6 June 2017

Newsletter Articles

Principal’s Report

As we move towards the end of this first semester it is pleasing to note the strides made by the school towards our goal of improving learning outcomes for all students. By the end of this term each student in years 7-12 will have a secure designated locker to store their possessions whilst at school. This is an essential part of the infrastructure required to ensure that our Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) strategy is a success. Having a secure location to store personal laptops will minimise the risk of accidental damage and provide students with further opportunities to develop their personal and social capabilities. Our first caregiver information session on BYOD is this Wednesday at 6pm. During this session I will briefly outline the benefits of BYOD, how it will be implemented at our school and the options around purchasing a device to support your child’s learning. There will be an open forum to discuss any concerns that you may have relating to the BYOD strategy. In addition to BYOD we have made a commitment to implement a ‘learner management system’ called Daymap. This system, when operational, will not only enable us to track student achievement and attendance but also allow for greater collaboration between students, caregivers and the school. The aim by term four is for senior students and their caregivers to be able to view assignments, deadlines, and grades remotely in a secure online environment. We will continue to update our website as further information becomes available.

On Friday the 2nd June we welcomed teachers from the DECD Instrumental Music Service into our school. They ran a short workshop for our Y2/3/4 & Y5/6 classes with the students developing basic playing techniques, musical literacy and listening skills. All of this culminated in a wonderful performance of ‘Mamma Mia’ on the recorder. It was fantastic to see so many young people actively engaged in music making and experience a wealth of learning opportunities in such a high energy session. As a result of the workshop we have entered into an agreement to further develop music in our school. From next term we will have a recorder specialist working with our Y2/3/4 class and a select group from our Y5/6 class. In addition to this we will be offering students in Y4-8 the opportunity to study flute, clarinet or saxophone. The lessons will be free; however, caregivers will be required to provide their own instrument or rent a subsidised instrument from the school in 2018. We will be sending out further information in the coming weeks once we receive updates from the service provider.

Andrew Gilsenan-Reed

Secondary Report

Semester one is coming to a close (23rd June) within the secondary school and all the teachers are very busy writing reports. All of our staff spend a great deal of time and energy to provide parents and caregivers with valuable information about the progress and areas that students can improve before the end of the year. Teachers at Quorn Area School take pride in providing reports for your children so please read and discuss them with your child once they are received.

Semester two will see changes to the structure of some classes and the timetable. This will provide our students with an even higher chance to succeed. More details about this will be in the next newsletter, but if you would like to discuss this further then please contact the school and arrange a time to speak with myself.

Matt Griffiths
Deputy Principal

Primary Report

The Primary school has been busy with a wide variety of activities this term. Here are some points of interest and photos to match.

Choir students attended their first Port Augusta regional rehearsal. Robyn, the visiting conductor from Adelaide, was absolutely awe inspiring!

Several of our choir students also auditioned for solo parts in the Port Augusta Regional Crossroads Music Festival concerts being held at the end of next term.

Max and Molly Agnew were farewelled with a shared lunch.

Year’s 2-6 Spanish online program was launched with guest speaker, Rebecca Lyman. Rebecca shared her personal experience of living and learning to speak Spanish in Chile and she provided some tips and tricks to get us started on the learning curve.

Our Young Environmental Leaders presented a Bee Attraction project to the Year 2/3/4 class and a Bird Box project for the Year 5/6 class to help relocate the nesting of Sparrows and Pigeons from under “the cave”. The leaders also participated in an excursion to Mambray Creek.

F-6 student’s received their new “Oxford Owl” online learning passwords. Oxford Owl is an electronic way to bring reading books and associated learning into the classroom and home.

The library hosted the Kindy and F-6 students for this year’s National Simultaneous Story Time with the book “The cow tripped over the moon” by Tony Wilson and Laura Wood. After the story, older students worked with younger students to complete craft based activities.

A recorder workshop introduced new skills for some and a reignition of enthusiasm for others.

Assorted Primary Activities

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Assorted Primary Activities

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Year 5/6 students have also:

• knitted some frilly scarves for Mother’s Day
• selected a kitchen garden plot with Sharon, built a temporary fence using cane to prevent future crops from being trampled, laid pavers to walk on during planting, watering, weeding and harvesting, and planned winter crop plantings
• been cooking harvested produce with Bart and Tricia
• supported the work of the Young Environmental Leaders by researching interesting facts that could be used to help design and make the bird boxes to attract Sparrows or Pigeons away from “the cave”, designed and produced three dimensional models of Sparrows and Pigeons
• designed and produced Sharpie pen tie-dye art
• begun incorporating some new writing support work including “Wow words” and “Kung Fu Punctuation”
• designed some three dimensional key chains with Mr Pilz
• learnt some games to promote and reinforce resilience and growth mindsets

Vennessa James
5/6 Teacher

Counsellor Report

Toastie Thursday

Toasties are back again; place your order at the front office and come down to the Canteen at lunch. We are also selling hot chocolate this term for $2.00.

Careers Trip

Week four of term two was a busy week for the Year 10 students, who are studying a compulsory SACE subject, known as Personal Learning Plan (PLP). On Tuesday 23rd May, the Year 10’s, Travis McDonald and myself travelled down to Adelaide for a careers trip which was jam-packed with learning opportunities about potential career pathways.

