We look forward to seeing you at our annual Gathering of the Clan event being held at the College next Friday 2 February. Please book your tickets here by next Monday 29 January.

On Wednesday, 17 January, Mr Shane Coppin, the CEO of the Presbyterian and Methodist Schools Association (PMSA), joined our Headmaster, Mr Andre Casson, as we welcomed new teachers to the College for 2024. 

Left to right: 

Mr Tim Biddle – Science Teacher 

Mr Simon Schmidt – Head of Choral and Vocal 

Ms Emma Nuccoll – Early Years Teacher 

Ms Beth McKeown – Learning Enrichment Teacher 

Mr Shane Coppin – CEO, PMSA 

Ms Krysten Rowe – Visual Arts Teacher 

Mr Cameron Thew – Mathematics Teacher 

Mr Mitch Brockman – Mathematics Teacher 

Mr Alex Thanasoulis – Drama Teacher 

Mr Andre Casson – Headmaster 

Ms Julie Calderbank
HUMAN RESOURCES ADMINISTRATOR

The beginning and end of each school day sees large amounts of pedestrian traffic around the College, much of it comprised of the boys as they make their way on or off the campus. Given this, it is important that road rules are adhered to at all times when transporting your son to and from school.   

There have been instances of cars stopping across the school crossing on Kensington Terrace, across the driveway to the College’s Main Administration building, and in the designated loading zone for the Boarding House. Please be advised that police do monitor school zones, particularly at the beginning of a new term, and tickets have been issued for traffic violations around the College.  

Additionally, we have been advised that BBC parents have been using the Miskin Street car park of the Queensland Academy for Science, Mathematics, and Technology to drop off and pick up their sons. This creates challenges for QASMT parents, much as it would for BBC families if the situation were reversed. Both QASMT and BBC respectfully request that the QASMT car park be left for the pickup and drop off of their own students.  

BBC has also received the following information from the Department of Transport regarding school zone safety. For the benefit of our students, it is reproduced below in its entirety.  

School zone safety – advice for motorists, parents and carers   

With school back for 2024, we need to keep safety top-of-mind when travelling through active school zones and around our school community.    

School zone times have been standardised in Queensland to help motorists remember when to slow down. The standard operating times for most school zones in Queensland are 7–9am and 2–4pm, with some operating all day between 7am–4pm.   

Speeding remains a significant concern, contributing to fatalities and injuries, and police will be on the lookout for speeding motorists. Keeping below the signed speed limit in school zones helps keep everyone safe. This simple adjustment may have minimal impact on travel time but has the potential to significantly contribute to saving lives.   

Children’s crossings are identified by children’s crossing flags, displayed near crossings before and after school hours.    

When the crossing is supervised, you, as a motorist, must:      

• Wait until all pedestrians, bicycle riders, or personal mobility device riders have crossed the road and the crossing supervisor has returned to the footpath.   
• Abide by the direction given by the School Crossing Supervisor.   

Please keep our children safe by staying alert, slowing down and obeying our school crossing supervisors who are there to help kids cross the road safely.     

You can also help children become more road safety aware by:      

• Showing them how to look for vehicles coming in and out of driveways and discourage them from playing behind parked cars, or with toys or balls when walking to school.    
• Ensuring your child knows the safest route to and from school. This is usually the way with the least traffic and the fewest roads to cross and teach your child to always walk on footpaths.    
• Showing your child how to cross at traffic lights when the green ‘walk’ sign is showing at pedestrian crossings when vehicles have stopped and at supervised school crossings when the supervisor has signalled it is safe to do so.    
• Accompanying children when walking or riding to school until they are old enough to understand road safety (usually around 10 years or older).    
• Teaching your child if they catch the bus to never cross in front of or behind a bus; wait until the bus goes before crossing the road.    
• Making sure wheeled devices (bicycle, scooter, skateboard, or rollerblades) used to travel to school are well maintained and that the appropriate protective and safety gear (for example, helmet, visible clothing, knee and elbow pads) are used.    

Visit the Street Smarts website for more information about what to do at pedestrian and children crossings. 

Department of Transport and Main Roads

In regard to last week’s newsletter message concerning the ticketed school bus BBC operates to and from the College, we are able to confirm that we have received enough community interest in the service to continue it.  

However, please be advised that we received the absolute minimum number of registrations required to make the BBC East Bus Service tenable.  

