Just like every other fortnightly cycle at school, the last two weeks has been filled with so many wonderful activities and events, possibly the busiest of the year so far. From camps to sporting events, student progress meetings (SPMs) to Chicago the school musical for 2023. It was a fortnight full of many great opportunities for our students and a great way to finish a fantastic Term 1.
Year 8 Camp
The Grampians – Gariwerd
Our Year 8s ventured to The Grampians National Park for their year level camp where they engaged in activities such as mountain biking, rock climbing, abseiling, canoeing and hiking. This camp is a progression from Year 7 as part of their outdoor education skill development where it has them fully self-sustaining for the week. They carry all their own equipment including tents, Trangia stoves, sleeping mats and bags, as well as five days of food. Developing their ability to cater for a week-long adventure is part of their ongoing development and preparation for Year 9 where they will be required to do this on several occasions. All students participated wonderfully in the activities and came back to school with a real sense of accomplishment. Below is a student reflection from Troy Ma
‘Sleeping was a pain. Since Max has the height of an NBA player, he took up one half of the tent, leaving me and all the stuff on my side of the tent. Fortunately, the daytime was the most fun I’ve had outside for a long time! We got to hike and climb some of the mountains in the Grampians such as Mount Zero and hiked to Mackenzie Falls. On top of that, we had a 9km hike, which made us all very tired but proud as we finished it and limped into our next campsite.
What I improved on during the camp was rock climbing, where we were able not only to climb in five different spots up the mountain with a harness but also help the rock climbers by ‘belaying’, that is, tightening their harness rope.
The abseiling was the most exciting part which you could say was only for the bravest but some of the boys were brave enough to say ‘no thank you’. I waited for the next abseiler to come down, and looking at how high I was and not having my harness attached yet, I was a little nervous, but as I leaned down and started to slowly climb my way down, I changed from nervous to adventurous. The last part was that we had to bring our food, prepare, cook and even clean all of our meals! There were no refrigerators, so most of us brought ready-to-cook meals where you just have to boil water on the Trangia (our personal stove), which was what I did for three of the four nights.
On Thursday, we had a very fun and challenging mountain bike ride that had most of us bumping and losing balance due to the sand, with a drizzle of heavy raindrops just as we finished.
Even though this was all really hard, as we used so much energy in the heat, the three Year 10 leaders (Jack, Michael and Tyson) and the two outdoor education leaders Jody and Joel helped and guided us the whole camp, and if it wasn’t for them, I’m sure some of us would have gone insane.’
Troy Ma | Year 8
Chicago the Musical
Throughout the second half of last week and over the weekend, our wonderful cast and crew from Chicago were finally able to present their show to the public. This has been in production for more than six months from when auditions began back in Term 3 of 2022. The commitment required, and demonstrated, for such a show is incredible and the sense of accomplishment and fulfilment that the students felt on Saturday night after their final performance would be hard to match. It is such a treat to be able to watch such quality performances in acting, singing, playing the music, working the backstage, lighting and much more – all led by our wonderful students and supported by an incredible group of committed staff. Read the full report.
Years 7 – 11 Art Exhibition
Over the last few weeks we have had an exhibition in our art space highlighting the incredible work done by our Years 7 to 11 art students in the variety of different art subjects that they undertake. From core art through the Middle School, to a number of elective options in Years 8 – 10, as well as our Unit 1 – 2 Art students, it has been a treat to see such amazing work on display by all students. Our art staff do an incredible job in helping all students realise their artistic potential, as well as creating the opportunity for some of our extremely gifted artists to showcase their talents.
Student Progress Meetings (SPMs)
On Monday this week we held the third of three Student Progress Meetings for Semester 1. These meetings are a great opportunity for our families to connect with staff at the school and help share in the educational journey of our students. The feedback provided at these sessions is vital to help our learners focus on continuing to develop themselves in their best possible way. The interim reports that go along with these meetings focus on the key learning areas of: Preparation for Learning, Participation in Learning, and Attitude towards Learning. These behavioural indicators are very important for students to be developing, not just for their immediate benefit, but for life-long success. I would like to thank all families and staff for such positive communication and connection, and I look forward to this continuing into Term 2 and beyond.
Term 1 has been a great term for everyone involved. The energy and enthusiasm within the School is as high as it’s ever been, led wonderfully at the top by our Year 12 students. The example they continue to set around commitment to their studies and support for each other has been great to see and it has had a real positive impact on our other year levels. As we approach the Term 1 holidays, I would like to wish all students and families a great break. It is important that everyone finds the time to recharge their inner batteries, to find the opportunities to do the things that we love and that bring us joy.
A reminder that Term 2 will begin on Wednesday 26 April for all students and I look forward to seeing them all then.
Brett Trollope | Head of Secondary
