Leadership Report
Tristan - Literacy Learning Specialist
This term, each Literacy update will focus on the literacy learning that is happening in a particular cohort. Today we are focusing on Year 3-4.
Year 3/4
Our Year 3/4 students are currently writing descriptive narratives. They have been reading rich mentor texts such as Tree and Storm by Claire Saxby and watching David Attenborough videos to help inspire their writing.
The students have been zooming in on something specific, such as a marine iguana diving underwater to hunt for its prey, and describing this scene in detail. The purpose of this is to develop students’ capacity to write rich sentences when describing a scene in a story.
Students have been learning about powerful verbs, noun groups and fronted adverbials. They have been finding examples of these in texts and applying them to their writing. Here are some examples of the things that students have been learning about:
Costa -Wellbeing and Engagement Leader
As we begin Term 3, we would like to take the opportunity to remind families about the positive behaviours we encourage and celebrate at Merri-bek Primary School.
Our School-Wide Positive Behaviour Support (SWPBS) framework helps create a safe, respectful, and inclusive learning environment where all students can thrive. Throughout the school day, students are explicitly taught and encouraged to demonstrate our expected behaviours in the classroom, playground, specialist programs, and wider community.
We know that students are most successful when there is a strong partnership between home and school. By using common language and reinforcing the same expectations at home, we can work together to support our students in making positive choices and developing lifelong social and emotional skills.
We encourage families to have conversations with their children about:
- Being respectful to others.
- Showing kindness and including others.
- Taking responsibility for their actions and learning.
- Being safe in all school environments.
Demonstrating resilience when faced with challenges.
Throughout the term, staff will continue to recognise and celebrate students who consistently demonstrate our school values and expected behaviours.
Thank you for your ongoing support as we work together to create a positive, caring, and connected school community where every student can learn and succeed.
Friendship Day
On Thursday 30th July, Merri-bek Primary School came together to celebrate Friendship Day. It was wonderful to see so many students enthusiastically participating in a range of activities that celebrated the importance of friendship, kindness, teamwork, and building positive connections with others.
Throughout the afternoon, students took part in partner and team challenges, compliment activities, and collaborative games that encouraged them to work together, include others, and strengthen existing friendships while making new ones. The activities provided students with valuable opportunities to practise communication, cooperation, empathy, and respect in a fun and engaging way.
Friendship Day was a wonderful reminder that even the smallest acts of kindness can have a big impact. Whether it was inviting someone to join a game, offering a compliment, or working together as a team, our students demonstrated the values that make Merri-bek Primary School such a welcoming and inclusive community.
A big thank you to our staff and students for embracing the day with such enthusiasm and positivity. We look forward to continuing to foster strong friendships and a sense of belonging throughout the rest of the year.