Newsletter, Term 2, 2022

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Student Showcase

And just like that, the first semester of 2022 is gone! Throughout the semester, TC students have produced some amazing work! For students and staff walking through the halls this week, you may have seen a few alarming bright pink posters around the school, which were to promote students and staff to submit student work to be featured in this showcase. The showcase aims to highlight student excellence throughout the term and celebrate each other's achievements.

Model UN

For Global Citizenship week, Cassidy's Entry Humanities and Entry English class came together and ran a Model UN. In small groups, the entries researched their chosen country and "found out about the problems that they were facing. Then put together a proposal to the United Nations to address one problem - some countries asked for money, resources, military support, etc. Delegates representing each country then Proposals were then We listed the proposals on the board and then voted on the proposals they wanted to pass. For Cassidy, the activity was a "great way for the students to think about the big issues that are affecting overseas nations and understand the functions of an international organisation, like the United Nations." 

Jac Hng- Flight Numbers

For Jac's Essential English class, he was challenged with creating something that he was passionate about. Jac has had a strong fondness for aviation since 2017 when he sat on his first-ever jet. He decided to turn this passion into his learning task. For the task, Jac went to a live flight website, documented the live flights in a notebook and then transferred them onto an excel spreadsheet. The most challenging part of the project for Jac was that "some airlines had a lot of live flights with the flight numbers involved some of them were more than 100". 

Lulu Fyffe Goodall and Dara Cucos - Energy

For Lulu and Dara's Entry Maths and Science project, they created a PowerPoint on energy! Their PowerPoint covers what types of energy Dara uses to get to school, food transportation and how shopping locally is great! The process of creating the project included completing a booklet, doing lots of research, designing a PowerPoint and finally presenting in class!

Lexie Rough- Phoenix 

In Unit 1/2 Studio Arts, Lexie created Phoenix. The process began by developing inspiration in her visual diary on light painting and setting up multiple photoshoots in the studio with various light setups. Then Lexie created hundreds of images and edited her favourites in photoshop. The inspiration for Phoenix came from "Michael Bosanko's use of the light painting technique to create unique images through photography." Lexie used the setup of a rivetted vase upside down with scrunched red and yellow cellophane surrounding it, by shining a studio light on her set up she was able to create streams of light for the photo. 

Illumination Project- Ashwin Krishnan and Amin Safari

The force was definitely with Amin and Ashwin when they created their very own star wars themed illumination project! Their task included 3D-printing a light lamp, laser cutting a picture and connecting LED lights on a base lamp to light up. The Design & Technology project took the two, a lot of time and focus, but was ultimately extremely successful.

The Life Cycle of a Star - Joshua Yip, Alessi Zambas and Francis Oaten

In Earth and Beyond, students were tasked with a stop motion animation, flipbook, presentation or video to animate the lifecycle of a particular star. Together they produced a comic book strip. Alessi was thoroughly researching the topic, and Joshua was illustrating and writing down the information given by Alessi. The pair found the most challenging part of the project was "designing the layout as the time dates were really hard to obtain".

Francis Oaten also completed the Lifecycle of a Star Project. The goal of Francis's poster was to "depict what the pistol star looks like and what surrounds the star". Even with the limited materials available Francis was able to produce a realistic pistol star poster.

Tee Fekonja - You and Me

You and Me is a gorgeous piece created for Tee's 1/2 Studio Art class for AOS3. Using charcoal, Tee focused firstly on areas they wanted to be dark and deep and built those up before filling other spaces up. The inspiration behind 'You and Me' was an artist named Carl Beazley. The most challenging part for Tee was "trying to make the faces mimic real faces whilst understanding that it is supposed to be morphed and funny looking".

A big congrats to the TC community, for getting through a challenging semester. 

Have a good break and stay safe!

By Bonnie-Mai Smith
TC Journalist

Indigenous Literacy Foundation (ILF) Fundraiser

As your School Captains, we are working on legacy projects that integrate with the school, and we envisage that it will continue yearly after we have left. One of the projects we held this term was led by Madeleine Ng, who was fundraising for ILF.

In week 8 of term 2, we had a sausage sizzle on Tuesday and a book swap on Thursday. The sausage sizzle was very successful. We had a massive line with sausages literally flying off the grill. The School Captains and Student Leaders were all there to help make it a success. We had music blasting through a speaker, which created a lively atmosphere. Altogether, it was a great event that had the whole community engaged.

Two days later, we had our book swap. In the lead-up to the event, people dropped off all sorts of books, including cookbooks, novels, science books and more! On the day, we spread out all the books for display for everyone to look at and exchange a book for a gold donation or more. A lot of books were taken home, which was great to see. However, not all books were taken, so we will donate the rest to a charity.

Overall, the outcome of both events was fantastic to see. We engaged with many new students and made new connections with the community. In total, the amount raised from both activities and online donations was $643.28! We didn’t quite reach the goal of $1000 but hopefully can beat this number next year! All the money raised will now go to the Indigenous Literacy Foundation, which will be able to provide children in remote indigenous areas with books and literacy education. They will also be able to print books in their own indigenous languages. We would love to see the school’s continual and annual support of this foundation next year and in the years to come.

By Madeleine Ng  

Parliament House

Our College Captains were invited by the Hon Bruce Atkinson MLC to attend a tour of Parliament House, along with Peter Ellis and other School Captains from the Eastern Region.

