28 June 2019

Newsletter Articles

Principal’s Report

Welcome to this newsletter, my last as Principal of Emerald State High School.

A month ago, at our executive team meeting we had a warm up question; “What was the best career decision you ever made?”

My answer was simple, it was “Coming to Emerald State High School!”

I can understand why so many people wish to attend the school’s 50th Anniversary of proudly providing public education. It’s the people in this amazing organisation that create a richness you won’t find anywhere else. It’s about the memories created every day, it’s about the great highs when teams win and top results come in. It’s about the tears and frustrations when we are hurt by others actions or words and how we rebound from those lows stronger, wiser and more resilient. It’s about learning!

I wish to thank all the staff, students and parents of the ESHS community. It has been a fantastic journey with a great number of ups and downs and yet steady progress forward in improving student results. When I write student results, I mean student growth both academically and also as a competent citizen who can add value to our society and enjoy a quality lifestyle.

I have one year’s leave approved during which I intend to retire to focus on my health and family. I think my most significant contribution was to provide stability and assist staff to lead some fantastic initiatives which now shine for our school.

I wish to take this opportunity to thank my executive leadership team: Tanya Shaw, Ben Van Hees, Gaye Saunders and Helen Markey. They are a remarkable group of people and it has been my privilege to work with them on a daily basis. They are all high performers, and Emerald is lucky to have them. Many days they work untill it is dark, managing staff, students and community. They are Polite to students, staff and parents; they are Prepared each morning for a “tough day”; and they Participate by making “tough but fair calls” that others wish to avoid. I will miss their good spirit and banter!

Reminder

• Reports are emailed out this Friday 28th June (last day of term 2)
• Term 3 Commences on Monday July 15 with new Principal Sean Maher

Special Mentions

• Congratulations to Kynan Shields and Sophie Paige Gibson to his year the successful applicants to the fully funded Brisbane STEM Camp at the University of Qld. They will: attend lectures on engineering and structures, listen to speeches from prominent engineers, take part in hands-on practicals, attend the powering cities workshop, do the Story Bridge Climb and attend the disco.
• Congratulations to Mr Van Hees who is now permanent Deputy Principal at ESHS

Have a safe winter break
Ray Clarke

Principal

From the Deputy Principal – Junior School

It has been an exciting first Semester at ESHS. Firstly a thank you to all those students and parents who have participated in our first transition day and our recent enrolment night. We had over 180 students present from over 7 different primary schools for the taster transition day. It was a fun and engaging day and feedback was overwhelmingly positive. If there are any students who were away and missed out there are still two more days of transition later in the year on the 2nd and 3rd of December. Many year 6 students are now enrolled at ESHS, the sooner we have enrolments the sooner we can start planning our classes for next year. We have another enrolment night coming up next term on Thursday 15th August 2019, 4:00pm till 5:30 is the first session and 5:30 till 7:00pm is the last session. It would be great to have all students coming to ESHS enrolled by this time. Even if your family is unsure if you will be in Emerald next year or which school you are attending it is best to enrol early and you can cancel an enrolment early next year if circumstances change. Our SEP is also running a transition program that will occur every 3 weeks, starting on 31st July from 9:00am till 11:00am – please contact Dee Lucht on 49882222 for more information.

On a personal note you may not have been aware that I have been in an acting position for the last two years as Deputy at ESHS, I have recently accepted the offer to take up the permanent position as Deputy Principal 7/8 and look forward to working with you and your family into the future. I sincerely hope you all have a great holiday and I will see you next term.

If you have any questions regarding year 6, 7 or 8 students please don’t hesitate to contact me at bvanh2@eq.edu.au.

Thanks
Ben Van HeesDeputy

Principal – Junior School

From the Duputy Principal – Middle School

SET Planning (year 10) (Senior Education and Training)

Next term, in VFS102 classes (Certificate II in Skills for Work and Vocational Pathways) year 10 students will undertake surveys and spend some time looking at career options. As part of this career planning, students will have opportunity to attend a career expo at our school on 6 August, as well as our subject selection information evening where parents and their year 10 students can discuss options with teachers and other providers. Part of the Senior Education and Training Plan (SETP) also involves an interview with parent/s, year 10 students and a member of the senior leadership team. This is for all year 10s regardless of whether they intend to return in 2020.

