Term 3

This term students have been very busy in a range of opportunities including hosting the Hachioji Japanese student Exchange, the Future Planning Expo, the Language Perfect Championships, the Joe Dix Memorial Lecture, and a whole range of camps and excursions. 

Last week we were fortunate to have the opportunity for year 8-10 students to hear from Inspirational Mathematics Teacher, Eddie Woo.  Woo’s YouTube channel has over 660,000 subscribers and more than 38 million views worldwide.  Woo's book entitled Woo's Wonderful World of Maths, published in 2018, addresses questions like "Why are rainbows curved?" and "Why aren't left-handers extinct?", with the answer being: maths.  Eddie answered student’s questions during his interesting presentation as he explained how maths is all about patterns and that the universe is extraordinarily patterned.

Renmark High School Teacher Positions

We currently have two teacher positions for Renmark High School advertised on DfE jobs online.  One position is for a Design and Technology Teacher, the other is for Senior Mathematics.  These can be found at https://jobs.decd.sa.gov.au

We have a fantastic school, are very excited about the improvement journey we are on, and are looking for enthusiastic teachers to join our team.  As you know the Riverland is a terrific place to live and work so spread the word!

Planning for 2020

Planning for next year is well underway. Please let the School know if you are planning on enrolling your child for the first time at RHS in 2020 (unless you are a year 7 parent who has already informed your Primary School as we would already have this information), or if your child is not planning on being at RHS in 2020. This information is very important for the successful planning of classes, subject offerings, staffing and budgets.

Student Self Care

It is the end of Term 3 and with only 8 weeks to go until the last exam, the next few weeks are essential for year 12 students.  It is important to set a good study plan, making the most of the time remaining, and taking the opportunity to work with teachers to assist in your preparations for final assessments.  However, having a balance between work and fun is extremely important so ensure that you take time during these holidays to relax and enjoy yourself.

For all of our students, as you will not be at school for two weeks, your support structures may not be as readily available to you.  With this in mind, here are some excellent resources you can utilise anytime - whether it be during school holidays or not:

Phone Counselling

Kids Helpline 1800 55 1800, Headspace 1800 650 890, Beyond Blue 1300 22 4636

Online Counselling

Enjoy the break and we will see you all in Week 1 of Term 4.

Regards, Mat Evans

On our Student Free Day this term we were fortunate to have Erica Handley, Autism SA Consultant, on site to present information to staff to help us develop strategies that address the needs of our students who are on the autism spectrum. We also welcomed staff from other sites who took up the invitation to engage in our professional development.

We looked at the complexity of students on the spectrum and identified a range of strengths typical of these students including: a good rote memory, visual-spatial abilities, honesty, an intense focus on an area of interest, preference for routines, logical thought processes and often, a good sense of humour. We discussed other commonalities including heightened anxiety and the need for direct instruction around social communication and social interaction. Common concerns with students on the spectrum may include: a delay in spoken language, problems reading non-verbal communication, sharing of interests, initiating social interaction, developing and maintaining relationships, understanding emotions in self and others, adjusting behaviour to suit different social contexts and Theory of Mind.

Erica also shared information on how behaviours may manifest in a school setting with some students having difficulty with: seeing the ‘big picture’, knowing the relevant detail in each learning area, organising and sequencing information and reading in context. This enabled conversations around the impacts for us and our students in specific learning areas.

Another important area of discussion revolved around sensory processing patterns. We looked at the sensory threshold of students and how this may impact in the classroom, enabling us to consider the implications for some students in specific areas of the school.

Students on the spectrum can find it difficult to self-regulate so during our afternoon session we considered tools and strategies to use in a secondary setting. This included the use of the 5 point scale, already being used by many students, along with calming strategies and useful fidget toys.

We also offered a free session for parents after hours to provide an opportunity for our community to know of the training undertaken by staff and to offer some strategies, information and access to resources. Erica covered some very useful topics including:

• School-family partnership
• Information gathering
• Supporting your child at home with regard to routines and organisation.

The session also enabled parents to talk to each other about common concerns and to discuss their students’ learning in a casual but informative environment. We would like to thank those parents who took up this opportunity.

