Boorman StreetSunnybank QLD 4109Subscribe:Subscribe: https://sunnybankshs.schoolzineplus.com/subscribe

Email:Email: the.principal@sunnybanshs.eq.edu.auPhone:Phone: 07 3323 8111

Fax:Fax: 07 3323 8100

17 November 201717 November 2017

Principal’s ReportSunnybank State High School is a dynamic, future-focusedlearning community. On behalf of our school, I would like tothank our phenomenal staff, students families, agencies,volunteers and community members for joining together toempower our students to succeed. By uniting as a team, wehave achieved outstanding outcomes for our students andschool.

Outstanding School Satisfaction Rates

It is affirming to acknowledge the feedback from our learningcommunity about our school and endeavours in 2017.

We are exceptionally proud of the satisfaction rates from ourstaff, students and parents from the 2017 school opinionsurvey. The feedback from each stakeholder group has usexceeding the State average in each domain. Thank you. Weappreciate working together to make a difference for ourlearning community.

Exceptional Achievements

It has been a remarkable year for our school. Here are some ofthe most noteworthy highlights across our school’s results:

• Increased student enrolments by 15%

• Improved school-wide attendance rate (exceedingthe State)

• Outstanding success in the Senior Phase ofLearning: 100% QCE

• Increased academic achievement by the number ofstudents achieving A-C standards across the school

Farewell to the Graduating Class of 2017

It was a significant milestone for our Year 12 students thisweek, who completed their secondary school studies. Theyhave graduated Sunnybank State High school as fine rolemodels and leaders across the school, honouring andmodelling the school-wide expectations of respect,responsibility and readiness. We thank our Year 12 students fortheir service to our school community and wish them all the verybest for the future.

Sunnybank on Show

Our school was selected by the Department of Education totake part in a photoshoot, capturing school community life.These images will be published across Queensland in both printand digital platforms. Our school community were buzzing withpride and we look forward to seeing the publication and imagesin the near future.

Remembrance Day

On Saturday 11 November, our 2018 School Leaders, alongwith Year Co-ordinator, Miss Platt represented our school atthe Sunnybank RSL Remembrance Service. Our leaders wereoutstanding ambassadors of the school. They appreciated theopportunity to interact with many guests and pay respects tothe soldiers who have sacrificed for our freedom.

End of Year Dates for Year 7 – 11 Students

Students are expected to attend school routinely until the finaldate of the term:

2018 Enrolments

Enrolment interviews continue this term for 2018. Pleasecontact the main office to arrange an enrolment enquiryinterview as soon as possible if enrolment is relevant to yourfamily. If you know family or friends who are intending to enrolat Sunnybank SHS, please encourage them to contact us foran interview booking time.

2018 School Start Date

School resumes for ALL students, in every year level onMonday 22 January, commencing at 8.15 am. We look forwardto welcoming all of our returning and new students on thisdate. It is vital that students are ready to commence on the22nd in order to have a strong start to the year and access theinformation and learning required.

2017 has been an outstanding year for staff and students atSunnybank State High School. I would like thank our incredibleteaching, non-teaching staff and community and interagencypersonnel for their significant investment in our students andschool. I would also like to acknowledge our parents andguardians, who work together with us to support the successof every child.

As we approach the end of the term, on behalf of theSunnybank State High School community, I wish all of ourfamilies a safe, happy holiday and look forward to seeing you22 January 2018 for a wonderful year ahead.

Tracey Cook, Principal

STEMOn Sunday 12 November, our team of robotics students, Mia,Ruby, Tian, Prodipto, Sam and Johnaphin, attended a FirstLego League competition and came away with a trophy. Thestudents won the best robotic strategy which was anexceptional effort for their first attempt at competition. We arevery proud of them and look forward to many other fantasticoutcomes from them.

• Years 10 and 11: Friday 24 November

• Years 7 – 9: Friday 8 December

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Well done Robotics team and special thanks to Mr AdamChristie and Mr Dan Robins for accompanying the students.

Ms Aldridge, HOD Science

International Student Program

“Hello” Campaign

This week we are saying “Hello” from our Indian students whoare studying at Sunnybank State High School. India is theworld's largest democracy, with 1.2 billion people. India got itsindependence on 15 August 1947 when India was liberatedfrom the rule of the British. The tiger is the national animal ofIndia.

