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Principal’s Message

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Special points of

interest:

Musical

Relay for Life

P & C News

Student Disability

Notification

Bear Cottage

Concert Band

Photo of the

Month

Student

Attendance

Volume 8 3 June 2016

Telephone: 96344199 Facsimile: 9899 6527 Email: castlehill-h.school@det.nsw.edu.au Website: www.castlehill-h.schools.nsw.edu.au

“All Shook Up” – a great time, a great success

On a cold, rainy night, on the evening of the first State of Origin football match, Castle Hill High School’s 2016 musical “All Shook Up” opened to a

rapturous audience, filled with anticipation that the annual musical- fest would live up to all expectations . And it did just that. What a wonderful show it was.

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New program in Year 7 Maths I’m very excited about the possibilities of a new Maths program for all students in Year 7, known as Pathways, commenced at the beginning of this term. Using Bring Your Own Devices, year 7 students do their Mathematics on-line in order to start and continue “from where they are at”. This program individualises learning, allowing students to move at their own pace with regular feedback on their progress. In fact, students cannot move forward until they have mastered certain steps. This gives every student the opportunity for success, at their own pace. So far, teachers and students are really loving it. With an enormous amount of work from our Maths teachers and the Pathways coordinator, Mr Peter Minne, I am very grateful that our students have the opportunity to learn differently and learn well and that these dedicated professionals are working hard to realise this. I look forward to more evaluation of this new program and anticipate any feedback from parents as to its impact on year 7. Sport, sport and more sport It’s that time of year. We have so many teams competing across the state such as girls AFL, boys AFL, soccer, basketball, netball, touch football. Again, this cannot occur without the goodwill and energy of our staff and the many parents who assist. Thank you all.

With 24 songs in the score from Elvis Presley classics like “Heartbreak Hotel”, “Love Me Tender”, and “Can’t Help Falling In Love”, this was sure to be a foot-tapping, dancing in the aisles blast from the past as well as a reminder of the Shakespeare play “Twelfth Night” whose plot is roughly appropriated for the “All Shook Up” stage hit. Over 120 students and staff were involved in some aspect of this production – either on stage, behind stage, off stage or in the orchestra – designing, singing, dancing, playing and assisting to bring this show to our community. On display was a rich array of talent from the principals, chorus and featured dancers as well as students and teachers accompanying the show with their music, building or technical skills. It takes time, teamwork and commitment to bring a large show to the stage – and this was evident, in spades. There are many people who need to be acknowledged, as the team is so vast. But in particular, I want to pay tribute to the co-directors, Ms Josephine Spinks and Ms Naomi Acheampong-Muller, the musical director, Ms Amy Danckert, the choreographer, Ms Kate Bandiera, the stage manager, Ms Natalie Olivera and the producer Ms Lindy Jones. All are exceptionally giving of their time and expertise to ensure that students have the opportunity to showcase their talents, have fun and gain some challenge from putting on a great show. I hope you enjoyed it as much as I did. Vicki Brewer

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Volume 8 3 June 2016

Follow your P&C

on Facebook

https://

www.facebook.com/CHHSPC

“Like” us now and stay up-to-date

with all things CHHS P&C including:-

Fundraising events

Canteen

Uniform Shop

Local community issues

Next P & C Meeting: Third Wednesday of the month,

7:30pm Common Room, Block A

15 June 2016 Come join us, we’re very friendly!!!

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Castle Hill High School P & C News Stand ...where Parents and Community

stay informed

Castle Hill High School has always prided itself for its involvement in the Cancer Council's Relay for Life and the weekend of 21 and 22 May was no exception. This year the school team consisted of over 75 student walkers. There were also many students and their families participating in other community teams.

The Friday afternoon setup went well at Castle Hill Showground, my son and his friends got a life lesson in pitching our 16ft tent for them to sleep in, and they did well to get it up before dark!!

