From Monday 23 May 2022, the use of RATs will only be required where staff and children are close contacts (household contacts) or they have symptoms of COVID-19 (such as fever, chills or sweats, cough, sore throat, shortness of breath or a runny nose). Close contacts will need 5 negative tests over a 7-day period to attend school or a Kinder service.

Children and staff will therefore no longer be recommended to conduct RATs twice a week if they have no symptoms and are not household contacts.

Vaccination continues to remain the best way to protect children, families and staff in schools and early childhood settings.

Face masks must continue to be worn at school by household contacts and may also continue to be used by any staff or children who wish to do so, including those who are medically at risk.

Thank you for your ongoing support for (and implementation of) these COVIDSafe measures.

Kind regards

Paul Manley - Deputy Principal

There are a number of events happening this week. By the time this newsletter is published, they will have occurred already. I shall report on these three in the next College Newsletter

Senior Pathways EXPO (Tuesday 17th May)
Secondary Cross Country (Tuesday 17th May)
The Year 7-10 Student Leadership training. (Weds 18th and Thurs 19th May)
NAPLAN and Follow ups

A massive thanks to all of the staff – particularly Mr Dan Stanley, Mrs Merrin Blashki and the IT staff – who did a huge amount of work to make the Year 7 & 9 NAPLAN test program run so smoothly. This week has been catch up week for any students who missed one or more of the NAPLAN tests. 

Regards

Geoff Grace - Head of Secondary 

We are in the process of updating and finalising our procedures with regards to Year 12 students being allowed to come to school late if they have private study in the first lesson(s) of the school day or at the end of the day. I expect to speak with the Year 12 cohort this coming Thursday morning, May 19th at their year level assembly.

Whilst we are trying to be flexible with the way our students use their private study time – and recognising that some students are more productive when they study at home, there will be some clear expectations including, but not limited to:

1. Year 12 students will attend their year level assembly each Thursday even if they have Private Study in Period 1
2. They will not make any ongoing out of school commitments during the scheduled Thursday P5&6 private study as this is a time when there may be a guest speaker, an English SAC or a catch up SAC where necessary. Students need to be able to attend a Thursday P5&6 event if/when necessary. We recognise that some of our Year 12s play SIS sport at this time – this is a different matter.
3. Should a Year 12 student fall significantly behind in their work, the privilege of this flexible Private Study structure may be revoked until such time as the student catches up in the subject(s) identified.

BOYS’ TOILETS

We have been addressing some issues with regards to a small minority of boys not using the toilet facilities in an appropriate way. Mr Watts and I spoke to all assembled Year 7-9 and 11-12 boys on Friday morning (given that the Year 10s were on camp) and strongly urged them to exemplify the RESPECT and SAFE mottos we are aiming to instil. We are planning to have the same talk with the Year 10 boys sometime this week.

From all reports, the Year 10 camp was a great time for the students and staff alike. After 2 day outings in the city on Monday and Tuesday, the rest of the week was spent in the CBD, staying in the CYC City apartments. Big thank you to Mr Podhaczky who oversaw the camp program as well as the staff and students who made the week work so well.

Here are a couple of photos taken on the Tuesday morning after the students made their own way to Fed Square and then a group of students I had with me on a tour of the MCG.

The Flinders values award is presented to a student each chapel that really exemplifies one or more of our Flinders values. Congratulations to Saira and Zara for receiving a Flinders values award during this weeks Primary Chapel Service.

Saira received her award for displaying Integrity and Excellence  by Taking classroom responsibility seriously and being a role model to others.

Zara also exemplified the values of Integrity and Excellence  by showing others that she genuinely cares and giving her very best in any task. 

Problems are no problem for Professor Maths!

We are so lucky to have Professor Maths visiting the Grade 1, 3 and 5 classes on Monday 23 May to participate in fun hands-on maths activities.  

Well done to our Primary cross-country runners. The weather held last Friday and students were able to ‘enjoy’ the challenge of pushing themselves to keep going!

Congratulations to Flynn House for winning the Primary School Cross Country carnival. 

The final point tally below:  

4th Place: Cuthbert 325

3rd Place: Ten Boom 340

2nd Place: Nicholls 375

1st Place: Flynn 458

We would like to wish all our students that have been selected to participate in the Frankston District cross country Competition all the very best as they compete with other schools on Monday 23 May

The next P & F meeting will be held at 7pm on Tuesday 24 May in the Staff Dining Room. All are welcome.

For further information please email Marianne.morgan@flinders.vic.edu.au

HELP NEEDED 

We are currently looking for parent assistance with book covering and general assistance in the Library. To complete the Flinders Community Program you need to do a double period helping in the library once a week for a term. Usually at the beginning or the end of the school day works out well.

As with all parent volunteers, we do require that you have a current 'Working With Children Check', complete a 'Risk and Compliance' declaration and have your complete COVID vaccination including the booster.

Please call either Kate Rowe or Sue Treanor on 9785 0000 if you are interested in volunteering.

Do you wish for your child to practice their instrument more? We have new opening times available for G3 to Y12 students.

Monday from 3:15pm – 3:45pm  Tuesday from 8.05am- 8. 35am  

Contact Ms Gardiner kristine.gardiner@flinders.vic.edu.au to book a place. Limited numbers 

As a result of the global pandemic, there has been a noticeable shift in the amount of time people spend on screen-based devices. Families are transitioning back to pre-COVID routines but many are still struggling to re-establish the boundaries and rules around screen use. Some continue to deal with digital conflict and tech-tantrums on a daily basis. The latest research found that 77% of teenagers spend more than five hours on screens per day, but it is important to note that not all screen time is considered equal.

