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Welcome back to all our staff, students, and parents for Term 3. We have a busy term planned with several camps and excursions in the first few weeks. Miss Edge has been busy organising a Building/Construction Industry Immersion Day with some of our Year 10 & 11 students. Flinders University has delivered a Career and University Pathway presentation for our Year 7, 8, 9 and 12 students. Miss McAllister will be taking a Year 11/12 on an Art Camp in Adelaide in Week 3, and the Year 9 Ski Trip is in Week 4.
There is still Covid in our school community, so I remind staff and students that masks are strongly recommended by both the Chief Medical Officer and the Education Department. If students are unwell, they should stay at home, and if displaying Covid symptoms should be tested with a PCR.
I look forward to Tyler returning next week after recovering from foot surgery.
Acting Principal - Stephen Bosch
On Thursday 30th of June, the Year 12’s left Gladstone to pick up the Crystal Brook students for the Year 12 retreat. The students travelled in separate cars as it was a 40-minute drive to Port Hughes. We stopped at Kadina for Mini Golf, lunch and then headed to the Cinema to watch Top Gun: Maverick. A the Port Hughes campsite we played games, did team-building activities and then received personal letters from our parents. On the last day of the retreat, we went for a short walk along the beach before having some free time at Kadina park.
Mahli Evans
On Monday, 4 July SAPOL, in conjunction with the emergency services suite and local emergency services staff, created a mock crash in Gladstone High School’s bus loop. This was attended by students in Years 10, 11 and 12 from Gladstone High School and Jamestown Community School.
The students witnessed a mock scene which provided a realistic experience for the students where the extended effects of road accidents were considered and worked through in a way that highlighted the number of people and services that are involved in a singular event. A speaker attended after the session and talked to the students about her lived experience of being involved in a devastating accident and the impact this accident has had on her both physically and psychologically.
During the mock scene, discussions and speeches a number of important topics were explored including the perils of road use, the contributors to unsafe driving and guidance on how to be a responsible road user. Students left the session with a clear understanding of the effects of car accidents on young road users.
“It was a very important session.” Bella Zwar, Year 12
“It was impactful and a lot of people needed to learn about it.” Mackenzie Myers, Year 12
“It was a great opportunity for students to ask questions about what happens at an emergency site.” Lara Zanker, Year 12
“It was very informative.” Reuben Hughes, Year 11
“It was good because it was informative.” Bodie Gilby, Year 11
“Very accurate reenactment of a genuine car accident.” Oscar Kleinman, Year 11
“This session taught us what happens in the event of an accident.” Laura Rackham, Year 10
“It was very confronting but informative to know that if we are on the roads, we need to be paying attention at all times.” Asia Brand, Year 10
New Semester, New Experiences!
With the change of Semester our Year 7 and Year 8 students are now having their first High School experience in some new practical subjects. All year 7 students now have Home Ec lessons and are doing an amazing job of working together in the kitchen. They have completed their safety booklets and we have made Apple Turnovers (using fruit from the school orchard!) and mini quiches (with a focus on presentation).
The Year 7s are also doing Art this term with Mr Gillard and Miss McAllister, as well as Design and Technology where they have also completed some online safety courses and have started using the hand tools to learn about different joints.
Our Year 8 students have swapped over their practical subjects which run for the whole semester.
8A are now in Design and Technology and Digital Media
8B are now in Home Ec and Art
Please ask your child about their new experiences as these will be some of the electives they are able to choose from in Year 9!
Middle School Coordinator - Kate Seidel
On the June long weekend, the Laura Courthouse again exhibited wonderful art in the Laura Art Exhibition. As always, thank you to the organisers of the show, for celebrating and encouraging young artists. This year, the students who recieved commendations were Danika Olsen (Year 10), Bridie Anderson (Year 10) and Taylah Palmer (Year 8). Congratulations to the students. Well done to all local students who had work exhibited.
NAIDOC stands for National Aborigines and Islanders Day Observance Committee. It is recognised each year in July. It is a time to acknowledge and celebrate our First Nations people and their contributions, successes and sharing of cultures.
This year each home group took part in designing a new flag which embraced our 3 flags of Australia. Some wonderful stories were created and great conversations followed. The children were also given an opportunity to create their own interpretation of what this year’s theme meant to them in a creative poster. Our judges had a hard decision as so many wonderful designs were created!
Winners were treated with a donut thanks to Kupsch Bakery which had the colours of the Aboriginal Flag on them.
Aboriginal Education Team - Tyler Norton and Judy Crosby
All students from Years 7-9 were given the Recording Sheet for the Premier’s Reading Challenge last term. They have until the 9th September to complete the challenge and can include books they read at school (studied in English or during free-choice reading).
It would be great to see our students continue with their PRC achievement if they completed every year in Primary School. If they have lost their Recording Sheet they can grab a spare from the Office or they can be printed from the website https://premiersreadingchallenge.sa.edu.au/
Middle School Coordinator - Kate Seidel
Over the last several months, the Sentral for Parents app has been updated to improve performance and functionality. All users should now update to at least version 5.4.0 to continue using the app, as older versions will no longer be supported. The Sentral for Parents app can be updated using the App Store (for iOs users) or the Google Play store (for Android users).
By downloading this app, you will have access at your fingertips to your child’s timetables, attendance, and academic reports. You will also be able to book interviews, view the school calendar, explain absences and download the latest newsletter.
If you currently use the portal on a computer, you will be able to sign in using the same credentials on the app. If you don’t have access to the portal, please contact the school and we can send you instructions on how to set up your family-specific log-in.
