15 November 2022

Newsletter Articles

Important dates

Wednesday 16 November – CSC Year 9 Transition Day
Wednesday 16 November – CMS Year 6 Orientation day
Thursday 17 November @ 5.30pm – Principals Tour
Thursday 17 November – Stars End of Year Celebration
Tuesday 22 November to Friday 25 November – Clontarf End of Year Camp for Year 9 - Watarrka National Park & Glenn Helen
Friday 2 December – Staff Learning Day – No School for Students
Tuesday 6 December 5.30 to 7.30 – CMS Presentation Night – CMS Gym

From the Assistant Principal

Hello, Werte!

We are past the halfway mark for the term, we are almost there.

Thank you to staff, students and families for your hard work and support.

Teachers are busy finalising assessments and writing up Semester 2 reports. These reports are feedback on student achievement and growth. They provide an opportunity for reflection and planning. In the words of Malcom X, “Education is the passport to the future, for tomorrow belongs to those who prepare for it today” (Malcom X)

Exciting things are happening across the school:

• The Year 9 students are immersed in the Vet Program at CDU. They are being prepared for VET courses which will open the doors to amazing careers post middle and senior school.
• The Clontarf and STARS awards night are on Wednesday 9 November and 17 November respectively. Our school community is looking forward to these events. Our students and their families will celebrate the many achievements for 2022.
• We cannot wait to have new members of our school community join us for a transition visit. These Year 6 students will get a taste of what a full day at CMS feels like.
• Year 9 students will have a full transition day at Centralian Senior College on Wednesday Week 6. Students will find their way to CSC and back home.

Let us continue to engage with our children

I am delighted to note that as a community, we continue to instil values which enable our young people to become model citizens. The school values embody this desire. These are:

We are Responsible.

The future belongs to us we need to be responsible enough to prepare for the future we want. We are responsible for our choices and our learning.

We are Respectful.

CMS encourages respect other people’s rights to safety, learn, irrespective of gender, ethnicity, language and cultural belief.

We are fair

At CMS, no one should be left out, or treated unfairly. We want to model the society we would like to see by giving everyone a chance they deserve.

Last words

We recognise that at school, differences may occur. However, my strong belief is that we should never teach our children that it is okay to use violence as a means of settling differences. Mahatma Gandhi said:

An eye for an eye will leave everyone blind

CMS has processes and policies to deal with differences in a transparent and professional way. Please contact the school if you have any concerns.

Wellington Pasi
Assistant Principal

School news and updates

Principal Tours

Come along and join our principal, Mr Simon Rowlands, for an overview and tour of Centralian Middle School.

Year 9 CSC Transition Day Important Information

CSC Transition Day: This Wednesday 16 November is the final transition day to CSC. Year 9s need to make their own way to and from CSC, where they will engage in a day of learning and subject selection. It is important that all Year 9s attend this day, so they are well prepared to start at CSC next year. CSC Enrolment Packs are due back urgently. If you have not completed enrolment forms for your young person, or need a new pack, they can be collected from CMS reception. If you need a hand completing enrolment forms or have any questions about enrolling at CSC, please contact their front office on 8958 5000.

Swimming Carnival

We had such a fun time at the Alice Springs Aquatic & Leisure Centre. Thank you to Mr Druce, Mr Raja and Ms Steele-Park for organising the event. Mrs France did an unreal job on the BBQ. A massive congratulations to those who participated on the day and to Earth who won the Swimming Carnival by 25 points.

Student age champions will be announced in year level assembly’s in the next coming weeks. The Town Pool was very impressed with the way we cleaned and left the pool, so thank you to everyone who cleaned up and ensured the space was respected.

Interschool Netball Competition

In week 5, 3 teams of CMS students competed in the Interschool Netball competition. Our young women did great - supporting and coaching each other throughout the day. Thanks Ms Park and Ms Toze for accompanying our students!

Year 7

It has been a busy couple of weeks of learning in the Year 7 Block.

In Science students have been learning about the wonders of physics. They have been exploring gravity and air resistance by making egg parachutes and bottle rockets. I think we have some future astrophysicists on our hands!

