Loading

Northlakes High School Newsletter - week 8, term 3, 2019

Principal's Message

We have had some outstanding recognition in the past few weeks. Congratulations to Ms Stacey Ewer, Mr David Hextell and Ms Jo Jager on receiving recognition for their outstanding contributions to Northlakes High School at the Central Coast Education Awards held last week at Kariong High School. Also Mrs Danielle Evans and Ms Kim Dean have been recognised as part of World's Teachers Day for their outstanding efforts and ability in the classroom supporting students.

Central Coast Public Education Awards

Northlakes High School was recognised along with some of our neighbouring schools with a Secretary's Award for an Outstanding School Initiative. The award was for the Creating Chances program that has been running in the various schools. Congratulations to Mr James Mackinnon and Mrs Erin Boake who have been the two staff running the program for us on such a successful achievement. Thank you to Mr Boake who represented the school at the awards ceremony at Sydney Town Hall to receive the certificate.

Year 9 students DaeShan, Reilly, Kahu, Jazmin and Aleisha represented Northlakes High School at Central Coast Future Council recently. Future Council is a project of Central Coast Council and an opportunity for students to experience a real life council debate while exploring both sides of current local environmental concerns. It gives students the opportunity to experience the democratic processes of government and the role and procedures of municipal decision making. The students were outstanding ambassadors for our school.

Central Coast Future Council students

This week we welcome Mrs Lauren Goldie as Head Teacher Aboriginal Student Learning Pathways following a statewide selection process. Mrs Goldie joins us having previously been at Gorokan High School. Mrs Goldie will co-ordinate our Muru Bulbi Learning Centre. She has been joined by Ms Maddy Matthews-Turner who has been employed as a student learning support officer. Together they will support Aboriginal students by providing a range of activities, opportunities and enrichment to foster positive engagement in schooling and assist students develop their full potential. Mrs Goldie and Ms Matthews-Turner will be actively forging relationships with students and families over the next few weeks.

We held a very successful book week. Thank you to Mr Burley who organised the activities held during book week and all the students and staff that participated. It is important that students participate in regular reading activities to improve their vocabulary, grammar and general knowledge. The library has a number of new additions to its collection for students to borrow and take home so that they can read at home regularly.

Finally could I stress that ripped jeans/pants are not part of the uniform at Northlakes High School. They may be seen as fashionable at the moment, but they are not appropriate school wear. Please do not be convinced by your teenager that the purchase of torn/ripped jeans is a great idea because they can wear them to school. Also there are a number of female students who think that they are being trendy and part of the 'cool group' by wearing grey hooded jumpers. Again these are not acceptable as part of the Northlakes uniform. Students are required to wear a plain black jumper/cardigan/hoodie with no large corporate logos. If your child is leaving home in a grey jumper please talk to them about succumbing to peer pressure from others to wear the wrong clothing.

For families that need financial support in supplying correct uniforms please contact your child's Year Advisor and they can assist you through funding that we have available in the school.

#TeamNorthlakes - Opportunities for Future Success!

Yours in Public Education,

Warren Welham

Enrolment Policy changes

Year 7

Year 7 have been travelling well so far this term. All class changes have been finalised and the handful of students affected have successfully adapted to their new classes.

Reminder to parents and carers that spelling homework should be coming home weekly. This is an excellent way for students to improve their literacy skills. As students move towards the end of Year 7, it is important for them to take responsibility for their own homework and assignments, as this will be a valuable skill for future years. If anyone is having difficulty with this, they are encouraged to speak with their classroom teachers or come to see me. We’re always happy to help.

As the weather is starting to get warmer, it seems like an appropriate time for another reminder about uniform. Northlakes High has a strict policy on what is accepted as uniform. If you have any questions or concerns about this, please contact me so we can resolve any issues that may arise.

Parents and carers are reminded that they can contact me on 43900555, or paige.watts@det.nsw.edu.au with any questions or concerns.

Paige Teulan

Year 7 Advisor

Year 8

Halfway through the term for Year 8 students! Thank you to all of the parents and students who took the time to come and visit with teachers on the information night for subject selection for Year 9 electives. Students have been very engaged and have asked informed questions to ensure that they have chosen subjects that are suited to their interests and abilities and I look forward to seeing what they achieve next year in those chosen subjects!

A reminder to all students about the NHS non-negotiables, you all need to be following the policies that are in place to ensure that you are getting the best out of your time within learning environment. The non-negotiables are in place so that you are not distracted or distracting the learning of your peers – in particular please make sure that hats are off, phones are away in your bags and that you are in class on time each morning and after the bell goes at the end of each break with all of your equipment ready to learn.

