DE HOLIDAY CONNECT Luke Reifler
Distance Education is a vibrant and dynamic part of the College community and we have the honour and privilege of becoming involved with the lives of our students and their families in a remote way. With almost 800 students across Kindergarten to Year 12, our staff always look forward to opportunities when they can meet ‘in real life’ with those we usually only interact with online.
In the final three days of the July school holidays, DE students gathered for our DE Holiday Connect program. Those who joined these days were treated to marvellous weather, exciting connections and interesting activities. It began with two On Campus days, which gave a great opportunity to explore the College and enjoy our facilities.
Exclamations such as “This is the best day of the year!”, “I loved being in the Recording Studio the most!”, “I’m so happy to see my friends again” or “I didn’t know anyone when I arrived but I had a great time!” were quite commonly heard.
Some of the exciting DE Holiday Connect activities that were experienced during the on campus days were:
Class Connect (ice breakers and Campus tours)
Science experiments
Creative Writers Workshop
Drama/HSIE activities
VR Lumination Lab and Recording Studio
Food Technology cooking
Art and Music
Chapel Music and Gospel Message
Sports, games and skills
Recess and Lunch chats and games
The two On Campus days were also a wonderful opportunity for DE parents to connect with each other and with staff over a delightful brunch. This allowed intentional time for chatting and also to hear about the diverse DE community and College supports that are available, such as remote counselling.
On the third day of DE Holiday Connect, we went to Luna Park! The fun in the sun, with unlimited rides at Luna Park, allowed for a range of experiences, with each person able to decide how ‘mild or wild’ they wanted it to be. It was also a highlight for anyone from out of town to enjoy time around the iconic Sydney Harbour.
For our staff team, these days were a particular highlight as we too gathered together from across the state and got to spend some quality time together. It was certainly an enriching experience for everyone and we look forward to the future when we may be able to do something like this again. Until then, we look forward to connecting online and strengthening our community.
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