SECONDARY NEWS
From the Assistant Principal
Semester Exams
Students are reminded that semester exams will be held in Week 5 for Year 10 and in Week 6 for Years 7 - 9. In order for students to achieve their best possible results, it is necessary to prepare adequately for these important assessments. Students are encouraged to revise thoroughly in the coming weeks and to seek assistance from their teachers if required. It is essential that students catch up on missed work if they have been absent from school.
Last Minute Study
What do you do if you have left your study to the last minute?
In an ideal world it would be great if all students paid attention, focused and participated in all classes, completed all homework and assessments thoroughly, asked for help throughout the year on anything they didn’t understand, made regular summaries of the work covered in class (preferably at the end of each topic or section) and did their best to learn as they go throughout the year.
But in reality, this doesn’t always happen for every student and every subject.
So what can you do if you have left your study for tests and exams to the last minute?
5 TIPS FOR LAST MINUTE STUDY
FIND OUT FAST: Be very clear what you need to learn and what will be tested. It is impossible to start your study until you are sure what you have to know. Find out as much as you can too about the exam format and the style of questions. Don’t be afraid to ask your teacher. For each subject write a list of exactly what topics and areas you need to review.
GATHER MATERIALS: Do you have notes, materials, textbooks on everything you need to learn? If not, is there a friend who will let you photocopy the work you have misplaced? Is there an online portal where material from classes is stored? Can you borrow from the library additional books or textbooks on the topics you need to learn? Are past examination papers available?
MAKE A PLAN: You only have limited time left so you need to make the most of it. Draw up a grid that shows how much time you have left before your exams to study. Decide if you will spend equal time on each subject or if certain subjects need more time. Allocate subjects to the timeslots you have then decide exactly what you will do to prepare for each subject. For each subject make a list of what sort of study you should do to prepare for that subject. Brainstorm your ideas on how to prepare, ask your parents and teachers for feedback and share ideas with your friends.
CREATE STUDY NOTES: Target your notes to what will be tested. It is best for learning and memory to make your study notes yourself, but if you have run out of time there are options. See if any of your class materials or textbooks have summarised the sections you need, see if there are study guides available in the library on the topics to learn or make targeted notes yourself on the key areas you have to memorise. You could also see if there is a friend where you could split the topics between yourself and share the notes you make. Don’t spend too long on this stage, it needs to be completed as quickly as possible.
STUDY! What does study actually mean? It means memorising the material you need to know so you can recall it in the exams, and practising the skills of the subject so you know how to do the types of questions you will have in the exam. To memorise your notes you need to test yourself over and over on them. You could read a section, see what you can write down without looking then check. Then review the things you didn’t know again. Or you could do the same approach reading things out loud then seeing what you can repeat out loud. Doing questions, practise essays, past exam questions will also help you understand what you know, and what you need to spend more time on.
The key is to get started. No more procrastination, no more excuses. Start today!
PREPARING FOR BLOCKS OF EXAMS
For many students, a block of examinations can be daunting. Some students have no idea where to start and what they should work on.
The first thing to do if you have examinations approaching in the next few months is to find out what topics will be tested. Even a simple question to teachers can get you started such as ‘are we being tested on the whole year’s work or just this semester?’.
Once you know what topics will be covered, organise all of your learning materials and make sure nothing is missing and you have everything you need to review those topics.
The next step is to make study notes on these topics if you haven’t been doing this throughout the year (hopefully you have!).
Next, it is time to start learning the notes (testing yourself on them over and over) and doing practice questions to make sure you can apply your knowledge to different types of questions.
If you have a number of weeks prior to the examinations, it is a good idea to make a plan in your diary or phone or on a whiteboard of what subjects you will study when.
Try and allocate each subject once or twice each week, depending on the number of examinations you have.
Year 9 History Excursion
As part of their studies in History, Year 9 will be investigating commemorations and the nature of the ANZAC legend. Students are required to explain how and why Australians have commemorated the wars.
To investigate this further we will visit the Kurrajongs Memorial on the Gwydir Highway as it is in walking distance from the school grounds.
Students will leave school at 9.00am on Wednesday 7 November for a short reflection and return to school by 9:50am.
The visit to the memorial will be a valuable part of our studies and provide insight and context for future learning.
GRIP Leadership Conference
Congratulations to the following students who were the successful candidates in the recent elections for the SRC for 2019; Gabbie Barratt, Grace Doyle, Emma McInnes, Darcy Brennan, Oscar Rainger and Campbell Watchirs.
They attended the Grip Leadership Conference in Tamworth last week. The conference helped to equip the 2019 student leaders with the strategies and understanding required to make a meaningful level of contribution to the school during their term of office. The presentations, discussions, forums, activities and workshops provided students with a range of opportunities to learn from a team of experienced facilitators and from other student leaders. Thank you to Ms Melvin who accompanied the students to Tamworth last Tuesday.
As mentioned last week, voting for School Captains will be held later in the term.
Student Achievement - Brittany Camp: NSW Bowls Representative
In the school holidays, I was granted a great opportunity to represent NSW again at the Australian Under 18's Championships.
After two days of hard competition and 3 out of 4 wins, we came first on the ladder for Triple and we had to play off for gold. We came up against WA and had a really great game, winning the gold medal. The NSW girls came third overall and the NSW team also came third overall.
On October 20 and 21 I travelled to Cabramatta to represent Country at the City vs Country Championship Under 18’s, with Country coming away with the overall win.
On November 3 and 4 I will head to Soldiers Point to represent Country at the under 25’s City vs Country Championship.
Brittany Camp
Student Achievement- Harrison Frazier: Winner of 2018 Inverell's Got Talent.
Well done to Harrison Frazier who won the recent 2018 Inverell's Got Talent Competition. Harrison impressed the judges with his superior piano playing skills and took out the main prize in the competition. Congratulations Harrison!
Defence Force Visit
The Defence Force will be holding a Careers Information Session from 5.00pm - 7.00pm on Wednesday 14 November at Inverell High.
The ADF is recruiting for a wide range of positions and attending the session will provide you with more information about possible opportunities within the Defence Force.
2019 Junior Hereford Camp – Inverell Showground
This event has been designed to give young people the opportunity to build their knowledge and understanding of the beef industry, in a safe and welcoming environment. Activities will target all age groups and experience levels, and the committee will be available to help you. The organisers have placed a strong focus on ensuring that the demonstrations are age appropriate and that practical skills and knowledge will be able to be taken away from the event. For those that don't have access to a suitable Hereford animal, crossbred steers may be shown as long as they are 50% Hereford, if that is still not an option there will be loan animals available. Simply select ‘Loan Animal required’ in the entry form and leave the rest to the organisers.
If you are interested in attending please contact Mrs Kathy Townsend in Secondary for entry forms.
The flyer attached below also contains more information about the camp.