Year 9 – City Cite

Learning is a key component in school, but what about City Cite? Yes, City Cite turned out to be a great learning experience, one full of fun and exploration!

Some of the many experiences we had were: learning about cultures, history, others and ourselves. The experiences we had will stick with us for a long time.

We had the privilege to meet the Lord Mayor and ask him some questions relating to our Big Question project. Berwick Grammar School is the only school that the Lord Mayor meets with. This allowed us to have an interview with an expert about Melbourne and gain an insight different to that of the general public.

We participated at FareShare and made meals for the food insecure. We cooked both sausage rolls and quiches and contributed to more than 3000 meals.

When we went to The Big Issue we learned about homelessness and heard a gentleman called Dave tell his account of how he became homeless and how The Big Issue provided him with a steady income to help get him back on his feet.

Urban Seed was another activity where we learned about homelessness and graffiti. We walked around the city and listened to our guide tell stories of homelessness and drugs.

The Shrine of Remembrance, where some of us got dressed in a WWI uniform, was a moving experience.

We had a guide called Den teach us about the Royal Botanic Gardens. He taught us about ancient Aboriginal customs, and uses for the many different plants around us.

The Victorian Magistrate’s Court session was very interesting. We were able to view a variety of court cases taking place.

We also visited Parliament where we learned how the State of Victoria is governed and we also got an insight on the latest laws that will be brought before Parliament.

The most important component of City Cite was the Big Question presentation. Each group selected an issue related to Melbourne and had to research its effect on the community. We got to present our projects to our teachers and our parents (a fantastic experience) and we all did really well.

City Cite has been a fantastic experience and one to remember. All of the Year 8 students should be looking forward to City Cite next year as you learn new skills and make new friends whilst working in a team.

Kurt Caddy and Max McCahy
Year 9 students