Student News

ADT WEEK

Media Competition Winners

A huge thanks and congratulations to everyone that sent something through, we were overwhelmed with both the volume and the quality of the submissions this year.

Without further ado, we are thrilled to announce the winners:

1st Bea Payla K1 (9)

Video

2nd Ruby Dong R1 (12) -

Animation

3rd Eric Nguyen R2 (11)

Photos

Pie Oh My!

As part of the ADT week of activities, houses competed in designing and making the very best BERRY PIE. Congratulations to Cotrrell who took out first prize by creating a beautiful and elegant design of semi-lattice pastry with flowers of varied sizes. Second place went to Kororoit, and followed by Rothwell and Blackwod . Thank you to the students who took part and the staff who supported their houses by supervising and encouraging students.

Ms Muollo

Chalk Art Competition

Congratulations to all students who participated in the Annual Chalk Art Competition on Friday.All houses were well represented by a group of enthusiastic artists and the creative talents of students shone through once again as they reproduced an artwork by renowned Australian painter Mirka Moira, under very tight time constraints. Choosing a winner was, as usual, very difficult as all houses completed their reproduction to a very high standard.1

1st Place - Rothwell

2nd Place - Cottrell

3rd Place - Blackwood/Kororoit

National Reconciliation Week

National Reconciliation Week is an important part of Australian culture, encouraging everyone to learn about our shared histories, cultures, and achievements, and to explore how each of us can contribute to achieving reconciliation in Australia.

The 2022 theme was to “Be Brave. Make Change.”, challenging everyone to tackle the unfinished business of reconciliation so we can make change for the benefit of all Australians. Here at Suzanne Cory, we did this by actively engaging in learning about the history of the Indigenous communities and getting educated on the relationships and values important in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people's histories, cultures and futures.

In respect and celebration of the significant milestone of the 1967 referendum and the High Court Mabo decision, students wrote messages of reconciliation towards the First Nations people on a cut out of their hands, which were placed all throughout the school. All Australians must have a role to play when it comes to reconciliation and should play our part by collectively building relationships and communities that value Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, histories, cultures, and futures.

Shakya Abeysinghe Yr 12 / K2 and

Jennie Kong Yr 12 / K4

Citizenship Captains

Road to Zero

On Wednesday the 25th of May, our ¾ HHD class had the opportunity to attend a Unit 3 seminar on health promotion, which mainly focused on health promotion strategies currently studied through AOS 2: Smoking, Road safety and SunSmart. We were delivered speeches by Keynote speakers, engaged in panel discussions, and rotated through activities, all made with the intention of preparations for our sac.

Dr Sarah White, a director at Quit Victoria, taught us initiatives that were applied to society to reduce the prevalence of smoking like mass media ‘fear’ campaigns which evoked fear into the audiences on the dangers of smoking to government laws and policies already enforced to advocate anti-smoking like plain packaging and taxes to reduce affordability of cigarettes. She also spoke on the Australia’s history of smoking, sharing with us some shocking realities like smoking being the social norm for both the younger our age and older.

Through Nicky Muir, a SunSmart Youth Coordinator at Cancer Council Victoria, we learnt about how SunSmart has implemented strategies to reduce risk of skin cancer like physical provision of shades in schools, the much-loved Slip slop slap seek and slide! To how we can all be more self-aware of UV rays which although cannot be seen by the naked eye, is the main precursor to skin cancer.

Anne Harris, The Director of Behaviour, Education and Community at TAC spoke on road safety and ways in which their program has been able to promote and advocate change in reducing road traffic related deaths via improving car structures, road conditions and behaviour.

Road to Zero gave us the opportunity to ponder through fun and insightful interactive on road safety, which really developed our knowledge on the current handling of road safety and in reaching zero deaths on the road by 2050.

All in all, the day was an absolute blast and a big thank you to Ms Collins for organising this rewarding experience!

Enuri Koralagamage

Year 12 K8

Cinderella Excursion

On Wednesday the 8th of June, the cast of this year’s school musical Working went on an excursion to the Regent Theatre to see the musical Cinderella. It was a gorgeous performance and afterwards, we had the privilege of being invited to attend a Q & A session with several members of the main cast, including Australian stage and screen royalty Todd McKenney, Silvie Paladino and Tina Bursill. They were all very kind and open to all the questions we had about theatre, performing as a career, and even answered our questions about other productions they had been in such as Les Miserables.

