26 October 2018

Newsletter Articles

PRINCIPAL’S REPORT

Attendance is a key factor in the success, not just at school, but in work and life. I have signed many certificates in recent days for 100% Attendance, High Achievement and Improved Achievement. Not surprisingly, many of the same names appear. I encourage all students and especially their families to try to have students at school and engaging EVERY DAY. It does make a huge difference.

Mackay SHS 2018 Sports Awards Nights was held at the start of the term with the large assembly of students and their families and staff attending. The special guests for the evening included Kahn Stephenson, former Kirwan SHS student and now involved in coaching world level power lifters and Alex Kertesz, Strength and Conditioning Coach at Mackay Cutters. These men shared their experiences as they transitioned from school and the changes that have been confronted, to guide them to the positions they currently hold. Congratulations to the many students who received awards especially

Junior Sportsperson of the Year - Ryleigh Wotherspoon & William Morgan

Senior Sportsperson of the Year - Alec Scott

2018 Pierre De Coubertin Award winner - Charni Bloxsom

Remember that our 2018 Awards Night will be held at MECC at 7pm on Wednesday 7th November 2018.

Our Year 11 students have been invited to nominate for 2019 Leadership roles in recent weeks and twenty-two students have presented oral presentations to both their Year 11 cohort and also the assembled staff. Each of these students has done a quality job and will develop their confidence. The students will receive the results of the elections for the 2019 Prefects soon and the School Captains and Vice Captains for 2019 will be announced, at Awards Night.

A number of these Year 11 students represented students of our Mackay SHS, with students from other schools to discuss and develop priorities for future action at the CQU Student Forum Indaba. The forum sought student input and comments around the challenges and issues being confronted by our young people in Mackay and district. The outcomes will be shared, in a report to the students and representatives of CQU, Schools, MRC, Chamber of Commerce and other interested community organisations. Our representatives were Lauren Anderson, Mayson Armstrong, Caitlyn Ebner, Holly Gething, Blaize Grant and Reillly Sehmish along with students from Calen Secondary College, Sarina SHS, Mackay North SHS, Pioneer SHS, Holy Spirit College and Mercy College.

Our Open Netball Academy girls from Year 10-12 attended the State Netball Vicki Wilson Cup in Brisbane competing as one of the top 16 Qld Open schools teams. The students performed well and as several of our students are only 15 years old, could see the level that they can aspire to, under the guidance of Miss Forster and Miss Koko for next year. Our team was the only State High School and they represented very proudly, looking forward for the majority of the team to return in 2019 to lift again.

Eight of our Year 9 students attended the Conocophillips Science Experience off Gladstone last week and have returned with lots of experiences to share and build upon. They spent the week with other regional Year 9 students undertaking learning and sharing, problem solving and presenting their findings.

October brings on Eisteddfod each year. Many students are presenting individually and our Instrumental students represent on the Schools sections, performing so very well this year. Results included Senior Strings 1st, Strings Ensemble 2nd, Snr Concert Band 1st, Stage Band Highly Commended and Middle School Concert Band 3rd place. Our Snr Concert Band was awarded later in the evening a special Trophy for Overall Most Enjoyable Performance – Secondary Schools. Congratulations to all students and staff on this excellent outcome for Eisteddfod 2018.

Over 90 of our Year 10 students are participating in Work Experience at local and regional employers this week. A very big thank you to Annamaria Esau for her coordination of all of the placements and the organisation of the agreement forms required for such a large cohort. Sincere thanks to the wonderful employers and hosts who are engaging with our students, to give them real experience in the workplace.

Mr Steve Paulger
Principal

ANNUAL AWARDS NIGHT

The MSHS annual awards night will be held at the MECC on November 7, 2018.

This is the night that we recognise all of the amazing students in this school for their academic, cultural, citizenship and leadership abilities, as well as handing over our school leadership blazers to the incoming school leaders and announcing the 2019 school captains.