The opening ceremony started at 10.am and the Survivors and Carer's lead off for the first lap. The day is a buzz of activity on and off the stage. School concert bands performed, Tanya's Strictly Dance Troupe entertained and The Breakaways had us tapping away to 80's covers. The Corporate Games event was hilarious, it was called 'A Change of Brief' and the contestants had to pull extremely oversized undies on and off in a team, you can imagine everyone getting a fit of the giggles. Well done the winning CHHS team Shaalv, (Captain Underpants) won a plaque for their efforts. There was also a new world record broken, the most amount of people doing the Nutbush for 5 minutes, which will be entered into The Guinness Book of Records - Team Gainey you rock!!. These are just a few of the activities that go on all day and into the evening, there was even a silent disco where you put headphones on and dance away! At 6.00pm there was the very touching Ceremo-ny of Hope and a minute’s silence, followed by a candle light lap in remembrance of loved ones.

Heads were shaved and the community came together as one. The dress ups were out in force, a big line up of Star Wars, Cinderella, Shrek and Mario Kart. All walked many a lap of support and some walked all night and were hard to see as the fog and smoke rolled in. It was a very chilly night. Sunday morning concludes with the final lap and a closing ceremony at 10.00am.

The P&C along with Ms. Boss and Mr. Gainey managed the school's registration, marquee and storage tent and helped the students record their laps and provided encouragement and snacks for the 24-hour period. A special thanks goes to Jo from the canteen who organized water and lollies for the kids, to boost their energy levels throughout the walk, for which they were very grateful. Another big thank you goes to Mr. Gainey who has the patience of a saint. Mr. Gainey is there for the 24hr duration offering his support and doing what he loves - taking photos of all the activities. He was such a good sport, even joining me in the Nutbush challenge. After a nap at some ungodly hour he started packing up and offering the left-over food to the walkers (and he did well to get rid of the very last pink lamington!!) Speaking of food, thank you so much to the fabulous volunteers who helped man the tent with me, you were great company and I appreciate you giving up your time on a busy Saturday. The food that was donated was fantastic, homemade sausage rolls, cakes, muffins, beautiful fruit cut up and chicken rolls. It was just amazing and very much appreciated.

Castle Hill High 2016 Relay for Life Report

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Volume 8 3 June 2016

Thank you to the staff that popped in throughout the day, Mrs. Brewer, Mr. Tudman, Mr. Hovelmann and his lovely dog for the dog hour. We had to drag Mr. Warren away from The Pennant Hills High School tent as we felt we still owned him until Monday. Thank you for coming down especially after Mr. Warrens farewell dinner the night before, a huge effort from you all. The kids think really appreciate seeing staff at events like this. I really appreciate the parent volunteers support, and to the parents who stayed well into the night, thank you I can't do it without you. Finally, a big thank you to Anne-Maree Kinley for her continued help and support with Relay for Life, she is a terrific mentor.

I also would like to thank Barbeques Galore in Castle Hill, they partly donated an enormous BBQ to us and I was blown away with their offer. I went in asking for a deal on a small portable BBQ that fits in a boot and came away with the 'Footy Master' in which we need a crane it's so big, then to top it off the Blue Army, who go around volunteering their help throughout the day, kindly assembled and seasoned as one of the boys worked at Barbeques Galore. Bush's Meats in the towers donated 120 sausages, Smiling Bakery in the Castle Mall donated 100 rolls and Castle Trophies have also kindly donated our winning house lap trophy with engraving and an appreciation plaque, the generosity was amazing.

