Forever Excelling Faith, Family - St George College

Faith, Family Forever Excelling Volume 30 | Issue 15 | Friday, 29 September 2017 A PO Box 29 Torrensville Plaza 5031 | T 8159 8100

CRICOS Provider No: 02799F

MESSAGE FROM THE PRINCIPAL

KEY UPDATES

Mrs Gina Kadis Learning from those who studied before us at St George College – stories from our Old Scholars inspire our current students to “Dream Big” and be the best they can be.

Old Scholar – Dr Sophie Plagakis Current employment: I am a doctor working at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital. I am currently completing my surgical specialist training in Urology and on the weekend I passed my final exams. A urologist is a specialist in the field of the kidneys, ureters, bladder and prostate so we deal mostly with cancers of these organs, enlarged prostates, stones, blood in the urine and incontinence.

*************** Term 4 Commences for Staff & Students Monday 16th October *************** KEY DATES Year 12 Holiday Workshops Tuesday, 3 October Physical Education—9:30-12 Wednesday, 4 October Drama—10am—3pm Visual Arts—10:30am-3pm General Maths— 10am—12pm

Education journey: I was at St George until year 6 and then moved to Loreto College at Marryatville where I completed my education. I attended University of Adelaide to do my Bachelor of Medicine and Surgery. Internship at Royal Adelaide Hospital and the subsequent 8 years of surgical training around Adelaide. I'll be moving to Sydney next year for fellowship training in female urology and surgical oncology. I am also finishing a Masters of Public Health by correspondence through Monash University.

Thursday, 5 October Modern Greek—10am—2pm

I look forward to attending to the urological needs of the Greek community upon returning to Adelaide in 2019!

Wednesday, 11 October Visual Arts—10:30am-3pm General Maths— 10am—12pm

Family and interests: My parents are Andrew and Zmaragdi who people would remember from the P&F and Mothers Club. My brother George is a youth worker and Damian is an engineering student. I can't remember my interests because it's been so long since I indulged in them! But I plan to read some non fiction books, cook some delicious desserts and spend more time with my boyfriend Simon now that we have both completed our specialist studies. Concluding remarks: Sophia we are so proud of you and your achievements and wish you every best wish today and always. Thank you for inspiring our students to “Dream Big”.

I invite you to email me on [email protected] the CV details of the Old Scholars that you believe should be featured in our SGC newsletters to inspire our current students to Dream Big.

Tuesday, 10 October Visual Arts—10:30am-3pm History—9am—11am

Thursday, 12 October Visual Arts—10:30am-3pm

UNIFORM SHOP HOLIDAY HOURS Thursday, 12 October 12:30pm—3:30pm Monday, 16 October 8:15am-9:15am 2:45pm-3:45pm Call 0408 803 289 to book an appointment time if you need a longer timeslot.

