Curriculum

Students begin to develop the skills and knowledge required for successful learning throughout their Middle School years, and they have the opportunity to experience many of the subjects available in Years 8 to 10.

Students will take courses in all the eight learning areas upon which the curriculum throughout the School is based: The Arts, English, Health, Humanities, Languages, Mathematics, Science and Technology. Learning Support may also form part of a student’s learning program. A decision to replace a subject with Learning Support is made in consultation with the student, parents and Learning Support staff. In most cases, Learning Support will replace a language, but this will be determined on a case-by-case basis.

Connections

One full day each week is set aside for Year 7 students to participate in a program which aims to foster explicit connections between the learning areas and to develop the understandings outlined in our Curriculum Statement. The emphasis is on teaching and learning approaches that promote knowledge acquisition, skill development and deep understanding that emerge from a transdisciplinary curriculum. Extended tasks are seen as an ideal vehicle for allowing students to develop independent work habits, self-reliance and their ability to persevere. Students are encouraged through inquiry, reflection and self-assessment to reach a clear understanding of how they learn best as individuals and in partnership with others. Technology is used extensively within Connections, with particular attention to information literacy and the consolidation of a repertoire of research and multimedia skills. Approximately every three weeks, each teaching group will be engaged in whole day activities outside school, including Outdoor Education.

Year 8 builds on the foundation course completed in Year 7 and leads into the learning programs offered in Years 9 and 10, where there is a considerable range of subject choices. In Year 8, students take a combination of compulsory and elective subjects. English, Mathematics, Science, Health and Physical Education are compulsory and must be taken throughout Years 8 to 10. Humanities is compulsory in Years 7-9, with one semester of History studied in Year 10.

In addition to the compulsory subjects, students in Year 8 choose elective subjects in The Arts, Languages and Technology. Students also have extended time set aside to participate in a Connections program which links themes in individual subjects in a transdisciplinary way.