Instagram

I know not everybody loves social media; however, the school makes use of Instagram to highlight activities which our students have been involved in. If you care to look (@aranmorecc), you will see that the students have been involved in an enormous variety of opportunities to extend their learning, within, and outside the classroom, our students have participated in:

• Netball matches against Singapore schools
• Rugby matches against Gold Coast schools and others
• Participation in satellite planning projects with Edith Cowan University and NASA
• The Senior Ball
• Cooking food for victims of domestic violence
• Virtual reality in Science classes
• Our Music camp
• Mini class drama productions
• Sports Carnivals
• Outdoor Ed camps
• WASO excursion
• Media Class to Channel 9 news

And the list goes on.

I would like to acknowledge and thank the teachers for providing these learning opportunities which go far and beyond the confines of the curriculum.

Principals

Our new Principal, Lisa Fogliani, will commence working on the amalgamation in Terms 3 and 4. She will be operating at the College, at the primary school and at the Catholic Education Office.

I will continue as Principal for the remainder of the year.

Jonnine Lamborne will conclude her role as Principal of Aranmore Catholic Primary School at the end of this term. We thank her for the many interactions which the two schools have had in recent years. We congratulate her on a fantastic career, and we wish her well in the next part of the journey.

Sr Janina

This wonderful photo, unearthed from the College's archives, was taken in 1965 when Sr Janina was a young nun. She hasn’t aged a day!

Brother Olly Pickett - A special presentation by 2025 Senior Australian of the Year

Brother Olly will be sharing his inspiring stories from a 27-year journey of service, during which he has dedicated his life to helping disadvantaged children through the gift of mobility. His efforts have changed thousands of lives - one wheelchair at a time.

This presentation, hosted by Floreat Wembley Catholic Parish, is a powerful message about compassion, resilience, and the impact of selfless service. Brother Olly’s story is a testament to how one person can make a lasting difference in the world. – 

To book: https://www.trybooking.com/DDCHI

Mr Declan Tanham
Principal

Dear Parents and Caregivers,

I am writing to share with you that Catholic Education WA (CEWA) has announced it intends to implement a three-week mid-year break across its 150 schools from the 2027 academic year.

The implementation of this initiative will not only bring our school in line with practices at other Independent Catholic Schools but is based on significant research into how the change will positively impact teaching, learning, and wellbeing.

I want to stress that there won’t be any changes to the hours of instruction your child receives as a result of this initiative, however small adjustments to individual term calendars and school timetables may be required.

As CEWA prepares to implement this initiative, they are welcoming feedback from our students, parents, staff, and community members. I encourage you to submit any feedback you may have via this form.

Mr Wayne Bull
Executive Director

We appreciate your continued support in helping us maintain a safe, respectful, and well-functioning school environment. Please take note of the following reminders:

🔹 Unwell Students
Please do not send your child to school if they are unwell. This helps protect the health of other students and staff. We thank you for being considerate of our school community.

🔹 Parent Access to School Grounds
Parents are not permitted on school grounds during school hours without prior approval. If you need to speak to your child or a staff member, please report to the Front Office.

🔹 Answering School Phone Calls
We kindly ask parents and guardians to save the school’s phone number (9201 5200) in their contacts to avoid missing important calls from the College.

🔹 Label Uniform Items
Please ensure that your child’s name is clearly marked on all items of their uniform. This makes it much easier to return lost property.

🔹 Late Arrivals
If your child is running late, please notify the College as soon as possible (absentee@aranmore.wa.edu.au or 9201 5277 or via SEQTA). This helps us avoid unnecessary follow-ups and ensures students aren’t issued a recess detention for unexplained lateness.

The Uniform Shop will be open on Tuesday 22 July (first week back in Term 3) from 8am to 1:30pm.

Normal Uniform Shoping Hours during the term are: 
Tuesdays 11:00am - 1:30pm
Fridays 8:00am - 11:30am

Please note that appointments are not required during the term. Appointments are generally only offered during anticipated busy times.

To submit an absence you will need to:
Log into SEQTA Engage.   (If you are unable to log in, use your email address as your user name and click FORGOT PASSWORD.  You will receive an email to reset your password.)

