Term 4 Week 5

FROM OUR PRINCIPAL

The value of extra-curricular learning

A few years ago, I was speaking to a Year 12 student, Alex, and reflecting on her time at the school.  What would be her enduring memories and what would be the advice she would offer to students commencing their secondary journey?

Her message was simple.  Get involved.

She told me how in her first few years she had tried most things on offer at the school.  Through that she found out what she liked and what her strengths were.  She also told me about the relationships she had made, the skills and attitudes she had developed and the way that she had felt connected to the school as a result.

There is no doubt that getting involved in extra-curricular activities builds a sense of belonging and supports young people to develop a range of attributes that will be highly useful in adult life such as teamwork, time management, empathy and commitment – not to mention our school values of respect, responsibility and resilience.

In this newsletter, there are a number of articles that highlight just some of the extra-curricular learning available at Salisbury East High School. 

Sometimes students need a bit of a nudge to get involved.  Sometimes they think that everyone will be much better than them and lack confidence.  Teachers certainly have a role to play in encouraging involvement but parents/caregivers are often hugely influential too.

As we move towards 2022, start planting the seeds with your children about getting involved in something beyond their classes. Speak to them about some of the opportunities available in sport, STEM, Student Voice or Music, for instance.

What’s happening with the new buildings?

Earlier in the year we were delighted to hear that our concerns had been listened to and that plans were afoot to provide us with some additional learning spaces.

This is occurring in two stages:

Stage 1 involves:

• A new grounds and maintenance shed built at the rear of the gym – work is now underway in this location
• Two new modular buildings (Design and Technology workshop and Home Economics kitchen) – near the current Home Economics area/current location of the maintenance shed. These modular buildings are largely being built offsite and then will be craned in during January.
• Refurbishment of classrooms in Wing 2 (ground floor) into Science laboratories. Work will be commencing in late November/early December in readiness for the beginning of the school year.

Stage 2 also involves modular buildings – located near the gym area:

• A new Supported Learning Building for students in our two Special Options classes
• Four general classrooms

This wil occur during 2022.

Kristen Masters, Principal

YEAR 7 & 8 TRANSITION TO HIGH SCHOOL

Exciting times are getting closer and closer by the day at Salisbury East, ready for the arrival of the 7s and 8s of 2022! New Furniture has been ordered, the extra sport equipment is on its way and the table tennis tables are almost ready for positioning. More importantly, our teachers and staff have been busy preparing the learning ready for our new students.  

Teachers from all areas of study have been involved in observations in primary schools in our local area, to get a feel for the learning that students are used to. Teachers have said this has been a very positive experience and are ready to include more hands-on learning, and build the student's reading and maths skills in small group targeted learning groups. Additionally, our curriculum leaders have been working with teachers to prepare engaging units of work, and unpack teaching ideas from the new Department for Education units.

Coming up are two important events for families: 

1. Enrolment Confirmation Interviews:

Bookings are now open for families to book an interview time for students to confirm their enrolment. Please check your emails. If you did not receive an email, please contact the school ASAP on 8258 2070 and ask to speak with Kate or Steph. Interview days will be held on the 17^th and 23^rd of November. Students are strongly encouraged to attend where possible. At these interviews we confirm their enrolment, talk about class placement and complete any outstanding forms. 

2. Transition Days:

Year 7 (2022)– Week 8, Thursday. 2^nd December. Start 8.35am. Finish, 2.15pm. Students meet in the STEM plaza. Students will be called to classes for next year. Students complete a day of high school activities. Students meet back in STEM at 2.05pm for dismissal at 2.15pm. Students wear the school uniform of their primary school.  

Year 8 (2022)– Week 8, Friday. 3^rd December.  Start 8.35am. Finish, 3.05pm. Students meet in the STEM plaza. Students will be called to classes for next year. Students complete a day of high school activities. Meet back in STEM at 2.55pm for dismissal at 3.05pm. Students wear the school uniform of their primary school.  

As we move closer to the transition to high school, if you have any questions or concerns, whether you are a new or existing parent, please feel free to contact me via email or phone on the details below. I look forward to meeting as many people as possible at our interview days. 

Kate Mckinna, Learning and Transition Coordinator

Email: Kate.Mckinna122@schools.sa.edu.au 

STEMIE CHAMPIONS

Winners are grinners! Following on from regional success several weeks ago, our STEMIE team last week became South Australian champions - an outstanding achievement.

