Year 7
Week 10 – Hopping into a Happy Easter!
It has been a fast, busy and energetic first term in the Secondary School for our Yr 7 cohort and, with Easter just around the corner, everyone is excited for a well-earned holiday break!
We have learned a lot about how to operate in the Secondary School this term, and the upcoming holidays will provide a great opportunity for students to recharge and to reflect on their successes and shortfalls this term, ready to come back and ‘let their light shine’ in Term 2!
Last week, in our Year assembly and in our Peer Support session, we began this process of reflecting on what we have done this term to establish good habits and routines, and how we might harness this and maintain our success into Term 2 and across the year ahead.
Our Peer Support session last Friday saw our wonderful Year 11 leaders engaging Year 7 in thoughtful consideration of how they might best use their holiday time to gain important rest and also space to enjoy time with friends and family. While a top response amongst students for what that they were most looking forward to was ‘sleep’ during the holidays (welcome to the busy world of Redlands!), many also identified ‘hanging out with mates’, ‘going shopping’, ‘TV’ and simply ‘chilling’ as important plans for their upcoming break. I’m sure whatever they do, we will see Year 7 energised and ready to tackle Term 2 when they return!
Last week, I asked for students to volunteer to write reflections on their first term at Redlands, and quite a number took me up on the challenge of submitting a brief reflection. It was wonderful to read their perspectives on the great moments they have shared. I have copied a few choice extracts below, and you can read all of their individual reflections on Redlands Pulse via the link below the Reflections.
Extracts from Year 7 Term 1 Reflections
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I really enjoyed being part of the School Musical, The Addams Family; I made so many friends when I was doing the show. The show was crazy and fun at the same time. Gomez’s line resonated with me when we were doing the show: “It’s family first and family last.” The Addams Family cast has been my family away from my actual family. –Leo Campbell |
The sun appeared and the thin air brushed my face. I sat above grass beds, home to wilderness. Rocks caped in moss, reflections beamed off lakes and mountains towered over us. My steps added to the echoes, as triumphantly ventured our way to the top. There it was. Mountains and mountains, pinching myself in the moment. –Seren Guha |
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Looking back on the first day of school I can’t believe how far we have come. Ten whole weeks have passed so quickly. With the raging waves of Term 1 behind us, the rest of the year looks like smooth sailing. –Lachlan Carter |
My favourite memory was when we were at camp. It was late at night, and I was looking up into the stars when a shooting star went past. It was cold and it was completely quiet. It reminded me how lucky I was to be able to do that, something you wouldn’t be able to do back in Sydney. -Lily Musgrave-Kresa |
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My favourite part of this term must be Camp. It has given me a chance to get to know friends that I am certain will be my friends for a lifetime. –Clem Leroux |
Two months and seven days later and the anxiety and nervous feelings have all disappeared. So many new connections and memories have been formed. –Ruby Entwistle |
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At the Swimming Carnival, it was Issy and Laura who encouraged me to participate in events. I wasn’t confident in swimming, but here I am, trying things I would never dare to do before. At the Swimming Carnival, I also met Laura’s friend Clemy. Now I’m also friends with her. Making friends wasn’t as hard as I thought it would be. -Charlie Lee |
When I walked into PDHPE on Friday, there was only one seat left and it was next to a tall girl with black hair. Little did I know she was going to be one of my best friends for the rest of the term. Once I met her, I met her other friends Issy and Charlie at the Swimming Carnival, and now I hang out with them every single lunch time. –Clem Roumanoff |
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I was looking around to see who looked like a good friend, then I saw a short, black-haired girl sitting in the table across from me, and I remembered that I talked to her once on Orientation Day. Suddenly I was eager to make friends with her. When it ended, I went up to her and said hello. The best decision of my life. After that the rest of the day was amazing. –Isabelle Mansfield |
I feel like the two biggest essentials are friends and focus to help you through Year 7. Friends because they, as well as teachers, are your biggest supporters. All my friends have supported me and helped me grow a lot. The teachers have also helped me a lot this term, with questions, queries and managing emotions. –Alexis Castan |
Find more student reflection in Pulse.
This week, we spent time in Tutor discussing locker storage spaces with students how they should be packing their lockers. Many have found it challenging to organise these spaces appropriately – some becoming quite a mess! – so we talked through ways they might create a better space here, and one which fits their school resources AND their school bag. Thank you to those students who let me take photos of their lockers to offer as examples!! Let’s make sure we are keeping our spaces clean, neat and organised for Term 2.
On Wednesday, we also faced the dreaded spectre of needles and vaccinations – and it was a great success! The School, combined with NSW Health, provides an excellent opportunity for students to be vaccinated at school, so they can be protected from various health conditions. Yesterday, students were vaccinated against HPV, protecting them from nine types of cancer that can occur as they mature. Students were extremely well-behaved and respectful as they moved through the vaccination process.
Yes, there were some tears and moments of panic and stress, but it was wonderful seeing friends helping to calm down their mates and guide them past their fears of needles. And at the end, everyone was pleased to have made it through and received their vaccination.
Thank you to all the immunisation nurses who attended to make this happen, and Mrs Kells who organised all the schedules.
For those who were unable to be vaccinated on the day, there will be an opportunity for make-up vaccinations in Term 2 on Thursday, 25 May.
Meanwhile, around the school we have continued to have many things happening in the cocurricular space. A HUGE congratulations goes out to Phoebe Sun who last week was awarded the Redlands Ballet and Dance Academy ‘Student of the Month’ award for April in the Year 7-8 category. Recently, Phoebe made her Redlands performance debut in The Addams Family Musical. Phoebe attended every rehearsal with a smile on her face, and remembered all her choreography. She was definitely an important member of the Dance ensemble, which is impressive considering she was the only Year 7 student selected for this group. Well done, and we can’t wait to see what Phoebe does in her future with Redlands!
Some of our Year 7s have recently got really involved in the school newspaper club, The Irregular. As with all co-curricular clubs, The Irregular provides students with an opportunity to engage in something they are passionate about, in this case, writing! In this club, students can write about school issues, review school productions, or even compose puzzles and buzzfeed-esque quizzes. These then get published through The Irregular’s page on Pulse. It is a great place for students to be creative and critical, and a nice place to meet like-minded peers who share the same interests.
And now let’s jump back in time! In Week 8, students were engaged in Science Explorations, learning about the lab and how to use key Science equipment appropriately. This term has been a great introduction to students for understanding appropriate lab processes and procedures, and they are all looking far more confident in the lab (and very professional in their lab aprons!). 7P got right into this in Week 8, building their skills and confidence in the Science lab space.
Finally, after a fun and exciting (and busy!) term, Mrs Adams and I want to wish everyone a restful and enjoyable break. We hope you find time to connect with friends and family, have some fun (responsibly!), and are recharged and ready to start it all over again in Term 2.
We wish you a restful, relaxing and happy Easter!!
Key Dates and Upcoming Events:
- Term 2 Commences: Wednesday 26 April
Mr Jimmy Tod-Hill
Year 7 Advisor
jtodhill@redlands.nsw.edu.au
9908 6462