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After a couple of weeks away, it is a shock to the system to return to the reality of school after the Scottish highlands. Thanks must go to Stephen Bosch and the rest of the staff for their exceptional work at the start of this term. Our COVID cases have certainly increased, and with NAPLAN, the organisation required has been extraordinary.
Thank you very much to all of the families for their communication regarding the COVID status of students and families. Staff will keep putting work on Teams for their students, so learning can continue from home where possible.
Next Tuesday we will finally have our Governing Council AGM, starting at 7pm. We encourage as many parents as possible to attend the meeting and show their support for the school. Meetings are held only twice a term, so there is not a huge commitment required. There are also some committees that would appreciate parents' representation that do not require you to be on Governing Council. If you have any questions, please get in touch with me at the school or Kathryn Hansen on 0438363123.
We have been reminding students about the use of mobile phones recently and expecting them to put them into the pockets provided in the classrooms. Some teachers allow students to listen to music when they are working independently, which can be accessed through laptops. Parents can help support the expectation that students will not access their phones during lessons if they ensure they contact the school for an urgent message for students. Students should also attend the front office if they are unwell so staff can make an assessment and contact home if necessary rather than students making contact themselves.
We are working towards having the Ski Trip for the Year 9’s this year and also a Canberra Trip for the Year 11’s as soon as final details can be confirmed.
Hopefully, our term settles down, and all of our planned activities will go ahead. Tyler Hogan - Principal
The staff and students at Gladstone High School would like to take this opportunity to express our sincere thanks to our wonderful volunteers.
Volunteering brings people together; it
builds communities and creates a better
society for everyone.
National Volunteer Week is a chance for all
of us to celebrate and recognise the vital
work of volunteers and to say thank you.
Together, through volunteering, we are
changing communities for the better.
We are, Better Together.
For the past few weeks, the senior Hospitality students have been learning the art of using the coffee machine to make a range of coffees. They can now competently produce lattes, cappuccinos, mochaccinos, flat whites, as well as short and long blacks. The staff have been super impressed with the quality of the coffees and the students have been super eager to learn and improve. The Year 11's recently used their newly acquired skills to run 2 coffee and cake days, on which we sold coffees and accompaniments to the staff at Gladstone High School, as well as Gladstone Primary School and St Joseph's. A huge thank you to Sarah and Mrs Foulis for assisting with delivering the coffees to the primary school. In addition to this, the Year 12 boys have commenced weekly coffee sessions, which they will run every Tuesday. They will offer a range of iced coffees and coffees and are selling them to the Year 12's plus Gladstone High School staff to raise money for the Year 12 formal. Demand for their products in the first couple of weeks has been extremely high so it is looking like it will be an extremely successful fundraiser. The boys are also gradually learning to run these days more independently to reflect what working in a coffee shop would actually be like. Keep the coffees coming, Bodi and Kane!
Jacqui Edge - Senior School Coordinator
SKI TRIP
The Year 9 Ski Trip tradition has been affected by COVID restrictions over the past few years. We hope to confirm the outcome of this year’s planning early next week. A note will be sent home to all Year 9 students once we can verify whether or not the Education Department guidelines will permit interstate travel. We have everything crossed for the 2022 Year 9s!
NAPLAN
Over the past two weeks, our Year 7 and Year 9 students completed the 2022 NAPLAN tests using the online platform. While there were an unusually high number of absences due to caution around COVID symptoms, all students who participated were respectful of others and mostly tried their best.
With the final official test completed on Monday (Numeracy), catch up sessions have continued throughout the week. Students who are still absent due to isolation will either be withdrawn or conduct the tests when they return, depending on the time frame.
We thank families for supporting their children during this time, as we know it can be a little unsettling and stressful. We are all very proud of the behaviour choices our students made when there were technical hiccups and other delays.
I want to say a huge thank you to all of the teachers who ran NAPLAN sessions, took relief lessons or had their timetable/classrooms changed during this period – your flexibility helps us make the week as smooth as possible for our students!
Textiles in Home Ec
Students in 8B are the first of our new students to access the Textiles room and try their hand at some sewing. They are creating drawstring bags from their own choice of fabric. The class are also exploring some hand sewing techniques by working with felt to make travel tic-tac-toe.