1) Once you have logged in, click on ABSENCES in the menu panel. 
2) Select NEW ABSENCE and select your child’s name. 
3) Complete all of the mandatory sections.  *** make sure to select the exact time frame related if your child is only absent for part of the day ***
4) Click SUBMIT.

If you have any difficulties, please email our SEQTA co-ordinator, Mrs Wolmarans at -   corlie.wolmarans@cewa.edu.au.

Year 7 & Year 10 - Term 2 Wrap

As Term 2 draws to a close, we reflect on the exciting and enriching experiences our Year 7 and Year 10 students have had.

Year 7 Adventures: The Year 7 students kicked off Term 2 with a bang, spending two days at the Swanleigh Recreation Camp. These days were filled with activities focused on team building, working together, and challenging themselves. From obstacle courses to team challenges, the students had a fantastic time developing their skills and forging new friendships.

Parent-Teacher Interviews: Both Year 7 and Year 10 students had the opportunity to meet with their teachers during the parent-teacher interviews. This was a valuable time for students and parents to discuss progress, set goals, and strengthen the home-school partnership.

Extracurricular Opportunities: This term offered numerous opportunities for students to get involved in extracurricular activities. The lightning carnivals, NWAS sporting carnival was a highlight, showcasing the sporting talents of our students. The music camp provided a creative outlet for our budding musicians, while the rugby and netball games brought out the competitive spirit in many.

Year 10 Milestones: For the Year 10 students, this term marked their first experience with exams. This brought a range of emotions, from nervousness to excitement, as they navigated this important milestone. Following the exams, students began the subject selection process, starting to consider their pathways for Years 11 and 12. This is an exciting time as they begin to shape their future academic and career goals.

As we look back on Term 2, we celebrate the growth, achievements, and memories made. We look forward to what the next term will bring for our vibrant school community. Have a wonderful break, and see you all in Term 3!

Mr Craig Rodgers
Dean of Students - Year 7 & Year 10

Congratulations to Quaide Kahotea who has been selected into the WA Maori rugby league team which will travel to NZ on the 2 July to represent WA in the U14s Teina Tama Tournament. All the best Quaide!

IGNIS Mission Student Interns Program

Six students from Aranmore Catholic College were chosen to go to ECU Joondalup for the IGNIS mission, which is an 8-year plan to research fires started by lightning. We, along with 22 other schools, were lucky enough to be selected to be part of Phase 1 of the three-phase mission - a collaborative project involving Australian Universities and NASA. Phase 3 of the mission involves travelling to Jupiter to study its storm patterns and apply this research to the storms on Earth. 

The Welcome Event started with an introductory talk by Professor Paulo de Souza, the Executive Dean of Engineering, we then had a Zoom call with NASA scientist, Dr Aaron Perenira, who answered questions we had about NASA. Secondly, we toured ECU’s Engineering buildings, mostly in the technology and robotics areas. Furthermore, we attended a psychology session held by Dr Greenwell-Barnden, this showed us different types of resilience and how to overcome tough engineering obstacles or just challenges in general! We were able to get the captivating opportunity of experiencing the clean room, where we had to wear a hairnet, gloves and white suit. After taking several photos, we were able to play a non-released engineering game that challenged our thinking skills to solve conundrums.
 - Anika Perry, Zac Orsi, Henry Howard, Joseph Wardjiman

On our second visit to ECU for the IGNIS Program we had attended two different workshops. The first being Materials with Professor Laichang Zhang. During this workshop we looked at how nitinol changes to its original shape when reacting with hot water, after having deconstructed it. This was used to show the way in which the satellite folds outwards once it has begun to orbit around the Earth. Then we used a Universal Testing Machine to determine whether a sample was steel or aluminium.

The second workshop was Additive Manufacturing with Dr Ana Vafadar. During this workshop we used the CAD software to construct and design a heat sink for electrical components, which will be useful when constructing the satellite. Lastly we had a look at a few 3D printers and got an insight into how they work. - Kimberely McLeary

Education Perfect Sustainable Oceans Competition

In the lead-up to World Ocean Day, Year 7 and 8 AEP students showcased their knowledge in the Education Perfect Sustainable Oceans Competition. Congratulations to our top four performers: Martin Ma, who placed in the top 2% of competitors worldwide, Zac Orsi and Jack Stalteri, both scoring in the top 5%, and Benjamin Gillam, who ranked in the top 10% globally. Well done!

