Primary School News

Changing the Mindset

Much has been written about the benefits of having a positive outlook and changing the mindset to a more positive one. Whether it be a glass half full attitude, or perhaps an every cloud has a silver lining attitude, research has shown that there are benefits to being optimistic, from better mental and physical health to longer, more satisfying relationships.

One simple way that this is achievable is to adopt more of an “I get to” mindset, rather than an “I have to” one. I was introduced to this change in thinking recently by my wife who had been part of a seminar at her work where this was explored further. In the past, there have been many occasions where, I would catch myself saying ‘I have to….’ when speaking of daily routines or tasks that I had in front of me. Without even thinking, it would be a case of, “I have to go to the shops”, “I have to cook dinner”, or “I have to drop in and see Mum on the way home”. I was amazed at how many times I was using the “I have to” language each day. By changing my position to an “I get to” mindset, the positives in these ‘tasks’ is easy to reflect on. I realised that not everyone is able to visit the shops or have the opportunity to cook a meal for any number of reasons, and most certainly, not everyone gets the chance to visit family as part of their week. Instantly, the narrative changed to a more positive one. 

Being positive is essentially a skill and like all skills, we need to practice them if we hope to improve them. The more we practice being positive, the better we will get at it.  I intend to challenge the staff and boys to adopt an “I get to” mindset to see if it helps foster a more positive way of looking at the everyday.  I ask you all, as Primary parents, to encourage an “I get to” mindset with your sons. Especially at those times when they are not positive about school, schoolwork or helping out around home perhaps.

Thanks for all that you do, and I hope you have a great week.   

Boys Arriving Early

There are a number of boys who are arriving early to school so that they can play basketball on the secondary courts in the mornings. These boys are not involved in organised training as part of one of our AIC basketball teams so there is no adult supervision present for these students when they are out on the courts playing. Some of the boys are arriving around 7:00am in order to play for an hour. From a child safety perspective, I would like to discourage the boys from arriving early to play basketball as our teachers do not come on yard duty until 8:15am each day.

New Primary School Building

This is an exciting week for us in the Primary School as we watch our new building continue to grow before our eyes. A concrete pour for the floor of the top level will take place on Thursday morning. This will give us a good indication of the finished height of our new building and takes us another step closer to it being completed early next year.

Australian Mathematics Competition

This Thursday, selected boys will be participating in the Australian Mathematics Competition. This is a gentle reminder that Primary boys entered into this challenging opportunity will require a calculator and (if possible) an English dictionary to assist with their interpretation of questions. Whilst this competition is online, boys will also be expected to take along their pencil cases that include pencil and eraser for any additional working out required. Please note that participation in the Australian Mathematics Competition will replace their extension class for this week. 

Anthony Graham – Primary Pastoral Leader 

Trick-Shot Challenge

After much deliberation and watching over 50 entrances into the Trick-Shot Challenge competition we have been able to narrow it down to a Year 5 and a Year 6 winner. A special thank you to all boys that submitted their entries It was great to see boys engage in a challenge over their holiday break and get off their screens for an extended period of time. 

Year 5 Winner: Patrick Hambleton (Patrick did an MCA inspired marble run that included dominoes and had the marble eventually end up in his mouth!)

Year 6 Winner: Toby Russell (Toby had a marble run that started on the top of his stairs and ended up snaking its away down the handrails to the bottom level). 

Under 8s Thank You

We were lucky enough to receive this very lovely and handmade thank you card for the boys that volunteered their time at the St Joseph’s Bardon Under 8’s Day. It was a great day and made even more special when receiving this thoughtful card. A big thank you to St. Joseph’s for allowing our Marist boys to attend. 

Free Dress Day Change

A reminder that the Environmen Group Free Dress Day has been changed from this Friday to next Monday 7 August. Boys can either donate a gold coin using their ID card or can bring in staples (cooking salt, rolled oats, canned tomatoes, canned pulses – lentils + chickpeas). The donated goods are in support of FareShare which is a Brisbane company who uses surplus food (from farms, supermarkets, donated through OzHarvest etc.) to cook meals for vulnerable Queenslanders – around 2 million a year. 

