Dear families

It is great for spring to be upon us next week and we are enjoying seeing our beautiful school grounds come to life with blossoms on the trees, bulbs and shrubs flowering thanks to Mr Bosworth’s outstanding horticultural skills! As we head into spring, we are now more than halfway through Term 3 and, therefore, well past the halfway point of the 2025 school year. It is timely to remind students to set and act upon some positive goals to ensure that they maximise their opportunities and achievements for the second half of the year.

We are fortunate to have Shannon Anis who is studying a Master of Teaching, University of Tasmania, undertaking her Professional Experience Placement 2 with us for the next four weeks. Ms Anis will be working alongside Mr Tuffin and Mr Tyson and with Mrs Tuffin’s Year 9 Home Group.

We have had a number of exciting and positive things happening over the last few weeks that we can celebrate.

Congratulations to Mrs Samantha Barclay for graduating last week gaining her Diploma of Education Support from UTAS! Sam has embraced studying for the Diploma with such commitment and enthusiasm. We are very proud of you Sam!

This week we welcomed Year 5/6 students from Bridport Primary and Ringarooma Primary School and next Monday, we have Scottsdale Primary visiting us as part of our transition program. Thanks to Miss Walker, Ms Harding, and Mrs Tuffin for their work with the students as they receive a small taster of high school subjects and get to explore our school facilities. It has been great to meet the students and start to forge some relationships.

Book Week

Last week we celebrated Book Week with Home Groups entering the door decoration competition based on a book they chose. Students could then dress in the Home Group book theme or as a favourite character. Door decoration was a close competition with Year 9 leading the way and Year 11/12 also being recognised for their depiction of Jaws. Mrs Butler and Miss Walker organised an excellent Readers Cup Competition between Home Groups last Thursday. Students impressed us with their commitment to the tasks and outstanding collaboration as team members. They were skilled in discussing the language devices and techniques used by the authors thereby demonstrating a strong insight of the texts. Well done to all students who were involved and congratulations on bring such a positive growth mindset to the day!

WINNER RESULTS DOOR COMPETITION: 

• Most Outstanding: 11/12 Jaws  
• Best Effort: 9Enr The Man from Snowy River  
• Most Creative: 9A The Hobbit
• Most Enchanted: 9B The Secret Garden

READERS CUP RESULTS:

• 10B won the 9/10 section.
• 8A won the 7/8 section.

Thanks to all involved in our Book Week Celebration – our reading culture is continuing to flourish and we know that the more students read, the more their vocabulary will expand, comprehension be boosted and critical thinking enhanced leading to improved academic achievement.

Year 10 Exams

Our Year 10 students have completed mid exams – it was terrific to see a large number of students who are considering a pre tertiary pathway completing the 2 hour exams and others opting for the shorter exam or supported assessment task. The mid-year exams offer students a valuable opportunity to consolidate learning, build exam confidence, and identify areas for improvement. These assessments simulate real exam conditions, helping students develop time management and stress-handling strategies. Teachers gain insights into student progress, allowing for targeted support and revision planning. Importantly, practice exams foster a growth mindset—encouraging students to view challenges as stepping stones to success. By engaging with these exams, students become more resilient, better prepared, and more aware of their academic strengths and needs, setting them up for success in their future studies.

On Tuesday 19 August volunteers from Red Dirt Café provided a delicious and nutritious lunch for students and staff. Over 175 servings were enjoyed by students who tucked into curry sausages, spaghetti bolognaise and mac and cheese. Thank you to Karen and her team from Red Dirt Café and students from Hands on Learning for feeding us!

Survey Time!

It is that time of year when we ask students, families and staff to complete DECYP surveys to inform our future direction at Scottsdale High School. Over the next few weeks, students will be prepared for and participate in the Student Wellbeing and Engagement Survey and families have been provided with an email with the link to complete the Family School Satisfaction Survey. The survey is carried out on a secure website and all responses are anonymous and confidential.

Please contact us if you require any assistance.

Staffing – Long Service Leave

I am fortunate to be heading off on LSL for Weeks 7-10. Many thanks to leadership team for supporting me to head away! Mrs Fletcher will step in to Principal role. Miss Walker will be acting AP weeks 7,8 and 10 and Mrs Howlett for week 9 whilst Miss Walker has a week LSL. Thanks to Mrs McDougall and Miss Simmons who are also helping and undertaking acting AST and additional relief during this time.

Best wishes for the remainder of this term.

Elizabeth Williams

Principal

On Thursday, 21st August, our Year 7 Agriculture elective students had the exciting opportunity to visit Clovelly Farm in Bridport, hosted by Ingleby Farms. Guided by Environmental and Sustainable Production Officer Kate Petrie, students explored the inner workings of a modern dairy farm and discovered a range of career pathways in agriculture.

Highlights of the day included:

• Career Insights: Students learned about various roles on a dairy farm and the education required for each—from hands-on animal care to environmental management.
• Calf Rearing: Anna introduced students to the calf sheds, explaining feeding routines, hygiene standards, and biosecurity practices.
• Dairy Operations: At Dairy 1, Conrad shared his experience and emphasized the importance of safety and cleanliness in milk production.
• Live Demonstration: Students witnessed cows being milked for colostrum collection, gaining insight into milk grading systems.
• Innovative Technology: A standout moment was learning about Clovelly’s use of halter technology for virtual fencing and data tracking—an exciting glimpse into the future of farming.

This excursion was a valuable learning experience, sparking curiosity and appreciation for the diverse careers available in the dairy industry. We extend our sincere thanks to Ingleby Farms for their generosity and hospitality.

It’s so exciting to see Year 10 students excelling in this valuable program offered by                     Dorset Employment Connect!

The next generation of baristas is brewing in Dorset!

Our Year 10 crew in the Growing Futures in Hospitality Program   smashed out two days of coffee training  in week 4 – and the results were impressive!

They’ve been learning the art of:

Perfect milk texturing

Taking customer orders like pros

Espresso extraction

Keeping the machine sparkling clean

Jess said her favourite part was making all the coffees – lattes, cappuccinos, flat whites, espressos, mochas, hot chocolates, and even babycinos (because every good café needs them!).

Eli loved transforming the TTC space into a pop-up café and serving real customers their caffeine fix.

A huge shoutout to these students for bringing the energy, enthusiasm, and some seriously good coffee skills to the table. The future of hospitality in Dorset is looking bright (and perfectly frothed)!

Daffodil Day 2025- well done to our SLB on raising over $600 for the Cancer Council on Friday 15^th August. Thank you to all who donated. Quite a number of push ups and sit ups were completed by students at lunchtime and a BBQ was cooked to also help raise funds. It was great to have student bands performing along with the staff band. Congratulations to all who performed and provided great entertainment!

We are very grateful to Red Dirt Cafe for providing lunch for our students and staff on Tuesday 19^th August. Delicious serves of spaghetti bolognese, mac and cheese, and curried sausages were plated up along with bread and fruit. Thanks Karen, Bec, Deb and Jean for working with students from Hands on Learning to provide a nutritious, free lunch!

On 13^th and 14^th August two of our Year 11 students, Molly and Shakira, took the opportunity to be involved in Meat-Tech Futures at The Workshop at UTAS. The program involved a tour of JBS at Longford and the opportunity to identify an issue within the production cycle then plan for a solution. The girls team pitched their idea to a 3 person panel placing 2nd overall!

Please see the following information regarding our 2026 Subject Offerings for Year 11/12 students.

Our Parent Information session will be on the 9th of September at 6pm in the 11/12 centre.