Welcome back to all students and families to Term 2. We finished last term with over 300 secondary teachers here at Queechy for our Northern Moderation Day. Teachers engaged in deep analysis of student work samples to ensure consistency in the way we assess student work across our schools in the north. Staff attended from as far away as the East Coast and Flinders Island. Thank you to the organising committee from Queechy, Heather Jackson, Sam Ayre and Ann-Marie McKendrick for the hours of work that went in to ensuring a successful and productive day.

NAPLAN Online:
Next week will see our Year 7 and 9 students completing their annual NAPLAN assessment. This year we will see a change in format as all the assessments will be completed online. We trialled this process last year with our Year 8 students and were impressed with student engagement and attention to detail using the online format. This year NAPLAN will run across a two week period with students completing the tests in order but not necessarily with all classes at the same time. Whilst this will mean increased usage of our computer labs we are confident there will be little interruption to learning for students across our school during this time. Thank you to Caleb Turale, our NAPLAN coordinator, for ensuring a well-planned testing program.

Respect:
One of the key Department of Education and Queechy High values is Respect. In our school I challenge all students to strive to be respectful at every opportunity, every day.
Respect sits on four levels. Respect for oneself, respect for others, respect for the past and respect for the environment we find ourselves in.

For our students at Queechy that translates into:

• Having high expectations of myself as a learner
• Being tolerant and accepting of fellow students
• Wearing my uniform with pride
• Working to the highest level I can in class
• Listening to my peers and my teachers
• Following instructions and asking good questions
• Looking after my books and learning tools
• Keeping Queechy free from damage or litter
• Making everyone feel safe, all the time

Plus many more examples of what it means to be respectful. I see students, staff and parents being respectful in our school every day.

There are times, however, when we can all benefit from taking the time to think before speaking or acting in a way that others may find disrespectful. I encourage all members of our school community to strive to ensure Queechy is spoken about only in respectful terms. We all have a role to play in making Queechy a place where Respect sits at the forefront of our thinking at all times.

Rob Fleming 
Principal 

They shall grow not old, as we that are left grow old;

Age shall not weary them, nor the years condemn.

At the going down of the sun and in the morning

We will remember them.

 

Lest we forget.

 

Students and staff of Queechy High School paid their respects by marching and laying a wreath at the ANZAC day parade and ceremony. It was a heartfelt day as people and schools all around Launceston gathered together to pay their respects to the men and woman who once fought for our beautiful and now safe country. It was a powerful service with many strong features. The students who participated were honoured to be given the opportunity to represent Queechy High School at such an important event. 

Zoe Lewis 
Student Leadership Board 

In HASS, Grade 7's have begun Term 2 with a unit called, ‘Egypt and Water’. This combines the Geography unit, ‘Water in our World’ with a depth study on Ancient Egypt. The first part of the term focuses on water as a natural resource, the global distribution of water and graphing climate data.

Lauren Phipps
HASS

In Grade 7 English, students have been developing their recount and persuasive writing skills. They have enjoyed recounting Bethany Hamilton’s Soul Surfer and deconstructing the persuasive devices found in Severn Cullis-Suzuki’s 1992 Rio Summit speech.

Joshua Jeffrey 

The Maths Olympiad is an opportunity for Year 7 and 8 students who are enthusiastic about problem solving in Mathematics, to compete against other students across Australia and New Zealand. The competition is unique in that it focuses on the students' ability to solve mathematical problems in a creative manner - as opposed to simply reaching a solution using a prescribed method.

The Olympiad runs over five dates, with each session of the competition taking 30 minutes. If you are interested in your child taking up this opportunity, you can email me at sam.ayre@education.tas.gov.au. There are a limited number of places, so make sure you get in quick!

Sam Ayre 
AST Curriculum 

On Friday 29^th March, Queechy attended the
Northern High School Inter-High Swimming Carnival at the Launceston Aquatic Centre. The other schools competing were; Riverside High, Kings Meadows High, Prospect High, Exeter High and St Mary’s District High School.

