From the Principal

After a busy two weeks and some warm autumn weather it is an opportune time to report on the happenings at Baimbridge College this term.

Building Works

Firstly the building works continue to progress at a rapid rate with steel frame work appearing above the first concrete slab and preparations almost complete in order to pour the final stab of stage one. Thank you to community members who came along to the meeting with the architects from Moreton Dunn to discuss colour options for the brickwork and outside cladding. It is great to see the considered input and shared ownership in what we hope will be a fantastic finished product that will serve the community for years to come. All form captains and School Representative Council members were participants in another meeting with the architects to hear the progress and planning so far and to also share their views on the colour choice combinations again with the idea to have ownership of the new school. All students were than invited to attend a session after school with a small number present.

Anzac Day Ceremonies

Thank you to all families and students who attended the many Anzac Day ceremonies around the district. There were many students in many locations who marched, represented the school or another community organisation including Warrnambool cadets, the CFA and the Scouting organisation. This was very heartwarming to see the investment our students continue to place in our community and shows our values being applied.

X Country

The cross country was held at the Bandicoot reserve this year and weaved its way around Pedrina park. We had a slight hiccup with some senior students taking the wrong turn but will offer those keen to test themselves and qualify for the next round a further opportunity. The inter school course will be in the same location as Fridays Glenelg District event and will be run by Baimbridge Colleges own Hayley Boxall.

State Champion

I'd like to acknowledge that one of our students, Dom Hoggard returned home from the State Swimming Championships with a Gold medal for his efforts in the Multiclass 50m Freestyle and a Silver in the Multiclass 50m Backstroke. 

What an amazing effort, congratulations Dom.

I'd also like to acknowledge that Todd Dymke placed 7th in the 100m Fly, at State level that is an effort to be proud of.  

Community Sporting teams

Our weekend netball team continues to improve and show great spirit and the girls are all having a great time building cohesion and comradeship. The newly established soccer team similarly made up of Mr. Hong and students from Years 7-12 is also kicking goals... six of them last week to be precise. They are proudly called the Baimbridge Bandicoots using our newly minted mascot name.

Leaving school without permission.

This week we believe a couple of students have again left the school without permission. Our staff are diligent with their roll marking and will continue to enforce safety, duty of care and expectations for our students. 

Attendance remains a focus for the DET and we must play our part to ensure we have done all we can to get students to aim for a 100% attendance to maximise their learning.

Parents are reminded that students are to use the reception phone to call home and all arrivals and departures should check in at the office, the use of mobile phones to contact home will result in the enforcement of the mobile phone policy. 

Focus

Heading into Term 2 we have completed our Review and we not far away from completion of our Strategic Plan and Annual Implementation Plan (AIP).  In the meantime our current AIP is clearly focussed on 

1) Achievement & Catch Up 

2) Health & Wellbeing

3) School Connectedness

We have been listening to feedback from parents and have been making a concerted effort to provide consistent feedback on Common Assessment Tasks (CATs) so that you can know how your child is tracking.  

School Song

You may have seen some information through Compass around the selection of a new school song that has been composed by Mr Hayes with input from students to develop the lyrics to the song.  Please take the time to vote on your preferred rendition and we can then get to work learning the words for upcoming ceremonies and celebrations.

Tutor Program

Our Tutor Learning initiative continues to provide additional support for many students as part of the State Governments commitment to help students to catch up on missed learning due to the lockdowns of 2020. Mostly these additions are existing staff who are timetabled to have two teachers in many English and Math classes but we have also employed 3 new staff to help out in this space. We are working with the timetable to extend after school tuition for those students who need it on a volunteer basis. Please contact the office if you would like your child to attend so we may cater.

Progress Reports

We are pleased to report that on the back of the parent feedback mentioned above, we have chosen to implement Progress Reporting.  In Terms 1 and 3 in week 4 (prior to the Parent Student Teacher Conferences) and week 8 (leaving enough time to contact teachers, meet and implement strategies to begin in the following term) and Week 5 in Terms 2 and 4 you will receive a 1 page document tracking the following areas:

Achievement – how the student is tracking academically.

Preparedness – if the student comes to class ready to learn.

Participation & Engagement – encompasses behaviour, involvement in learning activities and positive contribution to classroom discussions and collaborative tasks.

Learning Independence – if the student can work on their own (especially important if students wish to apply for online VCE courses or VET programs in future – students must be achieving a score of 4 in this habit).

Endeavour – whether the student demonstrates their best work in class. 

Further information regarding the grading will be released on Compass closer to the distribution date.

Music

Our music program continues to build in numbers across the school and the year 7 music program is getting ever closer to be able to showcase a large band of musicians. This is a big investment by the school to rebuild our music program and once again be known as a successful music school around the district and state. It takes time but will be well worth the final result.

Weekly Reminder

We now publish a weekly reminder of upcoming events on a weekly basis to our social media pages on Facebook and Instagram so that parents can check in and not miss out on any important dates.

NAPLAN TESTING

NAPLAN is set to occur from May 11 - 13, keep an eye on Compass for details for students in Years 7 & 9.

A message from the CHO

Community Connectedness

We have continued to see many new enrolments this term and are also celebrating those students who have been able to secure full time employment or apprenticeships. Our students are the local workforce of the future and we are very proud of them. 

To continue to celebrate their achievements we are working towards a special celebration where we invite students, families and their employers back at the end of the year to thank and celebrate the connectedness with our school.  

If you have any further ideas as to how we can continue to work with the community such as our students cooking breakfast for our ex service men and women  last Sunday or our badge selling efforts raising over $4000 or any other contribution we would like to hear from you.  

Thank you for your continued support, it is very much appreciated.