AQWA excursion Term 2 

Students in the Academic Extension Program visited AQWA, where they attended a Shark Biologist presentation, enjoyed a guided tour of the Shipwreck Coast Tunnel, and experienced a behind-the-scenes glass-bottom boat ride — the highlight of the day! - Miss Cerny (Academic Extension Program Coordinator)

"My favourite part of our trip to AQWA was going on the glass bottom boat and learning about the animals there. It was also very intriguing to learn about all of the different shark species." Khloe Lepidi

To wrap up our marine biology topic this year, Year 7 and 8 students in the AEP program enjoyed a screening of David Attenborough’s new film Ocean (complete with popcorn, of course), followed by a thoughtful class discussion and reflection on the film’s key messages.

Miss Sonya Cerny
Academic Extension Program (AEP) Coordinator 

A lot has been happening in our department this term…

Visual Arts

Oxford Street has been made even more vibrant thanks to the help of our Year 9 Visual Arts students and visiting artist, Trevor Bly, who collaborated with the City of Vincent to design and decorate a series of planter boxes along Oxford Street. You might have caught our story on socials, where teacher Julie Pannell explained the motivation and process behind this cultural project. We hope you can get down to Oxford Street to see our amazing artists’ work. (Images courtesy of City of Vincent)

After school art workshop

It has been a busy time at Aranmore with a select group of Year 6 students attending an afterschool Art class. The project aims to foster a relationship with Aranmore Primary School and this term’s focus is on Photography. Students have learnt the fundamentals of a digital SLR and how to take photographs based on the Elements and Principals of Design. Students also had the opportunity to recreate the work of famous Black and White photographers such as Ansell Adams and Henri Cartier Bresson, with spectacular results. These photos will be displayed in the Art Exhibition towards the end of the year.

Speaking of our end of year Art Exhibition, preparations have already begun for this event, which will be held at Aranmore Primary School for the first time. This is an exciting step towards our amalgamation as a College and we can’t wait to show the amazing talent shared between our primary and secondary artists!

Woodwork

There have been plenty of changes in the Woodwork room this term, with our teacher, Phil Brooks finishing up in Week 3. Phil was filling in and will be replaced by our new Woodwork teacher at the start of Term 3. A big thanks Warren Hawes for filling in for the remainder of this term and helping our students to complete their projects.

Media

Our Year 9 Media students learnt all about the news with their annual pilgrimage to the Channel 9 News Studios. The classes enjoyed learning the ins and outs of making a great story and saw what a real news studio looks like.

During Term 2, Aranmore was fortunate to host two extremely talented members of its alumni: Sampson McCrackan and Benjamin Mitchell. Sampson and Ben have recently graduated from university and returned to Aranmore with a wealth of knowledge in film and media production. They conducted cinematography workshops with our current Year 11 and 12 Media students, giving them insight into the art of camera movement, composition, and lighting.

The sessions were engaging and enlightening for our senior media students, who gained hands-on experience and practical tips from professionals who once sat in the same classrooms. Sampson and Ben were among the first students at Aranmore to take Media Production and Analysis as an ATAR subject. It was incredibly heartening to see them back here, inspiring the next generation of budding filmmakers.

Drama

Term 2 has been an exciting time in the Drama department, filled with performances, and excursions for our students.

Our Year 7 students have been exploring the world of Circus. Their end-of-term showcases were full of energy, colour and creativity. It was a fantastic introduction to performance and stage presence.

In Year 8, students have been looking at children’s theatre. They performed their fairytale pieces to the Aranmore Primary Pre-Primary students. These performances were filled with engaging storytelling, imaginative characters and interactive moments.

Our Year 9 Drama class devised their own performances and attended a compelling production of Radium Girls at Corpus Christi College. The performance offered a powerful exploration of historical themes and showcased the effectiveness of ensemble work and dramatic tension. Students found it both inspiring and relevant to their own studies in dramatic storytelling.

Meanwhile, our Year 10 and 11 students had the exciting opportunity to attend Sister Act at Crown Theatre. What a show it was! Starring Casey Donovan and Rhonda Birchmore, among other talented singers, the show was an extravaganza of music, sequins and pure joy!

