LEARNING RESPECT SAFETY

16th Dec,

2016

Term 4

Week 10

Gulgong High School

Newsletter

SCHOOL

INFORMATION

Address:

Belmore Street,

Gulgong, 2852

Phone: 6374 1201

Fax: 6374 2360

Website:

http://www.gulgong-

h.schools.nsw.edu.au/

Principal:

Linda Macleod

Deputy Principal:

David Tooney

Head Teachers:

Sharelle Fellows (English/

HSIE/LOTE)

Winston Hughes (CAPA/

Welfare/Careers)

Kathryn Lane

(Mathematics/Library/

Sport)

Darryl Newton

(Administration)

Graham Wilson (Science/

TAS)

Stage Advisers:

Sophia Tooney (Stage 4)

Carly Sewell (Stage 5)

Matthew Stanley (Stage 6)

Support Staff:

Gail Ratcliffe (Aboriginal

Education Officer)

Justine MacLennan

(Learning and Support

Teacher)

Melanie Freudenstein

(Counsellor)

Cheryl Seis (School

Administrative Manager)

Year 12 FORMAL

What’s Happening

Years 7, 11 and 12

Return Monday 30th January 2017

All Remaining Students

Return Tuesday 31st January 2017

Principal’s Report

Welcome to the final newsletter for 2016. I would like to start by thanking Mr.

Tooney and Mrs. Lane for relieving in the roles of Principal and Deputy Principal

respectively whilst I was on leave. They fulfilled the roles exceptionally well and I

thank you for your support of them during this time.

The past couple of weeks have been extremely busy as we finalise matters for 2016

and begin organisation and preparations for next year. Last week, Ms Chivonne

Gofers accepted the Position of Head Teacher Welfare gained through the Merit

Selection Process and she will commence n this role from the first day of Term 1

2017. Mr Ben Bennett successfully gained a classroom teacher position at The

Ponds High School in Sydney and we wish him all the best in his new endeavours.

With a majority of staffing now finalised, timetabling and organisation for next year

can now be completed.

The Year 10 end of year Alternate Program has been extremely successful. Thank you to the students for engaging in the

activities and we look forward to your feedback for future planning of this activity. Last week, the Year 10’s participated in

work Experience with a majority of students receiving a placement in Gulgong. A huge thank you to local business and

organisations for their support of Gulgong High School by agreeing to take students for work experience during the week. The

response was resounding and is greatly appreciated by the staff and students.

It has been an extremely busy year however, at our staff meeting last week we spent some time revising our plan for the year,

looking at what we have achieved and identifying the areas for focus in 2017. There have certainly been some physical

improvements made to the school grounds, classrooms and facilities. The focus on literacy and ALARM has begun to make a

difference in the area of writing, leadership and career opportunities continued to be facilitated for students, and there is an

ongoing focus on communication and high expectation sin the classroom. Positive Behaviour for Learning continues to

develop, the Links to Learning Program produced some great outcomes for students involved and students continued to

access support through Individual Learning Plans, Quick Smart and in class support. This has been complemented by regular

and relevant Professional Learning for staff.

I would like to thank all parents who assisted the school in the provision of resources through payment of fees and the $50

School Contribution. All of these funds contribute to improving the education outcomes of students at Gulgong High School.

We are fortunate also to have the support of an active Parents and Citizens Association and I thank them for their efforts

throughout the year.

As we head into the festive and holiday season, may I take the opportunity on behalf of the staff to wish you all the very best

for Christmas and the New Year and we look forward to seeing you upon our return in 2017.

Linda Macleod

Principal

GALA CONCERT

Gulgong High School’s second Gala Concert for 2016 was held in the school hall on Thursday 1st December celebrating the amazing musical talents that our students possess. Students began preparations for the concert several weeks prior to the event and are to be congratulated on the very polished performances they presented.

Concert preparations began in week 3 of this term when applications were sought for items to go into the concert. Mr Hughes had left Gulgong High School after being appointed Deputy Principal at Coolah Central School and the concert organisation was now run by Year 11 music students and myself.

The year 11 students enthusiastically set about preparing for auditions which were held in week 5 of this term and assisted in preparing the program as well as preparing their own performances. In addition they trained junior students in the art of sound mixing, lighting and backstage work.

