ATTENDANCE MATTERS!

The Education Act 1990 requires your child to attend school each day that instruction is provided unless prevention for doing so by sickness or another approved reason. The Principal will only grant leave for the following instances:

Sickness where the absence is satisfactorily explained as being due to illness

Misadventure or unforseen event
Domestic necessity such as serious illness of an immediate family member
Attendance at funerals
Recognise religious festivals or ceremonial occasions

If a student is absent, a note explaining the absence should be handed in to the roll call teacher on the first day of their return. The explanation should contain:

Date that the note was written;
Student’s name
Days/dates the student was absent from school
The reason why the student was absent
The signature of the student’s parent or caregiver.

Students can collect an absence note book from their roll call teacher or the Front Office Staff. This makes absence note writing easy as it ensures all relevant information is given to the school.

Parent/s and caregivers are required by law to provide a written or verbal explanation to the Principal within seven days of any absence as to why their child was not at school. It is important that the school receives a written or verbal explanation because:

It is the parent’s legal obligation to explain their child’s absence within seven days
It is a requirement that the school investigate all unexplained absences
It is the way the school knows your child was legitimately absent and not truanting from school.

Failure to explain your child’s absences within seven days of their occurrence will result in an unjustified absence being recorded. This will be displayed on your child’s report.

It is important for parents to make attending school a priority. Allowing children days off for birthdays, to look after younger children, to go shopping, to keep you company or because they were tired from a late night, not only send the wrong message to your child, it is against the law. Children who get used to having days off school for these kinds of reasons develop an attitude that their attendance at school is not very important. This can become a big issue as a child gets older.

An attendance rate of 95% or above is a good target. This equates to no more than three days absent per term.

School Attendance

Late to school

Justified reasons	Unjustified reasons
Doctor/Dentist appointment – must provide evidence, such as a Doctor/Dentist certificate or letter	Sleeping in/ alarm not going off
Appointment with other health care professional or similar service – must provide evidence, such as an appointment card or letter	Missed the bus
Special family circumstances – note/verbal explanation must be provided	Traffic/ road works
Bus delayed – school will check to verify	Walked to school
Interview with Principal, Deputy/Assistant Principal, Counsellor or other school personnel – staff involved must inform the front office	Waiting for parent
	Minding sibling
	Shopping
	Other similar reasons

Please note: A note from a parent or verbal explanation from parent who drops student at school for any reasons listed above as ‘unjustified’ DOES NOT make the reason ‘justified’.

Wendy O'Malley

Head Teacher

Student Engagement

WORLD'S GREATEST SHAVE

On Friday 13th March we will be participating in the World's Greatest Shave. Mrs Wells, Mr Nairn and Matt from Clontarf will be shaving for a cure. Many people have already shown their support by donating at school. This support makes sure that families facing blood cancer have a place to call home during treatment, someone to turn to and access to the best possible treatment. It helps fund Australias best and brightest blood cancer researchers in their quest to deliver rapid advancements in diagnosis, treatment and ultimately a cure.

Students can join the fun by donating a gold coin to have their hair coloured, purchasing a sausage sandwich at lunch or wearing mufti and donating a gold coin. We hope to see some students get into the theme of Friday 13th and coming in costume.

Out total currently sits at $2143! Thank you to all who have donated so far. If you would like to support the teachers in their fundraising, you can use the link below to donate online. All donations over $2 are tax deductible.

http://my.leukaemiafoundation.org.au/lakeillawarrahigh

Tracy Wells

Teacher

WOMEN'S DAY BREAKFAST 2020

Student Represtentative Council

On Friday the 6th March, Student Representative Council Co-ordinators Miss Nicholson and Miss Robinson took nine young women from Lake Illawarra High School SRC to an International Women’s Day breakfast held by Shellharbour Council. The event was for young and emerging female leaders and hosted around 50 young women between the ages of 16 to 25 years to listen and discuss equality, leadership and comradery among women. The breakfast featured a panel of diverse young women from across the local area and took the form of a Q&A style panel, with questions from the audience and a chance to interact, be inspired and to discuss issues relevant to women of this age group. The students had a fantastic morning and took away many valuable life lessons from this experience.

Sarah Nicholson

Emily Robinson

SRC ELECTIONS 2020

Lake Illawarra High School students voted for their SRC representatives in Week 4. There was an exceptional range of nominees from all year groups, who not only wanted to represent their peer group but make a difference in the local community. Following a formal voting process, votes were counted and the students were informed of the results. The SRC Co-ordinators and Mr Hicks, would like to formally thank all nominees, as these committed and positive individuals help make Lake Illawarra High School the amazing place that it is.

Year 7 SRC Representatives

Cayden Dawson
Isaac Grillis
Tori Henderson
Chae Conte

Year 8 SRC Representatives

Dale Fox
Shianne Shaw
Lilli Anger
Tyler Fletcher

Year 9 SRC Representatives

Ella Riley
Kaitlyn Sengstock
Tallis Gilmour
Shae Mann

Year 10 SRC Representatives

Jai-Ann O’Nains
Molly Yates
Jacinta Bazzano
Aylish Mitchell

Year 11 SRC Representatives

Chantelle Borg
Logan O’Sullivan
Kasey Yates
Michael Dolingo
Lachlan Moosman

Year 12 SRC Representatives

Bianca Percival
Marina Bellef
Jen Grujevski
Claudia Balatti
Ryan Stocks
Rhiana McDonald
Brody Mitchell
Caieta Bazzano
Brianna Kerr
Tahni Anger

Congratulations, to all successful nominees.

