Barwon Beyond Blue Fundraiser and Mental Health Awareness Day

This week Barwon House ran their annual Barwon Beyond Blue Fundraiser and Mental Health Awareness event. On Thursday during lunchtime the fundraising auction was held. Many staff kindly donatated items for auction and all items were sold in an entertaining auction. The record sale was a box of incredible home made cupcakes from Amanda Tenney fetching $101.00. The buyer was David Allitt who fought off stiff competition from Julianna Garcia and Jamilla Cranny.

Many students and staff had a lot of fun bidding on a variety of items and supporting the cause.

On Friday students accessorized for the day by wearing blue hair spray or blue ribbons in their hair. During lunchtime the BBQ was fired up and the school community was treated to musical performances from RJ Love & Faith Grima as a duet and Alex Aidt playing a DJ set. Special thanks to those performers and Matt Crowe setting the music up, Dave Allitt and Ben Fergusson from the Barwon House Office, Barwon Student Leaders Johnny Lazic, Alannah Gorski, Acacia Vaughan, Chloe Rutter, Chloe Van Krieken and Mariele Go.

The auction and gold coin donation raised an amazing $605. Well done GHS.

Hi my name is Jaxon,

I have spent the last year almost every Friday picking up rubbish during lunch, recess and even before school to actively play my part in keeping the school clean and as rubbish free as possible.

You may think that a kid like me could not have an impact, and although my actions did not directly cause a massive reduction permanently of rubbish all around the school I still believe it is possible. If I can prove to you all, what one person is capable of doing, if you are determined enough and want to make a change that this may inspire you to play a part in keeping our school clean too.

Now the numbers. Over roughly 25 + weeks, I picked up an average of 7-9 full buckets of rubbish each and every Friday. This eventually resulted in 200 entire buckets of rubbish, or as much as HALF A TON (500kg’s) (each bucket weighs an average of 2.5kg’s) of rubbish being diverted away from the school and is the equivalent of a small car in weight.

It was tough. Rain, hail or shine but worth it a thousand times over. If you wonder how that’s possible though, it requires a will and determination for change. I hope you truly realise from this, that just the will to make an impact is often enough to drive huge change.

Jaxon Waldhart

8CA

GLOBAL YOUTH FORUM

In Week 7 of Term 4, twelve Year 9 students were given the opportunity to participate in a ‘Global Youth Forum’ over three full days. Students joined over 1000 other participants from Victorian schools and international schools in Vietnam, Indonesia, Japan, and China. The program was run by the Asia Education Foundation (AEF) and University of Melbourne and funded by the Victorian Government. Representing Geelong High were Charlie Harper, Josh Hobbs, Ethan Hobbs, Georgette Roswell, Charlee Pearson, Gracie Whitworth, Phoebe Sortino, Charlie Whykes, Jackson Fillipi, Tre Callanan, Jaxon Heikkila-Taylor and Immogen O’Shannessey.

The forum consisted of Zoom breakout sessions, daily goal setting, brainstorming, teamwork and listening to guest speakers. Students were asked to focus on goals such as creative thinking, critical thinking, communication, and care for others. The guest speakers included Ahmed Hassan (Young Australian of the Year, Victoria) and Sizol Fuyana (Young NT citizen of the year). Guests shared their stories of identity and explained the work they do as young leaders. In the Zoom breakout sessions with other schools our students discussed the meaning of identity, culture, belonging and what it means to be a global citizen.

It took a day for our Geelong High team to gain confidence and find their voice but by day two everyone was madly taking notes, openly communicating their views, listening to others, and learning new ways of thinking. I, as the teacher watching our young representatives was very proud of their positivity and the respect they showed others.

I asked the students how they found the forum and what they felt they gained from the experience. Below are a few of their responses:

“I learned how much racism can affect others and their daily lives.”

“I had a lot of fun talking to people from other schools.”­

“It gave me a different way to look at the world and how we treat others.”

“The program made me want to meet more people from different communities.”

“I loved how we all worked together to do things and learnt new things from people from other countries and here in Australia. I think that I might volunteer for some more things now since I had a great experience doing this.”

“I think that doing this was a great thing and might help me get a job and is good to have on the resume.”

Anna Wild

Parents and friends would like to advise that the Election BBQ will not be running tomorrow, Saturday 26^th November. Sorry for any inconvenience.

