Head of Secondary School

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Keep Learning and Stay Connected

We’ve been really focused on connecting with our students at home this week. Whilst we have not had the significant numbers of students isolating at home as other schools, we are cognisant of our students who are currently learning from home because they either have Covid-19 or are a household contact. It isn’t much fun being at home! One way to maintain normalcy is to do the typical things we would do in any normal day, and for our students that is engage with learning and stay in contact with teachers, tutors and friends. Our Academic Deans have been zooming students who are learning from home, and yesterday Ms Anna-Marie Rolon, did four back-to-back zooms with students in Yr 7 to 10. I spoke to Anna after the zooms and she was buzzing with excitement. She reported that the students were keen to ask questions, see and hear from each other and feel reassured about upcoming learning tasks and assessments. The Subject Coordinators have already considered assessment contingencies to take us through to the end of this term, and these are currently being communicated to students impacted by Covid-19.  If your child has any questions or concerns about their learning from home, please do encourage them to reach out to their Academic Dean or their Subject Teacher. They are available to support and understand it is a tricky time.

The Musical is Finally Here!

We wish the following students all the best this evening in their premiere performance of the Shrek, The Musical! If you haven’t yet secured tickets, they are available here.

Musical Student List

A significant amount of energy, enthusiasm and sheer hard work has gone into this year’s musical and I want to acknowledge and thank the students and staff for their dedication and commitment. The desire to deliver an exceptional performance has been made more complicated by the pressures of a challenging year and the constancy of Covid-19. The Musical is most certainly something to look forward to, and enjoy, at the end of hectic term.

Yr 8 Camp

Year 8 students have a wonderful week of activities planned at Yarrahapinni on the mid-North coast. They plan to be hiking in National Parks, exploring the Nambucca River by canoe and even have surf lessons! In our sequential Camp programme, students are building on the camping, cooking and outdoor skills learned last year by completing a journey for the first time.

Fundraising Appeals

Currently we have two appeals, being led by Year 12 House Captains from Cowper and Roseby.

Gotcha4Life

Cowper House Captains Katina and Cristian are hosting a Cowper sausage sizzle today, raising funds for ‘Gotcha4Life’, a mental fitness charity. This fantastic not-for-profit raises funds to deliver mental health programs that engage, educate and empower local communities.  

They interviewed Gus Worland about Gotcha4Life. Watch the video here. There is some focus on suicide but, overall a very positive message.

The sausage sizzle went well at lunch time today!

Redlands UNICEF Ukraine Fundraising Appeal

Redlands is fundraising to help children and their families in Ukraine. The Redlands community can support by:

1. Donating to the Redlands UNICEF Ukraine Fundraising Appeal
2. Roseby Bake Sale, Week 9, Monday 28 March. Roseby Students are encouraged to bring baked goods to sell. All students should bring their appetites and lots of money to purchase baked goods. A big thank you to Roseby House Captains Emmi and Sam for support of this initiative.
3. International Day Activity & Food Stalls, Tuesday 5 April. In Week 10, students will be running activity and food stalls during lunch. Students are able to sign-up to host a stall here. See the Languages section of Note Day for more information.

By contributing to our fundraising efforts, the students will be helping UNICEF provide access to basic services including water and sanitation, immunization and health care, schooling and learning, psychosocial support, and emergency cash assistance for children.

Yr 7 Study Skills

On Monday 29 March from 6.00 – 7:30pm, Dr Prue Salter from Enhanced Learning Educational Services will be delivering a webinar for Yr 7 students and parents.

This year the Study Skills evening will involve an online, interactive presentation on Zoom. The skills to be covered in the evening include:

1. Improving the space where you work at home and managing distractions.
2. Organising resources for school and learning about independent learning.
3. Creating an afternoon routine and managing time so you can balance schoolwork and activities.
4. Planning and managing workload and assessments.
5. How to study for a test in high school and the importance of learning to make study notes.

Parents can expect to gain a greater understanding of the tools that students can use to help them achieve academic success, and students can learn how to make the most out of their abilities through simple but effective techniques.  All students are encouraged to attend this Zoom session, accompanied by a parent. As the session is very interactive, the session will be of most benefit when both the student and a parent attend.  We look forward to your involvement in this valuable experience for your child.

Details of this Zoom session follow.

Please click the link below to join the webinar

Passcode: 565921

Sporting Achievement

Yr 11 student Isaac Brooks competed at the NSW Little Athletics Championships over the weekend. He ran a PB in the 1500m and finished fourth (4:13) and won a silver in the 800 (2:01) – 2 second PB. 

Yr 11 Advisor, Nick Walker, was able to watch Isaac race and says he executed his race well, leading the race for part of it, and finishing strong. Isaac has significantly improved over the last 12 months and has an exciting future ahead of him. 

Ms Gemma Van de Peer
Head of Secondary School
gvandepeer@redlands.nsw.edu.au
9968 9811