Court Street GILGANDRA NSW 2827 Phone: 6847 2276 Fax: 6847 1288

PRINCIPAL Mr Neal Reed DEPUTY Mr Joshua Webb HEAD TEACHERS English/HSIE Mrs Fiona Lambell Mathematics Mr Steven Schier Science Mrs Suzie Frost TAS Mr Russell Woollams SUPPORT Mrs Di Irvin (rlg) YEAR ADVISORS Year 7 Mr Andrew McCutcheon Year 8 Mrs Laura Jordan Year 9 Miss Kristy Smith Year 10 Mrs Jessica Reed Year 11 Mrs Stacey O’Neill Year 12 Ms Kristen Skewes P&C President Mr Paul Alchin AECG President Deidrie Naden ARCO Mrs Meredith Schier

Newsletter 4 22nd March 2019 Term 1 Week 8

EMAIL: gilgandra-h.school@det.nsw.edu.au www.gilgandra-h.schools.nsw.edu.au

Quote of the week

“If it doesn’t challenge you, it won’t change you”

Principal’s report...

This term we continue to have many positive stories to share. From the new enrolments that have joined our school community to our sporting and cultural achievements, our students continue to excel – and with them, our staff who put in many additional hours to provide a smorgasbord of opportunities for students to achieve their personal best. We recently recognised some of these achievements, including the Western Region Swimming team, the Boys Cricket team, the Girls Soccer team and the Aboriginal Education Team who will be coordinating Harmony Day this Thursday 21

st March. Each of these stories has one

thing in common, and that is ‘team’ – working together to achieve a common goal. We work hard to develop our culture of working together and that it is embodied so well by both students and staff, is an excellent reflection on our school. Reflection of a different sort is a crucial skill our students develop through

their years here at Gilgandra High School. Reflection is an active process,

one which requires students to ‘tune in’ to conversations or their own inner

voice, and it’s something which requires students to be present in the task

that they are undertaking. I encourage our parents and friends of Year 12

to help our students focus as they prepare for their half yearly exams

which will be taking place at the end of this term. What will be important

after the exams is that students listen in order to understand, not simply to

reply. Active listening and reflection will help Year 12 to continue to grow.

Neal Reed Principal

Students representing Western Region Swimming Carnival

Senior Basketball Dubbo The Open Girls’ basketball team has progressed to the regional finals after comprehensively winning all their games in the Dubbo Zone round. They opened their first game against Narromine with a 42-2 win making use of the fast break with Sarah Schier getting some easy layups after great steals from guards Cassie Nolan, Zoe Welsh and Shari Grimshaw. The next game was another dominating win over Wellington with Monique McEwen-Reid starting to make the most of her height and strength inside the key while the guards continued to upset the opposition ball handlers creating opportunities. In the final round Gilgandra met the highly fancied Dubbo Senior Campus team. Giving away height across the floor it was the insatiable guards who again created the opportunities with strong displays by Zoe, Shari and Cassie stealing the ball and driving the basket to create a 14-3 halftime lead. With Cassie injured early in the second half the girls played some tough defence to halt the Dubbo team’s progress; Sarah and Anna Schier defended well with Monique and Rebecca Gaff rebounding strongly. Kirralah Pracy stepped up to hinder the opposition before the final buzzer signalled the end for Dubbo’s campaign. It had been four years since the last win over Dubbo and the girls celebrated! In the cross-over game to determine who would progress to Bathurst for the regional finals it was obvious our side of the draw had been the stronger pool. After a sluggish start the girls found their feet and played some strong defence to create fast-break opportunities. They easily accounted for the Mudgee team 24-8 to secure the finals berth in Bathurst. The Open Boys’ basketball team combined well to just go down to the taller and more experienced Dubbo Senior college team. James O’Neill played three fantastic games driving the basket to either score himself or setup his teammates. In the first game against Narromine, James and Coen Naden stole the ball to create fast break opportunities for Allen Allport and Ty Sutherland-Tink. Luke Mackenzie was strong under the basket driving well to ensure a 34-10 win. In the match against Wellington the team continued to grow in confidence with John Bunter finding his feet under the ring and Kyle Welsh involving himself more in the game. Wellington couldn’t hinder either Luke or James who dominated their opponents for a cruisy 38-14 win. The big game against Dubbo was an exciting match with Dubbo having trouble stopping James when he drove the basket. The lead swapped repeatedly until the final 5 minutes when Dubbo edged ahead by 7. Strong defence and drives to the basket saw the gap close to 3 with 3 on the clock when Dubbo called a timeout, soon after our big man Luke hurt his knee leaving the court and although the boys tried hard couldn’t bridge the gap with the final buzzer sounding at 25-20. Dubbo went on for a 2 point win against Mudgee in a very physical match to join our girls’ team heading to Bathurst. Congratulations to both teams for the dedication to training and the way they played the game,

strong but fair. A big thanks to Julie Nolan who coached the girls team assisted by Judy Quayle.

