Cleveland District State High School eNewsletter

From the Principal's Desk

Dear Families

We’ve had a number of very strong student and school performances since our last newsletter. These again showcase the engagement of our students and the professional and committed work of our staff, alongside our valued partnership with our school community.

Honour the Fallen and Remembrance Day

Our school exhibited a deep respect for veterans who have served our country through the Honour the Fallen and Remembrance Day recognition events. Our junior and senior student leaders, displayed hundreds of poppies around our campus and created a very elegant and meaningful display in our library. A large number of staff helped to create the displays. I thank the leaders and Joni Edwards for coordinating this, to allow our school to come together to reflect and acknowledge the contributions of those who served.

Premier’s Queensland Coding Challenge

I had the pleasure of accompanying Vanessa Feng, Year 10, to this prestigious event and as many know, she won the Year 9 and 10 Queensland division. A video was played of her program and it demonstrated Vanessa’s impressive coding skills and her artistic abilities, as she had created all the art work too! After the event, we went to the Australian Robotics Centre and then to a session at QUT where numerous industry partners worked with students. Vanessa was paired with the CEO of a robotics company and I was enthralled as they both worked through Vanessa’s code and discussed future options. It is wonderful that Vanessa’s work has been recognised at this elite level and it further reinforces to our community the opportunities at our school. I thank Nick Cooper and Melinda Kingaby for their work with Vanessa in the field of STEM.

Music on the Green

I attended the music concert on Sunday, 7 November and was pleased to see such a large audience in attendance. There were a number of students who came along to support our musicians which was terrific to see. Our students are certainly growing in stature as we have more performances. This bodes well for 2022. Thank you to Simon Watson, Head of Department, Creative Arts, and staff who organised this event.

Year 12 IB Celebration of Learning

I commend Karen Abraham (Deputy Principal), Laura Ewan (Head of Department Humanities and IB Coordinator) and staff who work with our IB students for the celebration of learning on Thursday 11 November. Laura’s speech captured our vision and values for our rationale for IB and the opportunities it provides to students.

Sports Awards Evening

We had a very special Sports Awards Evening on Wednesday 17 November. Over the years, I have attended many sporting ceremonies, in numerous schools. So, when I say that our awards ceremony was the best I’ve ever been too, I’m drawing on a lot of experience. Our House Captains did a really fine job of running the event and it was terrific to see the number of students who received awards. Our special guest speaker, Peter "Spida" Everitt, provided exceptional insights into his sporting journey with humorous anecdotes. Special award winners were given a surprise with a range of well-known athletes personally highlighting our students’ performances. Finally, the use of a panel to delve deeper into our Sports Development Programs, really shone a light on the exceptional work being done by coaches. I congratulate Tim McKennariey (Head of Department HPE and Sport), HPE staff and all staff members who assisted to make this event so successful.

Australian Jobs

I have attached the 2021 edition of Australian Jobs (see link below) which has been released by the National Skills Commission. The report provides an overview of trends in the Australian labour market to support students, job seekers, career advisers, those considering future training and work and people interested in labour market issues. The report is produced annually by the National Skills Commission and functions as a single source of information on industries, occupations and local labour markets, and helps focus skill development, educational pathways and strategies to find a job.

I wish all students a very successful Term 4 and especially wish our Year 12s all the best with their upcoming graduation.

Leonard McKeown
DipT BEd GradDipMgt MEd(Res) MBA MACEL MAICD
Executive Principal

2022 Australian Jobs

Remembrance Day - 11 November, 2021

Today the Senior and Junior Leaders had the honour of attending the Redlands Remembrance Day Service. Cleveland High students have a long involvement with this service and this year, two of our students were involved as part of the Honour Guard.

This year we created a poppy garden and displays through our school to show our respect and to ensure we remember our veterans.

Cleveland would like to, “Thank all Veterans for their Service”.

Lest We Forget

Below is a Student Perspective of Remembrance Day.

As an Australian citizen, Australian army cadet and Cleveland District State High school student, Remembrance Day isn’t just any other day. It’s a time to reflect on the history of this nation, thanking those who allowed us to be a free nation.

On the 11th minute of the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month, we remember them.

On Remembrance Day, we acknowledge the courage and sacrifice of those who served their country and acknowledge our responsibility to work for the peace they fought hard to achieve. During times of war, individual acts of heroism occur frequently, only a few are ever recorded and receive official recognition.