Everyone who participated in Relay should be very proud of yourselves, you have contributed $4000 in registrations, $355 from staff and student donations at school and $15 from the donation box on the Relay table - a fabulous effort all round. As previous years the lap scoring was hectic, competitive but fun. Congratulations Year 11 you walked the most laps. A huge congratulation to Tim Deng in Year 12, walking a staggering 150 laps. Also thank you Tim for your help early Saturday morning in unloading my car. Year 11 -1393 laps Liam Creagh - 95 laps Year 12- 994 laps Tim Deng - 150 laps Year 10- 268 laps Renee Telsch - 30 laps Year 7- 220 laps Hannah Longton - 80 laps Year 9- 92 laps Emily Clark & Georgia Garnett -22 laps Year 8- 83 laps Natalie Conyngham - 30 laps The Sports House with the most points is Caernarvon

Caernarvon - 928 points Durham - 775 points Edinburgh - 695 points Windsor - 638 points

Well that's Relay for 2016 well done Castle Hill High, let’s see if we can aim higher next year. Thanks again Tracey Garnett P&C Relay For Life Coordinator

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Second Hand Uniforms Uniforms in good condition are always welcomed as donations to the Uniform Shop. They can be left at the School Reception if the shop is closed. Also, second hand uniforms in good condition can make an economical alternative to purchasing a new uniform item. Don’t Forget Your Jacket!

Terms 2 and 3 are the Winter Uniform times. Jumpers in Polywool or Polycotton are available in all sizes. A reminder that as the days get colder, the winter jackets are available in the Uniform Shop. The jackets have a zip closure and zip pockets, are fleece lined and shower-proof. The jackets are available in Slim fit in even sizes from size 2 to 16 and Regular fit in sizes from XXXS to XXL.

Uniform Shop News

Opening Hours

Weeks 2-10 Monday and Friday 8.15-11.30am

CANTEEN UPDATE

As everyone probably already knows, the Castle Hill High School canteen utilizes the online ordering system Flexischools. The system is incredibly useful but even the best of services can sometimes suffer a glitch. (It can happen to the best of us) Thank you to the ‘eagle eyed’ parents who alerted us to a problem. The canteen contacted Flexischools and they were only too happy to correct the issue, immediately reimburse the families concerned and apologised for their mistake. Now that’s service! Speaking of ordered lunches, please take the time to remind your children that they do in fact have an order and that they need to collect it from the canteen at lunchtime. Students should line up in front of the appropriate year sign. This ensures a quick and efficient distribution of lunches. There is no need for any student to go hungry during the school day. Please reassure your children that the canteen is only too happy to provide lunches (with parental approval, of course) if they leave their lunch or lunch money at home. Students should go to the school reception, explain the situation and they will be given an approval note. If preferred, parents can contact the canteen directly on 96341188. Payment can be made the following day. Joanna Sutherland Canteen Manager

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Volume 8 3 June 2016

Nationally Consistent Collection of Data on School Students with Disability Notification for Parents and Carers

All Government and non-Government schools across Australia are required to participate annually in the Nationally Consistent Collection of Data on School Students with Disability (NCCD). All Australian schools will collect data on their students who are receiving adjustments to meet additional learning and support needs in accordance with their obligations under the Disability Discrimination Act 1992 and Disability Standards for Education 2005. This data will be provided to the Australian Government to assist in the development of a consistent, national picture of the education needs of students with disability. The data provided to the Australian Government by the NSW Department of Education and Communities is provided in such a way that it cannot be used to identify any individual student or school. General information about the national data collection can be found on the Australian Government Department of Education and Training website at http://education.gov.au/fact-sheets-nationally-consistent-collection-data-school-students-disability. Privacy Protection The NSW Department of Education and Communities follows the requirements of the Privacy and Personal Information Protection Act 1998 and the Health Records and Information Privacy Act 2002. Schools will collect, record, store and use data about individual students in line with these requirements. Data security and protection is a priority and students’ personal details will be kept confidential. Under Clause 52 of the Commonwealth Australian Education Regulation 2013, data collected by the NSW Department of Education and Communities for the NCCD must be provided to the Australian Government Department of Education and Training. This includes the number of students at each level of education, the number in each category of disability and the number at each level of adjustment. The information is provided to the Commonwealth as a series of number sets that cannot be used to identify any individual student or school. The Australian Government Department of Education and Training follows the requirements of the Commonwealth Privacy Act 1988 when handling any data provided by NSW Department of Education and Communities in connection with the national data collection. A privacy notice has been developed to by the Australian Government to provide students, parents and carers with important privacy information in relation to the data collection. This notice is available on the department’s website at http://education.gov.au/notices If you have any questions about the data collection please do not hesitate to contact the

school.

