The Canobolas Rural Technology

High School

Friday 18th March 2016 Term 1 Issue 4

Icely Road Orange NSW 2800 Ph: 02 6362 1677 Fax: 02 6362 4481

Website: www.canobolas-h@det.nsw.edu.au

NSW ALL SCHOOLS REPRESENTATIVESNSW ALL SCHOOLS REPRESENTATIVES Mackenzie Reith-Snare, Georgia Kiel (umpire) and Aiden Kelly have

been named in the NSW All Schools Softball side. A special

mention to Mackenzie Reith-Snare who was named captain of the

NSW Side. The only other Canobolas student to receive this honour

is current CHPA mentor, Jade Warrender, who captained the U16

NSW All Schools team and co-captained the Australian All Schools

team in 2008 for hockey.

The trio will compete at the Australian championships to be held in

Melbourne from 1-7 May 2016. Congratulations and good luck

guys, we wish you well.

From the

Principal’s Desk Dear Parents and Members of our School Community

Japanese Visitors

We have had the pleasure of fifteen students and two teachers from Toyo Ushiku school in Japan

visiting us for the last week and a half as part of our annual sister school exchange program. They

have been involved in a large range of activities, including trips to the Blue Mountains and Jenolan

Caves, a civic reception at the Council Chambers and various class activities at the school. I

would like to thank the families and members of the school community who have hosted the

students, I am sure that there are many firm friendships that have been formed. I would also like to

acknowledge the hard work that was put into the planning of this trip by our Community

Engagement Officer, Vince Lovecchio and the magnificent job Mr Marriott did in driving the bus.

Year 12 Half-Yearly Exams

The Year 12 half-yearly exams will be held in Weeks 10 and 11 of this term and all students should

soon have a copy of their exam timetable. If for some reason they miss receiving the timetable

they should see Mr Curran or Mr Conliffe for a copy. A reminder that the Homework Centre

operates on a Tuesday afternoon in the Health Building and the Senior Study operates on a

Thursday afternoon if students need a quiet place to study or complete assessment tasks.

Interim Reports

This year only Year 7 and Year 11 students will receive an interim report towards the end of Term 1.

The school felt that it was critical that the families of these two year groups receive feedback on

how their students have settled in after making the transition either from primary school to high

school, or junior school to senior school. There will be a Parent-Teacher Afternoon on Wednesday

6th April from 3:45-5:30pm for ALL parents in the School Hall. This will be a great opportunity for

parents and staff to meet and discuss student progress.

Athletics Carnival

The Athletics Carnival will be held on the last day of term, Friday 8th April. This has now become a

tradition at our school and a nice way to end Term 1. All students are encouraged to attend and

participate, remembering that every entry in an event is another point for your House. Students are

encouraged to dress in their House colours on the day and come ready to be active.

It has been a pleasure to relieve as Principal for the last three weeks while Mr Chad Bliss has been

working out of the school. For the last three weeks of term Mr Stuart Riles will relieve as the Principal.

Please do not hesitate to contact him on 6362 1677 if you have any questions or queries.

With my warmest regards

Kate Wootten

Relieving Principal

JAPANESE VISIT 20th Visit to Canobolas a Wonderful Success!

Wednesday marked an emotional and teary day for Canobolas High School host students and their families

as our school bid farewell to our Japanese guests. This year marked Ushiku-Toyo High’s 20th visit to Canobolas

High and once again eight days of close bonding, sharing and getting to know one another had to draw to

a sad end. Our guests enjoyed a ‘Sayonara’ (Farewell) celebration before departing Orange where guests

and hosts had the opportunity to reminisce and thank each other for the abundant sharing of laughter, joy

and knowledge over the past week.

Everyone really enjoyed themselves and made the most of this wonderful opportunity to indulge in a

dynamic exchange of cultures and an experience different to their own. Highlights included visiting the

Jenolan Caves, Waradah Aboriginal Cultural Centre in Katoomba, gold panning at the Bathurst Goldfields

and a civic welcome reception at Orange City Council chambers. The students also experienced a series of

workshops and activities held at the school.

