A Belated Welcome to the Start of Term 2!

It has been wonderful to recommence classes and to look ahead to an array of co-curricular events taking place over the coming weeks. With further easing of COVID restrictions, we look forward to inviting parents on campus once again.

As winter approaches and flu season sets in, below you’ll find a reminder of the latest guidelines of what to do if you are a household contact of someone who tests positive to Covid-19.

- Rapid antigen testing should take place each morning before school
- Wear a facemask indoors (unless granted an exemption)
- Isolate if showing any symptoms
- Practise good personal hygiene.

Upcoming Dates For Your Diary

10 to 13 May: NAPLAN tests for Years 7 and 9
14 May: Year 12 Formal
16 to 20 May: Year 9 City Experience
16 to 20 May: National Careers Week
24 May: Subject Selection Expo

Sport at CGS

The first round of SIS competition began last week and our students have been enthusiastically involved.

During our Week 2 Assembly, we revealed the age group champions, runners up and record breakers from our House Athletics Carnival. As you can see below, competition was so close that the winning House was only determined in the final relay race of the day. Congratulations to Reid House and to all who competed.

1^st: Reid (1,300 points)

2^nd: Booth (1,286 points)

3^rd: Leaver (1,110 points)

4: Trist (1,039 points)

The most successful athletes, including those who raced at last week’s House Cross Country, will be offered a place on the SIS team to compete against other schools. Last Thursday, our SIS Swimming Team managed a clean sweep in the pool, winning by over 100 points. Congratulations to our Division B Champions!

Environmental Initiatives

During the first week of the holidays, a group of Year 11 and 12 students participated in Clean Up Australia Day and cleared litter from the disused trainline at the back fence of the school. Multiple bags of rubbish were collected and sorted into recyclable items and landfill and then disposed of.

Our 2022 Environment Captain spoke during assembly about ways that we can be involved in caring for the environment. Small steps will lead to big changes and initially the focus will be on improving paper recycling at school and establishing a collection point for battery recycling. Students will soon be invited to join the Environment Committee to put further initiatives in place this year.

Studio Arts @NGV

On Tuesday, 19 April, Year 12 enjoyed an excursion to 2021 Top Arts and the Chanel Exhibition. Here, Keely M describes the trip:

Although it was a very dreary and miserable day, the sights and experiences were not. Myself, along with most of the Year 12 Studio Arts class and a couple of Year 11 students, went to see the Top Arts Exhibition at the Ian Potter Centre and it was spectacular, to say the least. It was interesting to see what other students had worked on for their finals, especially the planning put into creating their work. The meaning and aesthetic qualities that the artist wanted to convey shone through.

I was mesmerised by what some of the students had created and awestruck at how such complex ideas and meanings could be so simply put down in a painting, drawing, sculpture or a wordless short film. After looking at some folios, I have gained inspiration as to how to get my own folio to the same standard, and I have gained a larger appreciation for the works on display.

Following Top Arts, we walked through the rain to the NGV to see the Chanel Exhibition. It was all about Chanel's life and how she became the fashion icon that she is today, even after death. Going through the small corridors where her work was on display, usually behind glass, it was enthralling to see the minimalism and simplicity of her dress designs that still had an elegant and regal look to them, as did the rather bulky jewellery. Although I've never been too into fashion, it was intriguing to learn about a designer's process. I took a lot of inspiration home with me to hopefully include in future illustrations.

This was an experience I'll be sure to remember for a long time.

Changes to Dandenong Campion Store

As of Friday, 29 April, Campion’s Dandenong South store closed for walk-in purchases, but it remains open for Click & Collect during May and June.

Parents can order online for Click & Collect or delivery via www.campion.com.au

A new store in Hallam will open in July with the specific date to be confirmed.

A full list of Campion stores can be located at www.campion.com.au/parents/store-locations/

If you have any questions, please contact Campion via https://www.campion.com.au/contact/ or call 1300 433 982.

Big Thanks From the PFC

The Parents and Friends Committee (PFC) would like to thank Chandima and Sue, and Year 12 student, Lachlan, for their assistance with the Senior School Athletics Sausage Sizzle.

Thanks also to Sue and Tamara for their help with the Mother’s Day stall.

Secondhand Uniforms

The PFC Secondhand Uniform Shop is reopening soon!

Opening days: Tuesday, 17 May, Friday, 27 May, Tuesday 7 June, Friday 24 June

Opening hours: 8.00 am – 8.45 am

Please check the link on the website for details of what items are available.

Book Fair

As the weather gets colder and wetter, there’s nothing better than curling up with a good book! It is a great activity to do independently or to share with a loved one. The presence of books in the home has been proven to have many benefits to student’s learning and academic success.

The Library loves to share its resources, allowing students to borrow books to share with their family. Sometimes children may want to own the books and purchasing books that a child can read repeatedly can spark their creativity, imagination, pride in their collection and continue their love of reading. This is why we run Book Fair.

This year’s Book Fair theme is ‘Dive into Reading’ . Students are already excited and sea creatures and beach displays are slowly appearing around the school.

Book Fair will run from Friday, 13 May until Friday, 20 May.

