MIDDLE SCHOOL
MS KATRINA STALKER HEAD OF MIDDLE SCHOOL
‘ WHERE THE WILD THINGS ARE ’
CHALLENGING CAMPS FOR OUR YEAR 8 BOYS
THIS PAGE : SCENES FROM THE
YEAR 8 CAMPS
‘ Adventure starts with daring yourself to try something new . It ’ s about embracing every opportunity and living life to the fullest !’
The author of this quote is unknown , but it sums up what we asked of the Year 8 boys in preparing for the Year 8 camps held towards the end of October .
It was challenge by choice , with three different camps to choose from , of various levels of difficulty . The boys embraced the challenges with gusto . The camps were run by three different companies in three different Victorian locations – the Strathbogie Ranges ( AusCamp ), the Grampians ( Adventure Plus ), and Toolangi and Castlemaine ( Bindaree Outdoor Group ). All camps provided an introduction to outdoor education . Boys cooked for themselves or their group , hiked and camped in two-man tents , abseiled or rock climbed , with some trying a high ropes course . Others canoed and undertook mountain bike riding and an obstacle course .
While some camps offered the opportunity of a bed for a few nights and a shower , others were under canvas each night without facilities , or at least limited facilities , throughout the week . On visiting some of the groups it did feel a little as if I were in a chapter of the book Where the Wild Things Are !
The challenges of the camp were varied . For some it was the 40 foot abseiling , while others had a 20 foot abseil – both didn ’ t look half as daunting when standing firmly on the ground compared to being perched on the edge , even if you are securely tied on . For others it was scaling the rock wall and the challenge of climbing Mount Rosea , particularly on
those days when the weather became quite warm . For some boys it was a challenge to keep their gear organised , packed and carried from site to site .
Regardless of the personal challenges the boys faced , along with some of the staff , they all did amazingly well to conquer their fears and achieve success . Undoubtedly the boys learned a lot about themselves , and their peers , as they spent time out of their comfort zones in the great outdoors . As Winnie the Pooh said : ‘ We didn ’ t realise we were making memories ; we just knew we were having fun ’. I am sure all the boys will also think the same , as they look back at this camp .
There have been some notable achievements in the last few months by the boys of Middle School . Daniel Wang ( Year 8 ) received a distinction for his LMusA horn . He is one of the youngest students at Scotch to achieve this level of achievement on the horn . James Luk ( Year 7 ) represented the North-East Inner Metro at the state finals of the Association of German Teachers of Victoria German Poetry Competition . James performed exceptionally well and came second overall for Year 7 in all of Victoria .
Our da Vinci Decathlon teams did very well in the state competitions , with our Year 7s achieving third overall . The team consisted of William Wang , Aaron Shen , Matthew Dallalana , Jun Gardiner , Yevan Navaratne , Thomas Doan , Alexander Gordon and Kevin Sui .
Our Year 8s came second overall in the Decathlon , the team consisting of Cameron Wong , Matthew Wang , Aaryan Berera , Jayee Zhang , Joshua Wang , Gabriel King , Gary Kong and Hayden Yu . There were some big performances in the junior APS crosscountry event . Henry Curlewis finished first in Year 7 , with Joshua Lindeman sixth and Alexander Gordon seventh . Joshua Baker achieved second in Year 8 .
28 Great Scot Issue 170 – December 2023