On behalf of Canobolas High I would like to say thank you to all our wonderful host families for your

exceptional kindness and generosity in having shared your lives and homes with all 16 of our visiting

Japanese students. You have provided them with a unique experience of Australian life, one they will never

forget.

The Japanese teachers were very impressed with the manner in which our students conducted themselves as

hosts, mentors, buddies, guides and friends to their students. So a big congratulations to you all, well done!

Vince Lovecchio

Community Engagement Officer

HONOUR FOR FORMER

STUDENT Congratulations to former Canobolas High student Jenna McAtamney (Harris) who received a

Royal Life Saving Society award on Wednesday at Government House, Sydney from the Governor

of NSW, His Excellency General, David Hurley. This is an excerpt from the awards ceremony

program.

SCIENCE FACULTY NEWS Year 11 physics recently completed their first assessment task, this involved them measuring the angles of

incidence and refraction as a beam of light changed medium. They used this data for calculations and

graphing and after putting everything together were able to write up some excellent discussions linking the

theoretical and practical sides of physics. This was not a simple task and they should all be very happy with

their results.

Year 8 are learning all about the circulatory system by dissecting a sheep's heart to investigate its inner

workings.

Year 12 Chemistry students have been conducting

titrations to determine the concentration of

hydrochloric acid in a solution.

Year 9 constructed and tested a model of a steam turbine.

AGRICULTURE NEWS In the last fortnight in Agriculture, we have had Simon Warner come out and shear our four

adult Alpacas – Rosie, Peaches, Ralph and Sanchez.

STEM CENTRE NEWS

1.25 and 1.5 Litre plastic drink bottles for STEM projects.

Please drop them off at the STEM centre.

Stage 4 AcTal students collaborated to draft a criteria

for success around project cost. Other groups worked

on function, aesthetic and cost.

Cress and spinach seedlings have been growing

in mini biodomes on the windowsill in the STEM

centre with varying success rates.

Yr 7 Altitude STEM have been working on their

graphic communication skills in the thinkerspace

in the STEM centre.

Our STEM team met with the Minister of Education in

Sydney on Thursday. Our school is only one of eight

STEM Action schools and the only one in western NSW.

We have accessioned some new books in the STEM centre recently. Come and check them out on the

New Books stand.

The Sidekicks by Will Kostakis - The Swimmer. The Rebel. The Nerd. All Ryan, Harley

and Miles had in common was Isaac. They lived different lives, had different interests

and kept different secrets. But they shared the same best friend. They were sidekicks.

And now that Isaac’s gone, what does that make them? The author perfectly depicts

the pain and pleasure of this teenage world, piecing together three points of view with

intricate splendour.

The Yearbook Committee by Sarah Ayoub – Ryan had it all, until an accident

snatched his dreams away. Charlie’s just moved interstate and she’s determined not

to fit in. Nobody really notices Matty. Tammi has always bowed to peer pressure, but

the expectations are becoming too much to handle. Gillian’s learning that life in the

spotlight comes at a very heavy price. Can they all find a way to make their final

year a memorable one or will their differences tear their world apart?

The Bone Queen by Alison Croggan – Cadvan of Lirigon, one of the most brilliant

Bards of his generation, has been exiled for a terrible crime that unleashed the power

of the Bone Queen and wrought destruction across Annar. Meanwhile, in Lirigon,

several unnerving events suggest that the Dark is growing in strength once again, and

that the Bone Queen may yet lurk in the world. If Cadvan is to save both the living

and the dead, he must once again face the evil that almost destroyed him.

The Way We Roll by Scot Gardner – Will Rushton works as a trolley collector in a super-

market. Julian is a Westie who is curious about Will and his secrets, especially when

he finds out that Will was formerly a student at an expensive private school and that

he is now living in a small space under a bowling alley. An unlikely friendship forms

and Will finds that Julian and his family have a lot to show him about getting on with

people and getting a little fun out of life.

Where the Shoreline used to be – A diverse collection of poetry, short stories, song lyr-

ics, novel extracts and illustrations from some of the most important creators today

including singer-songwriter Kate Miller-Heidke, author Alice Pung and well known artist

and author Shaun Tan. This anthology follows on from the success of the collection

Things a Map Won’t Show You. This books has an exciting mix of original and pre-

published works that cover themes of Indigenous issues, friendship, migrants in Austral-

ia, environmental impact, dystopia, sci-fi adventure and death.

