31 March 2023

Newsletter Articles

Assistant Principals

Paul Stevenson
Andrea Saville

Grade Leaders

Grade 7: Elle Fox
Grade 8: Lenny Towns
Grade 9: Allison Stone
Grade 10: Sharon Parish and Dave Shorter

Support Services

School Psychologist: Caitlyn Osborne: Thursday and Friday
Social Worker: Trent Williams: Wednesday, Thursday, Friday
School Chaplain: Bec Cameron: Tuesday and Friday
School Health Nurse: Julie Edrich: Monday

PRINCIPAL’S REPORT

Last Friday saw the Induction Assembly for our 2023 Student Leaders. It was wonderful to be once again reminded of the outstanding calibre of students that we have here at Exeter High School. I look forward to seeing the valuable contributions this group of students makes to our school throughout 2023. An outstanding example of this already was the unveiling of the Exeter High Peace Pole last Wednesday, which recognises the relationship our students now have with Ukraine through their efforts to raise funds for students in that country. The SLC raised funds for two shelter boxes and a generator to be sent to Ukraine. There are a lot of other leadership opportunities available throughout the school and I encourage all students to make the most of these as they are presented.

Whilst talking about opportunities, we are being presented with various vocational possibilities this year, where students are being offered mentoring roles with industries and sessions in helping them become ready for job interviews. Once again, students need to seize these opportunities as these sessions can lead to employment and/or the development of skills and attributes that will be invaluable in future years as students seek employment in whatever field they find themselves interested. I would advise parents to encourage your child to seize these as they are presented to the grade throughout the year. In Term 2 already, we have several groups being provided with opportunities in hospitality/tourism and the timber industry. We also have approximately eight Year 9/10 students who will be commencing a program with the CSIRO each Wednesday afternoon, looking at the growth employment area of STEM. Congratulations to all the students who have taken these opportunities, you will benefit immensely from nominating yourself for these.

Last week saw our Year 7 and Year 9 students complete their 2023 NAPLAN tests in Numeracy and Literacy. I was impressed with the attitude and application of our students during these sessions, and we will have our school’s results later in the year to share.

Interim reports have been sent home this week either with your child or posted. Parent/Teacher nights will be held on Monday 3 April from 3.30pm-5.30pm and Tuesday 4 April form 3.30pm-5.30pm. If you would like to make an appointment with teachers, please call the school on 6394 4366.

Unfortunately, I have become aware this term that there are a number of students who are vaping. We have had several complaints from the bus companies and any students that are found to be vaping on any bus will be handed an automatic suspension from travelling on that bus for a length of time determined by the company. Vaping is a very harmful activity and I encourage all parents to read the information included in this newsletter around vaping and have conversations with your children around how harmful this activity is. I have held an assembly with all grades and informed everyone that any students found to be vaping or in the possession of vapes at school will be handed an automatic 10-day suspension.

Benjamin Frerk
Principal

EXETER HIGH SCHOOL ASSOCIATION – AGM

The Annual General Meeting for the Exeter High School Association is Tuesday 2nd May 2023 at 6:00pm in the School Staffroom. The School Association would certainly value new members and their contributions moving forward.

Please contact the office on 6394 4366 for a nomination form as we have vacancies available.

MY EDUCATION DAY

My Education at Exeter High School supports students in making important life choices around planning for their future. It helps them to identify their personal interests, values, strengths, opportunities, and aspirations, and teaches them how to use this knowledge to make decisions about their future learning, work, and life opportunities. It has been shown that students who consider their interests and opportunities early on have a clearer picture about who they are and what they might like to do. Research has shown that students who are actively engaged in shaping their own life and career have:

• improved relationships
• higher aspirations
• an increase in confidence and self esteem
• healthier lifestyle habits
• a more positive outlook on life.

A variety of activities were undertaken in each of the grades as part of the EHS My Education Day on Friday 24th March.

