Congratulations to Kirralee who has won the position of Music Education Network Field Officer for our Department for Education for the next 12 months.  These positions are part of our departments new Music Education Strategy and offer a combination of Kirralee’s love of music education with her passion for curriculum development.  Kirralee has already begun her new position and we are working on her backfill.  In the meantime, for the next 2 weeks Kirralee’s year 10 PLP class and year 8 music class will be taken by teacher Renee Bower who has worked in our school before.

Futures Planning Expo

We strongly encourage current Year 7-11 students and their parents to attend our Futures Planning Expo tomorrow (Wednesday) evening.  Come along and talk to the teachers about the options for next year so you can make an informed choice.  Year 6 students are also welcome to hear about our school and have a look around to start familiarising themselves.

This is our second year we have also provided follow-up subject selection interviews for Year 9, 10 and 11 students the week after expo.  These interviews are a valuable opportunity and we ask that parents or caregivers please attend with their student to support them and be involved in the process. 

The next step is for us to use this information to make subject and staffing decisions, so the more accurate the choices are, the better.  Students are much more likely to get their choice of subjects next year if they make an informed choice this year.  We aim to accommodate student preferences in order, but keep in mind that where necessary we will go to the reserve list if needed.

The Expo is also an opportunity to check out our new STEM spaces in C and E block that were completed earlier this year.

See you at Expo!

Mat Evans

This term Renmark High is offering a number of activities, information sessions and one to one support for your child’s future career planning. Career planning can be quite complex as each child has different goals and the world of work changes quickly. Students need to drive their own career planning by seeking advice wherever possible and taking every opportunity provided to them. Parents and Guardians can also provide support and advice.

In the upcoming Beyond Tomorrow lessons, all year levels will participate in presentations and information sessions being delivered about subject selections for 2020.  This will be followed by the Renmark High School EXPO night on Wednesday 14^th August where all faculty areas will be represented. Subject leaders and other experts will be available to answer many of your questions. There will also be outside agencies represented including various Employment agencies, Riverland TAFE, River Murray Study Hub and our Riverland Pathways Manager, Chris Marks, who can offer ASBA support.

In Beyond Tomorrow lessons the Year 12’s will be involved in SATAC sessions where information about how to apply for University and TAFE will be delivered. Recently there have been a number of university visits to the school and the Adelaide Open days will occur on Friday 18^th and Saturday 19^th August. All Year 12 students are encouraged to attend these important days. The residential colleges are also open for parent /student tours over these days. There is plenty of information available in the Senior Study space as well as online.

The Year 10’s are currently enrolled in their Personal Learning Plan subject, which includes goal setting, work experience, career profiling, resume building and application letters. All of this supports their career planning. This year Work Experience will be in Week 8, 9^th -13^th September. All students were provided with instructions and paper work in PLP classes on Monday 5^th August. Once again caregivers can further support their child with ideas for work experience.

Continuing on from the last two years once again Renmark High School has employed Keryn Van Dyk from the Career Development Centre (CDC).  Keryn is available every Wednesday for senior students to make appointments to seek support with a variety of career plans. This can include resume support, job hunting skills, interview techniques, gap year ideas, scholarship information or any other support that your child might need. Students simply need to make an appointment at the Admin desk in the ILC (former TAFE building).

Chris Marks will also be available to students or parents to seek advice about School based apprenticeships. These apprenticeships normally follow a successful work experience placement and a discussion between students, parents, the employer and an apprenticeship broker. The school needs to approve this type of transition to work as students will balance their SACE completion with one or two days of work each week. Chris Marks will also present in BT programs in some upcoming Wednesdays.

Subject Counseling will occur in Week 5 for each of the following year levels:

Tuesday 20^th August Year 9 into 10

Wednesday 21^st August Year 11 into 12

Thursday 22^nd August Year 10 into 11

Every family should have received an interview booking time in the post. At this time your child will meet with their Care Group teacher and other experts to help them to select subjects for next year. It would be excellent if you could join us at this time. If not we will send your child’s selections home for your approval.

As you can see there are plenty of opportunities for students to seek support with their potential goals and career investigation whether they are selecting subjects, leaving school, seeking school based apprenticeships or following a pathway to further study.

I can also be contacted at school to further support families in their child’s planning for the future.

Marina Pater - Director of Organisational Operations

On Thursday the 13th of June, Renmark High competed in the 9 A-Side Football Lightning Carnival at Glossop High School. Our school was represented by five teams, 2 Year 8 boys, 2 Year 8/9 girls and 1 Year 9 boys team. It was a very successful day for Renmark High, winning the Year 8 boys and the year 9 boys competitions and coming 4th and 5th in the Year 8/9 girls competition. We also won the overall competition, which meant we went back-to-back, after also winning the competition in 2018. All students are to be commended for their positive and respectful behaviours shown on the day.

