Montrose Bay High School Newsletter - Term 3

Message from the Principal

Dear parents and carers,

Thank you for continuing to engage in the school’s communications and connecting with us to support your child’s education and wellbeing. Working together with our wonderful admin. team, our highly skilled leadership team and our hard-working and professional teachers creates valuable partnerships and is the best way to ensure success for your child. Our focus value of the Montrose Mindset this term is Connection which is mainly about building positive relationships and a sense of belonging (See graphic, right, for more details on how we display connection). Decades of research tells us that the more connected students and families feel towards their school and their teachers, the more motivation students have to attend school and engage positively when they are here. 
At Montrose Bay High School, we know that valuing Connection by building a positive and vibrant school culture, focusing on learning, aspiring to be our best and looking after one another are fundamental areas to build the kind of school that will best serve this community. I continue to look forward to working with you to help us get there, so please don’t hesitate to contact me via email or phone.
I strongly encourage you to complete the Department’s Family School Satisfaction Survey which will be open until 20 September 2024.

As we move into the second half of the school year, sometimes regular school attendance can be challenging. There are so many reasons to go to school. It’s a chance to be around friends, learn new things, grow and have fun. This term is packed with exciting things. Some opportunities provided so far:
•    Science Week activities, including a Young Tassie Scientists visit and a lecture from Dr Karl at UTAS
•    Book Week activities, including a staff debate, Write a Book in a Day, and costume day
•    Numerous HPE excursions (Netball, Rockit,  Hobart Gymnastics Academy
•    History seminars at Claremont College
•    RYDA driver education for Yr10s
•    24 Carrot (see below)

Still to come:
•    Swimming carnival
•    Sports colours day
•    Year 10 exams
For tips on creating better attendance habits, visit the Anything can happen website -

Please talk to us if you’re having trouble getting your child to school. We’re here to help.

NAPLAN
Recently, data from the school’s NAPLAN testing results were provided to the school and there are some great achievements to highlight. Overall, we:

-    Had a significantly increased participation rate in Yr7
-   Significant increases in the percentage of students showing medium to high growth in their achievement from Year 7 to 9. Numeracy = 8% increase, Reading = 10% increase, Writing = 14% increase, Grammar and Punctuation = 9% increase
-    Had an increase in Yr7 students exceeding the expected national standard for each domain
The school is holding an assembly and afternoon tea this Thursday to congratulate our highest achievers. Well done to all for your efforts!

Digital Skills for Families - Support your child’s online learning at home    
Digital skills are critical to every child’s success, but supporting online learning can be overwhelming. 
The Digital skills for families team are delivering a program to help Tasmanian families support online learning at home. Spending time online at home gives children an opportunity to practice what they are learning at school. Positive home environments help children develop the skills and independence they need to succeed in a digital future.  
Learn about communicating online with schools, digital education at school and how to support online learning at home. 
Digital skills for families is offering free: 
•    information sessions
•    workshops
•    one-to-one help 
In libraries, schools and community locations statewide. 
Email the team at digitalskillsforfamilies@libraries.tas.gov.au to find out more and book a free session. 

Regards

Jared Richardson
Acting Principal

School Association-Montrose Bay High

Are you a new parent to Montrose Bay High? Were you active in your child’s primary school association and wondering how to be involved at MBHS, or do you want to have input now that the early years are behind you and your kids are ‘levelling up’ at school?  Please feel welcome to come along to the MBHS Association meetings held once each term on a Tuesday evening. If you can’t make it, but have issues that you’d like raised and discussed, please let the office know so they can pass this on to us!

Zoe Smith
Association Chairperson

Year 7-Exciting Changes & Upcoming Events!

Term 3 in Year 7 has started brightly. All classes have been super busy taking on new learning in all their subject areas. Students have been excited about the flip over for the second half of the year in our specialist lessons. 

From now until the end of the year, students in 7A, 7B, and 7C will engage in three lessons each week in Art and Outdoor Education. This change is sure to spark creativity and adventurous learning opportunities. On the other hand, students in 7D, 7E, and 7F will delve into Food Studies and Photography, offering a fantastic opportunity to explore culinary skills and capture the world through the lens.

