Principals' Message

A message from Alison and Lisa

Dear Parents/Carers,

Thank you for making time to come into our school and meet with your child and their teacher for our Semester 1 Learning Conversations. We have received some very positive feedback from our parents and carers in relation to this process and many feel that they have been given a clearer understanding of their child's progress through this process in comparison to the usual report. We strongly urge any parent/carers who are yet to make a time to meet with your child's teacher to do so before Learning Conversations conclude at the end of next week. 

"Why is parent engagement in learning important? There is strong evidence that parent engagement is associated with improvements in academic attainment for students of all ages. This includes early literacy, school adjustment and student attendance, motivation, self-regulatory behaviour, social skills, retention and graduation rates. This evidence confirms the importance of valuing and supporting parent engagement in learning. The evidence suggests that parental engagement strategies have the greatest impact when they are focused on linking behaviours of families, teachers and students to learning outcomes, when there is a clear understanding of the roles of parents and teachers in learning, when family behaviours are conducive to learning, and when there are consistent, positive relations between the school and parents (Emerson, Fear, Fox & Sanders, 2012, p. 32). When schools implement parent engagement as an intentional and collaborative strategy, they can draw on and benefit from the world views, knowledge, capacities and diversity of families. In turn, this enables families to gain vital information and support to help their children succeed. "

All parents will receive a hard copy of the Learning Conversation Report in Week 10.

Three Way Learning Conversations - Semester 1 Reporting

This year we are conducting a Learning Conversation between the student, parent/carer and teacher. Three way conversations are an opportunity for learning to be discussed between students, parents/caregivers and teachers. The aim of these conferences is to celebrate success, highlight student strengths and current achievement and then determine the next learning steps. It also allows for student ownership of learning. Following these meetings parents/caregivers should have a clearer picture of their child’s developmental learning needs and goals for Semester 2.  Please make sure that you do make an appointment to engage in these very worthwhile Learning Conversations. 

Please make sure you visit the 'Focus on Learning' section in this newsletter as we have clearly outlined what our 'Learning Conversations' will look like at St Edward's School.

Principal for a Day

Three weeks ago our Year 6 students were invited to submit a letter of application to become Principal for a Day here at St Edward's School. This initiative allows our senior students to experience the process involved in applying for a position, having an application shortlisted and being interviewed by a panel. On Tuesday Mr O'Toole, Mrs Ryan and Year 5 students Georgia Errington, Abigail Smith and Lachlan Williamson interviewed those candidates whose letters had impressed them and had the unenviable task of selecting one successful student to become Principal for a Day. Congratulations to Miss Molly Taylor who impressed the panel with her answers and was selected as the successful candidate to be Principal for a Day.

 **NEW KISS AND DROP **

We wish to to make all stakeholders aware that we will be opening our new Kiss and Drop from the Wongala Street entrance in Week 10 - the week beginning 29th June. This will mean the current practice of dropping and picking children up from the Hillvue Road access will no longer be possible. Between now and then, all staff, students, parents/carers and neighbours will be informed in detail on the operation of this new facility and ask that all parents/carers adhere to the information and directions and be patient with this new procedure. More details to come next week.

Kinder 2021 Interviews

Kindergarten interviews have continued this week. It is always a privilege to welcome new families to a school and discover why they have chosen our school for their child's primary education for the next 7 years.Overwhelmingly it is due to word of mouth from our current parents and carers. They acknowledge the high standards we at St Edward's aspire to and the quality of education and the pastoral care our staff readily provide for our students. It has been wonderful showing our new families around our Infants Campus and allowing them to witness the great learning experiences they can expect to occur in our Kindergarten spaces.

Maintaining Safe Practices

We have all seen and heard stories of COVID outbreaks in schools in the past week. To this end we are very determined to not become complacent with the safety and health of our Staff and Students here at school. We continue to ask parents to respectfully wait outside our gates at drop off and pick up times to ensure we maintain a COVID-19 free environment.

Parent / Carer Code of Conduct

We ask that all parents and carers uphold a high level of courtesy and respect toward our staff. It is unacceptable for any of our staff to be spoken to or treated in a way that is rude and intolerable, especially our office staff who do a wonderful but difficult job managing the demands and requests of so many in our school community. 

Sports Uniform

To accommodate our students (for physical activities) and parents (for washing!) all students are now permitted to wear their sports uniform to school on Wednesdays and Fridays until the end of the term. 

Winter Uniform Reminder

Thank you for sending your child to school in the correct uniform each day. Our St Edward's School uniform is something that sets us apart from other schools and we encourage all students to wear it correctly and with pride. All students are now required be in full winter uniform. Please ensure this includes the correct black school shoes (not sport shoes) and a school tie. The following new school winter items are available for purchase: jumper ($35), jacket ($70), tie ($25), girls navy knee high socks ($10), girls winter navy tights ($10), scarf ($10). To help minimise parent contact, our preferred method of purchasing uniform items is via the Qkr! App and your clothing order will then be sent home with your child.

Have a great weekend everyone!

Alison Hatton and Lisa McSweeney