General News
XSPAND City of Casey Inquiry
During the first 2 weeks of Term 3, the Clyde North Year 9 XSPAND students engaged in their first school-based inquiry, looking into areas of interest within the City of Casey.
This learning experience is a fundamental aspect of the XSPAND program, bringing the cohort together with the intention to develop their collaboration, communication and critical thinking competencies – transferable skills that will serve them as they progress through their senior years.
Three questions were provided to explore:
How can we engage young people in climate action in the City of Casey?
How might we use Indigenous knowledge to develop greater connection to Country in the City of Casey?
How can we transform existing spaces for positive community engagement in the City of Casey?
Students worked in teams to develop a response to one of the questions, resulting in a final expo where they pitched their prototypes to members of Casey Council, and the school community.
We were privileged to see the creativity and professionalism from our Year 9s, presenting ideas to transform local public spaces utilising CPTED (Crime Prevention Through Environmental Design), harnessing Indigenous knowledge to make spaces more welcoming, and developing strategies to support environmental awareness and action.
Ms Portia Subotsch
Year 9 Learning Leader - Clyde North Campus
VCE Art Creative Practice
At St Peter's College, we believe that authentic, first-hand experiences are an essential part of developing students' creativity, confidence and artistic skills. Our VCE Art Creative Practice students recently participated in a practical oil painting workshop led by practising artist and St Peter's College teacher, Carla Edgerton.
Throughout the workshop, students were introduced to the rich tradition of oil painting while exploring the contemporary practices used by professional artists today. They learned about the specialised materials, techniques and processes that make oil painting such a versatile and enduring artform, including the safe and effective use of oil paints, painting mediums, brushes, palettes and a variety of painting surfaces.
Students experienced a range of professional painting techniques through hands-on experimentation, including layering, blending, glazing, alla prima and underpainting. As they worked, they documented their observations, technical discoveries and personal reflections in their Visual Arts Journals, building valuable evidence of experimentation that will support their own creative practice throughout the year.
Experiences such as this provide students with opportunities that extend well beyond the classroom. Learning directly from a practising artist allows students to gain insight into the creative decision-making, problem-solving and reflective processes that professional artists use when developing their work. These authentic learning experiences encourage students to take creative risks, refine their technical skills and deepen their understanding of how visual language—including colour, texture, composition and mark-making—can be used to communicate ideas.
The Visual Arts program at St Peter's College is committed to connecting students with real-world artistic practice through workshops, incursions, exhibitions and community engagement. These experiences inspire students to see themselves as emerging artists while fostering creativity, critical thinking and a lifelong appreciation of the arts.
We look forward to sharing more exciting opportunities from our Visual Arts program throughout the year.
Carla Edgerton
Art Teacher Cranbourne Campus