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Term 3, Week 5

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Newsletter Archive

26

Calendar

August

Term 3, Week 5

Contents

Senior Executive
Acting Headmaster - Mr Nicholas Foster Acting Head of Senior Campus - Mr Adrian Finch
Teaching and Learning
The Art of Storytelling Motivation in Learning  Plassey & Wool Centre Excursion Book Week
Community
Parent Seminar: Paul Taylor Mind, Body, Brain Spring Concert Cricket Hub Clinic
Senior Executive

Acting Headmaster - Mr Nicholas Foster

When asked what the greatest strength of Launceston Grammar is people often talk about a sense of community. A sense of belonging to not just the ...

When asked what the greatest strength of Launceston Grammar is people often talk about a sense of community. A sense of belonging to not just the School but the community that makes up the School. A community that encompasses current students, past students, staff, parents and supporters of the School. A key element of keeping this community together is the Old Launcestonian Association. Every student who attends the School is automatically granted life membership to this organisation. Staff that have given service in excess of 10 years are also granted life membership to the OLA. They serve as an organisation that enables members to support the School in many ways. They run a host of community events and philanthropic activities.

One such event is the upcoming Old Launcestonians’ Association Spring Cocktail Party on Friday 9 September. This event will be held on the Senior Campus. We hope as many of you as possible can come along to attend what will be a fantastic event with exceptional food provided by Hubert &Dan and a selection of wine and beer from local makers and brewers. If you would like to attend please follow the link to reserve your tickets. RSVP here.

Finally, it was wonderful to hear that Mr Dale Bennett will be joining Launceston Grammar in 2023 as our new Principal. We look forward to meeting Dale in the coming months and warmly welcome him to this wonderful community at Launceston Grammar.

I hope you have a great weekend with your families.

Warm regards,

Nick Foster

Acting Headmaster

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Acting Head of Senior Campus - Mr Adrian Finch

It’s hard to believe that we are at the halfway point in Term 3, so much has happened over the past 5 weeks, there isn’t a quiet time at School! Most ...

It’s hard to believe that we are at the halfway point in Term 3, so much has happened over the past 5 weeks, there isn’t a quiet time at School! Most nights of the week our Senior Campus is buzzing with activity; from music practice, sports training, information sessions, cocktails parties, soirees, rehearsals, meetings, and boarding house activities. The list goes on.

This term, there have been so many amazing achievements outside the classroom. From students representing the school, or a club, performing on stage, in music competitions and representing the State at a national level.

Senior students Abbey King, Stella Freeman and Matilda Johnston represented Tasmania at the National Swimming Championships in Brisbane.

The Entrepreneur Club participated in the National Illuminate Enterprise Challenge – Tasmania’s only team for this national competition, winning the best business video launch and coming third overall for the best solution.

Lettamae Gardner and Alice Reid have been selected to play in the Tasmanian U16 Junior Girls Rugby Squad this weekend.

The Grade 7/8 Boys Soccer team have taken out the NSATIS premiership for the 6th year in a row! Our Grade 9 French class topped the state out of the 21 schools that participated in the Language Perfect Championships.

Five of our students finished in the Top 10 of the state, with Anders Schild and Adrian Dineen finishing first and second.

Our athletics carnival was a great success after being postponed from Term 1, washed out in Week 3 and rescheduled to a beautiful sunny day in Week 4. Listening to musical performances in assembly from Sophie Lamb, Edie Burns and Liam Fassett, among others, have been highlights for me. It’s amazing just how much talent is at our School.

This week our students celebrated Book Week organised by Cherrie Parker, our Learning Hub Coordinator, which included dress-up, cake making, “write a book in a day competition” and a barbecue. We have a strong presence by both staff and Ag Science and Aviation students at our Launceston Grammar Agfest stall this week.

It’s pleasing to report that there is a positive vibe on the campus that can be felt by students and staff. There is also a sense of calm. Our students have embraced the opportunity to get involved in school activities and events following the easing of COVID restrictions. It is also pleasing to report that there has been a significant improvement in appearance and pride in the school uniform. Students are highlighting our school’s standards to each other. Students are speaking up and know that they have a voice that will be listened to. They are driving positive change and presenting some great ideas for school leaders to consider.