The tour involved seeing a session take place in the Lower House, as well as being able to see the Parliament House Library and other areas of the building. It was a great opportunity to see and hear about the long history of the building dating back to when construction began in 1855, as well as hear Politicians speak about their roles.

We would like to thank Bruce for the invitation and his hospitality whilst visiting.

School for Student Leadership, Snow River Campus

Hello from the School for Student Leadership, Snowy River Campus. We are Tya Robinson, Mikaia Lion-Preuss, Bel Gooley, Ed Mason and Kaeden Falzon.

We decided to come here because it sounded like an amazing experience to develop self-leadership and have fun, especially after the past few years in lockdown to come to a new place and to be able to meet a whole lot of new people in a fun and flexible learning environment. The camps and all the outdoor activities sound so amazing and fun.

The highlight from us so far has been our first expedition which was a two-day hike along the beach. There were ups and downs but that made it more fun, adventurous and exciting and we helped each other stick together though the experience. We do outdoor activities such as bike riding, canoeing, bridge building, fire down at a special spiritual place, and spirit spot up in the amazing sand dunes where we do our reflection every re-charge day which is our one-day weekend on Saturday’s.

The place is very different to Templestowe College. We have duties everyday, including breakfast, morning tea, lunch, dinner set up and back up. We also have bathroom clean up. Everyday there are two student leaders where they lead the day and tell everyone what to do. None of the classes are the same as they would be at Templestowe College. Instead of studying core subjects such as English, Maths and Science we learn about how to become a better community by the 9 learning concepts, including:

• Learning Strategies

• Emotional management

• Resilience

• Identity

• Empathy

• Respectful Relationships

• Collaboration

• Health and Wellbeing

• Environments

Not only that, we also learn self-leadership. 

We have really enjoyed our weeks so far and can’t wait to encounter both the adventures and challenges to come. 

Reshape Our Future

On the 10th of June, a group TC Student Leaders went to the Reshape Our Future: 2022 Youth Forums at Melbourne Museum. The group we took consisted of both recognised and emerging leaders.

The primary focus points of the Forum was around allyship, activism and action. Young leaders for the Community with a variety of backgrounds spoke to us about a combination of their paths to leadership, the action that they’ve taken, and gave us advice on how to better assist people from marginalised populations.

Victorian State School Spectacular

🎬 We are proud to announce our crew for the 2022 Victorian State Schools Spectacular.

TC is super excited and proud to have two students working behind the scenes at this years state school spectacular!

⭐Dexter, Vision, Templestowe College
⭐Jack, Stage Management, Templestowe College
🎫Tickets are on sale now! www.ticketek.com.au/spectacular

Zoo’s Victoria Youth Leadership Program

This year we have had 2 students participating in the Zoo’s Victoria Youth Leadership Program. They were successful in their applications, and there is a small team of 30 students from across the state participating to expand their science leadership skills. This program allows them to experience the inner workings of the zoo, including Melbourne Zoo, Werribee Zoo, Healesville Sanctuary and many external excursions such as Phillip Island and St Kilda Pier.

The aim of the program is to assist the Zoo Community Engagement Team, by collecting data on microplastics that are impacting marine animals, such as the Australian Fur Seal. Their exploration also looks at how the health of our waterways are contributing to this. The end goal of this is to help the Zoo with their future media campaigns to raise awareness and bring conservation to the forefront of our minds!

Lily Aragona-Murry and Cate Reynolds have attended multiple days throughout this term, and have enjoyed their time so far. Their favourite things? Cate says “I love doing the program as it allows me to explore my passions and interests beyond the limitations of a classroom environment”. Lily most enjoys “hearing the personal experiences from all the different staff members at the zoos, and how all their different jobs help get to the conservation goals the zoo has set.”

Part of their data collection involves surveying the school community about their opinion on soft plastics and their place in schools. We would love your help to gain as many survey responses as possible! Responses are anonymous and are open to staff, students, parents, carers etc.

The link is https://bit.ly/zvylpsurvey

By Kate, Lily and Cate

Animals Gram

Check out our Animals Instagram page @tc_animals 📷 and Facebook page Templestowe College Animals Program | Facebook they are always updated with the latest info on our animals program!

Community Integrated Learning Week

The second Community Integrated Learning Week was held in week 6, the theme was Global Citizenship. During the week, the TC community explored cultural awareness, identifying issues and challenges that affect humanity and decision making and problem-solving that involves listening and resolving differences in a respectful and culturally sensitive way. Throughout week six, there was a plethora of events, performances, classroom-based activities and community projects occurring across the whole campus. Take a look at a selection below, truly spaning all areas of the school!

Cross Country

Careers and Wellbeing Expo

This week TC hosted its very own Careers and Wellbeing Expo! The free event was held on, Monday and connected students with expert partners to answer their questions about "job opportunities, future study at University or TAFE, apprenticeship institutes and wellbeing services that offer job placement, resume support and more!". Student Archana describes the expo as "informative and definitely helped me with so many different options of what I would like to study in the future". Some of the expert providers that attended included:

• RMIT

• Latrobe Deakin

• Swinburne

• Melbourne Polytechnic

• Richmond Institute Of Sport Carlton College

• Aie Mass National

• Megt Next-Gen

• Jobs WPC Group

• Collarts

• Headspace

• Box Hill Institute

• Manningham Youth Services

Congrats to all staff involved in the event.