www.sgc.sa.edu.au

The Importance of MUSIC at St George College

Music Masterclass – Sunday 24 September 2017 from 2.30pm to 5.00 pm – in the St George College Music Suite The Music Program has undergone some recalibration in the on the Senior Campus last 12 months. We have moved away from offering Music as an elective subject and are growing music in the College, by It was a privilege to host this event at St George College. I introducing a compulsory music curriculum on both warmly welcomed two talented musicians and friends of St campuses, growing our Instrumental Music program and George College to inspire our students, and help market our establishing a new St George College Contemporary Music College, by partnering with “The Con Dalagiorgos School of Ensemble. Students can also choose to specialise in Music in Music” to conduce a Music “Masterclass” in our Music Suite their Senior Secondary studies – to study SACE Stage 1 (Year on the Senior Campus. Mr Con Dalagiorgos and Mrs 11) and Stage 2 (Year 12) Music with Ms Mantis and Tsambika DeGeorge provided fabulous music tuition to a specialist music teachers. mixture of St George College junior campus and senior campus students who study Bouzouki with Con privately at We have partnered with the best music teachers and his studio at home and to welcome other music students to musicians in Adelaide to grow the instrumental music see our fabulous music facilities here at St George College. opportunities of our students to learn to play the Bouzouki, The event was a huge success. Thank you to everyone Piano, Percussion and Drums, Guitar and Singing/Voice involved – especially to Con for his passion and commitment development. Parents and students can have the to work closely with St George College to grow music convenience of accessing private music lessons through the opportunities for our students. We are very indebted to you. College – making it easier for working families to inspire their Thank you to parent and Consul-General of Greece, Mr children to take up a music instrument. Andreas Gouras for accepting Mr Dalagiorgos’ kind invitation Finally – to confirm with the wider community the importance we place on music at St George College in our Strategic Plan and our College Vision 2018 – 2020, the Board of Governors have introduced some new “Music Scholarships” – commencing from the 2018 College year. We have recently awarded 3 Music Scholarships – the names of students to be released at Speech Night. There are still a few scholarships available. Tell your family and friends outside the College about these. Contact [email protected] in writing, outlining why your child should be awarded a to officially speak at this event and continue his fine work to scholarship. Ring the Principal on 0447-177-939 if you want promote Hellenism Music, Language and Cultural events in South Australia and in particular for promoting our College to to know anything further about these. the wider community. Instrumental Music Evening – for Junior Campus and Senior I wish to share the speech I delivered at this event to our Campus students – Thursday 14 September 2017 from 6pm families and guests: – 7pm in the Music Suite, Senior Campus “Good afternoon – great to welcome you all to St George Ms Alexandra Mantis, our newly appointed Music teacher at College to partake in this fabulous Music Masterclass. My St George College, since February 2017 orchestrated a name is Gina Kadis and I am the proud Principal of this fine fabulous family evening recently. This event afforded our ELC to Year 12 Co-educational Greek Orthodox College that instrumental music students an opportunity to showcase welcomes students from all multi-cultural backgrounds to their musical prowess. The evening was a huge success. join our welcoming educational community. Thank you to all the students, parents and staff that Learning music is a meaningful and gratifying experience for attended. The students really appreciated our support. We students and for people of all ages. plan to host a number of these evenings each year – to encourage all our instrumental and music students to At St George we strongly believe that: perform in front of family and friends and develop their  Music is an essential part of the human experience. performance skills, in an uplifting safe environment – our  Music is something that everyone should experience as part of a broad liberal education. specialist Music Suite at the Senior Campus.  Music develops humans in very unique ways.  Music is one of the key Australian Curriculum areas we want our students to learn about.

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This is why we have partnered with “The Con Dalagiorgos us tips to CARRY ON – regardless of the LOSS and HURT School of Music” and two of the best musicians in Adelaide we are feeling when we are sick or a loved one leaves us. and Australia – Mr Con Dalagiorgos and Ms Tsambika May Music continue to light up your life as you live it fully DeGeorge – to grow music again at St George College. and with gusto. Since 2016 we have made Music a compulsory subject I look forward to meeting you over a drink later today. through the introduction of our Choirs program, as well as Feel free to take home a St George College prospectus and offering a Music elective for Middle School and Senior School call me for a personal tour. students; in 2017 we appointed a new Music teacher who is also an accomplished Musician in her own right to inspire our I now invite Mr Andreas Gouras, the Consul-General of students to join our new Contemporary Music Ensemble and Greece and proud St George College parent of Eleni, and parent of Foti and Dionysius to say a few words. Thank you grown the instrumental music program. for listening and joining us today.” We miss Tsambika DeGeorge who used to teach here at the Let’s continue to “Dream Big” for St George College as we College prior to having her family; Music had taken a work together for the good of our current students, Old different road for a while – but since the appointment of Miss Scholars and prospective students. Do not hesitate to Alexandra Mantis (a talented musician and music teacher contact me with initiatives that inspire us to be the best we from St Mary’s College) – I am delighted to announce that can be. Email: [email protected]. the College Board has invested further resources to develop Music at St George College. The College has funded a number of Music Scholarships to attract and keep the best music students at our College. I am delighted to have offered 3 Music Scholarships to date and we are keen to welcome more new music students to our St George College family – through the release of additional music scholarships. In summing up: I hope you have enjoyed visiting our St George College Senior Campus – for students from Year 5-12. I hope you have loved listening to the talented music students perform in our fabulous music suite. Finally, 

music is in our blood from the minute we are conceived and born. Our mothers, fathers, godparents, grandparents, aunts and uncles sing us lullabies to reassure us of their love and some do it to make their newborns smarter (as research shows music helps rewire the brains of youth);

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music is in our lives when we visit our churches – through the wonderful byzantine chanting that transports us to that magical place where we reflect on the important things in our lives;

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music is something we turn to when we celebrate joy and happy occasions in our lives – where we “turn up the stereo” (us oldies in the room) or “ipods” (the youth in the room) and play our favourite songs that remind us that LIFE IS MEANT TO BE LIVED WITH GUSTO AND PASSION EVERY DAY!;

