What’s Happening at Middle School
Week 4
- Wed 25 Oct – Fri 27 Oct – Year 5 Camp – Log Cabin Ballarat
- Wed 25 Oct – Year 7 & 8 GISSA Sporting fixtures
Week 5
- Tues 31 Oct – ‘Readiness for Middle School’ 2024 Year 5 Families
- Wed 1 Nov – Year 7 & 8 GISSA Sporting fixtures
- Thurs 2 Nov – House Cross Country
Year 4 to 5 Transition Morning
A team of our current Year 5 teachers, Mr Andy Francis and Deputy Head of Campus Natasha Troop were greeted by the big smiles of our current Year 4’s from Junior School. All teachers were assigned a current Year 4 homeroom and began by allowing time to explore what a Year 5 classroom looks and feels like. We then began exploring the school, from the science rooms and drama room, all the way over to the Year 5 playground.
The students asked fantastic questions, listened eagerly, and were overjoyed with the endless possibilities that the Middle School campus has instore for them. The current Year 5 team felt incredibly privileged to have been able to be a part of their morning and wish them all the very best as they transition up to the very exciting Highton Middle School campus. A very special thank you to the Year 4 team for coming along and supporting their classes as they continue to do a fantastic job in preparing their students for the transition.
What’s On in Years 5 to 7 Digi Tech?
A report by guest star student journalists and Andrew Groves (Digi Tech Teacher Y5 to Y7)
Throughout the coming weeks, the hard-working learners and teachers would like to share what they have been up to in Digital Technologies.
Students have been invited to share their unedited reflections of their learning journey to date. It is hoped that our reports appeal to our wider College community and that they target families with students undertaking Digi Tech, providing additional information and conversation-starters. Digi Tech is a core subject for all Christian College Middle School students from Year 5 through to Year 8.
For our first update of Term 4, we are heading to Year 7, where we have been learning a new language, a coding language called, ‘Python’.
As student reporter Angus Brewer from 7Y insightfully wrote recently, “Python is a great first language, Python is a great last language, Python is the most powerful language. Python is the language of code and the language of the world.
It codes and controls your daily essentials like your car, our buildings, phones and lots more.”
We now hear from another VIP Guest Journalist, Eva Kouri 7G to tell us all more about this ‘thing’ called Python.
Eva opted to use the web app Canva to produce her reflection. Thank you, Eva for your excellent article, which is a great read (see below).
What’s Happening in Year 9 at Middle School
Here we are at the end of week 3, can you believe it? Our Year 9’s have 27 days of formal classes left at Middle School! Term 4 is such a wonderful term, filled with celebration but also plenty of school work to still be completed. We encourage our Year 9’s to finish the year well.
With the weather warming up, please remind your young person that they need to be wearing their hat every day now. It’s been wonderful seeing students wearing their uniform with such pride this term.
We have our Marine Studies groups out snorkelling, and another Outdoor Ed group surfing, these are just a couple of the many great opportunities our students get to experience this term. During our Wellbeing sessions on Wednesday’s, students are gathering in their House groups to start to build connection and relationships with other students in preparation for Senior School in 2024. It’s been such a joy watching our students grow in confidence and connection this year.
On Friday 13th October, Jacob Sharp took 14 of our Year 9 Prefects to Kardinia Park to take part in the Barwon Respect Cup. This event is run by a collaboration of local services in the Barwon region, led by Netball Victoria and the City of Greater Geelong, that are taking a proactive approach to promoting respectful relationships. The committee includes:
- Netball Victoria
- Barwon Community Legal Services
- The Victorian Department of Education (Respectful Relationships)
- The Sexual Assault and Family Violence Centre
- headspace Geelong
- The City of Greater Geelong
The Barwon Respect Cup reinforces the work we Christian College are doing to build respectful relationships at our school. The evidence supporting the importance of respectful relationships education is overwhelming and comes from respected institutions such as the World Health Organisation and The Royal Commission into Family Violence. Our Prefects represented the school extremely well as they connected with 10 other schools from Geelong and Colac.
