23 February 2024

Mrs Scrimshaw, our Head of Academics Learning & Innovation, has penned a brief article outlining key facets of our learning approach for you to peruse. Additionally, she has shared a video link to offer further insights. I highly encourage you to explore the article and gain insight into our educational direction here at RJ. This term, we are excited to host a forum for parents/carers, where they can learn about our Building Learning Approach at RJ and how it positively influences their child's learning experience. So stay tuned!

For students currently in Year 7-12, I am pleased to introduce our new Student Futures Advisor, Miss Alicia Wild. Students can schedule appointments with Miss Wild by contacting her via email to explore post-formal education possibilities, including alternative pathways such as traineeships or apprenticeships.

Celebrating

Our current College Captains (Hilton N, Crystal A, Ryshaanth N & Shan M) recently attended the Archbishop’s Prefect Commissioning Service at St Andrew’s Cathedral in the City. This event was attended by student leaders from all the Anglican Schools in the Sydney Diocese where the Archbishop gave his blessing and commissioned the student leaders as they embarked on their final three terms of formal schooling.

Our Christian groups, Footsteps, JCrew and Ignite, have kicked off activities across both the Junior and Senior Schools for the year, and it's inspiring to witness the growing participation of students in these weekly gatherings. Senior School Chapel has also commenced in the past few weeks, featuring Mr Liam Johnston's insightful discussions on God's unique design of creation, emphasising our individuality as humans bearing the fingerprints of God. 

When we celebrate at RJ, we're reminded of the abundant blessings bestowed upon our College community by God. Reflecting on Reverend Richard Johnson's timeless words from over 200 years ago, echoing Psalm 116:12, "What shall we render to the Lord for all He has done?!" – our hearts overflow with gratitude. I’m grateful for the recent successful events, including Parent Information Evenings, the spirited swimming carnivals and the enriching Year 5 & 6 and Year 7 Camps held in the past two weeks, all of which were conducted incident free. Moreover, I'm deeply appreciative of the unwavering support of all our RJ parents and congratulate our new team of Parent Ambassadors as they serve our community this year (listed in separate article). Don’t forget our RJ Community Connect evening coming up next Tuesday, 7pm. Would love to see many of our parents at this event.

Asbestos in the News

While we don’t have a lot of garden beds on our campus, with all the news about asbestos turning up in garden mulch in schools recently, I wanted to allay any concerns you may have for RJ. 

Our Property Manager, Mr Nate Rushton and his team undertook an audit of our supply chains and found that it is highly unlikely that we have asbestos in the garden mulch at Richard Johnson Anglican College for the following reasons:

1. We do not use leaf mulch. We use Hardwood Chip. 

2. Our supplier, whom we have used for over 10 years, only uses the highest quality.

3. Our Property Staff hand barrow and spread every piece of wood chip we have on our gardens.

4. Our Property Staff have had experience in identifying the appearance of Asbestos and are confident that there has been no asbestos in any of the woodchip that we have used.

In closing, let’s uphold the value of keeping God at the forefront of our families' lives, inspiring respect and care towards others, following the example of Christ. Let's instil in our students the courage to pursue excellence in all their endeavours, giving their best in every aspect of life.

Until next time, God Bless…

Mr Alan Dawson | Principal 

Join us in the Paul Cockrem Senior Learning Centre at 7pm and enjoy an evening of light refreshments and engaging conversations with fellow parents and members of the RJ Executive. Take this opportunity to connect with others in your community. The event will wrap up by 8:00pm, at which time you will be invited to tour our recently refurbished science rooms.

Please register - https://bit.ly/3SNMUq8

The PCSLC is on the left when driving into the College turnaround. Parking is available onsite as staff will have left for the day.

We kindly request that children do not attend, as the evening provides an opportunity for parents to socialise and connect with other adults without distraction.

One of the key messages continues to be to communicate early and often when you have concerns about your child’s progress or things that are happening at the College. If you were unable to make the evening, I want to also reiterate one of my key messages, which is that effective education is a partnership. We want to continue to partner with you in growing and educating your students.

