Term 2 is a busy term with a number of opportunities for students, including; Cross Country, whole School Social, the Big Freeze, RYDA (Year 10), Work Experience (Year 10) and Pride Day. Reporting to families on student learning will be a big focus for our teaching staff this term and we have an opportunity to moderate our learning tasks with other high schools on the 7^th of June. This will be a student-free day on the Friday before the King’s Birthday long weekend on the Monday. Last term we talked to students about realising their potential and making the most of their opportunities. We will continue to encourage this “growth mindset” amongst students for Term 2.

Our focus value for Term 2 is “Responsibility”.

I strongly believe that our relentless focus on our school values has helped to shape our positive school culture. Not only do they hold us accountable, but they also support us in developing great personal qualities. Our student leadership teams will focus on this value throughout the term and our end-of-term awards will also be tailored to this value. 

Attendance

I would like to emphasise the importance of school attendance. As with all learning that takes place at RHS, we expect students to give their Best Effort. This is especially important when we find things difficult or challenging. Going to school every day gives your child every chance to learn and grow, and connect with their mates and teachers. It’s where bright futures start and where they’ll benefit the most.

When your child goes to school every day, it helps them to:

• learn better
• find interests
• make friends
• connect with teachers
• be happier
• have a brighter future

If you’re struggling to get your child to school, help is available. Please talk to us at school about your situation. We’ll support you, in whatever way we can.

To find out more, visit the Anything can happen website.

ANZAC Day 

Anzac Day is one of Australia’s most important national occasions. It marks the anniversary of the first major military action fought by Australian and New Zealand forces during the First World War. Australians recognise the 25th of April as a day of national remembrance, attending services all around the country. Anzac Day is a special time when we reflect on the many different meanings of war. I would like to thank our prefects for representing RHS at the Devonport service. They were all fantastic role models and we appreciate them giving up this day to lay a wreath on behalf of the school.

School Uniform

We are fortunate to have an amazing school culture in relation to our school uniform. Our students wear their uniform with pride which demonstrates the connection they have with our school. If you need any support around school uniform, please contact your child's Year Level Team Leader or Assistant Principal.

Vaping and young people 

The rising number of children and young people vaping is a growing issue of concern in our community.  

Electronic cigarettes (vapes) can be appealing to young people due to bright colours and flavours. But no vapes are safe as they are often full of harmful chemicals and nicotine.  For this reason, vapes can be addictive and harmful for lungs, brain development and general health.  

It is important to talk to your children about vaping. If this is a concern, try to be understanding, compassionate and non-judgemental as you support them to learn more about the dangers of vaping or in seeking support to quit. 

Information on what vaping is, the impacts and how to support your child is available on the new Department for Education, Children and Young People webpage on vaping, which can be accessed here: 

https://www.decyp.tas.gov.au/about-us/projects/child-student-wellbeing/vaping/  

Free 24/7 Online Study Support with Studiosity

Do you have a child who would benefit from extra support outside of school hours?

All Tasmanian students can access free 24/7 online study support via Studiosity with their Libraries Tasmania membership.

Studiosity provides:

• Homework support, writing feedback and practice quizzes for students in Years 3 to 12.
• Real-life subject specialists that assist with core Australian Curriculum subjects.

Students can join online for free and get immediate access to Studiosity. View how Studiosity helps 3-12 students and teachers on Vimeo.

School-Based Apprenticeship

A school-based apprenticeship or traineeship enables a Year 10, 11 and 12 student to combine work and training to achieve a nationally recognised qualification, while still attending school and working toward their Tasmanian Certificate of Education (TCE).

• Apprenticeships and traineeships can be undertaken full-time, part-time or as a school-based apprenticeship/traineeship. 
• A school-based apprenticeship or traineeship offers flexibility. It enables a student in Year 10, 11 and 12 to combine school, work and training to achieve a nationally recognised qualification.  
• Students are expected to attend school and work toward their Tasmanian Certificate of Education (TCE). 

