31 January 2018

Newsletter Articles

Principals Report

Dear Parents,

Welcome to 2018! I hope that everyone in our schooling community was able to enjoy a restful break with family and friends over the holidays and have returned refreshed and ready for what is already promising to be an outstanding year at Coolum State High School.

From Day One this year I have been incredibly impressed with the way in which our students have not only embraced our uniform policy, but with the sense of pride and positivity they exude as they make their way through the school. Our students look simply magnificent in their full school uniforms, ready to learn in our new and improved campus. Our Smart Futures Centre has already become a hub of innovative teaching and dynamic learning, whilst the grounds in general look great. Our intent to be excellent is most certainly shining through with Coolum SHS looking like the terrific school we know it to be.

For all parents, our Meet the Teacher evening on 7th February from 5:30pm-7:00pm will provide a great chance to see our new building and meet our dedicated teachers. I look forward to meeting as many parents as possible during the evening as we showcase all the amazing opportunities Coolum State High School can provide for students. At the evening, important information on subjects and the operation of our school will be presented. I strongly encourage each and every parent to attend.

Not only will the Meet the Teacher evening give you an opportunity to see our campus for yourself, it should also provide some great information and starting points for important conversations with your child. The beginning of the school year is a very pertinent time for families to consider each student’s destination, whether it be Year 12s and post school employment, training or further education, or our new Year 7s and subjects they want to improve in or a team they may want to be selected for. Having a positive outlook and a suitably ambitious pathway gives students’ purpose and drive to achieve those goals. The following questions are a starting point for discussion:

• Why are they at school?
• What are they hoping to achieve?
• What steps do they need to reach their goals and ambitions?
• What did they succeed in during 2017?
• How can they improve on their last scholastic year?

As a parent, we can never underestimate the influence we have on our student’s choice in pathways, no matter how uncommunicative or non-committal a teenager may be. Helping them to structure a pathway with achievable steps to a final goal is essential in making the realisation of that ambition possible, instead of hopelessly unattainable. Ensuring that students’ feel supported and believe in themselves is also of the utmost importance. Coolum State High School students are absolutely bursting with potential and together we will help them realise those goals and ambitions. Already, the sense of optimism and possibility filtering through our classrooms reveals we are well on our way to doing just that.

Well done to all our students and staff on a fantastic start to 2018: keep up the great work!

Troy Ascott
Principal

Deputy Principal - Junior Secondary

Welcome to 2018

This year, I am the Deputy Principal working with Year 7 and Year 8 students. I would like to say a special welcome back to these students – nearly 450 students in total.

Year 7 and 8 students have had a very good start to the year. They have been excellent in presenting themselves in the correct and complete uniforms and have moved seamlessly into their new year-level areas for lunch breaks. The swimming carnival was also very successful – congratulations to all students and the HPE teachers for their organisation.

Year 7 students are required to sit, eat and then clean-up for the first 15 minutes of both lunch breaks prior to leaving the Year 7 area and going out to play. Year 8 students are required to do this for first break. The students have been great during this time and we have seen a great improvement in the care and cleanliness of their areas.

Day 8 enrolments – possible class or teacher changes

Every year, all schools’ allocations of staffing resources are finalised based on student enrolments from the eighth day of the school year (Day 8). Once this is complete, staffing resources for any school may decrease, increase, or stay the same.

As such, class compositions and teacher allocations to classes are considered temporary until this time. This is exactly the same process that you may be previously aware of in primary schools as well. Should any changes need to occur, we plan this to be completed by the end of week 4.

Junior Secondary students – belief to succeed

The persistent and consistent message I will be giving to Junior Secondary students this year is that they have to believe in themselves to be successful. Often, negative self-talk and self-doubt can derail a student’s belief to succeed – and can often be exaggerated in early adolescence.

Our message will be that success feels good – and deliberate effort is essential (sustained success can’t be fluked). It is also important to believe that it is ok to fail – the best thing about failure is what you learn to be successful next time.

Every single student must have a quality destination upon the completion of their schooling – tertiary education, skilled/qualified work (e.g. apprenticeship), or full-time employment. A sustained effort in literacy and numeracy and the belief to succeed are key ingredients for this.

Terry Proctor
Deputy Principal Junior Schooling

Deputy Principal - Senior Secondary

To the Coolum State High School community, I would like to take this opportunity to introduce myself and identify my key agendas for the 2018 school year for senior schooling.

