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The Nunga day on Monday was truly something wonderful to see. The students and staff from John Pirie Secondary School and community members provided outstanding informative and enjoyable sessions. Our students were engaged, respectful and immersed themselves in the activities. Congratulations Judy Crosby-Woods and Tyler Norton who canvassed so many helpers and planned such an amazing day of learning.
Another activity this week has been the Fast 5 Netball. Luke Bartlett and Tyler Norton have spent a lot of time preparing for Gladstone High School to host this event and provide students with an authentic experience to be assessed on their netball skills at the completion of the unit of work.
Written reports will come home next week for all students. Please take the time to discuss these with your students, and if you have any concerns or would like to meet with your child’s teacher, please don’t hesitate to contact the school to arrange a mutually convenient time.
We are all looking forward to the annual Fun run event, hopefully in Wirrabara Forest this year, weather permitting, as an enjoyable day to finish off the term. Have a wonderful break and we look forward to Term 4 already.
Tyler Hogan - Principal
CATTLE
From the 1st to the 4th of September five students from the Year 11 and 12 Ag class attended the Royal Adelaide Show. We took 2 steers, our Shorthorn named Sebastian and our South Devon named Simon. We were unable to take our third steer Stanley as he did not learn to walk in time. We arrived in Adelaide on Thursday the 1st to unpack the steers and set up our display. On Friday we had a handlers competition, with Will Crawford and Bella Zaw competing. Even after Sebastian played up throughout the show ring Bella's determination enabled her to place 4th in the intermediate class. After the days activities, we then went back to the accommodation, and the students learnt how to iron shirts and tie ties. On Saturday, the Royal Show began, where they had an incredibly busy show day with over 70 000 people attending. The competition for that day was the TFI (Thomas Foods International), here Ammelia Chapman led Simon to victory by being chosen to represent the South Devon team. On the final day was the led steer competition, unfortunately, neither steer placed in these competitions. The students had a wonderful time and enjoyed the learning opportunity.
A huge thank you to our sponsors of that cattle this year; Black Angus (Stanley) BM & BP Mumford, South Devon (Simon) DC & RD Leese and Shorthorn (Sebastian) GE Ashby & Sons.
"I had a really enjoyable four days at the Adelaide Show with the steers. Each day I learnt something new to help me in the future. My favourite part was spending time with my friends and the steers."- Bella Zwar
SHEEP
The Sheep Team have had a busy time preparing and attending the Schools Merino Wether Competition. the team consisted of 3 Year 10 students and 3 Year 9 students. This competition was held on the 7th of September at the Wayville Showgrounds in Adelaide. Here students had to prepare and present their sheep for showing and presenting themselves in regards to appearance and knowledge of the sheep. Students had to compete in multiple competitions throughout the day. Team 1 and 2 both made it into the top 18 for the best-presented sheep where they look for the evenest pen of three sheep, Team 1 was successful and came 2nd in this competition. Students Chloe Crawford, Hailey Hodgson and Eliza Heinrich were selected for the handler’s competition, being selected out of 300 students as being one of the top 18 handlers for the day, in this competition Hailey placed 3rd overall. At the conclusion of the day, prizes were given out for competitions that had been run throughout the day. Here students placed 1st in the Best Presented School Competition, this was judged on the student's knowledge of their sheep, teamwork in looking after the animals throughout the day and how they presented themselves in terms of clothing and attitude. They also placed 8th in the most valuable fleece as a team with Team 1.
A huge thank you to our sponsors for the Merino Wethers; R.H Dunsford & CO, D.E. & L.N Hansen and Durrant CO for their contributions and expertise throughout the year.
The following day the year 10 students competed in Junior Judging competitions, here they had to judge the best-presented fleece and visually rank them in order of 1st to 4th. If they did well in this, they were selected for the finals where they had to present an oral presentation, here Chloe Crawford was successful in making the finals and placed 2nd overall. After this competition, they then competed in a visual structural class of rams, here they had to once again give a written visual assessment and place in order of 1st to 4th. Unfortunately, no students made the final of this round, but I would like to commend the students for competing as it can be daunting in front of such a large audience.