The team performed exceptionally well and the number of students that stepped up to other events, due to various reasons, were amazing.  Some went into events above their own age group and managed to gain places!  The teams’ support of each other was great to see and be part of, and the cheering for our swimmers was loud and fun. Congratulations to all students that were involved in the day,
Queechy High School is proud to call you one of us!

In the Junior Shield QHS came 3^rd behind Kings Meadows and Riverside, with only 13 points difference between 1^st and 3^rd. 

In the Senior Shield we came 5^th. Overall, we came a respectable 5^th, managing to stay in Division 1 for next year.

Students in Grade 8 Science spent the last few weeks of Term 1 wrapping up their Biology unit and have moved into Chemistry this term.

Students finalised their Biology unit by looking at yeast respiration and an interactive demonstration of a pluck dissection. Students could interact with the various organs of the pluck, for example expanding the lungs with a pump. Additionally, students could see where organs are located within a sheep body and how they work together to make a system.

Students this term have began working with both the periodic table and looking at the particle theory model to explain the physical properties of states of matter.

In Health, Grade 8 students have started a unit on relationships and sexuality. They have begun the unit by looking at relationships. Students were given the opportunity to decide what characteristics are shown in a healthy relationship and compared those with the characteristics of unhealthy relationships. Students looked at the different types of relationships, the benefits of being in a relationship and how a healthy relationship should progress.

In practical lessons the Grade 8 students have been participating in a fitness unit. Students have been given the chance to look at their current fitness levels by participating in a number of fitness related activities. One of the major activities is the 20m shuttle run (also known as the beep test). Students are required to run 20m within the allocated time and repeat until they are no longer capable of making the distance within the time frame. Students have shown amazing effort and support of each other whilst completing this activity. Students will revisit the beep test at the end of the unit to compare pre and post test results.

School Association Update

Our school association met in the Queechy Staff Room
on the evening of Wednesday 10 April 2019 at which time the Annual General Meeting and a Committee Meeting were held. Newly elected committee members are:

• Karen MacFarlane, Sonia Peck, Rachel Kerrison and Mandy Brown.
  Committee members continuing into their second year are:
• Jason Orr, Kirsty Crawford, Sam Rathmell, Ari Reich and Tua Agaiava.

Unfortunately all office bearer positions were declared vacant and no nominations were received to fill them. Our Principal,
Mr Rob Fleming, will undertake the role of Chairperson until such time as the position is filled by a committee member.

Matters discussed at the Committee meeting included school uniforms, capital and minor works around our school, new school banners and a new transition brochure for grade 7 students in 2020.

The “Shop it Forward” fundraising initiative is no longer available as unfortunately the website closed on 30 April 2019. The school are looking to raise funds once again by way of the popular Entertainment Books so if you’d like to grab the new 2019-2020 copy please contact the school office.

Our next Committee meeting is on Wednesday 29 May 2019 in the admin block at 7pm. We would love to see you there.

 

Tasmanian schools will participate in NAPLAN Online from 2019.

NAPLAN Online will provide better assessment and more precise results.

The assessments feature a tailored test design where the questions a student receive will depend on their answers to previous questions.

• NAPLAN Online testing will be held from the
  14 to 24 May 2019
• Testing will be available for each of the NAPLAN year levels (3, 5, 7 and 9)
• NAPLAN Online 2019 will include four components, Writing, Numeracy, Conventions of Language and Reading.

Schools will receive reports and results for participants following the completion of NAPLAN Online 2019. These Individual Student Reports will have the same format as the results from the paper based testing. The same report format is used for every student in Australia.

Grade 8 Students; Zara, Ava-Lily, Francesca and Raeja all took part in the Schools Out After School Radio Programme. Students wrote their own script to read over in their 30 minutes of air time, learning the importance of editing and clear communication while speaking over the radio. These students had an absolute blast and who knows maybe we all will be listening to one of them a lot more often in the future. 

