1 Moolanda Street
Jindalee QLD 4074
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28 April 2017 Volume 19 Number 4
PRINCIPAL
News from the Principal
Welcome back to Term 2 and I trust all members of the
Centenary Community enjoyed a relaxing break and are ready
for the challenges of Term 2. We face a busy commencement
to the term with plenty of events filling the school calendar.
The sudden closure of the school at the end of Term 1 has
forced a number of end of term events to be pushed into the
current term.
By the time you receive this newsletter the parent teacher
nights would have been completed. I hope that the forum gave
you a good understanding of how your child is progressing.
Your child’s education is a partnership between home and
school and good quality dialogue is essential between the two.
I encourage all parents/carers to follow up with any concerns or
questions you may have regarding your child’s education with
staff through email, telephone call or a further interview.
Staff Appointments:
We welcome Brandon Long (DLD) and Sue McDonald (English/
EALD) to the Centenary SHS Staff.
NAPLAN
The school is fine tuning its preparation for the NAPLAN tests
which are set for May 9-12. Although the content of the testing
is a reflection of the Australian curriculum, students generally
need greater exposure to the regimen of writing under exam
conditions. With the mooted changes to Senior Assessment,
students will be required to undertake more external testing in
their schooling.
Email: [email protected]
Phone: 07 3373 4555
Fax: 07 3373 4500
Students in Years 7 and 9 have recently undertaken practice
tasks which have provided some specific information on
individual and cohort strengths and weaknesses. Feedback
from this testing will be invaluable in maximising student
performance.
At a state level, Numeracy and Reading have again been
identified as areas targeted for improvement. Traditionally our
Numeracy results have been very strong using the proportion
of students above National Minimum Standard as a barometer.
Our challenge in the Numeracy domain is to continue to
improve the proportion of students performing in the top bands.
A number of our Year 7 students have been working on an
online numeracy program designed to improve capacity.
In respect to reading comprehension initial data indicates that
our students are competent in recalling information from texts
but are challenged with making inferential meaning. Our focus
across the curriculum has been to identify cues.
Writing remains as the targeted improvement area for
Centenary SHS in 2017. We have implemented a range of
strategies across subject areas over the last 18 months in order
to improve performance in this area.
School Survey
We recently surveyed Years 7 and 11 parents/carers in order
to receive feedback on both the respective transition of both
cohorts as well as general school practice. The parent/carer
response of 69 and 57 respectively has given us quality
information in respect to what has worked and what demands
further attention or revision. Responses overall were affirming of
school practice.
In Year 7 strong support was given for the school’s
expectations in regards to behaviour, transition program and
range of learning experiences. Areas that still received a
favourable response but were not as strongly affirmed were
the role of Year 11 mentors in the support of Year 7 students,
the amount of homework set and the variety of co-curricular
activities.
In Year 11 strong support was given to the school’s
expectations in respect to behaviour and uniform and the
quality of the transition program. Priority areas of challenge
identified were the variety of co-curricular activities and
understanding of OP, QCE and Vocational Education.
Rotary Support
Centenary SHS is most fortunate to have the support of
Jindalee Rotary who have funded the weekly Chappie
breakfasts for several years. Their support allows the school
to provide an important community service that supports the
wellbeing of all Centenary SHS students.
Student Achievement
Congratulations to our newly appointed Year 7 leaders. The
selection process took place toward the end of Term 1 which
provided the school with a period of time to better get to know
our entry cohort students. The leadership role is an affirmation
of the regard in which the selected students are held by staff
and students and carries the significant responsibility of
representing the views of our 256 students in Year 7 and
leading this cohort in our continual improvement agenda. Our
Year 7 leaders for 2017 are:
Juan Vargas
Aidan Plapp
Sienna Pritchard
Jayde Radonova
John Brew, Principal
Email: [email protected]
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BUSINESS SERVICES MANAGER
News from the Business Services Manager
Changes to the way we invoice for 2018
After consultation with our school administration and Centenary
SHS P&C, the following changes have been endorsed.
For all students enrolled into 2018, there will be changes to
the way we invoice parents/carers for the Student Resource
Scheme and Curriculum Charges.
• All new enrolments for 2018 will be invoiced and
required to pay $230 on enrolment (this includes an
early bird discount of $20). Payment plans can be
arranged and will need to be finalised before the start
of the school year.
• For all students currently enrolled, the process has
previously been to invoice in November for the
following year with payments due by 31st October.
This will change for next year. For 2018 the $250
SRS invoices will be issued in August this year (2017)
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with an early bird discount of $20 being applied if
paid by 28th January of the following year. Invoices
will have a finalisation date of 31st July for those who
don’t wish to pay before the discount date.
For Curriculum Charges, invoices will be raised in February with
a due date of 31st July of that same year.
Payment plans will be accepted and may continue as is the
current practice.
There will be no changes to excursion and extra-curricular
invoicing. These will continue to be raised and paid as needed.
For any more information, please contact the school on 3373
4555 or email [email protected].
Student Cards
In the last newsletter we advised that Student cards
(Confidential Information Sheet) would be posted to parents/
carers. After reviewing our processes the decision has been
made not to post these sheets due to confidential information
on these documents. Our preferred option now is for parents/
carers to email any changes to the school at
[email protected]. Up-to-date and current
school records enable us to send you messages, contact you
when your student is ill or if there is an issue that needs
resolving.
Charmaine Macaulay
Email: [email protected]
SCHOOL IMPROVEMENT AND
INNOVATION
School Improvement and Innovation
Curiosity
Curiosity is an important ingredient in ‘learning that sticks’.
Teachers are constantly looking out for ways to identify gaps in
students’ knowledge, errors in their assumptions or to expose
students to novel ideas; some of the ‘states of curiosity’1. But
what impact does this have on learning?
Researchers assessed the level of curiosity of individuals
generated by a set of trivia questions before scanning their
brains while they were shown these questions and waited for
the answers. During the wait time, they were shown images
of random faces. Not only did participants better retain the
answers to questions they were most curious about but they
were also better at recalling the unrelated information (the faces
they were shown)2. Curiosity activated the reward and memory
centres in the brain.