Connect TV Production Excursion

Connect TV continues to expand, heading into the CBD interviewing the general public for an upcoming episode.

Refugee Week

This year we had a small group of staff and one student participating in the Ration Challenge. We managed to raise $2856 by being sponsored to eat the same rations as a refugee living in a refugee camp. This money will help people in camps overseas access food and essential health care so thank you to all who supported our team. Well done especially to first timers, Claire and Chase! It still isn't too late to donate - go to Templestowe College - Ration Challenge Schools 2022.

During Refugee Week we also invited Tamil asylum seeker, Niro, to cook lunch for our community. We sold a total of 171 meals, with all proceeds directly supporting the chef. Thanks to all who supported this great initiative and to the students who helped prepare the food.

We also collected donations of goods for the Asylum Seeker Resource Centre, which will be distributed to people in need in Melbourne.

We are so grateful to be in such a kind and generous school community.

By Meg Bailey

The latest episode of TC Street Podcast recorded for Global Citizenship Week, listen now on SoundCloud.

outdoor ed munjara camp

Munjara camp played host to an array of practical educational experiences. Beginning in Gippsland where we went white water rafting and mountain biking, to the Bunurong coast, surfing the oceans waves. The students all engaged in these activities while acknowledging, learning and respecting the land. We had a Gunai Kurnai elder support this journey, providing guided bush walks and pointing out observable characteristics of Indigenous activities since time immemorial. Surprisingly, the most memorable experiences for the students were our visits to the primary industries of the local areas mentioned above. We walked across Glenmaggie Weir, seeing up close and personal the awe striking structures of dams. Our trip ended with a visit to Wonthaggi Desalination Plant, where we learned of the enormous project that now supplies 1/3 of Melbourne's drinking water and contrary to the beliefs of initial environmental activists, runs entirely on green energy and has regenerated over 200 hectares of native plants, endemic to the area. Replenishing what has been arid cattle country since colonization.

By Ryley Norris

URBAN Surf

Our class went to URBN Surf and participated in a safety course and surfing activity. I really enjoyed every part about this experience and I learnt my foot placings when standing on a board. During the safety course, we learnt the acronym D.R.S.A.B.C.D, as well as learning about rips and currents.

By Indie Shanahan

Victorian Orienteering Carnival

A group of students participated in the Victorian Secondary Schools Orienteering Championship at Mt Macedon. The students completed a 5km+ course which required map reading and navigation in the Macedon plantation forest. The weather was a but wet but that didn’t dampen our spirits and congratulations to Alex Rowlands who had scored a spot on the podium with a third place finish!

ESDP Term 2 UPDATE

ESDP Basketball had a very busy and successful term two which started with the Basketball Victoria 3x3 tournaments.

The Senior Boys and Girls both won their 3x3 tournaments with the Intermediate Boys and Girls both finishing runners up. The junior Boys and Girls did not enjoy similar success, but it will be interesting to see their development over the coming years with success sure to follow.

The Basketball Victoria College Championships were also held in term 2. These involve one day round robin tournaments among interested schools. The Senior Girls were Champions defeating Berwick Secondary College in the Grand Final. All our other teams competing well in the events but couldn’t come home with the trophy.

Lily Carmody and Maddy Potts were also named emergencies for the Under 18 Victorian State team which was also a great achievement for the program.

Also in term two Nik Ellul, Amos Harvey and Lilly Amor were named in the School Sport Victoria Senior State team with Brodie Schaeffer-Vesley named emergency. They will compete in the National Championships held in Bendigo in August.

International Global Citizens

As part of Global Citizenship week.  The international program contacted some of the TC international alumni to contribute and send messages about what it means to them to be global citizens.  Here are some of the things shared by the three alumni.

River Park from Korea - Grad 2017

Momono Tajima from Japan - Grad 2017

I graduated from Tokyo University of Foreign Studies in March 2022 and received a Bachelor of Global Studies. Since my major language was Spanish, I went to Spain and Colombia while I was a student. I devoted to studying, but also performing Japanese traditional cultures such as Karta and Noh (Japanese traditional musical) to the local students. I’ve been learning Noh since I was little. Performing as a member of professionals is one of my dreams.

Currently, I work in one of the Marriott International hotels. After I acquire more experience in the hotel industry my plan is to open my own hotel in Tokyo. I would like to have a hotel that welcomes people from all over the world.

Being an international student at TC helped me to realise that communicating with various people is one of my joys. I gained not just skills, but also confidence to challenge new things. Because of Covid-19, our actions are limited, but I’ve never stopped to achieve my goals. 

JD Remitar from Philippines – Grad 2019

My name is JD Remitar and I graduated from TC in 2019. I am originally from the Philippines, but I moved to Australia in 2017. Since I graduated from TC, I have been involved in the community through the disability sector. I worked as a Disability Support Worker for 2 years until I eventually pursued a course in foundation in counselling. I now work in the community as a Mental Health Support Worker. 

