19 August 2020

Newsletter Articles

Principal’s Report

At Coolum High every one of our students is different; many come from diverse backgrounds and are of many different abilities.

Our students are individuals which is fantastic, but each and every one of our Coolum students needs to feel a sense of belonging, care and respect within their day at our school so that they can learn effectively. This is where inclusivity comes in.

Inclusivity is very simply ensuring that every student within the school community is receiving the support they need to belong, is involved purposefully in learning and is given every opportunity possible to experience academic success. Inclusivity is about making sure that students, no matter whether they are from around the corner, interstate or overseas, from a nuclear, single parent or blended family, are gifted in a subject area or are challenged with a disability, are all given an education which allows them to do the very best of their ability and achieve excellence within their own personal schooling. I’m very proud to say Coolum High does this and we do it very well.

Coolum High School has always been an inclusive school. Every day, in every classroom, students are learning and achieving in a safe, inclusive and supportive environment. We achieve this through a whole school approach with specialist staff supporting students and teachers both in and out of the classroom. As teachers, we cannot apply the very same set of teaching methods and subject matter to every student and expect to get the same result: this is simply impossible.

This week, the Diverse Learners team hosted a Transition Program Information Session for parents of Year 6 students who will require additional support in their move to High School in 2021. This session provided the perfect opportunity for parents to meet the staff and ask any questions relating to the transition to High School and Coolum State High School’s Diverse Learning Department.

Our Diverse Learners Department is essential in ensuring teachers and students are supported with strategies and programs so that everyone in every class is learning to the best of their ability. These highly trained and skilled staff work together to do an amazing job in supporting those students with differing abilities and needs within our school. Their patience and dedication to our students is absolutely outstanding.

As the great British Prime Minister, Winston Churchill, said, “Diversity is the one true thing we all have in common… Celebrate it every day.”

Troy Ascott
Principal

Deputy Principal - Junior Secondary Year 8 & 9

Our Vision: That students have the confidence, desire and belief to succeed through strong foundations in literacy and numeracy.

Writing on Demand

You may have heard from your student in Years 7-9 that they regularly undertake a piece of writing as part of our strategy to improve writing.

This has involved giving students a stimulus on which to write response in either a persuasive or a narrative genre. I am very excited that this has led to improvement in student writing throughout this year and last year.

Not only have students been writing more, they have also been structuring their work much better and improving their use of ideas and vocabulary. This is great work to celebrate from our students and teachers.

Junior Secondary Assessment

Junior Secondary students will continue to be completing a number of assessment tasks for their subjects this term. This may range from assignments and exams, to presentations or completing practical tasks. This is a particularly important time for Junior Secondary students as they are still learning the behaviours and skills to be successful across a range of high school assessments.

As I always mention, one important skill that all students will benefit from is being organised. Setting in place a number of routines at school and at home will support Junior Secondary students to achieve this. Such routines could be:

• Regular and consistent tracking of assessment dates, homework and other tasks;
• A small, but consistent, amount of time each afternoon or evening to put aside for school work. This can be for homework, assignments or exam revision (committing information to memory);
• A consistent time for going to bed each night, and waking up each morning;
• Firm but fair rules around access to devices (phones, tablets etc.) in the evenings.

Developing good routines and habits will definitely support all Junior Secondary students to be organised. Personal organisation is a skill that can be learned with a growth mindset. Remember, students who are organised often produce a higher standard of work than those who are not.

Terry Proctor
Deputy Principal – Year 9

Business Services News

QParents information

QParents is an Education Queensland Portal that allows parents to access their student’s financial invoices/payments, reports, absences/attendance and timetable all in one place. You are also able to make payments directly from this portal for outstanding invoices and is Education Queensland’s preferred method of payment. Please refer to the flyer below for more information.

Nolly Griffiths
Business Manager

Science News

This week, Week 6, we celebrate Science Week, the 2020 Schools theme is Deep Blue: innovations for the futures of our oceans.

This year the Science Department will be making Wax Food Wraps with the students at breaks. They are reusable environmentally friendly food wraps. If you have ever seen an aerial view of our beautiful school you will see that we are connected to the waterways which lead out to Stumers creek then the ocean. They are made of cotton and then infused with Local bees wax, The Bee Man! We openly encourage students to reduce the plastic s brought to school as they unfortunately can make it on the ground then into the waterways.

Wax Food Wraps

On another positive note I want to share a story with you from this week which is one of the key reasons why I am a teacher, it has made my year.

At the end of Term 1 I was in communication with a parent who advised me that his daughter wanted to work in the marine sector, however struggles academically due to learning difficulties. In an exam this week, she worked extremely hard coming up to the exam and the father assisted with her study, advising me that he now knows how to draw cells. I was so happy and was even happier when she completed the exam and I marked it resulting in a solid B. We are as excited as you, the parents, and students, when they do well.

