Issue 9 - 19th June 2015 Please remember to advise the relevant House Assistant by 9:30am if your child will be absent from school Melba—8804 6407 Freeman—8804 6408 Hollows—8804 6409 Dunlop—8804 6410 Music Dept: 8804 6411 Term Dates in 2015: 1. 30/01—27/03 2. 13/04—26/06 3. 13/07—18/09 4. 05/10 –18/12 Next School Council Meeting Wed. 19th August 2015 Blackburn High School 60 Springfield Road, Blackburn Vic 3130 Website: www.blackburnhs.vic.edu.au Telephone: +613 8804 6464 Facsimile: +613 8804 6499 Email: [email protected]Jane Richards Assistant Principal Tristan Webb & Bonnie Hodge School Captains Have you lost your phone or spectacles? Please check at the front office as we have a lovely selection to choose from. Inside this issue Page 1 2-3 4-5 6-7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 From the Principal Dunlop House Freeman House Hollows House Music e-Learning Humanities News Primary School News Year 12 Formal Intentional Tour Wellbeing News School Calendar Thank You Warren Dawson has been Acting Principal during Term 2. On behalf of the school community, I would like to thank Warren for his leadership and for the ideas and skills he has brought to the school. We wish Warren all the best. Night of the Notable Well done to all the Year 8 students on their presentations for Night of the Notables this week. Students put a lot of time and effort into their work and it was great to see the enthusiasm with which students approached the task. Thank you to all the staff who were part of this program and thanks to Val Weber for her organisation of this event. There will be more on Night of the Notables in the next newsletter. Year 12 Formal The Year 12 Formal was a wonderful celebration for our senior students following on from the GAT last week. The students looked resplendent and we received many compliments from staff at the venue about the behaviour of our students. A huge thank you to staff who gave up their own time to attend the formal and thank you also to Marina Crescia on her organisation of the event. Further details follow in this newsletter. Europe Tour We wish our tour group heading to Europe all the best. What a wonderful opportunity and we look forward to hearing about the great time they have had on their return. Trivia Night We look forward to seeing many of you at the Trivia Night being run by Friends of Music tonight. It will be a great night. Thank you to all the parents who support Friends of Music—we value your support of our Music Program. School Council News Carolyn Nette has tendered her resignation from School Council. Carolyn has been President for the last five years and has been involved with the School Council for 15 years. We thank Carolyn for her great contribution over a significant period of time . We will still see Carolyn at school as she continues her involvement with work to support development of the school grounds.
Transcript
Issue 9 - 19th June 2015
Please remember to advise the relevant House Assistant by 9:30am if your child will be absent from
Have you lost your phone or spectacles? Please check at the front office as we have a lovely
selection to choose from.
Inside this issue Page 1
2-3
4-5
6-7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
From the Principal
Dunlop House
Freeman House
Hollows House
Music
e-Learning
Humanities News
Primary School News
Year 12 Formal
Intentional Tour
Wellbeing News
School Calendar
Thank You Warren Dawson has been Acting Principal during Term 2. On behalf of the school community, I would like to thank Warren for his leadership and for the ideas and skills he has brought to the school. We wish Warren all the best. Night of the Notable Well done to all the Year 8 students on their presentations for Night of the Notables this week. Students put a lot of time and effort into their work and it was great to see the enthusiasm with which students approached the task. Thank you to all the staff who were part of this program and thanks to Val Weber for her organisation of this event. There will be more on Night of the Notables in the next newsletter. Year 12 Formal The Year 12 Formal was a wonderful celebration for our senior students following on from the GAT last week. The students looked resplendent and we received many compliments from staff at the venue about the behaviour of our students. A huge thank you to staff who gave up their own time to attend the formal and thank you also to Marina Crescia on her organisation of the event. Further details follow in this newsletter. Europe Tour We wish our tour group heading to Europe all the best. What a wonderful opportunity and we look forward to hearing about the great time they have had on their return. Trivia Night We look forward to seeing many of you at the Trivia Night being run by Friends of Music tonight. It will be a great night. Thank you to all the parents who support Friends of Music—we value your support of our Music Program. School Council News Carolyn Nette has tendered her resignation from School Council. Carolyn has been President for the last five years and has been involved with the School Council for 15 years. We thank Carolyn for her great contribution over a significant period of time . We will still see Carolyn at school as she continues her involvement with work to support development of the school grounds.
Page 2 Issue 9 - 19th June 2015
DUNLOP HOUSE NEWS Claire Greve
Dunlop House Leader
House Assistant:
Liga Darzins 8804 6410
“I have a conviction that it is only when we are put at full stretch that we can realise our full potential’ Sir Edward ‘Weary’ Dunlop.
