Year 12 Biology Camp – 19-21 April 2023

On Wednesday morning in Week 1, the Year 12 Biology students and 3 teachers set off for their trip over to Konomie Island. It was a very early start, with the bus leaving Shalom at 4:25am and not arriving at Keppel Bay Marina, Yeppoon until 9am where the students then boarded the ferry, Gundoo Spirit.

The boat trip was very rough and quite a few students became sea-sick, but it was worth it because when we arrived at Sandy Beach, we knew we were going to have a great time!

This camp was designed to allow students time to collect data for their IA2: Student Experiments, so after unpacking luggage, we set off to gather information from sand dunes and the inter-tidal zones on the camp side of the island. We also had the opportunity to classify plankton under the microscope later that night.

The next morning saw us all get into stinger suits and outrig over to the other side of the island where we collected data from the sand dunes and mangroves. That night we enjoyed damper cooked over the campfire, some music and were even able to watch the Panthers vs. Rabbitohs game on the big screen in the classroom.

The Konomie Island teachers were fabulous, and all knew so much about the Island’s history, along with the different types of mangroves, grasses, molluscs, etc. They were also very impressed with the organisation and efficiency of the Year 12 Shalom students, and how respectful and well-behaved they were throughout their stay.

The Biology teachers want to thank the Year 12 students for an excellent camp and their parents for allowing them the opportunity to experience Konomie Island.

Ms Katie Campbell
Acting Learning Area Coordinator - Science
Senior Science Teacher
Katie_Campbell@shalomcollege.com