​​​

• Performing Arts

​

• Music

The Music program focuses on developing a passion for music, as well as the confidence to perform. Students practise singing in every music lesson to help develop pitch, rhythm, and the ability to sing with others. They also explore a range of musical instruments, musical genres and performance styles from around the world.

Outside the music class, our students are offered a range of performance opportunities, in the form of school musicals, choirs, performances groups, film & recording, assembly presentations, and evening concerts.

​

• Drama

From Prep to Year 6, the Gardenvale Drama program focuses on developing our students' confidence, team work and social skills, as well as their performing techniques and abilities. The program is based on the expressive skills of voice, movement, gesture and facial expression, and teaches students about presenting character and emotion, play building, theatre styles, and design elements.

​

• Media

Starting in Year 3, students explore the style, content and application of different media through the creation of advertisements, news reports, film trailers, infomercials, music videos, children's TV shows. They also use a range of film and music recording technology, software and techniques to help develop their abilities in producing different media and communicate meaning to an audience.

 

Please refer to the Specialist Programs tab to view further information.

​

​

• Languages : Japanese

​

The Japanese program at Gardenvale Primary School introduces students to Japanese language and culture through a range of topics and activities from Prep to Year 6. In the early years, the focus is on oral communication and recognising high frequency Japanese characters. As students progress through the school, they learn to read and write Japanese hiragana and kanji characters in both traditional and modern multimodal texts.

 

The goals of our Japanese language program include:

​

• To communicate with others in oral, aural and written Japanese;

• To enhance critical thinking and problem solving skills;

• To develop an understanding of different cultures and practices, with a strong focus on respecting and valuing differences;

• To further develop self-awareness and a sense of personal and cultural identity;

• To acquire cognitive, affective and sociocultural skills that may be transferrable to other areas of learning;

• To instil within students a love of language learning.

 

Within the language program, we cater for a variety of individual learning styles through a range of authentic, traditional and modern resources such as crafts, toys, books, and digital technologies. Students enjoy singing, dancing, creating, and communicating in both planned and spontaneous language.

 

They are introduced to a range of digital technologies both within the Japanese classroom and through the Year 4 – 6 BYOD program. Digital resources include a variety of contemporary language learning games, and students are encouraged to learn 21st-century skills such as collaboration and communication through the Classcraft learning platform.

​

Students at Years 5 and 6 have an opportunity to participate in an Educational Tour to Japan, where students travel to Japan and experience many unique cultural experiences. In past tours, these experiences have included:

​

• Travelling around Japan on ‘shinkansen’ (bullet trains)

• Spending a day at Tokushima Elementary School in Shikoku

• Experiencing a sumo tournament in Osaka

• Visiting an authentic ninja village in Koka

• Hand-feeding deer at Nara Deer Park

• Seeing ancient temples in Kyoto

• Exploring the Japanese 17th Century Movieworld

• Entering the Arashiyama Monkey Park and seeing Japanese macaque monkeys

• Walking through the famous Sagano Bamboo Forest 

• Experiencing the bustle of Tokyo, including pet cafes and the famous scramble intersection

• Seeing the Peace Park and the Bomb Dome in Hiroshima

• Traveling to the famous floating Tori Gate in Miyajima

• Exploring the ancient town of Koya-san

 

Students have the opportunity to experience a range of extension activities through participation in the Victorian Japanese Speech Competition, Calligraphy Competition, and Poster Competitions, as well as whole school activities such as Japanese Day, Haiku competitions and lunchtime club activities. They also have the chance experience leadership by becoming Junior Japanese Captains in Year 2 and whole school Japanese Captains in Year 6.

​

Please refer to the Specialist Programs tab to view further information.

 

• Physical Education

​

Physical Education at Gardenvale Primary School is an important component of the school’s curriculum. Students are encouraged to participate in all types of sport whether it is within their own class, Physical Education lessons or through our many other sporting programs. This time is critical for students as it adds to their confidence, co-operation and sportsmanship and keeps the balance between work and play.

 

Each child from Foundation through to Year Six participates in weekly Physical Education lessons. In addition, upper primary students have the opportunity to participate in a Swimming Carnival, Cross Country, Athletics Day, Ski Camp, Interschool Sport and Footy Day.

​

We also offer a wide range of different sporting clinics such as AFL, Basketball, Tennis, Soccer, Rugby, Cricket, Taekwondo and many others that run throughout the year. 

​

Please refer to the Specialist Programs tab to view further information.

 

• Visual Arts

​

The Visual Arts program focuses on developing expressive, creative and communicative forms that engage students in critical and creative thinking and help them to understand themselves and the world.  The Visual Arts program plays a pivotal role socially and culturally. It encourage the development of skills and the exploration of technologies, forms and processes through single and multimodal forms. Visual Arts fuel the exploration of ideas that cross the gamut of human emotions and moods through holistic learning using cognitive, emotional, sensory, aesthetic, kinaesthetic and physical fields.

​

The Visual Arts Program at Gardenvale Primary School aims to:

​

• Encourage students to create and critically explore visual culture. Provide a vehicle for confronting and exploring new ideas and inspire passionate exploration of ideas and the resultant products.

• Provide learning opportunities that allows students to communicate their perceptions, observations and understanding of structures, functions and concepts drawn from other areas of the curriculum.

• Promote a program that reflects cultural diversity and the vast growth in information and communications technology that has made arts forms increasingly visual. 

• Foster the importance of imagination and creativity.

• Promote Art as essential to our wellbeing. 

• Use Art as a medium to create and enhance our experiences in the creating, making, presenting and responding process.

• Provide each student with a positive experience with all mediums that we use

• Support students to work individually or collaboratively on projects for display in the school and the wider community or for them to take home.

 

Our Visual Arts captains present the "Artist of the Week" awards at the assembly each week and support a variety of art clubs, competitions and events on the Senior Campus.

​

Each class has one 50 minute session per week and each class from P- 6 has the opportunity and be exposed to the Art Areas of Drawing, Painting, Construction, Printing, Threads & Textiles, Media and Modelling, using a variety of materials and techniques.

Throughout the year, the students participate in a range of Visual Arts projects, including Mother's Day gifts and cards, environmental causes and numerous competitions and community ventures. Student art samples and achievements can be viewed by clicking on the Specialist Program tab on the home page.

 

Please refer to the Specialist Programs tab to view art samples from Year Prep – Year 6 as well as all the other accomplishments and Visual Arts events.