Principal Report

Principal’s Message Week 8 Term 4

After the year that we have had, I think we are all looking forward to a fresh start in 2021.

2020 certainly provided us with a year like no other. Despite the many challenges that we faced as a community I am extremely proud of the way in which we pulled through. It was tough going but we managed to find our way. They say ‘Out of adversity comes opportunity’ and we certainly saw this come to fruition during the lockdown. Overnight we had to shift gears. We went from face to face teaching to embracing what technology has to offer in the narrowest window of time. It really was a case of adapt, be flexible and get onboard. Remote Learning showed us that change doesn’t have to take time and that we can move and embrace new ideology, pedagogy and technology more quickly than we would give ourselves credit for and not only that but our children are also incredibly resilient and adaptable. 

2021 will be a very exciting year for us. We are in the last year of our four-year School Improvement plan which means we will undertake a Review during the year which will result in a new four-year plan. At the same time, we will also complete our IB candidacy with the intention of verification leading us to become an authorised IB World school. Staff have already begun planning for 2021 and we are very excited by the opportunities these two events afford our school. This is the next step to firmly entrenching a learning culture in our community that is inspiring, rigorous, relevant, purposeful and engaging for all involved. Enabling our learners to step boldly into the future, equipping them with the skills they will need to participate with confidence in a world that continues to rapidly change. Furthermore, these two reviews will enhance learning and teaching at our school whilst enabling us to continue with the strong structured focus we have on numeracy and literacy. Ultimately ensuring we continue to deliver a high-quality education for all well into the future.

The staffing for 2021 has now been finalised and the following is a summary of what will be in place for the next year. 

At the end of the year we will farewell Sarah Huang. Since joining St Columba’s in 2015 Sarah has been an integral member of our staff. She has been a wonderful asset to our staff and school. Despite her 0.2 role in the school, Sarah has participated fully in the life of the school, often travelling across the city after teaching at Saturday school to be present for celebrations and community events. Her expertise in the Mandarin language and her professionalism has been exemplary. We are grateful for the knowledge and breadth of experience that she has brought to our school. She will be greatly missed by us all. We wish Sarah all the best in the future as she takes on a full-time Mandarin teaching role in Preston.

There have been some changes to our staffing and leadership roles for 2021 and I would like to welcome to our school community three new staff members: Ms Kate Northam, Miss Hannah Cooper and Miss Yang Song. We also welcome back from maternity leave Mrs Chantel Lazzaro.

I am very excited about the new staff joining and returning to school next year. I know you, our community, will make them feel very welcome. 

2021 Teaching Staff

Principal                                                                              Daniella Maddalena

Deputy Principal-Student Wellbeing &                   Bern Bradley

Community        

ICT, NCCD & Learning Diversity Leader                 Natalie Cromie

Religious Education Leader                                        Stuart Andreou-Mill

PYP Leader                                                                         Brooke Dobric

P-6 Literacy Leader                                                         Brooke Dobric

STEM Leader                                                                    Tara Wilkes                         

Sustainability Leader                                                     Stephanie Young                              

Classroom Teachers

Prep                                       Gemma Canalini

Grade 1/2                            Stephanie Young              Angela Saliba (1 day)

Grade 1/2                            Hannah Cooper

Grade 3/4                            Liane Pimenta

Grade 3/4                            Kate Northam

Grade 3/4                             Lauren Doran                     

Grade 5/6                            Stuart Andreou-Mill        Chantel Munoz (1 day)   

Grade 5/6                            Tara Wilkes                         Chantel Munoz (1 day)   

Visual Art & Kitchen Garden                                       Bec Long

Languages (Mandarin)                                                  Yang Song 

Physical Education                                                          Sharelle Braithwaite 

There will be extra support for all classes in Literacy and Maths Prep-Year 6, with a Differentiation/Intervention Support Teacher working within each year level. This will allow smaller groupings during these times for explicit instruction and will also provide the opportunity for greater personalisation and differentiation of the curriculum.

Natalie Cromie and Angela Saliba will work as Intervention Support Teachers providing Literacy and Numeracy support and differentiation to Prep-Year 6.

Bern Bradley and Brooke Dobric will also work as Differentiation Support Teachers across Prep-Year 6.

Rachael Bulcock and Sophie Champion will also work as Differentiation Support Teachers across Prep-Year 6 until they commence maternity leave halfway through term one.

Learning Support Officers (Aides)

Norma Pullen, Suzie Hansen, Lorraine Everitt, Freda Minas, Julie Watson, Andy Szkibik,  Justine Seymour, Laura Harris, Kylie Marshall

We are very excited to continue to provide regular music classes throughout each term with Chris Lazzaro. These sessions will focus on music-making and creating and will occur fortnightly in terms 1, & 4, term 2 and 3 will be dedicated to the School Musical. In 2021 the children can pursue instrumental music lessons with Creative Music and all children will of course participate in our Musical during term 3.

The children will find out their classroom teacher on Thursday 10th December when they have a ‘Step Up Day’ orientation session, with their new teacher and class from 9:00-11:00 am.

I am extremely excited about 2021. Although we will have both a school Review and IB verification I look forward to the new opportunities the year ahead will bring. As the new year starts, we invite you to share in our journey by continuing to participate in your child’s learning. We saw first-hand during remote learning how powerful this can be. It is one of the many learnings during that time that we do not want to lose and in fact, must capitalise on as we move forward. So, we invite you to fully embrace the many opportunities that will be on offer throughout 2021 and to engage with the many learning experiences, social and community experiences on offer and to participate in and immerse yourselves in the life of our school.

Parish Education Board

On behalf of the school community, I wish to thank Simon Lewin for his time on the Parish Education Board. Simon has been an integral member of the board and we have greatly valued his expertise. and insight during his tenure. I would like to particularly acknowledge the work Simon has done to help secure tenders for major works and his excellent Project Management skills. During his time on Board, we have completed and installed the athletics track and the new playground. 

The School Board is an advisory body to the Parish Priest and Principal. The key functions of the St Columba’s Board are to provide advice on education matters relating to whole of Parish including the school.

Parents are nominated to the Board for a term of two years with the option of a second term. The Board meets seven to eight times a year – usually twice a term. There is an AGM at the end of each year. When positions become available parents are called upon to nominate.

At the end of this year, we will have one vacancy on our Parish Education Board. If you would like to contribute to the school as a member of the Board then I invite you to nominate yourself in writing to me before the AGM which will be held on Tuesday 1 December 7:00 pm on zoom.

dmaddalena@scelwood.catholic.edu.au

Class Lists for 2021

One of the big tasks we undertake at this time of year is the placement of children in classes for the following year. You may think it is a simple task, however, in reality, it is quite a challenging task for all staff. It is about ‘getting it right’ so all children can succeed in their learning and in a social setting. Often these two factors can cause some conflict because the children who they socialise with may not always be the best children to be in the class with, due to them distracting each other on a regular basis. 

In all situations, I advocate that children need to be risk-takers and problem solvers and this can be applied to the children they have in their class. For example, the prep children from 2020 will be mixed up next year and instead of looking at whether the children will not be with some of their friends, I see it as an opportunity for the children to meet many more friends. The same applies for children in all the classes. 

Sometimes parents have valid reasons as to where their child is placed in a class. These reasons can be educational or social. The staff put in a lot of time placing all the children in their classes for next year and I would ask that parents trust our professional judgment when dealing with these matters.