Captain's Corner 

Interhouse Thinker's Challenge

In Week 4 and 5 all Year 6 to 12 students participated in two rounds of the Interhouse Thinker’s Challenge. This consisted of topic-based and puzzle/riddle Kahoots. There was a lot of friendly competition as Houses battled their way onto the leaderboard. While Ashburn 1 and Gibson 3 both took winning places, it was Henderson who took the overall win. The final placings are below:

1. Henderson - 280
2. Ashburn - 244 
3. Campbell - 209
4. Gibson - 204
5. Youngman - 202
6. Radcliffe - 184

Exam and Assessment Tips

On another note, with exams and assessments just round the corner, here are some tips that we hope you will find useful:

1. Plan ahead – to avoid stressing the night before an exam/assignment, ensure you make enough time to start studying in advance. This can include preparing a study schedule, reducing availability at work and not over-committing to co-curricular activities.

2. Take breaks – our ability to concentrate and maintain attention has limits. After a certain period of focused study, attention tends to wane, leading to decreased comprehension and retention. Taking breaks allows your brain to rest and reset, making it easier to return to your studies with renewed focus. Also, during breaks, your brain continues to process and consolidate the information you've learned, which helps improve your long-term retention of the material. In fact, the brain's consolidation process often occurs during periods of rest, making breaks an integral part of the learning process.

3. Reduce distractions – when your mind isn't constantly shifting between tasks, you can engage in deeper and more thoughtful learning. This is particularly important for subjects that require critical thinking, problem-solving and analysis. Additionally, distractions can lead to procrastination, which results in less efficient use of your study time. Minimising distractions helps you stay on track and accomplish more in less time.

4. Find your effective study methods – not everyone learns the same way, so find what works for you. Different types of learners include auditory, kinaesthetic, visual and reading/writing. If you’re not sure what suits you, start with visual learning techniques as the majority of people are visual learners.

5. Leave time for the things you enjoy – engaging in activities you enjoy helps to reduce stress and anxiety. Study-related stress can hinder your ability to concentrate and retain information. As well as this, knowing that you have something enjoyable to look forward to can act as a powerful motivator. When you have a reward waiting for you after a study session, you're more likely to stay engaged and motivated during your study time.

Additionally, tutorials are still on and the schedule can be found on the College App or on Student Café. Your teachers are there to help you! The peer mentoring program is also still running. If you would like to be a part of this program, either as a mentor or mentee, please reach out to us.