Well here we are at the end of Term 3 and I know that the team here at Kings Meadows High all feel the same in asking; “Where has that term gone?”  Schools are such vibrant and busy places and we continue to be so lucky in Tasmania that we have been able to have all our students on site for learning all the time this term. I thank families for their continued efforts in ensuring students remain home if they are unwell which supports us all to remain healthy and well.

We have had much to celebrate throughout the term and I certainly hope everyone has had opportunity to read our fortnightly newsletter throughout the term to keep track of the achievements and celebrations. The last fortnight has certainly been no different and I share with you some of the wonderful events and activities that have been happening.

Write A Book in a Day

Last Tuesday we had four teams working in the library until 8.00pm on their stories around the different stimulus tasks they were each given. It was wonderful to see throughout the day the collaboration, teamwork and enthusiasm that our young writers all had and I was super impressed with the creativity and imagination that was evident in their stories and accompanying graphics. Well done to all involved and thank you to Mr Gale and Ms Furley for co-ordinating.

Northern High School Netball Championships

On Thursday and Friday last week we had teams competing in both boys and girls Netball Championships at the Silverdome. All teams certainly represented the school with great pride according to Miss Williams who accompanied them on the day.

Deloraine Drama Festival

On Thursday evening last week, we had senior Drama students travel to Deloraine to perform at the Deloraine Drama Festival. This festival has been running for many years in the gorgeous Little Theatre at Deloraine. It was a fabulous opportunity for the students to perform on stage with and audience and adjudicator. They performed two pieces; Alice’s Adventures with Poorly Coked Cafeteria Seafood and Dystopia, the Hungry Maze Game of Divergent Death. The feedback from the adjudicator was very complimentary and the students all appreciated this opportunity. Thanks to Miss Blaubaum for her work in preparing the students and taking them to the festival. Thank you also to Mrs Joh Breen and Mrs Katie Wightman for attending and supporting on the evening. The pieces will be able to be viewed again later next term at Arts Night. (See article below for more information)

Grade 8 Social

On Thursday 9^th September the Grade 8 Student Leaders organised a School Social that was held at Kings Meadowsn High School in the gym. This was a fabulous event and such a fun evening was had by all that attended. The Grade 8 staff team and I are very impressed with the calibre of leadership that the students modelled in planning and organising then running the successful event. They had all bases covered to ensure it was a great night. Thank you to Mr Chatwin for all his guidance and support, the staff who assisted and attended to supervise on the evening and most importantly to the Grade 8 Student Leaders. The standard of leadership displayed was outstanding. Well done.

Timberlink Excursion

On Friday 17^th we had a group of Grade 9/10 students travel to George Town to Timberlink to see the workings of their factory and build connections and understandings around the timber industry. We have a good partnership with Timberlink and this was an opportunity for our students to see an authentic business in the building industry. Thank you to Mr Chamberlain for accompanying the students.

Leadership Interviews

In the last couple of weeks we have seen a vast number of students participate in Leadership Interviews for the 2022 Leadership roles for senior students (Prefects, Peer Support Leaders, House Captains and Beacon School Ambassadors).  I had the pleasure of sitting in on a few of these interviews and was certainly very impressed by the articulate well thought out responses provided by the students.  Our school and department values of Aspiration, Courage, Growth and Respect certainly come into play here and all students should be very proud of themselves for stepping forward and stepping up in applying for these positions.

Academic Competitions

Congratulations to all the students who have participated over the last few weeks in ICAS external competitions. These competitions provide students with a fabulous opportunity to extend and challenge themselves in specific learning areas. It also is a wonderful achievement to have in personal portfolios. Thanks to Mrs Kate Hume for co-ordinating and managing these tests and ensuring this opportunity is afforded to our students.

Student Growth – NAPLAN

Last week parents of students in Grades 7 and 9 would have received a NAPLAN summary report for their child. This report also provides a description to help parents understand what this information represents. If you have any questions about the report, please don’t hesitate to touch base with your child’s teacher or grade co-ordinator. Whilst the report reflects a child’s assessment for the key areas of literacy and numeracy at a ‘point in time’, we know that it doesn’t necessarily reflect the growth and passion that students may have for plenty of other areas that they should be proud of, and celebrated for. It is always important to share this perspective and balance with young people when discussing assessments like this.

As a school, we have seen some very positive trends for our recent focus on building students' reading and language skills which is very reaffirming. We will be using this as a platform to take our improvement further and have this reflected in our school improvement planning. We will also be unpacking our NAPLAN school summary reports with our teams to ensure our work is targeted for every student.

You can see from the above table that Kings Meadows High School results are well above schools of a similar demographic and also Tasmanian averages for all areas which is worthy of celebration. We never rest on our laurels though and certainly know there is still much work to be done to ensure that all our students are making the necessary gains in their learning.

I would like to wish everyone a relaxing and safe break over the next two weeks and look forward to a busy (as usual) Term 4.

Warm regards