Term 2 Newsletter, 2023

Principal's Address

Here we are at the end of another term… and half way through the year already!  It has been a fabulous term with lots of really great activities, excursions and successes. 

For staff, the Education Support North Network that we belong to (including approximately 18 education support schools and centres in the North Metro region) held their conference at the Perth Convention Centre on Monday 22^nd May and our staff were really pleased with the quality of speakers and the topics covered.  It is also a very valuable opportunity to network.  Our keynote speaker was Andrew Whitehouse, who is the Angela Wright Bennett Professor of Autism Research at the Telethon Kids Institute and Professor of Autism Research at The University of Western Australia. He was also recently recognised as the WA Australian of the Year.  What a star!

We held two of our three school camps this term – the lower school camp at Swan Valley and the middle school camp at Ern Halliday.  Both camps were a huge success and I commend the students for their behaviour and thank the staff who helped and stayed over at the camps and also those who managed the students left back at school.  Excellent team work!

We had planned our annual Planting Day with City of Joondalup and Friends of Warwick Bushland but had to postpone it due to the forecast and then the terrible weather on the day. We will reorganise it for later in Term 3, when the weather is due to improve. 

We have had building works going on this term to put in a footpath for universal access to the oval, pool and basketball courts.  We have also had a preliminary meeting regarding the pool change rooms and should get a start date soon.  How exciting!

We also had a win with the school crossing on Lloyd Drive and we are hoping that we will have a manned crossing before too long.

The Music Rocks concert for the students involved in that program was held on Saturday 24^th June and there was a great turn out.  I could not make this one unfortunately as I was away but will look forward to the next one!

There were many other events – but you will read about them in the newsletter.  I am sure that you are all looking forward to the two-week break - returning for Term 3 on Monday 17^th July. 

I wish you all a very safe and relaxing holiday break and look forward to seeing you next term. 

Carol Clarke
Principal

Careers

Term 2 has been a very busy for our Year 9 to Year 13 students with them attending different events to give them the opportunity to try new skills and explore future career opportunities.  In week 2 Year 9 and 10 students attended a Career Taster Conference at Joondalup resort where they listened to presenters and took part in activities.  Day one covered: Customer Engagement – Customer Experience, Aviation, Hospitality and Retail, Operations – Mining, Rail, Facility Management and Primary Industries.  Day two included: Digital & Creative – Personal branding, animation, content creation and game design.  Community Development & Care – Disability services and early years education. Students created their own items for sale, heard from pilots and air hostesses, worked in a simulated restaurant environment, answered quiz questions and participated in games relating to the various careers in these fields.  There was also a mini exhibition regarding traineeships and other student-centred providers that can help with career pathways.  It was an empowering experience for the students that attended, and they were admirable ambassadors for WCSESC.

Year 10 and 11 students attended a three day Try-A-Trade at Balga Tafe where they had a hands-on experience of trades including Bricklaying, Tiling, Plastering and Ceiling Fixing.  This event was helpful in giving students the opportunity to see the types of skills that tradespeople need and whether a career in the Construction industry is something they would like to pursue.  It was great to see the students embrace this opportunity and learn new skills and develop new passions.  We will continue to offer this event on a yearly basis and if there are any trades students would like to try, please let Karen Spencer our Career Practitioner know.

Paragon Corporate Training came to WCSESC on 1^st May to deliver White Card Training to a group of Year 9 to Year 13 students.  The students learned about how to work safely on a construction site, and this is essential training to work in Construction even in a part-time capacity.  The students were all successful in completing this course and are very proud to receive their White Card and we are proud of them: Jet, Elliot, Ethen, Aaron, Adam, Ramon, Matthew, Mikayla and Michael.

Congratulations is also due to Adam, Kasey, Taleigha and Lachlan who graduated from their Edge Employment Charge Up for Work course.  Students completed a 7-week course that helps build their employability skills and introduces them to different types of working environments.  Once students graduate Edge assist them for a further 6 months to find either part-time or full-time employment or work experience positions.  This is an ongoing opportunity that we will be offering our senior students.

Karen Spencer
Work Place Learning Coordinator

Lower school camp

From Tuesday the 23^rd to Wednesday the 24^th of May, the Year 7 and 8 students attended Swan Valley Adventure Centre. The Swan Valley Adventure Centre has a mission to create a safe place for growth and enjoyment while also promoting honesty, integrity, and respect as their values. We saw many of our students showing their West Coast values which follow a similar stance to the Swan Valley Adventure Centre.  

