18 August 2016

Newsletter Articles

From the Principal

Welcome to this edition of our newsletter. During this last fortnight much has occurred, last Friday we underwent a 9-month school review. The intent of the review which only went for 2 hours was to gauge if the school’s improvement agenda was narrow and focused. I believe we have progressed significantly in the last 6 weeks to narrowing our improvement agenda. Well what is that agenda, I hear you ask! Our improvement agenda which will run over the next 4 years is about:

1. Improving the pedagogical (Teaching) standards of practice in the classroom and
2. Improving behaviour through teaching positive behaviour activities and having effective consequences in place that assist in the learning of positive behaviour.

These two areas are crucial in improving student performance and resilience, and that’s what we are all about. If you walk into our school you will see Polite, Prepared and Participate signage all around the school, every lesson you will see a learning intent followed by success criteria and a specialised vocabulary on the whiteboard. There will be vocabulary word walls and explicit instruction will be in action. These are the visible elements of our improvement agenda which is underpinned by significant education research that cannot be ignored. I have been in the education game for 34 years and have watched a revolution in research and teaching occur. We are coming closer to a genuine overarching theory of teaching where every child can succeed if the theory is applied correctly. Thousands of education research papers are now being studied on a meta scale that has not been previously feasible. Our work is now much more evidenced based.

Thank you to all the parents who attended our subject selection evening last Tuesday. Our teachers are rewriting the Year 10 curriculum to align with the significant changes occurring in the new senior curriculum with the introduction of external assessment. Year 10 SET planning will occur in the next two weeks and we are midway through our Year 6 transition program.

Special Mentions

• Paige Michelmore was a Year 12 student at ESHS last year. Paige goes to Brisbane for the Qld Training Awards ceremony on September 9. We wish her all the best!
• Mrs Weatherly has battled for 3 years to improve our parking situation and she may well have gained some success. We hope to make an important announcement soon about improvements for our parking facilities.

“This nation was built by people who took risks — pioneers who were not afraid of the wilderness, business men who were not afraid of failure, scientists who were not afraid of the truth, thinkers who were not afraid of progress, and dreamers who were not afraid of action.” – Brooks Atkinson

Ray Clarke
Principal

Thank-you

Thank you to all the parents/caregivers, students and school staff that completed this year’s School Opinion Survey. We look forward to reviewing our survey results when we receive our school report later this year.

From the Deputy

Welcome back to term 3, traditionally the most academically busy term of the year. This year is no different with our Year 9 and 10 students being asked to make significant choices about their life after school as this directly impacts the subjects they study next year with Year 9 and 10 students making these decisions about subjects they are going to study by Friday next week.

At Emerald State High School we are proud about the range of choice that our students have when they are making these decisions. From Year 10 onwards the only subjects that students are required to study are English and Mathematics. Even in these subjects students will get to choose the level of each subject to suit their future. Parents and Students are encouraged to access the diverse range of support and extensive information that has been provided to make the best choices for the future education and life after school.

Attendance is a major contributor to a successful education and as such remains a focus at Emerald State High School. The winter months can result in a drop in attendance of students due to sickness. Therefore it is timely to remind parents and students that if a student is away from school it is vital for the parents to let the school know the reasons for the student’s absences as soon as possible and essential for students, when they return to school, to talk to each of their teachers to ensure they catch up on the learning that they missed. The current attendance data for this term is overall 89.1% which is 0.9% below our target for each year group. Our attendance data is:

Congratulations to our Year 7 students who continue to lead the entire school in attendance demonstrating their love and value for their education; Years 9, 10 and 12 definitely have something to learn from your example.

Brendan Shannon
Deputy Principal – Years 9 & 10

Year 9 News

This term we’ll see some exciting events occurring for our Year 9s. On 9th August ESHS held their Senior Subject Selection Evening which provided students and parents information about subject choices for 2017. It was great to see the Year 9s taking a valued interest in their education and subject choices for next year. The Junior Secondary Awards Night was also held on the 9th August. I would like to congratulate all students who received an award on the night.

