Year 7 Pastoral Guardian

Wednesday morning: 158 nervous, but curious and excited, individuals are loaded up with their essentials for three days of adventure, challenge, and reward.

Friday afternoon: 158 students return feeling more connected to themselves, each other, their teachers, and the world in which they live.  

 

It is incredible how transformative three days of living and learning together can be.  For some students, this growth revealed itself through increased confidence to try new activities; or to find their inner strength to face fears; or having to seek solutions and improvise when faced with uncertainty; or learning to collaborate and communicate for personal and group success; or realising the need to trust others so that meaningful connections could be nurtured.  It must also be stressed that immense personal growth also occurs when distractions are removed from our lives, and we let opportunities for stillness, unity, and gratitude enter our lives. 

Over the past two weeks, it has been great to chat to students and to hear about their experiences.  Here are some highlights:

 

I loved the milk-crate climb because we really had to work together so we could achieve our best.  Together, Lulu and I stacked ten crates – the highest in our group.  

Emma Y

 

We loved the food!  The bucket lunch was delicious, and it was so much fun making tacos for dinner on the campout night.  Preparing meals allowed us to ‘step up’ and accept responsibility, and it was a genuine way to show care for one another; it also united our group. 

Matilda W, Lily S, Georgia B, Alex T, Genevieve T, Angela M

 

The punctured drum activity was such a blast.  It was really challenging, but our team united during this activity.  The rain could not dampen our fun; in fact, it enhanced it. 

Imogen M

 

I really loved the real-life leaning, like packing a backpack for campout and feeling more independent and responsible for myself.

Chloe B

The Adventure Alternatives camp instructors were awesome.  They were so supportive and helped us to believe in ourselves as we tried new experiences.  They were also a lot of fun.

Anusree H

 

We loved the campout.  This new experience was not only a lot of fun, but we learned the importance of working together and supporting each other.

Marina F and Isabella M

 

I loved beating Mr O’G in archery … Well, that’s my interpretation of the outcome!

Leilani D

With the aim of the Year 7 Outdoor Education experience being to develop behaviours and attitudes that help create and maintain positive connections, it is clear from the student comments that the camp experience was truly worthwhile.

 

Next Tuesday, Triple Antigen and HPV immunisations will be administered for those students where parental consent has been provided.  Feeling nervous about these is quite usual; however, speaking with your daughter about why you believe these injections to be important, along with strategies for remaining calm, is incredibly valuable. 

 

Finally, with four weeks remaining, students will be starting to undertake assessment in their subjects.  Achieving one’s personal best should be the focus.  To facilitate this success, good routines around the systematic completion of work and study should be in place.  In addition to this, may I also remind you of the self-care foci presented in the previous Parent Corner: eat well, sleep well, rest well, play well, focus well, and connect well - and, when the end of the term comes, we can all celebrate how far the Year 7s have come, in such a short amount of time. 

Conversation Starters

  • What was the most enjoyable experience for you?
  • What activity really challenged you?
  • What strategies did you use to cope with this challenge?
  • What did you learn about yourself and others through this camp?

Best wishes for a very safe and blessed Easter holiday.

Jeni Barlow