Bookweek Wrap-up - Primary Library

Last week, The Primary Library celebrated Book Week with the theme “Read! Grow! Inspire!” The boys had a marvellous week with countless activities and an enormous dose of fun. 

Tristan Bancks was our visiting author, and he gave the boys a terrific insight into the story writing process. It is far more involved and time consuming than the boys had anticipated and included using music and photographs to invoke and stimulate creativity. Some fortunate boys had the opportunity to hone their skills and gain some insight into improving their writing from a celebrated author during the writing workshops. 

Our book fair was an enormous success with our sales topping previous years. We would like to thank everyone who supported us by purchasing books and merchandise. A generous percentage of the sales will convert into new books for our library. 

Our book week parade was a huge success as well with the boys dressing as their favourite book character. We had some incredibly creative costumes, and it was evident the boys had spent time and thought in developing their ideas. Thank you for supporting your son with this fantastic event.

Our celebration of Book Week 2023 was triumphant, and we feel gratified that we have stimulated and excited the boys in the marvellous world of books.

Primary School Sport

Mr John Lambourne - Head of Sport (Primary

Achievements

Congratulations to the following boys who have qualified to represent North West District (10-12 Years) Track and Field at the Met North Carnival to be held 22 – 23 August.

10 Years

Lucas Crowley

Combined Event (100m, 800m, Long Jump & Shot Put) – 2nd

Hugo Lockhart 

High Jump – 2nd

11 Years

Nick Bray

High Jump – 3rd

1500m – 3rd

Aidan Field 

Long Jump – 2nd

Declan Mulqueen

800m – 2nd

1500m – 2nd

Nathan Wright

100m – 4th

200m – 3rd

Long Jump – 1st

Shot Put – 3rd

Combined Event (100m, 800m, Long Jump & Shot Put) – 2nd

12 Years

Atticus Caesar

SP – 4th

Jimmy Corbett

200m – 4th

800m – 2nd

Aston James

High Jump – 3rd

Christian O’Reilly

Long Jump – 3rd 

Dermot Whitaker

Shot Put – 3rd

Basketball

Tennis

Year 6 / Year 5

Tuesday – Marist Tennis Centre – 6:45 – 8:15am

Wednesday – Marist Tennis Centre –3:30 – 5:00pm

Rugby League

Year 6

Thursday & Friday – Hayden Oval – 7:15 – 8:15am

Year 5

Tuesday – Hayden Oval – 3:30 – 4:45pm

Thursday – Hayden Oval – 7:15 – 8:15am

Track and Field

There are 4 AIC T&F meets scheduled at the end of Term 3.

• Thursday, August 24
• Wednesday, August 30
• Thursday, September 7
• Wednesday, September 17

AIC Championships – Thursday, 5 and Friday, 6 October – QSAC.

Track and Field Training

Sprints and Middle Distance

Monday and Wednesday – McMahon Oval – 3:30 – 4:45pm

Long Jump & Hurdles

Tuesday – Athletics Precinct – 6:45 – 8:00am

Shot Put

Friday – Hayden Oval – Break 1

Boys wishing to be considered for AIC selection should also be aware that there will be training and meets conducted over the Term 3 holidays.

College App

Please ensure that you download the College App. This app will be used weekly to inform you of sporting fixtures, cancellations, and bus arrival information.

Pick-up Arrangements - “Plan B”

It is important that you are aware of your son’s pick-up procedure if sports training is cancelled or if you are running late. As soon as a decision is made to cancel a sporting fixture or training, a message is placed on the College app.

If training is cancelled boys can remain in the primary school or walk to an arranged pick-up-point when the time arrives. Sport training sessions finish normally finish by 4:45pm. We ask that boys are picked up at this time, or soon after. Any boy who is still at their training venue at 5:00pm will be directed to the Boarding Reception area so that he may be collected from there. In the case of bus arrivals, boys will be sent to Boarding Reception 15 minutes after the arrival time of the bus.

Sports Photographs

We are always on the lookout for photos and action shots to be used for the Blue & Gold, other College publications, season or end-of-year wrap-ups etc. Please follow this link and add your photos - Marist College Ashgrove Primary Sports Photos.