Before starting my teaching career I completed an apprenticeship at a sugar mill outside Childers then worked as a tradesperson in the heavy engineering field working in many different locations and industries.

In 2007 I started my teaching career as an industrial technology teacher at Clontarf Beach State High School on the Redcliffe Peninsula, which was a massive learning curve from my previous career as a boilermaker. From there I moved to Sarina State High School, just outside Mackay, as Head of Department of the industrial technology department and managed their trade training centre. This positon led me to an opportunity to manage the trade training centre and Head of Department position at Moranbah State High School, 2 hours west of Mackay. After 12 months I became the Senior Schooling Deputy Principal, a position I held for three years before moving to Coolum State High School this year.

In the 3 years as Deputy Principal at Moranbah State High School I have managed to achieve 100% QCE attainment for the Year 12 cohorts, a target I intend to achieve here at Coolum High in 2018. During my whole teaching carer I have been committed to setting high expectations and in the last three years I have created strong partnerships within the community and developed strong pathways for senior students. I will endeavour to work tirelessly for the students of Coolum High, providing them meaningful pathways and career opportunities. I am extremely excited to be a part of the Coolum community and look forward to meeting all of the students, parents and wider school community over the coming weeks and months.

Lee Merrett
Deputy Principal Senior Schooling

Deputy Principal – Initiatives

Originally from the UK, I have lived in Australia for nearly 20 years and in and around Coolum for nearly ten. Whilst I have been a teacher since the age of 25, I have held a number of other positions outside of education, including, General Manager of Mindil Beach Markets in Darwin, Music Director of the Northern Territory and also as a sound recordist for major television productions in England. I have spent the last five years at Meridan State College where, in between stints as Acting Deputy Principal, I was the Head of Learning Enhancement and then Head of IT.

I am very much looking forward to working within my own community to improve the educational experiences and outcomes for students at Coolum State High School. Here at Coolum High, I am managing the delivery of a Guaranteed And Viable Curriculum and overseeing the new Academy Programs.

Tim Robinson
Deputy Principal of Initiatives

Business Services News

Welcome to 2018! Thank you to the families that have returned the Student Resource Scheme (SRS) form for 2018. If you have not received one please contact the school office immediately. The SRS funds go directly to classroom resources and helps us provide quality teaching and learning items for your child’s learning. Parent SRS participation is very important for your child and to the school, so we appreciate the ongoing support we have from the parent community for this scheme.

We don’t want your child to miss out, so don’t hesitate to discuss your financial options with me. And I remind you that BPOINT is now available for direct debits into the school bank account, call the office to find out how to set this up. It’s very easy to do and takes only a couple of minutes to set up. I encourage all families to take up this new option.

Before a student can be considered for participation in an optional school activity, a parent is expected to have:

• fully paid all outstanding fees or
• paid the Student Resource Scheme and other outstanding fees up to and including the term in which the school activity takes place or
• made regular on-going payments towards these fees, as previously arranged with the Principal or Business Manager
• been exempted by the Principal from paying all or part of these fees

We’ve been busy over the summer holidays with the maintenance of our grounds and facilities and it is great to receive your emails and positive comments. As the Principal has previously mentioned, we’ve also had the whole school externally painted and the amenities have been painted both internally & externally which has given the school a much needed face-lift.

A lot more will happen this year around our facilities and grounds improvements and I look forward to providing those details in due course.

Nolly Griffiths
Business Manager

P&C News

We would like to welcome everyone to the P&C meeting on Monday 19 February at 6:00pm in the school Administration building. This is a great opportunity to get involved with the school, share your ideas or just to find out what is planned for the year ahead. We look forward to seeing as many of you as possible.

P&C Executive

Dates for your Diary

Science

Welcome back to a new and fresh year, 2018. This year is going to be a very special one as we will be planning and preparing for the new curriculum in 2019. The science department has also introduced senior preparatory classes (i.e. Physics, Chemistry and Biology) to prepare the students for the new curriculum and in particular the assessment skills required.

At the end of 2017, I wrote a Newsletter article reflecting upon the thousands of amazing students I have had the pleasure of teaching and have deliberated about what makes them so successful as students. Things which I have seen which makes them good learners include:

• They are curious (Why? They are addicted to knowing and learning).
• Good learners put in the effort, they don’t give up easily. Motivated.
• They realise that everything can not be fun! We try but it all cannot be.
• They are frightened of failure, but know that this will benefit them. Resilience.
• They take the knowledge in and share it, tell others. Parents ask them what they learnt today.
• They never stop questioning things, what if?
• Read. Anything and everything!
• They are respectful.
• Finally, in summary the big 5 (They are organised/manage their time well/participate fully/resilient learners/self disciplined)

Not everyone is going to attend university and not everyone is going to do a trade, we all have our own pathways, but all or some of the above still apply.

