10 December 2021
Newsletter Articles
OUR MISSION, VISION AND VALUES
Our Mission
Our mission is to foster academic and creative excellence in a respectful and nurturing educational environment. We strive to support student wellbeing and provide meaningful learning experiences that develop socially responsible and resilient life-long learners. Through collaboration and leadership, our students will engage in, and contribute to the community, both locally and globally.
Our Vision
At Pinnacle College, we celebrate diversity and uniqueness in an innovative and inclusive learning environment. Our vision is to equip students with the confidence and skills to reach their potential and meet the challenges of the future as global citizens, leaders and innovators.
Principal’s Message
Dear Parents, Guardians, Teachers and Students,
We have finally reached the end of the 2021 educational year. It has been quite a challenge for all of us with the emergence of COVID-19 and the resultant impacts on education and loss of Ahmad Alfarhan. Particularly, after the loss of Ahmad, our beloved student! it has become more challenging. I would like to extend my thanks to his family and friends for their understanding, being magnanimous and patient, and on the other side, the school community for their support in overcoming those challenging days together. We have inspired each other to live with hope and face the future in the sure knowledge that we will emerge from this in a stronger position than ever before. We have grown together and thrived together during these most testing of times.
This year we have been able to conduct both graduation ceremonies. Year 6 graduation ceremony was held on the 8rd of December and Year 12 graduation ceremony was held on the 3rd of December. I would like to congratulate both students and parents and their constant supporters and teachers. Also, I wish them all the best for their future endeavours.
I am immeasurably proud of my colleagues and I marvel at their resourcefulness and the compassion that they demonstrated for all of our students. They have done a lot of things with grace and kindness.
During the year, support from our parents remained steadfast. We never underestimate the huge sacrifices that our parents make in order to be able to send their children to be educated here at Pinnacle. It is never taken for granted and we are honoured that you have chosen to become members of this wonderful community.
I would like to thank the coordinators that I worked with who were my biggest supporters during this year. It would have been impossible to run the school without them. Their immense contributions and dedication to their work supported me on my journey.
I also would like to thank all the teaching and non-teaching staff for their commitment and dedication.
Finally, I’d like to thank all of our students who are always respectful, caring, responsible, compassionate and creative which is making my life as a Principal quite enjoyable and rewarding.
It is a privilege to lead the Elizabeth East Campus and the joy and excitement which results from seeing the happiness and success of our students make it one of the most rewarding roles imaginable.
As usual, at the end of each year, it is sad to see a number of staff leaving us due to a variety of reasons and starting another journey in their lives. I would like to thank Deniz Yildirim for his guidance, Emily Rowlands for her unlimited dedication, Lujan Herrera for her positive approach, Mehmet Kavlakoglu for his energy, Muhammed Cetin for his support, Sabira Hasanoff for her great work, Serkan Sezen for his outstanding effort who helped to improve Pinnacle College.
I wish you all a relaxing and safe holiday break and look forward to a better and a covid-free 2022.
Till next issue…
Educationally Yours,
Mr. Gokhan Kot
Campus Principal, Elizabeth East
Executive Principal Farewell
Dear Parents/ Caregivers and Students,
Please see the final message from the Pinnacle College Executive Principal, Mr Deniz Yildirim, below as he is leaving his position at the end of this year.
Dear all,
We have come to the end of the 2021 academic year at Pinnacle College. I congratulate all of you on your achievements throughout the year and thank you for your sincere efforts. Looking back on 2021 is a great pleasure for me, as I remember many wonderful memories and a strong, successful, and happy Pinnacle College family.
I felt my biggest appreciation towards our beloved students. Their enthusiasm brings energy and joy to our school, while their dedication and hard work makes us all very proud as they continue to reach many achievements every year.
Our teachers all have a huge role to play in this as they act as an important source of guidance and inspiration for their students. Throughout 2021, I have seen many examples of our teachers doing whatever is necessary to help their students reach their full potential.