Junior School classes will have an allocated time to visit and see all the books on offer. Senior School students will be able to attend before and after school to avoid interruptions to their classes.

All students will create a ‘wish list’ of books they’d like to buy. Families are then able to use the details provided to log in to Scholastic Book Fair and purchase from their child’s wish list.

Once payment is made, families fill in their details and invoice number on the wish list, clearly indicating what they have bought, and their child returns the wish list to the library no later than Friday 20 May. Some children may be able to get their books straight away and others have to be ordered. Once the books are received by the school, your child will be able to take them home.

Due to COVID restrictions, we will not be processing payments on site and all orders must be made online. However, we are always happy to help and you can contact the school via email or phone and we will guide you through the online purchasing process. Money raised through the Book Fair will help the school increase the selection of books available to our students.

We know that spoiling our children with books to keep is not always an option so these books could be used as birthday or Christmas gifts or students could use pocket money. Students are reminded that they may not be able to get some or all of the books on their wish list and that they can continue to borrow books from the library anytime.

Diana Thompson

Head of the Joan Reid Learning Center

Robotics and AI Excursion

Year 10 student, Katerina M, has shared some highlights from the recent Robotics and AI Excursion to Box Hill TAFE.

During Term 1, myself and five other Year 10 students — Naheed J, Justin T, Jay R, Alice H and Ebony B — attended a conference on Robotics and Aritificial Intelligence at Box Hill TAFE campus in Lilydale.

The day revolved around the development of robotics and science. We started the day by observing some amazing innovative products from well-known brands. We even got to play with a few of the robots and machines which was very exciting, given we all have an immense interest in science and technological products.

Additionally, we spoke to the companies about future innovations and we were able to explore the robot technologies on offer at Yarra Ranges Tech School. An awesome competition followed this exhibit and Casey Grammar competed against four other schools.

We had 10 to 15 minutes to quickly program one of the robots to complete a course plan – we had to program the robot to manoeuvre through six cones and program it to do some tricks without hitting the cones. This seemed challenging at first as we’d never used that specific software before. However, we worked as an incredible team and successfully got our robot through the obstacle course and added some cool light and aesthetic tricks as well.

Our effort and teamwork was rewarded when we won the competition! As Ebony stated, we are ‘One in the Spirit’ which is our school motto and that comment made us all laugh. We represented Casey Grammar School with pride and excellence and we were determined to work as a team to achieve our goal and win!

We congratulated all the other teams and would all like to thank Mr Selfridge for making this day possible. Katerina M

Kylie Rose

Head of Science

Year 7 Camp

Year 7 students recently attended camp at Iluka Retreat and have shared some highlights:

The year seven Camp of 2022 was like no other. This was an opportunity for all Year 7s to gain confidence, master independence and make new friends. These useful skills would be very important for our future nerve-racking and anxiety-filled years of high school!

Camp definitely changed our lives in the most remarkable way. I personally felt like I was a different person with each challenge we faced and each skill we mastered. I found a new version of myself — a more confident and outgoing person. I sincerely hope to see more of this new person in my future years of high school. At camp we were able to gain trust and reliance, create friendships and bonds and make many marvellous memories. I can’t wait to face any upcoming challenges with the handy skills I equipped myself. Advita D 7B

Going to Year 7 camp, I had mixed emotions. Going with a new class and knowing only a fraction of people, to me, was scary. We did a lot of activities that really pushed me out of my comfort zone. The entire purpose of the camp was to get to know each other and I would say that the camp achieved that. We all worked together to complete certain activities and teamwork was a big part of the experience. I enjoyed almost everything at camp and would say I now know a lot more people than before. Altogether, camp was a positive experience for me. I have new friendships and have gotten to know people on a deeper level. Arpita A 7B

The Year 7 Iluka Retreat camp was an unforgettable experience. What made it different from other camps was the level of challenge the students had to face in activities and in the accommodation. Despite the challenges, we still all managed to have a lot of fun!

During the camp, we got to do all sorts of fun outdoor activities to improve our strength and independence. The majority of students had two favourite activities — kayaking and a challenge course. During the kayaking, you had to pair up with another person and learn how to steer and move your kayak. It was a really fun activity and we all enjoyed it a lot. For the challenge course, each group had to go through a set of obstacles while working together as a team. Although there were some struggles, like the ridiculous amount of push ups, we all still managed to make it through and finish the course. Team 4 had the fastest time but everyone did a fantastic job at the challenge course!

Overall, this is a camp that we recommend to all! We had a great time and everyone wishes they could go again. A big thank you to the teachers and to the Out Beyond staff for keeping us safe and making sure that we were happy throughout the camp. Sophie B 7A

Ben Peake

Head of Year 7

SIS Swimming Carnival

Bright and early on Wednesday, 4 May, selected students in the Casey Grammar Swim Team headed to MSAC in Albert Park for the SIS Swimming Carnival.

Students were a little nervous about the prospect of competing against other SIS affiliated schools, but they need not have been! All students swam to the best of their ability and I could not have been prouder of their efforts.

Casey Grammar placed in an astonishing 70 swims out of 84, resulting in us becoming the SIS Division B champions!

The team’s outstanding achievements included placing first in the following events: