No. 4, Term Three, 2018

The students sung beautifully and represented the College proudly.

Congratulations to our Year 1 and 2 Cool Cats on your Highly Commended award, to the Melodic Myna’s on third place (from nine choirs) and Junior Chorale’s third place (from thirteen choirs). The adjudicator commented that our students clearly “told a story” with their song choices, and worked a team to blend together and sing, using contrasting volume, clear diction and uniform vowels. Further comments were that the groups were well presented and “made his heart sing” due to their evident joy on stage in their expression and bright sound - this made Ms Black very happy too!

It is a lot of fun to sing with friends, but even more special when we are able to share our talents with our families and friends in the wider community.

Thank you to the parents for supporting our young singers in their musical journey, to Mrs Collie for coming to support us and to Mrs Roberts for her co-ordination and logistics, and for her amazing accompanying skills to help us sound so good!

Congratulations to all!

As always, our younger year levels stole the show with the Year 4, 5 and 6 speakers demonstrating a superb ability to speak to such a large crowd with confidence and poise. The Hall twins, Jacob and Harrison, were up to their usual comedic brilliance when regaling the season in review for the Year 9 team.

Captain of Rugby, William Stoten emceed the evening and did a superb job keeping the programme running. Our special guest was former All Black test winger, Rico Gear. Students watched in awe as we played his highlights clip including a superb hat-trick for the All Blacks against Wales in 2005. Rico, spoke of his experience as a professional player and gave some sound advice to our young aspiring players, to never give up on your aspirations and surround yourself with the right people to get you there.

The major trophies winners for the night were:

Preston Cup for Outstanding Sportsmanship in Rugby: Ethan Carson

Best Non 1st XV Back: Lochlen Brenssell

Best Non 1st XV Forward: Samuel Liu

Somerset College Most Promising Player Year 7 to 10: Calvin Conley

The Team Culture Trophy: Harrison Yarwood

Somerset College 1st XV Best Back: Henry Arbon

Somerset College 1st XV Best Forward: Lewis Pye

Somerset College Spirit of Rugby Medal: Ziggy Enoch

Somerset College 1st XV Players Player of the Year: Rhian Stowers

Somerset College Captain of Rugby 2018: William Stoten

Somerset College Captain of Rugby 2019: Sam Dalton

Well done to all players, coaches and support staff for another great year for Somerset College Rugby.

To start the week we were thrilled to have Sid Hooker, from Griffith University’s Science on the Go! to come and present a number of science experiments. This gathered a huge crowd on in the Quad to launch the week. We watched him dazzle students’ minds with dry ice and liquid nitrogen, and then using the gas created from liquid nitrogen, we saw him blow up balloons, deflate and freeze only to re-expand the balloon again all under three minutes. The final experiment presented by Sid really sent our students hearts into shock. He called out for a BRAVE volunteer and asked them to cover their forearm in liquid detergent. After adding bubbles into their hand, he pulled out a gas lighter. Yes, a gas lighter! This caused silence across the audience and we watched in anticipation as the volunteer’s arm was brought closer and closer to the flame until…..BOOM! A sound the entire school heard.

Day two, and we introduced the inaugural Tech Tuesday. The technology team brought to life objects that were just pieces of metal and wires only a few hours before. We had robotic balls moving around our feet as we gave it a path around the obstacle course to a final destination. One incredible device sent out sound waves to locate objects within a 10m radius. We also had small robots which use colour as a guide to move around paths. Finally, we had a virtual reality device set up in the KIP to really bring technology to life.

The last day of Science celebrations saw our students battle it out in the annual Amazing Science Race. Students from Years 6 to 12 competed against each other in six different science tasks. The first five teams to finish the race advanced to the final. The final task was the Coke and Mentos experiment. The highest geyser wins. Year 12 team, Rhian Stowers, Riley Noon, Yasmin Holmes and Jess Jackson, took the gold with their geyser reaching beyond the Smith Building roof. That afternoon the teachers were able to get involved in the renowned Teachers versus Students Titration Competition. The battle of the best scientists in the school – the title going to Titration Nation, made up of Alexandra Gerrard, Grace Kennett and Jason Zhang.

We ended our Science Week with the annual Science Awards Night where the students’ Science Projects were on display for everyone to see. From Pre-Prep to Year 12, we celebrated the curiosity and imagination of the scientific minds of the College.

Year 10 students who were selected to be published in the Somerset College Journal of Scientific Issues, were also honoured.

We are thrilled to see the strength Somerset Science has within our school community and that Science Week had been huge success.

Lyanna Chan- Chess

Lyanna has been selected to represent Australia in the Asian Girls Under 14 Chess Champs being held in Mongolia in August.