Students are constantly challenged to be curious at Centenary
SHS – what makes your student curious?
References
1Oudeyer, PY Gottlieb, J Lopes, M 2016, ‘Intrinsic motivation,
curiosity and learning: theory and applications in educational
technologies’, Progress in Brain Research, Vol 229, 227-284
2Gruber, MJ Gelman, BD Ranganath, C 2014, ‘States of
curiosity modulate hippocampus dependent learning via the
dopaminergic circuit’, Neuron, Vol 84:2, 486-496
Anna Petrie, School Improvement and Innovation
HOD
Email: [email protected]
GUIDANCE
News from the Guidance Officers
The Importance of Honest Reflection
“I love those who can smile in trouble, who can gather strength
from distress, and grow brave by reflection. 'Tis the business of
little minds to shrink, but they whose heart is firm, and whose
conscience approves their conduct, will pursue their principles
unto death.”
Leonardo da Vinci
Before we embark in earnest on a new term, we need to
reflect on the year so far. Focusing on self-reflection is a critical
element in making positive change. Many of you have
formulated and are working toward a set of academic and
personal goals. This is a great START in your quest to improve
yourself, but change requires more: you must have an
awareness of the distance between where you are now and
where you want to be. Many goals are never achieved because
people do not take the time to reflect on their progress along
the way. If you are not actively taking time to assess the
discrepancy between your goal and your current behaviour,
your chances of success are low. How can you ensure you
achieve your goals if you’re not self-aware enough to know
whether you’re on the right path?
The right kind of Reflection
There are two main, almost opposing mistakes that people
make when engaging in self-reflection: being overly critical and
being overly defensive. Those who are overly critical of
themselves tend to focus only on their shortcomings, become
overwhelmed at the magnitude of the perceived obstacles to
overcome, doubt their ability to meet challenges, and instead
decide that any meaningful change is out of their reach. This
form of negative self-talk is likely to cause a person to become
paralysed or disengaged, rather than inspired and tenacious.
On the other hand, those who are quick to defend and justify
their behaviour run the risk of stagnating simply because they
won’t take ownership of their part in their progress to date.
When you convince yourself that you’re doing everything you
can in the circumstances, there is really no room or direction
for improvement. By absolving yourself of accountability, you
are also missing out on the opportunity to actively change
your trajectory. Overall, it is important to find a happy medium
between blaming yourself and refusing to take responsibility,
and that happy medium is honest self-reflection.
The how-to of Reflection
Let’s use academic progress as an example to illustrate how
to self-reflect. Models of reflection are generally cyclical, and
most feature three stages – do, reflect, plan. In this case, term
one was the do: you have attended class, compiled notes,
and completed assessment for each subject. Now it’s time to
reflect on your experience this term, so that you can plan for
improvement next term. The importance of honest, constructive
reflection cannot be overemphasised.
Some useful reflection questions include:
What happened?
What strategies did I rely on this term?
What was the outcome?
What was I thinking and feeling throughout term?
What challenged me, and did I successfully overcome
that challenge?
When was I most successful, and why?
What have I learnt about the way I think, learn and act?
Can I take any lessons from others around me (peers,
older students, teachers, parents)?
The next step in the process is to plan what you will do next.
It is important that you identify how you will approach your
studies in future. It is really useful at this stage to write down
your key learning points, the changes you intend to implement,
and any other actions you need to take forward. Writing down
your plans makes them more concrete, and makes you more
accountable. It is also really helpful after this term (your next
round of doing) to have your plan handy so you can reflect
upon and improve it.
As you move forward this term, please remember that ANY
serious goal you have deserves the time and respect of honest
reflection. As my old friend John Dewey once said, “We don’t
learn from experience; we learn from reflecting on experience.”
Juanita Oberle,
Guidance Counsellor
Email:
[email protected]
Janet Ingram,
Guidance Counsellor
Email:
[email protected]
CHAPLAIN
News from the Chaplain
Food for Thought
Every day brings opportunities to experience and enjoy a
productive life, but many people let their lives just slip by,
accomplishing little. These are the people who often complain
of boredom and disappointment with life, but they are often
too lazy to take the time to investigate ways of improving their
current situation.
What about you? Are you making the most of each day or are
you unhappy and just wishing that things were different? If there
are things in your life that you know you could change for the
better, stop wishing and start considering your options.
If you need a bit of advice to help you, please understand that
you are never alone. There are many wonderful organisations,
such as UnitingCare Community, who can help you with
relationship or financial advice. Here within our school
community, we have Guidance Counsellors and other support
staff, including myself who are available to you.
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Don’t waste one more day. Start making the effort to live life to
the full.
A message from Chappy Bernie
Ten Ways Schools Can Reduce Anxiety - Andrew
Fuller
The biggest barrier to doing well at school for most students is
not their attitude, intelligence or motivation; it is their levels of
anxiety. Recent research by Resilient Youth Australia has found
that 25% of girls and 21% of boys feel anxious and under strain.
These levels shoot up to 69% of girls and 36% of boys by Year
12.
http://www.resilientyouth.org.au/
These levels of anxiety are accompanied by sleep and
concentration problems, memory difficulties and distractibility.
Not to mention a lessening of the joy of learning.
Develop security and safety
Our sense of belonging and attachment is the foundation stone
of resilience. Schools are an essential element of belonging.
Identify the fringe dwelling students who no one really knows
and devise strategies to link with them.
We need to support teachers to create vibrant stimulating
classrooms that are comfortable, safe and where a caring
friendly adult is clearly in charge. Now that we have the research
on optimal classrooms, we can no longer be content with
barren, visually dull spaces that are anonymous and unowned
by anyone.
Great schools nurture great souls
Education is about much more than just the marks. You can be
good at passing the test but be bad at life.
To get great outcomes we need to lessen anxiety. We can
achieve this by focusing less on the results and more on
awareness and commitment.
Relaxation and Focusing Methods
Make sure staff know and use relaxation and focusing methods.
These include guided relaxation, brain gym, breathing
exercises, creative problem solving, yoga, drama games,
visualisation, art, sport, chanting and body mathematics.
