30 April 2021

Newsletter Articles

Assistant Principals

Paul Stevenson
Andrea Saville

Grade Leaders

Grade 7: Naomi Cartledge
Grade 8: Elle Fox
Grade 9: Skye Champion
Grade 10: Allison Stone

Support Services

School Psychologist: David McCormack: Wednesday & Friday
Social Worker: Lauren Brown: Monday/Tuesday/Wednesday
School Chaplain: Paul Burton: Wednesday/Friday
School Health Nurse: Dave Mackay: Thursday

Principal’s Report

I was very proud last Sunday when I attended the ANZAC dawn service at the Exeter RSL. Our SLC members who represented the school did an outstanding job and the tribute to our soldiers, read out by Emily Franks and Urban Farquhar was a true reflection of the calibre of students we have here at Exeter High School. I would also like to thank Maddison Dunn, Isaac Leslie, Rebecca Edwards and Eve Herne, who spoke at the 11:00am services at Exeter and Beaconsfield, families and staff who attended the various services in our community on this very important day. Our ANZAC assembly here at school last Friday was a most fitting tribute to our armed forces. Thank you in particular to Mrs Parish and her Grade 9/10 Drama class for their excellent performance.

As I have highlighted in previous newsletters, attendance at school every day is vital for students to succeed. If your child is away for any reason, please notify the school office so that we can adjust attendance records accordingly. Also, if you are having difficulty getting your child to school for any reason, please contact their Grade Leader to discuss any ways in which we as a school can further support you. As the colder months begin to arrive, please contact the school as well if your family is having any difficulties with uniforms as we are able to help out wherever needed.

Last night’s Stargazing event was a very popular and successful one, where students and their families were given the opportunity to participate in a fantastic experience that is rarely offered to schools. Thank you to Mr Finnigan and Mrs Hall-Dadson for organising this event and to everyone who came along to support this night.

Benjamin Frerk
Principal

Beaconsfield Anzac Day Service

Student Leaders Eve and Rebecca at the 11:00am Beaconsfield ANZAC Day Service.

2021 Inter-High Swim Carnival

On Wednesday 31st March, a team of 28 students headed off to the Launceston Aquatic Centre to compete in the Division 1 Inter-High Swimming Carnival. Due to some Covid-19 restrictions still being in place, team numbers were capped for all schools, creating a more “level playing field” this year. With a formidable task ahead of them, our students embraced the challenge of competing against schools almost three times our size to maintain our status in the top division. Some outstanding individual performances and excellent team efforts contributed to our overall fifth placing behind Prospect, Riverside, Kings Meadows and Queechy High.

All team members are to be congratulated for their selection in the Inter-High squad and for upholding their commitment to every allocated event. Special mention goes to the following students for participating in a higher age group to fill events in true team spirit:

Milly Cheetham and Princezz Feely (Gr 9 Girls 4 x 50m Freestyle Relay)

Rachelle Plapp (Gr 9 Girls 50m Breastroke)

The following students and teams achieved top three placings which greatly assisted our overall points tally. Congratulations to:

Aidan Woods (Gr 9 Boys)

1st – 50m Butterfly, 50m Freestyle A, 100m Freestyle, 50m Breastroke A, 100m Breastroke
2nd – 50m Backstroke

Hannah Carr (Gr 10 Girls)

2nd – 50m Freestyle A, 100m Freestyle
3rd – 50m Butterfly, 50m Breastroke A, 50m Backstroke A

Ben Hockey (Gr 9 Boys)

1st – 50m Breastroke B

Aimee Ringk (Gr 10 Girls)

2nd – 50m Backstroke B

Edward Jones (Gr 9 Boys)

3rd – 50m Freestyle B

Olivia Sheppard (Gr 8 Girls)

3rd – 50m Freestyle B

Gr 9 Boys 4 x 50m Freestyle Relay

2nd – Aidan Woods, Ben Hockey, Edward Jones, Dylan Russell

Boys Combined Age 4 x 50m Freestyle Relay

3rd – Jack Porteus, Avery Thomas, Aidan Woods, Niall Swain

Mrs Robinson
Co-ordinator

Excellence at Exeter

These certificates are awarded to Grade 8 students in recognition of their efforts in upholding the school values and helping to make our school an excellent learning environment.

Congratulations to this fortnight’s Grade 8 students:

Jessica from 8B: Jessica is a caring and conscientious student who has commenced Year 8 in a very positive manner. She can work effectively with a range of students and is highly regarded by her peers as a supportive class member. Values demonstrated: Respect, Learning, Maturity & Acceptance.

Ethan from 8A. Ethan is a quiet achiever who consistently upholds our school values. He applies himself conscientiously to all tasks and consistently meets deadlines for task completion. Ethan is a kind, reliable and respectful student. Values demonstrated: Respect, Learning, Maturity & Acceptance.

Grade 9 Student Representative Council

Congratulation to our Grade 9 Student Representative Council members:

Eliza Kemsley, Chloe White, Ashlee Norgrove, Ben Hockey, Jordan Sulkowski and Sam Jayne-O’Connor.

