In this issue

To download the flyer please click HERE

We’re hosting another Adopt a Boarder weekend (see flyer attached) which will take place on Friday 21 May to Sunday 23 May. This is a wonderful opportunity for your family to spend some time with our boarding students and create connections beyond their familiar SCOTS PGC
boarding community.

Families are invited to attend Chapel and a BBQ dinner on the Sunday after dropping your adopted boarder back to the boarding house (smart casual dress code please). If you would like to host a boarder for that weekend, or any other weekend please contact the relevant Boarding House leader to make arrangements.

GIRLS BOARDING Susan.Everson@scotspgc.com.au
JUNIOR BOYS BOARDING Stewart.Bailey@scotspgc.com.au
SENIOR BOYS BOARDING David.Marriott@scotspgc.com.au

The College is holding an Open Morning next Friday 21 May.  Our students will tour prospective families around the campus between 9am and 12 noon to experience a typical day at school.

If you know of any families who are interested in the College and what we have to offer, please encourage them to sign up via the website here: https://scotspgc.com.au/events/open-morning/

Mr David Marriott | Head of Senior Boys’ Boarding

Cardinal Ball

The Year 12 Cardinal was a fantastic night for our boarding boys and my wife, Jodi, and I were very pleased to be able to share the evening with all the students and staff present. The entire event, from the garden party at Girls Boarding to the final dance of the night and a fast and efficient clean up by the remaining boarding boys, was a huge undertaking – congratulations to all involved, it was spectacular indeed.

It was great to see the Year 12 students embrace the occasion, with special mention to Beau, Sam and Darcy Brennan for their dance awards and Ewan for being the trivia king on the night. Jodi and I particularly enjoyed the unique arrivals of the partners down East Street, including the trucks and hot rod cars; it was most entertaining. The night was certainly a fitting celebration for a fine cohort of students.

National Boarding Week (16 -22 May)

SCOTS PGC will celebrate this event with a number of profiles of our boarding students, published via our Facebook and social media streams. Please keep watch as we celebrate the wonderful young men and women who undertake boarding as a key part of their educational journey.

Adopt a Boarder weekend (21-23 May)

I encourage those families who are interested and available to engage with the ‘Adopt a Boarder’ weekend, where girls and boys from all the SCOTS PGC boarding houses are encouraged to spend the weekend with a friend/family from the day school.

This is a wonderful opportunity for your family to create connections beyond their familiar SCOTS PGC boarding community.

Please make contact with me directly via email for more details:

David Marriott | Head of Senior Boys Boarding

david.marriott@scots.pgc.com.au

Mr Tom Bradbury | Assistant Director of Co-Curricular Activities

Darling Downs Cross Country

Next Monday 17 May will see our largest contingent of runners for some years, attend the Darling Downs Cross Country Championships in Toowoomba.

Ben Carey and Ewan McFarland will lead the charge for our boys whilst Eliana Jones and Shona McFarland will undoubtedly show the way for the girls.

A squad of 28 students will represent the College directly in the 13-19 years events, while 6 of our juniors have been selected to represent the Southern Downs at this event.

We wish all students the very best as they take on the best the Downs has to offer.

Junior Netballers ever improving!

The first quarter for our Junior Netballers was a rocky start and I thought we might be in trouble.

Although the shooters worked well in the goal circle, they couldn’t deliver the shots and missed one shot after the other. The girls were behind in points, when the left they court after the first quarter.

A quick pep talk to cheer them up and swapping the shooters with the defensive players, seemed to be the magic trick!

Jekeira Major and Neitayah Prince sank one shot after the other and Makybe Edwards in centre, played brilliantly – she was one of the many stars of the night and made plenty of turnovers for the team.

Every player put in their best effort when on court. The girls won 22 to 18 and were very pleased with their performance.

Senior Hockey Report – team pictured in the main image

This week we played around with different combinations and really mixed it up, which saw Emma Bradbury, Seb Christensen and Millie Groves get their names on the score sheet with only one scored at the other end.

