As we count down to the end of the term, we are heading into the last week before spring break. This did not stop us from going full speed ahead with many activities and great learning.

In Math, we started our exam preparation for the assessment week in week 2 of term 3 by looking at past exam papers and how the questions are structured and should be answered.

In English this week, we finished our unit on Frankenstein, so to end it, the student’s got creative designed and started making a diorama of a key scene from the text.

In IMYC, Science, we continued to study waves and especially sound waves. We looked at different properties that influence the pitch, loudness and tone of waves. We also looked at the constructive and destructive superposition of impulses and the practical uses of reflection of sound. In History, the learners contrasted and compared a hot war to a cold war. In Geography, we looked at how fossil fuels impact us, especially in the context of the local economy and why it can be difficult for people to stop using fossil fuels despite it being a major cause of global warming. In Design, learners worked on their design phase of designing a kite to specific criteria, looking at measurements, materials and costs of the kite.

That is all for this week, I hope everyone has an enjoyable weekend and comes back on Monday refreshed and ready for the last week.

Happy Friday on this lovely afternoon, spring is in the air, and we are heading full speed towards the end of the term. However, that does not mean we are slowing down in class; much learning took place this week.

In Science, learners studied different types of waves and their properties, such as amplitude, frequency, wavelength and speed of waves. They also learned about the relationship between wavelength, frequency and wave speed. In Geography, we looked at the difficulties of identifying climate change and the different measurements that are taken to identify whether climate change is taking place. In History, the students looked at why Germany’s Blitzkrieg tactics were so successful during WWII, comparing it to the trench warfare of WWI. In Design, the students studied engineering design processes. They looked at different kites to evaluate the design decisions that went into the making of these kites, with the aim of designing and ultimately building prototype kites of their own.

In English, we have come to the end of our study of Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein. We analysed extracts, exploring how characters changed, key events, and how the story concluded.   

During our Math lessons, we started the week by constructing equations from word sums and then looked at the different ways to simplify equations and finished by looking at the indices laws and using them to simplify equations.

That is all for this week, and I hope everyone will have an enjoyable weekend.

This has been an eventful if short week. The highlight for most students being the class trip to go snow sledging. The students had the opportunity to have fun while simultaneously doing some learning.

In English this week, we role-played a scene from Frankenstein to help us understand character motives. The students also began to look at how Victor Frankenstein changed as a character and pick apart his choices.

In Science, we started our new unit for IMYC: Reflection, where the students recapped what they know about waves and the different forms of waves. Another highlight was the Middle School regatta, where the students had the opportunity to test their boat hull designs and see who could come up with the fastest design. The winner of the inaugural regatta was Declan; congratulations to him.

In Design, learners looked at different everyday products and the design decisions that have been made to design the product. In History, the learners saw the difference in performance when answering questions given a lot of time to reflect compared to having a time limit as an introduction to our unit.

In Math, we finished our unit on probability with students looking at the difference between theoretical and experimental probability in chance experiments.

That is all for this week, I hope everyone has an enjoyable weekend.

As we come to the end of the week, we have reached the end of our unit titled Belief. This meant that we did exit point activities for all our IMYC subjects except Science which is due next week Friday.

For History, students had to research and present a conflict from around the world that was fought due to differences in beliefs. In Design, the students designed, manufactured and put on a fashion show based on products that showcased something that they considered to be worth believing in. All the students came up with amazing designs and work exceptionally well together to put forward a fashion show to showcase their designs. In Geography, we started with our new unit: Reflection, where students looked at the interconnectivity of different regions when it comes to climate and recourses.

In Math, we are studying probability, looking at calculating the probability of an outcome, mutually exclusive events and dependent and independent events.

In English this week, we continued our study of Mary Shelley Frankenstein. The students held a debate to discuss the blame for the monster’s actions and how much responsibility lies with Victor Frankenstein. We also continued to analyse different extracts and conventions of gothic horror.

