A team of Cornerstone Christian College students can call themselves published writers, with a book launch this weekend including their work.

The College had professional writer and teacher, Kevin Price, spend a few days with students in a writing workshop last year.  The Year 6 class and a few students in extension programs in the lower primary school were included in the incursion.  From those workshops, the students were encouraged to submit a story for consideration in the Born Storyteller Series – a successful program which introduces aspiring young writers to the process required to work from pen to publication.  As a result, 9 Cornerstone students have been selected to have their stories included in the latest edition which will be launched this week at Murdoch University.

Eamon Brand, Molly Jackson, Alyssa Warner, Elke Weinert, Jessica Black, Marli Enslin, Joshua Fontana, and Pania Kara are the young budding writers, and they are delighted at the opportunity that has been presented to them.

Their teacher at the time, Graham Dixon, is really proud of how the students have performed and said that it was a really worthwhile exercise. He, along with several of the students will be attending the book launch in Perth (at Murdoch University) so they can participate in the book-signing process.  Understandably they are very excited.

Edie Strutt, the College’s Primary Principal said it was a wonderful experience and is a lovely way of celebrating the writing gifts the students have.   This sentiment was mirrored in comments from the students themselves, who were all delighted at the opportunity to be able to consider themselves published writers. 

A wonderful initiative that has brought the attention of the press with them.  The West Australian wrote a story on the students that can be found here, and local press also featured the initiative.  The link to that story can be found here.

Congratulations to each of the latest young writers from Cornerstone.

The Year 6 class at Cornerstone has marked its final days in the Primary school with a night of celebration.  The Graduation ceremony was held on December 7, with parents and staff helping the students remember their Primary School years, and anticipate their entry into the Middle School.

Each of the graduates was invited onto the stage to be presented with a graduation momento, and whilst there, shook hands with their teacher, Mr Dixon, College Principal Bruce Douglas, and Deputy of Primary Edie Strutt.

During the course of the evening, Mr Dixon organised an entertaining line-up of events, including a baby photo competition, photo reflections, a tribute poem by two students,  a message from Mrs Strutt and then Mr Douglas, and concluded with supper.

The class was charged to enter the next phase of their education with the same enthusiasm and passion with which they have displayed over the course of this past year.  Mr Dixon praised them, stating that they were an incredibly helpful and thoughtful class, who amongst other things, even gave Mr Dixon a surprise birthday party! 

Mrs Strutt and Mr Douglas both gave the students encouragement to pursue their secondary education with the attitude of striving to always do their best.  The students were responsive to the words that came from each of the staff members that spoke, and concluded the evening by all rushing onto the stage to give Mr Dixon a group hug. 

A delightful evening of tribute and celebration.  Well done Mr Dixon for bringing it all together, and well done Year 6′s for finishing your year so well.  We are incredibly proud of you all.

The Year 6 class at Cornerstone Christian College has become quite attached to a number of animals over the course of the year, particularly their class mice and rats.  However, recent visitors to the classroom may have threatened these class pets under different circumstances.

Bill, a re-known animal lover and carer for some less than unusual species, was recently in Mr Dixon’s class with his favourite snakes, lizards and ferrets.

The writer, having witnessed the student’s enthusiasm to care for the young rodents in their room, was interested to note that not even snakes caused the students to quiver.  Infact, they were desperate to take their turn in a close encounter with one of the two Children’s Pythons.  Once the pythons and lizards had been encountered, they were locked away, and the ferrets took centre stage.  Bill was determined to provide a safe environment for both the students and animals, and as these animals are natural enemies, was keen to avoid them encountering each other.  The entire visit was without incident, and a delightful experience for the students.

And what did the Year 6 class think of their guests?

‘This is just so great’, was a frequently expressed sentiment.

According to Mr Dixon, giving the students access to such a diverse array of animals has broadened their view in current studies.  They are currently focused on Endangered Animals, and whilst the animals on hand today may not have technically fit that classification, other pythons that are closely related to these do infact qualify.  Getting some literal hands-on experience has made their education quite practical.

For our brave students who had a close encounter with the guest animals – it was great to see.

The Year 6 students have once again been able to participate in a initiative created by the Busselton Shire Council, which seeks to engage students in the process of Local Government.

On Friday, an excursion to the Busselton Shire Council Offices was undertaken. Students were provided with a number of opportunities for education, as well as practical engagement in the various areas governed by the local council.

Council staff walked the group through a number of topics, such as:  Councillor roles & responsibilities; maintenance & construction; waste management; libraries; occupational health and safety; animal control; parking; and town planning .  Students were then able to test their budding Councillor skills by participating in a mock council meeting.   This is an initiative that commenced with Cornerstone last year, and of which, according to the Shire’s Public Relations Officer, Meredith Dixon, still one not utilised by many schools.  ‘Cornerstone is our most frequent customer’, she said.

Participating ”Cornerstone Councillors” spoke over an issue and then voted on the application.

The benefits to the students were quite varied. Mr Dixon’s class came away with new knowledge – from having an understanding of the role of local government, through to seeing a number of career choices on offer. A terrific program, and special thanks must go the the Busselton Shire Council for their organisation of the event.

Mr Dixon’s year 6 students have been seen doing a-MAZE-ing things recently.

Their resident class pets, comprising of two rats and two mice, were put through their paces in mazes that the students created for them.

The children were required to design a playground with a number of challenging elements they had to entice their young rodent friends to do.  From walking up stairs, running through tubes, pushing a ball, rolling on a tin, to even walking through an obstacle course, there was nothing these mice weren’t asked to do. They had to try and work out where to place strategic treats and tempting items to get the mice to follow their unspoken instructions.  Once the planning, creating and testing was carried out, the students had to assess how they performed.