Relaxation and focusing methods are not always passive or
quiet. Exercise, sports, and rhythmic activities energise and
focus brains.
Resilience based coaching
Use the increased presence of mind and focus to empower
students to develop skills through resilience based coaching. In
resilience based coaching everyone in a school staff, Parents/
Carers, students are asked to take on an area to improve upon
each term. One of the mottos we use is, “Here everyone gets
smart”.
The process is to have each person select an area to focus
on and rate their current level on a ten point scale (10 = totally
awesome to 1 = dreadfully incompetent). They are then asked
to describe what it would look like if they were two points further
up that scale. What would be happening differently?
They are then asked to focus on noticing when that happens.
That’s it. They aren't asked to work at it, develop improvement
plans or have additional coaching to make gains in that area.
Just notice it when it occurs.
Instead of focusing on the outcomes and results, direct your
attention to what you need to do each day in order to get the
results.
If we allow the international rat race of PISA results and national
testing programs to narrow our focus we will have collateral
damage. The cost will come in a lessening of imagination,
courage, character and empowerment.
Our energy follows our attention. If you can, review progress
each term and then either select a new area to focus on or
continue working on the current skill. Resilience based
coaching reinforces the idea that schools are learning
communities where everyone can get better at things.
The result on one specific test is transitory. The attitude people
take toward learning has lifelong consequences.
Think long and hard before you introduce open
learning areas
Mistakes are opportunities for growth
Open learning areas work well in some settings but can be
factories for anxiety in others. Sixteen percent of students will
have hearing problems to the extent that they will be unable to
hear in an open learning area. Creative, independent thinking is
often harder in noisy distracting circumstances.
Shame causes low motivation. It is better, some students
reason, to opt out than to endure humiliation.
Classrooms should be more about questions and less about
answers. Many people say they learn more from their failures
than their successes. Use guestimation games, quizzes,
puzzles, mazes, mysteries, forensic clues and problem solving
games to build a have-ago mindset. Ask students to give you a
wrong answer and to tell you one reason they think it might be
wrong.
Mindfulness is presence
Mindfulness is about being aware and being present. Now!
Create rituals where everyone can stop and bring their energies
and their awareness into the present.
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Students who have traumatic backgrounds, have been bullied
at schools, have family difficulties or are new arrivals to the
country often report higher levels of anxiety in open learning
settings.
When you are anxious, your levels of cortisol and adrenaline
increase, blood is shifted away from your brain and you are
focused on survival rather than learning.
Use apps
There are some wonderful apps that can be used to help
schools implement relaxation and focusing programs. At the
time of writing two of my favourites are Brainwaves and
Buddify.
Teach kids about how their brains work
Years 7 and 8/9 sports day
When students and their parents/carers learn about how their
brain works they have a choice. Learning about what drives
anxiety and how to shift your gears down is useful information.
Also, learning that you can’t believe all of your thoughts and
some of your feelings are pretty shifty too, helps people to start
thinking about their thinking rather than just being a victim of the
latest idea that flies into their heads.
The second gala day for summer was held on 21 April.
Centenary SHS had an extremely successful two days with
students enjoying themselves and getting involved. We won 4
premierships and they will now proceed to the Met Finals.
Anxiety is a sign of an overloaded brain. It is toxic to creativity
and memory. Learning the signs of stress and knowing what to
do to come back to a state of relaxed focus is a skill everyone
needs.
We all need good refreshing sleep to learn well. It is a revelation
to some people that if you start your day either by denying
yourself some fuel or by having a few energy drinks and a bowl
of chips you might feel like something has crawled into your
head and died there by midmorning.
Put the fun back into learning
Let’s make happiness the key goal of schools. Happiness is the
antidote to anxiety. Little kids move, play, explore and question.
Then they are told to sit down and do some hard work called
learning.
When we put the playfulness back into learning, motivation and
engagement increase and performance improves dramatically.
Centenary SHS fielded all Tennis Teams for the Gala Day, which
is the first time in the school’s history that all teams were full.
Students had a great day with a number of matches won,
developing their skills, making new friends and getting to play at
the top Tennis Centre in Queensland. Results wise, the Year 9
Boys lead the way finishing runners up, the Year 9 Girls finished
fourth. The Year 7 Boys finished third with the Year 7 Girls in
fourth place. Well done to all players!
Coming up on 21 June is the first winter gala day. This day
provides competition for Years 7 and 8/9 teams in Volleyball,
Tennis, Netball, Basketball, Rugby League/Union and Soccer.
Students will be able to trial for a team over the first four weeks
of Term 2. I encourage all students to listen to the notices daily
so they do not miss the trials for their team sport.
The summer district premier teams who will be moving on
to Metropolitan Finals are: Year 7 Girls Softball, Year 7 Boys
Basketball, Years 8 & 9 Boys Basketball, Year 7 Boys Volleyball,
Year 10 Boys Cricket, Year 10 Boys Volleyball and Open Boys
Touch Football. Good luck to all of the teams competing and I
look forward to announcing results in the next edition.
When students are encouraged to take risks, play, create and
learn, neuroplasticity increases. If we combine this with good
sleep, nutrition and enough physical movement, learning
outcomes soar.
Copyright Andrew Fuller www.andrewfuller.com.au
Bernie McMullen, Chaplain
Email: [email protected]
SPORTS DIRECTOR
Upcoming Dates
May
3rd - 1st round of Met Finals
4th - West Akuna District Cross Country and West
Brisbane Cross Country
10th - 2nd round of Met Finals
17th - 3rd round of Met Finals
24th - 4th Round of Met Finals
Sports Report
Welcome to Term Two. We have a number of sporting
competitions and district finals day this term so I look forward to
continually being able to share the results of our individual and
team successes.
District Cross-Country
The school Cross Country Team will be competing at the
District Cross Country carnival to be held at Limestone Park on
Thursday 4 May. Students have received their permission forms
and payment and forms are due back to school by Friday 28
April. We have set a goal to win the Percentage Trophy again
this year. This can only be accomplished if we fill our school
team. Good luck to all of the students competing.