As a global citizen, I place strong importance on promoting and prioritising mental health because while globalisation has its advantages in economy, trade, cultural exchange, and innovation, it also has its disadvantages, especially in mental health. In this fast-paced world that we live in, it is easy to keep swimming to stay with the flow without realising that we are already drowning. While globalisation has enabled us to hasten the natural course of the human race, it is important to remember that we are still humans who live, breathe, and feel. 

Since I arrived in Australia, I have acquired a broader worldview on diversity, social justice and equity, and peace and conflict. This is globalisation at work. Since I became a global citizen, I have learned to embrace and love my unique identity as a Filipino in its entirety. 

My family and I have been active in the Filipino community in Australia. We primarily work with migrant rights as well as voicing out our political stand about Philippine affairs. I find fulfillment in contributing to the community as it enables me to practise my rights as a global citizen, but at the same time strengthen my identity as a Filipino. 

In the near future, I plan to continue my studies in counselling and practise as a community counsellor, particularly for the youth. 

Healesville Sanctuary

After 2 years of staying close to school - the international students mixed with some of our local EAL students were able to go see and learn more about Australian wildlife.  Spirit of the Sky was the favourite presentation, watching Australia’s bird of prey flying through the audience.

The International Program normally organises excursions to Melbourne Museum, immigration museum, and Sovereign Hills.  We hope to start more of these in the future and welcoming more international students to our community.

Global Citizenship week – MAP@TC

To be as authentically global as possible, we contacted a series of Montessori Adolescent Schools around the world. The Americas were all on summer break, but we ended up liaising with Germany, Morocco, Taiwan and Spain – and we worked directly with Japan, the Philippines and South Africa.

Eleven different projects were set up, with work from partnership countries complementing what was happening in each school. The Japanese and Filipino students were able to link live with our TC students, chatting via Zoom and Discord. With South Africa we had to chat overnight.

The atmosphere in class was incredible. We abandoned the MAP timetable for the week – we ran the projects instead of Literacy/Numeracy/Humanities/Occupations. Students focused for the whole day/week on one project, apart from their electives.

• Art: paintings of iconic Australian subjects were completed to be posted to the partner schools for hanging in their classrooms.

• Mosaics: Japanese students designed traditional patterns for us to use in pots and pathways in our garden.

• Books: compilation of life at school were created by countries to be posted to partners. Australian flora & fauna books, with a focus on the immediate TC environment, were also made.

• Video: Groups in each school contributed to “A Day in the Life” video, comparing similar activities in adolescent life in the various countries.

• Food: students in each country offered recipes and cooking instructions to each other – we ate beautifully that week!

Art panels featuring international ideas were painted to be mounted on the exterior of our classrooms.

It is one of the best educational experiences we have been able to offer in MAP so far. Friendships have been forged internationally, and discussions begun on potential student exchanges.

MAP Farm Camp

Project Based Learning

Entry students have been working on a combined Maths and Science project exploring their energy use. This is culminant in a showcase for their peers one Monday afternoon. Congratulations to everyone involved in this great initiative.

Students shared their feedback on their PBL experience:

Lines in the Sand

The big event of our Global Citizenship Week was 'Lines in the Sand'. The showcase explored ideas of "shared humanity, issues of social justice, relationships, and just the plain joy of music". Over 150 students performed on the nights. Some of the songs performed were written in languages other than English and included rhythms and melodies inspired by global musical traditions. Original songs, written by students were also sung.

The concert also featured some awesome international artists!

Mady Keita is a master percussionist from Mali. He has performed all around the world and has taught drumming in Australia to students of all ages. He is also the Musical Director of Super Mande Percussion.
Mal Webb & Kylie Morrigan - Mal is a vocal adventurer, multi-instrumentalist and looping-beatboxing songwriter. Kylie is a classically trained violinist from Orchestra Victoria. Together they write quirky, polyrhythmic songs and have toured around the world.
Nilusha Dassenaike is a Sri-Lankan Australian singer who was based in NYC for many years. She was also the Musical Director of the Resistance Revival Chorus (NYC based social justice choir). She has sung in Tina Arena's band, been on Dancing with the Stars, and more.

Bonnie-Mai interviewed some of the performers on their involvement

What songs did you sing?

Kyra: I had 5 songs on the setlist. I performed a Hebrew prayer called "Avinu Malkeinu", an original song with my band Controlled Chaos called "Laila Tov", a song called "Malcolm Smith" with the pre VCE, 1/2 and 3/4 music classes as well as guest artist Nilusha, an original song written with my Stage and Beyond class and guest artists Mal and Kylie called ‘Dis-Connection’, and the finale song "Sir Duke" by Stevie Wonder with Ragamuffin.

Allara: I sang a duet with Lachie called "When you Love Someone" by James TW as well as a song called 'Malcolm Smith' with the 3/4 music class.

Lexie: I was in the Brass Ensemble and we performed "Mangroove" by Linsey Pollak

Why did you choose those songs?

Kyra: I chose ‘Avinu Malkeinu’ because I loved the melody and the atmosphere and emotions that it generates. I also chose it because it allowed me to connect and display a part of my identity that I don’t share on stage often. I worked with the other VCE classes on ‘Malcolm Smith’ and it was the wonderful Nilusha who introduced us to the song and I feel like we were truly able to drive home the meaning of the song through our performance. "Dis-connection" was a fun song to write and from my perspective, we wrote it in the way that we did, with all the questions as a way to prompt the audience to ask their own questions about the world. 