Back Row: Kyle Welsh, Allen Allport, Luke Mac-kenzie, John Bunter Front Row: James O’Neill, Coen Naden, Ryan Marshall, Ty Sutherland-Tink

Back Row: Sarah Schier, Rebecca Gaff, Zoe Welsh, Monique McEwen-Reid, Shari Grimshaw Front Row: Kirralah Pracy, Anna Schier, Cassie Nolan

Closing the Gap

On Wednesday 13 March, local health workers and educators presented Year 8 students with a talk about the Closing the Gap government initiative. This initiative aims to help Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people achieve better health and education outcomes more in line with the wider Australian population. Students were told how coming to school, completing all their work and assignments would help them achieve their dreams in life. Achieving equality for the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people in health and life expectancy is another key target which is very slowly being met by educating more Aboriginal people so that they can work with their local communities. Closing the Gap is the foundation for building a

fairer, stronger and more connected Australia,

where we celebrate the longest living civilisation

on earth.

Year 8 STEM

This term Year 8 STEM have been learning about computer coding. Here they are programming their Sphero robot to follow a course using the ipads.

Year 8 at Closing the Gap presentation

From the Careers Desk

Macquarie in a Day, Macquarie University

17 & 18 April 2019 University life doesn’t have to be a mystery. That’s why they are opening their doors on 17 and 18 April to Year 11 and 12 students. This is a great chance to experience what a day in the life of a Macquarie student is really like. On the day students will be able to get a feel for the campus, sit in on lectures, demonstrations and experience practicals and tutorials.

More info—E futurestudents@mq.edu.au or heather.frewin@det.nsw.edu.au

Heather Frewin

Miss O’Sullivan’s

Year 12

English Studies class, have been studying ‘The Big Screen’. They first read Stephen King’s novella ‘The Body’ and have now compared it to its film adaptation ‘Stand By Me’. Pictured is a life sized plot diagram that may or may not be Krystal Herbert.

Congratulations to our Swimmers It was a fantastic day in Dubbo last Friday for the Western Regional Swimming Carnival. The following students will represent Gilgandra High School at the State Swimming Championships at Sydney in April. Oscar Spora, Darcy Neeves, Olivia McClelland, Kelsey Hutchison, Ashleigh Carlow, Sarah Schier, Jacob Wilson, Thomas Eason, Sam Duff, Rebecca Gaff, Zoe Welsh, Anna Schier and Caitlin Carlow. This is a great achievement for our swimmers.

Canteen

Dates for your diary...

Friday 22nd March Boy’s Soccer

Monday 25th March Homework Centre 3.30pm to 4.30pm

Monday 1st April Homework Centre 3.30pm to 4.30pm

Friday 12th April Last day of Term 1

Tuesday 30th April Term 2 resumes for Students

ASSESSMENT SCHEDULE Term 1 Assignment (ASG), Assessment (AST), In class task (ICT), Student Research Project (SRP),

Skills Assessment (SAT) Completion of Project work (CPW), Working Mathematically Task (WMT), Bookmark (Book)

Practical Task (PTK)

Due Year 7 Year 8 Year 9 Year 10 Year 11 Year 12

Week 9

25-3-19 to

29-3-19

Maths Book Geography

Task 1

Geography Task 1

Maths Book Geography Task 1

Drama Task 1

Geography Task 1

Drama Task 1

Ancient History Task 1 Biology

Week 10

1-4-19 to

5-1-19

Science SAT

Maths Book Science SAT

Maths Book Science SRP

Chemistry Half Yearlies

Volunteers are required to help in the canteen.

If you can spare some time Please ring the school 6847 2276

From the Careers Desk The transition from school to the adult world can be difficult to navigate and has been described as one of the most stressful times in a person’s life. Supporting your children at this time can help make that move smoother. I get a lot of information over my desk that is relevant to students and their parents and I have begun a newsletter that I email to all students in Years 10, 11 and 12. I am inviting parents to be included. If you would like to receive a Careers Newsletter please email a request to me at the address below. Together we can empower your children to make informed decisions about their future. Heather Frewin heather.frewin@det.nsw.edu.au

Homework Centre

Will run on Monday afternoons, 3.30pm—4.30pm

in D12 at Gilgandra High School. All students are welcome and can bring any

work they need assistance with.

Dear Parents/Guardians, Please remember If you are collecting your child/ward for the day can you contact the front office beforehand. If your child needs to leave for an appointment or another reason, can you let the front office know in advance. If you are collecting a child who is not yours and you are NOT on the emergency contact list, the parent/carer of the student needs to have notified the front office. Thank You