We hope everyone had a restful and happy holiday.  Term 2 is very busy with Winter Sport for Years 9 and 10 beginning on Wednesday in Week 3.  Information has been sent home with students regarding the sports uniform and what is required for each sport.  The NHSSA Winter Sports Roster is a wonderful opportunity for Riverside High School students to develop their fitness and skills in their chosen sport and meet new peers from the local high schools in a friendly competition.

Unfortunately, the Tasmanian Mountain Bike Championships at Trevallyn had to be postponed due to the weather. The new date for the competition is Friday, 20 May 2022.

This week we have our Year 7 and 9 students completing NAPLAN.  We encourage all students to try their very best during the tests and ensure they are present at school each day for the testing. 

Thank you to our Prefects and Grade Council members who represented Riverside High School at the ANZAC Day march and service 2022. 

Mobile Phone Policy

Just a reminder to students that mobile phones must be switched off and locked in lockers for security.  Mobile phones need to be placed in lockers before class teacher time of a morning.  Please be aware that if you need to contact your child at any time during the day this can be done via the School Admin Office.  The Riverside High School Mobile Phone policy reflects the DoE requirements for all schools.  Students who wear ‘smart watches’ must have them set to aeroplane mode when at school.

COVID

Students are required to wear a mask when indoors at school.  In all classrooms, sanitiser dispensers have been placed on walls for students to use on entry to the room. Air purifiers and fans are in every classroom to ensure adequate airflow. Attached to this week’s newsletter is information for parents/guardians on the ‘close contact’ requirements.

Winter Uniform

Students are now required to wear their winter uniform.  We have high expectations in regards to students wearing the full school winter uniform and we thank parents/guardians for their continued support and encouragement of this. Our uniform supports a sense of pride, belonging and respect and also ensures students are easy to identify.  The school uniform policy is attached to the newsletter for your reference.

Ms Jeanna Bolton

Being at school is the best place for our kids. It’s where they learn and grow alongside their friends, and where they benefit the most.

Every COVID-safe measure is being taken, so that every student can learn in class safely.

If your child is well enough to attend school, being in the physical school environment is the best place for them.

From Week 5, small changes are being introduced to how we record attendance to support the transition back to face-to-face learning for students who have been learning at home during Term 1.

If your child has been learning from home, please contact the school to discuss how we can best support a safe and supportive transition back to learning onsite for your child. 

We look forward to having all our students in class with us.

For more information on the importance of regular school attendance, please visit the Department of Education website.

Being at school is the best place for our kids. It’s where they learn and grow alongside their friends, and where they benefit the most. Learn more here: education.tas.gov.au/school-attendance

Students started Term 1 learning Mandarin Chinese. Students participated in games, watched Chinese television and even won some Chinese snacks. By the end of the term, all students could confidently talk about how they were and introduce themselves with ease. Students also completed a “city profile” presentation, in which they introduced the culture specific to one Chinese city. This term, we are moving on to Japanese. Students are already learning the words for items around the classroom and participating in scavenger hunts as they learn new words. Students have been open, respectful and curious as we have delved into new languages and cultures. I am looking forward to what we learn together next!

Dear Parents/Carers,

Any students requiring a winter skirt (especially smaller sizes), please see Sue in the Uniform Shop (Tuesday 8:30am – 11:00am) (Thurs 8:30am – 11:00am) or contact the Admin Office on 6327 6333. No requirement to purchase yet.

Feedback is one of the key elements of our Quality Teaching and Learning Framework. During recent years, we have dedicated considerable professional learning time to the provision of quality feedback and this is a concept which we regularly review during our meetings. This is because feedback is considered to be one of the most powerful strategies through which to enhance student learning outcomes. Dylan Wiliam, a leading educational researcher, states that effective feedback accelerates the pace of student learning by at least 50% or an additional six months.

Feedback or formative assessment involves obtaining the best possible evidence about what students have learned and then using this information to determine what to do next and communicating this clearly to students. Imagine that students are flying their own ‘learning plane’. If they know where they are headed, learning can be more successful and efficient.

