Welcome back to a new Semester at Foxwell State Secondary College. 

As part of our NAIDOC Week 2021 celebrations I acknowledge the Traditional Custodians of the land on which we gather for learning, and pay our respects to the Elders past and present.

I extend that respect to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people in our College Community.

Naidoc Week allows a time for all of us to celebrate the history, cultures and achievements of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people.

This year the theme of HEAL COUNTRY means everyone coming together to take care of First Nation's lands, waters, sacred sites, cultures and languages. 

Although there have been some complexities as a result of COVID 19 cases in our broader community, we have been quite fortunate in 2021 to have continued with consistent at-school learning. This has enabled us to build stronger learning partnerships with our students as they work towards their 'Success' goals.

Remember that "Success at Foxwell is being empowered as a learner; connecting, contributing and flourising academically, personally, socially and emotionally". Our commitment to High Expectations equalled with High Support enables all of our students to work towards their potential and flourish. 

As is normal practice in Junior Secondary education, we have two unique semesters of learning. On Monday all students in Years 7 and 8 were provided with their Semester 2 timetable. This week as the students meet with their new teachers and potentially new class peers, our staff are reminding students of our high expectations for their learning and social behaviours. As parents you play an integral role in the success of your child in both these learning and social development domains. We encourage you to engage with your child in relation to their new timetable, subjects, and the units of work they are involved in for Semester 2. 

We are looking forward to welcoming ALL parents to the upcoming parent and community engagement events. Next week we welcome parents/carers to the Student-Parent-Teacher Conferences where parents can engage with their child and their teacher around their strengths, achievements, and areas for development. It is important that your child attends and leads these sessions as part of their personal development. Please ensure that your child brings with them their iPad so they can share with you some of their work.

Next week, we ask ALL Year 8 students to bring their parents/carers to the Year 9 2022 Information Evening. At this session you will learn all about our unique and innovative approach to Year 9 education. This is a must-attend event as critical information will be provided in relation to your child's subject selections for their important Year 9 learning program. 

At Foxwell State Secondary College we have very high expectations of student's behaviours in and out of the College environment. We pride ourselves on our proactive approach providing a safe and supportive culture that promotes learning.

We are completely aware that students who are entering, or are in, their teenage years can sometimes push boundaries as they struggle to find their place in the world and determine their self-identity. We work with our students on our agreed SPIRIT Values every day, and we also engage in more comprehensive approach through the Respectful Relationships curriculum.

We provide students opportunities for social and emotional learning in self-awareness, self-management, social awareness, relationships, ethics, values, social norms, stereotypes, human rights, risk and responsible decision-making. Evidence shows that this social and emotional learning leads to:

• improved social and emotional skills, self-concept, bonding to school and classroom behaviour
• less distruptive behaviour, aggression, bullying and delinquent acts
• reduced emotional distress such as depression, stress and social withdrawal.

When required our College takes a firm reactive response to inappropriate behaviours. We adhere to our College's Student Code of Conduct when investigating any incidents of misbehaviour, when communicating with students and their parents/carers about the incidents, and in determining the most appropriate consequence for the behaviour. Although we are not able to provide all parties with the specifics of the consequences, please be assured that we do take a firm stance against inappropriate behaviour, harassment, bullying etc to ensure that all students in our school and broader school community can feel safe in their learning environment. 

Once again I ask parents to play their role in ensuring the broader school community stays physically and social-emotionally safe. Please know where your child is at all times. Please monitor or restrict their social media behaviours. Please remind them of their responsibilities as members of our positive local community, and please work collaboratively with us if you have any concerns. Together we can ensure that these precious years of your child's life are memorable for all the right reasons. 

Each year all Queensland State Schools offer parents, students and staff the opportunity to provide feedback about the school over the previous 12 month period. You are invited to participate in this year's School Opinion Survey (SOS). We value your feedback. This year the SOS will be distributed directly to students and parents using the email addresses held at the school. All invitations will contain a link with a unique user id and password as part of that link. The survey can be accessed by simply clicking on the link.

