Montrose Bay High School Newsletter - Term 3 Week 9

Principal's Report

Term 3 has seen the continued improvement journey at our school, our current focus on reading and engagement has been highlighted by several data sets which have seen positive growth which is testament to our staff and student’s efforts supported by the wider community. Next week many students will take part in a silent disco and pizza making sessions as part of our positive behaviour support program linked with class dojo, these students have demonstrated our school values and strived for excellence in all learning areas.

There have also been some pleasing achievements by our students this Term, Esther in Year 9 has been nominated as a candidate who may be awarded The Frank MacDonald Memorial Prize (FMMP) that commemorates and preserves the meaning of the Anzac spirit in the Tasmanian community. If she is successful, she will receive a trip to Europe. Our senior girl’s netball team represented our school at the Southern Championships this week where they placed 4^th which was a fantastic effort.

We have also had several Year level excursions which have taken students out of their comfort zone and helped them to experience different environments, these include the statewide STEM conference at Guilford Young College, Science excursion at UTAS, HASS excursion at the Springs on Kunanyi to name a few.

Evidence of Learning

You will shortly receive evidence of learning work samples. These work samples will be posted home and will include a piece of work for both English and Maths which will have a rubric attached with “where to next comments” and describe achievement for the sample in the learning area. Some students may not receive these samples due to attendance issues.

Reading Inquiry presentations

During 2023 all teachers across all year levels have been involved in inquiry cycles linked to student data in reading. These groups have investigated best practice strategies linked with our school data to improve student learning. This week each Year level presented to the wider teacher cohort and shared their learning and achievements it was great to listen to and view their impact and improved student results.

Student Leadership

Throughout Term 3 our student leadership team have been extremely busy with many events. The team has been raising money for the Black Dog Institute which has included a free dress day and BBQ where they prepared and cooked egg and bacon rolls, sporting competitions and spider drinks. This has all culminated in raising over $1200 for the institute. As part of their goal in early Term 3 they set out to raise over $700 and if they achieved this several staff agreed to have mullet haircuts. Congrats and thankyou to Mr Griggs, Mr Luttmer and Miss Critchley who all received mullet haircuts this week

Mr Tim Nicholas - Principal

School Association-Montrose Bay High

Here we are at the end of Term 3 already, the weather is getting warmer there seems to lots happening in the school. It must be spring! As we break for term holidays I wonder where the year has gone. 

Hope you all have a great break ready for a big effort in Term 4, and as always you are welcome to come along to our end of year meeting at 5:00pm on Tuesday 14 th November.

Look forward to seeing you there.

Earle Patman on behalf of the School Association.

Year 9 & 10

It has been a busy and productive term 3 for the grade 9 and 10 students. Term 3 started with a fully staffed school which enabled changes to our structure. This meant teachers were teaching new classes and grades. It has been pleasing to see how the students and teachers have approached the change with a growth mindset, resulting in quality teaching and learning within classrooms. A highlight of our term has been the ongoing senior school assemblies where we celebrate learning, recognise student achievement, and focus on career aspiration by having guest speakers discussing their individual journeys and the importance of education within their job.

In Science, grade 9s have been learning about homeostasis, which is the body’s internal thermostat or cruise control that keeps all your vitals at a set level through the process of negative feedback loops. Since week 7, grade 9 have been learning about sexual and asexual reproduction, the benefits and downsides of both and reproductive strategies. The students did a doing a daffodil dissection in week 9 and in week 10 for their assessment, the students will be creating two dating profiles one for an organism that reproduces asexually and one for an organism that reproduces sexually.

The grade 10s have been learning about the periodic table for the first 5 weeks of term, what information it tells us, and what chemical reactivity trends are portrayed on the table. The students sat a test for their assessment where they were permitted to use the notes that they had taken in their science books throughout the term to help them. Since week 6 the grade 10s have been learning more about chemical reaction, how to predict the products of chemical reactions, how to identify the types of chemical reactions, and what factors increase the rate/speed of a chemical reaction. In the laboratory, the students have been forming precipitates by mixing pairs of dissolved salt solutions to make a solid product “come out of” the solution. They will be designing their own science report for their assessment.

