In a significant advancement for Somerset College's sustainability journey, the Sustainable Spartans have been awarded a generous grant of $15,750 by the Gold Coast City Council. This grant serves as a vital catalyst for the ongoing Wyangan Creek Restoration Project, affirming the council's confidence in our commitment to environmental stewardship.
Our 2024 Ambassadors, Evie Cardone, Evie Ladbrook, Eva-Marie, and Eunice Wilcox, alongside the Sustainable Spartans and the broader school community, will play an integral role in the fruition of the project. Thanks to the grant, the preliminary works commenced last year will continue, with the first Tree Planting Day earmarked for later this term. This will see the collective effort of students, our grounds team, and external partners Regen, who will be pivotal in finalising the project works.
This financial support enables us not only to enhance the ecological value of the Wyangan Creek area but also to provide an educative platform for our students to engage firsthand with meaningful sustainability practices. We anticipate this grant-funded project to stand as a testament to what collaborative effort and community spirit can achieve in fostering a greener future.
Stay tuned for updates as we prepare to roll up our sleeves and make a lasting positive impact on both our school's landscape and the environmental consciousness of our students.
For my Personal Project, I have decided to delve further into the art of composing, and how to use music as a way to represent a story.
Since a young age, I have always played pieces composed by other people on piano, although rarely do I get to compose a work of my own and play it. Personal Project offered me a chance to do just that, and I concluded in creating a story in the genre of love and composing a piano piece that matches the ups and downs in a relationship.
My story consisted of a romantic relationship between Caspian and Kalee set within a small town called “Harmony Falls”. From their love at first sight, to arguments occurring and eventually resolving their conflicts, I have attempted to capture this staggering storyline within my composed piece through musical techniques such as varying tempo and change of tonality.
My composition was completed through the ATL skills of predominantly Research and Communication. I enjoyed learning through others and varying sources on how to compose a good piece and also loved communicating with my peers and teachers regarding any feedback they may have along the way.
Overall, Personal Project has been really enjoyable so far as I am doing things I am passionate about and I am looking forward to sharing my piece live at the Personal Project Evening.
'Skills For the Information Age' that we once viewed as specialist skills are now seen as essential skills for our young people to acquire and bring forward into the workforce.
When developing these skills, it is essential to understand how data is transformed into information that then leads to knowledge acquisition and eventually wisdom. As artificial intelligence develops the computational tools required to analyse data and find wisdom will become more prevalent. At Somerset College students who maintain a focus on developing their digital skills for the information age will be well placed to interact with those new tools. When a student studying Digital Design or Digital Solutions engages in computational thinking, they are looking deeper at the problem for the abstractions that exist beyond the immediately obvious. These skills for the information age allow a student to see inputs, how processes may be repeating and develop strategies to improve both effectiveness and efficiency. Studying digital subjects at Somerset College is so much more than learning to code. National curriculum dictates that students should learn to design, create, manage and evaluate sustainable and innovative digital solutions to meet and redefine current and future needs.
At Somerset College, the vertical digital curriculum builds a wealth of understanding of how our modern world is saturated with technology, developing within each student an appreciation of the risks and threats that exist and placing them in a much stronger position to prosper as they go forward in life.
Congratulations to Year 11 student, Aleeza Tariq who is the recipient of a Barbara Sisley Award.
The Communication, Speech and Performance Teachers Inc. presents the Barbara Sisley Awards annually. Recipients are students who have attained the highest results in Queensland in AMEB (Speech and Performance) and Trinity College London (Speech and Drama) examinations in the preceding year.
Aleeza achieved the highest result in Queensland for Trinity College London Speech and Drama Grade 6 examinations in 2023. Aleeza has been invited to present a performance of her choice at Parliament House in Brisbane in June.
Science Committee is an amazing experience for both Junior and Senior school students in which we explore all three major areas of science: Physics, Biology, and Chemistry.
More than 60 students in the Senior School come together every fortnight in Week A to conduct experiments separate to those in class. The instant students and teachers walk into Science Committee, the joyful environment filled with smiles and laughter will always surround them, and it is such a precious experience to have.
In Week 1, we measured how far a ping pong ball could fly using triangle catapults built out of paddle pop sticks and rubber bands. It was an incredibly fun, and memorable afternoon that still explored the physics aspect of energy transformation from elastic energy in the rubber bands to kinetic energy.
Well, we can’t let the Senior School have all the fun now can we? Not to worry, the Junior School is not missing out as 30 students come together every Week B to carry out the same exciting experiments! The Junior Science Committee is facilitated by the fabulous committee captains, Griffith, and UQ STEM Ambassadors along with other members who volunteer to help.
In Week 2, we explored biology and chemistry by understanding plant leaves and how the many pigments inside can be separated using the technique of paper chromatography. Different coloured leaves were found around the school and the separation of pigments was seen due to capillary action. To explore chemistry and physics, we made cars using plastic bottles and milk caps in Week 3.
The car moved due to the transformation of chemical energy into kinetic energy with the chemical reaction between vinegar and bicarb soda happening inside the car. We are yet to do this thrilling experiment with the Junior Science Committee, but a heartwarming and educational afternoon is bound to happen as the Senior and Junior school gather for an amazing experiment, support, and smiles between older and younger students.
Beach Volleyball Schools Cup is an annual event run by Volleyball Queensland. This year saw 472 teams from 55 Queensland schools play on 54 courts set up on beautiful Coolangatta Beach.
This year Somerset entered 10 teams from a variety of different year levels playing both pairs and four a side.
Last Sunday teams from Years 8 to 12 started the tournament in pool play. Conditions were ideal with light winds and overcast skies. The Year 9 Boys 4-a-side team cruised through pool play with a combination of control from Tima Koran and Philip He and power from Ethan Shen and Soham Agrawal. The Year 11 boy’s pairs team of Lachie Mathieson and Lachie McKinnon narrowly lost some close matches in the timed games format but still showed that they are one of the best in the state. The Year 10 girl’s side of Audrey Cirocco, Maddie McLaughlin, Aanika Soni and Natalia Zotti played fantastic volleyball beating some of their more experienced competitors and topping their pool.
On Monday teams moved into the final cross over matches and started to edge closer to a medal round. The Year 7 girls team also played, having their first taste of Schools Cup volleyball and showing great promise winning the majority of their games. The Year 9 boys continued their good form from the previous day winning the bronze medal match. The Year 10 girls narrowly lost in the semi-final which relegated them to the bronze medal match which they would go on to win. The Year 11 girls team went undefeated all the way to the final when they faced a formidable team from OLSCC coming away with a silver medal. The team of Zaina Abbas, Alice Niu, Alvina Shen and Ella Jin showed great consistency and teamwork and deservedly came away with the medal. The Year 11 boys pair team of Ethan Grocott and Raiden Kyaw cruised through to the final without dropping a set and were able to keep that momentum going winning the gold in straight sets and were crowned state champions.
Overall, we had fantastic results:
A massive thank you to all the parents for not only your help over the two days but also getting students to early morning practice sessions. Also, Issy Garland and Paris Johnson with coaching in the lead up to and over the two days. Also, to Dane Robinson and the sports department with their help organising logistics.
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