From the House Leader Celebrating and acknowledging our students is an important part of Blackburn High School and Dunlop House. An important component of this is hearing from our students and finding out what makes them tick, so I have set up a Dunlop Vox Pop. What’s Vox Pop? It is a Latin phrase that translates to ‘Voice of the People’. I will be regularly asking a variety of questions to hear from our students in Dunlop. This week we asked to hear from D5 and posed the following question:
Dunlop 5
What does success look like to you?
When you are doing something that you love to do for a living and enjoying what you have done in your life
Being happy about what you are doing and achieving a goal
Success is being the absolute best you can personally be
To succeed in life, one must first be happy
Achieving goals of others and yourself
Success isn’t always winning or passing, it’s about trying your hardest to achieve your goals
House Business Semester 2 commenced Monday 15h June. Students have been given their new timetable this week. Year 10 and 11 students who wish to make subject changes must see Mr McGann ASAP, complete the change of subject form and submit it to their House Leader for approval.
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DUNLOP HOUSE NEWS Claire Greve
Dunlop House Leader
“I have a conviction that it is only when we are put at full stretch that we can realise our full potential’ Sir Edward ‘Weary’ Dunlop.
House Captain Sarah Turner
Mentor Group Presentations Last week D7 gave their Mentor presentation. It was themed ‘Get behind each other in your Mentor Group’. D7 worked over many weeks during Mentor Group and during lunchtimes to create a mini film, starring Joanne Yang and Ari Christodoulou, and a cameo appearance by Mr Nicassio. This week D1 presented a Pictionary game. Using the interactive TV, they each drew a Pictionary drawing and members from the audience had to guess their creation. It was highly engaging for all Dunlop students.
Outstanding Student Achievements Gymnastic Star Congratulations to Cameron Twidale (D6) who competed in the State Championships for gymnastics over the long weekend. His performance was excellent over the two days with fantastic consistency. He placed 9th. Primary School Visits Well done to Kaja Jeffrey, Miles Stukenborg and Mathilda Karow for helping out with the recent primary school science visits. All students were terrific role models and ambassadors for our school.
From the House Leader As we near the end of Term 2, I would like to acknowledge the effort and work of all staff and students. We have had many events and goings-on at our school this term and none of it would be possible without the cooperation, as well as the motivation and hard work, of all members of our school community. I would also like to thank Tameka Carter for all of her work with Mentor Group D6 and the Art Department whilst replacing Cheryl Angus, who is away on leave. As this is the last newsletter item from Dunlop this term, I would like to wish everyone a well-deserved holiday break and hope you return feeling refreshed for Term 3.
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House Assistant Denise Strahan
8804 6408
Freeman House News Geoff Vezey
House Leader
Year 7 Rich Task Andre Heeraman– Year 7 Freeman leader A couple of weeks ago all the Year 7s did the Rich task. The Rich task is when all the Year 7s choose a topic of some sort and they have a week to get as much information on the topic and use the information to make a visual display. For the Rich Task I chose robots as my topic. I was quite happy with choosing robots because I got a lot of information and I think my display looked awesome! We also had to make a handmade craft for our topics. Everyone made some amazing handmade craft, I even think I made an awesome handmade craft. As I had robots for my topic, I made a life-size robot out of cardboard boxes, spray paint and for the arms some sort coil installation thing. There were also a couple of little accessories like wires for the antennas, paint to make little buttons and googly eyes. On the day everyone set up their displays in the gym. Once everyone had finished setting up their displays, parents, students, teachers and Grade 5s and 6s from Blackburn Primary came and had a look at everyone’s displays. After they had seen all the displays they chose their favourite displays to get different awards. I thoroughly enjoyed doing this and now I know many things about robots!
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House Captain Andre Burborough
Freeman House News Geoff Vezey
House Leader
Year 8 Night of the Notables Students have been researching and preparing for their Night of the Notables presentation on Tuesday 16th June.
Reports/Mentor Program Previously, I have mentioned the commitment students were making to viewing their Cycle 2 Reports. I was impressed with the majority of Freeman students who had read their second cycle reports before starting the analysis of these reports and their first semester SMART goals in the Mentor Program. This has demonstrated to themselves and us the value they place on their of education. I would encourage all parents to continue to support their child’s learning by discussing their progress with them. The previous fortnight has seen Mentor Groups present to the House. Presentations have included topics such as cyber-bullying, their bucket list, worst jobs and why education matters.