On Monday, we will go on a field trip to Yangsan Go-Kart and Ice sledging, where we will experience practically some of the concepts we covered in science relating to speed, acceleration and aerodynamics.

Students are reminded to dress warmly and to bring either a packed lunch or money for food from the restaurant or food stalls.

That is all for this week; I hope everyone has an enjoyable weekend.

We come to the end of yet another eventful week where we were surprised with some snow and a nice valentines card from the PTA, and of course, lots of learning.

In English this week, we continued our work around Frankenstein. The student created their own monster and wrote a description about it. Also, we explored how Mary Shelley create mood, and atmosphere, her use of symbolism and emotive language.

In Math, we finished our unit on line graphs, looking at how to work out the y-intercepts and gradients of straight line graphs using the graph and only the formula.

In IMYC, Science, we looked at balanced and unbalanced forces and how this explains Bernoulli’s principle of creating lift in wings. We also examined the Magnus principle to explain how footballs curve in the air. In History and Geography, the learners worked on their end-of-unit activities. In Design, the learners are hard at work creating their masterpieces inspired by something they strongly believe in.

There is a high probability that we will be going on a field trip this Wednesday, so please be on the look out for any further information and a reply slip to return.

That is all for this week; I whish everyone a pleasant weekend.

As we get closer to the end of the unit, the class is getting busier with end-of-unit assessments and projects.

In English, this week, we started to learn about Gothic Horror using Mary Shelley’s ‘Frankenstein.’ At the beginning of the week, we looked at the features of Gothic Horror, then we moved on to anaylsing extracts of Frankenstein, and writing letters from the perspective of Victor. To engage the class, we made our paper look old, by ripping, crumbling up, and staining it with coffee.

In Math, we look at line graphs, especially those in the format of y = mx + c. Where students started making use of a table of values to draw the graphs. Then we looked at lines parallel to the axis and the x- and y-intercept. And finally, how to get the gradient of a graph both from the graph as well as from the equation.

For IMYC, learners have received final projects for Design, where they have to manufacture a clothing item or accessory to show an ideal they believe in. History learners are researching and producing a poster to show their results on a war fought over differences in beliefs other than the one we looked at in class. Geography learners are doing a project on population density and the factors influencing population density in different regions. In Science, learners used a ramp and photo gate timers to calculate three differently weighted trolleys’ average speed and acceleration.

Please note that all students have received their reports today and are bringing them back home with them this afternoon. Please take the opportunity to read through the report with your child and discuss what is being said with them. I also sent an email with a form attached that I would appreciate if you could complete indicating if and when you would like to meet with me to discuss your child’s report. Alternatively, you can use the link below to complete the form:

https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSexsOUNjY9W9K-I5uaBXLZr5RMtotUC6YCcXaDS5b1DnBNi8g/viewform?usp=sf_link

This week in Math, we completed our unit on percentages and started a new unit on functions and graphs. The students wrote functions from descriptions and used functions to complete tables that generate coordinates to plot straight-line graphs.

In English, this week, we started a new unit called ‘Monsters.’ We analysed extracts, wrote an account based on the modern myth of the Chupacabra and designed a leaflet. 

In History, we saw how the beliefs of Martin Luther changed the political landscape in Europe, especially due to King Henry VIII of England. We also looked at how people suffered for their beliefs during different times. For Science, we studied terminal velocity and the forces influencing when a falling object reaches terminal velocity. The students made parachutes to try and reach the lowest terminal velocity during a drop. In Geography, we studied China’s one-child policy and examined how it gained and suffered due to its belief in this system. The students also researched different strategies to control populations from different areas of the world. During Design, the students handed in their clothing designs that reflect a belief they feel strongly about. They also started making manufacturing manuals to illustrate different simple clothing item manufacturing methods and a way to decorate these items.

That is all for this week, I hope everyone has a relaxing weekend.

I would like to take this opportunity to thank the class for working hard and still doing great work while I was away on paternity leave for the birth of my baby daughter. This week was still full of learning and fun.

