One of the things I have personally missed during isolation is the chance to spend time with my father on his beloved sailing boat. There is nothing better than to be out in the middle of the lake on a beautiful day with the wind in your hair and the sound of the waves lapping against the boat as you glide smoothly along. There is also nothing more frightening than when a storm suddenly comes up, the waters turn turbulent and the boat leans over at a very uncomfortable angle. I have experienced a few such storms while sailing and at those times I have to remind myself that Dad is an experienced sailor. He knows what he is doing and we are not going to capsize despite my fear!

Jesus and the disciples were on a boat once in the middle of a lake. (Matthew 8: 23-27). The Bible tells us that ‘without warning, a furious storm came up’. Waves swept over the boat and the disciples were frightened. In their fear, they called out, ‘Lord, save us! We’re going to drown!” 

For many of us, the COVID-19 pandemic has felt like a ‘furious storm’ coming out of nowhere. It has taken us by surprise and we find ourselves shaken and tossed about by the unexpected storm we find ourselves in. As we begin the transition back to school next week, many families are experiencing a heightened sense of stress. It may feel like another wave is about to hit and we are being tossed about in a sea of panic. 

During the good times, it can be easy to feel in control while metaphorically steering the boat of our lives. But when the waves hit, we realise we are not in control.  We realise our absolute dependence upon God. We realise we are nothing without God. 

How does Jesus respond to the disciples’ fear in the storm?  He says to them, “You of little faith, why are you so afraid?” Jesus does not turn away from them in their fear. Instead he calms the wind and the waves. Immediately the storm is over. The lake is calm. The disciples are left amazed. 

We do not know when this ‘storm’ will be over. But what we do know is that we have the choice to choose faith over fear. We have the choice to focus on transformation of our lives rather than focus on the turbulence of this world. We have the choice to hold onto a God who calms storms.

And when we learn to really rely on God to steer us through the storms of life, we will find that our lives have more meaning and purpose. Like the disciples, we will be left amazed at what God is willing to do for us.

– Mrs Meggan James, Nunawading Christian College Principal

I am not a huge fan of heights… I’m comfortable in saying that I am actually quite scared of them. I’m pretty sure I’m right in making the huge generalisation that everyone has a fear. It can be something as simple as spiders, clowns and cats or it could be something a little more heavy-duty like finances, public speaking or even the thought of being alone. Strangely enough, these fears can often cause us to make decisions. The way in which we make decisions when faced with fear will give us an idea of how wise we are. We all want to be wise in how we handle decision making, but what does it take to gain wisdom?

In the book of Proverbs, the author says ‘The fear of God is where wisdom starts…’ But what does ‘fear of God’ actually mean and why does it matter? How does fear lead to wisdom when the world tells us that courage leads to wisdom?

For me becoming wise begins with knowing God. To really know God is not just to know details about Him, but to respect Him and have a relationship with Him. The starting point of wisdom is found in fearing God, this doesn’t mean that we go around every day all day being afraid of the big guy in the sky. Fearing God means to love, honour and respect Him, to trust and to obey Him.

Wisdom comes by listening to God and doing what He says. As we strive to become wise, there are three ways we can use to gain wisdom:

1. Read and Study the Bible.

Proverbs 1 and 9 may be a good place to start. These chapters tell us all about fearing God. I challenge you to find time in your day to take 10 minutes to read the Bible without being distracted (this is actually quite hard to do). There are heaps of stories in the Bible that we read about that help give us wisdom on how we are to act and make future decisions.  

2. Ask questions.

There are no questions that God is intimidated by. In fact, God encourages us to ask questions in humility and He welcomes them when we ask with a desire to know Him more. Don’t be afraid to ask Him ‘why’ something is happening or what He would like you to learn and take away from the situation.

3. Be teachable.

We need to be mouldable and always be willing to learn from the decisions, situations and conflict. We shouldn’t be overly sensitive when someone shares a concern that they have about us, because it is an opportunity to gain wisdom on what to change. Ask God for guidance in the life lessons He wants us to learn through the feedback we receive. 

The choices we make and the consequences of those choices set the direction in which our lives head. When we choose to chase after wisdom, our relationship with God deepens. Fearing God will create respect for Him that develops wisdom in us to help us through every decision we make.

Are you ready for the next competition? This week our challenge involves creating some nature art for our ISO Nature Art Competition!

Create a piece of artwork that uses elements from nature. This could be leaves, sticks, stones… Take a photo and send it to principal@ncc2.vic.edu.au by Friday 5pm. The most creative piece will win. Here is a google document to give you some ideas. Click here for some inspiration. 