One of the most frequent questions I am asked from parents is related to Cyber safety and online bullying. Often parents will just want to arm themselves with knowledge as a preventative measure in case they ever need to know what to do in the event that an online incident ever occurs. I cannot stress enough how fantastic the E-safety Commissioner website is! The site has multiple links and factsheets that cover all you need to know about cyber use and will help if you also have primary aged children. Below is a handy video that shows you how to collect evidence related to an incidence of cyber bullying if needed.

As always if you need to contact me please do not hesitate at all on 43900555.

Stacey Ewer

Year 9

Positive Behaviour for Learning

Positive Behaviour for Learning (PBL) is a whole school program at Northlakes High School. Our three main areas of focus are Respect, Responsibility and Personal Best. Below are the PBL expectations for everyone, everywhere, all the time.

Respect

  • Value everyone
  • Care for each other
  • Use polite language

Responsibility

  • We are safe
  • We own our own behaviour
  • We are on time
  • We follow instructions

Personal Best

  • We are organised
  • We are ready to learn
  • We deliver quality

For further information on our school’s PBL program, please see visit our website

Right Time, Right Place

Right Time, Right Place is a key component of the PBL value of Responsibility. It is expected that students arrive to school by 8am ready for roll call at 8:10am. We understand that sometimes students are late and when this happens, students need to sign in at the student window and then report to their timetabled lesson. It is important that any lateness or absence is explained via a parent phone call to the school or a written and signed note.

Once at school students are expected to be in their timetabled classes throughout the day. Students need to be prepared for all lessons with the necessary equipment including a book for each subject and pens. Should students need to leave early for any reason appropriate processes need to followed such as a note explaining the need to leave early and signing out through the student window.

Uniform

With the weather remaining cooler a reminder that students need to be in full school uniform which includes black pants (no ripped jeans or leggings) and a plain black jumper or jacket. Other colours or jumpers/jackets with large branding and logos are not school uniform. Further information can be found on the school website.

If you require any additional information, or have any concerns about your child please do not hesitate to contact me on 4390 0555.

Genevieve Henry - Year 9 Advisor (relieving)

Year 10

We have just reached the halfway point of the term and there is no sign of slowing down yet! NHS focus for Year 10 is preparing them for their upcoming shift from junior to secondary schooling and ensuring that they have chosen subjects that will benefit them for their future. As a result, the Year 10 subject selection interviews will take place this week on Thursday and Friday. It is an opportunity for parents/ carers and student to have a conversation with a member of staff about their subject choices and future goals. It is important to ensure students are talking to people about their subjects and tentative career in order to be informed and ensure correct decisions are made. Students have been encouraged to wear professional attire to these interviews. Students are reminded that they only attend their scheduled day and time for their interview. They are expected to be in class as normal on the other day.

Attendance is starting to become a concern with many students in Year 10 trailing below the 85% attendance benchmark. It is important for growth and understanding of core subject content that students attend school each day and on time. At present, many students are becoming habitual late arrivals which is impacting on their learning and attendance percentage. Further, some students have also decided to regularly truant lessons, which goes against our PBL initiative of responsibility and personal best. Our school has strict policies in place regarding truancy and habitual lateness and students may find themselves referred to our orange card team and have their attendance/ lateness monitored closely. Below is the DEC policy about school attendance link for further reading. If your child is struggling to get to school for any reason, please reach out so we can put supports in place.

If you have any concerns or wish to contact me, please feel free. I can be contacted on 43 900 555 or via email at jarad.freebody@det.nsw.edu.au

Jarad Freebody Year 10

Year 11

SENIOR JACKETS!

Thank you to everyone who have paid their deposit of $50. Now is the time to see me with the nickname you would like on the back of your jacket. Some “characters” are available such as ♥ © ® ™ ☺ etc

You will also need to tell me how much of your name you would like on the front of your jacket under the “Class of 2020” wording. Please let me know asap – write it on a post-it note and leave it at my desk if you can’t find me. The balance of your jacket is due by the end of Term 3. Total cost is $100.

Congratulations to Zara Smith, Kari Bullman and Samantha Monzer for their efforts in the Max Potential Showcase at Wyong Rugby Leagues Club on Thursday evening. The Max Potential project offers 22 weeks of personal leadership development, including coaching, to young leaders from schools and the community, to help them maximise their potential during the final years at school and beyond. It encourages students to focus on the local community and ways that they can work to improve it. Zara worked with Year 7 students looking at Youth Mental Health in an "Act of Kindness Project". Samantha worked with Sharyn Burgess from 'Because We Care Boutique' based at Wyong Neighbourhood Centre focussing on supporting women going into and getting back into the workforce. Kari was inspired by LGBTQIA community and raising awareness in younger secondary students. Her main message was "It is OK to be different".

