
Telephone: 9488 1900 • Fax: 9481 6135 • info@fitzroyhs.vic.edu.au • Falconer Street NORTH FITZROY 3068
Our TeamsSapphire Indigo Jet Scarlet (Post Compulsory)

September 2007

School Council News

This is the first of what will become a regular report on the activities of the school council and its sub committees.

Building Works

In June the State Government announced that it will fund the construction of a new building for VCE students. Since then the Built and Natural Environment Sub Committee and the architects have been in discussion with the Department to finalise the budget and agree on details of the building program. Our aim is to have additional rooms available for the start of 2008 and to complete the new building for the start of 2009.

We now have agreement to proceed with the construction of additional rooms in the gym - within the roofline - and the works will be put out to tender within a fortnight. While it is expected that students and the community users will continue to have access while the work is being done - we will be ensuring that the area is safe.

There are still some items to finalise agreement on with the Department about the new building. The Committee is working to ensure that the building design incorporates environmental sustainability features and that the ICT facilities and services are up to date. We are hopeful that these matters will be resolved in the next week or so.

VCE and AIM report

The Education sub committee has been reviewing the schools plans for the conduct of the VCE programs and considering data on the schools educational performance. The number of students doing VCE will increase substantially next year and the year 10 students are now looking at their subject choice. The school will be offering a comprehensive range of subjects in Years 11 and 12 and is also developing a model of student support.
The Council considered a report on the Achievement Improvement Monitor (AIM) results for Year 9 students. The Government supports these tests to provide information to parents on their child’s performance. On an overall level the AIM results at Fitzroy High indicated a high level of performance from the students and excellent progress from their Year 7 results. The Council discussion highlighted that a key focus of AIM testing – from the schools point of view - is on providing information to the school that helps better meet individual student needs.

School Budget

During Term 4 Tim Fitzgerald and the Finance sub committee will prepare an operating budget for next year. All government schools must raise funds locally to cover the full cost of the education provided. This budget is approved and monitored by the School Council and expenditures and financial reports are considered at each meeting.

The revenue for this operating budget comes from government grants, funds raised by facility hire and fund raising events and the materials and services charges.

The school runs on a very tight budget. The staff and the Council sub committees have been proactive in obtaining grants, and raising funds from facilities hire and events. The materials and services charges provides over 80% of the funds that are available to support the provision of books, other resources and materials, equipment, furniture needed to support programs.

The Council will be considering the overall level of payment made in 2007 in preparing the budget for 2008. All payments for the 2007 materials and services charges should have been received by now … but it is still not too late to pay.

If you have not paid the materials and services charge – please do so. The payments will not only resource the school programs. It also means that the school can plan with confidence that the resources needed for developing and expanding its programs –will be available - and the school can also keep the overall level of the charges at a lower cost.

Joe Burke
President

Principal’s Report, 20 September 2007

At the end of each term, we ask teachers to reflect on their experiences. This term teachers were asked to describe some of the positive moments for them. I would like to share some of these thoughts with you, as I think they show the pride and pleasure teachers take in the students’ many and varied achievements, their enthusiasm for teaching and the positive relationships that exist between all members of our school community.

“I think my most positive moment was taking the Maths 300 activity ‘Jumping Kangaroos’…Some of the algebraic expressions students found as a result of the investigation were incredible, some of the year 7’s came up with quadratic equations to represent the relationship! It was our best moment this semester”

“The day I informed the year 8’s who had been successful in their application for the challenge camp…To see the delight on their faces and the different reactions from silent fist pumping to high 5ing, was an absolute pleasure”

“My special moment was when some of the year 10’s started asking about year 11 and what they needed to do to get there. They were interested in my opinion and made use of my expertise. They were more eager to receive and complete work. I was completely run off my feet trying to help them all but I loved it”

“The way students represent the school at interschool sports showing a great team spirit and sportsmanship. Makes the experience really rich and pleasant”

“The Amazing Race – what a fantastic day. The students had a wonderful day and so did I. It clearly showed how the students worked cooperatively together to get to the end task. Students were responsible, engaged and motivated. They supported and encouraged each other. It was a great opportunity for those students with strong leadership qualities to really shine on the day. It wasn’t about winning, more about working together. What a great day!”

“3 Way conferences – it was fantastic to be able to spend 30 minutes with students and listen to them articulate their learning, interests, positives and negatives.”

“Positive moments for me are when I see the pleasure in the students’ faces when they finish their work and are satisfied with it. With some students it is very satisfying to see the big smile on their face when they come and say ‘thanks for your help.’”

