Narrabri High School Community News Educational Excellence and Innovation in a Unique Caring Environment
Meetings 15th August in Library 6.00pm Canteen Committee 6.30pm P & C Meeting
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Nira Windeatt (Stove)
Olympian 1976 and
Narrabri High School Captain
Nira at the Opening Ceremony Every four years a very special phenomenon occurs. For two weeks in August the world slows down a little and focuses its attention on one very special city that has been chosen to host the Olympic Games. The Olympic Games is the coming together of the world’s current elite sportsman in a huge event which showcases the best that the world has to offer in a wide range of sports. In 1976 the Olympic Games were held in Montreal, Canada. It was a very big year for me as at the National Championships and Olympic Trials in Sydney in February I qualified as one of twenty eight members of the Australian Olympic Swimming Team to compete in the butterfly events. In the previous year, 1975, I had been part of the Australian Swimming team that competed at the World Championship in Cali, Columbia, South America where I swam in the butterfly events and placed fourth in the 200m, my favourite event. In September of 1975 I returned to school at Narrabri High and continued to train at Narrabri pool for the 1976 Olympic trials. My father Jeff Stove was the local pool manager and club
coach and worked hard to keep me fit and motivated to compete at a high level. 1976 was a big year for a young 17 year old girl from a small NSW country town. I qualified for the Olympics which is the biggest sporting event on the planet, I was Narrabri High School Captain which is an immense honour and I met my future husband Graham Windeatt. Graham had swum at the previous Munich Olympics in four events and won a silver medal in the prestigious 1500 metres freestyle. In
C a l e n d a r August
10-22 Trial HSC
15 Canteen Committee Meeting 6pm Library
P & C Meeting 6.30pm Library
22-31 Dental Clinic
23 Back to School Night 6pm
25 Year 10 Mock Interview (all day)
September
1-3 Dental Clinic
7-9 CHS Athletics, Homebush
12-16 Year 10 Ski Trip
14 Year 6, 2016 Gala Day
16-22 Preliminary Yearly Exams
21 Year 12 Activities Day
23 Year 12 Farewell Assembly
Holidays 23/9 – 9/10
October
10 Term 4 commences for staff & students
19 Year 11 Senior Success 6-7pm Library
26 North West Softball Trials
November
7-10 Year 10 Exams
15-16 North West Boys Cricket Trials
18 Year 12 Formal
28-30 Year 10 Work Experience (5 days)
December
1-2 Year 10 Work Experience
7 Presentation Night
16 Last day Term 4
February 2017
3 Staff Development Day
6 Year 7, 11 & 12 Commence
7 Year 8, 9 & 10 Commence
1976 in Montreal he swam in three events and was captain of the swim team. That was forty years ago but some of the memories from then are as clear as if it was yesterday. The pride of my family, friends and the town overall was fantastic and even though at times I felt very much alone and overwhelmed by the enormity of being so far from home and participating at such a high level I knew I was being supported and cheered on by so many back home. One of the most amazing things about Olympics is that once you arrive at the Olympic Village you become part of a new, very large and diverse family. One of my favourite memories was eating in the cafeteria in the Village. This is where all the athletes and officials from all countries gather to eat all their meals. The food is diverse and healthy to cover all sorts of dietary requirements. The tables are long and plain with no segregation. One lunch time I had to smile to myself as I looked around and from my seat could see the Chinese women’s basketball team who made us look like elves, members of the USSR (Russian) weightlifting team who were massive and near them the Romanian girls gymnasts who were tiny and very quiet and sharing our table were two Kenyan marathon runners who looked like they needed a good feed. What an assortment of humanity and in the middle of this was little old me from Narrabri. The Olympic Opening and Closing Ceremonies were quite surreal. To have so many amazing athletes together in one area to celebrate the one thing they love, sport, is a life changing event. Australians have a great reputation in sports and I am very proud to have been a very small part of our wonderful sporting history. I am even prouder to have been from Narrabri High School representing our country at the highest level. Every four years the Olympics come around again and each time they do it reminds me of how fortunate I was to have been part of such an amazing event and how lucky I was to come from a family and town who worked with me to make my dreams become a reality. My Olympic pride is Narrabri’s Olympic pride. Warmest regards
Nira