During our stay at Swan Valley Adventure Centre, students took part in the following activities Flying Fox, Mid Ropes Course, Archery, Team Building and Commando Course. There were several daredevils on the camp who thrived off the thrill of the activities and others who were nervous and willing to give it a go. It was nice to see students support each other when faced with a challenge and to see the excitement they felt after accomplishing what they wanted to achieve. An example of this was on the Flying Fox, students would reach the top and find it difficult to step off the platform but once they did, they would run back to the start ready to do it all over again. The Team Building activity saw the students work together as a group to make their way through the tasks. It was fantastic to see students from different classes come together as a team and complete the activities without leaving anyone behind.  

The Lower School Camp for some students was the first camp they attended and were able to accomplish staying the whole night. The camp was a new experience for some students and even though some went home for the night they had the courage to push themselves to try something new.

I wanted to say a huge thank you to the Lower School staff who attended the camp and the Bush Ranger Committee members who contributed to the organisation of the camp. Camps are a wonderful opportunity for students to continue their development in skills such as resilience, social skills, teamwork, self-awareness, and self-esteem. If it wasn’t for the incredible West Coast staff these school camps would not be possible.  

Catherine Irvine
Bush Ranger Instructor

Middle school camp

During week 8 (12^th to the 13^th of June) the Year 9 and 10 Bush Ranger Cadets attended a camp at Ern Halliday Recreation Camp. During our stay, the students took part in a range of activities which included Archery, Flying Fox, Minutes to Win It, Team Building and the Big Swing. It was wonderful to see the Bush Ranger Cadets spread the West Coast SESC values throughout the camp, many of the students showed excellent manners and respect when conversing with the Ern Halliday staff. Each student should be proud of how they represented the school, themselves, and their families during their stay at Ern Halliday.  

The staff at Ern Halliday facilitate programs with the philosophy of 'Challenge by Choice'. This creates a great learning opportunity for our students to set their own goals for each activity and feel empowered when they achieve them. Students showed a great amount of compassion for their fellow classmates, encouraging each other to succeed. This was demonstrated perfectly during the Big Swing activity, which was mentioned to be a favourite for several students. During the Big Swing students are geared up in safety equipment and attached to a rope that is hanging from the ceiling, the remaining students then pull on a rope to hoist them up to the ceiling or their preferred height. The students pull the rope, listen for when the person on the swing requests for them to stop, and when they do, everyone stops pulling. The student on the swing must then pull on the tug rope which releases the latch and sends them swinging through the air. The encouragement from their peers is what gave them the confidence to pull the tug rope and once they did you could see the excitement and pride on their faces as they swung in the air.  

Camps are an amazing experience for everyone involved, it encourages personal development for the students and strengthens our school's sense of community among staff and students. A big thank you to all the staff involved throughout the camp and those who sacrificed the comfort of their own bed to sleep the night at camp, you are all amazing. 

Catherine Irvine
Bush Ranger Instructor

Music Rocks West Coast SESC...

Semester 1 at West Coast saw us re-introduce the Music Rocks program into the school.  Music Rocks sees a group of WAAPA trained staff and musicians come to the school and help our students form 'rock' bands, where students learn to sing and play musical instruments to a song/s of their bands choice.  Bands perform their song/s at one of a number of awesome Perth venues for an end of term concert.  This semester we saw 2 bands created, 1 from middle school classes and 1 senior classes.

Students have had the chance to be able to learn and play a wide range of instruments from different types of guitars from bass to acoustic, the drums, keyboards to singing through microphones.  After being able to have a go at each instrument, the students decided what they individually wanted to play in preparation for the concert. They have been learning how be in sync and to collaborate as a band.  They truly have been enjoying playing music and shown great excitement to perform at the concert to their families and friends.

All the students who participated in the end of term concert did an amazing job. They had lots of fun performing on stage and are already looking forward to the next concert!

Music Rocks uses music as a tool to for social and personal development in our communities.  The sessions are highly valued by and appealing to our pupils. 

Faith Clancy-Lowe and Tia Davidson
Education Assistants

Students attended The Convenience store in Northbridge on Saturday 24^th June to perform in the Music Rocks concert.  It was a wonderful experience for them to show off the skills they had learned during the semester.  Jude played keyboard and drums in a solo performance. Wyatt played the drums with real zeal and won the most improved student award.  Monica and Eryn sang a couple of songs and it was delightful to see these girls showcasing their talents and enjoying performing for an audience.  The senior band performed at the end as part of the Certificate course they have been completing. It was amazing to see these students enjoying themselves and coming out of their shell’s to put on a show for the audience.  Anthony surprised us all with his superb voice when he accompanied Mikayla in a duet, as well as his guitar playing skills.  Mikayla is a true performer with a great voice, costumes changes and all the moves.  Kaine and Jayden played keyboard and Samson rocking the drums.  It was truly superb to see them come together and show off their talents.  Lets hope for a repeat performance later in the year.

