From the Principal

Good morning to all our families,

In the newsletter last week, Nick Evans highlighted the importance of uniform in developing a sense of connectedness and belonging. Factors that support academic achievement. 

During this week I met with the Senior Manager of our uniform supplier PSW, and I am pleased to inform our families that we now have options for trousers and shorts. Stretch microfibre pants and shorts are now available for purchase. There is no excuse for not wearing uniform. The stretch microfibre is extremely comfortable to wear, regardless of size and shape. 

Students also have the choice of wearing the polar fleece or the jumper. Jumpers can be purchased at the General Office. Jumpers are to be worn over the collared shirt.

PSW also offer a make to measure option. This is not the same as making alterations (a service they do not offer). 

The new white shirt was chosen by the students and is now available to purchase. This will be compulsory for Year 7 students, 2025. All students are welcome to wear the white shirt, but they can also wear their blue shirts. Blue shirts can no longer be purchased from PSW. 

I would like to wish our school community a wonderful break. Stay safe and make sure you do something for yourself. Any student completing unit 3/4 subjects need to work and continue to revise their work as the exams will begin for many 29th October.

Thankyou for your continued support. We have had an amazing term with so many positives and opportunities for our students. I look forward to working with you again next term. 

Linda Stanton

Principal

Important Dates

Term 4

October

Friday 11th October - Year 11 Formal - Frankston Art Centre

Tuesday 15th October - Year 10 Outdoor and Environmental Studies Phillip Island Surf Excursion

Wednesday 16th October - Year 8 Showcase - 2.00 to 4.30pm and Systems Engineering Exhibition

Tuesday 22nd October - Final day for Year 12 students and Valedictory dinner

Tuesday 22nd October - Whole School Assembly to farewell our Year 12 students

Tuesday 29th to Thursday 31st October - Year 10 Outdoor and Environmental Studies Otways Camp

November

Monday 4th November - Staff Professional Development Day - Student free

Tuesday 5th November - Melbourne Cup - Public Holiday

Wednesday 6th to Friday 8th November - Year 10 Outdoor and Environmental Studies Otways hike

Monday 11th November - Remembrance Day commemorations - 10.45am

Wednesday 13th November - Year 11 SWOTVAC - No classes for Year 11 students

Thursday 14th November - Final presentations for Year 11 VM students

Monday 18th and Tuesday 19th November - Final assessment presentations for Year 11 VM students

Tuesday 19th November - Year 7 celebration of first year of secondary school - Portfolio showcase afternoon

Thursday 21st November - Year 9 Graduation and social - Frankston Arts Centre

Friday 22nd November - Professional Practice Day for all teachers - Student free

Monday 25th November - Fast Forward commences - students transition into their 2025 year level and classes

Thursday 28th November - Year 10 Formal - Frankston Arts Centre

December

Wednesday 4th and Thursday 5th December - Japanese visitors from Nara

Friday 6th December - Year 11 2025 students final day

Tuesday 10th December - Grade 6 Orientation Day for students joining MSC in 2025

Monday 16th December - Presentation Evening - New Peninsula Baptist Church - 6.30pm

Tuesday 17th to Thursday 19th December - 3 day activity program

Friday 20th December - Last day of Term 4

Don't forget to look on compass for sport sign ups, excursions and any other information sent to students and parents. 

Below is a link to help guide you in your use of compass.

https://mornsc.vic.edu.au/for-parents/compass-parent-guide/

Middle School

Dear Parents and Carers,

A big thank you to the Year 7 parents who responded to the newsletter survey. It was wonderful to hear that you enjoy our updates, and some of you mentioned wanting to hear more from our students. We are happy to include more student voices! In this edition, Campbell Duthie and Lulu Ramalinga have written about their preparation for the Year 8 Showcase, which will take place on 16th October from 2:00 pm to 4:30 pm. At the same time, we’ll also be hosting our Systems Engineering display. We would love to see you there!

Yesterday, our Drum Corps visited Mornington Primary School and performed for their school community. It’s incredible to see how much progress our mostly Year 7 Drum Corps students have made, having only started learning the drums earlier this year. They performed with great confidence! A special mention to Honey Tohia from Year 8, who has advanced to playing the Quad drums—her amazing talent was on full display at Mornington Primary School.

When we visit primary schools, it’s always a joy to bring students back to see their former teachers. Their primary school teachers are delighted and often amazed at how much the students have grown. It’s heartwarming to see how proud they are of their former students' progress.

