Newsletters

Term 3 Issue 2 2023

18/08/2023

Principal's Page

Dear families,

The middle of term three heralds several very key milestones in a school year. Traffic light data will soon be shared with parents, this is an indication of progress towards successful completion of the term and year against the Australian Curriculum subjects for Middle School and SACE for Senior School. Every learner is different and a one size fits all approach is not the most effective. As a school community we look for trends over time, and also sudden shifts that may indicate a young person is not travelling well socially/emotionally or academically, in order to put support in place to stop the decline. On the flip side, when a student is having continued and increasing success, we aim to identify the practices and routines that make this happen and amplify them. Traffic light data is also used to track a number of students with learning difficulties and disabilities to see if the interventions we have put in place are working productively and are having an impact. When communication between school and home is reciprocal, learning from each other, we can all best support our young people to be the most successful they can be.

The other event happening right now is subject selections and course counselling for year 7-11. There are three relevant points about why it is so important it is done right now, meeting timelines and with rigour.

Conversations about life beyond school, career planning and specialisations are more important than ever. Not only do we all want our young people to love the work they go into, but also have financial stability and flexibility in the good and bad times. Having conversations as a family with all age groups is important. By year 10 students will be making life choices about the pathways they want to pursue, and we can help tailor subject choices to maximise success, and link students with employment, VET and Uni real life experiences to explore. Research tells us that students who stay at school and complete year 12 or equivalent training have greater prosperity later in life. Students who know the general field they want to go into are also better equipped to set themselves aspirational goals to reach important milestones.

The timetable is developed after students make their choices and every timetable is unique to the person. It is an incredibly complex algorithm to make this happen and is only as good as the data that goes into it. The process of mixing and matching subjects on different lines enables the team under the direction of timetabling guru Paula Hahesy to create the least number of clashes against subject choices. More students are getting exactly the subjects they want and the breadth of choices is outstanding. Current year 6s will receive their 2024 timetable at transition next term, relieving much anxiety because they will know what a week at high school looks like, meet classmates and teachers for the following year and make early connections.

Finally, now is the time I am locking in staffing for next year, based on the data around selections for subject choices. As an example we saw a swing in students choosing agriculture and the Ag teachers were fully loaded. I was able to advertise for another teacher and provide opportunities for current teachers interested in the field to train in preparation. Our VET pathways continue to be strong and aligned to Flexible Industry Pathways in our community. When students undertake VET they are trained by external providers, meaning less teachers are needed. Making accurate staffing predictions keeps our school financially strong and able to offer more to our families such as loan chromebooks, subsidised camps and free excursions.

Currently we are sitting at about 55% subject selection completion. I urge if you haven’t already, please have a conversation with your child/ren, access career counselling (yr 10 and above) and submit online asap.If you are unsure please reach out to your Neighbourhood Student Pathways Leader.

Regards,

By Maddie Hughes

On the 10th, 11th, and 13th of August (last weekend), Murray Bridge High School entered 6 teams in the Volleyball SA School's Cup Tournament. This is the biggest tournament in South Australia, attended by many schools, including all of the "big volleyball schools" - those that have had whole school programs for decades. Many of our students were attending just their first tournament, but they were up for the challenge, and entered the first day of matches with high hopes, and a readiness to learn and grow. The competition was tough, but all teams saw success in their games from winning matches and sets, to nailing new court movements and strategies. Our highest finishing team was the Year 11 Boys who placed third - congratulations! To all other teams - many of whom were playing in age grades above their own age, a huge congratulations to you too. Your coaches are all so proud of how you have developed and grown throughout the tournament - bring on School Smash in December!

MBHS Robotics Club @ Science Alive

By Keira Stavast - 10D

On Sunday August 6th, the MBHS Student Robotics Club attended a fun and informal “Freddo Frog Frenzy” robotics scrimmage at the annual Science Alive Expo!

The day involved the usual ‘friendly’ competition, but also allowed South Australian teams an opportunity to showcase the FTC program - their awesome robots and driving skills - to the general public (around 10,000 attendees!). Everyone got the chance to drive our club’s three robots, including our newest members who have not been to a scrimmage before! There was also some dancing that had several of us up and moving - even a couple of youngsters from the crowd joined in! When we weren’t busy competing or fixing robots, we took the chance to have a look around at the other 80 exhibitions, which ranged from bugs and animals to IT and STEM.