-Mrs James

Gaming addiction has recently been classified as a mental health condition by WHO. More than 90% of American youth play video and/or online games; of this group, 10-15% meet the criteria for addiction, with the majority being male. Many gamers are averaging more than 23 hours per week on gameplay with almost 9% in one study reporting playing for 40 hours per week. Adolescents are greatly at risk of online gaming addiction because of their natural affinity to the technology, their considerable internet literacy, flexible schedules, unlimited online access and relative freedom from parental interference.

Gaming addiction can cause similar physiological effects in the brain as those of drugs and alcohol addictions: epinephrine, dopamine, and serotonin levels are all impacted. Dopamine is thought to be involved in the reward response in the brain, and hence the design of games where players are repeatedly rewarded with prizes and levels attained, may artificially increase dopamine levels to the extent that the brain becomes less tolerant to normal levels.

Multiplayer online games such as World of WarCraft, Cod and Diablo are of the biggest concern currently in regards to gaming addiction. Online relationships between players can often become more important than real-life relationships because of the dependence and pressure set by the group to participate. Gamers may be searching online for these connections due to loneliness and isolation in their real lives. Alternatively, gamers may actually develop feelings of isolation as a result of ignoring and neglecting real-life friendship groups.

There are several indicators for adolescents possibly having problems with addiction to online gaming. These include: 

1) Spending more than two hours a day playing games

2) Fantasising and talking obsessively about gameplay or characters when not online

3) Lying about the duration of time spent playing online games

4) Disobeying parental limits for gameplay

5) Loss of interest in sports and hobbies that were once important

6) Opting for gameplay over time spent with friends and family

7) Use of gameplay to escape negative moods or stressors

8) Continuing to play despite negative consequences (e.g. plummeting grades, loss of a scholarship, a relationship breakup)

9) Experiencing physical consequences due to loss of sleep, poor hygiene and skipping meals due to long hours spent in gameplay

As parents, the best way you can support your child is to have strict conditions regarding access to technology from an early age. If your child does develop a severe form of gaming addiction, the most common form of treatment currently is behavioural cognitive therapy which is carried out with the support of a psychologist. Want more information including a test to assess whether you or your child has a gaming addiction? Explore the Game Quitters website.

** This article is an abbreviated copy of a Masters of Education assignment by Jody Lawson.

‘Superfoods’ is a buzz word. It was coined to refer to those foods that have a very high concentration of a particular nutrient.

Other than breast milk for babies, there are no single food sources that can provide all the nutrients in the amount needed for good health. All foods have their own nutritional qualities, which are part of the whole diet. If we just ate the so-called ‘superfoods’ our diet would be deficient in many macro and micronutrients.

Rather than relying on advertising and striving to eat ‘superfoods’, the real message should be that we need to consume foods in the proportions recommended by the Australian Guide to Healthy Eating. 

We should consume the largest portion of our diet from a range of colourful vegetables and fruits as well as from whole grains.

There is no definitive list of identified superfoods but there may be some merit in looking at those that frequently appear on lists and their characteristics.

Broccoli, kale and spinach – High in antioxidants and a good source of folate

Legumes – High in protein, fibre and antioxidants

Grains and ancient grains (eg. spelt, quinoa, psyllium and oats) – High in fibre and protein

Berries (eg. blackberries, cranberries and goji berries) – High in antioxidants

Soy – Rich in complete protein and high in fibre

Seeds (eg. chia and flaxseed) – High in protein and good fats

Yoghurt (eg. Greek yoghurt and natural yoghurt) – Contains good bacteria to fight bad bacteria

Dark Chocolate – High in antioxidants

Olive oil – Rich in antioxidants and good fats

Oily fish (eg. salmon) – Rich in omega-3 fatty acids

One could say that the term superfoods is a marketing concept that has gathered undeserved notoriety. There is no real superfood because food is only as good as the company it keeps.

How difficult is it to find two numbers if you only know their product?*

This is easy for a small number like 12. We find the factors*; 1, 2, 3, 4, 6 and 12.

But factoring some numbers is really really hard. Especially if you are looking for factors of a really really big number and you want the factors to be prime numbers.* In fact, finding the prime factors of really big numbers is so difficult it could take 1000 years for a computer!

Mathematicians and computer scientists use this to encrypt data that goes on the internet and this helps to keep us all safe. It is impossible to crack the code of an RSA* (prime number) encryption.

Encryption and decryption have always been used as a tool for keeping information secret. 2020 marks 75 years since the end of WWII in Europe. You may have heard the story of Alan Turing, his Engima machine and the women at Bletchley Park in England who spent WWII working on decrypting the secret code that the Nazis were using to communicate with each other. Cracking this code, in the years before modern computers, helped the Allies finish the war quickly and prevented more deaths.

Consider: 

• What sort of information do you want to keep safe on the internet?
• Strangely, it is very easy for computers to multiply two big prime numbers together, but nearly impossible for them to ‘undo’ this by factoring the answer. Can you think of more examples of things that are easy to do and very difficult to ‘undo’?