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music is in our lives when we are sad – where we turn to music to lift our spirits and listen to the LYRICS of those famous composers and musicians who inspire us and give

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MESSAGE FROM THE DEPUTY PRINCIPAL Mr Peter Karamoshos

Make the most of the holidays. We are all looking forward to the third term break. We congratulate students, families and staff for maintaining a high level of commitment and dedication during this busy term. No doubt the demands of the long term, along with the bleak and cold weather, have made our students feel worn and weary and they need to use the upcoming break to fully recharge the batteries. An article I read recently provided advice on the key things people should do during a break. 1

Take time to reflect on the good things that happened during the term. Review the things that made you smile and remind yourself how you made them happen.

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Don’t work for a period of time. Give yourself permission to stay away from the books, assignments and revision.

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Get enough sleep. Sleep is one of the things students miss out on during term time and the holidays gives them a chance to catch up. (don’t overdo it though)

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Eat well. Students often miss breakfast during the term, eat dinner on the run and don’t get a chance to sit at the dinner table with their families. They should find time to enjoy their meals (and share stories) in the company of the people that they love.

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Make plans. Students should find time to meet friends, go to the movies, playing games, visit family, listen to music…. Find something to look forward to.

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Get outside. Students should not fall into the trap of being inside all day, particularly when the weather is now picking up. Get out, walk the dog, go for a jog, shoot a basketball, and enjoy the sunshine.

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Clean your room. Its amazing how having a clean space around you can have such a positive impact on your outlook. Put everything in its place and make a fresh start. And students will have parents onside too.

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Play. Play with friends, play video games, play netball, play soccer, play football, play cricket, play backgammon, play cards, play music. Games are a terrific way to bond with friends and to share experiences.

We have broken through the cold weather, the flu season and end of term challenges for students, families and staff. I hope you all have a relaxing and fulfilling break and look forward to a high energy start to Term 4.

2017 Uni SA Connect to Engineering Week Rosa Mulalem Maru and Dimitrios Tolis are two of our year ten students that have been chosen to attend Uni SA Connect to Engineering Week. They are hard working and dedicated students that have been selected for this even as they have an interest in engineering, along with a strong aptitude in science and maths. These are the core foundations for an engineering career. Rosa and Dimitrios will spend a week at Uni SA Mawson Lakes campus and work with other students in teams to develop working solutions to engineering problems. They will have an opportunity to experience four sub-disciplines of engineering (civil, electrical, mechanical and mechatronic). This will enable them to decide the type of engineering they enjoy and help them in choosing their future career path.

Jelena Gasic Middle and Senior School Teacher

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National Science Week 2017 This is the week in which we celebrate science and aim to increase the understanding and appreciation of science, innovation, engineering and technology. Students become aware of the role each of the disciplines play in improving our society, economy and environment. The theme for this year’s National Science week was “Future Earth. The aim was to address some of the key challenges to global sustainability and come up with potential solutions. Students from our school contributed to National Science Week by participating in a diverse range of activities and events. Junior students were involved in colouring in competitions and middle school students in creating posters and models in which they focus on an aspect of global sustainability. Cake stand was organised on both campuses where all students had an opportunity to enjoy some themed treats. Students could take part in one of many competitions, such as lolly jar guessing, raffles and most creative posters and models.

Taekwondo Taekwondo is a traditional Korean sport meaning ‘The way to kick or punch’. As a part of our Asian Studies Program, Aaron from Rhee Taekwondo was invited to St George College to teach us some basics. Aaron was a professional Taekwondo instructor that wore a black belt. Before we started, we had to take off our shoes and walk around on the floor. We then formed a circle and were taught how to clench our fists and what part of the fist we should punch with so we didn’t injure ourselves. Next was blocking and he showed us the way to use our elbows and hands to deflect an attack. There were two different ways we were taught to kick, the side kick and the high kick. It wasn’t just special moves that he taught us; some Korean words were also explained such as ‘ready’. As we reached the end, we had gained new knowledge and also tried to break a few wooden boards. Aaron taught us that self-defense is not for hurting people. We all left the session with new Korean knowledge that ties in with our Korean project.

This event was a success and empowered students to become aware of the possible issues facing our “Future Earth” and means to make it sustainable.

