Year 7 and 8 Summit Camp

The Year 7 and 8 Camp at The Summit is always a highlight in the Middle School. A time where students can feel empowered to push themselves and grow in ways they may have thought were not possible. The Summit uses 5 keys as a model for being able to grow and achieve.

1. Have fun - life is short... so is camp... laugh a lot
2. Play all in - no reserve... give it all you've got
3. Make lots of mistakes - there's no such thing as failure... only feedback
4. Get comfortable being uncomfortable - magic happens outside your comfort zone
5. Don't leave camp wondering "what if..." - no regrets

With these 5 keys in place, the students can set themselves a target (something that they know they can do), a stretch (the next step beyond where they may feel comfortable) and a super stretch (their goal of what they want to achieve).

The activities on camp presented all students with a challenge, whether it be through heights, working together as a team, trusting others, or simply trusting themselves. The 5 keys were an integral part of working through some of these challenges. The legacy of the Year 8 worship team on camp continued this year, blessing us with creating a space to worship and honour God. This time allowed us to prepare our hearts to receive words of encouragement from the staff each night. Topics included, being a part of the body of Christ and what that looks like in their own worlds, identifying what we can and can't control and how to work through those situations and finally the power of words to lift people and speak life and good things into others. Mrs Wan finished off the evening programs with team games, such as a marshmallow and spaghetti challenge, 2 truths and a lie, egg drop, egg lucky dip and her personal favourite, the scavenger hunt!

We are so proud of the students, their effort in activities, the encouragement of those in their activity groups and being quick to quieten down at night and get a night of good sleep, in preparation for the following day! It was specifically mentioned to the Heatherton staff by the catering team, the activity team and even the office staff at The Summit how beautifully our students represented themselves, their family, their school and God. What a credit to the students!

A huge thank you goes to the staff who attended camp: Janet Abbott, Rebecca Harvey, Claire Wan, Nathan Raymond, Bevan Hung, Matt McGrath and John Oppy. Their heart for inputting into the students was invaluable. To the staff back at school: Darren John, Carolyn McClean, Shireen Vanbuskirk, Melanie Gover, Sarah Peters, Phil Bergen, Tonia Burgess, Christina Douglas and Miriam Karelsky for their co-ordination of things behind the scenes and with the Year 7s was greatly appreciated. And lastly to Sharmila Raymond for the endless emails, phone calls, forms, and meetings to ensure everything would run as smoothly as possible on camp. Something like this honestly takes a whole community and we are so thankful to have a community like this at Heatherton Christian College.

Christy Marshall

Head of Middle Years