Week 2 has certainly been positive and full of opportunity, a week in which I have observed the students and staff quickly settling into Term 3. I trust that your child is really optimistic about what lies ahead of us this term.

First and foremost, I would like to extend my heartfelt gratitude to all the students, staff and volunteers who made the opening night of the Alice in Wonderland musical a resounding success. I was humbled to attend the opening night and see the God-given gifts on display. It was truly fantastic, and the entire production was nothing short of tremendous. We appreciate the dedication and passion that went into making this show such a high-quality production. Thank you to all of you who were able to attend and show support last night. There are still some tickets left on the Horsham Town Hall website.

I would also like to commend the Year 11 students for their remarkable effort and the excellent quality of their Presentation Ball. Such events provide an opportunity for our students to demonstrate their maturity, elegance and poise, and it is always heart-warming to witness their growth and development. It was also wonderful to have many family members and special friends of the Year 11 students travel significant distances to celebrate this significant occasion with the students.

As part of our commitment to fostering strong study habits and contemporary enterprise skills, this week I encourage us to think about critical thinking, ultimately supporting students to become independent learners and solving the problems of tomorrow. Developing strong critical thinking abilities is crucial for our students as they navigate an ever-changing world and prepare for their future endeavours. As educators, we encourage students to read widely, exposing them to different perspectives and ideas. Ways that families can support the development of critical thinking at home include engaging in meaningful conversations and encouraging their children to analyse and question the information they encounter. Further, emphasise the importance of evidence-based reasoning and support them in seeking reliable sources of information.

In this week's devotional thought, I invite you to reflect on Matthew 13:24-30, 36-43. In the parable of the weeds among the wheat, Jesus teaches us about the coexistence of good and evil in the Kingdom of Heaven. As Christians, we recognise that we live in a fallen yet redeemed world. This parable calls us to faithfully navigate the tension between these two realities. Instead of hastily judging and uprooting the weeds, we are called to patiently trust in God's timing and judgment. We are to bear good fruit and share Christ's love, knowing that a day will come when God will separate the righteous from the unrighteous. In this hope, we live faithfully, persevering through the challenges of a world that contains both wheat and weeds. It was wonderful to bring the Chapel message this morning alongside Year 5M. The students highlighted that as good stewards, we are called to bring care and love into our community.

Thank you once again to our incredible College community for your unwavering support and tireless efforts. Let us continue to strive for excellence, nurture our students' academic and personal growth, and create a vibrant and inclusive learning environment that draws on God’s prevailing love.

Wishing you all a wonderful weekend, and I do hope to see you at Alice in Wonderland!

Mr James Phillips, Principal

by Maria Rudolph

Again Jesus said, ‘Peace be with you! As the Father has sent me, I am sending you’ (John 20:21).

Are you a bit slow off the mark sometimes? How about our LCANZ? There are plenty of opinions on why it takes the church so long to face large financial deficits, a major pastor shortage, and the dwindling numbers in congregational membership. Facing realities is one step, and then adapting to these realities by adjusting your modus operandi is another.

Praise be to God that we are in good company in being slow off the mark. Easter Sunday morning, two of the disciples had a running match to the tomb and believed in the resurrection. Easter Sunday evening, we find the disciples huddled together with the doors locked in fear. Amazingly, the resurrected Jesus stood among them and declared his peace over them. Shortly before his crucifixion, he had told them, ‘Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid’ (John 14:27). Here they were, hiding and afraid. Jesus meets them right where they are, breathes on them to receive the Holy Spirit and even grants them the authority to forgive or retain sins.

This encounter could have changed their course of action. Yet the disciples are slow off the mark. Instead of going forth in confidence as Jesus sends them out, we find them, one week later, still huddled together behind locked doors. Jesus’ words, ‘Stop doubting and believe’ (John 20:27), are not just directed at the disciple Thomas. They are directed at all of us. Let’s ask the Holy Spirit to help us not just know the peace of God and the hope we have in Jesus but also adjust our living and acting according to it. We need not hide and fear in the face of the big issues faced by our LCANZ or what we face in our private lives. We carry the peace of Jesus in us. We carry his death in us through our baptism and thus also his resurrection (Romans 6:4). God does not rely on us to be quick off the mark – God is simply always with us, always working in and through us. God invites us daily to accept and embrace the peace and hope he gives us, so we can face each day with confidence in his grace and care.