One Thousand Hills by James Roy and Noel Zihabamwe – Eleven-year-old Pascal lives

in Agabande, Rwanda, and in 1994 this land of one thousand hills is his whole world.

But Agabande – and his country – stand on the brink of a precipice. Hatred and fear

are sweeping over the countryside and what is about to happen will change Rwan-

da forever. Pascal and his family cannot escape the maelstrom, and as the under-

currents of terror rise to the surface, in one short night of horror and pain everything

he knows is swept away.

Come and have a browse through these books. The STEM centre is open at

lunchtimes on Monday, Wednesday, Thursday and Friday. See Mrs Richard if you

want to know how to borrow an ebook.

On Monday, March 7th Canobolas High School contested round 1 of the Western

Region basketball knockout competition at the Orange PCYC. Both Boys and Girls

teams brought their commitment and ‘A-game’ to the table, coming up against

Kandos, Bathurst and Canowindra in their pool.

The girls worked exceptionally well for a newly formed team, and while they went

down to a very strong Bathurst High, they were persistent against Canowindra,

and even managed to keep the score to a draw against Kandos. Charlotte

Chamberlain hassled every opponent and was a huge impact player on the

court. Erin Dalzell held her own, and was the highest point scorer for the

Canobolas girls on the day.

In the final game the girls

came up against Orange

High School, and while the final score didn’t go our way, Nailani

Lang scored a huge 3 point basket with 2 seconds on the clock.

For the Canobolas boys the day seemed to breeze on by. In their

first game of the day the score board nearly ran out of room with a

score of 80-10 against Kandos High, with Lochie Baker a key point

scorer. In anticipation of a tougher game against Bathurst High, the

boys went out a bit harder in their second game, yet still managed

an outstanding score of 63-29, Matthew Gray pleasing the crowds

with a number of dunks from all angles. The Canowindra game saw

some fantastic vision and passing from Benjamin Zegzula, with Harry Betts and Luke Wilde proving essential in capitalising

on rebounds. James Gogala and Owen Burgess showed strong ball skills and team work throughout the game to assist the

team to a handy 63-7 win. For the final game the boys played Lithgow

High. With the sideline support of many parents, carers and even a visit

from the 2015 School Captain, Andrew Gray, the boys secured a placed

in the next round of games in Bathurst, with a 56-38 win. Alongside the

players we had some fantastic assistance in the official duties of the day,

with Jayden Zegzula and Cody Wright assisting with umpiring games for

the day. Without these boys it would have been difficult to get through

the day with such success.

Congratulations to all students who participated on the day; you were

fantastic representatives of Canobolas High School and are to be commended on your conduct throughout the day.

Thank you to Carmen Dederer for coaching the boy’s team and also running the carnival – an overall success! And also

to Miss Woods who took the girls under her wing and guided them throughout the day. It’s always fantastic to see the

support of family and friends, so many thanks to those who

managed to come and support our students throughout the

day.

The boys will now move on to the next round on Friday, March

8th at Bathurst Basketball Stadium. Watch this space for results!!

A further congratulations goes to Matt Gray and Lockie Baker

for their selection in the Open Boys Western Region Basketball

team, heading to the CHS carnival later in the year.

Hoops

Canobolas Cricketers Win Round 1 of the Alan Davidson Shield

On Friday 11th March, our Open Boys Cricket team played their Round 1 match of the Alan

Davidson Shield against Orange High at Max Stewart Oval. Orange High won the toss and sent

Canobolas into bat. Our opening batters Keagan Jackson and Jesse Gardiner had a solid start

facing off the opening bowlers. It was the 105 run partnership between Harry Pearce (49) and Dylan

Wadwell (57) who got Canobolas onto the front foot with some handy shots and great running

between the wickets. Hugh Farley, Mac Reith-Snare and Ryan Noon also contributed with the bat.

Canobolas faced out the 40 overs with a solid total of 186.