Rosalie Mauch showed good improvements and Will Angus continues to grow in confidence. Lachlan Nolan is getting more confident as an all-rounder and Tanner Henley stepped outside his comfort zone to try his hand at striker.

All in all, a very positive learning experience for the squad in general and a fun night had for everyone involved. Keep up the good work team!

Another win for these champions on Tuesday night sees them 5 and 0 in the Senior Teen Competition and looking forward to the Interschool Competition in Term 3.

Arranmore Activities

This week, Arranmore Gymnastics returned to the program with nearly 20 students joining coach Alexis Carey for our developmental but very challenging program of movement based activity. This rounds out our three activities for Term along with Arranmore Rugby and Arranmore Athletics for the remainder of the Term.

Monday | Gymnastics | Assembly Hall | 3.15 – 4.30pm

Tuesday | Athletics | Buss Oval | 3.15 – 4.30pm

Wednesday | Rugby | Buss Oval – 3.15 – 4.30pm

Places still are available for these activities. Please contact Mr Bradbury if you wish to join.

Upcoming Events

• Rugby fixtures continue on Friday evenings for both Boys and Girls teams throughout Term 2.
• QCIS Cross Country will take place on 1 June here at SCOTS PGC. All SD and BD participants are required.
• Senior Athletics training continues this coming week with sessions available Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday through until out carnivals.

Header Image: Erin Fearby (Year 12) and Izzie Twidale (Year 9)

Mrs Susan Everson | Head of Girls’ Boarding

The PGC Boarding house has been alive with activity over the last week.  It has been a particularly busy time for our senior girls who were all very excited about the Cardinal Ball.  Dresses, hair and make-up have been a prominent conversation topic over the dinner table in the lead up to this highly anticipated event.  It was an honour to be able to host the Cardinal guests and their families for our annual Cardinal festivities which included an afternoon garden tea party and the traditional group photo on our PGC steps.

Our younger girls loved setting up for the afternoon garden tea party and were very instrumental in ensuring everything was ‘just right’ for their bigger boarding sisters.  Our grounds looked beautiful and our flower wall was a popular spot for photos.  Thank you to everyone who joined us last Saturday afternoon.  It was lovely to see our young ladies having so much fun while looking their finest.

On Sunday, we enjoyed a Mother’s Day Luncheon and Bingo at the Des Davey Dining Hall. The luncheon was a lovely way to celebrate all our mums and be surrounded by families and other community members.

Over the next few weeks, all girls are very busy with academic assessments and co-curricular activities which seem to make the time fly by fast.  Here’s to great Week 5 ahead!

Natasha Paganin | Equestrian Captain

The SCOTS PGC Equestrian Team has been working hard this week leading up to one of our biggest EA events of the year, the Darling Downs Interschool Regional Championships.

A group of our Equestrian members will head up to the Toowoomba Showgrounds this week in preparation for the 3-day long event. Riders will compete in a range of events including Dressage, Show horse, Showjumping and Combined Training.

We also have a team of riders headed to Goondiwindi for the Interschool Horse Sports competition.  What a weekend it will be for the Team – Good luck everyone!

Last weekend some of our riders competed at the Interschool Queensland SEQ Regional Championships in Caboolture, while others showed off their skills at the Stanthorpe Campdraft.

SEQ Regional Championships | April 30 – May 3

April Davies: 2nd Overall in the 110cm Showjumping

3rd Overall in the 100cm Showjumping

Mr Mark Richards | Director of Teaching, Learning and Innovation

“If we didn’t have deadlines we would stagnate.” – Walt Disney

In our family we have a regular new year’s mantra: ‘This year is going to be the year of no drama’.  Inevitably this promise fades into the ether of real life, a running joke about the illusion that we have control of fate.  This year has been tougher than most.  My 2-year-old son contracted RSV, a serious respiratory infection, a couple of months ago and had to be airlifted to Toowoomba by the RACQ Life Flight Team https://www.lifeflight.org.au/.  This was a very traumatic period and something I would not wish on anyone.  However, it has made me reflect on some of the real-life consequences and manifestations of some of the soft skills we teach our students.  Watching the helicopter rise above Warwick made me think about the real reason we teach; to provide children with the skills and knowledge to grow into people who have the drive and tenacity to become excellent, who can make the world a better place and a more spirited and respectful community.