Invitations were sent out this week to students and their families.

Performers arrive at 6:15pm (Senior Concert Band, Vocal Group, String Ensemble and Stage Band)

We hope all can attend and share in this celebration of success.

Ms Lisa Veney
Deputy Principal

SPORT REPORT

The HPE staff would like to showcase the nominee’s for Junior and Senior Sportsperson of the Year. These awards are the most valued sporting awards at Mackay State High School. All students nominated have excelled in their chosen sport or sports within our school community. They have also shown a willingness to participate, and displayed all the qualities of future sporting greatness. They were recently recognised at our annual sports awards night. Congratulations to all nominees and a special congratulations to the winners of 2018.

CONGRATULATIONS to Ryleigh Wotherspoon & William Morgan who were dual Junior Sports Persons & Alec Scott who was the Senior Sports Person of the year.

We have included a range of photos taken on the night of students who received a range of awards across our three sporting academy’s, congratulations to all students.

VICKI WILSON CUP

On October 12th 11 of our year 9/10 Netball academy girls headed off to the Vicki Wilson Cup State Titles. The Vicki Wilson Cup is the Year 10-12 competition in Queensland. Our girls had previously won the Northern Cluster Title beating St Patricks College to go through and represent the Northern Area at the State Titles. Out of 360 teams that try out for the State Titles 20 teams are selected to play off for the best in the State. Our girls knew going into the competition it was going to be a challenge playing against older and more experience girls. However, this never deterred the enthusiasm of our girls leading up to the event. Julie McLennan led the parents in the charge of fundraising funds to get our girls to the Gold Coast. Our parents worked hard selling chocolates, raffles and turning sausages at Bunnings to raise the money. Our girls also were sponsored by Raw Metal Corp for our team t-shirts for the event which meant our team looked professional before, during and after the event. We cannot thank the P&C, parents and Raw Metal Corp enough for helping making a trip possibly.

The girls flew out on Friday at 6am with Miss Koko, Julie McLennan and Miss Forster for a weekend full of Netball. The girls arrived in Brisbane to cold and wet conditions but we were lucky as they knew they were playing indoor netball. After picking up the mini bus and travelling to the Gold Coast the girls got a chance to hit up DFO and get all of their shopping needs out of the way and then made their way to the accommodation. By the time we arrived all of the girls and teachers were fairly exhausted by then so an afternoon rest was needed. That evening the girls went out for a final carb load at a pizza and pasta place before and early bed time. We arrived at the courts at 7am for the Opening Ceremony and an early first match at 8am. The girls played 4 games on their first day and 3 games on the second day. It was played off in 4 different pools and the best of each went through to play off for the State Title. The girls came up against some tall, strong and experienced netballers. They took away something from every game. For this trip it was about gaining experience and networking for the girls with other schools. The girls had some strong wins on the Sunday however, the girls were exhausted by the end of the carnival.

It was an excellent opportunity for our girls to grow and develop as netballers as well as young women. The girls have now seen their goal of where they want to be in Year 12 and they will continue to work hard to be the best in the State. Remember to watch this space over the next couple of years to see where this fantastic group of netballers can take Mackay State High School at the State Titles.

Thanks to the girls for being a fantastic group of girls who represented our school the best they could. We are all very proud of you.

Well Done

Miss Forster
Netball Academy Coordinator

JUNIOR SECONDARY NEWS

General News

Student Council

The Student Council has been functioning well this year. It's great to see reliable and committed students representing the school. Members have been busy over the last 4 school weeks measuring out and marking handball courts around the school for students to use. We hope to have the project completed by the middle of this term. Here are some photos of the students out marking the courts.

Enrolments

Round 2 of year 7 enrolments for 2019 has been completed. If you know of someone whose child is wanting to attend Mackay Stat High School for year 7 in 2019 and has NOT had an enrolment interview, please tell them to contact the school immediately. It is difficult to place students in certain classes when enrolment is left to the last minute.

