Bundaberg North State High School student Porter Lavender has taken his weekly home learning challenge to another level after recording a song about learning in isolation with his dad Mark Lavender.
With catchy lyrics and a tune that will get stuck in your head, it’s no wonder the two-and-a-half-minute song had more than 500 views in the first hour after it was posted online.
Porter said the song was part of Bundaberg North State High’s weekly Relationship and Self (RAS) home-learning challenge, that was set up by the school to engage with the students learning from home during the current COVID-19 regulations, and to help students not feel so isolated.
“I picked the poem challenge and I was excited to see they picked it and put it on the Bundaberg North High Facebook Page,” Porter said.
“I love the song cause I got to write it with my dad; it’s so good! Amazing! Best song – silly but amazing. It gets stuck in our heads.”
The Year 7 student said he felt a lot of kids may be struggling with home learning and he wanted to help by making it a little more fun, by creating a catchy song to show his peers that learning can be fun, and with the right approach anything is possible.
“I want kids to know that learning can be fun! The flip side is you can make an assignment your own like our poem,” he said.
“Our teachers are really understanding about how we deliver our work. Try and make the best out of what you’ve got, and teachers are always there if you need them.”
Porter said he missed the social side of school, which included playing handball, hanging out with his mates.
“I am in Year 7 – this is my first year of high school and I was really looking forward to it so I can’t wait to get back,” Porter said.
“The hardest thing is you don’t have teachers there every minute to help you when you are stuck, but it’s great to have your parents there and you can ring your teachers anytime – North High teachers are fantastic.”
Home learning challenge great for kids to engage
Bundaberg North State High School principal Robyn Kent said the weekly RAS home learning challenge was a way of checking in on the students and making sure they were engaging in a fun way.
“The RAS challenge is a great way to encourage the kids to get involved in learning in a fun way,” she said.
“The current situation of home learning has been challenging for everyone, and this little challenge we have to encourage participation and engagement.
“I know the song has already got stuck in some of the teacher’s heads too!”
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