Principals Report
Dear Parents and Carers,
Catholic Education has designed a new learning framework for contemporary Religious Education. The framework is based on a “conceptual understanding in Religious Education” model which all Catholic schools in our Archdiocese are adopting. The new Religious Education Learning Framework has a new vision for teaching Religious Education and contains six core elements. There are validation standards which support our school in becoming aligned with the Learning Framework.
As a result, St Thomas More’s has been given the exciting opportunity to design a Conceptual Inquiry model in Religious Education. Staff have engaged in professional learning opportunities to embed a deeper understanding of conceptual inquiry and the pedagogical understanding behind the need for a new Religious Education curriculum.
There is a 3-year implementation period for the new Religious Education curriculum. The Religious Education Coordinator (Mrs Donna Victory) regularly uploads documentation to Catholic Education which shows STM’s evidence for attaining each phase development. Staff have been working hard to ensure the teaching of Religious Education is not only robust and contemporary, but also that it links with our vision of Teaching and Learning Excellence.
Sacrament of Reconciliation
Congratulations to our Yr 2 students who will receive the Sacrament of Reconciliation this Saturday. Special thanks to Fr Josh and Mrs Christine Washington for all the work involved in preparing the children.
Cross Country Carnival
Thank you to all the wonderful parent helpers who attended our Cross Country Carnival today. Your assistance was very much appreciated and needed! Thank you also to the Kinder, Yr 1 and Yr 2 teaching team for setting up and organising all the details for the smooth running of the carnival.
Hall Lobby Area
The lobby area is still a work in progress. A plumber has been doing some investigative work. Hopefully the source of the leak will be found soon!
Reading Volunteers
Are there any grandparents, carers or parents available to read with students? Please let Julie Ogden know if you can spare approximately 30 minutes a week. Thank you.
School Drop Off
Just a reminder to parents, carers and grandparents: Young children should be escorted to the top gate in the morning to ensure their safety. Also, a reminder to be aware of children walking behind cars - it is getting a little hazardous. Please remind your child/ren to be safe around cars.
Year 5/6 Camp
Our Year 5/6’s head off to camp on Monday morning. I would like to thank Kristy Poole, Donna Victory, Amanda Lynch and Mr David Collins (Elly Yr 6, Rex Yr 5) for attending with the students. (I will travel up for the day on Monday). I appreciate the staff spending time away from their families so the students can participate in this important and exciting experience; I know they will all have a great time. School camps are designed to positively impact on student education through fun and rewarding challenges.
For your information - If your child is not featuring on our Facebook page, it’s because they have a media exclusion in place. If this is not the case, please advise the front office.
Yours sincerely,
Julie Wiley
Principal.