Year 7 Incursion - Sustainability Ambassadors

Our Year 7 HASS students participated in the Waterwise Experience on Wednesday, 15 November 2023, an interactive, multi-sensory incursion for high school students, that is designed to engage and inspire them on the topic of water sustainability.

Using silent disco technology, students explored, wondered and questioned through the power of audio. Students were led through three engaging narratives, which empowered them to take action and become sustainability ambassadors. They learnt that we have finite resources and need to work together to preserve, restore and protect the uniqueness of our planet. Each narrative took place in its own tent world, where the students worked together to identify our water sources and understand the importance of our water supply and treatment processes.

Claire Green
HASS Teacher

WA Junior Mathematical Olympiad 2023

Early in Term 4, we were delighted to participate in the Western Australian Junior Mathematical Olympiad. This is an incredible opportunity for our students to showcase their mathematical skills and compete against other talented individuals. 

The event was conducted in two parts. An individual online event was held in the College Library on Tuesday, 17 October 2023 with the students completing a 100-minute paper of 16 challenging questions. We had eight students representing our College in this competition, and I have no doubt that they made us proud.

On Saturday, 21 October 2023 students met at UWA for a 50-minute paper-based team event. Our College was represented by two teams, and we are excited to announce that we also invited an extra student from St Stephens School to join our teams. This collaboration will not only foster friendly competition but also promote camaraderie among the students. 

We commend all the students who have shown dedication and perseverance in their studies. This competition generates exceptional growth and it is a testament to their hard work. Well done, students!

As part of our commitment to providing a well-rounded education, we have included some of the individual questions in this newsletter. These can be a great opportunity for your child to further enhance their problem-solving skills. Feel free to tackle them together as a family!

I would like to take a moment to express my gratitude to all the students who have participated in this challenging competition. Your dedication and hard work are truly commendable. I also want to extend my heartfelt thanks to the parents for their continued support and encouragement. Your partnership with us is invaluable, and it plays a significant role in the success of our students.

Questions from 2023 Individual event. For the answers, please ask your child’s mathematics teacher.

Question A - 1 mark

After a game of footy, the 18 players of each team shook hands with each player from the opposing team, and with each of the 3 umpires. How many handshakes occurred altogether?

Question B - 2 marks

How many 3-digit numbers have an odd middle digit and are divisible by 12?

Question C - 3 marks

What is the largest integer less than 1000 that has the same remainders as 2023 when divided by each integer from 2 to 7, inclusive?

Question D - 4 marks

Let ABCD be a square with area 204. Let E, F be the midpoints of sides BC, CD, respectively. What is the area of the shaded region?

Mr Stuart Rutter
HOLA Mathematics 

JLC Student Leadership Day

The Joondalup Learning Community Leadership Day was recently hosted at Belridge Secondary College on Friday, 17 November 2023.  Year 5 students from our Partner Primary schools attended the Leadership Day were they learnt lots of leadership tips, attended a Student Councillor meeting, chatted to Belridge Secondary College Year 10 student leaders and had the opportunity to meet with Emily Hamilton MLA who discussed the power of letter writing as a way of making a positive difference in the community.

Thank you to all staff and students on such a successful day. The feedback received from students speaks for itself!

WHAT WAS GOOD ABOUT TODAY?

"Coming to Belridge!

The way the Belridge student leaders independently interacted with primary students.

Public Speaking.

Dried spaghetti challenge and working as a team.

Learning how to work in a team, because I usually work individually.

Learning how to write a letter and activities, meeting new people and having fun.

Writing a letter to the Principal.

All the fun activities and opportunity to say how we think our school could have been better.

Brain breaks good in between activities.

The brain break actually reset my brain into learning.

Spaghetti towers – it was a really fun project and we got to eat the marshmallows!

The Belridge Year 10’s.

Getting to know the students and seeing the school.

Basically everything!"

WHAT COULD HAVE BEEN BETTER ABOUT TODAY?

"It could have been longer, so we can learn more about leadership.

I think nothing could have made today better.

Nothing. I think it was amazing and that there is nothing to change."

WHAT WILL YOU TAKE AWAY FROM TODAY?

"Change can happen when you are passionate about making change happen. Josh gave great evidence of this.

That tactics and teamwork work more than strength.

All the speeches from this morning and writing the letters.

I will speak up to my problems and try to resolve them.

A new sense of community.

Things about how to run a fundraiser day.

Writing a letter.

The letter writing and skill building.

All the memories from making friends and learning how leadership works.

That I actually like writing letters!

Today taught me to look out and discover new pathways and it built a stronger connection with other schools. I also learnt new ways to communicate with other people I don’t know.

It formed me to look out and discover bigger problems in the world and environment.

The day gave me way more confidence being able to socialise with people I do not know.

New friendships.

Interactions with other schools.

Getting to know the Year 10s and maybe getting a school dog."

Vocational Education & Training

Congratulations to Kiara Willing (Year 10), who has secured a School Based Traineeship with Event Cinemas, Whitfords. Students have a choice of two qualifications to work towards achieving at Event Cinemas, either Hospitality or Retail.