Miss Wright - Ag Teacher
GOATS
During Term 3 Year 9 students competed in the Royal Adelaide Show Goat Competition. Students are judged on professionalism, maintenance of the animals and their pens, goat handling, and then participate in a grand parade to show off the goats they have spent time raising. For their first-time attending the Royal Adelaide Show competitions, the students performed very well. The Year 9s placed 3rd in the Grand Parade for having well-maintained and controlled goats. All students competed in individual goat handling competitions, which saw Nicki Zanker compete in the finals. Overall, students had a fantastic time showing off their skills and joining in with the competitions.
We would like to say a huge thank you to Jim and Maggie Dunbar for donating our goats this year. Without them and the goats supplied to us, students wouldn’t have been able to have this experience or claim the wins they did.
I enjoyed being able to spend time with the goats. One of the best parts was being able to sit in the pens getting them comfortable around us. – Haylee Magnay
Mr Wren - Year 7 & 8 Ag Teacher
Over the past two weeks, the Year 11 and 12 Child Studies classes have visited Gladstone Primary School to run learning activities with Kindergarten and Reception students. Planning these activities forms part of the Year 12 assessment and they had to have a specific focus:
- Healthy Foods – an activity promoting the Australian Guide for Healthy Eating and some information to take home
- Creative Play – an activity encouraging creativity while promoting sustainability (eg reusing materials)
For the Healthy Foods focus, children participated in a discussion about food groups. They used fine motor skills to colour and cut out small pictures of different foods and glue them onto a paper plate to create a healthy meal. The children also experimented with new foods, using fresh ingredients to make “Cracker Stacks”. Several students tasted (and enjoyed!) foods they had never tried before!
During the Creative Play activities, children collected items from the garden in re-used egg cartons to create a house/garden collage. We were very lucky to have a beautifully sunny afternoon to go on a treasure hunt!
Thank you to Beck Crawford, Anita Hook and Gladstone Primary School for supporting our Child Studies class this term. We look forward to working together again soon!
Kate Seidel - Child Studies Teacher
On the 19th September 2022, the Year 7-10 students participated in the Gladstone High School Nunga day. Students rotated through different stations where they learnt about traditional Aboriginal practices.
Kangaroo Tail Cooking (Nutritional Health) – Duane Woods
Students were exposed to the traditional procedure of preparing and cooking a Kangaroo tail. Kangaroo tails are cooked unskinned, singeing and scraping off the hair, and then toasting them in the fire untill thoroughly done. Students were given the opportunity to watch this process as well as try the freshly cooked Kangaroo tail.
Native Australian Flora (Traditional usage) – JPSS
Students participated in an information session about the traditional use of Native Australian Flora. These uses include hunting, gathering, decorative and medicinal purposes. This information helped our students further develop their understanding of the use of native flora, and John Pirie Secondary school donated seedlings to be planted in our own Nunga Garden.
Damper Cooking (Nutritional Health) – Leanora Neal & Zara Mitchell
Students participated in a damper cooking workshop where they learnt about traditional recipes and cooking methods. Damper, also known as bush bread or seedcake, is a European term that refers to bread made by First Nations people for thousands of years. Damper is made by crushing a variety of native seeds, and sometimes nuts and roots, into a dough and then baking the dough in the coals of a fire. The bread is high in protein and carbohydrates and helped form part of a traditional balanced diet. Students were given the opportunity to taste the damper they made as well as some traditional Jam recipes.
Jewellery making (Psychological and Emotional Health) – Judy Crosby
In the last session, students participated in a practical jewellery-making session where they learnt about ornamental and decorative items. Aboriginal People made and continue to make jewellery out of natural materials, such as seeds, beans, bones, feathers and shells. Students were given the opportunity to make their own jewellery during this session.
Students were provided a BBQ at lunchtime where they were treated to Kangaroo sliders. Overall the day was a major success. Overall Gladstone High school would like to thank all volunteers and participants who made this day possible.
Tyler Norton - Aboriginal Education Teacher
This week, the Year 8 English classes combined for 8A to judge 8B in debating. It was certainly an interesting and informative performance, including from Mr Hussell! We look forward to more debating and sharing in the coming weeks.
