Term 1, Week 2

News from the Principal

Dear Parents and Carer/s,

Welcome to a new school year! As I have already said in my email to families last week I extend a warm welcome to you on behalf of the staff at Malanda State High School. As Principal, I am honoured to lead a school with such a strong and supportive community and look forward to working with you to ensure the personal and academic development of each student at our wonderful school.  

Firstly I would like to introduce and welcome some new staff to the school:

• Mr Christian Stewart, Deputy Principal – Senior
• Ms Stacey Stremouchiw (returning), Head of Student Support Year 10
• Mrs Cecelia Lizzio, Science Teacher
• Mr Jack Horton, Digital Technologies Teacher
• Ms Katie Maxfield, Arts Teacher
• Mr Darren Grose (returning), HPE and Science Teacher
• Mrs Faan Jaemsaidee, HPE and Humanities Teacher
• Ms Danielle Chappell, English and Humanities Teacher
• Ms Shay Kohlhardt, English, Humanities and HPE Teacher
• Mr Caleb Ryan, School Support Officer

I have included the current organisational chart for your reference and based on this I wish to clarify for families points of contact should you require them throughout the year:

1. If you have a question about classwork the class teacher should be the first point of contact. Please do not hesitate to contact your child/ren’s teacher for clarification on any information related to classwork.
2. If you have a question or query about your child’s social emotional wellbeing, academic progress across multiple subjects or peer relationships, the Heads of Student Services are the main contact.
3. If you have a question about delivery of the curriculum in a subject area, the Heads of Educational Services for the particular subject they line manage are the main contact (as listed on the organisational chart).

Like the email I have sent to families, I have attached our updated mobile phone policy. This year we have updated our mobile phone policy to align to Queensland Department of Education’s policy. The main changes include:

• from the first to the last bell of the school day, all phones, and smart devices unable to have notifications silenced, are to be stored in a bag, phone locker or signed in at the office
• exceptions will be granted by the Principal on a case by case basis, including those students who require smart devices for medical intervention and/or outlined in a support plan
• a physical card will be required for purchases at the tuck shop - a reminder the QKR app is available to place orders electronically ahead of time and cash is still accepted
• class use of devices will be approved ahead of time by both the Head of Education Services and the Principal and communicated with students and parents
• smart devices, such as wearables (watches), will also need to be in ‘school mode’ where notifications are silenced for the school day, otherwise they will also need to be away for the day.

These changes will ensure all students are able to focus on their learning but still have communication with parents and friends outside of school time. If parents need to contact their child during the school day, or vice versa, parents can call the office and students can report to the office for this purpose.

On the back of this, for our returning families, if your contact details have changed over the break, please ensure you contact the office to provide up-to-date information so we are able to contact you if required. Also, for all families, if you have not already signed up to the QParents app, I highly recommend doing so as we will move to this into the future for consent management and other school processes. To gain access please contact the office.

As we welcome new families and students to our wonderful school, we also have to remind the public about accessing the school in a safe manner. Student drop off and pick up occurs from the bottom driveway (the first driveway into the school on Memorial Avenue) especially at the start and the end of the school day. The other driveways are designated staff and delivery access points and need to remain clear. We also have the bus turning circle at the top of the road; we work very hard with our bus drivers to ensure the safety of all in this area. I do ask that all families refrain from driving to the top of the road as this is a very dangerous location when the buses are frequently moving. Our students will not be permitted to cross at this area due to the safety issues so I ask for cooperation in this area, so staff are also safe in this area.

Our annual Meet and Greet event is on next week, Tuesday afternoon from 5:15pm with the P and C offering food and drinks. Please come along to both this event and stay for the P and C meeting afterwards to engage in our wonderful school. I look forward to meeting as many of you possible on this afternoon and working with you all this year.

