PRINCIPAL'S REPORT

Term 3, Week 3 Newsletter

As we approach the end of Week Three, it feels like we're really hitting our stride for the term. Already, our students have enjoyed a wide range of rich learning experiences, and it's remarkable just how much has been packed into these first few weeks.

It has also been a pleasure meeting our new Prep families for 2027 during their enrolment interviews. While these sessions have been a wonderful opportunity to begin building relationships, I've also enjoyed hearing what drew each family to St Agnes'. Time and again, they speak about the warmth and welcome they felt from the moment they walked through our gates for tours with our senior students, our office staff's welcome or attending a school event, along with the outstanding reputation our school has earned through the positive experiences shared by families across the local community.

The past fortnight has certainly provided an opportunity for reflection, with our Prep students celebrating their 100th day of school. It is hard to believe how far they have come in such a short time. We are incredibly fortunate to have such a settled, kind, connected and respectful group of students across our two Prep classes.

Over the past few weeks, many of our 2027 Prep families and prospective enrolments have visited these classrooms, and the feedback has been overwhelmingly positive. Families regularly comment on what settled and productive classes they are. What I enjoy sharing with them, however, is that what they see today is the result of months of growth. Our Prep students have developed remarkable learning stamina, resilience, perseverance and independence. They haven't always been as settled and confident as they are now, and their progress is a testament to the hard work they have put in each day, supported by the exceptional guidance of their teachers, Mrs Hobart, Mrs Barton and Mrs Georgiou. It is exciting to think about how much more these students will achieve over the coming months.

Last week, I had the opportunity to meet with a family exploring Prep enrolment for 2028. As always, their visit began with a tour led by two of our Year Six students before they returned to my office for a chat. During our chat they told me that the character, confidence and love our Year Six students showed while speaking about their school had convinced them there and then that St Agnes' was the right choice for their family. We couldn't ask for a better endorsement. Our students are our greatest ambassadors, and feedback like this is a wonderful reminder of that.

100 Days Brighter: 100 Days of Prep

It has become a highlight of the school calendar, the 100th day of Prep. It was lovely to see our excited and colourful Preps come in through the gates on Wednesday for their 100th day. The day began with activities in the classroom with the children and their parents. A few 100 days themed activities across the day, before they moved over the hall for their special celebratory feast. The day was topped with yet another wonderful Prep assembly performed to a full house. It’s amazing to see the confidence of our Preps on display at assembly, reading and performing for the crowd. Before a big thank you for their Prep teachers, Mrs Hobart, Mrs Georgiou and Mrs Barton, and Mrs Baker, whose guidance and passion in Prep makes it all the more special.

We have loved seeing the growth and achievements of our Prep students celebrated this past week. We could not be more proud of the young people they have already become and are excited to see what else they can achieve for the rest of 2026. Thank you to all our families for supporting the day and making it a special one to remember for the youngest members of our school.

Inform and Empower

On Wednesday evening, we welcomed the Inform and Empower team to St Agnes' for our parent workshop, Raising Kids in a Digital World. Marty and Carley delivered a practical and engaging session, sharing valuable insights into social media, gaming, online communication and practical strategies families can use to help keep children safe in an increasingly digital world. I was so proud to see such a large turnout of parents in attendance, across a wide range of ages across our school. Your commitment and investment in your children's safety is fantastic to see.

While parents attended the workshop, our Year Six student leaders facilitated interactive cyber safety sessions for our Years Three to Five students. Through engaging discussions and activities, they explored age-appropriate ways to stay safe, healthy and responsible online. Our Year Six students did an outstanding job leading these sessions, educating and supporting our younger students.

Thank you to all of our parents who attended on the night. Navigating the online world is one of the biggest challenges facing families today, and your willingness to engage in conversations like these is a valuable investment in your child's safety, wellbeing and future. 

Science of Learning Behaviour Curriculum

This term, we have begun implementing our Science of Learning student curriculum across the school. Each week, our students have participated in explicit, age-appropriate lessons exploring concepts such as how the brain learns, the importance of attention, the benefits of calm entry routines, cognitive overload, the forgetting curve and opportunities to respond.