DAY ONE First stop was Adelaide University Roseworthy Campus, where we toured the state of the art Equine and Vet facilities. Then we travelled to Heavy Mech, where the majority of our boys were in their element amongst machinery they would love to operate. The final stop for the day was at Regency Tafe where the students toured the Hospitality facilities. Although the day was long and tiring with an early departure, it didn’t deter enthusiasm for an hour session at Latitude. Careers Trip Day 1 VIEW GALLERY Careers Trip Day 1 Click images to enlarge

DAY TWO Day two began with a short walk to Regency Tafe for an automotive tour. It was very convenient that Regency Tafe have accommodation on campus (Regency International House), which is where we were based for the week. We made it into the city by lunchtime to tour UniSA’s City East and City West campuses. Careers Trip Day 2 VIEW GALLERY Careers Trip Day 2 Click images to enlarge

DAY THREE Thursday morning students travelled to Port Adelaide Football Club and were greeted by Russell Ebert whose presentation, regardless of the club you support, was informative and inspirational on so many levels. We then travelled to Fort Largs Police Academy, where the students were able to get firsthand experience of what it would be like and what would be expected of them if they had the opportunity to study at the academy. The tour concluded with a presentation from members of the S.T.A.R force. After lunch we travelled across town to Flinders University and Tonsley Tafe to code and play with robots. Careers Trip Day 3 VIEW GALLERY Careers Trip Day 3 Click images to enlarge

DAY FOUR Finally on Friday students attended the 2017 Careers Expo. Students walked around and demonstrated their communication capability by asking many questions and receiving a great deal of information from experts in the field. Students are now reflecting upon the Careers Trip, evaluating possible future career paths, and deciding how the information they collected may or may not, affect their Personal Learning Plan. Careers Trip Day 4 VIEW GALLERY Careers Trip Day 4 Click images to enlarge

Walk Safely To School Day

On Friday 19th May student met at the Railway Station to all walk together to school in recognition of National Walk Safely to School Day (WSTSD).

The campaign was a drive to encourage school aged students to commute regularly and safely to school. It is great to see a number of our students do this on a regular basis. Thank you

Walk Safely to School

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Walk Safely to School

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Citizenship Activities

Quorn’s Biggest Morning Tea

This morning, Tuesday 6th June, Leilani and Maddi from Year 10 baked up a storm for Quorn’s Biggest Morning Tea. Both students were busy plating up their baked goods for sale at recess. It was great to see so many people support the cause. All proceeds raised went to the Cancer Council.

Queen of Hearts Social

Three students from Year 10 are holding a school social on Friday 23rd June (Week 8). Chloe, Kara & Kosmo welcome you to the Queen of Hearts Castle. Tickets are on sale now at the finance office. See flyer for more details.

Student Voice

The hot topic for discussion at the moment is lunchtime facilities and revamped eating areas. The students are in the process of sharing ideas and making plans to submit to staff and Governing Council. They look forward to finding out what the next stage of progression will be.

Understanding the ‘Boy Code’

Thank you to those parents who attended the Live Webinar featuring Dr. Justin Coulson. For those who happened to miss the webcast, it is available online for viewing until 9.00pm June 20 2017 via this link

Below is a flyer from Parenting SA which is a resource guide “Where to get more information” for parents and young people.

Monique Carcuro
School Counsellor

Subject Report

Library

Storytime Adventures

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Storytime Adventures

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A collection of our weekly storytime adventures and National Simultaneous Storytime held recently

Tech Studies

Ryan Young, Year 8 student, made the ‘Friends’ frame in Tech Studies

Vocational Education

Sports News

MNSEC Netball

On the 31st of May, Meggan, Tayla, Rebekah, Kaitlyn, Tahli, Maya and Jayde participated in MNSEC ‘knock out netball’ in Port Pirie. They all played amazingly and to the best of their ability, winning one out of the two games they played. Meggan played as Goal Defence, she did extremely well at intercepting the ball and stopped many players from getting goals. Tayla played as Goal Attack, she shot almost every goal and moved around the ring, helping to defend when the opposing team had the ball. Rebekah played Wing Defence, although she didn’t want to she played as if it was her regular position; she intercepted many passes and put lots of pressure on the ball at centre passes. Kaitlyn was positioned at Goal Shooter and was very consistent in her shooting. Even with her sore ankle she got through the day, with a smile on her face. Tahli played at Wing Attack, she made lots of space, received many centre passes and worked well with the team. Maya played as Goal Keeper and defended the ball well despite her lack of height. Jayde played as Centre, she was quick on her feet and was very reliable at delivering the ball to the shooters, she did amazing in mid court and blocked many balls from reaching the defence end.

The girls won against Gladstone 25-10. The second match was played against Booleroo they unfortunately lost 22-13.

Thanks to Michelle who came and umpired for our matches and thanks to Miss Carcuro for coaching us and encouraging us to do our best. Thanks also to Angie for helping to transport us.

Students ready to dominate in the Year 10 division

Maya Omonte-Kramer
Year 8 Student

Parents and Friends

Parents and Friends are seeking donations of 1lt glass bottles with lids for an upcoming fundraising event. If you have any please deliver them to the front office in the coming week.

Miscellaneous Reports

Scholarship Award

Congratulations to our 2016 Year 12 student Marty Paynter for his recent College Bursary Scholarship awarded by St Ann’s College Inc. This will assist Marty with his accommodation costs in 2017.

Damage to School Grounds

Our school oval and garden area were damaged by vehicles on the school grounds over the weekend, if anyone saw or heard anything suspicious can you please contact the school or the local police. Thank you.