Find us at: 88b Murray Road Corrimal East, NSW, 2518

Mail: PO Box 372 Corrimal, NSW, 2518 Phone: 4285 1199

Email: Corrimal-h.schools@det.nsw.edu.au Facebook: www.facebook.com/corrimalhs

Website: corrimal-h.schools.nsw.gov.au

TEACHING FOR ENGAGEMENT, OPPORTUNITY AND SUCCESS

CORRIMAL HIGH SCHOOL

SAFETY RESPECT RESPONSIBILITY

Newsletter Friday, 1 November 2019

PRACTICAL

TECHNOLOGY

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PRINCIPAL’S PERSONAL MESSAGE

I would like to officially welcome all of our students back to Term 4. It was nice to speak to the

students on their return about the exciting things that they did during their holidays, with many

taking time to connect with family and friends, play sport, surf and relax, while lucky few got to

travel interstate or overseas. Everyone seemed genuinely glad to be back and appear to have

settled well into their routines again.

The end of last term saw us hold our annual Year 12 Graduation – a time when we get to

congratulate our outgoing students, and reminisce over their experiences in their time at high

school. All staff speak very highly of these students and wish them well as they continue through

their HSC exams. Students have been very well supported by their teachers and a nice healthy

breakfast was put on for all students as they started their exams in week one. A number of our

students have already been successful in their applications for early entry in the University of

Wollongong and I would like to congratulate these students for their achievements.

This weekend marks one year on from the devastating fire which ravaged the school on November

3 2018. While this is a date that will forever be ingrained in our minds, it has not defined who we

are as individuals or as a school community. I am extremely proud of what we as a school have

achieved over the past year, using the fire as a catalyst for positive growth and change. There has

been significant investment in the school over past year to improve or enhance the quality of the

facilities at the school. This has included:

Double Kitchen Upgrade

Hall Roof replaced

Front area carpet and paint

New hall windows and blinds

Front gardens

Pleasance area upgrades – shade sails, sandstone blocks, gardens, stage area.

A new deck and BBQ will also be placed into the Pleasance this year.

Back of Hall has been painted and carpeted as well as new heaters and toilets

installed

Classroom audit to improve classroom learning environment with new paint to 6

classrooms, improvements in technology and furniture, plus new heaters and fans.

This will be an ongoing process in 2020

In week 5 this term, we will be completing an extension to our Agriculture farm,

creating an extra 200 sqm of grazing space.

There will be new directional signage coming later this year

Construction has started on our Yarning Circle.

Basketball courts resurfaced – Christmas holidays

All of these projects have been completed or are in progress to improve the overall facilities of our

school to ensure that we continue to provide outstanding learning opportunities in a quality learning

environment.

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All schools are currently receiving their new Aspirational targets set out by the Department of

Education. These targets are contextualised for each individual school, and provide us with a clear

picture of what the research data is telling us and areas that we could improved further. After

seeing our targets this week, I am confident that we are already making outstanding progress

towards meeting these targets which need to be achieved by 2022. Each school has targets for

reading, numeracy, top 2 bands in NAPLAN, Top 3 Bands in the HSC, improvements in aboriginal

education and achievement of outcomes, student wellbeing and attendance. Corrimal High School

already has systems and programs in place to address and improve each of these areas.

Consistency in our implementation of our current initiatives will ensure that our students continue

to improve. Some of the targets and initiatives will require ongoing and extensive support from

our entire school community, particularly in the area of attendance and high expectations.

This term will see students completing their final assessments for the year, leading into their end

of year reports. I encourage students to ensure that they attend school regularly, are on time to

every class and remain on task in every class in order to ensure that they maximise their own

potential, while providing opportunity for group success with their classmates.

Thank you.

Paul Roger

Principal

ALSO IN THE ISSUE

CONNECT TRANSITION WELLBEING TECH CLASS PROGRAMS MESSAGES

DATE EVENT DATE EVENT

NOVEMBER 4 YOUNG LEADERS DAY

NOVEMBER 8 PEER SUPPORT DAY

NOVEMBER 12 YEAR 6 TRANSITION

DAY

NOVEMBER 19 YEAR 6 TRANSITION DAY

NOVEMBER 20-22 IDMT CAMP NOVEMBER 29 SPORT PRESENTATIONS

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KOORI CONNECTION

KLC MESSAGE

Lots of fantastic plans for 2020 coming along but for the remainder of 2019 the KLC will be working on completing the Yarning Circle that will be located within our school. This will involve students and staff across the school and our community.

Further, a big congratulations to students recognised at this year’s Deadly Encouragement Award ceremony – D Kelly, G Shepherd and former student C Shepherd.

BOYS 2 MEN PROGRAM

REVIEW

Recently I have been given the opportunity to start a program called Boys 2 Men that aims to develop social skills and strengthen the confidence of teenage boys. The boys in the Year 7O class spend an hour each week working together and embrace the chance to support one another whilst participating in various activities. The students created an agreement that they believe is important.