The wearing of the poppy symbolises those who have lost their lives in conflicts and wars around the world.

I am so very thankful for those who have served and are currently serving. I take full pride in my country as we remember the honour and dignity of all veterans.

2022 Student Leader

Library News

BOOK RETURNS – IMPORTANT INFORMATION

Please note, all book borrowing has now ceased. Emails have been sent to families whose student still has outstanding resources.

All resources are now overdue and must be returned to the Library.

Students will not be allowed to borrow resources in 2022 if they have outstanding resources from 2021.

If you have lost or damaged books, please contact us at the Library.

Lost and Found

If your student has misplaced an item including uniforms, lunchboxes, drink bottles, notebooks, shoes or bags of sports clothes, please send them to the Library to collect. At the end of the year we donate all left-over items to the Uniform shop, the school Engagement Centres and charity.

Remembrance Day Library Display

A beautiful display was created by our Student Council members for Remembrance Day on Thursday 11th November.

From the Year 7 Dean

Our young people go through a variety of changes during adolescence including navigating puberty, transitioning to high school, seeking out and changing friendship groups and taking on more independence from their parents. One thing that every young person will experience is issues in their friendship group, whether it be small or catastrophic.

When we analyse the reason for friendship issues, we often find that the cause is gossip, mainly with girls but also with boys. Gossip can be a call for entertainment, currency, a weapon or revenge but in all cases, it ends up being very hurtful to the person being gossiped about. Outcomes can include a change of friendship group, arguments or ignoring and moving on for our more resilient kids.

Sometimes as parents, we can feel helpless because we may not know the new friends or we may not have the same conversations with our teenagers that we once had when they were little. Linda Stade, Education Consultant, outlines the following that parents can do to help our kids:

Encourage your child to call it out when they see it when it is about someone else
Teach them a handful of comments to use in that situation eg: ‘Why are you telling me this?’, ‘That’s my friend and I don’t want you to badmouth them’
Use body language if not confident to call it out eg: look away, don’t engage by smiling or nodding. Say nothing and then change the conversation.

At school, we continue to build a culture that does not accept gossip by addressing friendships on parades, while dealing with incidents between friendship groups and through guest presenters and key events like year 7 Fun and Friendship Day. Students who have issues with gossip and friendship groups can see support through the Engagement Centres.

For more information on gossip and friendships, click on the link below:

Gossip & friendships

Student Council News

Student Council has completed their final project for 2021, Honour the Fallen and Poppy Garden for Remembrance Day. The Council has been working on this project for the past few months. We must acknowledge all the ladies who created the poppies for us. We thank The Redlands Centre for Women Craft Group, Judy Krohn, Marilyn Kennedy, Danielle Bain, Sylvia Heterick, Helen Pugh, Judy Miller, May Rolfie, Val McGregor, Bronwyn Knowles, Love is Stiches Craft Group, and Mrs Dowling and Sports Class. These ladies made over 800 poppies for us. The garden looked fantastic, see the photos below.

At this time, we would like to thank both the 2021 & 2022 Senior and Junior Leaders and the Student Council representatives who assisted with these projects.

Below are is a student perspective of Remembrance Day.

On the 11^th of November, the Cleveland District State High 2022 Leaders partook in the Remembrance Day service. This ceremony was held opposite the Cleveland RSL, an organisation respected by the Cleveland community. The first event that took place was watching the cadets march to honour the fallen. Next, we placed our beautiful wreath on the memorial to give thanks to all those who sacrificed their precious lives for our freedom. Following that was a minute of silence where we grieved our countries lost soldiers.

Remembrance Day was a meaningful and lovely experience, a privilege for us, the school leaders, to be a part of.

Lest We Forget

2022 Leader

Upcoming Events:

February – Valentine Roses

Icy cups – Swimming Carnival

Honour the Fallen

As a 2021 Junior School Leader I have participated in, and been exposed to, amazing opportunities that support our Veterans. CDSHS participates in Honour Our Fallen, a project which sees students place Australian flags on the graves of fallen veterans at the Cleveland cemetery, in preparation for each ANZAC and Remembrance Day. This is a heartfelt experience for students and families alike, and a physical act of gratitude for their sacrifice and bravery.