With the end of the academic year also came many exciting events at Pinnacle College. The End of Year Ceremonies, Year 6 and 12 graduations, sport carnivals, festivals were amongst the highlights of the year. After weeks of preparation, students from F-5 presented the school community with a fantastic line-up of artworks and performances. The Graduation Ceremonies were memorable nights for our Year 6 and 12 graduates who have reached an important milestone in their life. I would like to thank the graduation committees for organising such nights to remember, worthy of the special place our graduates have in the Pinnacle College family.
Dear Graduates,
Congratulations to every single one of you for your achievements not only this year, but throughout your primary and secondary schooling life. I wish you all the best for your future endeavours and I strongly believe that every single one you have the potential of becoming very successful, contributing individuals.
I encourage our students to use the upcoming holiday as an opportunity to learn many new things. They should, of course, relax and spend valuable time with their family, but should also take some time to improve important skills such as reading and writing.
At the end of this academic year, I am sadly stepping down from my position at Pinnacle College to move back to Melbourne due to my family circumstances. As of the beginning of 2022, I will commence working as the principal of Sunshine Ibrahim Dellal Campus(IDC) - Sirius College.
Sirius College is a sister college and the IDC is currently serving students from F-10 and will be serving from F-12 as of 2022.
Mr. Mahmut Karaduman, who was the principal of Girls High School at Amity College in Sydney before he moved to Adelaide a few years ago, will fill my position. He also worked as a teacher and school principal at various schools in Tanzania, Uganda, and Russia between 1992-2008.
Our School Board and I are very confident that Mr. Karaduman will take Pinnacle College to new heights with his wealth of educational leadership experience.
Pinnacle College has an excellent reputation in the wider community. Our students have achieved great academic results over the years. I am sure that this trend will continue.
I can tell you that I will dearly miss my Pinnacle years.
Wishing all of the Pinnacle Family the best in the future and a wonderful holiday.
Keep up the good work!
Mr. Deniz Yildirim
Inclusive Education & Counselling
Dear Parents and Caregivers,
Congratulations on making it to the end of another year and what a year 2021 was! Reflecting on the past 12 months is bittersweet. It has tested our community in ways that I hope no school would need to endure. In this time I have realised the significance of a school’s involvement in the community and the level of influence it has. Thank you to the staff, students and wider community for their support and patience throughout the year. Extensive consultation has taken place to ensure students’ wellbeing has been at the forefront of the management team's consideration.
With each new year, comes new opportunities and challenges. Some of you may be aware that I will be leaving the Pinnacle College family next year to pursue a career in the law. It has been an amazing experience working with the students, families and staff of Pinnacle. I am incredibly fortunate to have created many fond memories and friendships during the tenure of my role.
I do need to afford the Pinnacle workforce an appreciation for their tireless and consistent efforts to educate the future generations. The quality of education provided is high and although continued revision and consultation will always be required, I have come to admire the learning experience that the school provides. I look forward to remaining engaged with the community and will be available to support in the future.
Goodbye for now but not forever.
Mr K
Secondary Curriculum Coordinator
And we are at the end of 2021.
It was a long year for all staff, parents, and students with ups and downs, but always going forward. Below are some points I would like to share with parents and students that will hopefully help planning and goal setting for 2022.
EOYC awards
Just recently we had our Secondary End-of-Year Award Ceremony take place at our Elizabeth East campus gymnasium. The awards that were awarded to students are listed below. It would be a good idea for students to choose one or more awards to set as a goal for 2022, and strive to achieve their goal(s).
Academic Award - awarded to one student in each year level from each campus with the highest annual grade.
Endeavour Award - nominated by staff and awarded to one student in each year level from each campus who has shown the most effort to improve in their academic studies.
Behaviour Award - awarded to one student in each year level from each campus with the highest COOLSIS points who has been on excellent behaviour for the duration of the year.
SRC Award - awarded to two SRC students nominated by the SRC coordinator for being great role models.
Sportsmanship Award - awarded to one student from each campus, nominated by the sports teachers.
Sport Competitor Award - awarded to one student from each campus who has participated and done well in the most sports competitions representing the school.
