Learning & Teaching News

SIS Book in a Day Competition

On 11 August 2020 eight students from Clyde North campus proficiently collaborated to make a short story in the SIS Book in a Day 2020 competition. The students imagined, conceived, generated ideas and produced a novella titled “Frozen in Time”. Under current circumstances, student participation was conducted online via zoom. They were given the following brief to put their story together. 

• Primary character 1: Sorcerer
• Primary character 2: Three-year-old girl
• Non-human character: Sloth
• Setting: Rio
• Issue: Power Outage
• Random words: Glistening, Rumble, Philosophy, dirt, and Distraught.

Stories are judged against other stories from teams of student writers in Southern Independent Schools. These stories can be found by year 7 and 8 students, who are asked to read the stories and vote on the ones they liked on our “mylibrary” web-page under the “myreading” tile. 

Our 2020 “Book in a Day” team is Christaron Newstead, Saoirse O’Riordan, Sophia Cabador, Vichit Kan Vong, Amelia Johnson, Kitty Gajendran, Harjas Singh, and Michelle Muchai.

It is an exciting opportunity to facilitate this day. There is a thrill in observing the flurry of thoughts that culminate in a story that is 5 chapters long and approximately 4000 words in length. 

My take of “Book in a Day”-

"It was an enjoyable experience, but it taught me the importance of a team.

I wanted to structure some of the parts of the story differently, but after listening to feedback from the rest of the team it turned out much better than I expected!"

- Harjas Singh

"I've been in “Book in a Day” every year now and every time it's a different experience. There's always the last-minute stress about getting everything done and there's always the team working hard. The differences end there though since the team is always different and the roles and responsibilities are different. At the end of the day, relief and happiness is always the feeling of getting at the end of it. It didn't matter if we all didn't work well together or if we had just had a laughing fit from all the stress, I was always happy in the end. Sometimes, the team all just laugh and enjoy the moment, sometimes we all hug and sometimes we all just relax. Each time I do this I always learn something different and new. This is something that I recommend people to do since you'll always have fun and learn something new. This may be the last time I can do this and all I got to say is that this journey has been a fun one." 

- Sophia Cabador

"It was my first time participating in the book in a day competition. It was a very enjoyable experience because I was able to write my own part of a story. Throughout the day we were all able to write, edit, and for some to be able to illustrate it." 

- Saoirse O’Riordan

Ms Fiona Gallagher

Learning Adjustment Leader: Exceptional Learners

Clyde North Campus 

Education, Training and Employability

We were recently provided the opportunity to attend a webinar by Ivan Neville, Director, Labour Market Analysis Branch, National Skills Institute on “The Impact of COVID-19 on National and State Labour Markets, and the implications for young people, including those leaving school early”. It was a very interesting and engaging presentation where Ivan shared research with some pertinent information.

Some key points include;

• Employers want the whole package;
• Education and Training is essential
• Experience is necessary
• Employability Skills are vital
• Employers are looking for employees with experience as it;
• Shows reliability and trustworthiness
• Shows an individual knows how to work
• Gives an individual contacts and references
• Improves confidence
• Provides opportunities to develop skills
• Employers will not compromise on essential employability skills;
• Interpersonal and people skills
• Communication and teamwork skills
• Organisation and planning skills
• Adaptability and resilience
• Reliability and motivation
• Critical thinking and problem solving skills
• Digital literacy

Finally, some advice for students (and parents) was;

• Post school qualifications are important - University / TAFE / Apprenticeships
• Explore and learn about options
• Students need to be persistent, flexible and creative
• Get experience to learn skills

Considering the above factors, VCAL students at St. Peter’s College are well placed to develop a strong pathway into employment or further study. At the completion of the VCAL program students would be exposed to;

• A VET certificate of their choice (eg. Electrotechnology / Beauty / Early Childhood)
• Certificate II Public Safety (Firefighting Operations), Certificate II Outdoor Recreation and Certificate II Business - Applied Learning (as part of the VCAL course)
• First Aid, CPR, Barista, RSA, Food Handler’s Certificate
• Structured Workplace Learning (1 day work placement per week)

The Victorian Certificate of Applied Learning (VCAL) is a hands-on option for all students from Years 10 -12 and is offered at the levels of Foundation, Intermediate and Senior. The VCAL gives you practical work-related experience, as well as literacy and numeracy skills and the opportunity to build personal skills that are important for life and work. 

More information can be found on the VCAL faculty SPACE page by clicking the button below:

The full presentation from Ivan Neville can be found by clicking the button below:

Chris O’Hara & Paul Woodbridge

VCAL Co-Ordinators

Cranbourne & Clyde North Campuses

Reflection and Progress

Following our opportunity to meet with families via Zoom last week, parents and students are encouraged to revisit student learning goals, and to consider the feedback that teachers have provided. For many students I hope parent-teacher interviews were affirming of the resilience and determination that they have shown towards their studies in unusual circumstances. Also, constructive feedback on how they can improve is critical to their success. I am heartened to have seen students in my classes act on the suggestions that I provided to maximise their learning. I encourage all students to think about what they would like to get out of your schooling this year and take steps in the final weeks of Term 3 to working towards their goals. 

VCE Opportunities - getting a jump start on Exam Preparation

Over the coming school holidays many opportunities are being offered to our Senior students to prepare them for their upcoming Examinations. I would like to take this opportunity to encourage all students studying a Year 12 subject to investigate these online webinars. Most provide detailed course notes, insider information from experienced assessors and an opportunity to to revisit content from much earlier in the year. One of the other key benefits of this type of program is the ability to interact with students from other schools across the state. 

Our Careers advisors and VCE teachers have lots of information for students regarding what is on offer. 

VCE Practice Examinations 

VCE Practice Examinations are a vital part of the preparation programme for all students completing Units 3 & 4 VCE Studies. Parents and students should note that the published dates for these Examinations have needed to change given the announcement of a Public Holiday on 23 October 2020. 

Practice Examinations will now be held during Period 5 and after school

• Wednesday, 14 October 2020 - Thursday, 15 October 2020 and
• Monday, 19 October 2020 - Thursday, 22 October 2020

A detailed timetable will be published prior to the end of term. 

Ms Louise Mansfield

Acting Deputy Principal - Learning and Teaching