Message from the
School Principal
Kaylene Carlin
Message from the
School Principal
Kaylene Carlin
Dear Sacred Heart Families,
After a fantastic day of celebrations for Sacred Heart Feast Day, I am very much looking forward to a special evening tonight as we celebrate our special day with a Family Mass at 5.30pm in the Sacred Heart church followed with pizza afterwards in the school hall. Gen Bryant will be singing at mass and I have seen Gen many times and she is a highly engaging and talented musician.
A few weeks ago, I attended the launch of Melbourne Archdiocese Catholic School's Vision for Engagement. Alongside MACS Vision for Instruction, the Vision for Engagement is an important document in articulating and bringing to life the 2030 strategic plan in Melbourne Catholic schools. So, what is the Vision for Engagement?
The MACS Vision for Engagement is an evidence informed and authentically Catholic commitment to nurturing calm, respectful and inclusive classrooms in which every student can thrive academically, socially, emotionally and spiritually. Put simply, it is our collective answer to a simple but important question: what kind of learning environments do our students need so they can flourish?
How does the Vision for Engagement align with MACS Vision for Instruction?
Student academic, behavioural, communication, engagement, health and wellbeing needs are interconnected and complementary facets of student learning. Vision for Engagement complements our Vision for Instruction. Both are grounded in world-class evidence and research from most successful teachers. Where our Vision for Instruction focuses on what we teach and how we teach it, Vision for Engagement focuses on the conditions essential for learning. These Position Statements reflect our belief that every child and young person is made in the image of God and deserves to be treated with dignity and respect, and given the best opportunity to flourish in their life.
What are our engagement practices?
• teaching respectful behaviour
• fostering belonging
• focusing on attendance
• promoting mental health and wellbeing
• enabling motivation
• targeting individual learning needs.
For students, Vision for Engagement means:
• behaving respectfully towards others
• attending school every day, on time
• adopting classroom routines that ensure expectations are understood
• listening intently and paying attention
• participating in instruction that is targeted to need, and supports growth and achievement • persisting with complex tasks
• feeling safe and connected at school
• being supported with mental health and wellbeing
• benefiting from stronger partnerships between the school and family
• experiencing caring relationships with teachers and school staff
• receiving a coordinated and effective system of support across all areas of their learning.
For teachers, Vision for Engagement means:
• being supported with high-quality professional development and resources
• clear guidance and a focused and consistent whole school approach to creating and sustaining learning enabled environments
By taking a whole-of-system approach, our Vision for Engagement creates a learning environment in all schools that is primed for students to grow and succeed, with the right support.
Over the coming weeks, we will explain more about what the Vision for Engagement means for our school. In the meantime, you may be interested in reading the media release of the Vision for Engagement Launch that I referenced earlier in the link below.
Media Release - Vision for Engagement Launch (Dr Ed Simons)
A huge thank you to everyone who contributed to the Bake Sale with either donations or purchases to raise money for a new sandpit cover. A special thank you to Vicki Foord (Prep parent) for her initiative and energy in making it happen. The new cover has been ordered and should be installed early next term.
Now that the autumn leaves have a fallen, we will also be topping up the sandpit with fresh sand for our children to dig in and explore with.
A reminder to parents/carers to please ensure you have opened and read your child's report before attending the Learning Conference. Educators will base conversations on the assumption that your child's report has been read.
What are Learning Conferences at Sacred Heart?
A Learning Conference is a meeting with a student and his or her family and teachers during which the student shares their work and discusses progress with their parent/guardian. The teacher facilitates/guides the meeting with input from the student and family. The Learning Conference is for 10 minutes. If you think you will need more time, please discuss this with your teacher prior to the appointment date or during the conference.
What are the roles?
The teacher acts as a guide for the discussion.
The student presents their work and facilitates the discussion.
The parents listen and speak with their child about his or her academic and social progress and needs & ask questions of the teacher.
When?
Wednesday, 2nd July - All classes except Prep B & Year 1KN
Prep B & Year 1KN
Please note, Prep B & Year 1KN Learning Conferences will be held on Monday 23rd & Wednesday 25th June. Bookings are now open as advised in Seesaw posts by the respective teachers. If your child's Learning Conference in during the day, you are encouraged to pick your child up from their classroom or specialist class to attend with you.
Bookings
Bookings for Learning Conferences can be made via School Interviews on the following link or using the QR code shown here. Bookings are open now.
Click here to book a Learning Conference for your child/ren for all classes (except Prep B & Year 1KN)
Code: peudb
If you have any questions or need to make an alternate time, please contact your child's teacher.
Camp Australia will be running on Wednesday 2nd July. Parents will be able to pick their child up from Camp Australia to attend the learning conference and return them afterwards for those who need to.
Have a wonderful weekend!
Warm regards,
Kaylene Carlin
School Principal