The show itself had some amazing onstage costume changes, a beautiful set and amazing costumes. There were also a few modern twists to the original story, which were very interesting to see, and the singing and dancing absolutely blew us away.

It was an amazing experience for all of us, and for some of us it was our first time seeing a musical live on stage. This was an excursion that we will remember for a long time to come!

Amelie Barham, R1

Co-curricular Semester 1

After 2 years of COVID disruptions, it was great having all SCHS students enjoying themselves with the co-curricular program this year. Semester 1 saw the entire SCHS student body taking part in 37 different co-curricular offerings, ranging from sports, craft, cooking, mindfulness and many, many more. It is amazing to see the smiling faces of students having a go at something new and having fun in the process.

A massive thank you to all the staff and instructors who have worked so closely with the students in their co-curriculars. The program cannot run without their tireless efforts and passion. I’m looking forward to seeing what semester 2 brings for the co-curricular program!

The Co-curricular Billiards group at Yarraville Snooker Academy with Victorian Snooker and Billiards Association instructor George Spiteri.

The students of Co-curricular Bytes & Bots with their robot models at Wyndham Tech School

Dolly Nguyen

Director of Student Engagement

SENS event

This term, the year 11s had the opportunity to participate in their very first SENS event. This was a 2 week online bonding challenge that ran from the 23rd of May to the 6th of June. It was a wonderful opportunity for everyone to meet people from other select schools and partake in fun activities for a chance of winning prizes (bowling tickets, gift card vouchers and chocolate!).

Congratulations to:

First place: 🥇💓 TEAM 7 💓🥇

Aakriti Malhotra, Ganika Shree, Nathan Lay, David Le, Khawna Mallick, Katinka Schmid, Ayden Narayan and Eric Rashid

And following VERY close 1 point behind...

Our second place winners: 🥈💙 TEAM 5 💙🥈

Sophie Parnham, Sara Adani, Rakshan RS, Chanul Gunawardana, Akshara Balreddygari, Presh Rajavel, Sophie YunLang Lan, Lois Pal

And our third place winners: 🥉🧡 TEAM 12 🧡🥉

Shemaya Fernando, Melody Chong, Ankit Behera, Arjyashrestho Roy, Tiffany Ding, Medha Kakkar, Anna Reese Joyson, Parami Balage

Thank you to all students who took part in this event!!! We hope everyone enjoyed this event and could give us feedback on what other potential events you would like :)

https://forms.gle/u27HacPh383oe3kc8 (feedback survey)

Melissa Xavier (R8), Eric Nguyen (B4), Carol Danial (C7) and Krisha Luhar (K5)

Your Year 11 SRCs

Units 3&4 Ancient History Hellenic Museum and Open Horizons Excursion

On the 2nd of June, our one and only Units 3&4 Ancient History class went on an excursion to learn more about Ancient Greece. Sitting in a classroom and listening about historical events is definitely interesting, but there was something so fascinating about being able to see the artefacts from the wars and events we had learnt about in real life. It was like finally being able to put a face to a name. We started at the Hellenic Museum, where our guide (who very closely resembled Gal Gadot if she was Greek) filled us in on every single item on display. It was surreal knowing that a small clay vase could hold such a story to it.

Just looking at it, the guide could tell us about where it was made based on the paintings, when it was from based on how intricate the details were, and what it was used for. I don’t think the same could be said today about the items we’ll one day leave behind to be found as artefacts. Something else that was really interesting was the hoplite helmets. In class we always learn about how hoplites revolutionised warfare with their armour and revolutionised society by demanding political power, but actually getting to see it was a whole different story. Some of them had damage from past battles, like a permanent reminder of the effects of historical events. At the end of the tour we were taken into a dark room and saw a silicone sculpture by Sam Jinks titled “The Messenger”. It was inspired by a statue of the goddess Iris which once stood on the temple of the Parthenon on Athens’ Acropolis. It was so lifelike and felt like the modern equivalent to the ancient Greeks and their marble statues.

We also enjoyed the Ancient Olympics virtual reality exhibition for which we donned headsets and were transported back to a 3D version of ancient Olympia. There were torches from ancient and modern Olympics on display.

