Faculty News 

Welcome back to the Arts 2023!  

2022 has been a year full of new learning and discoveries. With the changes of timetable and shifts in expectations, we are very excited to be facing 2023 head on.  This year the Visual and Performing Arts has started working as a single Learning Area. This new change will open new doors for collaborative curriculum and whole school events.  

The year has started with gusto. We introduced Media Studies in Year 10 and working collaboratively with Ms. Abbey Novak, our STEM Leader. The way media is operating and presented today has changed so much and will keep on changing as technology becomes more advance and sophisticated.   

We are currently working on a cross faculty program looking at the Year 8 RISE Art collaborating with French LOTE. French Impressionism art will be the theme of the program. Students across Year 8 levels will have the opportunity to explore the much revered art movement in the classroom as well as experiencing the Impressionism moving artwork at the LUME art show in Semester 1.  

Our student lead Wheelers Art Club will resume this year. Lillian Kleinman who is now in Year 11 will be running the club again one day a week after school from 3-4pm. The success of the program has seen a variety of artworks demonstrating various skills in our yearly Art and Technology exhibition last year.  We are looking forward to be participating in a variety of local and community events like the Youth Art for Reconciliation exhibition and a few others.  

In the area of Performing Area, Ms. Kirsty Michielson has put together a full calendar of events for the year. This includes Instrumental nights, Choir performances, Stage band incursions and music tour. There will also be the Winter and Spring Music showcases to be looking forward to.  

Ms. Mikayla Ellis is running the school production this year. We are delighted to announce the 2023 school production ‘Spongebob the Musical!’ Auditions for a variety of roles both on and off stage are well under way in the planning and students will soon be starting their rehearsals.  

The vibrant music and performing arts areas are well supported by our staff member Mr David Gill, who is now our Student Leader and Community Connection. We also have all our sessional staff who have continued running the Instrumental classes with enthusiasm.  

There is so much more to look forward to in the Visual and Performing Arts throughout the year and we at Wheelers Hill Secondary College are looking forward to presenting them to you, our wonderful community of families and friends. Here’s to a wonderful 2023!  

Kind regards, 

Khairi Razaai 

Visual and Performing Arts KLA Leader  

Maths News! 

It's been an exciting start to the year in Mathematics at Wheelers Hill Secondary College! 

Our Year 7 students had the opportunity to participate in the Maths Show, designed to amaze our students with the wonder and beauty of Maths and numbers. The Maths Show was a fantastic and engaging way for students to learn about mathematical concepts through interactive activities and demonstrations. It was a joy to see our theatre full of laughter, creativity and tons of Maths! 

One of the highlights of the first two weeks was the efforts of our Year 8 RISE students. They put together fantastic fraction puzzles to support the Year 7 and Year 9 students in their NAPLAN preparation. This showed a strong sense of teamwork and a commitment to helping others succeed. 

The Mathematical Methods Unit 1 students also did an excellent job in using Coordinate Geometry to develop mathematical models of houses. This helped students to understand how mathematical concepts can be applied in real-life situations and demonstrated the versatility of mathematics. 

These are some of the amazing designs that my Year 11 class submitted: 

A classical design full of incredible details ( I love the window shades!) by Lilian Huang 

https://www.desmos.com/calculator/ir3vvpqepy 

A fantastic and detailed design by David Choun  https://www.desmos.com/calculator/cdnu5grnzj 

A beautiful contemporary house by Aria Small  https://www.desmos.com/calculator/y7nubd7x38 

Overall, it's been a great start to the year in Mathematics at Wheelers Hill Secondary College. We're looking forward to continuing to foster a love of mathematics in our students and helping them to develop their mathematical skills. Keep an eye out for future updates on the exciting things happening in Maths at Wheelers Hill Secondary College! 

Nery Soto 

Mathematic Leader

MUSIC LEARNING AREA – WELCOME TO 2023 

We are getting back into the swing of things in the Music Learning Area. Instrumental lessons have commenced for students in Years 8 -12, VET VCE Bands are back rehearsing and we are seeing many students coming in during lunchtimes to practice. 

Ensemble rehearsals for students from Years 8 – 12 will recommence next week, starting Monday February 13th. All students in the instrumental program must be involved in an ensemble. Each student will be allocated an ensemble appropriate to their instrument, and the rehearsal time will appear on their Compass schedule. Ensembles rehearse at the following lunchtimes: 

MONDAY – PERCUSSION ENSEMBLE (M02) 

TUESDAY – STAGE BAND (M02) 

WEDNESDAY – GUITAR ENSEMBLE (M01) 

THURSDAY – CHOIR (M01) 

It is important that you contact your Instrumental Teacher or Ensemble Director if you are unable to make a lesson or rehearsal.   

Please remember that instrumental fees for Term 1 are due by the end of Week 8 (Week ending Friday 17th March).  

Year 7 Instrumental Recruitment Session 

We are holding an Instrumental Recruitment session on Monday February 13th at 4:15pm in D01, in the Bunjil Centre. This will be immediately following the Meet and Greet event for Year 7 families. At Wheelers Hill we offer lessons in the following instruments: Flute, Clarinet, Saxophone, Trumpet, Trombone, Percussion, Guitar, Bass Guitar, Voice and Keyboard.  

We encourage all students who might be interested in learning an instrument to come along with their parents and find out about the music program, meet the instrumental staff, and try out the various instruments we have on offer. All students who learn brass, woodwind and percussion in Year 7 will be placed in the Year 7 Concert Band, which will start rehearsing from Tuesday February 28th at lunchtimes in M01.  

As all students in the Year 7 RISE class will be learning a brass or woodwind instrument, we encourage students from this class to attend this event to assist with their instrument selection.  

Choir 

All students from across the college who enjoy singing are welcome to join the Choir, led by our Voice Teacher Annie Stone. Choir rehearsals will recommence on Thursday February 16th. Please come to M01 (upstairs in Bunjil Centre) at lunchtime on this date if you are interested in seeing what Choir is all about! We particularly encourage Year 7’s to come along!  

Please contact me at kirsty.mechielsen@education.vic.gov.au if you have any questions about our Instrumental Music Program.  

Kirsty Mechielsen 

Head of Music