Ivanhoe Students Abroad
During the Term 2 holiday break, over 40 students have had the opportunity to take part in a variety of international trips to New Caledonia, Cambodia and the UK. Each trip focuses on a different learning area from the school curriculum, as well as providing opportunities for sightseeing and adventure activities in their host country.
As a member of Round Square, Ivanhoe Grammar School shares the vision of taking education, personal development and responsibility beyond the classroom and to further international understanding and educate through service. As part of the School’s commitment to Round Square, each year a group of students and teachers travel to Cambodia to work with various organisations in the community such as Happy Football Cambodia, Plan Cambodia, Daughters of Cambodia and Angkor Kids Centre.
The 2014 Cambodian Service Team departed Melbourne on Saturday 21 June and have experienced a great deal so far, including learning more about Happy Football Cambodia and playing a game of soccer with some of their players, teaching English to primary school students and a trip to the Killing Fields where students learnt how the events of the Pol Pot regime affected the Cambodian culture. So far the trip to Cambodia has provided an intriguing and insightful experience to the Cambodian culture and one that students and teachers will never forget.
Another group of students and staff attended the Round Square Conference – Destination Dreaming North Stradbroke Island which focused on developing an understanding of Indigenous cultures from the Quandamooka people. The seven day program provided students with an insight into the cultural, political and environmental perspectives of the Island through a range of activities. These included learning the uses of native flora and fauna, helping local elders clean the foreshore from rubbish and debris washed ashore, visiting the local primary school to assist with literacy and numeracy and discovering family heritage and connectedness of the Quandamooka people with their environment.
Students from the Middle Years French Program departed Melbourne on Thursday 19 June for a seven night language tour in Noumea, New Caledonia. Students attended intensive French lessons at the CREIPAC language centre (which was located in an old prison) in order to further develop their conversational skills. Students also enjoyed activities such as kayaking, swimming, a visit to the zoo, learning about Indigenous history and artefacts and experiencing music, cultural dancing and sampling local delicacies.
The Ivanhoe Grammar School Boys’ Cricket team returned on Saturday 28 June from an international tour to the UK. The team from ‘Down Under’ played matches against the best of British school teams and also had the opportunity to do some sightseeing along the way. Among these was a visit to a 600 year old school, seeing Durham Cathedral which provided the backdrop to many scenes in the Harry Potter movies were filmed and finally a trip to the world famous Lord’s Cricket Ground. The team enjoyed playing against new competitors and also won most of their matches!
Ivanhoe Grammar School provides many opportunities for students to participate in out-of-classroom experiences with a focus on service projects, language, sport, the arts and much more. These trips allow students to experience different cultures, make connections with students across the globe and provide an enriching learning environment.
,,
