Year 8 students went on camp to Gariwerd/the Grampians last week. They hiked, stayed in tents, and abseiled, supporting each other through the challenge of being out of their comfort zones. Please see Year 8 student Ohr Sar-Shalom's reflection below:

"I thoroughly enjoyed camp this year. We went up to the Grampians where we stopped in a nice, small town in the memorial gardens. This was the first and only stop of the journey in Beaufort and we could already see some signs that the Grampians were waiting for us. After a very long four hour bus drive, we settled down in the Tandara Lutheran Camp, located in Halls Gap. We also did our first walk to the actual campsite, which was about 3km which mentally prepared us for what was about to happen next. For the short walk, we got allocated groups which would be with us for all of the awesome activities we were about to endeavour on. While strolling around, we also spotted lots and lots of tall trees and native plants and fauna, which made for a beautiful walk.

My highlight of the camp was actually the hardest part of camp, as I was going into it with a ‘never give up’ attitude and I also wanted to give everything a go and try my best which paid off hugely. Me and my group walked 13km in around 6.5 hours. This was a very challenging walk and probably the toughest walk I have ever done in my life. The views from all the ‘nooks and crannies’ in the holes of the rocks were spectacular and we did plenty of stops and really appreciated how lucky we are to be able to see such gorgeous things to look at while we were enjoying our tasty wraps, sitting on these rocks on this huge mountain, the feeling was truly surreal. After this, we slept overnight in tents which was really fun but also quite hard, 

As part of their Sustainability: Tiptoe through our World unit of work, students engaged in the CSIRO STEM Professional in Schools Programs. On 10 September students met with Dr Megan Sebben, an expert on Earth and Environmental Sciences with a focus on water. Her passion for using science to tackle real-world challenges was clear throughout her interactions with the students.

Dr Sebben shared insights into different forms of water, the availability of water for human use, and guided students to recognise the importance of conserving this vital resource. Their curiosity and engagement were evident through the thoughtful questions they asked.

Some words of reflection by the students included:

Ari Shlezinger: I learnt about algae bloom and how scientists are trying to find a way to make it smaller.

Jacob Gafni: I liked learning about transpiration and learning that by tying a plastic bag with a little water to a tree, more water can be collected.

Romi Brukarz: Megan told us how to use water responsibly.

Scotty Cohen: It was good to find out about chemicals that we should not put down the sink to help protect our oceans.

What Am I?

I am like an alien. I was