Parents and families are invited to attend a forum to provide information about and discuss Educational Adjustments.

From 2020, there will be a new approach in
Department of Education schools to assisting students with disability to access, participate and engage in quality educational programs. 

Forums are scheduled for Term 2. Light refreshments will be provided.

See details of locations and timing and how to register at:

Ally Colbeck, a successful business owner of her own franchise ‘Rabble’.

What was your experience like at Queechy High School?
I graduated from Queechy High School in 2013, and during my time there was able to experience leaderships roles such as being on the Student Leadership Board, World Vision student ambassador, Beacon student ambassador (2 years running), and junior house captain. I truly believe these opportunities, as well as the support of my teachers, allowed me to experience real world situations that have also assisted in opening my own business, such as time management and organisation, public speaking and confidence building, and a massive talent of networking. and so much more. My teachers pushed me to my potential, and for that I am extremely grateful.

What are you doing now?
At only the age of 21, I am now a successful business owner, having just launched UK franchise "Rabble" here in my hometown of Launceston. I discovered Rabble during my past two years living in London, and am now the first person to bring it down under to Australia. Rabble is fun "old school" games, such as capture the flag, dodge-ball, frisbee, vortex, etc (not dissimilar to those you would play in high school!), with a HIIT (high intensity interval training) workout mixed in. Rabble aims to provide a fun and sociable environment to get your workout in, but also to meet people, and help tackle the ever growing issue of loneliness in our community. I also work for the Department of Education, specialising in high needs special education. This is a major passion of mine, and can also be seen in my work with all inclusive theatre company - Studio Space Theatre Company, as a dance/drama teacher and artistic associate.

What inspired you to pursue this?
It took some time for me to realise what I wanted to do. For Rabble, it took moving abroad for two years, and discovering my passion for fitness with Rabble in the UK, and also for social networking and business ownership, before I knew I wanted to run my own fitness business. And for my work in the disability sector, I spent six months volunteering in a special needs school, which is when I knew that was what I wanted to do. It took lots of experimenting, and trying different fields before I was sure of myself that this is where I wanted to head. I now have aspirations to complete my Bachelor in Education,
specialising in disability, and to undertake some business management courses, to further understand the world of business ownership.

What educational preparation or life experiences would you recommend for someone who wants to pursue a career in your field?
The best advice I can give is to give yourself as much experience as possible. Don't be afraid to volunteer, and give up your time for free, because the rewards you will reap are worth so much more. Take every opportunity possible, and talk to your careers adviser on possible courses you can undertake to help assist, get your name ahead of everyone else when making applications. Life experience is everything, not just uni degrees. I got my job with the Department of Education through volunteering for six months, rather than any qualifications. And I opened my business with the life skills I had gained from working a hundred different jobs. Each career is different.

If you are interested in any of the following, please contact The Main Office.

Student Absence SMS The main contact of the student will receive an SMS message if they are an unexplained absence during Tutor Group. If the student arrives after 9:00am and signs in you will still receive the message as they were absent from Tutor Group. Please reply to the message with the child’s name, date, and details of your child’s absence. Parents have the option of messaging the school to advise of explained absences. Can parents please double check that our school SMS number has not been blocked in your phone settings. To avoid receiving an SMS please phone the school on 6341 4455 to advise of your child’s absence before 8:45am or leave a message on the Absent Student Message Bank 6341 4444.

Road Safety A reminder to students crossing roads on their way to and from school, to be alert and aware of the dangers when in and around traffic.

Validation Forms Thank you to all parents/guardians who completed student Validation Forms during book sales. Forms that were not completed during books sales have been posted home to parents.  Could we request that they be completed, signed and returned to the school office as soon as possible. This allows us to have the most updated details to contact parents/guardians.

School Uniforms  A reminder to all parents and students, to name and label all articles of clothing to help identify lost or missing uniforms.

