24 June 2021

Newsletter Articles

Principal’s Report.

Dear Friends of Emerald High,

Well, the semester has come to a close. How quickly is the year flying by?

It has been a huge term and the amazing achievements of our students continue!

Logan in Year 9 has been selected for Youth World Weightlifting Championships in the United Arab Emirates and the Youth Commonwealth Weightlifting Championships in Singapore. He is also on the High Performance Weightlifting Program at the AIS and on the watch list for the Commonwealth Games. These are amazing achievements and we will be watching his progress with anticipation. Super work, Logan!

Eden in Year 7 has been selected for the Queensland Schools Basketball Team and Julius Jurd in Year 8 has been selected for the Queensland Future Development Program in Basketball. These too are amazing achievements and a testament to the hard work and dedication of these two wonderful young people.

As a school and as a community we are certainly punching above our weight!!

Our athletics carnival was held in Week 8 and proved to be a very successful and enjoyable event in perfect weather conditions. Student conduct and participation was exceptional and we saw a number of school records broken in a number of events. My very sincere thanks to Maggie Pembroke who coordinated the event, to the PE Faculty and school staff who supported her, to our House Captains who did an outstanding job leading their houses and to Leanne Ross, Angela Johnson and the SRC for their catering.

Sadly, we are farewelling some staff, some of whom are off to new adventures and others who are taking leave and will be returning. My very sincere thanks to:

• School Nurse, Josie Bridgeman, who has been promoted to a higher-level role, but will still work with our school.
• Head of Department, Annette Carter, who is moving to Warwick.
• Lisa Richardson who will be returning to District Relieving Teacher duties next term.
• Isabella Padget, Liz Bull and our Absentee Officer, Michelle Harrison, who will be taking some leave.
• Julie Brennan, our Speech Language Pathologist, who will be working in an acting role in Roma for 12 months.

I thank all of these amazing people for their dedication and wish them all the very best.

With the holiday break now upon us, staff and students need to rest and re-charge their batteries, ready for the second half of the year! Stay well and safe I look forward to seeing everyone back on 12 July!

"So, one thing I want to say about life is, don’t be scared and don't hang back, and most of all, don’t waste it"
-Joan Blos

Have a fantastic fortnight and a great break
Mr. Sean Maher
Principal

From the Deputy Principal – Senior School

We have yet again come to a quick end of the term. It is amazing that we are half way through the year! Term 2 is always hectic for the seniors, with many events for them to participate in and as usual, they shone. I am proud of how both cohorts are travelling this year with regards to their learning.

Next term will be just as busy for our Year 12s with mock external exams occurring in Week 8 and 9 and then graduation at the end of the term. Our advice to the 12s has always been to see their studies as a marathon race rather than a sprint. They need to recognise that the finish line is very near and conserve their energy for that last push. Now is the time to re-evaluate how many hours they are working in casual employment and what becomes a priority. Please find attached a copy of the published the external exam timetable for the Year 12s occurring in Term 4. These dates are non-negotiable and must be adhered to.

They have certainly earned their June/July holidays, keep safe and see you next term.

Regards
Mrs. Tanya Shaw
Deputy Principal – Senior School

From the Head of Year 10.

As Term 2 comes to an end, I would like to take a moment to congratulate students on the way they have conducted themselves this term.

As we enter Term 3, the weather will be cooler, this is a quick reminder to every one of the ESHS uniform policy and expectations at Emerald State High School.

The requirements for the uniform at ESHS are as follows:

1. Closed in shoes with laces
2. ESHS shorts OR PLAIN black mid – length shorts with NO logos or symbols
3. ESHS polo shirt
4. ESHS bucket hat

WINTER:

1. ESHS tracksuit pants OR PLAIN black tracksuit pants with NO logos or symbols
2. ESHS jumpers OR PLAIN black jumper that does not have a hood or logo/symbol of any kind.
3. NO beanies and headwear

At the start of next term, students will be placed in different English classes. A reminder for students to take note of the class they are in and attend the class that is on their timetable.

Stay safe over the holidays, and see you all next term!

Regards
Miss. Kate Deighton
HOY – 10

From the Head of Year 11.

The final week is here! Two terms down, two to go!

The 2021 Leadership Camp is on Wednesday 4th August – Friday 6th August at the Fairbairn Outdoor Education Centre (FOEC). This camp is aimed at students who are interested in leadership positions in 2022 and involves activities to develop student leadership abilities through challenges and team building exercises. Permission forms have been handed out and are due back by Wednesday 23rd July. Students who do not attend the Leadership Camp, are still encouraged to apply for a leadership position.

If there are any concerns with the uniform policy and expectations outlined above, please do not hesitate to contact myself (Miss Prior) on cprio0@eq.edu.au. It would be fantastic to see all Year 11 students wearing the school uniform with pride and leading the younger students by example.