In History we are finishing our history unit on Ancient China. Students have enjoyed learning about the wide variety of items that were traded along the Silk Road, particularly fireworks, dried fish, silk and the magnetic compass. Over the next few weeks students will start their Civics unit and will learn about the Australian Government.

Maths

In maths, students have been studying geometry and geometric reasoning. They used principles of transformation to create tessellating artworks with handmade cardboard stencils. These were used to decorate the classroom and gave students the opportunity to apply their geometric thinking to new context.

History

This term in History we have been studying Ancient Egypt. Students have explored the features of Ancient Egypt and investigated the importance and significance of the Nile River to Ancient Egyptian society. For their assessment task they created a topographical map of Ancient Egypt and labelled key areas.

Food Technology

In Food Technology, Year 7 have made Vietnamese Spring Rolls. We practiced making sure we have either a 'bridge hold' or 'claw grip' while using the knife. We looked at three different cuts: dicing, shredding and julienne. Students then learnt how to tightly roll their spring rolls and how to safely deep fry the spring rolls in oil.

Bonnie-Mae found assembling her gingerbread house quite challenging, however she persisted through her challenge and as a result was successful in getting it together.

Year 9

VET week at CDU

Last Week, Year 9s are back at CDU for the second VET block of the year. A bunch of enthusiastic learners have spent the week in an adult learning environment, gaining skills in carpentry, music and media, vehicle detailing, sheet metal, barista and kitchen operations. As always, we’re so proud of our students for embracing new opportunities and stepping outside of their comfort zones. We think the photos speak for themselves!

Year 9s participated in the Democracy Dash. This is an event put on by the Northern Territory Electoral Commission to help young people learn about democracy, democratic principles and institutions, and different organisations in Alice Springs that are part of democratic processes. Students worked in groups to race around town to different organisations. Congratulations to Bella, Katherine, Kai-Ella, Domenic and Raison (with Mr Kadaoui) who won the Dash!

Year 9 Science

Students have continued their learning of light energy, exploring how light behaves when it passes through different density materials, like from air to water, and through different lenses.

They have also begun their work into sound energy and how this energy moves as a wave.

VET Conservation & Land Management

Students have been working hard to complete the tasks for their final units for the term (and for some, their certificate!).

For the unit "Observe and Report Plants or Animals", this work has included...

• planning documents
• a job risk assessment
• a series of field observation records

We have run surveys at the Alice Springs Desert Park, Simpsons Gap (Tjoritja National Park) and Jessie Gap (Yeperenye Nature Park).

For the unit "Follow Basic Chemical Safety Rules", students have been...

• reading chemical labels
• choosing and wearing PPE (personal protective equipment)
• loading and unloading chemicals
• using backpack spraying units
• mixing chemicals
• responding to chemical spills

Stars Foundation

In Stars we welcomed back our Year 9s from their overnight trip to Tennant Creek for a Central Australian Stars Oz Tag Carnival. We are so pleased that the girls enjoyed their time away mingling with other program members from Centralian Senior College, Tennant Creek Primary and High School and Yirara College!

In Year 7 and 8 Contact Times our students tested their culinary skills with a Dumpling class and Curry MasterChef comp. The girls worked well in teams to make their meals and should all be encouraged to keep practicing at home! We have also been lucky to have David Thomas from AFL Central Australia come in to work with them and look forward to having him in our Year 8 and 9 Contact Times in the coming weeks.

On Friday in Week 4, to show our appreciation for the wonderful teaching staff of CMS, Stars held a late World Teachers Day High Tea. We would like to thank all the staff for the support they provide our program, and also a shout out to senior Stars student and CMS School Captain for her bravery in addressing the staff beforehand. We’d also like to say a huge thank you to the HPE staff for a great Swimming Carnival. Our students that participated in each race and games did so displaying Stars values of Commitment, Pride, Respect and Honesty, and we commend every student for their efforts on the day.

There’s a lot coming up in CMS Stars and we don’t want anyone to miss out! Please see the below dates for upcoming activities and events:

Thu 17th Nov – 2022 Stars Celebration Night! 6pm @ the CMS Gym
Thu 24th Nov – Year 9 Sleepover

Clontarf Corner

What a great start the fellas have made to Term 4 getting stuck into all our activities, training, camps, and events. One of the highlights has been how the boys have conducted themselves when we've been out in the community.

