul reminds us that we need to always work together for God. 5 May the God who

gives endurance and encouragement give you the same attitude of mind toward each other

that Christ Jesus had, 6 so that with one mind and one voice you may glorify the God and

Father of our Lord Jesus Christ…’

Later in the chapter he describes “how” we should do this:

‘13 May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may

overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.’

We also encourage parents to use this opportunity to explore many of the other biblical threads

of Christian education such as celebrating life, challenging distortions in the media to discern

God’s purposes or to deepen our faith in Him. There are many opportunities to serve while

maintaining appropriate distance, imitating humility around the home, overcoming setbacks,

and practising hospitality to name just a few.

I encourage us all to continue to pray for our leaders; for a halt in the spread of the virus in our

community; for those for whom the current waiting period may trigger anxiety caused by the

2019 floods; and lastly, for this situation to turn around to a focus on Him.

Shalom,

Andrew Jones

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From the Head of Primary

In staff devotions, and in classrooms this last week, as a College community, we

have been acknowledging God as our Lord and Saviour and seeking his wisdom

during this most unique time for us and the rest of the world. We sincerely thank

all parents and caregivers for their prayers for Annandale Christian College

during this time and the days and weeks ahead.

Staff have been exceedingly busy preparing for a range of contingencies amongst an

ongoing change of information on a daily basis. Whilst some individual schools around

Australia have closed temporarily, (usually as a result of a school member having tested

positive to COVID -19) schools have not been given a directive from the Federal government

to close. Should the situation arise whereby schools are directed to close, Mr Andrew Jones,

the College Principal will communicate with parents and students detailing the process for

closure and the process for continuity of learning.

Primary teachers have prepared work for their classes in the event of a College closure at

some point, which students can take home with them for their continuity of learning. This work

has been prepared specifically for a duration of time, for each class, should the College be

asked to close as part of the Federal government’s strategy of all schools closing for a period

of time. Alternatively, it could also be used if we were to close temporarily as a result of

somebody in the College community testing positive to COVID-19.

The specifically prepared work packs are only for the scenario of a whole College closure due

to reasons expressed above. Due to the amount of time required by teachers to prepare for a

potential whole College closure for a duration that would be unknown at this stage, teachers

are not able to provide individualised work on a rolling basis to parents withdrawing students

at varying times prior to a whole College closure. However, for any students withdrawing prior

to any whole College closure, there may be some current learning tasks that could be

continued at home, and a conversation with your child’s teacher will clarify that for you.

Annandale Chess Club is currently on hold for this week and next, for both lunch times and

after school to help provide a little more social distancing in school over this time, and also to

allow us time to sanitize our chess pieces and chess boards. I would like to remind parents of

the chesskid.com app that has been advertised in the newsletter previously, and which many

of our students currently use. As well as being an excellent means of learning chess

interactively, it could also be a useful addition to worthwhile learning activities for temporarily

learning from home.

Rod Lane

We have 361 members signed up to our ACC Community

Facebook page. Join in on the conversations, questions and

comments which are helping to build our community.

Request today to join ACC Community page.

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Do you believe in the power of prayer?

We have a prayer group, Wednesday mornings in the

OSHC room H Block -

8.35am to 9.30am. Come along!

Parents with pre-schoolers are welcome too.

From the Head of Secondary This year sees our first group of Year 12s on the new Senior Assessment and

Tertiary Entrance (SATE) system. I thought I would spend some time in this

newsletter on some of the developments and updates around this area.

First Confirmation Event- March & April

Right now the teachers of Senior General Subjects are busily preparing for the

first Confirmation Event of the year of Internal Assessment Task 1 (IA1). This involves a process

of internal quality assurance of teacher judgements before uploading provisional results by

the 20th March. It will then be followed by the QCAA identifying work samples to be uploaded

for Confirmation Meetings in April. Confirmed results are uploaded directly into student

Learning Accounts so Year 12 students need to be able to access their Student Portal on the

QCAA website.

