Celebration of Learning

Students & Parents as Partners in Learning SURVEY

All Year 7 students are invited to complete the end of Term 1 Year 7: Student Partners Learning Survey 2019. Links and information have been emailed to all students and families in Year 7.

You can use this link to get to the survey:

https://forms.gle/DhWu2bNrCQ7Y7o7J9

For term 1, please submit one response for each of English, Mathematics, Science and HSIE.

OR, another way to do the survey is as follows:

You can log in to Moodle and go to Personal Learning Plans, and then select "Students and Parents as Partners for Learning".  Scroll down to Reflections and Surveys to find the link to the survey:

Reflections and Surveys

Year 7 Students as Partners Survey URL

In order to promote reflection on your learning and have you think about how you learn best:

In term 1, please submit one response for English, Mathematics, Science and HSIE.

In term 2, please submit one response for PDHPE, Language, VA, Technology, Drama.

In term 3/4, please submit one response for each subject you studied.

FAMILIES, please see the information published on the school website, on the Year 7 Curriculum Page, about the Students and Parents as Partners in Learning program: 

Students and Parents as Partners for Learning

• Student Personal Learning Plan **
• Student Learning Presentations
• Student Assessment Task Reflection Sheet (includes optional parent comments, and can be completed now for assessment tasks done in Term 1 in any subject, and kept to use in the Term 4 Learning Presentation)^^
• Student Partners in Learning Survey (LINK TO GOOGLE Form digital version of this survey is on Moodle and has been emailed to all students and families)
• Student Learning Presentation - Parent/Caregiver Feedback

** IF STUDENTS HAVE NOT YET COMPLETED A PLP, they should do this first, following the instructions on Moodle:

Personal Learning Plan

Personal Learning Plan Survey File

Create a folder on your BYOD Device for Students and Parents as Partners in Learning (or SPIL).  Then, download the Personal Learning Plan to your BYOD device. Finally complete the survey and set your goals for 2019.  If you down load the PDF use the "Fill and Sign" function to complete electronically.

^^ Additionally, please find on the Year 7 Curriculum Page of the school website (and below) a link to the Student Assessment Task Reflection sheet, where there is space for optional parent comment.​

https://web3.canterburg-h.schools.nsw.edu.au/Documents%20for%20Uploading/2018/Curriculum/Student%20Assessment%20Task%20-%20Reflection%20Sheet%20year%207.pdf

PARENTS & CAREGIVERS ARE INVITED TO ADD YOUR FEEDBACK ON SUBJECT SPECIFIC ASSESSMENT TASKS COMPLETED IN TERM 1 - these reflection sheets should be saved in the SPIL folder (Students and Parents as Partners in Learning) on your child's BYOD device. They will be used again in Term 4 when students plan their Learning Presentations.

This folder should have been created when the 2019 Personal Learning Plan was created in Term 1.  All guidelines and links to do this are on Moodle.  Access to Moodle is via the same student username and password which is used to log on to the school network.

CAPA Year 8 Field Day

This Field Day focused upon the idea of ‘belonging’ and asked our girls to reflect upon the ways in which they belong.  They were asked to reflect upon:

·         Who they chose as their friends?

·         What influenced them in their choices?

·         What they bring from home which makes them the person they are?

We also watched a theatrical performance ‘Trading Places’ which used action, acrobatics and agile movement to create the narrative of a city girl experiencing life in the country and the adjustment she needed to belong.  The day was tied to our own Musical Production Tribe & Tribulation and we explored the idea of school and its’ tribes and the way we adapt to fit in.  Students were asked to work in groups to create and present performances to each other incorporating musical skills, synchronicity and performance flare.  The day concluded with the year group enjoying participating in the calls, rhythms, dancing and percussive beat of Afro Beat and their interactive Drumming workshop.   The context and the geography of the day was experienced close to home but we explored much broader origins and experiences and the day was packed with responsive, energetic and enthusiastic students.​

Maths Clinic with Mr Jurd in A11, Thursday & Friday lunchtimes - no bookings required

Music News

We are gearing up for the Musical Tribe and Tribulation with weekend rehearsals and weekday run throughs. Let’s just say that you will be thoroughly entertained by the talented students of Canterbury Girls. Why not see it twice and see both casts in action! Elective music students are busily writing original songs for the Kool Skools project as well as the Australian Children’s Music Foundation National Songwriting Competition (for more details visit: acmf.com.au).

