news 4 2014 - berwick college€™s have ‘no more zero ... army corps landed on the gallipoli...

Berwick College Newsle er — May 2014

NEWSLETTER ISSUE 4 9th May 2014 IMPORTANT CALENDAR DATES 2014

Office Hours: Administra on: Mon–Thu 8.15am–4.30pm

Friday 8.15am–4.00pm Payments: 8.30am–4.00pm

Berwick College Newsle er

Berwick College no fies parents by email when newsle ers are published. Newsle ers are published three mes per term.

Newsle ers can be accessed on the Berwick Secondary College website.

Manuka Road, Berwick 3806 Telephone: 8768 1000 Facsimile: 9707 2533 Email: [email protected] Web: www.berwicksc.vic.edu.au

DATE EVENT

13th – 15th May NAPLAN for Years 7 and 9

Tuesday 20th May Berwick College Dance Academy Informa on Night, PAC, 7‐8pm

Wednesday 21st May Presenta on Ball

Thursday 22nd May Presenta on Ball

Thursday 22nd May Monash Day

Friday 23rd May Year 10 Maths and English exams

2nd – 6th June Year 11 Exam Week

4th—12th June Year 12 Exams

Monday 9th June Queen’s Birthday Public Holiday

Tuesday 10th June Berwick College Dance Academy Applica on Forms Due

Wednesday 11th June GAT

Friday 13th June Report Wri ng Day – no classes

Monday 16th June Semester 2 classes start

Sunday 22nd June Dance Academy 2015 Audi ons: Year 7, PAC, 9.00 am – 12 noon Year 8, PAC, 1.00 pm – 4.30pm

Monday 23rd June Dance Academy 2015Audi ons – Year 7, PAC, 4.45pm – 7.30pm

Tuesday 24th June Dance Academy 2015 Audi ons – Year 8, PAC 4.45pm – 7.30 pm

Thursday 26th June Frost Day

Friday 27th June Last day of term 2 Students dismissed at 2.30pm

Berwick College Newsle er — May 2014 2

PRINCIPAL’S REPORT

I was privileged to a end the Careers Expo at Caulfield with 259 of our Year 10 students on Thursday 8th May. With a broad range of exhibitors and informa on sessions to a end, I know our students gained a great deal from the day. They were excellent ambassadors for our college, wearing their Berwick College uniform with pride. Thanks go to Mrs Birke and Mr Ne leingham for organising this opportunity for our students. Prac ces con nue as the me rapidly approaches for the Presenta on Balls. Members of the Rotary Club of Berwick are present at every prac ce, organising ckets and the background work that goes towards successful evenings. The College benefits enormously from the generosity of our local Rotarians and we are very grateful for their support. Our Year 7 Informa on Evening was very well a ended. Both the Basketball and Dance Academies have a racted great interest and we have had large numbers of families a ending tours. Our basketball teams have begun their compe on with other basketball academies and will con nue in a highly compe ve contest. Tes ng for entry into the 2015 High Achievers program was held last week and a strong field of students a ended the test. Our focus on learning con nues as we move towards the end of semester. We are focussing strongly on effec ve feedback, both to students and to teachers, alongside our exis ng strategies to improve learning. Differen a on of work based on students’ current abili es allows us to cater for the individual student. Families, students and teachers working together bring about the best possible results for the students. I hope you were able to a end Parent/Teacher interviews last term and that the result of those discussions is more successful learning for our students. In pursuit of our goals I have men oned previously the concept of ‘no more zero days’. This means there are no more days when we do nothing towards our goals. Not only is this helpful for our students in their pursuit of good results, it is relevant for all of us. Even if we only do something small it will contribute to reaching our goals.

Let’s have ‘No more zero days’.