If you are interested in finding our more, please contact the office to speak to Mr Franks, Mrs Elliott or Mrs Armitstead.

Congratulations – Individual Achievements

Eva, in Year 8, was chosen and represented Tasmania at the Australian Little Athletics Championships in Adelaide on April 27th and 28th. Eva competed in the 1500m Race walks getting a PB with a time of 7:30.17 and coming 5th in Australia. Eva also competed in the Javelin and Discus and enjoyed her experience and catching up with friends from other states she has met at other competition meets in Australia. Well done, Eva!

Beth, in Year 7, recently broke her first Tasmania record in the Girls 12 years 200m Breaststroke in a time of 2:46.20. This has been a long-standing record and we are so proud of Beth for her achievement. Beth has now qualified for both the State and National Championships; however, she is unable to participate in the National Championships until she turns 13. We look forward to watching her progression in the years to come.

The events that Beth qualified in are the: 50m Breaststroke, 100m Breaststroke, 200m Breaststroke and the 400m Medley.

We are now three months into rehearsals for our school production of Roald Dahl's Matilda Jr. The Musical. In April, we had a full day of rehearsal with the cast and crew which gave us all a really clear indication of how the show is progressing. Students worked hard throughout the day to learn dialogue and choreography and ended the day running half the show! 

Most recently, students have been singing with our live band, led by Mrs. Mihal, who has also joined the rehearsal process. We are excited to see the set come together under the watchful eye of Mr. Smith and Miss. Lutwyche. 

Hopefully you have seen our posters advertising where to buy your tickets which will go on sale on Monday 20^th May! You can purchase tickets at trybooking.com 

The cast are working so hard to bring this show to life and we can't wait to show it to our community. Put a reminder in your calendar to get your tickets before they sell out!

In Year 7 we have been busy starting some new units in Science and HASS.  In Science, we have started our “Separating Mixtures” unit.  This involves spending a lot of time in the laboratory completing experiments.  The students have enjoyed the opportunity to complete their Science in a different environment and learning about all the different equipment.  In their first lesson, “Evaporation”, students used heat as a separation technique to remove salt from water.
During HASS, students have started a new unit for this term. Our history unit focuses on the rise and fall of Ancient Rome, and historical figures such as Julius Caesar who ruled over the once-famous empire. In mathematics, students are finishing a fraction unit where they have been ordering and comparing fractions and using fractions with all four operations. In English, we have learnt how to use strong vocabulary to construct mental images for a reader by writing poetry using a haiku structure. Here are a few student poetry works: 

Beach

Junk and rubbish 

Rocks and water 

Disloyal souls, no longer clean 

By Poppi

Rainy Days

Flower bloom

Blossoms, bud and burst

Gracefully like a ballerina.

By Asher

Forest Fire

Endangered wildlife, death coming

Scared forest,  smoke eating saturated branches 

Dying world like a plague.

By Thomas

Year 8 are proud to announce that some of our students have recently represented Tasmania or been selected to represent Tasmanian in their chosen sport.

Eva  represented Tasmania at the Australian Little Athletics Championships in Adelaide on April 27th and 28th. Eva competed in the 1500m race walk getting a personal best time of 7:30.17. She finished 5th in Australia. Eva also competed in the javelin and discus and enjoyed her experience. She caught up with friends from other states that she has met at other competition meets. Great effort Eva.

Sianna represented Tasmania in athletics in Adelaide in April. She competed in the heptathlon, under 15 and under 17 javelin and the 4 x 100m relay. Sianna won the under 15 javelin, came second in the heptathlon, fourth in the under 17 javelin and her team came sixth in the relay. In the under 15 javelin, Sianna broke the record for under 15, 16, 17 and 18s javelin throw in Tasmania. She also broke the record for the heptathlon for Tasmania. Well done Sianna.

Maddie  has recently been selected to represent Tasmania at the Under 16 National Basketball Competition in Bendigo in July. This is Maddie’s first year playing in the Under 16s which is a huge accomplishment. We wish her all the best for the upcoming Nationals.

