From the Deputy

Diving into Term 4

Dear Families,

On Tuesday teaching staff worked together to begin designing our Term 4 integrated unit of work.  Our focus for next term will include a 2-week lesson sequence about the Physical Sciences before covering the key aspects of The Arts curriculum for the remainder of the time.  These days are always highly valued by staff as they promote collegiality and collaboration, two key factors which enable the development of engaging and meaningful learning experiences for our students.  Staff decided on the concept of creativity for the term and then explored this in light of the Catholic faith and the context for the learning.  The staff will now seek the voice of their students in determining the ‘big question’ which the students will attempt to answer.  In the field of Education, this approach is referred to as inquiry-based learning and it is a structured, student-centred way of teaching.

Inquiry-based learning approaches are characterised by:

• motivating learning through a sense of purpose and authenticity to ‘real world’ tasks and issues,
• encouraging students to become co-creators of their learning,
• developing student skills in self-direction, research, critical thinking and problem solving, and
• developing discipline knowledge and skills.

We are looking forward to sharing the progress our students make in their learning across the term. Watch this space!

It is difficult to believe that the holidays are almost upon us and we will soon begin the last quarter of the academic year.  I wish you all a safe and restful break from the routine of school life and look forward to seeing everyone ready for a wonderful Term 4.

Best wishes,

Peta Overbury

Deputy Principal