Emerald State High School
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Old Airport Drive, P.O. Box 419
Emerald QLD 4720
Subscribe: https://emeraldshs.schoolzineplus.com/subscribe

Email: the.principal@emeraldshs.eq.edu.au
Phone: 07 4988 2222
Fax: 07 4988 2200

3 September 2021

Newsletter Articles

Principal’s Report

Dear Friends of Emerald High,

End of term approaches and our students are well involved in assessment across their subjects.

Year 12 Mock Exams commenced this week. These exams are similar to the 'external exams’ that Year 12s in General Subjects will be doing in Term 4 and provide students with good feedback to support their studies in preparation for their external exams.

As usual we have seen some amazing things happen over the past few weeks. On Friday 20 August, our jazz band 'ESHS Swing Doctors' conducted the 'Grooves and Night Moves' evening at school, showcasing their amazing talents. My sincere thanks to Dana for leading the evening and to our 'Biters' Team for their superb catering.

Some more amazing student news. Three of our Year 7s students, Lucy, Estera and Indianna competed in the Regional QAMT Mathematics finals in Rockhampton and achieved Second Place overall!! This is another outstanding result, made even more amazing as they were competing against teams with Year 8 students.

Many more of our students participated in the Eisteddfod Gala Night in both our Instrumental Music Band and Jazz Band, competing against local schools. I am delighted to announce that both our bands performed magnificently and achieved close Second Places. This is yet another amazing outcome - well done Dana and all band members!!

On Thursday I had the joy of presenting certificates to 125 Year 7 students who have displayed exceptional conduct during the term and to a further 80 with attendance over 95%. A huge 'well done' to those students! The vast majority of young people in our school are doing things really well and are making us all proud!

Last week we conducted our annual 'Bookweek' when our students and staff dress up as their favourite book characters to celebrate the joys of reading. I was delighted to see the large number of students and staff involved and some amazing costumes on display. Well done to Mr Sanson and the F Block staff!!

Yet more exciting events to celebrate with the conduct of our Year 9 Business students' Market Stalls program, in which our students established and ran a number of amazing stalls in the sails area, selling products and services to our students and staff. This was a fun and educational learning experience for all - a huge well done to Ms Cordwell and the Year 9 Business students.

A reminder that parents can help students to succeed at school by actively encouraging reading at home. Reading is like training for a sport - we only get better through practice. In addition, reading broadens our understanding across a wide range of subjects and it is a great way to relax and unwind from a hard day at school.

If you would create something, you must be something.
- Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

Have a fantastic fortnight
Mr. Sean Maher
Principal

From the Deputy Principal – Middle School

PBL Focus

Our current focus is “Respond positively to feedback and make necessary changes/corrections”. This is timely, given that students are receiving feedback on their drafts (e.g. Year 10 English assessment, which is due Thursday 2 September).

Ripple Effect Awards

This initiative of the Student Council has been well received and students can nominate their peers for following the 3Ps here at school. These are given out fortnightly by the student leaders on Year level assemblies.

Year 10 Certificate II In Skills For Work And Vocational Pathways

During these classes, students should have completed the first 4 tabs; INTENDED LEARNING, PERSONAL (A reflection of their own OneSchool account, as only they are able to edit this)!

VIVO

Part of our positive reward system is our VIVO program. Each time a student gets a VIVO from a staff member, they are in fact receiving 5 points. Once the student has accrued 250 points – this equates to $5. So, 500 points = $10. Students can “save” this for senior rewards, such as putting towards the cost of their senior jersey or formal, or can purchase vouchers that they can redeem from local businesses as well as ESHS bites or from the VIVO store.

2022 Subject Selection

Students in Year 10 are in the process of selecting their subjects for 2022, based on the initial choices that students made – this is now set in lines for students to choose on. This is the final selection that will be done. Other year levels will be advised when they are set to choose on “lines”.

SET PLAN Meetings – Year 10 Only

Parents have been sent a link to respond to for the most suitable time for the SET Plan meetings which will be held in Week 10 of this term. For those of you who haven’t done this, I will arrange communication via your child. Please ensure that you check your JUNK mailbox, as sometimes this is where emails from @eq.edu.au end up.

Some Great Happenings In Year 9 Classes:

I had the absolute privilege of being in Ms Sharma’s Food and Nutrition class, when students were cooking their assessment items. The standard and quality of the food was fantastic (and the taste was very good too).

I have seen some wooden boxes been made in Mr Leaver’s Materials class. Three finger joints have been perfected by the students.

Mr Olivier’s Engineering Principles and Systems class were busy making wooden gears.