Yours in learning,

Natasha Lyndon

Principal

News from the HPE/Agriculture/ITM Department

From the HPE crew

Some familiar and new faces in 2025. Continuing staff include Mrs Selena Harding as Head of Department (also ITM and Ag), Mrs Tiarni McCarthy as Subject Area Coordinator, Ms Shana Backshall as Sport Coordinator, Mr Steve Murador and Mr Darren Blooranta. These staff were part of the 2024 team who delivered pass rates of over 95% and A/B rates of over 50%. New staff are Ms Faan Jaemsaidee and Ms Shay Kohlhardt. We also welcome back Mr Darren Grose! A letter will come home to all junior students and parents about our upcoming units. 2025 looks like another exciting year with plenty of sporting opportunities, more information to come from the Sports Desk on that, particularly the roll out of our very own Sport Academy.

The ITM crew

Mr John Pitt will take over the role of Subject Area Coordinator from long standing contributor Mr Peter Nightingale. Mr Scott Earsman will continue to support to ensure student learning and safety in the workshops. This team has already been busy creating sample projects to ensure students can experience success in the workshops, as well as purchasing and preparing materials. A letter will be sent home to relevant students outlining workshop requirements for 2025.

From the Ag crew

The Ag crew will continue to be led by king (grumps hairy man) Kilpatrick as the Subject Area Coordinator, ably supported by Mr Bruce Dane and Mr Kev Mallyon. Our amazing volunteers Wednesday John and Friday John will also continue on in 2025. This looks like another year of opportunities and experiences for students including Beefies and Chookies Shows, mushroom growing, tractor driving, fence building and bee keeping. A huge thankyou to these staff who give up significant amounts of personal time to offer real world and hands on experiences for kids that last a lifetime. Students can keep an ear out for notices for clubs and upcoming events. A letter will be sent home soon around specific information for relevant students undertaking Ag this year.

News from the Science Department

Year 10 Science Class Harnesses Rare Sunshine for Greenhouse Effect Experiment

It’s not every day that we get a break from grey skies, so when the sun made a rare appearance last week, the Year 10 Science class took full advantage! Seizing the opportunity, students headed outdoors to conduct an experiment investigating the greenhouse effect—a timely topic given the increasing discussions around climate change.

Using mini greenhouses, and thermometers, students measured temperature changes over time. By comparing sealed and open environments, they explored how trapped heat behaves under different conditions, mimicking the real-world impact of greenhouse gases.

Following the hands-on experiment, students spent the next few days analysing their collected data, identifying trends, and drawing conclusions about the role of greenhouse gases in warming the Earth's surface. Their findings sparked insightful discussions on climate science and the importance of sustainable solutions.

The combination of real-world application and data analysis made for an engaging and thought-provoking learning experience. A rare sunny day turned into a valuable lesson—both in science and in appreciating the weather while it lasts!

News from the Sports Coordinator

News from the Sports Desk

A quick message from your 2025 sports captains, we're so excited to deliver a year full of sports, fun and games. We figured we'd introduce ourselves before our first big event…our swimming carnival Wednesday, week 4, the 19th of February. From Barrine house we have Nash Coghlan and Kirby Horan. Nash is aiming to use his leadership position to become a role model for students and Kirby has just always loved the sports carnivals and team spirit. Our Eacham captains are Elektra Nordijk and Bayley Mckinnon. Elektra and Bayley have always been supportive people and jumped at the opportunity to represent their house. Our Tinaroo Captains are Ashton Russo and Tessa Freeman. They are both sports lovers who really enjoy the carnivals and are determined to bring Tinaroo to victory.

Keep a look out for some exciting events throughout the year such as lunch time sports and our Cross country at the end of term 1. We look forward to learning and growing in our roles and becoming a bigger part of the school community.

See you at the swimming carnival!

Love from the sports captains. 

Support Staff Introduction

News from the Japanese Club

Naplan 2025

New Staff Introduction

Important Dates Term 1

Parents/Guardians/Staff/Student additional information

Peninsula School Sport 2025

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