Mrs Ryan's Fortnightly Reflections
“A good education can change anyone. A good teacher can change everything!” Unknown
This week, we recognise and celebrate the amazing educators in our school community! National Teachers Day is on Friday, and it is essential to express our thanks and gratitude to our teachers. Our teachers understand the complexities of their roles, yet they arrive each day feeling positive, energised, and ready to make a significant impact on the lives of their learners. While St. Mary’s is a large and busy school, our educators consistently provide intimate and relational care to every child, understanding who they are and what brings out the best in them. I know you will all join me in expressing gratitude to our St. Mary’s staff.
Although we have important learning to accomplish in the coming weeks, we are consistently planning for the future throughout Term Four. The leadership team is beginning preparations for the 2025 school year. Our learning and teaching direction, Magnify, as outlined in my recent letter from Catholic Education, is well underway. We have teachers collaborating within a diocesan-wide network, accessing evidence-based learning and teaching supported by globally renowned educators, all underpinned by the science of learning. We are excited about the learning opportunities for everyone in our community. Our educators have recently started webinars in preparation, and our resources and planning spaces are being organised for readiness. St. Mary’s is already tracking learner data to have a more detailed analysis and future direction will be the next step in our journey.
In addition to next year's preparations, St. Mary’s will soon begin planning and allocating learners to classes for the upcoming year. This process is highly complex and takes into account social, emotional, and academic data, both summative and formative. Teachers consult in teams, and leadership makes judgments where necessary. Our most important contributor to this process is honoring our learners' voices. Each year, our learners are invited to recommend three peers with whom they believe they will learn best. We prepare these choices by emphasising what effective learning looks and feels like. These selections will take place in mid-next month; however, we thought families might appreciate discussing these decisions at home in preparation. This year, St. Mary’s will utilise a database called Class Solver to input the selection criteria for class generation.
Car pick-up and traffic flow continue to pose challenges for our school, with our families now impacting the broader community. This week, we have noticed an increased number of families arriving early, which congests the car pick-up area as they wait for extended periods for their children to arrive at the collection point. The car pick-up area is intended for a two-minute collection. Families are asked to remain in their cars and to be prepared to move on safely and quickly. If your child is not at the gate ready for collection, staff will ask drivers to complete a loop. I urge our families to collectively respect the need for us, as a school serving over 600 children, to be mindful of the wider community and to support the flow of traffic and transport services that help all children in Echuca and Moama get home. We ask families, in conjunction with our staff, to encourage their children to move swiftly from the dismissal bell to the car pick-up area, and please do not take offense if staff request that you complete a loop.
A reminder that Weeks 4 and 5 will both be shorter due to staff professional learning. November 1st and 4th are school closure days, with November 5th being a public holiday for the Melbourne Cup. I hope that this mid-term break for families and learners is restful and relaxing, allowing us to re-energize for the final weeks of our term!
Take care and God Bless!
Jasmine Ryan
Principal