Secondary News

Dear Parents and Guardians,

As we reach the midpoint of Term 4, it’s been a busy and productive time across the Secondary School. With exams, end-of-year events and final assessments well underway, our students are demonstrating great focus, resilience, and commitment to their learning.

Over the past week, students in Years 7-11 have been preparing for and sitting their Semester 2 exams. These assessments provide an important opportunity for students to consolidate their knowledge, demonstrate their understanding and reflect on the progress they’ve made throughout the year. We encourage students to use feedback from these assessments to identify strengths and areas for improvement as they move into their next year of study.  We also keep our Year 12 students in our thoughts as they complete their final exams over the coming days. We hope the experience has been a positive one and that their hard work and understanding of the year’s content are reflected in their exam responses.

As we approach the end of the school year, we are proud of the dedication and growth our students have shown in both their academic and personal pursuits. It’s been wonderful to see students support one another through study sessions, collaborative projects and co-curricular activities. The sense of teamwork and community continues to shine through.

The coming weeks will include final projects, reflection activities, and preparations for our Celebration of Learning Awards event and other end-of-year celebrations. We look forward to recognising the hard work and achievements of our students and celebrating their success as a school community.

This year, we are delighted to present new awards at our Celebration of Learning service that recognise not only academic achievement, but also effort, improvement, leadership, service, and the many ways our students contribute to the life of our College community. 

These awards are;

Community Spirit Award - 1 per year level

Presented to a student who has demonstrated outstanding commitment to helping others, showing compassion, initiative and leadership through meaningful service to the school and wider community.

Growth and Perseverance each subject per year level

Presented to a student who has demonstrated outstanding progress, perseverance, and commitment to improving their knowledge, skills and achievement in [Subject Name] throughout the year.

Academic Excellence - each subject per Year level

Presented to the student who has demonstrated exceptional achievement, consistent effort and a deep understanding of the concepts and skills in [Subject Name] throughout the year.

We look forward to seeing you at this special event. 

We ask that parents and families please be aware of the new social media regulations for children under 16 will be introduced on 10th December. We have included a flyer from the College’s SchoolTV site that provides key information. For more information visit https://lakeside.vic.schooltv.me/wellbeing_news/special-report-new-social-media-regulations-what-you-need-know

Key Dates for Term 4

Monday 17th November - Headstart for Year 11 and 12 2026

Thursday 20th November - Secondary Celebration of Learning Service, 1 pm - 3 pm

Friday 21st November - PTFA Colour Run

Monday 24th November - Year 12 Valedictory

Friday 28th November - Orientation Day Year 7 2026, Last Day of term 4 for Year 10 and 11

Tuesday 2nd December - Year 7 2026 Information Evening, 6 pm

Thursday 4th December - Year 7 - 9 Gumbuya World Day

Friday 5th December - Last Day for Students

We thank parents and carers for their ongoing support during this busy time. As always, please encourage students to maintain a healthy balance of study, rest and wellbeing as we head into the final weeks of Term 4.

Yours sincerely,

Mrs Joanne Rothwell                                                                                          Mrs Amanda Trewin

Head of Middle School                                                                                      Head of Senior School

A Day Trip to Venus Bay…

Students in 8A and 8B spent some lovely time on Beach No 1 at Venus Bay on Friday 7th November with Ms Rodrigo, Ms Zhang, Ms Kocevska and Mr Njuho. Arriving at 10.30, they instantly embarked on a lengthy meander along the beach, searching for natural treasures to add to their collections.  

There were plenty of cuttlefish shells and sea shells, lots of seaweed, driftwood, sea sponges, stones, feathers and even a puffer fish (!!) but nobody managed to find a sea urchin.   After a quick lunch they walked all the way back to the coach (9750 steps in total for the day) and enjoyed an ice cream at the general store, chatting with the locals and making a very good impression on the owner and his staff.  The bus driver kindly detoured along the Venus Bay-Walkerville Rd, so that they could see some wind turbines up close at the Bald Hills Wind Farm.

The excursion was the finale to a semester of study in English class. Having read an anthology of short stories relating to the themes of the future of mankind and the sustainability of living on Planet Earth, as well as watching several films and documentaries on related themes, we moved on to a unit in Argument Analysis using the same ideas. 

The experience was also directly connected to the end of year English Exam as students had the opportunity to share some of what they have learned in both terms in a piece of persuasive writing. 

Ms Andrea Kocevska

English & Humanities Teacher