Principal’s Report Welcome to our August Community News. Earlier this term, the Minister for Education announced changes to the HSC credentials in upcoming years. Please see the message from the BOSTES President:
I have attached 2 pages of the Frequently Asked Questions document that provides more information. On the 27
th July we held our NAIDOC Week
Celebrations. I would like to congratulate Jackie Jones (Aboriginal Education Officer) and her team for putting together a great day of celebrations. It was wonderful to
see the many and varied activities, all being support by students, staff and the community. Great job Jackie. Our congratulations are extended to Will Alexander in Yr 9 who recently travelled to Canada with the Australian Youth Athletics team. Will won a gold and silver medal for the Javelin and also two bronze medals for the hammer event. Fantastic achievement Will. Please see the full story later in our newsletter. I would like to welcome Mr Chase Magner to Narrabri High as a permanent member of staff. Chase was appointed to the school last week through a vacancy we had. This was great news for all of us. We recently held two terrific parent information nights for transition to high school. Both nights were well supported and I hope, enjoyable and informative for the parents that came along. I would like to thank Amy Johnson and her team for their continued work in providing our Yr 6 students and their families with an outstanding program of transition to high school. Last week we had our final design meeting for our Secondary Schools Renewal Program proposal. The Project Manager and Architect came up from Sydney to discuss the design concept for the front of the school (Gibbons St) and also the refurbishment and re-development of our Administration build. Their concept for our school was very exciting and with a few minor
Message from the BOSTES President
Literacy and Numeracy Standards
From 2020, in order to be eligible for the HSC,
students will be required to reach a minimum literacy
and numeracy standard. The standard is set at the
Australian Core Skills Framework (ACSF) Level 3,
which is a nationally agreed standard of functional
literacy and numeracy.
Students can demonstrate that they meet the standard
by achieving either:
· a band 8 in each of their Year 9 NAPLAN reading,
writing and numeracy tests, or
· a pass in the online literacy and numeracy test in
Years 10, 11 or 12.
A band 8 NAPLAN result is not the literacy and
numeracy standard. A Year 9 NAPLAN result below a
band 8 will rather act as an early warning system to
identify students at risk of not meeting the standard.
These students will then have time with their teachers,
parents and schools to work to improve their
performance, before taking the online literacy and
numeracy test.
Students who do not demonstrate the standard during
schooling will have five years after leaving school to
meet the literacy and numeracy standard and receive
an HSC.
Exemptions will be made for some students, such as
those with disabilities undertaking Life Skills courses,
and students from non-English speaking
backgrounds who have been learning English for less
than one year.
More information on the literacy and numeracy
standard is available on the BOSTES website.
alterations to Option 3 for the Admin centre, we now move into the next phase. There will be more meetings over the course of the next 4 months and hopefully our program might start during the Christmas holidays. If not, early 2017. I have attached the landscape plan and also the Admin plan. They do, however look a lot better in A3. (See pages 4 & 5) I was also informed last week that our application to have both boys and girls toilet blocks completely refurbished was successful. This is long overdue and another great outcome for our school. I would like to thank our Director, Ms Ruythe Dufty and also the New England Asset Management Team for supporting our nomination. The planning, tender and construction process will start shortly. I look forward to seeing everyone at our next P&C meeting Rod Jones Principal
Country Cup Rugby League
Our opens rugby league team travelled to Port Macquarie to compete in the Northern Finals of the CRL Country Cup during week 2. The boys played eventual winners Chatham HS in their first match and after trailing 22-0 at half-time, the boys fought back in the second half to finish 22-12. In the second match the boys played Woodlawn HS and were pipped on the post in the last 30 seconds to go down 16-12 after the score was locked at 12 all for most of the match. In the final game, the team started well against St Edwards of Gosford. The physical nature of the 3 games eventually caught up with the boys as they went down 14-0. The team would like to thank the parents and the teachers who transported the boys to Port Macquarie.