We are incredibly proud of the enthusiasm, creativity and maturity shown by our students this term. We look forward to building on these experiences in Term 3 with even more performance opportunities and artistic challenges.

A big announcement is coming! Please keep an eye on the notices and socials next term for my information!

Music

Our Music students visited the Night Owl recording studio this term to learn about live music venues and to try their hands at recording their own songs. It was a full-on day of learning and students came away with a great appreciation for the work that goes into performing and recording in the music industry.

The Young Rockers event at the Rosemount Hotel was also an amazing event, with two of our rock bands performing along with other groups from the College and other schools. The students put on an amazing show and had the audience rocking out to some classic hits. Congratulations to the students who did our college proud with their heartfelt performances.

CPAF is nearing and students are gearing up with rehearsals and preparations for their performances next term. These rehearsals intensified as students attended the CPAF Camp in

In Week 8-9 of the term, students spent three days focusing on their performances, honing their skills and building strong relationships with their peers.

We had just over 50 students attend the Camp this year at Point Walter, with the camp ranning from Sunday afternoon until Tuesday afternoon and it was a wonderful success.

Musically, we achieved a lot in our time there, rehearsing intensely every ensemble that is offered at the College in preparation for CPAF next term. We are grateful to all of the tutors who made their way to Point Walter to direct their particular group (Coralie Kan, Luke Savage, James Sewell, Ciaran Mullin).

The students were excellent throughout camp and all got on well across the years with new friendships and collaborations formed. It was cold but that didn’t dampen their spirits and the student leaders stepped up each night to coordinate activities and on the last night they ran a musical quiz. Well done on an amazing job - the students had a ball.

A very special thanks must go to Mat Tchan for driving the bus full of equipment on Sunday afternoon (his daughter’s birthday), to Point Walter so we could start rehearsing asap, much appreciated Mat. Thanks also to Mark O’ Brien who came to pick up the equipment on Tuesday afternoon.

Lastly, an enormous shout out to Stephanie Knowles and Ciaran Mullin for coming along for the entire camp, sacrificing time with their families and making it a seamless, enjoyable place to be for a few days whilst achieving musical goals.

Compiled by Mrs Katherine Miller - Arts & Technologies

DISMANTLE 2025

The Dismantle BikeRescue is an award-winning accredited program that uses bike mechanics as a vehicle for outreach, engagement and mentoring. Students enjoyed stripping and rebuilding two recycled bikes, one for themselves, the other to be donated to charity.

It was awesome see students develop their skills and confidence over the 10-week period, and the finished bikes were a true reflection of their hard work and talent.

ONSITE

Our ONSITE students have been completing their blocks of work experience with students undertaking the Specialists condensed program continuing over the school holidays to ensure they have a full pre-apprenticeship qualification by the end of the school year.

Kiel Biss -World Trades

Shout out to Kiel Biss, who travelled to Brisbane in June to participate in the Tiling division of the World Skills competition as part of Team WA. Well Done Kiel!

Try-A-Trade and Career Discovery Course

Some IEC and Cert in Employment Pathways students attended TAFE recently for an immersive day of career exploration. They finished the day with an enjoyable VR experience.

Coming Up…

Pop into the library, say g’day and check out our info boards which include information about upcoming courses, holiday programs, workshops, and jobs.

If you need help updating your resume or applying for anything, pop into see myself, Sascha Gwynne or Barb Keelan for a chat or make an appointment. Remember to add any volunteering or work experience over the holidays to your pastoral service booklets!

Year 9 - Step Up
Year 9s interested in getting a headstart in the trades industry, apply for STEP Up now! You get to complete the units for a Construction Pre-apprenticeship (Tiling Focus) attending Balga TAFE one day per week throughout the year, with the work experience component to be completed in Year 11.

Career Taster Program:
In Term 3 and 4, our Year 9 students get an opportunity to participate in the Career Taster Program with TAFE. We are busy organising a variety of ‘tasters’ for all to experience “a day in the life of” where our students attend a full day workshop experiencing a range of different careers tailor made and facilitated just for them. For more information, click here on Year 9 Career Taster Program | Jobs and Skills WA

Subject Selection -Year 10s

A big couple of weeks ahead for Year 10 students... Please take some time over the holidays to think about your subject selections for Years 11 and 12. Course selection meetings will be held during Week 3, next term. Parents welcome to attend.