Allara: We chose to cover 'When you Love Someone' as it comes from the perspective of parents in a relationship that's falling apart and having to tell their children. 

How do they relate to 'global citizenship' or culture?

Kyra: "Avinu Malkeinu" relates to the ‘global citizenship’ and culture theme because it is a traditional Jewish prayer and is only sung during a short period of the year. I think it was a perfect fit for the theme because not only is it in Hebrew instead of English but it also generates a powerful energy in the room. "Laila Tov" was an absolutely perfect fit for the theme because there are 4 languages throughout the song, it is written in a way that includes all of our stories, cultures and families. "Sir Duke" relates to the theme because it is all about the effect that music has on us which I think was the perfect way to end the show.

Allara: Being able to sing this (When you Love Someone by James TW) as a duet allowed us to address the difficulties of family relationships and hopefully gave the audience something to take away. "Malcolm Smith" was a powerful song about indigenous deaths in custody. We performed this song to recognise all the black lives lost in custody.

Lexie: "Mangroove" relates to global citizenship as it is written by an Australian Artist and uses musical tones from Eastern Europe.

What was your favourite part of the performances?

Kyra: The energy! Everyone absolutely rocked it on stage and I think we all really put ourselves out there and shared new parts of ourselves. Aside from the energy on stage, I loved the energy backstage and during the dress rehearsal. I got to talk to and work with lots of musicians I had never talked to or worked with before and I think that with every performance, the bonds within the entire TC Music community just keep growing stronger.

Allara: My personal favourite part of the performance was the finale song. It created a sense of community and appreciation with all the muso's at TC.

Lexie: I enjoyed the wide range of performances and energy that each group exuberated. The collective group of performances showed the scope of world music and it was interesting how each group interpreted the theme.

A huge congrats to all of the students and staff involved in this major event! For those who missed the event, a video version of the concert available shortly. 

International guest artists:
Mady Keita: https://www.facebook.com/mady.keita.official/?ref=page_internal
Mal Webb & Kylie Morrigan: https://www.facebook.com/malandky
Nilusha Dassenaike: https://www.instagram.com/nilushadassenaike/?hl=en

By Bonnie-Mai Smith 
TC Journalist

Empire Recording Studios

Drama Performance Evening

On Friday, the 27th of May, the TC community was invited to watch the Drama 3/4 classes, semester one ensemble performances! By using "traditional oral storytelling and physical performance", the performances explored mature themes and highlighted the creativity of TC's Drama department. All of the works explored the "theatrical avant-garde, playing with form, style and composition to create exciting new works of modern theatre". As part of their SAC, the four performances were entirely developed by the brilliant students, in accordance with, "theatrical traditions and assessment conditions." The incredible performances both challenged the audience and made them laugh out loud.

Works presented:
Nightmare at the Museum - 'Do I stay lost and embrace who I am or be someone I'm not and be lost?'
Untitled Murder Mystery - An old-school murder mystery with a thrilling twist.
Jess, Ingrid & Bella - The modern world is a twisted place, which tries to rob us of our very humanity. Meet a mother and daughter who try to survive it all.
Just Chaerrfro4hllh (Carol) - 'Welcome to my world, where everything revolves around me' - Cherrfor4hllh (Carol)

Read more in TCNEWS here when Bonnie-Mai Smith interviewed some of the cast: TC - 17/06/2022

Dance Showcase

on the 17th of June Streaming Netflix, the dance showcase was held in the PAC. Starting at 6:00 pm, TC's elite team and dance elective classes captivated the audience with enchanting choreography and dazzling costumes. Finally, after nearly three years without a live audience, the dancers showcased an enthralling event that grabbed your attention. In twenty different dances, the dancers brought the crowds' favourite shows and movies to life. With snappy moves, great remixes and challenging lifts, the showcase was definitely worth the wait.

To create such an awesome, showcase. The group routines were choreographed by, Tonile Fox and Emma Tierney and choreography for small groups were in the hands of the students. Throughout the semester, students chose the film or show they were passionate about and found compatible music. For finding music, students selected either one song or multiple and edited them together. When starting to choreograph a piece, Abbey's group "listen to the music and see what comes to your body. You do a bit of improvisation and see what works. After choreographing, the dance team start to costume based on the theme. For the Pitch Perfect dance, the group "dressed as the Bellas. We wore blue long-sleeved shirts and leggings with a yellow bandana around our necks. For 13 Reasons Why we based the costumes on the mood". The next process is rehearsing. This means getting dancers to nail every sequence and move, multiple times. And finally, it's showtime!

Personal favourites of the showcase:

RuPaul's Drag Race - Dance Elective A
Gossip Girl - Meg and Jamie
Squid Game - Dance Elective B
Pitch Perfect - Spencer, Abbey, Scarlett and Tash
Heathers - Olivia, Daniel, Kat and Lielle

It was great to see the supportive nature, of the TC community and hear the sounds of dance students behind the curtain cheering on their friends. Flooded with excitement, quick costume changes and lots of sweat. The showcase was a must-see event and was incredible to see the hard work and effort that went into pulling off the show-stopping dances!

A huge congrats to all students and staff involved in the showcase!

If you missed the showcase, keep an eye out for the recorded version coming to a screen near you!

