Mirror Mirror

On Friday evening of last week I was fortunate to have a seat saved for me at the production of Mirror Mirror. The cast was most impressive and the students are to be congratulated not only for their performances, but for the sensitive manner in which they dealt with the challenging theme of body image.

I would like to thank Cate Page for her work as Director, along with Rachel Battams (Drama Captain) and Anna Trundle (Vice Captain) for their work as Assistant Directors. It is important for our students to explore such challenging and relevant themes.

Dr Leonard Sax

I would like to offer my thanks to the 300 parents who attended our seminar with Dr Leonard Sax, medical practitioner and psychologist. Dr Sax was brought to Australia by the Alliance of Girls’ Schools and I would like to thank the CGGS P&F Association for its financial support which enabled me to invite him to our School.

Dr Sax spoke with students in Years 9 and 12 during the day and the information which he gathered from them was used throughout the evening presentations. Prior to the evening’s Parent Seminar, Dr Sax offered a three hour seminar to our staff and invited staff from other ACT independent schools. The focus of the staff presentation was the differences between boys and girls, and the relation of these differences to our teaching. Dr Sax uses scientific research in his writing and presentations which offers clear insights into gender differences. His research has taken him to the view that single sex education offers many advantages for young people as they grow and develop. Dr Sax promotes the view that parents should have choice in educational institutions and their choice of a single sex school or a co-educational school is based on their understanding of their children and their particular needs.

For those parents who were unable to attend the seminar it is my intention to provide some points made by Dr Sax during the evening presentation. I will use bullet points in order to offer a summary for you.

• For teenage girls the focus of emotional activity is the cerebral cortex, while for teenage boys the focus of emotional activity is the amygdala. Therefore, it becomes evident that girls are able to articulate their emotions where boys are unable to do so. As teachers of boys it is important to use boy-friendly activities which do not ask ‘How would you feel if…’, but ‘What would you do if…’ In this way, Dr Sax suggests that teenage boys will not consider that English or creative writing is only for girls.
• Dr Sax spent some time in highlighting how culture has changed in the past 100 years. He offered a collection of diary entries which had been written by girls in the 1890’s. Resolutions made in these diaries focused on ‘I want to be more charitable’. Dr Sax pointed out that today resolutions are about how you look. He expressed the view that females remain oppressed because they are pressured about appearance, rather than enabling them to consider who they want to be.
• Dr Sax stated that the biggest change in society over the past fifty years was the transfer of authority from parents to their children. He offered the view that children who were obese made decisions about their diet, rather than their parents. He spoke about a young girl and her parent who visited his surgery in Maryland. The child’s diet was made up of pizza, fries and soft drinks. The parent told him that she had tried to get her child to eat fruit and vegetables but she had refused so she gave her the pizza and fries. Dr Sax also stated that parents have responsibility for choosing the school their children will attend, not the children.
• Dr Sax stated that there are no commonalities in enduring cultures but that the rules of what is expected of a male and female are passed on. He said that being a man means having biceps, fast cars, compliant females and doing dangerous things. Being a female means being sexy and thin.
• Dr Sax spoke about the favourite television shows watched by teenage girls. In other schools he had visited in Australia and America, Desperate Housewives, Gray’s Anatomy and the OC were the most popular. At CGGS he was delighted to find that the ABC shows, The Chaser’s War on Everything and Spics and Specs were favoured.
• Dr Sax then took his audience through a brief history of music from the fifties to today. The average teenager listens to two and a half hours of music each day. The music of the past years gave attention to marriage and children. Dr Sax used 50 Cent and Akon as examples of music listened to by teenagers today. The lyrics of songs produced by these individuals are degrading to both men and women. The songs focus on the sexual act and the gratification of the male, rather than on a loving and equal relationship.

Dr Sax offered a number of insights into the difference between young men and women dating and the concept of ‘hooking up’ which focuses on casual sexual relationships.

Dr Sax offered much food for thought. I do not expect that every parent who attended the seminar went home and checked the music on their child’s iPod but I do imagine that there were conversations about the meaning of lyrics.

I believe that the visit of Dr Sax has promoted discussion between parents and their children. We will continue to work with the P&F Association in developing a yearly speaker program for parents and staff.