Year 7

The Term 1 Year 7 focus for My Education Day was around building relationships. In Lesson 1, we highlighted the importance of starting the day well and kicked things off with a grade breakfast and had time to get to know one another outside in the Year 7 area. A huge thank you to Coles Supermarket for contributing items towards our grade breakfast. In Lesson 2, we walked to Gravelly Beach and participated in a range of activities with a focus on team challenges designed to build group cohesion, develop communication, and promote respectful relationships. In Lesson 3, students participated in a workshop by JCP on resilience, which they thoroughly enjoyed. The Year 7 students engaged well with the content and activities making it a worthwhile experience for all.

Year 8

The Grade 8 focus for My Education Day was around transferrable skills and traits in lesson 1, critical thinking in lesson 2 and a presentation from JCP about resilience in lesson 3. These are all skills which are highly valued by employers and students participated in a range of activities to unpack and apply these concepts. They also had an opportunity to self-reflect on their areas of strength and areas for improvement to best set themselves up for positive and productive outcomes in the future. Students engaged very well with the content and activities, making for an enjoyable and worthwhile experience for all.

My Education Activities Year 8

Year 9 and Year 10

Lesson 1 and 2 - JCP Presentation and workshop

Resilience - Empowering young people to be the best version of themselves

JCP’s aim is to inspire and empower young people to become extraordinary leaders who positively contribute to our communities. Their purpose is to create better humans, by working with them through a variety of programs to become the best versions of themselves. Will Smith, founding member of JCP, presented a jam-packed program for Lesson 1 and Lesson 2 that was thought-provoking and engaging in its delivery of content and interactive sessions. The purpose was to guide all those present toward positive engagement in life, building resilience and to steer them away from negative behaviours and thoughts. The 9/10 students learnt about:

• thoughts, actions, opinions – emotive responses
• understanding influence
• taking responsibility – your capacity to be resilient is your ability to control emotional opportunities
• building resilience – one word to control your response – ‘good’
• two wolves, good and bad wolf – feeds thought processes
• self-talk is incredibly important – sleep, exercise, food intake and water is important to feed ‘good’ wolf
• smiling minds – positive mind set
• your greatest strengths
• enemy of resilience is excuses

Lesson 3 - Year 9 students spent the afternoon focussing on well-being. Students were provided with a variety of well-being-based options and participated in two activities.

Year 10 - Students focussed on developing their Transition Plans, completing resumes and initial preparation for Mock Interviews to be held in Term 2.

EXCELLENCE AT EXETER

These certificates are awarded to two students in each grade 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 students:

Jessica from 7A: Jessica is a friendly and respectful student. She demonstrates an excellent work ethic, applying herself across all subject areas to complete tasks to the best of her ability. Jessica consistently upholds our school values and is an excellent role model for her peers. Values demonstrated: Respect, Learning, Maturity & Acceptance

Gabriel from 7B: Gabriel is a polite and friendly student who works co-operatively with his peers. He always tries his best and has impressed his teachers with his positive attitude towards his learning. Gabriel is an excellent role model who consistently upholds our school values. Values demonstrated: Respect, Learning, Maturity & Acceptance

Kallie from 8A: Kallie consistently demonstrates a mature approach towards her learning. She is a quiet, conscientious, and respectful student who has made an excellent start to the year. A highly organised and independent learner; Kallie also willingly assists and supports other students. Values demonstrated: Respect, Learning, Maturity & Acceptance

Oliver from 8C: Oliver is a punctual, well-organised and respectful student who consistently demonstrates a conscientious approach towards his learning. He is an independent learner who can prioritise tasks to meet deadlines for task completion. Keep up the great work Oliver! Values demonstrated: Respect, Learning, Maturity & Acceptance

Jaydah from 9A: Jaydah has been working well across all areas. She takes a mature approach to tasks and has an improved focus in classes. Jaydah is a polite and respectful student. Values demonstrated: Respect, Learning, & Maturity

Thomas from 9A: Thomas follows all our school values consistently and is a focused and dedicated student. He is polite and respectful with his interactions with others. Thomas has demonstrated a great work ethic. Values demonstrated: Respect, Learning, & Maturity.