In 2021 we, the Junior School Leaders, also established Poppy Gardens to bring this acknowledgement and gratitude into the school grounds, whilst establishing connections with members of the local community. ANZAC Day 2021, we were fortunate to receive a number of crocheted poppies from The Redlands Centre for Women Craft Group. These beautiful poppies were affixed to stems and planted by the Junior school leaders and Ms Edwards. This Remembrance Day we were able to further expand on this concept and received many more poppies from The Redlands Centre for Women Craft Group, Judy Krohn, Marilyn Kennedy, Danielle Bain, Sylvia Heterick, Helen Pugh, Judy Miller, May Rolfie, Val McGregor, Bronwyn Knowles, Love is Stiches Craft Group, and Mrs Dowling and Sports Class. These wonderful ladies created over 800 poppies for our garden. On this occasion we involved the Junior Student Council, allowing us to make many more poppies and fill many more garden beds. Having garden beds full of red poppies placed around the PBC is an impactful sight and the start of a new tradition to remember the remarkable human beings who sacrificed so much for us during war.

Being a member of the Student Council as a Junior School Leader in 2021 has been incredibly rewarding for many reasons. The opportunity to work with Ms Edwards and members of the Redlands RSL Sub Branch and other community members to continue the legacy of our Australian Defence Force veterans has been especially worthwhile.

2021 Junior Leader.

IB Celebration of Learning

On Thursday 11 November, we celebrated the achievements of our 2021 IB class. These students set themselves a target in Year 10 to tackle the academically challenging International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme (IBDP). This course of study is in its fifth year at Cleveland High and remains a rigorous course of study which provides students with an excellent preparation for not only entry to university, but success while they are there.

As well as their six subjects, IB students study Theory of Knowledge, write an Extended Essay on a topic of their choice and participate in Community, Activity and Service (CAS) where they contribute to worthy causes and mentoring in the school and wider community.

If you would like more information on the IBDP, please go to the page on our school website via the link below or contact our IB Co-ordinator, Ms Laura Ewan lewan2@eq.edu.au

We are very proud of this group of young people, like all of our Year 12s, who have faced every obstacle in their way and triumphed. Best of luck for your study goals in 2022.

International Baccalaureate

Language Department News

Year 7 Japanese Comedy Show and Workshop

On Monday, 15 November, 95 of our Year 7 Japanese studying students had the wonderful opportunity of attending the Games Boy JP interactive comedy show and workshop. The show was conducted by Entertainer and Comedian, Mr Sean Murphy. The students were invited to investigate aspects of Japanese culture through interactive theatre, whilst using their language skills, followed by a workshop whereby students played traditional Japanese games. The students thoroughly enjoyed the show, participated well and learnt some new cultural concepts to support their language learning in the classroom.

Chinese Karaoke Competition

On Friday, 5 November we conducted our Annual Chinese Karaoke Competition and our six entertaining contestants battled it out, showcasing their singing, dancing and linguistic skills. We thank our special guests from the Confucius Institute QUT, Director, Mr Antoine Barnaart, Ms Lisha Song and Ms Meixi Liu for their support of our Confucius Classroom, and our judges Deputy Principal, Mr Grant Mitchell, Creative Arts HOD, Mr Simon Watson and Languages HOD, Ms Kylie Venamore. Congratulations to our winners: 1^st Place: Limkyung Choi, 2^nd Place: Sienna Moir & Gabrielle Mol and 3^rd Place: Rowan Dennis & Augustus Harris. Well done to all our amazing contestants, thank you to our wonderful audience and last, but not least, our dedicated Chinese teachers, Ms Ivy Tang, Ms Shichan Tang and Ms Helen Lee for organising this inspiring event!! Xie xie

The Creative Arts team would like to take a moment to farewell our Year 12 students in this newsletter edition. We thank all of our students who have made such a valued contribution to the Arts through their energy and enthusiastic participation in a range of curriculum and extra-curricular activities – you will be sorely missed! To paraphrase Dr Seuss et.al.: Today is your day. You’re off to great places, so be on your way. Don’t cry because it’s over, smile because it happened.