West Akuna Cross Country
The West Akuna Cross Country is being held on the 4 May. This
carnival is for the 12 year age group students only. Students
who make the team will be given permission forms and
information.
June
1st - Regional Cross Country
6th - School Field Athletics Day
21st - Day 1 Junior Gala Day (Winter Season)
23rd - School Track Athletics Day
Reporting Results
To enable me to report on student results and to keep accurate
records for sports awards, I need to know how participants
went in their competitions. I encourage all students and
parents/carers to advise me of their results immediately after
they have competed.
5
Students can see me in Staffroom 4 or results can be emailed
to: [email protected].
Tamara Nasalio, Sports Director
Email: [email protected]
STEP
News from STEP
Possums no longer a problem!
A group of students are endeavouring to make life a little more
comfortable for our local possum population by making
possum boxes in STEP this trimester. This is yet another
example of the great opportunities students get in our STEP
program at Centenary SHS.
A dedicated group of junior students who are passionate about
wildlife have joined with Mr Tobin in learning how to construct
a possum box. They want to contribute in preserving native
wildlife within their respective neighbourhood. In the project,
they refer to a plan endorsed by the National Parks and Wildlife
Authority and have been using their skills to construct the boxes
during STEP time. Students will then be able to take the boxes
and mount them in a tree around their home. Possums are very
quick to find these new homes and it is likely that the box will
become occupied within 2 nights of it being placed in a tree.
This helps to prevent possums from trying to find homes in
garden sheds, pergolas or even the house roof area.
This project teaches our students many skills that involve
multiple curriculum areas such as Mathematics, Arts, Science
and Technology. During the design phase, students need to
consider how to allow possums access to the living
compartment; how to prevent premature deterioration of the
wooden box and most importantly to avoid unwanted
inhabitants such as snakes. In order to construct this wooden
box, they are required to perform accurate mathematical
calculations, interpret information from their plan, competently
use different tools and machinery and to assemble their project.
These young students perform a high level of workplace safety.
Every Wednesday afternoon they are actively engaged with
their work; they are not only able to work independently but also
work as a team.
By the end of this trimester, each student will produce a
possum box that will hopefully accommodate a family of both
adult and young possums. These students certainly will bring
this wooden box home with a smile!
Sin Woon Thoo, STEP Coordinator
Email: [email protected]
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CULTURAL DIRECTOR
Cultural News
Welcome back to Term 2. We have a very busy term ahead with
some major events coming up.
ANZAC Day
The Symphonic Band conducted by Fiona Harvey was involved
in two ANZAC ceremonies in the second week back. Firstly
there was the school event on Monday 24th April, and the Mt
Ommaney community event on ANZAC Day itself. The band
performed with distinction and gravitas at both of the events
and I thank them for the wonderful ambassadors that they
are for the school. I would also like to specifically mention
and thank our soloists who performed at a number of the
local ceremonies as well as our own, Andrew Haigh, Lauren
Hooper, Grace Franklin and Alex Knowles who all performed
brilliantly. Thank you again to our helpful parents/carers and
their trailers for getting the gear down to Mt Ommaney for
the community service. And last but not least, I would like
to acknowledge the incredibly hard work of Fiona Harvey in
preparing the Symphonic Band to perform so well. Your
commitment and dedication is unsurpassed and we are very
fortunate to have such a great teacher at our school.
Legally Blonde
The full rehearsals for Legally Blonde the Musical begin in week
five of this term, but plenty has been happening already getting
prepared for the show. Auditions were held in the last week of
Term 1 for lead performers, giving us a very strong and talented
group of students to work with. Congratulations to all of the
students given lead roles, in particular the role of Elle Woods,
and Nathan Merry as Emmett Forrest. Performances will be in
August.
Junior Camp
Junior music camp for Concert Band and String Ensemble
is occurring in week three up at QCCC Mapleton. We look
forward to some great music making with our young
ensembles.
Choir
The school choir have a number of events coming up this
month. There is the overnight choir camp to Brookfield on
May 18/19 in preparation for Creative Generation Voices. Our
performance day for CGV is on Monday 22 May at Springfield
Lakes State School. The choir has also been registered for
an event on 29 July called “You’re the Voice”. This event is
part of the Queensland Music Festival to encourage Australians
to unite their voices and turn the tide on domestic violence.
The project will bring together thousands of singers from
community, school and professional choirs as well as
individuals from across the country to join forces in a
monumental musical event which will culminate in a moving
mass rendition of John Farnham’s powerful anthem. The
“You’re The Voice” finale concert will commence at 5pm when
more than 2,000 choralists, led by Choral Director Dr Jonathon
Welch, will sing for change with QMF Artistic Director Katie
Noonan and other star talent in the South Bank Piazza.
http://qmf.org.au/youre-the-voice/
Gala Concert
Our major instrumental event for the year is the all groups Gala
Concert being held at Ipswich Civic Centre on Sunday 28 May
at 2pm. Tickets will go on sale in week three of this term with
adults $15 and primary aged children $10. We look forward to
seeing you all at this wonderful event.
I look forward to seeing many of you at the various events
throughout this term.
Date Claimers
TERM
WEEK
DAY
DATE
DESCRIPTION
GROUPS
INVOLVED
2
2
Monday
24
April
ASSEMBLY ANZAC DAY
CEREMONY
SYMPHONIC
BAND
2
2
Tuesday
25
April
ANZAC DAY
HOLIDAY/
ANZAC
COMMUNITY
SERVICE
SYMPHONIC
BAND
2
3
Wed-Fri
3-5
May
INSTRUMENTAL
MUSIC CAMP
(Junior)
CONCERT
BAND, STRING
ENSEMBLE
2
5
Thu-Fri
18-19
May
CHOIR CAMP
CHOIR/VOCAL
ENSEMBLE
2
6
Monday
22
May
ASSEMBLY
CONCERT
BAND
2
6
Monday
22
May
CREATIVE
GENERATION
VOICES
CHOIR/VOCAL
ENSEMBLE
2
6
Thursday
25
May
SINNAMON
VILLAGE/
YOUNG CARE
CONCERT 2
STRINGS
2
6
Sunday
28
May
INSTRUMENTAL
AND CHORAL
GALA AT
IPSWICH CIVIC
CENTRE
ALL
INSTRUMENTAL
AND CHORAL
GROUPS
2
7
Saturday
3 June
OPEN DAY
TBA
2
9
Saturday
17
June
YEAR 7 PEP
AND MUP
SHOWCASE
YEAR 7 PEP/
MUP
2
10
Monday
19
June
ASSEMBLY
STRING
ENSEMBLE
Mark Watkins, Cultural Director
Email: [email protected]
meetings enable teachers and parents/carers to review the
student’s term one achievements and consider improvement
strategies for Term 2. For parents/carers who were unable
to attend either of the two evenings, you are encouraged to
contact your child’s teacher directly to discuss how your son/
daughter might satisfy their potential during Term 2.