Grade 9/10 Psychology

2021 has seen the introduction of Psychology as a half-year option subject for Grades 9 and 10.

This subject has been designed to be a fast-paced taster of some of the topics that students may come across if they choose to study Psychology in college and beyond. It is proving to be a rigorous but fun academic subject in which the students have been enthusiastic and eager to learn new things.

Topics covered include:

Human Development, where students unpack the meaning of the age-old debate, Nature vs Nurture.

Neuroscience, which investigates the structure and function of the brain and nervous system.

This term we are working on Learning and Behaviour, which explores the theories and concepts behind how humans learn and why they behave the way they do.

The remainder of the term will see the students investigate Emotions, Stress and Mental Health; Body Language and Lying; Sleep and Dreaming; and Personality.

Whilst the theory work is challenging at times, there have been many practical activities for students to experiment with their newfound knowledge. At the end of last term, students wound up the Neuroscience unit with a brain dissection (pig) which allowed them to identify cerebral structures. After having learnt the most prevalent structures, students are now able to identify corresponding functions and put this into practise with the current Learning and Behaviour unit. Students recently experienced new skill acquisition in accordance with brain plasticity in which they completed a mirror image maze tracing challenge. This requires ignoring automatic neural pathways whilst creating new pathways through repetition and flipping right and left hemispheric processes. Not as easy as it looks!

All in all, Psychology is fantastic opportunity for students to explore the mysteries of the brain which may spark some interest for them in pursuing a pathway in the area in their future studies.

Bridie Youd
Psychology Teacher

Psychology students at work

Exeter High School AGM

Exeter High School - School Association

Notice of Annual General Meeting

The Exeter High School Association will be holding an AGM at the Exeter High School Staffroom on

Tuesday, 4th May 2021 at 6:00pm

This AGM will announce the new Committee Members

All parents, nominated community members and staff are welcome to attend.

SLC FUNDRAISER - SILLY SOCK DAY

The Student Leadership Council will be holding a Silly Sock Day on Friday, 7th May 2021. Please bring a gold coin donation to help raise funds to support the Cancer Council.

Chloe – Tasmanian U15 Girls Hockey Team

I was selected in the Tasmanian team to participate in the U15 National Hockey Championships in Bathurst from 9th – 15th April 2021. We played 6 pool games and 2 finals games in total over the period of the championships against the other states. I was lucky enough to score the first goal for the tournament for the Tasmanian girls’ team and was also equal highest goal scorer! Our games were all very close, with the scoreboard not necessarily representing our dominance in some of the games. It was a new experience for me playing on a sand (hybrid) turf, which is not very forgiving when you fall to the ground as it results in significant turf burn injuries (as I found out). It was a great experience to be able to travel away to represent Tasmania, especially during the current times.

Chloe from 9A

NAPLAN online – information for parents and carers

Across Australia, NAPLAN Online assessments will take place between Tuesday 11 May and Friday 21 May 2021. At Exeter High School, all Grade 7 and Grade 9 students will take part in NAPLAN Online assessments as follows:

• Wednesday 12 May: Writing
• Thursday 13 May: Reading
• Friday 14 May: Language Conventions
• Monday 17 May: Numeracy

If your child is absent from school at the time of testing, we will make arrangements for him/her to complete the missed test(s) at another time during the school’s testing schedule.

Students with a disability may qualify for adjustments that reflect the support normally provided for classroom assessments. You should discuss the use of any adjustments for you child with your child’s teacher.

You can support your child by reassuring him/her that NAPLAN is just one part of the school program, and to simply complete the tests to the best of his/her ability.

A NAPLAN individual student report will be issued for your child later in the year. This will be sent home to you.

For more NAPLAN information, visit the link below.

Visitor and Student Check In

We have a new sign in procedure for visitors and volunteers, or students who arrive late (parents will need to be present to sign their child in). It is known as School Kiosk and it is in the front foyer of the school. The School Kiosk is an online check in system that records people entering and leaving the school site.

Visitors/Volunteers checking into the school will need to produce the following:

• Working with Vulnerable People registration card and details.
• Name and phone number
• Company details
• Site contact person

Students arriving late or leaving school early will need their parent/carer to come in to the office, or alternatively parent/carers can phone the school to advise or send a note with their child.

We thank you in advance for your support to our current changes to sign in/out procedures.

Term Dates 2021

Calendar – Term 2

May

June

July

Community Corner

West Tamar Council’s Youth Centre Programs

West Tamar Council's Youth Centre program for Legana and Beaconsfield will be recommencing from 3rd May 2021.

We require all young people to complete the form before attending (if you completed this for term 1, you don't have to complete again). We look forward to having a range of fun, active and creative activities on offer for young people to engage in. The youth centre program is completely free and also includes afternoon tea and refreshments for everyone to enjoy. Age restrictions apply.

Registration is required as part of our safety plan. Make sure you register for 2021!

Online registration can be made at the link below.