Term 1- Week 6- 16th March 2023
Principals Report
The term is flying by, it's only nine weeks and we've got a lot to get done!
Over the last three weeks we:
- Are participating in the NAPLAN testing
- Engaged in sessions with the RSPCA on how to care for animals and what to do if we see an injured animal
- Our Year 7-10 had a session with Hilary our school nurse on the impact that vaping and e-cigarettes have physically on ourselves and on others
- Our teachers have engaged in Professional Learning with Bagdad Primary School
We are extremely grateful and lucky to have the Sheep Station Cup contribute directly to the most important people in the school, our students.
The Bothwell District High School students and staff will be provided with a high quality, machine washable woollen jumper with our school logo on it. There will be no charge for the jumper. On Monday 3rd of April members of our School Association will be sizing up students with sample jumpers, parents and carers are more than welcome to assist their child with this to select a suitable size for your child/ren now and with a bit of room to grow into as your child/ren get older. If you can’t make it on that day but would like to have input into the size, we have samples at school, and you are welcome to come in to try one on before the 3rd of April.
This is a great opportunity to engage our students in the journey that locally produced wool undertakes to arrive at a product that is wearable.
Students can wear their new jumper, school rugby top or school jacket as an outer garment at school. If the jumper proves popular, we can work towards incorporating this item into our uniform policy with the aim of making it available for order in the uniform shop.
Your child/ren will bring home their progress report on Friday 17th March. Your child's teacher/s provided ratings for various aspects of their learning, including how they respond to feedback, their level of aspiration, their ability to work well in groups and independently, and their willingness to seek help when necessary. The report also includes information on their ability to listen to others, persist with challenges, respond respectfully, use time effectively, and actively participate in learning. We encourage you to take the time to review your child's progress report and discuss it with them. If you have any questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to contact your child's teacher for further information and support.
Congratulations to our following students for their achievements in their chosen sports.
- Mikel Blundell, James Brazendale, Michael Pearce and Brayden Clark won their U15 grand final with the Gretna Cricket Club
- Caleb Mayne was selected to represent Tasmania in the National Indigenous Cricket Championships held in February
- Tara Pearce won the Premier League grand final with New Town Cricket Club
- Brodie Speed is a member of the Tasmania Devils development squad, selections on the final team are underway, goodluck Brodie.
We have lots of talented students at our school and we are very eager to share their achievements. If your child has achieved in the arts, sports, technology or received recognition for their work in the community please let us know so we can acknowledge them in person and in our newsletter. There is a link on our Schoolzine App that allows you to directly notify us, you can send us an email or call the school to let us know.
Students who being noodles to school and wish to have hot water added to them are asked to bring them to the meeting room (next to the Year 11/12 classroom) at recess. A staff member will help students prepare them. Due to WH&S regulations students will need to sit down on the decked area to eat them and then put their fork away. There will be times when a staff member can not assist students to prepare their noodles if they are required to perform duties elsewhere or the number of students wanting noodles prepared impacts their play time and students may have to wait.
Currently our Grade 3,5,7 and 9 students are taking part in the The National Assessment Program - Literacy and Numeracy (NAPLAN) which is a standardised testing program that assesses students' literacy and numeracy skills in Australia. The results of these tests are used to evaluate individual student progress and the effectiveness of educational programs at the state and national levels. At our school level we see how effective our teaching and planning strategies are, where we need to focus our energy and what we are doing well.
While NAPLAN tests can be a source of stress and anxiety for students and staff, they can also be an opportunity to develop resilience. Resilience is the ability to bounce back from challenges and setbacks, and it is a critical skill for success in both academics and life.
Here are a few ways that NAPLAN can help students build resilience:
- Learn coping strategies for stress
Tests can be a source of concern for students, and NAPLAN is no exception. Encourage your child to develop coping strategies for stress, such as deep breathing, exercise, or talking to a trusted friend or family member. By practicing these strategies during NAPLAN preparation, students can develop a toolkit of coping mechanisms that they can use throughout their lives.
We present NAPLAN to students as a challenge not a test, it is an opportunity for students to show us what they know, a chance to show off! The word test evokes negative emotions (think COVID tests!!) reframing a test as a challenge gives students the opportunity to take control and show us what they can do.
- Practice perseverance and effort
NAPLAN can be challenging, but is also provides an opportunity for students to practice perseverance and effort. Encourage your child to put in their best effort during NAPLAN preparation, and remind them that mistakes and setbacks are a natural part of the learning process. By persevering through challenges, students can build their resilience muscles and develop a sense of pride and accomplishment in their achievements.
Bruce O'Toole has informed us that he is retiring from his teaching role at our school and with DECYP. We thank Bruce for his contribution and passion that he has shown to our students, their learning outcomes and their wellbeing for learning and wish him all the best in his retirement. He assures me he is going to be kept busy on his farm! We will invite Bruce to an event where we can formally recognise him in person as soon as we can.
