Deputy Principal Matters by Claire Cartwright
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Term 4 Week 4 6 November 2020 Deputy Principal Matters by Claire Cartwright Year 12 exams and formal This week year 12 exams have continued. There is a dwindling number of students who still have examinations to complete next week with the final exam being Design and Technology next Wednesday. We are very proud of all our students who have strived to do their best this year. We know they are very much looking forward to their formal next Thursday evening at Curzon Hall. This event will be attended by students and many of their teachers. It will be an opportune time for all to celebrate student success. Year 7-10 final assessments Currently students are busy completing final assessment tasks for each subject. Many of these are in class tests (examinations). If your child is unsure about any aspect of a task, they should ask their classroom teacher for assistance. If your child is experiencing high levels of anxiety about these tasks, please contact the relevant year adviser for assistance. It is normal for students to experience some stress, please be aware that we just want each child to perform to their best and experience growth in the subject specific skills. Parents can find dates for assessments on the school calendar and formal notifications for tasks on the Parent Portal in the home- work section. If your child is experiencing cold or flu symptoms please keep them home, get them tested for Covid and email a negative result to the school office before returning to school. Please email the class teacher and ar- rangements can be made to make-up the assessment task without penalty. Year 7 Parent Survey In partnership with St Ives High School’s P&C, we are conducting our Year 7 Parent Survey to gather feedback about you and your child’s experiences transitioning to St Ives High School this year. The survey will launch on Tuesday 10 of November. The survey is designed to capture your input and insights gained over the past three terms relat- ing to important areas such as communications, school programmes and the experience of your child at our school to date. The School and/or P&C only will access and use the data gathered from this survey. The results will be used to inform our decision-making on issues affecting students, staff, parents and com- munity, as well as to improve and streamline the services we offer to current and future Year 7 students and families. The Year 7 Parent Survey is a valuable opportunity to have real input, so please take advantage of this to make suggestions and tell us what it is we are doing well and where we could improve. Year 7 parents are asked to please check their email inbox next Tuesday morning (10th November) for the 2020 Year 7 survey. The survey will be sent to the email address used for school correspondence and par- ents will receive one survey per student because many of the questions are specific to their child. Please check your junk mail if the survey invite is not in you Inbox by 8am. Any issues, parents can email [email protected] Building Update After a year of moves and renovations the final refurbishment of our old classroom blocks has been completed. This weekend all equipment will be moved from the demountable classrooms to our newly renovated A Block. It is antici- pated that classes will resume in A Block on Monday. As planned, the Assembly Hall will be handed over to builders at the conclusion of the Year 12 HSC exams. We thank the P&C for all their efforts in winning the community grant to revitalise the Hall. Unfortunately, there has been a delay in the construction of the Sports Hall. We look forward to its opening in 2021. 2020 Celebration and Presentation Day This week, the Education Department has further relaxed restrictions with regard to end of year ceremonies. Howev- er, we have chosen to continue with our plan for a virtual ceremony with some individual year groups engaging in various celebratory activities designed by their year adviser. A driving force behind this decision is that we will not Respect ~ Perseverance ~ Growth have any access to the Assembly Hall or any other space that would allow us to abide by social distancing re- strictions. Furthermore, our planning is well underway for a virtual ceremony and we are confident it will be a posi- tive experience for students and their families. Girls Day 2020 On November 27, St Ives High School is pleased to be offering our girls in years 8 to 10 the opportunity to partici- pate in a positive day of “selfies”. The program is designed