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House Assistant Kaye Sampson
8804 6409
HOLLOWS HOUSE NEWS Mark Pasquali
Hollows House Leader
HELPERS FOR SCIENCE IN SCHOOLS Thank you to the following students who helped brilliantly with the primary school Science visits last week. It was great to see our Year 7s helping out with the primary school students. The Hollows students involved were: Alex Foster
Campbell McLean
Hiral Sethi
Jennifer Yi
Danny Nguyen
Katie Young
THANKS TO KATE FYANDER & LEIGH BEATTIE Big thanks to Kate Fyander and Leigh Beattie who have sang and played for us at our recent assemblies. Both are fantastic musicians and it was great to see them show their skills. Thanks again Kate and Leigh for sharing your work with us.
Kate Fyander—Year 12/H10 Leigh Beattie—Year 12/H10 A CAPPELLA GROUP Leigh Beattie also announced that she is starting an “A Cappella” singing group. Any interested students can join Leigh in the Music Block on Thursday at lunchtimes.
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HOLLOWS HOUSE NEWS Mark Pasquali
Hollows House Leader
House Captain Lucy Fist
GABI HOLLOWS TO VISIT/CAKE SALE Thank you to all of the people that have been involved in the planning of our big fund raising effort today. Hollows students have been asked to bring in baked goods for a bake sale. We are looking to raise $2000 at least for the Fred Hollows foundation earthquake appeal. In a great piece of news we have received word that Gabi Hollows (Fred’s wife) will be visiting us next term. We look forward to meeting with her and presenting her with the money we have raised.
NIGHT OF THE NOTABLES—YEAR 8 Well done to all of the Year 8 students who completed their ‘Night of the Notables’ presentation this week. There was a wonderful array of displays and materials. Full credit to everyone involved. We look forward to pictures in the next issue.
YEAR 12 FORMAL Last week saw the big night of glitz and glamour aka the Year 12 Formal. Everyone looked great in their frocks and suits and this was just the teachers!! Well done to all students for having a great night and producing some great memories to look back on. Here are some photos of Hollows students on the big night.
Page 8 Issue 9 - 19th June 2015
Music News Jemima Bunn Director of Music
Upcoming Events
Term 2:
Friday 19 June—Friends of Music TRIVIA
NIGHT
Thursday 25 June – Concert Band & Sym-
phony Orchestra – WORKSHOP WITH ST ANDREW’S ANGLI-CAN SCHOOL, BRIS-
BANE
Friday 19 June - Music & Trivia Night 7pm—Gymnasium Bookings through: trybooking.com.au
Contact Details
Music Department 8804 6411*
*Direct line to Maureen
Jemima Bunn 8804 6464 (extn 6526)
Fax: 9894 2751
ANZAC Day March – Saturday 25 April The day was wet and grey as five teachers and thirty-six students of the Symphonic Band met at Federation Square to get ready to march in the ANZAC Day March. After a few weeks of memorising the march tune, Arch of Triumph, and learning how to march we gathered to contribute to the sound of drums, bagpipes and school and military bands, joining the numerous war veterans outside St Paul’s Cathedral, to cross Princess Bridge and go down St Kilda Road to the Shrine of Remembrance. The Symphonic Band were in good spirits and represented Blackburn High at a high standard. It was wonderful to see so many of the public out, despite the weather, to honour those who have contributed to Australia’s war story. Much thanks goes to the Louisa Pennell, Val Weber, Melissa Baron and Charles Ayre for marching with us in a supervisory role. Their support on the day is most appreciated. Thanks to Jude Hallam at Scotch College for loaning us percussion equipment, to our French Horn teacher Sarah Clark for her support, to John Kelly from Box Hill Band for the mace, and to Flight Sgt Ben van den Akker from the Royal Australian Air Force for coming in and helping us with the march etiquette.
Generations in Jazz: Mt Gambier – 1 – 3 May What a remarkable weekend – in more ways than jazz. A wet and wild weekend at Mt Gambier in a hotel reminiscent of Fawlty Towers complete with Basil and all. Students from Junior, Intermediate and Senior Jazz along with a clan of staff trooped off to Mt Gambier to perform in Generations In Jazz. The feedback we received was invaluable and constructive towards improving future experiences for our ensembles. I know from our conversations that this experience benefits not only the students but us as teachers as we continue to look towards our student development as musicians and as contributors to a good life. The awards we receive are an external qualification of the work being done with the students, but really witnessing how our students react to the experience of such an event and their excitement about being in music is a real qualification of the work we do. There is certainly be a buzz around the Music Department…. Awards: Division 1 Super Band – Tristan Webb, Luke Dema, James Heaney Division 2 Super Band – Neve Anderson-Vague Division 3 Super band – Ardian Strybosch Tom Gregory Award for most promising piano player in the competition - James Heaney, receiving a $3500 trust for continuing his studies in piano Ross and Jenny Blanchard Development Award - Stephanie Burger, receiving a $5000 trust for her musical development Division 1 – 3rd Prize went to Senior Jazz Orchestra, conducted by Andy O’Connell. Congratulations to Andy, Dave, Steve and Sandra for their work with stage bands and vocal ensemble, and to all the Music Staff for their support.