Visual Art News

Last week year 11 Visual Art students attended an excursion as a stimulus trip for their upcoming Year 12 body of work in the unit “Art as Knowledge”. Students engaged in workshops at Dunwich (Goompi), with guest artists Delvene Cockatoo Collins and Sophie Munns. Both artists provided a wealth of knowledge and shared their processes and techniques. Students were thoroughly inspired by the day, returning to school on Wednesday excited to create and prepared to launch into their final year of creativity here at Cleveland DSHS. We wish all year 12 artists the best of luck in 2022.

In other great Visual Art news, four of our Senior Art students were nominated for the Creative Generation Excellence Awards in Visual Art. There was a total of 500 submissions from 181 schools around the state and two of our students received awards, which is an excellent achievement. Congratulations to Indiana Gough, who received for an Excellence Award for her work, Serial Cereal, and to Tia Nicholls for a Commendation Award for her work, Dysarthria. Indiana’s art work will be on display at the Queensland Art Gallery I Gallery of Modern Art – she is one of only 37 students from around Queensland to have her work exhibited, which is a wonderful reflection on both Indiana and the Visual Art department.

Jazz on the Green

On Sunday November 7, our Jazz ensembles entertained an enthusiastic audience of family and friends. Weather moved this event indoors, but the relaxed vibe of Jazz music still pervaded the afternoon. Audiences were treated to the jazz stylings of our junior and senior Jazz ensembles, as well as Drum Line and our smaller vocal ensembles. The concert featured many brave students, improvising solos to encouraging applause. We were also fortunate to have guest artists perform at this event, including the Brisbane Jazz Orchestra who were a great inspiration for our students. Thank you to all of the performers and crew, and to Mr Shane Purnell, Mr Ashley Higgins and Mr Simon Watson for organising this event.

Student Point of View: Chiara Thomson, Senior Creative Arts Ambassador

Wow! I’m not even sure how to start! My time as a Creative Arts Ambassador has been nothing short of wonderful. Honestly, this year has been the best year of my life, and a huge reason for this is because of this position and being involved in all the Creative Arts events and extracurriculars. My favourite part of being an Ambassador is seeing how I can bring smiles to my peers and the younger students in our school. Through art printmaking workshops to being an MC at live music events, to talent shows, wellness weeks, meeting new students and NAIDOC week activities, my fellow Ambassadors and I have improved school culture and community, and that is something I will always remember. I think it's safe to say this opportunity has meant the world to me and it has been sure an honour being the very first Creative Arts Ambassadors at Cleveland High. I will be very sad to see it go but I’m so sure there are many bright smiles coming from our 2022 Creative Arts Ambassadors. So, this is me signing off…… Thank you for everything!

Chiara Thomson 😊

Reminders:

Please return all dance costumes, band uniforms, school instruments and music to your teachers. Thank you.

International Student News

Congratulations to Year 10 IB student Vanessa Feng, who was an individual winner in the 2021 Premier’s Coding Challenge – Open Platform category.

The Premier's Coding Challenge is an annual state-wide initiative that aims to encourage an interest in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) in Queensland students.
The challenge in 2021 was to code an interactive and innovative digital solution to raise awareness of digital wellbeing. Vanessa created a computer game on the Unity platform based around mental health in the cyberworld. Vanessa’s design was particularly outstanding because she created the graphics and artwork herself.

What an outstanding achievement! Well done, Vanessa.

*Mr McKeown, Vanessa and the Honourable Bart Mellish MP, at the Awards Ceremony.*

Congratulations to our international students who enjoyed their Year 12 Formal a few weeks ago. The idea of a school formal if quite unusual for many of our international students; with no comparable event in their home country. We thought they looked amazing!

*Kim from Vietnam and Miss Hendy, International Student Program Coordinator*.

Congratulations to our International Baccalaureate class who recently celebrated the conclusion of their final exams at the IB Celebration of Learning ceremony.

Well done, Richard and Limkyung. You made it!

*Limkyung and her gorgeous homestay mum, Shirley.*

*Richard looking fine in his formal attire.*

School Leavers Program

The Department of Employment, Small Business and Training (DESBT) have created resources for your year 12 students to support the transition from school into employment and/or further education.

The school leavers program connects you to:
* Current job vacancies
* Training opportunities
* Career information

Joining the DESBT mailing list allows you to receive the latest jobs in your area. For further information, please contact www.desbt.qld.gov.au or phone 1800 210 210.