Our regular weekly catch up with our Year 1 buddies continues to be a weekly highlight for Year 7/8 students.

This term 7/8LM and 7/8SB are involved in the Buddy Programme. This sees us joining with the Year 1 Hub for buddy time each Friday.  One group spends time with their buddies in the garden while the other group focusses on literacy. 

Activities in the garden vary with the seasons. Last week saw us sewing Radish seeds. A classic Winter crop that we look forward to harvesting in the not too distant future. The seniors worked hard providing support for their junior buddies as they went about their work in the garden. It was great to to see the seniors providing genuine guidance, rather than just dominating and completing the activity themselves. The Buddy Programme provides an authentic context for the seniors to  practice leadership and it was heart warming seeing this in action. 

The literacy group assisted their junior buddies with an activity that required them to classify creatures as insects or not insects. It was great to see the seniors leading discussion with their buddies and keeping the discussion at a level that allowed their buddy to be completely involved. 

It is pleasing to see that the interactions with our Junior Buddies are not only limited to Friday afternoons and it is not uncommon for the Year 7/8 students to be approached by their buddies in the playground. A testament to the sound relationships that are being built on each week. What a fantastic demonstration of our Community Value. 

Read some of the student's thoughts on the Buddy Programme below:

Aidan: It was fun because I got to help my buddy in the garden. Then I got to help him in the classroom, but he did most of the work. It has been fun seeing my buddy in the playground and catching up. 

Mackenzie: It was really cool spending time with the juniors. I enjoyed being in the garden and helping my buddy plant seeds. 

Harrison: It was fun getting to know my buddy and helping her in the garden. 

Issy: I enjoyed collaborating with the year 1 group. It was fun working with a different year level. 

Ben: It was really cool hanging out with the students from 1RPH. It was challenging because sometimes they don't listen.