On Wednesday, 16th November our Inter-High Athletics team competed at St Leonards in the NHSSA Division 1 Carnival.  The participation, sportsmanship and motivation of our team was outstanding.  Thank you to all students who competed to the very best of their ability and to the parents who went along and supported. Riverside High School was placed first in both the junior and senior shield and won the overall Division One Carnival and the NHSSA shield.  Congratulations to all team members.

Our transition program for Year 6 students and our associate primary schools has continued throughout Term 4.  Riverside Primary, Trevallyn Primary and West Launceston Primary School students have been able to build positive, supportive relationships with our Year 9 Transition Mentors.  On Wednesday, 23^rd November an Information Evening was held in the school gymnasium for our Year 6 families.  The Year 6 Orientation Day was held on Wednesday, 23rd November also.  Students had the opportunity to spend a full day at our school familiarising themselves with the learning spaces, getting to know the teaching staff and developing friendships.  Thank you to Susan Matkovich and Karen Dudley who have coordinated the Transition Program for our school. 

Student Leaders 2023

Our Prefects for 2023 were announced last week. All students involved in the process should be acknowledged for their hard work, courage and willingness to contribute as a leader at Riverside High School.  Students at Riverside High are provided with a range of leadership roles and responsibilities across the school with our senior students also having the opportunity to fulfill roles such as Year 10 Council Member.

Our 2023 Prefect Elect team and 2023 Peer Mentors have already made a positive contribution with their work during our Grade 6 Orientation Day.  We would like to congratulate both groups for gaining these positions and thank them for the service to the school they will continue to provide.

Prefects

Peer Mentors

Quality Teaching and Learning - Video Clip

Riverside High School has just released our ‘Quality Teaching and Learning’ video clip.  The clip reflects the learning opportunities available to students at Riverside High School, the school values, culture and evidenced base teaching practices.  The clip is located on the school website and school Face Book Page.  Thank you to the students who agreed to assist in the development of the video.

Student Options/Elective Classes for 2023

Students will receive their end of year reports in Week 9 along with a notice detailing the elective subjects which they have been allocated for 2023.

End of Year Assemblies

The Riverside High School Presentation Evening 2022 will be held on Wednesday, 14^th December from 6.30-8.30pm in the school gymnasium.  Award recipients in Year 10 will receive their invitations for family members on Wednesday, 7^th December.  Family members will need to RSVP to the evening.

The final Year 10 Celebration Assembly will be held on Wednesday, 21^st December.  Year 10 and 9 students will attend this special event in Lessons 2 and 3, starting at approximately 10.45am.  The assembly will be live streamed to the Year 7 and 8 students and teachers in their classrooms.  Year 10 students and their families will receive an invitation to this special event closer to the date. The Year 10 assembly will be recorded for parents/guardians who are unable to make it on the day.

Representative Teams

Riverside High School often has students who are successful in making state and national teams and representative teams in the arts, sports and academic pursuits.  We would love to share and celebrate the successes of our currently enrolled students in our fortnightly newsletter.  Please contact our student Administration Office or public email if you are happy to share your child’s achievements.

Ms Jeanna Bolton

This year a number of Grade 9 and 10 students participated in our Career Awareness Program (CAP). Throughout 2022 there have been a range of activities offered to help guide students in their transition to further education and employment post-Year 10. More than 50 students have enjoyed the opportunity to undertake work placements. A range of placements were offered in areas including building and construction, cabinet making, concreting, civil engineering and construction, automotive, forestry, warehousing, electrotechnology, hair and beauty, childcare, early childhood education, hospitality, metal fabrication and agriculture.

Riverside High School began a partnership with the Beacon Foundation. Highlights included Polish, a high impact program with support from Findex where students participated in mock interviews with mentors as well as site visits to help with the introduction of the Civil Construction course which a group of Grade 10 students will enrol in next year.

We have two excursions to come this term with a group of students learning about Renewable Energy with the Home Efficiency Group and Civil Construction with a site tour thanks to the Baker Group.

During Term 3, Grade 10 students were involved in a Transition Day which saw guest speakers from a range of sectors and stakeholders deliver key information. From learning about future pathways from university to apprenticeships through to industry-based information such as careers in forestry and hospitality, our students have been exposed to a variety of sources of information as they make decisions.

Some of our Grade 10 students started Australian School Based Apprenticeships (ASbA) this year. They began their training, in most cases a Certificate II or III, and their learning at school was complemented by one or two days at work. Most students undertaking an ASbA will go into full-time employment at the end of the year and continue their apprenticeship or traineeship.

Grade 9 students this week have received information regarding joining the CAP class for next year. We will be supporting students in an option line throughout 2023 with the learning intentions based around transitioning to their learning post-Year 10 which will include a variety of hands on experiences such as work placements.