Bus passes are now available for purchase at the following price points:    

• Semester 1 (AM and PM) - $1,385.00  
• Semester 1 (AM only) - $692.50  
• Semester 1 (PM only) - $692.50  

If you are interested in registering your son for the BBC bus, you can review the route online. 

As you may know, school photos are being taken on Tuesday, 30 January. These photographs will be taken during school hours across every year level, and BBC would appreciate parents’ help in ensuring their sons look their best.  

Secondary School   

• The photos taken will be used for student IDs. These photos will also be used to create the Secondary School Year Level and House Photos, as the number of students in them makes taking them in person impossible.  
• Photos will be taken in waves in the Sports Hall starting at 8:20am.  
• Class teachers will inform students when it is their turn to head to the Sports Hall.  
• Students will be required to wear their formal summer uniform. Blazers and boaters are not required due to the heat. Boys who are not dressed correctly will not have their photos taken.  

Junior School   

• The photos taken will be used for student IDs. In-person class photos will be taken at a later date.  
• Photos will be taken class by class in the Junior School Library from 8:30am.  
• Class teachers will accompany students to the library when it is their turn to have their photo taken.  
• Students will be required to wear their formal summer uniform unless they have PE class that day, in which case their PE uniform is acceptable. Blazers and boaters are not required due to the heat. Boys who are not dressed correctly will not have their photos taken. 

Students who are absent from school on Tuesday, 30 January, will have the opportunity to have their photos taken in a catch-up session on the morning of Friday, 2 February. If your son is also absent from this catch-up session and you would like him to be included in the Year Level or House photos, we can provide the contact information for the photographer to have a photo taken off-campus; however, this would not be organised or monitored by the College. 

At the end of every academic year, BBC produces a yearbook called the Portal. This volume is a specially printed and bound record of the year at BBC across all areas of academics, co-curricular activities, and student wellbeing. The Portal is available for all BBC families and serves as a memento for the boys to reflect on their schooldays in the years to come. 

The 2023 edition of the Portal was made available to all students in attendance on the final day of school last year, and we are making every effort to distribute the rest of the copies through Mentor Groups over the next week. 

If your family does not receive a 2023 Portal for whatever reason, please drop by Reception in the Main Administration building to collect a copy. 

Book Club

Ms Daryl-Jane Williamson
JUNIOR SCHOOL | LIBRARY TECHNICIAN

Welcome to the new school term and to another exciting year of STEM Club at BBC. Junior STEM Club offers students unique and interactive learning experiences at BBC. Through real-world investigations, research activities, experiments, and STEM challenges, students will develop skills in problem-solving, critical thinking, and teamwork as they explore the world around them. Our STEM program complements many of the students’ in-class learning experiences, offering additional opportunities, including STEM workshops, competitions, and excursions to enhance each student’s skills and potential.   

Term 1 Program  

This term, students will have a whale of a time as they dive deep into the STEM of the ocean. The Junior STEM students will embark on a voyage of discovery as they explore ocean science, conduct experiments, investigate the technologies used for deep ocean exploration, and discover more about the important and often unusual species that inhabit this incredible ecosystem. Our ocean STEM program will commence in Week 2. The full program will be available in the Junior School STEM Lab and on the Junior STEM Club page on Highlands.  

Junior STEM Club is held each week at lunchtime from 12:50pm to 1:20pm in the Junior Technology Laboratory next to the Junior School Library.   

• Monday (Years 1 to 3)  
• Friday (Years 4 to 6)  

All students are welcome to attend. 

Ms Maria Bavins
JUNIOR STEM CLUB FACILITATOR 

Come and Join!

Have you ever thought about learning the bagpipes or drums, becoming a bass drummer, or even becoming the Drum Major of the Brisbane Boys’ College Pipe Band? 

Well, here is your chance. 

The BBC Pipe Band is looking for eager members to join its ranks in 2024. The band is looking to build on its foundations and become one of the best school pipe bands in Australia. 

Mr Stevie Stanley  
DIRECTOR OF PIPE BAND 

Advanced Player Development Camps:

Tuesday 2 April - Thursday 4 April from 9:00am - 12:00pm 

Please book the Morning Camp here.

Tuesday 2 April - Thursday 4 April from 1:00pm - 4:00pm 

Please book the Afternoon Camp here.

Keen to join gymnastics classes? Enrol today here or contact Ashley Druve on gymnastics@bbc.qld.edu.au

For further information please contact:mbirch@bbc.qld.edu.au