Ms Kerri Bolch

Principal


The ANZAC tradi on ‐ the ideals of courage, endurance and mateship that are s ll relevant today was established on 25 April 1915 when the Australian and New Zealand Army Corps landed on the Gallipoli Peninsula. This year ninety nine years since that charge on Gallipoli, the College Captains Mikaela Vincent, Danielle Galea & Luke Artner presented a wreath at the Berwick Main Street Ceremony on behalf of the College to remember all the Australians who served and died in all wars, conflicts and peacekeeping opera ons. As expected the ceremony was emo onally charged and illustrated the journey from war, to peace, and provided a touching tribute to those who fought hard to give us the safe and war free place in which we live. Lest We Forget. Student Leadership Team.

ANZAC DAY 2014—BERWICK MAIN STREET CEREMONY

STATE SUCCESS FOR BERWICK COLLEGE SWIMMERS

On Tuesday April 29, the School Sport Victoria State Swimming Championships were held at the outdoor pool at the Melbourne Sports and Aqua c Centre. Berwick College had four students represen ng us at these championships. Our four swimmers were Jake Mitreski, Bill Le Brocq, Natalie and Chantelle Gray. Chantelle competed in the Girls 16/U 50m and 100m Backstroke events. For both of these events she placed third, taking home two bronze medals for the day. Natalie competed in several events and in the Girls 15/U 50m Bu erfly, she placed third and was presented with a bronze medal. In a very exci ng and ght Boys 14/U 50m freestyle race, Jake touched in equal first place. He was presented his gold medal by one of Australia’s best swimmers Nicole Livingstone. Our final compe tor at the event was Bill. He won the Boys 15/U 50m Breaststroke in a record breaking me of 32.21 (the old record was 32.81). Also as an added bonus he came 2nd in the Boys 15/U 50m Bu erfly. It was a great day had by our swimmers, and I was very pleased and proud that I got to see the students shine on such a big stage. The whole school congratulates you all on great conduct and even be er successes. Ms Jannelle Graham PE Teacher and Casey North Division Coordinator


VCAL / PRECAL NEWS

PEER SUPPORT

Senior VCAL students have now been trained in Peer Support. They held first Peer Support session with the Year 7 students this Thursday, 8th May in home group. The remaining sessions will be held on a Tuesday, using the 20 minute me slot. Dates are, 20th May, 3rd June and 24th June.

The theme for the term is Belonging, with the first session "establishing groups and general get to know you" We hope these sessions build a sense of connec on to school and the culture is one of support.

INTERMEDIATE VCAL

Intermediate VCAL students have been working on designing a healthy menu for children in personal development skills. On Thursdays over the next 5 weeks they will be cooking with Edrington Park Kindergarten students and Berwick Primary grade 3’s. They will also be running a Tabloid Sports Fun day on Monday 16th June.

Students will also be a ending the Jewish Holocaust Museum this term to complement their studies of the Novel Night.

YEAR 10 PRECAL

Year 10 PreCAL students have had a very busy start to Term 2. They have a ended Try a Trade on Tuesday 29th April and the Careers Expo on Thursday 8th May to complement their Work Skills Subject and help them make informed decisions about their career pathway post year 10. PreCAL class 1 have also a ended an overnight hike in Bunyip Na onal Park this week and Class 2 will be a ending on Monday 19th and 20th of June. This camp enables students to meet personal development outcomes in an engaging and challenging manner. At the end of May both classes will also be collec ng for the SALVATION ARMY RED SHIELD APPEAL.

YEAR 9 ALP Year 9 ALP students have now finished their Building and Construc on and Hair and Beauty units at Chisholm Dandenong and this term are work on Hospitality units. Students will be beginning their work placement on Thursday 19th June for every Thursday in Semester 2 and should be returning their Structured Workplace Agreements as soon as possible. On Thursday 24th April students a ended the Shrine of Remembrance to commemorate ANZAC Day and complement their studies on Australian History in Humani es. Ms Fiona McNeal VCAL


HOLLOWS NEWS

The Hollows Learning Team had some great successes in term 1, and we are now gearing up for an even busier term 2.

Last term, we had a wonderful day at the school athle cs carnival. We were so pleased that so many of our students got involved on the day. We finished the day in 4th place, which we are very proud of. To celebrate our achievements, we ended term one with a pancake breakfast, which was a lot of fun. Many thanks to Sheri, Tamara and Jade and Jayde who helped us cook and clean up.