Next term, I hope to share some of our students’ essays or at least a few paragraphs of their written work. Kylie Oliver has expressed how impressed she is with the quality of writing in her Year 7 class.

Finally, a big thank you to everyone who has worked hard this term. Enjoy the break and come back refreshed! For those who need to catch up, the holiday is a great time to reflect on how you can succeed in Term 4.

Wishing you all a wonderful end-of-term break. I look forward to seeing you next term.

Warm regards,

Denise Leggett

Middle School Assistant Principal

Senior School

To students and families of the Mornington Senior School,

We’ve made it! Term 3 is done and dusted. A term that started off cold, dark and wet (the first day of term was a shocker if you can think back to then) has now finished slightly warmer, a bit windier but with more daylight! Term 3 is often the hardest term for both student and staff and we are all happy to have made it. Term 4 is fast-paced term that is almost split into 3 mini-terms for Senior School students. I’ll talk more about that in week 1’s newsletter.

Year 11 Uniform focus

It has been both fantastic and slightly annoying to see our Year 11 students in almost 100% full school uniform over the last week or so. It’s fantastic because they look like they belong to our community and slightly annoying that it took such a concerted effort in September to make it happen. They’ve set their own benchmark now and I look forward to seeing it continue in term 4 (and through into 2025). Next term it will be the focus for our Year 10s as well.

Year 12 VCE Art Show

I had the great pleasure of attending the Year 12 VCE Art Show on Wednesday night and while there will be images shared elsewhere in the newsletter, I wanted to say how blown away I was at just how talented our students are. I’ll be the first to admit that art is not my strong suit, and I did have to pick some principal nominations based on what I liked. I picked two (even though I was meant to only pick one) but I could easily have selected many more. The creativity and the skill displayed by our students was incredible and credit goes to them for the many hours of hard work, and to their teachers for their support.

Holidays or not holidays…

I hope all our senior students have a good break. It’s a fantastic chance to recharge the batteries, wash those uniforms 😉, do some physical activity, catch up on sleep and spend some quality time with friends and family. 

For our Year 12 ATAR students however (oh no, I hear some of you think), it’s actually the time to really get stuck into revision for the end of year exams. Our Year 12 students are competing against the state from this point on and I can tell you that that many students will be attending revision lectures, attending sessions or trial exams at their schools and doing the utmost to maximise their grades. So our Year 12s need to use this opportunity to sleep in a bit, study in comfort and ensure their notes are ordered, they are looking over exam style questions and preparing questions to ask subject teachers after the holidays. The work that our Year 12 students do now, will hold them in great stead for the exam period which starts in just 40 days.

40 days is enough time to have students prepare comprehensively for their exam. They’ll have access to multiple printed exams and others will be available electronically. Good luck and happy studying Class of 2024. 

Term 3 key dates for Senior School

September 30 – Timely VTAC applications close (Year 12 students only)

Kind regards,

Nick Evans

Senior School Assistant Principal

Taking the Time to Listen to our Young People

This week we have been running some of our semester 2 “Have a say days”.  A have a say day involves gathering a group of students from a year level together putting them in small groups with a senior member of the college staff (Principal, Assistant Principals and Team Leaders) and having a discussion around a range of themes.  So far we have heard from Year 11, Year 7 and will be chatting with Year 9 students at about the same time you are reading this.

Topics for discussion this semester are focusing on how we make “Connect” more effective, what has been the impact of classroom mastery and how do we improve the submission rates for student work. (That last one should prompt all parents to go and have a look at their child’s COMPASS!)

The students have been really engaged with the discussions and have been providing some really well thought out and reflective points of view.  I’m not going to reveal the findings until every year level has had a chance to have a say, but watch this space early term 4!

Kind regards,

Mike Parker

Assistant Principal

Year 7 Showcase

Last Wednesday evening, our Year 7 students showcased all the hard work they had been doing in Science, Humanities, and Japanese. Our Learning Centre was transformed into a museum, displaying everything from habitat dioramas of various endangered animals, Ancient Roman artifacts, and Japanese pet posters. It was a fantastic evening and the students work was high quality. As our students’ families viewed the Year 7 work, they were asked to vote in a range of categories, and the results are listed below.

Congratulations to all our winners, and all the Year 7 students for a fabulous showcase! 

