careers expo 2011€¦ · august 2011 - edition no 5 successful learning - responsible living page...

August 2011 - Edition No 5

Successful Learning - Responsible Living page 1

IMPORTANT DATES: Next P & C Meeting - Tuesday 9th August - Admininistration Block 7pm Education Week - 1st to 5th August Parent /Teacher Interviews - Wednesday 3rd August 3:30pm to 6pm HSC Trials begin - 15th to 26th August Rock Eisteddfod - 2nd to 9th September

CAREERS EXPO 2011

PET ART COMPETITIONS WINNERS see Pages 5 & 6



Welcome back to all staff, students and families for semester 2, I hope everyone enjoyed the winter break and managed to keep warm. Term 3 will prove to be another busy term as the school starts the planning process for courses in 2012. Year 10 and 8 students will be selecting the courses for study next year and will begin the next stage of their secondary schooling. Year 12 students will begin the HSC trials and year 11 will complete the pre-liminary course at the end of the term. The focus is on teaching and learning and ensuring all students reach their personal best. All students received their semester report at the end of last term and I strongly encourage students and families to carefully read and act on the advice teachers are providing. I was very pleased to read each and every report and note the great academic achievements by so many of our students. Congratulations to all students who achieved outstanding reports. It was evident in reading the reports that many students who had not achieved their personal best were often students with poor attendance. Students who are attending school less than 85% of the time are not giving themselves the best possible opportunity to build on their learning. For every school day missed there is 5 hours of missed learning this can have a detrimental effect on students ability to maintain the continuity of learning. I would urge parents who have children reluctant to attend school please contact the year adviser and make an appointment to discuss these attendance issues. Successful students are those that attend school every day possible school day. In the last week of the term MHS proudly celebrated NAIDOC (National, Aborigines and Islander Day Observ-erance Committee) week with a serious of cultural events that was marked with an official flag raising ceremo-ny, work on repairing our beautiful bush tucker garden and repairing of the serpent path towards the Aboriginal centre and ending with a sporting challenge in netball and football between staff and students. NAIDOC cele-brates the survival of Indigenous culture and the Indigenous contribution to modern Australia, highlighting the achievements and successes of Aboriginal people. The 2011 National NAIDOC theme is about taking responsi-bility for our future. To control the change we need to plan and take action to make it happen. It’s our future – change: the next step is ours. Congratulations to Mrs Mc Donald, Mr Victor, Mrs Archibald and the Aborigi-nal education team at MHS in conjunction with the Itji-Marru AECG on planning such a great week of celebra-tion. At the end of last term MHS supported the year 6 sports GALA day, where we had 120 primary school students attend representing our 7 partner schools. It was a great day of sporting challenges with an opportunity for year 6 students to meet new friends and become more familiar with their local High School. Despite the wind chill factor the day was a great success with students having a wonderful day at Morisset High School. I would like to thank the Primary Principals for supporting the day and a special thanks to Ms Blazcyzk, Mr Kendall, The PDHPE staff and the year 9 helpers who ensured our sportstars had a fabulous day! A community issue that continues to be disturbing is that of cyberbullying, today most households have several computers with many young people having access to social networking sites such as facebook and most young people now have mobile phones. These are often the media used to harass, bully and threaten other people and cause significant distress and anxiety for victims and their families. With the technological revolution confront-ing us it is essential that we educate our young people about being responsible users of technology. This infor-mation is extracted from a very helpful site on cyberbullying at www.cybersmart.gov.au that may be useful to parents and carers. Cyberbullying can be conducted in many ways, using different media including: the sending of abusive texts or emails taking and sharing unflattering or private images, including naked or sexual images posting unkind messages or inappropriate images on social networking sites excluding individuals from online chats or other communication assuming the identity of the victim online and representing them in a negative manner or manner that may damage their relationship with others repeatedly, and for no strategic reason, attacking players in online gaming. Like other forms of bullying such as verbal abuse, social exclusion and physical aggression, cyberbullying has the potential to result in the target of bullying developing social, psychological and educational issues.