Hints with subject selection:
- Speak with family, friends who know you well, ask them what they can see you doing.
- Set realistic goals- Use your semester 1 report as a guide. Pre-requisites are in place for a reason. We want you to succeed. Ask your HoLA if unsure, they will help guide you.
- Do some research, find a career path that interests you and work backwards. Check out Course handbook, requirements and unit descriptions.

If you would like to book in a pathway’s session before your meeting, please Seqta Claire Drabble for an appointment.

Stay productive over the Holidays

Pop into the library, say g’day, and check out our info boards — you’ll find details about upcoming courses, holiday programs, workshops, and job opportunities.

If you need help updating your resume or applying for a job, feel free to drop in for a chat with me, Sascha Gwynne, or Barb Keelan — or make an appointment.

And don’t forget to record any volunteering or work experience from the holidays in your pastoral service booklet!

Info for Year 12 - TISC important dates:

Applications are still open to majority of university courses until 18 December
19 December: ATAR results released
23 December: First round of offers sent to students
15 January 2023: Closing date for second round preferences
20 January 2023: Second round of offers sent to students

For a full copy of all the latest TISC information, see the latest school guide here  TISC Circular

TAFE Applications for 2026

TAFE courses for 2026 are out! Please see below. Info is also advertised in SEQTA. Applications for Semester 1, 2026 will open in mid-July.

Students interested can find the study guides here: 

North Metro TAFE North Metropolitan TAFE - 2026 VETDSS Course List_V1 (1).pdf

South Metro TAFE 2026 SM TAFE VETDSS Course Guide List.pdf

ONSITE Offers Closing Soon

ONSITE is a Workplace Learning group that oversees nine Catholic schools and is based at Aranmore. The team at ONSITE work closely with employers to ensure students have the best possible first experience into the world of work, one that is beneficial for both the student and employer and enables our students to gain transferable and employability skills.

Thank you to all who attended our annual ONSITE info evening at Chisholm. There is still a small window of time to get your interest in to apply for one of their Specialist Condensed Pre-apprenticeships that you can complete in just 1 year. Interested? Contact the VET team to register.

We are on the lookout for host employers to manage our students on 10-week blocks doing work experience. If you have or know of a suitable business available to offer this valuable opportunity to our students, please contact Claire Drabble (claire.drabble@cewa.edu.au), or the ONSITE team (fleur.bauchop@cewa.edu.au).

Mrs Claire Drabble
VET/Pathways Coordinator

Kings Park Excursion

On Wednesday 11 June, the IEC students went on an excursion to Kings Park. On the excursion, students engaged in the Walking Together Program, which explores Whadjuk Noongar knowledge about local flora.

At the start of the program, students learned that the place of Kings Park is called Kaarta Koomba (the big hill) and learned the names and months for each of the six different Noongar seasons, Birak, Bunuru, Djeran, Makuru, Djilba and Kambarang.

Then they walked through the botanical gardens, stopping and learning about Nooongar knowledge and traditions for different plants along the way. Students learned that different plants were used for food at different times of the year, and for medicinal purposes. They got to look at, feel and smell different parts of the plants, including the leaves, seeds, seed pods and bark.

Students also got to spend time exploring the Rio Tinto Naturescape space, which they thoroughly enjoyed. They waded in the creeks (which were freezing cold!), climbed trees, searched for special rocks and leaves, and of course enjoyed playing on The Python and The Tangle. They also got to bird-watch and take time to just sit and relax. The staff enjoyed watching the students interact together outside of the school space.

God blessed us with beautiful weather, and we all got to enjoy a day out in nature. Special thanks to Mrs Waller, Mrs Brown, Mr Davis, Sister Vicky, Miss Asghari and Miss Almadi for joining us on the day! 

This term in the IEC 2 Junior classroom students have focused on writing descriptive reports and learning vocabulary about homes. In the IEC we follow the EAL/D teaching and learning cycle, which involves hands on learning experiences and a very explicit and structured approach to learning to help students understand vocabulary in context, language structures and features of different text types.

The first step in the EAL/D teaching and learning cycle is building the field. We used pictures to help us learn and recall new vocabulary about the different parts of houses, things we find in different rooms and what you do in different rooms. Students had competitions to come up with as many items that they could name in different rooms. They were also encouraged to take pictures of their own homes and bring them into class to talk about.