Tutorials

Reminder to all that we have Tutorials in the Smart Futures Centre, Brahminy Kite room every Wednesday from 3:00pm-4:15pm (NB we are combining them in 2018). Maths/Science/Humanities/English teachers will be available for support. It has been great to see more and more students coming over the 2017 year and we looking forward to its ongoing success in this conducive environment with a group of fantastic teachers from all curriculum areas

Any questions please do not hesitate to contact me at school on 5471 5333 or by email at polse3@eq.edu.au.

Paul Olsen
Head of Science

Music

This year is a very special year with the introduction of the Coolum High School Instrumental Music Academy (CHSIMA).

The biggest changes that we will see will be in the increase in rehearsal and contact times, and the change in name for our school Concert Band from “Fusion” to “Coolum High School Wind Symphony”.

Rehearsals will now run Monday 3:00pm – 4:30pm. All students are expected to be in attendance for the entire duration. No one will be permitted to leave early unless prior arrangements are made with the Band Director. This should be in the form of an email from a parent or guardian. Students who miss rehearsal will receive an email to parents asking to explain (just as you would if you missed class).

There will be an additional rehearsal on Thursday 7:15am – 8:30am. These will be timetabled as either a “TUTTI” (whole group) or a sectional rehearsal. Students will receive a timetable for these rehearsals each term.

Group lessons for Mrs Guest will be held on a rotational timetable on Monday, Wednesday and Thursday. Where possible, each student will be able to have two, 35 minute lessons per week. The aim is to not miss the same subject lesson twice so in the event of a clash, please let me know so that other arrangements can be made for that week.

String lessons with Mrs Pearson will run on Wednesday mornings this year.

Our major projects for 2018 are as follows. There will be fundraising opportunities for the trip to Melbourne and an approximate cost will be made available as soon as possible.

• Rehearsal weekend with visiting tutor. February 10/11. ALL Coolum High School Instrumental Music Academy (CHSIMA) members must attend. Cost $20.
• Parade performance February 12
• ANZAC parade April 23 (TBC)
• Fanfare Heat – May 25-28
• Sunshine Coast Junior Eisteddfod – August Date TBC
• Victorian Schools Music Festival (Melbourne) August 27 – 31
• Awards Night October 24
• Feeder Schools Tour week 6 or 7 Term 4

Our first activity for the year will be a compulsory weekend workshop at the end of week 3, 10 – 11 February. All students who are participating in the CHSIMA this year are required to attend this workshop for the entire time. Saturday 9:00am – 4:00pm and Sunday 9:00am – 3:45pm.

We welcome any students who would like to join the Instrumental Music Program and some instruments are available for hire from the school for the start of the school year.

Please contact Sharelle Guest if you have any enquiries regarding the Instrumental Music Program.

Sharelle Guest
Instrumental Music Teacher

Health & Physical Education News

Welcome back to 2018! This year is sure to be jam packed with school, district, regional and state sporting opportunities for students.

Let me introduce myself, particularly to the new 2018 cohort of Year 7’s, students new to Coolum SHS this year and those that may just not know who I am.

I am Miss Fiducioso and I am the current Sports coordinator at Coolum High. I reside in the Health and Physical Education (HPE) staffroom situated at the end of the Multipurpose Hall.

In my role as sports coordinator, I advertise opportunities for students to trial for District and Regional Teams as well as organising interschool sport, and school teams travelling to swimming, cross country and athletics district carnivals.

First up this year nominations are open for the following district and regional trials.

District:

12 years Girls Softball
13-15 & 16-19 Girls Netball
14-15 & 16-18 Boys Rugby League
12-15 & 16-19 Girls and Boys Volleyball
17-18 Boys Rugby Union
13-15 & 16-18 Boys and Girls Touch Football

Regional:

12-14 & 15-18 Boys Baseball
13-19 Boys and Girls Softball
13-19 Boys and Girls Tennis

If your student would like to nominate/trial for any of the above events, they are to come and see me in the HPE staffroom during break times. These will also be advertised on the student notices.

Students will be given paperwork which will include:

• a trial notice,
• permission form, and
• Project consent.

