Superstar STEM Session Wednesday 4th of March

Our iCreate STEM class were very fortunate to have Dr Kirsten Ellis from Monash University, and her team, to run a workshop with us on electric circuits! Students used block, conductive tape, batteries, LED lights and other materials to build block circuits. Some of our students used their creative skills to make puppets! A big thank you to Dr Ellis for running this engaging workshop.

Ms Loan Luong-Nguyen

iCreate STEM Teacher & Science Coordinator

Careers Shines a Spotlight on SBATs

What does it mean when a student is doing an SBAT (School Based Apprenticeship/Traineeship)?

These are available to secondary school students, who are 15 years of age and are enrolled in VCE or VCAL.

An SBAT offers students the option of combining part-time employment, school and training. The program runs under a contract with an employer and has a training plan registered with the Victorian Registration and Qualifications Authority. The training must lead to a nationally recognised qualification.

The vocational training components of SBATs also contribute credit towards a senior secondary certificate. Many school-based apprentices and trainees move on to a full-time contract with their employer after leaving school, while others choose to continue their education and training at a registered training organisation or university.

Hello everyone, my name is Nobuhle but people know me as Jeanette.

To inspire you all who are currently completing an SBAT in Allied Health, here is some information to help you get through.

In 2018, Ms. Geraldine in Careers discussed with me the benefits of doing an SBAT because I had done my Year 10 Work Experience (one week) at Cabrini Hospital in Malvern.

So, when I was in Year 11, I decided to do a School based apprenticeship in the Allied Health field at VFA learning, Melbourne CBD campus. I started this one year program in early February 2019. From my personal experience, doing an Allied Health Assistance course was one of the toughest things to do as there was so much content to learn and quite a lot of assessments to do, in a short period of time. Initially, I found it quite hard to balance my placement, school work and TAFE assessments, but one of the inspirations that got me through was to always learn how to manage my time productively. I used to travel to the city every Wednesday to attend classes from 9 am to 3 pm.

Doing an Allied Health course not only helped me to gain knowledge in that field, but it is going to help me get into my career pathway after I finish Year 12 (medical field). As part of my placement, I used to work at Sandringham Dragons, Linton Street, RSEA Moorabbin, on Mondays, Tuesdays and Thursdays after school from 4 pm to 7 pm. I watched the St. Kilda AFL team train on most days that I was there. I worked closely with the physiotherapist and the rehab coordinators to help massage the players whenever they were injured and to also help them get back into training by doing some gym sessions, usually on Tuesday, just to make sure they were ready to train again.

My parents and teachers were very supportive of my undertaking this SBAT. I earned a salary too. I am happy to announce that I graduated from this program on 9th November 2019.

Jeanette Mhundwa, Year 12 VCE

Hi everyone,

My name is Talia Shipp and I am a Year 12 VCAL student. I chose to do VCAL because I like working with my hands.

I also like working in childcare because I look after my nieces and nephews in my spare time, as my family means a lot to me.

I enjoy cooking and I have done VET Hospitality with Mrs Read and Mrs Lynette. This has given me an edge with food preparation for children.

When I was in Year 11, I did my SBAT through VFA Learning and U Train. I attended the city classes every Wednesday and I worked at Star Fish Early Learning Centre, Clayton, every Friday for which I received a salary. It was tiring but I was happy that I had my pathway planned and I was achieving my goals.

I learnt to travel by public transport and ensured that I was punctual and reliable because Star Fish staff were always pleased to see me. I enjoyed my VCAL studies, Certificate III in Early Education and Care and my employment. My Graduation fulfilled my dream. I have received certificates in VET Hospitality, Child Care, and I am looking forward to getting my VCAL certificate at the end of this year. Moreover, since I am up to date with all of my tasks at school, I will be able to move to full-time work from July 2020.

I am proud to say I am the VCAL Captain this year!!!!

Talia Shipp, Year 12 VCAL

OUR SBAT STUDENTS CURRENTLY ARE:

Congratulations Talia, Jeanette and all the students undertaking an SBAT at Westall.

We are so proud of your achievements, and we are grateful to your parents/guardians for their support, as well as the Companies and Organisations that offer you an opportunity within their programs.

Geraldine Borgonha

Careers Advisor

iCreate Construction and Technology

The students in Construction and Technology have been challenged to redesign the garden bed outside the woodwork classroom, as well as complete some rigorous design briefs. A group of students took part in the demolition of the 'Mosaic Couch' feature due to mould and age of the Hebel material it was constructed from. They are now in the process of redeveloping this area using sustainable materials and making the space interactive for students to use in their break times. Wheelbarrows came and went to the dumpster to dispose of the rubble.

While this group worked intensively outside, the rest of the group worked busily indoors on some interesting design briefs. The challenge was to complete a product in 75 minutes, that had function, design innovation and was made for a specific client. The constraints were to use scrap timber, screws, glue and sandpaper. Some incredible designs evolved during this time and included - pencil sharpeners, chopping boards and multi-purpose book stands. The photographs capture some of the highlights that were achieved last week.

Congratulations to the students for their great effort!

Helen Ifandis

iCreate Constuction and Technology Teacher & Art Coordinator

iCreate Outdoor Ed Camp to Phillip Island

The iCreate - Outdoor Education students went to Phillip Island and adventured the outdoor environment. While having fun, we also learnt, discovered and tried new things every day.

