Don Menounos Task 1:

The Teachers Of Reddam House

This is my second year at Reddam House and it’s a great school. The teachers really care and everybody is welcoming and friendly. Even though the school lacks massive ovals and high buildings, Reddam house has the best teachers and that’s more important.

The teachers that teach Reddam House in year 7 are the best!

My English teacher Mr Francis, is very nice and sort of like me because he is a very funny teacher and likes to make jokes. He also has 3 earrings on one ear.

My Maths teacher Mrs Freedmen, is full of mathematical wisdom. If you don’t set out your work correctly or pick up you pen while she’s talking, she will become very angry. If you mark and do you homework she will reward you. She is an extremely fair teacher.

My Science teacher Mrs Maloney, is a very knowledgeable person and has the funniest Irish accent. She has a lot of scientific wisdom and is an inspiring person although, I have had only a few lessons with her. She is a role model for me.

My Geography teacher Mr Patella is a ‘legendary beast’. He is always outdoors and he knows all the different trees outside. He has a video of his scoobadiving to the bottom of the sea and swimming into a broken ship. He says, “ If you aren’t dying at the bottom of the sea on a boat then you aren’t living life to the fullest.” He is impressive in character and muscle. My geography teacher is head of the ‘green’ house Macquarie, and ofcourse the emblem is a tree!

My Tutor teacher Mr Messemeris, is a legend. He is Greek and he is extremely optimistic. He tells us to have a wonderful day or else he’ll follow us up. He is a very nice teacher to be with.

My Chinese teacher Miss Yeh, is a fair teacher. She likes the whole class to listen when she’s talking. I have had her for a year and I think she is a very good teacher. She listens when you need help and she is very nice when it comes to demerits. She doesn’t give a demerit unless you deserve it.

My sport teacher Matt, is a persevering coach. He is such a good teacher and  helps me in water polo and also makes jokes in PDH. Even though he broke his leg, he still gets in the water to help us in water polo. Matt is truly an inspiring man.

My Design and Technology teacher Mr Johnson, is a funny man. He knows all the different woods and he is always there when you need him. I have enjoyed all the classes.

My Public Speaking teacher Mrs Karney is such an awesome teacher. She isn’t afraid to shout at us and she has fun Public Speaking games that we can all play.

Meeting my teachers has been tremendous; they are so nice and they really care about you. They are always ready for questions. I like all my new teachers at Reddam House and I would like to know more about them.

By Don Menounos

Year 7 camp Gemma Eagle Task 1

On the 2nd of February Year 7 went on camp. To say I enjoyed every second of it would be a lie, to say I didn’t enjoy any of it would also be a lie. To say there were moments when you felt fear, nervousness and shock, would not be a lie but the truth.

The Giant Swing was an example of fear. Harnessed, you were pulled up in the air and then were to pull a rope dangling in front of you to come down making it the giant swing. Down on the ground, it looked a lot less high up than it did in the air. 1,2,3 pull. Swinging through the air with the wind blowing all around you is an amazing feeling, but coming to a stop with a camp instructor grabbing your feet is not quite as amazing as the first part of the experience.

One of the other coolest activities was most definitely caving. Torch, helmet, and the knowledge that there were going to be itsy bitsy gaps to squish through were all you went in with. The caves in Cataract Scout Park were the tiniest little caves I have ever seen let alone had to crawl through. Crawling along the ground in the light of torches, listening to the sound of people yelling at you to hurry up, not being able to see where you are putting your hands is a very interesting thing to do. At one stage during the caving, I put my hand on what I thought was a slug, later I was told it was in fact a leach! Not exactly what you want to hear on your second day of camp when you still had Challenge Valley to go.

Orienteering. Compass, map and a group full of people whom half of us held the map upside down. The map being upside down, and not knowing which needle in the compass pointed north, its no wonder we got lost and only found two of the ten pointers. Orienteering was hilarious and tiring and most of all HOT. The temperature was unbelievable so we found our way back to the scout hall less than half way through the time limit we had. In the scout hall we suggested playing sleeping lions and that’s what we did. It was relaxing!

The other activity I enjoyed the most was the waterslide! I think I enjoyed it because all the groups were there not just the people in my group. Because everyone was there it was more fun and I met a lot of new people at the waterslide. I came to Reddam knowing ten people and because of camp I know everybody in our year. Also the waterslide was fun because it was a waterslide!!! Of course it was going to be fun, especially when you could go down in chains.

Year seven camp was a great experience. Full of laughs, making new friendships, mud, amazing activities and most of all FUN!!! All I can say is I cant wait for year eight camp next year!

Hannah Rubinstein- task 1

FIRST DAY

Lulu sits in the playground, waiting for the bell. Her thoughts and emotions swirl. Who will her classmates be? Will her teachers be friendly? How will she ever find her way around the school? Lulu imagines vast, empty classrooms, vicious, malicious teachers, tight knots of friends in which she is not welcome. Lulu tries to calm the butterflies in her stomach and gets up as the bell begins to ring.