North West Athletics Carnival Forty five Narrabri High students travelled over to Tamworth to represent our Namoi Zone at the North West Regional Athletics Carnival. All of our representatives ran, threw or jumped a personal best which was fantastic! All of the students had a great day and were fine ambassadors for the school!
Those students who finished first or second have qualified to represent North West SSA at the NSWCHS Athletics Carnival at Homebush on September 7,8,9. The following NHS students qualified:
Will Alexander (1st Javelin, 2
nd 15s Relay)
Makayla Beddow (1st High Jump)
Angus Browning (2nd
Discus)
Liam Davis (2nd
800m)
Zara Foley (1st Discus)
Angus Gourley (2nd
800m)
Mae Harvey (1st 15s Relay, 1
st 200m)
Felix Johnson (2nd
15s Relay)
Amy Larson (2nd
800m)
Chloe Myers (1st 15s Relay)
Jonty Schwager (2nd
800m)
Cody Shepherdson (1st 200m, 2
nd 15s Relay)
April Smith (1st 15s Relay, 1
st Javelin, 2
nd Triple
Jump)
Sam Soper (1st 800m, 2
nd 1500m)
Bella Stewart (1st High Jump, 1
st Long Jump, 1
st
Triple Jump, 2nd
100m 1st 15s Relay)
Nick Tomlinson (1st 100m, 2
nd 15s Relay, 2
nd
Long Jump)
Dylan Williams (2nd
High Jump)
School Landscape Plan
School Administration Plan
Will Alexander
Australian Youth Athletics
Will Alexander was selected to join the Australian Youth Athletics Team to compete in Canada through the company Sports Travel Australia in Victoria when he competed at the 2015 NSW State All Schools Athletics Championships in Sydney. A team of 43 athletes were joined by 4 elite coaches who gave professional training sessions and assisted athletes during the meets in Kelowna and Vancouver.
Will medalled at both meets taking gold at Kelowna in Javelin. He was humbled to be able to compete against Canada’s best taking the silver position on the podium in Vancouver throwing the javelin 45.80m just short of his new school record of 46.16m. Trying his hand at the hammer event for the first time Will threw a 4kg hammer and he grabbed bronze at both
meets throwing just over 33m. He will compete in this event at NSW All Schools in October. Touring with the team he was able to try mountain biking at snow capped Mount Whistler, spotted wild bears at Grouse Mountain. Meeting some Canadian native Indians he was invited to a special meal to try their food, enjoyed Canada Day in down town Kelowna City and enjoying many sites across Vancouver. He attending his first Grid Iron game where the atmosphere was electric. Flying into Los Angeles
they continue the tour staying at Anaheim California going to Universal Studios, Disneyland, Hollywood Boulevard and Santa Monica before returning back to Australia, this three week trip was a brilliant experience for any young athlete.
Merle Hurley
Mrs Merle Hurley has Graduated from Tramby University, completing Certificates I to IV in Community Development and Community Services. Mrs Hurley has generously donated her Graduation prize consisting of three Aboriginal Art books to the Aboriginal Resource room. Thank you Mrs Hurley for your kind gesture.
Rock & Water Program
Year 7 Boys Some year 7 boys are participating in the Rock &
Water Program. This teaches the boys about Self
Esteem, Discipline and Resilience. The Program is
being run by Mr Magner & Mr Doherty.