to help encourage girls to build their self-esteem. Please see details, permission and payment information later in the newsletter. School Plan 2021-2024 Over the past few months, St Ives High School teachers have been spending professional learning time reflecting on the Department of Educations’ What Works Best document and brainstorming what we are doing well and how we can improve. From there, the school’s executive leadership team has been considering how these ideas fit with our school’s values and beliefs, including the school motto of Respect Perseverance Growth. All of these discus- sions will feed into the development of our 2021-2024 school plan. Ultimately, our goal is focused on providing a quality education for our students. We will continue to update you as we fine tune our plan. Best wishes Claire Cartwright Deputy Principal SCHOOL TERMS 2021 Wednesday, 28 January – School Development Day - Staff return to school Term 1 Thursday, 29 January – School Development Day 10 weeks Friday, 30 January – Years 7, 11 and 12 students return to school Monday, 1 February – Years 8, 9 and 10 students return to school Thursday, 1 April – last day Term 1 Monday, 19 April – School Development Day - Staff return to school Term 2 Tuesday, 20 April – Students return to school 10 weeks Monday, 9 June – Queen’s Birthday (Public holiday) Friday, 25 June – last day Term 2 Monday, 12 July – School Development Day – Staff return to school Term 3 Tuesday, 13 July – Students return to school 10 weeks Friday, 17 September – last day Term 3 Tuesday, 5 October – All students and staff return to school Term 4 Wednesday, 15 December – Last day of Term 4 for students 11 weeks Thursday, 16 December and Friday, 27 December – Staff days SCHOOL CANTEEN LICENCE Tenders are called for the licence of the St Ives High School canteen for the school year commencing on 25/01/2021 for a term of approximately 3 years and a 2 year extension option. Annual school enrolments will be approximately 1200. General enquiries and requests for a Tender Information Package should be referred to: Amanda Sibbald, School Administration Manager Telephone: 02 9144 1689 Tenders must be submitted in a sealed envelope marked “Confidential- School Canteen Tender” and sent to: Sean Champion – Head Teacher Administration St Ives High School Yarrabung Road St Ives 2075 Tenders close at 3.00pm on 19/11/2020 Due to COVID-19 and health advice, visits to the site will not be conducted. Photos of the facilities can be provided upon request. All applicants must make themselves familiar with clause 2 of the tender offer. Term 4 Week 4 Page 2 GIRLS FIRE & RESILIENCE PROGRAM Hannah from Year 12 had a wonderful day at YMCA Camp Yarramundi on the Girls Fire & Resilience Program. This program involved 4 agencies coming together to provide a Hands On Train- ing day for 33 teenage girls. The girls got to try all the basic skills in fire & emer- gency services and were led by some of our agency’s most dedicated leaders. Michelle Nunura Head Teacher Welfare YEAR 9 ENJOY PUTT PUTT GOLF AND THE DRIVING RANGE This term for grade sport we went to Golf Paradise in Ter- rey Hills for putt putt and a swing on the driving range. The Driving Range was a fun experience for all the stu- dents where we got to test the power and technique of our swings on the driving range with 7 irons. We each got 60 balls to try and hit the ball as far as we possibly can. Every second week we got to have a go at putt putt where in groups of 4 we each played a quick 18 hole putt putt match. In week 5 we will compete in the inaugural St Ives leg of the PGA tour, to crown the first ever St Ives golf champion. Evan W (Year 9) YEAR 8 FOOD DESIGN Year 8 Food design were getting into the spirit of the Hal- loween season this week making Monster Chicken Burg- ers! They tasted as good as they looked! Emily Brown TAS Teacher Term 4 Week 4 Page 3 UNIFORM SHOP NEWS: 6th NOVEMBER 2020 NEW SHOP HOURS Please note that from week 5, commencing Monday 9th November, the Uniform shop will have new opening hours as below: Monday 8.30 -11.30 Tuesday 8.30 -11.00 Thursday 10.30 -1.00 The Uniform shop will now be closed on Wednesdays. Orders made online can be collected during opening hours and purchases can be made in the shop by students ONLY during opening hours. Year 7- 2021 New Students For those who have a new starter in Year 7 2021 and already have a child at SIHS, you can now order online and your older child can collect the order. Please mention this when ordering. Any book pack and backpack orders will be ready for your Year 7 2021 child to collect on Orientation Day .