People’s Choice Award

Humanities: Hudson Park

Science: Ryan Chambers

Japanese: Lucas Dekleuver

Most Creative

Humanities: Ethan Corbett

Science: Paula Arena

Japanese: Charlotte Davies

Most Informative

Humanities: Hannah Cooper

Science: Jai Knott

Japanese: Dean Long

Most Effort

Humanities: Chelsie Surridge

Science: Heidi Barnes

Japanese: Charli Christie

Year 8 Showcase Update

Our Year 8 student cohort have been working hard over this term, putting together their showcase tasks. 

The year 8 Showcase will look different to the Year 7 showcase as students have spent the term working in groups, each classroom group studying a different continent in relation to our Geography Unit. Their showcase will include posters, PowerPoints and a model for Humanities.

Science and Japanese work will also be showcased, along with Art and clay work students have completed during their Art electives.

Our Year 8 showcase will take place Wednesday 16th October 2:00-4:30 pm in the Learning Centre. Further information will be provided to parents and the school community early next term.

Kim Rattue

Year 7&8 coordinator

Year 8 Showcase Preparation

Preparation for Humanities showcase – By Campbell Duthie

At the start Term 3 we got to choose our groups of 4 or 5. Our teachers explained our tasks and each group got to choose a continent (except Antarctica). 

For the first task, we had to make a detailed poster about the continent we chose with questions, including the 5 largest cities, the highest mountain etc.

Once the poster was finished, we moved on to the next poster which was about a landform or landscape, for example the Amazon rainforest and Victoria Falls. This poster had to include pictures of how it evolved and other questions regarding the landform and landscape. 

The final poster was about a geomorphic hazard that has occurred in our continent, for example volcanic eruptions and tsunamis. The poster had to include photos from before and after the disaster and information about why and how it happened. The final task in school was a PowerPoint on changing nations. This PowerPoint is a task about a mega city in your continent. Our task includes analysing population pyramids, photo essays, push-pull factors and information about your megacity. 

Our final task will be completed next term; a Model; using materials of our choice to be presented at the showcase. 

 We have been working hard to show what we have learnt, we hope to see many of you there!

Preparation for Science Showcase – By Lulu Ramalinga

The Year 8’s has been preparing for their showcase in the previous weeks, working hard for their parents to see all the hard work they have accomplished. 

In Science we are learning about the body system. We were given the choice of what body system we would like to present in our showcase, and each have allocated. There are four main options, the circulatory system, the respiratory system, the digestive system, and the excretory system. 

Although some students have decided to choose another body system altogether, everyone is very eager to be finally putting all the pieces of our projects together. It is an individual performance task and is graded. Every Year 8 student is doing this project. 

Each student must answer a series of questions based on the system they have chosen. Then they must transfer the information onto a poster, and to finish, everyone must be inventive and create a model of their system or a part within it. The science task is based on what we have been learning in class for human biology, and we all have put in a lot of effort into our project. The showcase is a way to show our families what we have been working on, and each student is making sure that their projects will make their families proud.

Year 8 City Experience

Last Tuesday, 10th September, we took over 100 of our Year 8 students into the city to investigate Melbourne. 

As part of our Humanities Changing Nations Unit, students prepared for the excursion by creating a photo essay of Melbourne’s past, looking at The Docklands, Bourke St Mall, Federation Square, Flinders Street Station, Southbank and Melbourne Sport precinct in particular.

Tuesday, we began our day at the Docklands. Students explored the area, taking note how our rising population required new infrastructure through ‘urban renewal’. Many of the students had been to Marvel Stadium but were unaware of the shopping district, entertainment options and residential area.

From the Docklands all groups headed in different directions, crisscrossing the city to explore and take note of how the different landmarks in Melbourne have changed. Students were also given time to purchase lunch and do some shopping. 

Walking towards Federation Square two of our groups witnessed a peaceful protest down Swanston Street. Students were curious and asked many questions about this occurrence.

We finished our day at Melbourne’s sport precinct, resting our tired feet (most groups walked over 7km!) in an open tennis show court.

The year 8 team and staff who attended the excursion were extremely impressed with our cohort and how they conducted themselves throughout the day. Their behaviour was exemplary.

Well Done Year 8!

Kim Rattue

Year 7&8 Coordinator

2025 Victorian State Schools Spectacular

Does your child love to dance, sing or play a musical instrument? Or would they like to work in the performing arts or creative industry?

The 2025 Victorian State Schools Spectacular is inviting students to participate in the program that starts in February and culminates in a live performance at John Cain Arena on Saturday 13 September 2025.