Kiara chose Hospitality and will be stationed in the kitchen at Event Cinemas where she will complete a Certificate II in Hospitality over a period of 12 months. Kiara will be employed to complete her traineeship qualification out of school hours.

Kiara attended a sign-up meeting to formally commence her traineeship on Wednesday 22 November 2023 and is photographed below with Event Cinemas National Traineeship Manager, Tammi and Skills Strategies International Hospitality Trainer, Mark Dundhy.

Meredith Fuhrmann
Workplace Learning Coordinator

Educational attainment is rising

The number of people undertaking tertiary training is increasing and more of the workforce now holds post-school qualifications.

In 2022 68% of Australians aged between 15 to 74 years held, or were currently studying, post-school qualifications. 

Post-school qualifications are beneficial in today’s jobs market. People with higher level qualifications generally have better employment outcomes than those who have not completed further education after leaving school.  

• Almost 90% of jobs currently being advertised require post-school qualifications.
• Almost 40% of jobs currently being advertised require a Bachelor degree or higher.
• Around half of jobs currently being advertised require a VET qualification.

Year 9 Career Tasters

‘It’s Child’s Play’
Wednesday, 15 November 2023

15 Year 9 students were recently involved in a childcare based Career Taster, held at North Metropolitan TAFE’s Joondalup campus. The excursion was part of the Year 9 Career Taster Program, which has been designed to provide students with exposure to industry and workplaces of interest. Attendance was based on an expression of interest basis, with numerous students unfortunately missing out on the event, due to a lot of interest in the childcare field. All attendees were excited to attend TAFE for the day and have the opportunity of being in an adult learning environment. Students admirably found their own way to the site, with the support of guardians and public transport.

On arrival, students were Welcomed to Country in one of the childcare classrooms. Once the day’s itinerary was explained, students were introduced to their lecturer, Ann Marie, who instructs Certificate III and the Diploma in Early Childhood Education and Care to TAFE students. Importantly, these courses are currently 100% funded by the state government, due to the wide scale shortage of qualified childcare educators. In addition, in Year 10 students can apply to complete a Certificate III in School Based Education Support and complete the TAFE course, in conjunction with their Year 11 and 12 studies, by attending a TAFE site one day a week. This means students would be work ready to commence employment as an Education Assistant straight after graduating from the College.

Students were taught about the importance of fostering an encouraging learning environment for young people, as well as the importance of play to a young person’s development. Students were responsible for taking care of a simulated baby throughout the day, which they all found challenging but rewarding. They were also involved in planning and delivering childcare based activities, such as story time, painting, physical outdoor games, making play doh, slime and kinetic sand, as well as performing a range of cleaning duties. All students did a great job being involved in all activities, with TAFE staff commending the student’s attitudes and commitment to learning.

‘Cooking Up a Storm’ Year 9 Career Taster
Friday, 24 November 2024

The final Year 9 Career Taster for 2023 saw 14 Year 9 students visit Joondalup’s North Metropolitan TAFE campus to participate in the ‘Cooking Up a Storm’ commercial cookery event. Students chose to be involved in the excursion so that they could gain an idea of what working in a commercial kitchen at TAFE is like.  The excursion was part of the Year 9 Career Taster Program, which has been designed to provide students with exposure to industry and workplaces of interest. Attendance was based on an expression of interest basis, with numerous students unfortunately missing out on the event, due to a lot of interest in the commercial cooking field. All attendees stated that they had enjoyed the cooking they had completed at home and during their time at Belridge prior to the event.

On arrival, students were Welcomed to Country in one of the TAFE classrooms. Once the day’s itinerary was explained, students were escorted to one of the site’s commercial kitchens and introduced to their lecturer, Cormac, who instructs Certificate III in Commercial Cookery, which is the qualification apprentices complete to become professional chefs. Students were attired in clothing suitable for the kitchen environment, including long pants, enclosed shoes and long hair tied back. They were also provided with a hair cover and plastic apron. Students were informed that they would be preparing a sticky date pudding from scratch, topped with a glazed fig and butterscotch sauce. Students were excited to prepare the meal but were mainly motivated by the realisation that they would be able to eat the yummy dessert at the end of the day.

During the day, students were taught about the importance of kitchen hygiene and instructed in the proper use of a range of kitchen utensils and machinery, including the commercial mixers and ovens, which required significant instruction to operate. They also had the opportunity to purchase food from the nearby café, which is stocked by meals prepared in the commercial kitchens at TAFE. Students worked in pairs to prepare their meals, with their communication and collaboration skills put on great display. At the end of the event students did a great job cleaning their workspaces and they were rewarded with tasting their amazing meals, topped with icing sugar and banana flavoured gelato. They also had plenty of leftovers for their friends and family to enjoy once they got home.

The excursion was a big success and capped off a great effort by all Year 9 students who participated in a career taster over the course of 2023.

Ashley Mouritz
Career Practitioner

E:  ashley.mouritz@education.wa.edu.au
P:  (08) 9408 8015