Translanguaging helps students develop their metalinguistic awareness as they make connections between their own language and English. This was also used to explore the differences and similarities in what items are called in different languages. For example, I learned that in Spanish a remote control is called mando a distancia (control remote) and for short people call it a mando (control). This is opposite to what we do in English, where for short we call it a remote.

The next step in the EAL/D teaching and learning cycle is text deconstruction. In this stage, we examined a model text, broke it down and annotated it for the structural components and language features of the text type. students became familiar with titles, headings, the concept of moving from general information to more specific information, and the use and formation of the present simple tense for general truths when writing descriptive reports. Learning grammar and vocabulary in specific contexts helps students connect new learning to prior knowledge, therefore helping them to retain information in long term memory.

After modelling the writing process, including the planning phase, which was brainstorming vocabulary and information from images, the writing phase, and the editing phase, which was making sure that we had all of the components needed in a descriptive report, students were ready for joint construction.

In the joint construction phase of the teaching and learning cycle, students sequenced parts of a descriptive report as a class and in pairs. They also worked in small groups to go through the entire writing process, planning together from images, writing and then self and peer assessing to ensure that they had all the components of a descriptive report.

Finally, after lots of practise, and gradually fading out support as students became more confident with the writing process and the text type, students were ready to begin independent construction of a descriptive report.

In the independent construction phase of the teaching and learning cycle, students show their understanding of the learning with differing levels of scaffolding depending on student needs. All students produced a multi-paragraph descriptive report, complete with title, general introduction statement and information about their house divided under headings for different rooms.

Not bad for students who have been in Australia for less than two years and are in the beginning phases of learning English! Well done for all your hard work this term IEC 2 Junior!

Mrs Ellen Jenkyn
IEC Teacher

This term, four new international students joined the College. It has been wonderful seeing the new students settle into Aranmore and tackle the challenges of high school in a new country. Thank you to all the staff and students who have helped these students as they find their way this term, directing them to their classes, teachers supporting these students at Homework Help and at recess and lunch and other students who offer to explain the instructions of a task or say ''hey - come and sit with me''.

Each week, Homework Help runs on Tuesday and Mondays in the Library. It has been wonderful seeing familiar faces each week who attend and are working hard on their subjects. A reminder that all international students ought to be attending, seeking help from their teachers and growing into independent learners.

 This year the College is planning more social activities for students to connect. This term students were treated to a spicy bowl noodle lunch and an Evening at Palace Cinema where almost 20 students came to watch the Disney movie ‘Elio’ together. It was great to see students step up and attend the events, spend time with each other across year groups and to connect with fellow students from similar backgrounds. Thank you, teachers, for your support to make these activities possible.

Studying overseas is about trying new experiences, making new connections in and out of the classroom and developing oneself as a whole person. Looking forward to having a great Term 3 and hope all students have a safe holiday this July.

Interested in hosting a student from Italy? Please see the flyer.

STUDY PERTH MOVIE VOUCHERS x INTERNATIONAL STUDENTS

If you are on an International student on a Student Visa 500, you are eligible for the Study Perth School Holiday movie giveaway. A reminder to all families that Study Perth is a central point of support for all international student families in Perth. To stay up to date find them at StudyPerth | Study, work and live in Perth, Western Australia or their Instagram account @studyperth

New International Student Profile

Molly Ho Year 9

Molly and I am in Year 9. I am from Vietnam and I have been in Australia for 1 year. Over the last year it was great to learn and study more about Aranmore and Perth such as starting to learn the flute. I had made a lot friends and met a lot of people from another countries. Since I am an International student, there were many big challenges for me (taking the bus, exam) but I got used to these new experiences. Not only that,  I had a lot of challenges every term but I'm glad that I overcome them. In this year, I enjoyed music class and went on a music camp in Term 2 which was a great time for me.

Vanvisot Be Year 10

My name is Vanvisot be and I'm from Cambodia. I've been studying at Aranmore for a little while now and I really like how we are welcome here in this school. One thing I really enjoy is how Aranmore is diverse. There are students from all around the world, and its nice to learn about different cultures and make friends from different countries. Perth is a very relaxed place, especially the beach and nature. School here is a bit different from home - there are more classes, and more interactivity. It is different from back home, but the good thing is you get used to it quickly. A fun memory this term is when we all went to the movie night  with the international students, we had snacks, watched movies, and it was a great way to relax and bond with everyone. 