One of the key ways in which we support the provision of effective feedback at RHS is to make sure that students fully understand what it looks like to achieve the Learning Intentions for the lesson. Indeed, we work to provide students with clear and meaningful Success Criteria which show them how to recognise the successful attainment of the Learning Intentions. Where possible, we also enable students to consider specific examples of high quality work prior to starting a task to assist them to gain a deeper understanding of what success looks like. Documents such as assignment sheets and rubrics also allow students to understand the exact requirements of a set task.

At RHS teachers work extremely hard to provide students with timely and relevant feedback. This work may include sharing verbal feedback with students about the work which they are completing whilst moving around the classroom, writing comments and suggestions on students’ rough drafts, asking students to complete self-reflection tasks during which they reflect on both the strengths of their work as well as areas for future focus and supporting students to gain feedback from their classmates via peer assessment opportunities. All of these strategies provide students with targeted feedback which promotes deep thinking and self-reflection and fosters the enhancement of learning outcomes.

Next Monday’s Parent/Teacher/Student Interviews also constitute an invaluable opportunity for our students and their families to gain feedback regarding learning progress and to discuss students’ strengths and consider areas for future growth. We are very keen to hear your ideas concerning students’ needs, learning styles and interests and to work in partnership with you to determine the best means by which to support students to achieve success and develop positive attitudes to their learning. We also encourage students to attend the evening and play an active role in these discussions to support them to own their own learning and allow us to learn from their thoughts and ideas.

Starting at the end of Term 1, Riverside High School has again been participating in the Launceston Schools’ Debating Competition. After competing over video calls last term, it is great to be back participating in person (socially distanced and masked) in Term 2.  

This week our Year 9/10 Team, consisting of Lily, Erin and Rhys had their first impromptu debate for the year. An impromptu debate means that the students have no idea of the topic until one hour before the debate.

Without any devices or resources, they had an hour to create arguments in favour of the statement ‘War is a necessary evil’.

The team did extremely well, creating a strong line of arguments, with some great references to historical tyrants and dictators.  

In the end they defeated the team from St Pats convincingly, with Lily being awarded best speaker of the debate.

We hope that our senior and junior teams continue to improve their public speaking skills and have fun for the remaining rounds of the competition.

Mr Shaun Osborne and Ms Naomi Hack

Prefects’ Report

We are Anabelle and Sienna, two of your Community Portfolio Prefects for 2022. As the year quickly progresses, it is important to not let the school year get away from us. In the hope to make Term 2 as engaging as we can, we have many exciting events and ideas approaching.

Earlier this week, the House Captains opened applications to the Grade 8 students for the role of House Assistant. Students interested in the role had to submit an expression of interest.  From this selection, two successful applicants will be appointed to represent each house.  Riverside High School’s 9/10 Winter Sports Roster has begun, which is another exciting experience for students.

The Learning Portfolio’s Spelling Bee is finally underway and will take place in the upcoming weeks. This is a terrific opportunity for students to display their abilities that may go unnoticed. In addition, the Learning Portfolio is working towards a massive goal of ours, a Riverside High School Podcast. Another event to look forward to this term is Arts Week. This will be hosted by the Learning and Community Portfolios. Arts Week celebrates the importance of expressing oneself and creativity in different ways. This could be through visual art, dance, music and drama. We look forward to seeing how students engage and support one another.

Towards the end of this term, the Community Portfolio Prefects will be hosting Pride Week. Pride Week is very important to show students they are welcome and able to be themself without judgement. It also shows how our school community is accepting and willing to learn about others and what makes everyone different. We will be holding a range of different events, including but not limited to, a rainbow jelly eating contest, a chalk mural and other food events.

Early this term, the Prefect Board will be attending another planning day, as this was a great opportunity in Term 1. This provides us with the chance to bond as a team as well as within our portfolios.  It also helps us to address our leadership skills. We are starting to focus on the legacy we will leave and how we want to be remembered. We aim to widen our thinking, to not just hold isolated events, but long-term initiatives that shape our school culture. Following this day, the Prefect Board hopes to communicate our goals and ambitions for the year.

