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Dear Families
Athletics Carnival
The big event on our calendar over the last 2 weeks would have to be the annual Athletics Carnival. Held on Wednesday 28th and Thursday 29th October in fine weather conditions with Esk house once again being crowned the winners. As normal the first day was held at Kings Meadows High School and then on the Thursday the whole school participated at the St Leonards Athletic Centre. These carnival days are always a fabulous day on the calendar and an opportunity for our students to compete for championship and house points and enjoy spending time supporting one another. The support and comradery that was witnessed over the two days was special to see and reinforces what a lovely culture we have at Kings. These days were thoroughly enjoyed by the students and staff and I thank them all for their time and enthusiasm over these two days. A big thank you to Mrs Elliott and the HPE Team and the House Captains for all their work in planning and co-ordinating another successful carnival. Thank you also to Mrs Freestone and Mr Howard for volunteering their time to assist with events.
Congratulations to all the grade track and field champions of our carnival and also to those students who represented the school at the Northern Athletics Championships recently held again at St Leonards.
Band Success
Congratulations also to our senior band “House of Leaves” who made it through to the State Final of the Rock Challenge last Friday evening. This is a wonderful achievement and a great opportunity for the boys to play in an authentic venue with other high quality bands and musicians. Thanks again to Mr Nic Parker for all your support.
Waste NoT Awards Success
Congratulations to our Climate Action Group ably supported by Ms Jemima Cooper and Mrs Mandy Ritchie for applying for and being successful in attaining an award in the Waste NoT Awards recently announced by Northern Tasmanian Waste Management. This award is in recognition of the work this group proactively lead in ensuring locker clean out at the end of term is completed with an environmental lens. Students were able to recycle any materials (books, pens etc.) that they had not used. These were able to be recycled for further use or placed in the correct waste management recycle bins.
Students Free Day Professional Learning
Last Friday all teaching staff were engaged in a professional learning day as authorised by the Minister and DoE. These days are an opportunity for staff to continue to learn and build new skills into their practice. Staff spent the morning either listening to International Education specialist Professor Dylan Wiliam presenting on formative assessment or a session on Student Engagement led by the Engagement Team from the Department of Education. The afternoon saw staff working in their Learning Area Teams looking at their curriculum sequences to ensure that these are in line with the current guidelines and policies. A very fitting day for our staff to be engaged in learning on World Teacher’s Day and I thank them all for their ongoing commitment to ensuring our students have the very best practitioners. We are so lucky to have such an outstanding team of educators at Kings Meadows High School.
New Grade Leader Model 2021
As our numbers continue to grow at Kings Meadows High School we have reviewed the model of student support and have added an additional Grade Leader to both Grade 7 and 8 for 2021. It is wonderful to announce that Mr Stuart Withington will be working alongside Miss Nicole Williams with the Grade 7 students and Mr Taylor Whitford will be working alongside Miss Lillian Males with the Grade 8s.
Both grades will continue to have Senior Staff support and these will be announced before the end of the year.
Students Leaders 2021
Congratulations to all the students who put themselves forward for election to the 2021 student leadership positions in our school. It shows courage and confidence to do so and as I sat and listened recently to their speeches, I knew any one of the applicants would make wonderful leaders in our school. The names of our elected leaders and their respective positions are in the Grade 9 report later in this newsletter.
Warm regards
Maree Pinnington
Principal
As part of our Positive Behaviour Support Program at Kings Meadows we will be acknowledging students who have been contributing positively to our learning environment. This means that they have been supporting our school wide expectations.
Respect for others, self and environment
Organisation
Commitment to learning
Keeping safe
Sensible behaviour
We would like to acknowledge the following students:
Grade 7:
Blake Jones - For always being organised and committed to his progress in reading group.
Zak Richardson - For consistent application of the ROCKS as well as showing great care and support for his peers.
Grade 8:
Lillian McCormack - For always being very helpful and having such a positive attitude towards her peers and her work.
Adut Yel - For showing kindness to her peers and being very supportive during the Athletics Carnival.
Grade 9:
Tahlia Vanderheide & Reza Rahimi - For their great dedication at the Athletics Carnival.
Grade 10:
Cleo Taylor, Jaxon Bassett, Chilli Kettle & Sam Brophy - For their outstanding performance in the recent Rock Challenge, making it to the next round. We are so proud of your talent and the way you work together making music and amplifying the school ROCKS.
Celebrations
This week the Grade 7 team received a letter of appreciation from the Benevolent Society for the donation of non-perishable items at the end of Term 3. It is fantastic for our Grade 7 students to see how their donations have contributed to our wider community.
