A Symphony of Stories
Last week I had the privilege of attending a professional learning course on Human-Centred Leadership. At its heart, the course posed a simple but powerful challenge: to deal with every person, whether a student, a staff member or a parent, and every situation, on its own merit, and to genuinely try to understand the other person's perspective before responding to it.
To help embed this practice, we were introduced to a simple framework: SLOW.
- Stop. Give your full attention. Pause, observe, and acknowledge with compassion.
- Listen with no judgement.
- Open your heart and mind and remove the armour. Pay attention inwardly.
- Wisdom. Ask why this is happening.
It is a practice I see play out in our Middle School every single day.
Every Day, A Symphony of Stories
This year's Book Week theme, A Symphony of Stories, could not describe our Middle School more fittingly. On any given day, our staff are moving through dozens of individual stories, academic, social and emotional, each one deserving its own attention and care. A student who is quiet in class might be carrying something heavy from home. A disagreement between two friends at lunch might be the surface of something that started weeks ago. A moment of frustration in a lesson might be a young person still learning how to manage a big feeling. Stopping, listening, opening and asking why gives our staff a compassionate and kind way to meet each of these stories as they arise.
Structures Built on Compassion
This human-centred approach does not happen by chance. It is supported by structures we have deliberately built into the fabric of Middle School life: our structured pastoral care and mentoring program, delivered through our vertical house system, and our proactive programs in respectful relationships and digital citizenship. These structures exist because we know that strong learning comes from a young person feeling safe, seen and supported. Our hope, always, is to positively impact the wellbeing and educational outcomes of every young person in our care.
Restorative Practice
This same approach shapes how we respond when a student's behaviour results in a consequence. Rather than a consequence simply being handed down, our staff sit with the student and work through it together, guided by a restorative conversation:
- What happened?
- What part did you play, and what could you have done differently?
- Who was affected, and how might they have felt?
- My plan for next time.
This conversation asks a student to take ownership of their actions, consider the experience of others, and think forward, rather than simply accepting a consequence and moving on. It is SLOW in practice: stopping to understand before responding and helping a young person find their own wisdom in why something happened and what they will do differently next time.
Book Week Parade
It was wonderful to see so many students and staff embrace this year's theme and dress up for the Middle School Book Parade in The Collect. Thank you to everyone who took part and helped bring our own Symphony of Stories to life.
House Cross Country
This week also saw our Year 7 & 8 students take on the House Cross Country. Students were encouraged to run the course to earn points for their respective Houses, another example of our vertical house system in action, bringing students together across year groups in healthy competition and team spirit.
Year 7 2027 Information Night
For families who are new to our school community, this event marks the beginning of a partnership between home and school that will span the next six years. For our current students and their families, it is an opportunity to further strengthen that partnership, to ensure your child continues to receive the very best care, support, guidance and encouragement as they embark on their secondary school journey.
Resilient Youth Survey
This week, our students were also invited to complete the Resilient Youth Survey. The survey is completely anonymous, and no individual student can be identified from their responses. It collects self-reported data on students' resilience, mental health and wellbeing, and will provide us with valuable information to help support key strengths and address challenges across our community.
Congratulations, Tournament of Minds!
Finally, a huge congratulations to our Tournament of Minds team, Wren Plews, Liliana Fenwick, Jim Haynes, Mia Bowring, Zara Hill, Emily Miles and Amelia Ritterman, along with their mentors Ms Melanie Flower and Ms Cynthia Young, for progressing to the state final. Tournament of Minds is an academic competition focused on collaborative problem solving and critical thinking. The team will compete in the state final on Sunday 13 September, and we could not be prouder of what they have already achieved.
Every one of these moments- a parade, a survey, a competition, a quiet conversation in a corridor- is part of the same symphony. Thank you for the part you play in it, as partners in the care, growth and wellbeing of your children.
Upcoming Events
Friday 28 August, all day - Staff Professional Learning Day – Student-free day
Wednesday 2 September, 9:00am - 12:00pm - Year 5 Dream City Incursion
Wednesday 2 September, 2:20pm - MS Assembly
Friday 4 September, 12:00pm - 3:00pm - Fathers’ Day Stall
Monday 7 September, all day - Spring Concert Dress Rehearsal
Monday 7 September 6:00pm-9:00pm - Spring Concert, The Union Theatre Wonthaggi
Thursday 10 September - SEISA Cross Country
Friday 11 September, 9:30am - 2:00pm - Year 4-6 Division Athletics Casey Fields TBC
Monday 14 September, 9:30am - 2:00pm - Year 5/6 Basketball
Tuesday 15 September to Fri 18 September - Year 6 Camp, Coolamatong Lake Camp
Friday 18 September - Last Day of Term 3 - 2.20pm finish
Ralph Arceo
Head of Middle School
Symphony of Stories - Book Week Parade
It was wonderful to see so many of our Year 5-8 students and Middle School teachers dress up in the spirit of Book Week. The parade was expertly hosted by Middle School Captains, Ivy Addison and Annabelle Fallu.