Students can perform on stage or gain hands-on experience behind the scenes across all creative disciplines, under the guidance of industry professionals. The show provides a rare experience to perform in a world-class arena and for a television broadcast.

To register an expression of interest, and for more information on how to audition or take part, please visit the Victorian State Schools Spectacular webpage and complete the online form by Monday 4 November 2024.

Students encouraged to register their interest in taking part include:

• musicians, dancers and singers
• those with specialty skills, such as skaters, acrobats, skippers, cheerleaders or circus performers

 those interested in audio, lighting, film, photography or stage management.

Find out more 

For information, refer to the Victorian State Schools Spectacular webpage. 

For further enquiries, contact the department’s Performing Arts unit:

• phone: 03 9415 1700
• email: performing.arts@education.vic.gov.au

Environment Club News

On Tuesday 17th September students planted over 130 native seedlings in the school gardens. In August, the Environment Club ran a pancake cook-up fundraiser to purchase seedlings for the National Schools Plant a Tree Day which culminated in Tuesday’s planting event.  The Yr 11 Environmental Science students, along with Environment Club members and a few extra volunteers, joined forces to help beautify the school, increase biodiversity and reduce our carbon footprint. The species planted were indigenous to the area and will help attract native birdlife, so its apt that it is also National Biodiversity Month. The Environment Club hopes to continue these activities and enhance the indigenous biodiversity of gardens throughout the school and add to the wetlands/bushland area that was created last year so that it can become an outdoor learning space.

Year 7 Mini Olympics and Movie Fundraiser

On the 18th of September, the Year 7’s participated in the mini-Olympics. There were a lot of sport events consisting of 5-minute rounds. Including relay, basketball, beanbag toss, hurdles, netball rebound, soccer shooting and many more. All of the students went face to face against their other Connect class groups. Everyone had such a fun time!

Congratulations to Group 5 (7B) as they are our mini-Olympics champions. The most popular games were relays, basketball and the beanbag toss. This was such a fun event for our Year 7’s to participate in, doing some physical activity as well as having lots of fun with their friends!

During period 3 and 4 on Wednesday the Year 7 Captains Emma Bassett, Kendal Christie, Hannah Cooper and Chelsie Surridge, organised a movie session and all the Year 7's were encouraged to bring a gold coin donation to raise money for Food for Change.  The Year 7 Captains worked really hard to put together the fundraiser so that all the students had a great time.  The Leaders walked around to each classroom so they could give recommendations about what movie we watched, not only did we watch the movie but we announced the winners of the mini Olympics the Year 7's had an amazing time.

Emma Bassett, Kendal Christie, Hannah Cooper and Chelsie Surridge

Year 7 Captains

Middle School Student of the Week

Year 7 student of the week

Emma Bassett 7A

Favourite food:

Chicken burger with all the toppings

Hobbies out of school:

Surfing, cricket and sport in general, reading and baking. 

Sports team do you follow: 

Geelong cats (finals bound!) and Melbourne Stars

Favourite TV show: 

Gilmore Girls

Do you have any pets: 

A 10yr old Border Collie named Olive

Do you have any plans for the holidays?

I’m going into the city, going shopping, and if it’s hot I will head down to the beach

Year 8 student of the week

Harry Ledlin 8D

Favourite food:

Smoked salmon pasta

Hobbies out of school:

Footy & basketball, I also enjoy playing the guitar

Sports team do you follow: 

Western Bulldogs

Favourite TV show: 

Footy and sport

Do you have any pets: 

A dog named Winnie

Year 9 student of the week

Grace Alston 9E

Favourite food:

Pizza, especially margherita 

Hobbies out of school:

I like to read horror books and catch up with friends

Sports team do you follow: 

Geelong cats

Favourite TV show: 

Friends is a classic

Do you have any pets: 

I have a Cavalier named Ollie

Do you have any plans for the holidays?

I’m off to Bright with my whole extended family. 

A Night of Celebration: Year 12 Final Art Show - Nature Nurture

Wednesday night was a fantastic opening evening of celebration as our Year 12 students proudly showcased their final artworks in this year’s Nature Nurture art exhibition. This year’s theme explored origin and influence where our students delved into various interpretations through painting, sculpture, photography, textiles and digital art. 

Held in our school art gallery, the exhibition had an incredible vibe with the year 12 band entertaining the crowds. Delicious food and drink supplied by our school caterers topped it off, making it a night to remember for all!