The Year 11 Wellness team meet weekly to discuss attendance and wellbeing for Year 11 students and how we can offer support where it is needed. It is crucial that if a student is sick or unable to attend school for a period of time, that contact is made with the admin staff or myself and/or a medical certificate is provided.

I would like to wish everyone a safe and fun holiday and I look forward to seeing you all back in Term 3.

Regards
Miss. Chloe Prior
HOY – 11

From the Head of Year 12.

That is a wrap for Term 2! There’s only 17 more weeks of school left for the Year 12s.

The students have had a busy term with assessment, a presentation from Glencore, university talks and much more.

Earlier in the year, Madison Iles competed in Lions Youth of the Year. She was lucky enough to be awarded Lions Youth of the Year for Emerald and continued on to compete at the district competition in Biloela. Madison represented Emerald State High School to a professional standard and is congratulated on her efforts.

On Friday 4th June, the Senior and Junior School Captains and SRC Presidents travelled to Springsure to participate in the Mayoral Student Leaders Summit. The day allowed for student leaders in the region to participate in discussions and presentations about identifying youth and community needs and aspirations. The leaders also had the opportunity to listen and engage with the guest speaker, Luke S Kennedy.

The formal is fast approaching and we are hoping to hold a fundraiser early Term 3 (TBC – 31 July). The fundraiser would allow for funds to be raised to assist in lowering the cost of tickets for students and families, as well as supporting the purchasing of equipment and decorations. Please stay tuned for further information in regards to the fundraiser.

This will be my last newsletter as the Head of Year 12. Beginning next term, I will be moving into a Head of Department role. I wish all the Year 12s the very best in the last weeks of their schooling and I cannot wait to see what pathways they take after graduating. If you have any questions though, please contact Tanya Shaw via email (tshaw20@eq.edu.au) or by phoning the school on 4988 2222.

Regards
Mrs. Jacinda Stefaniuk
HOY – 12

From the Cooee Corner.

This term, we have been working towards our show entries and our students came away with many prizes in the Visual Arts sections. We created a collage made with many different colours and a variety of textures. Students looked at the elements and principles of design, and enjoyed making mandalas out of flowers, leaves, sticks and pebbles found throughout the school grounds. We then turned this temporary ephemeral art into a series of photographs that we then entered into the photography section of the show. Some students created gorgeous water colour paintings with the theme of creatures in their environment, where we studied bees and bee hive designs. All students did an amazing job and it was a great confidence boost for our students to participate in a community event, and see their own artworks included in the displays.

Regards
Ms. Natasha Vought
Teacher

From the Science team.

It has been a wonderful term of learning in Science, with students exploring a range of concepts from ‘Forces’ in Year 7, rates on ‘Chemical reactions’ in Year 10 and the structure and function of DNA in Year 12 Biology. It’s great to see the students in class and working hard to finish off the term and their assessment. There are still assessment pieces outstanding for many of the science subjects and we look forward to a thorough and a quality submission. Please refer to previous newsletters for the submission dates for science.

We would like to remind you that if any student is feeling overwhelmed, or under pressure with the assessment or content of their class, that every Monday and Wednesday afternoon from 3pm there is an opportunity to come to homework club. At homework club teachers from many different faculties volunteer their time to help wherever they can. It can be a valuable resource. If a student is looking for a particular teacher, be sure to ask them so they are aware.

Next term, our junior science classes will be working on Chemistry for the Year 7s, Energy for the Year 8s and Chemistry for Year 9s.

Regards
Ms. Annabel Paul
Teacher

From the English team.

Nearing the end of Term 2, students are exploring the beginnings of their new units after finalising assessments for English.

Year 7 English students have just completed their creative writing task on myths. Year 7 English teachers have read some fascinating and intriguing tales about natural phenomena, including those around how the kookaburra acquired its laugh. Students are now engaging in their new unit – a novel study on ‘Percy Jackson and the Lightening Thief’.

Year 8 English students have also presented their latest task on song analysis. Students analysed a song of their choice and made arguments around the importance of such songs for youth audiences. Since Week 9, students have begun exploring their new unit on advertisements, completing a mini-advertising challenge in Week 10.

Year 10 English students have finished their academic blogs on Australia’s involvement in war. Drawing knowledge from texts such as, ‘The Water Diviner’ and several Australian songs and poems, students discussed the significance of such texts in society and their representations of Australians. Students have selected their new English subjects for Semester Two; English and English Extension. To prepare for the new semester, students have been exploring literature focused on the Holocaust as a setting to the novels, ‘The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas’ and ‘The Book Thief’.