Compulsory APS Summer Season Practices

All students are required to practice with their APS Summer Team once each week and attendance rolls are taken. If students are unable to attend, parents must make contact with the coach, in advance, so we can maintain our “duty of care”.

Term Three

Monday/ Wednesday/ Friday 7.00am - Athletics Practices for South Coast & State Knock-out (Nitro)

Monday 13 and Wednesday 15 August - Compulsory APS Summer Practices begin (7.00am or 3.30pm)

Friday 17 August - APS Summer Round 1 vs Emmanuel (Girls Home)

Somerset Sport Policy

All policies and procedures are outlined in the Senior School Sport page of Schoolbox, under “Sport Policy and Dates”. All students and parents are encouraged to familiarise themselves with these.

Please note, practices are compulsory for both Winter and Summer Seasons.

APS Sport PhotosClick here to access photos of your sport or your team.

All Season details on Schoolbox Senior School Sports page. (“Winter Sports” tile for all season dates, and training schedules of the APS Season)

Sports Information

• Don’t forget to check the Somerset Schoolbox Senior School Sport Page, as well as the noticeboard at the end of the Science Block for all Sports notes.
• If you need more information, drop by the Sports Office.
• The Sports page link must be added to your Schoolbox.
• If you need more information, drop by the Sports Office in the Ray Building.

Student Injuries: If your son or daughter is injured at school sport, it must be recorded at the time by the school nurse/medical person present if parents wish to apply through the school insurance policy. If delayed signs or symptoms arise over the weekend, students must notify the school nurse on Monday morning.

All sporting details are posted on Schoolbox on the Sports page.

• go to “My Links” at the bottom left of your Schoolbox page and click ‘Edit”
• at “Manage my Links”, click “+” at the top right of page
• paste the link below and add title “Senior School Sport”: http://schoolbox.somerset.qld.edu.au/homepage/1466

Lower School Inter-House Athletics Carnival - Results

The results on the day were as follows:

• 1st Laver
• 2nd Andrews
• 3rd Franklin
• 4th Starkey
• 5th Vievers

Under 10 to 12 Girls Queensland State Golf Champion

Well done to Sarah Hammett (6Z) who won the overall Girls 10 to 12 years Queensland School State Golf Title. She played very well over the four-day tournament at Kingaroy and now has been selected to represent the Queensland Team at the National Championships in Geelong during November this year.

2019 Australia Region Top 12 Fustal Squad

Congratulations to Lachlan Milan (6L) on being selected in the 2019 Australia Region Top 12 Fustal squad. The Top 12 Futsal Experience is an excellent opportunity for the selected players to receive advanced training with Top European Coaches and to compete against players from countries all around the world for 10 days in Barcelona, Spain. Lachlan will be travelling overseas to Europe from March 3 to March 11 in 2019 and we wish him all the best of luck!

Junior Cricket Blast Program – Prep to Year 3

A Junior Cricket Blast Program for Boys and Girls from Prep to Year 3 is coming to Somerset College! This new and exciting program starts on Thursday 16th August from 3.30pm to 4.30pm on the Lower Sands Oval and runs for 6 weeks until the first week of Term Four. The price is only $99 which includes a participant pack. So if you passionate and love your cricket please get involved! Click flyer below to register on www.playcricket.com.au and search for your school’s suburb. For more information please contact TRENT WALTERS (Market Development Officer - Gold Coast, Queensland Cricket) 0432 328 973 trent.walters@qldcricket.com.au

Up and Coming Events:

Thursday 16 August (3.30pm to 4.30pm) - Junior Cricket Blast Program Begins (six-week session)

Thursday 30 August - No Junior APS Summer Sports Trials/Training (Week 7)

All information about Junior School Sport can be located on Schoolbox by clicking on the Junior School Sports page.

The competition featured 73 total students (18 teams of four), from five different schools. Congratulations to our top team that won the Premier quite convincingly with 25.5 points from a maximum 28: Byron Morris (6/7), Oliver Yang (6.5/7 and individual gold on Board 2), Jason Li (7/7 and individual gold on Board 3) and Ben Atia (6/7). Also well done to our second team, winning team silver in Premier: Charlie Liu (6/7 and individual gold on Board 1), Jennifer Yeung (5.5/7), Nikita Rubis (5/7) and Michael Dobroskok (4/7).

In the Open Division, Somerset Team 5 came first: Hugo Chan, Tommy Xu, Hamish Folliott and Jonathan Wang. Other individuals that performed superbly were: Harrison Newing (6/7 and individual gold for Open), Sean Nguyen (5/7) and Ethan Chant (4.5/7).

Lyanna Chan to represent Australia

Somerset Year 8 student Lyanna Chan has been selected to represent Australia at the Asian Girls Under 14 Chess Championship held in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia, from 17 to 26 August. She is currently very busy balancing her chess studies with her school work.

