Curriculum Offerings

Designed to stimulate and challenge inquiring young minds, BBC’s Junior School program caters for the unique learning styles of young boys, combining structured and play-based learning experiences. Traditional foundation skills such as literacy and numeracy are a given, with boys extended in these areas through activities such as internal and external competitions in debating, public speaking and mathematics.

BBC’s focus lies in the development of the whole boy and in preparing him for future learning and the changing world. Exposure to experiential learning builds and activates skills such as resilience, problem solving, independence, social aptitude and mindfulness.

The synergy that exists between childhood development and a boy’s ability to learn, absorb and apply knowledge is reflected in the school’s approach. Teachers’ understanding of key developmental milestones informs teaching strategies and the delivery of tailored learning experiences. Specialist lessons including Visual Art, Christian Education, Music, Technology and Physical Education are integrated into the core curriculum for Junior School students. In the Early Years, boys also take part in the Music Every Day program. Based on the world-renowned Kodaly philosophy, it aims to foster a lifelong love of music yet, most importantly, supports literacy and numeracy development through song, syllable work and musical stories. It also assists in building confidence, self-esteem and expression through creativity and performance.

Enriching activities, which include public speaking, chess, camps, musicals, expressive arts, choirs, orchestra, bands, excursions and mathematical, science and English competitions, are integrated into the core program.

Boys are also given the opportunity to extend their talents by participation in Enrichment Days, Mathematics Olympiads, da Vinci Decathalon, Future Problem Solving, extension mathematics groups, individual instrumental lessons and a full sporting program which allows them to achieve up to state representation level.

Middle Schooling at Brisbane Boys’ College has been developed to cater to the unique needs of Years 7 to 9 boys as they progress from Junior to Senior School learning environments. For most, this means moving away from their dependence largely on a single, classroom teacher to a more independent environment, characterised by a variety of teachers and classroom settings.

Our committed Middle School staff tailor their academic programs to engage and enthuse their students with a carefully crafted blend of rigour and fun. All of this occurs against the pastoral backdrop of a cohort-specific wellbeing program based on the science of Positive Psychology and directed towards helping boys understand how to apply their character strengths to work through setbacks and build resilience.

Exposure to specific study skills programs, service and leadership opportunities mean that Middle School boys make their transition to the Senior School well prepared for the challenges of their senior years.

To get them off to a running start, our Year 7 boys take part in a unique ‘Orient and Connect’ Retreat program in the first week of the academic year. Designed to help boys build resilience and alleviate any anxieties associated with the transition to high school, the retreat helps boys to foster a sense of place and belonging within a community of which they will forever be a part.

View our Middle School Curriculum Overview on our Website

Senior Schooling at BBC provides a setting for adolescent boys to develop into independent, resilient, problem solving young men and mentors for our younger learners. It builds on the Middle School journey through an increasingly individualised approach. Whether students plan to undertake tertiary studies or head directly into the workforce, our Senior School program allows each boy to work towards achieving his individual goals.

The senior years represent a time of transition and leadership as boys consider their future. We want our boys to have the confidence to change the world. During these final years of schooling boys develop flexibility of mind, strength of character and are equipped with the skills needed to navigate future challenges and learning beyond their formal years of schooling.

At Brisbane Boys’ College, we offer diverse and flexible career guidance and a support program to ensure each boy is able to pursue his pathway of choice. To assist with their professional development beyond the school gates, boys can also join the Brisbane Boys’ College Mentor program which links recent graduates with Old Collegians who wish to share their professional insights and provide ongoing assistance after school.

Our Senior School students develop from the knowledge that they will always strive towards personal excellence, be truthful to themselves and others, and have the humility and mindset when they need to improve, but also take the plaudits when deserved. They are also encouraged to have personal integrity that informs them through life, an internal and external courage, and an innate drive to serve others.

View our Senior School Curriculum Overview on our Website

At Brisbane Boys’ College we have renewed our focus on academics and innovation with a Prep to Year 12 perspective. This has resulted in some inspiring new programs being introduced to the College as well as a renewed focus on developing foundational literacies and maintaining standards of excellence. What has remained is our commitment to ensuring academic achievement and outstanding outcomes for our boys.

Significantly in Senior Schooling, 2019 saw the final year of Overall Positions (OPs) and The Queensland Core Skills (QCS) Test for Year 12s with the introduction of the Senior Assessment Tertiary Entrance (SATE) system, incorporating QCE and ATAR, for Year 11 students. Teachers have worked with new syllabus documents to develop engaging and aligned learning opportunities. This has required assessments to be endorsed by the QCAA to ensure that new syllabi have been rigorously followed. Syllabus expectations have risen across the State, however our boys have been well prepared to engage with the future of curriculum implementation.