During Term 1 Hollows had excellent a endance. Many students had 100% a endance for the term and every home group met their a endance target ‐ a great result.

This term, our leadership team are working on some fantas c home group ac vi es. Among them, is a ‘Design the Hollows Logo’ compe on. We would like all home groups to submit a design for a new logo for the Hollows Team, which celebrates our mascot – Hank the Hollows Hog! Designs need to be submi ed by the start of week 4.

Ms Sally Mitchell and Mr Ben Craddock Hollows Learning Leaders

BIG DECISION FOR KENNY LEADERSHIP STUDENTS The Kenny Student Leadership students had some big decisions to make at their last mee ng working out what to do with the money raised on Kenny Day.

They decided to give their con nued support to the Cortland’s Orphanage in South Africa where they have donated money twice before. This orphanage houses children that have been affected by AIDS and have been born with some deformity as a result. In the past we have helped to fund walking frames and hand rails to children at the orphanage to improve their quality of life. We will again donate $200.

We will also donate a further $200 to the Hutchinson‐Gilford Progeria Syndrome. This is a rare gene c disorder wherein symptoms resembling aspects of aging are manifested at a very early age. Those born with Progeria Syndrome typically live to their mid‐teens or early twen es. A recent TV documentary alerted our students to this rare disease and they felt that their contribu on could go towards valuable research in this area.

The Kenny team are par cularly empathe c to medical condi ons in keeping with their namesake Elizabeth Kenny, who was a nurse and worked relessly rehabilita ng those pa ents unfortunate enough to have poliomyeli s, o en called polio or infan le paralysis.

A big thanks to all the staff and students who have supported Kenny Student Learning Team that now allows us to generously donate money to these worthy causes. Ms Jenny Hart


DUNLOP DELIVER At our recent learning team assembly, our new captains were announced ‐ Kathryn Coxon, Amy Ashman and Brooke Bryan, and we welcomed Miss Manning into the Dunlop leadership team. On Friday 7th March the learning team leaders and school captains a ended a GRIP Student Leadership Conference at the Melbourne Exhibi on Centre. The sessions were about learning what the role of a leader entails and how they can further make a difference within their community. The presenters shared their insight into how to succeed as leaders, maximise student involvement, maximise fun with fundraisers, and create unity. Kathryn, Amy and Brooke found the day very informa ve and took great notes on ways to incorporate this in Dunlop, and school wide. The Dunlop leadership team have some brand new ideas that will be sure to keep you interested and looking forward to the year ahead. At our recent Dunlop assembly, it was great to see such a large number of our students recognised for their outstanding achievements, with students receiving awards for academic excellence, academic endeavour and excellent a endance. We are also excited to say that plans are already well along the way for Dunlop Day in June. Thank you to all the people who have contributed ideas to the day. Keep them coming, it’s not too late! We can’t tell you the details yet, however we can promise you we will keep you warm on a Winter’s a ernoon! On 10th February 2014, the whole school par cipated in the annual Swimming Sports Carnival held at the Doveton swimming pools. This day was a huge success for Dunlop, coming an overall 3rd place out of the 8 learning teams. It was fantas c to see so many students compe ng in the races. The students from Dunlop that competed on the day were: Adam Rogers, Joel Boatman, Adam Forger, Jamie Lowden, William Lui, Thomas Truman, Harry Wightman, Madeline Kelly, Jaimie Mc Donald, Yasith Peiris, Chris na Blackwell, Oscar Fowler, Cooper Taylor, Himeth Maputugala and Ma hew Gates. Congratula ons to all those who par cipated in the races and novelty races. It was so good to see so much enthusiasm and cheering from all our other Dunlop students. It was also outstanding to see some of our former Dunlop Year 11’s dressing up for the ‘Year 12 dress up parade’. In March, the Year 7 Dunlop students also went on Camp at Phillip Island Adventure Park. Over the three days the students were involved in many ac vi es, including the Giant Swing, High Ropes Course, Team Rescue, Archery, Surfing and Beach games. The students all showed great par cipa on and team work in each for the ac vi es. On each of the nights, the teachers entertained the students in a fun trivia and games night, dance off and ea ng compe ons! Dunlop students were a stand out in not only their sportsmanship and teamwork, but also with their killer dance moves. Numerous students, including our Learning Team Captains, also eagerly represented Dunlop in a range of events at the recent Athle cs carnival, . Congratula ons Dunlop on such an impressive start to 2014. Katherine Coxon, Brooke Bryant and Amy Ashman Dunlop Learning Team Captains


