Year 12 Conference and Trent Lang Lecture

Last week the Year 12 students participated in the annual Year 12 conference. There was an extremely varied selection of presenters.
Mark Edmonds, former physiotherapist and teacher of severely disabled students spoke about his experiences. Many of the children he worked with had demonstrated particular qualities of courage, determination to succeed, willingness to learn, and sense of humour in learning to live life to the fullest extent possible in each individual’s circumstances. Students were encouraged to put their own problems and dramas into perspective by considering the challenges some people face daily. This linked very well with Peer power’s theme “Disaster or Master” in which students are encouraged to reflect on their attitude/response to certain difficulties that come along. You can look to try to find someone to blame, or who is at fault, or you can just get on and work with the circumstances as they prevail at the time.

There was a presentation from QUT regarding study options, and we also heard from Sophie Hood (Year 12, 2010) who spent 2011 taking a Gap year, involved in different employment situations overseas.

Barry Collis and his team from the RACQ presented a hard-hitting and very confronting Road Safety Docu-drama in which a car accident scene is re-enacted using student actors and involving attendance by the Police, Ambulance, lawyers, undertakers, and representatives of the Spinal Injuries Association. This was a quite confronting experience for some students, but if just one car accident involving one of our young people is prevented it will have been well worth the effort. Many thanks to Barry and his team, and also to our actors who performed challenging roles with distinction, and to Grant Connolly and Sandgate Wreckers for providing the vehicle. Some very positive feedback was received from the external presenters, regarding the attentiveness and level of engagement of our students.

Motivational speaker Eric Bailey presented a high-energy session with a very positive message about making the most of your opportunities, and Brett Lee spoke about the pitfalls of not managing carefully enough your digital footprint or electronic identity,
Thanks to the Association and the Auxiliary for their support in funding the program for this year.

Year 10 Camp
Also during the first week of this term, the annual Year 10 camp took place at a variety of venues in South East Queensland. The focus of activities at various locations included horse riding, canoeing, water activities, SCUBA, mountain biking, bushwalking and sailing. All camps also included various elements of outdoor education, planning and implementing of camp survival aspects, teamwork, co-operation, problem-solving and so on.
Older students and past students reflecting on their time at St Paul’s invariably list the year 10 camp as a highlight of their time at school. Mrs Wise and the large team of staff responsible for the various camps are to be congratulated for their ongoing commitment and energy.

Senior School Dance
The Senior School dance originally scheduled for 23 March will now be held on 27 April in the PE Centre. Tickets are $15 at the door. Information regarding theme, regulations etc have been published at school and on Assemblies in recent weeks. Security and police will be on hand to maintain supervision. The parents in the Auxiliary have been very busy organising this event, so it is hoped that Senior School students will support the event, come along, dress up and have lots of fun.

Congratulations
Andrew Brown (Year 12) has made the Queensland Under 19 volleyball team, with Ben Malyon (Year 12) being selected as a Shadow for this team. Well done to Andrew and Ben.
Robert Patterson (Year 11), won the State Championships for Men’s Artistic Gymnastics Level 7 Open. As a result he will now be representing Queensland at the National Titles. These will be in Sydney in late May. Best wishes at the National championships, Robert.

Important Dates
27 April – Senior School dance
15 June - Year 11 & 12 Exam block
16 June – Senior Formal
20, 21 June – Year 11 Leadership training days
4, 5 September – Year 12 QCST
6 September - Year 12 study day / Year 11 normal school
7- 14 September Year 11 & 12 Exam block
15 September – Year 11 semi-formal

Parent Help Needed: Some helpers are needed for the Senior School Dance, being held on Friday 27 April in the PE Centre. If any parents could help for an hour or two between 6.30pm and 10.00pm it would be greatly appreciated.

PEC, 6.30 -10.00pm, $15 entry. Please bring your ID.

Please contact Anne Jansen (Auxiliary Secretary); auxiliary@stpauls.qld.edu.au