Middle School HAS featured at the GTAV Conference
On Friday 14 August three of Middle School teachers, Melanie Flower, Steven Scott and Cynthia Young, presented at the Geography Teachers Association of Victoria (GTAV) Conference. We were invited by GTAV to write an article for the quarterly newsletter, and then the request came for us to speak about the innovative Humanities and Science (HAS) class running in Middle School. This interest from the peak body representing Geography teachers in Victoria was a real endorsement of what we are doing with HAS.
Three years ago Mrs Milkins-Hendry approached a small team of Humanities and Science specialists and asked if we could put together a ‘super-subject’ that seamlessly combined the curriculum of Science and Humanities. Thanks to some planning time, collaboration and creative thinking, our Middle School students are now studying a subject that three years ago did not exist in its current form.
The interest from teachers attending the conference was high, and there were a lot of questions and great discussions about how this could be implemented in other schools. Several teachers from schools across Victoria (including some quite elite Melbourne schools) expressed an interest in coming to Newhaven College for a day to observe the HAS classes in action. We were delighted by the reception our presentation received.
It is satisfying to know that something we have invested a lot of time, thought and energy into is being recognised across Victoria as being innovative and exciting. As teachers, we get enormous joy out of the creative and collaborative opportunities offered by teaching HAS. Our students also benefit by making connections across the subjects and developing a deeper understanding of how the world works (Science) and how we live in that world (Humanities).
With a pioneering program which is attracting interest from other schools, the HAS journey has been an exhilarating one. It is just one way the Newhaven College Middle School is working to engage, innovate and educate our young people.
Melanie Flower, Cynthia Young and Steven Scott
Middle School Teachers
Tournament of Minds Success
On Saturday 22nd August, 'The Seven Spectacular Sparkling Spoonbills' went to Churchill University to compete in the Tournament of Minds. Dressed in custom-made matching shirts, the team included Mia Bowring, Emily Miles, Jim Haynes, Zara Hill, Amelia Ritterman, Wren Plews and Liliana Fenwick. We were up against five other schools from the Gippsland region.
Students participating in Tournament of Minds choose from four different challenges - The Arts, STEM, Social Science and Language & Literature. We chose the Language & Literature challenge, which asked us to create a radio play that could take the place of social media for young people. We also had to make all our props, sets and costumes out of basic craft resources such as cardboard, newspaper, fabric scraps and icy pole sticks. In just under ten minutes we set up, presented our solution in the form of a short play, and packed up.
The judges enjoyed our performance and laughed at all our jokes, even when Jim shouted “6 7”. They thought our props and sets were well done, and they liked the radio play which included romance, a shady Scottish dude and, of course, murder. In fact, they liked it so much that we won the competition!
The Seven Spectacular Sparkling Spoonbills are very excited to have made it through to the State Finals held in Melbourne in three weeks, and we are looking forward to this next challenge.
Melanie Flower
Middle School Teacher
Year 8 Camp
Our Year 8 students had an incredible time on camp at Kinglake last week, creating lasting memories while challenging themselves in new ways.
From tackling the high ropes course to participating in a range of team-building activities, students stepped outside their comfort zones, strengthened friendships, and developed trust, resilience, and confidence throughout the week.
A huge thank you to our dedicated staff, whose support, encouragement, and care helped make the camp such a rewarding and enjoyable experience for everyone involved.
Year 6 Science
Our Year 6 students have been getting hands-on in the science labs, exploring the fascinating world of electricity! They have been learning how electrical circuits work by constructing and investigating both series and parallel circuits. Students have also tested a range of materials to identify conductors and insulators, developing their understanding of how electricity flows and how different materials affect a circuit. It has been fantastic to see their curiosity and problem-solving skills in action as they experiment, test and make connections between theory and the real world.
Rebecca Burgan
Year 6 Teacher
Years 5 & 6 Health and Wellbeing
As part of the Years 5 & 6 Health and Wellbeing lessons, the students have been learning about photography. This term, they have learned about what makes a good photo and the students have been taking 'general interest' photos around the school.
Some of the images are stunning.
Donna Driscoll
Year 5 Teacher
Year 5 & 6 Crazy Golf Day
Our Year 5 and 6 students had a fun mini-golf trip to Grumpy's Crazy Golf in Cowes as part of our Year 5 and 6 Health and Wellbeing learning. Sharing fun experiences with our peers supports our affective engagement and creates a sense of class belonging.
