11
Issue 53 – June 2015 – QUEEN MARGARET CALLING
As part of Humanities students were instructed to present
their individual projects on Pompeii/Herculaneum
through the medium of their choosing. Milly chose to use
video. This was not just going to be any old video, Milly wanted it
to be interactive. Using her own intuition, she found a Virtual App
(vApp) called Touchcast which allows users to create interactive
videos online.
“I wanted to try something different and take the risk,” Milly
comments.
She had a range of sourced material for the project she needed
to present, including video footage of Herculaneum, maps, photo
images of historical artifacts and music. Using Touchcast, Milly was
able to put together a professional presentation on Herculaneum in
which she talks about artifacts preserved after Mt Vesuvius erupted.
During the video you can click on a picture of Mt Vesuvius and
Remember When
School Projects
Were On Paper?
Being a part of the tech savvy generation Year
8 student, Amelia (Milly) Ware, decided to
hand her project in via video.
the film will pause allowing you to enlarge the picture. Milly also
wrote the script and narrated the entire video herself.
For Milly, the process of creating the video was fairly
straightforward. The most challenging aspect was sourcing the
material and getting the narration perfect. The finished product is
impressive and has earned her high praise from her teachers. She is
glad it turned out well, particularly the interactive elements.
Milly started at Queen Margaret College in Year 6 so has been
a participant in the 1:1 Laptop Programme for over two years now.
Highly confident with technology, she has been encouraged to
experiment with new technology at school and will eagerly continue
to use vApps where possible for assignments.
Holly’s tertiary qualifications include a Bachelor of Arts from
Massey University, a Teaching Diploma from Victoria
University and a Graduate Diploma in Psychology from
Victoria University. Holly’s talent for Psychology is evident, earning
straight A+’s throughout her degree and being accepted into Psi Chi
– an International Honour Society in Psychology.
Outside of the classroom Holly has worked both as a writer and
in policy. Writing is one of Holly’s great passions – she has recently
had a children’s play published by Playmarket, which was the same
play that won the Plays for the Young Award in 2013. In 2014,
another play Holly wrote was shortlisted for the prize. She has had
three stories published as school readers and a collection of short
stories for 11-12 year olds published.
Holly has had a varied teaching career leading workshops in
Creative Writing and Creativity and at Wellington Gifted Education
Centre. Her philosophy towards teaching is about helping students
to make connections – between subjects, with what they see and
experience in the world to what they are learning in class. Holly
loves her teaching subjects English and Psychology equally because
they are both about the human experience.
This year Holly is coordinating Middle School LEAP (Learning
Enrichment and Accelerate Programme) with Head of Middle
Meet Holly Gooch: Year 10 Dean
English and Psychology teacher Holly Gooch
loves teaching because it gives her the
opportunity to be creative.
School, Rena Day.
“LEAP is an opportunity to study things that do not fit neatly
into certain subjects, that are interdisciplinary,” Holly Gooch says.
She describes LEAP as ‘brainfuel’ to help inspire and motivate
students to new heights.
Holly enjoys teaching at Queen Margaret College because the
students are always up for a challenge. One of her favourite quotes
from iconic American baseball player, Babe Ruth, sums up that
sentiment. “It’s hard to stop a person who won’t stop trying.”
Amelia (Milly) Ware
Year 10, Anna van den Broek, with Holly Gooch cycling down to
the waterfront during EOTC Week.