DAY 1

On Tuesday, 10th March, we departed from school, at the break of dawn, on two minibuses. It was a two-hour ride from Westall Secondary College to YMCA Ocean Discovery Camp in Phillip Island. When we arrived, we went straight into our first activity on Smiths Beach; surfing. Everyone learnt how to surf, which was a popular favourite among the students. Afterwards, we explored the campsite, where we stayed while teachers and a few students went shopping for food. That night, teachers and some students cooked pasta and garlic bread for dinner. We ended the night with a self-reflection and slept at 11 pm.

DAY 2

After a good night's sleep, we were ready to begin the day with a full stomach of cereal and toast. At 8 am, we went to the Koala Conservation Centre, which is a place with boardwalk trails allowing people to observe koalas and other creatures. One of the things we learnt is that koalas sleep 18 to 22 hours a day. They were interesting and cute to look at! We went back to the campsite and had free time to do what we wanted to. Some students went down the beach, while others, played sports. We had rolls and wraps for lunch then went off to Woolamai beach for a walk. We walked 4km from the beach to a high cliff and watched the beautiful sunset scenery. We walked back and it was dark by the time we were back on the bus. When we came back, we drank milo and completed a self-reflection. The night ended with a movie before bed.

DAY 3

Since the day was a schedule of activities, we woke up early, at 7 am, for breakfast and shortly afterwards, headed to the rock pools where a ranger told us about the sea creatures living in the rocks. This session was very interesting and cool. We walked back to the campsite and took a short break because it was extremely hot! Then, we drove into Cowes, where we were able to explore and chill at the pier. Straight after, we went to the sand dunes at Woolamai beach. During this, many students had great faceplants on the sand. This activity was very tiring, especially the walk to the sand dunes and back, which made us fall asleep afterwards. After eating tacos for dinner, we went to the Penguin Parade. We watched little chubby penguins waddle back to their shelters and observed the starry sky.

DAY 4

We had a short leisurely day, waking up early to explore Forrest Caves. This activity involved a lot of rock climbing and we went under the caves. During this session, we thanked people who we were grateful to and spoke about the good things we did on camp. Shortly after, we had to clean the site and head back home.

By Monica and Elenie, Year 10

SRC News

This term has been action-packed for the student leadership team! We have successfully renovated the old canteen, and breakfast club has been serving food to over fifty students every Tuesday and Thursday morning. Our House Captains have written chants and ran sub-school assemblies. Our school community were also in the preparation stage of organising and celebrating Harmony Day.

Harmony Day and Athletics Day, as well as Westall Week, is to be postponed due to the developing issue of the Coronavirus (COVID-19). In addition, Breakfast Club will cease for the remainder of Term 1. However, the SRC aims to have Breakfast Club up and running in Term 2. It is highly unfortunate that the unprecedented virus has affected school events, that everyone had been looking forward to. However, as leaders, we recognise that the health and wellbeing of the school community need to be prioritised. Yet, the SRC has actively collaborated and established several fun activities, as well as BBQs, which are to take place in Term 2.

Furthermore, we have been busy surveying the students to ensure we represent them, in particular, a survey about the 2021 whole school structure and another to gather student suggestions, ‘What do you want out of 2020?’, which middle school students are invited to complete. Students are urged to take 5 minutes to tell us, via these surveys, what you want your school to be like for the future.

Aside from that, Badminton Club is still on and running every Monday after school!

The SRC Team

Food Department News Term One 2020

It’s been an exciting and productive start to the year in the Food Department. The Year 7 students have started with a great deal of enthusiasm, cooking a variety of healthy meals including, spaghetti bolognese, vegetarian noodles, fruit muffins and apple crumble. They have learnt many skills including, safety and hygiene, working as a team and cooking in the large commercial oven.

Middle school classes have been very competitive, with every class operating like something out of Master Chef! They are learning more complicated techniques and skills, which will prepare them for the VET Hospitality Course if they are interested in this formal qualification while still at secondary school. They have been making savoury dishes such as their own pasta, breads, biscuits, big breakfasts and creating design dishes of their own. Mr Tahos and Miss Barb have been visiting judges and have been impressed with the level of skill.

VET Hospitality is an accredited course that is offered at two levels, where students complete units that contribute towards a Kitchen Operations course at TAFE. They wear full chef uniforms and the dishes they prepare are restaurant-standard, such as Eggs Béarnaise and Caesar Salad with poached eggs. Part of the course is a minimum of catering twelve functions, which gives students the experience of catering for “real customers”. They came into school at 7:30 am on the day of the whole school swimming sports, to make a delicious lunch for the staff. They also catered for a Staff Association morning tea; everyone enjoyed the carnival theme.

iCreate Master the Westall Café is another subject where students have the opportunity to design a menu and prepare lunch once a week, for up to 100 staff and students. They have made many delicious lunches this term, including an Islander Buffet at the end of term, where the hospitality students offered their time to share their culturally appropriate recipes. We all enjoyed a delicious meal of chop suey, potato and beetroot salad, islander donuts (cooked with a stick) and watermelon coconut drink. It was a real community event for the school, one that the students had a great time providing for!

Ms Lee Read

Food Technology

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