A reminder that HSC minimum standards test practice is available for Year 11 students every Thursday in Period 2 until the end of the year. Tests are conducted in the Library Lab, but you must enrol in advance by putting your name down in room D46. This is a great opportunity for anyone still needing to meet the minimum standards for HSC. I am aware of a few Year 11 students who have taken this opportunity and encourage others to do the same. It would be wise to consider meeting the HSC standards prior to commencing Year 12 next term.

If you have any questions, feel free to contact me on 4390 0555 or Fiona.Davis4@det.nsw.edu.au

Thankyou

Mrs Fiona Davis - Year 11 Advisor

Year 12

Well done to everyone who studied hard and prepared for the HSC trial examinations. I would like to congratulate you on your behaviour and maturity during this time.

Please use these last 5 weeks of this term to prepare for the HSC. Complete practise papers and submit them to your teachers for feedback. For every exam paper you complete, you can go into a draw to win 2 free formal tickets.

Reminder: the formal tickets are due in full by the 13th of September. This includes your plus one. All plus one tickets must be approved by Mr Welham. Please do this as soon as possible as I need to confirm numbers at Kooindah Waters.

If you have any questions, please feel free to contact me on 43900555 or email Kerry.bissaker@det.nsw.edu.au

Mrs Kerry Bissaker - Year 12 Advisor

Maths

Year 12 students have just completed their Trial Exams. It is very important that students go through their papers thoroughly and learn from any mistakes or fill gaps in their knowledge. Each student will be provided with solutions to help with this process and teachers are available to assist with any concerns or uncertainties. It is advised that students seek out Excel type books. These are very worthwhile in helping to familiarise students with the style of questions they can expect. The next few weeks until the HSC exams are vital preparation time and we often find that students make huge leaps in their knowledge of their courses during this time.

Year 11 students have exams coming up in Week 7. It is the culmination of the assessment program for Mathematics Standard, Mathematics Advanced and Extension 1. It is not quite the end of the course since there will be more content to cover early in Term 4. Students should be aware that 30% of all Year 11 content is also examinable in Year 12, so there is nothing that can be left behind as irrelevant.

Stage 5 grading. Schools are responsible for awarding each student a grade (A, B, C, D, or E) to summarise the students achievement in any 100 hour or 200 hour course completed in Stage 5. In Mathematics, grades have been further differentiated to nine levels (A10, A9, B8, B7, C6, C5, D4, D3 and E2). The grade awarded is reported on the student's Record of School Achievement.

Teachers should use these Stage 5 course performance descriptors to determine Stage 5 grades. The descriptors have been developed from the Boards general performance descriptors, and provide a more complete description of typical performance in this course at each grade level. The CPD’s can be accessed on the schools website.

Problem of the month

If an analogue clock reads 12:05, what is the approximate angle formed by its hands? What if it reads 1:36?, 4:57?

Dean Lappas

Head Teacher Mathematics

Science

Halfway through Term 3 and our Science students have been busy in the lab. We celebrated Science Week recently with visitors to the school running a number of students through a crime scene investigation.

Students and teachers got a preview of the exciting new digital learning resources available to NSW public schools the STEMShare Community program. At Northlakes we have been lucky enough to have access to a digital filming kit and tablet robotics kit. Using these technologies our students will need to think critically, solve problems creatively, work in teams, communicate clearly in a range of media and continue to learn to engage with new and ever-evolving technologies.

Robots

In our junior school:

• Year 7 are currently working on forces and the application of these to everyday life. In Mr Mason’s class they undertook a problem-solving task, protecting an egg from total destruction when launched across the playground. Needless to say there were hilarious results.

• Year 8 are busy being chemists, making elements and compounds out of lollies.

• Year 9 are looking at Earth’s spheres, particularly the impact humans are having on them.

• Year 10 are studying Genetics and Evolution. Within this topic they are looking at the occurrence of genetic disease, the inheritance of physical feature and theories about the origins of life on Earth.

Year 10 Genetic projects

Assessment tasks for our juniors this term include a portfolio of work that they will prepare in class throughout the term, a practical task to test their ability to follow a series of instructions and an end of term examination. If you would like to access additional support material for home study you will find homework books for each topic in Year 7 to 10 on the Northlakes High School website

If you have any questions or concerns about the assessment schedule for Science please don’t hesitate to get in touch with one of our teachers.