STEMIE is the STEM Innovation Experience conducted by UniSA and is offered as an extra-curricular activity to our students. Made up of Year 10 and 11 students, the team has worked tirelessly over this semester in preparation. A huge well done!

In the state final, our team competed against six other teams who qualified through the regional showcases. Faced with ten unseen challenges, the SEHS team completed them a full ten minutes faster than the next team - hugely impressive!

A special acknowledgement to our STEM and Innovation leader, Mr Jamie Broadhurst, for all his work in promoting and supporting our students’ involvement in such competitions.

FINANCE UPDATE

Have you completed your School Card Application?

To check if you have submitted an application or may be eligible, contact the Front Office (08 8258 2070)

• Online applications can be made online at GOV.AU - School Card scheme (www.sa.gov.au) (link below)

           Online Applications close at 11.59pm on Friday 19^th November 2021.

• Paper application forms are available at the Front Office.

            Paper applications must be received by the Front Office by 4pm on Wednesday 17^th                                  November 2021 to ensure that they can be processed in the School card system.

If you are not eligible for School Card.

You can make payments via:-

• Bpoint portal on our Website (link below)

• Bank Transfer to our bank account-

       Salisbury East High School Council Inc – Consolidated  

       BSB 065-122    

       Account Number 11105055   

       Reference (Your invoice number or Family code)

• Front Office (8.15 am – 4pm Mon – Fri)

        Payments can be made via Cash, Credit/Debit Cards and Cheque

• Centrepay

       Directly from your Centrelink benefit. You can arrange this via Centrelink or through the

       School.  A signed “Agreement to Pay” is required.

• Direct Debit from your bank account. Please see Finance Officer to arrange this.

          A signed “Agreement to Pay” is required.

If you require any assistance, please contact our Finance Officer on

 (08) 8258 2070 – option 2 between 8.15am – 4pm Mon – Fri.

MENTAL HEATH FORUM

On October 26, students from all year levels were invited to a mental health forum hosted by Salisbury Youth Council and Headspace. The forum, ran by youth council members and year 11 students Shariff, Meng, Brooke and Hossein, discussed a variety of topics including identifying the symptoms and causes of poor mental health, as well as discussing strategies to combat and overcome these feelings.

Students also took part in games, as well as some positive wellbeing activities including mug and pot decorating, and rock painting.

The session, which was held in the STEM centre, was a forum provided by Salisbury Youth Council’s mental health project team and is a part of their goal to educate the youth on mental health issues and provide options and resources for those in need.

Overall, the students who participated valued the information provided by headspace and found the forum to be a very enjoyable and educational experience.

Brooke Duncan, Year 11 Student

RAA's STREET SMART HIGH

On Wednesday 20^th of October, we joined with over 70 schools in South Australia’s largest youth road safety event, RAA’s Street Smart High.

Our Year 11 students arrived at the Adelaide Entertainment Centre to improve their road safety knowledge, skills and attitudes.

The four-hour program included a simulated crash scene, real life stories from people whose lives have been affected by road trauma, and a demonstration on the importance of ANCAP star ratings when choosing a car.

RAA Community Engagement Senior Manager, Ben Haythorpe, said it was vitally important to educate novice drivers about the risks and dangers they faced when they get in a car or on a motorcycle.

“People aged 16-24 years make up 13 per cent of the population but accounted for 21 per cent of all fatalities in SA over the past 2 years,’’ he said.

“Young people need to be exposed to road safety education consistently, and over many years, in order to develop positive road safety attitudes and behaviours.

“I’m confident road safety education is impacting positively on students’ attitude to risk taking on our streets and contributing to this long-term reduction in road trauma.

More than 60,000 year 10-12 students from over 80 schools across the State have attended Street Smart High since it began in 2009.

The event is supported by Think! Road Safety through the Department of Planning, Transport and Infrastructure.

LEGO LEAGUE CHALLENGE

More Robotics success for SEHS! Recently, two teams made up of Year 8 and 9 students took part in the annual Lego league challenge at Pedare Christian College. Both teams competed valiantly -finishing 3rd and 4th out of 16 teams for the Robotics aspect. Both teams came away with awards for best in category. The girls took the Engineering and Ingenuity award and the boys for Robot Design. The girls will be back in action in a few weeks after qualifying for the national championship! (Virtual event this year for obvious reasons). The students did SEHS proud and added two more trophies to the growing collection in the STEM centre. Well done to all!