Coffee Kings
Parents/Carers who attended the recent parent teacher
consultations may have purchased a freshly brewed coffee
from a couple of the school’s barista students.
My gratitude is extended to Emma Love, Ella Holroyd and
Jarryd Matthews who operated the coffee machine to provide
parents/carers and staff with deliciously hot “real” coffee. As the
evening progressed, so too, did the consumption of coffee.
Junior Class Swap
A number of Year 7 classes have been timetabled to
commence a five week block of either Home Economics or
Industrial Technology and Design (ITD). This is part of the Year
7 curriculum which provides students with an opportunity to
experience all aspects of the Applied Technology discipline.
Students will swap with their peers after the next five week
period to experience the alternative Technology unit.
Students in APT08A, B, C, D or E have swapped at the
beginning of Term 2, to experience an alternative Applied
Technology unit. Essentially, those students enrolled in Home
Economics in Term 1 have swapped to complete a term of
ITD and vice versa. One group of Home Economics students
elected to continue with a second term of Home Economics
with Ms Ace.
Parents/Carers of these students can expect to receive a
consent form soon, to be signed and returned. Your attention
to this authorisation is appreciated.
Design Challenge
FACULTIES
APPLIED TECHNOLOGY
News from Applied Technology
Parent Teacher Consultations
On behalf of the Applied Technology staff, I extend my gratitude
to those parents/carers who met with their child’s respective
teacher, to discuss progress in the various subjects. The
Mr Leppens’ Year 9 ITD classes are presently working through
a design challenge task requiring students to design, build and
fly a model plane, using 3mm thick foam board as construction
material. Students are supplied with a 12 volt motor, a set
of wheels and a propeller. Students will create and present
ideas using the CAD programme Inventor and will then produce
components on the laser cutter. Once the plane has been
assembled, it will be connected to a “Power Anchor” to test
its ability to fly. Some adjustments may be required to improve
the plane’s performance. I invite you to google “Power Anchor”
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to view the basic concept of the design challenge. We look
forward to the development of some innovative aircraft.
• Intermediate : 14 Years and over (Questions 1- 40)
• Senior: 16 Years and over (Questions 16 – 50)
Many thanks to Claire Law, who assisted me in the running of
the competition this year. Many students will also take part in
the annual History Competition in the coming weeks.
Students will be in assessment mode early in Term 2, as we
change over to new units in many year levels. We appreciate
the role parents/carers play in encouraging students to manage
their study time effectively whether they are preparing for
assessment or completing homework tasks. Please contact
your child’s teacher if you have any concerns regarding their
progress. The most efficient method is usually an email; the
email addresses of all staff can be found at the back of the
student diary and on the school’s website.
Vocational Education and Training Assistance
In previous years, the school offered Certificate I in Furnishings
prior to it being rendered obsolete by the VET regulator.
However, as an accountability requirement, the school needs to
access a tradesperson within the furnishing industry, to validate
the programme and its assessment pieces. Essentially, the
reviewer needs to confirm whether the content taught and
assessed was of an industry standard. If you would like to
assist, please register your interest with the ITD department (Ph. 3373 4507). Only one reviewer is required and I suspect
you might need to devote a couple of hours to the task. The
staff are happy to clarify any concerns, so any assistance would
be genuinely appreciated.
Michael Tobin, Applied Technology HOD
Email: [email protected]
HUMANITIES/LOTE
News from Humanities
Welcome back after the Easter Break. We stand before another
busy term. Academic reports have been sent and Parent
Teacher interviews are already over by the time you read this.
Term 2 began as always with ANZAC Day Commemorations in
Week 2. This was timely, as we closed Term 1 with a Year 10
History exam on WWII and Year 9s are now beginning a study
of WWI, in which we focus strongly on the role ANZACS played
at Gallipoli and its enduring mythos.
A number of extra-curricular opportunities for students are
regularly offered by the Humanities and Language Faculties.
Recently, the annual Linguistics Olympiad was held in which
four teams successfully took part for the ninth year running.
Every year for the last 10 years, we have also participated in
the Australian Geography Competition. This year’s competition
was held on Wednesday April 26th. It is run by the Royal
Geographical Society of QLD and is sponsored by a six
Australian universities. All participants will receive a certificate,
with the highest-achieving students being offered a chance to
represent Australia at the International Geography Competition,
on an all-expenses paid trip overseas later in the year. It was a
multiple choice, competition held at three levels:
• Junior: 13 Years & under ( Questions 1-30)
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I would also like to thank Humanities staff and the ADMIN team
for supporting me in my role as acting HOD in Adrian Skerritt’s
absence in Weeks 1 & 2.
Deb Mansini, Humanities/LOTE A/HOD
Email: [email protected]
SCIENCE
Science Report
Welcome to the new term. This term will be as eventful and
busy as Term 1. It is worth reflecting on the past term and
celebrating students’ involvement and achievements in a
number of opportunities:
Year 11 Science in Practice WH&S Excursion
Students visited the Mount Crosby Water Treatment Facility
as part of their Science in Practice curriculum requirements on
17th March.
