Year 8 & 9 students cooked a range of delicious treats in their ReBoot time and spent Monday assembling platter boxes as part of the Community Connections curriculum. Students then took the platters to ‘Loaves ad Fishes’ in Devonport for distribution to those that will benefit from the extra Christmas treat! Well done to all participants.

Please see two links to the Presentation Evening

Please keep an eye out on the Advocate on Saturday morning for all our Major Award Winners for 2022. 

It’s hard to believe that we have come to the close of our school year.  Students should feel very pleased with their efforts. It has been wonderful watching this year group blossom over the past months, developing in maturity, leadership, and confidence.

This week students have enjoyed a range of activities. On Monday, as part of our Reboot Community Connections, students took their Tas Rocks to the Ulverstone Park and hid them for people to find. On Tuesday, we had our school picnic. Students spent some time at the Ulverstone Water Slide and park before heading to the Surf Club where they got to have a swim in the ocean and play some games on the beach.

On Wednesday, we had our Grade assembly to celebrate a number of successes had throughout the year and term and enjoy a few fun items, as well as our Christmas assembly. This was an enjoyable way to finish the term.

We would like to take this opportunity to wish everyone a happy and safe holiday break and look forward to being your Year Assistant Principal and Coordinator again in 2023.

Wendy Leonard and Shaun Conkie

Assistant Principal and Year Coordinator

 

The 9/10 Packages of Learning class are winding down for the year in the workshop and completing the last of their projects. The class built a team of reindeer for the Council that will be set up in front of a sleigh for the community to interact with. Last week the year 10 boys assisted Mr Mainwaring in digging and pouring piers at UPS for a shed that the VET Construction class built. Along with these group projects, PoL students are also finishing their individual projects and shown here are some cabinets that have been built with hand cut joints to a high degree of accuracy.

This term, Outdoor Education students of 2022 were given the opportunity to opt-in to one of two full day hikes. 

Fiften students summited Mt Roland via the face-track on Friday 9 December. It took the group 5 hours return which is an amazing effort given the strenuous nature of the walk. The crew were met with terrific views early on in the walk and students enjoyed pointing out mountains and landmarks around Ulverstone from on top of the mountain. The hike was lead by Outdoor Ed teachers Miss Clark and Mr Wicks and accompanied by Teacher Assistant, Zac.

Science Engineering Investigation Awards

During terms two and three, students from years nine and ten created and conducted their own science investigations to be submitted into the UTAS Science and Engineering Investigation Awards. Students spent the upcoming weeks of the competition designing and completing interesting and creative poster boards that displayed the contents of their investigation. These poster boards were displayed in the MPA, ready for members of the UTAS team to score. On judging day, each group had ten minutes to explain their investigation to the UTAS team and discuss what their findings were. Students had the chance to learn about the judges and what their careers have been like in the field of science and engineering. The day was spent learning about new ideas and the findings from our peers’ investigations. Overall, the day was a great opportunity for students to ask questions about their future careers and learn about the different ways they can be a part of the science and engineering industries.

Anna Holtum (Year 9)

William Henderson (Year 10), Joely Nixon and Sarah Brewer (Year 9) recently attended the Science Experience that was run and funded by UTAS. We are most grateful for this opportunity.

Here is Joely’s impression of Day 2: 

The second day of the experience was both intriguing and adventurous as we started the day off by touring the Australian Maritime Collage. During the tour we competed in a marine engineering challenge which involved boat making and strategic thinking. After recess, we continued by taking an entomology class which focused on the study of insects. Within the class we were taught how to pin certain insects and how to preserve them properly. To finish the day off we visited the MILE truck which taught us agricultural science and the importance of nitrogen in soil.

As I’m retiring on December 22 after 43 years of teaching in Tasmanian government high schools, I’d like to say a big “thank you” to all the students and their families I’ve worked with over that time, and especially at Ulverstone Secondary College since 2000.

Every day at school since 1980 has been busy, happy and interesting.  I’m thankful for  the unpredictably entertaining “I didn’t see THAT coming” moments   in classrooms because I chose a career with teenagers.  Working with inspirational teachers has led to me unashamedly stealing their brilliant ideas.  I’ve valued 43 years of kindness and classroom support  from people working in non-teaching roles at Savage River, Parklands, Burnie and Wynyard High Schools (and Ulvie!)

The difference you made is beyond measure.  You all know who you are.

My special thanks,

Robyn Lamprey

Recently I was given the opportunity to participate in a nation wide STEM program called Curious Minds. The Curious Minds program was created to encourage young women to participate in subjects involving science, technology, engineering and maths. The program consists of a four day online camp, six month mentoring program and a winter camp in Canberra. Having just completed my online summer camp I am excited to be starting my coaching experience during the school holidays and the new year. The online summer camp consisted of students all over Australia participating in zoom sessions which involved completing workshops and lectures in areas such as cyber safety, communication skills, Olympiad problem solving and mathematical modelling. The main investigation over a few days focused on the importance of micro plastics in the ocean by looking at the amount of plastics within different sizes of sand through a microscope. We were then able to brainstorm ideas as to how we could reduce micro plastics in the ocean. Each day would end with a fun activity or a choose your own adventure plan. Overall the first camp was fascinating and informative and allowed me to meet other passionate young women interested in all aspects of science and maths.