Last week we were very impressed with our Grade 7's behaviour during the two days of the Athletics Carnival. It was great to see so many students wearing house colours, participating in each event and most importantly encouraging their fellow classmates whilst they were competing. House spirit was at an all-time high and we look forward to seeing our Grade 7's continue to participate and take advantage of all the opportunities we have available here for our students at school.
Grade Focus
Our focus continues to be around our ROCKS expectations with particular attention to Keeping Safe, Sensible Behaviour and Organisation. Students are reminded every Monday in our grade assemblies about their commitment to the ROCKS. Our students have now been with us for three terms and this term will be making their transition to Grade 8. Our staff have high expectations of behaviour and it is important that students rise to the occasion to grow and mature as they head towards the end of their first year of high school.
Grade 7 iPad Return
Towards the second half of Term 4, Grade 7 students will be required to hand back their school iPads so that over the summer holidays they can be serviced by our IT department. When handing back their iPad as per our iPad Standard Operating Procedure, students will be required to hand their iPad back to their class teacher with their Apple Charging Block and Apple USB Cable. Students who have lost or misplaced any of these items will be invoiced for replacements which will then be given to students to use next year 2021.
Upcoming Events - My Education Day
On Thursday 12th November Grade 7 students will be involved in the first My Education day of Term 4. Grade 7's have a jam packed day as they will also be attending the ‘Careers on Wheels’ expo held at the school. In preparation for Careers on Wheels, Grade 7s will have an assembly next Thursday morning explaining the importance of the expo in relation to their futures, past high school. It is our aim to get the life-long learner juices flowing so that our Grade 7 students can make informed decisions about their subject choices and future pathways. On this day students will also continue working on their class awareness project which was introduced last term. Students will decorate their classrooms to represent the awareness project and an inter-class competition will be held with a panel of judges assessing creativity and awareness of each class teacher group.
Celebrations
We would like to congratulate our Grade 8 students on a phenomenal effort at the Athletics Carnival last week! The participation was outstanding, and the team spirit and encouragement was so lovely to see. We are proud of how our students conducted themselves and demonstrated great sportsmanship throughout the two days.
Special mention to Cody Clayton, who took out the Grade 8 Boy’s Javelin 1st place – well done Cody!
We are also very impressed with how our students are following the ‘off and away’ policy; the rate of phone offences in Grade 8 has been very low. The flow on effects of this policy include more focused learning in class, improved social interactions at break times and less distractions for our students.
Grade Focus
The wonderful Dr Brene Brown is responsible for the following quote: What we know matters, but who we are matters more. As we move through the final term of 2020 and we focus on achieving our learning goals, we would like to remind students that who they are and how they treat people will always be more important than what they know. We would like to encourage our young people to continue to demonstrate kindness, compassion and vulnerability as we see out the term!
Celebrations
Congratulations to the following students for being elected into leadership positions for 2021:
PREFECTS | HOUSE CAPTAINS | PEER SUPPORT LEADERS |
Jasmine Jones | Anthony Dennis | Grace Richardson |
Ethan Stebbings | Marcelline Bula | Frances Day |
Ella Fullbrook | Bryce Stone | Jayda Laskey-Roles |
Lincoln Newman-Beams | Jessica Homan | Bella Roberts |
Chaise Jordan | Micah Boxhall | Ethan Clarke |
Millie Smith | Alex Lyons | Olivia Chamberlain |
Tom Hawkins | Erin Quillerat | Brooke Cunningham |
Deagan Madden | Jacob Maher-Maynard | Bree Lavelle |
Jayden Eldershaw | Tahlia Vanderheide | |
Lachlan Kingshott | ||
Tyreece Williams | ||
Erica Kirk | ||
BEACON AMBASSADORS GRADE 10 | BEACON AMBASSADORS GRADE 9 | |
Campbell Stebbings | Amelia Lethborg | |
April Stebbings | Sarah Henshall | |
Courtney Burnie | Maggie Robins | |
Ashtyn Peters | Marcus Kelly | |
Liana Connie | ||
Paige Smith | ||
Ebony Wegman | ||
Mirren Taylor |
Grade Focus
In our Learning Areas the Grade 9's have been focussing on a variety of concepts and modules. In English they are currently engaging in texts centred on the theme of survival or Shakespeare. In Maths the focus is on linear relationships. Science are getting close to completing their unit of Chemistry, focussing on acids and bases and HaSS has a focus on World War I studies. HPE is completing a unit based around collaboration and co-operation.