In Year 11 Essential English, students are halfway through Unit 2, Topic 1 exploring contemporary heroes and their portrayal in the media. Students are exploring contemporary texts such as ‘Lion’ and ‘Go Back to Where You Came From’.

Regards
Miss. Kayla Franklin
Teacher

From the Arts team.

On Thursday 27 May 2021, Emerald State High School was visited by the Noosa Film Academy. Greg Huglin, Academy Award winning Cinematographer, presented a filmmaking workshop as part of our Film, Television and New Media studies, with Andrea Huglin, his producer. The full day activity engaged our students with film crew shooting and editing of a short film, whereby they were involved in the entire film production process.

The students had the opportunity to use high quality, state-of-the-art, professional equipment to create the film production. The filmmaking workshop was amazing, allowing the students to alternate between the key roles of director, camera operator, script supervisor, actor, sound operator and editor. It is great that the students who participate in the filmmaking workshop receive the short film production to include in their own portfolio as well as a certificate of completion. The students thoroughly enjoyed the filmmaking workshop. It was an amazing experience!

Regards
Ms. Lucy Ferrara
HOD

From the Hospitality and VET team.

What an exciting year we have had so far. Once again, our Year 11s and 12s have been able to visit the kindergartens of Emerald, as a part of the Early Childhood Studies course. The Year 10 Early Childhood Cert III students have been working extremely hard to smash out their theory module books in class once a week, and have been attending the Emerald Community Kindergarten every Thursday, to engage with the little people there. The students have shown great enthusiasm on every excursion and the feedback from the kindy staff regarding our Year 10 students has been very encouraging.

The highlight of this term has been attending the ‘Under 8s Day’ with our Year 11 students. They all did such a great job delivering a play-based learning activity to the young children that develops literacy skills.

Below are some photos of our Year 11 Early Childhood students in action on ‘Under 8s Day’.

Regards
Ms. Deborah Gellatly
Teacher

From the Technologies team.

The second term is coming to an end for 2021, and what a term it has been for everyone. I need to thank my fellow staff members for a great half of the year. Students have been engaged in their learning areas and have been producing projects of a very high standard.

The seniors are manufacturing a Cape Cod Chair for the outside setting. I know all staff are very proud of the outcome led by Mr Olivier.

We then have Miss Weis and Mr Cavanagh, who teach Year 12 Engineering and they have been manufacturing a metal vice. I think it can be said that the end result speaks volumes for the student outcomes.

In Year 9, Mr Laver’s and my class started off manufacturing a serving tray and below is only a small amount of the completed project. We have since moved on to constructing a cam toy.

Students also have been manufacturing a cam toy with some great imagination.

Year 10 students are manufacturing a camp stool in my class. We then have moved on to a new project, a mobile phone holder.

Mr Cavanagh has his students manufacturing a metal carryall. We will be having a turnaround next term, so students can have a complete introduction of both types of material.

Lastly, Mr Laver is teaching across Year 7 and 11 Furnishings. The Year 7 students are manufacturing a timber pencil box, which has a sliding or hinged lid. Year 9 students are manufacturing a serving tray of all designs.

Mr Laver’s Year 9 DAT class had be studying CAD drawings, which entails roll out developments and autographic projection. In Year 9 and 10 Engineering Principles, this includes manufacturing a wind turbine and hydraulics.

Regards
Mr. Ed Hansen
Teacher

From the Positive Behaviour for Learning Team

At Emerald State High School we are:

• Polite,
• Prepared, and we
• Participate.

Please see the attached PowerPoint of the lesson taught on parade and throughout Weeks 9 and 10 of this term.

Behaviour Focus

Our current behaviour focus is “Stay true to the value and beliefs of the school”.

Student of the Week

Week 9

Charlee Howard For being a diligent and contentious student who is always polite and completes tasks to the best of her ability.

Lillia Renwick For demonstrating kindness and encouraging her peers to participate in activities.

Bridie McKeown For always participating in class and completing set tasks to the best of her ability.

Daley Catip For Daley demonstrating incredible patience and kindness towards one of his peers at Athletics Carnival.

Brant Richardson For his consistent work ethic and for always being polite.

Week 10

Nate Gilliland For displaying a polite and courteous manner to all peers and teachers. Nate works hard to complete all set tasks in class.

Cam Fox For outstanding result across all subjects; he is a role-model for his peers.

Saxon Mitchell For being polite and prepared in English and his consistent effort towards his assignment.

Diolo Dailo For always being a polite and courteous student both inside and outside of the classroom.

Maddy Limkin-Neill For trying really hard in class and looks after other students across the school.

Community Notices

The school opinion survey is open from 15th July to 30th July. Week 1 or prior to School holidays. Only students and parents of the Year 8 and Year 11 cohorts are participating.