Well, Term One is done! It’s hard to believe that it has been eleven weeks since we embarked on the new Year of the Dragon. And this is a year of challenges with a new syllabus in Years 7 and 9 and the changing landscape of AI.
So far we have seen some excellent work from students across all year groups. Year 7 embarked on a study of Powerful Youth Voices, culminating in their composition of a memoir. Throughout the term they heard and read extracts from other young people to inspire them whilst developing their knowledge of language features.
Year 8 read a novel and demonstrated their understanding of how the characters changed in their text through an essay exploring the character’s development. A range of books were covered across the classes including Neil Gaiman’s Coraline, Louis Nowry’s The Giver and Runt by Craig Silvey.
Representation of Life Experiences was the new unit for Year 9 whereby they considered the works of young people who have had their work published for a competition called ‘What Matters.’ From there, students were tasked with composing their own persuasive narrative about something that mattered to them and we look forward to reading their thoughts.
Year 10 embraced their study of Representations of Australia, developing well considered presentations demonstrating their understanding of visual and language techniques evident in their chosen material. Tasked with choosing one text they studied in class and one of their own, students spoke with confidence about everything from Land Down Under to episodes of Bluey.
Reading to Write was the focus for Year 11 Standard and Advanced, where students developed their understanding of the significant role reading plays when it comes to crafting compositions. Students completed a ninety minute assessment in which they wrote a critical and creative response to demonstrate their knowledge, applying themselves with diligence and maturity.
Year 12 have just completed their second HSC assessment with students achieving very pleasing results. In Standard, students wrote an essay in class about the work of Australia’s favourite bush poet and short story writer, Henry Lawson, while Advanced compared Margaret Atwood’s Hagseed to the Shakespearean play on which it was based, The Tempest, with great success. English Studies students were able to choose a high profile Australian and create a portfolio and feature article about their life.
Drama in the Middle Schools from Marie Payne
Fourteen eager but shy Year 6 students from our surrounding schools entered Mount View, ready for a challenge. Not knowing one another, you could hear a penny drop, they were that quiet. Through playing Theatresports and ‘getting to know you’ games, the bonds slowly started to form between schools and students.
As the different personalities started to come forth, it was clear to see that the budding actors and actresses in front of me were superstars. Setting them the challenge of creating their own fractured fairy tales, the students were divided and the themes were set. Frozen took a flip with Anna wishing to avenge the negative treatment at the hands of her parents and Elsa while a hybrid mix of Harry Potter and Shrek brought forth a story about saving the world from an imminent end. All the students worked incredibly hard to write their own scripts, block their performances and design their costumes and props. Our 10 week block ended together when staff, family and friends were drawn to the Drama Room where the students performed their pieces. I am incredibly proud of the performances that were on display and cannot wait to see them in the Drama classroom in the future.