Aaron Camplin - Health & PE Coordinator

Year 11 Digital Media students have been working with 4 local businesses to design graphics, websites and social media pages throughout Semester 1. This involved students visiting the local business and collaborating with the businesses owner to develop a Brief and Style Guide. Students then worked through the Design Process to create a series of concepts that met the requirements of their Brief. On Wednesday 24^th July, the local businesses were invited to a presentation of the students’ work at RHS. The feedback from the businesses and students was extremely positive and all really enjoyed this authentic learning opportunity. Thank you to Kerryn Van Dyk and Bruce Mellot for the support they provided in establishing and carrying out this pilot program.

Jodi Long - Digital Media Teacher

Hachioji Homestay Program Farewell

Last week, we bid adieu to our visiting Japanese students and teacher with an official dinner and presentation evening held in the Renmark High School library. During the evening, the students set up a range of different cultural activities for a ‘hands on’ experience for our families; including a Japanese Tea Making Ceremony and writing in Japanese script using paints.

Fabulous stories were shared about some of the truly ‘Aussie’ experiences our Host Families offered their students over the week-end, including operating a Houseboat to outback 4-wheel driving.

We were also spoilt with a wonderful spread of warm winter cuisine provided by Salt & Pepper Catering, which was thoroughly appreciated by our Host Families and students.

Once again, we extend our thanks to our Renmark High School students and their families for opening their homes and sharing their lives with the Japanese students and supporting the Hachioji Study Tour program.

Jasmine Tassios - International Education Program Manager

Riverland High Schools Tag Rugby Carnival

Due to some unfortunate injuries a few years ago, the zone Sports Coordinators decided that the usual rugby carnival wouldn’t continue as students needed to be educated more on the game and how to effectively take/conduct a tackle. In 2019 Akesa (NRL Game Development Officer - Sunraysia) contacted the high Schools and mentioned the idea of having a Tag Rugby Carnival. As a zone we were in favour of the idea as it provided our students another opportunity to be active and have some fun while developing their skills in a another sport.

We believe it will be more popular in 2020 although we still had 4 teams attend the day (2 x 8/9 Boys and 2 x 8/9 Girls). The conditions made things difficult as some of the tags were flying off due to the high winds. The first few games were a bit scrappy as the students were still trying to understand some of the rules but through having Akesa and her staff umpire and assist during the games, the students improved dramatically.

Although most of the students would of enjoyed incorporating the tackle overall the students had a great time with the Year 9 boys team and Year 9 Girls (+ a few Year 8’s) playing off in the Grand Finals. The boys were dominant with Baily White, Angelo Otero and Maison Goodman weaving their way through traffic, before feeding a pass to a team member winning the game. The girls played a high quality/exciting game with but unfortunately they went down in extra time. The girls chased and defended well in all of their games which provided continuous opportunities for Tianna Ivanovic thy scoring machine.

Akesa and her staff were pleased with the quality of the games and are looking forward to working with the schools in 2020. They are hoping to visit schools prior to the event to conduct a few training/information sessions.

Thanks to Akesa, her team and all of the students involved.

The Local Government Association is holding the 2019 Roads and Works Conference at the Chaffey Theatre from the 14^th – 16^th of August. The hockey oval will be utilised during the entirety of week 4 (12^th – 17^th of August) for a sponsorship and marquee display, heavy vehicles will be also be on display in the car park. The Chaffey Theatre car park will have no access to the public beginning the morning of Wednesday the 14^th of August – Friday 16^th of August with the exception of limited access on Wednesday night to parents for EXPO. Security guards will be on site from Monday – Friday monitoring the situation. We apologise for any inconvenience caused.

Karina Lambert -Business Manager

Renmark High School staff are utilising the Week 8 Pupil Free Day (9th September) to access professional development that will provide us with a better understanding and effective strategies to accommodate students on the autism spectrum. This training will be provided by Autism SA. We are also offering a session for parents of students in Years 6-8. The parent session will run from 5.00-6.30pm (to be confirmed) and focus on supporting your child through high school with an emphasis on: what to expect who to talk to at high school what support your child might be eligible for, and preparing for transition from primary to high school. Please contact Stacey Lambert at the Front Office to register your interest. Renmark High School will cover the cost of this event.

Danielle Weeks - Student Support Coordinator

As chairperson of Chaplaincy Renmark High School Inc. I would like to appeal to members of our community to join our small group of volunteers to help support our pastoral care Workers Pammy Main (Renmark High) Maria Dowzard (Renmark Primary) and Narelle Fielke our new PCW at Renmark North.

These dedicated ladies are making a difference in the lives of students, staff and families and are well respected by all.  Our group is responsible for supporting their work with extra hours and providing resources for the programmes and activities they run in their schools.

The Renmark Paringa Council, Renmark Paringa Lutheran Churches, Renmark Uniting Church and Renmark Anglican church all donate money to support their work and each school provides resources as well.

For our group to continue we are in need of a treasurer. We meet once each term and the job is not very demanding. Our present treasurer is willing to teach someone the ropes. We use internet banking which makes things much easier.

Our AGM will be held at the Renmark Lutheran Church Fellowship Centre 17^th Street Renmark at 7pm on Tuesday August 20^th. Your support would be much appreciated.

Lorraine George Chairperson.

Contact 0401317557