27 March 2009

MIDDLE ROAD, (PO BOX 1261)DEVONPORT Phone: 6420 8100. email: [email protected]

Issue 2

NEWSLETTER

27th March 2009

From the Principal’s Desk Occasions such as the School Association AGM , held last week, provide us with the opportunity to reflect on the previous year and congratulate people on the outstanding achievements they have made. 2008 was no exception with a number of large projects coming to fruition. The Breathe of Life concert offered our students the opportunity to work with professionals in the music industry and to gain some insight into their lives as musician, sound technicians and “roadies”. The Gala dinner was an opportunity for our catering students to work a major event and see the rewards of their efforts. Our major project, Summit 2 School captured the minds and attention of everyone connected to our school community through a variety of experiences. Everywhere I went people were talking about it, asking me questions, talking about what their class had achieved. This project was designed to bring our school community together and make connections with the wider community. There can be no doubt in anyone’s mind that the project was an outstanding success. Another major highlight of our school year in 2008 was the Anzac assembly. Everyday I continued to be impressed with the initiative and achievements of our student leaders. The Anzac Assembly of 2008 will be remembered as one of those occasions when a simple message touched the emotions of every person present. Not only that but the efforts of the Prefect Board were recognised when they became state winners of the Department of Veteran Affairs Anzac Day Schools’ Awards. There were many other fine achievements during 2008 and although we have no major whole school project underway at present we have a number of smaller projects happening within the school in 2009. One such project is the Lighthouse Career Project. This involves a class of Grade 10 students working closely with the Devonport City Council. Students are engaged in working on real projects being developed by the Council and through this process are receiving the benefits of mentoring from Devonport City Council employees. Developing future pathways for students is an important goal at Reece High School. As part of this students in TAPP class are currently in Melbourne attending a Career Expo whilst other Grade 10 students have had the opportunity to undertake a mock interview with business people from our local community. 2008 was an outstanding year for Reece High School but I have no doubt that 2009 will prove to have many highlights that we will be able look back on and be proud.

R e e c e H i g h S ch o o l

Wise Up to Asia Globally the Asian region is of great significance Did you know that Asia includes:  60% of the worlds population and 30% of the worlds land mass  the worlds two most populous nations, China and India  a great diversity of belief systems including Islam, Buddhism, Hinduism and Christianity, and Indonesia, the worlds largest Muslim country  the world’s second largest economy, Japan, and the two fastest growing major economies, China and India.

2009 Competitions The following competitions for 2009 are being offered to the students of Reece High School. Competition

Competition date

Cost

ICAS Computer Skills

Wednesday 27th May

$6.60

th

ICAS Science

Wednesday 10 June

$6.60

ICAS Writing

Tuesday 23rd June

$12.10

th

ICAS English

Tuesday 4 August

$6.60

ICAS Mathematics

Wednesday 19th August

$6.60

If you would like your son or daughter to participate in one or more of these competitions could you please complete and forward the attachment below to the school office by Easter, Thursday 9th April Please indicate which competition and send the appropriate money with the form. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------I give permission for my son/daughter ______________________________(student’s name) ___________(principal class) to participate in the following competitions

Competition

Cost

ICAS Science

$6.60

ICAS Mathematics

$6.60

ICAS Writing

$12.10

ICAS English

$6.60

ICAS Computer Science

$6.60

Tick if entering

Amount due

Total: _________________ If you have any questions or queries regarding the competitions please contact Andrew Baker or Nerissa Snyders on 64208100.