The next step of our leadership journey for our Grade 9 students has been completed with students and teachers casting their votes last week. From over 500 votes, students have been assigned roles for 2021. Throughout the remainder of Term 4, there will be a range of activities completed to assist in the transition of our Grade 9 students into their new roles.
In our upcoming Grade 9 My Education Day, the focus will be on resume and CV writing, exploring careers and making community connections.
Celebrations
Grade 10 are celebrating a successful excursion to the recent Driver Awareness Program RYDA. All students were excellent in their participation and walked away with better knowledge of road safety as they approach applying for their licenses.
Grade Focus
Grade 10 students are encouraged to continue working hard to complete all of their assessments on time to ensure they receive their full graduation packs at the end of the year.
Reminders/Dates:
- Newstead College enrolment interviews @KMHS (9th November).
- Launceston College enrolment interviews @KMHS (11th November).
- My Education Day @KMHS (12th November).
- Students are reminded that VET EOI forms are past due to Mr Chamberlain.
- Students are reminded to begin work on the post Year 10 enrolment packs with their parents/guardians.
- If students are intending to sit Mock Interviews they must sign up through the link found in their student emails.
Wonderful weather last Wednesday and Thursday contributed to an Athletics Carnival that was once again full of spirit, colour, athleticism and comradery. The level of participation and house community spirit was extremely impressive with many students displaying solid performances in both track and field events. Our students embraced both days and all who attended are to be commended for the way they represented themselves and our school.
Well done to all athletes for your efforts over the two days, your ability to run, jump, skip and throw is a credit to your dedication and support of the carnival.
Esk was the successful house who took out the 2020 House Athletics CAhampionships by accumulating the most points for all events over the two days. Excellent participation from all Esk team members was the contributing factor in their win. Well done!
Final house points are still being collated and we will advise together with our record breakers in the next newsletter.
Carnivals cannot be as successful as ours without a combined team effort. A massive thank you must go to the HPE Team for arriving at school early on both days for set up and for all of their work prior to the carnival helping organise such a great event. We would also like to thank our parent helpers Mrs Alicia Freestone and Mr Jamie Howard for their tireless efforts over the carnival. Thank you also goes to Isabella Darsaklis for giving up her time to help us with our carnival. Your expertise and experience in running Athletics Carnivals was greatly appreciated. Finally a big thank you must also go to all staff who supported us on the day and worked tirelessly to produce a smoothly run carnival.
Student name: Caidyn Leeder
Student class: 7D
What can you tell us about this piece of work?
This piece of work is based on the book, Mallee Boys. We were assigned to choose one thing from each of the six categories to work on. I quite enjoy writing and this gave me a chance to extend my understanding of the book through the different tasks.
What is your favourite thing about English?
My favourite thing about English is coming up with new ideas for new pieces of work.
What are you working on at the moment in English?
After the Mallee Boys assignment, we will be working on poetry as of next week.
What are you reading at the moment?
I am reading the Harry Potter series. I have just finished the third book, The Prisoner of Azkaban. The next book is The Goblet of Fire.
What is your favourite book and why?
My favourite book is: Percy Jackson and The Battle of The Labyrinth. It is my favourite book because it links with Greek mythological history. There are always unexpected twists and turns and there are always cliff hangers at the end of every chapter.
What are some books that you would really like to read?
I like reading fiction novels, particularly fantasy. Some examples are the Harry Potter series and books by Rick Riordan.
MALLEE BOYS
Sequel: Create Section
Sandy:
After a long day at school, I’m glad to be back home. I drag myself in the front door and dump my bag in the lounge room. I don’t even realise how hungry I am until I walk past the kitchen. I grab an apple and head to my room. I feel exhausted. Biting into my apple, I wonder how Red and Dad are doing.
I figure I should probably check in with Becky, I haven’t talked to her for a while, “Hey Beck, how have you been? How’s Townsville? xx.” After I send her the message, I turn on my PlayStation so I can play for a bit before I start my homework.
I kinda miss arguing with Red about who’s going to win the next game and so on and so forth.
After about 10 minutes of playing my PlayStation, my phone rings. It’s Red. “That’s weird, Red doesn’t usually call me much at all,” I say to myself as I pick up my phone.