* A product is the result when two or more numbers are multiplied together.

* Factors are the numbers you multiply together to get another number. So 2 x 6 = 12 means 2 and 6 are factors of 12.

* Prime numbers have only two factors – themselves and 1. Eg. 2, 3, 5, 7 and 11

* Find out more about RSA encryption here.

Ms Austen’s Prep class have been using the Seesaw online digital platform to record their learning at home. They have been having fun themed afternoons  – Marvellous Monday, Terrific Tuesday, Wonder-full Wednesday, Thankful Thursday & Fantastic Friday – where they participate in play-based activities. 

Last week they worked outside in the fantastic weather. The Prep students collected items from their front or backyard to make a “nature face”.

God is encouraging me to be thankful that I have good health and that no matter what He will never leave me. There are lots of things that we have restrictions on at the moment: going to the shops, the movies and visiting friends! Despite all of this, I am thankful. I am healthy, I have a loving husband and family and I can still go outside and see God’s creation. Every day I have been going for walks – rain, hail or sunshine and I have been able to see what an amazing and beautiful world God has made which makes me even more excited to see what Heaven will look like!

During this time, I have been reminded of the importance of making connections with others, even when these connections look different to normal.

I have also been reminded as to how powerful a ‘random act of kindness’ can be. Doing something kind for someone without expecting anything in return definitely makes others feel special and in return makes me feel happy too. This is something that I have been trying to also encourage my Year 2 students to do too through our #kindrona tasks (kindness in corona) that we have been doing as a part of our Bible learning, along with Miss Yuen and Miss Ferry’s classes. 

During this time, I am reminded that this Earth is not our ‘final destination.’ Although we do not know the day or hour as to when Christ will return, I do know that I’m looking forward to seeing Him! 

In Mathematics, Mrs Yuen’s Year 1 students have been exploring patterns. They have enjoyed starting each lesson by dancing to one of their favourite class songs – ‘Banana, Banana, Meatballs’, which is all about patterns.

The students also created their own patterns using items that they found at home. What’s even more impressive than their patterns, is the fact that these students can and have been uploading their work onto the online platform, Seesaw, mostly independently! Remote learning has definitely promoted growth in their digital technology skills and made them more tech-savvy!

So what’s a Music classroom to do when the learning goes online? After all, we are used to playing our instruments together as an ensemble, singing in a chorus and composing music with a partner.

Well, we simply have to think outside of the ‘Music Box’. What better way to celebrate musical creativity online, than with 14 ‘Choose-your-own’ BINGO activities! Students in Prep to Year 2 were able to pick from musical tasks that ranged from making their own instruments, learning a new song with Ms Kapusi, inventing new instruments for the orchestra and so much more! It was an absolute joy to watch the many videos and pictures of students singing, playing, moving and creating.

Music can often be neglected when it comes to academic importance, however, music has an incredible power to expand the mind. During our time of uncertainty, let us remember that: “Music can heal the wounds, that medicine cannot touch (D. Mridha).”

Lego competitions began to roll out recently amongst the Years 1, 2 and 2/3 classes. There was a lot of effort and creativity on display as students began the competition. They were able to enjoy some screen-free time as they used their imaginations and fine motor skills to build, design and play with their lego. Students were also able to use foil or cardboard to help them build if they needed it.

At the end of the week, students presented their work to their class and it was interesting to hear the ideas and thinking behind their creations as they unveiled them.  

Get ready for some great creations coming up in the following weeks!

The love of God for His children is often likened to a mother’s love for her children. God is the one who sticks up for us and if we run to Him, He fights on our behalf. Most of us have mothers who love us very much, but the Bible says that even if a human mother could forget her child, God will never forget us.

Isaiah 49:15-16 says: “Is it possible for a mother to forget her nursing child? Can she feel nothing for the baby she carried and birthed? Even if she could, I, God, will never forget you. Look here. I have made you a part of Me, written you on the palms of My hands.”

We hope some of you had the opportunity to listen to our Mother’s Day Chapel with your children. Mother’s Day is a special event in the NCC calendar, and it was sad we had to miss our usual celebration this year.  But we hope our mums and grandmothers know how appreciated and loved they are.

Families are always welcome to join us for our weekly Primary Chapel screenings on Fridays at 9:15am and 10:15am.

Congratulations to the following students for their winning entries in our Principal’s Prize Week 4 and 5 competitions!

Week 4 – Iso Chef

Prep – Year 3

First Place: Genesis

Second Place: Abigail

Third Place: Oliver

Years 4 – 6

Winner: Aria

Second Place: Emily

Third Place: Emma

You can view the delicious creations made by our students the gallery below.