Nomination process:

• Students collect paperwork from me
• Students take home paperwork and have it completed and signed by a parent/guardian
• Students return the paperwork back to me to sign
• Students will then be given back the paperwork to take with them to the trial

NO PAPERWORK = NO TRIAL

• The student’s nomination will be sent away to the carnival convener & District Secretary
• Student makes own way to trial with paperwork

Looking forward to providing opportunities for your students in 2018!

Christina Fiducioso
Health & Physical Education Teacher

2018 Girls Soccer at Coolum Football Club

Vocational Education and Training (VET)

Welcome back to 2018!

We are off to a great start with our Senior Secondary workshops on Wednesday of Week 1. As part of this, all students in years 10, 11 and 12 had the opportunity to hear about options available through Vocational Education and Training (VET) pathways within and beyond the school and the many ways in which they can succeed. Quality Vocational Education and Training is all about gaining real skills for real careers and that is our goal for all students undertaking VET courses at Coolum State High School.

School-Based Apprenticeships and Traineeship Opportunities (SATs)

This year we will continue to maximise the number of School Based Apprenticeships and Traineeship opportunities (SAT) available to our students due to our expanding links with industry. Under a SAT arrangement, a senior school student is released from school time to undertake an apprenticeship or traineeship in their chosen field. Current opportunities will be advertised in each issue of our e-newsletter as well as via Student Notices and year level e-mails. Students who are interested in undertaking a SAT as part of their pathway, should see me in my office in DBA to discuss the process and register interest.

Current Vacancies

Certificate III in Engineering – Mechancial Trade – Diesel Fitting (MEM30205) based in Nambour
SIT30616 Certificate III Hospitality – Aromas, Noosa
SIT30616 Certificate III Hospitality – Gloria Jeans, Tewantin
SIT30616 Certificate III Hospitality - Pitchfork Restaurant, Peregian
SIT30616 Certificate III Hospitality - Pizza Capers, Noosa Junction
SIT30616 Certificate III Hospitality - Sumo Salad, Maroochydore

TAFE at School

Several of our senior students are commencing their TAFE at School qualifications during Week 2. If you are involved with any of these courses, please ensure that you are aware of when students are expected to be attending TAFE. Student timetables will be adjusted to reflect attendance at an off-campus school activity. If you do get an absence alert, please respond to this and get your student to come and see me in DBA upon their return to school to ensure our system is accurate

Meet the Teacher Evening – Week 3

As part of our Meet the Teacher evening on Wednesday 7 February, there will be a session specifically around Vocational Pathways and the programs, options and support that is available for students. Our Senior Schooling Deputy Principal and I will be presenting key information at this session aimed at Year 11 and 12 students – it would be great to see you there with your child.

Certificate II in Skills for Work and Vocational Pathways

This year, all year 11 and 12 students who are not undertaking the QCS Test Preparation Program, will be completing a Certificate II in Skills for Work and Vocational Pathways. This course aims to further develop foundational employability skills and equipment students for the world of work. They will be developing skills in areas including digital technology, problem-solving, numeracy, literacy and teamwork. Upon completion of the course, students will be awarded 4 QCE points. This course will also assist students in making valuable links with industries and pathways to further education, training or employment. Please support your child in making sure that they attend and value these important lessons every week.

For further information about any of these opportunities, please see Mr Walden in DBA or email pwald9@eq.edu.au.

Patrick Walden
Head of Vocational Education and Training (VET)

International Student News

This term we welcome 22 new international students from Brazil, Germany, Luxembourg, Japan and Italy. The enthusiastic group of students joined year 9, 10, 11 and 12 and are already enjoying the natural environment, friendly community and school activities.

Recent highlights for the international students have included catching waves during surf lessons, enjoying Australia Day activities with their host families and making friends with other students.

We also welcome back to school from last year to year 11 and 12, Elin (Norway), Theresa, Fabian and Raphael (Germany), Kimberly (Switzerland), and Giulia (Italy).

We will be welcoming a study tour group of 20 students from Japan on 10 – 21 March. We are currently taking interest from families who would like to host these students.

The ISP program offers our students, families and community an opportunity for cultural exchange with students from other countries and developing global connections and friendships. Of course, we also have the privilege of showing off our wonderful part of the world.

Our homestay families are really excited to host the international students and walk them through their journey of living the Australian way of life. For more information regarding the homestay experience, please contact Ms Terri Shine on 5471 5303 or 0418 185 809.

Terri Shine
ISP Homestay Coordinator