Citizenship Award - nominated by staff and awarded to one student from each campus who has demonstrated qualities of a role model citizen at Pinnacle College in the current year.
Art Award - nominated by the art teachers and awarded to two students from each campus who have produced excellent work pieces throughout the year.
Scholarships
Apart from the current scholarships we currently offer, we now offer two more related to Sports and The Arts. More information can be found in the Pinnacle College Scholarship Policy that can be found on the Pinnacle College website. Eligible students have applied, and applications have been reviewed and shortlisted. Interviews will take place at the beginning of 2022. Students will need to apply themselves throughout 2022 before they are awarded the sum payment at the EOYC. Good luck to those who applied.
Student google site
Students are highly encouraged to bookmark this site and browse through it at least three times a term for updates and curriculum related information. Only students with a school email account can view it.
Link to the site -
https://sites.google.com/pinnacle.sa.edu.au/studentscurriculum/home
Planners
The 2022 subject planners are currently being revised and will be finalised by the end of the term. All planners will be shared with students at the beginning of the 2022 academic year. Links will be on the google site above. Students are encouraged to access them and plan their term accordingly. We plan to be as transparent as possible so that students are more accustomed and prepared for their further studies at TAFE or University, where a similar approach is used.
Thank you for studying at Pinnacle College in 2021. All the best in your future endeavours and hope to see you again in 2022.
Warm regards,
Sami Hussein
Secondary Curriculum Coordinator
Community Engagement
Community Engagement
Pinnacle College, Australian Migrant Resource Center (AMRC), Australian Relief Organisation (ARO) and City of Salisbury Council organised 'Families Get Together' and 'Clothing/Gift Drive Event' for newly-arrived Burmese and Afghani Refugee families last Thursday. It was great to see families getting together. Special thanks to all parties involved for making this event such a success.
Community Hub News
What a year! From opening our doors on the 3rd of March our Community Hub has had over 130 families participate in our programs. We celebrated the end of a successful year with an end of year celebration, our hub families enjoying breakfast and lots of children's entertainment. Thank you to all of you for getting involved in our playgroups, parenting workshops, English and cooking classes. We look forward to having more families join us in 2022. I hope you all enjoy your holidays.
Warm Regards,
Hannan Hassan
Library
We all had a fantastic time this year in the library. I would like to thank Mucella for all of her help through the year. I could not have run the library at Elizabeth East Campus without her.
Just remember to read during the break. All the public libraries have a great selection of books and also they do run holiday activities. Check them out.
Here are a few ideas of reading with your younger children:
- Take ten minutes every day to read aloud to your child.
- Let your child choose the book.
- Have your children read anything and everything
- Enjoy yourself!
- Let your child see you read.
We had a competition with the year 4-5-6 on reading 10 books of different genres. We had 11 students complete it at Elizabeth East campus. They enjoyed a Pizza Party on Friday.
More challenges and excitement in the library next year.
“The more you read, the more things you will know. The more that you learn, the more places you will go” Dr Seuss
Lisa Preston
Librarian – Pinnacle College
Front Office Notices
Primary
Foundation
We had a great time at The Ice Arena, finding out what it was like in the snow. We made snowballs, rode penguins and pulled each other on sleds. It was c-c-c-c-cold!!!
Year 2
I can not believe that this year has come to an end! We have had such a fantastic year full of learning. Thank you to all the parents for your support and I look forward to working with you all again next year!
Love, Miss. Musa
It was fun making friends and going
on excursions together -
Aref, Abdulaye Ahmad and Aayan.
Year 2 is the best class because
Miss. Musa was teaching us! -
Zeynep A, Zeynep S, Natasha, Ayesha and
Marva.
Our favourite thing about this year
was that we always had fun together -
Lilly, Sumayya and Reema
The best parts of the year were
Swimming, Sports Day and playing with our friends -
Tazneem, Qudra, Muhammad, Ayan R and
Idrees
Year 3
What a journey this year has been!
We have experienced many highs and also some lows this year, but not even continuous Covid could stop us from getting through another year of school!