Karen Spencer
Teacher Area L

Physical Education

including West Coast's Kalability Kickability Soccer carnival success...

We are thrilled to share the Physical Education news from this term's activities at West Coast SESC. Our students dedicated their efforts to honing their soccer skills, which led to a fantastic opportunity to participate in the highly anticipated Kalability Kickability Soccer carnival. Held on the 14th of June at Hartfield Park in Forrestfield, the event was a resounding success for our school.

Representing West Coast with pride, we brought along a group of 30 talented students to showcase their skills and sportsmanship. We formed three teams, each competing in different divisions. Throughout the day, our teams displayed unwavering determination, giving their all and exhibiting exceptional sportsmanship.

We are thrilled to announce that our teams emerged victorious in all of their games across all three divisions. This outstanding achievement resulted in West Coast School bringing home two trophies, one for division one and another for division two. We couldn't be prouder of our students for their remarkable performances and commendable teamwork.

Furthermore, we would like to acknowledge the enthusiasm our students demonstrated in their Physical Education lessons this term. Their dedication and passion for staying active and improving their physical skills are truly commendable. Well done to all the West Coasters who showed great interest in these lessons.

We extend our heartfelt appreciation to the teachers and EA’s who supported our students throughout the day. Your guidance and encouragement played a vital role in their success..

Let's celebrate this remarkable accomplishment and continue to foster a love for sports and physical education among our students at West Coast. We look forward to many more carnivals in the future!

Ryan Koppl
Physical Education Teacher

Work Skills Room update

It has been a busy term for us in Area D, starting with a change of name.  Instead of TEACCH, our room will now be known as the “Work Skills Room”.  This change occurred as the room continues to grow in supporting the students to prepare and develop new skills for the workplace.  We believe the new name better reflects what we represent.

This Term has seen the dust settle for a lot of our new students, who seem to be settling in to Work Skills.  We’ve found a lot of the students are now following the routine perfectly and can work independently.

Some of our Middle school students recently assembled around 150 morning and afternoon tea packs for camp.  Each bag had 3 items in each, with the students then tying a knot in each bag and packing them in to 50 packs per box.

We’re still doing work for REmida, which continues to supply us with some brilliant ‘sorting tasks’ for our students.

We’re also looking to continue our “Wedding Wednesdays”.  If you, or someone you know is getting married, and are interested in our help making “Leafetti” please let us know as we would love to be of assistance!

We are looking forward to seeing what term 3 will bring!

Miss Woods and Miss Dionne
Education Assistants

Area E update

Camp
Some of Area E students attended school camps this term. Both camps provided the perfect setting for our students to reconnect with nature. Students participated in team -building activities and immersed themselves in the natural wonders of the camps environments. They faced a series of thrilling challenges, pushing their limits and discovering new strengths. The flying fox tested their courage and determination. It was heart-warming to witness students overcoming fears and achieving personal victories.

HASS
In HASS this term we have been learning about the seven continents where we explored fascinating places, learnt about diverse cultures, and expanded our knowledge of the world. We have been using Google maps to further explore our understanding. The focus in weeks 8 to 10 have been on Asia and Europe, with a particular attention on Vietnam and Italy.

Picture of cooking pizzas PowerPoint and Jake pointing to the continents

AAC
Using communication devices, sign language, picture exchange systems, and other AAC strategies. Area E students are being encouraged to further discover their unique voices and unlock new possibilities for engagement and learning. AAC is empowering Area E students to express emotions, needs wants and descriptions of events.

Staff, and students are actively supported to use AAC, so that it is a natural part of the classroom routine, promoting empathy, understanding and collaboration.

Amanda Letizia
Area E Teacher

Pictures of student using AAC / Cameron on camp / Jake pointing to the continents / Joe on camp

New Parent Liaison role

Tamara Gill has a new role within West Coast SESC as Parent Liaison.  She is helping families with National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS)  plans, the Disability Support Pension (DSP) and associated paperwork. 

Tamara can help with NDIS applications, information/suggestions on whom to get reports from, requests for funding, change of circumstances and reviews etc.  This is particularly important as our students enter year 10 onwards as that is when their plans need to include funding for employment supports post school.

Tamara can also help with applications for Centrelink's DSP and the mountain of paperwork that goes hand in hand with this.  Applications for DSP can be uploaded from age 15 years and 9 months.

Please contact Tamara at the school on 9345 6600 to make an appointment, or for any queries you may have.

