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Timbertop

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This is an old revision of this page, as edited by Kerry Raymond (talk | contribs) at 16:54, 12 January 2018 (→Notable people: added Prince was happy there). The present address (URL) is a permanent link to this revision, which may differ significantly from the current revision.
  • Comment: The subject is clearly notable with independent coverage in countless reliable sources incl. books, journal articles, newspapers etc. I'm going to decline it for now as I have some concern that the article fails WP:NOTPROMO in its current state. It reads a lot like an ad and this isn't helped by its reliance on non-independent sources.
    It may also be more appropriate to merge the encyclopaedic content from this draft into Geelong Grammar School if there remains only a stub following a cleanup. Kb.au (talk) 01:20, 12 January 2018 (UTC)
  • Comment: Timbertop is absolutely notable but I'm concerned that with no references that are independent of the school that it would get nominated for deletion if I accepted in its present state. If some independent references could be added (and they certainly exist), I'd definitely accept this. The Drover's Wife (talk) 00:46, 12 January 2018 (UTC)


Sorry, I'm still learning to use Wikipedia, and so don't know how to leave a comment to those who wish to review this page, so I guess I'll leave it here and then delete later. I have put more citations into this to make it more credible. They don't all go to Geelong Grammar pages anymore. A lot of the comments made were about how the page reads like an ad. I'm wondering if somebody could help me make this less so. Any advice on this would be great, and because I'm extremely new to this process, it would be great if it could be done in as though you were talking to an alien who didn't understand things very well. Much appreciated.

Timbertop is a full-time boarding, co-educational campus of Geelong Grammar School located near Mansfield, Victoria, Australia.[1]

Established in 1953, by then Headmaster James Darling, Timbertop is compulsory for all year nine students attending Geelong Grammar School.[2] As of 2017, approximately 240 boys and girls attend Timbertop, who participate in a wide variety of physical activities including running, hiking, and skiing, as well as a normal academic routine. Additionally, students at Timbertop do not have access to devices such as computer, phones, or digital cameras. The majority of communication from students to family and friends off campus is done through letters.

History

In December 1951, Geelong Grammar School announced that it had an option on a piece of land near Mount Timbertop where they would conduct normal schooling combined with outdoor activities that would foster independence and initiative.[3] The concept was the initiative of headmaster James Darling, who was received inspiration from the likes of Kurt Hahn and England's Outward Bound schools.[4][5][6]

The Timbertop campus opened at the start of the 1953 school year with 40 students who would be building sheds, paths, roads and a plantation. The campus consists of 2000 acres with a frontage onto the Delatite River.[4]

In 2009, the Timbertop Campus was forced to evacuate to the main Geelong Grammar School Campus at Corio due to severe bushfires close to the campus.[7]

Curriculum

Academic Programme

Timbertop has an academic programme much like other schools. For five days of every week, classes take place on the Timbertop campus. Students take part in compulsory "core" classes, such as English, Mathematics, Science, Physical Education, and Australian Curriculum History. Students are also required to take part in Positive Education. Students must also choose electives which include:German, French, Chinese, Japanese, Music, Geography, Agriculture, and Art.[8][9]

The school has also introduced Positive Education to Timbertop, and is a compulsory core subject.[10]

Outdoors Programme

Timbertop has an extensive Outdoors Programme which encompasses Hiking, Downhill Skiing, Cross Country Skiing, Canoeing, Rafting, Rogaining and Camping.

Students begin with two training sessions at the start of the year, where they are taught to use "Trangias", pitch tents, and use the hike gear issued to them. They then do other hikes places such as Mt Stirling, The Bluff, and Mt Buller, to familiarise themselves with the area, and to build up to a 3 Day hike, where they choose the route and its difficulty themselves. The first "Solo" session also occurs, with students spending a day by themselves in a tent on the Timbertop Campus, where they reflect, and think about goals for the year, and future life.

In term 2, students take part in a Unit Hike, but most of the term is taken up with Community Service and School Service. A second "Solo" also occurs

In term 3, students participate in Downhill Skiing on Mt Buller, where they do lessons, and free skiing. The students also learn to Cross Country Skiing on two unit based trips on Mount Sturling, near GGS hut, and on the Bogong High Plains. At the end of the term, students take part in a unit based "Mystery Hike".

Term 4 is the culmination of the outdoors programme. Returning students participate in Option Hikes 1 and 2, which vary in difficulty depending on the choices of the hike groups. The last unit based outdoor trip is a Walk Canoe Raft, where units do some walking, canoeing, and rafting (or sledding) near William Hovell Dam. Hike Rogaine takes place towards the middle of the term. Students walk to Mt Stirling, then compete in a Rogaine on Mt Stirling. The Hiking year culminates in the Four and Six Day hikes, where students choose and design routes, and are given a large amount of autonomy in choosing where they go, distances walked, and food taken. Students then partake in their third and final "Solo".[11][12]

In total, students camp for between 50 and 55 nights during the year.[13]

Running Programme

Running makes up a large part of the Timbertop Programme. Student run between two or three times a week. The aim of the running programme is to build the resilience and fitness of the students, to prepare them for The Timbertop Marathon, and ultimately later life.

