News from the Deputy Principal

Dear Families,

Welcome back to Term 2! I hope that you have all had a wonderful break with your families and are able to enjoy another long weekend this weekend! 

Although this term appears to be longer than usual, the calendar is already booking up with lots of events and excursions, and I'm sure it will fly by quite quickly!

Staff Conference

At the end of last term the staff gathered together to take part in Professional Learning over two days at Cape Schanck.  

The focus for our Professional Learning was a continuation of the work that we have already begun with Melbourne Archdiocese Catholic Schools around the Vision for Learning.  

This Professional Learning underpins the way we teach at St Joseph's and our commitment to the Science of Learning.  Simone Traynor and Lisa Bourke led us through some learning around Checking for Understanding, which is an important part of learning and ensuring that students are understanding the learning taking place. There are many ways to check for understanding, such as using whiteboards to display answers, cold calling students (drawing their name out of a container to respond to questions) completing exit tickets (questions to be answered prior to exiting the task) or students responding with thumbs up/down to demonstrate understanding.

We also spent time unpacking the Wellbeing Curriculum, particularly around the School Wide Positive Behaviours or Positive Behaviours for Learning.  This allowed our staff to develop explicit knowledge of classroom practices and universal supports to support students and engagement in learning.

As part of our commitment to MHIPS (Mental Health in Primary Schools) we also unpacked what is Mental health and how does this look for children in our care.

This weekend, enjoy yourselves, and spend time with your families,

Kind Regards,

Katie