Susan Just
Principal

The Best of Both Worlds

The CGGS Strategic Plan (2006-2010) lists as one of the strategies under the Pastoral Care goal to: ‘Establish a yearly speaker program which aims to provide information and support to parents.’ Last year the School was fortunate enough to obtain well known adolescent psychologist Dr Michael Carr-Gregg as a speaker and last Thursday, Dr Leonard Sax spoke to a large gathering of parents. While it is quite possible that not everyone agreed with all of the points Dr Sax raised in his presentation, the mere fact that he inspired so much discussion amongst staff and parents has great benefits for the CGGS community.

Dr Sax’s presentation to parents was slightly different to the one he delivered to staff during the afternoon. With staff he concentrated on the gender differences in how children learn and the implications for teaching methodology and assessments. Dr. Sax’s unusual background - being both a family physician (MD), as well as a PhD (Psychology) - has led him to recognise the importance of gender differences in how children learn, and to a belief that these gender differences are best served in single sex schools.

Dr Sax highlights three main reasons why he believes girls are best suited in single sex education:

1. Girls have expanded educational opportunity – research has shown that girls are far more likely to explore ‘non-traditional’ subjects such as mathematics, physics, and computer science in girls only classrooms.
2. Custom-tailored learning and instruction – girls process information quite differently to boys. They see differently, hear differently, use different parts of their brain to interpret information and respond differently to different pedagogical approaches.
3. Greater autonomy in relationships at school – friendships are not clouded by the sexual relationships that often occur between individuals within larger groups in co-educational schools.

After listening to Dr Sax on Thursday evening, I had an opportunity to observe our Year 8 students at their Social with the boys from Canberra Grammar School (CGS) on Friday evening. Together these events served to remind me that while there is clear evidence that single sex education better accommodates the specific developmental needs of students, it is best provided when there are opportunities provided by the School to mix socially with students of the opposite sex. At CGGS, we are able to ensure quality, targeted, nurturing education where girls’ learning needs and cognitive differences are enabled, practiced and celebrated but at the same time we are also very fortunate to provide social opportunities through our close connection with CGS. The Combined Music Tours to Sydney and Melbourne last term, the combined dragon boating competitions throughout Terms 1 and 4, the Autumn Concert this week and the Year 9 Social in a fortnight’s time are all examples of joint co-curricular activities.

CGGS philosophy is based on the proven benefits of single-sex education for girls, where academic rigour and success can flourish and where the specific social and emotional needs of our students can be met effectively. Substantial research shows that boys and girls display marked learning differences and that co-education forces compromise between teaching modes rightly targeted to these different cognitive abilities.

We are indeed fortunate to have the best of both worlds; a school that provide the best opportunities for its girls while still providing a sensible approach to socialisation of adolescents of a similar age.

Mirror Mirror

Last Friday evening I had the pleasure of attending the Year 9/10 Co-curricular Drama production of Mirror Mirror. The play, which explored the inner-life of a girl with an eating disorder, was very skillfully directed by Cate Page and assisted by our Drama Captain and Vice Captain, Rachel Battams and Anna Trundle. The issue was handled in a very sensitive and yet thought provoking manner and the end result was a tribute to all students involved.

While the standard of acting was excellent by all students involved, a special mention should go to Ellen MacKinnon, Sam Weaving, Jo Richards, Eloise Anderson, El Eckhardt, Katie Daubney, Lauren Jenkins, Amelia Moulis, Beatrice Tapp, Caitlin Budge and Clair Phillips who shared the main acting parts. Congratulations also to all of the students who assisted with backstage, costumes, lights, make-up, publicity and construction. Without the combined effort of all students involved, the play would not have been the success that it was.

Lateness to School

There has, in recent days, been an increase in the number of students who are arriving late to school. Whilst there are unusual circumstances from time to time, I am concerned that some students are repeat offenders. It is vital that students allow enough time in the morning to catch their bus. If parents are driving their children to school, sufficient time needs to be allowed to have the students at school by 8.45am. If students do arrive at school after this time it imperative that they sign/swipe in at Reception and should they not have a reasonable excuse an Order Mark will automatically be given.

Fiona Godfrey
Deputy Principal/Head of Senior School

MESSAGE FROM THE HEAD OF JUNIOR SCHOOL

A common theme in our on-going conversation about schooling and education is to do with the importance of the links that bind the School to the wider community. For us at CGGS we speak of the quality relationships we strive to achieve within our School community.

