English

Year 7:

This year in English, we have been expanding our knowledge of anthropomorphism, learning what it means, how to spell it, and how to include it in a story. Along with that, we have been taught how to use quotation marks and punctuation properly. We have written, revised and published a story using anthropomorphism and everything we have been taught over this term. It has been a big adjustment from primary school, where we did reading, writing and spelling separately, to high school where we learn it all together. This term has helped us adjust, taught us so much, and set the bar for improvement. I cant wait to see what the next term brings us.  Jasmine J.

Year 8:

Term 1 in Year 8 English has seen students exploring the literary device “anthropomorphism”. Anthropomorphism is when animals, objects or natural forces are given human traits, such as thinking, speaking or feeling emotions; think Bluey, Lightening Macqueen or classics like The Tortoise and the Hare. Throughout the unit students looked at different examples of anthropomorphism in fairy tales, first nations storytelling, Japanese culture, picture story books and short fiction. Students then applied what they had learned in their creative writing.

Year 9:

Year 9 English started the year with a study of the film ‘Hunt for the Wilderpeople’ directed by Taika Waititi. They studied the characters, setting, symbolism and of course the haiku poetry that runs throughout the film, before crafting their own creative pieces where they took the existing elements of the film to new places.

Year 10:

In English, we have gone through many different short stories via the Short Story book, learning about annotations and how to utilise them further to enable us to properly analyse writing styles and techniques. We also had to reflect on the 'Human Experience' and what is a common feeling/situation people go through that make us human. Following on from that, we had to produce a short story of our own, reflecting our mentor texts and the Human Experience. I had the most fun annotating, it is definitely a good skill to have! It gives an excellent insight into the story beyond surface level reading. My favourite annotation was of the 'Tell-Tale Heart' by Edgar Allen Poe.   Ella R.

Year 11: 

During area of study one we looked at Shirley Jackson's book 'We Have Always Lived in the Castle,' analysing how she conveyed her views and values. We learnt how to unpack quotes and themes in the book. The SAC wasn't too hard or too easy and allowed us to create a deeper connection to the book and look at its meaning.  Lena H. & Acacia AB.

Year 12:

Year 12 students started the year by looking at writing through the framework of ‘play’. All elements of play were explored from childhood play, sport and what it means to be part of a team, the differences of what play means at different stages in our lives, what role gender has in how people play, the negative sides of play such as gambling and the role of rules in our society. Their first SAC saw students responding to a stimulus with the title ‘Keeping Score’ in creating and different ways to highlight the talent and strengths individual students have in writing.

Open Night:

On Open Night, Kailin P. and Olivia B.  from Year 7 encouraged visitors to contribute a single line to their creative piece. This is what they finished with at the end of the night:

As the clouds gathered overhead, I jumped out of the car. I quickly started sprinting with excitement towards the PAC of Lilydale Heights College! I zoomed into the library and entered the literacy space. The bookshelves were filled with interesting books. I began filling in sheets with all my favourite books that I want to read in my first year of High School. And then I swapped over to the Humanities section. 

To read some juicy knowledge and the facts filled my head as I thought, what should I read next?   I was puzzling what should I read; there are too many good books to choose from. How would I be able to choose from so many books? I decided to go with Catching Fire from the Hunger Games series.    After hours of reading, I got so distracted with the book that I lost track of time! The bell went to go home but I didn’t notice. When I realised everyone was gone, I panicked and hurried out, I slammed the book picked up my bag and rushed out of here! 

I rushed out of school with the book in my face. My footsteps sounded heavy on the pavement; the bag slung on my shoulder almost on the edge of slipping off. When I got home, I did my chores, had dinner, and went to bed. 

The next morning, I woke up to the sound of my mum saying, “Breakfast is ready!”    “Hello people of Australia!” says the Prime Minister on the news.