Loving God, I can be slow off the mark when it comes to putting my actions where my words of faith are. Help me understand and trust in the peace and hope you give me and what that means for my everyday life. I want to believe; help my unbelief. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

Assembly - even Mondays

Just a reminder that assembly is every even week for the Junior School, and every odd week for the Middle and Senior schools. This week was great to be able to be over in the Senior Centre Gym, as the MPC was being used. I heard the kids were excited to be able to see another part of ‘their school’ that many of them had not been in before.

Wednesday next week - sausage sizzle

On Wednesday, 26 July, please keep an eye and ear out as we are having a sausage sizzle lunch to support our aerobics team as they prepare to compete at the nationals. As a part of the learning experience, the girls have been involved in fundraising for this event. Sausages will be $2.50 and available to purchase at lunchtime on the day. Please support the fundraiser and don’t pack lunch for your child next Wednesday!

Building community - playgroup and 2024 Foundation classes

The HTLC Playgroup that started off small last term (in the library on Thursday mornings) is growing really well and it is great seeing many existing and new families feel comfortable in a new environment each week. Thank you and well done to Jessie Ferguson and Maria Deleeuw who coordinate this each week.

I am up-to-date with interviews for our 2024 Foundation classes and would like to say we have 40 accepted enrolments and are now building towards numbers that may require three classes.  If you do know of any families around that may be considering HTLC as the college of choice for their child in 2024 (or any other year for that matter), please let them know they can phone ahead or come at any stage for a chat or a walk-through.  The more organised I can be for the new year, the better!

Life is learning and learning is life

I have a little saying that I share with the students from time to time. It ensures that school feels comfortable and relaxed, yet keeps learning well in focus. Please keep me accountable to this principle that ‘life is learning and learning is life’.  Education should not become institutionalised.  Schools should be places that harbour excitement and enthusiasm for learning and not dull it. We should be creating masters in the art of living:

The master in the art of living makes little distinction between his work and his play, his labour and his leisure, his mind and his body, his education and his recreation, his love and his religion. He hardly knows which is which. He simply pursues his vision of excellence at whatever he does, leaving others to decide whether he is working or playing. To him he is always doing both.

Co-educators.  Educating together with you!

This week I have had some great feedback from parents when your normal classroom teacher is away. Although technically not our teachers, parents can often think they will hold off providing feedback on how teaching and learning go on the days when other teachers are in their child’s classroom because ‘we will be back to normal’ soon with our other teacher back.

While this is a great attitude to building resilience in your child, the balance also is in letting your regular classroom teacher know your feedback, so they can grow as a professional, relieving teachers can grow as the professionals they are, but also the organisation can grow in doing what we call ‘handover’ better.

Keep that relationship up with your teachers!

Blessings on your week,

Mr Adam Borgas, Head of Junior School

Term 3

Two weeks into the new term it is good to see that staff and students are settling in well. A new semester provides fresh opportunities for everyone to set new goals and study habits or work hard to build on the positive work done previously. It won’t take long for assessment tasks to be introduced and I encourage all students to be proactive in seeking assistance with these, whether it be through class support or Homework Club, which is available to all students after school on Monday and Wednesday nights.

As well as subject requirements, the students will be provided with extra-curricular activities throughout the term including:

• Excursions
• Sporting opportunities 
• Pedal Prix 
• School Musical
• Elective events and activities

School musical – Alice in Wonderland

Months of hard work and preparation have come to fruition this week as Holy Trinity’s production of ‘Alice in Wonderland’ the musical has hit the Horsham Town Hall stage. This spectacular show is not to be missed and you can still purchase tickets for the final show through the following link: horshamtownhall.com.au/hthevent/alice-in-wonderland-htlc/

WestVic Sports Academy Excursion

On Wednesday our WestVic Sports Academy students had the opportunity to attend an excursion to Fed Uni and the RADCentre in Ballarat to participate in a tour of the facilities, fitness testing, a strength and conditioning session and hear from professional speakers about the importance of training and looking after yourself. The students enjoyed their day and gave 100 per cent effort in all activities. Thank you to Mr McKenzie for accompanying the students.