If you have read the Deputy Principal’s column in the first issue of the RJ Review, you would have noted that we are communicating and explaining the Child Safe Standards. This is to mirror the communication we have with students to educate them about what they should expect from their education. This week we dive into Standard 2 – Children participate in decisions affecting them and are taken seriously.

This standard is a vital component in growing student agency and allowing them to begin to take ownership and responsibility for their choices. So what does this look like for an RJ student? Let’s take a look at three key areas.

Leadership

Our Junior School and Senior School both operate a Student Forum where students are elected to represent their class (Junior School) or Home Group (Senior School). These student leaders form a vital bond between the staff and the student body, both in communicating things to the staff that represent the student body, but also in communicating to their class or home group key ideas and information that the staff are looking to present. These students have a say in how we do fundraising and community service as well as running events that take place within and outside of the school timetable.

Our Junior School Leaders are guided and supported to lead Junior School events, contribute to House Meetings and present at activities and assemblies. Our Junior School House Leaders even gave their House a rev up at our recent RJ Day assembly. Our Senior School leaders have a voice also, in directing various initiatives, running charity and fundraising opportunities. Those elected to portfolios also have significant investment and say in how we do much of our core business as a College. A good example of this is our Chapel Captains who are on stage running our Chapel services.

Behaviour Management

Students who have made poor choices or found themselves in a difficult position also need to have a voice. This is why students are interviewed and have an opportunity to “tell their side of the story”. When we are tackling such challenges, it is important that we have the opportunity to learn and grow from our mistakes. There is no doubt we are all capable of making them, but we ought to move forward each time we fail or fall. Students who have the opportunity to “buy in” to this process almost always have better outcomes. Again partnership in this area is vital for positive outcomes for our students.

Student feedback groups

Student feedback is sought in a variety of areas across the College. From Principal’s morning teas where students have the opportunity to meet with Mr Dawson and share their experiences of “Life@RJ”, to student leadership teams who share their observations and experiences of how the student body is tracking, to specific groups put together to address an issue, students are considered to be one of our most valuable sources of data. This is true of our classes as well where students will often feel safer to contribute or raise a concern.

Student voice will continue to be a focus at the College as it provides effective feedback into students’ lives and their experiences at RJ. Perhaps this weekend you can take a moment to touch base with your students to find out how the year has started. I encourage you to try using open questions that prevent your students from giving one word answers or if they do, to ask follow up questions to solicit more detail. It is great to particularly probe when things are going well so that we can remind students of these positive and protective factors when things are a little more challenging.

Mr Scott Roby
Deputy Principal

PUNCTUALITY

A reminder that students K-6 must be at School by 8:45am. Our lining up bell occurs at this time and students hear morning announcements, celebrate birthdays and take part in prayer time to start the day. Students who arrive late stand at the back so they do not disturb others getting to their class line. The number of late students is becoming concerning. Please assist your child with morning routines and help them be at RJ on time.

STAGE 3 CAMP

Our Year 5 and 6 students enjoyed activity-filled overnight Camps at Teen Ranch in Week 3. It was a great time of attempting new things (challenge by choice), working as a team and enjoying God’s creation. The activities included the giant swing, rock climbing, archery tag, high ropes course, horse riding, water activities and eating lots of yummy food! A special thank you to Mrs Smith, Mr Newmarch, Miss Parata, Mrs Bichescu, Miss Shannon-Duhigg, Miss Ross and Mr Reed who accompanied the students to Teen Ranch.

STUDENT FORUM 2024

Congratulations to the following students who have been chosen by their peers to represent the student body in our Primary Student Forum in Semesters 1 and 2. These students received their badges at our first Assembly.

