Strong Start, Great Teachers

21st century learning

Nothing's going to harm you

No sir, not while I'm around

Demons are prowling everywhere nowadays

I'll send them howling, I don't care, I've got ways

No one's going to hurt you, no one's going to dare

Others can desert you, not to worry, whistle I'll be there

Demons will charm you with a smile for a while, but in time

Nothing can harm you, not while I'm around.

“Not While I’m Around” by Stephen Sondheim from ‘Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street’

Year 8 (2018) Elective planning

Our teachers are working very hard on a new initiative to be implemented for Year 8 students from 2018. For the first time, Year 8 students will choose from a suite of new electives including:

entertainment productions
football
psychology
survivor
game of life
mind your own business
lego-botics
street art
cake decorating
gardening and sustainability

and a few more! These electives are designed on the principles of project-based learning and student-centred learning. Recent research emphasises the importance of developing ‘soft skills’ such as collaboration, creativity and communication in students to ensure they are successful contributors to the 21st century.

Promotions

The NSW Department of Education’s Strong Start, Great Teachers initiative aims to provide improved and ongoing support to new teachers to ensure they reach their potential.

Last year, our school created two temporary Head Teacher – Beginning Teacher Mentor positions. This was part of a broader initiative where Cecil Hills High School is collaborating with our local Professional Experience Hub at Bonnyrigg Heights Public School. Ms Jane Carter and Ms Belinda Vidot were appointed to these roles and currently work with university students, new staff and beginning teachers in their first two years of teaching. I am extremely pleased to announce that both Ms Carter and Ms Vidot have now been appointed to these roles in a permanent capacity. They are both long-serving teachers at our school and have immense experience in classroom practice, the welfare team as year advisers and so many other programs. Our school and students will reap strong benefits from these permanent appointments and I look forward to working with both Ms Carter and Ms Vidot in their new roles.

Stymie - Report Bullying online

Our school takes a serious approach to anti-bullying measures to create a safe and harmonious school environment. In terms of my introductory quote, as parents we want to do anything we can to prevent harm to our children and reassure them that “nothing’s going to harm you”. However, we know that bullying is an issue that teenagers need to confront as they move into adulthood. Our Tell Them From Me survey tells us that we excel in this area and students feel welcomed and supported at Cecil Hills High School. As you may already know, to reinforce our already successful approach, we have decided to adopt the ‘Stymie’ program. Research shows that almost all bullying is witnessed by innocent bystanders who may be unsure of how they can respond positively to help resolve the bullying incident. Stymie uses a website where students can make online and anonymous notifications which are then accessed and actioned by the school. Further information can be found here. This is a significant change to school processes and as such,a special parent information session will be held from 6pm to 7pm on Monday, 5 June 2017 in lieu of our normal P&C meeting. Rachel Downie, who established Stymie, will be a special guest presenter at this event. It will be an important opportunity for parents to ask questions about Stymie. All parents are asked to attend and we also extend this invitation to prospective parents at our feeder primary schools.

Parent Teacher evenings

Parent teacher evenings dates are:

Years 9, 11 and 12 - Wednesday, 28th June: 3.30pm to 8.00pm
Years 7, 8 and 10 - Monday, 24th July: 3.30pm to 8.00pm

Cecil Hills High School uses the online Parent Portal to allow parents/carers to book interviews for Parent Teacher evenings. Parents will be advised when online bookings are open.

P&C Meetings

Our next P&C meeting for 2017 will be at 6:30pm on Monday, 7 August 2017 with a repeat session at 9:30am on Thursday, 10 August 2017. We always welcome input and feedback from parents and community members to ensure we are considering your perspectives when making decisions.

I look forward to continuing to work with the staff, students and parents of Cecil Hills High School, the best school in NSW. Mark Sutton, Principal