On Tuesday, Wynyard High School celebrated NAIDOC Week. We deeply appreciate the support of our community, particularly through the Wynyard Waratah Council, in acknowledging NAIDOC Week. With the theme of 'Keep the fire burning! Black, loud and proud,' our student leaders joined students from Table Cape Primary and young people from the Lapari Child and Family Learning Centre to celebrate the rich and ongoing history and connection of First Nation people to our region. This was celebrated on the Kinship walk that physically connects our learning communities.

The whole school assembly that followed was outstanding. Thankyou, Kelly, Lucy, Dylan, Deputy Mayor Celisa Edwards (Wynyard-Waratah Council representatives), and Camilla and Rochelle (Circular Head Aboriginal Corporation representatives) for sharing with everyone the importance of NAIDOC Week.

At our end of term assembly, we celebrated our value of connection. This event highlighted the outstanding work of both staff and students throughout the school in building positive relationships and fostering an inclusive environment that nurtures a sense of belonging. It is fantastic we recognised the following students in each class for their efforts in Term 2.

Finally, the Department for Education, Children and Young People (DECYP) rolled out Safeguarding Training for staff, volunteers and service providers. This training was compulsory for everyone as part of our ongoing commitment to safeguarding Tasmanian children and young people and prevent them from harm. The Department has recently released additional advanced Safeguarding Training modules. These are optional and are aimed at anyone who volunteers at a DECYP site, external providers and anyone in the community who wants to learn more about how to keep children and young people safe. If you would like to build your knowledge in this space, the modules are available on the Department’s Safeguarding page. If you require additional assistance to access the modules, please take a look at the FAQs about technical support and additional assistance, which are also on the Department’s Safeguarding page. 

I wish everyone a relaxing mid-year break and look forward to Term 3 starting on Monday, 22 July.

On the Thursday, 20 June and Friday, 21 June our Senior Performance class performed Grimm and Twisted Tales. With five performances over the two days, students performed to guests from Boat Harbour and Table Cape Primary Schools as well as invited friends and family. Grimm and Twisted Tales tells the story about the dark origins of some of the fairy tales we know and love. The story covered four of our favourites, Hansel and Gretel, Cinderella, Little Red Riding Hood and Rumpelstiltskin. We are extremely grateful for all the time committed to run the show and the public that whole-heartedly supported us during this time. 

It has been an awesome year for our talented music students performing in the Burnie City Eisteddfod. The Burnie Eisteddfod is a music, dance and drama competition that sees students from the North-West competing in a vast range of sections. Each performance is judged by adjudicators and students receive a score out of 100, as well as verbal and written feedback on their performances. Mr Taylor was extremely impressed with the effort that our musicians put in during Terms 1 and 2, as they gave up their own time to rehearse music items after school. In total we had 19 students, represent Wynyard High School. Our students all competed very strongly, and received high scores and extremely positive feedback from the adjudicator, check out the impressive placings listed below.

Mr Taylor looks forward to welcoming and supporting any new students who are interested in being part of the Burnie City Eisteddfod in 2025.

Each year the Burnie Eisteddfod holds an annual poetry competition as part of the Speech and Drama section. This year Wynyard High School entered over 80 poems across years 7-10, covering themes from gothic narrative poetry, to the experiences of playing Fortnite.

Congratulations to all students who entered poems, and to the following medal and ribbon winners:

Yr 7: Equal 1^st – Jordyn R, Equal 2^nd – Keenan P, Brady L, Equal 3rd – Ava C

Highly Commended – Makayla L, Huegh W, Charlotte S, Will E, Samantha D

Yr 8: Equal 2^nd- Mani S,

Highly Commended -Maddison B

Yr 10: Equal 1^st – Ryda G

Here is Ryda’s winning poem representing Year 10.

