Middle School e-News 17

Careers, Course and Pathways Sessions

 

17 career.png

Rachel Burke

Careers Advisor

To support to students who require ongoing support with their future plans, I am providing a series of one-on-one sessions focusing on their options, direction and future pathways. These will start in the Careers Office in Term Four this year and follow through to next year.  

Rather than just a one-off meeting, students will attend fortnightly sessions for however long they need (approximately 10 weeks) to thoroughly explore career options, look through their options and commit to a plan/ pathway until such time they want to review it and change to a different defined pathway.  

Resilience - A link to the ̨UUApp Learner Profile

Resilience is the ability to meet and overcome challenges in ways that maintain or promote well-being. It incorporates attributes like grit, persistence, initiative, and determination.

We build resilience when we push students gently to the edges of their intellectual, emotional, social, and physical comfort zones. Our support and encouragement as they take risks, overcome challenges, and grow from failure helps them learn to bounce back from life's ups and downs.

Some useful resources may be found at:

iPad Purchasing for 2018

Daniel Budd

DIRECTOR OF LEARNING TECHNOLOGIES

Dear Parents and Guardians

As you are aware ̨UUApp is committed to innovation in our teaching practices and the foundation of this innovation is our 1-to-1 iPad Program. As the devices mature so too do the systems which allow us to manage the device in the classroom. In order to take advantage of these systems we have organised two methods for you to purchase an iPad for your children.

METHOD 1: College preferred supplier

We have worked to develop a relationship with a local Apple Channel Partner to set a bulk order price. If you purchase through Winthrop Australia the device will be delivered to the school and will be configured prior to pick-up. You will NOT need to attend the setup days described below.

/byod/

METHOD 2: Your choice of retailer

If you wish to purchase from a local retail store you are more than welcome to. However, the requirement will be that you attend during the iPad Configuration week to ensure the device is configured ready for the start of the academic year. These sessions have been in place for a number of years.

Whilst there is no need to setup an appointment, we do ask that you backup any devices to iCloud and have your Apple ID username, password and any devices linked for two-factor authentication on-hand. This will ensure that we can get you up and running quickly.

Device Recommendations

To ensure that your son or daughter is able to participate in all learning activities and install the necessary applications for their classes we strongly recommend the following minimum requirements for the device which you purchase.

·       iPad Air 2 32GB WiFi ONLY - iPad Mini is not suitable and Cellular device is not required. Upgrade to iPad 5th Gen, iPad Pro 10.5" or iPad Pro 12.5" at parents discretion.

To ensure your device is protected we also recommend that you purchase a hard wearing case, consider a protection plan and purchase the compulsory applications. The College recommends the following.

·       STM Dux Case – or alternative case.

·       AppleCare+ - AppleCare Protection Plan provides hardware coverage directly from Apple and includes up to two incidental damage coverage, each subject to a $65 service fee.

·       $50 iTunes Gift Card – Used to purchase compulsory Apps (e.g. Explain Everything, Popplet and Book Creator)

Other accessories e.g. Apple Pencil or Smart Keyboard can be purchased at parents discretion.

As the Apple iPad is a very popular device, particularly in education, the demand for devices are also stressed around the Christimas holiday period. For this reason, we recommend that parents purchase student devices prior to the end of the academic year.

Further information is available on the College website and if you have any questions regarding the iPad Program or the purchasing options please contact me directly - /byod/

 

Year 7 Pastoral Program – Study Skills

Mark Barron

Head of Year 7

In Pastoral Period this week, students built on their previous work on the topic of “Study Skills”

After the completion of the following activities, students identified their learning styles.

  1. Study Skills Checklist
  2. How to Study
  3. I am ready to Study
  4. How you feel about school
  5. What is my learning style
  6. Learning style Quiz
  7. My Learning Style.
  8. Make a Schedule
  9. My Schedule

Students are now working on individual tasks tailored to their needs.  This will aid with their studies leading up to assessments and are recommendations for some of the approaches to be taken when working at home.

Some of the activities include.

·       Note Taking

·       Outlining

·       Sub Topics and Details

·       Idea Grams

·       Working Backwards

 

Year 8 Pastoral Period

 

Chanel Fenwick

Head of Year 8

This week the Year 8 cohort have undertaken gender specific activities for the Pastoral Period.

This session has been planned and provided to cater for the needs of the students, as a better understanding of these topics will better equip our students for their years ahead.

The girls looked at the dynamics of ‘Girl World’ and how to deal with the differing dynamics that groups have. This session was all about empowering girls and was facilitated by Chanel Fenwick and Melanie Trant. 

The boys are undertook a session called ‘Boy’s World’ which looked at the use of respectful language towards each other and girls. This session also involved some physical activity and was planned and presented by Simon Messer and Sheldon McIntrye.

 

Year 9 Pastoral Program - Students will be focusing on Cyberbullying

Yvette Pearce

Head of Year 9

 Students viewed videos and had discussions focusing on “The Bystander”. Questions included, What does it take to act?

So, what are the reasons ‘good people’ sometimes do nothing?

• Fear • Apathy • Laziness • Insecurity • Selfishness • Ignorance • Lack of empathy

And what does it take for a ‘good person’ to finally act?

•   Empathy• Courage• Conviction• Resilience• Compassion

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