Celebrating “Best Effort”
Research states that having a growth mindset and giving your “Best Effort” has a significant effect on your achievement. As a staff we have continually looked at ways we can support students if they are finding a concept or skill difficult to understand/achieve. We have a commitment to providing the time and support to make this happen. This week each grade has been completing PAT testing which will give us an understanding of individual student growth over the past 12 months. This will inform future teaching for each student and govern our interventions for 2022.

Grade 10s
At this time of the year while contemplating their future, the Grade 10 students have also been undergoing PAT testing and will start exams next week. I just wanted to highlight how proud of them we are as a group of staff. During such a stressful period, they have remained respectful and taken responsibility for their own learning. This has seen a number of them staying in at break times or accessing teachers after school to ensure they give themselves the best chance to achieve well in their testing. The majority of our students have indicated that they are heading to Don College next year, with some others either receiving apprenticeships or completing Year 11 and 12 and Reece High School. At Reece we will be starting an exciting new program called Seafood and Maritime. Approximately 8 students have already enrolled in the course for part of their Year 11 program. We believe that we have given our Grade 10s the tools to succeed in post Grade 10 education or training and know that they are striving towards our school vision of “Inspire Today to Empower Tomorrow”. Towards the end of the year I will have the exact numbers of students that have already gained apprenticeships. I would like to personally thank Natasha and Merryn for the support they have provided these students. There are approximately 5 students that I am aware of that have already gained an apprenticeship.

Ski Trip
We are optimistic about having a ski trip next year, however, are still waiting on approval from the State Government in relation to interstate school trips. This may mean that we are unable to begin planning a trip until the start of next year. If your child is in Grade 9 or 10 next year and are wanting to attend, I would encourage families to start saving for the trip.

Approximate costs will be:

$2000 for 8 day trip

$3000 for 13 day trip

Remembrance Day
The 11 November marked the 101^st Anniversary of the Armistice which ended the First World War (1914–18). Each year on this day Australians observe one minute’s silence at 11 am, in memory of those who died or suffered in all wars and armed conflicts.

Our youth play an important part in ensuring we remember those who fought for our independence. We took a moment to observe a minute’s silence at our Athletics Carnival last Thursday. Thanks to Grace and Josh for leading this message.

2022 School Uniform

At the beginning of this year I outlined the school and School Association’s expectations in relation to our school uniform and especially the wearing of black shoes; however, some parents had already purchased other coloured shoes. In planning for next year, we ask that parents ensure that your child has black shoes. The wearing of our school uniform highlights that our children belong to RHS and are proud of their school.

Amazing Talent

Several staff and students had the privilege of watching 'Moana' in Burnie last Week. Moana was the most successful junior show that the Burnie Musical Society has produced. We were fortunate enough to have Toby and Jackson play lead roles in the performance. We were astounded by their talents on stage. We knew they had amazing drama skills, however, didn’t know they were also such great singers. When talking to them both since their performance I have never seen them so animated. They said it was the most amazing experience and that they can’t wait for the RHS production next year. “Our proud moments are when we work really hard to try and achieve something!”. Both boys got to experience this feeling and I am sure we will continue to see them on stage for many years to come.

High School Basketball Championships

Last week we had several students take part in the High School Basketball Championships. We had some positive reports about their sportsmanship and willingness to give their “Best Effort”. A few students elected to represent our school even though they don’t usually play basketball.  We had some outstanding results with our Grade 10 Team making the Grand Final, eventually going down by 6 points. I would like to thank the parents and teaching staff that supported the teams over the weekend.

Message from Grade 7 Coach for the Tournament - Chris

The boys are all in Grade 7 and played very well. Under sized and 6 players, meant they had it ahead of them.

Wins against Burnie High, St Brendan’s Green, and Parklands meant they topped pool B.

Narrow loss in the semi-finals against Circular Head meant the boys played the Grade 8 Reece side in the playoff for third.

The boys battled hard against the bigger boys and went down by 13 points.