Miss Weis’ Design and Technologies class were designing school logos and she was busy giving feedback to students on how to improve for their final assessment.

Regards
Mrs. Gaye Saunders
Deputy Principal – Middle School

From the Head of Year 7

The end of the term is upon us and how quickly it has flown by.

This week, Mr Maher and myself ran a report to see how many of our Year 7 students are consistently doing the right thing at school and to our amazement, 125 students in Year 7 were consistently displaying the correct behaviour during the month of August. These students were recognised on parade Thursday 2/9 with a certificate to congratulate them. Mr Maher and I also ran a report for students who have above 95% attendance and within the cohort we are able to recognise 80 students who have consistent attendance to school. These students will be recognised next week on Parade for their attendance and receive their certificate.

I must say that as the HOY, it was a fantastic feeling to be able to hand out over 200 certificates to the students within Year 7. From this we will also be conducting a monthly draw in which each certificate winner goes into the draw to win a prize. Mr Maher went on to set the challenge to the students on Thursday to have even more students being recognised for displaying consistent behaviour throughout the month of September.

In regards to attendance, it is important that each student is here every day. One day off a fortnight, equates to missing more than a year of school over a student’s 12 years of schooling. If your student is absent, we ask that you follow the processes in place and contact the school to explain the absence.

Please check in with your child regarding their progress at school as we get to the end of term, assessment picks up. A reminder that study club is on every Monday and Wednesday afternoon in the library from 2:50-4pm and may be beneficial at this time of the term.

I have noticed a number of students slowly making their way to school/class during the day, meaning that they have arrived late. This impacts not only their learning but also disrupts their peers on their arrival. Below are the bell times and I ask you to check in with your child to ensure that they are on time to class.

Lastly, this week’s PBL focus was: Participate - Responding positively to feedback. This explored the difference between growth and fixed mindset. Fixed mindset, being limiting where students may avoid challenges, give up easily and ignore feedback. Growth mindset being freedom which sees students persevere in the face of failures, embrace challenges, accept criticism and have a desire to learn. I urge you to check in with your student at home and have a chat with them regarding mindset and the power of yet.

Here’s a riddle to finish on – your student is able to see me in A-Block staffroom if they believe they have the right answer… “I have cities, but no houses. I have mountains, but no trees. I have water, but no fish. What am I?”

As always if you have any questions or concerns regarding your child’s welfare, do not hesitate to get in contact with me.

Regards
Miss. Bridget Ryan
HOY – Year 7

From the Head of Year 8

On Monday the 16th August, the Year 8s engaged in a variety of leadership workshops held by the external company yLead. It was impressive to watch Year 8s stepping out of their comfort zones and working with a range of students in their cohort. Next term we will begin the process of selecting our Junior School Leaders for 2022. I hope to see a large number of students engaging with the process, as I know how many capable and talented students we have in the cohort!

Over the past couple of weeks, I have had a few discussing with students regarding uniform. A quick reminder that jumpers must be plain black with no hoods or writing. As we head into the warmer months, the school polo with either the school shorts or mid-thigh length black shorts are acceptable.

Regards
Miss. Maggie Pembroke
HOY – Year 8

From the Maths team

This time of the term most students have some form of assessment due. If the assessment is an exam, it is essential that students have studied at some stage outside of the classroom in preparation for their exam and if possible, the night before. If it is an assignment, it is recommended that prior to submission they proof read and/or read aloud their assignment to a parent or peer, to ensure their sentences are logical and grammatically correct.

In saying that, some of our year levels are moving on to a new topic because they have just finished a piece of assessment. We are learning right up until the end of term and what we learn will be assessed at the end of this term or next.

Some exciting news for Emerald SHS school is our results from the QAMT maths competition held in Rockhampton. Our entry team came 2nd in the region!!! Well done to students Lucy Shaw, Estera Job, Indianna Elliot and our amazing teacher Mr. Bahr for his efforts.

Year level summary is as follows:

  • Grade 7: Just completed their first assignment and moving into probability
  • Grade 8: Probability and Relative frequency
  • Grade 9: Simple Interest and Index Laws
  • Grade 10: Quadratics – All classes have their exams next week
  • Grade 11 Specialist: Revising for Unit 2 exam
  • Grade 11 Methods: Revising for Unit 2 exam
  • Grade 11 General: Revising for Unit 2 exam
  • Grade 11 Essentials: Just finished managing money, moving onto time, speed and motion
  • Grade 12 Specialist: Mock exams
  • Grade 12 Methods: Mock exams
  • Grade 12 General: Mock exams
  • Grade 12 Essentials: Revising for IA4 exam

Regards
Mr. Dan Van Hees
Teacher

From the HPE team

We are nearing the end of Term 3, with holidays in sight! That means we are at the time of assessments. Whether it be exams or assignments, we wish all students good luck towards their upcoming assessment items. Also, our warmer weather is approaching meaning it is vital students are bringing water bottles and hats to our PE lessons.