Mrs Cameron and Mr Hussell - Year 8 English Teachers
On Friday 16September, the Year 8 students went to Port Pirie to Charlie & the Chocolate Factory presented by the Port Pirie Youth Theatre Company. We all enjoyed the performance and cheered and clapped extra hard for our GHS students who performed in the production:
- Mahli Evans
- Hannah Zanker
- Kathryn Zanker
- Kira Gable
Well done to the performing students for an amazing effort. Thank you to Digger and Miss Kerr for driving the bus.
We were lucky enough to see Charlie and the Chocolate Factory at the Northern Festival Centre as part of our English lesson on Friday. It was an excellent performance and it was great seeing so many GHS students in the Port Pirie Youth Theatre. Thanks to Mrs Cameron, Mr Hussell, Miss Kerr and Digger. Madi Clogg
Mrs Cameron and Mr Hussell - Year 8 English Teachers.
The student leaders organised a school basketball competition and a number of exciting games have taken place over Weeks 5 to 8 of Term 3. On Friday of Week 8, the finalists lined up against each other in an epic battle royale. Team 7 featured Will Crawford, Ronald Nash, Tobey Dwyer, Eliza Heinrich, Charlie Flavel, Jacob Rushworth and Mirra Tunbridge while Team 3 showcased the talents of Ben Flowers, Max Smart, Danyl Haskell, Elizabeth Court-Demmell and Nate McInerney.
Team 7 performed brilliantly, forcing turnovers and driving the ball down the court to the key. Notable for their impressive skills and confidence with the ball were Tobey Dwyer and Jacob Rushworth. Team 3 kept the defensive pressure on, particularly Danyl Haskell and Nate McInerney, which kept Team 7 in check as they tended not to pass the ball on when under pressure, resulting in a number of missed shots. Team 3 worked beautifully as a team, making use of all the players on the court to play a considered game. Ben Flowers was unstoppable at the 3-point line, sinking a number of incredible shots throughout the game.
When the buzzer at the end of the game went off, the two teams were tied 18 vs 18. The game went into overtime with the winning team being the first team to nail a shot. Seconds later, Ben Flowers led his team to victory with a winning layup. Team 3 will now go on to battle it out with the teachers.
Thank you to Mr Gillard for umpiring and to Mackenzie Myers for running the show and keeping everyone organized.
Miss Johnson
To celebrate Wear It Purple Day, raising awareness for LGBTQI+ Youth and highlighting that we are an inclusive community, the SWAT team organised multiple activities. Home groups decorated their doors with purple and information about LGBTQI+ services and messages, students shared purple cupcakes, and added rainbow beads to their shoelaces as part of the Rainbow Shoelace Project. The Rainbow shoelace project was started by young people in Broken Hill, wanting to show they are a safe person for other LGBTQI+ youth to come to.
We also recently celebrated R U OK DAY, with some informative posters and activities in pastoral care about how to check in with our friends and support them to seek help if things are tough. This year's focus is that we do not need to be experts to check on someone else's wellbeing and mental health, and that we are all qualified to ask, 'R U OK?'; we can support the people around us to take action to improve their health.
Miss McAllister
The annual Gladstone Art Show is on at the Gladstone Town Hall until the 7th of October, open 10-4 every day. This community-run exhibition takes a lot of organisation and effort from community members, and it is a pleasure to exhibit student work each year. Head over to see work from our art students, as well as all of the primary schools, and other entries. There's such a wide range of wonderful art to inspire, and it is well worth a visit.
Miss McAllister
As winter sports come to an end, we would like to congratulate all of our students and staff who won Premierships and Medals this season.
- Ronald Nash - NAFA Best & Fairest, Senior Colts.
- Hudson Seidel - NAFA Runner Best & Fairest, Junior Colts.
- Southern Flinders Senior Colts Premiers defeating Broughton Mundoora 3.12 - 2.6
- Southern Flinders H Grade Premiers defeating Crystal Brook 23 - 14. Imogen Cunningham - Best on Court.
- Crystal Brook Hockey Club Div 3 Men's Premiers defeated St Andrews 4-2.
