Keep Informed
LETTER TO PARENTS
Dear Parents and Carers,
Welcome to Term 2! Continuous Online Learning has commenced. Please know we are praying for you all in this difficult time. Despite the various pressures we all have, we need to remain steadfast doing the work of the Lord and keep focused on Him.
“Therefore, my dear brothers, stand firm. Let nothing move you. Always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not vain.” - 1 Corinthians 15:58
“Lift up your face unto God…
…and light shall shine upon your ways.” - Job 22:26.28
For some families it is SO difficult managing the remote learning and for others this may be combined with the loss of a job. Please, if we can help in any way, let us know.
It is our aim to not only keep the College open – but keep it thriving. The ‘College’ is community – students, staff and all their families, and the way we thrive is to keep Jesus as our focus and the reason for why we exist as a College.
Our 3 key AIMS for this term are:
- Keep our students learning
- Keep connected
- Keep caring
I know school looks really different at the moment, but I assure you our staff are working harder than ever to deliver quality learning to all our students. Our staff care about your child/ren so we are constantly developing processes of ways to keep connecting with and caring for every student.
We care for every family and want you to connect with us if you are having problems with Continuous Online Learning; have difficulty in paying fees or are concerned for the wellbeing of your child.
Learning Onsite
For families who cannot cope with remote learning for any reason – you are able to send your child to the College to receive supervision with their online learning. We have strict guidelines (health/safety) for students and staff onsite at the College. Contact Peter Friend on pfriend@standrews.vic.edu.au if you need your child to come to school.
School Fees
The College will be processing a credit to school fee accounts for school camps that have been cancelled during Terms 1 and 2. There will also be a credit relating to the Junior School Swimming Programme.
At this stage we are not considering any other reduction in school fees. In moving to Continuous Online Learning, the staff are endeavouring to provide a full service of education, with all teachers and staff still employed.
If families are experiencing financial hardship at this time, please email Darren Waterworth (Business Manager) dwaterworth@standrews.vic.edu.au who will provide you with details on the process for applying for financial assistance. We aim to keep all our families and hence all our staff during this difficult period.
Our College website has a Resource Centre for all the information we are giving out on Continuous Online Learning and information forwarded to parents (https://standrews.vic.edu.au/remote-learning-resources-covid-19-updates/).
Please read the attached updated guidelines for parents of Junior, Middle and Senior School.
Every blessing to each of you. May we all continue to lean more into Jesus to find grace, love, patience and endurance in all.
Keep safe!
Catriona Wansbrough
Principal
CONTINUOUS ONLINE LEARNING -
ADVICE FOR PARENTS
Firstly, I want to express my appreciation for all of the assistance that parents have been providing to their children through this time of Continuous Online Learning. I also want to acknowledge the amazing work that teachers have been undertaking to provide parents and students with the resources they need so that effective learning can continue to take place.
To assist parents, I have included below some information from a highly regarded education research organisation “Evidence for Learning.” The goal of Evidence for Learning is to Build, Share and Use Evidence to improve learning in all schools so that all children, regardless of background, make the best possible progress. They have recently published some key learning concepts for you to keep in mind as you navigate your new, expanded role with your children. Further information can be found on their website - HERE
1. Set up for success:
- Create an orderly environment for learning, for example, by limiting distractions
- Help to set and reinforce routines and timetables
- Support children to be ready for learning, including ensuring they have the materials that they need
- Engage in meaningful conversations about learning
- Communicate with your child's teacher if they need additional support
2. Creating confident learners:
Build a positive attitude to learning. It begins with children feeling loved, safe and supported. It incorporates a ‘growth mindset’; which emphasises that people aren’t born with a fixed amount of intelligence. Instead they can always take their abilities to the next level with perseverance and thoughtfulness. It also helps children see mistakes as a guide for what needs to be learnt next. Parents can model a growth mindset by speaking aloud about their own mindsets “Something didn't go right for me today, so I'll need to try a different way of doing it tomorrow.” In short – it replaces “I can’t” with “I can’t, YET”
3. Thinking about thinking:
Helps your child to understand how they learn best. It includes strategies for solving problems and for coming up with new ideas. It involves knowing how to track progress, reflecting on what is going well and what could be done differently. Being aware of your thinking is a great way to learn more productively.
You can support you children to think about their thinking by:
- helping them to manage time
- helping them to set goals
- helping them to organise their learning space
- prompting them to ask questions about their learning: “What worked well and what would you change next time?”