The Year 9 Home Ec class are also sewing at the moment, completing the annual boxer shorts project. It’s great to see them being creative with their fabric choices and challenging themselves by combining different patterns.
Kate Seidel - Middle School Coordinator
Three busses, with barely a spare seat among them, bubbling with excitement as the new Gladstone High School enrollees made their way to Jamestown Community School for a year 7/8 combined AFL tournament. Some students were eager to demonstrate their experience and sporting prowess, while, for others, it would be their first time touching or kicking a football. It was the 5th of May, and the rain radar was not looking conducive to an outdoor football event. Upon arrival though, it was clear that the Sun’s warm rays had managed to break through the impending clouds – a relief to staff and students alike. After a brief briefing by Amanda Bowman, the day’s cool-headed coordinator, it was time to play some football. The game played was an efficient and fast-flowing hybrid of official AFL 9s and tag football rules. This kept the ball, and the players, constantly moving. Gladstone High School submitted four teams that rotated around the oval, competing against different opponents every twenty minutes. With Peterborough High School announcing a late absence, a bye was scheduled every so often, which was much appreciated by participants as it allowed time to rest their legs and watch and support the other teams playing during those timeslots. The day was running like a well-oiled machine, and all were displaying top-notch sportsmanship. At this point, I am compelled to mention some extremely special year 9 students who came with us that day. Aleesha Nitschke, Eliza Heinrich, Antwan O’Brien, Tobey Dwyer, and Max Pedler were selected to attend to umpire the games that day. However, what started as an umpiring role very quickly turned into a coaching role, as each year, 9 was given a team of either boys or girls to oversee for the day. Each of these incredible students displayed leadership qualities, fairness, and patience, and I sincerely thank them for their input – the day simply would not have worked as smoothly without them. The games had ended, and although no official scores were being kept, Gladstone High School had performed exceptionally well. Highlighting the day were the final games between the two boys' and two girls' GHS teams. It was great to see students competing against their friends with ferocity and determination while also displaying commendable sportsmanship and keeping the main focusses on having fun and being active. After a brief debrief by Amanda as if it were scripted, grey clouds massed overhead, and chilling winds began biting at the staff and students, spelling a suitable and well-timed end to the event. The year 7 and 8 students are praised for their behaviour and participation throughout the day. This is definitely an occasion that students will eagerly anticipate in the future. To the staff who gave their time to either help organise or execute the day – a sincere thank you from me.
Max Rutjens – PE Teacher
As we begin to focus more on working through Growing With Gratitude and building the resilience of our students, in Pastoral Care and across the school, we have implemented some positive reinforcement through the Gotcha! system.
Each week will have a focus (kindness, listening to others, gratitude, empathy, etc) and Pastoral Care activities will reflect this.
WEEK 3 FOCUS – KINDNESS (treating and speaking to others with kindness)
During Week 3, when staff witness a student in Year 7 demonstrating kindness to others – they will give them a Gotcha! ticket. On the card, we will write their name, and a quick sentence to indicate why they got the card and sign it. The student can then pop the Gotcha! ticket in the Gotcha! box in the Learning Hub. At the end of the week, we will draw a winner out of the Gotcha! box and they will win a prize.
We are all looking forward to seeing lots of kindness happening in our school. Keep an eye out in the next newsletter for our first Gotcha! winners.
Kate Cameron - Wellbeing Leader
Gladstone High School is very lucky to have so many passionate students about Chess. The Student Wellbeing Team (SWAT) wanted to facilitate a space where students who loved chess could compete against each other but at a whole new level. With the help of our groundskeeper, the SWAT team organised to have a giant Chessboard painted on the ground in the quadrangle. Since then, we have had many Chess tournaments that have been a lot of fun. We love to see students of all ages, and strategies, stimulate their minds and have a great time during lunch playing a good old-fashioned game of Chess.
Sarah Treasure - Pastoral Care Worker
Thank you to those who have volunteered your help in the Canteen in Term 1. Below is the roster for the next 5 weeks. We are always happy to have more volunteers.
Please contact Phillipa for any further details.
Week 3 - 20/05/2022 | Colleen Woodlands |
Week 4 - 27/05/2022 | Annie Zanker |
Week 5 - 03/06/2022 | Jacinta Huxtable |
NOTICEBOARD