We have so much to celebrate at Foxwell so keep an eye out on our Facebook page and our newsletter as we share the highlights of our school and student successes. This week in particular I acknowledge the powerful NAIDOC week celebrations and the moving ceremony lead by our students, staff and family members. 

Congratulations also to the Foxwell State Secondary College Athletics Age Champions and each and every member of our large Athletics team who are in the final training preparations for the upcoming Broadwater Athletics Championship. Good luck to our Foxwell Mariners. 

Until next week.

Kym Amor

This week, two new staff members joined our ever-growing Foxwell Team. We are excited to welcome Ms Melissa Furtado, our Industry Liaison Officer, and Ms Newton our Student Services Officer, both of whom have settled in very quickly, bringing with them a wealth of experience and a genuine interest in suppporting our students and families.

My name is Melissa Furtado and I am the Industry Liaison Officer at Foxwell State Secondary College. I have been a teacher for eleven years working in schools around Australia, Brazil and have extensive experience in Japan.  I enjoy learning languages, travelling and helping students to achieve their full potential. I am excited to start working with the students of FSSC to focus on their career planning, work experience and open their eyes to certificate and apprenticeship programs as they transition into the senior school. I am located in the Administration Building. Please stop and introduce yourself if you see me out and about. 

I am Amanda Newton, and I have been with Education Queensland for 15 years. During that time, I have worked mostly as an Educational Assistant alongside students in Learning Support and Disability. I am so grateful and excited to be given the opportunity to take on a new role within the school environment. I look forward to supporting all students and families at Foxwell. 

As per previous communication, Parent-Teacher Conferences will be held next Tuesday 20th July from 3.10pm to 7.30pm. These Conferences are an invaluable opportunity to meet with your child’s teachers and further explore their progress this year. It is also helpful to gain insights from the teachers regarding feedback, strategies for improvement and any other considerations that may assist your child in developing their abilities even further.

The online booking system for you to arrange conferences with your child’s teachers, particularly those who have requested an interview via your child’s Report Card, can be accessed via this link.  Please ensure that you book only one conference timeslot for each of your child's teachers, even if they are the teacher for more than one subject. This will allow us to maximise opportunities for teachers to meet with as many families as possible. It is worthwhile booking interviews as soon as possible as teachers’ schedules fill up quickly. Please note that the following teachers will not be available for conferences on Tuesday:

• Tania Noskoff
• Marnie Shillig
• Racquel Wilson (we also have Ms Collette Wilson on staff. Please ensure that you are booking with the correct teacher)

All bookings must be made by 12.00pm, Monday 19th July. After this time, families will need to contact teachers directly to schedule an appointment for another date.

Should you wish to discuss your child’s progress in these teachers’ classes, please contact the Head of Department of the particular subject area. You are welcome to book interviews with Semester 1 teachers of your child, even if they will not be continuing with that subject (such as an Art elective) or with that teacher (due to a change in teachers) in Semester 2. A conversation focusing on learning behaviours and strategies for improving progress can translate and be meaningful across teachers and subjects.

Learning dialogues are effective in engaging all partners in your child’s learning so it is helpful to make this a habit or routine in your home. We look forward to seeing you on 20th July in our Sports Performance Hall for our Conferences. Please note that our canteen will be open with cold and hot drinks and snacks available for purchase. 

TERM 3 Week 1 2021

Years 7 and 8 have returned from their break with great enthusiasm, ready to commence their studies. They have been amazed by how much the new build has progressed and are looking forward to visiting the new Science laboratories when they are ready later this year.

Year 7.

Students will be undertaking the study of the water cycle, its sustainable use, and the importance of this resource by studying what relationship we have with the environment and how water connects us on the Gold Coast.

Living in the Gold Coast we have the privilege of having plentiful of water which helps shape our active and outdoor lifestyle. As water is a precious and finite resource it is crucial for our students to understand the interconnectedness of water with the places, people, and the environment so we can best utilise this resource.

This important topic comes with some experimentation that will be based on the water cycle with students involved in practicals on precipitation, condensation, and evaporation.