Farewell

We are saying farewell to fantastic students who we havegrown to cherish while they studied at Sunnybank SHS. Bestwishes to Tina, Daniel, Danny, Owen, Patricia, Ricky and Bella.‘Well done’ to Patricia who did a wonderful job as ourInternational Student Captain for 2017.

We are very proud of our International Students for comingto a new country, most speaking no English when they arriveand then achieve very high OPs in our International StudentProgram.

We wish them a wonderful future and hope they achieve all theiracademic dreams.

Mrs A. Moy, Ms G. Spratt, Mrs R. Moodley and Ms D.Venter

International Student Programme Presentation

We hosted our International Student Programme Presentationon Thursday 16 November in the Auditorium. Wishing our Year12 students all the best for a great future ahead.

Become an EQI Homestay Host

How do I become an EQI homestay host?

For more information, please contact: Dee Venter, 3323 8111,Sunnybank SHS International Student Coordinator, EducationQueensland International, Cricos Provider Number: 00608A

• How do you say “Hello” in Indian? “Namaste - Hindi”

• What is the country well known for? “The Taj Mahal,meaning Crown of the Palace, is an ivory-whitemarble mausoleum on the south bank of the YamunaRiver in the Indian city of Agra. It was commissionedin 1632 by the Mughal emperor, Shah Jahan (reigned1628–1658), to house the tomb of his favourite wife,Mumtaz Mahal.”

• What is a famous food of the country? “Curry dishes,especially Butter Chicken”

• Homestay hosts are selected from local communitiesand come from many different backgrounds andfamily settings.

• EQI homestays are managed by individualQueensland Government schools.

• After completing an EQI application form you will beinterviewed by your school’s Homestay Coordinator.

• To ensure student safety, each adult (aged 18 andover) in your household is screened via a policecheck and must obtain a ‘Blue Card’, Queensland’smonitoring system for people who work with children.

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Sunnybank SHS Library

2017 – A Retrospective

Sunnybank State High School’s Library continues to be a hubfor learning and connection with our students. The library ishost to large numbers of students from our 8.00 am openinguntil closing at 4.30 pm. During peak times, when assignmentsare due or exams are close, there can be nearly 200 studentsworking and collaborating in the various spaces.

Homework Club is a popular destination for students Tuesday,Wednesday and Thursday afternoons from 2.45 pm – 4.30 pm.On average more than 50 students attend Homework Clubeach day and numbers often exceed 100 students. They cometo work with Sunnybank SHS staff and volunteer tutors fromGriffith University, Volunteers Queensland, Islamic Women’sAssociation Queensland and some of our students’ families.Afternoon tea is generously supplied to students by teachers,ancillary staff, Chaplaincy, SecondBite, Foodbank, and studentvolunteers. Homework Club remains the place to be in theafternoons primarily through the efforts of Mr Gilroy Hatcher.

The Library collection is constantly evolving, responding tostudent needs, and the curriculum. Throughout the year, 350new titles have been added to the catalogue. Many of thesenew additions have been student requests. Borrowings ofresources have continued to increase, particularly since theLibrary renovations were completed in 2014, with an average of644 non-fiction titles and 312 fiction titles being borrowed everymonth in 2017.

During 2017, 2599 unique titles were borrowed by ourstudents. The most popular books this year have been Diaryof a Wimpy Kid (the whole series), Guinness World Records2017, Harry Potter (the series), Avengers: the Ultimate Guide,Guardians of the Galaxy: Prelude, The Boy in the StripedPyjamas, 100.

During the year, several ‘days of interest’ encouragedstudents to continue their reading for pleasure. Valentine’s Daybrought our serenaders. Students entertained library clientelewith a range of romantic songs.

In May, we celebrated Japanese Children’s Day. Studentsviewed artefacts, tried Japanese food and researchedinformation on the country.

Book Week was celebrated in August with many activitiesand challenges for students. On 6 September, we ran our first

Sunnybank Book Event to raise funds to support IndigenousLiteracy. A selection of books, removed from our collection,were available for staff, students and community members tochoose via a gold coin donation.

Halloween brought another week of activities for students toparticipate in. More than seventy black cats were found andbrought back to the library for a reward. Students were soenthusiastic about the week, borrowings of fiction books (141books borrowed) more than doubled from the previous week(59 books borrowed).

