Principal’s Piece — Justin Harrison
Thanks
As we reach the end of semester one, I would like to congratulate the Toolooa SHS teaching and non-teaching team for their dedication, flexibility, responsiveness to innovation and unwavering support for student learning. We are fortunate to be a committed community of educators who keep student outcomes at the heart of all endeavours. In addition, a special mention must go out to our parents and carers for your support of our school and the vested interest you have displayed in your child’s education. A positive connection between school and home has never been more important.
To keep our community abreast of all staffing changes, I have included below some changes to our staffing team that will begin next semester.
Congratulations
Karyn Baxter, who has been an integral member of our wellbeing team for the last six weeks has been permanently appointed as one of the school’s three Guidance Officers. I congratulate Karyn on her appointment and look forward to her being an instrumental member of Toolooa’s Wellbeing Team.
Welcome
It is with great pleasure that we will be welcoming three new staff to Toolooa SHS at the start of term 3.
Natalie Hicks – Business / Maths
Alannah Shore – English / Humanities
Deanne Cook – Students with Disabilities
I hope you join with us in making these ladies feel welcome when they arrive.
Farewell
I would like to take this opportunity to thank the following staff who will be finishing at Toolooa at the end of this term:
Mr Tim Lowe who has been at Toolooa this year as a Guidance Officer. Unfortunately, Tim will be leaving Toolooa at the end of this term and will be returning to GSHS. I would like to thank Tim for his outstanding contribution to our wellbeing team and the support he has offered many students.
Miss Aimee Robertson has decided to move back to Brisbane and take up a new opportunity as an Accountant. I would like to thank Aimee, who was a previous student of Toolooa, for her positive contribution to the Business Department and the dedication towards her students.
2022 Senior Subject Selection & SET Plans
All Year 10 students have now selected their Semester 2 subjects which should align to their Senior Pathway and Senior subject aspirations. This Semester 2 "Foundation to Senior" approach will enable students to trial particular subjects and get a "feel" for the academic rigour and assessment/study demands required of Senior students to be successful in their chosen pathway. 2022 Senior Subject Selection and SET Plan processes will commence next term. More information will follow.
Term 2 Reporting
Term 2 reports will be emailed out to all year levels. Year 11 and 12 reports were emailed out on Tuesday 22 June while reports for years 7, 8, 9 and 10 will emailed out to parents/caregivers in Week 1 of term 3, on Wednesday the 13th of July. Please check your inboxes and if you have not received your child’s report, please contact the Administration office on 49714333.
School Opinion Survey
The annual suite of School Opinion Surveys will be conducted in Term 3 and will close on 30 July 2021. All families, school staff and students in target year levels (5, 6, 8 and 11) will be invited to participate. We encourage you to take this opportunity to have your say about what our school does well, and how we can improve.
An invitation to complete the Parent/Caregiver Survey will be emailed to one parent/caregiver per family in the week beginning 5 July. The invitation will be sent from the Department of Education, not the school, and it will have the subject line School Opinion Survey for parents and caregivers, 2021. Check your junk email folders if you can’t find it. The survey can be completed as soon as the invitation is received and will take approximately 5 minutes using a computer, tablet or smart phone. Parents/caregivers who do not have access to the internet at home are welcome to complete their survey online at the school. School computers/tablets will be available.
Holiday Work Experience
We have a number of our year 10, 11 and 12 students undertaking work experience during this upcoming holiday period. This provides these students with exposure to the workplace, an opportunity to understand that particular role and importantly, to develop a strong portfolio for future employment. With many of our senior students competing for apprenticeships, traineeships and employment in the near future, having holiday work experience on the CV may be the difference that employers are looking for. We encourage all Year 10, 11 and 12 students to consider this option for upcoming holiday breaks.
Term Wrap Up
Term 2 has again been a busy time in our school with a significant number of students involved in sporting, cultural and academic opportunities outside of their standard classroom routines. Before I mention some of the notable achievements, I would like to congratulate a large number of year 12 students whose results in their General subjects for Unit 3 are exceptionally high, setting them up for rewarding ATAR results at the end of the year. Keep up the great work.
Some of the notable achievements are:
Tiah Vogler (Year 9) was recognised in Term 1 for winning the Gladstone Award in the 2020 Future Makers STEM Challenge.
Nine students in year 9 were invited to take part in CQUniCares Monadelphous Indigenous STEM Camp (hosted by The Boyne Island Environmental Education Centre). Congratulations Kelsey, Christine, Evander, Corban, Kacie, Leslie, Juztis, Lewis and L’Trelle.
Congratulations to Maddyson, Hayah, Tiah and Sophie who were the winners of the advanced division in the 2021 CQ Robotics Challenge in Term 2.
Congratulations to Benny, Jakada, Maryanne, Zavier and Connagh who were recently recognised for their exceptional entries into the 2021 Santos Scratch Challenge. These students created animated games and quizzes using scratch programming and were invited to Santos GNLG for a tour of the plant and to present their entries to a panel of engineers on site.
Elijah Retort participated in the Bond University Year 12 Mathematics Extension program over two days during the Easter school holidays. Elijah did exceptionally well in the program, achieving a High Distinction and a $5000 bursary.
Congratulations to the following students who were selected in Capricornia sporting teams for their chosen sport: Mia Boase, Monique Jephson, Declan Corke, Anaya McCafferty, Jakaylah Docherty, Liani Radisic, Maja Radisic, Billie Orth, Nate Beach, Jack Bramall, Ryan Young, Janara Donald, Paul Jones, Jesse Hayden, Dylan Price, Dwane Mendolia and Zoe McDonald.
A large number of students participated in Australia Science Innovations - The Big Science Competition. Congratulations to the 40 students from grades 7, 8 and 9 who did extremely well. A special mention must go to Connagh Arandale, Benjamin Campbell, Jake Pattilo and Alyssa Pease who all received High Distinctions.
Please refer to the following page which showcases some of the outstanding written work that some of our Year 8 students have completed in their extension class during their warm up.
A range of school camps, excursions and sporting events have also taken place this term. I congratulate each and every one of the students who have participated and represented Toolooa in accordance with the school’s core values. Finally, our student’s community service commitment continues to be strong and I want to congratulate our junior/ senior leaders and our Interact Club for the service they provide.
As I mention all the time, I am very proud of the achievements of our students and would like to thank the staff for their support and contribution to the students of Toolooa. If it was not for the time and effort teachers put in, students would not have the opportunities to engage and excel in academic, cultural and sporting fields.
Safe Holidays
With this being the final newsletter to be issued before the holidays, I would like to take this opportunity to wish the Toolooa community a safe and relaxing holiday. For those travelling on the roads, please be careful as we want all students to return safely on Monday the 12th of July.
Athletics Carnival
Well done to all students who attended the annual athletics carnival on Tuesday. It truly was a fantastic day. A special thank you must go to the HPE Department for the organisation of such a terrific carnival. Congratulations, goes to Curtis for taking out the carnival and to all the students who, broke records and were awarded Age Champion. Please see page 5 for specific details of all award recipients.