8 June 2017

Newsletter Articles

Principal’s Address

Principal’s Message

As Semester 1 draws to a close, the school reaches a point where it collects information on the academic progress of its students and reports to parents. The vast majority of students have worked well and staff members have put an enormous effort into finalising assessments and writing reports. The Semester 1 reports will be distributed to all students on the final week of term, we encourage parents to ensure that they have provided the school with relevant email addresses otherwise parents and guardians will be required to collect reports from the front office, of the school.

Our Year 10 students are about to make decisions related to course selections for Year 11 in 2018. Entry into senior school courses is determined by the students’ achievement over the semester and their Year 10 examination results. There is still an opportunity for Year 10 students to work hard and improve their results in Semester 2 increasing subject selection opportunities; however students need to make realistic choices if they wish to be successful.

Year 12s are approaching their final term. Students working towards ATAR examinations should already have a strong revision program to maximise their final results. Students enrolled in non-ATAR, WACE and Certificate courses need to be working towards completing all their assessment and competency tasks.

Many parents may be aware, through recent stories in the media, that Education Ministers across Australia have agreed, in principle, for NAPLAN to be an online assessment in the future. To ensure our school is ready for NAPLAN online we have started to review our hardware and where possible give our students some practice online assessment tasks so they are more prepared for online testing.

Susan Kerr M.Ed.Admin, B.Ed,Dip.Teach

PRINCIPAL
Newton Moore SHS

From the Finance Team

Unpaid Upper School Charges

Upper School subject charges are not an optional payment. The school works very hard to encourage all parents to support the delivery of great programs and learning outcomes to our students.

Collection of these amounts continues to be challenging, particularly in difficult economic times. We encourage all parents to consider using our payment plan option to pay off C&C over the course of the school year.

It really does make a difference as to what the school can offer your child in terms of resources, curriculum and programs. To enquire about a payment plan please ring the accounts office 97222419.

Up and Coming Dates

Attendance

Do you need to let the school know if your teenager will be away from school?

Yes, you need to let the attendance officer, front office, wellbeing coordinator, student services know the reason why your teenager is going to be or has been absent from school as soon as possible.

Don’t feel the need to ‘cover up’ the reason for your teenager’s absence. This reinforces that you are taking over when things are difficult. Be honest so we can work with you and your teenager to improve their attendance.

Having information about why your teenager is missing school helps us plan for their return, and to work out whether we can provide any further help to you.

Admin Report

Connect

Parents of Year 11 and 12 students

Connect provides easy access to information relevant to your child’s classes, assessment results, teacher feedback and attendance data.

Parents can access Connect on any internet enabled device. Notifications can also be received via email or the Connect Now app, which can be downloaded from the Apple App Store or Google Play. Parents will be able to adjust their notification preferences to suit their individual needs.

If you have not provided the school with a current email address, need your password reset or have any difficulties please feel free to contact the school administration (Tania Martyn) on 9722 2400 for assistance.

Wellbeing & Program Coordinators Report

Lower School Leadership visit City of Bunbury Council

The Lower School Leadership students had the pleasure of visiting the City of Bunbury Council offices and meeting with the mayor Mr Gary Brennan. They were taken on a tour of the chambers and were able to quiz the mayor on a number of issues such as: what the council does to support small business, how much the Koombana development will cost and a timeline for completion, and how he saw the crime rates in our city. The mayor was impressed by the depth of questions asked and the interest that all of the students showed towards the working of the City. The students were then allowed to see the mayor being interviewed by the local press on the parking issues in the CBD.

Year 9 Dance

Year 9 Dance students performed their dance routine at lunchtime. They have been working on their routine for many months and Ms Sabourne was very proud of their performance.

Student Services Update

Positive Behaviour Points Term 1 2017

Congratulations to Students of the Month for Term 1, 2017 and to all the 151 students that were nominated.

Chaplain

Teens and Depression – Why Teens Are More Vulnerable, and the Risk Factors Parents Need to Know About

Teens are becoming more sensitive to what others might be thinking.

As little people, our children are able to take the world as it comes, knowing that we’re by their side when things get tough. They don’t tend look outside of themselves for information about who they are meant to be. They just ‘are’. This is exactly how it’s meant to be for a while. They need to understand the world from their own perspective first, with themselves at the centre, and as they grow, their reference points and capacity to think of things from other perspectives will also start to grow.