I am super proud of what the students have achieved this year, for some I’ve been teaching for two years, so it’s been so lovely to watch them grow. They’ve built more confidence, stronger relationships with others and themselves but most importantly they’ve all achieved some amazing things!
Wishing them all the best for next year and beyond!
Miss P
Year 5
Dear Parents and Caregivers,
We have had an amazing year of learning and FUN. We have all worked extremely hard all year long and are looking forward to a refreshing break. Some of our highlights from this year are our Zoo excursion and End of Year Concert. We wish all the parents, teachers and families a happy and safe holidays!
Love from Miss Marcoionni, and the Year 5’s.
Year 6
Going to AFL Max was an amazing experience, we all had so much fun. There were so many different challenges and competition. The rock-climbing was very scary, no one made it all the way to the top. The inflatables were also a highlight, we had to dodge a lot of stuff. - Olla Year 6A
Primary Art
Another term ended with lots of fun and learning time. 5 & 6 students practiced a diverse range of Arts genres ranging from dance to drama and collage-making. They are now overdue for a well-deserved rest before 2022 starts!
Secondary
SACE Coordinator
For our year 11-12 students, 2021 has been a year full of challenges. However, with such challenges comes the opportunity for growth and it has been a privilege helping our students grow across the year as they rose above these obstacles. Big congratulations to our year 12 students in particular at the conclusion of their schooling journey and we eagerly await the release of their results on December 13th. Remember, success means something different for each individual and so long as you have given your best effort this year, you should leave school with no regrets. Lastly, a big thank you to the hard working SACE teachers on your tireless work supporting our students this year. Their successes would not be possible without your valuable contributions.
David Hannan – Year 11/12 Coordinator
Year 7 to Year 10 Coordinator
Dear Parents and Caregivers,
I would like to thank you for trusting us with your children, the most valuable treasure and gift from our lord. We are aware of your expectations from us as an educational organisation. However we all are humans and we are not working with robots which only act in the way they are programmed. At Pinnacle, we have always been reinforcing and encouraging positive manners, making right choices and respecting each other. Although we sometimes have issues, we are proud of our students for their improvement and we owe big thanks for your support
At Pinnacle College, we know it is important for families and the school to work together and share responsibility for student success. We take on board your feedback on your children. You know your children best and we can learn from you so that we can deliver better teaching. We also want our students to know the importance of school and families working together to support their learning. Pinnacle College acknowledges the importance of effective communication between school and parents to achieve our common goal which is to get the best out of your children. Thanks to Cool-SIS, you can closely monitor your child’s academic and behavioural. Please make sure that you check Cool-SIS regularly. You can book an appointment with any staff member to discuss any issues related to your child.
At Pinnacle College we are trying our best to provide a quality academic, spiritual and behavioural education, without sacrificing our cultural values and differences. We believe that we have a responsibility to present our unique identity and community successfully by achieving the best. That is why it is important to work as a team, a big family, and to use every opportunity to better educate our children and to teach them respect for each other.
Now it is the end of the school year 2021 and you are on your own for almost 1.5 months ☺. I believe you will utilise that holiday time to get the best outcome for your children. Please consider more physical activities and limit computer use if possible. Dear students, I hope you will have every opportunity during the holiday to help your parents and make them pleased. They are the ones who love you the most even if sometimes they may not show it.
Finally, I want to acknowledge my colleagues who are working tirelessly to make our school a better place. Thank you to all and I wish you all the best.
Zeki DENGIZ
Coordinator
Art
Year 7 students have been learning about the pioneer of modern abstract painting Mondrian. Inspired from Mondrian’s work, students experimented with creating balance and contrast within a square using rectangles and squares along with primary and secondary colours. Year 8 students learn about using words in art. They designed their chosen words and phrases as drawings. Some of the students continue painting their design as 2D completed artworks while some others choose to build them into cardboard models.
