12 May 2017

Newsletter Articles

Principal’s Comments

As the school continues to grow and establish relationships with a wide range of learners in a variety of contexts and locations, it is pleasing to see that with this growth comes a positive whole school purpose evident in every area of the school. Our young people rely on parents, tutors, carers, teachers, and other learning centres to support them in their learning. As such, the collective and individual success of students is made possible only through the individual and collective commitment of this learning community.

A practical example of this rich diversity within our school is evident during the recent NAPLAN testing for students in Years 3, 5, 7 and 9. Within the school, for different reasons, we see students undertake their testing in a range of different locations beyond our school gate. With work being done to take these tests to an online platform in the near future, distance may no longer present the challenge that it currently does for some in this area.

John Clark
Principal

Deputy Principal’s Comment

As occurs at this time every year, NAPLAN is upon us. As I reflect on the students coming in to the school to embark on 3 days of testing in their respective years (3, 5, 7 and 9), I note some great tips and advice provided by Dr Andrew Fuller on coping with the stress of the test. These tips, I think, extrapolate to a much broader focus than just NAPLAN and indeed are probably applicable in many stressful situations.

1. Everybody gets stressed during tests and exams, even people who say that they aren’t. That means everybody has to learn how to cope with these feelings, not just you.
2. The first strategy to deal with stress is to get stressed. Sounds funny, but realising that your body reacts to stress by “revving up” to perform in these situations and how this feels can help keep feelings in perspective.
3. Focus on now. Stress can make your head spin. Remember, the past is no longer with you and the future has not happened yet. Worrying never changed anything in the past and future predictions are usually wrong. Doing well in an exam means you need to focus on the question right in front of you. Keep reminding yourself, “What do I need to do right now”.
4. Build momentum. Answer a question that feels easy first off to build your confidence.
5. Breathe Out – SLOWLY. When you feel stressed, one of the fastest ways to calm down is to breathe out slowly. We all have a calm down system that is controlled by our breathing.
6. Stand tall, walk proud. Your brain is incredibly intelligent, but it is also incredibly stupid. It believes what you tell it. This means if you stand up and maintain a powerful posture, your body sends a signal to your brain that tells it that you are feeling in charge of things and this can reduce your stress level.
7. Look after yourself. Breakfast – eat brain food the morning before an exam. Have a higher protein, lower carbohydrate mix in your breakfast.

Cameron Burke
Deputy Principal

Finchatton ANZAC Day Parade

FLIQ (Flexible Learning Initiatives Queensland)

SNAPSHOT of PCYC – Upper Ross (Townsville)

FLIQ is an educational program designed primarily for Year 7 – 12 students who are disengaged from mainstream schooling and seek an educational pathway that will lead to further education or employment. We currently have 25 centres across Queensland participating in FLIQ. PCYC Upper Ross (Townsville) is one community based organisation who work in partnership with FLIQ to provide students with educational opportunities to achieve these goals. Over the last few years PCYC Upper Ross has conducted a program called ALPS (Alternate Learning Program) specifically aimed at students who are at risk of disengagement from education due to a range of extenuating circumstances. As a component of the ALPS program, students are enrolled with the Charters Towers School of Distance Education FLIQ program. The students are supported by FLIQ teachers, as well as a team of dedicated staff from the centre including Youth Workers, Teacher Aides and Coordinators. FLIQ provides the curriculum content to students and CTSDE teachers work in conjunction with PCYC Upper Ross staff to deliver the education program. The students involved in ALPS work to a daily schedule which includes their participation in FLIQ’s self-paced, modified program specifically developed to meet their educational needs. Subjects offered by the FLIQ program include Foundation Literacy and Numeracy, as well as Core English and Mathematics across Years 8, 9 and 10. Learning materials are presented in paper and digital format and can include workbooks, video clips, audio voice-overs, multimedia Learning Objects and interactive quizzes. Being an Alternate Learning Program, the students participate in other activities aimed at promoting social, physical and emotional development; as well as a broad range of life skills. These activities are only possible because of the excellent facilities available and the supportive PCYC staff who facilitate the extra-curricular sessions. Students work with community members from the Men’s Shed which is located on site, to build projects from scratch. The centre has snooker tables, a fantastic rock climbing wall, fully functioning gym and large gym hall allowing students to be involved in a broad range of individual and team sports. Community members are often invited to the centre to share their knowledge and experience. Some students have been fortunate to move into traineeships and school-based apprenticeships. PCYC Upper Ross exists for the community and is about bringing the community together. Through the ALPS program, PCYC Upper Ross and the FLIQ team are supporting the young people of the community who need a second chance.

FLIQ TEAM

Busy start to Term Two for Year 6

It has been a very busy start to Term Two in Year 6. The students have started the term getting right back into their studies. The students have started the term off with studying persuasive texts in English, conventions for the order of operations and angles in Maths and transitioning in Health and Physical Education.

Along with their studies, some Year 6 students have been busy participating in extracurricular activities. Some students were recently involved in commemorating Anzac Day by participating in the Anzac Day march and celebrating the Charters Towers Country Music festival by participating in the CTSDE float.

Mr Purdie and Mrs Langham are looking forward to spending time with students at the NAPLAN Inreach and the upcoming outreaches. Students should expect to have a fun time whilst revising concepts already covered in this unit.

Mrs Langham and Mr Purdie
Year 6

Year 1 Capers

Visual Arts

At the end of last term, our very creative Year 1’s completed a Visual Arts Unit that explored a range of concepts such as; different line types, textures and colour mixing. They used their newly learnt skills to create an amazing collage piece depicting a healthy habitat.

Some of these completed masterpieces are on display in the office. Next time you are visiting, please remember to check them out.

English

This term in English we have been reading some interesting texts and focusing on character descriptions. We have learnt about adjectives and how character’s traits change from the beginning of the story to the end of the story.

NAPLAN Inreach

This week, we are very excited about seeing Grade 1’s smiling faces during NAPLAN Inreach. We have some great activities planned around a classic fairy tale, The Gingerbread Man. I wonder who will be able to catch the cheeky Gingerbread Man by the end of the week?

Tash Weston
Year 1 Teacher

Showcasing Languages@CTSDE

Last week saw several CTSDE Languages students participate in the annual Charters Towers Japanese Speaking Competition, competing against a number of our local schools. Our students showed great courage in competing against students from local schools, especially considering that local students have the benefit of face-to-face specialist teachers and lunchtime practices! Students spoke about a range of topics, including self-introductions, family and pets. While all our students represented our school wonderfully, special congratulations must go to Maddison Knuth, who placed second overall in the Year 5 Division! Maddison is now eligible to compete in the Townsville competition later in the year. Thank you to our Japanese teachers, Ms Bogilevu, Mrs Waerea, Mr Gwon and Ms Doi who all gave up their own time to help prepare our students and ensure that they had this opportunity to use their developing skills.

Japanese Teachers

Maddison and the Japanese Teachers

10 Days in the Towers – Charters Towers Country Music Festival Street Parade!

Our school took part in the 10 Days in the Towers – County Music Festival annual street parade on Friday 28th April. Teachers and students enjoyed celebrating the event’s 40th Anniversary by riding on the float displaying their party hats and party whistles through the main street of Charters Towers. Thank you to the students, teachers and their families who joined us. A special thank you goes out to Coleman Stock Feeds Pty Ltd. for supplying our school with a trailer and hay bales.

Miss Micallef
Country Music Float Co-ordinator

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