Mr Child
Vocational Learning Leader

This term our Grade 9 Transition Mentors have continued to be involved in supporting our 2023 Grade 7 students’ transition to high school. They have visited our associate primary schools, Trevallyn Primary School, Riverside Primary School, and West Launceston Primary School to meet their Grade 6 buddies and get to know them. Each primary school has then visited us to familiarise themselves with the high school environment, find their way around the school and spend time learning how to complete tasks such as reading the timetable and using locks for their lockers.

Our Grade 9 Transition Mentors have shared their knowledge of high school life and answered a variety of questions about what it is like to be a student at Riverside High School and what learning opportunities are available. They have consistently demonstrated our CARE values of Courage, Aspiration, Respect and Endeavour and have represented our school with pride. Our mentors worked with the Grade 6 students during their Orientation Day on Wednesday, 23^rd November and will be supportive and familiar faces for them to recognise in the future.

We would like to sincerely thank the Grade 9 Transition Mentors for their positive commitment to supporting our 2023 Grade 7 students and for the time they have spent getting to know their buddies. We are incredibly proud of their leadership qualities and the way they have represented Riverside High School. Our thanks also go to the wonderful staff at our associate primary schools for their incredible support of this invaluable program.

Mrs Matkovich and Miss Dudley

The Prefects are full of ideas to make the end of the year memorable. While the Trivia Night had to be postponed, the Prefect Board has been gathering items for a Silent Auction. The auction will be held online on Microsoft sheets and open to the whole school from Friday, 24th November at 9:00am until Wednesday, 7th December. Successful bidders for each item will be announced on Friday, 9th December.

Some of the items available include two adult passes for a three-hour Pennicott Wilderness Cruise, a Tas Oak-mounted handmade brass coat rack, two Full Adventure Passes for Penny Royal, a Russell Hobbs 4 slice toaster and an Alps and Amici hamper. A letter will be sent home with more details on the prizes and how to bid. So, make sure to put in a bid to be in the running to win some great experiences or items! The money raised will go towards our Prefect legacy, an outdoor stage.

As the year comes to an end, the festivities of Christmas begin. To celebrate this the Prefect Board will be holding Christmas activities in Week 8. We will be running a range of events such as karaoke and dance sessions during lunch times. There will be a Christmas themed free dress day and food stall on the Friday of that week with all money raised going towards the Giving Tree Appeal. The Giving Tree Appeal is a foundation that aims to create a brighter Christmas for people experiencing hardship or family crisis. By donating to the appeal, we hope to make someone's Christmas a little easier during the festive season.

In Term 3, the Learning Team launched the Student Voice podcast. After months of planning, we aimed to build awareness on community issues; promote school initiatives; and give students a platform to express themselves.

In ten episodes, Student Voice has highlighted the work of the Climate Council and the Debating Team; shared the backgrounds and passions of our teaching staff; promoted the Book Club through reading suggestions; and strengthened the community through our teacher appreciation content.

This project would not have been possible without the support of Mr. Child, the guidance of Ms. Bolton, our interviewees, and of course, our listeners! Student Voice will be continued by the Prefect Board of 2023. We can’t wait to see how it evolves! Stay tuned.

Our Riverside High School Cafeteria Team is proudly showing our Bronze Accreditation Certificate, School Food Matters.

On Thursday, 10^th November and Friday, 11^th November, staff from Launceston and Newstead Colleges conducted enrolment interviews at Riverside High School. Our Grade 10 students were well prepared after attending College Open Days in Term 3 and working on their transition plans in Home Groups throughout the year. The feedback from College staff commended our students on how well organised they were and knowledgeable about College courses and pathways. Students and their families greatly appreciated the time and expertise of College staff in engaging in these important conversations.

In particular we would like to thank the Grade 10 Home Group teachers for their ongoing work in supporting our students with their transition to further education and the College staff for their work and partnership with Riverside High School.   

On Wednesday, 23rd November, thirty-six students made their way to the Devonport Bluff to compete in the Northern Schools Triathlon Challenge. It was a great day for swimming and running but not so much for cyclists who had an incredibly strong headwind to battle through.

The Riverside High School team consisted of six individual entries and eleven teams, with some students competing in both areas.

Riverside had a very successful start to the day in the individual races with Grade 8 student Aurora D placed second in her race. The other racers James, Will, Oryn, Daisy and Sophie also performed very well with most placing within the top fifteen.

The teams competition looked to be a tough start with our 7 teams facing ninety five other competitors.