English
During this last term, Year 11 applied all their understanding of literary devices and techniques, and wrote an essay comparing Spielberg’s Jurassic Park to Shelley’s classic novel Frankenstein, establishing comparisons between ambitious scientists and businessmen and their unwilling but powerful creations.
Regrettably, I am leaving Pinnacle this year, but I want to thank all my students (in all year levels) for all the memories created over the three and half years I’ve taught in these classrooms. From the You Debate preparations with its ups and downs, to our debating classes, the lunch and recess writing sessions, and my attempts during English classes to convince you of the importance of reading, to the Year 11 and 12s babysitting my own children any time I had to bring them to school; I have cherished every moment. I leave this school a better teacher because of all of you and I am very grateful to have been part of your lives. You are a vivacious, fun, incredibly kind bunch of young people and I wish you all the brightest future.
Lujan Herrera
“If you sleep in a barn, you deserve
to be framed.”
2022 Year 12
Philosopher in residence, August 2021.
Humanities
Students have recently completed their unit on Economics & Business where they learn the importance of enterprising behaviours and capabilities that can be transferable into life, work and business opportunities and will contribute to the development and prosperity of individuals and society. They are now beginning their study groups to help prepare them for their end of year exams. We wish them the best of luck!
Science
The year 9s have been studying hard for their end of year exams. The students have learnt about ecosystems and how they consist of communities of interdependent organisms. The abiotic components of the environment, matter and energy flow through these systems were also covered along with circuits and waves.
Good luck year 9s
Maths
Students did very well in mathematics during the terms. They put lots of effort into harnessing their skills. Besides their class work, students were assigned homework on a worksheet and Math Space once a week.
One of our students, Ali S from Year 10, won the Math Space Award out of 300,000 students across Australia; we congratulate him for his great achievement.
PE
2021 Official Pinnacle College Elizabeth East Sporting Results:
South Australia wide Tournaments:
Gala Day Girls open Football: Winners
Gala Day Open boys: 3rd place
8/9 Boys 5 a side Soccer: 6th
8/9 Basketball: Runner up
Zone competitions
8/9 Boys 5 a side Soccer: Runners up
8/9 Basketball: Runner up
Ultimate Frisbee: Runner up
Open Ten Pin Bowling 3rd
Open Mixed Volleyball 4th place
8/9 cricket 5th
Primary
Bachar Houli Cup AFL Girls: Runner up
Bachar Houli Cup AFL boys A: Winners
Bachar Houli Cup AFL boys B: 3rd
Notable Standouts:
Ayman Ismail (State Soccer, State Basketball, Open Gala
Day Team)
Mohammed Al Ani (Basketball, Top Scorer)
Mohammed Turay (Soccer, Top Scorer)
Zakia Adam (Gala Day Open Football Girls) MVP
Pastoral Care
Pastoral Care is not only on Wednesday after school! Year 8 Pastoral Care students are contributing for themselves, for their families and the community with their weekly goals. Nadir took the duty of mopping at house cleaning and Shamil helped clean the school as a weekly goal.
Dear Parents/Guardians and lovely Students,
First of all, all of you have deserved a special appreciation for completing another year at Pinnacle College and have successfully overcome all challenges so far. Most of the time, the accomplishment of a student is never possible without the constant support of parents/guardians. Therefore, I would like to thank all of our parents, especially those who provided enormous support to our Pastoral Care (PC) department by permitting their children to participate in and benefit from our PC extra-curricular activities and programs.
I am glad to state that our students, Pastoral Care teachers, and all school staff did a remarkable job in collaboration and numerous PC projects have come to fruition in 2021. The positive reflections and feedback from parents, students, and the school community boosted our motivation to continue and add more programs and projects.
I have been happily part of the Pinnacle family for the last three years, however, as known, nothing lasts forever in this life. This message is also my farewell message to our school community. I can sadly announce my separation from Pinnacle College as of 2022 to work as a secondary teacher in NSW. I will always cherish the Pinnacle College memories and will definitely miss the Pinnacle College family.
May God fulfil all of your wishes that are to your advantage.
Kind Regards,
Muhammed Cetin
Boys PC coordinator