4. Meaningful conversations:
Shows how good dialogue in the home strengthens what is being taught by the educator. It starts with just talking, and building language and reasoning skills through expressing ourselves. It develops into effective ways to give feedback – not just praising talent or effort (good job!) but recognising specific achievements and suggesting what to do next to improve, e.g. “I was pleased that you re-read that sentence from the beginning. That is a good thing to do whenever you get stuck”. And later it creates the space for respectful discussions on the more challenging topics through adolescence.
OTHER IMPORTANT INFORMATION -
Years 7 – 11 Examinations:
After much thought and careful consideration, the College has decided that there will be no Examinations for Year 7 – 11 students for Semester One this year. This will enable students to focus on the key aspects of their learning in each subject area without the added pressure of preparing for an Examination. It is also important to note that some Year 11 subjects will conduct an assessment task towards the end of the Semester which is more summative in nature. This task will include questions which cover content from a range of topics across the semester. However, this task will not be of the same scope or magnitude as would normally be expected in an Examination. Year 11 teachers will continue to provide students with all of the necessary information regarding assessment tasks.
A decision regarding Examinations in Semester Two will be made later in the year once further information regarding the recommencement of face-to-face teaching is available.
Study Skills
Another useful resource which parents may like to access to assist their children is the “Study Skills Handbook.” This is a website that helps students develop essential skills for academic success. There are units of work on topics such as improving time management skills, how to study, research skills, summarizing, technology use, brain and memory.
Please see the attached flyer for further information or login to the website www.studyskillshandbook.com.au using these details:
Username: standrewsvic
Password: 130success
If you require any assistance please contact Mrs Irena Yevlahova (Careers Coordinator)
Michael Swanborough
Head of Learning and Teaching
RECIPE BOOK FUNDRAISER
St Andrews Netball Club is running a Recipe Book Fundraiser and we need your recipes! Please email all recipes and photos to netball@standrews.vic.edu.au.
If you have any questions please contact Cheryl Pajor at cpajor@standrews.vic.edu.au.
Look forward to hearing from you,
St Andrews Netball Board
YOU CAN STILL ORDER ONLINE THROUGH
VIRTUAL SCHOLASTIC BOOK CLUB!
In these unprecedented times we’re all being asked to change the way we work and live. Scholastic Book Club's tradition of putting books into the hands of kids isn’t going to change, but for Term 2, we're doing things a little differently. For the first time in the history of Scholastic - we will have a Virtual Book Club for Term 2. We’re really excited to have BOOK CLUB running this Term, but it will look a little different! It will be a virtual catalogue rather than the printed catalogues you’re used to receiving.
Every child will still have the opportunity to access their Book Club catalogue. The same carefully selected, best-value books will still be available, so the enjoyment Book Club is known for will not change!
You can use the link below to connect to the Virtual catalogue and place your orders. All the parents already on the LOOP database will have received a link to the latest Book Club. They'll be able to click-and-go directly to the fantastic issue we've put together and place their orders via LOOP—just as they always have.
To order from this Virtual Catalogue issue go to:
https://scholastic.com.au/book-club/virtual-catalogue-1/
Place your order on LOOP as normal and orders need to be in by Friday 8th May. Once you've ordered online your order will be electronically linked to the rest of your school’s order & delivered to the College like normal.
Once your order arrives, we will contact you to arrange for collection. You'll receive an email notification when your order is ready with details on how the books will be distributed to you.
For any further queries please contact Sally Wade at swade@standrews.vic.edu.au.
Happy reading!
Sally Wade
OSHC Coordinator & Nominated Supervisor
LOST PROPERTY
Parents and students are encouraged to name and label all personal items including school clothing, lunch boxes/containers, drink bottles, books, and valuable items:
- Misplaced or lost items are to be brought to the lost property box found outside Reception or any valuables handed into Reception as soon as possible.
- Parents or students seeking lost items should look through the lost property box located outside Reception.
- Labelled/named items will be returned to the student.
- Unclaimed and unnamed items will be displayed outside Reception at the end of each term for collection.
- Unnamed uniform items that are still unclaimed will be washed and stored in sick bay for spare clothing and/or if suitable, passed on to the second hand uniform shop to be sold, or passed on to charity.
- Other unclaimed items will be disposed of
Names written using permanent marker often wash off easily or can be hard to read, therefore a suggestion of ordering labels as seen below, will hopefully reduce the amount of lost property we have.
Here are some links for ordering of name labels for school clothes, lunch boxes/containers, drink bottles and valuable items (which may include USB’s, glasses, calculators and so on).:
• https://www.mynamelabel.com.au/
• https://www.stuckonyou.com.au/
If you have any questions regarding Lost Property, please contact Reception on 8847 8300.