Year 10 Drama students worked collaboratively, casting, rehearsing, and designing their final assessment, a piece which was presented to an audience of family and College staff.
The group performed on the evening of Thursday 27 October in the Suzanne Roberts Centre for Performing Arts.
A focus of the group's work was the gothic convention of the past tormenting the present, the students put their skills of acting, knowledge of elements of drama and production into practice. The result was the successful creation of a foreboding atmosphere, working to educate the audience on the ‘lost’ children that have existed throughout the course of Australian history.
Thank you to Mr Sam Cash, for collaborating with the Year 10s to bring the technical vision of the work to fruition. Drama offers students the opportunity to walk in the shoes of others, to learn through the embodiment of perspectives, opinions, and feelings, often far removed from their own. It encourages students to build a sense of empathy as they explore what it means to be human.
Congratulations Year 10’s on an impressive conclusion to your MYP Drama journey.
This time of year is incredibly busy for most schools and it can certainly be said for Somerset College. Final examinations, preparations for end of year celebrations, planning for the 2023 timetable, report writing, students completing major projects and assignments, sporting seasons winding down... Whew!
Carl Honore’s text, In Praise of Slowness, offers an enlightening alternative that we could all reflect on. Not only can this reflection be undertaken when considering school life, but rather life in general.
Honore suggests that we are all inhabitants in a world which is increasingly “…obsessed with speed, with doing everything faster, with cramming more and more into less and less time”. Evidence can be found all around us: Power naps, speed reading, speed dial, speed dating. As you can see, even our language and slang persuade us to live and work faster or else we are, at best, ‘wasting our time’ or, at worst, ‘wasting away’. Phrases such as ‘You either use it, or lose it’, ‘Time is money’ or ‘Time waits for no man’ create a culture that encourages haste. Consequently, we all (including students) try to fit more and more in and this then feels like there is less and less time to do so.
Honore states that “Right across the world, people are doing the unthinkable: they're slowing down, and finding that, although conventional wisdom tells you that if you slow down, you're road-kill, the opposite turns out to be true: that by slowing down at the right moments, people find that they do everything better”.
When peering at this notion through the prism of education, it is important to understand that I am not advocating for inaction. Rather, it is important to recognise how the action itself is taking place. The key, as Honore mentioned is to know when to slow down “…at the right moments…”.
Looking beyond the immediate circumstances experienced by our senior students with their examinations taking place, it is also important to reflect on the experience our junior students are undertaking and what they are being prepared for in their future.
Ivy League Schools (such as Oxford and Cambridge) receive thousands of applications regularly from keen, eager and obviously dedicated students whose resumes are “…jammed with extracurriculars, to the point that would make your eyes water. But they lack spark; they lack the ability to think creatively and think outside…”. To combat this, these schools are starting to send a message to parents and students that they need to begin to consider this pace revolution. Harvard, for instance, send out a letter to undergraduates telling them that “…they'll get more out of life, and more out of Harvard, if they put on the brakes, if they do less, but give time to things, the time that things need…”.
So how can a student take the time to slow down? Some may need to learn how to schedule this time. Others could be encouraged to exercise (either alone or with others). Reading for pleasure outside of learning? Experimenting for process and discovery rather than outcome? A family walk without purpose of the destination?
At this busy time of year, when we all feel the obligation to be faster and fit more in, we should be encouraged to all take a deep breath and clearly focus on what needs to be achieved and how we may be able to do that. This does not mean we neglect responsibility nor turn away from opportunity.
But… one cannot help but consider Aesop’s memorable fable of the speedy, impetuous hare versus the calculated, considered tortoise.
With so much to do, it is important to be sure to take the time to get in touch with our inner tortoise.
We are off! House Plays Festival 2023 will launch in Week 7, with 10 creative visionaries inviting ALL students from Years 7 to 12 in 2023 to audition.
Directors will walk through Pastoral Care groups throughout Week 6, introducing themselves to students and assisting in the online audition sign-up process. Audition details will also be posted on the Performing Arts Schoolbox page at the beginning of Week 6.
It is with great pleasure that we introduce the House Plays Festival Directors for 2023.
Did you know… Every person who auditions for the festival receives a House Spirit point towards the Arnison Cup? If you have ever considered giving House Plays Festival a go, make 2023 your year!