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On Saturday 21 May the Castle Hill High School Concert Band combined with Crestwood High School to perform at ‘Relay for Life’. We played a range of many different songs including ‘Take On Me’, ‘Firework’, ‘Don’t Stop Believing’, ‘Game of Thrones’ and more. The crowd bopped to the beat and sang to

the lyrics as the band belted out their

parts. We also enjoyed collaborating with

Crestwood High School even Sophie

Foster Year 9 thought it was a bit nerve

racking as we had never played the songs together before. The band was honoured to perform at such an extraordinary event that supports such a worthy cause. The band rehearses every Wednesday afternoon from 3:15-5:00pm in the drama room. If you are interested, come along and join us! Be there or be square!

Concert Band

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Volume 8 3 June 2016

Bear Cottage Fund Raising Project

A huge thank you to the entire Castle Hill High School community for your support of this project. We raised $8000.00 to donate to Bear Cottage. They will purchase an Interactive Television which can be moved around the beds of the unwell children. It will provide much needed fun and stimulation for them and their families. It has been a massive effort by students, parents and staff to raise this much money

A special thank you to the Year 12 Boys’ Mentoring Group and their parents who helped to get us over the line. Bear Cottage staff are overwhelmed and very grateful for your generosity. Once again Thank You and Well Done Castle Hill High School. Ms D Boss Head Teacher Welfare

An example of an Interactive Television

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ATTENTION PARENTS/CAREGIVERS

Student Attendance Reasons Given for Absences

Castle Hill High School notifies parent/caregivers by SMS of all whole day absences and late arrivals. Parents/caregivers who respond to the SMS by supplying a valid explanation are not required to send in a note as the SMS explanation is saved to the attendance record for that date.

A detailed explanation for all absences from school is required. This also applies to late arrivals and early leavers.

The following examples:

At home studying for exams and/or assessments At home Permission to be absent/to stay at home Family reasons and/or commitments, appointment – A specific reason or type of appointment

needs to be given With me (Parent/Caregiver) That you are aware of your child’s absence

Missed Bus

Slept in

are not valid reasons for absence or late arrival and consequently will be recorded as

“Unjustified Leave”

LATES

Students are expected to arrive at school by 8:30 so they are ready to move to class when the first bell rings at 8:45. The growing traffic congestion around Castle Hill due to road works and other construction is not a valid reason for lateness.

LATE BUS If your child’s bus is late, when they arrive at school, they are required to go to the Timetable Room to sign into school.

EARLY LEAVER

Students are not permitted to leave school early without a parental permission note, which is taken to Room 1 prior to the start of the day, to receive a pass to be permitted to leave class. The student MUST go to Room 1 at the time of departure to be signed out of the school.

Mrs Diana King

Relieving Deputy Principal

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Volume 8 3 June 2016

RELAY FOR LIFE Over 100 Castle Hill High School students took part in the Hills Relay for Life on May 21 at the Castle Hill Showground. Some highlights ……. We raised a fantastic $4000 for the Cancer Council. Most laps: TIM DENG (Year 12) 150 laps (60km) Winning team (most laps): CAERNARVON Winners of the Corporate Games award: Abishalv, Jordon, Kurt, Rebekah and Rhea. World record for the most people doing the Nutbush City Limits for 5 minutes and 45 seconds ! Castle Hill / Crestwood show band – brilliant ! Best dog lap walkers: Mr Hovelmann, Miss Franchi, Tom and Cap-tain. Best P&C supporter: Mrs Garnett (all nighter) 15 years of relays award: Mr G. I was very proud to be involved in this event. We have some fantastic kids who will go out of their way to help for a good cause ! I look forward to next year.