Year 8.

The students have emerged excited and eager to embark on studying the physical world of chemical changes. One class has already been fortunate to participate in a practical observing chemical changes. All classes will have the opportunity to become involved in this hands-on experiment where basic household reactants, such as vinegar and baking soda, react to produce enough gas to inflate a balloon.

Over the term, students will be inquiring into how our chemical footprint affects the world in which we live. This is a really big question that they will face into their future and what a fun way to start. They will be investigating, designing, and planning their own experiments to observe chemical change and the implications these chemical changes might bring.

Let’s hope Foxwell students continually challenge themselves in the space of science.

DANCE TROUPE – Star Bound Dance Competition

It is with great excitement that the Foxwell State Secondary College 2021 Dance Troupe students, led by Mrs Lauren Riches will compete next Thursday July 22^nd in the Star Bound Dance Competition at Somerset College from 6:30pm.

Students have been rehearsing their two competition pieces since term one; a musical theatre routine, “Six” and a contemporary performance, “Rise Up”. Students have been supported by Dance Captain, Josephine McMurtrie.

Friends and families can purchase tickets online at: https://www.trybooking.com/BSPGH  in the section ‘Thursday 22 July 202 6:30PM – 9:30PM’.

STRINGS ENSEMBLE – Gold Coast Eisteddfod Wednesday 11^th August

We are so fortunate that the Gold Coast Eisteddfod were able to accommodate the Strings performers in the upcoming competition. With a change of location, our Strings students will be competing in their first ever competition with their incredible instructor Mrs Helen Wyatt on Wednesday 11^th August at the Gold Coast Youth Orchestra Centre in Ashmore. Ticket availability is still to be confirmed so keep an eye out for more information soon.

CHOIR – Gold Coast Eisteddfod Tuesday 24^th August

Our amazing choir made up of 35 enthusiastic Year 7 and 8 students has been mentored and taught by Mrs Kate Shaw since the start of the year. Performing at HOTA on Tuesday 24^th August at 5.30pm, these students will wow audiences with their amazing voices and excited smiles.

They will perform a repertoire of 4 songs that will demonstrate their vocal range and their amazing talent.

We wish all of our performers the very best and look forward to celebrating the wonderful work of our dedicated students and teachers in the coming weeks.

2021 Athletics Carnival

We are pleased to announce the overall age champions:

12 Years Boys – Tom Deegan

12 Years Girls – Layla Mathias

13 Years Boys – Sean Hepi

13 Years Girls – Panatahi Tonga-Awhikau

14 Years Boys – Brad Garland

14 Years Girls – Sommer Morandini.

Overall house winners:

4^th place – Oakey

3^rd place – Moreton

2^nd place – Coral

1^st place – Pacific

Congratulations to Pacific on winning the inaugural Foxwell State Secondary College Athletics Carnival


All Schools Touch trials

Squad lists have been finalised and students would have found out if they made the  squads last term. There were final trials on Wednesday  to finalise the teams. Good luck to all students.

Inter-School Sport

A reminder that interschool sport is NEXT Tuesday,  Week 2. Looking forward to seeing our teams continue playing with the Foxwell Spirit. Go Foxwell Mariners!

Broadwater Trials

Currently Girls 10-12 yrs and 13-15 yrs Cricket trials for Broadwater representation are being advertised. If students are interested, please see Mr Taylor for a note and details about the trial.

Addison Newlan - Congratulations

Ariana Griffiths

Relationships change during the teenage years. Although your child might want more privacy and more time with friends, family love and support are still very important. They help your child learn how to make responsible decisions and build caring relationships.

Adolescence can be a difficult time - your child is going through rapid physical and emotional changes. Young people aren’t always sure where they fit, and they’re still trying to work it out. Adolescents also need support with peer influences and relationships.

During this time your family can be a secure emotional base where your child feels loved and accepted, no matter what’s going on in the rest of their life. Your family can build and support your child’s confidence, self-belief, optimism and identity.When your family sets rules, boundaries and standards of behaviour, you give your child a sense of consistency and predictability. And believe it or not, your life experiences and knowledge can be really useful to your child – they just might not always want you to know that!

