End of Term 2

Faculty Reports

Maths Club

HKHS is blessed to have an excellent Maths Club. Now in its fifth year, the club meets each Wednesday after school, filling the library with a happy buzz of maths talk. There are about 40 students and 20 tutors involved. The students work in small groups with their tutor, consolidating their skills and growing in their confidence and enjoyment of maths.

 

To the Smith Family coordinator, Regina, and the twelve Smith Family volunteers, we give a huge THANKS for your generosity and skillfulness. We couldn’t do it without you! Thank you to our tutors who have been coming for many years, and welcome to the tutors starting this year.

 

Also, a big shout out to the HKHS teachers who kindly volunteer in the Club:  Ms Toomer, Ms Bennett, Mrs Buhagiar-Sharma, Dr Irvine, Mr Reece, Mr Clarke and Ms Lill.

 

Maths Club is now mainly a senior club. To go on the waiting list, please see Ms Lill or Ms Buhagiar-Sharma for an application form.

Maths & Milo

Maths & Milo is a maths drop-in centre where older kids teach younger kids. It is open to ALL students and happens before school on Tuesday mornings in GL9, from 8.00am till 8.50am. No need to fill out a form, or come for the whole session – just drop in to get help with your homework or revision over a milo. 

 

Or come and tutor a younger student! As well as helping another student, this will probably help you - have you noticed that explaining something really helps YOU learn it?!

 

A huge THANKS to the students who have been volunteering as tutors. You have made Maths & Milo into a wonderful place! It is a great example of a student-led program.

From the Maths Faculty

PDHPE 

It has been a very disrupted start to the year for conducting practical activities. From the extreme heat at the beginning, to the constant rain, it has been difficult to conduct a normal program. We have played lots of sports in the gym out of the sun, and volleyball which doesn’t involve too much running. Currently we are in the Athletics/Cross Country unit in preparation for our school carnivals and it has mostly been cross country due to the oval being waterlogged! There have been some outstanding performances so far with students very keen to compare their times.

 

By the end of the term all classes will have completed their first written task. Year 8 looked at a Balanced Lifestyle and produced some excellent work based on ‘King-sized Homer’. Year 9 have been looking at issues surrounding drug use of young people and Year 10 have been working on driving and road safety.

Year 9 and 10 PASS students have received notes about the snow trip which is a very exciting opportunity for the students to experience skiing and snowboarding. Students will receive a list of necessary gear for the trip but look out for the ALDI snow sale as their gear is very cheap and good quality. Due to financial rollover could all deposits please be paid by Friday 5 May.

Just a reminder that attendance and participation is compulsory for all PASS and SLR students. Any student who is unable to participate on the day should have a note of explanation, and they will be given tasks to help with the running of the carnival.

 

Year 12 PDHPE and CAFS students have started the year very well and have shown pleasing progress. They have just completed their mid course exams so no doubt will be eagerly awaiting results. Hopefully they have a fun and relaxing holiday and come back refreshed ready to tackle their second last term of school.

From the PDHPE Faculty

English

The English faculty would like to thank all students for their effort and engagement in class this term. Some of the highlights include:

  • Year 11 beginning their first senior topic – an exploration of the concept of journeys – through the prescribed texts King Lear and Othello (Advanced) and The Way, Gran Torino and Pleasantville (Standard). The English Studies class has also been busy preparing and completing mock job applications and interviews.
  • An engagement with live theatre - many Year 10 students recently attended a fantastic adaptation of Bram Stoker’s Dracula at Laycock Street Theatre. The students were thoroughly entertained by the spooky story, specially installed revolve, and the lighting and special effects.
  • Year 9’s narrative and persuasive compositions. The extracts below will give you an idea of the writing talents of our Year 9 students.

What Matters? – Entries for the Whitlam Institute Annual Writing Competition

Cynthia Li:

“Child labour matters: Have you ever thought that your clothes come from the labour of a child? Across the world children are used as labourers each and every day. They cannot get a proper education nor have a childhood with friends to have fun with. These children have to work long, unreasonable hours which make them vulnerable to death, injury and disease. Children are subjected to slavery, trafficking, sexual exploitation and hazardous work which are all major human rights violations. No one should be treated that way; not an adult, not a child, no one.”

 

Rayne Pene:

Molly loves social media. Every day she is on a different social media platform. It influences a large part of Molly’s everyday thoughts. Molly tells her friends what social media says. Because, social media is always right, right? I mean, don’t all African Americans have guns? Weren’t all celebrities born with perfect skin? Molly tries to look like those celebrities. When it fails, Molly is insecure in her own skin.

 

Stella Tufuga:

Music matters: The symphonies collide and crash, nourishing my soul with the fuel that is essential for it to survive. Music nurtures me like a mother, it picks me up when I am down, and encourages me to stay up, keep moving forward and love life. It’s there to erase the hard times and celebrate and embrace the good. It’s always there. There isn’t a time in which I haven’t been drawn to the closest lonely instrument to explode my never ending internal melody, patiently waiting to be born.

 

Zoe Davis:

Our Generation matters: We are forever surrounded by stereotypes and ideals that we need to conform to in order to be accepted and valued by our society. Young girls are lead to believe that they aren’t beautiful or valuable unless they have a certain body type. They are expected to make sure their hair, makeup and clothes look flawless everyday and if they don’t they are ridiculed for it.

 

And to finish, here is the orientation of Connor Ryan’s narrative, entitled ‘Melancholy and Madness’:

It is my sorrowful duty to inform you of the tragic tale of the Borchanga family, a wealthy clan of eastern aristocrats who were prone to infighting. I must warn you that this tale is one of intense melancholy and lunacy and those who cannot handle these matters must take this text and, utterly and absolutely, destroy it. If you are beset by fears upon finishing these words, seek out a New York based doctor by the name of H. Phersons.

You have been warned.

 

Enjoy the holidays!

From the English Faculty