John Monash Science School

Peter Corkill

Principal

Dear Parents and Students

Welcome back to Term Two. It has been a strange yet busy start to the term at JMSS, no doubt a three-day first week has led to some difficulties in getting into a continuity of routine. This week began with our Annual Athletics Carnival, well attended with good spirit and healthy competition despite the cold blustery weather. We now look forward to settling into a more normal routine over the next few weeks.

 

The 2019 Regional Exchange Part One Begins Next Week

A huge thanks to the many families who have volunteered to host one of the 15 Year 10 exchange students who will arrive this weekend to enjoy three busy weeks at JMSS. I trust you will all build friendships which will last, and the opportunities your generosity has availed these young people cannot be over-stated. We will be joined by regional teachers at the beginning of week 3 of the exchange, and we look forward to the projects these students will be undertaking being a feature of our October Science Fair. The students will enjoy an experience in Science within the university, and will taste a few of Melbourne’s delights, including an AFL Football match MCG-style.

I would like to thank staff members Erin Hayley, Mel Denney and Fiona Bui for their work in setting up the exchange, and know that all our students will make them welcome at JMSS during their stay.

 

MWITS Team With Us In Week Two

We have enjoyed hosting the team from Mahidol Wittayanusorn School in Bangkok Thailand over this week. They will be hometaying with their JMSS student buddies, and they, and staff members Adriana Abels and Erica Trickett have made sure they have had a terrific time. Trips to Healesville Sanctuary and Melbourne city, into Monash Iniversity and even to the football this Friday night will no doubt give them a strong feel for life in Melbourne as well as at JMSS. At the time of writing I am looking forward to the cultural performances they will perform later this week.

 

ANZAC Ceremony

The annual ANZAC assembly took place at school last Friday, with Major General Jim Barry the guest speaker. The ceremony featured several students at JMSS who are members of cadet units across Melbourne, as well as staff member Mr. Peter Toronyi who is an officer in a local unit. Year 12 student Huon Howard played the last Post and Rouse with great aplomb – I often think this is one of the most difficult musical solos one can perform, and he did it with aplomb.

 

I usually devote the first three newsletters of term two to providing some timely advice around organisation, assessment and strategies to maximise the chances of students doing their best when the stakes are high. I would urge you all to read these articles and discuss them at home with your families – the first is included below.

 

ARTICLE ONE: A Strategic Approach to Study – Planning and Organisation!

As is usual at this time of the year, some students are looking toward the mid-year examination period with more trepidation than anticipation, and this is beginning to affect their thinking and in a few cases probably their wellbeing. I would like to use our newsletters to contribute some thoughts and strategies I think will help students over the coming weeks. The first instalment is about PLANNING.

 

Students tend to feel overwhelmed by work when it starts to mount up, and some often have no systematic approach to dealing with it. The strategic use of a weekly planning tool might assist students to get on top of their work. The tool is simply a large grid of the seven-day week, broken into hourly timeslots from 6am to 11pm. The five school days are encased in a bold outline. Students who need better planning should obtain one of these grids (one is attached to this newsletter) and follow these steps:

  • Shade out all COMMITMENTS in that week (sport, tutoring, part-time job, church, family etc)
  • Make a list of all work you wish to complete that week in each subject, including extra preparation for SACs OR mid-year exams like practice from the Checkpoints books or from past VCAA exams if you are in Year 12, or topic summaries etc.;
  • For each piece of work estimate the time you need to complete it, and calculate the TOTAL TIME you need for each subject;
  • Break this time into SESSION TIMES you feel you can stick to, for example 4 hours of Maths could be achieved in one 2-hour and two 1-hour sessions;
  • Place these sessions onto your weekly planner, stick it on the bedroom wall and commit to it! Make sure you get a good night’s sleep each night and put in some REWARDS for yourself, say some exercise, a movie etc to give yourself a break;
  • Do this EVERY SUNDAY for the following week;
  • Finally get yourself a cardboard wall calendar from Officeworks (I am told they cost around $7) and put it on your bedroom wall at home. Put all important dates and deadlines on it, including assignment due dates, SAC dates and exam dates. This will keep deadlines ‘public’ for you, not lost in a diary, and will help you plan accordingly.

I would suggest that students use this tool STRATEGICALLY, that is, when needed. It is best used when:

  • you fall behind with work and you have a lot to do in a short time or
  • you want to include revision for exams in your homework schedule, say four weeks before the exams begin or
  • you just want to get a bit more organised when you have a lot going on.

I believe a more strategic approach to study will help all of our students. In the next newsletter I will talk more about balance and keeping things in perspective, and closer to the exams I will include some strategies to use immediately prior, during and even after them.

 

If students and parents would like advice with appropriate study schedules, you are welcome to contact your son’s or daughter’s mentor, House Leader, one of the Assistant Principals or myself. We are happy to help.

 

Peter Corkill

Principal