From Rags to Riches

In the world of Fortnite, he was just a boy
Named Tahj, with a dream to bring joy
To his gaming life, with every victory
He aimed to rise, and make history

At first, he was just a noob
But his determination, he could not subdue
He played and played, day and night
With every defeat, he'd come back to fight

His love for the game, it could not be denied
With every level, he grew stronger inside
He learned the strategies, he mastered the skills
And soon, he was climbing up the ranks, filled with thrills

From a noob to a pro, he rose with pride
His opponents trembled, as he stood by their side
His name became known, in the world of Fortnite
And he became a legend, in every player's sight

But his ultimate goal, was yet to be achieved
To win the World Cup, and be forever believed
He trained harder, and pushed through the pain
For he knew that this was his ultimate gain

As the championship drew near
Tahj's heart was filled with fear
But he held onto his dreams, with all his might
And stepped into the battlefield, prepared to fight

The competition was tough, his opponents were fierce
But Tahj played with a focus, never to be pierced
With every bullet, he dodged with grace
And with every kill, he moved closer to first place

As the final round began, Tahj's heart raced
Every move he made, was carefully traced

And when the final shot was fired
Tahj knew that his dream, had truly transpired

For he was crowned the champion, of the Fortnite world
A title that was now, forever unfurled
From a noob to a pro, to the top he had flown
And his name would forever, in the gaming world be known  

So here's to Tahj, the boy who never gave up
And through his journey, he sipped from victory's cup
He showed us all, that with passion and drive
Anything is possible, as long as you thrive.

On Tuesday 2 July, the SEC hosted a NAIDOC Week assembly in conjunction with the Waratah/Wynyard Council. Members of the SEC and our current Class Representatives met students from Table Cape Primary School and families from Larapi Child and Family Centre to walk back across the Kinship Walk together where they joined the rest of the school for our assembly. 

During the assembly we were played a wonderful acknowledgement of country video which was produced for the Waratah Wynyard Council. Members of the SEC spoke about the history, purpose and importance of NAIDOC week. Two representatives from Circular Head Aboriginal Corporation (CHAC), Camilla and Rochelle, spoke about the  Tommeginner People who were the original inhabitants of the land on which our school now sits.

Thank you to the Kelly and Lucy from the Waratah Wynyard Council, Rochelle and Camilla from CHAC and Duputy Mayor Celisa Edwards for their contribution our assembly.

For the first two weeks of next term we will be hosting 10 students from Kinmen Island. The students are staying with local families and engaging in some wonderful experiences at Wynyard High, including spending time in class and visiting a number of well-known attractions along the north-west coast.

The students are part of a contingent of 60 students who are in Tasmania to improve their English and broaden their horizons. Four schools along the coast are hosting students. Students will be hosted in Year 9 and 10 classes and paired up with two student buddies.

The second part of the Kinmen Island Experience is that we get to send five Year 9 and 10 students back to Kinmen Island in October. Students interested in being part of the outbound trip are required to submit a written application of 500-800 words by Friday, 2 August.

For more information about the Kinmen Island visit, please contact Mrs Moore on 6442 2385.

On Wednesday, 5 June, 40 students made their way over to the Penguin Athletics Track for this years Inter-High Cross Country. The Year 7/8 boys and girls, and the Year 9/10 girls ran a 4km track, and the Year 9/10 boys ran a 5km track.

The day ran smoothly for Wynyard High School with great results from all students.

A special mention to the Year 10 girls and Year 7 boys who finished 3^rd overall for their group.

Some standout performances from River H and Lucas P who placed 2^nd, James B who placed 3^rd, and Bella P who placed 1^st. These four students were invited to Symmons Plains to race against other students who were selected for their running skills. Once again Bella P showed to be a standout performer, coming 5^th overall.

Thank you to all the students involved.

Students have recently been participating in a gymnastics program run by the Wynyard Gymnastics Club during their PE classes. This has seen students engage in a range of activities from trampolines to bars, balance beams and body manipulation. This has been a fun and new experience for many. We would highly recommend the Wynyard Gymnastics Club for anyone thinking of trying something new. Students have learned a variety of skills consisting of roundoffs, flips, forward rolls, bar strength, and general jumping and landing skills. If you would like to come along for a session, they will be running sessions in Term 3 on a Monday between 6:00pm and 7:30pm. Come see Miss Mitchell if you would like a flyer which contains one free trial!

The Year 9/10 Hospitality and Tourism class held a Tex-Mex Cafe at lunchtime on Monday, 24 June. They learned valuable hospitality skills such as planning, preparing, costing, portion control, presentation, cashiering and customer service.

It was a success and all tables were booked. Students enjoyed the churros, gelato, enchiladas, burritos, mocktails and mexican hot chocolates. Thank you to everyone for giving up their lunch time!