Future directions: We have already purchased some resources and have a range of other tools on order to hopefully assist us in supporting our students with ASD. We are also holding discussions about potential areas that may provide sensory support and a safe ‘time out’ space for students who would benefit from this. I will be working with SSOs early next term to develop resource kits for every teacher to provide useful strategies and reminders of ways to support our students with specific learning needs.

If you would like further information, please contact me at the school.

Danielle Weeks – Student Support Coordinator

Mrs Atsaves invited Mr Lachlan Abbott's 5/6 class from Renmark North Primary school to spend some time in our art studio and have a lesson on making clay pinch pots. Students also had an opportunity to see our Technology area where Mr Soltes showed them a range of projects high school students worked on. Students were delighted and greatful to visit our school and experience some art making in our studio.

All fundraising requests must be approved by the Governing Council prior to fundraising event commencement in order for Renmark High School to abide by ATO and Departmental policy and legislation in regards to fundraising. Direct all fundraising enquires/proposals to dl.0794.finance@schools.sa.edu.au please remember to include team (if volleyball), event, products to be sold, venue and date. For approval this week please submit proposals prior to 3pm Wednesday 25^th September 2019.

This year’s Joe Dix presenter was former Renmark High School student, Chloe Rudd. Chloe attended Renmark High School form 2010-2014 before completing an apprenticeship at Print DNA as a graphic designer. Chloe has gone on to win a number of awards including the National Lithographic Industry Award where she received a scholarship of $15000 to help further her study. She has visited Vietnam and Cambodia as a part of her work and is now an ambassador for the industry. Chloe continues to study online where she is completing a CERT IV Leadership and management course while continuing her career at Print DNA.

Chloe provided great insights to our senior students about the opportunities available to rural students. She is very passionate about young people following their dreams and always looking to improve themselves. She has followed a pathway that did not include university and leaving the district but this has very much worked for her. We would like to thank Chloe for her presentation. We would also like to thank Bruce Mellett for once again being a great interviewer.

It's last week of term already, where has all the time gone?

I sincerely hope that this term has been as kind as it could be to everyone (especially our Year 12's) and through the ups and downs of life you are able to relax and get done what is needed before the year ends.   

Week 1 next term is the Spring Carnival, what an exciting night that is!  Each year it is full of amazing food and lots of wonderful, fun things to do - especially the side show alley run by the SRC students.   I will be there helping out with the ticket sales for the events so come and say hello.

I hope the holidays are safe and full of adventure and laughter for all of you, especially if you are going away.

So until next term, stay safe and remember to always keep smiling. 

Cheers, Pammy 

2018 School Magazines

There are still a number of 2018 school magazines that are yet to be collected. If you have ordered and paid for one please see Carli in Student Services to collect it as soon as possible.

Mobile Phones

Thank you to those students who have consistently followed our school policy of no mobile phone use during class. We have seen a considerable decline in the amount of phones being confiscated and hope to see this continue into Term 4 also.

School Uniform

Please take the opportunity during school holidays to check that your student has the correct summer uniform.  Uniforms are now available from Yates Menswear or Tri-State Graphics (online or in store).  Navy blue shorts/skirts are permitted however anything with a brand name on it, denim or any colour other than navy will not be permitted.

11 Renmark High School teams competed in the annual 5 aside soccer competition on Thursday at Glossop High. The persistence of every player was unwavering and the day was an overall success. Due to the hot and windy weather the games proved to be challenging, however, players did not drop their heads. Thank you to Mr Thiele and Mr Clark for organising teams and for supervising throughout the day, it is thoroughly appreciated by all! 

The results are as follows; 

YEAR 8 BOYS TEAM 2 - 2ND PLACE 

YEAR 8 BOYS TEAM 3 - 3RD PLACE

YEAR 8 GIRLS TEAM 2 - 3RD PLACE 

YEAR 9/10 BOYS TEAM 1 - 1ST PLACE 

YEAR 9/10 BOYS TEAM 2 - 2ND PLACE 

YEAR 9/10 GIRLS TEAM 1 - 2ND PLACE 

YEAR 9/10 GIRLS TEAM 2 - 3RD PLACE 

By Charlee Webb