 They all had fun……we think……..hopefully they stick together next year and with a  bit of height added they will go well!

Is Ned Kelly a hero or a villain? This is the question Grade 7 students have been exploring this term in English. Carole Wilkinson’s novel Blake Snake uses a variety of primary and secondary sources to explore the events that unfolded in the late 1800s. For their final assessment in this unit., students will be making an informed decision, around whether one of Australia’s most famous outlaws was a hero, villain or victim.

During HASS, students have been studying ancient China. They have learnt about a Chinese educator and philosopher by the name of Confucius. Confucius’ teachings come in the form of a series of proverbs. A proverb is a simple, concrete, traditional saying that expresses a perceived truth based on common sense or experience.​ How many of the following proverbs are you familiar with?

• Great minds think alike
• If you snooze, you lose
• No pain, no gain
• Money is the root of all evil
• Love is blind

Some popular proverbs among the Grade 7 students were:

• "Everything has beauty, but not everyone sees it."
• "Respect yourself and others will respect you."
• "Life is really simple, but we insist on making it complicated."

This week, our students have sat their annual PAT testing for Mathematics. We have been blown away by their results. This is a direct reflection of their effort within Intervention and core mathematics classes. The current unit of work we are exploring is chance and data. We have been focusing on theoretical probability and experimental probability and this week will be conducting some chance experiments. Our Intervention focus is on fractions, decimals and percentages.

You may have wondered why your child has been asking to go out and stare at the night sky recently! As a grade, we have been exploring space in Science. Students have enjoyed learning about the Earth’s position to the sun. The phases of the moon and a focus on eclipses have intrigued some students with great questions being produced.

Last Wednesday in Grade 8 Science we had an expert on climate change visit the school to talk to us. His name was Dr Stuart Corney from the University of Tasmania, and he researches the impacts of climate change on marine ecosystems. He spoke to us about his work and about some of the effects that climate change will have on Antarctica and penguins, and about how he was once shipwrecked in Antarctica. It was great to get some first hand knowledge on these issues. Below is a list of tricks to reduce our carbon footprint, even little changes can make a big difference.

• Volunteer to help (e.g., clean up Australia day, RSPCA)
• Use less water
• Reuse materials instead of throwing them out
• Plant trees
• Buy paper not plastic (e.g., plates, cups, straws)
• Buy electric vehicles
• Make a compost bin for food scraps
• Don’t throw out lots of food
• Take fewer flights
• Walk or cycle places if possible
• Put solar panels on your roof
• Pick up rubbish
• Eat plant-based foods
• Turn the power off when you’re not using it
• Recycle
• Reduce the use of single use plastics
• Hang clothes instead of using the dryer
• Cook more vegan or vegetarian meals (introduce meat free Monday)
• Encourage others to help

This week, students in Grade 9 completed their PAT testing. These tests, which measure students reading comprehension, spelling, grammar, vocabulary, and maths, allow us as a school to see the growth in our students. Grade 9 teachers have been really pleased with the mature way students have approached these tests, applying their best effort across all four tests. We have already seen some fantastic results!

In week 7, Grade 10 students will have the opportunity to sit exams for the subjects of English, Maths, Science and HASS. The purpose of these exams is to assess the learning of concepts and skills and to prepare students for further educational pathways. This term’s exam results, along with their work throughout the year will be reflected in student overall assessments for reporting.

In preparation for and sitting exams, it is expected that students will:

• Make the most of the support offered to them. This includes support outside of their normal classroom lessons – Advisory lessons, during lunch times and after school on Thursdays
• Engage in the preparation supports offered by their teachers
• Dedicate some time at home to study. It is expected that students study for at least 20 minutes a night. This encourages students to retain the information they are needing to remember over a period time instead of ‘cramming it in’ over a few short days.
• Sit the exams under proper exam conditions. This will be explained to students prior to the exams taking place.

Exams are a valuable experience for all and the Grade 10 teachers are committed to preparing each and every student to do their absolute best.

Sarah Elliott
Grade 10 Team Leader

We had such a great 2 days!