Mr Jason Przibilla, Head of Middle School

Senior School pathways – Year 11, 2024

Year 10 parents and students are reminded that next week will be the final week of pathways and subject selection interviews with our VCE Coordinator (VCE pathways) or our Applied Learning Coordinator (VCE Vocational Major and VET options). The Year 11 Pathways and Subject Selection preference form will be available for online completion on Monday, 24 July and should be completed no later than 3.00pm on Friday, 28 July.

Senior School pathways – Year 10, 2024

Thank you to all Year 9 students who have submitted their VCE pathways forms for 2024. 

All Year 10 2024 Pathways forms should be submitted no later than 3.00pm on Friday, 21 July.

Year 11 College Ball

The organisation of our College Ball requires a huge commitment over a number of weeks from both our trainers and our parent committee. The hours of work contributed by Mrs Schneider, Mrs Grieger and Miss Farnham ensured that our Year 11 students performed in a manner of which they can be extremely proud. We are sincerely thankful for the endless hours of preparations by our parent committee, friends and family who assisted with setting up and packing up, and who helped to make the evening the success that it was. An evening that the students will remember for many years to come.

Important Senior School dates

VCE written examinations: Tuesday, 24 October to Wednesday, 15 November

VTAC applications open: Monday, 31 July

VTAC parent information evening: Wednesday, 2 August, 7pm in the Senior Centre

Unit 3&4 trial exams: Monday, 25 September to Friday, 29 September (second week of holidays)

Last day Year 12: Breakfast and final chapel: Monday, 16 October

Year 12 Valedictory dinner and worship service: Friday, 17 November

Mrs Sally Kuchel, Head of Senior School

ICAS (International Competitions and Assessments)

ICAS assessments are designed to recognise and reward academic excellence. They are offered to students in primary and secondary schools in more than 20 countries globally.

The assessments are based on the curriculum for the relevant year. To ensure an engaging and beneficial experience for all students, new ICAS assessments are developed annually for each subject in every year level.  ICAS assessments offered at HTLC this year are:

• ICAS English: Week 6 Term 3
• ICAS Science: Week 7 Term 3
• ICAS Maths: Week 8 Term 3

Students in Years 3 to 10 have the option to independently register for the ICAS English, Science and Mathematics competitions. To register, parents will need to visit the following link and use the school access code to enrol and pay for one or more of the selected competitions. 

HTLC school access code: UON982

HTLC Parent page link: https://shop.icasassessments.com/pages/pps

If you have any questions regarding this testing please contact the office.

Intermediate boys basketball

On Monday, students from Years 9 and 10 travelled to Ararat with Mr McKenzie and Kerry Pearce to compete at the Black Ranges intermediate basketball. Over the course of the day, James P, Leti T, Aiden N, Xavier S, Brodie F, Kyren P, Zac vB, Evan H and Jarhyn M represented the College with pride and had some excellent results.

HTLC opened the day with two fantastic wins, limiting their opponents to a total of eight points across the two fixtures, defeating Murtoa College 18-6, and following that up with a 30-2 win against Warracknabeal. The next game was the toughest match of the schedule, facing off against St Brigid’s College. Despite a heroic effort at both ends of the floor, the boys didn’t quite have enough to get over the line, losing 14-16. In the final match of the pool stage, the boys defeated Horsham College B 20-4.

Despite having three wins on the day, the team was one win short of finishing top of the pool, which meant it unfortunately did not get to play in the grand final. Congratulations to the boys for their efforts on the day, and thank you to Mr McKenzie (coach) and Kerry (referee) for their volunteer work.