Duc Anh Cao Year 10

Hello, my name is Duc Anh. I'm 15 years old and I'm from Vietnam. I’m currently studying Year 10 in Aranmore Catholic College, Australia, and I’ve been here for about four months. So far, I’m really enjoying my time here. The people in Perth are incredibly friendly, the weather is beautiful, and the food is amazing, probably the best I’ve ever had! Everything here feels so different from life back home. In Vietnam, I didn’t usually take public transport to school and rarely hung out with friends outside of class. But in Australia, I’ve become much more independent. I now take the bus or train to school by myself, manage my own schedule, and even spend time with new friends on the weekends. One of the biggest challenges for me has been the language. I studied English in Vietnam but I have very little chance to practice it with foreigners. However, I'm improving it in Australia everyday, my friends and family also give me lots of assistance. I've just watched the movie in the cinema with Ms Casey and other international students in this term and it's very fun! I'm looking forward to doing different activities next term.

Ms Casey Deng
International Students Coordinator

Year 7 Digital Technology - Commands

Year 7 Digital Technology students had fun learning how to be very specific in their commands.

How easy is it to get a classmate to sit on a chair?  A lot harder than you may think.  Programming requires very specific commands, you can’t just say move forward, you need to say how far, you cant just say turn around you need to specify how many degrees to turn. 

Year 7 Mixtures

Year 7s are exploring the properties of mixtures and solubility, using the skills they have learned in their study of chemistry to separate a mixture.

Year 7 Chromatography

The Year 7 students are learning about mixtures in science and why we might want to separate some mixtures. This week on Monday, the Year 7s looked at separating marker inks into separate colours using Thin Paper Chromatography. There were some amazing results, with black and brown having the most colour combinations. - Ms Cindy Palermo (Pre-Service Teacher)

Year 7 Dichotomous Key

A dichotomous key is a tool used by Scientists, especially Biologists, to classify and identify living things. While few of our students are likely to go on to a career in taxonomy (the science of classification), learning about dichotomous keys is important for our students to help develop a variety of skills.

To create a dichotomous key, students must observe carefully, think critically then make logical decisions and communicate their intent in a clear and organised manner. These are all real world skills our students will need to use and dichotomous keys are a fun way to hone these skills.

Year 8 Cell models

Year 8s have had the chance to use their creative talents to produce a cell model that shows all the features a cell requires to perform its specialised function and have been busy constructing it during class and also at home. There was a variety of plant and animal cells, and the students did a great job identifying and describing the organelles within. - Mrs Hopkins

Year 8 Flower Model

Flowers are beautiful and fascinating. Year 8s are having a close look at these reproductive structures and creating colourful paper models as they learn.

Year 8 Heart Dissection

Dissections are an exciting rite of passage for science students.  Ms Hopkins Year 8 Science class took dissecting their first heart dissection very seriously.

ECU VR Research

Year 8 and 9 students took part in a project investigating the novel use of immersive virtual reality to educate and engage students about electrical work in the mining and resources sector. Dr Julie Boston and her colleagues from ECU brought their equipment into the Science department allowing our students to take part in a co-design workshop and provide feedback on this early version of the immersive virtual reality application. The feedback will inform the prototype's ongoing design and development to be eventually installed in the Construction Futures Centre.

Students were excited to see their feedback from Engagement Week last year used to improve the version they used this term.

Year 9 Lemon Circuits

One lemon can be a cell, two or more lemons forms a battery and a whole class of lemons joined together is a lot of fun.

Year 9 Circuits

Electricity is now part of nearly every aspect of our lives, so it is important that students learn the basics of how it works.  Here Year 9 students are learning about the components of a circuit and how to draw circuit diagrams.

Year 9 Tectonic Mars Bars

Year 9 students are learning about the structure of our earth and tectonic plate movement. While some things like earthquakes or tsunamis can happen very fast, other processes, like the formation of the Himalayas, happens very slowly. Students have modelled these processes to gain a greater understanding of the forces involved. Some classes used Oreos and others Mars Bars. Science is already awesome but chocolate makes it even better.