FLYNN NEWS In March the Year 7 students a ended the annual school camp in Phillip Island. The Phillip Island Holiday Resort offers a wide variety of fun and challenging ac vi es for all to enjoy. Some students said that their favourite ac vity was the high ropes course, while others enjoyed the giant swing and flying fox. Most said their favourite things about camp were swimming at the pool, surfing at the beach, hanging out with friends and spending me away from their siblings back home. The year seven’s also said they liked this camp because they had the freedom to be independent and the chance to show responsible they can be. Generally, the food was really good, however some said they weren’t impressed. Overall, the year seven students had a fun and relaxing me on camp where they got to spend quality

me together and build strong life skills and friendships. Just before the holidays, on Tuesday 1st April, Berwick College held its annual Athle cs Carnival. Flynn students par cipated in numerous sports including high jump, relay, 100m sprints and javelin. Flynn students really embraced the colour purple; some had purple hair, socks and capes, we even had a purple Flynn fairy! Our stamina and determina on paid off, because we ended up coming in third place. A Flynn record! This shows just how great Flynn students are working in teams and suppor ng each other through thick and thin. Our great efforts have placed us equal second with Monash on the overall ladder. Well done Flynn! Keep it up. Jessica Makeham and Piper van Hout Flynn Students


CAREERS NEWS

UMAT The UMAT test is used specifically to assist with the selec on of students into the medicine, den stry and health science degree programs at undergraduate level at a number of major Australian Universi es. Current Year 12 students who require assistance with the process are encouraged to contact the careers centre. Registra on for the UMAT closes on 6th June 2014. More informa on can be accessed via www.umat.acer.edu.au VCE AND CAREERS EXPO ‘The Age’ VCE and Careers Expo is Victoria’s largest educa on and careers fair. Universi es, TAFEs, private providers, and many others will have representa ves there. Get your ques ons answered, collect informa on, and be informed. When: 9am‐3pm, Thurs 8 & Fri 9 May; 10am‐4pm, Sat 10 & Sun 11 May; Where: Caulfield Racecourse; Cost: $10 (family concession); www.vceandcareers.com.au PARENT AND STUDENT TERTIARY INFORMATION NIGHT Deakin University is offering parents and students an evening where you can start to plan your VCE, university and career. Find out about courses, VTAC applica ons, prerequisites, costs, scholarships and pathways to university. When: Burwood campus – 6‐8pm, Wed 21 May; Geelong Waterfront campus – 6‐8pm, Wed 28 May. FOCUS on VET Cer ficate II Community Services Students enrolled in the Cer ficate II Community Services program recently completed the SCOPE Young Ambassadors Program. As part of the program, students spent me with Lyn Rowe who was born with no limbs in 1962 as a result of her mother taking the morning sickness drug, Thalidomide. Lyn shares her personal experiences with her audience to encourage the community to see the person, not the disability. Students also spent a day working alongside people with a disability at Scope Business Enterprises in Oakleigh. Scope School Programs give students the opportunity to take the understanding of living with a disability into their everyday life and challenges them to share the message of more inclusive communi es with others. COMING SOON Berwick College will be hos ng a Careers Expo with providers from more than 40 ins tu ons available

exclusively for our students. Tuesday 17th June, 2014 in the Leisure Centre.