I would trust that there is a realisation by students that it’s a privilege afforded by parents for them to attend our school and to be proud to be a Launceston Grammar student. Students are encouraged to make the most of what is available to them both academically and in co-curricular activities.  Our school provides a wide variety of opportunities to experience success, learn how to manage failure and how to bounce back. Making mistakes is a part of life. If you’re not making mistakes, you’re not making anything, no one is immune to it. Having the right support to enable students to grow as individuals is imperative, that is where our school excels.

Have a wonderful weekend,

Adrian Finch

Acting Head of Senior Campus

 

 

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Teaching and Learning

The Art of Storytelling

This week is Book Week! Book Week is always an exciting time at Launceston Grammar School and by now I’m sure many of you have seen our social media ...

This week is Book Week!

Book Week is always an exciting time at Launceston Grammar School and by now I’m sure many of you have seen our social media posts celebrating all things books. From dress-ups to cake making, to our annual TCE House speaking competition, our community celebrated the importance of engaging with stories and championing literature.

But Book Week is not just about reading stories; the process of writing and sharing stories is equally as important.

A showcase activity we held this week was the annual ‘Book Blitz’. Set up in the Learning Hub with snacks and enthusiasm, teams of students furiously competed to write a book in a day. At 5 pm, 9 finished books landed on my desk for English teaching staff to read, enjoy (and judge!). We look forward to announcing our winners at a whole school assembly in the coming weeks.

When thinking about the profoundness of sharing stories, I am reminded of Eddie Jaku, Holocaust survivor and author of ‘The Happiest Man on Earth’. He reflects that ‘Sometimes I think that those of us who didn’t tell our stories for so long made a mistake’. Here, silence is presented as endorsing oppression, thus emphasising the imperative to speak, to share and to write.

Recently I attended the National English teachers conference in Darwin with the conference theme being ‘Hearts, Minds and Stories’. Much was made during the conference to nurture storytelling and inspire the student as writers. Teachers were encouraged to make space for stories to be told by people who own them and to use stories to take experience into real life. At one of the author breakfasts, we were reminded that every child we teach has a story. Stories can challenge the knowledge that is privileged in curricula as they express multiplicity, diversity and the infinite ways of being in this world.

Acclaimed Australian poet Luka Lesson emphasised the imperative to write: that the blank page needs to be a student’s safe place and we must encourage and make space for students to write about their experiences and often.

Dr Miriam-Rose Ungunmerr AM, 2021 Senior Australian of the year, also spoke of the importance of children recording their stories. She spoke of Reconciliation as hearing and acknowledging this multitude of stories, from the past and now, expressing sameness and difference, to create a better and brighter future.

But it’s not just students who need to write. Teachers, too, need to ‘turn up on the page’, slow down and listen to the world around us and engage as a writer-teacher. At a recent English Faculty meeting, English staff wrote their own stories, sharing their experiences and acknowledging that writing creatively can be challenging. We agreed that teachers modelling writing supports students in this space.

The art of storytelling allows us to recognise and validate our own existence. They also allow us to vicariously live one thousand lives. Ultimately, to read others’ stories and share our own is a human imperative and one we champion at Launceston Grammar.

Natalie Stewart

Acting Learning Area Leader English

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Motivation in Learning 

We are now mid-way through Term 3! It can be around this time in the term that students might start to get tired, distracted, or lack some drive to ...

We are now mid-way through Term 3! It can be around this time in the term that students might start to get tired, distracted, or lack some drive to focus on their learning. We, therefore, thought it pertinent to reflect on the research around motivation. 

Motivation is influenced by students’ backgrounds, interests and goals, their beliefs about “successful” learning, and their understanding of how learning occurs. Understanding how motivation works and the importance of struggle in learning can aid in motivation. 