While cyberbullying is similar to real life bullying it also differs in the following ways: it can be difficult to escape and invasive—it can occur 24/7 and a person can be targeted while at home it can involve harmful material being widely and rapidly disseminated to a large audience, for example, ru-mours and images can be posted on public forums or sent to many people at once it can provide the bully with a sense of relative anonymity and distance from the victim, so there is a lack of immediate feedback or consequences Some helpful tips for parents in managing cyberbullying include: Don’t respond to any further messages/postings from the bully and, if possible, block further correspond-ence from them (block their mobile number or email address). Keep evidence of any bullying to assist with tracking down the bully and potentially reporting the matter to police (screen captures, bully’s screen name, text and images). Report any concerns to the administrator of the service used, including the mobile phone provider (if SMS is involved), website administrator (if social networking or chat services are involved), or internet service pro-vider, as most have measures to assist with tracking and blocking the bully. Some block the bully’s access to their services entirely as bullying is often a breach of website terms of use. If the student is distressed by the bullying, ensure they are provided with options for psychological support in-cluding school counselling and the Kids Helpline (phone 1800 551 800). Ensure they have appropriate and sup-portive contact people at schools and help them to develop strategies to manage their distress Another helpful site for parents to assist their children who are victims of cyberbullying is www.bullyingnoway.com.au Looking forward to another exciting term of successful learning and responsible living at Morisset High School. Yours Sincerely, Mrs Karen Nicol - Principal



WELFARE REPORT

Morisset High School is moving in a positive direction with the assistance of Southlakes Youth Centre @ Bon-nells Bay providing services and support for our students. Recently SYC provided the funds for all students in yr 7-12 to participate in a motivational media presentation with the message “what about me”. The messages conveyed in the presentation were around overcoming adversity and being resilient. All students enjoyed the presentations with positive comments and remarks afterwards. Southlakes youth centre @ Bonnells Bay will also be organising a healthy eating program, youth mental health workshops which are from 12.30 -3.30 each Friday throughout August, as well as a Legal Aid presentation called BURN which is a fantastic opportunity for young people and their parents to attend and find out more information about the legal system and the impact this can have on young people and the peer group situations they can find themselves in. All sessions will be held at: Bonnells Bay Youth & Community Centre (BBYCC) 275 Fishery Point Rd Bonnells Bay Phone BBYCC for bookings – 4973 5125 Regards Keith Leyshon Head Teacher Welfare



VISUAL ART

PET PORTRAIT EXHIBITION

Our annual “Me and My Pet” portrait exhibition was held on Wednesday 8th June. Again it was a very successful event, with many parents and family members eager to see the students of nearly two terms work. This exhibition is the culmination of all aspects of the year seven curriculum - from the learning, creativity and curation of their individual works. This year the photography students also exhibited works and helped in the ‘hanging’ and presentation of the final exhibition. We, the Visual Art Department, would like to expressly thank the following local businesses for their on-going support. Without these generous people we would not have been able to ‘mount’ such a large exhi-bition or give so many student prizes and awards for their endeavours. Eraring Power Station - Eraring.

Breakaway Cycles - 65 Dora Street, Morisset.

Eeva’s Clothing Alterations and Repairs - 1/71 Dora Street, Morisset.

Muffet’s Hair Salon - 62 Dora Street, Morisset.

Mary and the Gal’s - Morisset High School Canteen.

Catalina Pets - 63 Dora Street, Morisset.

Thank You - Visual Art Department, Morisset High School.

Rock Eisteddfod

‘The Red Curtain Trilogy’

From behind the red curtain we’d like to extend a warm welcome back from holidays. With our perfor-mance date Thursday 8th of September soon approaching; It is time to put the final touches on our fantas-tic production. In order to do this we will be commencing after school rehearsal sessions starting Tues 26TH July up until our performance date in Sydney. After school rehearsal sessions will run from 3:05pm-4:30pm in the school hall, continuing straight on from sport. Light refreshments will be available to purchase. We encourage parents, caregivers and community members to attend after school rehearsals as your support and expertise are always appreciated during these final weeks. Students received a note detailing costume requirements and the help needed to finalise set and prop construction. A huge congratulations to our amazing performers who work their hardest every Tuesday during sport, we would also like to congratulate our newly announced leads: Louise Dash, Caitlin Browne, Ashlee Lane, Shantelle Bendeich, Zoe Stemp, Paige Anton, Olivia Cook, Bonnie Mason and Naomi Pope, and extend our congratulations to our support leads: Ashlee Maggs, Tayla Branz and Alana Bru. Looking forward to an exciting performance in Sydney! The Rocky Team.