The aim of the activity was to provide students with an
opportunity to experience a workplace in which scientific
techniques are routinely used and to give them a chance to
understand the importance of workplace health and safety
processes and procedures. Additionally, students gained an
understanding of the processes that SEQ Water undertakes to
ensure the provision of clean water and adequate supply to
greater Brisbane from the Wivenhoe Dam catchment.
World Science Festival
Cool Jobs
10 students were selected from the Year 8 EXCEL class to be
involved in a World Science Festival event called Cool Jobs.
Cool Jobs brought students face-to-face with amazing
scientists doing amazing jobs. They learnt what it takes to do
some of the coolest jobs on earth and how these people inspire
the world to learn and get excited about science.
Pioneers of Science
10 students across the Years 9 & 10 EXCEL classes were
selected to attend the Pioneers of Science Program within
the World Science Festival. The students were fortunate to
hear from Queensland’s very own World renowned Pioneer
of the Cervical Cancer vaccine Gardasil, Professor Ian Frazer.
Samantha McKay was selected to present one of the questions
directed to Professor Frazer.
QUT STEM High School Research Internship
Program
Selma Sadek was one of the students who grabbed the
opportunity to apply for the above program when it was
brought to the attention of Year 12 Science students. Selma
was one of 24 students who was successful among a field of
150 Queensland students who applied to be a part of the above
program. This is what Selma had to say:
“Almost 14.5 million people were diagnosed with some form
of cancer, a disease caused by the uncontrolled division of
abnormal/mutated cells, in 2014 alone. However, thanks to
cancer research, advances in surgical practices, radiation
therapy, drug development and treatment methods in the past
decade, it has allowed us to increase cancer survival rates by
13%!
In the first week of the Term 1 holidays, I was able to obtain
first-hand experience in the field of cancer research and work
with a team of esteemed researchers at the Translational
Research Institute, Princess Alexandra Hospital as a part of
the STEM High School Research Internship Program by QUT.
I found out about this opportunity through an email from Mr.
Moodley, the Science Faculty HOD, in early Term 1 inviting us
to consider applying for one of the limited 24 places in this
program. The application process mainly consisted of obtaining
a letter of recommendation from a teacher, submitting previous
report cards and filling out a statement of purpose form
comprising of answers to five questions about personal
achievements and future ambitions.
During my time at the internship, not only did I learn about
DNA damage and how it can lead to cancer, but also got
the chance to conduct my own experiment. With guidance
from my supervising researcher, I prepared a melanoma (a
type of skin cancer) tissue culture and irradiated it with UVB
rays, which create breakages in the cells’ DNA strands, to
then study how the cells repair themselves. I was introduced
to a lot of advanced apparatus such as micropipettes and live
cell imaging systems as well as laboratory techniques including
gel electrophoresis and immunofluorescence. As high achieving
as the scientists were, they were also very friendly and
down-to-earth and made the experience as fun as it was
educational.
This has been quite a valuable experience that has given me
a deeper insight into the world of medical research and the
important role it plays in our society. I strongly encourage other
students to constantly have an eye open for opportunities to
pursue what they love and to get involved in the many programs
and events provided and promoted by our school whether that
be in science or any other subject that they enjoy. Not only
has this helped me with making decisions regarding my future
career choices, it will also help me with future applications to
help me pursue my passion towards science.”
Selma conducting tests on cancer cells at the TRI laboratory.
Staff success
We are pleased to announce and congratulate Patrick Griffin
on his success in securing a study scholarship to Switzerland
through CERN (the European Organisation for Nuclear
Research). His success is a vindication of the tremendous effort
Patrick puts into interrogating the science curriculum and his
practice for positive student outcomes both at the junior and
senior level.
We begin Term 2 on a positive note as well by recognising the
students who were successful in their application to be part of
the School’s UQ Science Ambassadors team. They are:
Caity McMahon
Sam Wallace
Holly Wilson
Jessica Tse
Jack Machan
Majurran Vimalan
These students will be tasked with promoting and raising the
profile of science at our school and in the wider community.
Once again this term our students will be presented with
opportunities to explore science outside the classroom as well
as demonstrate their enthusiasm for and expertise in science
through their participation in science competitions.
Excursions and competitions
DATES
Tuesday 02
May
ACTIVITY
YEAR 9
Nudgee Beach – Ecology Study
Wednesday 03
May
Friday 05 May
Thursday 11
May
YEAR 8 EXCEL
Geology Extension – Purlingbrook Falls,
Springbrook
Friday 19 May
YEARS 7 - 12
Big Science Competition
Tuesday 23
May
YEAR 12 BIOLOGY
QIMR – Genetics study
Thursday 25
May
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DATES
ACTIVITY
Friday 26 May
YEAR 10 PSC
Space Science - Brisbane Planetarium
Tuesday 30
May
YEARS 9 & 10
Science & Engineering Challenge
Tuesday 30
May
YEARS 7 - 12
ICAS Science Competition
Thursday 08
June
YEAR 9 EXCEL
SPARQed – Investigation of cancer cells
Allen Moodley, Science HOD
Email: [email protected]
THE ARTS
News from The Arts
Welcome to Term 2! Term 1 was a blur of excitement as
students settled into new classes, met their teachers and
started learning; and ended with assessment, deadlines and
cyclonic winds! We start Term 2 rested and ready for a busy
term. The key events in the Arts faculty this term include two
showcase events: the Instrumental Music Gala and the Year 7
Performance Plus and Music Plus Showcase. We look forward
to your attendance at these events as we celebrate the work of
our many talented students.
Congratulations to the students who have
been successful in their recent auditions for
lead roles in the upcoming school musical,
Legally Blonde: Lauren Hooper, Nathan
Merry, Ethan Smith, Allie Lagos, Grace
Williams, Brendan Ham, Nina Sarapa, Ashleigh Vandermaat
and Lucy McKellar. Mark the dates for the musical in your
diaries now – August 25 & 26.
Term 1 Reports
Excursions and Events
Senior Visual Art Excursion
“As part of the extensive school curriculum offered to students
enrolled at Centenary SHS, both Years 11 and 12 Visual Art
students were extended the opportunity to explore the Gallery
of Modern Art (GOMA) and the Queensland Art Gallery (QAG).