Maths and Science

In Maths, year 9 have been working on a Data and Statistics unit where they are analysing data sets and learning how to use technology to compare various types of data.

In Science, students have had the opportunity to explore the different body systems and how feedback cycles in the body help to maintain homeostasis.
This has involved experiments in the lab where students tried to maintain normal set points of coloured water, and dissections of a sheep’s heart and a cow’s eyeball.

English and HASS

In English, students have been completing a novel study on the book “By the River”. In this unit they are learning about real-life matters, and they will have an opportunity to write in the style of the author.

In HASS, we have been exploring the causes of the Industrial Revolution. This involves an upcoming mini-assessment to demonstrate their understanding of this topic.

Yr 9 HPE

The countdown is on for Cross Country! Students in year 9 have been training for this event in their PE classes – make sure to mark Tuesday the 28^th of May in your calendar for our 2024 Cross Country event.

As the winter months loom on the horizon, many of us are looking for the elusive second Ugg boot or removing the oodie from storage.  At school however, the air conditioners are pumping and learning is definitely not hibernating on the couch.  As many of us are tucking the doona around cold feet or trying to find that elusive draft, our year ten students are looking at surface area, a handy skill to work out optimal winter coverage.  In English classes, students have chosen an ethical dilemma to craft an analytical essay.  In Science, the focus is on Biology.  In History, students are looking at Australia’s role in WW2 - some very cold content for a very cold term.  So, our winter travellers, we must wrap up for you and say a wintery farewell and good luck for the upcoming darker months.  However, there is a light in the darkness as Mr Robinson's birthday is the 22nd of June and his love of presents, especially socks will keep many students on track and happy.  

Recently the prefects have been busy participating in a leadership day, planning events for the term, and discussing our aims and priorities for the school. Here’s a snapshot of what we’ve been up to.

ylead conference

In the prefect board, we have been looking at what good leaders are and how to make a positive impact on our school. Last Thursday, the prefects went to Devonport High School to participate in a leadership course led by ylead. Ylead is a group of people who help create unique learning experiences that empower young people to be their best and make a positive difference in their world. We were joined by Ulverstone Secondary College, Latrobe High School, Sheffield School, and Devonport High to work together to learn about leadership and ways in which we can have a significant impact on our community. We learnt about how to efficiently plan ideas, and how the environment around you affects your work ethic. We would like to say a big thank you to the ylead team and the participating schools for the day, and a special thanks to Devonport High who accommodated and catered for the event. We will be sure to take on everything we learnt and implement it into our discussions and actions.

Upcoming events

In prefect block, we have been busy organising some events coming up this term. This includes the social and Big Freeze. The social this term will be 80’s themed, so come dressed up as crazy and colourful as you can. There will be drinks, snacks, and awesome music, so make sure to come along. This will take place on 6^th June, 6:30-9. There will be more information about this event coming up, so make sure to be on the lookout!

The big freeze is always a big event at our school, and this year it is the 10^th consecutive year of the big freeze fight MND event for the AFL, so we will be sure to make it a big one at our school as well. This will take place on the 11^th of June; more details will be out soon. We can’t wait to get these events up and running during the term, along with lunchtime activities.

Mission statements and priorities

Prefects, as a group, have been focusing on creating our mission statement and priorities for the school year. We went through a lot of things that we would like to focus on as leaders in our school for 2024, such as creating a positive environment, making everyone feel welcomed and connected within our school, and looking at the student wellbeing surveys from 2023 to see what significant changes we would like to make. We have been looking at what we can do throughout the school to make these changes possible, such as lunchtime activities to get more people involved and running different events where everyone has a chance to participate. We have also been working on our priorities from the data we have seen from the well-being survey. We have looked at what the concerning areas of our data are, and what we can do to make it better. We worked in groups to condense our ideas for a mission statement and priorities, and the head prefects will help finalise our team statement for the prefect board.

By Mikayla and Charlotte A

If anyone is experiencing difficulties and would like some confidential help please feel free to contact the school Chaplin Darra or the school Nurse Mel.