Year 6S Students Jelena Gasic Middle and Senior School Teacher

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MESSAGE FROM THE ASSISTANT PRINCIPAL Miss Stephanie Kosmetos

Junior Campus Working Bee On Saturday morning 23 September, a handful of dedicated parents and grandparents volunteered their time with a helping hand at the working bee on the Junior Campus to landscape a section of the new playground area with new plants and trees. A BIG THANK YOU to parents Costa and Sasha Fotopoulos, Sasha’s mum Marie, parent Pantelis Charitopoulos, parent Niko Dacolias and his father Kostas, and parent from the Senior Campus Theo Makris all worked together in sync to get the job done. The small garden beds at the front of the campus were also worked on. The children had fun creating mud and getting their hands dirty too!! A heartfelt thankyou to the P&F Committee and all parents who contributed in raising the funds for this project to help beautify our school. This is what family and community is all about!

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News from Playgroup By Janice Copeland “You can discover more about a person in an hour of play than in a year of conversation”
 ...... Plato, Greek philosopher. The programs planned for playgroup constantly complement the role that early childhood experiences have in a young child’s growth and development from birth to the years before school. During this crucial time, the children learn fundamental cognitive, physical, emotional, and social principles that become the building blocks that facilitate later learning and development. Each week, the interactions and play observed in our playgroup children give life to Plato’s statement as they explore, imagine and experiment with the equipment and materials and interact and seek each other. Personalities are emerging as the confident playgroup members take possession of their play area and set to work, exploring and having fun. Early childhood researchers constantly remind us that a child develops and learns more in the first five years than at any other stage of life. To support the precious learning moments at home, playgroup’s responsibility is to enhance and encourage each child’s amazing development. As we near the end of our third term of playgroup, meeting the children’s increasing need for stimulation and helping to lay the foundations
for their lifelong learning is critical. The trusting relationships established in playgroup not only benefit emotional and social wellbeing but also language, cognitive and physical development. The children confidently enter the playroom with the intention to explore familiar and safe areas. Areas where they can revisit past moments of learning and play and consolidate what they know. This is active learning! The time spent cuddled in the arms of a loving adult hearing the wonderful sounds of a story help create a lifetime love of reading. Singing, dancing and music making empower the children as they share a musical closeness with mum, dad, yiayia or a playgroup friend. I look forward to our Playgroup days in Term 4 where the children will continue to explore their play environment, learning to be independent, manage new tasks and continue developing their social and communication skills. Thank you for another wonderful term in Playgroup. Please enjoy the school holiday break. I look forward to catching up with everyone on our next Playgroup day on Thursday 19th October.

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What’s been happening in 1T?

Art Club

SCIENCE! The children have been researching and discovering what they can see in the day and night sky, as well as what natural and man-made features are on the land. With all this new-found information, and our software focus being Power Point this term, they were able to transfer their knowledge into their very own Power Point presentation, which they will be sharing with their classmates once finished. We then integrated this into an art project, where the children created an environmental diorama of their choice. The outcome was phenomenal and they were able to take ownership of what the environment looked like in their own eyes and mind. All the dioramas will be on display in the 1T classroom, until the last day of Term 3. Feel free to come and have a perusal. Here’s a snapshot below to whet your appetite!

Another very popular and successful Art Club was conducted this term. The children came to each session full of enthusiasm and ready to learn new techniques to enable them to express their creativity. It was thrilling to watch the children explore the use of different mediums and then produce amazing outcomes. It never ceases to amaze me the talent our students display and how wonderful their end results are. This term the students sculpted, painted and drew, working individually and in pairs. They also took great delight in observing the creative process of their peers and viewing the finished products. It was my privilege to conduct Art Club this term and to work with this year’s group of students.

Miss Iliana Toumbas

Mrs. Lynley Davies Learning Support teacher P-4 and Year 1 teacher

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News from Reception B Reception B had the pleasure of having two new Reception students, from the Early Learning Centre, visit our classroom for Orientation Day. Andreana and Iliana were very excited to be reunited with their friends who had transitioned to Reception mid-year, while the older Receptions had been looking forward to Orientation Day all week. The children had a wonderful time in class at the ‘big’ school playing with the magic sand, drawing and even having their first Greek lesson with Mrs Miltiadous. It was great to see the older Receptions making the girls feel welcome and we look forward to having them back for the second Orientation Day in week 10.

