Humanities

Head of Faculty – Humanities 

Kelli Chapman

It’s all happening in the Humanities department!

Year 7 Humanities:

As a part of our “Investigating the Ancient Past” unit, our Year 7 Humanities students have been learning about archaeology and the excavation process. To extend on their learning students took part in a “mini archaeological dig” to discover “ancient” artefacts and record their finds. The Year 7 students were also very lucky to have our own Miss Jane and Felise Goldfinch from JCU come in to talk all things archaeology and excavation.

Ms Semola’s class also took part in a ‘cookie excavation’ where students worked to remove only chocolate chips from their cookie-coating using archaeological techniques and survey skills. It was a very successful activity and the girls enjoyed the hands-on task. 

Year 8 Humanities:

Moats were dug, drawbridges lifted and arrows drawn – Year 8 students have been studying the history of Medieval Europe. As a part of this unit, students have explored the role of castles in this period and how and why they were constructed.

Students from Miss Towers’ Year 8 Humanities class had spent a week designing and constructing miniature medieval castles, using their knowledge and understanding of the key defensive features of castle warfare. They then went head-to-head and defended their castles against fierce opponents from Miss Hudson’s class, who were primed with a wealth of knowledge and understanding of medieval weapons and attack strategies.

To begin the battle, Miss Hudson’s class were invited to analyse the key features of the castles and ask questions about their construction. Their eyes were peeled, on the lookout for weaknesses such as low battlements, inadequate grain stores and limited water sources.

Teams were then encouraged to select and modify their own personalised attacks which ranged from 6-month long sieges designed to starve castle occupants if grain stores were insufficient, battering rams on weakened wooden doors, and wheeling belfry towers up to castles that were built without moats or mounds.

The activity encouraged students to work collaboratively with classmates, harness their creativity and flair, and think strategically about medieval warfare. But, most importantly, it gave students a real insight into the motives and actions of people at this time in history.

Year 10 History:

Dr Sarah Kleinman recently came to speak to our Year 10 History classes. Dr Kleinman comes from a Jewish refugee family and was raised in a large community of Survivors. Dr Kleinman told personal stories about people’s experiences during the Holocaust, and why growing up in that environment has helped her become an empathetic person and politically vocal about human rights abuses. We spoke about how historical events can help shape people’s identity and world views, and the importance of how studying events like the Holocaust can help keep us more informed and aware about what is happening in our society today, see the warning signs, and most importantly, speak out.