It is hard to believe the term is just about finished. So much has happened throughout the term and especially this week. Indigo, Sapphire and Scarlet have had community evenings where students demonstrated and shared their learning with the school community. Jet held a successful information evening for parents and students. A big thank you to students, parents and teachers who all work hard to make these events so worthwhile.

On Tuesday, a group of students worked with Marco Torres, an international educator, learning about and making movies. There will be more about this next term when the students have completed their work. While Marco was working with the students, a film maker was documenting the process. Representatives from The Department of Education and the CEO of Becta, a company that leads the national drive to improve learning through technology in the UK, were observing. I look forward to viewing the finished product.

Finally I would like to sincerely thank all students, parents and teachers who gave me advice, support and encouragement during my time as Acting Principal. It has been a great time of learning for me and I feel privileged to have had the opportunity to work with the school community in this way.

Pauline Rice
Acting Principal

Year 7 Korfball Report

For the first time in the Yarra district a Korfball tournament was held for year 7’s on 17 September in which Fitzroy entered two teams. Both teams had the chance to win the Champions Cup for the day.

Team A:

Fitzroy got off to a fantastic start against Princes Hill SC winning the game 4-1. In what was a well rounded team performance the goal scorers were: Finbar G-O – 2, Lisa E – 1 and Guy P – 1.
In the second game we came up against Brunswick. In what was a fairly even match the scores were tied 1-1 at half time. Brunswick were able to gain a slight advantage in the second half and eventually ran out comfortable winners 3-1. Lisa E was a solid contributor in this match scoring our only goal and grabbing plenty of rebounds.
In the third game we came up against St Francis who were a well drilled unit having played Korfball at the school for a few years. Both of their teams ended up playing in the final. We ended up losing the game 6-0 but the whole team played to the best of their ability. A standout feature in this game was the player’s ability to listen to and receive feedback.
The whole team received many instructions across the day and they carried them out extremely well. A couple of individual examples were: Michael B’s effort to really work on pivoting around the defence and Tilly S’s work on leading up the court as well as a whole team understanding of moving into space and up the court and how to defend.

Team B:

Fitzroy’s second team didn’t fair as well as team A coming up against some quality opposition. We lost our first game to Princes Hill 4-0. We then came up against eventual pool winners St Francis. After being down 5-0 at half time the team showed a lot of spirit to only concede 2 goals in the second half. The defenders were outstanding in this game showing a great deal of improvement from the start, they were: Luca T, Daniel T and Carlie P.
In the next game we played Brunswick and battled it out to eventually lose 4-0. Again the defensive efforts of the team were great with Tess M-O joining those mentioned earlier. The last game of the day was a combination of both of Fitzroy’s teams. In what was a fantastic finish to the day we just missed out on winning, after leading 3-2 with a couple of minutes to go, to draw the match 3-3. It was an excellent all round performance by the team with Guy P and Lisa E the standouts. Goal scorers for this match were Lisa E – 2 and Jai P – 1.

Well done to both teams on their efforts for the day especially Jai P, Guy P, Michael B and Finbar G-O who all doubled up in both teams to basically play the entire day.Fitzroy High School

Korfball team:

Michael B, Lisa E, Emily F, Finbar G-O, Faith J, Tess M-O, Ruadh O-S, Avgi P, Carlie P, Guy P, Hannah P, Jai P, Marie S, Tilly S, Luca T and Daniel T.

Coach and report – Tom Robinson

Principal’s Report, 13 September 2007

It is hard to believe that school holidays are just around the corner. It has been a busy time for all of us with many exciting events and opportunities happening throughout the term.

Last week, Callum L-F, Billy P and I visited the Collingwood Town Hall with Sonia, the City of Yarra Youth worker who is working with us on the Battle of the Bands project. The students were fired up with ideas and lists of things to do. They have already sourced some sponsorship, we have booked the compere and this Friday morning, students from Fitzroy High School, Collingwood College and Princes Hill Secondary College will meet with Sonia for the next phase of planning. It is fantastic being with these students and see firsthand their ideas, commitment and hard work as they make this event happen.

The year 9 and 10 ski camp at Bogong Outdoor Education Centre is currently underway. The students left the school with great anticipation of the time ahead. I look forward to their stories when they return. Watch out for a full report and photos in next week’s newsletter.

This week, Year 10 students attended the City Centre in Melbourne Central where they were briefed in the program “The Worlds of Work” an inquiry based program looking at what it is to be successful. Students started the process of 360 degree feedback to determine their strengths and the skills required to get on with work. In term 4, students will attend the centre for a week’s program where they will meet with and learn from leaders of business and non-profit organisations.

