The View

Thursday, 13 May 2021

Making Memories
Holidays are wonderful for many reasons, but the greatest for me is about making memories with my family. This Easter my family and I travelled up the coast and stayed at a place called Yarrahapinni. We arrived late in the afternoon, unpacked the car and then headed down this sandy track...
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Friday, 30 Apr 2021

Tell Them They're Dreaming!
So… What do you see when you gaze into the crystal ball of 2030 education? Will things look dramatically different or will we be plodding along pushing students through an academic, ATAR funnel, hoping they achieve their dream job through being accepted into their dream university after choosing their...
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Friday, 23 Apr 2021

Faith Development
A key part of our mission at Avondale School is for our students to know Jesus. Our hope is for each student to begin a faith journey that anchors their lives. Not just a set of beliefs or a bank of knowledge, but a personal, growing relationship with God that...
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Thursday, 01 Apr 2021

He Has Risen
This morning my wife and I asked our three daughters the question “what is Easter all about?”. Our eight and six year old girls eloquently explained that it is about “Jesus dying on the cross for all the naughty things we do''. Our four year old on the other hand...
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Friday, 26 Mar 2021

Consent Matters
The news has been dominated lately by the topic of consent. We feel appalled, perhaps outraged, as we listen to the complex and heartbreaking impacts of sexual assault in society. Recently there have been calls for schools to shoulder the responsibility of teaching consent to students. There are many factors that contribute...
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Friday, 19 Mar 2021

Opportunities for Optimism
I love spending time in my garden. I’m not a highly skilled gardener, so in the words of my husband, I offer new plants as living sacrifices to the sun God. It’s a beautiful miracle when my new plants grow roots and thrive. Recently I planted seeds in carefully prepared...
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Friday, 12 Mar 2021

Optimism is a Fantastic Word
Optimism is a fantastic word that helps us to think of greater things and aspire to greater things to come. We Austalians are well regarded by the nations as having a larrikin - give it a fair go - attitude. It is this strength of attitude that has seen...
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Friday, 05 Mar 2021

To Be or Not to Be ... Entitled!
“Striving for success without hard work is like trying to harvest where you haven’t planted.” - David Bly  Julie Fournier, Founder and CEO of BallisPsych, wrote an insightful article which resonated with me for our students! The Entitlement Cure: Not everyone gets a trophy is a powerful article for teachers and parents...
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Friday, 26 Feb 2021

Dance Moves
It was I994, the Channel Tunnel had been opened, Forrest Gump was on at the cinemas, and I was standing in front of 100 plus people ready to bust-out my dance moves. It was not quite “run Forrest, run!”, but rather “dance Stuart, dance!” Many options presented themselves in the...
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