JET Planning (year 9) (Junior Education and Training)

With all of the changes that are occurring in the senior space, the importance of getting subject selection in year 10 is more important than ever. Mrs Carter and Mrs Saunders will be developing a program to be delivered to year 9 students during term 3, prior to subject selection evening. Following this evening, students will select their subjects for 2020

Reporting (all year levels)

End Semester Report cards will be emailed home to parents on the last Friday of this term.

If you do not receive this email, or you are unable to open the report cards, you may access them through QParents or you can email me on gsaun25@eq.edu.au with the full name of your child and I will resend it to you.

Positive Behaviour Learning (PBL)

Our students are Polite, Prepared and Participate. Each Tuesday on the full school parade, as leader of PBL I deliver a lesson snapshot on the behaviour we are focusing on over the coming fortnight. This fortnight the focus has been to “Keep the school environment safe and clean”.

Next term, on August 9th, we will have Verbal Combat performances occurring. This is an education focussed on how to avoid, what to do in the area of CYBER-BULLYING. Permission forms will go out to parents next term.

Positive Feedback

It was very pleasing to receive positive feedback from some of our supply teachers with regards to the behaviour of classes that were allocated to her.

Have a wonderful holiday, stay safe if travelling on the roads and we hope to see you at the 50th Jubilee celebrations on Friday 28 or the open day on Saturday 29 June from 10:30am.

Kind Regards,
Mrs Gaye Saunders

Deputy Principal – Middle School

From the Head of Year 10

Winter has hit! With the cooler weather settling in, students are reminded to ensure that they are wearing the correct uniform. Jumpers are expected to be either plain black or the school jacket. Remember that if students are attending school in the incorrect uniform that a note is to be sent to school with the student or contact made with the corresponding HOY is to be made. As of Term 3, a new uniform process will be put in place that we require the students to adhere by – stay tuned for updates.

At Emerald State High School we have an expectation of attendance of 91% or higher. If your child is unable to attend school, please contact the school to inform us of the absence. If your child will be missing a considerable amount of school, please contact either your Head of Year or child’s teachers to collect any work that they may miss. If your child receives a blue note for explanations of absences, please return to the school as a matter of urgency. This is particularly important as unexplained absences will be displayed on report cards which could affect students further down the track.

I huge congratulations goes out to all the year 10 students who entered work into the Emerald Show. It was fantastic walking around seeing all of your fantastic creations and skills. Many placings were awarded and you should all be very proud – keep up the great work.

Well done also to Beau Ingram who won a photography competition earlier this term; he was up against many great photographers from all different ages. Beau travelled to Iceland late Term 1 to learn more skills about photography and they sure paid off. Beau shows great skills in photography and shares his love for it with many. Congratulations Beau.

I wish everyone a safe and happy holidays and I look forward to seeing you all back at school in Term 3.

Jacinda Fehlhaber
Year 10 HOY

From the Head of Department - Science

Curriculum News

The grade 7’s have finished working on their balloon powered experimental investigation. The grade 8 and 9 students are completing their Geology exams this week. In the senior school, the year 11 Science in Practice students are working on their assessments on rockets. The year 11 Biology students completed a student experiment on unit 1 and they are currently learning about infectious diseases for their research investigation task in term 3. The year 12 Biology students have been completing their reports on water quality in the Fitzroy basin. In Physics the year 11’s completed their research investigation on unit 1 topics while the students in grade 12 Physics/Chemistry classes are in the process of submitting the final scientific reports on their own choice extended experimental investigations.

Field Trips

During this term, the grade 11 and 12 Biology students went to the North Keppel island to study water quality of the reef and how impacts from the catchment areas can be managed to reduce their effects on the reef. The year 11 SIP students went for an excursion to the Fairbairn Dam to collect samples of water containing macro –invertebrates. They used probes to test the quality of the water they collected, in particular, the dissolved oxygen and nitrogen contents. The students used the classification guides to identify the different types of macro-invertebrates found. The QMEA Beakers.Bots.Build Day was held at Blackwater State High School on the 28th of May and eight year 9F students participated in this activity.