Ms Allison Birke


NAPLAN

The Na onal Assessment Program – Literacy and Numeracy (NAPLAN) 2014 for Years 3, 5, 7 and 9 students will be held on Tuesday 13 May, Wednesday 14 May and Thursday 15 May 2014. NAPLAN tests assess student knowledge and skills in Wri ng, Reading, Language Conven ons (spelling, grammar and punctua on) and Numeracy.

The results of the tests provide informa on for students, parents, teachers and principals which can be used to improve student achievement.

All students are expected to par cipate in the NAPLAN tests.

Exemp ons may be granted to students with significant intellectual disabili es and to students who have been learning English for less than one year.

If your child is eligible for support due to disability or an exemp on, you should discuss this with Miss Lauren Kenny or Mr Spencer Davenport prior to the tests. Parental consent is required before any support due to disability or exemp on is granted.

Students may be withdrawn from NAPLAN by their parent or carer. This is a ma er for considera on by parents and carers in consulta on with Mr Spencer Davenport. If, a er consulta on, you decide to withdraw your child, you must sign a Student Withdrawal form. These forms are available at the school.

Later in the year you will receive your child’s personal NAPLAN report. The report will describe your child’s par cular skills in Reading, Wri ng, Language Conven ons (spelling, grammar and punctua on) and Numeracy. The report will also show how your child performed in rela on to na onal minimum standards. These describe the minimum acceptable standards for students across Australia.

I am confident that the informa on you receive as a result of your child’s par cipa on in the NAPLAN tests will be valuable in helping you to assess your child’s progress in literacy and numeracy.

For more informa on about the tests, please visit the VCAA website at www.vcaa.vic.edu.au or the NAP website at www.nap.edu.au

Mr Spencer Davenport

Assistant Principal

SECONDHAND UNIFORM SHOP

The Second‐hand Uniform Shop will be open each week at the following mes (during the school term):

TUESDAYS 8.30am‐9.30am

THURSDAYS 5.15pm‐6.15pm

Please phone 8768 1042 during these mes. If you have any uniform enquiries outside of this me, please

contact Diane on 9707 2605.

Second‐hand items s ll required include: dresses, blue polos (larger sizes), grey trousers (larger sizes) and

the school jacket. Items must be in good and clean condi on. Bring to the shop during opera ng hours.

All new uniform (both 2013 and 2014) can only be purchased from Noone Imagewear (formerly Graeme Booth), Shop 4, Beaconsfield Hub, Princes Highway, Beaconsfield. Telephone 9769 9093. Trading hours: Monday to Friday: 9am ll 5pm, and Saturday: 9am ll 1pm.


UPPER BEACONSFIELD BUS

Berwick Buslines has ins tuted a cket system for the Upper Beaconsfield buses. Student can purchase a return cket from the driver at the start of the day for $2.40. One‐way ckets are also available for $1.20. As much as possible students are required to have the correct change. Passes for students who are eligible for the conveyance allowance should see Mr Couche for their pass.

COMMUNICATING WITH PARENTS VIA SMS

Communica ng with Parents via SMS We have added an SMS facility to eWorkSpace, which will primarily be used to no fy parents of student absences, but communica ons may include reminders regarding mee ngs, sports days etc.

An SMS regarding a endance will be sent if your son or daughter is not in a endance at school and you have not no fied our A endance Officers: Chisholm, Frost, Hollows and Monash – 8768 1051 Dunlop, Flynn, Kenny and O’Donoghue – 8768 1086 Year 12 either 8768 1051 or 8768 1086

An SMS will be sent a er morning administra on and relevant data has been entered into the system at approximately 11am. Once you receive the message could you please contact our A endance Officer on the above numbers. The success of this system clearly relies on accurate records of mobile phone numbers, so it is essen al that you keep us informed of any changes.


EVERYDAY COUNTS ‐ SCHOOL ATTENDANCE

We all want our students to get a great educa on, and the building blocks for a great educa on begin with students coming to school each and every day.

Missing school can have a major impact on a child’s future – a student missing one day a fortnight will miss four full weeks by the end of the year. By Year 10 they’ll have missed more than a year of school.