PET ART

Ben Jacobson - ‘Best in Year’ Award Jacob Lorenzo - ‘Principals Award’

Samara McCarthy ‘Class’ Award Mani Cartwright - ‘Best in 7-5’



Would You Like To Make a Booking at Table Eleven Café?

Would you like a scrumptious lunch prepared and served by Year 11 and 12 Hospitality students? Table Eleven café operates on a Friday of week 2 in the timetable cycle. Parents and carers are invited to make a booking at Table Eleven Café to experience the culinary delights and to see the great work that these aspiring Hospitality students complete as part of their studies. Hospitality students are undertaking a Certificate II in Hospitality – Food and Beverage and are learning how to operate a café. Students prepare, cook and present the food for the café or they prepare the dining room, take orders, make espresso coffees and other non-alcoholic beverages and serve these to their customers. If you would like to make a booking at the café please contact: Mr Post at Morisset High School on 49731999. Customers with bookings will need to arrive at school before 1.30 p.m. on Friday (Week 2 of the timetable cy-cle) so that they can sign in at the front office and pick up their Visitor pass. This will need to be completed by 1.30 p.m. as the café only operates between 1.35 p.m. and 2.05 p.m. Bookings are now being taken for the following dates:

Friday 12th August Friday 26th August Friday 9th September

Right is a sample menu for you to peruse. Mr Post Hospitality Teacher

Table 11 Menu MAIN COURSE

Minestrone Soup (large bowl) served with Herb Bread $6.50 Vegetable Curry with Jasmine Rice $7.50 Chicken, Cheese and Julienne of Vegetables in Puff Pastry with Grain Mus-tard Cream Sauce & served with Salad & Chips $9.50

Battered Fish and Chips with Tartare Sauce, Chips & Salad $9.00

SWEET THINGS

Choc-Chip Cookie Stack with Vanilla Ice-cream $2.50 Chocolate, Coffee and Caramel Slice $2.50

(Take-away only. Please place your order when ordering main course so that we can have it ready to take-away)

BEVERAGE

Milkshakes (chocolate or caramel) $2.50 Pot of tea $2.00 Lemonade, Lemon & Lime Solo, Coke or Diet Coke $2.00 Hot Chocolate $2.00 Espresso Coffee (cappuccino, flat white, caffe latte, long black) Cup $2.00 Mug $2.50



Year 7 Technology Mandatory (food) Teachers: Mrs Kerr, Mr Post, Mr Grace Year 7 have had another great term cooking with different herbs each week. Students made minted rocky road slice and thoroughly enjoyed it. Part of their marking criteria for this practical lesson was to present their slice gift wrapped, with a label complete with ingredients. Another enjoyable lesson was Spaghetti Bolognaise. Stu-dents really displayed confidence in the kitchen and are budding master chefs. Keep up the good work Year 7.

Some of the recycled containers designed and presented by students in order to grow their chosen herb.



Year 10 Food Technology Teachers: Mrs Bryde and Mrs Kerr Students have worked hard last term studying and understanding concepts of food equity. Throughout this unit several recipes containing staple foods where prepared and discussed. From this students gained an understand-ing of issues related to food equity/inequity around the world. Students researched countries and regions from around the world who may suffer from inequity and discovered the AID agencies that are assisting in these re-gions. Students presented their findings of AID agencies in an assessment task.

Year 9 Child Studies Teacher: Mrs Kerr Students have just completed an assessment task defining illnesses and diseases that impact on a women ex-pecting a baby and that of the unborn child. The students have been engaging in quality research to enhance their understanding and knowledge of the needs of pre-pregnancy and then pregnancy . This knowledge and understanding will be delivered through a poster design and then presented to the class. Students completed this task in groups. Group work can help with students confidence, self esteem and a sense of belonging.