The Year 8 and 9 Camp at Emu Gully Adventure camp will be held this term in week 7 (August 21st to August 25th). Students will be living on ration packs and will be completing challenges which are designed to build teamwork and leadership skills. I hope you all have a great time on camp.

Students will have their first piece of assessment due for a range of subjects in the coming weeks. I would encourage all students to attend Homework Club during this time. Homework Club is run Tuesday and Thursday afternoons in the library from 3:00 – 4:00pm. Students can use this time to catch up on work, complete assessment and revise for their subjects.

Have a great week!

Elyse Gilbert
Head of Year 9

From the Head of Department: English

Semester Two is in full swing with all engines running on full steam ahead. Last week we hosted the Junior Awards night where a large number of students in years 7-9 received awards for high academic achievement and attendance. Our subject selection afternoon and information sessions were also held on Tuesday to inform students and parents of the choices available in selecting curriculum subjects for next year.

Staffing:

We are very pleased to have welcomed five staff to our English department this term.

• Mrs Gabby Hunt has returned in the role of Literacy Coach after taking maternity leave. We are very fortunate to have her expertise and support for the remainder of this year.
• Mrs Melinda Prior has also returned from maternity leave. She will be working in Learning Support as well as teaching English.
• Miss Tess Doherty is currently replacing Miss Hannah while she is working in Barcaldine.
• Miss Sarah Veness has arrived and she is replacing Mrs Elsden whilst she is on maternity leave.
• Mr Kelly Wright has relocated from Bundaberg to join our team. Mr Wright will be teaching English Communications and Junior English.

Congratulations to Mrs Elsden on the arrival of her daughter Felicity. We have been very fortunate to meet little Felicity this term. Mrs Hume will be jet setting around Italy and enjoying a well-deserved break whilst on long service leave. We are looking forward to hearing about your exciting stories upon your return. All classes have been filled with our very capable, existing English staff.

Assessment

In term three, students in Years 7-9 are reading and listening to Indigenous poetry, protest songs and ballads and analysing them using SPECS and SLIMS. In week 6 they will be completing an exam based on what they have been learning this term.

Year 7 - This term all year 7 students have been using SPECS and SLIMs to analyse a variety of ballads. When using this analysis tool, students analyse the ballad to locate information regarding subject matter/ purpose, structure (stanzas etc), imagery (similes, metaphors) and more.

Year 8 - We have had an enjoyable term listening to and reading the lyrics of a variety of protest songs and analysing using SPECS and SLIMS.

Year 9 – Using SPECS and SLIMS, the students have been analysing a variety of Indigenous poems.

Year 10 - This term the students are writing short stories (narratives) in response to a stimulus. Throughout the term students have been focussing on the use of language and how to use figurative language effectively to enhance their writing.

In my last newsletter I spoke about the importance of students using their time effectively and being prepared. Please talk to your child/ren and ask them what they are learning in English and what their assessment task is and when it is due.

Have a calendar at home that is visible. Write draft and final submission dates on the calendar as a visual reminder of when they need to be prepared.

Subject Selection for 2017

Year 9 into Year 10

Students who are moving into Year 10 next year have the choice of two English electives to study in 2017.

Option 1- English: this subject will be offered to those students who are currently in year 9 who are achieving a C+ or higher. This subject will allow you to continue along the ATAR pathway and prepare students for further study after high school.

Option 2- Essential English: this area of study is designed to support students who are heading down the vocational pathway and planning to seek a traineeship, apprenticeship or job after they complete school.

Year 10 into Year 11-

There are 3 choices available for students choosing subjects for English in Year 11.

Option 1- English: this subject will be offered to those students who are currently in year 10 who are achieving a C+ or higher. This subject will allow you to continue along the ATAR pathway and prepare students for further study after high school.