LUNCHTIME GROUPS/CO-CURRICULAR

Our students in the Junior School are being spoiled for choice with a number of co-curricular groups on offer most lunchtimes or before/after school. Chess, Gardening club, Footsteps, J-Crew, Hot Shots Tennis, Lego club and Debating are starting up and music groups including RJ Singers, Ricky J Dancers, Cantabile Choir, Dance Troupe, Bucket Drumming and RJ Dancestars are beginning to get into their lunchtime or before school groove. Some sport training and workshops are commencing in coming weeks as well. We are blessed to have such dedicated and enthusiastic staff who readily give their time and expertise to make being part of the Junior School at RJ such a rich experience.

PARENTS OF K-2 LITERACY INFORMATION EVENING

On Tuesday 5 March at 6:30pm we will be holding a Literacy Information Evening in the College Hall for parents of students in Kindergarten to Year 2. This information session will explain aspects of literacy and how they are approached here at RJ, with practical tips to consolidate literacy progress at home. We encourage parents to attend to better understand the importance of literacy acquisition, which lays the vital foundation of future learning. Email with further information to come.

SUNHATS & WATER BOTTLES

With recent events such as the Stage 3 Camps and the Swimming Carnival held primarily outdoors, plus the current run of very warm days, it is essential that your children have sunhats and water bottles at school every day. Students without College hats will be directed to sit in the shade during playtimes at Recess and Lunch. No glass bottles, please.

 STAGE 1 SWIM SKILLS DAY

This year we are again holding a Stage 1 Swim Day for Years 1-2 on Wednesday 28 February at the Little Fishes indoor pool centre at Oakhurst. Each grade will have 1.5 hours of supervised pre-swimming skills activities plus a small water slide to enjoy. We really want to encourage our young students to overcome any fear of swimming and enjoy being in the water. If you are interested in being a parent volunteer and have WWCC clearance, please contact Mr Mitchell. gmitchell@rj.nsw.edu.au

COMMUNITY CONNECT EVENING

We would be delighted to spend time with you at our RJ Community Connect Night on Tuesday 27 February. Join us at 7:00pm for light refreshments in the SLC and spend time sharing with other parents, and members of the RJ Executive.
During the night, parents will be updated on relevant school matters including any topics of interest raised through questions.
The event will conclude by 8:00pm.

PARENTING WEBSITE

Have you checked out Rowena Thomas’ website ‘Amazing Me’? https://www.amazingme.com.au/

It’s a wonderful resource especially for parents of Stage 2 and 3 students who are starting to ask ‘those’ questions! Great tips and resources for parents, online courses you and your children can do. Definitely worth a look – you can also subscribe to Rowena’s newsletter for podcasts, blogs, book reviews. A winner!

Enjoy your weekend.

Mrs Karen Shannon-Duhigg
Head of Junior School

Here are some of their reflections:

The best thing about camp was the giant water slide - Jakob 

I liked the high ropes course - Leroy

Horse riding was the best - Aryan

Playing archery tag was my favourite - Madison

I liked swimming in the pool - Jolina

My favourite thing about camp was roasting marshmallows in the camp fire - Austen 

At the end of Week 2 our Year 11 students attended Study Camp at The Tops. It was a great experience for all who attended, with the weather being a positive point for the camp this year. Thank you to the students and staff who attended the camp.

The Senior School Swimming Carnival has been run and won, taking place last Monday on a warm and then very wet day. Congratulations to all the students who competed across a range of events. Thank you to the PDHPE staff for coordinating the event and also to all the Senior School staff who helped the carnival run smoothly. Additional thanks to all the students and staff who responded well to the early departure from the pool due to the rain.

This week the Year 7 Camp is taking place at Deer Park in the Royal National Park. I am certain that it will be a great time for our Year 7 students and the RJ staff. I look forward to hearing about the highlights of the camp.

The last of our information sessions occurred on Wednesday night for Years 9 & 10. Presentations regarding the camps were the focus of the evening, with the camp notes being issued to those who attended. Spare notes will be available at Student Reception. It is important the permission notes and any additional information requested are returned on or before the due date to assist in the organisation of the camps.

During the recent Senior School Assembly, students who were meeting the College's expectations in relation to wearing the uniform were acknowledged. Additionally, it was highlighted that for some students it is a "work in progress" with some still needing to address issues around belts, hair length, skirt length and the wearing of jewellery. The cooperation of students and the ongoing support of parents/carers is appreciated in this area.

