Assistant Principal 

Staff Development Day - Focus on Curriculum- Fluency, Vocabulary and Reading Comprehension 

On Monday the staff at Holy Family, engaged in day of professional learning regarding the new English Curriculum.  We began the day with a workshop with Jo Quinlan, Digital Enablement CSBB, who led us through reading tools on Microsoft Teams that can further enhance our reading assessment and targeted intervention with students. 

We then became more familiar with elements of the reading components in the Syllabus and how reading fluency, comprehension and vocabulary work together to create balanced learning program for our students. Laura Nunn and Lesley-Ann Beau Gasper led the staff through a case study of their Year Two program and how they have used explicit teaching, shared learning and independent learning to motivate and teach their students. 

Elements of the professional learning will be further explored throughout the term. 

Student Holiday Achievement 

 We are thrilled to announce the achievements of Jonathan S during the holidays. Jonathan travelled to Tweed Heads to compete in the Australian International Oireachtas - an International Irish Dancing Competition.  He competed in the 11/12 age group, children his age and older, and WON. We are so proud of you Jonathan.

Also, during the first week of the holidays, I was lucky enough to attend the Kanga Cup in Canberra with my Year 6 son.Several students from Holy Family also attended, playing either for Lindfield or Northbridge. They all played so well, and I was proud of their sportsmanship and representation of Holy Family. 

Well done to Declan and Conor B, Jasper W and Benjamin S. 

Staff Development Days 

To assist schools to implement new English and Maths curriculum, CSBB has allowed us more Staff Development Days than in previous years. These days are used to assist teachers in their knowledge of the new curriculum and the best ways to teach the outcomes and content. The dates of these additional days are set by CSBB and often involve 'System Days' where we meet with other schools for whole diocese professional learning. 

For the remainder of 2024 the dates and focus are as follows. 

Monday 19th August - Staff Spirituality Day at Cana Communities

Friday 27th September - Curriculum - Mathematics  

Thursday 19th December - End of year handover procedures 

Friday 20th December - End of year handover procedures 

We appreciate that family organisation on these days can be challenging and we thank our parent community for their flexibility and understanding. 

Have a lovely weekend 

Sam Edwards - Assistant Principal