During Years 7 and 8, students will rotate through the Arts, Technologies and Connecting To Country. Each student will sample drama, media, music, visual art, food, digital and applied technology. In Years 9 and 10 Arts & Technology offer a variety of elective classes, where students can specialise in one or more subjects.
Photography
This course provides the opportunity to learn basic photography skills using digital SLR cameras and editing software like Photoshop. Students will produce their own images, experiment with depth of field, shutter speed, composition, camera angles to capture interesting and creative artistic photographs.
Studio Art
Students will explore a range of 2D mediums in depth including drawing in graphite and charcoal and painting in acrylic. Students explore a range of techniques, refining their skills for independent art development. Drawing is an integral part of this unit with an emphasis on skill development alongside a support for self-expression. Art appreciation (historical and contemporary) and analysis of student artwork is included.
Sculpture
Sculpture introduces students to a range of three-dimensional art materials, both traditional and contemporary, to create their own artwork. With references to some of the world's most recognised sculptures, statues and monuments, from realism to pure abstraction, students experience working through various multi-stage processes in developing their art. Modelling, chiseling, carving and casting are the featured practical skills students will develop in this course along with an aptitude for pushing the boundaries of a given material and problem-solving through various design stages.
Art Around the World
Students will combine sculpture, textile and fine art. This elective will introduce students to the significance of Art across various cultures and periods of time. Students will make, adapt and personalise 3 dimensional and tactile objects that draw on cultural artwork and art movements. Techniques and mediums such as mask/head pieces, soft sculpture, mixed media, mosaics, painting, wire manipulation, ceramics, threading and weaving will be explored in this subject.
Media Arts
Publishing: Yearbook
How will you remember high school?
Students will work together to compile the Year 10 yearbook, as well as creating screencasts, websites and planners. Working with text, photos, and compilation programs students will make professional quality publications, providing information to our student body and wider community, as well as developing a yearbook full of memories that the Year 10s will treasure forever.
Media: Script to Screen
Students develop skills in front of and behind the camera, learning the processes involved in writing, producing, filming and editing mixed media. Creating short films, trailers, screencasts and more, students will learn to collaborate effectively and enjoy popcorn at the screenings! Learn skills to enhance your own social media presence, direct your own feature film or tell any story you want to!
Performing Arts
Music Curriculum - There are two distinct courses at Belconnen High School. They are the junior classroom course and the senior music course.
Junior classroom music is designed around experiencing a wide variety of music-making while learning as much as possible about the rudiments of music to support further learning. The class learns together, albeit at time being self-paced. The curriculum is “whole of class” and offers all Year 7 and 8 students an opportunity to make an informed decision on pursuing music into their senior years as an elective. Instruments learnt in class include learning notation on Guitar TAB (picking), Piano, Drums, Ukulele strumming & Guitar chords. Student will progress through music theory using Music Ecademy as well as composing on Flat, an online music writing program. There are numerous performance assessments such as initial, mid-course, final, class and group.
Senior music is designed around the individual needs and ambitions of the students. All seven Achievement Standards are available to students, who in turn select the Standards they wish to pursue. There are no whole-of-class lessons, rather each student gets on with their own course, which is a minimum of three Standards. Collaboration is encouraged along with performance. Some Standards are literacy based and there are opportunities for originality through composition. Due to the students designing their own course that includes only three Standards of a possible seven, students may successfully complete this course and to a high standard without performing on an instrument.
Drama: Production Company
Students will create a production company to develop the elements of Drama collaboratively. They will be honing performance skills to create Children’s Theatre to perform at Southern Cross Early Learning Centre and one of our feeder primary schools. Working on providing the essentials within the Children’s Theatre genre including tech, costume, hair, make-up, scripting, sets, props, media, and devised performances which can all be developed by those in the Production Company. Come and work inclusively as part of a fun, creative ensemble.
Drama: Comedy and Commedia
Students will explore the elements of comedic drama, creating and acting in collaborative performances. They will experiment with acting techniques to develop comedy, experimenting with characterisation, tone, voice and movement. As skills develop, students will build their own performances with the opportunity to develop various stock characters within Commedia dell'Arte; 18th Century masked, physical comedy techniques still prevalent today. Students will perform their final performance within the school at an organised year level performance or for a college audience.