These concepts underpin many of the teaching practices we use every day. They are evidence-informed strategies designed to help students learn more efficiently, retain knowledge for longer and become more successful learners. Until recently, however, the 'why' behind these approaches had largely remained with the teachers. Our goal is to empower students to understand how their brains learn best and why we ask them to engage in particular learning behaviours. We hope this knowledge will help students take greater ownership of their learning and become more reflective, independent learners.

I recently had the pleasure of visiting Mrs Law's Year Four classroom during a lesson on cognitive overload and the forgetting curve. To bring the concept to life, Mrs Law used her childhood phone number to demonstrate how information moves into long-term memory through retrieval and repetition. The impact of this lesson was on full display at the Year Four assembly the following week when I asked if anyone could remember the number. Without hesitation, the entire class were able to recite it, a wonderful demonstration of the very principles they had been learning about.

It has been a promising beginning to our Science of Learning: Student Edition journey, and we are already seeing students engage with these ideas in meaningful ways. We look forward to continuing to build their understanding throughout the year and sharing with our community soon how we plan on using this further with their learning. Watch this space.

Year 5/6 Mini-Boss Economics Incursion

It’s been wonderful to see our senior students jump so passionately into their Business and Economics unit this term. We launched the unit last week with the Mini-Boss incursion, where students explored what it takes to develop a successful business, from identifying opportunities and understanding customers to marketing products and managing finances. They used all of these skills to develop a smoothie business.

The incursion has set the scene for what promises to be an exciting and authentic term of learning. Over the coming weeks, students will work collaboratively to develop their own business ideas, design products and services, and learn about concepts such as profit, budgeting, supply and demand, entrepreneurship and financial decision-making.

The unit will culminate in a Shark-Tank presentation, where students will bring their ideas to life by pitching and selling their products to a panel of judges. Not only will students develop their understanding of economics and enterprise, but they will also strengthen essential future-focused skills such as collaboration, communication, problem-solving and critical thinking.

We are excited to see the innovation, enthusiasm and entrepreneurial spirit our students bring to this exciting learning experience over the rest of Term Three. Well done to Mr Otto, Mrs Miller, Mrs Murdoch and Mrs Gorski for the work they have done developing an exciting unit of work for our students to take part in.

Geography Immersion Day

While our senior students begin their Business and Economics unit, the rest of the school has launched into an exciting exploration of Geography. Last Friday, students took part in our Geography Immersion Day, providing a fun and engaging introduction to the term's learning.

Working in multi-age groups, students travelled the globe, discovering different countries, continents, cultures and environments through a range of hands-on experiences. Throughout the day they created animal masks inspired by wildlife from around the world, embarked on a virtual African safari, learnt how to use chopsticks, explored different cultural traditions and participated in a variety of activities designed to bring geography to life.

It was a wonderful way to ignite curiosity and excitement for the learning ahead. We are incredibly fortunate to have Mrs Baker, whose creativity and passion for curriculum continue to provide our students with such rich and memorable learning experiences. A sincere thank you also goes to all of our teachers for embracing the day so enthusiastically and creating engaging activities that sparked our students' curiosity about the world around them. We look forward to seeing where this journey takes them throughout the term.

Maths Professional Learning at St Agnes’

Over the past few weeks, our teaching staff have begun another cycle of our termly Learning Sprint Professional Learning Team sessions. This term, led by Mr Otto, our focus has been on strengthening Mathematics instruction. Building on the strong foundations established by Mrs Baker, teachers have been refining the structure and pacing of their maths lessons to ensure each component is purposeful and that students have ample time to independently practise and apply new learning. As part of the learning sprint, teachers have video-recorded their own lessons before analysing the footage to reflect on how instructional time is being used and identifying a specific goal to improve over the coming weeks.

This cycle of observation, reflection and refinement will continue throughout the term, with teachers revisiting their goals and measuring their progress after each lesson. It is a powerful example of our commitment to continuous improvement and ensuring we are always seeking ways to enhance student learning. Mr Otto has done an outstanding job designing and leading this professional learning, and we are already seeing greater consistency in lesson structure and pacing across our Mathematics classrooms, helping to maximise every minute of learning for our students.