Afterwards, we went to the Open Horizons exhibition at the Melbourne Museum where we explored the exhibits and videos on our own, and excitedly pointed out familiar places on the moving map. These are artefacts temporarily on loan from the National Archaeology Museum in Athens. Ms Fenby was to see her old university friend who works at the museum and helped prepare the tech elements of the exhibition. It was inspiring to see the different avenues a history degree could lead to. Here we gained more views of what ancient Greek life was like, and the museum was chock full of pottery, painting and more.

Overall it was a really fun day, especially the hour lunch break where we got to eat wherever (the Korean BBQ was great and some students strictly stuck to Greek cuisine). Seeing physical reminders and memories of what we learn in class was really interesting, and really helped me appreciate the history more.

Beatrice K., K8

Open Horizons Education Preview Event at the Melbourne Museum

Ancient history teachers were very excited to hear about the new Open Horizons: Ancient Greek Journeys and Connections exhibition which has opened at the Melbourne Museum. Featuring statues and artefacts from the National Archaeology Museum in Athens, the exhibition examines Greek culture spreading across the Mediterranean and being influenced by other Mediterranean cultures, including the colonisation movement which is part of the Ancient Greece Study Design.

I was fortunate to be invited to the education preview of this wonderful exhibition on April 27th as a representative of the History Teachers Association of Victoria, and to meet up with a good friend from university who is on the Melbourne Museum team and worked on the digital side of the exhibition. Although the preview was aimed mostly at teachers of Ancient Greek language and the speeches were partially delivered in Greek, there were a number of us from the history community present who were delighted to catch up, wander the exhibits and connect objects to events and locations in the curriculum.

There were many beautifully preserved objects and fragments including a head of Zeus, a broken piece of pottery with a detailed trireme (warship with three banks of oars) carved on it and some impressive statues. As seen above, I took my Ancient History class in to visit the exhibition, which will remain open until August 14th.

Ms Raquel Fenby

SCHS VCE History Teacher

PAW Club

In Week 2 of this term, the PAW Club ran a bake sale for RSPCA Victoria, to support their endeavours in protecting our furry friends! We managed to raise over $466 for the RSPCA, and we are so thankful to everyone who supported the cause by purchasing a delicious baked treat. We would also like to thank all the members of the club, and everyone who helped by baking and selling for the sale, we definitely could not have done it without you! Finally, we would like to thank Ms Sordello in helping us organise the logistics!

Be sure to keep your eyes peeled for any future events to help our furry friends!

Hridey Kapoor (B7) and Richard Lee (B9)

PAW Club Leaders

HUMANITIES WEEK

Mock Trial

During Humanities Week, the Humanities faculty held their annual mock trial. This year saw Humpty Dumpty sue the King for injuries sustained after falling off the wall while guarding his castle. The students enthusiastically took on the roles of Humpty Dumpty, the King, Judge, Legal Representation, and the many witnesses. After a hard-fought trial, the jury of students found in favour of the King!! It looks like Humpty Dumpty won’t be getting any compensation.

Congratulations and thank you to all the students who got involved either as a participant or audience member.

Ms Byrne & Mr Collom

VCE Humanities Teachers

Week 8 of this term was HUMS Week. Part of this week involved a mock civil trial. The case? Humpty Dumpty v The King!

During the two-day trial, evidence was presented, words were exchanged, and friendships were tested, as lawyers from both sides sought to convince the jury of the King’s liability – or lack thereof – for Humpty Dumpty’s injuries from his great fall. It was a fantastic event, with ground-breaking debate on the effectiveness of equine-assisted therapy, workers’ compensation fraud and surgery on … an egg …? In the end, the jury gave their verdict after a difficult, time-pressed, deliberation: not liable!

Regardless of the outcome, it was a thoroughly enjoyable trial and all performances were fantastic. A big thank you to all the students who volunteered to take part, those who came to watch, and to Ms Byrne and Mr Collom for making sure it ran smoothly.

Long may His Majesty reign and remember to follow your OH&S laws!

Cindy Truong

Year 12 student

Extracurriculars update

On the 2nd of June 2022, Suzanne Cory hosted a secondary open zonal chess tournament for a spot in the Northern Star State Finals. For seven, fifteen minute, rounds, our students fiercely competed alongside Geelong Grammar and Werribee High School students. Our students gave it their all, putting out a dominating performance, and claiming a well-deserved and hard-ought win, booking a spot at the State Finals in Term 3.

