Class 7 Geometry in Nature 

Class 7 have been immersed in exploring the beauty and wonder of our natural world in their Geometry in Nature Main Lesson. This Main Lesson draws its inspiration from Plato’s idea that the geometry that permeates the Universe is the visible, crystallised expression of creative thought. Class 7 students have been discovered where and how geometric archetypes precipitate as organic and inorganic forms within and around us.  

Over the past few weeks, the students have been discovering the incredible geometrical patterns, ratios and rules that occur all around us in the natural environment, in leaves, shells, trees, flowers, fruit, and elsewhere. The beautiful Djilba weather we have been experiencing has meant that students were able to spend time outside, observing patterns and shapes in nature as she flaunts her spring finery.  

As the weeks of this Main Lesson have progressed, the students have been challenged with increasingly complex forms, resulting in some beautiful and detailed stellar forms working with circles, angles and lines, and exploring the property of angles and triangles.  

In the final week the class have explored Fibonacci’s Sequence, also through observing nature. The class were able to visit the Silver Tree vegetable garden in order to find flowers whose petal numbers corresponded to Fibonacci's Sequence. Students discovered the connection between Fibonacci’s Sequence and the Golden Ratio and used their understanding of the golden ratio to map out a nautilus spiral on grid paper. They took cross sections of celery and cabbage to identify the golden ratio. They also found the golden ration of 1:1.6 in their limbs, between comparing the distance between shoulder and elbow, and elbow and fingertip, between fingertip and the base of the finger, and the base of the finger to the wrist, from the top of their head to the belly button, and belly button to the earth.  

Finally, the class discovered Fibonacci’s Sequence when they picked a coriander stem from the vegetable garden, they noted how the stem spread from one to two, then to three, five, eight, and finally to thirteen, before flowering. The children were astonished to hear that Golden Ratio could also be found in the rotation of planets in our solar system, our galaxy, the Milky Way, in the vortex of a hurricane, and many other places in nature.  

Katie Southall
Class 7 Teacher 

Class 8 World War I Main Lesson

Class 8 have had a range of Main Lessons this term, From Art History followed by Human Biology, Class 8 are ending Term Three exploring the chaos and turmoil that was World War One. As the students begin to transition from knowledge to cognition, they are now capable of examining historical forces at a deeper level. In this Main Lesson they continue to explore more modern historical periods and pivotal events from the beginning of the 19th Century that have significantly changed and shaped our modern world. 

During the first week of the Main Lesson, Class 8 learnt about a range of areas including the lead up to and causes of World War One, the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand that was the final straw in the outbreak of the war, the alliances, the main theatres of war, and why Australian soldiers enlisted, with students creating their own propaganda poster to entice young Australians to join the war effort.  

The class had an immersive lesson learning about the World War One trenches where they arrived at school to find their classroom reconfigured as a mock trench, equipped with gunfire audio and a nurse's station. Through reading about the lives of a number of service men and women, students were able to put together a list of battles where the ANZAC soldiers fought, identify the range of people who enlisted, and take note of the different service areas they were part of.  

The latter part of the initial week was spent examining the Gallipoli campaign. Through reading and listening to stories from a number of firsthand accounts and perspectives, students were able to piece together the sequence of events of the Gallipoli landing, the weapons used fighting against the Ottoman Empire, and the conditions in the trenches, identifying some of the items in the soldier’s ration packs, and the many diseases rampant throughout the camps. The week was filled with many great discussions about the war and the many fascinating themes and debates that it brings up. Students have been particularly engaged with the personal stories of the men and women who experienced and lived through the war. 

After the Class 8 camp in Week 9, the students will return to the Main Lesson, learning about the role of women during the war both on the front and at home, we will also discuss the experience of Indigenous servicemen during World War One, and the cost and aftermath of World War One. 

The study of the turmoil and chaos of World War One at this age directly mirrors and speaks to the inner experience of the students, which is characterised by powerful polarities - sympathy and antipathy, confidence and uncertainty. 

Ethna Brave
English and Humanities Teacher