Parents/carers collecting student/s during class time – Please allow extra time There are occasions when a parent/carer needs to collect their child from class during the course of the day, i.e. appointments, leaving early etc. When this happens, the student has to be called or collected from the classroom. This causes disruption to your child, the teacher, the class and regularly to the whole school if the student has to be paged.  If your child has to be taken out of class time, where possible, we will avoid using the PA system and instead someone will collect your child from the classroom and this may take some time depending on where your child’s class is. We value the learning of our students and therefore ask that where possible, you collect your child during the break times (times shown below) and in particular if you wish to take your child early in the afternoon, the best time is over the lunch break (1:10pm – 1:50pm) before the start of Block 4, i.e. 1:50pm. Recess 1 10:10am – 10:30am Recess 2 11:40am – 12:00pm Lunch 1:10pm – 1:50pm Thank you for your understanding. Rob Fleming Principal

PARKING IN SCHOOL GROUNDS When parking in the school grounds, please use the visitor carpark, the parking bays near the visitor carpark or the area next to the tennis courts. Please do not park in the bus parking areas as this space is reserved for buses only and this creates further congestion.  Also, a reminder that the disabled park spots are only to be used by permit holders and that permits must be displayed. Due to safety concerns please avoid using the staff car park when dropping off or picking up students.

MAILING OF INVOICES/STATEMENTS All statements/invoices are emailed out from our central office. This also applies to families who have set up an instalment plan with the school earlier in the year Receipts will be posted to those families who have opted to have payments made by credit card. Credit card payments are deducted from your account on the 20th of each month or the first business day after the 20th.

Up Coming Dates

14 May - 24 May	NAPLAN
20 May	Grade 10 Immunisations (Meningococcal)
20 May	Grade 7 Immunisations (1st Visit)
23 May - 24 May	Science and Engineering Challenge
28 May	Newstead College Visit (Grade 10)
28 May	Worlds Greatest Shave
29 May	Bulldogs Cup Day
29 May	School Association Meeting

2019 Term Dates

Term 1:	Wednesday 6 February – Friday 12 April
Term 2:	Monday 29 April – Friday 5 July
Term 3:	Monday 22 July – Friday 27 September
Term 4:	Monday 14 October – Thursday 19 December

 

2019 Student Free Days

Monday 22 July

Friday 1 November

 

Class Times

Tutor Group:	8:45am – 9:00am
Block 1:	9:00am – 10:10am
Recess 1:	10:10am – 10:30am
Block 2:	10:30am – 11:40am
Recess 2:	11:40am – 12:00pm
Block 3:	12:00pm – 1:10pm
Lunch:	1:10pm – 1:50pm
Block 4:	1:50pm – 2:57pm

Who to Contact

Principal:	Rob Fleming
Assistant Principals:	Grade 7/8: Caleb Turale Grade 9/10: Heather Jackson
ASTs:	Grade 7: Katrina Davenport Grade 8: Linda House Grade 9: Nigel Bent Grade 10: Kate Green Tier 3 Program: Donna Frankcombe
Grade Advisors:	Grade 7: Ben Van Est / Zoe Mesman Grade 8: Luke Tepper Grade 9: Emmalie Baylis / Ryan Innes Grade 10: Kim Anderson / Lochy Wilkinson- Reed
School Business Manager:	Tanya Smart
School Psychologist:	Lisa Docking
School Social Worker:	Alicia Hodge
School Nurse:	Peter Jacobson
School Chaplain:	Tracey Cassin

Queechy’s New Website

We have recently transformed our website with Schoolzine. To view our latest design click the link below!

Introducing Our New App

We have recently moved over to a new App with Schoolzine. This App will improve the way we communicate with parents and the community through the use of appropriate technology. Due to this change over, Queechy’s Skoolbag App is no longer in use and does not provide up to date information. Below are the details on how to download the App.