Term 2 Week 8 - 2024

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Term 2, Week 8

FROM THE PRINCIPAL


A Heartfelt Thank You

For the last 27 and a half years, I have had the absolute privilege of being the inaugural Principal of Cedar College.

I am one of the blessed people who have always loved coming to work each day and feel very fortunate to have led a school that is so easy to be proud of. Cedar College has become part of my DNA, but now I am writing to say thank you and farewell, as next Friday (28th of June) will be my last day. Whilst it will be extremely difficult for me to leave Cedar, the time is also right for me to enjoy my retirement.

I have been so incredibly proud to be the Principal of Cedar College. I have taken great pleasure in seeing hundreds of children develop and flourish as confident, successful young people, and I am very proud of the part I have played in making Cedar the outstanding and thriving school that is today. It has been a great privilege, but the time is now right for someone else to take over the reins and lead the school forward in its next exciting chapter.

Exciting Days Ahead

I am confident that Cedar College will have a successful future under the leadership of our new Principal, who will be supported by a very strong Leadership Team and an amazing staff who are passionate about improving the education and spiritual wellbeing of our young people.

We are not a Christian School simply because we have devotions each morning, provide mission trips, conduct weekly chapels, offer community service experiences, or have Christian Living lessons for all students. Yes, we do all of that, but we are a Christian School because God is at the centre of everything that we do. And that makes us different in this community, and that’s a difference that matters!

Cedar College will always be a special place for me, and I wish our new Principal and staff every success for the future. I can assure you that Cedar will continue to provide a safe and high standard of education that you, as parents and caregivers, would expect from us.

Around the Campus

In this edition of CedarNews, we take to the stage for some High School Drama performances, marvel at creativity in the Primary School, find out what our Year 7 students learned at our State Parliament, explore some High School Engineering and Scientific Studies tasks, try the Year 10 retro-cakes, and read the latest sports news.

 


Mr Peter Thomson, Principal


Mr Thomson with the Year 12 Head Prefects this week.

December 2024

Saturday December 14Sunday January 26

SCHOOL HOLIDAYS

Tuesday December 24

Christmas Eve

Wednesday December 25

Christmas Day Public Holiday

Tuesday December 31

New Year's Eve

January 2025

Wednesday January 1

New Year's Day Public Holiday

Thursday January 16

8:00 am – 4:00 pm
Get Ready Day!

Sunday January 26

Australia Day
Week 1 >>

Monday January 27

Australia Day Public Holiday
STUDENT FREE DAY

Tuesday January 28

Students return for Term 1

Friday January 31

New Student ID Photos
Drama

Setting the Stage

Spotlight on Year 7,9 and 10 Drama students, as they take to the stage.

Read the story...
Zoo

Wild About Learning

There was so much to see and learn as our Recetion students explored the Zoo.

Read the story...
Engineering

Bridging the Future

Engineering students tackle the secrets of strong bridge design.

Read the story...
Cakes

Retro Replicake

Year 10 Food and Hospitality students put modern spin on classic cakes.

Read the story...

The Front Page

Setting the Stage

The High School Drama space, known as “The Void”, has been abuzz with performances over the last week.

Dramatic Issues

The Year 9 and 10 Drama classes performed on Tuesday 11th June, to an audience of family and friends.

Week 8 News and Notices

Last Day of Term 2

Please note that Friday June 28 is the final day for Term 2. Primary School students finish at 3:15pm, High School students finish at 3:20pm.


First Day of Term 3

All students return for Term 3 on Tuesday July 23. Monday July 22 is a Student Free Day, as our teaching staff attend the Christian Schools Australia State Conference on this day.


Canteen – Week 9

Please note that Canteen lunch orders will not be available on the last day of Term 2, Friday June 28. The Canteen will be open for snack purchases only on this day.


Uniform Shop

Please note that due to the introduction of the new Cedar College uniform in 2025, some items and sizes are no longer available. The changeover period, between 2025-2026, will allow both old and new uniform to be worn.


Primary School Run4Fun

The Primary School Run4Fun will be held on the final day of Term 2, Friday June 28.

Students are required to wear their PE Uniform, with their House Team T-shirt. If your child requires a T-shirt, please order this through the Qkr! App under the School Payments menu. Sponsorship forms need to be filled in and returned to the Primary School Office, along with any money collected, by Friday July 26 (Term 3, Week 1). Sponsorship payments may also be made through the Qkr! App, under the Run4Fun menu. All funds raised will go towards upgrading play areas around the Primary School.


