Year 11 VCE VM students engaging in their “Connecting with Community” unit of work for Personal Development Skills.

It has been a very busy Term 3 already as we reach the half-way mark, and along with this the half-way mark for our Year 11 students’ Unit 2 studies.

The VCE VM students have been engaging in many different activities across their classes at school and many students are in the final stages of completing their VET qualifications for 2025, as well. In Personal Development Skills, students have been engaged in a unit of work called “Connecting with Community” where they are exploring different challenges that people in our community face and how these impact social cohesion and wellbeing within our community. Students have engaged in many practical activities including playing blind cricket, and even completing cooking challenges while simulating being blind, deaf or mute. The students have really enjoyed these activities and they have learned valuable lessons of teamwork, trust and empathy towards those in our community who face such challenges on a daily basis. In Work Related Skills, students visited the Yakult factory in Dandenong to learn about the different employment opportunities in that type of workplace. This was followed by an opportunity to explore the Dandenong Market and all the diverse offerings that are available there. Currently, our careers team is working hard to ensure that all VCE VM students are enrolled in their VET courses for 2026. We appreciate your support in returning any paperwork that is required for this in a timely manner; places in VET courses do fill up quickly and want to ensure that all students gain places in the 2026 courses that they want to be in.

Our VCE students continue to work hard through their Unit 2 studies. This week, our Year 11 Outdoor Education class has had the amazing opportunity to visit Mt. Buller for their snow camp experience, and we thank Ms. Stokkel, Mr. Close and former student Ben Achterdenbosch for leading them on this camp. Students in History will be visiting the National Vietnam Veteran’s Museum on Phillip Island towards the end of the term, and our Legal Studies students will be accompanying Mr. Davidson into the city to attend the Melbourne Magistrates Court to get a better understanding of the Criminal and Civil Justice Systems. We are pleased to see our students getting out and about in our community to reinforce how their learning in class relates to life outside of school. Next term, all Year 11 VCE students will be visiting Swinburne University of Technology in Hawthorn as part of our careers program, so please keep an eye out on Compass for that event, which we will be seeking permission for students to attend soon.

This term, Ms. Capacete and I have been working with students to improve punctuality, and we appreciate the support that parents and carers have given us from home with this, too. We are pleased to report that students have improved their punctuality, and we know that not only does this mean that they are maximizing their learning time in class but also building good habits for when they leave school, too.

As we move towards the second half of Unit 2 studies for both VCE and VCE VM students, we appreciate any support that you can provide from home to keep your child motivated to continue to do their best. We are in the second half of term now, and the end of the year will come around quickly. A reminder that in preparation for Year 12, students have had the opportunity to try on Year 12 uniform, and orders for this must be submitted online via the link emailed to you by Mrs. Miller (which is also on Teams for students to access) by Sunday 7th of September.

As always, our goal is to support your child to be their best person and to achieve to their potential, so please don’t hesitate to reach out to the Year 11 team if you have any questions or require any support.

Nicola Power

Year 11 Learning Community Leader

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