"Crossies" provide a base line for fitness, and are increased incrementally every Term. They generally take between 18 and 40 minutes to complete.

"Long Runs" Are longer then other runs. The length of the runs increases every week, starting (at the start of term 1) at approximately 4 km, and ending (at the end of term 2) at around 23 km.

"Wildfire Crossies" are short runs done in terms 2 and 3, designed to build fitness through interval training.

The Timbertop Running Programme builds up to Marathon, which varies in length depending on the decision of staff, and available tracks to run.

Hobbies Programme

The Hobbies Programme takes place in Term 3, before ski days. Students select two hobbies from a list that includes things such as Snowboarding, Fly Fishing, Horse Riding and Mountain Biking. [14]

Structure

Units

The dormitory of a Timbertop Unit

All students at Timbertop are placed in Units of anywhere between 12 to 16 people. Boys Units are named A through to I, and Girls Units are named J through to P, making a total of 16 Units. Students sleep, clean, study, maintain, and live in their units for the year. Once a week, units perform a "Sunday inspection", which rarely happens on a Sunday despite the name. During the inspection, every part of the unit is cleaned to a high standard and inspected by the Head of Unit. Additionaly, students perform two inspections per normal day to maintain cleanliness and hygiene in the Unit. The units are divided into two "Schools": A school and B school. Schools have classes separately, and often do things at different times.[15]

Assistants

Timbertop offers a Gap year programme. Assistants, or "gappies" help with tasks such as organising skiing, helping around the farm, and assisting staff. They participate in the outdoor programme.[16][17]

Notable people

In 1966, Charles, Prince of Wales, attended Timbertop for six months. The event was widely publicised.[18][19] In 1973, Prince Charles said that his time at Timbertop was the most enjoyable part of his whole education.[20]

In 1983, Boris Johnson took a gap year as a teaching assistant at Timbertop.[16][21]

See also

References

  1. ^ "Bonzle-Timbertop".
  2. ^ Buttler, Mark; Deery, Shannon (29 February 2012). "Missing South Australian teenager Tom McMahon, 15, found 'safe'". Adelaide Advertiser. Retrieved 13 January 2018. {{cite news}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |dead-url= (help)
  3. ^ "GEELONG GRAMMAR TO BUILD AT MANSFIELD". The Argus (Melbourne). No. 32, 853. Victoria, Australia. 19 December 1951. p. 7. Retrieved 13 January 2018 – via National Library of Australia.
  4. ^ a b "An Experiment in Education at Mt. Timbertop". The Age. No. 30, 508. Victoria, Australia. 9 February 1953. p. 2. Retrieved 13 January 2018 – via National Library of Australia.
  5. ^ "History". Geelong Grammar School. Archived from the original on 16 December 2007. {{cite news}}: Unknown parameter |dead-url= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  6. ^ Gunn, Alastair. Timbertop 1981 and term 1, 1982. Lulu.com. ISBN 9781291404302.
  7. ^ "Light Blue April 2009".
  8. ^ "Geelong Grammar School Curriculum Guide: Year 9".
  9. ^ "The Good Schools Guide-Geelong Grammar".
  10. ^ Rundle, Guy (27 June 2011). "Rundle: Timbertop, Moll Flanders and life as rehearsal for budding elites". Crikey. Retrieved 13 January 2018. {{cite web}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |dead-url= (help)
  11. ^ "Geelong Grammar School OES".
  12. ^ "AUS 07".
  13. ^ Gray, Tonia L. (1997). The impact of an extended stay outdoor education school program upon adolescent participants - Doctor of Philosophy thesis, Faculty of Education. University of Wollongong.
  14. ^ "Timbertop Handbook 2018".
  15. ^ "Geelong Grammar School Campuses:Timbertop".
  16. ^ a b "When Boris was just another Timbertop Rent-A-Pom".
  17. ^ "Geelong Grammar-Work at a School".
  18. ^ "THE NEW BOY AT TIMBERTOP". The Australian Women's Weekly. Vol. 33, , no. 37. Australia, Australia. 9 February 1966. p. 7. Retrieved 13 January 2018 – via National Library of Australia.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: extra punctuation (link)
  19. ^ "Timbertop - Prince Charles Australia YouTube".
  20. ^ "Prince had happy time at Timbertop". The Canberra Times. Vol. 47, , no. 13, 346. Australian Capital Territory, Australia. 31 January 1973. p. 11. Retrieved 13 January 2018 – via National Library of Australia.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: extra punctuation (link)
  21. ^ Bunbury, Stephanie (2013-08-17). "Boris Johnson and the right to write". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 2018-01-12.

Further reading

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