CAREERS What’s happening? OH&S White Card Another OH&S White card has been organised on Thursday 4th August. Cost $70 (subsidised from School to Work funds). This course is essential for work experience in any of the trade areas and a worthwhile qualifica-tion to have for resumes. Numbers are limited to 20 so see me ASAP for information & permission slips or check the calendar on the school webpage. You must be 14 years old to do the course

YEAR 12

Students wishing to go to university/Uni Talk

UAC Guides have arrived for those students wishing to apply for University next year. These guides can be collected from me. I will be holding a University information talk after Yr 12 Trials.

At this talk I will explain the Uni application process, EAS, Equity Scholarships, alternate entry pro-grams, STAT tests, deferment etc + answer any of your concerns where possible. If I don’t know the answer to your question I will find out from the relevant Uni for you, so have your questions ready. Some important handouts will also be distributed at the talk. More detail late via you emails. YEARS 10 & 11 - TVET Applications Students who wish to do a TAFE course as part of their senior study program, you must see me ASAP for ap-plication forms and to check courses/TAFE requirements. For more details you can check the school webpage under ‘Careers’ è TAFE/TVET drop down box on the left hand side. or log onto www.hunter.tafensw.edu.au è TVET Courses è Courses If you have been doing a TAFE course this year and you wish to continue in this course you MUST also submit an application. See me for more details YEAR 10 – School Based Traineeships/Apprenticeships (SBATs) There is an SBAT Information Evening for student/parents/caregivers on Tuesday 2nd August at Club Mac-quarie. For more details and to book a session time suitable to you visit www.careerlinks.nsw.edu.au. Career Expo (see photos) It was good to see so many Year 10 and Year 12 students attend the Careers Expo on 28th June at Avondale. I am sure they received excellent information, employer contact details and handouts from the many Universi-ties, TAFEs, private training institutions, group training companies and employers represented on the day. I was proud of the students who attended; they proved to be excellent ambassadors of Morisset High. See the photos in this Morissetian. Parents wanting information about any of the above or if you wish to discuss your child’s career and/or study options, please contact me on 4973 4958 for information or an interview. Ruth Burton Career Adviser



WORK EXPERIENCE

Maddie Black - Rathmines Veterinary Hospital

Tara McIntosh - Outdoor Education Experience



ENGLISH / DRAMA FACULTY REPORT There have been some exciting activities happening in our Faculty in recent months. As a faculty, we have been working hard this year on differentiating the curriculum to better meet the needs of our more able students in the top classes. We hope that this will strengthen the foundation of English skills and concepts in the junior years so that our students can engage more proficiently with the demanding Stage 6 Advanced course. To this end, we have introduced some more stimulating units to challenge and promote higher order thinking in the Quality Teaching framework. These have included a more demanding poetry unit in 7GATS, an 8GATS speech assessment based on the intertextuality between Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream and the novel A King’s Shadow. 9E1 are examining war poetry, with a close analysis of Seigfried Sassoon from the World War 1 period, contrasting this with more recent representations of war. A critical evaluation of the classic novel To Kill a Mockingbird as part of an Area of Study unit on the concept of journey was undertaken by 10E1. A number of students in our Year 10 Drama class produced some excellent set and costume designs in their recent Elements of Production portfolio. So far, our teachers are very pleased with the engagement and improved responses of many of the students. Debating is a wonderful higher order skill, which promotes analytical thinking, teamwork, public speaking as well as the quick thinking needed in refutation. Our two debating teams have been working closely, with practice debates and mentoring. The Stage 5 team, coached by Mrs Berzins, Andrew Pratt, Louise Dash, Maddi Cormick and Caitlin Browne have won two debates and lost one in the first round, and we await the results to see if we have progressed to the next round. The Stage 4 team, coached by Ms Harding, Clare Molloy, Paige Anton, Rhiannon Hallett andAmber Bennett,is about to begin the first round of debates. We wish them good luck! As well, there have some recent excursions to extend the students’ experience of the theatre and live performance. Students in the 11 Advanced and 11 Drama class attended a wonderful production of Chekhov’s The Seagull at the Belvoir Theatre in Surrey Hills. Mrs Peita Berzins (English/ Drama Head Teacher and Year 10 Case Manager)



NAIDOC CELEBRATIONS TEACHERS v STUDENTS

careers expo 2011€¦ · august 2011 - edition no 5 successful learning - responsible living page...

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