Congratulations to all the award winners:

• Josh Vanhoutte - Outstanding Art Award
• Devlin Nicholls - Outstanding Art Award
• Faith Ciriaco - Outstanding Art Award
• Raffi Schneider - Principal's Award
• Kirsten Stannage - Principal's Award

We would also like to acknowledge Jordan Smith, Abby Turner, Helayna Moresco, and Abby Christie for receiving the Teachers' Choice Awards - well deserved!

A special shoutout to Helayna Moresco for not only being our MC on the night, but who also took home the People's Choice Award!

A big thank you too, to Jo and Judy from Rotary for attending the event. Rotary has selected five exceptional pieces by Emily Moyes, Helayna Moresco, Faith Ciriaco, Emma McPartland and Josh Vanhoutte to be displayed at the Rotary Annual Art Show in Mornington this January 2025. Best of luck to these students in the competition!

Art plays a vital role in our school, exploring creativity, critical thinking, and self-expression. We encourage students from the younger year levels to visit the gallery and be inspired by the incredible work on display - it’s a great way to start thinking about your own artistic journey!

Finally, a huge thank you to our amazing art team for their dedication and support throughout the year, and to all the family and friends who attended the event to celebrate the achievements of our talented young artists. We couldn’t have done this without the collective efforts of everyone. 

What a wonderful way to wrap up Year 12, we wish them all the very best for their future endeavours! 

Lea Gilbert

Head of Art

Year 11Outdoor and Environmental Studies Grampians Camp

Our Year 11 OES students had their Grampians camp this term!  We had amazing weather, breathtaking views, and, honestly, a fantastic time!

The students accomplished some challenging hikes, including the Pinnacle. However, I think most students would agree that the highlight was the abseiling and rock climbing at Sundial Peaks! They truly pushed themselves out of their comfort zones.

Some memorable moments included spotting emus, wallabies, and eagles, watching the sunset at Reeds Lookout, taking a dip in Venus Pools, and, of course, the banter around the campfire at night. 

Despite some unwelcome city traffic on our journey and the occasional drop toilet smell, this camp has to be one of our best yet!

A massive thanks to Madison Nicholls & Mick Williams for organising and running this camp, to Johnnie Walker, Alex Malligan, and Em Jerkovic for coming along and making this year's Grampians camp one to remember! I know the kids really enjoyed your company.

Student reflections: 

"The Grampians was an amazing time away from school with so many once in a lifetime experiences, as a student I'm amazed at the tranquil scenery, and amazing views the land offers us. "  Lenny Gardner

"The Grampians are perfect for everyone because they offer a great mix of adventure and chill time. I love hiking to cool spots like the Pinnacle and Mackenzie Falls. The views are amazing and it feels awesome to finish a tough trail. Rock climbing and abseiling are super fun and a good way to push yourself to the limits, plus the Grampians is a great break from school, letting me relax and hang out with friends in nature. Whether we're camping under the stars or just exploring, the Grampians make for some really memorable experiences." Dean Resuggan

"We went to the Grampians for camp and had a very enjoyable time. We got to do things most of us had never done before; including real rock climbing & abseiling, which was very fun and exhilarating. There were lots of very pretty views. I loved this camp a lot and hope everyone choses to do Outdoor Education" Abbey Moresco

"I loved the Grampians, it was fun and a great experience. Amazing views, sights and lots of fun with friends." Sienna Harber

"The Grampians are like nature’s own classroom for me. Each hike through those rugged peaks feels like a lesson in geology and ecology rolled into one. The rock formations are ancient, almost like reading the pages of Earth’s history book, while the diverse flora and fauna make it clear that this place is a haven for biodiversity. I love how every trail teaches me something new, whether it’s about the unique plants that thrive in the area or the stories behind the Aboriginal rock art. It’s like stepping into a living textbook, and it makes every visit an exciting educational adventure." Saige Nicholls

Canine Comprehension

Canine Comprehension offers dog-assisted programs which aim to support students mental health and well-being. A Canine Comprehension handler (mentor) Kendal and their Animal Assisted Therapy dog, Marli, attended the school as an incursion and delivered the program, "Communication on the inside and out". These sessions explore strategies to assist with anxiety, mindfulness techniques, and interpersonal and social skills, including listening, team building and verbal communication skills. The presence of Marli is intended to calm students, allowing them to open up about their difficulties and experiences and discuss them with Kendal. The program included students from Years 8 and 9 this term. 

Nicole Boland

Wellbeing

Term 4 Commences

Have a great break, see you all in Term 4!

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