External Exams

The 2020 external assessment timetable is now available for schools to access and review prior

to its public release on the QCAA website from Monday 30 March (last week of Term 1). We

are currently working on how we will be running external exams and should be in a position to

provide more detailed information by mid Term 2.

Senior Formal

Due to the introduction of external exams in Term 4, the Senior Formal in 2020 has been

scheduled for the last week of Term 3. Year 12 parents and students should note that the

original date of Thursday the 17th September has been moved to Tuesday 15th September to

accommodate the CBSQ Basketball Competition where we hope to be able to field both

boys and girls teams this year.

Academic Integrity

Creating and maintaining good academic habits makes it easier for students to manage

assessment tasks. The QCAA has developed an online Academic Integrity course to help

students understand the correct way to approach assessment and provide advice on

producing their best work. This week in Study Skills the Year 11 students started completing the

online modules which provide important information about what constitutes academic

misconduct, rules around drafting and appropriate referencing of sources.

Assessment Policy

It’s now the time of term where a number of assessments and exams are due. Students and

parents should familiarise themselves with our Junior Secondary (Years 7-10) and Senior

Secondary Policies (Year 11 & 12) which can be found on the College’s Webpage by clicking

on the “Education” tab at the top and selecting “Assessment” from the drop down

list. Students and parents should take particular note of the rules and processes around ‘illness

and misadventure’ and submission of late assessments. A summary of this is also contained on

Page 9 of the Student Diary.

Mal Schneider

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Dear ACC Community,

Freeze it Forward is back for 2020 and we are looking forward to sharing the love (through

food) in our community this year.

The objective of Freeze it Forward is to provide practical help through the provision of a

meal, to families who may be doing it tough.

In the L block Staffroom there is a Freeze it Forward freezer. Staff and parents can drop off

meals before school to be given out to families in need.

Things to remember:

We rely on families and staff to supply these meals. We ask that all meals are NUT

FREE.

If you can provide gluten and dairy free as an option that would also be lovely.

All meals must have a label to attach to the lid of the container.

Baked goods as well as meals are also welcome! Meals will need to be sent in con-

tainers that don't need to be returned. There are takeaway containers available on

top of the FIF freezer for this purpose.

Donations for cooks: If you don’t have time to cook- but would like to donate some

ingredients for someone else to cook, please drop these donations off at the G21

Secondary Staffroom (Upstairs). Eg. Pasta Sauce, pasta, spare containers etc.

If you need to contact us, just email freezeitforward@acc.qld.edu.au

Stacey Robertson is the Coordinator for the month of March and can be contacted at the

FIF email address above, or in G21 staffroom.

Meals are not yet available for gifting as the freezer is currently empty.

Please give generously if you can!

Thanks,

Stacey Robertson

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https://www.acc.qld.edu.au/enrolment/initial-

inquiry-form/

Education Ministers met today and decided that NAPLAN will not proceed in 2020. The NAPLAN test window was scheduled to be held from 12 to 22 May. All Education Ministers acknowledge and thanked all of our school leaders, our teachers and support staff for the essential work they do every day educating our children and young people, particularly during these challenging times. They are all playing a vital role in managing the response to COVID-19. Education Ministers reiterated that the National Cabinet has agreed, on the advice of the chief health and medical officers, that “pre-emptive closure of schools are not proportionate or effective as a public health intervention to prevent community transmission of COVID-19 at this time.” The advice of the Chief Health and Medical Officers is available at this link. The decision to not proceed with NAPLAN in 2020 has been taken to assist school leaders, teachers and support staff to focus on the wellbeing of students and continuity of education, including potential online and remote learning. Queensland Health, Education Queensland and Annandale Christian College will continue to closely monitor health advice and together to ensure appropriate support for students and staff as the response to COVID-19 develops.

NAPLAN CANCELLED FOR 2020

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K2 have been learning many interesting facts

about marsupials this term. Did you know that

marsupials have pouches? We made wombat

burrows that joined up to make a den for the

wombats to live in. We also learnt about

spotted quolls, kangaroos and koalas.

