Learning and Teaching

St Mary’s NAPLAN 2024 Summary Analysis 

In March 2024, learners in Year 3 and Year 5 completed the national NAPLAN assessment. There have been significant changes to the NAPLAN assessments since 2023, including a change in the assessment date from May to March, the introduction of adaptive pathways, online assessments, and new proficiency bands: Needs Additional Support, Developing, Strong, and Exceeding.

Analysis of data from St. Mary’s NAPLAN results indicates that, in 2024, the scale scores for Year 3 and Year 5 are below the state average in most curriculum areas. Overall, St. Mary’s learners primarily fall within the ‘Strong’ proficiency band.

Strengths:

St. Mary’s has learners in the ‘Exceeding’ proficiency band in every curriculum area. 

The median scale scores for Year 5 in Spelling and Numeracy have increased in 2024. 

Data indicates that St. Mary’s is very effective at targeting and supporting our lower-performing learners while teaching to the middle of the curriculum. Staff have identified the need to grow and extend our ‘Strong’ learners to reach the ‘Exceeding’ band as an area for improvement. 

After analysing the data as a school, staff committed to implementing one specific action in their teaching practice, such as a strong focus on Grammar and Punctuation.

Foundation

The Foundation learners have been busy developing their phonemic awareness by recognising and recording digraphs in words. They recognise that a digraph is two letters working together to make one sound, building on their skills to accurately record digraphs in words, as well as continuing to build on their foundational reading skills. 

The Foundation learners have been focused on mastering the concepts of addition and subtraction to 10. They have been actively engaged in developing a diverse set of strategies to support their understanding and application of these mathematical operations. By exploring different approaches, such as using manipulatives, visual aids, worded problems and mental math skills. 

The Foundation learners have been actively exploring the school grounds in search of God's creations, deepening their understanding of the natural world around them. Through this, they have been learning to distinguish between man-made objects and those that are part of God's creation. The learners confidently express that God's creations are integral to our environment and are beginning to grasp the significance of caring for these gifts.

Year 3

In Year 3 literacy, students have been diving into the magical world of Roald Dahl, focusing on his enchanting novel The BFG. They explored how Dahl captivates his audience through his inventive language, particularly his unique, made-up vocabulary. The students have examined how these creative words leave a lasting impact on readers, making the story more engaging and fun. They also showcased their own writing talents by crafting imaginative "sizzling starts" and creating new Dream Jar labels, inspired by the ones in The BFG. It's been an exciting journey of creativity and language exploration for Year 3!