The University of Queensland (UQ) recently held an awards evening to celebrate the continued commitment of various schools in South-East Queensland to the UQ Science Ambassador programme, which has been running for the past 22 years.
The night was one of inspiration, filled with the enthusiasm of many like-minded students, teachers, and experts in areas of science. Somerset was proud to be presented with an award for 17 years of commitment – a recognition of the time and effort put into fortnightly meetings, annual science weeks, multiple science shows, and various competitions.
In 2022 alone, the Science Committee has held fortnightly meeting in which students from every grade of the Senior School has had the chance to bond over our love for Science, and our 2022 Seniors have had the opportunity to mentor younger scientists. In addition, we have continued our Young Scientists programme for the Pre-Preps and held several science shows for the Junior School, which have included a range of Biology, Chemistry and Physics experiments. Not to mention the introduction of fortnightly Junior Science Club meetings for Year 3 to 6 students.
All of these initiatives have been implemented to expose young students to the wonders of Science, hoping to spark interest from a young age and permeate our strong STEM programme in the Junior School.
We would like to thank Mrs Amores and Ms Hyman, as well as the lab staff Miss Pinnell and Ms Malone for all their hard work and dedication in facilitating the growth of Science Committee.
Everybody was Kung Fu fighting their way through Mandarin this week.
Our Year 1s and 2s were treated to a visit from a Kung Fu master, who alongside Year 12 student Ruben Yam, were put through the paces. The young learners were shown some techniques in the art.
The Sports Precinct transformed into a high-performance Netball Hub earlier this term, as the College welcomed the Australian Netball Team, in preparation for their must win final clash of the Constellation Cup Series against the Silver Ferns. The Diamonds took to the courts on Friday and Saturday in front of our College’s finest netball enthusiasts, who embraced the rare opportunity to see their idols up close.
The intensity and attention to detail put into their work was an eye-opening experience that captured the attention of our students.
For Bayley d’Hotman De Villiers it provided an insight into the calibre of training required to perform at the highest level, "It was a very inspiring and motivating experience to see firsthand the intensity and precision the Diamonds train at."
The Diamonds certainly delivered, appearing to leave no stone unturned as they fine-tuned their preparation and welcomed the opportunity afterwards to interact with our students.
“Seeing how friendly they were with all of us students and aspiring netballers, after the training. It really does show that it is possible to make it to the top," said Bayley.
The Diamonds went on to defeat the Silver Ferns 57 to 53 to retain the Constellation Cup for 2022.
Two Somerset Spartans Futsal teams are now champions, with two others runners up after competing in the last stage of the School Futsal Titles last weekend.
During Terms One, Two and Three Somerset particapted in the Regional Titles (Stage 1) and the SEQ Titles (Stage 2) in the lead up to Stage 3 last weekend, playing in the State Titles (stage 3).
Ordinarily Stage 3 is a national event where the best schools from all states meet but this year, many interstate schools were unable to attend and so the event became a competition between the best schools in Queensland.
Somerset College had six teams qualify.
Two Under 9 teams were entered into the competition and both teams performed outstandingly well over the two days. These players,many of who were playing against boys older and physically larger, not only stepped up to the challenge, but thrived in this high-pressure environment against some of the most talented in Queensland.
The White Team (Denham Barry, Dylan Hu, Sam Thompson, Hunter Sharples, Zac Sanders, Johnny Ratcliffe, and Franklin Yang) reached the semi-finals, bowing out to a very strong King's Christian College team.
The Green team (Jakub Pitura, Louis Hodge, Sion Kim, Kai Edgley, Knox Black, Ethan Kelly Correa and Oliver Moir) took out the entire competition, concluding with a thrilling final that saw them become champions after a convincing win over King's.
Well done to all those who competed. You all have my praise for how much you progressed over the weekend.
Two Under 10 Boys teams proudly represented Somerset, qualifying for the final stage.
One Under 10 team included Year 4 students (Benedict Thompson, Andrew Blatchford, James Baumfield, Henry Pevy, Vaughan Furlong, Hugo Hasselle, Edward Hassett, and Izaak Barclay). This team was one of the youngest teams in the competition and had a difficult weekend. Unfortunately, the boys could not get the results they wanted, and did not qualify for the finals.