School Dental Van

We are excited to offer all Primary School students at Cedar College access to an onsite dental check-up through the Australian Dental Foundation. All students will be eligible for a free check-up under the Child Dental Benefit Scheme, which may include an Exam, Clean, Fluoride, X-rays, and treatment, at no out-of-pocket cost.

The service is booked for Term 3 Week 4, Monday 12th – Friday 16th August. Parents will be able to attend the allocated appointment time with their child if desired. If you would like take up the opportunity for your child to participate, consent form packs will be sent home by the end of term 2.

If you have any further questions, please feel free to contact us via email: [email protected]

Simone Thomson and Lorelei Sparks, Cedar College School Nurses.


School Photos – Term 3

Parents and caregivers have been sent an email regarding the procedure for school photo ordering. Please note that our school photos are scheduled for Week 3 of Term 3, on Friday, August 9. A further email from our school photographers, MSP, will be sent directly to parents and caregivers containing a unique ordering key and details. This email should be received before the end of term.

Sports team photos, and absentee photos, will take place the following week, on Tuesday, August 13. Information regarding sports teams will be sent to those involved early in Term 3.


Nationally Consistent Collection of Data

Every year, all schools in Australia participate in the Nationally Consistent Collection of Data on School Students with Disability (NCCD). The NCCD process requires schools to identify information already available in the school about supports provided to students with disability. These relate to legislative requirements under the Disability Discrimination Act 1992 and the Disability Standards for Education 2005, in line with the NCCD guidelines (2019).

The NCCD provides state and federal governments with the information they need to plan more broadly for the support of students with disability. All information is protected by privacy laws that regulate the collection, storage and disclosure of personal information. Further information about the NCCD can be found here. If you have any questions about the NCCD, please contact Mrs Sandie Gardner at Cedar.


Entertainment Book

Cedar College has a fundraising link for purchasing the Entertainment Book. If you are looking at purchasing an Entertainment Membership, part proceeds contribute to our fundraising if you purchase via our fundraising page.

For a limited time, subscribers can grab any Single City Entertainment Membership and get a FREE upgrade to a Multi City Membership! Plus, receive a $20 bonus eGift Card! You can help us achieve our fundraising goal by sharing this link with your friends and family. Thanks for your support!


School Holiday Come & Try

Port Adelaide Enfield Council, in partnership with Port Adelaide Plaza, are conducting the Port Plaza Sports Expo during the upcoming July school holidays. A range of different community sporting clubs/organisations will be delivering free ‘Come & Try’ sporting activity sessions each day over the two-week period (schedule attached) in an enclosed netting area to visitors and children within the plaza.

CityReach News

Sunday June 23, 10am

You are warmly invited to CityReach Oakden to celebrate God’s gracious provision of our new lead & teaching pastor, Lyndon Beasy, and his wife, Janine. Pastor Lyndon’s commissioning service will be on Sunday 23rd June at 10am.

Christmas in July Movie Night

Cedar families are invited to join the CityReach Movie Night, on Saturday 13th July at 5pm, in the Main Auditorium for a fun evening of fellowship, food, and a cosy movie.

Pizza, popcorn, hot drinks, and soft drinks are all provided for just $5 per person and children 0-2 are free. There are prizes to be won for those dressed in their best Christmas PJs or Christmas outfit or sweater! Be sure to bring a bean bag or blanket if you wish and register online. Book your tickets by Thursday July 11 to be sure you don’t miss out.

Calendar Information

TERM DATES 

Term 2, 2024 – Tue 30 April – Fri 28 June


Three-week break between Terms 2 and 3


Term 3, 2024 – Tue 23 July – Fri 27 September


Term 4, 2024 – Tue 15 October – Wed 11 December


Term 1, 2025 – Tue 28 January – Fri 11 April


UNIFORM SHOP

Regular opening hours during term:

Monday 8:30am – 4:30pm

Wednesday 3pm – 5:30pm


Thursday extended opening hours:


TERM 1 – Weeks 1 – 6, 3pm – 5.30pm

TERM 2 – Weeks 1 – 3, 3pm – 5.30pm

TERM 4 – Weeks 1 – 3, 3pm – 5.30pm

PRIMARY ASSEMBLY

Our Primary School Chapels and Assemblies are held on Fridays at 8:50am. 


Assemblies can be attended by invitation from the involved classes, and parents/caregivers are welcome to attend our fortnightly Chapels.


Parents/caregivers are able to sit in the allocated chairs at the back of the Auditorium.

Primary School News

Wild About Learning

The Reception classes enjoyed an excursion to the Adelaide Zoo in Week 7. We were blessed with clear weather, avoiding the rain entirely.

