Humanities and Languages
As we wind down to the end of the year, I like to look back and review some of the highlights and this year has been packed full of action for the Huminites and Languages Faculty! There have been excursions, bugs, archaeology club, water experiments to name a few – not to mention learning galore!
It has been a great term 4 with student in year 7 looking at water, and playing the water-sharing game. This stimulates how complex it can be to manage and share water from the Murray-Darling Basin so that everyone gets as much water as they want. On each labelled cup, water had to be shared between a dam, a wetland, farms, a town and fish. The students did find it challenging to take water for their own cup ensuring there was enough for everyone downstream. Thank you to Ms Mallet for her organisation in this activity!
Year 8 students have been exploring famous mountains, and looking at how these mountains impact the country where they are located. They looked at the tourism industry, the history, and the formation of these mountains.
Year 9 students have been exploring alternative food sources, and have sampled the gourmet delights of meal worms, crickets and scorpion lollypops as an alternative protein. Apparently, the bugs tasted like chicken, but I will take the students’ word for that!
Our senior students have now moved onto the next phase in their subjects, all very eager to finish the year successfully.
2023 has been a successful year for Humanities, and we hope that 2024 is even better!
I wish you all a very restful, happy and healthy break – see you next year!
Cecilia Hall
Head of Department - Humanities and Languages - Year 9E to 9G
Japanese - いそがしい です！
Celebrations of completing another academic year at Ripley are fast approaching as the Japanese classes complete their assessments for Term 4. Year 7 will finish their bilingual multimedia brochures about their excursion to Nerima Gardens, the tea ceremony, environmental centre and animal encounter, this week. Lessons have continued for Year 7 with the Japanese class in Chiba city. Recently, our students shared their presentation about the Tanabata festival. They also played charades about their hobbies. The last lessons for 2023 will include bilingual conversations about food, then we will share our appreciation for the exchange lessons to Japan. Mr Kawana plans to visit our school in March 2024, and we are already planning how to welcome him at the school. We so excited for Year 7 lessons continuing with our sister school via zoom in 2024!
(Nerima cover page: designed by Athish.)
The Japan Foundation, Sydney have published our short films for the 2023 Video Matsuri Short Film Contest, signature item: toothpaste/はみがきこ. We'd like to thank all participants who took the time to enter this year, and the students said they enjoyed the experience.
2023 Results and Online Cinema – Japan Foundation, Sydney (jpf.org.au)
Year 8 were successful sensei (teachers) on Tuesdays during Term 4. Each pair of students led lessons with activities such as quizzes, games, charades and interactive power point presentations. The students really enjoyed leading the classes. Year 8 are a dynamic and proactive class who have also completed amazing movies about their hobbies for their assessment. Year 9 Japanese learners are studying hard for their exam and they have learnt the script of katakana!
For expressions of interest to the Japan Trip in the school holidays of April 2025, please let Ms Wellwood know via email on gawel0@eq.edu.au
and you are invited to an information evening on the Tuesday 13th February regarding the trip to Japan.
Georgina Wellwood
Japanese Teacher