Pastoral Wellbeing

Attendance at St. Kilian’s

As we begin Term 3, I want to thank everyone for the positive start to the year and remind us all of the important role attendance plays in student success.

At St Kilian's, our attendance target is 95%. While 95% may sound high, it still allows for around 10 school days of absence across the year. Every day matters, with each lesson building on the one before it. Regular attendance supports not only academic achievement, but also friendships, confidence, wellbeing and a strong sense of belonging.

Here is what attendance can look like across a school year:

95% attendance = approximately 10 days absent (our school target)
90% attendance = approximately 20 days absent (around 4 weeks of learning)
85% attendance = approximately 30 days absent (around 6 weeks of learning)
80% attendance = approximately 40 days absent (around 8 weeks of learning)

We understand that students will occasionally be absent due to illness or other unavoidable circumstances. However, wherever possible, we encourage families to schedule holidays, appointments and other activities outside school hours or during school holidays.

Thank you for your continued partnership in ensuring every child has the opportunity to thrive through regular attendance. Let's work together to achieve our 95% attendance target this term and make every school day count.

How Families Can Support Great Attendance

There are many simple ways families can help children attend school regularly and get the most out of every learning opportunity:

Aim for every day. Unless your child is unwell, every school day provides valuable learning and social opportunities.
Book appointments outside school hours wherever possible. If this isn't possible, consider returning your child to school before or after the appointment rather than keeping them home for the entire day.
Plan family holidays during school holiday periods. Extended absences during term time can have a significant impact on learning and classroom routines.
Establish consistent routines by ensuring children have a regular bedtime, morning routine and arrive at school on time each day.
Talk positively about school and encourage your child to attend even on days when they may be feeling a little reluctant.

Keeping Us Informed

If your child is going to be absent, arrive late or leave early, please let us know as soon as possible.

Where possible, we ask families to:

Notify your child's classroom teacher in advance of planned absences such as medical appointments, specialist visits, family events or holidays.
Record the absence through PAM (or follow the school's usual absence notification process).
Provide supporting information where appropriate so we can best support your child's learning and wellbeing.

Early communication helps us plan for your child's learning, ensure accurate attendance records and, most importantly, know that every child is safe and accounted for.

Thank you for partnering with us to make attendance a shared priority. Together, we can ensure every child has the best opportunity to learn, grow and flourish.

Seeking Assistance?

If your family is finding it difficult to get to school regularly, please know that we are here to help. You’re encouraged to speak with your child’s classroom teacher or reach out to our Wellbeing Team – Mrs. Antonowicz, Mrs. Maher, Mr. Teggelove or Mr. Podosky – for support.

We can assist in a variety of ways, including:

Creating a positive morning routine to reduce stress before school
Helping your child feel safe and connected at school
Offering support for separation anxiety or school-based worries
Adjusting your child’s transition into the classroom
Working with families to make a plan that suits your situation

Please don’t hesitate to reach out – we’re here to work with you and your child every step of the way.

If you know that your child won’t be attending school, please contact the office and let them know that your child will be away!

Building Positive Play at St. Kilian's

At St. Kilian's, we believe that students thrive when expectations are clear, consistent and taught explicitly. Over the past term, staff have been working together to develop a range of Yard Matrices that help students understand what it means to be Respectful, Safe and Responsible in different areas of our school.

These matrices provide students with clear expectations for:

Football
Soccer
Break Club
Playground activities

Students are explicitly taught the expected behaviours, problem-solving strategies and routines for each area. This helps create a positive, safe and enjoyable environment where all students can participate, build friendships and have fun during break times.

By teaching expectations rather than simply responding to behaviour, we are helping students develop important social skills such as cooperation, problem-solving, self-regulation and respect for others.

We encourage families to talk with their children about how they can demonstrate our school values of being Respectful, Safe and Responsible both at school and at home.

Our Classroom Routines – Supporting Calm, Ready Learners

To help create calm, focused and respectful learning spaces, all classes use three shared classroom routines. These routines support students to transition smoothly, know what is expected of them, and feel confident and safe at school.

Ready in 5

What this routine teaches: Ready in 5 helps students learn self-regulation, organisation and focus. It supports children to pause, prepare and be ready to learn together.

How the routine works: When “Ready in 5” is called, students have a short countdown to:

Sit or stand calmly
Face the teacher
Have hands still and voices off
Be ready to listen and learn

How families can help at home:

Practise short countdowns for transitions (e.g. “Ready in 5 for dinner” or “Ready in 5 to leave the house”)
Encourage children to stop, look and listen when given a cue
Praise effort rather than speed: “You got yourself ready so calmly”

Classroom Entry

What this routine teaches: This routine helps students develop respect for learning spaces, independence and calm transitions.

How the routine works: Students line up outside the classroom and enter calmly when invited, moving to their seat or learning space quietly and ready to begin.

How families can help at home:

Encourage calm transitions between activities
Talk about the importance of entering spaces respectfully (e.g. libraries, shops, places of worship)
Reinforce the idea that how we enter a space sets the tone for what comes next

Classroom Exit

What this routine teaches: Classroom exit supports safety, responsibility and respect for others.

How the routine works: Students pack up, stand behind their chair or line up, and wait to be dismissed calmly by the teacher before leaving the room.

How families can help at home:

Practise waiting calmly before leaving the house or moving to the next activity
Encourage children to finish one task before starting another
Model calm exits when leaving places together

These shared routines help create consistent expectations across the school and give students clear, predictable structures that support learning and wellbeing. Thank you for reinforcing these routines at home — your support makes a big difference.