From the Principal
Dear Parents, Staff, Students and Friends
This edition of the newsletter finds us arriving at the end of a wonderful Term 3, where our students and staff have been extended with a range of incredible learning activities. I remain in awe of students and staff alike who have given of their best in a range of situations to achieve personal and community growth, resulting in our school culture forever improving.
Parent Student Teacher (PST) Conferences Provide Essential Feedback For Students.
Thank you to the many parents and students who attended PST Conferences recently. Our teachers reported that they had very productive discussions with families about how students could continue to achieve improved learning outcomes. The research is very clear that specific teacher feedback is significant in enabling students to make great gains in learning. Attendance at such conferences allows students to benefit from gaining an understanding of themselves as learners, whilst establishing what they need to do for ongoing successful growth. If a teacher was absent on the day or you were unable to see them, you are welcome to contact teachers for feedback via email or the telephone.
Music Department Continues To Excel In Nurturing Talents Of Our Students
This term has been a celebration of Music at Frankston High School as follows:
WINTER CONCERT: INAUGURAL PERFORMANCE IN NEW PERFORMING ARTS THEATRE
There was no better way to christen our new Performing Arts Theatre than by staging the recent Winter Concert. This brand new, state of the art, 380 seat facility, was packed to the rafters with an audience of enthusiastic families and friends as they cheered on a range of performances by our various concert bands. I must say the magnificent seating no longer requires audience members to bring a cushion to such events. Our students loved this opportunity to show off their incredible talents in such a professional performance facility.
As a fundraising initiative, families are able to sponsor seats and have their family name inscribed on the back of a seat. Get in early because some families are competing for their favourite seat number and/or position. Contact Stav Smaragdiou if you are interested or book via Trybooking https://www.trybooking.com/book/event?eid=533255&
STAGE BANDS CONTINUE TO EXCEL AND WIN THE TOP AWARDS AT VICTORIAN BANDS FESTIVAL
The Senior Concert Band provided a sublime performance at the Victorian Bands Festival recently to take out top honors of PLATINUM! Mr Peter Sharp showcased this band’s talents as an extraordinary conductor. As usual our students have been outstanding ambassadors throughout the series of the Victorian Bands Festival with positive feedback from judges and other schools in relation to their performances but just as importantly their behaviour.
SMALL GROUPS NIGHT: JIVING TO JAZZ!
Highlights of our recent Small Groups Night included Stage Bands providing brilliant performances whilst supporting amazing vocalists. The Percussion Ensemble that returned from winning against elite private schools at the Ballarat Eisteddfod were highly entertaining in using cups as instruments to provide a toe tapping exciting performance. A special mention to Mr Ben Braithwaite who has nurtured the talents of our percussion ensemble to becoming an exceptional group of talented performers. Then we had the choir, the clarinet, flute, mixed group and guitar ensembles leaving the audience crying for more with the evening being over too quickly. For a mere $5 we all knew it was a steal in terms of the quality of entertainment we had the privilege to enjoy. Yet again the new Performing Arts Theatre was superb in showcasing our teacher and student talents. Many thanks to our fantastic team of Instrumental and Classroom Music Teachers who are developing our students’ musical talents to an extraordinary level.
Athletics Program Continues To Thrive At Frankston High School
NORTHERN PENINSULA DISTRICT (NPD) ATHLETIC CHAMPIONS YET AGAIN.
Our team had a fantastic day at NPD Athletics recently, winning the day overall, setting many new records and all 12 relay teams qualifying for Southern Metropolitan Regional (SMR) Championships. This is the first time every relay team has won at these championships which puts the school in a great position for competing at the SMR Championships. This is a magnificent achievement and a reflection of our outstanding coaches and support staff, Ms Chloe Stevens, Ms Carly MacDonald, Mr Mal Burt, Mr Steven Bonfadini and the great support provided by Ms Kylie Grech.
TRACK RELAY TEAMS IMPRESS THE PRIVATE SCHOOLS
Congratulations to all students who competed at the Victorian Track Relay Championships. We had some exceptional results against Victoria's most elite private schools. Our U14 Girls won the medley, placed 2nd in the 4x100 and our U18 Boys placed 2nd in the 4x100 and 3rd in the medley. We also had many teams make finals and finish 4th and 5th which is outstanding against Victoria’s best.
VERY PROUD OF ATHLETES AT VICTORIAN SCHOOLS’ NITRO CHALLENGE
Some great results from the Victorian Schools Nitro Challenge at Lakeside included our Junior Boys and Junior Girls winning Bronze and our Intermediate and Senior teams had strong results with two 5th place finishes against elite private schools. Thanks once again to our great coaches for all they do.
Frankston High School Students Win Awards At Annual Speech Contest
A number of our students were placed in the top three at the Annual Frankston Susono Japanese Speech Contest. Thank you to our dedicated team of Japanese teachers who prepared the students exceptionally well for this event. Congratulations to:
Year 7/8 Section: Subi Pandey (2nd),
Year 9/10 Section: Charli Evans (2nd),
Japanese Environment Section: Sarah Fujii (1st) and Hana Northey (3rd).
A highlight of the evening was Sarah Fujii winning the Japanese Environment (Secondary) Division for the 6th year in a row.
During the holidays we will be running compulsory practice exams for our Year 12 students which is an excellent opportunity to have our students well prepared for performing to the best of their ability during the final exams. My advice to Year 12 students is to study very hard during the holidays whilst maintaining a balance between rest and study. Also seek out your teachers for extra help. Our teachers will go out of their way to provide support for our students. These final few weeks during the holidays and during the beginning of Term 4 can make all the difference with regards to final results.
Wishing everyone hopefully enjoys some warm spring weather over the break. I look forward to working with you all throughout Term 4.
Mr John Albiston
Principal