Special Thanks to Emma Tierney, Spencer Watkins, Olivia Hick, Scarlett Evans, Abbey Welch and Amy Mooney.

By Bonnie-Mai Smith 
TC Journalist

Science

Lots of fantastic learning has been happening in Science this semester. It is so great to be able to take students out on excursions again and to see so many back in the classroom engaging with the content and each other. As we head towards subject selections next term, be sure to explore the Science subjects on offer and talk to the Science teachers about what might interest you. These photos show some of the great stuff we have been doing.

Girls in Science at Ecolink

A group of 12 FLE1 and FLE2 students attended a Girls in Science STEM day yesterday. Themed 'Blue Ocean' they listened to a key note about researching dolphins in Port Philip Bay, participating in workshops to learn about microplastics and and flying drones to collect whale snot and watched a Fizzics Deep Ocean Science show. The day culminated in a 'speed dating with a scientist' session where students had 5 minutes with 6 different female scientists from over 40 different science-related occupations. It was a terrific day and they all came back very inspired! A big message that came through was the importance of good communication and numeracy skills.

VCE Environmental Science

The VCE Environmental Science class had a terrific excursion to Werribee Zoo and Mt Rothwell Sanctuary. Students participated in a workshop at the zoo to learn how to assess quality of habitat for eastern-barred bandicoots and enjoyed time learning about conservation of endangered species and career pathways from the keepers. After that we bussed over the sanctuary where we learnt to make 'bait balls' (like bliss balls but with sardines added!) and each set a trap in the hope of capturing a live native species. We enjoyed a meal together and then went for a guided spotlight tour to see the amazing array of endangered species they have living there. It was incredible to see bandicoots, rock wallabies, quolls and bettongs hopping about on the ground without the threat of introduced predators like foxes and cats. After our walk we returned to check our traps and were lucky to have caught a southern brown bandicoot with young in her pouch. Of course we let her go safely. It was a very special experience.

Earth and Beyond

Students have operating and collecting images from a Radio Telescope this term. Although a visible image of the Car Nebula (NGC 519) looks very detailed. A radio image (detecting HII) looks more like the images below. However, you get the added benefit of watch the telescope move and the occasional bird.

Family Astronomy Night

Students from Earth and Beyond and their families attended an astronomy night at Mount Burnett observatory last night. Due to cloud they couldn't use the telescopes but they had the opportunity to ask lots of questions of the Astronomy volunteers.

Toby’s Life Cycle of a Star animation

zoology and ecology

n Zoology and Ecology this semester we developed our ‘artistic side’ and practices scientific illustration with the help of our In2Science mentor from LaTrobe University, Ruby. We also created artworks from recycled materials as part of the Global Citizenship Week that raised awareness about threats affecting some different animals and learnt about the roles of zoos in conserving threatened species and educating the public.

We also had an excursion to LaTrobe University where we learnt about zoo-archaeology and how animal remnants can be used to learn about ancient human cultures, climates and distribution of life. We also learnt that the most nutritious native animal is the echidna (and it even comes with toothpicks!).

In the last few weeks of term we focussed on learning about healthy environments and conducted some water testing and sorting of macroinvertebrates found in our local Ruffey Creek. It was interesting to see what lives in the water and learn how this can indicate the health of the ecosystem. Students enjoyed getting into the water with the wader pants on!

We wrapped up the semester by making bee hotels to put around the school to support local native pollinators.

'We went to Latrobe university for a lesson about zooarchaeology and I learnt about the human skeleton and how to construct a hand from the disassembled bones. I think my highlight was when we walked around the room and looked at the skulls and bones from early humans and monkeys. It makes me think about how humans lived hundreds of thousands of years ago.' Allie

Pre VCE Physics

Throughout Term 2 the Pre-Physics classes have been studying motion and its effects on everyday life. This brings together the work completed previously in Nuclear Physics and Electricity.

To signal the end of term, Anthony’s Pre Physics class worked on creating a protective shell that housed an egg to see the effects of crumble zones. Somewhat successful with only a few eggs cracking under the pressure. Neil’s class took the end-of-term challenge to build some bottle rockets launched across the oval.

Should you wish to be involved in projects such as these, make sure to select Pre Physics in the Term 2 subject sections.

Drew’s Retirement

Drew Barr is retiring from our Permaculture Garden team. Drew has spent many years developing the Permaculture program alongside students and various staff, and leaves a great legacy behind him in that space.

Backyard Permaculture

In Backyard Permaculture this term we focussed on planting our winter crops and using the cool weather to get on top of other jobs that keep the farm running smoothly. We always practices some cooking skills, painting, sewing and landscaping. In Community Integrated Learning Global Citizenship Week we learnt about harvest festivals around the world and this led us to having our own Potato Harvest Festival in Week 8. Highlights of this week included making hand painted celebratory bunting, scalloped potatoes, jacket potatoes and wedges and having staff and student potato sack races.

In addition, our regular Friday afternoon TC Market continued to grow in variety of produce and student-made products. It was great to meet lots of parents through the market and share ideas for cooking seasonal produce.

Potato Festival

During Global Citizenship Week Backyard Permaculture students learnt about some international harvest festivals and decided to have our own Potato Festival to celebrate the harvest of our potatoes last week. Students made banners and brainstormed recipes as well as some potato-related activities to share with the school community. We made scalloped potatoes and baked potatoes in the pizza oven and had staff versus student potato sack races, with the prize winners of course winning potato chips!