Emily Robinson

Teacher

POSITIVE BEHAVIOUR FOR LEARNING

As a PBL (Positive Behaviour Learning) school, LIHS rewards students who are respectful, responsible and resilient in every setting. PBL promotes positive behaviour in learning.

Our school values

RESPECT ⎜RESPONSIBILITY ⎜RESILIENCE

We show RESPECT by being tolerant and accepting of everyone, being polite and considerate of others, using appropriate language and wearing the school uniform.

We show RESPONSIBILITY by being at the right place, right time, staying on task in class and being prepared, following procedures and instructions including putting rubbish in the bin and caring for our surroundings.

We show RESILIENCE when we try our best, attempt new things, reflect on learning and keep trying in the face of adversity.

Merit System and VIVO Online Rewards

VIVO Miles is a point-based system where students are rewarded on a FAST and FREQUENT basis for positive behaviours.

How do I earn VIVO points?

For following the school values.
Representing the school (debating, Science Fair, Tournament of Minds, Peer support, SRC, Southern Stars etc.)
Representing the school in Sport.
Placing in the top 5 results in any test, assignment, assessment task.
Exceptional achievement: Monitoring with 6+ above averages, Attendance 100% in a term, End of year Presentation Awards, Principal Awards, ROSE Award, Year Advisor Awards, 1st or 2nd place in subject, Scholarships, State representatives, Australian representative.

The Vivo shop has many varied items on offer, including:

Event Cinema gift vouchers
School and stationery products
EB Games gift cards
Donations to various charities
iPads
Food treats
Pop! Vinyls

Students can check how many VIVO points they have earned by logging on to their account through the VIVO miles website.

Top 3 VIVO recipients

LIHS staff would like to congratulate the following students from Year 7 - 12 for their achievements so far this term:

Year 7 – Logan Moosmann, Tori Dupille, Kaden Renko

Year 8 – Lambros Wolfe, Sophie Harris, Matilda Ciufici

Year 9 – Irimana Reid, Zack Wakenshaw, Bailey Skinner

Year 10 – Brayden Henry, Emily Croker, Holly Gray

Year 11 – Kasey Yates, Cilla Wilson, Chantelle Borg

Year 12 – Chantell Hore, Lily Parker, Jessica Hilton

PBL Focus

Focus Values: RESPECT, RESPONSIBILITY and RESILIENCE

Current Value – RESILIENCE in the whole school

Resilience is defined as a person's ability to recover quickly from difficulties. Ways this can be seen in the real world include;

• Bouncing back after difficult times

• Dealing with challenges and still holding your head up

• Giving things a go or trying your best

• Being strong on the inside

• Being able to cope with what life throws at you

Ways that students can demonstrate this positive behaviour in the whole school is by;

• Setting achievable goals

• Caring for yourself and others

• Seeking help when needed

• Attending school

• THINKING before you act – is it Thoughtful, Helpful, Inspiring, Necessary, Kind

PBL: Following procedures, safety guidelines and instructions

Students at LIHS have a RESPONSIBILITY to follow procedures, safety guidelines and instructions.

It is a student’s responsibility to be compliant in regards to school procedures, safety guidelines and instructions.

These include;

It is a student’s responsibility to be on time for class and arrive before the second bell in addition to lining up quietly, in two lines outside the door.
If a student is late, students must sign in. Year 7-10- sign in with your Deputy upstairs and Year 11-12- sign in downstairs with the office staff.
If you have permission from a parent or guardian to leave school early, you also must sign out at the office.
All students are to WALK their bikes, skateboards and scooters to the bike compound at the beginning of the day.
There is no student access to the staff carpark at any time.
Phones are not to be seen or used during class time and between periods. They are permitted during recess and lunch times.

Why is compliance important?

So others in the classroom aren’t distracted
So your peers can learn
So YOU can learn
Creates a less stressful environment for everyone
It is your responsibility as a student at LIHS
Prepares you for the workplace

Sarah Nicholson

The Aunty Mary IWD Scholarship for Indigenous Women

Winner - Denise Willis

Aunty Mary Davis was an Illawarra Aboriginal Elder known for her powerful commitment to Aboriginal issues, determination to cut through prejudice and to create justice. She was always at the forefront of Aboriginal issues working with government and non-government agencies, organisations and the community. When something was needed for her people she’d find the ways and means. She was never shy, never scared or intimidated and for that she was highly respected in the Illawarra and brought respect to the whole Aboriginal community. She was always looked to for guidance by the Aboriginal community and the greater Illawarra community. She is recognised as the driving force behind continuous positive change and we honour her with the Aunty Mary IWD Indigenous Scholarship. As she would say, ‘Keep striving for what you believe in and if you have something you feel strong enough about, you got to knock on doors’.

The Scholarship panel were very impressed with the high standard of nominations this year. Denise Willis was a standout nomination for 2020 and the panel were thrilled to be able to assist her in continuing her work with our students and our community. Denise was invited to attend an International Woman’s Day Lunch on Friday March 6th in Wollongong, she was awarded a trophy and a cheque for $2000, which she has generously donated to the LIHS ATSI school community. When receiving her award Denise gave a beautiful speech to the audience, making mention that Aunty Mary inspires her every day when working with the students at LIHS.

Everyone at LIHS is extremely proud of Denise and congratulate her on receiving this prestigious and well deserved award.

Carly Waston

ATSI Team

The Black Swan

Issue 2 · 13 Mar 2020

In this issue