I encourage parents to continue to access the RJ App regularly to keep on top of providing permission for College events and also accessing information shared via the broadcasts. This will help keep you informed and also reduce the time spent by our administration team following up on outstanding parent permission needed for our students. Please contact the College if you are unable to log in to the RJ App. Parents are also invited to join us at Tuesday's RJ Community Connect evening at 7:00pm and a tour of our newly refurbished science rooms will be offered.

Learning Mode and Performance Mode are words you will continue hearing spoken by RJ students, which reflect the language used around learning. I look forward to seeing how our staff and students continue to learn about the way we learn, which will see new words being used in the classroom that may overflow into conversations at home.

Parents/Carers may notice a change in the Tokens their children may receive from staff. The Tokens align with the eight RJ Student Attributes, as outlined in the current Strategic Plan. Students may receive tokens for being Courteous and Kind, Courageous, Resourceful, Connected, Reflective, a Critical and Creative Thinker, a Positive Contributor and a Willing Learner. A record of the tokens issued to a student can be seen by Parents/Carers via the RJ App.

Finally, it has been pleasing to receive positive feedback from both parents and students in relation to the start of the Term. Thank you to the many students who have gone out of their way to help students in Year 7 and those new to the College feel welcome and assist them in navigating their way around the campus. This type of action reminds me of the words of Jesus in Acts 20:35 where He states that it is better to give than receive, an approach that can only benefit and build the RJ community. 

Mr Brad Maxwell
Head of Senior School

An illustration by Rosie Brooks for Unstuck Learning Design

The idea of the modes or zones of learning comes from the work of educationalist Eduardo Briceño. Briceño identifies that learners in a classroom can be in two different modes or zones. In the first mode, learning mode, learners have the attitude that they wish to improve. They know that they have not mastered everything yet and know that they can make mistakes and that this is part of the learning process. If we use the analogy of a sportsperson, this can be considered time to improve, practice and learn from mistakes. Many of our students latch on to this idea because they understand for sports, or indeed in any other skill-based activity, playing an instrument, learning to do something new, mistakes can happen. Now imagine we bring this concept into a classroom; we let the students know that we expect them to be in learning mode, we want them to ask questions and that making mistakes is part of the learning process. We have seen that this helps our students to relax and engage more fully in their learning. 

In the second mode, Performance mode, we teach learners that they need to bring their best. By the time Performance mode is needed, we hope that our learners have already mastered the skills they require to excel as they have been successful in Learning mode. In this mode, students try to impress and minimise their mistakes. When learners are in performance mode, they are not learning anything new. They are looking to shine and win. Just like a soccer player when they reach the cup final or a musician when they give their performance. 

Both zones are important in learning. Being allowed to spend as much time as possible in the learning zone allows each learner to get things wrong, seek and value feedback, grow in a culture of experimentation that values improvement over performance and have agency over their learning. 

We must ensure our learners understand what each mode looks and feels like. In school, we often see students who are looking to impress teachers and peers with their skills and knowledge. Research shows that when a teacher asks a question, only about one-third of the class actually tries to answer. At this point, many of our students move from learning mode to performance mode. To be quite honest, they will cheat! Whether that is looking for the answer in their book or pretending to know, then withdrawing. 

Now, unfortunately, there is also a third mode, defence mode. In this mode, no learning is happening. The Learner is just in survival mode, they are trying to protect themselves and just not get hurt. In this mode, most students may feel miserable and vulnerable. A student in this mode can exhibit varying emotions, including appearing angry and wanting to lash out or, indeed, being tearful and wanting reassurance. 

The thing is that all these modes have a place and are needed. Sometimes young people do need to go into defence mode, they may need reassurance from the adults around them. Performance mode is sometimes also useful; it helps them succeed in a test or on the sporting field. However, at RJ, the mode we want to see most in our learners is Learning Mode because it is the zone in which their confidence and competence grow. 