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Photograph of the Month May

The award for Photograph of the Month for May goes to Alannah Clarkin for her beautiful pho-

tograph of a cherished family pet. This green eyed feline stares directly at the viewer challeng-

ing the on looker’s gaze while partly hidden behind a grey blanket. What is this creature think-

ing? The colours and textures of this close-up image create an attractive environment for the

mesmerizing gaze of the cat’s eye.

Alannah Clarkin

Year 9

“Green Eyes”

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Volume 8 3 June 2016

Calendar Term 2

Week 7 Monday 6 June Year 12 Chemistry, CAFS and Society & Culture Assessments Musical Bump Out Synergy Dance Festival Dress Rehearsal

15’s Boys Soccer 12noon

Tuesday 7 June Year 10 Information & Software Technology Assessment

Wednesday 8 June Year 12 Chemistry, CAFS and Engineering Studies Assessment Year 10 Information & Software Technology and Textiles Technology

Assessments Waste Free Lunch Day Year 8 Geography Excursion – Blue Mountains Assembly Years 7-12 Giants Cup AFL Finals Uni of Notre Dame Lunchtime Info Session Open Girls Netball 3pm

Thursday 9 June Year 12 Japanese Continuers and Legal Studies Assessments Year 11 English Advanced and Engineering Studies Assessments Year 10 Commerce and Information & Software Technology Assessments Year 7 Scripture Seminar Synergy Dance Festival Rehearsal Soccer Game 1.30pm

Friday 10 June Year 12 Ancient History Assessment Year 11 Business Studies Assessment Years 11 and 12 Drama Excursion Year 7 Taronga Zoo Excursion Macleay College Lunchtime Info Session

Week 8 Monday 13 June Public Holiday Tuesday 14 June Year 10 Subject Information Week ICAS Writing Week Year 12 Physics, Japanese Beginners & Extension, Music 1, Assessments Year 11 French Beginners, English ESL Assessments Wednesday 15 June Year 12 Japanese Extension, Design & Technology, Drama Assessments Year 11 French Beginners Assessment ICAS Spelling Regional Cross Country Synergy Dance Festival Matinee Performance Penrith Assembly Years 7-10 Year 11 Parent Teacher Night 4pm P & C Meeting 7.30pm Common Room

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WEEK 9 Monday 20 June Year 12 Information Processes Technology Assessment

Year 11 Senior Science, Dance, Mathematics Advanced and General Assessments Year 10 Music Assessment

Tuesday 21 June Hills Zone Athletics Carnival Year 12 Mathematics Extension 1 Year 11 Geography, Dance, English Extension 1 Assessments Year 10 Parent Teacher Night 4pm Wednesday 22 June Hills Zone Athletics Carnival Year 12 English Standard and ESL, Food Technology Assessments Year 11 Drama, Software Development & Design, Design & Technology Assessments Celebration Assembly Year 7-12 Castle Rock Battle of the Bands 10am Thursday 23 June Year 12 Software Development & Design, PDHPE Assessments Year 11 Drama and Physics Assessments Year 10 Scripture Seminar Year 10 into Year 11 Parent subject selection night 6pm Friday 24 June Year 12 Business Studies, Biology, Senior Science Assessment Year 11 Visual Arts and Hospitality Assessments Year 7 Vaccinations

Week 8 Thursday 16 June Year 12 French Beginners & Extension, Hospitality Assessments Year 11 Food Technology Assessment Western Sydney Careers Expo Year 9 Scripture Seminar Hills Cup Seniors Rugby League 3pm Synergy Dance Festival Evening Performance Penrith Mufti Day Friday 17 June Year 12 Maths 2, Maths General 1 & 2, Music 2, Visual Arts Assessments Year 11 Information Processes Technology, CAFS, Construction, French Beginners, Industrial Technology Assessments Year 10 Drama Assessment Year 10 Shootout Festival Years 9 and 10 Drama Theatre Excursion Saturday 18 June Year 12 Japanese Continuers Speaking Skills Practice 8.30am