A huge congratulations to Lyanna on her selection and we wish her the best of luck!

Somerset Chess in Term Three

Upcoming Inter-school dates:• Gold Coast Secondary Inter-School: Wednesday 8 August at St Stephen’s College• Gold Coast Primary Inter-School: Wednesday 5 September at Carrara Indoor Stadium

Just as there is no shortcut to losing weight (move more, eat less) improving literacy follows the same logic – we need to read.

There is no snobbery from us about what our students are reading – have they read it before? Do we think it is not sophisticated enough? Not important. What is important is that our students are reading and that we are fostering the freedom to read. This term we have some exciting events coming up that celebrate reading.

Book Week is in Week 6 (20 to 24 August) and to celebrate we have our annual Book Fair and Book Character Day (Wednesday 22 August). The Premier’s Reading Challenge is running throughout the term and we finish off the term with our Onezie Party where we participate in The Reading Hour.

At its simplest - find books they like, give them access and space to read. We have a lot of resources available to help you in this space on our library site.

Amazing Librarians who read a lot and have great book suggestions:

Join the student run Somerset Bookclub

Storybox Library

eBooks

Audio Books

Books and Reading guides with suggestions

What to read next lists for all ages

When we arrived the next morning at Day for Girls, I realised we were actually volunteering. Although, it was different to the volunteering days I’d been to. There was a production line with distinctive workstations and teams, assigned with different tasks to make packs which would be sent to girls in third world countries. We were making ‘Days for Girls’ kits.

These kits enable girls to carry on with daily life during their menstrual cycle. They provide a safer long-lasting alternative which reduces school drop-out rates. Since I am so reliant on the modern-day system of convenience and comfort that I have never considered the possibility of going without, I’ve had to wrap my head around the fact that in many places around the world, some of the most basic hygienic products are not available, preventing people to continue with their daily lives.

After the few hours that I spent on Saturday morning, I felt as though I had contributed to an incredibly worthwhile cause and collaborated on something that would have a positive impact on someone’s life.

One component of the kit is a small bar of soap. A piece of soap that you can often find in a hotel room. So, I would like to start a collection of soap. If you or your family are staying at a hotel, could you please gather the unused soap bars and bring them back to Senior Hub Reception.

Day for Girls meet quarterly on a Saturday morning, please contact Mrs Idy Chan on 0417942801 or sim.idy@bigpond.com if you would like more information or to become a volunteer. Alternatively, go to the Days for Girls website.

The next meetup will be August 25.

The plans are to turn the creek into the perfect place for eating lunch, play, school studies, wildlife sightings and meditation. A survey of the teachers throughout the school indicates that many classes are already using this space, however they would love to see it made less risky and more ‘people-friendly’, so that it could be used so much more. Plenty of students have also showed interest when the topic has been discussed, convincing us more and more that this needs to happen!

Anyone can join the committee, we meet every second Tuesday morning in the KIP, with the next meeting 14 August. If you can’t make the meetings, don’t worry! There are Bird Watching sessions every Friday down at the nest boxes next to the Koala House which you are free to join in on. Also, there are multiple community events coming up that you can join in on, including a Tree Planting and Educational Nature Walk on Saturday the 1st of September. This event will take place at the Hinterland Regional Park, Hardy's Road, Mudgeeraba, from 8.00 to 10.00 am. Make sure to bring covered footwear! Transport from the school at 7.30am for those who cannot get to the park is being confirmed, however a definite decision will be made and emailed out. You will need to register for this fun day, the form is linked down below.

Interested in the Community Planting Day? Registration Here!

For any queries and information, feel free to contact Mrs Coombes, Noah Jay, Ruby Jay or Katie Norman (Katiebray@live.com.au).

This week we SALUTE THE RESUER within our working College and encourage our fellow students, colleagues and our community to embrace the reusable cups.

The College staff embracing the KEEPCUP revolution within the workplace. From left to right, Craig Bassingthwaighte, David Thornton, Kylie Sherrington, Kylie Radcliffe, Royce Smith, Helen Hocking, Stephen Walther, Suzie Frawley, Eleanor Amores, Heidy Barbera and Kate Andrews.

Use a reusable shopping bag, drink bottle and start making a daily difference, the best reusable is the one that you USE.

Keeps cups are readily available to purchase at both The Bird and Bush (Retail Centre) and Café Mackenzie in both a small and medium size. Not only will you be using a reusable cup and begin to make a difference but your hot/cold drink is charged at $2.50 per cup on presentation of your cup – our little way to thank you for supporting our reuse revolution. (Please note that extras are still charge at normal pricing of $0.50 each).

Another successful fundraiser stall courtesy of Laver 8 students, parents and families, combined with the Senior School's gold coin donations, brings the Senior School to a grand total of $1287.15!

Well done, Somerset!