A word from the Principal

We're well past the halfway mark of the term now, and I thought I would drop a few reminders to help us finish the term well and to set us up for a great second semester.

Students should arrive at school every day between 8:30 am and 8:50 am.  

Arriving earlier than this creates a potential safety problem, as we are not able to offer supervision before this time.  Especially now, with construction workers and others on site from very early, it is very important that students are not left at school before 8:30 am.  

Late arrivals cause disruption and frustration for teachers and other students.  Those who are late will miss out on important opening activities and will often be disadvantaged.  It also places unnecessary pressure on teachers to catch students up on what they've missed.  We understand that sometimes things go wrong and a late arrival may not be avoidable, but please do your best to arrive before 8:50 each morning.

Breakfast at school

We have many students lining up each morning for a free breakfast.  We're happy that we are able to provide this with support from local suppliers and a very faithful volunteer breakfast coordinator, Mrs Nadimpalli.  Please note, though, that we can't guarantee breakfast will be available every day.  Wherever possible, students should enjoy a hearty breakfast at home each day.  The breakfast supplied at school is first meant to provide breakfast for those who have missed out at home for whatever reason. So, by all means, enjoy the free breakfast at school, but please don't rely on it.

Plenty of break time

Our timetable allows for three 15-minute recesses each morning, as well as a lunch period of 40 minutes.   These recesses run for 15 minutes before the hour, each hour.  So, 45 minutes of work time, followed by a 15-minute break.  This is an unusually high number of morning recesses; however, teachers will not always send their students on all of these breaks.

At secondary level, our students will usually only have two 15-minute recesses.  This is still plenty of break time, and it allows students who are on a roll to 'lock in' and get their work done without interruption.

At primary level, our teachers will often require some students to stay in during one of the recess breaks in order to catch up on work that should have been previously completed.  These students will still go on the other breaks and will still have plenty of time to eat a snack or fill a drink bottle.  

Students are encouraged to use the toilets during recess breaks, but are never refused access to the toilets if they are needed.