Term 3 Week 9 2024 Newsletter

From the Principal

I have often said that “Term 3 is the busiest of all the terms”. I believe it definitely feels that way at the moment because:

after three terms “filled to the brim” with outstanding learning/teaching and events, we all feel exhausted;
we are planning and preparing for the year to come, while still preparing, working in and finalising the events of the current year.;
we are organising the staffing plan for the year ahead;
we have commenced organising our end of year celebrations;
students start transitioning to their next year level of learning.

Regardless of the term being busy or exhausting, no one can question how much we have planned, organised, prepared, and actioned, always providing the very best learning and care for our students.

75 Years

We will be celebrating our 75 Year Anniversary on Friday 15 November 2024. A program of activities will be released soon. In addition to this day, there will be an activity every day of that week.

We are working hard in the background to gather information about our school's history. This has not been an easy task but we have made significant inroads in this area. We are still seeking photographs and images of the school in the past.

If you know of someone or personally have photos / images of the school through the years 1949 to 2010, we would appreciate you sharing a copy of them with us, or allowing us to make a copy of them.

We are in the process of securing a large, circus-type tent, to be erected on the oval, to reflect and connect with the school’s beginnings.

2025

Staffing for 2025 is almost complete, with one more piece of the puzzle to finalise. The structure for 2025 has been decided. We will continue to grow in class numbers to accommodate the school’s growth.

It is important to note that as we grow, managing the growth is imperative, and this is constantly in my thinking. This includes leadership structures, additional staff, class sizes, common practices through the school, to mention a few. I still stand by the facts that the quality of learning we are providing, the opportunities we provide our student cohort, and the behaviour across the school, are the best they have been since I started in 2022.

2025 structure

Reception – 2 classes
Year 1 – 2 classes
Year 2 – 2 classes
Year 3/4 – 3 classes
Year 5/6 – 3 classes

This will take our school to 12 classes in 2025 and will result in the need to juggle the use of spaces around the school site. I am near placing the final pieces in that puzzle.

What we do …

In recent years, we have introduced common and consistent practices across the school. This has ensured that our students are learning, safe, engaged, and happy. Each term students participate in a “Pulse Check” survey, and the results affirm we are on the right track!

I want to particularly highlight the “Zones of Regulation”. We explicitly teach this across the school so that all our students understand the four zones that supports their self-awareness. In addition to this, we explicitly teach students strategies to regulate and stay in the “green zone” – the optimal zone for learning.

These skills are lifelong skills that our students are able to develop from a young age. I know of or have met adults who, sadly, have not learnt about or understand their self-awareness and hence struggle to regulate. It is important to appreciate that regulation strategies can look different for different people. In a school setting, it might include, but not limited to:

Colouring in,
Walking or running around,
Shooting some hoops or kicking a ball,
Having some quiet time,
Talking with an adult.

At all times, students are supervised by an adult. It is important that proactive strategies are NOT confused with tricky behaviour or perceived as “students wandering around the school not learning”. Again, these strategies are put in place to support the current AND future development of our students.

Thank you for your ongoing support over the term. We are a school that truly lives the partnership between school and families.

Term 4 returns on Monday 14 October.

Lee Abela
Principal