There is no safe number of days for missing school – each day a student misses puts them behind and if they don’t maintain regular a endance, it is unlikely they will be successful at school. In fact, the benefits go well beyond their years at school as research shows that regular a endance:

Develops skills and a tudes such as self‐discipline, punctuality and being well organised. These skills help students to become “work ready.” Regular a endance at school is more likely to be translated into the workforce.

Leads to making friends and learning how to maintain rela onships over a period of me. Leads to learning social skills necessary to live and work with others. Promotes learning, performance and enjoyment of school.

Coming to school every day is vital, but if for any reason your child must miss school, there are things we can do together to ensure they don’t fall behind:

Speak with your child’s home group teacher and find out what work your child needs to do to keep up.

For long term absences develop an absence learning plan with your child’s home group teacher and student learning leader and ensure your child completes the plan.

Remember, every day counts. If your child must miss school, inform the school early as early as possible. See below for informa on.

Chisholm, Frost, Hollows, Monash, Year 12 Absence line 8768 1051 (24 hours) to speak to Sharyn Collins or leave a message, and your child’s absence will be updated on our system or email [email protected]

Dunlop, Flynn, Kenny, O’Donoghue Absence line 8768 1086 (24 hours) to speak to Robyn Batch or leave a message, and your child’s absence will be updated on our system or email [email protected]

Please provide a note or email to your child’s home group teacher on return of your child to school (this is a legal requirement even if you have called the absence line)

From 1 March 2014, new laws will mean that parents can be fined for not sending students to school without an acceptable reason.

If you’re having a endance issues with your child, please let your classroom teacher know so we can work

together to get your child to school every day.


HELPING YOUR CHILD AT HOME WITH MATHS The new Mathema cs textbook for year 7, 8, 9 and 10 provides an opportunity for parents to help their children improve in Maths using Cambridge Go website and Cambridge Hot Maths

Cambridge Go is an on‐line support package and the instruc ons are inside the front cover of the textbook. This on‐line support package also includes quizzes for addi onal work and revision.

Cambridge Hot Maths is an on‐line interac ve program which can greatly help your child in Mathema cs. If you s ll require a Hotmaths code, it can be purchased online at the following link h ps://www.cambridge.edu.au/educa on/ tles/Cambridge‐HOTmaths‐Supplement‐Valida on‐Code You will receive an email with the HOTMATHS 16 digit ac va on code. Please print the email and give to your child to pass on to the teacher, or forward the email to their Maths teacher. The classroom teacher has the login and password that your child needs to enter Hotmaths to ac vate their account. Students will also require the 16 digit number inside the front cover of their text book.

Benefits include: Improves your maths performance by reinforcing the topics you are learning at

school with unlimited access Makes maths meaningful and engaging with over 600 interac ve inves ga ons

(widgets), 1000 worksheets, 25,000 images and almost 400 complete lessons. Encourages independent learning as you achieve at your own pace and level Helps you catch up on work missed if you are absent from school Understand mathema cal terms in a range of contexts and applica ons with

the illustrated dic onary Master mathema cal processes with step‐by‐step explana ons and worked

examples using the walkthroughs func on. Compete in skill based on‐line compe ons

You can also access and save the textbook in pdf form. Students can now leave their textbook at school and complete work not completed in class and revision for tests using the pdf version of the text. The explana ons in the text are very thorough and clearly set out so parents can work through these examples with their children.

Students should complete Maths homework each week. Year 7 to 9 should undertake at least one hour per week; Year 10 students at least 1.5 hours per week; Year 11 students at least 2 hours per week and Year 12 students at least 3 hours per week.

So if your child claims they have no homework go on‐line as there is plenty they can do to improve their Maths knowledge and skills with the on‐line and pdf ac vi es.

Also check the parent portal via the College website www.berwicksc.vic.edu.au where teachers list the set home work that is to be completed.

A erschool maths support is available to students every Monday from 3.30pm to 4.20pm. This is held in A12 and students just need to turn up, no bookings are required.

news 4 2014 - berwick college€™s have ‘no more zero ... army corps landed on the gallipoli...

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