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Q News Term 2, 2022

24th June 2022

In this Issue:

Cover Page
Principal’s message
Sports report term 2
Train like a Vixen
International students, Term 2
Year 8 & 9 Drama and Media fun
TOPshots
State Athletics for Special Olympics
Girls in Physics breakfast
Q Network Term 2 update
Garden program
Year 10 Physical Education
Year 9 Science
Year 9 Home Economics Masterchef competition
Lord of the Flies – Photo gallery

Principal’s message

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by Josie Millard
Principal

Jazz Band at the DET Principals Conference

The Kew High School Jazz Band was invited to perform at the Department of Education and Training State Principals Conference earlier this term. Our students were outstanding, and the school received many compliments on the quality of the performance and the success of our music performance program. Congratulations to Nyla Alcide Yr12, Noam Geva Yr12, George McMullen Yr12, Max Castree Yr12, Callum Estibeiro Yr12, Ethan Bennett Yr11, Wyni McIntyre Yr9 and Gabriel O’Shaughnessy Yr9. Particular thanks to teachers Adrian Jackson and Kylie Kollmorgen for their guidance and support of our magnificent students.

Thank you to Sue de Leon

Sue de Leon retires at the end of Term 2. Sue has been an education support staff member at Kew High School for 14 years. Her work has been integral in building the school timetable and supporting school organisation for many years. She has done a difficult job with unmatched care and grace. Sue will be sorely missed and I thank her for her amazing work at Kew High School.

Victorian Global Learning Awards and “welcome” to our Semester 2 English Language Centre students

Next term we welcome the re-commencement of the English Language Centre at Kew High School and look forward to rebuilding the International Student Program across the senior school.

There are many benefits to a school community in the delivery of an International Student Program but perhaps the most impactful of these is the influence on the learning and awareness of our local students of our role in a global community. We are so privileged to learn and work at Kew High School, and the fact that others seek our education from across the world demonstrates so clearly how fortunate we are.

I am sure that our 15 new students will be warmly welcomed next term. I know that they will be well cared for by their Homestay families. One of our Homestay carers was recognised in the Victorian Global Learning Awards last week. Details of the honour are outlined later in the QNews.

Year 10 and 11 exams

Over the past two weeks, Year 10 and 11 students have been practising reviewing and recalling knowledge and skills that have been acquired over a whole semester. The exam block has been successful in simulating the experience of sitting units 3&4 senior secondary exams. Feedback from students has been extremely positive in the manner in which they have been prepared. Students have presented magnificently, clearly taking responsibility for their learning outcomes.

The Year 10 and 11 subschools teams have done an amazing job in planning and preparing for the experience. Teachers who have written rigorous examinations, and who are now marking them in order to provide timely feedback, have also done an amazing job.

Facilities, Canteen and Buildings update

The final handover of the STEM Centre will occur over the holidays. Classes will be timetabled in there from the first day of Term 3 – we are very much looking forward to moving into our new space.

Most importantly, the Canteen will be operating from Day 1 of Term 3. The Canteen has been missed sorely this term. We look forward to the returning access to healthy food onsite, and to be able to sit down and eat together.

I am most pleased to announce that we will commence a new project involving repairs to the façade of the main building and the gym roof. It is likely that we will also be able to refurbish some key areas of the school. A consultation process will commence next term with the School Council Facilities Committee, the architect and the staff and students to determine the next steps of our master plan.

ASPIRE

In my address to students on Thursday in the General Assembly, I reminded them of the values of the school with a specific focus on PARTICIPATION. In preparing for the speech, I began reflecting on everything that we have participated in this term as a school community – and the list is overwhelming.

I have included part of the text here so that you may see some of the amazing things we have achieved. Many of these events and achievements will be outlined as you read through the newsletter.

Today, I would like to recognise and celebrate participation…

Congratulations to…

The Kew High School Year 11 and our Year 12 Boys Futsal teams who finished first and second in the Victorian Under 19s Futsal Titles, defeating a huge range of schools who allocate significant resources to Futsal. As a result of their wins, both teams qualified for the Australian Championships.
Congratulations to all students who participated in the Futsal championships.
The students who lead the work and put together the Kewspaper – an amazing initiative from this team of students
Congratulations to Dimitri Gosios and Sweeney Todd-Harvey who will represent the school in the State Schools Spectacular next term
Congratulations to Owen Roberts who will compete in Athletics in the 2022 National Special Olympics over the holidays, having won a number of State titles earlier this term.
All the students who performed in the Winter Music concert last night. It was the first concert we have been able to have in more than two years and it was definitely worth waiting for.
All the students who will perform tomorrow in Kew’s Got Talent (go to the Theatre at lunchtime)
The Year 12 Theatre Studies students for their breathtaking performance of the Lord of the Flies
All the students who are putting so much time and dedication into the upcoming performance of the Addams Family musical
Every Year 9, 10 and 11 students who attended an Outdoor Ed Camp or excursion
The Year 9 students for their thoughtful reflections on the Elephant Ed Consent Sessions
Jacqui and James for organising, and to all who participated in, the Boroondara fundraiser day yesterday
The Year 9 school for student Leadership students who ran a fundraising event to create community awareness.
The Year 8 students who participated in a Kindness BBQ – and particularly to those who were recognised as having taken an Act of Kindness.
The five Debating teams who have collectively participated in 20 debates and have won 14 of them thus far (two teams – Y10/11, Y12 – with only one loss, and one undefeated team – Y8). While many debaters are competing in a division above their year level, and even more competing for the very first time this year, all five KHS Debating teams currently have a winning (or even) record against their competition.
The students who represented Kew High School at the Ainger Public Speaking competition
The Volleyball Senior Boys who came second in the State! and to the Inter Girls who were ranked fourth in the state.
The whole school volleyball team for their magnificent representation of the school.
The Year 8 boys football team who are through to the regional competition.
The Year 8 Girls – they have won at Division Netball A & B as well as the football in which they have won six games in a row and are through to the Regional final.
Tao Murasawa Y8 who WON the Australian Youth National Championships in Rock climbing.
Milla Keys who is currently overseas competing at the World Orienteering Competition
The whole KHS Orienteering Team who came second in the state titles.
All students who participated in the House Cross Country – and to all who went to Division and those who placed individually, as well as the 14yo girls team for winning and the 13 boys team for coming third
Particular congratulations to Alex Wallis, Emily Wright and Jemima Thompson for their participation and representation of Kew High School in Cross Country as Senior students.
The Student Leaders who have brought back the Toastie Club and to all who have participated either by serving or eating a Toastie
The VHAP students who worked with the Richmond High students yesterday to solve a range of complex problems.
All students who have participated in the Peer mentoring program so – it is shaping up to be an outstanding program in the school
I have not had time to name all of you but congratulations to every student who has participated in a co-curricular program or activity this term.

Congratulations also to…

Year 10 and Year 11 students who have just completed a rigorous fortnight of exams
All Year 10 students for participating in Work Experience this week.
The Year 12 students for finishing Unit 3 – more than half-way there now!
Every student in this school who has completed a CAT or A SAC to the best of their ability or who has worked hard to get something in on the due date.
And finally everyone who has participated in a class discussion or who has been an upstander in the school yard.

This long list of people are the people who make our school a great school – and I thank you very much for your participation – for your reflection of the value of Participation at Kew High School!

I wish you all the very best for a safe, happy and healthy holiday break. I look forward to seeing you back for Term 3.

Sports report term 2

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by Ben Abbott

Cross Country

Well done to everyone who participated in the House Cross Country. In a tightly ran race, Lachie Warwick (Year 9) and Holly Porter (Year 8) takout out the line honours with some exceptional runs.

Then, from the results of House Cross Country, we sent a really strong team of ninety plus runners to the Division Cross Country event. Everyone ran exceptionally well, with some noteworthy runs in the following categories:

13 Y/O Boys – Alexander Picken 1^st, Hugh Furlong 5^th
13 Y/O Girls – Amy Cunningham 5^th, Charlotte Graham 10^th14 Y/O Girls – Holly Porter 1^st, Claudia Dal Pos 2^nd, Ruby Fraser 3^rd, Hannah Sertori 9^th, Casey Clough 10^th and Alana Leins 12^th14 Y/O Boys – Ben Leuscher 5^th, Charlie Drew 11^th
15 /O Boys – Lachie Warwick 3^rd, Oliver Drew 8^th, Mathew Farrawell 9^th, Patrick Graham 11^th16 Y/O Girls – Sophie Smith 3^rd, Milla Key 4^th, Isabel Fraser 10^th16 Y/O Boys – Mayan Bhaskar 2^nd, Aidan Hobbs 9^th, Connor Dare 9^th17-20 Girls – Emily Wright 5^th17-20 Boys – Archie Critchell 5^th.

Twenty-nine students progressed through to the Region event held at Yarra Glen racecourse late in the term. There were some phenomenal runs with Sophie Smith and Holly Porter finishing second in their respective age groups, the 14Y/O girls winning the team event and the 13 Y/O boys finishing third in the team event.

Congratulations to everyone who participated for the school and good luck to the runners who have progressed through to the state finals early in term 3.

Inter School Sport

Well done to everyone who represented the school at Inter-School Sport. Congratulations to everyone who participated in a team that progressed and competed at further levels of competition. Well done to the following teams.

Senior Boys Volleyball – Finishing Second at State!!!
Inter Girls Volleyball – Finishing Fourth at State!!!
Yr 8 Boys AFL – Progressed through to Region.
Yr 8 Girls AFL – Progressed through to Region FINAL in term 3.
Yr 8 Girls Netball – Progressed through to Region FINAL in term 3.

Orienteering

Our students made their way to the Macedon Ranges on a soggy day in May, in what was to become a really challenging day of competing. The 24 students made it through the challenging course to claim 2^nd overall position in the state championship. Congratulations to Holly Porter, James Edgar and Luke Hazeldine who finished in the top 3 of their respective age categories.

Special Mentions

Congratulations to the following athletes who have excelled in their respective sports outside of school this term (Sorry if you have been missed)

Tao Murasawa – 1^st place in the Australian Youth National Championships for Rock climbing.

Milla Key – Currently competing for Australia in the World Orienteering Championships.

Train like a Vixen

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by Catherine Gayfer

On Thursday May 26th, 41 year 7-9 students travelled via private coach to attend a free Netball coaching clinic called Train Like a Vixen at the Melbourne Sports Centre in Parkville. The Department of Education funds this extension/enrichment excursion, aiming to provide additional sports programs and experiences to Victorian students who have missed out on many extracurricular sporting opportunities over the past 2 year due to the pandemic. This full-day netball clinic included specialist coaching, through which students learned specific technical skills and game sense activities- plus we got to meet Kate Eddy, who is a current Melbourne Vixens players (WD). The Train Like a Vixen Netball clinic tied in nicely with Invasion Game strategies that year 8 and 9 students are currently studying in Physical Education classes. The students had a lot of fun and took away a lot of skills and strategies, along with some Vixens’ merchandise!

Melbourne Vixens website

International students, Term 2

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by Junling Yang

As the school year progressed to Term 2, we started to have a sense of what Covid-normal school life was like. After a pause of two years, many activities gradually returned to the life of our international students. We commenced the Term with an exciting trip to Monash University Campus (Caufield). It was our VCE international student first trip to a Group of Eight university, and it gave them an overview of what Monash University could offer and a glimpse of what campus life looked like.

The end of Term 2 was highlighted by the return of the Victorian Global Learning Awards. They are awards to celebrate the outstanding achievements and contribution of the International Student Program to the Victorian community. Over the 10-year award history, Kew High School has won multiple awards: 2015 Year 12 Global Citizen Award (Commendation) by Crystal Peng, 2018 Year 12 Academic Excellence Award by Helen Vu and, this year, our homestay Danae McGaw proudly won the Homestay Family of the Year Award-Government School. Danae has been a Kew High School homestay host since 2006, taking in students from China, Vietnam, India, Japan, Korea and Indonesia. She is respectful and open to all cultures, as well as introducing students to Australian life and history. She is a renowned cook and makes sure that she is there for her students, always. The homestay experience is vital to the success of an international student in Australia. We are lucky and grateful to have Danae, and many other homestay hosts like Danae on the program, to support our international students. We want to thank our past students Jingchen Wang and Lingjun Chen for taking time from their busy schedules to come back to Danae’s to assist with the filming of the award. We also welcomed Hoai Thu Nguyen into our Year 10 in Term 2. She is the only international student in Year 10, but she quickly settled in and developed confidence in her language and new subjects. Well done, Thu!

Year 8 & 9 Drama and Media fun

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by Danny Gesundheit

Year 8 and 9 Drama and Media students have had a lot of fun this semester doing practical tasks.

Year 8 and 9 Drama and Media students have had a lot of fun this semester doing practical tasks. This is especially so because of all the disruptions over the last two years. They’ve had a chance to work collaboratively with their friends to create different projects. In the case of year 8 Drama, students adapted a fragment of THE FRANKENSTEIN play. They adapted and re-wrote the scenes, and then performed them. Some performed with make-up, costumes, props and backdrops. Year 9 Media students made a one-minute film incorporating the theme of dreams. They wrote, filmed and edited their films in class. Some groups may enter their films into ATOM’S (Australian Teacher’s of Media) One-Minute film competition. These tasks are a fantastic way for students to learn and have fun. It also leads perfectly into the school production of the ADDAM’S FAMILY musical in August and the 3in6 Film competition.

TOPshots

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by Katherine Smith

Congratulations to Sebastian Crupi,a past student at Kew High school in 2021 who will be represented in theTopshots exhibition. Sebastian created his work in his Studio Arts class. It is an appropriation of a work by Olive Cotton, Tea cup ballet, 1935. Sebastian’s work focuses on the ideas of “Routine” – ‘The coffee routine’ and ‘The everyday, the mundane’. A great achievement to be represented in this exhibition and to be considered for this esteemed prize.

18 May – 26 June 2022
Curator: Stella Loftus-Hills

TOPshots is an annual celebration of emerging photomedia artists at MGA. Established more than a decade ago, this award and exhibition continues to showcase exceptional photographic work produced by students who have completed the Victorian Certificate of Education (VCE) subjects of Art, Media and Studio Arts, as well as the International Baccalaureate (IB) Visual Arts.

The artworks displayed in this exhibition have been selected from a large pool of entries and represent a small sample of the creative talent that emerged out of Melbourne’s high schools in 2021. MGA is proud to have the opportunity to foreground and acknowledge the excellence of young photomedia artists in our community, while providing a vital platform for these artists to share and exhibit their work.

https://www.mga.org.au/exhibition/view/exhibition/283

State Athletics for Special Olympics

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Congratulations to Kew High School’s Owen Roberts. Owen competed in the State Athletics for Special Olympics at Casey Fields on the April 23-24th and succeeded in winning many medals and placings.

1st Gold for 800 metres

3rd Bronze for 400 m and Turbo throw (Javelin)

4th in relay

6th 200 m

Girls in Physics breakfast

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by Holly Clayton and Isabel Fraser

This event was organised by Vicphysics, Melbourne (VicPhys)with the aim to encourage girls to pursue studies in Physics, provide them the opportunity to hear an inspiring female physicist speak, and also to network with other girls studying Physics and young women pursuing Physics-related careers.

On Thursday the 19th of May four students – Holly Clayton, Isabel Fraser, Zoe Johnson and Sera Smith – attended the Girls in Physics Breakfast held at Monash University. More than 100 Physics students and teachers from different Victorian schools gathered from 7.00 am till 11.00 am. The students attending the event were given the opportunity to have a royal breakfast and discover whether Physics is something they would like to pursue in life.

Dr Amanda Karakas shared her knowledge on Stars as Chemical Elements. This was a great experience because we had the opportunity to connect with many other female students across Victoria who are also passionate about Physics. We really appreciate the opportunity to be a part of this event.

Q Network Term 2 update

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by Elizabeth Tatham
QNetwork committee member

The highlight of the term was the wine and cheese night hosted by QNetwork in the brand-new STEM Centre. Guests were welcomed by school principal Josie Millard and school council president James Thyer, and treated to tours of the fantastic cutting-edge facilities that our children will have the privilege of using. Some even tried out the equipment for themselves!

We also launched our fund-raising initiative for a new large-format colour printer that will enable our students to produce professional photography, gallery quality artwork or colour-accurate proofs and so far have raised more than $2000 towards a target of $10,000. If you’d like to help us reach our goal, please consider making a contribution via:
https://www.trybooking.com/au/donate/qnetworkfundraising

Another successful initiative this term has been the Year 7, 8 and 9 coffee mornings organised by Angela Taylor. A great way to meet other parents in your child’s year group. These will now be held once a term, so look out for dates for Term 3 on Compass. Thanks for getting this going, Angela!

A term would not complete without at least one sausage sizzle and we thank volunteers Ken Brown and Mark Nikolich for firing up the barbeques at the Year 8 Kindness Sausage Sizzle.

Get involved
QNetwork is a great group of parents collectively supporting the school to provide the best possible experiences for our children. Everyone is welcome to get involved, whether it’s attending meetings, joining our volunteer list or coming along to one of our social functions. If you’re interested in finding out more, please email qnetworkpfa@gmail.com

Garden program

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by Phillip Naughton
Gardener Kew High School

Kew High School gardens and grounds have continued to be maintained. The main work has been to attend weeding, pruning and trimming shrubs and grassed areas. The Burke Road bus stop shrubs have grown vigorously and benefited from a trim, with the daffodils coming through early. Good rain and little frost have given the shrubs and trees a wonderful boost.