A reminder that Sports Awards are coming up next term. SAVE THE DATE – 15th October at ESHS in the UCA. This will be a great night where we will celebrate all the wonderful sporting achievements from this year.

Also, our boys 9s competition is coming up in Week 10 Wednesday and the girls 9s competition is going to be Week 2 of Term 4.

Have a wonderful week!

Regards
Miss. Chloe Prior
Teacher

From the Arts team

As always ‘The Arts’ department is all systems go! The Year 7 and 8, 13-week elective rotations have just changed over for Visual Art, Music and Drama. The Year 9 and 10 students are working on finalising assessment. The Year 11 and 12 students are finalising assessment and working on exam preparation. In addition to this, the Instrumental Music students have recently dazzled the school and wider community with their talents at the, ‘Grooves and Night Moves’ event. Now we are looking forward to the, ‘One Story Isn’t Enough’ Visual Art Exhibition, which will display the talents of our students from across the school (Year 7 – 12) and will take place at the Central Highlands Regional Art Gallery here in Emerald at the end of Term 4. Be sure to keep your eyes peeled for additional information.

Regards
Miss. Amy Cochrane
Teacher

From the LOTE team

First of all, another massive congratulations to our Year 9 students, for coming first place in our regional speech competition – A great achievement, which we are very proud of!

With the end of term fast approaching all year levels have commenced assessment.

  • Year 7 are completing in class reading tasks, about school routines.
  • Year 8 are creating and practicing speaking assessment about mealtimes.
  • Years 9 and 10 are completing assessment about environmental issues.

If any student is having trouble, falling behind, or wants some advice on how to achieve their best, all of your Japanese teachers are more than happy to help. Come and see us! We are also more than happy to attend Homework club!

I wish everyone a fantastic week!

Regards
Mr. Riley Neill
Teacher

From the Humanities team

Our wonderful Year 8 cohort have been learning all about the Bubonic Plague over the last 8 weeks! Students completed their Short Response Source Analysis exam in Week 6 and 7. We have a had a great time looking at this medieval disease, and have noted some important comparisons to our current pandemic. Check out some of the awesome posters our Year 8s created during this unit – they needed to create a poster to explain the actual cause of the plague to medieval peasants!

Students will be beginning their unit on Vikings, before finishing the year investigating Shogunate Japan!

Year 10 History

Week 7 saw our Year 10 students finalising their unit on Pop Culture, by completing an essay response in exam conditions. Students were asked to respond to the statement “Australian culture is unoriginal”. It has been very interesting to read the strong arguments for either side. We will end this term by beginning our final unit for the year: Did Hollywood Get it Right? Students will investigate the historical inaccuracies of Disney’s Pirates of the Caribbean, by looking at primary sources from the Golden Age of Piracy!

Regards
Miss. Michelle Watkin
Teacher

From the Positive Behaviour for Learning Team

At Emerald State High School we are:

  • Polite,
  • Prepared, and we
  • Participate.

Please see the attached power point of the lesson taught on parade and throughout Weeks 7 and 8 of this term.

Behaviour Focus

Our current behaviour focus is “Respond positively to feedback and make necessary changes/corrections”.

Student of the Week

Week 7

Mosese Soqeta 7A For always having exceptional manners and being a positive member of the school. Thank you for being amazing.

Menish De Beer 8B For displaying an excellent attitude towards presenters and peers during our Year 8 Leadership Day with yLead.

Kaden-Quinn Fitzgerald 9B For is effort towards all tasks has been outstanding and he is a role model for his peers.

William Pollard For being polite, organised and ready to learn. A pleasure to have in the classroom.

Trinity May For showing improvement after improvement in class.

Kaden Renwick For having 100% attendance.

Week 8

Trae Tarei For a huge improvement in effort in class. Trae is always friendly and is a pleasure to teach.

Grace Chandler – Ash For being a committed member of the class who always arrives to with a positive attitude and ready to learn.

Carla Pegg For her positive attitude towards schooling and consistently striving to achieve her best.

Mitchell Brewer For his maturity and dedication to curriculum tasks. He is a role model for his peers.

Madison Caban For her communication and efforts at school.

Community Notices