This is what we wish and reinforce with the students every day, ‘Excellence’ - work to your full potential and show us what you can do.

Keys to Success:

• It up to you – accept responsibility – what you put in what you get out
• Be Disciplined – Be resilient
• Time management and be organised
• Keep up with the work – Say no to procrastination
• Have ago yourself then please ask for help (Come to Tutorials).
• School attendance – Good attendance equals better results
• Don’t give up – Do your Best!
• Have goals
• Stay focussed!
• Regularly review what you have learned in class.

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 Department – Science

Sports News

Representative School Sport

Representative school sport is back up and running with Covid19 modifications in place. Unfortunately, many state and national championships were cancelled largely due to interstate travel and inability to meet Covid19 guidelines, however, a small number of sports are approved to go ahead.

Congratulations to the following students who have been selected in North District teams recently:

Surfing – Stella Scudamore, Kianni Effting, Anna-Lei Petit, Kai Barraclough, Finn Walsh, Lachlan Andrews and Ashton Pignat.
Basketball – Lucas Membrey, Connor Avery, Emmanuel Butterworth, Izaak Sklenars, Jack Woodward, Olivia Llewellyn, Isabel Gribble, Fallon Reisinger, Sienna Potter and Grace Pearson.
Cricket – Harrison Single

Well done to Kai Barraclough and Lachlan Andrews who finished 5th in the Open Boys and 3rd in the U16 Boys respectively. They both qualified for the Sunshine Coast team to contest the state championship next month.

U12 Basketballer Blake Sewell also was successful at regional trials and will compete at the state championships. Best of luck, Kai, Lachlan and Blake.

Eric Smyth
Sport Co-Ordinator

Student Contribution

Green Stuff – How do we “Keep Australia Beautiful” in 2020?

Next week is Keep Australia Beautiful Week. It’s held late August each year to raise awareness about the simple things you can do in your daily lives to reduce your impact on the environment.

Protecting ourselves from the spread of COVID-19 has led to significant changes to the way we live – from staying at home more to increasing hygiene practices. But there are downsides to this new normal, particularly when it comes to hygiene concerns, which has led to an increase in an environmental burden we were finally starting to get on top of: single use plastics.

Even in a pandemic we can take steps to keep Australia beautiful by just continuing to make the small changes that are within our control. Here’s couple to kick off with:

• Switch to reusable product bags that are washable and remove the need to touch the plastic bags in the supermarkets
• Replace plastic toothbrushes with bamboo ones
• Carry a reuseable straw when you go out
• Switch to bars for soap, shampoo and conditioner rather than liquid soap that comes in plastic packaging

Dates for your Diary

Bus Pass Information 2020

Q: What is a Buslink Bus Pass?

A: The Queensland Government’s School Transport Assistance Scheme (STAS) provides assistance to enable eligible school students to attend education facilities. The Buslink Bus pass is distributed if you are eligible for such assistance

Q: Will I need to apply for a new bus pass for 2020?

A: If the below circumstances have changed for you and/or your student then you will need to apply for a new Buslink Bus Pass:

• your child is moving from primary school to secondary school
• you have changed address
• you have changed travel days
• you have enrolled them at a different school

Q: What happens if I currently have a Buslink Bus Pass and my circumstances haven’t changed?

A: Buslink will automatically print off a 2020 Buslink Bus pass for you and you will need to collect it from either your AM Buslink Bus Driver or at published pick up points at your school.

Q: How do I apply for a Buslink school travel pass?

A: Your child may be eligible for free bus travel. To download an application form head to your bus service Sunshine Coast. You can email your completed application to info.sunshinecoast@buslink.com.au or post to 11 Page St, Kunda Park Qld 4556.

If you don’t have access to a printer you’re welcome to ask one of our friendly Buslink drivers or come in to our office for an application.

Q: If my student is ineligible for a full Buslink Bus Pass travel, and only eligible for a Part Buslink Bus Pass, how do I pay the top up fare?

Students with a Buslink part pass (part payment) can purchase single, daily or weekly tickets from the bus driver using cash. If your student is travelling Monday to Friday in both morning and afternoons, it is cheaper to purchase a weekly ticket as you’ll receive a day free travel. Please do not pay your top up with a Go Card or you will be paying the full fare.

Q: If I’m not eligible for a Buslink Bus Pass, can I still travel on a Buslink Bus and how do I pay a fare?

If a student doesn’t qualify for a Buslink pass they will be required to pay the full cash fare or purchase a Go Card to save up to 30% off the full fare.

Q: If I or my child need a reminder of the Code of Conduct where do we find this information?

Buslink Buses are governed by the Code of Conduct. Similar to schools we have an expectation of behaviour that is acceptable on each bus and if that behaviour is breached then students will receive consequences for their behaviour. To view the code please go to: Code of conduct