Jayden from 10A: Jayden is a valued member of the Year 10 group, with his sense of humour and can-do attitude allowing him to achieve success. He can follow instructions in a timely and respectful manner, and it was terrific to see him thank a visiting artist on behalf of the group recently. Jayden demonstrates leadership skills regularly, and approaches classroom activities with a positive attitude. Values demonstrated: Respect, Learning, Maturity and Acceptance.

YEAR 7 ENGLISH

In Year 7 English, students have been studying The Amber Amulet, a novella written by Craig Silvey and illustrated by Sonia Martinez. Twelve-year-old Liam Mackenzie (a.k.a. The Masked Avenger) and his faithful companion Richie the Powerbeagle patrol Franklin Street nocturnally, doing all sorts of good deeds. Liam derives his superpowers from his collection of gemstones. In readiness for reading the book, Year 7 students researched their birthstones and developed superheroes based on their findings. Their work is on display in the classrooms and looks great. The Amber Amulet addresses the importance of truth and honesty, and each student has received a small piece of amethyst as a reminder of these important virtues.

YEAR 9/10 COOKING

The year 9/10 Food Technology students have been learning about foods for festive occasions. They have been focussing on days and events that are celebrated and the type of foods that are associated with them. They had the opportunity to independently research and design their own celebration cake to create and decorate from scratch. Here are the finished products.

9/10 Festive Cakes

WINDEWARD BOUND EXPERIENCE

In late 2022, Isabella Topperwien successfully applied for a place aboard the brigantine Windeward Bound. In our whole-school assembly on Friday 17th March, Isabella recounted her experiences aboard the 33-metre vessel. Here is what she told the school.

On the 12th of December 2022, I set out on a voyage alongside 19 other teenagers. The Windeward Bound is a tall ship that runs sail training voyages for all ages. Every year, the crew on board run a 10-day voyage consisting of 10 Tasmanian children and 10 new Tasmanians or refugee children.

To be able to go on the Windeward Bound, I had to raise $2500, whether that be through sponsors, fundraising or donations. Since I only found out about the Windeward Bound three weeks before it began, I was given $500 worth of tickets and merchandise to sell. All the proceeds went towards helping women with gynaecological cancers. Generously, Rotary covered the rest of my costs.

The goal of the voyage was not only to learn how to sail but to connect with others and build relationships with people from diverse backgrounds you might not have off the boat. On the boat, there were no phones allowed, as it was seen as a distraction and defeats the purpose of connecting with others. We were also not allowed to know anybody before arriving to the boat. On the boat, age, race and status or wealth was not a factor when it came to building relationships with the crew. Everybody was equal and everybody was able to learn and grow together, as nobody really had any knowledge on sailing a boat.

On day one, we were divided into three groups: red, white, and blue. These were our watch groups and the people with whom we spent most our time. Then we were assigned watch hours. dog watches being 2-to-4-hour shifts from 8am to 8pm and guts watches being 4-hour shifts from 8pm to 8am. We were then given a thorough safety talk and run through. Then we were shown our sleeping quarters. The first watch started at 8pm, meaning we had a few hours to get to know the other kids.

I immediately felt welcomed by all the other kids and excited for the journey ahead. My first watch happened to be the worst, 4am to 8am. On our watch, we were shown around the boat and taught how to do checks. Doing checks ensured that the boat was on course and running smoothly.

Morning muster was held and attended by all members of the boat. We were told the plan for the day and held rope races. Rope races were when one representative from each watch competed with another to be the first to tie a specific knot. All the points were tallied every morning and my watch ended up winning by half a point at the end of the voyage. After morning muster, we held cleaning stations, where each watch cleaned a part of the boat. I had to scrub the deck.

We were all assigned specific ropes around the boat for different sails. For example, for the lower topsail I was on the starboard side brace. To show understanding, on day five we had to draw and label all the sails and ropes around the boat. This meant learning over 40 lines.