Orange High went into bat with a big score to chase. It was the fierce bowling by Harry Pearce who

took two outstanding wickets in his first over leaving Orange High at 2/8 off the first over. Canobolas

continued to bowl well and kept Orange High scoring at a minimal run rate. Wicket keeper Lachlan

Griffith, Mac Reith-Snare and Hugh Farley took two catches each, all contributing to bowling

Orange High out for 133 in the 36th over. Outstanding bowling figures went to Harry Pearce (3/33),

Ryan Noon (2/21), Jesse Gardiner (1/11) and Dylan Wadwell cleaning up the tail end with 3/5 off

two overs.

A great day out for our Open Boys cricketers who displayed great sportsmanship and passion for

the game of cricket. A big thankyou goes to Joanne Jackson for making lunch for the boys, Jason

Griffith and Max Pearce for umpiring and to all the parents who came down to support the team.

Looking forward to our Round 2 match in the next few weeks. Well Done Canobolas!

Open Boys and Girls Soccer Teams Kick off 2016 Season

On Tuesday 1st March our Open Boys and Open Girls soccer teams played Orange High in Round 1

of the Western knockout. With lots of new players in the mix for both teams we had our first game

together and played some outstanding soccer on the day. Unfortunately both teams were

outplayed by a strong Orange High opposition, however both teams played incredibly well and

should be proud of their efforts and dedication. Big thanks goes to our linesmen Mungo Pogson and

Bryce Borkowski and Miss Bruton and Mr Skein for getting the field in top condition and helping

throughout the day. Looking forward to our interschool matches in the first few weeks on Term 2.

Bollywood Workshop

On Friday the 4th of March, dance students from Years 7-11 were lucky enough to have the

opportunity to participate in a Bollywood inspired workshop. Shyamla Eshwaran is a dancer from

Sydney who teaches traditional Indian dance to students across Australia. This workshop introduced

our students to the style of Bollywood and Indian stick dancing.

This was a great, high energy, fun filled experience for all students involved. Our students were great

participants and showed great determination and willingness to work towards learning a new and

challenging style. We hope to have another one of these workshops in the future and would love

to have more students involved next time.

Canobolas High Lawn Bowls Team CHAMPIONS!!!

On Thursday the 10th March, our lawn bowls team competed in their first round of the CHS

competition. Our team consisted of three year 12 students, Bradlee Roberts, Aiden Leonard and

Jake Fiene.

Our first round was against Orange High and a close match it was. It was shot for shot for the first 10

innings until we made some great shots in the last few rounds taking the lead and beating Orange

High 14-10.

The boys played extremely well and even battled through when the rain started pouring down.

They are looking forward to their next match against Blayney in a few weeks.

Western Region Golf Championships

On Monday 14 March Canobolas High School students travelled to Cowra to contest the

Western Region Secondary Schools Golf Championships.

Trent Hassan and Trent Wilde entered the main championship event and Brad Roberts and Kaleb

Masila teamed up in the two person Ambrose event.

The boys joined about 50 other students from all over the Western Region, playing 18 Holes and

vying for a spot in the Western Region Golf team. This is the first tournament in a series of rounds that

students contest to be part of the Western team which will travel to Tamworth at the end of term 2

to contest the NSW All-Schools Teams Championships.

Zac Kelly (Mudgee HS) was the winner of the Championships with 81.

Open Boy’s Touch Football

The Open Boys Touch Football team, travelled to Orange High to compete in round 1 of the

Western Schools Knockout. After a couple of training runs the boys were ready and keen to play.

After a slow start to the game, the team finally found their feet and troubled Orange High every

time they had an attacking set. The first half was very close, with the score being 4-3 in favour of

Orange High at the break. The boys displayed some exceptional skills, but were unfortunately out

played on the day eventually going down 7-4. The boys displayed outstanding sportsmanship and

were fantastic representatives for Canobolas High.

Open Girl’s Trial game – Kinross

On Tuesday the 1st of March the Open Girl’s Touch Football side played a friendly trial match

against Kinross Wolaroi. This was the girl’s first match for the year, so they were all very keen.

It took them a little bit to get back into the swing of things. It was not long though until Erin Naden

did a beautiful show and go, fooling the defence and managed to run away to score our first try.