We have had two students reach the second round of auditions for Talent Development Program (TDP) and we wish them the best for the future workshops! Remember you can also audition for Specfest, a stage outside the area where students can perform before and between School Spectacular show,  apply here: https://www.artsunit.nsw.edu.au/featured-ensemble-application-form  

Futures Learning - STEAMpunk Girls

In mid February of term one this year, two teachers from the HSIE Faculty, Miss Szymanski and Miss Fountas attended a two-day Professional Learning Workshop at the University of Technology in the CBD. The workshop was dedicated to STEAMPunk Girls - an educational program encouraging young women in years 8 or 9 to engage with STEAM (science, technology, engineering, arts, and mathematics) through project-based learning (PBL) and design thinking. STEAMpunk Girls is a unique interdisciplinary educational program working at the intersection of high schools, industry and the university. The program aims to empower young women aged 12 to 16 to be equipped for the future workforce by fostering the growth of an entrepreneurial mindset, and supporting young people to develop their transversal and STEAM skills including critical and innovative thinking, problem-solving, and numeracy and literacy skills. 

The STEAMpunk Girls program works with innovative, enthusiastic teachers to deliver a core program which exposes young women to the STEAM fields, female role models, new ways of thinking, and emerging tech. Miss Szymanski and Miss Fountas utilised their knowledge attained throughout the day to further develop a year 9 history assessment on the Industrial Revolution. The focus of the task was to consider 'Making a Better World?' - where students were asked to observe a specific element of the historical period they had interest in (elements such as agricultural developments, key inventions and inventors, experiences of Men, Women and Children) and provide a judgement based on the short and long term consequences of the Revolution. Students were asked to provide visual and written evidence, expressing their opinions on whether they thought the world was better place today.

HSC Drama Australian Theatre Day

Year 12 students joined over five hundred other year 12 students as they spent the day watching a live performance and exploring one of their set texts: 'Norm & Ahmed'​ a play by Australia playwright Alex Buzo.   Seeing the text brought to life made an enormous difference to the students understanding and their ability to use examples of the theatrical elements and the staging conventions in their forthcoming HSC Drama external examination.  This was a very valuable experience and was combined with information and advice about preparation and procedures for both the Individual Project and Group Presentation from senior HSC markers.  It was very much a hands on exploration of tips and advice relating to what our year 12 students are most concerned about in their study of this subject.  It was time well spent!

Senior Student Support Programs

Study Workshops Program -

Curriculum Support

As mentioned in thank yous and congratulations earlier in this edition, Ms Yen delivered a senior student support in Mathematics workshop on April 10 to a fantastic turn out of students eager to improve their performance.  Year 12 will have a Biology workshop on May 29 with Ms Delmas, and an English Teachers Association Day for HSC students is scheduled for June 26.  This series of curriculum workshops follows on from Ms Houvardas' February 27 Legal Studies workshop and the seminars for high performance English students by Year 12 2018 student Coco Wang (2nd in the State in Advanced English).

Personal Best Program - Study and Time Management Skills Development

Senior students can continue to develop their study and time management skills via the Stage 6 Personal Best courses on Moodle for Years 11 & 12.  Following the issue of Year 11 Progress reports at the end of Term 1 all Year 11 are being supported during Personal Best on Thursday and Friday each week to complete a weekly study plan. Parents will find useful links on the website:

Young Change Agents - Mental Health YINC - Cerebrum

Over the Easter holidays, a team of our students, Billie Guice, Hailie Brown, Jessica Holt, and Kiara Green developed their idea of using plants as horticulture therapy at the Mental Health YINC. The team will be launching their idea along with 4 other teams via crowd fund in June. So exciting!

You can see their project here:  https://youngchangeagents.com/projects/cerebrum  

Years 7 & 8 Renaissance Reading Programme 2019

We are pleased to inform you of a new reading program Years 7 & 8 students will be undertaking in Semester Two of this year. Renaissance Accelerated Reader is an online reading programme designed to enhance and improve reading and comprehension skills in an engaging and meaningful way. Reading skills are the foundations for all learning therefore we look forward to initiating the program across Stage 4.

Renaissance Accelerated Reader is an online programme that helps students reach their full potential and allows them to work at their own pace. To maximise benefits, students are encouraged to read for a minimum of 20 minutes a day.  Individual student needs are catered for in a range of activities, where they receive unique attention and quick feedback to ensure they meet their goals. Teachers will be able to access student progress, using the information to better support your daughter’s learning needs. Parents too, can share in their children’s progress with access to the online programme from home.

When students develop confidence with reading skills they begin to develop a sense of achievement that can translate across the curriculum. There will be a small cost to establish and administer the programme therefore further information will be forthcoming.

We look forward to implementing the programme and working with parents in supporting student engagement and learning.

Year 8 Science: The Dirty Water Project

During Term 1, STEM experts of the future Year 8 Science explored separation techniques. Working in teams, their design brief required them to research the theory and then create a dynamic model of a portable water filter from recycled materials capable of removing some pretty gross pollutants from water. The results were outstanding.

Careers- USYD Engineering Workshop