Science teachers

In our Senior school our Year 12 students have just finished their Trial HSC Examinations and our Year 11 students are about to complete their final exams in the preliminary courses. It is recommended that all of our senior students are accessing the Edrolo system in preparations for their final exams. This is an interactive revision tool containing content that is designed, produced, and filmed with experienced teachers in Australia. All content is painstakingly crafted and centred around the NSW curriculum, and covers every single dot-point in the relevant study design or syllabus.

In the lead up to the Trial HSC Exams our Biology, Chemistry and Physics students had the opportunity to expand their studies through a visit to Newcastle University for Experiment Fest. They had the chance to use some advanced scientific technology that we are unable to access in the school lab such as the mass spectrometer and colorimeter.

News from the Ag Farm

We would like to introduce three new animals to the Northlakes family, Ham and Kevin Bacon our new pigs and a beautiful baby Angus Cow.

Marine Studies

In Term 3 Mrs Fulwood, Mr Dawkins and Mrs Starrett took a group of 35 fantastic and eager students to the Sydney Aquarium at Darling Harbour. They enjoyed the day thoroughly, with the beautiful Dugong and penguins being a particular highlight.

We would like to extend a huge thank you to Mrs Fulwood for organising these opportunities for our students.

TAS

HSC Timber

Year 12 Industrial Technology Timber students have worked really hard this past year to construct and complete both their Major Design Projects and Written Communication Folios by the NESA specified due date. The students involved have taken a lot of pride in their work and as a result produced a high standard of Joinery work that will be able to be utilised in the home setting for years to come. Both Mr Rielly and Mr Vanderkroft are pleased with student’s efforts and have developed a strong repour with boys involved throughout the planning, designing and construction phases. Well done Year 12

Stage 5 Metal

Stage 5 metal students have been participating well in practical lessons under the guidance of Mr Rielly. Students have been busy applying metal working fabrication techniques as per used in Industry such as Welding, Oxy Acetylene cutting and Heat Treating to manufacture portable BBQ units that can be used with their friends for camping. Students involved have been extremely keen to complete the projects so that they can put them to good use over the summer.

Oxy Acetylene cutting

Technology Mandatory Year 7/8

Students and teachers alike have been busy with the implementation of the New Technology Syllabus which has been rolled out this year. This means students have been participating more in Digital Technologies and have been exposed to coding micro controllers/processors to practice programming and the coding of Micro-Bits and Arduinos (basically mini computers). Both teachers and students have found this interesting and challenging. Students have still been enjoying the practical hands on aspects of the course such as timber, metal, sewing and cooking but are also integrating aspects of the ever increasing digital world into these take home projects. Good work!

Year 7 students working collaboratively to program/code Micro- Bits so that they can later install them into their smart phone acoustic speaker docking stations.

Year 11 Digital Technologies

Year 11 digital technology students have been working with computer hardware and learning how the components all fit and work together.

Mr O’Mahoney took the computers apart and challenged the students to put them back together. By the end of the lesson, all computers were in complete working order. Year 11 had so much fun and had a great learning experience based on this activity.

Stage 5 Timber

Stage 5 Timber students have been hard at work designing and building carry all tools boxes under the guidance of Mr Crotty. The have thoroughly enjoyed working collaboratively with their fellow students to produce a high quality timber project and written folio to support the construction process. The next project on the manufacturing assessment schedule is a wall cabinet and everyone involved is looking to improving and refining their Joinery skills and techniques. Thanks Mr Crotty for making this possible.

HSIE

The HSIE faculty happily welcomes back Mrs Lawson who has returned from maternity leave following the birth of her son. We are glad to see her back and she is settling in very well. We thank Mr Glover who filled in for her and wish him well in his Queensland adventures!

HSIE Faculty Staff Excellence

Congratulations to Ms Dean and Ms Ewer for being recognised as excellent teachers! Ms Dean was awarded in the World Teacher Day celebrations for being an innovative passionate classroom practitioner and Ms Ewer was awarded the Public Education Award for improving student outcomes and well-being! We are very proud of them! In fact I’m really proud of all the HSIE staff who excel in providing outstanding teaching practice and nurturing our students to achieve their personal best. Our faculty motto is “What’s best for the kids!”

We have taken part in the National Geography and History competitions and have been quite successful. Thank you to all the students who participated and congratulations to our high achievers!

