Thursday 2 August 2018

Dates to RememberAugustMonday 6 Kinder Art ShowFriday 10 Ali Baba and the Bongo BanditsSaturday 11 Ali Baba and the Bongo BanditsMon 13 – Thu 16 Lamont Book FairThursday 16 MS Family Science Challenge NightFriday 17 Years 3-6 Athletics CarnivalMon 20 – Fri 24 Book WeekTuesday 21 Anxiety Parent Information Night

The recent Senior School Expo was an excellent opportunity for students and their families to find out what’s on offer for next year.

Follow Chairo on Facebookfacebook.com/chairo.pakenham

Chairo KinderArt ShowMONDAY 6 AUGUST  

2.30 - 7.00 PM  

Please note: there will be no K4 kinder sessions on this day, asall children & visitors will attend the art show anytime

between 2.30 - 7.00pm. All are welcome!

Our K4 Growling Grass Frogs & Swamphens Groups at ourPakenham Campus, look forward to showing you their

beautiful works of art. Come along and be amazed by their creations!

Whole School NewsLiving as a Caring Christian CommunityIn our previous newsletter, I referred to the Gallup Student Poll that Chairo participated in during Term 1. This poll is an online 20-question survey that measures the hope, engagement and wellbeing of all students in Years 5–12.

Why participate in such a survey? Why seek to understand more about this area for our students?

The first and most basic response to these questions is that we see and care for all students as whole human beings. God has created them as such, and we desire to know them and relate to them as such.

It is easy to know and relate to others in a single-dimensioned way. It can be convenient to understand someone as a worker or customer or patient. Yet while we can relate to or understand people by their role or behaviour, God has created us as humans to know each other in a much deeper and more meaningful way.

He has created us as breathing, thinking, feeling people, with physical, emotional and spiritual qualities. All of these qualities are the things that make us human and allow us to relate to each other in such a meaningful manner.

The second reason we choose to learn more about this area of our student community is because we know that as whole-beings, each of our physical, emotional and spiritual qualities have an impact on us.

A student can attend school wanting to participate and learn but, due to an illness, is less able to do so. Equally, that same student may have terrific physical health, but due to anxiety may find engaging with and relating to others very difficult.

We also have all experienced situations where the effects of broken relationships with God or with other people mean that we cannot find the social harmony required to relate in a harmonious or positive manner.

Finally, the reason we seek to understand the social and emotional health of our students is that it is required so we can fulfil our mission—our reason for existing. Chairo’s mission is to provide excellence in Christ-centred education, in partnership with families, within a caring Christian community. Knowing, understanding and caring for the whole-child is an expression of fulfilment for each of the parts of that statement.

If we are seeking to provide an education that starts with the Lordship of Jesus, we will see and work with students based on how Jesus sees them—as physical, emotional and spiritual beings.

If we are seeking to work in partnership with parents and guardians, we will endeavour to find out everything that we can about their children so we are informed and intentional as partners in care and education.

If we are seeking to live as a caring, Christian community, we will seek to express that care in ways that acknowledge the physical, emotional and spiritual needs of each child.

What opportunities will your family have this week to learn more about the physical, spiritual and emotional needs of your children? How might we work as supportive partners in caring for and nurturing your child?Simon Matthews, Executive Principal

From the Senior ChaplainThe prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective. James 5:16

Can I request again that you pray for Chairo? Below are three invitations:

Invitation OneA parent has suggested that we help you to pray for Chairo by sending out a short email each week—a wonderful idea! If you would like to receive a weekly email that gives one thanksgiving point and one prayer point, please email prayer@chairo.vic.edu.au to indicate that you would like to be on the list to receive the weekly email.

Invitation Two You are warmly encouraged to email the above address, or to SMS Melissa Rumble (Chairo Prayer Coordinator) on 0439 694 444, with any prayer requests and/or items for thanksgiving that you may have. You can ask that your prayer points be kept private, or that they be shared (privacy laws permitting) with the members of the prayer groups who meet each week.

Invitation ThreeAs always, you are invited to attend our parent prayer meetings that take place at Drouin and Leongatha on Mondays, Pakenham on Tuesdays and Traralgon each day. Come when you can and leave when you must. Pre-school aged children are welcome.

Prayer is a joy, responsibility and privilege. Blessed are all who take refuge in Him. Psalm 2:12Medon Loupis, Senior Chaplain

Parent Satisfaction SurveyAll Chairo families with children in Prep to Year 12 should have received an email earlier this week regarding an ISV Parent Satisfaction Survey. It would be greatly appreciated if all families could complete this online survey by Friday 24 August.

Findings from the survey will enable leaders across the school to better understand the perceptions of Chairo families about the quality of the educational experience provided by the school, and to therefore determine specific improvements that can be made.