Jewellery Making

Another amazing showcase of students jewellery from semester 1, using resin, faux gems, recycled materials, even upcycling cutlery! Take a look at the video to see all the creations

Café Culture

Café did a master chef inspired mystery box challenge, resulting in some yummy treats like sticky date pudding and lemon meringue pie!

There has been so much happening in senior VCAL this term. During these couple of months, the class has been gaining skills in unexpected areas and knowledge on important topics. From fire safety training to global citizenship, or trying to drop an egg without breaking it. Here are some of the things we have been up to.

Road to Zero Excursion

On the 17th of May, the senior VCAL cohort went to Melbourne Museum to see the Road to Zero exhibit. We had a session with a Road to Zero staff member where he told us about the goal of the program and why the cause is important. The goal of the program is to get the number of road fatalities down to zero, and they are working towards this goal with education for young people about road safety, as well as advertising. After the staff member talked to us, we had to make our own ads meant to prevent road deaths and injuries, specifically targeted to either pedestrians or cyclists. After everyone had created and shared their ads, we then got to look around the actual exhibit. In the exhibit were many different visual aids to show the damage and issue around road safety, including images and information about what the human body would have to look like to survive a car accident, safe ways to structure roads, a vehicle safety projection and much more. The exhibit was very interesting and important and a great opportunity for young adults.

The Egg Drop Challenge

Whilst working on car safety as a topic, we had a challenge in our class; to create a design that would ensure an egg wouldn't break if dropped from a height. This was to be a representation of a human in a car when it crashes. There were many different designs people came up with, but all were very creative. There was bubble wrap, a boat, popcorn, oobleck, a balloon, a pillow and many more weird materials used to protect these eggs. Surprisingly, most eggs survived the fall! This was a fun way to explore car design safety and also served as a team-building exercise.

Fire Safety Training

Continuing on from the last term, this term we continued on with Fire Safety Training. This is a course run by Magenta Safety Training where an instructor teaches us how to use fire safety tools and about being a firefighter. At the end of this course, if you pass you receive a Certificate II in Fire Safety. The most exciting part of this course so far (in my opinion), has been getting to use the massive fire hose. We all got to learn about different parts of the truck like where to turn the water on and where the hoses are stored. We got to practise rolling out the hoses like a professional, but to be fair, the professionals make it look much easier than it is. After rolling them back up, we got lined up and all have a go at actually holding the hose and turning it on! It was a pretty cool experience and some of the students were natural! This course is still going and will continue until the end of the year.

The Sustainability Challenge

Sustainability is a subject talked about a lot at school in all areas, and we wanted a practical and measurable project focused on sustainability and animal conservation that will actually make a difference in our community. We have been working in groups on different animal homes, houses or boxes that will be sustainable in the animal’s natural habitats and not interfere with their ecosystems. There were many choices given to us to make including a butterfly box, a bee hotel, a ladybird house, a frog pond, and a microbat roost nest and students were also able to come up with any other idea they wanted to do. We had to use all sustainable and recycled materials that were safe for animals and nature and either durable or biodegradable. Students have been able to gain practical skills in finding materials and building the project, as well as knowledge about biodegradable materials, the animal they are studying and the importance of their conservation and survival.

Community Integration week

Community Integration week was a school-wide event, so VCAL decided to do some things for the school. To celebrate community and global citizenship, we redid the garden next to C wing with all indigenous plants. Many members of our class frequently went out and worked on creating a beautiful and healthy indigenous garden, working incredibly hard to have a biodiverse safe space in the school. There are so many different types of plants there and all of them have a tag with the name of the plant and a QR code on the back where you can find out more about the plant and its origins and uses. In the same area, some of the other VCAL students have worked on a beautiful and meaningful mural on the wall. This mural celebrates different plants and cultures through paintings of a cherry blossom tree, a cactus, gum tree leaves and so much more. Definitely go down and have a look at the newly peaceful and gorgeous part of our school.

Speed X Excursion

During week 8 we were invited to attend the Speed X Interviews run by Gateway LLEN at the Manningham Function Centre. We participated in a speed interview process where we spoke to a range of employers about their pathways and how they got to where they are now. It was great to speak to people in different industries and we all agreed that it was a wonderful experience.

By Katarina Tobin-Spall

Photography City Excursion

Students explored the International Photography Festival at various city locations whilst capturing life on the street through their cameras. The work the students made was of a very high standard and will be on display at TC over the next month.

"This term, students taking TC's photography elective went on an excursion to the city for the sole purpose of capturing the perfect photo. They explored the colourful alley ways and busy streets, all while lining up their next shot". Lily Curnow.

Junk Art Competition

As part of global citizenship week visual arts held a junk art competition. Connect groups and individuals sent in works of art made from recycled materials, the results are amazing and can now be seen in the pop up canteen gallery.

Visual Arts Instagram - TC Visual Arts (@tcvisualart) • Instagram photos and videos

TC Dog Therapy Program

The TC Dog Therapy program has now come to an end. We were fortunate to have Brad from Therapy Animals Australia working with 10 students & their dogs over the past 15 weeks. The students started learning basic commands and building trust with their dog. They moved onto more complicated training commands and developed stronger bonds with their dogs. The program focuses on dog behaviour and motivation and students learn to recognise that many animal behaviours are much like human behaviours. The dogs are also used to help students make sense of their world through story telling and the use of metaphor.