During this outing, students were required to complete activities
and essential coursework, specific to each year level,
encouraging idea development and progression in assessment
and student works. Additionally, the excursion proved to unite
classes through enjoyment, together learning the unique ideas
and formats expressed through modernism. During the time
there, students experienced and observed various art
installations and pieces, enhancing students’ observation and
individuality. From paintings to sculptures, minds were
awakened and inspired. Confronting, yet beautiful, works
highlighted an array of visual art elements and principles of
design, opening the minds and initiating creative instincts within
the classes. It is vital for students to access a firsthand
interaction with their studies, blossoming their creativity and
interest for the program and their own practises. Skills of
analysing and reflecting were required to complete the assigned
activities, coming together with students’ own creative and
artistic perceptions, thoughts and ideas. This annual excursion
is a time of excitement and wonder for students, being one
of the most eye-opening and enjoyable visual experiences the
school’s program offers.” Emma & Shana, Year 12 Visual Art
Ambassadors.
It has been very pleasing to see many students achieving great
success on their Term 1 report cards. It is important to note
that often in Arts subjects, there are three dimensions to be
assessed for each subject and that for the interim reports
not all dimensions may have been completed. For students
who weren’t happy with the results they achieved, there are
opportunities to turn things around by putting in more effort,
asking more questions in class or seeking help from their
teachers. A snapshot of the student success is below. The
graph shows the percentage of students in each class
achieving a C standard or better. As you can see, almost every
class is over 80%, with a larger number showing 90% or higher.
Well done Arts students!
Years 10-12 Music Excursion
The senior music classes visited QPAC this week to see the
Queensland Symphony Orchestra. This concert was an
outstanding celebration of student musical talent, with two
student performances in the program. One performance was
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by Russian pianist, Alexander Malofeev. At just 13 years of age,
he won first prize in an International Piano competition, and
students were able to see him, now aged 16, perform a very
technical Rachmaninov piano piece. It was certainly inspiring
to see someone the same age performing with the orchestra!
Some quotes from the students:
“It made me re-think my life choices because of how good the
soloists were and I couldn’t believe they could play at that level
at our age” Isabella & Jenna
“It was really amazing to see them play rather than just listening”
Abbie
“It. Was. Great.” Clayton
“The conductor was captivating and had great interaction with
the audience” Jenna
“I’m really disappointed I didn’t go because I missed out on the
concert and everybody is talking about it” Liam
“9.5/10” Humphrey
Music Plus
Two of our very talented Year 8 Music Plus students performed
in front of the whole Year 8 cohort recently on assembly. The
students added an extra level of difficulty to their performance
by singing in Spanish! Well done Ricardo and Oscar!
remembers 90% if you revisit notes within 24 hours; 30% if you
wait 3 days and after an month, only 3-4%.
Angela Sleeman, The Arts HOD
Email: [email protected]
YEAR LEVEL COORDINATORS
Year 11 Report
“What do you want to be when you grow up?” To a young
child, this can be an exciting question to ponder, ripe with
possibilities. To a Year 11 student, a mere eighteen months
away from leaving our cosy school grounds for the last time, it
might be a rather more terrifying query.
Year 11 Home Groups have been involved in Career Planning
activities over recent weeks. As usual, many students have
demonstrated a very strong resolve to enter a particular career
pathway, while others have somewhat less-defined visions of
their futures. It’s always interesting to see our students
grappling with the question of what they want to do post-school
at a time when it suddenly starts to seem “real”.
On a less existential note, congratulations to Mr Foster’s Home
Group, Curragundi 11C, for winning the year’s first HG
Challenge. Our wonderful Student Leaders organised a
two-pronged contest – a trivia contest followed by a tug-of-war
– that pitted friend against friend and teacher against teacher.
The winners enjoyed a pizza party.
Apologies to parents/carers who are terrified at the prospect of
their offspring getting behind the wheel of a car, but a recent
presentation by the RACQ gave our cohort a great overview
of how to achieve their automotive dreams. An upcoming
presentation from Queensland Emergency Services will offer a
more sobering account of the responsibilities of being on the
road.
Performance Plus
Students in Years 8 and 9 Performance Plus have completed
their first performances of the year, preparing a multimodal
presentation on the topic of the musical. This term sees their
dance and drama specialisations commencing, with students
participating in professional workshops conducted by the
Queensland Theatre Company and RAW Dance.
The Semi-Formal is set for Friday, May 26! It will begin with a
Fancy Dress parade at school, before students are bussed to
the city to board the Kookaburra Queen. Letters will be sent
to parents/carers very soon. Expect to see some very colourful
photos in the June newsletter!
Terry Oberg, Year 11 Coordinator
Email: [email protected]
Term 2 Home Group Program
Year 9 Report
Finally, what is the goal for this term? What are your children
trying to achieve in their studies? You can encourage your
child and prepare them for success by reminding them of
the importance of regular practice. Practising what you learn
strengthens your brain pathways and memory. Your brain
Term 1 went impossibly fast! Leadership ceremonies, school
photos and all the usual routines to begin a new school year
are over again until 2018. The annual Clean-up Australia Day in
March was again a great success. Many thanks to our Forum
leaders Dru, Amy, Imogen, Sam, Victoria, Sarah, Lilly & Tom,
who organised and ran this event! Our Year 9 cohort has some
very committed and thoughtful young ladies and gentlemen
who care about environmental and other community issues.
Thanks to the teachers, who encouraged and helped!
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resources into and to write in when appropriate. These
notebooks could also be of interest to students in later years,
giving them a ‘timeline’ of their junior secondary years. Could
I please ask for your support by encouraging your son or
daughter to bring the following equipment to HG lessons? Many
thanks.
• A small exercise book (48 pages will suffice)
• Pen or pencil for writing
• Glue stick & scissors for the pasting of handouts
“Behind the Scenes”
I will be on leave for part of this term, so many thanks to Kate
George, who will be acting in the role of Year 9 Coordinator in
my absence. Term 3 focus will be on teamwork and subject
selections for Year 10. In Term 4, students will prepare to
be ‘moving up’ into the senior school (!) in 2018 so themes
relating to career planning will be added to the program. We will
celebrate the transition from Junior to Senior school in Week 9
with a special assembly.