PDC Community projects

Year 7 classes will shortly begin some community projects as part of their Personal Development and care (PDC) class. These projects are aimed at promoting recognition of aspects of the community requiring support. For example, some of our students will be making Christmas cards for residents of some of our nursing homes. Please support your child if they request some resources from home to help out.

What's On Soon

Orientation Day and Activities day

A reminder that Orientation day for 2019 Year 7 students occurs on Monday 10th December. This is the same day that our Junior School is offered the chance to participate in an end of year activities day. Please be aware that it is an expectation that all year 7, 8 and 9 students participate in this. Details of the day will be provided in coming weeks.

Thought of the Newsletter

Rigour
noun

the quality of being extremely thorough and careful.
"his analysis is lacking in rigour"
"he had a rigourous workout at the Gym. Every muscle ached"
synonyms: meticulousness, thoroughness, carefulness, attention to detail, diligence, scrupulousness, exactness, exactitude, precision, accuracy, correctness, strictness, punctiliousness, conscientiousness;
"a speech noted for its intellectual rigour"

One of my aims for 2019 is to promote "rigour" and "resilience" in students. The desire and ability to produce high quality work and not be happy to produce and present 2nd or 3rd rate work, or no work at all. Not giving up after one attempt.

Matt Skinner
HOD Junior Secondary

CONOCOPHILLIPS SCIENCE EXPERIENCE

In Week 2 six Year 10 and three Year 9 students travelled to Gladstone to take part in the Conocophillips Science Experience, hosted by CQUniversity Gladstone. On the first day of the STEM experience the students were shown a variety of new technologies include VR headsets, 3D printing pens, and simple robotics. The second day they travelled to Quoin Island to visit the turtle rehabilitation centre and also learnt about the marine ecosystem and how plastic waste can impact it.

The third day the students competed in a paddle pop stick catapult challenge, before trying to find creative solutions to worldwide issues including poverty and access to clean water. It was an exciting and eye-opening experience that provided the students with a new insight into the value and application

THE ARTS

Instrumental Music

Mackay Eisteddfod

Monday 15th and Tuesday 16th October, 85 instrumental music students represented Mackay State High School at the Annual Mackay Eisteddfod. Our ensembles were very successful and the results are as follows:

Advanced Strings- 1st Place
String Ensemble, Conducted by Kristen Pengelly – 2nd Place
Senior Concert Band, Conducted by Matthew Johnston- 1st Place
Stage Band, Conducted by Matthew Johnston- Highly Commended
Middle School Concert Band, Conducted by Yvonne Bell- 3rd Place
The Senior Concert Band also received the overall trophy for “Most Enjoyable Performance in the Middle/ Secondary schools Instrumental Section”

Nicole de Brueys
Instrumental Music Coordinator

Year 10 Art @ the Beach

On Thursday the 18th of October Year 10 Visual Art students travelled to Lambert’s beach for a day of creativity, art making and exploration. Treated to perfect weather and pizza, the class explored the potential of this beautiful site through video, photography, drawing and site specific work… In some cases, students were called on the experience the place in unexpected and novel ways, notably Kayla Austin and Sissy Smith who in the name of art found themselves buried by their collaborators in sand!

SAVE THE DATE

MACKAY STATE HIGH PRESENTS

Escape 2 Euphoria will showcase our amazingly talent Arts Students on Friday the 2nd November from 5pm. There will be an art exhibition, performance artists, short films and music performances throughout the evening. There will also be free food and drinks available, making it the perfect evening out for family and friends to enjoy and support the fantastic Arts cultural at MSHS. We look forward to seeing you there.

When: 2nd November 2018
Where: MSHS Hall
Time: 5pm

BYOx Information Evening

There will be an information evening held in school Auditorium for any students in Year 6 coming to Mackay SHS in Year 7 2019 or any students looking at purchasing new laptops.