The main project this term has been the installation of a brick path along the east side of Musicland. This has used up most of the paving bricks stacked along the wall. The bedding sand for the pavers came from the theatre following the Production of Lord of the Flies. A welcome saving in cost and time.

The project construction team, The Landscape Lads, have contributed a lot of their free time to building the path. The stages of work involved clearing the site, installing the edging, levelling the sand and laying the brick pavers. Next term we will continue to make a garden bed and plant with screening shrubs and trees. The Lads team consists of Luke, Aidan, Luca, Ben and Liam. They are supervised by Mr Sam Gleeson and assisted by Mr Tim Gason.

Next term we will continue to restore the War Memorial Garden next to the Jacaranda Garden. The garden bed will be rejuvenated, and a mix of perennials and shrubs planted. The theatre Vertical Wall will get more plants ready for the spring. The vegetable garden raised beds are ready for some veggies and flowers.

Year 10 Physical Education

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by Catherine Gayfer

In term 2, the Year 10 Physical Education ‘Community Recreation’ unit explored local leisure/recreation options and proposed excursion options in the community where they can have fun engaging socially with their peers and be active at the same time – rather than interacting in a sedentary manner via social media or coffee shop catch ups. Students had to research travel options and present their proposed activity whilst keeping to a budget, then debate and persuade the class why they should vote for that activity. In class we also investigated the benefits to all areas of their health and wellbeing (physical, emotional, mental, social and spiritual), gained by continuing to engage in life long physical activity.

One specific thing I really appreciated about all the activities we did was that there was a mix of competitive team activities and individual tasks; for example, rock climbing was a challenge for some people. Some of the class members were afraid of heights, but we all encouraged and supported each other to go outside of our comfort zones, have a go and try something new. The encouragement and motivation coming from our peers created a very supportive and safe atmosphere, giving people the confidence and motivation to try new activities that they have never done before.

Our emotional health and wellbeing was enhanced through these excursions. Working in a team environment or even competing individually against someone else teaches you how to be a good sport. It reminds you to encourage the other person when they do something good, or to be resilient and calm when you make mistakes. Some of us are quite competitive and used to being good at most physical challenges Trying some activities for the first time was a challenge for some, as they weren’t used to not achieving success straight away. We had to demonstrate resilience, not get frustrated and angry at our initial poor performance. In particular, rollerblading was something many people experienced for the first time. Many people started off slowly and even had a couple of falls, but they continued to get up and try again. Even after falling or going around slowly at the start people bounced back and persevered.

Social health and wellbeing are the most positively affected area of health gained by engaging in these leisure activities. Having a supportive network of friends was demonstrated when we cheered and encouraged each other, and again when people had to trust their friends at rock climbing to belay them safely. Effective communication is very important because the belayer needed to know when the climber wanted to come down. Also, we worked in teams of two in croquet and lawn bowls, so the communication from organising strategies to attempt to triumph over the opposite team, also the overall happiness from winning one of the games or even scoring a point, was greatly improved when we played these games. I had originally perceived lawn bowls and croquet as traditionally an ‘older person’ activity, but we all brought our competitive spirit and these sports were very fun.

We also really enjoyed being outside in nature and travelling to these activities with my friends. Aside from the activities themselves, this aspect of the classes definitely enhanced our mental health and wellbeing – it gave us a chance to reduce my stress and anxiety and increase my confidence. We had an opportunity to calm down and get away from schoolwork and some of the stress and pressure that comes with the educational environment. We also had to use our logic and reasoning to make decisions when at the rock climbing and playing mini golf, and using strategies and tactics in croquet and lawn bowls.

By Hunter, Lloyd, Adele and Nels

Year 9 Science

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by Lara Collard, 9E

During science for the last couple of weeks we have been focusing on chemistry and doing different experiments involving many different chemicals. The first experiment used Acids & Bases, which taught us how to differentiate between acids and bases using litmus paper, then using a universal indicator to find the overall acidity. In the next lesson, we did a round robin of experiments but the show stopper of them all was the Elephants Toothpaste, which is sodium iodide reacting with the hydrogen peroxide by removing oxygen atoms. Overall, I feel myself and the class has been really enjoying science this term and especially the last few weeks.

Year 9 Home Economics Masterchef competition

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Michael Merlo and Lucas Kapobassis take out the top prize in the Year 9 HEC Masterchef competition for the best Mini Meat Pies.

Congratulations!

Lord of the Flies – Photo gallery

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