Two most notable researchers of motivation are Richard Ryan and Edward Deci, who developed the Self-Determination theory. Ryan and Deci (2000b) imagined motivation on a spectrum with extrinsic and intrinsic categories. While the former involves being motivated by outside influences such as awards or grades, the latter inspires us to behave in certain ways due to our values, interests, and own sense of morality. Intrinsic motivation tends to provide greater drive, though this is also dependent on the individual. 

Self-determination theory also suggests we have three basic needs: competence (a desire to master), autonomy (a sense of free will to act out of our own values, though not necessarily independently) and relatedness (a need to interact with and care for others) (Deci and Ryan, 2000a). This echoes the research of Pink, who found that the promotion of mastery, autonomy and purpose will foster strong, self-driven and consistent motivation (Pink, 2009). For example, take mastery. Observing struggles and consequential improvements in others builds self-efficacy and intrinsic interest in viewers because they attribute success to learning and strategy rather than natural capability (Larson and Rusk, 2011). Put simply, people are more motivated when they experience success as a result of working through the mental exercise of engaging with the challenges of an activity. Conversely, situations in which these needs are not supported can have a detrimental impact on motivation. 

Therefore, as educators, we work to engage in autonomy-supporting teaching and to build a sense of mastery and relatedness in our classrooms. This can involve building positive classroom relationships and a sense of belonging, taking on the students’ perspectives, providing students with choice, nurturing inner drive, providing explanatory rationales so students understand the relevance of learning, and supporting progress over time. 

Even from a young age, Lin Siegler, Dweck and Cohen (2016) argue, an authentic understanding of incremental intelligence (growth mindset thinking) can lead to improved motivation and performance. As we wrote in our newsletter on March 18, “understanding neuroplasticity – the idea that our brain continues to grow and change throughout our lives with new paths forming and old paths fading – empowers us as it shows that with effort, we can learn anything, change our behaviour, and reshape our brains.” Embracing this idea of incremental intelligence helps students know and understand how and why growth is possible, so they tend to get stuck less and reframe “can’t” to “can’t yet”. This also helps to establish failure and difficulty as normal and expected steps in the learning journey, and as providing meaningful learning opportunities. 

Families can support these theories in several ways, for example: 

  • Supporting the intrinsic motivation children already show for activities they value 
  • Encouraging active student choice in the elective and subject selection process 
  • Conversing about classroom learning regularly 
  • Fostering reflection on learning to ensure struggles are seen as opportunities to improve 
  • Framing growth as a key learning goal 
  • Discussing the ability of the brain to continuously re-wire itself

The four most important methods for improving student motivation are therefore building mastery, fostering autonomy, constructing relationships, and engendering meaningful purpose and mindsets in students. We encourage all students and families to reflect on this as we enter the second half of this term and in the lead-up to the examination period later in the year. 

Sarah Shepherd and Natalie Stewart 

Co-Directors of Teaching and Learning 

 

Sources 

Larson, R. W and Rusk, N. (2011). Intrinsic Motivation and Positive Development. In R. M. Lerner, J. V. Lerner and J. B. Benson, (Eds.), Advances in Child Development and Behavior, Vol. 41 (pp. 89-130) Academic Press. 

Lin-Siegler, X., Dweck, C. S., & Cohen, G. L. (2016). Instructional interventions that motivate classroom learning.Journal of Educational Psychology, 108(3), 295–299. https://doi.org/10.1037/edu0000124  

Pink, D. H. (2009). Drive. Riverhead Books. 

Ryan, R. M., & Deci, E. L. (2000a). Self-determination theory and the facilitation of intrinsic motivation, social development, and well-being. American Psychologist, 55(1), 68–78. https://doi.org/10.1037/0003-066X.55.1.68 

Ryan, R. M., & Deci, E. L. (2000b). Intrinsic and Extrinsic Motivations: Classic Definitions and New Directions Contemporary Educational Psychology, 25(1), 54-67. https://doi.org/10.1006/ceps.1999.1020 

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Plassey & Wool Centre Excursion

Our Grade 5 students enjoyed learning more about their unit of inquiry ‘The production of commodities is driven by human consumption’, while visiting ...

