Now that we are in the middle of Term 2, and halfway through our Year 9 electives, it is a good chance to ‘take stock’ and see the wonderful opportunities taken by students to share their ideas and learnings with each other and us.

In the Year 9 Women Can Change the World elective, students have looked at concepts around the role of women from a religious and historical perspective, and how they have influenced our story and social justice. Biblical passages, such as the Ode to a Capable Woman have allowed students to examine values. One student, creating their own ode, came up with the following insight:

She works hard and forges her path,

she is kind but firm when there is need.

She doesn’t let others suppress her,

or hold her down in a cage of expectations.

She helps in ways that very few see,

when others are asleep or focused on their needs.

Night and day she doesn’t stop.

She is courageous and protective of all she loves.

She reaches out to check in with others,

putting her feelings last.

Every now and then she should take a break,

and give herself a chance to recover.

It’s not a sin for her to cry,

to breathe, take a break and just be.

Each woman is different but the same applies,

a modern woman, capable.

Other students have looked at modern understandings of the person of Mary, creating a visual image of Mary of Kilbreda:

Hopefully, this is the beginning of seeing our junior students flourish further in their Religious Education studies, building knowledge of the breadth and depth at which they can examine their own understanding.

Jane Watkins

Learning Leader: Religious Education