Week 5 – Mathematical Problem Solving

Prep – Year 3

Winner: Rosie

Highly Commended: Trinity and Aarav

Years 4 – 6

Winner: Vincent and Reid

Highly Commended: Romeer

NCC is a multicultural community and the opportunity to learn a new language at school has always been a key component of this multiculturalism. It allows students to think, feel, speak, listen, read and write in new ways that they never thought possible.

Our students adjusted very well into their remote learning, continuing to develop the four components of speaking, reading, listening and writing in the French language. Our teachers and students have been working hard to prepare once again for the “Berthe Mouchette” (Language Competition), the yearly event organised by the Alliance Française of Melbourne. In previous years our school has performed very well in this competition and we look forward to seeing our students give their best efforts once again.

Our Year 7 and 8 Art students have been expressing their creativity by completing various projects at home.

The Year 7 students have been practising pencil sketching by drawing still life compositions of everyday objects.

The Year 8 students have been challenged to create collages by either manipulating photographic images or by using actual objects from their environment.

Both year levels have also researched the works of well known artists and taken virtual tours of some of the world’s famous galleries and museums to gain knowledge and an appreciation of some great art. 

Congratulations to the following students for their winning entries in our Principal’s Prize Week 4 and 5 competitions!

Week 4 – Iso Chef

Years 7- 9

First Place: Zoey

Second Place: Elena

Third Place: Jordan

Years 10 – 12

First Place: Ava

Second Place: Claudia

Third Place: Darius

Week 5 – Mathematical Problem Solving

Years 7 – 9

Winner: Aarav

Years 10 – 12

Winner: Laura

Highly Commended: Sunny

Strange but true. Just as remote learning began the Year 9 Biology class were due to commence their scheduled unit on Disease and the Human Immune System. A perfect opportunity for students to delve into the mysteries of Coronavirus and other pathogens such as bacteria and parasites.

The class has examined how many contagious diseases are caused and spread, as well as the importance of hygiene practices in their prevention and treatment. The pros and cons of vaccination have also been studied, all in the very real context of the pandemic.

Students have also constructed models of a pathogen by repurposing materials found around the home. Interesting uses were found for paper plates, aluminium foil, pipe cleaners and other items.

I spent Term 1 on Long Service Leave exploring historical sites in Europe and doing some volunteer work with my husband, Trent. We started off with a white Christmas (technically white snowy views from a distance, but I still call it a white Christmas!) in France with some friends from Avondale College. 

We then moved on to our history-based part of the trip. One of the most touching historical sites was Auschwitz Concentration Camp. At first I could not understand why the tour guide spoke without any emotion given the horrors that had occurred there. By the end of the tour, I came to realise that focusing on the raw facts without emotion would perhaps be the only way to not let one’s self become overwhelmed by the horrific experiences of those locked inside the camps. While there were probably thousands of tourists there, we were all rather quiet and probably all left with similar feelings: humbled and grateful for life. 

While Auschwitz Concentration Camp stood out the most, I also learnt a lot through visits to museums (mainly in London), Reformation sites in Germany and multiple beautiful churches in France, Austria, Poland and the UK.

The majority of our time was in London, where I spent each week working in Hyde Park Barracks with children who had disabilities or learning difficulties. With a team of volunteers, I took the kids horse riding and helped them learn more about the nature of horses. The kids would light up as soon as they saw their horses and never left without a smile on their faces. It’s amazing to see how much God’s creations can brighten one’s day! 

My husband and I helped out at a soup kitchen which was run by a lady who has dedicated years to making homeless people feel loved and valued. Rather than individuals lining up to get their food, we were their waiters for the night, taking their orders and serving them a three course menu topped off with beautiful table decorations (flowers, menus etc.). This lady deserved a medal for all of her efforts (she lived in the country but stayed in the city one night a week just to prepare for the soup kitchen!) and was certainly an inspiration to us! 

We had a bit of an impression to come back slightly early, and our flight actually left on the day Coronavirus was declared a world pandemic, so we were grateful to get back home safely with hardly any hassles. Overall, I had a wonderful time but I did honestly miss the classroom and I am grateful to be back teaching my students again, albeit in a different manner!

– Mrs Rebekah Martin

We have second hand MacBook Air laptops for sale. Contact the school office for purchase and collection details  – admin@ncc2.vic.edu.au or 9877 3555

MacBook Air 11 inch (Early 2015)

• A1465 / 1.6GHz Core i5 / 4GB RAM / 128GB SSD
• $330 each

There are a lot of questions being asked right now about where this world is headed. Discover solid answers that you can rely on about where we are today in earth’s history. Join with people around the globe in this interactive series as we make sense of the moment and find answers that will give you the hope you are looking for and a hope that will last beyond our tomorrow. View past programs and register for upcoming programs here.