Here is a picture of our sleepy koalas living in

the gum trees. We used newspaper to make

their fur grey.

This week Prep had a visit from Ranger Dan from Hands On Wildlife.

Ranger Dan talked to both K1 and K2 about how to care for our

wildlife. He also brought some special visitors with him - Matilda the

rat kangaroo, Dusty the

wombat, J.T. the squirrel

glider and Yowie the

crocodile.

K1 had a wonderful time

patting and holding some of

the special visitors. Some of

the facts Ranger Dan shared

about our wildlife are quite

amazing. For example, did

you know that rat kangaroos

carry their beds with their

tails and can make a new

home every morning?

What an amazing Perfect Designer we have!

PREP NEWS!

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Name: Nicole Broadley

Role: Head of English, Humanities and LOTE

When did you start at the College? 2011

What do you think makes ACC a great place to work? I have always felt that ACC is like a

family! I love that we can pray, grow and learn together.

What is God doing in your life right now? At the moment God is teaching me to enjoy and

savour the flow of the entire Bible – including Leviticus! Normally I prefer to dig deeply into

small portions of scripture, but the challenge of hearing from God about the “bigger

picture” through larger portions of scripture is exciting.

Where were you born? Dawson Creek, British Columbia (Canada)

What would we find you doing on the weekend to relax? On the weekend I would most

likely be playing the piano, walking my dog or reading a book!

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Do you need support in English and Humanities?

Do you need quiet space to complete your homework?

Do you want help with a research task?

Come along!

Where: P3 (Upstairs in Pioneer Hall)

When: Every Monday, during first break

Our Defence Program supports our students and

families who are affected by the unique dynamics

associated with being a part of our Defence Force.

This is achieved by supporting students and their

family’s by helping build resilience to support the

social and emotional wellbeing of Defence students.

This term we have come together in groups to get to

know each other, have fun and talk about life as a

Defence child. We have been doing things such as -

playing with playdough, making origami, decoding

secret codes and learning how to work together as a

team to accomplish difficult tasks. It has been so

good to get to know everyone and I am grateful for

the foundations that Chappy Evans has laid for me

coming into the position this year.

If you’re a Defence family and you have

any concerns or changes coming up that

might be good for me to know so I can

support your child better, or if you just

want to drop in and say hi I can be found

in the Chappy’s office in the undercover

area. Alternatively you can send me an

email on pstark@acc.qld.edu.au.

Blessings, Phil Stark

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TERM DATES FOR 2020

Term One Tuesday 28 January - Friday 3 April

Term Two Tuesday 21 April - Friday 26 June

Term Three Tuesday 14 July - Friday 18 September

Term Four Tuesday 6 October - Friday 4 December

Key Dates for 2020

Date Event

Tuesday, March 31 RACQ Docudrama - Year 12

Friday, April 3 Last day of Term One

Monday, April 20 Student Free Day

Tuesday, April 21 First day of Term Two

Wednesday, May 6 Silver Trail

Friday, May 8 Mothers Day Stall

P&F/SRC Family Trivia Night is now postponed due to

coronavirus considerations. We look forward to running this

event later in the year. Any families who have already made

payment will be refunded.

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PRAYER POINTS

Prayer for wisdom – especially for our College leaders – and for all

those having to make weighty decisions at this time.

Prayer for our staff as they prepare for the next few months.

Prayer for our students, with all the things in the media and the empty

shelves in the shops, that they would not fear and that they would

know and trust God is in control.

For the physical, mental and spiritual well-being of our students and

staff.

Prayer for all those experiencing disappointment as long-awaited

events are cancelled or postponed - including sporting events,

awards evenings, weddings, excursions and many more.

Pray for those who are feeling fearful and alone at this time – that we,

as a community, would have the opportunity to shine the light of

Christ’s love and grace into their lives.

Prayer that at this time we would not be distracted from keeping our

focus firmly fixed on Christ.

Prayer for staff and students and those in our community with family

members battling cancer and for those with cancer themselves –

especially for those in palliative care.