Quotes from students and staff involved -

“We are very proud to represent the rural region of STEM and robotics in such a lively environment, showcasing the opportunities for other students and highlighting the core innovations that will lead our futures!” - Lucas (Club Captain)

“It was really busy, crazy and the kids were invading your space. However, we pushed through the chaos and still had fun.” - Madison

“It was a really fun, exciting day, and it was awesome to get the opportunity to showcase our robots and knowledge of robotics and FTC to thousands of people attending the event, sparking curiosity and excitement in minds both young and old!” - Keira

“Who is science and why are they alive?” - Lachlan

“There were great things about science and new things we didn’t know.” - Katie

“Taking our robotics club into the lively realm of Science Alive filled club mentors with pride. Observing our students embody the values of Gracious Professionalism and Coopertition, extending their passion to fellow teams and engaging the intrigued audience, highlights the impact of empowering the next generation of STEM innovators.” - Ms Rabone (Club Mentor)

FTC robotics community in South Australia and their robots - see you all at the Kick-off!

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Busy in the pits fixing a loose wheel between matches!

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Busy enjoying “the hardest fun you’ll ever have!”

Crowds experience the thrill of FTC robotics scrimmages at the Science Alive Expo.

Congratulations to MBHS student Leah!

By Josh Coulter

I want to share an amazing success story with you all about one of our year 10 students. Leah was named as South Australia's MVP and gained All Australian selection in the Australian School Girls Netball tournament which was played last week. Leah was a late call up into the team, she was also the only public-school student representative for SA! This is an amazing effort, and those of you who have had the pleasure of teaching or working with Leah, would agree that it is well deserved. If you see Leah in the yard, please make sure you congratulate her on this achievement. We are very proud of her and the way in which she has represented our community.

Japanese Exchange Students Welding Experience!

By David Berresford

In the last week of hosting the Japanese exchange students they were brought into our Tech Studies building to experience MIG welding. To say the class was nervous was an understatement but after going through a safety briefing and then teacher lead demonstrations, it was time to dive in. Students began by measuring up mild steel flat bar to cut into pieces using the hand shear. After cutting they then went off to individual welding bays putting on their safety equipment before beginning to weld. The whole class went through welding a simple weld pass with their pieces. Each student had two attempts before taking them over to the skink for cooling down metal. Handing up their pieces for marking the whole class was judged with some interesting results. Of the class we had girls come 1st and 3rd with boys snatching 2nd place.

As a reward for winning the girls got to demonstrate welding compression and heat. This involves MIG welding a piece of metal to a high heat before compressing the weld with a hammer causing a spark shower. Year 12 students Robert and Brock were on call to support the class and set up the demonstration. The two photos show the moment before strike and then the spark shower afterwards. Judging by the smiles and laughter it was a huge success and a day at Murray Bridge High School they will remember at forever!

By Kelsey Milne

On the fifth of August our Pedal Prix team participated in their third race of the season. Event took place at the Bend Motorsport track in an intense eight hour race, the longest of the season so far. Despite the challenging weather which seem to showcase all four seasons in the single day, both teams displayed impressive growth since their last race. Team after-shock secured ninth place in their category and placed 42nd overall out of 195 trikes. Team aftermath also excelled achieving 44th place in their category and 132nd overall. Our eyes are now set on the horizon as we have an even bigger challenge the upcoming 24 hour race at start reserve in Murray Bridge on September 16th.

This week Mrs Sparrow’s Stage 1 Child Studies class had the opportunity to spend time with some of our school community mothers and their little ones. The students have been learning about development from 0-2 and the use of literacy for language development. The students read to the babies and children and discussed their development with the mothers. It was a fantastic time with the students developing their skills in working with young children and babies. Well done everyone and a big thank you to all the mothers and children for coming in.

Mon 24 Jul	Term 3 Begins
Mon 24 Jul	Japanese Students Arrive
Mon 7 Aug	2024 Subjects Market Day
Wed 9 Aug	School of Rock Musical Auditions
Thurs 10-13 Aug	Volleyball Schools Cup - Adelaide
Fri 11 Aug	School of Rock Musical Auditions
Mon 14 Aug	SACE Family Info Session 5:30 - 6:30pm
Tues 15 Aug	Governing Council Meeting 6pm
Sun 3 Sep	Adelaide Show
Mon 4 Sep	Show Day - School Closure Day
Tues 5 Sep	Student Free Day
Sun 10 Sep	Robotics Centrestage Kick-Off
Tues 12 Sep	Finance Commitee 5pm
Thurs 14 Sep	R U OK Day?
Mon 18 Sep	Australian Girls Choir Arrives
Tues 19 Sep	Governing Council Meeting 6pm
Fri 29 Sep	Term 3 Ends - 2:00pm Dismissal