Taleea determined to dance her way to the top

Year 12 student Taleea Long has long dreamt of one day becoming a back up dancer to global stars in the entertainment industry.

Early in Term Two, she moved a step closer to that dream when she was offered a position at Kelly Aykers Full Time Dance in Brunswick Melbourne, following a successful audition

Reflecting on her audition, Taleea told the Crier that she managed to create exactly the type of first impression she envisaged.

“They (Kelly Aykers) pretty much just told me I was in and that they were very impressed with what I did in terms of my skill level,” Taleea said

Wanting to ensure her audition was near faultless, Taleea diligently practised her routine by doing three run-throughs with her teacher She showcased snippets of different jazz and contemporary routines she had learned the previous year, recording them and submitting them for the audition.

You could say reaching this point of receiving a full time dance offer has been a long time in the making considering Taleea's dance journey began at the tender age of two when she started taking tiny tots classes

It hasn’t all been smooth sailing though, especially considering she decided to discontinue her training at the age of nine Her passion for dance was reignited when local studio League 23 opened its doors in 2019.

Now the world of dance is her oyster Taleea explained that she discovered Kelly Aykers Full Time Dance through a website called Dancetrain This site features information about full time dance schools across Australia

If she decides Kelly Aykers is the right place for her development, she will be committing to a rigorous training schedule, attending classes five days per week over a two year period

Not that it will particularly phase her considering her current training regime involves dancing three night per week, completing 11 classes in the process

Taleea says that having an intensive training program aligns perfectly with her love for dance, which she describes as an outlet for her boundless energy

“Because I have ADHD, dance is a way for me to let literally everything out On night’s when I don’t have dance, I can get pretty restless,” she said

Young Writer's Day flames Jett's creative passions

On 12 May, a group of students and myself attended the Young Writer’s Workshop Day

We went to Cathedral College in Wangaratta and had the amazing opportunity to hear and learn from some great authors and speakers on the day.

Firstly, we started with an introduction to the workshop and why we were having it. We learnt about Alex and how he was an intelligent young man and aspiring author.

Then the bubbly and bursting Gabriel Bergmoser, Australian author, comically initiated introductions and connected us as young writers from different schools, sharing his inspiring story of setbacks and accomplishments

We then separated into three groups and rotated between different workshops with each guest writer, learning about the fundamentals of writing: First was character

We learnt what makes a good character, how to make your audience love or hate your character and through these various writing functions, we began to develop our own characters

The second workshop focused on setting A gloomy ominous field, a bright warm forest, a lonely barren desert; all these different places that we can invent to build atmosphere and a feel for our stories

Lastly for my group was suspense How to build it, how to play with it and perhaps most importantly, how to keep your audience on the edge of their seats

Despite her recent success in securing a place at Kelly Aykers, Taleea has more auditions on the horizon She plans to audition for Jason Coleman's Ministry of Dance, Spectrum Dance and Transit Dance, which are all based in Melbourne

Taleea’s passion for dance now extends to the classroom and she is completing a Unit 3/4 in Dance through Virtual School Victoria (VSV) as part of her VCE She liaises with her dance teacher regularly and completes her coursework remotely.

Having discovered the dance program on the VSV list, Taleea seized the opportunity to pursue her passion after a less-thanenjoyable experience with online business studies the previous year.

She said marrying up the practical component of dance with the theory side has improved her overall performance “You better understand what you’re doing when actually dancing and you learn how to analyse prescribed dance routines, identify choreographic devices and movement categories,” she explained.

When asked about the most important skill in dance, Taleea emphasised the significance of mastering technique She highlights leaps and turns as particularly challenging as they require consistent refinement and practice

She added that while genres like jazz, contemporary, and lyrical demand technical proficiency, a genre like hip hop stands apart with its emphasis on creativity and expression, requiring a different approach and skill set.

We wish Taleea well with her remaining auditions and look forward to watching her dance career continue to prosper

We were then set with a task to make our prompt of “a little boy happily running through a sunny meadow” as tense as we possibly could.

At the conclusion of the workshops, we went outside enjoyed a barbecue lunch. It was a wonderful day and I learned so much about writing It really inspired me as a young writer and made me rediscover my love for writing

I’m really happy I experienced this day and had the opportunity to go to this event with Mr Willett and collaborate with other students who enjoy writing as much as I do

Jett Robbins, Year 11

Claudia North America bound for World Dairy Expo

Later this year, Claudia Ross (Year 12) and her family are jetting off to America to attend the World Dairy Expo, staged at the Alliant Energy Center in Madison, Wisconsin

The World Dairy Expo is a five-day event renowned worldwide for showcasing the best in dairy genetics, technology, and education, and brings together dairy enthusiasts, farmers, researchers, and industry professionals from around the globe

Claudia told the Crier that she was born into the dairy industry and has grown up around cows, with her family running a dairy farm in Katamatite.