Our 9/10 Hospitality and Tourism class have been working on entrepreneurial skills this term. This has included a workshop with mainland presenters. The students were given a design brief where they had to design a product or dish suitable to gift to tourists when they arrive at our local airport. The item had to include one native food element and fit in the palm of your hand. Students have been working on the development of this product, fine tuning recipes, costing them, managing portions and also a designing a brand/logo/label and packaging. We have engaged Big hART creatives to help us create these digital designs. Next term students will pitch and present their products to a panel of food and product experts in a shark tank format.  

On 19 June the Packages of Learning: Architecture and Construction class were lucky enough to attend an excursion to William Adams CAT and Alpha Electrics and Water. We first went to William Adams CAT and met our tour guide who was the manager of the whole facility. He took us all around the site while explaining the purpose of each section.

We got to see the repair bay, the remote operator construction vehicles and the giant warehouses filled with different parts of machinery, including giant new engines. One of the coolest things we saw was the giant white mechanically operated industrial storage unit known as the Modular Lift.

Our class learned that they were focused on repairing and selling CAT equipment to customers. Both businesses were very clean and well organised. One thing that stood out was the well organised, repetitive, nature of the workplace that increased efficiency. The tour guide made it very clear that the business was always changing and evolving.

At Alpha Electrics we spent a very long time in their meeting room learning about the business and how it has evolved into what it is today. They told as about how to get an apprenticeship and explained that they wanted hard working employees who are honest, reliable and resilient.

Both companies gave us a fantastic insight into how these industries work. After the class had finished at William Adams, we went to the Somerset park for lunch, which was a lot of fun. So, all in all we had a great day and are very grateful to Alli from the Beacon Foundation for organising this excursion and for companies for giving us this wonderful opportunity.

By Byron L and Harrison G

Firstly, a huge thank you to all my canteen volunteers, you all do an amazing job. Secondly, to those of you that use the Qkr! app to order, thank you, we have had record breaking days with our orders (5 A4 pages full of names and orders). Using the app really is the quickest and easiest way to order and knowing what your child is eating.

Talking about eating and food, what a huge term for pasta bolognaise and our new muffin flavours, I am struggling to keep up with the demand for both. A new addition to our healthy menu will be chicken sausage rolls. Tehy will cost $3 each and will be available on the lunch menu starting in Term 3. I make these myself and they smell and taste amazing. Be sure to give them a try!

Lastly, thank you to our school green team for washing the breakfast cups and taking food scraps to the chickens and compost. Rain, hail or shine they are on the job.

Regards

Sue Costelloe 

Everyone in our school has a role to play in educating students about vaping and the Department for Education, Children and Young People’s (DECYP) is committed to prioritising the health and safety of all children and young people.

DECYP recently worked with the Department of Health to develop an online vaping teaching package.

Teachers, support staff and school health nurses can now access additional online training, classroom resources and lesson plans about the risks of vaping, what the law and regulations are, and how to support someone in quitting.

At our school, we will continue to support your children on by giving them factual information about the impacts of vaping.  With these new resources, we will be able to build on this message so students can make informed decisions about their health.

This may lead to more discussions about vaping at home. You might like to have a conversation with your child to help reinforce what they’ve been learning at school. 

There are some useful vaping resources and fact sheets available on DECYP’s website aimed at supporting families.  The Department of Health’s website is also a good source of health-related information.

Please contact me if you have any questions about this.

We would like to remind our students of the importance of drinking water. Please bring a water bottle (preferably full) to school with you every day.

SCHOOL OFFICE HOURS 8:15am - 3:30pm

Just a reminder that our phone number (TXT only) for students that are/will be absent is 0448 098 383. This number is for TXT notifications only and will not be answered by voice.

Our office phone number for enquiries or attendance reporting is 6442 2385.

Emails can be sent to wynyard.high@decyp.tas.gov.au

You can also be reported absences through the link on the top of this newsletter, or the Schoolzine app.

School uniforms are no longer available to be purchased at school. Cassovic Tasmania is a local supplier who was awarded the contract to supply Wynyard High School with school uniforms.

To order uniforms, please contact Paul on 0419 247 249 or through the below link