Tutor Program News

At EPS we try to both challenge our students and provide them with a chance to shine. One way we do this is to encourage them to seize opportunities offered beyond the school's comfort zone. However, all such opportunities which exist parallel to the classroom program, need support within the school to ensure student access and success; the Tutor Learning Program has and will continue, to provide this support.

Throughout term two, Year 5 & 6 students were offered the opportunity to take part in national writing competitions open to all students across Australia. Years 5 & 6 had the chance to take part in the Dymock’s Beyond Words Writing Competition where students were asked to submit a narrative of between 500-1500 words, and Year 6 also took part in the Dorothea MacKellar Poetry Awards. Uptake was swift and enthusiastic, and we were proud to submit many entries. As this opportunity was offered parallel to the classroom program, the Tutor Learning Program made it possible by providing tutors and time to meet with students for 1:1 feedback, support and encouragement. Taking part in these programs was voluntary and self-driven as students had to gather their ideas, compose and edit their text independently and in their own time, yet they felt confident to do so, knowing they would receive the support needed. The outcomes of these competitions will be known in September, but more importantly, students reflected on their growth as writers, the independence and maturity they acquired by taking on the responsibility of meeting both the guidelines and deadlines of the task, and their pride in their completed writing.

The Year 6 works have been compiled into collections, and booklets containing this work are available in the school library and in every participating classroom.

Congratulations to all our young authors who took on the challenge.

Cheryl Clarke

Tutor and Tutor Learning Program Coordinator