Learning and Teaching

St Monica's Visit: STEM Incursion

Last week, we had many classes from Years 3 - 6 sit and listen to Frank from St Monica's who shared a variety of different transport vehicles. These included solar-powered LEGO Technic boats and cars, a small motor boat and a motorised balsa wood aeroplane.

In Stem this term, the students from Years 3 -6 are exploring, designing and making their forms of transport, so this was a great opportunity to see what students are making in Secondary school.

Well done everyone, we hope you enjoyed and were inspired by the presentation.

A short clip of the session can be viewed in the attachment below.

2024 STEM_Incursion_St Monicas.mp4

STEM Masters - Term 1, Weeks 5 - 6

After Weeks 5 and 6, we have had a staggering 188 masters earned including Planets, Bones, Clouds, Mouth, Rainbows, Solar System, Periodic Table and Birds.

We have also had 7 more students become 2024 Golden Children who have learned all facts about every master: Adam Mathew, Moses Mathew, Michael Antony, Johan Thomas, Gabriel Raj, Joshua Forbes and Louis Joseph.

Michael

STEM Teacher

michael.caruana@smcmeppingnth.catholic.edu.au

Visual Arts

In Visual Arts this term, we have been exploring the medium of clay and the elements of line and texture.

We have created a collaborative art piece for Harmony Day. We designed our unique clay bead that represents each person in our school community.

Claudia

Visual Arts Teacher

Claudia.Palmisano@smcmeppingnth.catholic.edu.au

Katherine

Visual Arts Teacher

Katherine.Clark@smcmeppingnth.catholic.edu.au

Staff Professional Learning Continues

Our dedicated staff have been actively engaging in professional development sessions to enhance our teaching methodologies, ensuring that we provide the highest quality education to our students. A key focus has been the exploration of Daily Reviews, a principle of instruction championed by Barak Rosenshine. This evidence-based approach involves dedicating a few minutes at the start of each lesson to review previous learning, which has been shown to significantly improve student outcomes. We are delighted to report that this practice has already led to greater success in the classroom, with students demonstrating increased engagement and retention of material. Our staff’s enthusiasm for developing new practices is palpable!

In addition to Daily Reviews, our team is also delving into the Little Learners Love Literacy program, a comprehensive literacy initiative that emphasises a sequential, explicit focus on phonics. This program aligns with our commitment to evidence-based instruction and is instrumental in developing confident readers and writers. As we continue to strive for excellence in teaching, we are confident that these initiatives will greatly benefit our students, equipping them with the skills necessary to thrive academically.