There were performances from all non-elective and elective music class bands as well as some solo items by students in years 7, 8, 9, 10 and 11 and some small ensemble pieces from various elective music classes. The pieces performed in the concert were of varying styles ranging from Pop to Rock to Music of the Theatre. All pieces were of a high standard and demonstrated the excellent talent of our students at Gulgong High School. All performers are to be commended on their excellent efforts and the way they represented themselves and the school.

In addition to the performers, there were many behind the scenes assistants working on sound, lighting and as part of the stage crew. They worked extremely hard through the four periods it took to set up the hall and throughout every rehearsal as well as packing and cleaning up after the concert. All students working behind the scenes are to be congratulated for their professionalism and assisting in a production that ran smoothly and was thoroughly enjoyed by a very appreciative audience.

Thank you to all staff who assisted on the night as well as the office ladies who organised ticket sales.

I.MacLennan

Music Teacher

Staying In Touch

Gulgong High School now has a Facebook

page for regular school updates.

Search for ‘Gulgong High School’ and hit

‘Like’.

Don’t forget to subscribe to

the school app!

Available on Apple and An-droid phones and tablets.

Search the App Store or Play Store for “Gulgong High” or

“2852”.

Term Dates for 2017

2017

*School development days occur at the begin-ning of Terms 1, 2 and 3 and the last two days of the school year.

Term 1 Friday, 27 January to Friday, 07 April

Term 2 Monday, 24 April to Friday, 30 June

Term 3 Monday, 17 July to Friday, 22 September

Term 4 Monday, 9 October to Tuesday, 19 December

Student Absences:

Schools are required to keep important attendance data and it is essential to maintain accurate records.

In the event that your child/ward is absent, please contact the school and provide an explanation.

Students may still bring in notes to ex-plain their absence, but parents and caregivers are now encouraged to use our new electronic system.

In the event of a student’s absence you can now notify

the school by SMS on

0418 131 099.

Recent School Photos

See more photos of recent activities on our Facebook page!

LAST Report

Literacy and Numeracy Programs

QuickSmart: is a professionally presented program built on substantial research over ten years. It is receiving wide

recognition for the improvement experienced by students participating in the program.

QuickSmart was identified as one of a small number of programs that has been effective in ‘closing the gap’ in numeracy and

literacy for students.

The program is based around an extensive resource kit and software that challenges and supports students’ growth through

timed activities to develop accuracy and speed. Students also learn number and literacy strategies to support growth.

QuickSmart is delivered as a 30-week program to pairs of students, three times per week to work with a dedicated instructor

for a 30 minute lesson.

There are ten students currently participating in the program and teachers are reporting significant gains in learning

achievement.

The majority of students in the QuickSmart literacy program have demonstrated a more settled and confident attitude to the

classroom (as noted in teachers’ end of year report). Results from Literacy based in-class assessments, showed significant

growth in student results since the start of the program. Numeracy data revealed significant improvement in both accuracy

and response time, as tested by OSCAZ software with students empowered by working at their own pace.

Recently we have had visitors from various Dubbo schools come to observe the program with the view to running Quicksmart

in their own school. It is a testimony to the benefits that this program provides when students willingly and enthusiastically

offer their time to either discuss the program or be observed during a Quicksmart lesson.

A huge thank you to those students who spoke to the visitors explaining how the program had developed their confidence

and significantly improved their literacy and numeracy skills and to those students currently on the program who allowed the

visitors to observe them during a session.

LAST Report continued

Teacher Aide In-Class Support Program

Another successful program operating at Gulgong High School is the in-class support provided by teacher Aides- Ros Hill, Kay

Mackie, Gail Ratcliffe and Glynis Hensley. Students receive individual support understanding course content, subject specific

vocabulary, task completion and other identified skills that require development.

The teacher Aides are also involved in supporting Special Provisions for Examinations. These are practical arrangements

designed to help students who couldn't otherwise make a fair attempt to show what they know in an exam room. The

provisions granted are solely determined by how the student’s exam performance is affected. Provisions may include the use

of a writer, reader, extra time or separate supervision. With the support of the teacher Aides, the students are able to

demonstrate their true understanding of course content and this is reflected in their school report.

I would like to take this opportunity to thank these women from the entire school community.

Justine MacLennan

Learning and Support Teacher

Glynis Hensley Ros Hill

Kay Mackie Gail Ratcliffe