Languages at GSC

It has been a busy start to Term 2 for the Languages Department.

This term the college welcomed the arrival of Arti Ati, an assistant Indonesian language teacher. Arti comes from Bandung, West Java, Indonesia. Arti will be working with the Indonesian staff and students until the end of the year, supporting their language learning and cultural understanding. Selamat Datang.

On Thursday May 2nd, all Japanese students participated in an incursion about Japanese music, particularly the Taiko drums. Kiyomi from EZ Japanese ran a workshop for each class to learn about the cultural significance of Taiko and how to play the drums correctly as an individual and as a team. All the classes demonstrated great teamwork and were all able to produce a great sounding beat.

Quotes from students:

Macy – Yr. 7 ‘I enjoyed Kiyomi Sensei’s Taiko drumming demonstration’.

Kenz – Yr. 8 ‘I enjoyed everything about it, I loved when we got into the rhythm and just kept going around and drumming.’

Lucien – Yr. 9 ‘It was very fun, and I enjoyed it. I liked drumming the back and forth from the group to the teacher.’

Bridie – Yr. 10 ‘I enjoyed when we started drumming and just kept going, switching drums as we go.’

Ryan - Yr. 11 ‘It was a cool thing to learn.’

Alex Yr. 12 – ‘I enjoyed learning the discipline of not only Taiko itself, but how its discipline links to Japanese culture in general.’

Finally, the 2024 Japan Study Tour is fast approaching. A reminder to participants and their families, a final pre departure information night will be held in the college library at 6pm on Tuesday 11th June. Looking forward to seeing you there.

Kristeen Quarrier 

Languages Curriculum Area Leader