During this term, I have become even more conscious than ever of how critical this dimension of schooling is. There have been a few things in particular that have gained my attention; the first is the continuing development of the Home-School Partnership. This has been evident in the range of activities supported by the School’s P&F Association. The School is most grateful to all those people who have committed themselves to assisting the School in a myriad of ways. One just needs to read the P&F Association news in the CGGS Newsletter to appreciate how active this group is and how wide reaching is their involvement. It has also been a focus for our KidsMatter Action Team. This group of staff and parents are working together to develop ideas to strengthen the ties between the School and our families.

Linking with this initiative, I am pleased to report on the excellent response to our Parent Helpers’ programs. The second of these was conducted this week and approximately forty parents have now trained and are signing up to be actively involved in the Literacy sessions in the classrooms. This program focuses specifically on early reading and writing and aims to train parents who are interested in either helping in the classroom or helping their child at home. It is pleasing to see that we have a growing number of helpers who are now involved in the Junior Primary Literacy sessions on a regular basis. It is another example of how we recognise the importance of relationships forged within the School community and how by working together we can improve the outcomes for our students.

Lastly, I would like to thank parents for their support of the School when difficult things happen. It is a fortunate child (and parent) who manages to get through 13 years of schooling without encountering a particularly difficult hurdle on the way. When these occur, the outcome is always so much more beneficial when the School and parents work together in a strong partnership to deal with the matter at hand. I would like to thank those parents whose child encountered a major hurdle this year, and who worked with us to over come the difficulty and turn it into a genuine opportunity for learning and education.

Congratulations to Sarah Naco, Imogen Schiwy and Priscilla Symmes (all from 6S) on being selected by Swimming Australia in the Junior Excellence program. Well done, girls!

Heather Ablett
Head of Junior School

IMPORTANT DATES

• 21 May Y9 Japanese excursion to Sydney
• 21 May Y11/12 Biology excursion to ‘Human Body’, Sydney
• 22 May South Canberra PSSA Cross Country
• 23 May Y3 to Y6 Maths Assessment
• 23 May ELC Sibling Visit
• 24 May Associated Southern Colleges Cross Country
• 24 May Y5 Concert, CGGS Hall, 7pm
• 25 May Junior School ‘Loud Shirts’ non uniform day
• 25 May Kitchen Tyrell Debates, Canberra Grammar School, 7.30pm
• 28 May Y8 Infomation Evening, CGGS Hall, 7pm
• 29 May Father and daughter/son breakfast, CGGS Hall, 7.30am
• 30 May CGGS Shakespeare Festival, Drama Centre, 6pm
• 31 May Y3 excursion to Tidbinbilla Tracking Station
• 1 Jun MindMax excursion to local Embassies
• 1 Jun Twlight Piano Concert, Music Centre Recital Room, 5pm
• 1 Jun Y9 Social, CGGS Hall, 7.30pm
• 3 Jun Trinity Sunday Family and Friends’ Chapel Service

Term Time Hours

Tuesdays 8.15am to 2.00pm
Wednesdays 8.15am to 2.00pm
Thursdays 12noon to 5.30pm

SNOWSPORTS

Is your daughter interested in skiing for the School this year? Each July, CGGS provides teams from the Junior and Senior School for the ACT and Southern NSW Interschools Skiing Competition. Many of our teams have then gone on to compete at the Australian Interschools Skiing Competition. If you are interested in finding out more about skiing at CGGS or sharing information about skiing, particularly ideas on how to improve the Snowsports program, please forward your contact details to Brad Griffiths at brad.griffiths@cggs.act.edu.au or Ladner Phillips at rodlad@optusnet.com.au.

Brad Griffiths
Teacher-in-Charge of Snowsports

MISSING MOBILE PHONE

A mobile phone was removed from the bag of one of our students during the Band Workshop at Canberra Grammar School on Saturday of last week. The loss of the mobile phone has caused distress for the student and her family. We would appreciate any information which may assist us in locating the mobile telephone.

Catering Help Needed

This year, the Australian National Eisteddfod for Bands will be held in CGGS Hall and it is expected that a large number of people will be attending. The Friends of Music (FOM) parent group will be selling refreshments over the two days and would greatly appreciate any offers of assistance by other parents. If you are able to spare even an hour, this would really help. FOM will be selling drinks, snacks, sandwiches and a BBQ throughout the weekend. This is a great opportunity for our school to host such an event. The Eisteddfod will be held at the CGGS Hall from 9am to 10.30pm on 2 June and 9am to 8pm on 3 June.

If you would like to assist, please contact Julie Dew on 0418 624907 or email rjrdew@bigpond.net.au.