Margaret Graham eLearning Coordinator eLearning News
Page 9 Issue 9 - 19th June 2015
The National Secondary School Computer Fund (NSSCF) provided all students in Years 9-12 at Blackburn High School with a netbook provided that a $100 security deposit was paid . The program finished some time back and we are now approaching the end of the warranty period of the netbooks purchased. We would like to inform you that the school will no longer be responsible for the devices once the warranty period is over. We are planning to offer
existing devices to families at a cost of $50. If you choose to purchase your child’s device they will remain connected to the school server and have access to most of the programs they have currently whilst enrolled at the school. Once your child has left the school the programs and operating system on the device will remain active for a up to 90 days, after this time you will need to purchase the software you require. Some software will be removed at time of purchase due to licencing issues. Any repairs required to devices after this time will become the responsibility of the owner of the device. The school will offer support in terms of software issues and access issues but not repairs to devices. We recommend that devices are checked for warranty issues prior to the end of the warranty period and will advertise well in advance for students to come and have their device checked. If you do not wish to purchase your child’s device at this stage we ask that it be returned and you will receive a refund minus any damage costs on the returned device. Stay tuned ——- more information will be provided it Term 3.
Update to School Acceptable Use Policy Agreement
We have recently made changes to the school’s Acceptable Use of Technology Policy and will be requiring all parents/guardians and students to acknowledge and accept the terms of the policy. This update has been brought about to remove all mention of the now defunct NSSCF program from our policy. The new policy has been uploaded to Compass where we ask that you access it, read it and accept its terms and conditions by ticking the ‘accept’ section. Please note that parents/guardians and students are required to do to maintain access to the technology provided by the school, including internet access. Process:
Log onto Compass and go to the ‘Organisation’ icon and select ‘Course Confirmation/Payments
Select ‘Responsible Use of Technology Agreement’ option
Read the agreement in full
Proceed to the next screen and accept the agreement (parent) and then proceed again and accept the student agreement.
Timeline: Please ensure that you have completed this process prior to the commencement of Term 3 to ensure that your access to technology and internet is not disrupted.
Return or Purchase of School Netbooks
Page 10 Issue 9 - 19th June 2015
Mark Vasgyura Humanities Coordinator Humanities News
Year 8 Medieval Day
Late term all Year 8 students were immersed in the mysterious and strange world of Medieval Europe by attending our annual Medieval Day Incursion. They investigated the topics of Medieval Justice, War and Warfare and Medieval Entertainment by taking part of many authentic activities led by experts.
Page 11 Issue 9 - 19th June 2015
Primary School Links Georgia Pashias Primary School Links Coordinator
Blackburn Primary School visits Year 7 Discoveries During the Discoveries Rich Task Presentations we welcomed Grade 5 and 6 Blackburn Primary School students and their teachers. The group was informed about ‘What is a Rich Task?’ by Val Weber While visiting the presentations, students moved from one Discovery to the next, viewing the displays, interacting with our Year 7 students and providing them with positive feedback. Many enjoyed the special items on display at the different learning centres and opportunity to vote for the various awards. The Blackburn Primary students’ visit was a highlight of the presentation afternoon and was enjoyed by all with lots of learning happening along the way. Grade 6 student enjoy Science Experience
On Monday, 1 June the Grade 6 classes from Blackburn Primary School participated in a Science experience. The students rotated through a number of Science experiments. They were excited about their Science learning and although all activities were engaging, there were two favourites. The making of slime and getting their hair to stand on end using the Van De Graff machine. Some comments from the primary school students follow: ‘The slime experiment was lots of fun, but I wish we could have done many more experiments. It would be great to come and visit again for science later in the year.’ (Ashton H 6F) ‘We made slime! It was fun but was very messy. The Van De Graff was really cool, especially the static hair from one of our class mates.‘ (Miranda L 6F)
The Blackburn High School helpers were excellent. Each was responsible for assisting a group of primary students. Thank you to the following students for their help: Ashleigh Bowman, Luke Brito-Babapulle, Alexander Foster, Kaja Jeffrey, Mathilda Karow, Campbell McLean, Danny Nguyen, Benjamin Ridd, Siral Sethi, Miles Stukenborg, Jennifer Yi and Kateland Young. Thank you to the Blackburn High teachers, Steve Thomson and David Coulter for their participation.
