On Friday 3/3/18 we visited a small farm in Kulnura that consisted of two enterprises a stone fruit orchid that grew peaches, netrins and plums. The other enterprise he runs on the farm is broiler production (meat chickens) this is set up with 4 conventional broiler sheds which each shed can hold about 26 thousand chickens. When we arrived at the farm we met with the farm owner and manager tony and from here we were shown around the farm.  We were first shown the broiler sheds where we got to have a look inside the sheds and in there we were told how they manage the chickens, how they operate, what each chicken is worth, what they do daily for the chickens, how they are transported and much more. From there we went back to the shed where we had a bit of lunch and then we were shown the fruit grading system.  The fruit grading system is a machine that cleans the fruit and then sorts the fruit into different categories like weight and condition. After we finished talking about the grading system we followed tony down to the orchid where he showed us the different types of plants grown and how and what they need to grow effectively. While we were being shown around the orchid tony was saying how they manage trees and what they have to do to get the best out of their trees like pulling some flowers off each branch so other flowers can grow as big as they can and pruning to keep the trees manageable are just a few of the endless amount of things that have to be done to manage the orchid. As we finished a long talk about the trees and how the orchid is managed and shown around we wondered up to the shed and quickly talked about the climate of his region and how it is vital for his orchid production.  We finished talking about climate the day came to an end and it was time to jump on the bus after we shook Tony’s hand and said thanks we all got a lot out of it and we all know how much work is needed to run and manage a successful farm like his.

On Friday the 24/8/18 the primary industries class went up to Colo the school farm and outdoor education facility. Our sole purpose for the visit to Colo was to handle livestock and to ear tag each of the calves that needed to be tagged. It started with a 7:30am bus where we travelled for about one and a bit hours, as we arrived we got ourselves ready and prepared for the tasks that needed to be done. As the cattle had been put into the yards just before we arrived we got straight into talking the calves out of the herd and put into another holding yard. As cattle are herd animals they like to be with the rest of the herd so after we had all the un tagged calves into a separate holding yard we prepared the ear tags and applicators (the hand-held device that puts the tags into the ear) ready. While we got the calves up the race and into the crush there was no time to waste and had to work, as efficiently as possible making sure each tag was put into each ear as quickly as possible so the animal wasn’t going to overstress and be put into the herd as quickly as we could. After the tagging had all been finished we washed our hands and jumped on the bus for some lunch where we had ham and cheese roles with a bottle of water. Before we knew it we were off the bus and back into the yards where we tried to get some of the fully grown cows that had lost an ear tag and we were drafting off the cows that all their tags and were left with the ones that had their tags missing but as we were in the process was being done we unfortunately had run out of time and had to pack up and head back to school as the task was left for another day. What our class had learned that day was the hard work that goes into working with cattle, although we advanced our knowledge and sharpened our cattle handling skills we had an enjoyable day and put into practice what we had learned from the classroom and to go out of the classroom and put what we learned into practice.

PE Excursion

On the 28th of August myself and 2 classes set out on an adventure to Narrabeen sports Complex. We embarked on this journey at 8:20am where we spent an hour on a motorized vehicle until we reached the complex. Once leaving, we saw the Trbojevic brothers exiting their training session with Dylan walker.

When we arrived we quickly started the high ropes course and the title of Joeys Ninja Warrior was up for the taking. Our instructors were very informative and outlined the safety requirement before entering the course. Once we were up there, the course was difficult as you had to manoeuvre ourselves around wooden planks, thin ropes at extreme heights (100ft). After many attempts most of us attempted the difficult course, with red hands to show for it. After this the reward was quite significant of a high flying fox which everyone participated, some even flipped upside down.

At around 11:30- 12 o’clock the group journeyed over to archery in which we shot archers at around a 10 metre distance. At the beginning hitting the target anywhere was unheard of. However, towards the end of the session we became William Tell shooting apples off the top of the target. There were only a select few to achieve this incredible feat, Matt Ryan, Kane Almanci, Tommy Hannan and the King of Archery Mr Rollo. We played games, battled duos for the victory but by far the highlight a kookaburra swooping in on Mr Rollo’s sandwich.

It was safe to say that this excursion was fun, enjoyable, and demonstrated the positives of outdoor recreation.

Your family is invited to attend the opening and view the artwork at our annual Student Art Exhibition.
For parents new to the College, this large exhibition surveys the artwork of Years 7-12 students currently studying Visual Arts and Photography and Digital Media and showcasing the 2018 HSC Bodies of Work.

Date: Friday 17th August at 6.30pm.

Additional viewing times:
Saturday 18th August, 9am-1pm
Sunday 19th August, 9am-2pm