The outstanding results for the History completion were:

Credits

  • Year 9 - Taj Barnes
  • Year 8 - Matthew Conwell & Jye Hampton-Anderson
  • Year 7 - Justin Forster, Kiara Pearce & Jackson Vandertouw

Merits

  • Year 9 - Max Barsby, Ryan Curtin, Andre Eran & Sophie Liddell
  • Year 8 - Hunter Barrett, Miyu Hopson, Thomas Lindop & Isabella Williams
  • Year 7 – Orlani Angianga, Sienna Byrne, Indica Millar & Jasmine Tierney

The outstanding results for the Geography completion were:

High Distinction

  • Year 8 - Dakota Jenkins 

Distinction

  • Year 10 - Connor Hebditch
  • Year 9 - Ryan Curtin
  • Year 8 - Kieran Everley, Jye Hampton Anderson
  • Year 7 - Justin Foster

Credits

  • Year 10 - Isabel Childs, Tyson Cooper, Flynn Dibben, Mathew Donnelly, Liam Toms & Dallas Zipf
  • Year 8 - Hunter Barrett, Dominic Cruse, Tenika Williams & Justin Foster
  • Year 7 - Jackson Vandertouw

Friday Week 6 was the due date for the first assessment task for this semester and we received some wonderful tasks. Well done to all the students who handed in their assignments on time exhibiting Responsibility and Personal Best!

Regards

Anna Howard - HT HSIE

CAPA

Music has had numerous success stories, including Conor Smith’s appearance on “The Voice”, with his versions of Bruce Springsteen’s “I’m on Fire” and Madonna’s “Ray of Light”. He and Samantha Monzar represented the school at Central Coast Showcase. During Education Week in Week Three this term Mrs Brimbecom and Mr Bannerman with a small group of students performed live at Lakehaven Shopping Centre. This event always engages members of the public and demonstrates the musical skill of our students.

In Visual Arts Katie Arnold won the Council’s award at the Maliga Aboriginal Art Prize, with Kyle Waters picking up a second. Aboriginal students also represented the school at both the Maliga and Sean Lonergan prizes, with painted surfboards support by a local Aboriginal Artist Jodie Freeman. Katie also won second prize in the Staedtler Art Competition recently. Katie had works selected along with Paul Mundey and Jacob Harris for the Nagoya Art Competition, these works are exchanged and exhibited with student works from Japan, America, Australia, Brazil, Mexico, Britain, Spain and France.

In Dance, Miss Cipriano has had great success with students performing at StarStruck in Newcastle, Central Coast Dance Festival. She has had tremendous support from stage 5 and 6 Dancers for the HSC co-hort. In both cases there were numerous selection of works from our school. In relation to StarStruck, the Year 9 students who performed as part of the Drama presentation, demonstrated initiative and determination against minor obstacles on the way to performing at Newcastle. I am very proud of their efforts and the rest of the students who performed magnificently at all Creative and Performing Arts events. This school has a proud history of working at the highest level and all Creative and Performing Art staff are highly satisfied with the achievements of our students.

From the Creative and Performing Arts staff we wish all our students the very best in their upcoming exams, make sure you read your timetables carefully and keep in constant contact with your teachers. They are here to help.

Wear it Purple Day

On Friday 30th August, #TeamNorthlakes joined the nation-wide event Wear it Purple Day. WIP Day is a day to embrace our LGBTIQ staff, students and families so they know they are supported and valued.

This year’s theme was “Stand Up. Stand Out.” Students and staff certainly did that by dressing up in purple. During the break students sprayed their hair purple, applied glitter, nail polish and face paint. As always at our Northlake’s special events, the photo booth was popular. Photos of the day can be seen on our Facebook page as well as in this newsletter.

It was particularly heart-warming to see how many staff and students put their name on the “chain of support”, a paper chain which will be displayed in the library until next year, when we intend to make the chain even longer.

Thanks to all involved including our Leos and friends from San Remo Neighbourhood Centre.

Northlakes Leo Club

HUGE SPRING FASHION FAIR

If you love op-shopping, then save up all your $2 coins and $5 notes and come along to Northlake's High School Hall on Saturday 21 September between 8am and 12 noon where a huge sale of preloved and new clothing will be on sale for bargain prices. Preloved clothing from $1 each, most preloved clothes $2 and New clothing with Tags $5 each. The sale is being run by the Northlake's High School Leo Club to raise money for local charities. Lots of clothing, mainly women's and children's and babies clothing. Nothing more than $5.

Uniform Donations Needed

Our clothing pool has started to get very low again. Please drop in any unused uniforms to the front office.

NORTHLAKES HIGH SCHOOL

Brava Ave, San Remo, NSW, 2262

Phone: 02 4390 0555

Created By
Samantha Barnett
Appreciate