From the Boarding Captains

What a busy term it has been so far with study, exam prep and winter sports filling up most of our time...and exams and many more events are still to come!

An exciting event we had this term was National Boarding Week. A week dedicated to celebrating the community of boarding and showcasing our boarding experience to the rest of the school. 

We started the week off on Monday with an assembly focusing on the theme of “What Makes Boarding Tick”. This featured reflections on boarding, an interview with some boarders, a speech by Mrs Kate Mitchell, who runs The Darcy Effect, and a video made by our amazing Gap Assistant, Miss Mia Wienand that featured many videos of our homes. This assembly really highlighted the boarders and allowed us to share with the school what home looks like for us. We ended the assembly with handing out boarding badges. These were given to all boarders to show that we belong together and united us as one community.

During the week we raised money for The Darcy Effect, an organisation dedicated to help families who find themselves in unexpected hospital visits. Kate creates care bags from donations to give to hospitals around rural Western Australia. These bags are full of necessities and fun items for children and their families. Kate is such an amazing person who is dedicated to helping others and it was such a privilege for us to have her talk about her amazing organisation at our assembly and for her to have stall on our field day. 

We had two new boarders join us during the week. Maddie Warren and Louis Cosh, our School Captains joined us this week to have the boarding experience. They participated in all the usual boarding activities like yoga with Ms Stewart in the Zen Den, endless pool and table tennis and long study sessions getting ready for exams. Their company this week was greatly enjoyed and I believe they enjoyed themselves too.

I wish good luck to all those with exams, winter sports and all those other commitments this term. I hope everyone enjoys going home for the long weekend and has a great rest of term.

Brianna Cunningham | Boarding Captain

Wow, what a busy term it has been. In Week Five it was National Boarding Week. The theme this year was 'What makes boarding tick'  For us it is the unique background from where all the boarders come from. We wanted to do something different that would really connect boarders to the day students. So, on Wednesday 15 May, the Great Southern Grammar Boarding Community hosted the first ever Agricultural Machinery Field Day at GSG.

It consisted of two local companies, AFGRI and McIntosh and Son who were more than happy to bring machinery down for the day, Mrs Kate Mitchell who is the founder of The Darcy Effect and even a student/staff Ute line up. We also had an opportunity to be interviewed by ABC Radio and Farm Weekly. It tested our media skills (which I have no previous experience in) and we were able to share the reason we put this day on.

One of the highlights for me was the interaction between the day students and boarders. When it came to discussing what each piece of machinery was and what it did, the boarders came to the rescue in answering the questions some of our day students were asking, like what each piece of machinery was and was used for. 

It was great to see how smoothly the day ran, thanks to the organisation of myself, Brianna Cunningham, Mr Keatch, and Mrs Franzinelli.

The day was a great success with students of all ages climbing on machinery, enjoying a freshly cooked lamb on a spit or just admiring the utes. I wish everyone the best for exams and make sure to study smart.

Steven Wiech | Boarding Captain

From the School Captains

National Boarding Week was a week with many special events for us all to enjoy here at Great Southern Grammar. One opportunity Maddie and I were lucky enough to have been given was the chance to spend the week in boarding with our fellow friends and classmates. This was a great chance for us both to find out a bit more about what boarding life is like.

So, today we would like to share with you all a recap of our time at boarding. Many activities took place for each of us over this time, such as the awesome field day, performing mechanics on a flat tire, many games of pool and table tennis in the afternoons. As well as joining in on some pretty full-on yoga in the Zen Den in Breaksea House, to just name a few. It did not take long for each of us to find our groove and become part of the boarding family. 

One thing we noticed is that boarding takes a lot of the everyday commitments, the little ones that you might not consciously recognise. We noticed lots of these, such as, filling in your Reach, doing prep, or joining in on Ms Stewart's yoga sessions. Another boarder mentioned how you must be organised and hardworking when you’re living away from home, she summed it up like this:

“Everything takes commitment at boarding. You’re committed to looking after yourself because you are independent, and you’re committed to doing your part because you’re part of a big house with lots of other people.”

Throughout our boarding experience, even with all the commotion that comes with living with your peers, we both have been able to make many fun memories as well as have a very productive week. Overall, we had a great boarding experience and are grateful for being able to have this opportunity. 

We would like to thank the Head of Boarding, Mr Keatch, Boarding Captains Steven Wiech and Brianna Cunningham, the Heads of Boarding Houses, Boarding Supervisors, Chef Harvey and his crew, and everyone who made this week happen, including the amazing day on Wednesday. Boarding is a key part of our school, and we are glad we are able to celebrate it in such a way. 

Thank you for having us.

Madeleine Warren and Louis Cosh | School Captains