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Emily walks slowly up the unwelcoming yellow stairs towards reception.
'Hello?' she ventures, timidly. 'Where is my room?'
She receives the answer happily, and almost sprints to the safety of her classroom. Emily worries. What if her students hate her? Or worse, what if the teachers hate her? Emily waits until the bell rings, then gathers her folders and walks to the field.

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Lulu lines up at the back of an exceedingly long line, trying to peer over her classmates' shoulders to see the teacher standing at the front. She catches a glimpse of him - a bulky man in his mid-forties, wearing a grey suit. His shoes, she notices, shine brightly in the sun. His balding head shines just as much as his shoes. She giggles.

A small, nervous-looking teacher approaches. Lulu smiles. The teacher is carrying a bundle of books and folders. The shiny, balding teacher introduces the small rabbity young woman whom Lulu has already noticed as Miss Emily Jones.

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Emily walks into the staffroom at break. All heads turn and look at the new arrival. She puts her head low, hoping her hair will cover her burning cheeks. She creeps to a table at the back and sits down, chewing on her peanut butter sandwich. A handful of other young teachers join her table and start talking to her. She answers monosyllabically, but soon finds herself relaxing and talking to them properly. She finds out their names and they talk about the subjects they teach and the kids they have taught.

Emily finds herself caught up in the animated conversation and starts to enjoy herself. The peanut butter becomes more than a lump of soggy bread, her flaming cheeks cool and she feels at home.

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Lulu sits by herself at lunch, unsure of where to go or what to do. Three girls call to her and motion for her to sit down. She sits, relieved to have found some friends. They talk about school, tell Lulu about themselves. Lulu relaxes and starts realising that high school isn't so bad.

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Emily leaves the staff room happily, contented with her new friends. As she walks down the corridor, she thinks about her next class. Year Seven. English. She smiles. They are new too.

Task 1: Hugo Powell

We finally arrived at camp, and got off the bus. It was boiling outside. The teachers and instructors told us to put our bags by the campfire and make our way to the dining hall. I sat next to the only person I knew at the time, his name is Daniel Mallat. We were both new so we didn’t know anyone. After eating and drinking, the instructors came up and introduced themselves. If I could remember their names then I’d probably write them down, but to be honest that sort of stuff doesn’t stick in my mind for very long. Anyway, after the instructors introduced themselves, they told us to get into groups of four and go to a cabin. So Daniel and I stuck together but we needed two more people before we could go into a cabin. We found out that there were no more cabins left anyway and there was a group of kids who didn’t have a cabin. Some other kids came out and said that they had six beds instead of four. Then the instructors chose me and another kid called Jay to go in their cabin. This was just great. A cabin full of people who knew each other, and me who doesn’t know anyone at all!

So I walked in and put my bag under the bed. Then a boy named Roderick introduced himself and then he introduced me to the rest of the cabin. And as soon as I was finally settled in, we had to go to lunch. Roderick asked me to sit next to him. He pointed out some other people and told me their names. It was turning out quite well after all. But then we had to go to our activities, which I didn’t mind, except I only knew one kid in my group. So we went to our first activity which was the flying fox. I wasn’t really in the mood to do it so I sat down with a few of the other people who didn’t go on. There I met Alex Markezinis and Ben Shvarts. Our next activity was caving, which I wasn’t looking to forward to. I don’t like being in small areas for very long, but I did it anyway. It was really annoying because I couldn’t lift my head because my helmet kept hitting the ceiling. I was behind Jonathan Christianos and we made it to the end of the cave. Our instructor wanted us to go back in while he hid somewhere in the cave. But Jonathan and I had got enough grazes and scratches so we sat out with Mr. Mezimeris and Ben. Well anyway, they’re most of the people I met and the rest of the activities weren’t that great, except one. The giant swing.

It was the last day, everybody wanted to go home, but we still had a couple of activities left. And one I was looking forward to. Roderick told me that it was really fun and that I should definitely go to the top, which I was obviously going to do. So when we got to the area, our instructor showed us how to put on a harness (again) and how to use the swing safely. One person would be strapped on to a rope and the rest would have to pull the person up with another rope. Then the person on the swing would pull a chord and go flying. I think the swing was about fifteen meters. Well anyway, after pulling the rope heaps of times, it was finally my go. I was last. I wasn’t really nervous at all. I had watched everyone else do it and it didn’t look that high, but was I wrong! When I reached the top it looked so much higher.  I heard my instructor say “PULL!” and without thinking I pulled the chord. It felt like my stomach completely left my body. I was falling down, and then I went up, and then down, and then up. It was so cool. And after that we had rock climbing. But no one wants to hear about that, we all know what it is. So after our last activity, it was finally time to go home.