All junior boys saw some success placing within the top fifteen. The teams comprising of Archer, Ben, Beau and Sam, Wil and Keelan finished 2^nd & 3^rd respectively. The junior grade 7 and 8 girls teams put in some hard work and had fun along the way.

Our Grade 8 powerhouse team, Aurora and Thomas, blew away the competition with Aurora leading the pack in both the swim and the run, whilst Thomas was able to extend this lead with an excellent ride to the conditions.

Our Grade 10 team of Zach J, Sam H and Jesse D had some fierce competition as well but were able to stick with the pack allowing Jesse to run away in the final leg, gaining the boys a 2^nd place in their age groups.

Poppy W and Isha D put in an outstanding effort in all race sections and managed to take out 1^st place in the Grade 9 girl category while also managing to come in before quite a few Grade 10, 11 and 12 teams.

All students should be proud of their efforts and comaraderie, suporting not only all Riverside High School students but cheering on the competition as well.

Miss Groves

On Saturday 12^th and Sunday 13^th November, 80 students across ten teams represented Riverside High School in the Northern High School Basketball Championships. Each team demonstrated fantastic teamwork and sportsmanship and looked great in the new uniforms and should be proud of how they represented Riverside High School. Riverside achieved some great results with the Senior Girls Division 2 team finishing 2^nd, the Senior Boys Division 1 finishing 4th. Congratulations to the Senior Girls Division 1 team who finished 1^st and the Junior Boys Division 1 team who finished 3^rd.  Both teams have qualified for the State Championships being held on 26^th and 27^th November. Thank you to all the staff, parents, supporters and students who were involved over the weekend. We would love to see you all there again to support the two teams hopefully on their way to become State Champions.

Mr Beardwood

Riverside High School had a tremendous day out at the Inter-High Athletics on Wednesday, 16^th November at St Leonards Athletics Centre. Eighty-four of our students represented the school in what was a successful day. We managed to bring back all three shields, the Junior, the Senior and the Overall. We have not done this since 2019.

More importantly, it was the student performances that were really pleasing to see. From the students who may have only been in a few events and helped with the running of the field events, to the record breakers, the entire team all chipped in. Thanks must also go to those students who put their hand up when we were an athlete down. All of these moments and efforts go a long way to our day’s success, and this is just a portion of the positive support we witnessed.

There were many highlights throughout the day with individual and team success, so unfortunately, we cannot name them all, but here is just a snapshot.

All of the Grade 8 and 9 girls winning five 100m races in a row, then winning their relay and the Grade 9 girls breaking the record.

Annabelle giving it her absolute best in the most gruelling race of the day, the 400m.

The Grade 7’s getting a taste of what Inter-Highs are like. Some great support and bundles of energy, saw many of them win and/or place in their events.

The Grade 8 and 9 boys relays – clean changes and a convincing win for both.

Eli running 2 x 100m races – winning the false start, but just missing out the second time.

Aurora getting the trifecta in the middle to long distance events, winning the 800m by 10 seconds and winning the 400m and 1500m.

Elliot being challenged in his Long Jump and Triple Jump, collecting 2^nd place but receiving a 1^st in his Shot Put and 100m.

The Poulton’s being amazing with field event support at the pits.

The RHS staff – being adaptable and encouraging to our team.

We cannot forget our record breakers! Incredible!!

Congratulations must also go to those individuals who were nominated to collect the shields on behalf of the school. These students were stand-out performers for Riverside too:

Oryn & Olivia collecting the Junior Shield

PJ & Izzy collecting the Senior Shield

Campbell & Rori receiving the Overall Shield

Reminder:  Safe behaviour when leaving the bus

• Wait until the bus has stopped before moving to exit the bus. Be aware of outside conditions at your stop and exit in an orderly fashion.
• Once you are of the bus, stand back from the road and the bus.
• Never cross the road until the bus has moved away and you can see clearly in all directions.
• Cross the road where and when it is safe to do so, use crossings/traffic lights where available.

School Crossings

Reminder – Safety when Crossing the Road and using the school crossings.

Choose the safest place to cross.

Think about when it is safe to cross – look and listen.

Pedestrians should use and obey pedestrian signals and crossings.

Pedestrians must use a marked crossing if they are within 20 metres of the crossing.

Pedestrians must follow the directions of a traffic attendant or crossing monitor while crossing.

Parent Parking

We urge all parents to use the designated parking for student pickups. Unfortunately, we do not have large capacity for parent parking at the end of the day. The yellow NO STANDING line marking must be honoured because Buses cannot drive safely with cars parked there.

All parents need to park in the designated areas past the bus parking zone please.

Could parents also please be mindful that there are designated bus stops on both sides of the West Tamar Highway which are not to be blocked when dropping off and picking up students from school.