Newsletter

Reflect, Recharge, Renew as 2024 Comes to a Close

Today marks the final day of assessment and timetabled lessons at Miles State High School for 2024. Students will receive their report cards on Tuesday of next week and Week 11 will be an alternative program. No work toward assessable 2025 Australian Curriculum topics will be undertaken at this time, however, cultural, wellbeing and engagement activities are planned.

Students may not be in their usual timetabled classes or with their regular teachers, but will rotate through different subject specific activities. Staff are also busy using this time to prepare units of work for the new version of the Australian Curriculum as well as new Certificate courses and updated Senior Syllabuses. Thursday is a pool day for those students with appropriate behaviour history, and the final day will be spent cleaning and setting up the school for 2025. There will also be reduced tuckshop items as we prepare for the summer break.

If your family has chosen to commence your holiday break early, please let the office know and we will see you in the new year.  If due to these family arrangements your child will not attend during week 11, the absence will be recorded, but will not affect their report card, ‘days absent’.

As I will not be returning in 2025, next week is my last week as Principal of Miles State High School and the school community will welcome the return of Mrs Josette Moffatt from leave next year.

Being Principal of Miles State High School has been a career highlight and as I encourage our school community to reflect on all that has been accomplished in 2024, I too have much to process. The act of reflection on what we have experienced, learnt, felt and shared is a powerful way to grow and improve. Research concerning the impact of reflection is outlined in the book, Don’t Underestimate the Power of Self-Reflection, by James R. Bailey and Scheherazade Rehman. They identify three aspects of reflection to consider. They suggest framing your reflections around the themes of Surprise, Failure and Frustration.

What surprised me about Miles SHS was what I have consistently said, which is that the school performs above expectations. This leads me to consider what are the ingredients to this success. Great facilities, staff and students, as well as embracing community are a few. Failure can be framed as, ‘What I have done as a leader that I could do better?’. Asking more questions and being louder regarding our infrastructure projects (oval upgrade, staffing and sponsorship) is what immediately comes to mind. Regarding Frustration, I reflect often at how little is known or recognised about the incredible opportunities in the regional areas of Queensland. I will continue to champion the Western Downs and the need for the young people in the community to have access to high quality educational opportunities, without having to leave their local community.

Students may wish to reflect on how much they have grown this year and what surprised, frustrated them or what they learned from failure. The great thing about being human is that every day is a new opportunity and each year can be one where we improve.

As the families of Miles State High School turn their attention to holidays and the season’s festivities, I encourage everyone to reflect, recharge and know that there is an opportunity to renew in 2025. Thank you to every student, parent, community member and of course the wonderful staff at Miles SHS, for your support, professionalism and kindness. I will fondly reflect on my time in Miles and wish the whole community a wonderful break and a happy 2025, with young people who are resilient and engage in discovering their pathways.

David Armstrong

Thank you for your contribution to 2024.

Firstly, if you have not viewed our billboard on your way back from Chinchilla, I suggest you have a good look.  Thanks to Mr David Armstrong for highlighting our students with the three simple words of ‘Strive, Thrive, Belong’.  Miles SHS is definitely a place where you belong to a wonderful community, and you are supported to strive and thrive in and out of the school.

It’s hard to believe that another year has come to an end, 2024 has been an exciting and productive year. Our school’s, Mission Statement of ‘Impact Minds-Change Lives” and values of Respect, Integrity, Safety and Engage have been practiced and witnessed each and every day by our staff, students and the wider school community. During 2024 our students have taken on and exceeded the goals they set for themselves. Our students have risen to the high expectations and standards that have been set for them by our school and its wider community.  It was terrific that our students’ successful outcomes in the areas of academic, sporting and cultural have been recorded and celebrated over the year and in particular at our Semester Awards Ceremony, our Annual Awards Night and at the Senior Graduation Ceremony. Our two-day transition for Year 6 students to high school in Week 10 was successful with students and parents meeting members of staff and the Leadership team.  These two days were followed with ‘QMEA – Big Day in’ where our Year 7 to 9 students participated in hands on activities for a day. These events are not possible without organisation and a willingness to support our students.  Therefore, I want to thank our students, parent/carers, school staff and our wider community partners in assisting our students to experience success at Miles State High School.

Please remember, school resumes back on Tuesday 28th January 2025 and the office will be open from Monday 20th January 2025.

Finally, thank you to David Armstrong and his wife Jennifer for their contribution to our school and we wish them well in 2025 at Tara SHS.

We welcome Josette Moffatt – Principal of Miles SHS back for 2025.

Safe holidays to all.

Raelene Bates

Well, we have reached the end to another big year and what a year it was! There have been many great memories made and important lessons learned for all. I wanted to say a massive thank-you to the staff of Miles State High School for all the efforts that have gone into working with our students this year. Also, thank-you to our parents and carers for getting your student to school ready for the day that was ahead of them. This is a very important part of the schooling day and one that is always appreciated! I also want to acknowledge that support that is received from our community when offering opportunities to the next generation. It is fantastic to know that people are always willing to give a hand when it is needed. Finally, thanks to the students of 2024. Without you and your efforts all the work that is completed does not amount to any great significance.

With this, our attentions are now turned to 2025 and the year that we will have at school. Plans are made and goals are set. To help you and your student prepare for the next year I have attached a copy of the 2025 uniform policy. This is also a reminder that they 2-year phase out period for the old uniform has now finished and the new uniform will be fully implemented next year. This means that all royal blue uniforms are now obsolete and we need to make sure that we are wearing the navy uniforms. Remember that you can use one pair of black polishable shoes that will suit both the formal and sports uniforms. If you have any questions please reach out to the school.