Our other Under 10 team of Year 5 students (Max Bowden, Danny Wang, Oliver Ng, Zhander Griffiths, Connor Millar-Martin, Paxton Stewart, and Harper Loon), went well through their group stage with wins and losses. The result saw them finish in the Top 2 Under 10 schools. They played their final versus Peregian Beach College, who were a higher level and defeated Somerset. Regardless, it was an impressive effort for the Under 10 students to reach the last stage of the School Futsal Titles.
Thanks go to Coach Rhys Parkes for the coaching both teams over the weekend.
On the weekend our Under 10 Girls travelled up to Mt Warren to compete at Stage 3 of the School Futsal Titles. The tournament was held over two days with our Girls making a strong start on the first day, claiming victory over both King's and Calvary College. The second day the group showed great perseverance and determination, fighting hard through tired legs to make it to the finals of their first multi-day tournament. Unfortunately, the girls were narrowly beaten by King's in the final but were runners up for the tournament.
Second place was a great result for the girls who should be very proud of themselves and their achievements as a team.
Well done Mayuko Takahata, Arianna Reading, Imogen Sounness, Luella Zerbst, Emma Cordner, Audrey Hilbert, Bronte Butler and Evie Ladbrook. Written by Coach Keita Emsden
The girls went into the tournament with great desire and focus to finish their futsal season off on a high. With quality performances and great team play throughout, the group stage saw the girls finish top of the standings. In the final they met Peregian Beach College. With their goal insight the girls' desire and performance went to another level finishing in a 6 to 2 Victory, becoming Under 14 champions in 2022!
Congratulations to all players on an amazing tournament, Ari Thake, Georgie Zerbst, Zara Ryan, Ellie Davies, Sarah Nickels, Natalia Zotti, Evie-May Coates, Miranda Ross.
A big thank you to our fantastic supporters over a very hot weekend.
Our Year 7 Boys and Year 8 Girls' Volleyball teams participated in the Junior Schools Cup Volleyball Tournament recently.
There were 225 teams from schools all over Queensland who competed against each other at venues across the Gold Coast.
The Year 7 Boys playing in Division One competed against the top schools in the state. After Friday’s pool play the boys were undefeated and finished top of their pool. Strong setting and serving from Tima Korin and defensive play from Daniel Kim were the highlight of the team’s performance. Patrick Deacon’s smart decision-making gave the team plenty of scoring opportunities.
On Saturday morning the boys lost to the strong Craigslea Volleyball Academy team which put them out of medal contention. But the boys regrouped and won their remaining matches to finish ninth overall in the state with five wins and one loss. Strong spiking from Soham Agrawal and Michael Zeng showed dominance the net. They were backed up with outstanding serving from Philip He and blocking from Ethan Shen. The boys proved that they could match it with the best in the state.
The Year 8 Girls team competed in Division Two. With a number of students new to volleyball the team has been expertly guided over the last few months by coach Issy Garland. Over the first two days the girls had some up and down matches but were starting to show promise. Great setting and blocking from Aanika Soni and Ella Jin along with the defensive play from Amelie Millar-Martin and Zara Hosking were highlights of the team’s play.
On Sunday the girls needed to win their last pool play match to make it to the medal matches. They came out and played inspiring volleyball crushing the opposition in three straight sets. Livi Budd and Momoko Takahata were rock solid in defensive.
This put the girls into the gold medal match against an extremely strong team from Tin Can Bay. The final went to the next level with both teams playing volleyball well beyond their age and experience. Strong spiking and blocking by Maddi McLaughlin and Natalia Zotti kept the score line close in each set. Somerset eventually coming away with the silver medal in two nail biting sets.
A big thank you and Issy Garland and Paris Johnson for coaching and support over the weekend and Candice McKenna for your continued support for volleyball at Somerset College.
It’s been another couple of busy weeks for Somerset students with a number of events being held recently.
The Gold Coast Individual Age Championships were held last week with Somerset students competing against schools from around the Gold Coast in their own age brackets. There were a large number of successful students with the highlights being:
The Queensland Junior rating list has also just been released with a number of Somerset students increasing by more than 20 points, and some new students achieved their first rating.
Congratulations to these students on their achievements.
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