Middle School curriculum initiatives included Year 7 ‘Shakes it Up’, where students worked for a week with Shake & Stir Theatre Company to learn and produce a dynamic performance of Shakespeare’s works. The Year 8 Legacy Projects engaged students in film making and augmented reality to honour Old Collegians who epitomise elements of our Positive Education character traits. Year 9 students ventured out into Brisbane for a week using public transport to answer academic challenges and engage in the Amazing Adventure. Year 10 undertook the newly developed ‘ASPIRE’ program which provided a week long immersion across a range of activities. The implementation of these programs has focused on alignment to Australian Curriculum and ensuring the opportunity to further develop human skills and competencies such as creativity, critical thought, communication and collaboration which prepare boys for their future.

Within the Junior School our results have gone from strength to strength with our Year 3 students benefiting from the foundational phonics-based literacy programs and evidence-based numeracy programs in place. Our Year 5 students recorded their highest ever success with NAPLAN, topping their performance in all areas from previous years. Engaging curriculum initiatives have been implemented, such as the introduction of a Year 6 Canberra trip to tie with Humanities as boys learn about Democracy. Curriculum innovations also include the introduction of the Eco-Marines program linking environmental studies in Year 4 with a new camp at Tangalooma to learn about Moreton Bay and the surrounding environment. These initiatives strengthen our commitment to ensuring learning is experiential and relevant to our boys’ lives.

Across Middle and Senior School we have also introduced Subject Application Ratings (SARs) which recognise the engagement and diligence of students in class. Since their inception at the beginning of 2019 the number of students who have achieved a perfect score of five across all subjects has seen a steady increase, as has the number of boys who have achieved and Overall Subject Application Rating of 4.5 or above.

The Outdoor Education Program at BBC engages our boys in a world of active outdoor learning experiences that inspire positive relationships integral to the wellbeing of self, community and our natural world.

Education is a continuous process which intertwines places and moments of special interest in our students’ lives. BBC’s Outdoor Education program is embedded in the curriculum and engages students from Year 4 to Year 10, as they venture outside the classroom and experience the outdoors.

2019 saw more than 980 students learning about themselves, others and the natural world through an Outdoor Education program which places emphasis on educational outcomes rather than a focus on recreation.

The BBC Outdoor Education program is based on six core values: self-discipline, leadership, integrity, resilience, positive relationships and community mindedness.

Gifted Education Program We understand that gifted students require different opportunities to ensure that their intellectual, social and emotional needs are being meet. Therefore, BBC staff have established an evidencebased model for the educational provision of our gifted students.

BBC’s Gifted Education Program responds to the diverse learning needs of our gifted students by implementing opportunities specifically designed to nurture their academic talents and further develop their skills through excursions, extension groups and participation in state and national competitions. This sits alongside the engagement and differentiation that our classroom teachers deliver on a daily basis. Some examples of out-of-class enrichment opportunities offered include Opti-minds, da Vinci Decathlon, Future Problem Solving Program, Maths Olympiads and ICAS Mathematics, English and Science competitions.

MAP Centre

Our MAP Centre is home to our specialist on-site Learning Support Team which provides expert and on-going support to boys with learning or behavioural difficulties and physical disabilities, along with their teachers and parents. The BBC Learning Support Program prides itself on highly qualified staff with extensive experience to help deliver these services. Working in collaboration with external professionals, including speech pathologists, educational psychologists and advisory visiting teachers, and drawing upon expert advice from current staff members, students are provided with strategies and resources to succeed in the classroom.

Support services are underpinned by the processes of identification, monitoring, programming, in-service and communication.

Arrowsmith Program BBC is one of only two schools in Queensland, and 90 organisations worldwide, to offer the Arrowsmith Program, helping students with unrealised potential a different pathway to try and overcome difficulties in academic learning such as spelling, reading, maths or executive functioning.

Since 2016, the implementation of the Program has seen eligible Brisbane Boys’ College students work closely with specialised teachers on targeted cognitive exercises to aid and strengthen the core skills that underpin their learning.

The program is run by dedicated staff, trained specifically in the areas of education and neuroplasticity. It is delivered in an environment conducive to supporting boys to develop the cognitive tools required to become effective, confident and selfdirected learners.

In 2019, BBC’s Arrowsmith Program benefited 12 incredibly committed young men, in Years 5 to 9. Each student diligently completed their individual cognitive exercises, which required high engagement and commitment to ‘perfect practice’.