Middle School Report
Message from the Director of Learning
- Mr. Tom Tahos
I would like to thank and congratulate all middle school staff and students for reaching the final term. It has been a wonderful, and at times, a very busy year, with students developing new skills and making careful, informed decisions around future careers and pathways. Students have particpated in continual growth exploration and development in the area of wellbeing, and have strengthened their foundations and extended their learning.
Quotes for thought:
“Education is the passport to the future, for tomorrow belongs to those who prepare for it today.”
“Education is the most powerful weapon in which you can change the world.”
Middle Years
Wellbeing Day
During Mental Health Week, first week of Term 3, our entire Middle Years cohort participated in the annual ‘Wellbeing Day’; the girls took part of the ‘Mind, Body, And Pedal’ workshop and the boys, in the ‘Man Cave’ workshop. Both workshops were very well received by all students. It was a very successful and insightful day covering many aspects of Health and Wellbeing.
The ‘Man Cave’ program involved a set of workshops on emotional intelligence and male mental health. The program is designed to facilitate healthy masculinity and build emotional intelligence in boys and young men by providing them with opportunities such as:
● To realise that their daily challenges are widely shared;
● To redefine their experience of masculinity not as silence, isolation and indifference, but rather openness, trust and mutual responsibility;
● To develop their emotional toolkit to powerfully deal with the challenges of life;
● To develop interpersonal skills that help them foster the important relationships they want and need.
These kinds of experiences build self-esteem, develop emotional and social intelligence, increase mental and physical wellbeing, build resilience, and ultimately, help our boys and young men lead better lives.
Outcomes of the ‘Man Cave’ were:
SELF-AWARENESS
Boys build their own self-awareness and identify positive male role models in their lives.
COMMUNITY BUILDING
Boys create a stronger connection to self, groups and communities.
RESPECTFUL RELATIONSHIP SKILLS
Boys develop positive self-concepts and healthy interpersonal relationships.
SOCIAL AWARENESS
Boys are introduced to concepts, such as stereotypes, gender and masculinity.
CONTEXTUAL UNDERSTANDING
Boys are introduced to how gender identities have been shaped by society, culture and the media.
RESPONSIBLE DECISION MAKING
Boys develop practical emotional tools that will contribute to long-term positive behaviour.
The ‘Mind, Body & Pedal’ Program
The MIND.BODY.PEDAL program was a one day initiative designed for female secondary school students, aiming to inspire and empower them to get active. MIND.BODY.PEDAL sets out to combat the unique barriers that hold back females from being physically active.
On the day, students participated in 4 sessions:
MIND: A team of qualified youth workers chatted to the group about issues such as self-esteem, your inner critic as well as peer pressure and challenging social norms.
BODY: For a whole hour, the girls went through a session devoted to the mind body connection. The group chatted about mindfulness and were taken through a series of breathing and stretching exercises. This session was designed to show just how important moving your body is.
PEDAL: Led by Ride2School, the girls were taken on a 5 kilometre bike ride around the local community. They were taught road rules, how to be a respectful road user as well as a bit of a history lesson of the bicycle.
Years 9, 10 & 11
Semi Formal
On Friday, 25th of October, the Middle school combined with the Year 11 students to celebrate the Semi-Formal social at the college. It was a wonderful night with lots of dancing and socialising. A big thank you to the Middle School staff for helping with organising the event, and a big congratulations to Krista Puia (10A), who planned and organised the entire event with the staff. Something the students will be talking about for a while.
Mr Charles Tran
Year 10 Coordinator
Year 9/10 Bridging EAL (English as an Additional Language)
This semester, the Bridging EAL students studied the text ‘Boy Overboard’. They compiled a creative writing folio, including poems that use the themes of the text as inspiration. These themes include human rights, discrimination and friendship. Some of their poems are included.
Ms Conja Coetzee
EAL Teacher
Human Rights
Crashing waves, smashing seas
Bringing water to people’s knees
As they struggle to save their lives
Hoping that help arrives
The stormy seas as dark as coal
Preventing the people from reaching their goal.
Struggling and troubled, yet they still fight
For their right
Wobbling and stumbling as they try to stand
Hoping that they soon reach land
No way to go, no way to reach
All I can hear is the sailor’s speech
Desperate in need
Trying to succeed
by Lujin Alghamdi
Human rights
No words to say, nowhere to go
They shut me down, with a no
I try to run
They scared me with a gun
There are things of which I may not speak
There are thoughts that make the strong heart weak
There are dreams that cannot die
There are lives that cannot fly
Still fighting for my dream
And things are not what they seem
Without a future to seek
And nothing to speak
by Ana Edo
A life with my friend
I’m coming with you now my friend
All the problems that we’ve been through
All the places that we’ve been to
All the time I’ve spent with you
I’m coming with you now my friend
Remember when a girl made you cry
And I was there by your side
And after I comforted you, we both just sighed
I’m coming with you now my friend
Remember when we jumped high
While holding a cane and laughing and you just cried
And you said we were like birds flying in the sky
I’m coming with you now my friend
I visited your grave when I could still walk
Now in hospital, just saying goodbye
There’s crying and I say: don’t worry I’ll be fine
Because I’m coming now with my friend
by Zhian Pasilan
Unfair
Afghanistan, Afghanistan,
What a bad and selfish government!
Our skin is tan,
Our girls live without enjoyment.
Women’s rights, women’s rights
Why do we have to hide?
Why do we have to cover our face?
Why can’t we go outside to play?
Girls are flowers
They don’t have any power
Scream and cry,
Sneaky learning at night
We are all human,
Please give us some chances!
To be teachers,
To be soccer players.
Afghanistan, Afghanistan,
Don’t tackle us too tight!
We need to be free,
Please give us our rights!
by Daisy Tran