Kinross soon retaliated and took the score to 1-1. The girls then decided to pull their socks up and hit

some form. They managed to score again when Jada Murphy found some space and offloaded to

winger Charlotte Chamberlain. The wingers were on fire, with Bek Turner scoring our third try after

some quick passing through the hands. The girls started to play some fast Touch Football, driving the

ball down the middle and putting the defence on the back foot. This allowed for Nailani Lang to

scoot through and score out wide, taking the score to 4-1. Emily Melnik then added another try to

the score when she found a gap in the defence and showed her speed. The last try was scored

when Jada Murphy had the defence on the back foot with the use of her footwork. The final score

end up 6-1.

The trial match was a great experience for the girls. All the students were on their best behaviour

and displayed excellent sportsmanship.

Open Girls Western Region Knockout

On Thursday the 3rd of March the Open Girl’s Touch Football team travelled to Orange High

School to participate in Round 1 of the Western Region Knockout competition. The girls were very

unlucky to face last years Western Region winners in the first Round.

Despite being the underdogs, the girls really stepped up and had Orange High a little nervous.

Orange High scored a quick try, but this was soon followed by Erin Naden taking the quick tap

and using her speed to race off and score. This took the score to 1-1. In the first half the girls

defence was solid. They were shutting down their driving and forcing a lot of errors. The girls then

had 4 sets of defence on their line and did well to shut it out for the first 3. However, they

became very tired and let Orange High score again taking the half time score 2-1.

The girls started the second half with enthusiasm and were talking lots in defence. Orange High

was becoming frustrated with the girl’s defence, as they were making very little ground. It was

very hot conditions and the girls began to fatigue. Orange High managed to put a couple more

quick tries on the girls before full time. This took the final score in favour of Orange High 4-1.

A huge thank you to Mr Curran, for driving the bus. Also a big thanks to all the students who

were a great bunch to take away. They all displayed excellent behaviour and sportsmanship on

the day.

When: Friday, April 8th (Week 11), 2016

Where: School grounds

Dress up in your house colours and get as

many participation points as you can to win

ATHLETICS CARNIVAL 8th April

On Thursday April 8 Canobolas will host our annual Athletics Carnival. Nominations will be taken up until the middle of

week 10 for events, but students are able to enter on the day if they find they wish to compete in extra events.

Students who would like a program of their events can collect one on the day. If your son/daughter wishes to pre-

enter, an entry form is attached below and can be returned to PDHPE ASAP. A program for the day is also below.

Canobolas Athletics Carnival 2016

Event Nomination Form

## Please Tick or Circle the events you wish to enter.

Track Events

Field Events

Relays will be organised on the day with the fastest 100m runners in each age group required to run for their house.

Sports house captains leading their teams into the carnival are:-

□100m □200m □400m □800m

□Long Jump □Shot Put □Discus □High Jump □Javelin

Name:- ________________________________

Protons Mesons Neutrons Electrons

4th 3rd 1st 2nd

HOUSE CAPTAINS VICE-CAPTAINS

Neutrons Emily Melnik

Jack Lang

Naomi Neuenhaus

Mac Reith-Snare

Electrons Samantha Coppock

Will Christopherson

Georgina Clark

Tyrell Dennis

Mesons Georgia Kiel

Matthew Gray

Rachel Heywood

Jack Fliedner

Protons Bek Turner

Ben Zegzula

Andrew Ryan

Becky Gibson

House ranks after Swimming Carnival

Term 1 Western School Sport Team Trial Dates If students are interested in trialling for Western Region Sports Teams this term please see the PDHPE staff for more

details. Please note that these are parents would be expected to transport their child to the majority of these trials if

they choose to attend. The details of the up and coming trials are below. Sport Date Location Nominations Close Teacher to see

Netball 17th March

24th March

Orange

PCYC 11th March Miss Bruton

Rugby Union 6th April Orange

Endeavour Oval 1st March Mr Finlay

Hockey

Boys 21st March

Bathurst

Bathurst Hockey Centre 14th March Mr Skein

Lawn Bowls 6th April Parkes

Parkes Bowling Club 28th March Miss Goodwin

Rugby League 23th March

29th March

Blayney (regional)

Peak Hill (area) 16th March Mr Curran

PDHPE Assessment Reminders

Many of the PDHPE classes across the years are currently working on assessable items both in class and at

home. I reminder that if your child does not complete an assessment task and handed it on time for marking it

will affect the overall grade they are awarded for PDHPE. This grade also has a practical effort, attitude and

participation mark for lessons where students participate in practical games, sports and various physical

activities. Please note that this component of the course is compulsory and students may only be excused

from these classes with a medical note during the time of injury recovery.

