15 March 2011
On Monday 28 February to Friday 4 March, Year 9 students attended a week long Curriculum Camp at Fahan’s Outdoor Education Centre at Kelvedon, near Swansea, designed to extend classroom learning and provide social benefits.
In the transitory year from Middle School to Senior School, Year 9 students at Fahan enjoy a dynamic and unique program designed to stimulate learning and peer bonding in a setting outside of the classroom.
The Curriculum Camp is part of that program, which is held annually and is designed to cover essential parts of the Year 9 course in an enjoyable and engaging way in an outdoor classroom environment.
Outdoor Education Coordinator, Gary Gooley, said that the while the weather was a bit wild during the camp, the girls remained positive and the experience was a worthwhile one for all of those involved.
“The Year 9 girls should be commended for how they went about their learning and made the most of the experience they had at Kelvedon,” Mr Gooley said.
“A lot of the girls reached out to peers who they might not ordinarily have much to do with and everyone supported each other in the difficult circumstances created by the weather.”
Students delved into Science, looking at rock platform ecosystems; Geography, examining the coastal landform; English, undertaking a creative writing assignment from an historical perspective; History, examining the history of the Kelvedon property and also the history of the town of Swansea; Art, producing art installations inspired by the coastal scenery and P.E. and Maths combined in an introduction to orienteering.
The camp, once again, proved to be a great success with the students who attended all enjoying the experience and learning a lot in the process.
One student commented that the camp was “a great way to get to know each other better and it was a lot of fun.”
Another student commented that they “LOVED the obstacle course. It was by far my favourite and I thought we should have done more of that. I also really loved art too.”
“I have been a Year 9 tutor and assisting with their learning experience for a few years now and I find that the program we offer at Fahan encourages the girls to work together as a group more cooperatively and it also has a positive effect on their learning,” Mr Gooley said.
“To be able to take the girls to a location outside of the classroom, where they can engage in all of the core curriculum subjects in a meaningful way, is a very positive thing for stimulating their interest in certain areas and demonstrating that learning can be fun and something that should not be limited to a classroom environment.”
The Outdoor Education Centre is based on the property of one of Fahan’s boarding families and over the years the basic camping facilities have been developed to include composting toilets, solar powered showers, running water, kitchen/cooking facilities and a covered deck all being added.
More upgrades to the facilities will be carried out this year.
In addition to the Term 1 Curriculum Camp, Fahan Year 9 girls also have the opportunity to take part in the World Challenge where students travel overseas to provide community aid in regions such as South-East Asia and South America. In Term 2 our Year 9 girls can also visit Fintona, Fahan’s sister school in Melbourne, for a cultural exchange program where they experience life in a big city with the chance to visit art galleries, restaurants and the theatre. While in Term 3, they can participate in the Year 9 Outdoor Education Camp, which also takes place at Kelvedon.
The exciting learning opportunities available at Fahan School in Year 9 help prepare girls for their Year 10 and TCE studies and foster a sense of belonging to a dynamic group.
To view more photos from the camp please visit the photo gallery by clicking here.