Year 9 Earthquakes

When looking at footage of earthquake devastated areas have you ever noticed that there are always a few buildings left standing amongst the rubble and wondered why? Year 9 students modelled an earthquake on buildings of various heights to see what effect earthquakes of different frequencies had on them. To allow for accurate calculations students filmed each trial of their experiment. They demonstrated that taller buildings are more likely to collapse in a lower frequency earthquake while shorter buildings will collapse when frequencies are higher.

Year 9 Forensics Class Cracks the Case with Curtin University’s “Case Solvers” Program

On Wednesday of Week 2, the Year 9 Forensics class took part in the exciting “Case Solvers” program, presented by Curtin University’s STEM Outreach team. Students were challenged with a fictional case: a garment retail outlet had been robbed!

Working in small groups, these budding detectives received kits containing evidence collected from the crime scene. Using their growing forensic skills and sharp analytical thinking, they compared these samples with those linked to various suspects. With just 45 minutes to crack the case, teamwork and time management were key.

As they investigated, students applied techniques learned in class and explored new aspects of crime scene analysis. They examined soil samples, sock fibres, DNA evidence, shoe prints, and fingerprints—gradually narrowing down the list of suspects.

By combining individual findings with class-wide evidence, the students successfully identified the suspect most likely to have committed the crime.

And the culprit was… well, you’ll have to enrol in Forensics to find out! - Mr Halden.

Acknowledgement: I acknowledge the use of Grammarly ( v1.2.158.1663) to edit my draft and Microsoft CoPilot (v19.2505.41055.0) to review my paragraphs. 

Year 9 Forensics – Murdoch Murder Mystery Box

Thank you again to the wonderful people at Murdoch for coming to visit Aranmore giving our students the chance to take part in amazing activities.  Mr Halden’s Forensics class enjoyed putting all their theory to the test completing against each other to be the first to solve the clues and open the Murder Mystery Box

Year 11 General Human Biology Joint Models

When you have to create something yourself you are more likely to notice and remember the details.  Year 11 General Human Biologists were tasked with creating joint models out of playdough then using their knowledge to identify the type of joints created by their classmates.

Year 11 General Human Biology - Heart Dissection

Year 11 Human Biology students are enjoying seeing all the features they have been learning about in real life.  A sheep heart is very similar in structure and size to a human so it is perfect for this purpose.

Year 12 Human Biology micropipettes

Biotechnology is an increasingly important part of the Human Biology syllabus with students learning the basics of how technology is assisting in areas such as curing disease and looking at human evolution.

Students will get a chance to see the technology in action and use some of this equipment when they visit the Harry Perkins centre next term.  For now we are practicing skills such as the use of micropipettes in preparation.

Year 12 General Human Biology – Agar Plates

Semester 2, which began for Year 11 and 12s after exams, is all about disease, immunity and hygiene in General Human Biology.

Swabbing items found in the classroom such as desks, taps, laptops and pens to grow samples on agar plates in our incubator gives students an ideal of the vast world of microorganisms that is right in front of them but invisible to the naked eye.

Year 12 Chemistry Titration Competition

Well done Josh, Peter and Tolu for representing Aranmore in the annual Titration Competition at ECU Joondalup. After students had thoroughly cleaned their equipment, teachers were escorted out of the lab to wait nervously for the finish. Students were given two hours to titrate their three samples against their known sample.

Thank you to Dr Carroll for training these students and organising their participation in this exciting event.

Stay tuned for the results.

Facial Approximation

In Science, we enjoy having various pre-service teachers who bring new ideas and extra enthusiasm with them.  This term we have had Ms Palermo.  Ms Palermo holds a degree in Forensics and holds various positions at Murdoch university – including running facial approximation courses.

Towards the end of the term, Ms Palermo returned to Aranmore after the finish of her practicum to run Facial Approximation classes with the Year 12 Human Biology class and the Year 9 Forensics class.

While the Forensics class focussed on how facial approximation can be used to identify remains, the Year 12s were looking at how physical facial approximation techniques are used to give ancient hominids a face. Using clay is more accurate than digital methods and is what professionals still use.

Mrs Naomi Geoghegan
Head of Learning - Science

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