On Friday the 11^th November, a selected group of yr 8 students travelled to the Geelong Tech School to undertake a program called ‘Tilt Brush’, where students use VR (virtual reality) headsets to create a 3 dimensional environment.

The excursion, as part of the Geelong High School STEM program, aims to engage students in STEM and build their STEM related skills. STEM is the fastest growing industry on the planet, with many high paying jobs remaining unfilled due to a lack of people trained in these areas. As a result, this creates many opportunities for GHS students with their prospective career pathways.

Next year, GHS will run STEM classes from year 7 – 10 to help students gain the skills required to move into the STEM industry.

Jason d’Offay – STEM Coordinator

Congratulations to the band members of “Violet” - Harry Jones Yr11, James Elliott Yr10 & Wanda Dohl Yr 12 are playing at the biggest rock venue in Melbourne on the 1^ST of December. Some of the greatest national & international bands have started in this venue.

Take a look at the link below:-

The TOTE

Iconic Melbourne music venue The Tote will celebrate 30 years of live music in November with a month-long celebration of line-ups curated by bands, musicians and organisations including The Meanies, The Onyas, Gareth Liddiard, The Age EG, Inpress and Mess+Noise.

Over the past 30 years, The Tote has evolved into one of Melbourne’s most influential music venues and has played an integral part in Melbourne’s musical landscape with bands such as The White Stripes, The Lemonheads, Mike Patton, The Dirty Three, Jay Reatard, The Dirtbombs, Hoodoo Gurus, You Am I, Spiderbait, Silverchair, Paul Kelly, The Drones, The Cosmic Psychos and Magic Dirt all gracing The Tote’s well-worn stage.

Vacant World

Rec Sports Bushwalk Camp 2023

Strange but true…Potatoes were once used as currency on the South Atlantic island of Tristan da Cunha!!

Bullying is an ongoing or repeated misuse of power in relationships, with the intention to cause deliberate psychological harm. Bullying behaviours can be verbal, physical or social. It can happen in person or online, via various digital platforms and devices and it can be obvious or hidden. Bullying in any form or for any reason can have immediate, medium and long-term effects on those involved, including bystanders.

Despite the efforts made to reduce bullying behaviours, the research tells us that one in four students still report being bullied every few weeks. However, not all negative behaviour should be considered bullying. The key difference is that bullying does not stop on its own. It’s important young people learn how to identify behaviours that are rude, behaviours that are mean, and behaviours that are related to bullying.

Often the reasons for bullying can be complex. Some young people do it to get approval from others, some do it to regain control, whilst others may do it because it makes them feel safe. Supporting young people as they work through their emotions will help them unpack the motivation and reason behind the behaviour.

In this edition of SchoolTV, caregivers can better understand why some young people engage in bullying behaviours and what to do to support a child experiencing it. We hope you take time to reflect on the information offered in this month’s edition, and we always welcome your feedback.

If you do have any concerns about the wellbeing of your child, please contact the school for further information or seek medical or professional help.

Here is the link to this month's edition https://geelonghigh.vic.schooltv.me/newsletter/bullying

The Curlewis Golf Club Australian is offering a Golf Foundation Junior Girls Golf Scholarship program.

Curlewis Golf Club’s mission is to provide girls between the age of 10 to 16 with the opportunity to start or continue their golfing journey with a group of girls a similar age.

The scholarship will provide a year’s membership and four school terms of tuition at Curlewis Golf Club throughout 2023.

We invite any girl who may be interested in a golf scholarship to apply.

Further details of the scholarship program are attached.

Applications close on 6th December 2022.

Interested students can get an application form from Ms Cameron or Deb in the careers office.

Crime Stoppers Victoria will offer young people aged between 12-24 the chance to connect with the community through free skateboarding sessions. In addition to learning a new skill, every program participant will be offered the chance to meet with local youth employment services to discuss their future work opportunities and learn about Crime Stoppers crime prevention strategies to keep each other and the wider community safe.

Times and dates for the skateboarding sessions:

Geelong Waterfront Skatepark
10 Western Foreshore Road, Geelong

Tuesday, 10 January, 10:30am – 3:00 pm

Wednesday, 11 January, 10:30am – 3:00 pm

Tuesday, 17 January, 10:30am – 3:00 pm

Wednesday, 18 January, 10:30am – 3:00 pm

Thank you