Questacon Worskhops

The Questacon Smart Skills Initiative is touring in Queensland during term 3, 2019. In addition to presenting in-school 1.5 hour STEM workshop for 90 Emerald SHS year 7-9 students on 7 August they will also be delivering a series of FREE STEM-based Professional Learning workshops for teachers. The teacher workshops will focus on inquiry learning, innovative thinking and hands-on prototyping.

Spark Engineering Camp

This year the successful applicants to the fully funded Brisbane Camp are

• Kynan Shields
• Sophie Paige Gibson

Camp Details

Venue: University of Queensland (St Lucia Campus Brisbane)
Dates : 1st to 6th July – First week of school holidays

As part of this camp Kynan and Sophie will:

• attend lectures on engineering and structures
• listen to speeches from prominent engineers
• take part in hands-on practicals
• attend the powering cities workshop
• do the Story Bridge Climb
• attend the disco

Aneel Dewan
Head of Department (Science)

From the Head of the Student Representative Council

Term 2 for SRC has certainly been a busy yet productive one! We hosted a fundraising campaign for Do it for Dolly Day which raised awareness about the impact of bullying and social media. Thank you to all staff and students who donated their time and efforts in baking the blue cupcakes, selling the blue slushies and cupcakes, dressing up in blue or donating gold coins. This term also saw Emerald SHS continuing its support of Rainbow House, which is local based charity that provides education, and support to orphans and vulnerable children in Africa. The SRC encouraged a free-dress themed Rainbow Day which was supported by our school’s tuckshop in selling yummy rainbow coloured treats! Thank you to all community persons who have supported Emerald SHS’s Woolworths Earn and Learn boxes! Our SRC leaders will be busy collecting these stickers and placing them into their booklets over the coming weeks.

Mrs Debbie Cognet
Head of Student Representative Council

Technology Department News

We are now rounding up a busy term with the culmination of a lot of our larger projects. Students are keenly finishing work and should be bringing home the results of their projects, both the written and the practical parts very soon if not already. With the introduction of new syllabus and assessment items, it is interesting to see what the junior students come up with and the seniors creating some items of a standard that they can proudly use as part of a future résumé.

The HPV (Human Powered Vehicle) students had a great day at the Yeppoon 8hr Race. It was good to see students from yr. 7 – 12 working together to get through the event in preparation for the 16hr race in Emerald on the 27th and 28th of July. Anyone that is in town is welcome to come watch as it will be a big day (or night as it runs from around 4pm until 8am). It will be at the Go Kart track behind where AG-Grow is held. The students would also like to thank our sponsors;

• Ensham
• Sojitz Minerva Mining
• Prime Plumbing
• Le Porte Rosse
• Supagas
• And Emerald Rotary Club

Without their great assistance, we would not have been able to participate in the 3 races have planned for this year.

Some small reminders, all engineering students need to clean out their lockers before they go on holiday due to the Technology block having ceilings replaced to remove asbestos. Anything that is left behind will be emptied out and stored in a large box but it may be difficult to find again. Also, projects made this term need to be taken home as we do not have a lot of space to store everything. IF it is left behind it may not be around next term to collect (unless otherwise negotiated).

Chris Plattel
Engineering Teacher

Learner Driver Training

Obtaining a Driver’s Licence is a major milestone in any young person’s life. Having a licence is vital to future independence and necessary for many employment opportunities. However, for many of our students, walking into the Department of Main Roads to complete a Learner Driver’s exam is a very intimidating experience. Our partnership with the Department of Transport and Main Roads makes this process more achievable for our students with additional literacy needs, those who speak English as an additional language and for those students who have a disability or anxiety of some kind.

We had a very successful Learner Driver course this term with a total of 10 students completing the program. It was lovely to share this experience with students from Clermont and Capella State High Schools. Thank-you to our instructor, Chris, who has extensive experience in working with people from all backgrounds and is able to assist the students to work through the required road rules and safety lessons. Once the group was feeling confident in their ability, they sat the Learner’s Test together, with each participant required to answer individually. Congratulations to Brian Ogden, Bianca Rapp and Brandon Matthews on obtaining their Learner Licences. Many thanks to Christine Bates for running the course and making this opportunity available to our students.

The next course is scheduled for the last week in August. Students must be 16 years of age at the time, have sufficient ID and be eligible to apply for their licence. For more information, see Miss Lucht or Mrs Prior and be sure to be regularly completing the online exams whenever you get a chance.

