Mulgrave Country Club – John Millegde Scholarship Program I had the privilege of attending the Mulgrave Country Club last week to attend the presentation of the John Millegde Scholarship. This significant scholarship is awarded to a Year 11 student, entering Year 12. It was great to attend this event in person, after two years of COVID-19 disruption. The Premier and local member, The Hon. Dan Andrews, was an apology – however, he was represented by Dr Tien Kieu, Labor member of the Victorian Legislative Council representing South Eastern Metropolitan Region. The scholarship is open to all schools, government and private who reside within the jurisdiction of the Mulgrave Country Club. Our nomination was Cayenne Boon of Year 11. It was fantastic to see her receive her award from Dr Tien, in the presence of her father and three siblings. Congratulations Cayenne, you are a worthy winner and sincere thanks to the Mulgrave Country Club for their support. Cayenne is looking to a career in nursing once she has finished her secondary schooling in 2023.
Year 12 Exams Our Year 12s (and some Year 11s) began their onsite written exams on Wednesday of last week, with English and EAL getting the ball rolling. The exams appear to have been well-received by students and staff alike and I wish all our Senior students all the best over the next few weeks – we are very proud about how you have approached the challenges of study throughout the COVID-19 era. I thank all teachers and tutors for their support of our students, especially from the busy SWOTVAC into the exam period as well.
50 Year Celebrations The dinner for former students and staff on Friday December 2 is booking fast. If you are a former student or know of one, please pass this message on. If you are interested in attending, contact the College to find out how to purchase tickets ($90 per head for a three-course meal at Merrimu Receptions). Closer to home, we have been trawling the nooks and crannies around the school to gather significant (and sometimes amusing) artifacts from our 50-Year history. These will be on display at the 50 Year Family Day on Sunday December 4. The photos below will hopefully whet your appetite. All past and present members of the Wellington community are welcome to this event.
EAL students demonstrate their excellent English language skills
The EAL Curriculum Learning Area was very proud to have four of our EAL students participate in the filming of short videos last Friday for the Department of Education. The students were Patrick Nuanchavee (Year 10), Stylianos Tsokas (Year 10), Jessica Nguyen (Year 8, international student) and Ma Bee Swa Tmin (Year 8). The four students demonstrated their high level English language skills in speaking and reading with Ms Turewicz as their teacher. The videos will be made available for teachers across Victoria to improve their teaching and to understand the learning of students who speak English as an additional language. Patrick, Stylianos, Jessica, and Ma Bee should be congratulated on their excellent work and their thorough preparation.
The Instrumental Music program recently held its annual Gala Nights. There were four nights in total (Percussion, Strings, Brass & Woodwind, Guitar & Vocal). These Gala concerts are shorter and more intimate than the Winter and Spring concerts. They allow for all the students who are learning their instrument to perform solo or small group pieces that they have been working on over the year.
We saw some amazing performances from some of our more experienced students, as well as some impressive and courageous performances from our more junior students.
These nights provide a great opportunity for us in the Instrumental Music program to meet with the community and have a conversation over a cup of tea. It was incredible to join with the parents and watch the lovely performances. Well done to all those who performed over the various nights!
Tray Driscoll-Plavins Director of Arts and Instrumental Music
Monash Tech School (MTS), in conjunction with Holmesglen Institute, offered us the opportunity to take a group of students on a Health Industry Immersion Day excursion.
Students in Year 9-11 were able to sign up for the event and we had a group of 33 attend. During the day, students participated in the following sessions:
Careers and pathways in Health
Nursing
Laboratory Skills
CPR & Simulation Ward
The activities were varied and interesting, ranging from bandaging, checking blood pressure, practising CPR and taking cheek cell swabs and viewing them under a microscope, to learning what happens to blood tests in the laboratory and more.
Students earned a digital badge that verifies participation in a learning experience that they can add to their resume, to social media pages and to professional networking sites, such as LinkedIn.
Thanks to Ms Gosbell for attending the excursion with us.
On Monday October 24, the College held a Finger Polishing event to raise funds for the Polished Man campaign.
Did you know, last year, one in two children experienced violence in Australia?
The Polished Man campaign encourages people of any gender to actively take a stand, paint one nail blue to spark up important and powerful conversations, and raise awareness and funds to end domestic violence. Each year the campaign raises funds to support trauma prevention and recovery programs in Australia and around the world. For more information, please visit the Polished Man website: www.polishedman.com
Thank you to all the students and staff who got involved and made a gold coin donation to this important cause. The College raised $77.25. These donations will be sent directly to the Polished Man campaign.
Diwali
Diwali, also known as ‘The festival of lights’, is a major Hindu festival celebrated by many across the world with feasts, gifts, music and dance. The festival symbolises peace, harmony and hope.
This year, Diwali was officially celebrated on Monday October 24, but it changes every year.
Diwali represents the victory of light over darkness, good over evil and knowledge over ignorance.
Shubh Diwali! (‘Happy Diwali!’)
Social and Emotional Learning
We would like your family to engage in the next Respectful Relationships* topic, as outlined below. This could happen in the car on the way to school, on the weekend, at the dinner table or on the couch – wherever the family unit is in the one place.
TOPIC 5: STRESS MANAGEMENT – is about positive calming strategies to deal with stress, which helps students to cope with future challenges.
Goal:Recognise how stress can feel in the body Activity: With a family member, tell each other about a situation when you felt stressed. How was this stress felt in the body (e.g. sweaty palms; butterflies in your tummy)?
*Respectful Relationships – is a teaching and learning program integrated into the curriculum within all government schools, including Wellington Secondary College. It isdesigned to help students learn and practice social skills and apply them in positive ways to learning, life and relationships, such as, treating others as equals and with respect. Respectful Relationships is broken up into eight topics of social and emotional learning.
David Hose Director of Student Services – Inclusion