The excitement began the moment we boarded the bus, and the day was filled with fun and discovery as we explored the zoo and saw a wide variety of animals.

Tails and Tales

The children asked many interesting and thoughtful questions throughout the day, linking to our inquiry unit on “Where do animals belong?”. They particularly enjoyed the animal scavenger hunt, eagerly discussing their favourite animals with each other. A highlight was our Literacy Tales session, when a zookeeper read the book ‘Pink Tongue, Blue Tongue’. We learned all about lizards and their habitats and then worked as a team to create an enclosure for a real blue tongue lizard.

The Zoo staff complimented our students on their excellent behaviour and respectful listening, which made us incredibly proud. Their exemplary conduct and enthusiasm contributed greatly to the success of the day.

Overall, the excursion to the Adelaide Zoo was a memorable experience that enriched our students’ understanding of some of the amazing animals that God has created. We are grateful to the parents and staff who made this excursion possible and look forward to more exciting learning adventures in the future.

 


Miss Justine Gallasch, Reception Teacher


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Developing Photography Skills

This term, our Year 5s have explored the exciting art of photography.

Over a number of weeks in Term 2, students have been learning a range of photography techniques and skills. Equipped with iPads, students ventured around the campus to capture some amazing and artistic photos.

The Year 5s were guided in their task by considering the categories of 𝘓𝘰𝘵𝘴 𝘰𝘧 𝘓𝘪𝘯𝘦𝘴, 𝘍𝘦𝘦𝘭 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘛𝘦𝘹𝘵𝘶𝘳𝘦, 𝘗𝘰𝘪𝘯𝘵 𝘰𝘧 𝘝𝘪𝘦𝘸, and 𝘙𝘢𝘪𝘯𝘣𝘰𝘸 𝘰𝘧 𝘊𝘰𝘭𝘰𝘶𝘳. With many opportunities and spaces to explore, students collected a wide range of photos!

The final step was to select and edit the photos, to make their final composition look its very best, and the results were amazing! After printing out the final photos, they are currently on display in the student foyer near the Cedar Health Centre for everyone to admire and enjoy.


Miss Johannah Petrie, Upper Primary Library Teacher


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Sports News

Interschool Competitions

This year we have had a focus on state-wide knock-out competitions, which is a part of the interschool high performance program, and this had a strong focus on training and development of teams over full-length games.

SW Netball & Basketball

Earlier this term, both our Year 7/8 basketball girls and boys teams make it through the initial rounds to the finals, coming in Week 9. A highlight was the 7/8 boys second round against Modbury, with the boys winning by just one point in the final seconds of a game after Kade made a spectacular 3-point shot. The Year 11/12 boys basketball team were dominant in their first round and will progress to the finals in Term 3. This same group won the State title in 2022, so we have high hopes for the finals.

The Year 11/12 Girls played a solid Round 1, but unfortunately with some key players unwell couldn’t hold on to the lead in the final game. Our Year 9/10 Girls, Year 5/6 Boys and Year 5/6 Girls won all three of their first games in Round 1 to move onto Round 2, which is held next term.

Cross Country

Congratulations to all our runners who participated in SACSA and State cross country this year. Unfortunately, due to Year 6 camp, quite a few athletes that would normally qualify for State were unable to attend. Tyler A, Zoe S, Sienna F, Sofia J, Alex V and Liam A all represented Cedar at State Cross Country and ran well.

SACSA Soccer

Students from Year 3-8 participated in the annual SACSA Soccer carnival last week. A huge thank you to Mr Lochie Jackman for selecting and training the teams in PE, and also during morning and lunch trainings. A huge highlight from the week was the Year 3/4 day where the boys finished equal top with Bethany in a nail-biting draw. An excellent game plan saw Cedar use a brilliant defence to leave a dominate Bethany side scoreless, after coming from an 11-0 win the previous game. Well done to all students who participated in the carnival and thank you to our staff for coaching.

 


Mrs Bek Robinson, Sports Coordinator Year 3-12


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After School Sports

The summer season for After-School Sport saw 14 basketball teams and 4 netball teams competing each weekend, and representing Cedar College.

Basketball

Over 120 students have given their best, whether in training or in the game, and have produced some excellent results.

The Cedar Cobras, coached by Cedar student, Jaden, went on to win their Grand Final in the U12 Div 3 competition. All the boys have grown as a team over the last few seasons, and we’re proud of their achievement this summer. Well done Cobras!

Cedar College relies on the generous time and commitment from our parent volunteer coaches and team managers. Without them, we wouldn’t be able to keep growing our after-school program. We thank them for their support!