The Accelerated Reader program has been used in juniorEnglish classes to encourage students to read more widely.The program’s operation has been streamlined this year withstaff receiving vital training. October’s borrowings reflect theresultant enthusiasm of students for reading within this program(see charts below).

During the next year, as part of our regular review of thecollection, a major cull of non-fiction resources is planned tomake it easier for students to find the right book first time, everytime. Fiction resources will also be reviewed, with a new sectionadded for series books, so students can find the next book

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in their favourite series quickly and easily. Library software willbe upgraded to a system that is cloud-ready, and easier forstudents to use.

The Library wouldn’t be the dynamic space it is today withoutthe support of our staff: Mrs Barb Angus, Mrs Bronwyn Webband Mrs Vika Webb.

Ms Cobb, Teacher-Librarian

Sunnybank’s Got Talent QuestThanks to the participants from across Years 7 – 12 whoperformed a variety of items ranging from solo or groupnumbers in singing, dancing, playing the guitar and piano, orrapping.

Congratulations to all participants, especially the winningperformances: Runners Up – Luke (Yr 12) and Chudi (Yr 10),with the winning performance from Charles and Nina (Yr 10)and their fantastic pianist, Manu (Yr 9). Thanks to: the audiencefor attending and being so supportive, Shukri our compere, thestaff for attending the finals, and our judges – Mrs Cox, MrLloyd, Mrs Miller and Renee, our Youth Support Worker. Seeyou in 2018!

Ms Matthews, Creative Arts Teacher

Legal StudiesYear 11 Legal Studies have just finished studying EmploymentLaw. During their studies they had a guest speaker, RebeccaGirard, from the Australian Services Union. Rebecca spokeabout the importance of joining a union when working to ensurethat workers’ rights are protected.

She also helped the students with their assessment task, anddetailed cases that involved vulnerable workers in theworkplace. She explained how employers forgo employeerights and exploit their vulnerable working status. Studentsraised a lot of interesting questions and gained invaluableinformation from Rebecca.

Ms Downie, Legal Studies Teacher

Science NewsWe farewell our group of wonderful Year 12s knowing we willmiss them but excited for them as they embark on the nextphase of their lives. They have worked hard completing theirfinal exams and should have a great deal of pride in theirachievements. Well done Year 12 and we wish them everysuccess in the future.

Years 8 to 11 have exams over the next few weeks and shouldwill be actively reviewing their work every night.

Mr Hamilton’s Physics classMr Hamilton’s Physics class eexperience spectral tubes.xperience spectral tubes.

Ms Aldridge, HOD Science

Sunnytext and Library

Return of books

All textbooks must be returned to Sunnytext before studentsfinish school at the end of the year. The books need to becleaned, ready to be issued in 2018. Any books lost ordamaged, need to be paid for at the Finance Office.

All students in Years 10 and 11, please return Library books assoon as possible.

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Sunnytext opening hours for the beginning of2018

15 January to 2 February – 8.15 am to 2.45 pmClosed Friday 26 January, Australia Day Holiday

Uniform Shop

Opening hours for the beginning of 2018

15 to 19 January – 8.00 am to 2.30 pm22 January to 2 February – 8.00 am to 1.00 pmClosed Friday 26 January, Australia Day Holiday

Students must be present when purchasing schooluniforms. New clothing will only be exchanged if clothing ispresented in same bags in which it was given and it has notbeen washed. Goods must be returned in the same state theywere issued.

Second Hand Uniform DonationsPlease consider donating to the school office, your student’srecently outgrown uniform. Having a supply of second handuniforms available for emergency situations, helps out studentswho, from time to time, may require some item of the uniformfor a short term or daily loan. Items of uniform that are in our“clothing pool” are carefully washed and maintained by ourstudent services staff who discretely lend items for a day orlonger if needed. These items are then returned, washed andstored in readiness for the next student who might need toborrow for a short time.

Sunnybank Rugby Union

Multicultural Sports Club of QldBasketball and Volleyball Training Sessions. Phone 0477 470770 for more information.

Important Dates

Advance Notice of Important DatesAdvance Notice of Important Dates

November 24 Yr 10 & 11 Final day

Positive Rewards Trip

November 28 Immunisations HPV3

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Advance Notice of Important DatesAdvance Notice of Important Dates

P&C Meeting 6.00 pm Library

December 1 Stem Experience Day

December 8 Yr 7, 8 & 9 Final day

December 9 School holidays commence

January 22, 2018 Term one commences

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