Thanks for the great year and I look forward to seeing you next year.

Caleb Kuhl

We’ve nearly made it!  This is the final newsletter of the year, with one more week left on the school books for Year 7-9.  As assessment has wrapped up, our teaching team are currently finalising results and getting ready to send reports out to our families.  This will allow us to determine bronze, silver and gold award winners, who will be recognised in an awards ceremony early in Term 1 of 2025.  A reminder of how these awards are calculated is below:

Bronze – C or above for Maths and English, plus three other subjects

Silver – B or above for Maths and English, plus three other subjects

Gold – As for Maths and English, plus three other subjects

This is consistent with the Department of Education’s focus on developing literacy and numeracy skills across the different phases of schooling.  For students who are completing Year 8 and Year 10 in 2024, the bronze, silver and gold awards will come in the form of a medallion to recognise completion of the Junior Secondary phase of schooling (Years 7&8) and completion of the Middle Secondary phase of schooling (Years 9 & 10).  The medallions, along with certificates for students in Year 7 and 9 will take place at the awards ceremony in 2025.

As 2024 is winding to a close, I want to say a big thankyou to our families for walking the path with us in 2024 to support your child, our students, to be engaged and successful in their learning.  This partnership and engagement are vital to our student’s success, and we look forward to that continuing in 2025.

Lastly, I love working with students, and it has been my privilege to play a part in each student’s educational journey in 2024.  With the holiday period to commence in the near future, I wish everyone a safe and restful break and I look forward to seeing you back in 2025.

Leigh Williams

Congratulations on Making It to the End of the Year

As we wrap up another successful year, it’s time to celebrate the hard work and resilience shown by our students, staff, and families. The school holidays provide a well-deserved break and the opportunity for students to relax and recharge. However, with more free time, students are likely to spend increased hours on their devices and social media platforms.

While technology can offer entertainment, learning opportunities, and social connection, excessive use can lead to negative consequences, including poor sleep, reduced physical activity, and heightened anxiety or depression. Device and social media overuse can quickly evolve into unhealthy habits, impacting a student’s overall wellbeing.

The Impact of Device Addiction

Device addiction refers to the compulsive use of smartphones, tablets, or computers to the point where it interferes with daily life. Studies have shown that excessive screen time, particularly on social media, can:

• Disrupt sleep patterns by exposing users to blue light before bedtime (Carter et al., 2016).
• Reduce face-to-face social interaction, which is crucial for developing interpersonal skills (Twenge et al., 2018).
• Increase the risk of anxiety, depression, and low self-esteem due to constant comparisons on social media (Keles et al., 2020).

How to Monitor and Provide Supervision

Parents and caregivers play a vital role in helping students maintain a healthy balance during the holidays. Here are some practical tips:

Looking Ahead

Helping students develop healthier habits with technology can positively influence their mental health and social skills in the long term. By providing guidance and supervision, families can ensure that devices enhance rather than detract from their child’s holiday experience.

Let’s work together to make these holidays a time of rest, growth, and meaningful connection for all students. Wishing the entire Miles State High School community a safe and balanced holiday season!

References Carter, B., Rees, P., Hale, L., Bhattacharjee, D., & Paradkar, M. S. (2016). Association between portable screen-based media device access or use and sleep outcomes: A systematic review and meta-analysis. JAMA Pediatrics, 170(12), 1202–1208.

Keles, B., McCrae, N., & Grealish, A. (2020). A systematic review: The influence of social media on depression, anxiety, and psychological distress in adolescents. International Journal of Adolescence and Youth, 25(1), 79–93.

Twenge, J. M., Martin, G. N., & Spitzberg, B. H. (2018). Trends in US adolescents’ media use and well-being, 1976–2016. Psychology of Popular Media Culture, 8(4), 329–345.

On Thursday Miles High hosted the QMEA and Origin energy to present this Big Day In. The day was received really well with the students engaging well and displaying the school values throughout the day. The students were broken into four groups and then further divided into colour teams. The coloured teams then competed against the other colours like a sports carnival. Students were exposed to 4 different rotation activities which included:

• Physics of flight – which involved them designing paper airplanes to meet the brief of longest flight time and longest flight difference. They were then awarded points on their ability to meet the brief.
• Robot Racing – this activity had students designing the most efficient race track for a robot to get around. Students then were timed and awarded points on how successful they were.
• Virtual welding – here students practiced MIG and TIG types of welding on a tablet and were scored on how neat and successful they were at welding.
• Pump station – for this activity, students designed a three-tier pumping station that needed to hold the most weight and stank 25cm tall. Points were taken away for the distance away from 25 cm and added for weight held.

Origin also addressed the students, telling them about the employment and scope of their operations in Miles, Chinchilla and Roma. This year they had an engineering slant to the gas industry to offset the trade focus of the last two years. They heard from a lead petroleum engineer and a first year graduate chemical engineer.

At the end of the day the Blue team won the day and Green team – Luke, Ryan and Tom were the highest scoring individual team. It was a fantastic day and great to see our students engaging in the STEM area. Well done to all! 

Mr Kuhl

Homework Centre is up and running, 3pm to 4.30pm every Monday and Wednesday afternoon.  Parents will need to complete a permission form from the Main Office and book on Sobs.  If unable to book on SOBS, please ring the office to confirm student attendance.

https://eq.sobs.com.au/pt3/parent.php?schoolid=70139