Miss Chelsea Betham

IMPORTANT ANNOUNCEMENT! This is your LAST CHANCE to register your interest to be part of the school musical in 2018. All students who will be in Year 5-11 in 2018 are invited to audition for next year’s production of Grease – The Musical. All you need to do is give your name to Ms Tsikouras, or to the Senior Campus front office. But HURRY because you only have until the end of Week 2 Term 4, Friday 27th October, to put your name down. This is a great opportunity and will be lots of fun, so get involved! Parents/carers who would like any additional information regarding this, please contact Ms Tsikouras on 81598100 or [email protected]

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With Maria Miltiadous Αλληλογραφία με το Oakleigh Grammar School

Οι μαθητές και οι μαθήτριες της τρίτης τάξης ήταν πολύ χαρούμενοι και ενθουσιασμένοι να γράψουν γράμμα στους καινούριους φίλους τους στο Oakleigh Grammar School που βρίσκεται στη Μελβούρνη. Τα παιδιά του κολλεγίου μας, σύστησαν τον εαυτό τους και έγραψαν στο γράμμα τους για τα πράγματα που τους ενδιαφέρουν και τι τους αρέσει να κάνουν στον ελεύθερό τους χρόνο. Τώρα τα παιδιά περιμένουν με αγωνία να λάβουν και αυτοί γράμμα από τους μαθητές και μαθήτριες του Oakleigh Grammar School.

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With Mr Michael Rodas TAFE SA 2018 Applications Applications for 2018 study or training at TAFE SA open Monday 25th September. https://www.tafesa.edu.au/

Flinders Study in 2018 Info Evening Thursday 28th September, 4:30pm – 8.00pm Students who are considering studying at Flinders in 2018 can attend this information evening to find out about applications, scholarships, entry pathways and to take a campus tour with current students. http://events.flinders.edu.au/show/event/study-in-2018-information-evening

New degrees at UniSA Find out about new courses and course combinations available to study at UniSA as well as the latest developments at the Uni. Your dream course might not have existed until now! http://www.unisa.edu.au/new

Unisa information Brochures covering a broad range of topics from 2018 programs, advice for parents, scholarships and lots more.

StudyAssist If you’re going to undertake tertiary study, you’ll need to know about StudyAssist, the government program to finance tertiary education. http://studyassist.gov.au/sites/StudyAssist

AIE AIE will be running a free day of workshops on the 4th of October. Students will get the opportunity to learn about the different pathways to get into the industry, what should be in a portfolio and will be able to get creative in practical workshops using industry-standard 3D animation and game development tools. The event runs from 10.00 am – 3.00 pm and it is aimed towards students from Years 9-12. The URL for students to attend is aie.edu.au/ ied

AIE Open Day Saturday 18th November http://www.aie.edu.au/openday AIE Applications Open Applications are now open to study at AIE in 2018. http://www.aie.edu.au/StudentInformation/Applications

AIE Applications Open Applications are now open to study at AIE in 2018. http://www.aie.edu.au/StudentInformation/Applications

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Out of School Hours Care (OSHC) News It’s official …. We have just finished our first OSHC term at school and it has been a wonderful time filled with new experiences, new friends and lots of fun in our new space. Each day we meet and greet our OSHC friends with an acknowledgement to land, speaking our acknowledgement in the traditional kuarna language. We then share our news, listening to each other talk about the best things that have happened in their day or sharing celebrations in our Greek life at school. The art and craft activities continue to be focused on the suggestions and interests of the children. These included clay creations, papier mache, collage, paper folding and 3 D creations using dioramas, boxes and frames. These craft activities have been very hands on and involved children working together and helping one another. This is the last newsletter for Term 3 and we would like to send a reminder to dust off the school hats as all students will be required to wear one for outdoor sessions as part of our Sun Smart Policy. We will also be asking the children to take their drink bottles into the yard when they play each afternoon.

Our Vacation Care program commences on Tuesday October 3rd and finishes on Friday October 13th. Enrolment forms and the Vacation Care program were emailed to all St George College families on Monday afternoon. If your child would like to participate in the fun, please complete the forms and either email to [email protected] or deliver the hard copy to Reception on the Senior Campus. Natalie, George and I would like to wish you all a safe and happy holiday and we will see you when school resumes on Monday, October 16th.

Janice Copeland OSHC Coordinator

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Sports Day Friday 20th October Week 1, Term 4

SA Athletics Stadium

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T: 08 8159 8100 | E: [email protected] | W: www.sgc.sa.edu.au

ELC, Junior & Senior Campuses 54-75 Rose Street, Mile End SA 5031

Faith, Family, Forever Excelling