Semester 2 has been an exciting, yet extremely busy term for the Year 8 students. Our Year 8 Assemblies have been held every two weeks, with each Pastoral Group organising a chosen song, prayer and shout-outs, which recognise student achievements, participation in co-curricular and individual demonstrations of the OLMC school values.
Students have embraced the many opportunities this term and have participated in the Athletics Carnival, Netball, the Footy Day, Aerobics, Bread Run, Choir and STEAM, to name just a few.
Year 8 students have been working hard over the last three weeks with assessments and it has been pleasing to see the students working on their organisational skills and setting goals to improve their grades. Teachers have been encouraging students to reflect on their grades for assessments, analysing the rubric and teacher comments, and students have been focusing on student reflection as a way to further improve their academic goals.
This week each Pastoral Group has participated in a class Mass with a guest priest, which has been a lovely way to finish the term.
Year 8 Dance have also participated in a dance incursion, where the guest teacher taught the dancers dynamic movement from different cultures, especially Bollywood and African dance. The students were very enthusiastic and really enjoyed the experience.
A highlight of the term was the Year 8 Reflection Day. It was so wonderful to see the year level embrace the day and participate in the many activities and spiritual moments with energy, a positive spirit and also recognising the importance of inclusion and acceptance of others. The Year 8 Religious Education teachers were really proud of the way the students conducted themselves on the day and made the most of the opportunities provided.
Over the past couple of weeks, the Year 8 Camp has been the topic of discussion, with the students organising cabin groups, gaining an understanding of the many wonderful activities on offer and also preparing for the highly anticipated Year 8 Pastoral dance competition. The students have all worked very hard with choreographing brilliant dances and it has been wonderful seeing every student involved in the creation of the dance routines.
We wish all of the Year 8 students a memorable, positive and rewarding camp experience in the first week of Term 3 and we hope they all have an amazing time with their peers and teachers.