Middle Years

Welcome back!

A school is not a school without students and this week we saw the remainder of our students return to face to face teaching. It was wonderful to see and hear students once again in our classrooms and out in the yard. Tuesday began with an assembly where we were able to discuss with students our plan for the week and really emphasise that our focus was on supporting them as they transitioned back to school. In classes, teachers provided opportunities for students to reflect on their experiences in remote learning and allowed them to have input into how we could support them over the coming weeks. 

We then celebrated at lunchtime by creating a 'Friendship wall' to acknowledge our return to school and students reconnecting in person with their friends.  Students creatively decorated a range of paper shapes that symbolised human connection and these were displayed on an outside wall for all to see. 

Lunchtime activities for the Middle Years will continue next week as a way to celebrate our return to school and allow students further opportunities to reconnect with their peers. Students are encouraged to keep a look out on Compass for further details. 

Over the last few days I have been able to visit a range of classrooms to see what our students have been up to and I have been so impressed by their focus, behaviour and persistence with their learning. Students were engaged with some exciting learning activities and were extremely positive about being back at school. 

This week we have also had our first in a series of Student-Principal Team forums where the Principals met with students in Years 7 and 8 to hear their thoughts on  assessment, Wantirna 21+ and Microsoft Teams. Students eagerly shared their ideas and thoughts (which could be linked to them receiving a donut!) These forums will continue with other year levels over the coming weeks. We are really interested in hearing what our students think and getting their input into the decisions that we make within the school. 

Finally, on behalf of the students, I would like to thank our teachers for everything that they have done over the past few months. At our end of the week assembly this afternoon I reflected with our students on the incredible effort and commitment that our teachers have shown to supporting the learning of our students. Over the past few months, our teachers have had to adapt to remote learning, finding new ways to teach concepts and engage students. They have then had to adjust their practice and adapt once more as students returned to school. Throughout this process they have consistently cared for the wellbeing of our students and worked incredibly hard to ensure that they have had engaging and relevant learning. As students were leaving today, I asked them to take a moment to thank their teachers for everything that they have done. To all of our teachers,  I would like to thank you on behalf of our students for your commitment and dedication to their learning and wellbeing.  

Shane Kruger

Assistant Principal