Principal Report
Welcome Back
Welcome back to term 3, I hope you had a restful holiday break!
As we finalise the term planner it is exciting to note that we will have more opportunity to connect with the wider school community with our annual book week and father's day events later this term as well as Student Support Group meetings.
Semester 1 Reports and Upcoming Student Support Group Meetings
Our Teachers and Therapists have finalised semester 1 reports and these were sent home at the end of last week. If you haven't received your copy please let the classroom teacher know. The report is designed to give you an overview of your child’s performance and to provide you with information regarding their progress towards the attainment of their individual goals that were established at the beginning of the year.
Please understand that this report is not expected to be viewed in isolation but is an introduction to how your child is progressing which can be discussed in further detail in a Mid-Year Student Support Group meeting if you choose. These interviews are the ideal time to gain a full insight into your child’s academic, physical and social development and provide you with an opportunity to discuss any issues in a confidential manner.
If you would like a meeting, please contact your child’s classroom teacher by Wednesday July 26th to arrange. Meetings will be held in Week 4 (July 31st – August 4th). This written report can be so much more meaningful when it is discussed in context with your child’s teacher.
Capital Works Update
The Capital Works Project has continued over the holidays with some important changes occurring throughout Stage B. On the Belmore Road end, 3 classrooms, 2 toilets, the laundry and server/tech room are beginning to take shape. With windows currently being fitted, internal walls being erected and all manner of electrics being organised. It's becoming much easier to picture what these spaces will look like and how we might use them. It is exciting to see!
Meanwhile the majority of our delays have occurred at the Stroud Street entrance with a number of engineering and procurement challenges. It is great to see that progress is continuing in this space and our new entrance beginning to take shape.
SWPBs
This week the staff at Belmore School enjoyed a Curriculum day learning about Positive Behaviour Support and helping to create ways to explicitly teach our students how to Be Safe, Be Kind, Be Your best and Be Respectful.
Our focus for this term is on Be Your Best and staff will take every opportunity to praise and reward students for being their best. Talking to students about what it is that they are specifically doing is one way of increasing their understanding. “I like the way you are being your best by having a go at writing.” “You are awesome!” Discussions will abound about what does ‘being your best’ look like? Picture symbols and all manner of AAC will also be used to consolidate student understanding.
At the end of last term, the students from SLC6 gave a lovely presentation about ways that they had been kind in term 2, which was part of the Be Kind focus. They read out their descriptions of being kind and developed individualised photo displays on posters. It was a wonderful example of students being proud of their efforts and demonstrating their understanding of the Be kind whole school expectation.
Amanda White
Principal