Task Due

Yr 8 PDHPE Study First Aid for test TBC

Yr 9 PDHPE Mental Health Task March 24

Yr 10 PDHPE Smart Party Plan March 24

Yr 11 PDHPE Core 1 Task TBC

Yr 12 PDHPE HSC Core 1 Overdue

At CRTHS we get o

ur notes and

money for e

xcursions and activities

in on time to

make it

easier for o

ur

coaches and office staff!

Mark Skein

Head Teacher PDHPE

CANTEEN NEWS The trial of Our Online Canteen has come to an end, and we have decided NOT to continue with it.

If you still have funds loaded onto their website and need a refund please email:

info@ouronlinecanteen.com.au

And request in writing that you would like a refund as your school is no longer using the website. Include your

User ID and the details of the bank account you wish the funds to be transferred into.

If you require any further assistance please contact the Our Online Canteen helpline on

1300 116 637.

CANTEEN ASSISTANT POSITION AND VOLUNTEERS NEEDED If you know of anyone who would like to work in the school canteen please click on the following link for

more information.

http://www.canobolas-h.schools.nsw.edu.au/news/canteen-assistant-position

The CRTHS Canteen is always on the lookout for volunteers from the community to help keep the good food

cooking. If you can spare any time and want to join the fun, don’t hesitate at all to contact the canteen.

Our hours are completely flexible and no long term commitment is necessary.

Keep up to date with the Canteen’s news and special offers by liking our Facebook page.

Just search for: TheCRTHSCanteen

SCHOOL NOTICES YEAR 7 VACCINATIONS

Monday 21st March

Monday 23rd May

Monday 12th September

UNIFORM

If you have any uniform items at home that no

longer fit your child, please consider donating

them to the school. Please drop them off at the

Front office. Also please remember to clearly

label all items of your child’s school uniform.

ATTENDANCE AT SCHOOL

You may be aware that from January 2010 the NSW Government legislated an increase in the school

leaving age for students from 15 years to 17 years. This means that if your child is not 17 and is not in full

time work or other tertiary study, they MUST attend school. Our school will be working closely with

Mr Lyndon Marriott (Careers Adviser) and our Deputy Principals to ensure that we are able to cater for

the needs of all students.

The Government and the Department of Education and Communities have also recently reviewed a

number of child protection initiatives. Attendance at school was one of these. If your child is absent for

any reason, it is essential that you contact the school and provide notification of the child’s absence in

writing on the first day your child returns. Our school will take very seriously unexplained absences. If

students are genuinely ill or have some other genuine reason for not being able to attend school, then

the school will support you at all times. However, it is the parents/caregivers responsibility to ensure that

their children attend school everyday.

Teams of specially trained registered nurses will be visiting our school throughout the year to offer our

Year 7 students free vaccinations against a number of serious preventable diseases.

In 2016 the following vaccines will be offered to all Year 7 students.

dTpa vaccine (Diphtheria, Tetanus and Pertussis (whopping cough) as a single dose

varicella vaccine (chickenpox) as a single dose; and

human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine in a 3-dose schedule at 0, 2 and 6 months.

If your child is to be immunised on the scheduled days, ensure that your child eats breakfast on the day

of the school vaccination clinic. A record of vaccination will be provided to your child for each of the

days of the vaccination clinics.

BUS BAY

For safety reasons, parents and carers are not

permitted to drive through the school bus bay

area to drop off or pick up their children.

Gates are only open for school buses, staff and

delivery vehicles.

