Learning 

Learning and Teaching - Literacy and Numeracy

Recently, our Grade 3 and 5 families received their NAPLAN results. While we are incredibly proud of our children for the Literacy and Numeracy growth indicated in these results, we are ALSO incredibly proud of all the things that these results do not measure and that equally deserve celebration. 

NAPLAN does not measure how creative and kind our children are. It does not measure how resilient and persistent they are. It does not know all that we as families and educators are lucky enough to know - your child’s interests, their love of sport or their siblings, their kind, brave and gentle nature. It does not know that your child greets their peers and educators in the morning with a “hello” and a smile or that they are showing incredible growth in their guitar lessons. WE are lucky enough to know those qualities. At St. John’s we place our kids at the heart, and celebrate and continue to grow these qualities, alongside our academic results.  

NAPLAN provides data in key areas of Literacy and Numeracy. This gives parents and educators a snapshot of how students are progressing- individually, as part of our school community, and nationally.

We are proud to share that our children have performed above the State average for both, Reading and Numeracy in Year Three, and above the State average for Reading, Writing, and Spelling in Year Five. 

Most importantly, the results show that our children have made significant growth in Reading, Writing, and Numeracy over a two year period, as they have moved from Year Three into Year Five!

At St. Johns, we use a range of data sets to measure children’s growth, and determine areas of need, and establish goals (this is called ‘triangulation’). The Running Records data we collect in P-2, as well as the ARCOTS testing data in 3-6 strongly correlates with this growth that is demonstrated in our NAPLAN data. So too does the data from our Essential Assessment tests and the Rich assessments we design to measure growth in various Numeracy skills and concepts. Along with our yearly ‘PAT’ assessments for Numeracy and Reading, there is a pattern in this upward trend reflected in all our data. In particular, the ‘value added (or growth)’ we see demonstrated year to year, or in the case of NAPLAN, across two years. So it is extremely affirming to see this through our NAPLAN results.

Our data is evidence of the priority and focus we place on explicit teaching through targeted teaching for Reading and Viewing, Writing and Maths. As you are aware, children participate in target teaching groups from Prep onwards. Our NAPLAN data reflects the learning that has occurred in all years leading up to their testing year. Children have continued to receive explicit teaching through target groups during Remote Learning, ensuring that their goals continued to be supported.

At St. John’s, we use data to celebrate success, inform our planning, and address areas requiring improvement by incorporating future goals into Personalised Learning Plans and across the school.

Together we walk in the light of our children, celebrating them as a person, and celebrating their achievements, and ours as one community.

We have much to celebrate!

From the St. John’s team

Lauren Davis, Jarryd Bradford, Chevon Adamidis, Daniela Deluca & Ashlee Owen

ldavis@sjfootscray.catholic.edu.au 

jbradford@sjfootscray.catholic.edu.au 

cadamidis@sjfootscray.catholic.edu.au 

ddeluca@sjfootscray.catholic.edu.au 

aowen@sjfootscray.catholic.edu.au 

Learning and Teaching Leaders & Wellbeing Leader

Faith News

You are welcome to join our online end of term Prayer Gathering, focused on hope. We will share this at 12:30pm on Friday 17th Sept. We will gather online in hubs to reflect and afterwards have a chance to say goodbye to one another as we all take a break. Codes will be shared on your child's gathering place.  

Aoife Mc Carthy

Faith Leader

amccarthy@sjfootscray.catholic.edu.au

Dance Monkey Video

A big thank you to everyone who contributed to our Dance Monkey video! What a pleasure it was to weave together so much love and joy. 

It’s impossible to watch this without smiling and I encourage everyone to check it out!

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1WnLQKn9m46EIdgtyp6mqTqn4iJWl3S8F/view?usp=drivesdk

Woiwurrung Word of the Week

St Johns has purchased the Woiwurrung Language Resource for the Early Years.

Woiwurrung language was traditionally spoken and is being reclaimed today by the Wurundjeri people, who inhabited the land along the Yarra and Maribyrnong rivers.

The Woiwurrung Language Cards have been produced by the Wurun Child and Family Place and Yarra Ranges Council with permission from key Wurundjeri Elders.

Acknowledging and celebrating Aboriginal culture and its connection to spirituality and language, family and kinship, land, country and community is important in protecting and developing inclusion and equity. Language in particular is recognised as a precious part of cultural strength and pride.

Each newsletter we will share with you a new Woiwurrung word of the week, we hope that this will provide you with a chance to read, speak, and talk about it with your family.