Congratulations to all the students who participated in the tournament, and special mentions to Claire Wong (champion of the tournament), Adarsh Kamboj, Ishwaran Nilakantan, Alan Prince, Rishi Mukherjee, Paarth Agarwal, Jason Jia, Meet Shah and Angel Vasisht for winning individual awards. This is something I forgot to add: Last but not least, special thanks to Ms Greaney and Ms Nguyen for helping to organise and run such an amazing tournament.

Ananyaa Duggal (R2) and Goutham Peddireddy (K1)

Extracurricular captains

Music Update

Hello SCHS!

It’s been quite busy for the music department as we’ve finally been able to run Chorals, our major music and art house competition! As most people know by now, Blackwood ended up winning, followed by Rothwell, Kororoit and Cottrell, however it was certainly a close fight between all of the houses to see which one would take first place.

The music captains sincerely thanks all the students and staff involved with making Chorals become one of the greatest days of 2022, and we wish to see it flourish in years to come! All the practising and hard work was certainly recognised, so keep it up!

Additionally, as a part of LOTE week, we also got to run our LOTE week Open Mic, where we had a number of performances in many different languages. Again, a big thank you to everyone involved, as it was great to see everyone be happy to share their cultures and languages with the student body.

Signing off,

The Music Captains

Gabe Custodio (R1) and Nirmidha Sankar Kumara Suriyar (B4)

Click here to view the Chorals House performances

LOTE WEEK

Term 2 ended with another spectacular LOTE Week event. This is a treasured part of our experience at SCHS, because it provides as an opportunity to celebrate the multiculturalism of our students. LOTE Week is all about recognising the importance of culture, language and identity. It is the reason why each year we raise money through our activities for the Indigenous Literacy Foundation. The charity does important work in preserving and celebrating the Indigenous culture of Australia by producing and distributing books in native languages. If you would like to learn more about the work they do, you can visit their website at https://www.indigenousliteracyfoundation.org.au/.

Our week started with the Hawker’s Market. Thirty students worked together to provide food from their different home cultures. The Agora was abuzz as students sampled the many different dishes on offer. In all, the event helped us to raise almost $700 for ILF.

We also held the Open Mic: LOTE Week Edition in the Auditorium. The event was so popular we had to turn students away at the door. We saw amazing performances from staff and students as they sang in a wide variety of languages. The support and love in the room shown to our students for their skill (and bravery) was truly in keeping with our school values and filled me with immense pride in our community. Of course, it wouldn’t be LOTE Week without the

Traditional Clothing Day on the last day of term. This is the true celebration of our individuality and heritage. It was a colourful, joy-filled day to end the term. Thank you to our school leaders for helping everyone to show off their outfits. Gold coin donations from the day helped to raise additional money for our fundraiser.

I’d like to thank all the students, parents and staff who helped to make the week so enjoyable.

Ms Louise Leong

Head of LOTE

High Notes! from the Music Area

Dear Folks,

It has been a most amazing term for Music and Music-Making at SCHS after so much disappointment over the last two years. We were able to hold our annual Winter Concert in all its glory with all of the school’s large ensembles making a triumphant return. This has been a mighty achievement and I would like to thank the staff and students for so wholeheartedly contributing to this event.

Of course, the big statement from us was the return of the House Chorals and even though we hadn’t been able to stage this event since 2019 (which meant that the only students with any semblance of the event were our current year 12’s when they were in year 9), it was agreed by all that this year’s event was a magnificent triumph. Many thanks to the staff and students for this rousing rendition of the House Chorals. Also, big thank you to our Adjudicator on the day, Mr Gareth De Korte, Director of Music at Melbourne High School for his insightful adjudication complete with the obligatory controversy.

We are very happy to announce Mr Jay Brendan Del Rosario to the position of Piano and Keyboard teacher. Jay is an ex SCHS student who is currently making a name for himself in performances at the University of Melbourne where he is a current Piano student.

Lastly, I would like to wish all the families at SCHS all the best as this will be my last edition of High Notes as Mrs Paye and I are leaving to move to the Island of Jeju in South Korea where I will be taking up a position of Head or Co-Curricular Music at an International School. I have enjoyed my time at SCHS and I am very happy with the work that I have been able to achieve with our talents staff and students.