RAISE MENTORING - YEAR 8s

This year - 10 students were involved in Raise Mentoring to program to provide young people with a caring, independent volunteer mentor who showed up each week, just for them. The mentors provided time to listen, one-to-one support to empower young people to talk through life's challenges and help them cope better, today and in the future. This program went for 23 weeks and concluded in week 4. Well done to all students involved. 

YEAR 11 ESSENTIAL ENGLISH EXCURSION

On Thursday, 4th of November, Miss Gigg's and Miss Patman's Year 11 Essential English classes walked down to Saints Kitchen in Salisbury Plains to complete a Restaurant Review for their final summative for the year. The students took lots of photos, engaged in critical analysis and enjoyed not only the food but each other's company. Students were all very well behaved and modelled our school values in the community. Thank you Saints Kitchen for having us.

Nicole Gigg, Year 11 English Teacher

BEACH SOCCER

Over two days SEHS had four teams participate in the annual beach soccer tournament in Mawson Lakes. A fantastic day - both weather and performance - from all  involved. The year 9 boys team and year 8 boys team faced each other in the final after going through the day undefeated. A dominating day of entertainment from both Salisbury East teams. In the final, the year 9 team managed to trump the year 8 team in a 3-2 thriller. There were some stand out highlights were riddled throughout the day with some influential goals and saves to get us through to the finals. All players showed class, determination and sportsmanship in playing each and every game. 

For the girls, Team A had 5 wins, 2 draws and finished 2nd in their pool missing out on the grand final by 1 point. Team B had 2 losses, 2 wins and 3 draws and finished 3rd in their pool.

James Marshall & Jordan Harris, PE Teachers

ORIGAMI ACTS OF KINDNESS

Over the year SLC student, Justin, has had conversations with students and staff across the school about the kind of thing they might like made for them using Origami. Justin enjoys Origami and has spent hours making gifts for people; based on either the information they have given him, or based on what he knows about their interests. Here are some photos of Justin with some of the gifts he has made. Each one has a hand written, personalised message from him. Thank you for your kindness Justin.

Michelle Sboro, SLC Teacher

VEX IQ

Two SEHS teams competed in the VEX IQ newbie robotics competition at Pembroke School. Team A won the VEX newbie award for best new team and qualified for the national competition next March. Team B are very new to it and had a great day building their robot and learning from the other teams. They will be raring to go for the next competition in December.

YEAR 10 SUPER 8s CRICKET COMPETITION

The future of cricket at SEHS is looking very promising indeed after our young boys team pulled off a remarkable victory! Despite taking part in the Year 10 School Sport SA Northern Zone Super 8s Cricket Competition with only one Year 10 player, the remaining middle school students looked anything out of place as they hit the boundaries, racked up the runs, and saw off the competition to claim the winner's plaque. What a performance!

JUMU'AH PERFORMANCE

During HASS this term 902, 904, 906 and 908 students were involved in an interactive performance by Act Now. The performance engaged our diverse community by facilitating conversations around challenging and contemporary issues. This performance 'Jumu'ah' was about racism, with a focus on islamophobia. Our students demonstrated Respect, Resilience and Responsibility all throughout the performance and provided positive feedback to their teachers. Well done year 9's.

LEARNING FOR LIFE SCHOLARSHIPS

The Smith Family is offering our students ‘Learning for Life’ Scholarships.

These are awarded to students in families experiencing financial disadvantage that have demonstrated a commitment to education and who would benefit from additional resources and support.

The Smith Family, which is partnered with Salisbury East High School, now has openings for Learning for Life Scholarships for students in Year 8.

Eligibility includes families having a current Pension Concession or Health Care Card, while students need to demonstrate a strong commitment to education through a minimum 90% school attendance.

Families who meet this criterion are encouraged to speak with our Middle School Wellbeing Coordinator Amelia Molnar.

Please note, however, that meeting the eligibility requirements does not guarantee a scholarship and self-referrals can’t be accepted – they must be at the discretion of, and be submitted by, SEHS.