Five Year 11 St Peters students participated in the highly competitive annual Wesley Healthcare day, accompanied by Careers Counsellor, Jacqui Estevao. Our students participated in rounds of practical activities with healthcare professionals at Wesley Hospital during the Wesley Healthcare Day. During the day students were shown specialist equipment and learned some techniques for everyday patient checkups. Students have provided their insights from an invaluable day of learning about the healthcare industry and where this career could potentially take them.

Year 5 students, Josh and Steven, took up the challenge from their teacher Ms Hannan to unbox and teach themselves the KANO Pixel Kit—to code a digital animation for their recent Solar System project.

Approximately fifty Year 8 students volunteered to attend the ‘Leadershift Day’ last term, along with the Year 9 Student Leadership team who attended as peer mentors.

Last week a new tradition at St Peters was welcomed — the presentation of Ironbark Badges to formally recognise the completion of an extraordinary outdoor education program seen as a significant Rite of Passage for Year 9 students. Students from 9A, B, C & D were the first groups presented with their Ironbark badges by representatives from the 2018 9A–D groups.

St Peters Year 6 students are working on an extraordinary project in which they’re investigating the story of a migrant who has come to Australia. In its second year, this project will lead on to the creation of beautiful Virtual Museums to be completed in the following weeks. With help from student leaders, teachers and children’s author Deborah Abela, their research and investigation will bring their migrant story to life. The project also has the potential to further explore and connect with their family’s history.

At St Peters Lutheran College we prepare students for an innovative world—as achievers and leaders. Our staff and teachers collaborate across subjects and disciplines to achieve these objectives. An integral part of that collaboration is our eLearning team, they support students and teachers, from Prep to Year 12, by helping them use technology in effective and meaningful ways in the classroom.

Established at St Peters in 2018, The Rite Journey creates a self development journey for Year 10 students over the course of the year. Using a framework incorporating ceremonies and celebrations, these events help transform teens into self-aware, responsible and resourceful adults. Events are crafted for individual, unique experiences to best suit the resources and geography of the school. The program was developed over a decade ago by Andrew Lines—Teacher, Educational Consultant and co-developer of The Rite Journey.

Choosing a University is not something you want to rush into—you need to find the right “fit”. At St Peters Indooroopilly campus, qualified Careers Counsellor Jacqui Estevao, organises sessions to guide students through the process of applying to Universities, both within Australia and overseas. Each year an increasing number of students apply to study in the US, Canada and the UK, along with other smaller countries in Europe and Asia.

The St Peters Career Centre is an incredible asset to the College exploring post-school options including work experience. During the holidays the Career Centre helped Year 11 students develop their work experience in the engineering field. With many pathways laid out before them, and more opportunities than ever before, having an experienced Career Counsellor on hand for advice is invaluable to help guide students.

Australian Adventurer and Mountaineer, Alyssa Azar, was our inspirational guest this week for the St Peters Father Daughter breakfast. Crossing the Kokoda Track at 8-years-old was just the beginning, she has also climbed the highest mountains in Australia, South America, Africa, Russia and Nepal. At 19-years-old, Alyssa was the youngest Australian, and youngest woman, to summit Mount Everest. During breakfast the adventurer discussed her incredible journey to Mount Everest, including the planning and goals she had to make for herself to keep mentally and physically prepared.

A long time ago, in a school far, far away, teachers used to stand and deliver the ‘chalk and talk’ method of teaching. Today immersive, next-generation teaching styles are used to connect with different learning styles. Our blog last week, unpacking the Units of Inquiry via Primary Years Program, is an example of that.

St Peters provides an immersive and exciting learning experience for students beginning with Primary Years. The IB Primary Years Programme (PYP) for children nurtures and develops young students as caring, active participants in a lifelong journey of learning.

William Farmer, Managing Director, Dale Carnegie Australia, writes about the advantages for teenagers in learning communication methods to connect with others.

At St Peters we provide goals for children to enhance their lives—whether it’s physical, spiritual or mental—we ensure a holistic approach through the programs we offer. One such program is the acclaimed Duke of Edinburgh’s International Award, Australia (DoE).

The term XR means ‘extend reality into the digital realm’ and covers five next-generation storytelling technologies including Virtual Reality (VR). The use of VR being used in the classroom at St Peters is just beginning this year. Read how it has the potential to create an alternative learning experience for teachers and students.

At St Peters we strongly believe in learning experiences for our school community, encouraging all to participate in the opportunities we host throughout the year. The St Peters Soloists String Orchestra embarked on an international music tour of epic proportions, visiting six countries in 20 days. Heather, our St Peters Year 12 student, talks about the remarkable benefits while travelling with her peers.

Building a greenhouse... Breathtaking architecture... Caring for others... Read about this extraordinary trip of a lifetime as Ella, our Year 12 Captain, describes the experience of travelling to Cambodia and Vietnam with her peers.

The St Peters Perceptual Motor Program (PMP) encourages the development of gross motor skills. It is designed specifically for our Prep to Year 3 students and contains a heap of great initiatives, one being Bike On Day, in Year 2.

In 2018, learning has extended beyond the classroom for both our students and our teachers. This is very exciting as it foreshadows the great things to come in the new year in terms of technology and innovation.

St Peters has become well known for its ability to embrace world class digital learning opportunities across both the Indooroopilly and Springfield campuses. True to the College motto of Plus Ultra, however, being well known isn’t where it stops. Throughout the year, our teachers and support staff have been pushing Ever Higher in their efforts to promote digital learning.