Watch Eduardo Briceño talk about the Learning Zone and Performance Zone in a TED Talk from seven years ago here: https://youtu.be/KaiwGb0csas?si=0FiVE7yIQ1FlVaQo 

Mrs Julia Scrimshaw
Head of Academics, Learning & Innovation

A mixture of excitement and joy, with just a touch of apprehension, has been evident as students have courageously tried something very new to them with an attitude of eagerness and curiosity.

Each student has been allocated a brand new band instrument purchased by the College. Students have had the option of playing the clarinet, saxophone, flute, trumpet and percussion and as the year progresses will form a Year 4 Band. 

Each class has been divided into tutorial groups with RJ staff and tutors taking small groups of students to give them specific instrument instruction and demonstrate how to produce sound, put the instrument together, and set up and pack away their instrument.  Students have worked hard to produce a sound for the first time, using the mouthpiece of their instrument to get some quite ‘interesting’ sound effects.  

Resilience and perseverance have certainly been evident as students have had the courage to try something new and different from previous experiences. 

Fine Arts Co-curricular information:

Junior School Co-curricular 2024

Senior School Co-Curricular 2024

Enquire about Individual Music lessons: https://forms.office.com/r/FFM68WiyUH  

Mrs Inés Marrable
Director of Fine Arts

finearts@rj.nsw.edu.au 

It was amazing to see the students participate in the events in the main pool, and their God given talents. There was further participation in the 20m pool, with novelty activities run by the Sports and House Captains. Although we didn’t get to complete our carnival due to the intense and fast rolling storm, we had a very successful day, and I am very proud of all students who participated in the success of their house through either wearing of House shirt or swim cap, participating in races, novelty events, House chants or other ways, it was an amazing day to be a part of.

Students at RJ

Joshua O (Year 7) will compete at the upcoming State Athletics Championships. Josh recently competed at the Regional Championships in Long Jump and 100m. Josh jumped 4.86m in the U/12 Boys event, and ran 13.86s in the 100m Final. Well done Josh.

If you have any stories and photos of students competing in their area of sports, please email tmillard@rj.nsw.edu.au so we can share their success. 

Mrs Trish Millard
Faculty Leader PDHPE & Sport

Jump Rope for Heart is the Heart Foundation’s primary school skipping challenge that helps kids move more, have fun, and raise funds for life-saving research and programs.

This year we’ve got an audacious goal to see our student Heart Heroes at RJ to log 40 hours of skipping throughout the program!

Register your child online, so they can receive the full benefits of the program and participate in online fundraising, simply follow the link below to get started. www.jumprope.org.au/parents  

Students will be skipping throughout the Term in PE lessons/during break times, during this time you can share their online fundraising page with family and friends to help raise money for this great cause.

We will hold our College Jump Off Day on Friday 12 April. This will mark the end of the program and is a chance for everyone to come together to skip and show off their newly learned skills. 

Thank you for supporting the Jump Rope for Heart program!

1-2 Swim Fun Day

We look forward to the upcoming Swim Fun Day for our Year 1 and 2 students. This event will be held on 28 February at Little Fishes. If you are interested in being a parent volunteer on the day, please let Mrs Roe know eroe@rj.nsw.edu.au 

Zone Swimming Carnival

Well done to all of our swimmers who competed in the Zone Swimming Carnival yesterday. They had a great day in the pool and competed to the best of their ability. We congratulate all of our students who have qualified for the CSSA State Swimming Carnival.

Football Clinics

Our football clinics are up and running for this year. There will be additional clinics in Terms 2 to 4 if your child missed out on the clinic for this Term.

Mr Gavin Mitchell
Junior School Sports Leader

In some Year Groups we had a number of interested parents so we were not able to give everyone this opportunity. However, we hope to have a number of community events this year, including a Trivia Night in Term 2, and our RJ Spring Festival in September, providing future opportunities for parents to volunteer and be involved.

Please contact Mrs Ghali if you are interested in filling the Year 7 vacancy above – sghali@rj.nsw.edu.au