Grafton High School - PO Box 458 Grafton NSW 2460, Phone: (02) 6642 3355, Fax: (02) 66423184

Email: grafton-h.school@det.nsw.edu.au, Newsletter available on our website: www.grafton-h.schools.nsw.edu.au

Grafton High School

Achieving Excellence Since 1912 Principals Report

Firstly, I would like to welcome everyone back to school for what I am sure will be a busy and productive term. While I have only been in the role of Principal for a week it has been great to be in classrooms and seeing what our students are doing. I have made a commitment to visit classrooms on a daily basis and hope to make my way around every subject and faculty in the coming weeks.

I was extremely proud of the students and staff that represented Grafton High at the Anzac Day march. There were over 75 students from all Years which confirmed for me that our students still recognise the significance that this day represents in Australia. A special mention should go to our school captain, Josh Crispin, for the speech that he delivered on the day. Josh’s words struck a chord with many that were present and this was reflected in the positive comments within the community.

We are straight into NAPLAN during week 3 with students from Years 7 and 9 completing this testing which provides us with valuable information regarding the literacy and numeracy ability of your children. Recently there has been some publicity around the HSC minimum standards and how they relate to NAPLAN. Attached to this newsletter is some information which should help to clarify what it means to your child in Year 9. They will also receive a letter from the NSW Education Standards Board regarding this matter.

I am pleased to announce that Grafton High School was fortunate enough to receive significant funding to support the implementation of STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering & Mathematics) within the Clarence Valley schools. The Grafton Community of Schools Digital Literacy Project is supported by the Australian Government Department of Education and Training through the Digital Literacy School Grants program. $50000 has been allocated to provide training for teachers at primary and high schools in the area and to purchase resources to assist in the delivery of these subjects. Currently we are trialling STEM with two Year 7 classes that have so far designed a cargo carrying paper plane and a steam powered boat with a soft drink can as the boiler. Students will shortly be working on coding and robotics. We are looking forward to seeing where this initiative takes us over the coming months.

We will be holding a Parent Teacher Night for all Years in the MPC, Tuesday 9th May, 3.30-6pm. We encourage all parents to take up the opportunity to speak to their child’s teachers and especially our Year 12 students who will receive their mid-course reports shortly.

We currently have 11 students in Year 11 who are travelling to Coffs Harbour each Wednesday to participate in the Southern Cross University Headstart program. This program allows students to have a taste of what university is like. Those students who successfully complete their unit are guaranteed a place in a course related to their studies. Students are currently completing units in Biology and Communications.

5 May 2017

IN THIS ISSUE:

Principals Report

Upcoming Events

Useful Contacts:

Kids Helpline (1800 551 800)

Lifeline (13 11 14)

HEADSPACE (1800 650 890)

eheadspace.org.au

Attendance Regular attendance for every student is essential if students are to achieve their potential. While parents are legally responsible for their child’s attendance, schools are required to document and monitor student’s absences. If your child is away from school for a whole or part day, please inform the school by way of phone, email or a note. Thank you for your support. Please find a list of possible reasons for absence below.

Medical reason:

Flu Stomach-ache

Diarrhoea Cold Headache/Migraine Strong pain

Fever

Broken bone Vomiting Infectious illness eg chicken pox

Nose bleed Asthma Rash Injury

Medical appointment Dental appointment Optometry appointment

Physiotherapy appointment

Specialist appointment

Family reason:

Funeral Moving residence Arrival or departure of an

immediate relative from overseas

Unavoidable involvement in a serious family incident

Other reason:

Misadventure and unforeseen events

eg fire, flood Participation in special event,

eg attendance at a religious ceremony

Family holiday Transport difficulty

Just a reminder that we are unable to

give medication to a student without

the appropriate paperwork.

It’s not rocket science, but it kind of is... Monday lunchtimes a group of 15 aspiring young computer programmers from Years 7, 8 and 9 have been participating in Coding Club. It’s not rocket science, but it kind of is, thanks to the Cuberider Program that Grafton High has chosen to participate in for the second year running. Last year students who participated were among the first students in Australia to be able to say they have conducted an experiment in space. At this stage students have been learning the basics of the computer programming language Python. As we progress students will learn core science and mathematics, as well as workforce-critical problem solving skills. They will use their acquired knowledge to program a NASA approved device called the ASIMOV to run their space experiment. The ASIMOV has a variety of different sensors as well as a camera for students to manipulate and record data. Once students have designed, coded, tested and refined their experiment this year the final test will be conducted via a stratosphere balloon launch. After this test the last step is the exciting rocket launch of their experiment to the International Space Station.

Grafton High School is introducing

stymie

Stymie allows bystanders to send anonymous notifications to their school, about someone who they believe is being bullied.

The notification interface allows bystanders to upload evidence like screen shots of FB discussions, Snapchats, text messages or instant message conversations and an outline of the incident(s).

All students will attend information sessions on Tuesday 16th May.

