Last term, the Middle School girls had many exciting opportunities for adventurous learning, including our third group heading off on their Year 9 REALISE Camp.

All Year 9 students take part in REALISE at our Crawford campus. The program supports our girls to become capable, confident and connected young women who are resilient and resourceful in the face of challenges and uncertainty.

Willow Rann has reflected on her experience.

The Lessons of REALISE

REALISE was many things and taught me even more. Everything we did on REALISE; every activity, every chore, every challenge faced always held a lesson, or even multiple, by the end of it.

By the last day, we came home with minds full of memories to be treasured and skills to take with us in all walks of life. REALISE taught us to be daring, it taught us to be flexible and to have endurance, to bounce back and persevere. Whether our arms were aching while kayaking, we were falling off boards while surfing or staring down the next rock to leap during rock climbing.

REALISE taught us to be independent and what to expect when moving into the unknown world of adulthood. This included lots of cleaning and cooking, living amicably with housemates, budgeting, ethical shopping, electricity and water management and learning the valuable lessons to never put flour in the microwave (unless you want to smell smoke for the next five hours) or let your dirty dishes pile up until your practically co-existing with a biohazard. REALISE taught us to be sustainable, to value our environment, understand our impact and do our best to save it, so we can continue appreciating it.

REALISE helped us bond, it taught us how to collaborate. It strengthened our ability to make new connections and make the most of our current ones, whether it was working to guide each other during an expedition, talking late into the night (which of course never happened), saving people’s lives in First Aid (don’t worry they were mannequins), laughing over inside jokes, getting to truly know the friends and strangers we called our cabin mates, or by pushing each other through all the tough times. REALISE taught us that you can be friends with anyone if you find the right connections. It also taught us some life lessons we never expected, like how essential communication is when solving problems, how important upholding trust, integrity and honesty is within your relationships, and what true friends are.

If I could describe REALISE as one thing, it would be unforgettable. All those moments spent with friends were incredibly and I have never felt closer to them. All the highlights filled with elation and to be cherished, like finally standing and gliding over waters on a surfboard, laying the tiles of the mosaic that will immortalise our place and impact on Crawford forever, sitting in the comfort of my own tent with book in hand proud of all I had learnt to get there, valuing the beauty of nature up close while having the opportunity to hold the Coorong’s stunning birds and feeling my kayak cut through glassy waters, appreciating every smooth movement as it drove me forward. I even cherish the lows, which always held something to be grateful for and an important lesson to take forward.

REALISE will forever be with me, and I am eternally thankful for this experience.

Willow Rann

Middle School Prize Giving Assembly

Please note that the Middle School Prize Giving Assembly date has changed to Thursday 2 December. Further details about the event will be emailed to parents closer to the date.

Ava's Starring Role

We are looking forward to seeing our own Year 8 student Ava Maios in the upcoming Netflix young adult drama series Gymnastics Academy: A Second Chance!.

Set in the world of teenage competitive gymnastics, Gymnastics Academy: A Second Chance! is a TV spin-off from feature film A Second Chance. It is the first South Australian production to secure a commission from Netflix and we congratulate Ava on this amazing opportunity.