Fundraiser for Drouin East StudentA fundraiser dinner and auction event has been organised to help raise funds for the Carmody family. Noah, who is in Year 3 at Chairo Drouin East, was born with complex disabilities that affect him in various ways.

See the attached flyer for more information about Noah and this special event, and about how people are able to donate money to assist the family.

Alternatively, members of the wider Chairo community who wish to donate a new item to be auctioned are able to do so by providing this to Molly Rogosin at the Drouin Campus. Molly can be contacted at mrogosin@chairo.vic.edu.au.

Keeping Our Students SafeThis week, I wish to share some information as part of our commitment to work with families to help protect the safety of the children entrusted to our care. The information below has been sourced from information provided by Family Zone Team (familyzone.com/blog/author/family-zone-team).

Monkey See, Monkey Don’t!A new video chat app invites young people to send 15-second videos to strangers. What could possibly go wrong?

‘Meet new friends face to face!’ is the tagline for social media app Monkey, the brainchild of Sydney teen Ben Pasternak and USA business partner and fellow teen Isiah Turner.

The pair—who claimed their only aim was ‘to fill the loneliness void in teenagers’—have since sold their interests in the app. It currently has more than 300,000 active users and has racked up more than three million downloads worldwide.

The app brazenly encourages kids to connect with strangers when they feel bored or lonely via video or text chat. Each interaction lasts only 15 seconds, but extra time can be added if both parties agree. After the initial hook-up, users typically go on to connect on Snapchat.

Family Zone cyber expert and ySafe clinical psychologist, Jordan Foster, calls Monkey ‘genuinely terrifying’. ‘Even testing it out was nerve-racking for me’, she said.

Foster signed up using her real age of 28 and was instantly connected by a person named CJ, who claimed to be the same age and from the USA.

‘As soon as I accepted the call’, explained Foster, ‘I could see a boy who looked about twelve. Because you’re given almost no information upfront, it really is a huge gamble accepting a conversation. You don’t know who they are and what they are going to say. You can also choose to speak with people who are located near you.’

Of course, Monkey is just one app that families need to be aware of. However, it provides a good example of the cyber dangers that our young people face today.

By providing this information through our newsletter, we hope parents and guardians are prompted and informed to hold important conversations with their children about how, when, why and with whom they are engaging beyond their face-to-face relationships.Simon Matthews, Executive Principal

Campus NewsFind Your TreasureWhat an exciting term ahead for our campus, and for our library! We have so many exciting events coming up.

Firstly, from Monday 13 to Thursday 16 August, we’ll have the Lamont Book Fair running in our new library space. This will be an opportunity for Kinder through to Senior School students to purchase from a wonderful range of books provided by our library supply company, Lamont.

Commission earned from the sale of books will be used to provide some wonderful new books for our library. Please see the poster in this newsletter for details of opening times.

Following the Book Fair, we will have Book Week from Monday 20 to Friday 24 August. This is an annual event instigated by CBCA (Childrens’ Book Council of Australia), which is passionate (like myself) about children reading for enjoyment and learning, and to expand their horizons. Great readers make great writers. It enhances the vocabulary of children and widens their worldview.

Each year, CBCA uses specific criteria to shortlist books. In our library lessons this term, we will be exploring these books by discussing their themes, characters and illustrations – how they all work together

and why they were chosen – using the CBCA criteria. Students will also be involved in a range of activities that support this learning using the shortlisted books.

This will all culminate in Book Week, during which we will be running great lunchtime activities and, of course, our annual Book Parade. This will be held at 9.15 am on Thursday 23 August in Finlay Hall. The theme this year is Find Your Treasure.

Students can dress up ready to go exploring to find their treasure (e.g. with magnifying glass, binoculars, safari suit) or they can come dressed as their favourite book character.

The library staff really look forward to this highlight of our year and sharing in the joy of reading with students. Parents/guardians and other family members are most welcome to come along and join us for the parade.

But wait, there’s more! To conclude this amazing time, we will be having a visit on Tuesday 28 August from well-respected author and illustrator, Mark Wilson. Mark has written some wonderful books, one of which was a CBCA notable book this year. Junior School students will have the opportunity to participate in one of Mark’s workshops.

We are really looking forward to all these events in the coming weeks.Jo Bridgman, Library Teacher

Lamont Change of AddressPlease note that our booklist provider, Lamont Books, has moved to new premises at 6 Technology Circuit in Hallam.

B O O K   F A I R

B O O K P A R A D E

 AUGUST  13 - 16

THURSDAY AUGUST 23

P A R E N T S   W E L C O M E !

F i n d y o u r T r e a s u r e

Middle School NewsUniform ChangeWe wish to remind families that from the start of the 2019 school year, Years 5–6 students will be required to wear the Perm-a-Pleat button-up shirts rather than the current polo shirts. This will complete the transition of Middle School students into the button-up shirts.