Parents play a crucial role in modelling a positive and healthy approach to using screens and assisting children to navigate the content they watch. It is better to model and mentor screen use, rather than monitor it. Children tend to do more of what they see us do, and less of what we tell them to do. However, it is still important to outline the risks and highlight the benefits of screen use to ensure you keep a balanced attitude. Encourage discussions around the issues that people experience in monitoring their screen time and be honest about your own difficulties.
Parents need to remain firm in their approach to managing screen time. Excessive screen time can be detrimental to a child’s overall wellbeing. Ensuring the correct privacy settings are in place is vital to prevent children from being inadvertently exposed to inappropriate content or online predators. Parents need to also be mindful of the potential impact screen time can have on a child’s social, emotional, educational, behavioural, and even physical domains.
In this edition of SchoolTV, care-givers will be provided with a range of guidelines and strategies to help manage screen time at home. We hope you take time to reflect on the information offered in this month’s edition, and we always welcome your feedback.
If you do have any concerns about the wellbeing of your child, please contact the school for further information or seek medical or professional help.
Here is the link to this month's edition https://flinders.vic.schooltv....

Primary:

Please write a note in your student’s diary or notify the school by phone if you intend to pick up your child early from school.  Primary students need to be signed out at the Primary Office by a parent or guardian. The student is not able to meet you at the carpark.

Secondary:

Please write a note in your student’s diary or notify the school by phone if you intend to pick up your child early from school.  Secondary students are required to sign out at the Secondary Reception in E Block. They will need to show parent permission before they can leave.   

Flinders Basketball Club warmly welcomes you to winter season 2022! Our welcome extends to our new ballers, coaches, team managers and the ever-enthusiastic family group of supporters that come along to games – we hope you enjoy being part of our community and wear our uniform with pride.  Basketball continues to be a popular sport within Flinders College and our extra curriculum teams have commenced the weekly winter season competition. Winter season competitions run until the end of Term 3. 

We’re going into week 3 of grading games and Flinders Basketball teams are off to a flier. Win, lose or draw, we have seen our ballers give their all for their respective teams in games that are considered grading only. This passion is wonderful to see. This is very important that we understand that grading games are just that. The associations must assess all games and results and after 3-4 weeks, and re-grade teams accordingly. Whilst most games are closely, there are a few blowouts. THAT’S OK! This is grading and team match-ups won't always be correct. The Associations allow 4 weeks to correct these situations so please be patient and show your grit through grading phase.

The Flinders Basketball Club has 68 teams playing across the Frankston, Westernport, Chelsea and Mornington Associations in age groups ranging from our youngest Preps in u8 to our “seasoned” Men’s Masters 35+ (a team with coaches, team managers and dads).
 
Flinders Basketball is a school-based community club whose teams train after school in the Carrum Downs and Tyabb gyms. Flinders Basketball is supported by an amazing group of 120+ volunteers in the role of coaches, assistant coaches and team managers - all working together to get kids back to being active playing basketball.
 
We also have a few teams who are also trained/coached by student basketballers - a huge shout out to the following students for giving back to their community: Archie May, Brodie Slefendorfas, Jhett Bondin, Emily Withers, Tom White, Corey Slefendorfas, Alasdair Macleod, Titch Muot, Oscar Williams, Jesse Metz-Dickenson, Darcy Murtagh and Miller Brown.

The season ends at the end of Term 3, and we look forward to seeing our teams in finals games!
 
Basketball Victoria urges everyone to continue to be vigilant and apply the health and hygiene practices that have been in place for the last two years: wear a mask; sanitise hands and maintain 1.5m physical distance where possible. Anyone in the community who has any COVID-19 symptoms, are requested to not attend any basketball venues.
 
We wish you all a fabulous season of basketball. Go Flinders!

Cindy Shacklock and Natalie Chatfield

Flinders Basketball Club Administrators

basketball@flinders.vic.edu.au / cindy.shacklock@flinders.vic.edu.au / natalie.chatfield@flinders.vic.edu.au

Photos of a few of the Flinders Basketball Club teams:

On Tuesday, the 17th May 2022 all secondary students from both campuses participated in our annual combined campus Cross Country event. Congratulations to our Carrum Downs age group medal winners;  

Boys - U13 Liam W 3rd; U14 Harvey D 1st, Bailey M 2nd; U15 Alisdair M 3rd; U16 Will W 1st; Cooper W 2nd; U17 Max J 1st, Balin D 2nd, Daniel W 3rd; U21 Jack W. 

Girls - U13 SarahW 1st, Chelsea O 2nd, Grace E 3rd; U14 Maddi R 1st, Morgan S 2nd, Teale W 3rd; U15 Shae B 2nd; U16 Laura V 1st, Ariel K 3rd; U17 Des’Ree 1st, Sophie K 2nd, U21 Mia F 1st.

House results for Carrum Downs: 1st Flynn, 2nd Ten Boom, 3rd Nicholls, 4th Cuthbert

Athletes from both campuses recently competed in the Victorian College Basketball Championships, both senior (U21) and intermediate (U17) age groups. All teams performed well and represented Flinders with great pride. The senior boys and girls teams have progressed to the finals days. Congratulations to our three combined Campus Basketball teams who competed in the U/17 Preliminary day of the Victorian College Champs. Team white played incredibly well to finish off undefeated, winning the Grand Final & securing a position in the State Finals day on Thurs 9th June. In the coming weeks our Juniors look forward to competing.

If you missed the Great Victorian Bike Ride Information night, please contact shay.cosgrave@flinders.vic.edu.au to register your interest.

Following the recent SIS Swimming Carnival at the Melbourne Sports and Aquatic Centre, six Flinders students  were selected to represent Southern Independent Schools (SIS) at the 2022 Victorian School Associations Competition (VSAC). Congratulations to CD students selected for VSAC Mia F, Alex K, & Teale W.