Kenneth Koon Task 2

                                                 Autobiography

Ok my life may be boring to you, but if you read on you'll understand.
First day of school, I walked into gates. Knowing that I had just walked into The Underworld, I decided to act very shy.
But eventually I made new friends. I'll name a few. I dunno if I can name them all but I'll try. Ok, Maxmo Collins, Sam Newton,
Bella Kable, Harrison Stein and Kenny Wong.

Day 2

We were welcomed by Mr Johnson on arrival at the Gym. We recieved our dairies and timetables and headed off to class.
It was awesome to meet new friends and meet teachers. Firt teacher I met was Mr Francis. The most awesome teacher, I have ever met.
Reddam was much better than my old school. Camp early, Swimming Carnival early, Funny teachers and Fun activites.

Day 3
Getting bored of classes, I coped with our teachers. D and T is probably may favorite subject right now. It's very fun.
Drama was also very fun. Aside from our friends and me ACCIDENTELY messing up. Drama was awesome.

Day 4
Getting more boring. I nearly fell asleep in Maths Class. Thank god, Mrs Friedman did not see that. Maths was my best
but worst subject. Although  I'm good at it, Maths never appeals to me.

The rest of the days just got more boring, but I survived them.

Kenneth Koon Task 1

                                            The First 2 weeks at Reddam
The first week of Reddam was awesome. Day one started with our Maths and English tests to see what classes we would be in.
Boring as! I couldn't wait for the tests to finish.

Swimming Carnival and Camp, the two most memorable events of the first week. Bennelong, Maquarie, Darling, Piper. 4 teams.
Swimming in the race was lots of fun because Bennelong won for the first time in history! Yay! However, none of this was
as good as the School Camp.

The neXt day was School Camp. Away from our parents was probably the best thing that happened to me. We got to do whatever
we wanted to do, stay up late, eat lollies, chat wih friends, even have sleepovers. Nothing could've been better. So, we
were on the track to Cataract Scout Park, Wollongong. On arrivial, we stumbled right into the kitchen, where we had our daily
meals. After having lunch, we did many acivities.

Camp was not as good as I expected. Aside from people looking into ur stuff, we also repeatedly found our snacks in the
toilets. However, all this was gone from my memory as we started the Waterslide.


On the second week, it was a normal school day. I quickly grew from being super shy to being able to know everyone.
Maths English, Science, Art, Music. Some of the boring subjects of school. English and Art were not too bad. Mr Francis
and Mr Conroy being the best teachers, I loved the subjects.

My first two weeks were awesome!

Masih Sadat Shafai Task 1

My Experiences of the First Two Weeks At Reddam House

During the first two weeks at Reddam House, I made friends; I got familiar with the School and met the teachers. Reddam House has a great environment, and I really couldn’t say I had met a teacher that was unfair or mean. The students there are also very kind, and are very open to the new students.


During Year Seven Camp, I Made friends, familiarised myself with the personalities of some of the teachers, and overcame fears. During camp we participated in many different activities, and I had a second chance on some things that I did not think I would ever be able to get a second chance on. And this time, unlike last time, I made the most of that chance. I also decided that it is my main goal for camp to make friends and get to know the teachers.


At first it was a strange feeling to go to another school, it just didn’t feel like school usually does. However after a while, I got used to it. The second Monday day was quite fun, it was nice to actually meet the teachers and get an idea on what we would do in the next year. During the first two weeks I discovered that I really liked English, Geography and Design and Technology, however the only subject that really surprised me that I liked out of my three favourite ones was geography, I really didn’t think I would like geography, I thought it was just knowing where everything was on the map, but its very different.


Assemblies at my old school were very boring, however, the assemblies at Reddam House are a lot better. I used to always think of assemblies as teachers telling us not to litter or chew gum, the principal going on about how this is the best school in the world and that she has been to so many horrific schools, that we are so much better than them, and saying she remembers when all of us were in kindergarten and she taught us, when half of us did not even go to the same school in kindergarten. However, in Reddam House, the assemblies are so much better, the teachers speeches are so interesting, and the students perform in term two and term three, which I am looking forward to.


On the second Thursday I also joined debating. And I am vey happy I did so, I believe that joining debating was one of my smartest moves since coming into Reddam House. I enjoy debating so much, and after I got to meet Mrs Karney (the public speaking teacher, and the person that organises Reddam House debating), I decided that I should definitely join debating.


One the second Friday, I got to wear the formal uniform (I wore the formal uniform on the second Friday because the during the first, we were at camp). There was something about wearing a blazer and a tie that made me feel different, superior, it even made me feel a bit smarter; it made me feel a bit like I was in a higher rank or position. Maybe because the people you see wearing these things are smarter, and could be in a higher rank or position.


At the end of the day, I have to say I really like Reddam House, and I feel that I belong in it, that it is my school. I like the environment and the people, I like the teachers, I like the extra curricular activities, and most of all I like the school in general. The first two weeks were great, and I really appreciate all the effort that the teachers put into it for it to be so good.