Many were a great success.  The mice and rats went through their paces and appeared to enjoy their encounter with both the students and the rewards on offer.  By the later stages of the process however, the mice appeared to have had their food reward fill, and so compliance was a little more difficult.

A really creative activity that all participants appear to have enjoyed.

The Year 6 students at Cornerstone  Christian College, recently have had the privilege of participating in a special three day workshop, which aimed to develop their writing and storytelling skills.  Visiting author, Kevin Price, spent several enthusiastic days with Mr Dixon’s class, and immersed the students in his enthusiasm and passion for telling a good story.

Kevin Price chose to be a professional writer in 1987. He began as a columnist for an advertising industry magazine and a lifestyle magazine before moving on to copy writing for local advertising agencies and businesses.  He has completed a novel of his own which is pending publication. While he still writes advertising, he now also teaches story-craft to bright young minds in Western Australian schools and writers
centres, and edits the resulting works for the Born Storyteller books. Since its inception in 2005, Kevin has delivered his creative writing program, Learn to Write like A Born Storyteller, in a number of West Australian schools and leading writer centres.

Over recent days, the students have been challenged to develop strong characters which will be used as they prepare to write stories that have the possibility of being published within the Born Storyteller series. It is likely that a number of Cornerstone’s budding writers will be able to say they are published writers at the conclusion of this experience. Kevin is helping the students understand the journey that must be taken and the essential elements needed to complete a good and well written piece.

The students have enjoyed the interactive and engaging manner that Kevin utilises, and were enthusiastic about their participation in the workshop. Despite the additional homework the experience brought with it, the benefits were enormous for each of the participants.

No.  This is not an announcement of displeasure – at least for some.  Mr Dixon’s Year 6 class has recently acquired several class pets that the students are taking responsibility for.  Two mice and two rats, all still very small and very cute have made the classroom their home.

With the aim of establishing some responsibility amongst the students, these recent additions to the class are a popular choice.  A maze has been created, to allow the animals to show their clever side, and of course, the obligatory mouse wheel is housed within the cage.

Whilst the writer did enjoy seeing these small creatures in the hands of students, there is still some hesitancy on her behalf to fully embrace the nature of their pet choice.  But it doesn’t really matter what other adults think, the students are delighted with their young friends and are showing enormous care for their class pets.  Great job Year 6′s.

Mr Dixon’s Year 6 students were the latest group to thoroughly entertain the Primary school during a recent assembly.

Presenting a drama about a school that is so strict that the students may not even breathe, the Year 6′s performed well in what was a humorous and delightful presentation.

After the students presented this view of schooling, the somber moment lifted, and they portrayed the way they see Cornerstone.  The’ staff’ member gave the students a chance to be themselves, celebrate life, and, put simply, to breathe again.  It was well presented and a delightful message about how the College operates.  Symbolism with the clothing was subtle, but present.  Well done Year 6 students for sharing such an enjoyable piece.

During the remainder of the assembly, the Striving for Excellence Awards were presented, Ambassador Awards were distributed, and the champion and runner-up swimming students were acknowledged and presented with medallions.  Mr Douglas used the message the students shared in the drama to encourage those present to be the best they can be and celebrate life.

The secondary assembly was hosted by the Year 11 students.  With a theme of ‘sponteneity’, the normal routine was tossed aside for the morning, and a ‘bucket’ with details of events was drawn upon to determine the order occurrence.  As with the Primary assembly, the Striving the Excellence Awards, Ambassador Awards and swimming champions were announced, as well as an address by Mr Douglas, a Reflections DVD and the tidy classroom award.

Well done to everyone involved, and a special thank you to the many parents who came and celebrated the morning with us. 

Mr Dixon’s Year 6 students  have spent time recently learning about the earth’s internal structure.  As a concluding activity, the class were split into teams and had to create a model of the earth which highlighted the 4 layers.  According to Mr Dixon, the process was a popular one, and the hands-on experiment helped solidify all that they have learnt.

The 4 layers of the earth are the inner core, outer core, mantle and crust.   Students firstly made four batches of play dough, coloured each one differently and then moulded it together into a sphere, representing the earth.

‘Once made, the kids cut it in half to reveal the different layers and then they were asked to label each layer correctly. Prizes were given for most accurate model and best group in terms of cooperation, coordination, and delegation’, he said.

Whilst God created the real one, our Year 6 students took a great deal of pleasure in modelling our planet with this creative exercise.  Great job!

The Year 6 students recently spent an evening with their parents, family members and teachers, celebrating the end of their Primary school education.

As of February next year, these students will enter the middle school years.  To mark this milestone, a special ceremony was held, introducing each of the students, and presenting them with a graduation certificate and photograph, as well as a Bible.

Mr Norris and Mr Dixon took time to express their thanks for a wonderful year their students have given them.  Some words of wisdom were imparted, with practical advice and encouragement shared by both teachers to their charges.

Principal, Mr Graeme Cross, addressed the audience, and challenged the graduates to become young men and women of note – for the right reasons.  He challenged them to use the gifts God has blessed them with for the benefit of others.  His message was as applicable to the adults in the audience as it was for the students.

A photo display was viewed, as well as a baby photo competition.  It appears that many of the students have dramatically changed their appearance since those early years, with few students obtaining many correct guesses as to who the images belonged to!

Mr Lee Sykes, the Senior Pastor at Cornerstone Church of Christ, addressed the crowd briefly, before the presentations were made to the graduates.  After a final graduation song was sung, it was time for an impressive supper.

Special thanks must go to Mr Norris and Mr Dixon for their organisation of the evening.  It truly was a celebration of what these past primary years have held, as well as a night of encouragement for the future.

As for the students, we are so grateful for the presence of each at Cornerstone, and look forward to sharing their journey with them into the middle school years.