Deanne Lucht
Head of Special Education

Arts News

We now come to the end of a very busy term in the Arts Department. Our Year 11 students studying the Arts this year have experienced the new SATE system within their chosen subject area as well as finished Unit 1. We have introduced Unit 2 that flows into next term and the start of Term 4. Our Year 7-10 students have completed amazing work in their Arts subjects this semester including impressive music compositions, creative performance pieces, inventive art works and clever media videos. Well done everyone

Our musical production High School Musical is now only weeks away and this is very exciting. The students and staff involved in this school-wide production have been working tirelessly for many months. We had a successful Pie Drive and Trivia Night this term to raise funds to support our students who participate in our musical productions.

The ticketing system for our musical production High School Musical is set up and ready for the school and wider community to use. Please following the link below to purchase your tickets. If you have any questions about the ticketing system, please email me lferr62@eq.edu.au and I will be able to assist you. We look forward to seeing you there!

Please Note: Due to in-house work at Emerald State High School in the first week of the school holidays, we have had to cancel our Monday 1 July musical rehearsal. An email has been sent home regarding this musical rehearsal cancellation. We intend to add two musical rehearsals to our rehearsal schedule next term as follows:

• Saturday 27 July from 2:00pm to 8:00pm in the UCA
• Wednesday 31 July from 5:00pm to 8:00pm in the UCA

Happy Holidays
Miss Lucy Ferrara

Head of Department – Arts/Indigenous Education

Attendance and Participation

2020 Year 12 Jersey’s / Year 12 Formal / Interest re School Based Apprenticeship (SBA) / Future Leaders Senior & Junior

Attendance is paramount for students who wish to partake in the above highlights during their High School Years. Leadership positions, acquiring a senior jersey, going to the Yr12 formal all require 91% attendance or above to participate. Did you know that your attendance counts as a reference if you wish to pursue a school based apprenticeship with a prospective employer? Please be mindful that “every day counts” or Participate. Parents please ensure all absences are explained.

Roll Marking in QLD State Schools

Table 1 – Absence codes for full or part day absence

Every Day Counts

The holidays are fast approaching. While it may be tempting to let your child stay home for the last day, or even the last week of term, our school would prefer to see every child on every day of every term. We strongly believe children need to attend school every day to receive the most benefits from their education. Did you realise that skipping the last day of every term adds up to more than a whole term of schooling missed throughout a child’s education? Skipping a whole week of school each term means your child will miss more than 15 months of their education!

Change of parent details

• Do you have a new mobile phone and number?
• Do you have a new job?
• Is your child/ren’s medical information current?
• Have you moved house?
• Using a new email address?
• Have any of your contact numbers changed?
• Are your “Emergency Contacts” current? Especially if you are leaving the country and your children are staying with a family member or friend.

Please fill out the attached “Change of Parent Contact Details Form” email or drop it off at the office Admin will update OneSchool so your records are current.

Please remember to contact the school if any of these details change

School Contact Information

SOBS

The SOBS link for parents access has changed.
The URL to access SOBS as a parent is now:

From the Positive Behaviour for Learning Team

Behaviour Focus

Our current behaviour focus is “Keep the school environment safe and clean”.

Student of the Week

Week 9

Dominic Malone (7A) for giving everything a go and being prepared for class.

Mathew Weeks (8A) for coming to every class with a smile on his face and always being a positive student.

Maddy Brosnan (9D) for trying her hardest in her subjects and attempting all work given to her.

Mai-Ly Duroux (10F) for ensuring all work is completed to the best of her ability.

Montanna Whipp (11E) because she is prepared for class every day; she willingly engages in work and proactively seeks assistance.

Adam Cunning (12D) for consistently putting in a great effort towards his academic achievement.

Week 10

Riley Thompson (7C) for his outstanding attitude towards learning.

Peter Whalan (8A) for consistently being a polite member of the class and making positive choices.

Harlan Corbett (9C) for always willing to lend a helping hand and trying his hardest in class.

Joseph Stoneman (10F) for showing a positive attitude towards all of his work.

Emily Reynolds (11F) for consistently contributing to class, challenging herself in tasks and assisting others.

Adam Cunning (12D) for consistently putting in a great effort towards his academic achievement.

Community Notices