This week, as part of the Design Team project, Darryn and I travelled to Christchurch, New Zealand, with a group of teachers, educators and Department of Education representatives. We visited two schools and two Learning Communities where the focus is on innovative use of space and the personalising of learning of all students. We were given the opportunity to talk with teachers and students about the schools and their experiences as part of the school community. We also had the opportunity to talk to members of the group we travelled with and made valuable links with these schools. The Design Team Charter has been sent to the Department for approval and we look forward to the implementation phase to begin next term.

Pauline Rice
Acting Principal

Interschool Sports
Table tennis

On Tuesday 11th September Year 8 students participated in the table tennis interschool sports day. We competed against Princes Hill, Melbourne Girls’, Brunswick Secondary College and Uni High. Our Fitzroy students tried their best and came equal third in the A team and third in the B team.
Although the results weren’t as good as we hoped we all has a great time and tried our best. It was a great way to meet other students and cooperate with people we didn’t know. Overall the experience of hitting balls across a table turned out to be lots of fun and we can’t wait till next term for the next sport day.

Elana M and Leah R, 8B Sapphire Team
(Guns at table tennis)

Korfball

For the first time ever, a Korfball tournament was run in addition to the other interschool sports, and FHS signed up one team consisting of Emely A, Charlotte B, Ruben C, Hannah C, Ali F, Dimitre H, Raka H, Remy H, Brittany P, Hamish R and Rob S.
In the first game everyone seemed a little unsure of the rules, as this was a new sport to us all, but it didn’t take long before we picked it up and were dominating all our games.
The FHS team won their pool and played Princes Hill Secondary College in the grand final. Unfortunately we lost to them by one point only. It was a fantastic effort by the team, who had only practiced together once, to finish second. Well done guys!
A special mention to Dimitre, Hannah and Emily who scored the most points. Remy and Ruben did a fantastic job as defenders.

Linda Ekman

Year 8 boys basketball

The boys’ team played at Boroondara Sport Centre for interschool basketball sports day. Our first game was against Brunswick Secondary College, we started off strong and maintained our smooth ball handling skills and top notch defense to win the game by seven points.
Our second game was against Glen Eira, we didn’t show the same amount of energy and persistence as in the first games as the boys were still tired from the games before. We were defeated 36-27.
Our third game was against Princes Hill. Jack showed incredible persistence in his shooting early in the game to get us off to a great start. We were winning by two points at half time but we unfortunately lost 20-30, we had a lot of fun and improved our skills. We would like to thank our coaches Nick and Blake - thanks boys.

Josh S

Year 8 girls basketball

On Tuesday 11th September, the year eight girls participated in interschool sports playing basketball. The event was held at Aqualink Box Hill. Our first game of the day was against Princes Hill, we put up a good fight, however we were unlucky in our shots and lost by a goal. Our second game was against Glen Iris and with great teamwork and accurate shooting we won the game, 38 – 0. After a quick break we played our third game against Elwood who were undefeated. We tired ourselves early in the game and lost 14 – 2.
The girls played really well and had lots of fun. Eleanor and Georgina were our top scorers for the day with Eleanor on 20 points and Georgina on 14. Thanks to our coaches Michael and Toby whose inspirational advice played a big part in our games.

Indigo Exhibition Night - Thursday 20 September

In Inquiry students have been learning about the Asia Pacific region and increasing their awareness of the social, cultural and geographic aspects of our neighbouring countries in the Asia Pacific region.
Students are currently investigating how Asia Pacific society and culture has enriched Australian society and culture. Each student has identified an aspect of a country’s culture that they are interested in exploring further and will be presenting their research and findings at the exhibition evening on Thursday 20 September from 6pm to 8pm. Areas of focus include food, art, performance, economics and trade, and recreation. On the night students will also be presenting their Inquiry websites and powerpoint presentations.

Principal’s Report, 6 September 2007

During the week a number of sporting teams competed against other schools in district competitions. I would like to congratulate all students in these teams for the team spirit they displayed and their graciousness and good sportsmanship in defeat and success. Congratulations also to the boys intermediate basketball team who won the district final defeating Melbourne High School, University High School and Princes Hill Secondary College. Well done all competitors.

Yesterday, Year 8 students attending the Challenge Camp in November participated in their first planning session. The Year 8s worked with students and teachers from Melbourne Girls College and Princes Hill Secondary College to design challenge activities for their time away. It is great to see students from different schools working together to plan and problem solve.