Area F update

Lower and Middle Camp
This term, we had our year 7 and 8 students attend the lower school camp at Swan Valley Adventure Centre, in week 5 of Term 2. Our year 9 and 10 students attended the middle school camp at Ern Halliday Recreation Centre in week 8. There were lots of engaging activities at both camps, including archery, the flying fox and team building activities. At Ern Halliday, the middle school students had the opportunity to do the big swing, which saw a lot of students get our of their comfort zones and demonstrate the zones of confidence, persistence and resilience, having a go and some even going to great heights on the swing. Special mention to Jayce who showed great skills in the team challenge that involved a lot of strategy, planning, effective communication with his team and gross motor skills. He was able to lead them to victory! It was great to see the students out of the school environment, positively interacting with their peers and engaging in new activities.

Class news
In class, we have been learning about landscapes and landforms in HASS and the causes and effects of volcanoes, earthquakes and tsunamis. Both units complemented one another, and students have appeared to enjoy the topics and actively engaged in the practical activities. The highlights were the volcano eruption experiments (we had to try it another time to get a more impressive eruption with a differently shaped bottle!) and the tsunami recreation. We created some land with houses and trees in a tray and moved water forwards to create a tsunami and explored how the landforms changed and the effects of the tsunami on the people and their environment.

Braydon, Mitchell, Jayce and Emily had the opportunity to attend a customer engagement career taster this term. The year 9/10 students also put their name forwards for future career tasters that are coming up, including robotics and animation. I look forward to hearing more about these exciting opportunities later this year.

Wishing everyone a well deserved break and looking forward to seeing the students coming back in Term 3, refreshed and ready for another enjoyable term.

Christine Abbott
Area F Teacher

Matilda @ opening of Headspace

Our new year 9 student, Matilda, was asked to make a speech at the recent formal opening of Headspace Osborne Park. She had to speak in front of some VIPs, including state and federal ministers, local MPs and senior members of the medical community. Matilda managed to conceal her nerves and spoke confidently about her mental health journey and ambition to become a midwife when she leaves school. Her speech was very well received by everybody there and Matilda was delighted to find herself on the social media pages of quite a few politicians the next day!

You Can Do It Assembly

On Wednesday the 28^th of June, Area C and Area K hosted the Term 2 You Can Do It Assembly. The students within these classes participated throughout the planning and implementation of the assembly.

Although we could recommend all students for an award, twenty-six students throughout the school were selected receiving an award for demonstrating the You Can Do It focus skills based on relationships, considering values, characters strengths and getting along skills. The certificate recipients’ names went into a hat for a chance to win one of five movie ticket as a reward for their You Can do It attitudes throughout the term. Congratulations Amelia, Connor, Ramon, Jayce, and Finlay Z.

We will be focusing on the You Can Do It skills of wellbeing, resilience and happiness next term and look forward to seeing how students demonstrate these skills.

Shannon Talbot
Teacher Area C

Landsdale Farm

The hard-working and enthusiastic team of students and staff have had a fantastic and productive term at Landsdale Farm. We have been kept extremely busy with a wide variety of tasks to carry out every Friday. These tasks have included maintaining paddocks and enclosures, landscaping, grounds maintenance, sanding furniture, event preparation, animal care and shed refurbishment. As well as this, every week an amazing team of students and staff busily prepare and cook all the food for the day. Our efforts have been really appreciated by the farm’s management and we are so excited to be part of an exciting new journey for Landsdale Farm. We are grateful to all students and staff for making this such a successful term.

Julie Day and Sarah Hills
Landsdale Farm Coordinators

Crosswalk on Lloyd Drive

Our children’s crosswalk on Lloyd Drive is now complete.

Both no standing and no parking signs have now been erected.

We are also still waiting for a traffic warden to be appointed.  If anyone knows of a responsible adult looking for 10 hours work per week, please ask  them to apply.  Contact the school office for the application paperwork.

Area J update

The students in Area J have made an excellent start on the Stephanie Alexander Kitchen Garden Program.  We have planted potatoes and various salad greens and herbs in the garden. These will be ready for harvesting next term and we are excited to use the produce in our kitchen. So far we have already cooked pizzas and Vietnamese Spring Rolls and are busy planning our menu for next semester.  We would love to expand our kitchen garden to include worms and compost and would welcome anyone with gardening or cooking experience available to volunteer with us in the kitchen or garden on Tuesdays. 

Bethany Tracey
Teacher Area J

First Aid course

A flashback to Term 1 now... on the 22^nd of February our students were given the opportunity  to participate in our First Aid Focus day.

The First Aid Focus program aims to train and equip students with the skills to assess and respond to first aid situations, while developing strategies to seek help for themselves or others.  It was great to see all the students giving CPR and thoroughly enjoying themselves.

Sarah Hills
First Aid Representative

Term 3 planner

Northern Lights Music WA

All Ability Cricket - free holiday activity