Although we have now finished this program for 2022 we hope to have Brad and the team from Therapy Animals Australia back again next year.

Raise In-School Mentoring

Each Thursday eight TC students meet with specially trained mentors who show up each week, just for them with the time to listen and provide one-to-one support. Raise mentoring empowers young people to talk through life’s challenges and help them cope better, today and in the future. The program runs across term 2 and 3 and finishes with a celebration in term 4.

The mentee’s have an opportunity to work through a specific social & emotional curriculum each week while also sharing their lives with mentors. They also get to share a morning tea with each other. Over the last couple of weeks students have worked on: Coping strategies, communication skills, Confidence and Help seeking behaviour.

Research shows that young people who are mentored have lower levels of depression, higher levels of wellbeing and know how to find emotional support. They report greater levels of resilience, feel more content and are more likely to finish school and make a positive post school transition

Child Safe

From 1 July 2022, new Child Safe Standards start in Victoria. The Standards are compulsory minimum standards for all Victorian schools, to ensure they are well prepared to protect children from abuse. Government schools already have policies and procedures that aim to keep children safe. TC’s policies are available on the school website and are in the process of being updated in line with these changes.

All children have a right to be safe, including when they are at school. Child Safe Standards have been mandatory in Victoria since 2016, so many organisations already have well-developed child safety frameworks. They are compulsory for a large range of organisations, including faith-based organisations who work or volunteer with children up to the age of 18.

The Standards are being strengthened in Victoria, to help protect children and young people from harm and abuse. From 1 July, organisations will need to transition to the new Standards. The Commission for Children and Young People has a range of resources to support you.

There are eleven new Child Safe Standards:

• Child Safe Standard 1 – Organisations establish a culturally safe environment in which the diverse and unique identities and experiences of Aboriginal children and young people are respected and valued

• Child Safe Standard 2 – Child safety and wellbeing is embedded in organisational leadership, governance and culture

• Child Safe Standard 3 – Children and young people are empowered about their rights, participate in decisions affecting them and are taken seriously

• Child Safe Standard 4 – Families and communities are informed, and involved in promoting child safety and wellbeing

• Child Safe Standard 5 – Equity is upheld and diverse needs respected in policy and practice

• Child Safe Standard 6 – People working with children and young people are suitable and supported to reflect child safety and wellbeing values in practice

• Child Safe Standard 7 – Processes for complaints and concerns are child focused

• Child Safe Standard 8 – Staff and volunteers are equipped with the knowledge, skills and awareness to keep children and young people safe through ongoing education and training

• Child Safe Standard 9 – Physical and online environments promote safety and wellbeing while minimising the opportunity for children and young people to be harmed

• Child Safe Standard 10 – Implementation of the Child Safe Standards is regularly reviewed and improved

• Child Safe Standard 11 – Policies and procedures document how the organisation is safe for children and young people

If you require further information on the Child Safe Standards see the DET website: https://www.vic.gov.au/protect or contact the TC Child Safe Officer Amanda Toyer on 9850 6333.

The Gender Agenda

This term we welcomed Britt (they/them) from Manningham Youth Service to TC to deliver “The Gender Agenda”, an information and support group for students to discuss various topics and issues related to gender identity and expression. The group met on Monday’s at lunchtime. It was a great way for students to connect with like-minded folks in a safe and inclusive space. The group discussed the following topics:

• gender journeys, gender diversity vs sexuality, phases

• dysphoria vs euphoria, talking to others about gender

• legal, societal, & health issues, navigating & advocating for yourself

• gender journeys, resources, euphoria experiences

Britt has also been a regular visitor to TC Queer Club throughout the term and has successfully started a Queer Youth Group that meets fortnightly at Aquarena. For more details about Manningham Youth Service see their website: https://www.each.com.au/manninghamyouth/ 

TC Breakfast Club

Food sharing is back! That means TC Breakfast club is back. We run Breakfast club on Monday mornings at the rear of S-wing starting at 8am and finishing up just before period 1. This term we’ve had cheese toasties, raisin toast and the Café Culture students made a big batch of pancakes that were a huge hit. Breakfast club will continue next term with some exciting new breakfast specialities.

Sex Ed

Amanda, Amy and Ashlee have pushed on with Sex Ed this term delivering classes to students in FLE1, FLE2 and FLE3. Students in the Montessori program have also started to receive their lessons each Tuesday. This term the focus of classes was on: Healthy Relationships & Breaking Up, Different Types of Sexual Behaviour, Pornography: what you need to know, and Contraception, Safe Sex and STI’s. The classes are always lots of fun and we’re always surprised with our mature and insightful the kids are in class. They ask the best questions too. Sex Ed will continue in Term 3 with the final sessions being delivered to students.

Courage program

A small group met regularly with Amy and Mei on a Tuesday participating in various activities and tasks to build connections and skills. The highlight of the group this term was definitely the games we played and learnt about. In the photos we played a game called Dutch Blitz. It was new to everyone in the group bar one person. Eventually we got the hang of it and competition was fierce.

Every week TC journalist Bonnie-Mai Smith provides the community with a insight to life at TC. 📰
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