Entry Transition Program
At Bundoora Secondary College, we understand the importance of a smooth transition from primary to secondary school. As such, we have crafted the Entry Program to be a full year transition into our PACE21 program that incorporates years 8 to 10.
Before they start their first day of secondary school, we engage them in a variety of ways including:
VIP Day: An additional Orientation Day for students who will be attending BSC without peers from their primary school cohort. This is an opportunity for students to foster connections with peers who are in the same situation in a smaller group setting before the state-wide Orientation Day for all incoming Entry students.
Information Evening: An opportunity for parents, carers and students to meet key staff, BSC leadership, and to learn more about the secondary school experience.
State-wide Orientation Day: All Entry students visit BSC to experience a day of secondary school. Students participate in hands-on activities related to a range of subject areas and are encouraged to begin engaging with their peers and foster new and continuing friendships.
On the first day of the new school year, Entry students are welcomed to BSC before the remaining students return from summer break.
Their first day is spent exploring and becoming familiar with their new school environment, meeting their PAL teacher and peers, and setting up their computer which allows them to complete a digital learning skill building session.
In Term 2, a Transition Camp is held for all Entry students to encourage them to get to know their peers outside of their class groups. During this camp, students are challenged and supported to step outside of their comfort zone and connect with their peers through physical activities such as abseiling, canoeing, raft-building and more.
SEMESTER 1
Our Entry curriculum provides a broad and balanced program designed to prepare students for PACE21 subjects and electives. It supports the development of core skills while fostering project-based and inquiry‑based learning. Students experience a range of teaching and learning approaches, encouraging them to become curious, confident and independent learners.
PATHWAYS AND LEARNING (PAL)
PAL is essential to BSC’s school community. Students build strong and supportive connections with the other students in their PAL, as well as their PAL teacher, who is their primary point of contact for all things academic and wellbeing. PAL teachers understand each student’s circumstances and needs, and they provide a deep level of care while guiding students as they engage in learning and self-development. Your PAL teacher is your go-to person for any issues or concerns throughout your time at BSC.
ENGLISH
Students build essential reading, viewing, writing, speaking and listening skills through language, social concepts, and interactions with the world around them. Students develop foundational, cultural and civic literacies, as well as essential communication, critical and creative thinking skills.
MATHS
Students continually build on their knowledge and skills, using different areas of mathematics to model meaningful real-life scenarios, apply emerging and existing strategies to seek solutions, and verify that their answers are reasonable and just. Students learn mathematical reasoning when they deduce and justify the processes used, and the conclusions reached with the support of technology for modelling and solving problems.
RHYTHM & MOVEMENT
Students are encouraged to engage with a wide range of activities such as dance, minor games, athletics, fitness and gymnastics that focus on technique refinement, biomechanical principles, and aid in the development of fundamental motor skills.
Students often work in teams to encourage problem-solving, collaboration and creativity while developing choreographed routines, game play strategies and support each other’s fitness journeys.
HUMANITIES & CULTURE
Through the integration of different units of work, students investigate ancient, First Nations, and contemporary cultures to develop key skills and understanding in History, Geography, and Visual Art. Students foster intercultural and ethical understanding, as well as developing collaboration and creativity competencies.
EXPERIMENT & DESIGN
Students develop foundational skills across science and design, conducting experiments using scientific methods and design thinking. Through hands-on learning, students hypothesise, create and prototype innovative solutions to real-world problems.
GERMAN
Students develop foundational language skills to communicate in German through listening, speaking, reading, and writing. Through interactive and practical learning experiences, they build vocabulary, pronunciation, and cultural understanding, using German in real‑world contexts to develop confidence and curiosity as emerging language learners.
BONUS: INSTRUMENTAL MUSIC
All Entry students can choose to learn an instrument and participate in the wide range of
instrumental music opportunities offered at the school. Instrumental music lessons are heavily subsidised by BSC and the Department of Education, with tuition provided at no cost in Semester 1 and at a reduced rate for students who continue in Semester 2.
SEMESTER 2
In Semester 2, the Entry Program expands to include Personal Best and Is water more precious than gold?, an integrated, inquiry-based elective that prepares and positions students to make informed choices about their PACE21 Deep Learning elective subject selections for the following year.
IS WATER MORE PRECIOUS THAN GOLD?
This subject introduces students to the Deep Learning inquiry model through the study of water as a precious global resource. Students compare water abundance in Australia with another country before planning and undertaking their own deep inquiry. They build a portfolio of evidence, create an authentic product, and conclude the semester by exhibiting their work and critically reflecting on their learning process.
In addition to these subjects, students use the subject preference system to select two specialist electives in Semester 2 from a range of options, which may include any or all of the following:
Ball Sports
Drama
German – Level 7
Make it with Digitech
Make it with Food
Make it with Wood
Music Performance
Visual Arts
Working with Animals