In addition to these exciting changes, we have an upcoming Health and PE excursion that is creating quite a buzz! All Year 7 students will have the chance to visit the Hobart Gymnastics Academy. Here are the details for the excursion:
•    Group 1 (7B, 7D, 7F): Period 5 on Monday, 26th August and Monday, 2nd September
•    Group 2 (7A, 7C, 7E): Period 2 on Thursday, 29th August and Thursday, 5th September
Don’t forget to bring your permission form, which can be collected from student administration or your home group teachers.

Beyond these exciting events, students are diving into engaging units of study. In Maths, we’re tackling Algebra with a focus on like terms, substitutions, and modelling. English classes are working on Information Reports, while Science explores Physics, specifically forces and simple machines. Health & PE students are learning about relationships and enjoying striking and fielding games, and in HASS, we’re discussing the concept of Liveability.
We look forward to seeing all the wonderful learning and activities that will unfold in the coming weeks!

Jack Young
Year 7 Assistant Principal

Year 7 Photography snaps

Year 8 - MDT Woodwork

This year, the students in grade 8 MDT woodwork have been enthusiastically engaged in a variety of projects. Their creativity and skills have shone through in the making of practical items such as spatulas, toolboxes and jewellery trees, just to name a few. Each project has provided them with the opportunity to learn new techniques and skills and express their individuality through their craftsmanship. The enthusiasm and dedication they have shown in their work is truly commendable.

Student Leaders - Fundraising efforts

Student leaders have been hard at work this term fundraising for local organisation Tassie Mums. They ran a BBQ and donation drive to support the important work that Tassie Mums do. Later this term they will be running the Lip Sync Battle and a sports colours day to raise funds for FightMND.

Student Wellbeing & Engagement Survey

The wellbeing of our students is important to us - we want to hear how students feel, and think, about different things going on in their lives.

Those in Years 7–10 at Montrose Bay High School will be taking part in the Student Wellbeing and Engagement Survey. The results from this survey will help us get a picture of the current wellbeing of our students, and what we can do to improve future wellbeing for learning. The more students who take part, the clearer our picture will be. 

The Student Wellbeing and Engagement Survey is part of the Department's Child and Student Wellbeing Strategy, which you can learn more about by clicking the below link -

You and your child don’t need to do anything. The survey will be done in class time and will not require your child to prepare in any way. 

A letter with more information has been sent home with all students, including Frequently Asked Questions and a form to sign and return to the school if you do not want your child to participate in the survey.   

If you would like further information, please contact us on 6208 2666.  

Thank you for supporting us to ensure that all our learners are safe, feel supported and are able to flourish, so they can engage in learning. 

Student Health

School Satisfaction Survey 2024 - Invitation

The 2024 School Satisfaction Surveys are coming! 

Every year the Department for Education, Children and Young People conducts a School Satisfaction Survey to find out what your child(ren)'s school does well and where it may improve.

We would be grateful if you completed our online survey about Montrose Bay High School. Your feedback is very important to help us inform our school-planning and decision-making.

The survey is open from Monday 26 August 2024 until Friday 20 September 2024 and should take about 5 minutes to complete.

Each family should nominate one person to fill in this survey for their child(ren).

Take the online survey by clicking the below link, or pasting it in your browser: https://nam.dcv.ms/sZuZx2mTVf 

The survey is carried out on a secure website and all responses are anonymous and confidential.
All families in this school received the same survey link and no identifying information is collected. A summary of the survey results will be provided to schools.  Responses from individuals or small groups will NOT be disclosed to any Department for Education, Children and Young People staff.

Please contact your school if you require any assistance.

Thank you for taking the time to fill in this survey.

School Attendance - text messages

If your student is not at school or signs in late, and we have not already been contacted by you about this, you will receive an automated text message from us advising they are absent.  This is because they have missed part or all of their lesson. Please respond to these messages with an explanation for the absence or late arrival so we can update your student's attendance records. 

This is part of our duty of care, to ensure you are aware that your student has not arrived to school or arrived late.  

Book Week 2024

Dates to Remember