Supportive and close family relationships can reduce risky teenage behaviour and your child’s feelings of being connected to school, and their desire to do well academically. Strong family relationships can go a long way towards helping your child grow into a well-adjusted, considerate and caring adult.

The attached link is a letter from teens to parents which provides strategies on how we can connect and understand our teenagers.

https://grownandflown.com/letter-from-teen-to-parents/

As a new term begins it is important to support children to manage their time and organise their learning. The more organised a child is, the less stress/or anxiety they will experience around school attendance, learning and assessment. It is important in these early years of high school that children establish sound study practices and habits which will continue to serve them well as they move through their education. Parents/carers working in partnership with schools to establish these practises and routines at home is a powerful force in young people's lives.

Over the next few weeks, we will provide some ideas to support children to become better organised.

Develop a Folder System on the iPad

Ensure children have a Notability folder set up for each subject as per instructions from their class teachers.

It is also a good idea to have Folders set up for each subject in the Files App on their iPad and even better to have this Folder system set up on One Drive (on-line) so if their iPad is damaged, or accidents occur, no work is lost.

Knowing where to save and retrieve items is critical to reducing stress and ensuring that student work can be accessed, worked on and retrieved at all times. 

Write everything down - record homework and revision tasks in a consistent place – planner/calendar

No one has a perfect memory and trying to remember everything can be stressful.

Ensure children have a Notability document or other diary/calendar app or a paper diary/notebook solely dedicated  to writing their daily homework tasks an/or revision tasks in. Alternately this could be added to an Outlook Calendar.

When children write everything down they’ll be less anxious because they won't be relying on their brains as storage devices. It also allows adults in their life to encourage them and to track their progress more easily.

Develop a Routine – Weekly Schedule

Consistency is key to student success – developing a weekly schedule which accounts for all outside of school commitments and activities will help create a routine.

It’s not always possible to stick 100% to a routine but at least having a framework will help keep children on track and give parents/carers an opportunity to support them.

Block times in your child’s schedule for things that matter most

Blocking time in a child’s schedule is a critical time management strategy. If children don’t do this, other things, which are less important, will fill their schedule.

Including times in the schedule for children to complete homework tasks, revision or preparing assessment as well as time for exercise and relaxing with family and friends,  is important.

Help children to honour their commitments to things that matter the most.

Once a week, review the upcoming events in your planner/calendar

Once a week have children take time to see what important events and deadlines are coming up. This will help to ensure that important things don’t get missed.

Reviewing the upcoming schedule will help children stay on top of things and keep them calm and in control. This will also inform any adjustment to the weekly schedule.

Negotiate rules for learning tasks

Set some specific rules with your child – such as ‘complete all assignments at least two days before they are due’ or ‘start preparing for an exam or a prac, a week before.’

Please negotiate rules that will best support your child, their personality and learning behaviours.

If a task takes less than 2 minutes, do it immediately - don’t wait!

The two minute rule was popularised by productivity expert, David Allen. When children follow this rule, small tasks don’t pile up and become overwhelming.

Things like texting a friend, sending a friend notes/handout from class or getting a consent form signed, are all quick tasks that can be actioned straight away.

When children do these tasks immediately, they will feel a sense of accomplishment as it’s one more thing off the ‘to do’ list.

Break down big tasks into bite-size, manageable chunks

Breaking down big tasks and assignments makes them seem less overwhelming to children. At Foxwell, for many more complex assessments tasks, we identify multiple checkpoints which chunks the task into manageable parts and assign timelines to each checkpoint.

For some students , breaking these checkpoints down even further may be required in order to ease anxiety or support productivity. Students may ask their teachers for assistance with this, if needed. Alternately, parents can work with their child to deconstruct checkpoints further.

Create personalised deadlines

Once the Term 3 Assessment Calendar is released next week, create a schedule of deadlines with your child which will better allow your child to manage their time and their ability to meet all the submission dates - drafts and final copies as well as be adequately prepared for any exams or practical assessments.