Some aspects of the agreement that the boys believe are vital are to respect one another, always use manners and to support their classmates.

The program has met with a positive reaction from the students and the boys should be applauded for their fantastic behaviour. Over the coming weeks the students will be given the opportunity to work on activities both in and out of the classroom, the students particularly enjoy having breakfast together. The students found the fresh fruit delicious and had fun creating their own toppings for their pancakes.

I would like to thank the 70 students for their great attitude towards the program and the Principal Mr Paul Roger for supporting the Boys 2 Men program with an innovation grant.

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TRANSITION

It has been a busy year for transition 2019. We have been lucky enough to have had our Year 4

and Year 5 CoS students attend Corrimal High School for a “Try Year 7 for a Day” program where

students got to see what classroom life was like. Staff also had the chance to meet parents and

carers of the 2020 Year 7 cohort at a recent “Meet and Greet”. Thank you to all those who

attended. It was a fantastic opportunity to meet you, answer some questions and pick up your

student information and orientation packs.

As part of this process, student volunteers in Year 10 have been trained in peer support mentoring

to be a “buddy” to some of our new students starting in 2020. Our Year 10 students will soon meet

Year 6 students for the first peer support transition day and also attend the Peer Support Transition

Camp in March 2020.

The Transition Team has also been involved in a range of supports for current students in years

7-12. This has been in partnership with our friends at in2uni. Students across each year group

have been involved in various activities including careers information days, study plan and

wellbeing days, university visits and more.

As part of what in2uni offer, students across the holiday can apply for a place in the Learning Lab

program. Students will get the opportunity to select an interest area and attend UOW to learn. This

is a fantastic opportunity for students. Additionally, students in Year 11 can also apply for in2uni

Summer Master Classes. Students again select a subject as part of their application, and if

successful in gaining a spot, will study an actual university subject at no cost and also receive 6

credit points in their first year at UOW and an early entry interview.

Students interested are highly recommended in booking in to see Mr Sullivan (Careers) or Mr

Foster (Transition).

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WELLBEING

POSITIVE REWARDS PROGRAM

We continue to reward students for positive behaviour in line with our core values of RESPECT, SAFETY and RESPONSIBILITY. Our reward tokens (C.H.A.T.S) provide instant feedback to students that they are working at a high level, contributing to the positive culture of the school and much, much more.

Congratulations to Oscar Bensi of Year 7 for achieving 40 C.H.A.T.S and thus earning himself a gift card of his choice. Well done for upholding the values of our school.

In Week 10 of last term, students were asked to hand in all their C.H.A.T.S to be eligible for the lucky draw. Congratulations to Ella Hudson of Year 8, Callum Thorne of Year 10 and Enzo Couto-Frontado of Year 7 whose names were drawn out. All deserving recipients of a gift card of their choice. Thank you to each of you for being positive members of our school community.

A reminder that the 40 students with the most C.H.A.T.S at the end of the year will be treated to a free trip to Jamberoo Recreation Park. The school will fund this trip for those 40 students as a reward for continued positive behaviour. (Bus travel and entry fee will be paid by the school.)

ATTENDANCE

Please remember that attendance at school is compulsory each day. If your child is absent due to illness or injury, it is also Department of Education policy that an explanation is provided within 7 days of that absence. That explanation can be provided over the phone to the office or via a note that your child can hand in to the school office or at roll call.

There have been some marked improvements in attendance which is pleasing to see. There are a number of students who have worked hard to improve their attendance rate and they will benefit from regular attendance in their classes and an increase in connection with their peers and with the school.

I encourage all students to value their education and to make the most of the opportunities afforded to them at our school. We engage in a number of programs and offer our students many opportunities to develop their skills and passions and improve their knowledge and experience the world around them. Students must be at school in order to benefit from all of these opportunities.

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LATE ARRIVALS

Each morning our Year Advisers are out the front of the school welcoming our students who arrive late and, as such, ensuring each student is cared for and is able to start the day on a positive note. We know that some students take their siblings to school and perform other roles which means they arrive at school a short time after the bell. There are, however, still students who regularly sleep in or do not have a justified reason for being late. We strongly encourage students to be at school on time. Being punctual is a life skill that will be necessary in many facets of their adult lives, especially their working life. We have started to impose consequences for those students without a reasonable reason for being late in an effort to improve their engagement in school and so they do not miss out on valuable learning opportunities. I welcome parent support with this endeavour.

If you have any concerns or would like to discuss any aspect of your child’s well-being, please call the school and ask to speak with their Year Adviser or myself.

TECHNOLOGY Year 9 Technology students accompanied Mr Foster to the University of Wollongong for a two day program. Students, along with peers from Warilla High School, worked in small teams to complete ideation tasks and procedural problem-solving tasks.

Students also got to hear from some amazing panellists, UOW students, former students and researchers.

Across the next month, students involved will become a teacher and work with local primary school students on similar tasks and problem-solving.