Maths Mind Challenge

This week we sent two groups of middle school girls off to the Maths Mind Challenge at Mentone Girls Grammar School. The girls took part in a range of Maths fluency, building and problem solving tasks in teams of four. Well done to Ivy, Gracelyn, Georgie, Ellie, Eva, Ava, Seren and Harlyn who represented the school so well. A special congratulations to the team of Gracelyn, Georgie, Ivy and Seren whose team finished third overall. They will go back for the championship day later in the year. Thank you to Mrs Law for organsing this experience and Mrs Baker for supporting the students on the day.

Coding Club

It was great to see our Year 6 leaders launch St Agnes’ Coding Club last week! Our students explored Scratch, learning to code, solve problems, and bring their ideas to life.

We’re especially proud of our Year 6 leaders for creating this opportunity and sharing their knowledge. Their leadership sets a fantastic example. We can’t wait to see Coding Club grow throughout the rest of the year.

Parent Social Evening

Head over to the Parents and Friends section for more information about our parent social night on Friday, August 14th. It always promises to be a great evening. Thank you again to our P&F for the work they do providing opportunities for our families and community to get together.

PSG Meetings 

It has been a significant week for our teachers, LSOs and Melinda Phyland, our Learning Diversity Leader, as part of our termly PSG meetings. These sessions play a vital role in strengthening communication and ensuring we provide the best possible support for students across the school. We thank our staff for the care, professionalism and time they invest in these meetings, so capably led by Mrs Phyland.

School Closure Day

Monday August 10th (Week Five) will be a School Closure Day for students as our staff participate in a professional learning day.

Throughout the day, our staff will be working with psychologist Stewart D'Silva, further developing their understanding of behavioural science and evidence-informed approaches to supporting student learning, wellbeing and engagement. This professional learning forms part of our ongoing commitment to continually strengthening teaching practice and ensuring the best possible outcomes for every student.

Kelly Sports Holiday Programs will be available on this day for families who require care. Information about this service is below. Please ensure you have booked by the 4th of August so appropriate planning can be done.

Family Maths Evening: Tuesday 25th August: 6pm

In Week Seven, we will host our annual Family Maths Evening, providing families with an insight into how Mathematics is taught at St Agnes' and the evidence-informed practices that underpin our approach.

This year's evening will explore the Science of Learning and how it shapes our Mathematics lessons, while also showcasing the Rich Learning Tasks that are becoming an increasingly important part of our weekly teaching and learning sequences. Families will have the opportunity to experience the kinds of learning our students engage in every day and gain practical ideas to support mathematical thinking at home.

This is an evening for both students and families, and we encourage everyone to make every effort to attend.

Both evenings have been thoughtfully planned and organised by our Mathematics and eLearning Leader, Mr Levi Otto. We thank Levi for his passion, expertise and leadership in these important areas of school life, and for providing such valuable learning opportunities for our entire community.

Book Week

On Friday 14th of August, our school will come together to celebrate Book Week. This year's theme, 'A Symphony of Stories', celebrates the way diverse characters, ideas, and words come together just like the instruments in an orchestra to create rich and memorable stories. All students are invited to dress up as their favourite book character or wear a costume inspired by this year's theme. The day will begin with a Book Week parade, where students can showcase their costumes, and will conclude with a performance by Perform Education. Further information will come out in the next few weeks.

Star Students

Well done to Kilian and Sayla who took part in the Run Melbourne last weekend. A fantastic achievement at their age. Sayla was especially proud that she managed to run the whole 2km distance! We can’t wait to see these two in our cross country team in a few years. Well done Kilian and Sayla.

Congratulations Miss Bell

Our students were thrilled to welcome Miss Bell back this week after her trip to Europe visiting family. She also returned with some very exciting news: she's engaged! Congratulations to Miss Bell and her fiance Aaron on this wonderful milestone. We wish them every happiness as they begin planning their wedding and look forward to celebrating this exciting chapter with them.

Thank you for a fantastic past two weeks, it's been a big fortnight. Enjoy a lovely weekend and I look forward to seeing you on the gate on Monday morning.

Tom