4 minute read
Resilience through programs
Pictured above: Year 6 students (L-R) Emilie, Annabel, Izzy and Avni.
YEAR 6
The Year 6 Reading Program covers a variety of components. Whole class teaching, small group activities and individual reading. Our sessions begin with a focus on a specific aspect of reading, such as identifying the main idea, summarising, drawing conclusions and making inferences.
YEAR 6 READING REFLECTIONS:
“Reading Smile by Raina Telgemeier I learnt that sometimes bad things can happen that result in something better.” Annabel, Year 6 student
“Sticky Beak by Morris Gleitzman taught me to be grateful for all the things I have, in a funny and humorous way that made me laugh and learn at the same time.” Avni, Year 6 student
“In The Music of Dolphins by Karen Hessehat, Mila was so resilient to keep trying to speak English when she couldn’t express herself in a way that others could understand. Her resilience astounded me.” Emilie, Year 6 student
“I read Out of My Mind by Sharon M Draper. Resilience is finding a path through your challenges, growth through hardship and standing up for yourself – the ability not to bounce back but to bounce higher. I loved the reading program this year. Because of COVID-19, we had to be resilient.” Izzy, Year 6 student When teaching these skills, we identify the learning outcomes and present differentiated activities for the students to work through with non-fiction and fiction texts, linked to our termly units of work.
During Term 1 our class novel is selected based on the theme of ‘resilience’.
The students are supported and guided to individually select a book from the Year 6 Resilience Reading List which includes more than 200 books.
These titles are levelled and allow students to be supported and extended with their reading. The theme enables students to further develop their understanding of resilience and to discover how they can learn from others to strengthen their own resilience. Students complete a book review analysing resilience examples from their selected book. This is shared during our Book Club session with animated discussion and excitement!
Evelyn Nguyen, Rosie Campbell, Charlotte Monaghan and Prue Short, Year 6 Co-ordinators
Pictured above: The MLC Exchange editorial committee.
THE EXCHANGE BRINGS STUDENT
Year 12 students Amy Xiao and Ingrid Winata explain how a team of International Baccalaureate (IB) students started MLC’s very own online newspaper.
It was June 2020. After failing to become published authors and professional Minecraft streamers, we began a message chain concerning our ever-impending IB CAS project.
The subject: did we, by any chance, want to start a student-run school newspaper? We briefly ruminated on the thought, considered the global state of affairs, and then enthusiastically said, “Yes! Most definitely.”
CAS stands for Creativity, Activity and Service, and we believed we could provide a relevant service. Thus, The Exchange was born, deriving its name from our intention to provide a broad platform for the exchange of knowledge and insight across our College community. We canvassed our proposal to a group of IB students who could each bring their own strengths to the project: Katrine Shi, Annabel Sutherland, Isabella Zheng, Lavinia Barker, Shivy Sivarajah, Elan Zhuo and Esta Chen. As fresh-faced beginners unversed in the world of journalism, we quickly realised that running a newspaper involved much more than simply putting pen to paper, or even disseminating that paper into the world. Although everyone was eager to begin writing, we had to contend with questions such as formatting, marketing, and ensuring our website did not crash periodically. However, once we gained momentum, the articles started coming through.
We discovered that it was immensely gratifying to have an opportunity to engage with matters of social significance – such as Indigenous rights, global politics and environmental conservation – while also being able to imbue our publication with an idiosyncratic MLC flair through exposés on science fiction and interviews with MLC legends. It is our hope that, as a student publication, The Exchange can become a lively hub of shared voices from students, teachers and members of our diverse community alike.
STUDENTS JOIN THE CLUB AT NEW CARNIVAL
MLC’s clubs and committees allow students to pursue their interests and get to know their peers from Years 7 to 12. To showcase the opportunities on offer, Year 12 student Chloe Taylor co-ordinated a lunchtime Club Carnival. One of two Deputy Senior Prefects this year, Chloe explains the vision for this new College event:
“My involvement in clubs throughout my time at MLC has provided me with opportunities to connect with students from other year levels, learn from likeminded people and turn my passions into action. I wanted to make it easier for students to learn about and join clubs that they are interested in. I was inspired by events that universities hold during orientation and open days, and set out to recreate the lively atmosphere of those events.
The carnival was held on the Principal’s Terrace during lunchtime on 23 February, with live performances organised by Music Prefect Harriet Waymark, a Crepes for Change van and fun carnival activities. Students from the Junior Secondary, Middle and Senior Schools all gathered to see what clubs are on offer at MLC. The creativity from the clubs in attracting new members was impressive. There was a chocolate bar coin toss, a lolly jar guessing game, Connecting to Country bracelets for sale, and a Global Committee Skittlechopstick challenge. It was extremely rewarding to see everyone enjoying themselves, and to see the new Year 7s engage so intently at the club stalls. As President of PRISM, MLC’s Science Club, I have loved seeing the eager new faces at meetings.”
Pictured above: Students enjoy the Club Carnival.