Horsham Volleyball

The Horsham Volleyball winter season starts on Monday, 21 July. It has been great to see all of the interest from students, with four HTLC teams being entered alongside HTLC students filling a number of other teams in the competition.

Last term, we posted on Facebook about a number of our Senior School students who played their first A Grade games. Congratulations to Noah W, Oscar J, Haidyn Y and Logan Y, who will all be making their full-season A Grade debuts this season.

Australian HPV Super Series: round four

The first weekend of August marks the final short-form round of the Australian HPV Super Series for 2023. HTR will be rolling back to The Bend Motorsport Park for an eight-hour event that will see all six trikes returning to the circuit for the first time since May.

Coming events

August

5 - Australian HPV Super Series: round four (Tailem Bend)

23 - Black Ranges Years 7 and 8 volleyball

September

5 - Black Ranges Year 7 basketball

6 - Black Ranges Year 8 basketball

15 - Australian HPV Super Series: round six (Murray Bridge)

Mr Matthew McLoughlin, Secondary Sport Coordinator

Most of us know what it is to feel a bit anxious at different times. Sometimes we feel anxious and know precisely why we are feeling like that and can see that our anxiety is proportional to what we are going through. Waiting for a relative to receive medical test results is an example. Sometimes though we experience anxiety in ways that do not seem proportional to situations or at times we can't identify a clear reason for why we feel this way. We might see evidence of this in our children and teenagers too.

It is not uncommon for parents to see signs of anxiety, or excessive fear and worry, manifesting in ways that impair their ability to function in their day-to-day lives. There are many different factors that may contribute to this. The good news is anxiety is treatable, and there are many resources available, including websites, self-help books and professional support. Treatment helps young people learn to manage anxiety so that it has less impact on their life.

Below is a range of resources that offer excellent information for parents about anxiety in young people. Also included is the Soulspace Christian meditation resource which some young people find helpful as one of their tools for helping manage anxiety. As always the Wellbeing Team is available to offer support, advice and referral assistance to parents if needed. The Wellbeing Team can be contacted at: wellbeing@htlc.edu.vic.au.

Soulspace - visit: https://soulspace.co/

Anxiety and Young People - visit: schooltv.me/newsletter-external-resource/anxiety-and-young-people

Helping Our Kids When We Have Our Own Anxiety - visit: schooltv.me/newsletter-external-resource/helping-our-kids-when-we-have-our-own-anxiety-raising-good-humans

Anxiety and the Teenage Brain - visit: schooltv.me/newsletter-resource/14628/14537

Holy Trinity Lutheran College is excited to present Alice in Wonderland! The musical production runs from 20 July to 22 July at 7.30pm at the Horsham Town Hall. Buy tickets at the town hall box office or here: horshamtownhall.com.au/hthevent/alice-in-wonderland-htlc/

The HTLC PTFA is hosting a Glow Disco for Junior School students on 28 July in the MPC!

Attendance is strictly by booking only. Book your free ticket and buy a $6 glow showbag at trybooking.com/CJVJM or via the QR code

There will be "black" UV lighting so children are encouraged to wear something white or neon. There will be zinc sticks for the kids' faces upon arrival. Attendees can also bring their own glow items.

A barbecue and juice boxes will be available to buy from 5pm - all $2 each. Please text any dietary requirements to Vanessa on 0403 323 180. Hot drinks will be available for purchase in the parent chill-out zone.

The kids chill-out zone is in the HTLC library, where lunchtime rules apply.

If you're able to volunteer on the night, please contact Vanessa on 0403 323 180.

There are a number of items building up in lost property. If your child is missing anything, please check in the lost property at Reception.

Please also ensure your child's items are labelled appropriately so anything found can be returned quickly.

We need your help!

The Scholastic Book Fair is coming to our school again. Thank you so much to the people who have volunteered to help out, we will be in touch with you soon.

At this stage we are still looking for helpers on our buying afternoon, Wednesday, 9 August, from 3.00pm to 5.30pm. If you can help out, please get in touch with me at school or give Kara a call on 0408 823 948.

Thanks, Jaci Gabbé (Library)