Personalised deadlines will support your child to present their best work rather than a last minute, night before/morning of, effort which is often not a true reflection of their ability.

Teach children how to say, ‘No!’

If you want your child to be organised and effective with their home learning they cannot say yes to everything – there will need to be compromises and trade-offs made.

So decide on the boundaries you want to set. Negotiate with your child how many times they can see their friends each week, what time commitment is ok/too much for extra-curricular activities and sports.

Children need to practice saying no to things that are outside these boundaries. Saying no to things that do not matter most.  When children do too much, are over committed, they feel overwhelmed. It is at this age we need to support children to learn that it’s ok to not be involved in everything they are asked to be involved in. Children should never feel guilty when they say no to friends or activities which are outside their time capability. We need to build children's skills in managing FOMO (Fear of Missing Out) so they feel they have control over themselves and their activities.

Remember we want our children to be busy, happy and productive but not overwhelmed.

Tune in next time for some more ideas to help organise your child to maximise learning and minimise stress.

We are now inviting students to commit to our upcoming, inaugural Year 8, Term 4 camp.   As notified previously, the camp will be held at Camp Kokoda/Kokoda Park, Maroon Dam from Wednesday 13^th to Friday 15^th of October.  We can now confirm that the total cost is $325 and must be paid in full by 1st of October 2021.

The camp will be set up to cater for all levels of challenge from your standard style camp (bunk rooms, mess hall, toilet blocks, showers) through to the challenging expedition style camp (tents, hiking to camp grounds, student food cooking and preparation, composting toilets/wet wipes and dam showers). 

Although we hope that all children will want to experience both styles of camp - for a night each (or two nights of challenge) to help develop their resilience, teamwork and ability to come together as a group, we understand that not all children may feel comfortable with an expedition experience.

Students will be asked shortly to indicate their preferences for style of camp. Both styles of camp options will provide children with a similar (not the same) range of activities. Both styles of camp will run at the same time and will be offered to all children from the outset.

Any student wishing to attend must have a signed and completed permission form returned plus a deposit paid, no later than 23^rd July, 2021 to ensure that their spot is secured.

Camp permission notes will be emailed today with all relevant information. Alternately, hard copy permission notes will be available from the Learning Hub next week.

All Year 8 Students will receive an invoice by Monday 19^th July 2021 for $325.00.

A $30.00 deposit is required by 23^rd July 2021 – Please click the link on the invoice you receive via email and make the $30.00 deposit payment.

Full payment is required by 01^st October 2021.

Camp payment suggested schedule:

$30.00– 23/07/2021

$30.00– 30/07/2021

$30.00– 06/08/2021

$30.00– 13/08/2021

$30.00– 20/08/2021

$30.00– 27/08/2021

$30.00– 03/09/2021

$30.00– 10/09/2021

$30.00– 17/09/2021

$30.00– 24/09/2021

$25.00- 01/10/2021

Students who have fees outstanding from 2020 and do not have a payment arrangement in place will be unable to participate. Families who are currently under a CentrePay arrangement can make contact directly with the Business Manager to discuss payment options. 

All payments can be made using the BPOINT link on the invoice that you receive via email.

For finance related enquiries regarding camp, please contact the Business Manager – Kimberley Knowles – finance@foxwellssc.eq.edu.au

For activity related enquiries, please contact Dane Anderson on 55 553 333 or dande230@eq.edu.au

It is important that you are aware of the amount of time your child misses from school and how this time adds up across the year. Any time off school impacts a child's learning and the more time off, the more significant the impact. In addition to the impact on learning, time absent from school impacts on relationships with peers and teachers as well as on the child's feelings of connection and belonging here at school.

We understand that there are times when children are absent due to illness and this is unavoidable. When your child is absent however, it is imperative that you provide an explanation - this can be done via the sick line or as a response to the absence text which is issued each morning. 

Our goal at Foxwell is 95% attendance. Many of you will have received contact from us when your child falls significantly below this target and we have concerns for your child's learning and wellbeing. Please work with us to ensure that your child has a positive experience at Foxwell and that they attend regularly.

