Dear Families,
Welcome back to Term 4! Students have had a very positive start to the term. It has been wonderful to see students so settled and ready for learning as well as enjoying other aspects of school life. In the first two weeks of term, students across the school have been involved in some exciting activities and opportunities including the Hurricanes Cricket trials, Year 9 Camp, the Break O’Day Christmas Sign judging, a Year 6 transition excursion to Rostrevor, a Kinder Intergeneratonal Play local excursion and some very excited pre-kinder children experienced their first session in the Kindergarten. Also this week, Prep to Year 10 students commenced PAT testing in Reading and Mathematics. This assessment will provide important information about student progress and inform future teaching and learning support and strategies.
Staffing News
This term we are pleased to welcome Mr Matthew Pinkerton to our teaching staff. Matt joins our English team in the secondary area and brings with him a broad range of experiences from his twelve years working in schools in Western Australia.
Last week we farewelled Mrs Susan Scolyer from her role as Quality Teaching Coach. Susan has accepted a position working as a Project Officer within DECYP’s Lifting Literacy team. My thanks to Susan for her contribution to our school and wish her well in her new role.
Student Wellbeing and Positive School Culture
Last term students in years 4-12 undertook the Student Wellbeing and Engagement Survey. Data from this survey has just been returned to the school and first indications are showing positive trends for students across all year groups. Continuing our intensive focus on student wellbeing and engagement, including the implementation of strategies such as The Resilience Project are making a difference for our children and young people.
Key messages students reported were:
- Increased wellbeing in all Learning indicators – Engagement with teachers, Engagement (work flow), Perseverance, Cognitive Engagement, Academic self concept and Learning practices
- Increased wellbeing in Connectedness to adults, School belonging, Peer belonging, School climate and feeling safe at school
An increase in students:
- Satisfaction with life
- Emotional regulation
- Motivation to achieve goals
Further analysis of this data will be a focus for teachers on the Student Free Day on Friday 1 November.
Making Every School Day Count
It is hard to believe we are heading into week three of the final term for the 2024 school year. Term 4 is a busy term with lots of out of class learning opportunities already scheduled in our calendar including some exciting excursions and carnivals as well as our Year 10 celebration events.
This final stretch of the school year can sometimes be challenging to get your children to school. But being at school is the best place for them to be, and it’s important we make every school day count.
If you’re struggling to get your child to school, help is available. Please talk to us at school about your situation. We’ll support you, in whatever way we can.
Here are some tips to help:
- Create a routine.
- Give yourself enough time in the morning.
- Be on time, every day. Monday to Friday.
- Schedule appointments and trips outside of school hours.
- Get a good night’s sleep.
- Set some technology boundaries.
If your child is well enough to attend school, they should be at school. Every day, Monday to Friday. Data tells us that the better a child’s attendance rate, the better off they’ll be. Their future will be filled with more opportunities…. which is what every parent and carer wants for their child.
School is where they learn and grow alongside their friends, and where they benefit the most. Going to school not only promotes academic success, but also helps build important social skills, relationships and confidence.
Again, please talk to us about your situation if you’re having trouble getting your child to school every day.
Professional Learning Day for staff
Please note that Friday 1 November is a Professional Learning Day for staff and therefore students are not required to attend on this day. This leads into the long weekend on Monday 6 November. These Professional Learning Days are incredibly valuable opportunities for staff to collaborate and apply our value of Growth to developing our skills, knowledge and understanding of our work. Teachers are learners too! We appreciate our community’s understanding and support of these days, particularly as we acknowledge that it can cause issues for families with care and supervision arrangements.
World Teachers Day
World Teachers Day is today, 25 October. I would like to acknowledge our dedicated teaching staff for all that they do for our students, which often goes far beyond teaching in the classroom. We have an exceptional team of teachers, both permanent and relief, at our school for which I am very thankful. Hats off to our teachers!
This term will seem to go by very quickly. I encourage all students to work hard, follow our school values and expectations and make the most of the final term of the year.
Regards
Carolyn Watson
Principal