This Term the Year 7 and 8 boys were tourists in their own town packing their swags and heading out to Discovery Parks. Antwan Wiseman won the Clontarf Spirit for the Year 7s through his leadership amongst the crew as well as being always willing to lend a hand. Brodius Palmer also took home the chocolates for the Year 8s, easily packing away the most swags throughout the trip - too deadly fellas! Overall it was another successful camp and the boys can’t wait for the next one!

The boys have been up bright and early every Tuesday and Friday for our morning training. The energy levels have been high and there have been some brilliant skills on display. We've been lucky to be joined by a few special guests already this term to jump in on the fun, including Dave Thomas from AFL NT, Jodie Scicluna from Kmart and Marilyn Smith from Lhere Artepe. The boys were able to put their skills to the test against our friends at the Yirara Academy.

In the first few weeks of the term fellas across the three Alice Springs academies, Centralian Middle, Centralian Senior and Yirara went down to Yeperenye Shopping Centre on a number of occasions to assist Woolworths shoppers and gain valuable work experience. They also put their hands up to help out our partner, Yeperenye Shopping Centre, with the centre's Halloween celebrations. A group of our Year 8s also went down to Kmart for a site visit and some of our Year 9’s lent a hand at the Alice Springs Derby Day!

Finally, a big shout out the lads who received awards for the hard work, dedication and commitment to school, our programme and themselves! It was a great turnout at our Clontarf Awards Night and amazing to see our families, school staff, partners and community members show up in support.

Award winners:

Attendance: Riley Swan
Leadership: Brody Satour
Community: Keenan Driffen
Most Determined: Billy Stuart
Principal: Nathan Swan
Junior Clontarf Spirit: Kevin Tiltsen - Collins
Senior Clontarf Spirit: Tama Wallace
Employment Award: Kendyl Forrester
For more go to: https://tinyurl.com/ClontarfCornerCMS

Polly Farmer Foundation

Yesterday CMS Follow the Dream students visited Purple House, an innovative Indigenous-owned and run health service operating in Alice Springs to learn about bush medicine and make bush balm out of local native ingredients. Students also shared in a healthy and delicious afternoon tea prepared by Purple House.

Year 6 and 7 Alice Springs students from Centralian Middle School, St Philip's College, and Braitling Primary School attended an overnight camp at the Alice Springs Earth Sanctuary earlier this term.

Students learnt about leadership, went on an eco tour to learn about some of the amazing sustainably initiatives at the Earth Sanctuary, learnt about astronomy and the night sky. Students camped out in swags under the stars and Year 6 students listened to the Year 7 students explain what it's like in high school.

Centralian Follow the Dream is proudly partnered with NIAA. St Philip's Follow the Dream is proudly partnered with NIAA and the Mazda Foundation.

Follow The Dream End of Year Presentation will be held on Tuesday the 22 November at Purple House Social Enterprise Hub – 15 Lindsay Ave, East Side @ 3.30pm.

The Polly Farmer Foundation would like to invite Follow the Dream students, parents/ guardians, tutors and supporters to the CMS Follow the Dream End of Year Presentation.

Please RSVP to hamish.mcloughlin@pff.com.au

Community Announcements

2023 NT Music School Enrolment

Is your child interested in learning a musical instrument or singing?

Enrolment applications are now open for new and continuing students in the NT Music School’s 2023 Instrumental and Choir Program. Instrumental lessons are offered during school hours for students in Year 4,5,6,7, 8 and 9 on flute, clarinet, saxophone, guitar, trumpet, trombone and percussion. Lessons are free with a $50 contribution requested on placement in the program. Instrument hire from $100 is available through NT Music School. Sports Vouchers are accepted to assist with costs of hiring instruments. Choir is by audition only and rehearsals are held after school.

Apply online now to secure your interest via the link below.

Applications close Friday 2 December 2023

Should you require further assistance call the NT music School on 8955 2345

Alice Springs Christmas Show

Saturday 19 November @ Blatherskite Park 4pm- 8pm

Join us for the second annual Christmas Show! Family Fun including water play, icy poles, animals and more! Plus get your Christmas Shopping started with market stalls!

Upcoming Holidays Minecraft Camps

Art & Craft Place Schedule

What’s @ Your Town Library

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