To get us to connect more since we were separated in watch groups, the crew held group activities such as an egg drop challenge and climbing to the mast together. The mast was 45 meters tall and not everybody could reach the top as it required a lot of upper body strength. The hardest part of my journey was probably commandment day. On day eight at morning muster, we were told that we were in charge and that the crew was leaving us in charge for 24 hours to run the boat. We had to elect captains, 1st and 2nd mates, watch leaders and second deckies, then we were given a list of things we had to do as well as destinations we had to sail to. It was difficult but it truly showed leadership and teamwork as a whole to be able to meet those destinations.

This whole experience has shown me how responsible I can be as well as how important relationships with your peers are. At the end of the voyage, I didn’t just learn how to sail a tall ship, but I made friends who have told me their stories, told me their aspirations, and with whom I’ve formed a connection that I’ll carry for the rest of my life.

Isabella
Year 10 student

TAPG-TFGA AG INNOVATION EXPO – HAGLEY FARM SCHOOL & AGRICULTURAL LEARNING CENTRE –

Student Industry & Leadership Experience – Wednesday April 19th & Thursday April 20th.

Spraying & Planting – Thursday April 20th

If students require further information, please see Mr Fox at school or contact him on 6394 4366 before the end of the term.

STUDENT VALIDATION AND POLICY AGREEMENT FORMS DUE BACK BEFORE END OF TERM

We ask that these forms be returned to the administration team before the end of term. It is very important that you carefully check the information and make changes where required on the Validation form. Please add any other contacts you would like recorded as emergency contacts. The Expectations form has areas for both parents and students to sign. If you need any assistance with these forms, please contact our administration team on 6394 4366.

ABSTUDY INFORMATION FOR ABORIGINAL OR TORRES STRAIT ISLANDER STUDENTS

We’d like to ensure families know about how ABSTUDY can help support high school students. This includes families whose children are living at home and may not know they’re eligible. When students live at home, eligible families can get support with school fees and school materials like uniforms, textbooks and stationery.

It’s not too late to claim ABSTUDY support for the 2023 school year.

For more information visit: ABSTUDY - Services Australia

CALENDAR

Calendar – Term 1 & 2, 2023

April

TERM 2

May

June

July

*Calendar is updated fortnightly – please check as there could be changes to previously advertised dates.

COMMUNITY CORNER

QUEEN VICTORIA MUSEUM AND ART GALLERY – SCHOOL HOLIDAY PROGRAM

LEGANA YOUTH CENTRE – TERM 2 ACTIVITIES

BEACONSFIELD YOUTH CENTRE – TERM 2 ACTIVITIES

RSPCA TASMANIA MILLION PAWS WALK - -21st MAY 2023, HERITAGE FOREST

VAPING UPDATE

Vaping is becoming more and more popular with Australia’s youth, but this trending activity poses a serious concern to young people's health. As Australia’s leading lung health charity, Lung Foundation Australia has developed new interactive eLearning for young people aged 12-18 years old to help them make informed choices. The e-learning, Unveil what you inhale: Vaping truths, is a short 15-20 minute interactive education module that brings awareness to the harms of vaping, fills critical knowledge gaps about vapes and encourages young people to be vape-free advocates amongst their friends and community.

Upon completion of the eLearning, participants will be able to:

• Outline what vapes are and how they work
• Identify harmful ingredients found in vapes
• Describe the short and long-term impacts of vaping
• Demonstrate ways to combat peer pressure.

This eLearning has been developed and reviewed by leading experts to ensure that the most up to date and accurate information about vaping is presented. Parents, teachers and young people have also been engaged in the development process to ensure the content is appropriate, relevant and engaging.

Access the eLearning here:

By submitting the registration form, participants will receive a confirmation email to create their own individual account to access the eLearning. We have also developed a brief guide for educators with suggestions on how to integrate this activity into schools and classrooms.