A big thankyou to our students who have been recognised for living our school values and setting a great example to us all.
- Jimmy, Holly, Aiden demonstrated RESPECT for the environment when they cleaned up a mess that wasn’t entirely theirs
- Ava B demonstrated COURAGE and ASPIRATION by challenging herself in phonics and going above and beyond in her learning and task expectations
- Lachlan G demonstrated GROWTH for persisting when things were becoming difficult in his learning
- Mia, Ryder, Makayla and Nellie demonstrated RESPECT in the way they cleaned the classroom at the end of the day
- Ella P demonstrated COURAGE, GROWTH and ASPIRATION in the way she challenged herself to extend her learning in maths
- Max and George demonstrated RESPECT when he included everyone in his football game
- Molly T demonstrated GROWTH by the way she worked in GEM
- Shelby R demonstrated GROWTH by the way she applied herself independently in her maths learning
- Jordy demonstrated GROWTH and COURAGE by being determined to complete his learning jobs
- Lilli B demonstrated COURAGE, GROWTH and ASPIRATION in the way she challenged herself to extend her learning in maths
- Holly S demonstrated COURAGE and ASPIRATION by challenging herself in phonics and going above and beyond in her learning and task expectations
- Willow demonstrated RESPECT by being a kind friend when she tried to cheer others up when they weren’t feeling the best
- Holly S demonstrated ASPIRATION by working independently in maths groups
- Nellie B demonstrated GROWTH by applying herself to her GEM learning.
See you all soon
Ryan Kinder
Virtual Learning Centre update!
If your child needs to stay home due to illness, but is well enough to continue learning, they may like to access the Virtual Learning Centre via Canvas.
For Kindergarten to Year 10 students, the VLC provides access to online lessons and activities for your child on various focus areas including Reading and Writing, Number, Science, Physical Activity and Wellbeing.
Your child can complete activities of interest to them or to support catch-up learning and revision.
If your child is unsure of their Canvas username and password to access the VLC, please let us know and we can provide these to you.
You can also access resources and ideas to support learning at home at Learning at home. You can find out more about the Virtual Learning Centre on the Department for Education, Children and Young People website.
Whilst we acknowledge that illness may mean students are at home for a short time, it’s so important that our students are actively participating in their learning. We know that going to school every day gives your child every chance to learn and grown and connect with their friends and teachers.
If you’re struggling to get your child to school, help is available. Please talk to us at school about your situation. We’ll support you, in whatever way we can.
Teddy Bears Picnic for LiL
Our LiL students went down to the Bothwell Park and had a Teddy Bears picnic. They all had a great time playing with their teddy bears at the park.
Kinder/Prep "Do you like crocodiles"
Kinder/Prep answered the question “Do you like crocodiles?” this week in Maths. We drew pictures of ourselves on a bit of paper and graphed our answers and data. We can safely say most of us do not like crocodiles in Kinder/Prep!!
Assembly
Celebrating student success at our first Assembly.
Sporting Success
Congratulations to Caleb (Year 12) who travelled to Alice Springs to complete at the National Indigenous Cricket Championship. His team came 2nd in the Tournament, just going down to NSW in the Grand Final. Absolutely massive effort! Well done.
Congratulations to Tara (Year 11) who this season has played Division 1 Cricket for New Town. Her team made it to the Grand Final and won at Blundstone Arena on Sunday.
Congratulations to Brayden, James, Michael (Year 10) and Mikel (Year 11) on winning the U15 Grand Final on Sunday against Sorell.
If you child has sporting success, we would love to hear about it. Please let us know.
Resilience Project
Gratitude
Working on gratitude helps us to be thankful and appreciate what we have in our lives, rather than focusing on what we don’t have or what we want. When we practise being grateful, we start to scan the world to look for positives–this only takes 21 days! Practising gratitude every day increases our levels of energy, helps us to feel happier and more focused, determined and optimistic. It even helps us have a better sleep, lowers levels of anxiety and depression and we are less likely to get sick. So many benefits–let’s all try to be grateful for the things and people in our lives every day!
Whole Family Activity:
Gratitude Scavenger Hunt
- As a family create a scavenger hunt list of things that make you happy or you are grateful for, you can make your own list or use the examples below:
- Something that makes you happy
- Something you love to smell
- Something you enjoy looking at
- Something that is your favourite colour
- Something you like in nature
- Something that is useful for you
- Each member of the family uses the list and has to find as many things as they can.
- You can hunt for things inside or outside, or both. You can hunt for real things, or you can also do this using magazines or pictures from the internet.
- After a set amount of time hunting, come back together, have a look at what each person collected and let them explain why they are grateful for each item.
Family Habit Builder:
Every night at dinner, have each person talk about their favourite thing about that day.
Fissure Sealant Program
The Fissure Sealant and Floride Varnish Program will be coming to Bothwell District High School on Monday 29th May and Tuesday 30th May, 2023.
Permission Forms will be sent home soon.