P o e t r y
It’s an Earthquake
I made a giant cake It was really hard to make
I mixed the milk and the butter Then the house began to shudder
It’s an earthquake It’s an earthquake
Now the cake’s going to break I’ve got to get the rake
It’s an earthquake It’s an earthquake
Now the milk is all on the floor I’ve got to shut the door
And that’s how you know
It’s an earthquake
By Emily Redman and Aimee Fladrick, 7 Red
Where Are They Now??
Jacinta Merten
Ex-student
I graduated from Narrabri High School in 2009, and
in 2011 I started a Bachelor of Medicine/Bachelor of
Surgery at the University of New South Wales,
located in Kensington, Sydney (not too far from
Coogee Beach!), living on campus at Baxter College.
It was a full on two years, with the year divided into
8 week courses, with an exam at the end of each
course and a couple of extra exams thrown in at the
end of each semester for good measure. However,
there was also time for sports, college plays, balls
and other social events, and I made many new
friends from all around Australia (and some from
around the world).
In my 3rd year, I completed a research project at
the Translational Neuroscience facility, working on a
viral delivery system of a molecule that would
effectively image neurons in brains of mice when
they were undergoing changes during a stroke. The
end of the year also ended my time in Sydney – I
elected to complete the rest of my degree at Port
Macquarie. My class in Port was a lot smaller than
Sydney – including the two years above us there
were 50 students altogether. The doctors in Port
are fantastic and and go above and beyond to teach
us all they can.
The highlight of the medical degree for many is the
elective course, and this was certainly true for me,
where students undertake two 4 week placements in
any clinical setting anywhere in the world. The first
elective I completed was at Cornwall Hospital in
Montego Bay, Jamaica, where I joined the plastic
surgery team. This involved looking after many burns
patients, including one patient who needed his
forearm amputated, a gruesome operation where I
was lucky enough to scrub in and saw off the ulna.
The second elective I completed was at Viet Duc
Hospital in Hanoi, Vietnam, where I was based in the
Emergency and Intensive Care departments. I saw a
lot of different patients, but the majority were
head traumas from motorbike accidents.
I am now in my final year of medicine, and I have
just completed my last clinical placement at a GP
surgery in Narrabri. I have 8 weeks of revision and
clinical practice to prepare for my final exams in
September. I have accepted a position at Royal
North Shore Hospital, Sydney, where I will work as
junior doctor in 2017 and 2018. After completing
specialist training, I hope to work in both regional
and rural areas in the future.
Medicine is a long degree, but it is endlessly
fascinating, and all the study is worth it when I think
about the awesome doctor I hope to become. My
words of advice to anyone wanting to study at
university is work consistently in high school, choose
subjects you like, and be kind to your teachers.
Make a study guide, stick to it, do a little bit each
day and you will be in good stead for getting an
excellent ATAR and more importantly, enjoying your
education. I have such fond memories of Narrabri
High School - my classmates and my wonderful
teachers who encouraged and inspired me.
Maths Challenge In term 1 Year 7 students participated in the
Maths Challenge for Young Australians. This is an
Australian wide competition where students work
on 6 problems over a 3 week period. The students
had their brain stretched and learnt some valuable
problem solving skills. Congratulations to all
students involved but particularly to Elsie Ford
who received a credit and to Sofia Fawcett who
solved all 6 problems and received a High
Distinction. An example of the type of problem is
as follows:-
On the TV show ‘The Price is Perfect’ Chloe will
win all the prizes if she can work out the
mystery number. Joe, the host of the show,
says: ‘Tonight’s mystery number is the largest
7-digit number which has these two properties:
• no two digits in the number are the same;
• each of the number’s digits divides into the
number exactly.
1. Find the three digits which cannot be in the
mystery number. Explain why they must be
excluded.
2. Find the mystery number. Explain why it is
the largest 7-digit number which has these
properties.
School Contributions Reminder
Could you please ensure your child’s fees are paid asap.
Elective fees (INCLUDING MATERIALS ARE COMPULSORY).
Please phone the school on 67921633 if you require any
information. Thank you
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