Option 2- Literature: this is a new subject that will be offered in 2017 to those students who are currently in year 10 who are achieving a C+ or higher. This subject will allow students to continue along the ATAR pathway. The prerequisite for this subject is that students must do English as well as Literature. Literature cannot be taken on as a subject on its own.

Option 3- English Communication: this area of study is designed to support students who are heading down the vocational pathway and planning to seek a traineeship, apprenticeship or job after they complete school.

Literary Festival

On Monday students in the Honours classes attended the Literary Festival and will be working with a number of authors and illustrators. We have extended this opportunity to participate in this program by offering it to other students in years 7-9 who have achieved high academic results in reading.

ICAS-

A number of students also sat the English ICAS test last week. We are looking forward to receiving their results.

Until next time,
Regards,

Terri Weatherley
Head of Department: English

School Based Apprenticeships/Traineeships/Work News

Emerald State High School would like to congratulate the following students signing into a School Based Apprenticeship with the following local businesses.

Ben - Le Porte Rosse

Congratulation to Tahlia Paulson completing a Cert II Business with Australia Post.

Term 3 week 9 will see year 10 students entering the workplace for the final round of work experience these last 3 terms have given students the opportunity to see what the industry of their chosen field is like to work in this will assist with choosing the subject they would like to study over year 11 and 12.

Emerald State High would like to thank the following businesses for their assistance with the work experience program for Term 2.

AJ & K Sanders
Allens Cabinets
AmpControl
Anakie State School
Avalon Aged Care
Basford & Hunt Constructions
Best and Less
Big W
Bill Whites Electrical
Borilla Kindergarten
Bradnams Windows and Doors
C & K Emerald
Childs’ Tyre Services
Coles
Comet Primary School
Construct Physio Therapy
Corbett Homes
Cordoma Farms
CQ Flight School
CQ Saddlery
CQ University
Deep Feet
Denison State School
Donut King
Emerald 4 X 4
Emerald Carrying Company
Emerald Community Kindergarten
Emerald Medical Group
Emerald North State School
Emerald Office Supplies
Emerald PCYC
Emerald State School
Emerald Twin Cinema
Emerald World of Learning
Ford Emerald
Gemfields Medical
Generations Fitness
Goodstart Early Learning
Gray Street Vet
Hooper’s Food Store
Isla Downs
Jodi’s Salons
John Crossan & Co
Komatsu
Le Porte Rosse
Maraboon Vet
Marist College
Mayfair Ridge Dental
Mayfair Tavern
McDonalds Emerald
NBS Plastering
Nogoa Newsagent
Pats Gems
Pj’s Pets
Rods Auto Electrics
Salvation Army
Skillpro PTY LTD
Snap Fitness
St Patricks Emerald
Theresa Street Vet
Total Beauty
Toyota
West Auto Electrics
Wow Cuts and Colours

Alarna Wills
Workplacement Co-ordinator

News from the Library

Word Mania

For the last two weeks, students in Years 7-9 have been participating in Literacy Planet’s Word Mania. Students are challenged to find as many words from fifteen letters as they can in three minutes. In the first week, the leader board for each year level was decided by participation. For the Central Queensland region our Year 7 students placed 2nd, our Year 8 students placed 3rd and our Year 9 students were ranked 1st against their cohort in other schools! In the second week, the leader board for each year level was decided by participation and skill. For the Central Queensland region our Year 7 students again placed 2nd, our Year 8 students placed 4th and our Year 9 students placed 2nd. This is an excellent example of our students following our positive behaviour expectation of participating. As a result, there are prizes of board games for our school on the way! Special mention to the following students who for the highest scores and most games played in each year level:

Competitions

Students should see Mrs Galea in the library for more details & to submit entries. Entering into these competitions earns students vivo points.

Driving Simulation

A Dreamy Breakfast

Our Rainbow House Fundraisers

Emerald State High School supports Our Rainbow House through our Student Representative Council. Below are some upcoming fundraising activities that they’re organising to raise funds for their school in Zambia.

Community Grants Program

BMX Club