On Tuesday 29 May, Indigenous students from Dianella Secondary College attended the Reconciliation Walk at Lake Gwelup.  

The walk was held by the Wadjuk Northside Community Group and the City of Stirling to celebrate reconciliation between Indigenous and non-Indigenous people within our community.
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 “It was important for us to acknowledge our culture and pay respects to our elders” – Mason Hansen, Year 10

They had a great time on the walk listening to local musicians performing, meeting new people from all cultures and sharing life stories.
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After the walk, they attended a festival for Reconciliation Day where they got up close and personal with native Australian animals, helped create a sand mural, played games and listened to local musicians perform live. 

​Choreography Night 2018 was a huge success. Nearly 50 students from years 7 to 12 participated on Wednesday the 23rd of May in the school gymnasium. Students were given the opportunity to showcase their work from Semester One and their own choreography tasks which they produced in class. The night left students and audience members buzzing with excitement. A huge thank you to all of the staff who volunteered their time to make the night a success.  A DVD of the performance will be available for purchase in the next few weeks. 

 On Friday 6 April, thirteen Dianella Secondary College Year 10 students visited the Optus building in Perth for the Interview 2 Impress Workshop.

The workshop was run by the Australian Business and Community Network and was designed to equip students with the necessary practical skills needed in interview and employment settings.

We started off with icebreaker activities to calm our nerves, introduced ourselves to the group then the mentors shard their career journeys and their interview tips and experiences.

Soon after, we were separated into groups and we sat in a circle talking about what to do and what not to do in an interview. We also learnt some tips on what to wear and how to present ourselves.

About an hour later, we all shared a very nice lunch together before we split into groups again and practised some mock interviews

 I think that this workshop really helped us know how to be prepared for an interview and how to control our nerves. We learnt almost everything there is to know about an interview and now we are ready to start working.
​- Montana Brown, Year 10 

All Year 12 students  will need to declare that they are aware of the requirements to achieve the Western Australian Certificate of Education (WACE) and for sitting the ATAR course examination. These requirements are listed in the Year 12 Information Handbook which is available on the Authority website at https://www.scsa.wa.edu.au/publications/year-12-information.
 


Please find more information in the document below.

​On the 8th May, a group of selected STEM students went on an exceptional excursion to Edith Cowan University (ECU) Mount Lawley.

The selected STEM students were given a task by two of the ECU Art teachers. We spent our day in a pottery room located at ECU.

Our objective was to make an assortment of figurines, pinch pots and flower pots. We had to make these using paper-clay. 

The only problem was the clay got harder the more we played with it. We saw many creations made by the ECU Art students, all as creative as the next.

As the day progressed, we got the see the kiln and were given show bags from ECU. On the whole, the day was an explosion of joy!

​Thank you to Mr Fortini and ECU for organising the day!
 
Maryana & Rhiannon
Year 7 STEM students

April 13th, what a magical night to be remembered! The 2018 Year 12 ball was held at the Mulberry on Swan venue in Caversham.

The venue was decorated to depict the night’s “Enchanted” theme.

The lively event gave students and teachers the opportunity to come together as one big family.

The girls all came dressed elegantly in their jaw dropping dresses and the boys rocked up fierce and handsome.

 We were greeted at the door with mocktails and after headed off to take photos which were filled with wide grins, laughter and funny faces.

Later, the night led to a delicious buffet filled with different foods and assorted cheesecakes. Some highlights of the night were Mr Gibbs and Mr Eshghi’s slick moves on the dance floor and the crowing of the ball’s King and Queen, Rauf Khan and Shahad Aiez.

A special Thanks to Mr Eshghi and the school ball committee for organising this special event. In ten years, we will still remember this night; the music, dance, food and most importantly, our friends who we shared this night with, Thanks to you guys!

​Mamu Dukuly & Fadak Alweisawi
Year 12 Students

On Friday 13 April, the Dianella Education Precinct held a commemorative ANZAC service at Dianella Secondary College.  Community members, parents, staff and students attended the service to reflect on the sacrifices made by ex-servicemen for our freedom today.  Mr Wayne Austin, Principal of Dianella Secondary College, opened the service with an ANZAC address.  A second address was given by Nollamara RSL representative and ex-Mirrabooka Senior High School student, Mr Daniel Kerton. He also recited the ode whilst Nollamara RSL member, Mr Ted Tait, played the Last Post and the Reveille on the bugle. 

Wreaths were laid by the Dianella Education representatives.  These included:

- Dianella Education Precinct Principals – Mr Wayne Austin, Mr Adrian Piers, Mr Anthony Middleton
- Dianella Education Precinct Board members – Mr Matt Byrne and Mr Tony Vuleta
- Dianella Education Precinct students – Trish, Sarah and Trish
- Friends of the Dianella Education Precinct – Mrs Avril Clark and Mrs Donna Hazzard

Dianella Secondary College music students performed “We are Australian” and the Australian and New Zealand National Anthems.  Year 6 students from Dianella Primary College recited the poem “In Flanders Fields” and students from the Dianella Secondary College Education Support Centre raised the flags as part of the ceremony.  Year 12 student representatives also read short narratives describing different war time conflicts and the purpose of ANZAC Day.  Thank you to Dianella Secondary College School Captains, Joel and Tearya, for comparing the service. 

​Dear Parents, Caregivers and Community Members,

As you may be aware, Dianella Secondary College has become accredited as a White Ribbon school through our participation in the "Breaking the Silence" Program.

"Breaking the Silence" is an award-winning professional learning initiative for principals and teachers that provide foundational knowledge, tools and strategies to implement respectful relationships and domestic violence education programs in schools.
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The program supports schools to bring about a commitment to stop violence against women. It builds on existing initiatives to strengthen a culture of respect and equality at all levels of the school community – through the curriculum, role modelling from staff, policies and procedures and strengthen family and community partnerships.

Schools play a pivotal role in breaking the cycle of violence by teaching young people how to recognise and challenge violence against women and build respectful relationships. "Breaking the Silence" engages the wider school community to promote and role model gender equality and create a safe, inclusive school culture to stop violence against women.

Last year, we held our very first White Ribbon assembly with White Ribbon ambassadors helping us to educate our students. It was also a great opportunity for all three principals of the Dianella Education Precinct to take the White Ribbon oath on behalf of our respective schools.

“I will stand up, speak out and act to prevent men’s violence against women” - White Ribbon Oath

Yours Sincerely, 

Wayne Austin
Principal
Dianella Secondary College

In Term One, 19 Year 10 students completed their Certificate I in Financial Services. The aim of the course was to give students the opportunity to learn to manage their money more effectively, a skill needed for those who have a part-time job or for when they enter the workforce in the future. 
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They covered topics such as banking, super, budgeting, taxation, insurance, loans, investments and mortgages, levels of government, credit debt and scams.

The course was funded by The Smith Family who also provided the tutor for the two days. 

“This was a great opportunity for students to learn some skills for life” – Mrs Anne Wilson, Head of Mathematics Learning Area.