Principal's Report
The countdown is on to the summer break, and we can feel excitement building for the opportunities warmer weather will bring, as well as the changes a new school year naturally involves; our year 6 cohort are absolutely ready for secondary education!
As I walk around the school, I am never without a little chorus of voices calling out "hello" and asking me where I am going. I can't quite put my finger on it, but to me, it seems we have beautifully socialised students who are confident speaking with adults and already feel connected to me and my presence in the school.
On Tuesday, we hosted three principal teams from schools in the Beachside Network to act as challenge partners for our plans for improvement. Our year 6 student leaders welcomed these adults, shaking hands with each of them and introducing themselves with confidence and maturity. They delivered an Acknowledgement of Country which always makes me grateful for the time we are living in, knowing we continue to grow in our respect for our indigenous heritage.
It was my great pleasure to attend the singing recital held by Susie King last week. I sat amongst a crowd of justifiably proud parents to watch a staggering number of children get up and demonstrate their bravery and risk taking. It is no small thing to invite public scrutiny and each student should be celebrated. Congratulations to Susie and each one of our performers.
The working bee is nearly upon us. Thank you to the parents and staff working hard to ensure we get some important jobs done to make our school as beautiful and safe as it can be. If there are more people in the community who have time on Sunday morning, December 7, please get involved and sign up via Compass. So many of the things our current students enjoy exist because of the work of past parents and we are grateful to them for their efforts.
Trialing a new shape of the day has been a fascinating exercise in human behaviour. The incidences of niggling and arguing during lunchtime has dropped significantly, which demonstrates the power of structuring the environment to set students up for success.
Junior classes are noticing an improved focus and appreciate children being able to eat an hour earlier. It has been very interesting to note some class teachers mentioning their students are eating far more than usual, while other classes are reporting that students are eating far less. We need some time to address this and support everyone to eat enough during the day. There has been no change to the 10-minutes of supervised eating.
Change can be challenging, and this trial highlights the great benefits of routines to me. When children can predict what will happen next, they feel safer and more secure. All changes to routines bring about uncertainty and take time to adjust - longer for some than for others which is perfectly fine.
Hilarious stories came from year 4 this week when Mrs Badley told me about her students asking if it was fruit break…or was it lunch? They decided it was 'frunch'.
The point is, please watch this space and we'll be sure to communicate any decisions we make. Thank you for your support as we keep trying to manage a wide range of needs.
Julia Stoppa
Principal