Craft forms an integral part of our curriculum from Kindergarten to Year 10. Handwork and Woodwork build a strong will, confidence, dexterity, and an understanding of materials.

Working with real tools and natural materials develops sensitivity and imagination, and there is great satisfaction in conceiving, undertaking and completing a task to the best of one’s ability.

Crafts offered in the Secondary Years include woodworking, felting, machine sewing, basketry, crochet, mosaic, beading and embroidery.

From Kindergarten through to Year 12, classes perform a theatrical production each year. The play performed is an extension of the epoch studied for that year level and is suited to the experience of that age group. From Class 8 onwards specialist drama teachers collaborate with English teachers to study and produce a play in which everyone in the class has a role.

The staging of these works is a great joy for the whole community and the production is supported by other workshop activities, improvisation classes and skill building.

Participation in drama is a way for each student to access their potential as a performer. It facilitates confidence in the self and trains our perception, enabling us to see ourselves and others in a more observant, active and authentic way. Individually or collaboratively, drama is a gateway through which students can explore a range of human feelings, social situations and moral dilemmas.

Our Secondary English program refines and hones skills in reading, writing, comprehension, speaking and listening. Students explore a range of texts and focus on the multitude of ways in which language conveys meaning. Encouraged to read widely in both fiction and non-fiction, students are directed toward discernment, sensitivity and perception in response to literature and mass media.

In creative writing, individual skills and competencies are expanded upon through the exploration of personal experience, relationships and the wider world. Of particular importance is the ability to formulate and communicate ideas and respond to strongly articulated opinions and attitudes in both written and verbal form.

Since the dawn of time human beings have resonated with a sense of place. As a species we have always adventured. The interconnectedness of knowledge, ideas and subject matter is a constant matter for human exploration, and geography provides a perfect vehicle for this.

Our geography education strives for breadth of experience, feeling and knowledge. We approach geography in a variety of ways, utilising both practical experience and intellectual exploration.

Geography illuminates our privileged world position and the potential we hold for positive striving and change. When we study and experience the spiritual and cultural relationships of others, we can cultivate respect and regard for different human beings who share the earth.

So, in geography we travel – both literally and metaphorically. Students engage in varied activities including modelling, map making, observation, ‘geographic imagination’ (the ability to appreciate landscapes, situations and living conditions vicariously) and conceptual thinking.

A knowledge of the past expands us. It encourages us to be open and sensitive in our responses, and intelligent in our actions. History provides us with unique intellectual, imaginative and emotional perspectives.

In history classes, students acquire both conceptual and factual knowledge. Deep, tangential learning takes place when students are brought into contact with historical inquiry and the need to consider different kinds of evidence.

The methods of exploring history include artistic means (modelling, drawing, painting), academic pieces (essays, debates, talks) and other expressions of the students’ own views of a particular event, situation or personality.

The study of science helps young people to function intelligently and effectively in a culture imbued with science and technology.

We prepare our students to think soundly, objectively and responsibly in new ways and in new areas. We approach science from both a historical perspective and with a view to exploring how technology and materialism have profoundly influenced every aspect of our society.

In physics, chemistry, biology and physiology we use a variety of teaching approaches that engage and activate the students, including problem-solving, group discussion, presentation, experiments and practical activities.

Our maths teachers aim to cultivate an appreciation for the elegance and beauty of the mathematical realm, fostering awe and wonder, and showing how clear thought can lead to the edge of the mysterious.

We utilise a variety of teaching approaches, including problem solving, group discussion, skills practice and practical activities. We allow time for drawings and diagrams to be completed with artistry and skill to engage the aesthetic sense, to produce an abstract formulation of clear mathematical principles, and to apply these to real-world problems.

Our Farm comprises around five acres in the northwest corner of the school. Work on the farm  is physically demanding and students derive enormous satisfaction from handling real tools and doing real work.

Clearing land, making compost, building sheds and greenhouses, planting, harvesting, working together, listening and observing, the farming experience teaches profound life lessons. These lessons include a readiness to do what is necessary, without complaint; a deep understanding that to harvest one must plant; an awareness of the rhythm of the seasons; recognition that production of food on a farm is a co-operative venture with the forces of nature.

These meaningful gardening experiences foster an appreciative, heart-felt connection with nature that will continue into adult life.

We encourage our Secondary students to view computers as a springboard or aide to broaden their learning.

A computer and its information are not simply an authoritative electronic source, but something to be questioned, analysed and utilised.

Our intent is to provide students with a multi-layered education which enhances their ability to meet and use the latest technology – whilst encouraging and developing their individual capacity for critical reflection.

In Year 9 and 10 we teach all the essentials, including creating spreadsheets and databases, as well as simple coding and graphics. We also discuss the social and cultural aspects of technology, including safe practices, copyright issues and the fast changing world of AI.

Our school fosters musical excellence in all areas – instrumental music, singing, music technology/recording and music performance.

The Secondary music program encourages students to expand and broaden in every sense. As well as great discipline, music-making offers wonderful social possibilities. Opportunities abound for performance and working in groups and ensembles. Our vast array of musical output covers styles from classical, rock, fusion, jazz, a capella and contemporary experimental to non-western. It is truly delightful to experience the energy and excitement that accompany our students’ diverse, eclectic performances.

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Our language teachers have grown up in the cultures and traditions of the language they bring to our school, which imbues the entire language program with depth and authenticity.

We operate from the simple and practical belief that there is no better doorway into another people or culture than to study their language.

At MRSS, the students experience French and German first in the Primary Years by being immersed in the teacher’s spoken language. In the Secondary Years, French is the main language taught and German is offered as an optional subject.

Our outdoor education program provides experiential learning through camping trips and expeditions. At all levels of the curriculum, we value real-world experience as an equivalent to knowledge.

Students develop a range of skills necessary for safe, minimal-impact travel in the bush and an appreciation of, and reverence for, the natural beauty of our environment. Our program fosters conservation ideals and values associated with the preservation of natural areas.

Throughout the year levels camps grow progressively longer and more demanding, with different age-appropriate responsibilities required. By Year 9, outdoor education becomes a fully-fledged subject for the year, with students spending around 30 days away from school.

Families often comment on the positive changes seen when students return from these expeditions. The practical and physical skills acquired when camping in the bush or by the beach are invaluable, and students experience self-empowerment on many levels – intellectually, emotionally, physically and spiritually.

Throughout the outdoor education program students progressively grow into their capabilities, building confidence, self-sufficiency, independence and resilience.

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Physical education aims to help young people find a healthy orientation in the world through physical bodily activities. We introduce students to a range of indoor and outdoor activities, games, Bothmer gymnastics, archery, team and interschool sports. The diversity of activities encourages the full participation of all students.

We cater to all levels of skill by creating an atmosphere where every student can be challenged and improve themselves through striving, learning to work with the will of others, and enjoying a growing sense of self-reliance, coupled with responsibility for those around them. At all levels of competency, we encourage support and teamwork.

Knowledge of the human body and how to care for it comprises an important part of the curriculum, as does an examination of the many different approaches to physical health.