In Week 9, the Year 7 students and the volunteering teachers went on a 3 day camp at Teen Ranch in Cobbitty. We were placed into 8 groups, which gave us the opportunity to meet new students and experience our first camp with students we wouldn’t normally hang out with. This allowed all the Year 7 students to get to know each other, creating a lot of new friendships.

At Teen Ranch we received the opportunity to try new things by doing many activities including canoeing, horse riding, archery, high ropes, giant swing, crate climb and pool games. These activities pushed us outside our comfort zones, as they were very challenging. The activities helped us to work together as a team and it created a bond with other students. The activities required trust, teamwork, communication. It was great that everyone participated and gave it a go even if they didn’t want to at first. Lots of people also overcame their fears and pushed themselves to the limit which was great to see.   

At Teen Ranch there was plenty of delicious food. We could see the hard-working staff making our breakfast, morning tea, lunch, dinner, dessert and supper. Let's just say there was a lot to eat and my belly was full! Everyone loved it! Like who can’t forget the delicious pancakes or the yummy cheeseburgers! I know for sure seconds was an obvious choice for most students and teachers!

Teen Ranch was an amazing experience and we hope that all Year 7 students had a great time. On behalf of Year 7, we would like to thank the teachers who gave up their personal time to let us have these opportunities. We would also like to give Mrs Taccone a big thank you for organising the camp for us and dealing with us when we didn’t want to go to bed. Thank you, everyone, for making camp a great experience that we will all remember.

Written by Flynn Bradshaw, Charlie Wagus, Emilia Leopardi and Emma Burrows