SCHOOL ASSOCIATION CHAIRPERSON REPORT- AGM 19TH MARCH 2009 As I approach the completion of my 2nd year as Chairperson, I reflect on this time as an invaluable and interesting experience. Along with the other parent members, who commenced at the same time, I have increased my knowledge and understanding of the school’s operational activities, an awareness of the broad range of the school curriculum and the demonstrated exceptional standard that is continually achieved. We also recognise the dynamic leadership of the the Principal and appreciate her involvement with and representation of Education on both National and International levels, resulting in the recognition of the Reece High School model in these arenas. The parent members have developed the upmost respect for the commitment and dedication of the teaching team and that is why we fully support additional Professional Learning days, which are considered necessary to maintain the high standard. The school community has been asked to vote on this, with hopefully a positive outcome. The first challenge for 2008 was the Breath of Life Concert. This event is to be held again at the end of February 2010. A working group has been established with representatives from all stakeholders and preparations are well under way. A workshop is to be held in early July to discuss strategies and progress. It is anticipated that this will be a major fundraising event. Lack of school fundraising activities has been a continuing concern and following a newsletter plea to parents, late last year, a small group indicated interest in forming a committee. This will be followed through as soon as possible, this year. The second challenge for the year was the Summit 2 School event. Casey Frimley and Nigel Woolley are to be congratulated for their foresight and courage to strategise and successfully implement such a mammoth undertaking. This contributed to raising students environmental awareness and the development of a wide range of life skills. The entire school community is to be commended for their positive participation, everyone rose to the challenge and were provided with the opportunity to extend themselves beyond their own personal limits. In 2007 the School Association contributed to funds for the Grounds redevelopment. It was rewarding to receive positive feedback in relation to the recent Athletics Carnival, which was able to be held on “home territory”, for the first time for many years. This last year funds were allocated for the construction of the Automotive Shed. A commitment of a large sum of money has been made to assist with the upgrade and extension of the school gymnasium, due to commence early to mid year. The contributions to these projects has severely depleted our available funds and we will be continuing to actively seek assistance from the school community for fundraising activities, to enable us to build our funds for future school improvements. I felt privileged to be recently invited to attend a meeting with Sheree in Launceston, with a statewide representation of School Principals and Association Chairpersons. This meeting was called by the Premier/Minister for Education, David Bartlett and we were pleasantly surprised to hear him announce the Education Stimulus Package, which will provide schools with opportunities to access various streams of funding for improvements in selected areas with specific criteria. The Package is to be advanced quickly to stimulate the economy. The tight timeframes associated with this, may reduce opportunities for schools that have not been proactive in future planning and may benefit schools who have been recently unsuccessful in their application for funding and the prospective projects meet the specified criteria. Within 2 days of attending the meeting, Sheree, with the assistance of her team, was able to present suggested projects for funding application, for approval by the Association members. We are very fortunate to be involved with a forward thinking team and we are well in the forefront for ensuring that this school will be sustainable into the future. On behalf of the School Association, I would like to extend our appreciation to the 2008 Head prefects, Torren Wooley and Addison Davis for their valuable contribution to the meetings throughout the year, they kept us fully informed of Prefect activities. We all felt privileged to witness their personal growth and maturity and consider them both a testament to the high calibre of students, produced at this school. Similarly, we welcome the 2009 Head Prefects, Chelsea Nichols and Luis Fantarella. You have both already demonstrated your high level of leadership qualities at the Prefect Induction Assembly along with your fellow prefects. We look forward to working with you in the coming year. Thankyou to the School Association Committee members for your ongoing support and encouragement and your valuable contribution. Thankyou to Mike Lizotte for supporting me as Vice Chairperson, Jenny Webb and Anne Stewart for your diligent respective Treasurer and Secretary responsibilities, also to Paula for your tireless minute taking. KAREN SMITH CHAIRPERSON

The School Association would like to invite any interested parents or school community members to attend a fundraising meeting to be held at Reece High School on Monday 6th April at 5.30pm. We have a small group of parents, who have already indicated interest. The purpose of the meeting is to discuss possible fundraising ideas and to form a committee of interested participants. Fund raising activities are imperative for future redevelopment projects for the benefit of our children attending the school and future students. Please come along to the meeting if you are interested or contact a School Association member or the School office. Karen Smith Chairperson

Swimming Carnival:

On Wednesday 16th March, a group of 36 aquaducks from Reece High School headed to the Burnie Aquatic Centre to do their best in the North-West Interhigh Swimming Carnival. Everyone participated throughout the day with their best efforts, excellent encouragement and team spirit. During the day there were some mighty efforts from our students highlights which included: James Lucas 1st 50m Breaststroke Vivienne Kenny 1st 50m Breaststroke Stuart Carter 3rd 50m Freestyle Alex Grant 2nd 50m Freestyle 2nd Boys 50m Medley Relay 2nd Grade 9 Boys 4 x 50m Relay A big congratulations to Hamish Bound who won Grade 8 Boys Interhigh Swimming Champion. Well done to all those that were a member of the team!!!

28th March 1st -3rd April 7th -9th April 10th -17th April

Car Boot Sale-Reece High Car park 9-12 Grade 8A & E Camp Grade 9C & D Camp Easter Break

CONTACT DETAILS Reece High School, Middle Road, Devonport Tas 7310 Ph (03) 6420 8100 Fax (03) 6420 8199

Email: [email protected]