Mrs Ryan's Fortnightly Reflections

We have reached the halfway mark of Term 2 and this short term will quickly pass us by. Over the past fortnight it has been wonderful to observe and feel the learning that is happening in our school. From learning in our spaces, to small group support, to sporting and community outings we are very engaged and settled in our school environments. Our teachers are working diligently to resume normal school life while making our learning experiences fun and relevant. We continue to be challenged by illness, between Covid and the flu, we are striving to keep all students at the center of all we do. I would like to express my gratitude for all families keeping children home when unwell, we do not have the provisions to care for those unwell during this time. 

Today we begin Reconciliation week. This week we particularly recognise our Aboriginal and Torres Strait cultures, celebrate that we live and learn on Yorta Yorta land and continue to educate our students of the rich stories of past and present. Today, I had the privilege of attending St Joseph’s National Sorry Day Liturgy with our Indigenous students. It was a special experience for them to take part in and the connection with teachers, families and friends at St Joseph’s was a special moment to witness.  Back at school, and over the coming week, we will continue our learnings and commitment of ongoing Reconciliation in our own school, to educate our teachers and students on the importance of our First Nations People rich history and culture that surrounds us. 

Currently the Leadership team is half way through Prep enrolment interviews. It has been a wonderful introduction for me to meet new and existing families. Welcoming new members to our community is one of the many highlights in my role and it was beautiful to be a part of meeting new Preps who are counting down to join St Mary’s. We have a very healthy intake for our 2023 year and we look forward to seeing these new families and students in and around our school over the coming months. 

As we are transitioning back to school as we knew it, St Mary’s has recognised the need in several areas to clarify, refine and refresh many of our processes and practices. As we develop and clarify practice with staff, we will also be sure to share this with our parent community. Two areas of exploration currently are; Bus traveler guidelines and our Communication Processes. 

Approximately a third of our school catch buses to and from school and we recognise the additional time and expectation this places on our students in transit. We are striving to put in place supports that provide our travelers with support and understanding of best and safe behavior while traveling. The leadership team in alignment with various expectations of external bus companies, have stipulated bus travel guidelines and expectations for our families and students. These guidelines have been emailed to our families and can also be found on PAM for future reference. Our bus travelers will be educated on these guidelines and we thank our families for their cooperation and commitment to safe bus travel. 

In our last newsletter our Communication road map was shared with our community. Currently as a staff we are reflecting and evaluating our communication practices and purposes so that everyone in our community has clarity and connection. If at any time you have a concern regarding your child, in the first instance please contact your child’s classroom teacher. Your teacher is the most connected and informed around your child’s experiences at school and is the most effective means in problem solving, hearing concerns and ensuring restorative practices. Please find our communication flow chart included again in this newsletter. A more detailed outline of our processes will be shared with you all in the coming weeks.  

Next term St Mary’s has scheduled a closure day for the staff to take part in some professional learning. This day has been scheduled for the first day of term 3, Monday 11th of July. Another date that can be noted on the calendar will be our Term 3 Learning conversations. These will take place on Monday 8th of August. These conversations will be either face to face or via Zoom, your child is encouraged to attend these conversations to share in their learning progress. 

I hope everyone is staying healthy and well! 

God Bless and Stay Well

Jasmine Ryan 

Principal