Page 12 Issue 9 - 19th June 2015
School News
Year 12 Formal
What a night! Wednesday night saw the Year 12 students and their respective partners dancing the night away at the Blackburn High School Formal held at The Manningham. The students arrived at 7.00 pm in their stunning gowns and fabulous suits and mingled before the night kicked off with Najee Eltaha and Curt Webb as official hosts for the evening. The two hosts annonunced and presented the awards on the evening for Best dressed, Most Elegant, Miss Congeniality, Cutest Couple and Most Likely to be a Billionaire along with many other awards (likely to be remembered for a long time to come.) The winners were presented by beautiful sashes organized by Ms Crescia who also played a key role in the evening’s organisation. The music was fantastic and enjoyed by all including some teachers who dared to find a spot on the packed dance floor to join in the fun. Exstudent Dominic Hook was the official photographer who was busy taking photographs all night of the young ladies and gentlemen in their evening wear. Photos available soon. Finally, thanks and well done go to Ms Crescia, the venue staff, the DJ - Craig Mitchell, the official photographer Dominic Hook and the Year 12 Committee for making the night a huge success.
Nicole Taylor Coordinator International Cultural Tours
2015 Tour – Germany & Switzerland - Departing June 19, 2015 This year‘s tour is a learning experience students will remember for the rest of their lives. Students will explore some of Germany's historical and scenic treasures, see picturesque landscapes, charming villages, centuries-old towns and enchanting palaces. Students will explore the famous Neuschwanstein Castle, visit 2nd World War landmarks, marvel at the beauty of the Black Forest, glimpse into the personal worlds of famous composers such as Beethoven and Wagner, tour medieval villages and immerse themselves in their history, see the iconic remains of the Berlin Wall and learn about its place in history. They will discover for themselves some of the darker side of Germany’s involvement in the 2nd World War, and delight in the local traditions and culinary specialties of Germany – and much, much more.
Bi – Annual International Cultural Tours Opportunities to explore a world of exciting learning. Every two years Blackburn High School provides an opportunity for students to explore either Germany or France where they can practise their language skills, immerse themselves in the history and culture of these ancient lands,
indulge their senses in the wonderful worlds of music masters like Beethoven and Wagner and study the renowned artists of these two countries. The tours are truly
experiential learning at its best. They are also an opportunity for personal growth through the development of independence, responsibility, organisation, cooperation, sharing and being part of the team. The tours aid the development of lifelong skills and attributes that will guide our students through their lives. Pre-Payment Plans are available. Parents can set up an instalment payment plan
so that the cost of the trip is spread over the 18 months preceding departure.
2017 Tour – England and France Plan now and start your own savings plan
In 2017 students will tour London, Bath and Paris. They will have the opportunity to visit Windsor Castle, the summer residence of Queen Elizabeth and British Royalty for centuries, listen to iconic Big Ben chime the time at the Houses of Parliament, visit London Bridge and learn about its history, marvel at the view from the London Eye, built over the famous River Thames and one of the biggest Ferris wheels in the world, experience the colour and vitality of Broadway and see a stunning performance of Les Miserables before travelling to Bath an ancient city steeped in history and culture. Students will learn about the Romans, Edwardians, Georgians and Victorians in just one city.
After exploring London and Bath students will travel across the English Channel to savour the delights of Paris - one of the most famous cities in the world. They will enjoy the bird’s eye view from the world’s most recognizable structure, the Eiffel Tour, cruise the river Seine to take in the history and culture that abounds, journey to the UNESCO listed, visit the lavish palace of Versailles and stroll through the exquisite artistry of the palace gardens planted in 1661 by King Louis X1V and finish the tour with loads of fun at Disney Land, Paris. This is just a taste of the many attractions and experiences students will enjoy on this fabulous journey.
We are looking for: Local families to host International Students from overseas who will be studying at Blackburn High School from Years 10—12.
Homestay families are paid approximately $270- $280 per week. You must be English-speaking, willing to help the student(s) adjust to life in Australia and help improve their English through a variety of means. Please contact the International Students’ Program Coordinator Isabel Zhou on 8804 6464 if you would to have any
