Outdoor Education

2022 has been another busy year of Outdoor Education activities for Year 7 to 10 students. The activities provided new and challenging experiences which catered for all ages and levels of experience.

In Term 1, Year 8 students were taken on a snorkelling adventure to Port Phillip Bay where they observed the vast marine life around Pope’s Eye, which lies between Portsea and Queenscliff. They were also able to interact with the playful seals that have taken up residence at Chinaman’s Hat. In Term 4, these same students went to ‘The Ranch’ in Cape Schanck where they tried horse riding and mountain boarding. They even got to test their nerve with the ‘Leap of Faith’. For the Year 9 cohort, an overnight surf camp was held at the start of the year. Students were taught open water safety and basic surfing skills from qualified instructors. They then enjoyed some time putting these skills into practice with two surf sessions. City Days followed for these students in Term 3, allowing them the opportunity to navigate Melbourne’s CBD, thus fostering their independence. The final Outdoor Education experience for Year 9 was a two-day activity program. Students could choose from rafting, mountain bike riding, abseiling, rock-climbing or river sledding.

Year 10 students completed a 4-day program in Term 1. This consisted of a two-day adventure camp, offsite driver education training, and a personal development day within the College. The adventure activities gave some students a chance to perfect skills learnt from previous camps and others an opportunity to try their hand at new skills. Students could choose from surfing and stand-up paddle boarding in Inverloch, surfing and mountain bike riding at Phillip Island or caving and river sledding in Warburton.

These activities cannot run without the generosity of so many staff members who give up time from home to supervise students. For that, we are very thankful. Dee McDonald and Michael Pearson