Our school’s mission is to provide a safe and inspiring environment that allows for quality education for all our students. We work hard to create respectful relationships with our students, their families and the wider community we service. The teaching and learning focus for the Years 7-9 elective program is underpinned by the School’s philosophy and values of supporting students using innovative learning practices to empower them to achieve their full potential as successful and valued members of their communities.
An element of importance regarding middle school electives is the ability of students to choose classes of their own. Students are given the opportunity to make a major choice regarding their education and they’re given the option to learn practical skills. This allows students to be receptive to the courses and also prepares them for future decision-making with regards to education and employment.
CYS believes in ‘learning together’, and ‘making a difference’ and this is reflected through our Elective Program. Students will receive information about Term 2 electives in Week 8 and 9.
Creative Photography
The Creative Photography elective group have been learning about portraiture, scenic photography, capturing action and the technical aspects of digital photography. Our Term 1 highlight has been a photoshoot in the ELC taking promotional pictures of the students and facilities.
International Banquet
In the International Banquet elective students have been researching food and culture in their chosen country. They have prepared a variety of foods from different countries selected by the teacher and in these photos they have prepared their first meal from their chosen country.
To Market
In the To Market elective students have created a name and logo for their market stall. They have decided on a product they are going to produce and sell, including food items, jewellery, scrunchies, handmade toy boats to name a few. The students have started making their items to sell at a market. They will also have to work out the cost and sale price, design packaging labels and create a marketing poster.
Strength Training
Students have been focussing on fitness testing using a range of machines at the Local Maitland Gym, Bodysync. Personal Trainer, George Davies taught students’ safe form with free weights. The students are becoming more familiar with strength training in the gym, planning group circuits, developing healthy attitudes towards exercise, improving fitness for performance and wellbeing, learning new vocabulary and engaging with members of the wider community.
Ceramics
The Handmade Ceramics students have been investigating Japanese Wabi-Sabi Pottery, a traditional Japanese style that celebrates the beauty of transience and imperfection. ‘Wabi’ is the kind of beauty that celebrates flaws, such as texture or asymmetry in a ceramic bowl which reflects the handmade craftsmanship, as opposed to another bowl which is perfectly manufactured, but soul-less. ‘Sabi’ is the kind of beauty that can come only with age, such as the rust on a very old bronze statue or the tarnishing of precious gold jewellery. Students will complete this course with a matching Wabi-Sabi ceramics set to take home and a portfolio that demonstrates their knowledge and practical skill development.
Woodwork
In the Woodworking Elective students have been exploring the various phases of design. Students have researched, critiqued, planned, budgeted, and begun construction on their fold away TV eating tray. They have learnt to read and create 3-dimensional scaled drawings to create the parts of the tray for assembly. Students are using a combination of hand tools, power tools, and machinery to bring together their projects while critically reflecting on their progress as they go. Woodwork is a combination of a challenge and enjoyment.
Mosaics
The ‘Upcycled Mosaics’ students have been gaining an ethical understanding about the environmental benefits of upcycling, which involves repurposing and reusing to give items a second life. With this in mind, students have been creating mosaics out of second-hand crockery and left-over tiles that would have otherwise been discarded or collecting cobwebs in people’s sheds. Instead, these items have been broken up and used to create artworks. Pictured are students’ mosaic tiles that they have designed and created to develop their mosaic skills. Students will then use these new skills to collaborate as a class in creating an upcycled mosaic mural to be displayed in the school. This mural will have the theme of ‘what represents Central Yorke School’ which has been designed by the students.
Class band
The Class Band elective group are developing a medley of songs based on the ‘Four-Chord Accompaniment’, which is the basis for hundreds of famous songs. The students have worked on their ensemble skills and created practice backing tracks for themselves in GarageBand.
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