At the end of Term 1, we all reflected on the year so far. The Board has a new structure this year, based around portfolios instead of partners. We have had to discover and adapt to what these new roles entail, but it is great to see our group continue to grow, and individual roles develop along with this. COVID has created challenges we would not usually face but has also forced us to think of new ways to bring the school together. Overall, we have learned a lot from Term 1 and look forward to Term 2 and the rest of the year ahead.

Public Health has recently changed the rules for close contacts of COVID-19 cases so that they no longer need to isolate.

This means that if your child is a close contact – and importantly, symptom-free – they can attend school (except for support schools).

They would however need to pass a daily rapid antigen test before leaving home each day, for a seven-day period. Advice for close contacts is available on the Tasmanian Government Coronavirus website.

You will only need to let us know if your child is a close contact if they’re not attending school.

Close contacts should practise COVID-safe behaviours including good hand hygiene, physically distancing from others when they can and staying away from school if they have any symptoms.

While primary aged close contacts are not obliged to wear a mask in school, they can still choose to if it is practicable for them and they are happy to do so.

If your child is medically vulnerable and you have concerns with the changes to close contacts, then you may wish to work with your child’s medical practitioner to identify further options to reduce the risk of COVID-19 to them. If you have any concerns, please talk to us about alternative learning options.

If you have any questions or concerns, please contact our school office.

For more information about COVID-19, please visit the Tasmanian Government Coronavirus website or contact the Tasmanian Public Health Hotline on 1800 671 738, or Department of Education COVID-19 Support Hotline at COVID19support@education.tas.gov.au or on 1800 816 057.

If you need support translating or interpreting this information, contact the Translating and Interpreting Service on 131 450.

The purpose of the Riverside High School Student Dress Code and Uniform Policy is to promote social equity in terms of clothing, ensuring that students are safe, easy to identify and enhancing a sense of pride within our school.  

The aim of the Dress Code is to support the Uniform Policy through clearly outlining the school’s expectations and standards with regards to personal presentation.  

Personal presentation  

• Students are expected to be well groomed, have a cleanly presented uniform and good personal hygiene. All visible clothing needs to adhere to uniform policy.  
• Students representing the school and attending excursions are expected to be in full school uniform at any school sanctioned activity outside of school grounds, including travelling both to and from school.   

Jewellery and Make-up 

• The wearing of excessive amounts of jewellery with our school uniform is considered inappropriate. One small piece of each type is adequate; nose and eyebrow piercing to be a small stud for safety reasons. 
• Make-up is expected to be minimal, with a subtle natural appearance. This includes nail polish; nails are to be kept at a reasonable length for health and safety reasons.   

Practical Considerations and Requirements  

• Ear pieces from phones are not to be displayed while you are walking around. Please make sure that these are tucked away and out of sight. 
• Every item of clothing should be clearly and permanently marked. 
• During practical MDT lessons where machines or moving equipment is present, suitable protective hair covering in the form of an approved type of hair net or cap must be worn.  
• With the exception of MDT/HPE classes, hats are not to be worn inside and are not to be taken to class.  

• During Food and Technology subjects long hair is to be tied back.   
• A complete change of clothing is required for Health and Wellbeing and sports activities. Students are expected to arrive in school uniform and change back into school uniform at the end of HWB classes and activities.  
• Hoodies are not part of our uniform and shouldn't be worn to school. Our Spray Jacket is the Uniform item for students to wear during colder weather. Spray jackets are not to be taken to Foods/MDT subjects.  
• Students are encouraged to ensure that they are Sun Smart when outdoors including wearing hats, sunglasses and sunscreen.  Sun screen is provided by the school and available for students to use both during breaks, HPE lessons and other outdoor activities and events. 

Non-Compliance 

• Where students are out of uniform, contact will be made with parents/carers to discuss whether support is required with the provision of uniform and to enlist parental assistance with complying with uniform policy. Every effort will be made to work in partnership with parents/carers. 
• Students who are out of uniform or who wear non-school outer garments will remain in the courtyard at recess and lunchtime so that duty staff in other areas can quickly recognise intruders.  
• Ongoing non-compliance may result in students being unable to participate in excursions or events that are held outside of the school.  
• Consequences such as detentions may be applied in circumstances where students have access to all uniform requirements but are being defiant of school policy and expectations.