If your child is interested in playing in an After-School team, please contact Michelle Green for further information at [email protected].

Middle School News

Engineering Foundations

Recently, the Year 9 Engineering foundation students were given a STEM challenge: to build a bridge from 150 pop sticks using only glue. The bridge had to span a distance of 40 cm and could not be wider than a single pop stick.

Each bridge was to be judged on its strength-to-weight ratio by placing weights on top of the bridge until it reached breaking point. This challenge is a brilliant tool for teaching students how Civil Engineering structures work, making learning fun and intuitive, and discovering how engineering concepts are used in real life. By making the learning rewarding and competitive, Cedar students were more willing to push the boundaries to achieve higher results.

Stress Test

Students grasped the concept of a basic truss and then spent time studying existing bridge designs. They used the Engineering Design Process to design their own bridges and sketch their truss concepts, before commencing construction. Once the bridges were completed, students used gym weights to test the strength of their bridges. They placed their bridges across two tables 40 cm apart, and carefully loaded them with weights, until they reached breaking point. Finally, the strength-to-weight ratio formula was used to determine the strongest bridge. The team with the best ratio was James and Tayte. Their bridge held an impressive weight of 43 kg without breaking (and then we ran out of weights). Two bridges stood up to the challenge of 40.5kg before breaking.

Students quickly learned the following: Practice will make you better. Measure twice and cut once. Don’t use too much glue. Keep your hands glue-free. Lateral bridge twists can be prevented with lateral bracing. Shorter sticks have stronger compression strength.

 


Mr Herman du Preez, High School Science Teacher


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Parliamentary Debate

On June 17, the Year 7E Humanities class, along with their teacher, Mr Hrvatin, were given a guided tour of State Parliament on North Terrace.

After getting a brief history of the building, the students were allowed to sit in the lower house chamber and take part in a mock debate. The chosen topic was the highly controversial question of “McDonald’s or KFC – which is better?”. Things got heated as members of the class debated the issue until a vote was taken and McDonald’s was triumphant!

Upper House, Lower House

It was then on to the Upper House for a look at how the process of Parliament works. The students were joined at this stage by the Hon. Emily Bourke (MLC) who spoke to the class about the differences between the two Houses of Parliament and the history of some procedures that take place – such as how the newly elected speaker of the Lower House is “dragged” to the chair because around 400 years ago nobody wanted the job as they often angered the king and faced severe punishment.

The students asked many wonderful questions about how to get involved in politics and how certain things happened during a sitting day. They also asked Ms Bourke how she got into politics and what it takes to become a member of the Upper House.

A big thank you to the office of Andrea Michaels MP, whose staff helped to organise the excursion and who took care of the students during the tour, and to Mr Reg Thompson for helping supervise the excursion.

 


Mr Rodney Hrvatin, High School Teacher


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Senior School News

Testing the Waters

One of the Science streams offered at Cedar College is our Scientific Studies course, incorporating a wide range of science concepts with a hands-on approach.

Recently, our Year 12 Scientific Studies class had the opportunity to dive into an investigation of the health of the pond at the nearby Northgate Reserve.

Together, students are testing various factors such as temperature, pH, and dissolved oxygen levels, and experimenting with ways to enhance the pond environment for the benefit of all the organisms living in and around it.

 


Mrs Emma Shaw, High School Teacher


Retro Replicake

The Year 10 Food and Hospitality class recently completed their Women’s Weekly Children’s Birthday Cake Assignment.

Students began the task by looking through the famous cake recipe book and then chose their favourite cake to replicate. They are able to add their own design flair to the colours or decorations used, but their aim is to replicate the original as closely as possible. Once they have chosen their cake, students bake the vanilla cake in one double lesson, then shape and decorate in another double lesson. Students often have to problem-solve, as some of the recipes require 2-3 cakes, which means creating a smaller template to cut their design out of a single cake. Other obstacles included how to get the perfect colours of buttercream and how to ensure the buttercream is applied smoothly and evenly over the cake.

It is always a fun task, where students show their creativity as they use their own favourite lollies and decorations to recreate the original inspiration. For most students, it is also their first experience using buttercream and often proves to be not as easy as the professionals make it look!

 


Mrs Caitlin Lorenz, Food & Hospitality Key Teacher


Contact Cedar College

School Office: 08 8261 3377

School Address: 215-233 Fosters Rd Northgate, South Australia 5085.

Enrolment

If you'd like further details about enrolling your child at Cedar College please contact the Enrolment Office via our Enrolment page.

About Cedar College

Cedar College is a Reception to Year 12 co-educational independent Christian School, in the growing suburb of Northgate, South Australia.

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