One of these vital soft skills is the ability to meet deadlines.  To plan and accomplish your goals within time limits.  Afterall a goal is just a dream with a deadline.  In in a real-life situation, such as a patient airlift, you cannot miss deadlines. Get the paperwork in too late – the transport might not happen.  You have not fuelled the helicopter on time –  it does not take off.  The analysis of the blood data is too slow – a patient may not get the right medications.  The I.T. system has not been fixed – the doctor is not able to video conference with the helicopter crew.  Deadlines are not just there to annoy and inconvenience, they serve a purpose to enable students to flourish within a learning environment.

The Education Endowment Foundation (EEF) is a charity that assesses all international peer reviewed evidence on teaching 5–16-year-olds.  It collates this evidence and provides insights into implementing teaching and learning strategies.  The EEF places feedback as the highest impact strategy that teachers can employ, with an estimated impact of 8 months.  In other words, a student who received targeted, constructive feedback on how to improve their learning will be 8 months ahead of a comparable student who does not receive adequate feedback.  Consequently, the drafting process is extremely important. It is why teachers spend time chasing students to meet draft deadlines, so we can provide as much support and feedback as we can.  Failure to meet these deadlines directly harms a student’s ability to grow, improve and prosper.

“We all need people who will give us feedback. That’s how we improve.”

– Bill Gates

Learning to meet deadlines is an exceptionally important life skill, and therefore we take them seriously at the College.  Nevertheless, this is not an easy task.  Even adults need help to defeat the lurking procrastination, so here are a few tips on how to make meeting deadlines easier:

1. Make a commitment. A goal or aim makes everything easier, commit yourself to handing in your drafts a day early.

2. Plan the timeline early. Break them down and set mini goals. Completing assignments in small, easy to digest, chunks will make a large task seem achievable.

3. Take initiative early. Be open to ask for help and accept help.

Teachers and staff are there to help, ask them.  Take their advice on board but do not be scared to ask more than one person.  Different perspectives will help you understand more and may bring a different viewpoint to your work.

Deadlines are not just there to make life difficult; they are there to ensure the world keeps going and people keep growing and learning.  Treasure them, respect them and make sure you meet them.

“I love deadlines.  I like the whooshing sound as they fly by.” – Douglas Adams

We have 3 carnivals coming up in the first few weeks of June that we are seeking volunteers for.  Please click the link and register your details to sign up for volunteering. Any assistance you can offer would be greatly appreciated!

QCIS Carnival | 1 June 2021

volunteersignup.org/TDMLC

SCOTS JAM Athletics Carnival | 10 June 2021

volunteersignup.org/JD7CB

SCOTS Senior Athletics Carnival – 16 and 17 June 2021

volunteersignup.org/QKXKK

Click on the image below to buy your tickets now!

A royal wedding, a magical forest, mischievous fairies, love spells, and donkey heads. Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream has something for everyone. A light-hearted comedy that is sure to keep you laughing and smiling all night.

Proudly presented by the SCOTS PGC Drama Department, this is a performance not to be missed!

When    Friday 28 May & Saturday 29 May | 6:00pm

Where   WALEC – 60 Oxenham Street, Warwick

Tickets   General Admission – $20 each

A Midsummer Night’s Dream

Photographs will be taken on Tuesday 18 May 2021

The College has arranged for all school photography packages to be ordered online via our school portal. This reduces administration and potential security issues related to the return of cash and envelopes on photo day. Orders for packages and sibling photographs can be placed securely online at www.advancedlife.com.au using our school’s unique 9 digit order code – MYE 565 VF9

Portrait and group package orders are due by photography day. Should you wish to purchase a sibling photograph online, the order must be placed no later than the day before photography day. Sibling photographs will only be taken if an order has been placed. Should you have any queries concerning school photographs or online ordering, please contact us at www.advancedlife.com.au/contact