Japanese City Excursion

On 27 July, the Year 10 and Unit 1/2 Japanese classes were lucky enough to go into the city for a Japanese excursion. We started the day off by visiting the NGV international section and looking at a variety of Japanese art. One of the current temporary exhibitions is Takahiro Iwasaki’s sculpture of the Itsukushima Shrine, part of his Reflection Model series. The sculpture is primarily made from Japanese materials and gives a 3D view of the popular shrine, suspended in the middle of the room. We also looked at various artworks, some dating all the way back to the 12th century. These included pottery, bamboo sculptures and traditional folding screens known as びょうぶ (or Byōbu) in Japanese. Even the kids section had Japanese influences as it included a long sushi train display in the centre!

Next, we headed off to have lunch at Ikkoryu Fukuoka Ramen, where we experienced a traditional way of eating in Japan, and we customised our own ramen or had other traditional foods such as Chicken Katsu. After enjoying the delicious meal, we walked to Melbourne Central where we enjoyed a variety of snacks that are from Japan or popular there. Some of these included Bubble Tea, Pocky and Japanese choux pastry. 

The Japanese excursion was a very fun experience, which allowed us to learn more about Japanese culture and we saw how much it has contributed to the multicultural society we get to enjoy every day here in Melbourne

Lola Martin
Year 11

Sicilian Cooking

Year 10 Italian have been learning about ‘Gli Italiani in Australia’– the experience of people with Italian heritage living in Australia. As part of this topic, we had the privilege of participating in a Sicilian cooking class, expertly facilitated by Rosa Malignaggi and her daughter, past pupil Marcella Malignaggi. Rosa taught the class how to make arancini and crostoli. During the process, she shared the history of the recipes, stories of her family’s origin and experiences migrating to Australia. The culinary lesson ended with a shared Sicilian lunch, which also included pizza from 400 Gradi, recently named one of the top pizzeria in the world!

Wayne Murrill
Teacher

VCE Italian excursion – ACMI and the Italian Museum  

On 23 August, VCE Italian students had a bustling day in the CBD. Our first destination was the Australian Centre for the Moving Image (ACMI), which is hosting the “Goddess” exhibition until 1 September. Through iconic stories, characters and moments spanning over 120 years of moving image history, ‘Goddess’ celebrates women who forged their own roles, assumed creative control and challenged a system that sought to exploit them. We decided to visit this exhibition because our students have been studying a unit that also explores the evolving roles of women in modern society.

Our subsequent stop took us to the Italian Museum in Carlton. Our visit was divided into three parts. Initially, we engaged in an interactive presentation that focused on the push and pull factors of post-World War II Italian migration to Australia. This presentation was conducted in both English and Italian. Following this, we toured the museum, where, under the guidance of our teacher, students delved into the stories of resilience, opportunity, and transformation narrated by objects that once belonged to Italian migrants and second-generation Italian–Australians.

Lastly, our students dedicated 20 minutes to practising the general conversation section of their VCE Italian oral exam. We collaborated with VCE Italian students from Simonds Catholic College, who were also exploring the museum. Despite a slow start, everyone managed to engage in meaningful spoken exchanges, and by the end of the session, everyone felt more confident and at ease while conversing in Italian. This practice was particularly beneficial considering that the VCE Italian oral exam is just five weeks away!

Giovanni Di Fabrizio
Learning Leader: Languages  

Year 10 French Lunch

On Wednesday 2 August, the Year 10 French class had a lovely lunch. It was held in the Conference Room and we were greeted with a lovely set table and the preparation of food. The idea was to get a ‘taste of Paris’ from the College. Mr Smith made this a reality by including lovely French music and we were greeted by the scent of French onion soup, quiche and garlic bread, alongside ‘croque – monsieur’ (an open ham and cheese toasted sandwich.)

The lunch was accompanied by personalised menus and the cheerful group of students enjoyed a welcome visit from Sister Lia, who enjoyed some quiche and tart. We all had a great time, some even said that it was their most memorable and best day at Kilbreda yet! Some of the favourites were the chocolate mousse and apple “tarte tatin”.

Annabelle Michel and Adrienne Cameron
Year 12