PARENT INFORMATION SESSION

GRAFTON HIGH SCHOOL MPC

TUESDAY 16TH MAY 2017 5.30PM

Let’s set some boundaries.

Rachel Downie, Director of stymie.com.au will be presenting important information about your child’s use of technology?

Having trouble managing technology?

Want to know what they are really doing?

Rachel will give you tips on how to manage kids’ devices and which apps can potentially create problems in the lives of students and parents everywhere.

Parents who would like to attend this session please notify Mrs Nichols at the school on 66423355. See what other parents are saying www.facebook/stymieau

Schaeffer House

At the end of last term our Year 7 class went to Schaeffer House, one of the best places to find historical information about Grafton. There is an abundance of many different artefacts from beautiful dresses made of pure silk to flogging whips used to punished wrongdoers. Schaeffer House is over one hundred years old and is one of the oldest and most historical buildings in Grafton. It is also home to many documents which contain information about Grafton and possibly your family and friends. Our class thoroughly enjoyed our time at Schaeffer House and we were surprised about how much intriguing information the museum contained. We would like to thank the ladies who showed us around Schaeffer House and told us about the many historical objects inside and thanks to Miss Benkendorf for taking us.

By Noah Fahey and Mikey Luxton, 7 Select

School Ties

School ties are available for purchase at the front office for $20 each. Please see Pamela

Work Experience

I have been doing work placement at Reimer’s One Stop Auto and Tyre Shop every Tuesday since Term 1 as part of the Year 10 Skills for Work class. It is a great experience for me because I am walking in my father’s footsteps and following the same career path. I have gained many skills including learning how to deal with customers, the basics of fixing cars and how to succeed in the workplace. My favourite part of work placement is changing tyres, after a lot of practise I have become very good at it. I would recommend work experience to other students because it shows you how to get the job you want.

By Paul Evans

For information about the Year 10 Work Experience Program see Miss Benkendorf.

Upcoming Events

TERM 2

WEEK 02

MAY

5 UNE Open Day

WEEK 03

MAY

8 CHS Hockey

8 Year 9 Police Talks

9 Year 8 Police Talks

8-12 NAPLAN

11 Year 11 Vaccinations

11 AIME Program

11 Open Boys Tennis

12 Year 12 Vaccinations

WEEK 04

MAY

15 Mid North Coast Zone Cross Country

16 Stymie Parent Information Session

Community Notices

Student Exchange Australia New Zealand

Opportunity for students to experience another culture, make new

friends and improve their language studies at home

www.studentexchange.org.au

SCU STAR Early Entry

SCU STAR Early Entry enables Year 12 students to gain early admission to Southern Cross University on the basis of their school Principal's recommendation. STAR Early Entry matches an individual student to a particular Southern Cross University course based on their likelihood of success in their chosen discipline. Applications for current Year 12 students will open on 12 July 2017, for study in 2018. SCU Head-Start SCU Head-Start provides an opportunity for exceptional Year 11 and 12 students to complete a unit of university study while completing their senior study. On successful completion of the program, students gain direct entry and advanced standing into a variety of courses offered at Southern Cross University. More information on SCU Head-Start can be found at scu.edu.au/headstart. Registrations for Head-Start 2018 (for current Year 10 or Year 11 students) will be open from 1 May - 13 October, 2017. Southern Cross University Get Psyched at SCU Year 11 and 12 students interested in studying psychology are invited to attend an information day at Southern Cross University's Coffs Harbour campus. Students and teachers will have the opportunity to explore the field of psychology through a series of interactive workshops. Date: Wednesday 31 May, 2017 Time: 10am - 2pm Venue: Southern Cross University, Coffs Harbour campus For further information contact your Career Adviser or email Peter Marshall at peter.marshall@scu.edu.au Keep up to date with our events by following us at SCU Future Student Facebook page

"Forest Coach Lines has decided to allow the carriage of Musical Instruments and other large items in all buses. Please note the following rules: 1) We do not allow surfboards or boogie boards in our buses on school routes. Chartered sports buses or passenger services are an exception. 2) When carrying musical instruments (including guitars, violins etc) if the bus has luggage racks, and they can fit, please store them there. 3) If they do not fit/bus does not have luggage racks, they are to be placed in front of the child in their seat - it is entirely the child’s responsibility to ensure they do not impede or cause obstruction/hazard for other passengers in the bus. 4) They are NOT to be placed in aisle of bus. 5) If the item is seen in the aisle of the bus, the child will be informed to move the item into their seat 6) Skateboards/balls must be kept in their school bag or strapped to their school bag - not carried or stored loosely. This policy is effective as from Term 2 2017.” Many thanks.

RegardsNigel Tooth Regional Manager North

Forest Coach Lines Pty/Ltd

9 Hurley Drive

Coffs Harbour NSW 2450 P 0266 523201 or 0266 541063 E ntooth@forestcoachlines.com.au W www.forestcoachlines.com.au