Please contact me if you have concerns regarding the welfare
of your student, or Kelsey Oakes, the Year 9 DP.
“Clean up in Action”
“The Results”
Reports have been sent and Parent Teacher Interviews already
over by the time you read this, but I trust you all enjoyed a
restful, and enjoyable Easter term break.
Term 2 is ‘short’ in HG terms, as there are no sessions during
the first three weeks, due to two public holidays in Weeks 1
& 3, and our annual ANZAC DAY ceremony Monday of Week
2. The overarching responsibility of the Home Group Program
is to foster the social and emotional wellbeing of students.
Each term has a theme relating to one aspect of wellbeing,
career development or personal development. Term 1 focussed
strongly on encouraging a positive start to the academic year
and goal-setting. The encouragement of respectful interactions
is an essential part of our role in Home Group, so Term 2 is
themed “Bringing Back the Friend”. The sessions are designed
to provide students with an insight into their own emotions and
actions and encourage respectful interactions. In HG sessions
from Weeks 5 – 9, under the guidance of our School-based
Mental Health Nurse Dyanne Moxham, students will examine
and address areas related to relationships. The materials have
been tailored to suit the needs of this cohort and are
age-specific. The five-week program will also complement
aspects of the current Health and Physical Education unit for
this term. The resources have been adapted specifically for
our Year 9 HG program using QLD & Victorian Department
of Education resources. The topics we will be covering over
Weeks 5 – 9 include:
• Why be Respectful?
• Emotional Literacy
• Personal Strengths
• Problem Solving
Delivery will be via the usual Monday HG ‘lessons’. As there
will be a number of hands-on activities, students need to have
an exercise book (as outlined in the booklist) to paste these
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Year 9 Home Group Teachers
CU09A Sophia JAHAN
CU09B Kate GEORGE
CU09C Siew Lin TEH
JA09A Alison WILLIAMS
JA09B Shanti REDDY
MO09A Amy KITTER
MO09B Peter WINN
YA09A David FREELAND
YA09B Tony NAIDOO
Debra Mansini, Year 9 Coordinator
Email: [email protected]
Year 7 Report
Welcome back to Term 2! I hope that all families have had a
good holiday and that everyone is feeling refreshed and ready
for lots of learning and activity through to our mid-year break
late in June.
Annual NAPLAN testing will take place in week four of this term.
NAPLAN tests provide ‘snap-shot’ information in relation to
student performance. Students have been given opportunities
in class to practice NAPLAN-style questions so that the format
of the tests will be familiar to them. Please reassure your
children that NAPLAN is nothing to worry about and is just
another school activity.
In our Home Groups, we will be working on the My Friends
Youth Skills for Life programme. The programme aims to treat
and prevent anxiety, increase emotional resilience and problem
solving activities and teach lifelong coping skills to young people
to protect them against stress and change throughout life. We
also hope to work with our Year 11 Mentors as they have now
settled into their senior schooling and are ready to get back into
the Year 7 classrooms!
Parent Teacher interviews have taken place over the last two
weeks. This was a wonderful opportunity to review your child’s
progress with their teacher.
Finally, I am happy to share the experience of a group of Year 7
students who participated in the World Science Festival at the
end of last term. A very special thanks to Mr Tony Oliver who
organised this event, which was clearly enjoyed by all!
Future BNE Challenge
A group of Year 7 students from Centenary State High School
travelled to South Bank for the Future BNE Challenge. Many
different schools participated in challenges revolving around
ways to secure Brisbane’s future water needs in the context of
rising salinity levels and low fossil fuel energy inputs allowable.
We started with speeches from some amazing people, like
Doctor Karl Kruszelnicki, who told us some interesting things
about water, such as the role of algae. Algae is good for
water but too much is not good. We had a certain amount
of time to complete a few challenges. The challenges started
with finding some cards. Each card contained factual evidence
and a problem. We then had to brainstorm ways each problem
could be solved. For example, we wrote about ways we could
filter water, make water and sustainable farming practices
featuring native food resources. Then we made diagrams
showing this. Soon after that we made an amazing 3D model of
the farm. This was the final challenge. Overall, we had a super
fun time and learnt more about science. Thanks to Mr. Oliver,
our Science teacher, and Centenary State High School Junior
Secondary Faculty for paying the challenge entry and taxi costs.
We help to fill a financial gap between what the State
Government provides and what the school needs through
several fund-raising activities as well as the operation of our
canteen and uniform businesses.
As always, we are a small band of dedicated parents/carers
and community members who take a keen interest in our
school and the success of its students. All our members work
and lead busy lives and would really appreciate the help of more
parents/carers to maximise our ability to help all our children.
We don’t ask for big commitments – the old adage “many
hands make light work” is never more apt. Just a few hours per
year helping in an area that matches your skills will make a huge
difference. Some things that come to mind are:
• Marketing/Graphic design to help prepare some of
our promotional items
• Event planning for our successful annual Trivia Night
which helps finance our student support fund
• Volunteer to assist in the canteen (even once a
month or once a term is a great help)
• Attend our regular monthly meetings and participate
in some of the decisions that have an impact on the
school – only about 1 hour per month
• Some of the projects that we have planned this year
include:
• Raising funds to help provide air-conditioning for
classrooms
• Urgently needed repairs to the Long-Jump pit on the
sports oval
• Upgrading the Canteen facilities to more efficiently
provide our children with a wide range of healthy
food choices
If you’d like to offer any assistance, no matter how small,
for any of the above just drop us an email at
[email protected]. Of course, you would be very
welcome to come along to our meetings which are held most
months on the third Wednesday of each month at 7:00pm in
the Resource Centre.
David Harris, P&C President Centenary SHS
Email: [email protected]
Karyn Abraham, Year 7 Coordinator
Email: [email protected]
NEWS FROM THE P&C
This year your P&C is embarking on a number of projects
that will assist in the educational outcomes as well as general
enjoyment of your children within the school.
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