NEWS FROM PDHPE
YEAR 9 PDHPE
Year 9 students have recently completed their Mental Health Project Based Learning unit, where students explored the driving question: “How can I keep my mental health at its best and support the mental health of others?”. Over the term, students worked collaboratively to design creative and thoughtful products aimed at supporting the mental health of a chosen target age group. We encourage you to ask your child about their project and what they have taken away from this experience. It has been fantastic to see the level of creativity, teamwork and empathy demonstrated throughout the unit.
Here are some examples of the projects created:
Year 10 PDHPE students completed their practical Movement Appraisal unit this week. Over the first six weeks of term, students have been actively engaged in a range of invasion games, with a strong focus on developing their attacking, defensive and teamwork skills. Throughout the unit, teachers have worked closely with students to strengthen their ability to justify their observations and decisions, a key skill in both sport and learning.
The unit culminated in a written peer appraisal, where students applied their practical experiences to analyse and justify the performance of a classmate. This task not only encouraged critical thinking, but also gave students valuable insight into the importance of feedback, reflection and communication in improving performance.
YEAR 10 PROJECT BASED LEARNING - ADVOCATES FOR THE FUTURE
Year 10 are beginning a Project Based Learning unit designed to help them, and others, respond positively to the challenges that young people may face in the future. Guided by the driving question; “What initiatives could help assist young people in overcoming future life challenges?” - students will work collaboratively to design a product, service, or initiative that supports adolescent wellbeing.
This project is an opportunity for students to be creative, empathetic, and solution-focused, while building the skills to navigate challenges they are likely to encounter themselves. It also empowers them to see their potential as positive change-makers within their community.
We encourage you to check in with your child over the coming weeks and ask about their project and what they are learning from the experience.
YEAR 9 CHILD STUDIES
Our Year 9 Child Studies students are experiencing the realities of caring for a newborn through the RealCare Baby simulation task. This hands-on learning activity helps them understand the responsibilities, challenges and rewards of caring for an infant for 24 hours. There may be a few tired looking students around over the next few weeks.
Indie “Looking after the baby was definitely a challenge, I got 2 hours of sleep max, and got over it crying VERY quickly. I thought it would be fun and wouldn't be as hard as it quickly turned out to be”
Leila “Having to look after koa was definitely fun but a real challenge at times (e.g. When the baby would wake up in the middle of the night when I was least expecting it)”
Imogen “It was fun when the baby wasn't crying and you could actually treat it like a real baby and dress it up. It was also fun watching how my dogs reacted to the crying baby”
After four days of consistent rain last week the Year 9 Bushcraft students were issued the challenge of fire lighting, in preparation for their upcoming hike. After nearly an hour of resetting and restarting the majority of the class achieved success, maintaining a fire good enough to toast a marshmallow. The driving force behind Outdoor Education programs is developing student's resilience and perseverance through setting a goal and persisting until they achieve it. Skills which will be invaluable when they are faced with future challenges.
As part of the Exploring Early Childhood course, students recently completed two days of work experience in local early childhood education centres. The aim was to deepen their understanding of course content and apply their theoretical knowledge in a real-world setting. The experience proved to be invaluable, giving students the chance to build confidence, develop practical skills and gain genuine insight into working with young children.
In the words of our students:
I was hoping to gain a better understanding of what this career is like in a real workplace and see what the day to day responsibilities involve. I also wanted to explore whether its something I would enjoy in the future and see if it sparks other potential career interests.
What I was hoping to gain from this experience more skill development, experience, problem-solving, and more knowledge as I was able to observe the more experienced educators, learning from them with their techniques, strategies, and approaches to childcare.
I learnt how important it is to be patient, approachable, and understanding when working with children. I also observed how staff members manage routines and create a positive environment, which gave me a better idea of the skills needed in this career.
What I was most excited about spending time with the kids especially when being with the different age groups, gaining more knowledge, and developing essential skills in childcare.
In the rooms they all had puzzles and matching games, storytelling and reading, counting and sorting games, and building blocks. These activities all supported skills such as attention, problem-solving, language, and memory. Each activity helping them learn and make sense of the world around them.
Strategies to interact positively with young children were bending down to their level when speaking to them so that they didn’t feel overpowered or scared, speaking at their level of knowledge and vocabulary (differed depending on age group, eg. older children are more advanced), understanding the opinions and differences in all children and accommodating the attitude you approach them with to best suit them
YEAR 11 SPORT, LIFESTYLE & RECREATIONYear 11 SLR classes have been visiting Pumpin Iron in South Nowra to put into practice the theory behind resistance training and how it can be used to enhance sports performance and prevent injury. This activity is directly related to their assessment task, which is the final component of their yearly program. After conducting research, students initially designed four 60-minute resistance training sessions tailored to help them achieve their identified fitness goals. These sessions are then performed in the gym, using resistance machines, free weights, and cardio equipment.
Mr Matthew Carraro
PDHPE Leader of Learning