Family Science Challenge NightTo help celebrate National Science Week, Middle School families are invited to join us on Thursday 16 August from 6.00 to 8.30 pm in the science labs for a night of science challenges.

Students and their parents will be encouraged to showcase their skills in design, building, teamwork and problem-solving in order to complete fun and interactive science challenges that will push everyone to think outside the box.

If you would like to attend, please place the RSVP slip located on the bottom of the notice sent home with students recently into the box in the Administration Centre by Friday 3 August. Please note that due to limited space, a maximum of fifty students may attend, along with their families.

ANXIETYParent Information Night

Tuesday 21 August, 7.00–8.30 pmPakenham Campus Library

Karen Shirt, PsychologistWhat is Anxiety?

A psychological explanation andhow this impacts the child

Jodie Chambers, Life CounsellingHow Parents Can Assist Their Child

Strategies and practical support

Chairo Welfare StaffHow Chairo Can Assist

Students & Families

EXTREMEREADING PHOTO

COMPETITION!

CHAIRO PAKENHAM LIBRARY'SSubmit photos to the Library by

Friday 17 August Photo entries will be voted on by students.

Prizes awarded to winning students in Junior, Middle & Senior School during

Book Week, August 18 - 24

Please note : EXTREME does not mean

DANGEROUS. Please ensure you are safe

while taking photos!

Junior School News

NED ProgramNED stands for Never give up, Encourage others and Do your best.

The NED program came to visit Junior School on Tuesday. What an encouragement to our students to persevere in the face of difficulty and have a positive frame of mind when making difficult decisions.

The focus of the show was very much in line with the Junior School motto of Listening, Encouraging and Obeying (LEO). Junior School students are certainly learning ways of living well in our community. Feel free to check out the NED website at thenedshow.com.

Being Good HelpersLet’s be helpers together. As part of the underlying desire for our students to be the best that they can be, this term Junior School is encouraging students to be LEOs that help one another. When you are around the dinner table, take time chat with your children about ‘What makes us a good helper?’

We know that Jesus’ example in scripture is one who is our helper. The Holy Spirit lives with us and helps us on a daily basis to outwork our lives in a righteous manner. The following scriptures are wonderful in their description of God’s help:

My dear children, I am writing this to you so that you will not sin. But if anyone does sin, we have a helper who pleads

our case before the Father. He is Jesus Christ, the one who is truly righteous. He himself is the sacrifice that atones for our sins—and not only our sins but the sins of all the world. 1 John 2

But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all that I said to you. John 14:26

In that biblical model of helping, I am reminded that helping a person will not necessarily change the world but it will change the world for that person.

Opportunities to HelpThinking about helping at school, we still have a number of ways that you can support the Junior School musical. Please contact Janelle Richardson if you have time to help teachers with supervision of students at either the Friday or Saturday performances. Thank you to those of you who have already pitched in to help with costumes and props.

One more way we help each other is with great communication. Thank you to those of you who attended the parent/teacher interviews in the past week. It was wonderful to meet so many of you but there were also many who were unable to attend. I encourage you to help your child by getting in contact with their teacher to discuss progress in class. Reports reflect your child’s progress but an open conversation is far more valuable.

Pakenham Campus Junior School Presents

Friday 10 AugustDoors open at 6.30 pm

Saturday 11 AugustDoors open at 4.30 pm

Hillcrest Performing Arts Theatre500 Soldiers Road, Clyde North

Adults: $25 | Concession/Child: $19 | Family: $72

Tickets available, Mon 23 Julyvia trybooking.com/XATA

© MUSICLINE PRODUCTIONSMusic and Lyrics by Craig Hawes

Supporting NoahDinner and Auction

Adults are invited to attend a two-course dinner and auction to assist Noah Carmody

Wednesday 29 August, 7.00 pmWarragul Reception & Conference Centre

Book at trybooking.com/WUFN or call Chairo on 5625 4600

Alternatively, you can donate by calling the Finance team at Chairo or direct debit to: Chairo Christian School BSB: 033–152 Account No: 422254Ref: Noah Fundraiser

$60

Noah Carmody is a Year 3 student at our Drouin East

Campus. The Carmody family, with support from

Chairo and their local community, are committed

to improving the quality of life for ten-year-old

Noah, a special young man with a delightful

nature and keen sense of humour … and a

passion for robotics, electronics and technology.

Born with complex disabilities that affect him

in various ways, including mobility and eating,

Noah has had many operations at the Royal

Children’s Hospital, his ‘home away from home’.

New, life-saving surgery—never performed before

in Australia—has recently increased Noah’s life

expectancy, although his mobility is now reduced.

Noah requires specialist medical care and other

support (e.g. motorised wheel chair, family car

modifications), both now and into the future.

Any assistance that community members are

able to provide, including via this event, will be

greatly appreciated by Chris, Shauna and family.