Our Grade 5 students enjoyed learning more about their unit of inquiry ‘The production of commodities is driven by human consumption’, while visiting the Tasmanian Wool Centre in Ross and ‘Plassey’ Farm in the Midlands.

The students learnt more about the supply chain of wool and sustainable farming practices. Thanks to Rob Calvert from Wool Solutions, Tamara from the Tasmanian Wool Centre and Luke and Michelle Rapley for contributing to this valuable learning opportunity.

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Book Week

Book Week has been a time of great excitement for our students. The opportunity to dress up as the character from one of their favourite books is ...

Book Week has been a time of great excitement for our students. The opportunity to dress up as the character from one of their favourite books is also an opportunity to share with others why the story and the characters so captivated them. At the Junior Campus, Mrs Lee has run an enthusiastic and engaging programme of events, including the Indigenous Literacy Fund Book Swap which has been so popular that it will continue running until Monday 29 August.

Our Senior Campus students did not miss out on Book Week activities with the Book Blitz, Fashion Show, live music, fundraisers and book cake competition. Congratulations to all involved, there are many pictures that have been shared on our Facebook and Instagram accounts throughout the week. Thank you to Mrs Parker for all her co-ordinating this week.

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Community

Parent Seminar: Paul Taylor Mind, Body, Brain

Launceston Grammar and the Pastoral Team would like to invite parents to a seminar run by Paul Taylor, from the Mind Body Brain Performance ...

Launceston Grammar and the Pastoral Team would like to invite parents to a seminar run by Paul Taylor, from the Mind Body Brain Performance Institute. Paul is an exercise physiologist, nutritionist, neuroscientist and PhD scholar in psychology and has been working with corporate and school groups for over 15 years.
He is an engaging and inspiring speaker. Launceston Grammar staff have been lucky enough to have had Paul speak with them twice this year, and universally found his messages to be simple and effective in improving well-being. As a result, we have asked him to come back and speak with student groups.
On Tuesday the 30th, Paul will be speaking with Grade 9-12 students over two sessions. In the evening, from 7-8 pm, he will be delivering the same messages and advice to parents. It is always beneficial for parents to hear what messages their children are receiving and may find the insights and advice to be useful in their own lives.

RSVP for this free event.

 

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Spring Concert

We invite you to our Spring Concert to be held at the Tailrace Centre featuring choral, instrumental and musical theatre items by students from ...

We invite you to our Spring Concert to be held at the Tailrace Centre featuring choral, instrumental and musical theatre items by students from Grades 3 to 12.

Drinks and nibbles from 5:30 with performances starting at 6 pm. This is not a concert to be missed – we’re looking forward to seeing you at this free event. Please RSVP here. 

We would also like to remind our Senior Campus musicians that the Senior Music Camp is coming up for students who participate in any ensemble on the senior campus.  It is to be held from 9-11 September.  This year it will be held at the Tamar Valley Resort.  Students will participate in a range of rehearsals over the weekend, culminating in the Spring Concert the following week at the Tail Race Centre.

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Cricket Hub Clinic

Cricket Hub Tasmania have an upcoming Cricket Clinic during the Term 3 Holidays. Mark Divin (ex Tasmanian Tiger) and Tawanda Mupariwa (ex Zimbabwe ...

Cricket Hub Tasmania have an upcoming Cricket Clinic during the Term 3 Holidays. Mark Divin (ex Tasmanian Tiger) and Tawanda Mupariwa (ex Zimbabwe international) will be running a one-day coaching clinic for aspiring young cricketers (8-13). For more information and to book visit their website.

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We respectfully acknowledge, with deep respect, the Palawa/Pakana people as the traditional owners of the land, sea, and waterways of Lutruwita (Tasmania) on which we work, rest and play. We pay our respects to elders past, present, and emerging and recognise their continued care for land, waterways, and community. We also acknowledge that sovereignty has never been ceded. It always was and always will be Aboriginal land.

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