JUNIOR SCHOOL NOTICES
Excursion / Activity	Date Handed to Students	Date of Activity	Staff Member / Department
Tuck Shop Menu	11 May 2007	N/A	Jenni Mitchell / Tuck Shop Manager
South Canberra PSSA Cross Country Carnival	10 May 2007	Tuesday 22 May	Antonia Matthew & Cherylee Kuypers, PE Department
Y5 Concert	11 May 2007	Thursday 24 May	Jennifer Johnson, Head of Music and Performing Arts
Touch Football Trials	15 May 2007	Wednesday 16 and Thursday 17 May	Antonia Matthew, PDHPE Coordinator
Tennis Primary School Singles Event	14 May 2007	Tuesday 15 May	Antonia Matthew, PDHPE Coordinator
1C Literacy Parent Helpers	14 May 2007	Term 2	Emma Cox, Class Teacher

SENIOR SCHOOL NOTICES
Excursion / Activity	Date Sent To Students/Parents	Date To Be Returned	Staff Member / Department
Junior Big Band workshop – 30 May	15 May	-	M Tatchell, Director of Music CGGS; C Woodland, Director of Music CGS
Duke of Edinburgh’s Award Scheme – Y9	14 May	-	M Smith, CGGS Duke of Edinburgh’s Award Coordinator
Y10 Geography excursion to Sydney – 16 May	11 May	14 May	A Nott, Head of Geography; P Noyes, Geography Teacher
Guitar Orchestra events – 20 May, 20 June, 13 October	14 May	16 May	M Tatchell, Director of Music CGGS; C Woodland, Director of Music CGS; J Couch, Conductor; S Allen, Conductor
Y10 Geography excursion to Regatta Point – 23 May (10GG2) and 30 May (10GG1)	14 May	-	A Nott, Head of Geography; P Noyes, Geography Teacher
Fantasy Fellowship co-curricular group excursion to Pirates of the Caribbean 3 – 24 May	16 May	-	E-J Stewart, Fantasy Fellowship Coordinator

More articles on School news, activities and events are available in the section ‘In the News’ on our website. 

http://www.cggs.act.edu.au/pages/page416.asp 

Featured articles this week:	Acting Antics News	Triathalon
Year 2 News	Junior School Music News	Tennis News
Year 3 News	Soccer News	Senior School Sports - Team of Week

Boarders’ Network Raffle 

The Boarders’ Network is holding their annual raffle. This year they are raising money for a colour printer/scanner for the Boarding House. Tickets are $2 and can be purchased from boarding students and staff. Boarding parents residing in Australia are asked to sell a book of tickets. Prizes are shopping vouchers at the Canberra Centre. The raffle will be drawn at the Boarders’ Parents Dinner on Thursday 28 June.

Donations of prizes for Fête Raffle 

Our major raffle is held in conjunction with the Fête. It is a significant fundraiser. As raffle books are distributed to every CGGS family, there are significant potential advertising benefits to prize donors. We would be very grateful for offers of prizes. This may particularly appeal to school families who run businesses but we will gratefully accept offers from the broader community. Prizes for the Fête Raffle need to be valued at $250 or more. Prizes (which can be of lesser value) are also gratefully accepted for the silent auction. To secure your place on the Fête Raffle ticket, please email the P&F asap.

Businesses at the Fête 

Every year the P&F receives requests from businesses to operate stalls at our Fête (27 October). A limited number of stalls are available for this purpose, and those taking them are asked to make a cash donation of $500, as well as a substantial donation for the Fête Raffle. If you are interested in operating such a stall this year, please email the P&F by 30 June. This year our charity stall will be the AFP Chequered Ribbon Association.

Hidden Treasures? - Antiques and Collectables Valuation Day 

Sunday 3 June, 10am to 4pm in Clements Hall, Junior School campus. It will be open to the general public as well as to the School community, so please spread the word. The valuer will be Davidson Auctions. We will charge $5 per item valued (maximum of 2 items per person).

We would be grateful for offers of help both with cooking for the day (we expect to raise most money from selling food and drink!) and also with selling tickets and general running of the event. If you are able to help please email Wendy Kay (wendy.kay@canberracoffee.com.au).

Shrek 3 

Get in now or be disappointed! Tickets are selling quickly so order your tickets now for this special event. Please click here for a ticket order form.

With thanks for your support.

Juliet Behrens
P&F President
email PandF@cggs.act.edu.au t: 6161 8140 (h)