As they move into adolescence, they will start to expand their capacity to see themselves through the eyes of another. With the social centres of the brain at full volume, and an increase in oxytocin, ‘the bonding hormone’, teens will tend to become more self-conscious – conscious of themselves – as they start to think about the kind of people they want to be, and how they can create the world they want to live in. This is a great thing but the downside is that it can make them sensitive to what other people might be thinking of them, particularly their peers.

Acceptance is important for any of us, but it becomes so much bigger during adolescence. Understandably, when the messages that are coming back to them – or the messages they think are coming back to them – aren’t nourishing and positive, it can bruise them from the inside out.

More on Teens and Depression in the next issue.

Learning Support Coordinator

Visual Timers

Visual timers are devices that keep track of a certain amount of time. You “set” a timer to count down and then alert you when time is up. To let you know that time has run out, the timer often beeps several times.

Visual timers are a specific type of timer. Visual timers allow you to “see” the movement of time through clear, visual signals. They include sand timers where sand falls in an hourglass, clocks and apps on electronic devices.

Visual timers are effective tools to help students manage their time for tests, projects, and assignments, as well as help them plan for the remaining amount of time before they have to move on to something else.

At home, you can use visual timers to help your children move along with a task or chore, or even to set a specific time for activities like reading or homework, or playing board games.

School Nurse

7 Ways for Teens to cut down on sugar!

• Choose cereals with less than 6 grams of sugar per serving.
• Read the ingredient list for foods like pretzels, breads and chips –find an option without added sugar.
• Cut back on store-bought condiments. Serve salsa or tomato sauce instead.
• Choose dairy options that are naturally lower in sugar. Greek yogurt usually has less sugar. Sweeten yogurt with fresh, dried, or heated fruits, such as baked apples, warmed frozen cherries, juicy cantaloupe, or dried fruit and nuts.
• Keep fresh fruit out that’s ready to eat and has eye appeal. If it’s washed, ready to eat, and close by, teens will grab it!
• Buy 175ml juice glasses –they are smaller and encourage the right size portion.
• Make it easy: Fresh produce such as grapes, cherry tomatoes, and bananas are easy to eat,

Why drinking enough water is important

Nearly all of our systems do not function as well without the proper water intake.

Your body is composed of roughly 60% water. That means that when we are dehydrated we are affecting the performance of the majority of our body. By the time you experience the sensation of the thirst, you are already dehydrated.

Keeping yourself well hydrated will have the following benefits:

• You will be less cranky. Research says dehydration can affect your mood and make you grumpy and confused. Think clearer and be happier by drinking more water.
• You will perform better. Proper hydration contributes to increased athletic performance. Dehydration can lead to weakness, fatigue, dizziness, and electrolyte imbalance.
• Water flushes out waste and bacteria. Our digestive system needs water to function properly. Waste is flushed out in the form of urine and sweat. If we don't drink water, we don't flush out waste and it collects in our body causing a myriad of problems.
• Being hydrated will help prevent headaches. Sometimes headaches can be caused by dehydration, so drinking water can prevent or alleviate that nasty head pain. Next time your head hurts, try drinking water.
• Being hydrated will make your skin glow. Our skin is the largest organ in our body. Regular and plentiful water consumption can improve the colour and texture of skin by keeping it building new cells properly. Drinking water also helps the skin do its job of regulating the body's temperature through sweating.
• Water helps to feed your body. Water is essential for the proper circulation of nutrients in the body. Water serves at the body’s transportation system and when we are dehydrated things just can’t get around as well.

Year 10, 11 and 12s Meningococcal W Immunisation.

The immunisation team are coming to the school in Term 3 to give this needle.

Meningococcal disease rates for 15 – 19 year olds are some of the highest rates.

The needle cannot be given at a Doctors surgery and will be given at school free of charge.

Could you please fill out the form your daughter/son has bought home from school and return ASAP.

If you have not received a form we have spares at the school, or call the nurse on 9722 2425 or South West Public Health on 9781 2355.