In English, across grade 9 and 10, students have been navigating the wonderful world of William Shakespeare. Grade 9s have been exploring Romeo and Juliet through the 1996 Baz Luhrmann film Romeo + Juliet. Students have used this reimagining of setting to develop ideas for their own version of a scene from Romeo and Juliet in their major assessment. In the grade 10 space, students have been studying another of Shakespeare’s classics in Macbeth. Students have watched the ShakespeaRe-Told version of Macbeth and are applying their learnings from the change in setting and dialect in their major assessment where they will be reimagining the entirety of Macbeth in a trailer, podcast or narrative. Both grades have had the amazing experience provided by Bell Shakespeare company to consolidate their learning and develop new ideas. We are looking forward to seeing them apply their knowledge of these plays in their wonderful creations.

In Maths, Students in 9/10 have been smashing some challenging topics this term. Grade 10 have been learning to solve simultaneous equations and focusing on their algebra skills. Grade 9 have been working on two different topics; exploring the world of Pythagoras' theorem and trigonometry before moving on to using index laws. Students have worked on various difficulties of questions and enjoyed applying index laws using memory games, wall treasure hunts, puzzles and mazes. 

In Drama, Year 9 this term are learning about Children’s Theatre. This style of performance is specifically created and performed for children between the ages of three to eleven. This convention features a mixture of styles such as audience participation, direct address to the audience, puppetry, and chorus elements. We have been rehearsing a play called Fables which is about morals and lessons, such as the Tortoise and the Hare. This involves creating some larger-than-life characters including funny and imaginative animal performances that incorporate human like qualities. Students need to consider who is the audience for this specific style of theatre and make sure there are elements of humour, easy to follow storylines, over-the-top characters, along with short, sharp scenes to ensure the audience will stay engaged. It has been a creative, funny, and imaginative term with students learning to develop more confidence, how to work with others effectively and showing commitment in the rehearsal process.

As part of our senior school assemblies for the remainder of the year we will be having a guest speaker series. We have invited people from all types of professions to share their stories about the journey they have been on from school to where they are now. Our first guest speaker was Daniel from Top Deck Building, we would like to thank Daniel for donating his time to share his story.

We hope the students have a great term break and return refreshed for Term 4.

Year 11 - 12

Year 11 & 12 students are now finalising end of year results and preparing for their end of year dinner.

Congratulations Ms Buchhorn

Ms Buchhorn received a Teacher Leadership Award from the Tasmanian branch of the Australian Council for Educational Leadership at their annual awards evening this month. The award recognises teachers who have improved student outcomes through exemplary teaching practice, contributing to leading the professional learning of others, and building purposeful relationships both within schools and the broader community.

24 Carrot Program

The 24 Carrot Garden has had a busy and productive term. We started off with completing our new renovations in the garden, the addition of a new 9m poly tunnel, calming corner and market garden beds have allowed us to extend our growing space.

The calming corner is a great space for students to have a quiet minute to themselves when needed and also allows small groups to sit down and get work done.

During this term students have started a garden journal. Each lesson students choose an edible plant, and they will write what it is, it’s scientific name, provide a drawing and list some characteristics such as taste texture and culinary uses for this plant.

We have also been heavily sowing seeds for what we think will be a very busy and productive spring and summer.

Netball - Southern Championships

A massive congratulations to all students who participated in the netball tournament on Thursday 21st September. For a team who have never played together before, everyone did a fantastic job. Miss Stacey is so proud of everyone's efforts, and you should all be extremely proud of yourselves too! 

Montrose finished 4^th overall, out of a total of 12 teams. A big thank you to the family and friends who came along and supported our students, and again we thank our talented student Rhohan Jackson for being our umpire.

Dates to Remember

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