If you have concerns about your child's attendance and perhaps reluctance to attend school, please contact the relevant Head of Students - Year 7 - Mr Braiden Ruge bruge3@eq.edu.au or Mrs Elle Bullock - emgil0@eq.edu.au

In addition, please be reminded that our College bell rings at 8.35am and that learning in classrooms starts at 8.45am. Students entering classrooms after this time are missing out on valuable learning. Learning continues in classrooms until 3pm. Please, if it can be avoided, do not make appointments which would require students to be collected early from school. 

Every minute of every day counts!

We are excited to announce that we are now registered to submit referrals for Students FairPlay vouchers!

Please email admin@foxwellssc.eq.edu.au if you require a referral. 

Coming soon the Foxwell Fun Run Colour Explosion.

Registrations open on the 8^th of August and closes on the 13^th of September.

Details on how to register and the great prizes to be won will be sent home with students soon.

Students participating in this event need to be registered before the 14^th of September, with $10 minimum raised.

For any enquiries or extensions to payments / payment plans, please contact the P&C on pandc@foxwellssc.eq.edu.au.

Parents and carers if you would like to help with this fun event please email us on pandc@foxwellssc.eq.edu.au , we would love for you to come and have fun with our students. A sub-committee will be formed shortly to plan for this.

Our next P&C meeting will be held in the learning hub on the 10^th of August at 6.30 PM, everyone welcome.

Foxwell State Secondary College is using the new Check In Qld app to help keep you COVID safe. The Check In Qld app has been developed to help the Queensland Government with contact tracing in the event of a COVID-19 outbreak.

Foxwell State Secondary College is adopting the app to help us collect your details quickly, easily and electronically as you arrive.

When you next visit, you’ll be requested to register your details using the Check In Qld app. We need to collect school visitor details to support the Queensland Government’s contact tracing efforts. The Check In Qld app is a safe, secure and convenient way to do this.

Your details will be stored securely by the Queensland Government for contact tracing only (if required). Foxwell State Secondary College won’t have access to this information, nor will any third parties.

When you sign up to use the Check In Qld app, the app will remember your details, saving you time in the future and providing easy check-in across other Queensland venues using Check In Qld.

The Check In Qld app is voluntary.

When visiting the school, including for all school events, checking in is required – but you don’t have to use the app.

For our community members who don’t have a smartphone or aren’t comfortable downloading apps, we can take your details using another method.

You can download the Check In Qld app from the Google Play Store or the Apple App Store now – simply search Check In Qld. The Check In Qld app is compatible with the Apple iPhone, iPad and iPad touch operating iOS 10.0 or later, as well as Android devices using Android 5+.

Please visit www.covid19.qld.gov.au/check-in-qld for step-by-step instructions. Alternatively, we can help you download and set up the app when you next visit. 

Once you’re set up, all you need to do on your next visit is scan the QR code or type in the unique code provided.

The annual suite of School Opinion Surveys will be conducted across the first three weeks of this term. All families, school staff as well as students in Year 8 will be invited to participate. We encourage you to take this opportunity to have your say about what our College does well, and how we can improve. To have your say, check your email for an invitation from the Department of Education titled School Opinion Survey for parents and caregivers, 2021. Can’t find your invitation?  If your family has more than one parent/caregiver, check that they haven’t received the invitation and/or check your junk email folder.

The School Opinion Survey is open until Friday, 30 July 2021. The survey can be completed as soon as the invitation is received and will take approximately 5 minutes using a computer, tablet or smart phone. Parents/caregivers who do not have access to the internet at home are welcome to complete their survey online at the College. A computer/tablet is at the Parent Counter in the Administration Building.

As always, if there is something you believe the College needs to know in order to enhance what it is we do well or to improve, please let us know by either sending an email or contacting administration, who can direct you to the staff member or member of Executive who is best placed to action your feedback. You can find out more about the ways in which you can contribute to our College by accessing our Foxwell Parent and Community Framework.