Learning Areas

Science

Science Rock Mobile

Year 8 students created a mobile depicting the rock cycle. This mobile provided an opportunity to learn about the rock cycle and show students artistic talents. They used a tree branch and recycled materials to hang their work and our class room looks much brighter.

VET

“Making it work” Apprenticeships and Traineeships Forum

All interested secondary students are invited to attend this forum Forum with their parents. The “Making It Work” Apprenticeship & Traineeship Forum aims to better inform students and their parents about Vocational Education and Training (VET) pathways, traineeships and apprenticeships.

The event is FREE and includes a one-hour information session followed by a light supper while you browse the exhibitors’ tables. Hear from training organisations, large employers, successful Apprentices and Trainees, relevant agencies and business organisations. Talk to people who can help explain the processes and the options involved in these career pathways.

Drama

Newton Moore presents ‘Puss in thongs’

Aboriginal Education

Girls Academy

Soroptimist of Bunbury Artist in residence Helena Sahm worked with the girls in the Academy to create a jewelled beetle artwork which took centre stage at Groovin’ the Moo festival

Specialist Programs

Science Horizons & Engineering

2017 Singapore Excursion

Over the past 6 years NMSHS Science Horizons and Engineering programs have developed a partnership with the Singapore Chinese Girls School. They have visited our school since 2011 and NMSHS paid a return visit to Singapore in 2013. It is a highly desirable requirement of DET academic Specialist Programs to offer such opportunities to the students in these programs.

A group of 14 Science Horizons and Engineering Specialist students had the privilege of visiting Singapore for a 7 day adventure from the 18th of May until the 24th of May. Singapore provided a captivating range of man-made structures such as the Gardens by the Bay, and its light show and the Marina Bay Sands hotel, and the efficient and intricate train network, real feats of engineering. Added to this were the biological aspects of the trip with visits to the Marine Life Park, Botanical Gardens, Orchid Gardens, Mangroves and the zoos. Culturally the students visited China Town and Little India and were informed of the history of these two cultures in developing Singapore as a labour source, trade and its religious beliefs.

Then there was the food. A number of students tried the Durian Fruit, known as the “King of Fruits”. It has an acquired taste and is very popular in Asian cultures but for the westerners it is a challenge to eat. A number of students attempted it and did so successfully. The same can be said about the Century Egg and once again a number of students were successful in digesting this unique food too.

The shopping was amazing with many stores to be. A number of students were really excited by the $2.00 shop, and many a purchase was made.

Though the days were long, the climate humid and our shirts laden with sweat, it was an experience that was enjoyed and memories created. We are very grateful to have been hosted by our sister school, the Singapore Chinese Girls School, who made our experience even more meaningful with their modern technology bus incursion and encouraging our NMSHS students to shadow their students for a day during their Sabbatical week; completing a Tourism unit and a Wetlands unit. It was interesting to encounter schooling in another country and culture.

STEM

To engage the students from the Girls Academy with STEM a project they could relate to was developed. The students depend on their phones and they require a lot of charging. It was decided a solution to charging their phone conveniently and using a sustainable energy source was required.

The girls constructed and successfully tested a prototype hand cranked phone charger. They identified that a more efficient method for turning the hand crank would be to use a windmill rotor or even attach a solar panel.

An 18 volt cordless drill was converted into a generator and tested also. To make the self funded project cost effective and to ensure all 21 students received their own charger, smaller prototypes were made from 12 volt hobby motors used in reverse to generate electricity.

This project provided an opportunity for all of the girls to learn a new skill, soldering.

South32 Worsley Alumina provided STEM professionals to come into the class to discuss their own careers paths with the girls and how the problem solving process is the same used in their own roles. (Samantha Mortley, Emily Dunn, Jacqui Daniels, Anthony Stewart)

News from Parent Bodies

School Board

Board Member Responsibilities

Board members do not represent specific interest groups or advocate special interest.

The role of Board members is generally providing strategic direction and advice. Unlike corporate and public sector boards, Board members do not provide oversight of day-to-day operations by the executive.

Individual Board members will act in accordance with the direction once determined by the Board, unless changed or revisited by the Board. Board members must not publicly advocate contrary to that determined by the Board.

Board members will act in accordance with the requirements of the Schools Education Act 1999 and adopted Code of Conduct and Terms of Reference.

Community Notices