FREE INTERNET FILTER

Schools are often approached by parents wondering what options there are to filter internet

access at home. At school, access is filtered for students according to their year group to so

that undesirable and inappropriate websites cannot be viewed. This is achieved through the

department’s enterprise filtering solution provided by Blue Coat. But did you know the same

company offers a free domestic filtering service? K9 Web Protection is a free web filter and

parental control software for home Windows or Mac computers. K9 “puts parents in control of

the Internet to help them protect their children”.

http://www1.k9webprotection.com/

An open Internet is unsafe for children and parenting in this digital age is difficult. We provide

tools for parents to control unwanted content and provide a safe Internet for your family.

K9 Web Protection is a free Internet filter and parental control software for your home Windows

or Mac computer. K9 puts YOU in control of the Internet so you can protect your kids.

APPOINTMENTS

Parents/caregivers—if you take your child to an appointment before school and they

arrive late, a letter or phone call from you must accompany the student so their leave

is marked as justified.

Applications for the 2016 Kokoda Youth Leadership

Challenge (KYLC) open until 5pm Wednesday, 13 April 2016.

This year the Challenge will be staged from 24 September to

5 October 2016 and this is your opportunity to participate. A

team of 25 – 30 young Australians sponsored by RSL and

Services Clubs and Club Industry Associations from around

Australia will be selected to undertake the 10 day trek. The

KYLC is aimed at young people at school or disadvantaged or

unemployed young people in the community who are having

difficulty in finding their way in society. It is also used to

encourage young achievers with natural leadership skills.

How to Apply

Orange Ex-Services’ Club will be sending two young people

on the trek and is seeking applications from young people

aged between 17 and 25 years of age. You will need to tell

us about yourself and your career aspirations and why you

would like to trek Kokoda and whether you have any family

connection to people who served in the Kokoda campaign or

other conflicts.

You have until 13 April 2016 to apply and your application

should be limited to no more than in spaces provided on the

application form. Applications must be emailed to

kokoda@oesc.com.au and headed Kokoda Challenge

Application.

Dear parents

At our school we aim to create a safe and supportive school community for everyone.

Sometimes, it can be difficult for parents or carers to know what to do when their child talks to them about

bullying. You are an important part of our work to prevent bullying and to respond effectively if it happens.

Stopping bullying involves everyone.

If your child talks to you about bullying:

1. Listen calmly and get the full story. Your calm response is important to allow your child to tell you all about

the situation. After they’ve told you their story, ask questions to get more details if you need to: who, what,

where, when. Although you may feel some strong emotions about your child’s experience, try to keep calm

to avoid more distress to your child.

2. Reassure your child they are not to blame. Many children blame themselves and this may make them feel

even worse. You could say things like, ‘That sounds really hard to deal with. No one should have to put up

with that.’ or ‘I’m so glad you told me. You should be able to feel safe at school; that’s not fair at all’.

3. Ask your child what they want to do and what they want you to do. A critical part of your response is to

avoid jumping in to solve the problem. While it is natural to want to protect your child, helping them to find

their own solution is a better option. It helps them feel they have some power in the situation.

4. Visit www.bullyingnoway.gov.au to find some strategies. The website has tips and ideas for different bully-

ing situations. One idea is to practise strategies at home to help your child feel more confident.

5. Contact the school. Your child may be reluctant for you to do this, so discuss the idea and reassure them

that the school would want to know and is able to help. Make an appointment to meet with your child’s

teacher and, if you need to, ask to talk with the principal. Contact the school immediately if you have a

concern about your child’s safety.

6. Check in regularly with your child. Keep the conversation going. It can take time to resolve issues, so

check in regularly with your child about their experiences and their feelings. Your ongoing support is im-

portant.

If you are looking for support for yourself to deal with a bullying situation, you will find ideas on the Bullying.

No Way! website for parents. As well, please contact the school if you would like to discuss any aspect of our

approach to preventing bullying.

Additional information about bullying can be found on the school’s website in the Our School and Caring for

Students tabs, under Rules & Polices and Student Safety. Other helpful sites include Youthbeyondblue, The

National Centre Against Bullying, Kids Helpline, Headspace and Reachout.com.

Thanks for your support to make our school a great school for everyone.

This is the mural students made

as part of Bullying No Way Day.

Students put their handprints

on the mural as a mark of their

pledge to stop bullying.