There will be information on device specifications, software requirements, use in the classroom as well as some information about devices available through the school’s Portals.

When: 13 November 2018
Where: Auditorium
Time: 6pm

ACCESS CENTRE

MSHS Junior Transition Program for Diverse Learners

Every Friday P1 & P2 (9am- 11am) - 4 sessions before orientation day: Parent or Primary School is responsible for drop off and pick up from the office at Mackay High.

Session 1: 16th November (week 6) ‘Starting High School’ – Tour
Session 2: 23rd November (week 7) ‘Subject Exploration’ – fun activities
Session 3: 30th November (week 8) ‘Meeting New People’ & ‘Making Friends’ – games
Session 4: 7th December (week 9) ‘Meeting Parents’ Morning tea – Students will prepare and cater for morning tea with Parents
2019 Year 7 Orientation Day (Whole school) – Week 10: 10th December, Monday

More information will be sent out to schools asap.

STYMIE

TOURISIM EXCURSION

On Thursday 18th of October Grade 11 and 12 Tourism Studies went on excursion. The day started with a tour the Mackay CBD with award winning local Historian Berenice Wright, who gave us an education on our local history, including that of important buildings in the CBD. We learned about the history of the riverfront Paxton’s building, early trade through the Pioneer River, the legacy of South Sea Islanders to the sugar Industry, the significance of the Leichhardt tree to early Mackay and so much more. Departing from there we arrived at Rydges, a spectacular premium hotel right in the heart of the CBD. There we toured one of their many rooms and their newly renovated bar area with friendly staff answering all of our questions. Here we learned of the affect online sites, such as Trivago, have on their business, both negatively and positively. For lunch we enjoyed excellent hospitality and service at Hogs Breath Cafe, we really enjoyed our meals and ice-cream and time to relax with our classmates. The final part of the excursion involved completing a demographic survey at Caneland Central, focusing business of our choice. During this study we observed how staff interacted with customers and took notes on the experience. Overall we enjoyed our time and gained valuable experiences on this excursion. We wish to thank our teachers and all the members of the public who gave up their time to share their expertise with us.

Reflection by 12A Tourism class

RACI CHEMISTRY QUIZ ACHIEVEMENTS

On the 26th July this year all senior chemistry students participated in the Royal Australian Chemical Institute’s National Chemistry Quiz. Over 114 216 students from 1 726 schools from 20 countries took part in this year's Quiz - a truly international event in chemistry education.

In Queensland there was 1599 year 12 students and 1640 year 11 students who participated.

A High Distinction was awarded to the top 10% of students in the state. A Distinction to the next 15% of students in the state (10% - 25%) and a Credit to the next 15% of students in the state (25% - 40%).

It is a pleasure to announce the following results:

Congratulations on a magnificent achievement!

SENIOR SCHOOLING

Position Vacant

INTERACT CLUB

This month marks 55 years since the first Interact Club was established at Mackay SHS. Over the decades many hundreds of students have been Interactors at the school, with many teachers having the privilege of coordinating the students in completing their projects and activities. After 55 years the Interact Club remains a service focused, student led club supported by the Rotary Club of Mackay.

2ND HAND UNIFORMS

We are always in need of any 2nd hand uniforms, for students that have the incorrect uniform, we can do a quick fix with a loan uniform through the Year Coordinators room. The loan uniform is then returned to the school in a clean condition. If you have any Senior or Junior shirts and shorts we would be most grateful, just bring into the General office.

MATHS DEPARTMENT

ENGLISH DEPARTMENT

TUCKSHOP

How can I get involved?

Volunteering is time willingly given for the common good and without financial gain.

The parents and citizens’ association at Mackay State High School appreciate any volunteer contribution that you can make. Can you help at tuckshop? Do you like planning or assisting at functions and special events? There are so many ways in which you can help our P&C email pandc@mackayshs.eq.edu.au for more information