Wow what great writing!

How to talk to your child about their Big Write

Last Thursday saw the lights turned down, classrooms fall silent, our brains buzz and wrists get achy as our students took part in their first ‘Big Write’. Excited and full of ideas after their wonderful chats with family in preparation for the day, it all went off without a hitch. What an opportunity for students to engage in sustained writing and demonstrate their writing skills!

We had a good group of parents join us in the Prep/One rooms for the ‘Sharing Morning’ on Tuesday and I know our 2/3 students can’t wait to welcome parents in to see their pieces after our next Big Write. Make sure you keep the date – Tuesday 23rd August.

Following the ‘Sharing Morning’ writing pieces were sent home on Tuesday evening for parents to look at with their children. We very much hope you enjoy the opportunity to sit with your child and let them tell you about their writing piece.

A good way to begin this conversation is to grab a comfy seat together on the couch and try to make sure there are no distractions (siblings, television etc). Snuggle up and ask some prompting questions:

‘I’m so excited to have you read me your writing, tell me what you wrote.’
‘Tell me what your story is about’ or

Next try to lead the conversation to what your child thinks they are doing well.

What parts are you proud of?
What do you think you did well?
‘What is your favourite part?’

Share with your child the things you think they did well. Try to focus on the ideas and creative nature of the story.

I love the way you…
I am so proud that you…
The part where… made me (laugh, cry, scared)

Finish up the conversation with discussing a goal for next time. Try to focus on the ideas, structure (beginning, middle, end or intro, problem, solution) or use of WOW words to describe.

What do you think you will work on next time?
What is one thing that you feel would make your story even better?

Finish with a closing comment:

I know you can do it, you always try your best.
I’m so proud of you, I know you will achieve your goal.

As parents, (I get it!) we can sometimes jump straight into trying to ‘correct’ our children, pointing out errors with handwriting, spelling, grammar etc. These comments unintentionally make children think that these are the things we value in their writing. In fact it is the ideas, structure, personal voice and creativity in the writing which is most important. Spacing, handwriting, spelling and grammar are additional skills that are developed over time.

Thank you so much for continuing to be partners with us in your child’s education.

Mobile Phones

Just a reminder that our school mobile phone policy states that all students who carry mobile phones to and from school must on arrival at school check their device into our school office. This policy was put in place for all schools by the Department of Education. We look forward to receiving more phones to look after at the office. 😊

The Principal is your Pal

This week I’ve been reminded that some of our students might see talking to the ‘Principal’ about an incident either in the classroom or in the yard as ‘very serious’. I hope that parents will support me in trying to break down this perception within our student body and community. As leader of our school it is crucial that our students see me as a role model of learning, positivity and growth. I hope that when students look back at their time at LPPS they will remember all the great chats they have had with me, about their interests, passions, family, learning, goals, ambitions and so much more!

Whilst minor behaviour incidences are generally followed up by teachers, sometimes I help out with this so as we can ensure that our teacher’s valuable time is spent on teaching our students! We always aim to problem solve incidences in a timely manner, helping students to learn how to make a better choice next time and restore any relationships which have been impacted.

If your child has been involved in a major incident or the repetition of minor incidences in a short time period you can expect to be contacted by us. My role in this is to lead the conversation and perhaps investigation into what happened, assist students in understanding the impact of their actions and prompt their learning about how to do things differently next time.

Our School Wide Positive Behaviour team is currently doing some excellent work in clarifying our school processes and they look forward to sharing this work with parents soon!

See you around the place!

Laura Caddy

Principal

Super Writers