Middle School

. MyCity: Ice Skating

On Wednesday the 9th of August, Year 9 went on an excursion to O’Brien’s Icehouse to go ice-skating for MyCity. The day consisted of the group taking a bus into the city, followed by a tram to the icehouse where the students were taught how to skate. It was lovely to see how engaged and respectful the students were when engaging with the instructors.

Seeing the students participate so well was encouraging, as well as the resilience shown by many who found skating quite difficult. Those students who were experienced showed examples of teamwork when they assisted those within the group that needed some extra help. 

After skating for an hour, the students were given a chance to eat lunch and socialise with each other. The students again displayed maturity and listened attentively to instructions provided by staff. 

We ended the day by catching public transport back to the college where students evidently showed respect, offering their seats on the bus to those who may need them more. 

Overall, the day was successful, and everyone seemed to enjoy themselves. Seeing the students behave so well in public was a joy for the staff on this trip and provided us with an opportunity to see students thriving in an environment outside of the college. We hope all MyCity excursions can be as positive as this one for the remainder of term.  

Jasper

Wellbeing Officer

MyPhoto

On Wednesday 16 August, MyPhoto students went on a field trip to the Australian Centre for the Moving Image (ACMI).

And for the final MyPhoto class of 2023, check out these amazing drone shots that our students created..

Exploring Chinese Culture at Dunhuang Arts Academy 

Last year, I took my Year10 Chinese class on an excursion to the Dunhuang Arts Academy in Box Hill. The students participated in three wonderful traditional cultural activities: painting pandas, dancing Mongolian dance, and playing the traditional instrument Gu Zheng. Due to last year’s success, this year I took two Year 9 Chinese classes to visit the Dunhuang Arts Academy again. However, this year I chose three completely different activities based on the number of students, age, and the ratio of boys and girls. These new activities included playing the Chinese drums, doing Chinese martial arts (five-step boxing) and painting with indigo dye. 

The duration of the three activities was three hours, with no breaks in between, meaning the students were very busy. Usually they are used to recess at school, however that day they worked non-stop from 9am to 12:30pm. At the end of the activities, many students had hot sweat on their heads and their faces were glowing red! 

Several students also had itchy hands, but couldn't help but play the centre’s piano, which amazed the art centre’s teachers and made the students applaud. It also made me happy to see another side of the students that shine!

On the day of the excursion, forty students and three leading teachers left the school on time at 9am and returned safely to the school at 3:15 in the afternoon. The students were very satisfied with the arrangement of this excursion. They learned about Chinese culture from the activities that everyone actively participated in, satisfied their appetite, socialized, and relaxed during the lunch at Box Hill Central.

During the excursion, I found out that the Chinese intern teacher who led the classes had learned Gu Zheng at the Dunhuang Arts Academy. What’s even more coincidental is that the teacher who teaches Chinese martial arts is a former student of DSC!

Below is some feedback from students about this outing, I am very happy that the students enjoyed it.

Ms Ning Zhang

Mandarin and Food Technology teacher

Student Reflections

On Friday, the 7th of September the Year 9 Mandarin classes combined on a excursion learning about Chinese culture. We learnt to play the Chinese drums in an ensemble type performance and learnt the different ways to play. After, we went upstairs to try out some Kongfu. First we learnt about its background and what it was used for. We then practised a simple routine which wasn’t very simple as lots of people fell over trying to do the Asian squat. Once we finished Kongfu, we moved on to Chinese dye. We got given a cloth that we folded and styled so that when it gets dipped in dye, a cool design comes out of it. After we left the Chinese culture place we went to Box Hill Central for lunch, whilst we were there we practised asking for items such as chopsticks and napkins and asking for directions to the toilet. We then caught the bus back to school. The excursion was successful and all the students had fun and it was overall a great experience. 

Mitchell W.

Through the excursion in Box Hill on Friday, I deeply understood the breadth and depth of Chinese culture. On that day, we learned how to play Chinese drums, do some simple and basic Chinese Kungfu, and also made extremely interesting and beautiful painting. As a Chinese, I am very proud of my motherland and its culture.

Siyu C.

The Excursion was really good, except it's a little short. I learned a lot about Chinese culture including drums, Kungfu, and painting with indigo dye. I also learned that the word 功夫 means working hard for a very long time, and it also means Chinese Martial Art.

Kyle T.

On September 8th, I felt very happy. I felt like I was back in China, with drumming, martial arts and fine arts. Although I had played drums in China, I didn’t play drums for two years. When I was in China, the school had martial arts classes. I thought it was very simple at the time, but it turned out to be not simple. I tried it two years later, and I felt the same way I did back then. I have never tried art work like this, and I find it very interesting. After I made it, I felt it was amazing. Overall, I thought that day was very interesting and happy. I felt proud that it could allow people from other countries to try Chinese culture.

James W.

On the excursion we went on I really enjoyed it. I learnt how to do Chinese paining on a cloth and how to make different patterns on them with different utensils. I learnt how to play the Chinese drums and we played a few Chinese beats on them which I really enjoyed. We also learnt some theory about Kungfu, and we learnt the 5-move routine. I really enjoyed it because I learnt different things that I hadn’t known in the past. Then at Box Hill Central we got the option to try a different type of Chinese cuisine which was a good experience. After we got to go and explore around Box Hill Central. Overall I had a really amazing day and I would want to do this experience again. 

Odysseas E.

Friday 7th of September, was our excursion. I really enjoyed the food at Box Hill Central and learning about the culture behind Kung fu. I believe using indigo dye as a natural resource to dye natural fibres such as cotton is a very smart idea that works amazingly. Thank you Ms Zhang for organising this wonderful experience! 

Lauren G.