25 June 2021

Newsletter Articles

From the Principal

On 21 June our school captains Demi Andersen and Josh Malick attended the Australian Governor General’s luncheon with me at the Frenchville Sports Club.

His Excellency David Hurley spoke of the Queen’s concern for Australia during the bushfires and her high regard for the Australian people. The Governor General praised the young leaders attending the luncheon and wished them all the best in their future endeavours. The Governor General also spoke of the resilience of our country and its advantages, quoting Dorothea Mackellar’s ‘My Country’:

Core of my heart, my country!
Land of the Rainbow Gold,
For flood and fire and famine,
She pays us back threefold

(l to r) Demi, Her Excellency Mrs Linda Hurley, Josh, His Excellency Mr David Hurley

Show Car Parking

Congratulations to our whole school community (in particular our wonderful P&C – Claire Morrison (Treasurer and Car Parking Co-ordinator) and Paula Ireland (P&C President) for co-ordinating Show Parking once again this year. Our students, parents and community volunteers have done an outstanding job, raising $13 000 in just three days. This funding will be allocated back into the school for P&C approved-projects for the benefit of our students. For example, we are currently investigating state-of -the art electronic and durable playground equipment.

School Infrastructure

The tender process has commenced for our $2.5 m aquaculture Centre. Our school fence is to be constructed by the end of 2021.

I would like to wish all members of our school community a wonderful winter break!

Kind Regards
Kirsten Dwyer

Important Dates

Girls Rugby League Grand Final Winners

Congratulations the Year 9/10 girl’s rugby league team on their grand final performance against TCC last night. The girls were behind on the scoreboard until the last few minutes when they snatched victory by 10 points to 8. Their premiership is the second competition they have won this year. Last month they were the winners of the Karyn Murphy Cup knockout competition held between schools in the Rockhampton District. Caidence Fouracre ( Yr 9 ) was judged to be the grand final Player of the Match.

Many thanks to Megan Findlater who has done a terrific job as girls’ rugby league co-ordinator. Special thanks also to the girls’ coach, Mr Cedric Auda, team trainer, Dale Fouracre and first aid officer, Toni Stevenson. Cedric’s coaching expertise played a very important part in the team’s success.

University of Queensland’s Young Achievers Program

Our school is seeking nominations for high achieving Year 10 students with tertiary study ambitions as part of the University of Queensland’s Young Achievers Program. The University of Queensland’s Young Achievers Program raises and supports the long-term tertiary education aspirations, career options and community-mindedness of nominated Queensland state high school students from disadvantaged backgrounds by actively engaging and mentoring them throughout their academic journey and beyond.

Applications for current Year 10 students for 2022 intake are now open. If you think you might be eligible for this opportunity, please see Mr Smith (Guidance Officer) during second lunch breaks on Mondays and Wednesdays or contact the Young Achievers Program directly on the link below or 3346 0005.

Wade Smith
Guidance Officer

Year 7 Digital Technologies – Coding using Python

This term in Year 7 Digital Technologies, we have focused on robots in society and developing coding skills. According to many professionals, gaining coding skills is highly desirable for future employment. Coding skills also attract higher wages and keeps your brain active. This is because it develops logical thinking and allows students to be highly creative. Students have started with block code, Scratch, and quickly progressed to Python, a more complex coding language which is also commonly used in the business world. Our students will be well prepared for the future given rapid growth in e-commerce and our society’s demand for technology! We have worked on projects including making games and running a variety of information.

Indianna and Aster stated, “We have enjoyed the challenge of coding in Python. The Turtle Race was hard to do at first but we kept trying and it resulted in the game working out.” Teachers have been very impressed with the independent work completed by students!

Mr Webb, Ms Davey, Mrs Simpkins and Mrs Buchholz
Year 7 Digital Technologies teachers

Interviews For Year 7 — 2022

Rockhampton State High School is taking interviews for Year 7 2022. Could you please ring us on 49204333 and make an appointment for Wednesday 4 August, 2021 from 3pm until 5.45 (15 minute appointments).

Once you have phoned we would like you to come into the school and collect an enrolment pack. This pack needs to then be returned completed to us the following week so we can collate all the information before the interview.

Along with the enrolment pack we require a recent report card, proof of residency- unless you have a sibling in Year 7 – 11 at school already, Birth Certificate to sight and provide information and any medical or legal paperwork if applicable.