“Hey Red, what’s up?” “
Turn on your bloody TV and look on the news,” He says to me. He seems worried, more distressed, but I listen to him anyway and turn my PlayStation off so I can look at the news. I turn the volume up. “…with ease. He seems to be on the run after getting out of jail. Everyone in the surrounding area seems to be panicking. Fortunately, the police are looking for him but they’re afraid he’ll get into something with Josh Douglas before they can find him. Anyway, that’s it for today folks. Enjoy your evening and stay safe,”
A horrible chill goes down my spine. How did he get out of jail? Where is he? Is it really who I’m thinking off? Too many questions and too few answers. Forgetting Red was on the phone, he says, “You okay?”
His question startles me. “Uh, y-yeah, I think. How?”
“What do you mean how, Sandy?”
“How did he get out of jail?”
“Dunno mate, but one thing’s for sure, we’ve got to keep a look out. Ryan’s pretty unpredictable and he’s obviously going to come after me.”
Red’s right. Ryan’s first move is most likely going to be involving Red. As much as he’s annoyed me in the past, I can’t stand the thought of something really bad happening to him, or Dad, or anyone for that matter.
“Don’t worry about it mate. Try and get it of your mind. I’ll be fine, just worry about yourself.”
As confident as he sounds, I don’t think he’ll be fine. Red’s definitely got better at controlling his temper, but when it comes to the people he loves, he’ll be as unpredictable as a bull that only see’s the colour red.
“Okay, but be really careful.” He must’ve heard the panic in my voice,
“I’ll be fine. Anyways I gotta go, Dad wants me to help him a bit more on the farm. I’ll talk to you later.”
“Okay,” I said in reply, “Bye.” He hangs up. I sure hope he’s right when he says he’s going to be fine.
GRADE 8 INTERNATIONAL FOODS BANQUET:
After having cooked foods from around the world throughout Term 3, Mrs MacFarlane’s Grade 8 FTE2 class celebrated what they had learned by preparing an international foods banquet. Foods from France, Italy, Vietnam, Japan, China, Spain, USA, Greece, India, Thailand and Canada were prepared and enjoyed by the class. Students began to cook at 8.30am and had everything served and ready to eat by 10.30am.
To accompany their term’s worth of practical work, students completed outstanding posters on countries which they had chosen to research.
Much fun and enjoyment was had by all!
The Department of Education recently announced that we would be expanding the Student Assistance Scheme for 2021. Parents who have a current concession card as listed below can apply for dependent students for assistance under the STAS:
- Services Australia - Centrelink Health Care Card
- Services Australia - Centrelink Low Income Health Care Card
- Services Australia - Pensioner Concession Card or
- Department of Veteran Affairs - Pensioner Concession Card
Please note that if you are already receiving student assistance you do not need to complete a form.
For 2021 a new online form has been developed to assist with processing applications for new applicants.
The online form can be completed at: https://stasonlinesubmission.education.tas.gov.au/.
The form will be available for public use from 10 November.
Once a validated form is completed the Department of Education will confirm the outcome of your application in writing, this process takes approximately 14 days.
We understand this online option may not be possible for all families, so if yolu require a hard copy form please contact your school or the Financial Assistanct Unit on stas@education.tas.gov.au or 1800 827 077.
REVIEW INTO REPORTING TO FAMILIES SURVEY:
The Department of Education is undertaking a Review into Reporting to Families. This Review will provide recommendations for our reporting system so that it continues to meet the needs of learners, families and schools in the most meaningful ways.
Parents and carers can have their say by completing the Families Survey before 13 November.
We encourage you to get involved and have your say.
For more information about the review visit: https://www.education.tas.gov.au/community-and-engagement/review-into-reporting-to-families/
Wednesday 4 November | School Association Meeting |
Thursday 5 November | Boys Cricket Gala Day at KMHS |
Monday 9 November | Newstead College enrolments 9.30am |
9-13 November | NAIDOC Week |
Wednesday 11 November | Launceston College enrolments 9.00am |
Thursday 12 November | My Education Day - Careers on Wheels |
Monday 16 November | Grade 10 library books end of year return date |
Friday 20 November | NHSSA Division 1 Athletics |
Monday 23 November | Grade 7,8 & 9 library book end of year return date |
Wednesday 25 November | Grade 6 Orientation Day |
Wednesday 2 December | My Education Day - Healthy Me Expo |
Thursday 10 December | Grade 10 Leavers Dinner - Country Club Casino |
Monday 14 December | Presentation Assembly (invited guests only) |
Tuesday 15 December | Grade 10 Mystery Picnic |
Wednesday 16 December | Grade 10 Graduation Assembly - last day for Grade 10s |
Thursday 17 December | Last day for Grade 7, 8 and 9 students |