Thank you to all staff and students who attended, participated, and gave their best at our recent Athletics Carnival. The sun was shining on Thursday and we enjoyed fruit for morning tea, a BBQ lunch and how could we forget the athletics itself. On this day at 11am all students and staff stopped and held a minute silence in recognition of Remembrance Day. There were multiple dogs to be walked and it was the first year a 100m final has needed to be re-run because of a ‘dog’ streaker. It was a little cooler on Friday but the boys heated things up early with House V House dodgeball and the girls eventually warmed up finishing their dodgeball game with a dance party. Big congratulations and thanks to all that came. Bring on 2022.

This year's points included house activities completed during class and break times, competition over the two days plus the new side games completed at each rotation.

Devon (Blue) - 7285

Torquay (Red) - 5936

Formby (Green) - 4789

Mersey (Yellow) 4481

Prefects trialled the Reece High version! 'Keep it up Cup'

https://aus01.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fyoutu.be%2FIiigz06_lvM&data=04%7C01%7Ckaylah.rataj%40education.tas.gov.au%7C20f4c5c1996947ae2d3208d99277de8d%7Ca9be3ac70c60491e8b3ba32f8f46aec8%7C1%7C0%7C637701865796264274%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJWIjoiMC4wLjAwMDAiLCJQIjoiV2luMzIiLCJBTiI6Ik1haWwiLCJXVCI6Mn0%3D%7C1000&sdata=pRlpVgjRCIAjTYPFO3PSKS5HpPR3KSiKjtOIisDll6w%3D&reserved=0

Thank you to all students who got involved.

A big congratulations to Blair who dominated the comp and easily beat Mr Franks.

Some of our Visual Art students in Grade 9 & 10 visited Don College last Wednesday to view the End of Year Art Exhibition. Students were impressed at the amazing artworks and it was great to see work from former Reece High School students on display.

Our Biggest Excursion

On Wednesday 10^th November, Miss Reeves, Darra, Gennah and the Life Skills group went to Burnie to the Arts and Function Centre to see the Burnie Musical Society’s production, “Moana”. We left school at 10 o’clock and Darra drove the bus to Burnie. When we got there, we had our morning tea and headed inside. There were lots of other school groups there as well. Two of our students, Jackson and Toby, were in the musical. Jackson played Maui. The light show and the crab were some of our favourite parts. After the performance, we sat down and had our lunch. We then headed back to school. It was a tiring but fun day and some people (not Darra, thank goodness) fell asleep on the bus on the way home. We had a great day.

Karla Reeves
Student Support Teacher

On Tuesday the 9^th of November, 5 teams - 3 of boys and 2 of girls participated in the Cricket Gala day held at Meercroft and Byard Park. Teams were placed in a round robin style roster where they played teams from other schools around the North West.  It was a great sunny day for cricket! 1 of the 3 boys' teams competed in the pitch competition, while the other 2 boys and 2 girls' teams competed in the social competition. The boys' pitch competition team played 2 great competitive games against Ulverstone and Devonport, although not coming away with a win the boys had lots of fun and shared lots of laughter with students from other schools. The social competition teams played 4 games each, each Reece team won at least 2 or more games. Well done everyone!

HPE Team

Check out our new Aboriginal design cushions in the Library!! Original artwork is from the Warlukurlangu Artists Aboriginal Corporation - Warlukurlangu Artists is one of the longest running and most successful Aboriginal-owned art centres in Central Australia. It has a national and international profile and its art has been featured in hundreds of exhibitions and publications in Australia and around the world. Have a look at their Facebook and Instagram page if you are wanting to see more artwork.

Gill Brazendale | Aboriginal Education Officer | Aboriginal Education Services
Department of Education | Reece High School, 41-43 Middle Road, Devonport
64 20 8129 | Gillian.Brazendale@education.tas.gov.au

Check out Aboriginal Education Services new collection of online multimedia resources designed to assist the teaching of Tasmanian Aboriginal histories and cultures here >>> www.theorb.tas.gov.au