Term 4 is always a busy time. I wanted to share with you a couple of important dates. There will be further information communicated in Term 4.
Tuesday 7th November – College-wide Orientation Day, including current Year 9s spending the day at Senior School
Wednesday 29th November – Year 9 Formal at Clyde Park, Bannockburn – 5:30-10:30pm. Optional 12:30pm Dismissal from Middle School- Highton Campus, before returning for the Formal.
Thursday 30th November – Activity Day – Normal school hours – 8:45am-3:40pm
Friday 1st December – Year 9 Graduation Ceremony – Middle School – Highton SAC – 2pm – 3.40pm. Optional Family BBQ lunch at 1pm. – 1pm for a Family BBQ Lunch before a 2pm start. Normal school hours – 8:45am-3:40pm
Monday 4th – Friday 8th December – Senior School Transition Week
Please remember to reach out to myself or your child’s homeroom teacher with any questions.
VET Information
Students who have applied for a VET course for 2024 should now know if they have been offered a position or have been put on to a waitlist. Students who have been waitlisted will be put into one of their reserved CCG subjects until a position becomes available.
Students and parents should regularly check emails as the training organisations will be in touch directly with course specific information this term. The Gordon will be inviting new first year students and parents to an information session and tour at the City Campus on November 22 from 5.30 – 6.45pm and at East Campus on November 27 from 5.30 – 6.45pm.
The training organisations prefer that all VET correspondence comes through the school. If you have any questions or require any further information, please do not hesitate to contact me, [email protected] or Cathy Brew [email protected] in the student office.
College Production 2024 – Update
As published in The Vine at the end of Term 3, the College will be staging Rodgers & Hammerstein’s Cinderella (Broadway Version) at the Geelong Arts Centre from May 2 – 4, 2004.
Audition Registration
All students from Years 5 – 11 (in 2023) across the College will receive an email early next week, with information and a link to an online registration form. Auditions will commence across the College on designated days from Sunday October 22. To register for an audition, students must complete the online form on/by Friday October 13.
There will be an information session held at each campus for students to have an opportunity to ask questions and learn more about the show. These will be held at:
Highton MS Campus Chapel Monday October 9 12.40
Senior Campus Music Department Tuesday October 10 1.20pm
Bellarine Campus Auditorium Tuesday October 10 at Lunchtime
Surf Coast Campus – Ms Notini will visit the Year 5 classroom next week.
Rehearsal Schedule
All rehearsals will take place at the RW Gibson Centre – Senior Campus with regular weekly rehearsals during Term 1 on Thursdays, 4.00 – 6.30pm and Sundays, 2.30 – 5.00pm. There will also be nominated full days and extended rehearsals, with more detailed information included in the email to be sent to students next week.
To be allocated a part, successful auditionees must be available for the full rehearsal period. We aim to cast approx. 70 students, with over 200 expected to audition. We request families to please consider the implications of their child’s involvement and that a total commitment to the show is required prior to auditioning/accepting a place in the cast. Please do not audition if you are unable to commit to the full rehearsal period.
There will also be opportunities for students to be involved in the production orchestra and a range of backstage tasks. More information about these opportunities will be shared with students as the project progresses.
There will be a large group of staff and visiting tutors working with the students throughout the staging of the production. The initial production staff includes Kelly Clifford – Director, Taylah Broad - Assistant Director, Fiona Gardner - Musical Director, Kate Notini - Vocal Director, Andrew Dunlop, Victoria Kent, Sharon Huber, and Brian Alexander. Students with specific questions are invited to approach the teachers at their campus.
We are looking forward to meeting students from across the campuses at auditions, casting and staging this production for our community.

Foundation Golf Day 2023
Following the success of last year’s inaugural event, we are delighted to announce the Christian College Foundation Golf Day tournament for 2023.
Save the date: Thursday November 9.
We are seeking prizes for this event – if you own a local business and are interested in creating partnership opportunities with Christian College, please contact Fiona Provan on 0400 477 467, or email [email protected]

Uniform Shop Clearance Sale!