Her family has a long-held affinity with the World Dairy Expo, with her father Adam attending the event regularly in his younger years Claudia last attended the Expo in 2017 and she told the Crier that a lot has changed for her personally since then

“When I was there in 2017, I led and showed a cow which was the biggest thing I’d ever done at that time. Since then I’ve definitely become more experienced doing it myself Last time all I did was lead the cows but now I pretty much just fit the cows and my sister leads them,” she said

Geoff Brown joins Teaching Fellowsh

We are thrilled to announce that Mr Geoff Brown, a passionate advocate for language education, has been chosen to participate in the prestigious Teaching Innovation Fellowship (TIF) program

Coordinated by the Victorian Academy of Teaching and Leadership, the TIF aims to recognise and empower outstanding educators who bring innovation to the classroom

Mr Brown's inclusion in the inaugural TIF intake is a testament to his dedication and expertise in teaching languages.

Among a pool of highly accomplished educators, he successfully navigated a rigorous, merit-based selection process

The TIF comprises 30 alumni from 26 diverse schools across Victoria from the Government, Catholic and Independent education systems

Claudia is excited about the prospect of getting back to competing in cattle shows on the global stage At this stage she is planning to show Jersey and Holstein cows at the Expo

For Claudia, the sheer size and scope of the Expo means it is not only a fantastic networking opportunity, but also broadens her knowledge of different cattle breeds and provides valuable perspective on how farming practices differ in America compared to Australia

“Each day the Expo features different cattle breeds and each day there will be a different farm tour or simulator that you can go to. It’s pretty cool because you also get to go on different farm tours and have a look at their facilities and the equipment they use," she said

"The farming over there is a lot different to back home Everything is under cover and in sheds and there is a lot less outside work.”

Away from school, Claudia does contracting for Flanagan Ag which sees her mainly driving tractors and doing seeding On the side, her passion lies in getting cows ready for shows and her endeavours in this area are beginning to bear fruit

Just recently she was invited to fit cows at the Sydney Royal Show and her work has been garnering interest from different corners of the industry

“I’ve been asked by a few well-known people in the dairy industry to clip their cows and things like that so I guess word just gets around I’ve also won a few competitions which helps get your name out there as well.”

Her excellence in showing cattle has even caught the eye abroad.

“SEMEX (a Canadian livestock genetics company) had heard about what I’ve done in Australia and asked me to come over and work for them in Toronto after the Expo which is going to be a great opportunity,” Claudia told the Crier

By providing funding grants, the TIF offers selected teacher fellows the opportunity to implement transformative innovation projects that enhance teacher practices and foster student learning in classrooms and schools throughout Victoria

"The project I'm looking at is building up online resources for Chinese Language teachers in rural and regional schools I'm starting off by doing a few basic lessons for Year 3/4 and then I'll keep on adding to it as I go. It will also give me the chance to create some good resources for our school. I'm looking at trying to create a few books which I can publish through a blurb publisher and that we can have in our Library," Mr Brown explained

As part of his professional development sessions in Melbourne, Mr Brown will receive assistance with skills relevant to his project, such as website design He said he was ultimately inspired to pursue his project based on his lived experiences and a gap he identified in the education system.

"From my experiences teaching in a lot of rural schools, often when you're the Languages teacher, you're the only person within miles who does what you do. My project is just about trying to get some resources up and running on a website so other Languages teachers can easily access them," he said

Celebrating our superheroes at annual Mother's Day Breakfast

Our annual Mother’s Day Breakfast was once again a magnificent gathering and celebration of the special women within our extended school community.

It was truly special to witness our school community coming together in such a meaningful way.

We would like to express our gratitude to the Year 11 and 12 students who volunteered their time and talents in the kitchen, cooking and serving delicious food and managing the distribution of raffle tickets.

Additionally, we extend our thanks to the staff members who went above and beyond by arriving before sunrise to ensure that the barbecue was ready to serve bacon and egg rolls to attendees

Furthermore, we would like to recognise the generous local businesses that supported our event by donating lucky door prizes. Noonans Showcase Jewellers, AMCAL Chemist, and Kerr Real Estate contributed wonderful prizes that added an extra layer of excitement to the breakfast.

A special mention must go to our talented Ukulele Club, who once again enchanted us with their melodic tunes The breakfast was a great platform for the group to perform several new songs they had been diligently learning and rehearsing

We are truly grateful to all the attendees who made the effort to come to the school earlier than usual to enjoy a scrumptious egg and bacon roll while celebrating Mother's Day with our wonderful community

Your presence and participation made this event all the more memorable