The collation of the enrolment packs makes the interviews flow smoothly for your interview.

If your student wishes to apply to enter the EXCEL program please advise us when you ring or return the pack.

Netball – Cooper Cup

The Cooper Cup is a multi-sport, interschool competition for State High Schools in the Wide Bay Region. This year the Cooper Cup netball competition was held at Hervey Bay on 21st June. Rockhampton High’s Year 7 and Year 8 netballers were invited to compete against teams from Maryborough, Bundaberg, Childers and Hervey Bay.

Subject Selection Process – Year 10 into 11

Year 10 is a critical time for students to make informed decisions about the next phase of their learning. The senior phase will present many opportunities in the form of academic study, school-based apprenticeships and traineeships, CQUniversity courses and work experience just to name a few.

In order to assist students to make meaningful decisions, a number of key activities have been organised. The most significant activity is the formation of the Senior Education and Training Plan (SET Plan). To ensure parents and carers are involved in the SET Plan process, a 10 – 15 minute SET Plan Interview will take place on Wednesday 25 August from 3.30 – 7pm in the Library.

At this interview, each student’s SET Plan and subject choices will be reviewed to ensure they have made sound decisions to achieve their career aspirations. The parent/carer, student and teacher will sign the SET Plan. Information about the booking process will be forwarded to families early in Term 3. Information will also be provided on the QCE system including the ATAR score. This is the final stage of processing your student’s enrolment into Senior Schooling at Rockhampton State High School – attendance is essential to validate your student’s subjects for 2022.

Several other school activities have been organised to assist students to make good decisions:

• Subject selection material distributed to Year 10 students – Wednesday 23 June
• HOD talks to explain subject requirements – Monday 26 July
• Subject selection lunch time chats (optional) – 2 – 6 August
• Subject selection forms due to the General Office – Friday 6 August
• Senior Education and Training (SET) Plans completed on One School and printed for parent/carer signing – 9 August
• Senior Education and Training (SET) Plans returned to Student Services – Monday 16 August
• Senior Education and Training (SET) Plan interviews – Wednesday 25 August
• Work experience (optional) – 13 – 17 September

For more information about your student’s options for the senior phase of learning, please do not hesitate to contact the school on 49204333.

Trudy Crow
HOD – Senior Schooling

Café project

Year 11 Hospitality students on an alternative graduating pathway negotiated the implementation of a small-scaled café this term for their assessment. Cody, Dylan, Joshua, Levi, Madison, Joshua H. and Jordan worked together to plan, create and deliver meals to SEP staff members over the course of 5-weeks. They produced a variety of meals, including quiche and salad, tacos, and chicken stir-fry under the guidance of Mrs Patria Matthews. Students received positive feedback from their customers and gained valuable practical kitchen skills as well as developing their interpersonal skills through working as a team. Congratulations to all students involved; it was a pleasure to see your confidence in the kitchen grow!

Mrs Julie Granville
HOD Food Technologies

Science

Students are concluding their unit of study on levers and forces by competing in the Rube Goldberg Challenge. Students will plan, design and test their Rube Goldberg machine before the Challenge Final on Wednesday Week 10. The machine which successfully completes the most phases will win!

Mrs Claire Moore
Teacher

Maths

This term in Maths, students focused on algebra, and probability in real-life situations. As assessment wrapped up in week 9 of the term, the last week of term was spent creating a tessellation art piece, where students are able to flex their creative and mathematical brains in preparation for a future unit on ‘transformations’. A group of our year 7 students also participated in the Maths Teams Challenge held at Glenmore State High School. These students had a great time problem-solving and meeting other mathematicians from around the Rockhampton region.

Ms Rachel Davey
Teacher

Civil construction students cement the skills of concreting

Senior students engaged in Certificate II in Resources and Infrastructure completed their training in concreting in the last week of school. This qualification will provide the students the opportunity to acquire skills for a career in the resources and infrastructure sector including construction, civil construction, drilling and mining.

The students were required to box the slab, participate in the pouring of the concrete and the finishing process. These are valuable skills for future careers in the domestic or civil construction industry.

We would encourage any students that are interested in this course in 2022 to contact Ellinah Wheeler in the FEET First program office.

Trudy Crow
HOD – Senior Schooling

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