In Math, students worked with sequences and functions and looked at generating sequences, term-to-term rules, using the nth term and using functions.

In English, we continued our work based on Sherlock Holmes and The Red-Headed League. The students wrote a police report on the events so far, analysed tension and suspense, and wrote their own ending to the story.

In IMYC this term we will be starting a unit called: “Belief”, for more information on the different subjects covered and the content covered in every subject please refer to the curriculum overview on this page.

In History, students explored why the Catholic church had such great power during the middle ages and why people started to get disillusioned with them during this time.

In Science, we looked at different units of measuring speed and making use of the speed formula to calculate, speed, distance or time. We then practically designed and performed an experiment to measure the speed of different toy cars.

In Geography, students explored population pyramids and population growth, and how this can have a positive influence on a country, we also looked at the different factors that affect population growth in a certain community or country.

During Design, learners researched some designers from different industries and how they influenced their specific area due to their belief in a certain idea.

That is all for this week, I hope everyone will have an enjoyable Seollal long weekend and come back safely on Wednesday.

Some examples of student’s work:

As we end the penultimate week of term, some great learning and many exciting activities are still going on in class.

As we came to the end of our unit called ‘Heroes,’ in English, the students spent the week recording scenes from the script they created last week. They used green screens to edit different backgrounds and effects. They also wrote their end-of-unit test.

In Math, we looked at some uses of ratios and how to use them to solve ratio-related problems, we started by looking at simplifying ratios and then dividing amounts into given ratios.

In Science, we looked at the negative effects of cigarettes and excessive alcohol use on the body and what organs and systems are affected by these substances.

During the History, learners did more research into the different consequences of actions taken by the leaders of the settlers in Tasmania and how this affected the native inhabitants and whose responsibility the after-effects of these actions were.

For Geography, the learners looked at global information systems (GIS) to see how geographical data and information is represented on a global map. The learners then had the opportunity to investigate a specific region or climate issue using GIS technology.

In Health and Wellness, learners had to re-plan their dorm room but this time on a much stricter budget, identifying what is essential and what is luxury or nice to have items. They also looked at different ways to make things more affordable when shopping.

We are also looking forward to the winter show that is coming up next week, where many of our learners will be showcasing their performing talents.

That is all for this week, hope everyone has a relaxing weekend.

As the cold weather sets in we are reminded that we are coming to the end of another year, but that does not mean that the learners are not hard at work learning new things and improving on skills.

In Math, this week we continued our unit on 2D and 3D shapes and looked at different aspects to shapes in Math. The learners worked on calculating the area of compound shapes, working with scale and perspective views and congruent shapes.

In Englis, his week the students learnt about the conventions of the Superhero genre. After that, the students created their own superheroes; next, they learnt about scripts and wrote their own, which they will film.

In History, learners study a Historical source in the form of a pictorial proclamation and the subtle undertones in the meaning of the proclamation and how different groups would have reacted to the proclamation, the learners also made a timeline of the decisions Lt. Gov. Arthur made in Tasmania, and the effects these decisions had on the people of the region.

In Geography, gave feedback on their selected regions’ most pressing climate issues and solutions proposed for these issues, looking at the real-world obstacles to implementing these solutions. The learners were also given clues to solve the “Mystery of why Runa’s stall closed” and in so saw links between different actions across the world and how they could have an impact in different parts of the world.

In Science, the learners found out how nerve cells work making use of neurotransmitters and how different substances could affect the function of nerve cells, and the dangers it poses.

In Health and Wellness, students had to estimate the average cost of living for a college or university student at a place of higher learning of their choice. After they estimated the cost they had to research the actual cost of living and compare this to their estimations.

We also came to the end of our PE unit on gymnastics, and the students had the opportunity to perform their routines for the rest of the class.

That is all for this week, I hope everyone stays warm in the time ahead and will be coming to the Winter Show on the 14th of December to see our students showcase their talents.