Thank you to all parents, students and teachers who attended the 3 way conferences in the past 3 weeks. We believe these are integral to the teaching and learning program of the school and I appreciate everyone’s efforts to make these occasions so successful. Please provide any feedback you may have regarding these conferences, so we can make these occasions as effective as possible for you.

This week we had a film company making a digital story about our teaching and learning practices. I am always impressed with our students and how well they are able to articulate their ideas. When the film is complete, it will be made available on the school web site.

On the 18 September, we will have an international educator, Marco Torres, working with a small group of students using digital technologies to tell stories. Again this event will be professionally filmed with Marco and the students talking about the process of teaching and learning. Both of these films are sponsored by the Department of Education and are part of our focus on continuous improvement.

The countdown is on for the Italian trip. Students are excited, tickets have been distributed, clothes are being packed, and we are almost ready to go. I hope that families and students will keep in touch via the web blog that has been set up. If you want to know more about the blog, please contact me.

Pauline Rice
Acting Principal
Kitchen Garden - Sponsor a tree!

As you know, the “Kitchen Garden Team” is currently in the process of constructing an edible garden to feed the hungry students at Fitzroy High and educate them about the benefits of healthy eating and proper nutrition.
We have just begun planting the seedlings – rocket, spinach, silverbeet, beetroot, lettuce, spring onions, basil and parsley, and some fruit trees – nectarine, peach and olive, but the budget is reaching the end of its tether and we need more plants.
In particular, we need fruit trees for our ‘blossom circle’, and we would like to get them in the ground ASAP! If you would like to ‘sponsor’ a tree by donating it to the kitchen garden, we would be forever indebted - it would be a lovely growing legacy. We are in need of Lemon, Apricot, Nashi, Quince, Apple, Cherry, Pear, Persimmon and Plum trees.

If you are interested, please contact either Briony O’Keeffe or John Ross on 9488 1900 or brionyo@fitzroyhs.vic.edu.au. Thank you to all of those parents who have offered their assistance, material or otherwise, thus far!

Nikkola, Phoebe and Briony

FHS - Intermediate District Basketball Champions!

On Tuesday September 4 our Intermediate Basketball teams, two boy’s teams and one girl’s team, competed in the district basketball competition. The day started with the boys B team playing Melbourne High A. The boys put up a great fight before going down by 15 points. The boys then played against Princes Hill 2 and worked well together to record their first victory of the day. The boys then built on their momentum to close out their last game with another win.
The competition then moved to the Girls with our first game against Melbourne Girls D. The girls played extremely well to win by 20, with all the girls contributing in a solid team effort. Next we played Melbourne Girls A the girls put up a spirited performance including the shot of the day from Sophie O, half court, over her head backwards swish! Unfortunately Sophie’s heroics could not lead us to victory.

Our final game was against Princes Hill A. In a thrilling finish Sophie O scored the last point of the game, from the free throw line, to force a tie.
The final stage of the competition was the Boys A team. The boys began the day with a simple mantra – “win and we’re in.” The boys began the day against nemesis Princes Hill. The boys worked as a team and remained calm down the stretch to win by 6 points. The safe ball handling of Elliot D and Toby H proved to be the difference and we were off to play Melbourne High B. In a balanced team performance the boys held the lead for the entire game before winning by 11.
The two victories moved us into a three way competition with University High A and Melbourne High A. Playing against a much taller University High team the boys moved the ball well, played great defence and road the hot shooting hand of Liam O to win by 11 points. That left us with a simple task – beat Melbourne High A and we would be champions. Melbourne High tried to extend us early with a full court man to man defence but our boys fitness, safe ball handling, team work and belief in each other kept us in the game. With the game in the balance early in the second half Nick M took over the game with some hard nosed defence and attacking offense.

With the support of their school mates the boys finished the game out with a seven point win and were awarded the title of District Champions. The boys now move on to the Northern Zone Finals where we will play the winners of the four other districts in our zone in term 4.
All students who participated on the day should be congratulated for their team work, effort and support of each other. It was a fantastic moment to have all of the students in the centre of court one celebrating as a team – boys and girls, students and teachers.
Our representatives were:
Boys A: Liam O, Nick M, Viv M, Michael K, Toby H, Elliot D, John C, Blake R, Gareth E and Dom P.
Girls A: Greta B, Sophie O, Ella D, Mai M, Marina S.
Boys B: Stefan P, Patrick D, Nicholas D, Josh H, Dom W, Pip D, Jack H, Liam G.

Telephone: 9488 1900 • Fax: 9481 6135 • info@fitzroyhs.vic.edu.au • Falconer Street NORTH FITZROY 3068