Year 8 News

Hi everyone,

Our Year 8s are working well in preparation for the upcoming CATs.  They’ll be taking place over the next few weeks.  The latest Learning Behaviour Updates are now available on Compass and we’ve celebrated record numbers of high learning behaviour achievers and high attendances over the last week. Well done to those students!  

Student Laptops

This a reminder that students are expected to have a charged laptop and that students need to bring their laptops to all classes. Could parents and guardians please check that their child is taking their charged laptop to school with a charger?  This would assist with trying to develop good organisational habits.

Karoonda Park Camp

Year 8 students from Kurnai College, Churchill Campus went to Karoonda Park for their school camp at the end of February.  We changed the dates of the Year 8 camp to maximise the camp experiences based on activity options available in the warmer weather. 

On the way to Karoonda Park, the students stopped off at Buchan Caves and went through

 the Royal Cave. The limestone cave consisted of many chambers, filled with calcite-rimmed pools and stalactite crystals covering the cave’s roof. Jumping back on the bus the students travelled the last part of the journey before arriving at Karoonda Park. Excitedly the students exited the bus ready and wanting to explore the place they would call home for the next week. 

The students settled into their dorms and were treated to some free time, before a delicious three-course dinner. A night hike around the farm and neighbouring bushland entertained the students as they went searching for native wildlife. Possums, koalas, frogs and spiders were some of the many animals spotted. 

We cycled through a range of activities on Tuesday, enjoying the great weather throughout the day.  Half of the students started with abseiling and zip lining while the other half went horse riding, played frisbee golf, battled the initiatives course and played Gaga Ball.  We enjoyed an amazing lunch with sausage rolls and salad then swapped groups for the afternoon.  Many students rode horses, abseiled or went on a zip line for the first time.  Some students were quite apprehensive about these activities but persisted with them, eventually enjoying the experiences.  We finished off the activities with some free time or a swim in the pool.

The fantastic weather continued into Wednesday.  We packed the bus and headed off to Willis campground in the Snowy River National Park, for the overnight camp and white water rafting on the Snowy River.  On the bus ride to Willis, we stopped off at the ghost town Suggan Buggan, and explored the old 1865 preserved schoolhouse. 

We saw spectacular scenery as we drove along mountainous roads with steep drops. Many students had not previously experienced the Victorian High Country.  We had mixed reactions to the steep windy roads.  On arrival at the campground and raft departure point, we saw a canoe tree with 2 canoes cut from it!  

After a rafting safety talk, students were divided into two groups for the activities.  While one group rafted or kayaked down the river, the other group set up camp and had some free time at the river.  Some very excited and some very nervous students paddled their way down the Snowy River, travelling through the rapids and paddling along the more placid parts of the rivers. 

Exhilarated, the students reached the exit point, hardly minding that they were soaked from head to toe, others jumping in to enjoy a swim at the end of the raft. The first group exchanged stories of their adventures, and waited for the second group to come down the river.  Despite some student’s earlier reservations about rafting, their doubts were washed away once on the water, and they thoroughly enjoyed the experience.

 We then had a large campfire where we cooked baked potatoes and a beef stew for dinner.  We went for a night walk to New South Wales then camped under huge tarps hanging from the trees.  We enjoyed waking up in the bush Thursday morning and having a lazy breakfast looking over the Snowy River, mountains and the bush.  

After the long pack-up, we were back on the bus for the trip home.  We detoured past the Little River Gorge, which is the deepest gorge in Victoria.  We went on a hike where we were able to burn off some energy and explore the spectacular sights.  

After some morning tea, we were back on the bus where many students slept, exhausted.  Arriving back at Karoonda we were met with a lasagne lunch.  After unpacking and re-energised after lunch, we tackled a walk to the top of Dingo Hill.  The walk was interesting as we hiked through cow and horse paddocks, through the bush and up the mountain.  We then enjoyed afternoon tea with a hot campfire milo and views across the mountains before the walk back to camp.  We finished off Thursday with a game of spotto and then a movie night. 

Karoonda park staff surprised us on Friday morning by planting a tree for our school.  The Omeo Gum will have a plaque dedicating it to Kurnai Churchill.  The Omeo Gum is a favourite koala feed tree. The Karoonda environment is still struggling after the fires and a tree-planting program is in place to support them, for the long term.

Getting on the buses Friday morning and leaving Karoonda Park was an experience met with mixed feelings. The students were sad to be leaving camp but were excited to be heading home to see their families. The staff were very proud of how the students engaged and presented themselves throughout the entire camp experience.

Student Accounts of Camp

Lily Sykes

In week 5, Term 1, the Year 8 teachers and students travelled by bus to Karoonda Park Camp in Gelantipy. On the way to camp, we stopped at Howard Park and Buchan Caves, and had lunch there. During camp, the activities groups participated in: Horse riding, Abseiling, Initiative courses, Night / Day walks, Zip Lining, Movie Night, Camping and rafting at the Snowy River.

During free time, we had dinner duties and played dodgeball, gaga ball and other activities. Overall Karoonda Park camp helped students and teachers. It encouraged people to try more things and to form more relationships.

Xaiden Hudson

Camp is very educational and a bit thrilling. We rode on horses, went abseiling, and went on a flying fox. We went water rafting on the Snowy River and camped by the Snowy River. Before we got to camp we looked at things and listened to history in the Buchan Caves.

Lilly Holt

42 students were at Karoonda Park Camp. The year 8 camp was one of the most enjoyable and amazing camps! We slept at the Snowy River on Wednesday night after rafting in the Snowy River which was half a kilometre away from the state border to New South Wales. Some of the activities at camp were horse riding, abseiling, flying fox, hiking, night walks and swimming. The food was amazing and we did volleyball or gaga ball in our free time 

Ali Sevenson

42 year 8 students from the Churchill Campus travelled up the mountains to Karoonda Park Camp for the week. We experienced different activities and challenges, such as horse riding, hiking, rafting, swimming, abseiling and even a flying fox. On Wednesday night we went up to the Snowy River and did an overnight camp which students really enjoyed. They experienced a fun and enjoyable time as well as learning a lot at camp. 

Camp Week Program at School

Students remaining at school undertook inquiry projects looking at sustainability within the Snowy River Hydro Scheme and the issues relating to brumbies in the high country.  They also enjoyed extra food and wood technology classes and some social and team-building time.  Many students reported the capture the flag activity was the highlight!

Art

Students have been working on their themed two-point perspective city street artworks. All horizontal lines must go back towards two vanishing points, including the outside lines of the building. All details and features of decoration are in a theme of their choice. Students have then outlined and added colour decorations to their city streets. Students have spent two-three weeks working on these amazingly detailed drawings with a wide variety of engaging themes. 

Karen Anders

Year 8 Team Leader