Principal's Report

Welcome back and to our new students

Welcome back to Term 3 of 2021. I cannot believe how quickly this year is going – we are near the end of July!

Firstly I'd like to take this opportunity to welcome several new students and their families to the school community this term. Joining us we have Grace, Kahlum, Kenzie and Finn in Kindergarten, Chevie and Tyson in Year 2/3, Amelia and Dempsey in Year 1/2 and Tarell in the 5/6 class. We also welcomed Mia in Year 9 late last term. It is exciting to see our great little school continuing to grow and prosper.

COVID and change to school operations

It was a surreal return to school this term for the staff and secondary students with masks being recommended by the Department of Education. To a person, every single student wore a mask without fuss and got on with their week. I was immensely proud of the students and their mature approach to the situation. Thankfully at present, I can relax the wearing requirement for the staff and students so that it remains recommended and optional to wear a mask. The office staff and any staff members who interact with visitors in the front office will wear a mask during interactions.

Thank you to our parents and family members for being so cooperative with the wearing of masks within our school and using the QR code when arriving and departing. I would also like to thank parents for social distancing at the parent gate. We are very fortunate to have a school that is well supported by its wider community.

As we progress through the term, advice regarding school operation continues to be updated in response to the current COVID-19 situation in greater Sydney. At this stage, Boorowa Central School continues to be categorised as a level 2 school. This means that we can continue learning at school, no non-essential visitors are allowed, mask and QR code use and restrictions placed on activities. Unfortunately, this means that many upcoming events have been postponed and may be cancelled in the future. As this information is received the school will communicate with families as soon as possible. I will send information home next week regarding events such as Subject Selection Night, SMArt Drama Night and many more upcoming events.

Parent-Teacher Interviews

One of the events that could continue in a COVID safe manner was our Parent Teacher Interviews. In line with the current advice, the school adjusted the forum for these interviews and moved to phone calls with parents. Whilst it was disappointing not to greet you all at school, it was reassuring that we could still provide feedback regarding your child(ren)'s progress in Semester 1.

If you were unable to arrange an interview with your child's teacher(s) please contact the school.

External Validation

I am happy to report that I concluded the school's External Validation process last Wednesday. Whilst the process was long and at times frustrating, it was a very meaningful experience that gave me an in-depth look at the learning, teaching and leading at our school. Pleasingly, the school's self-assessment was validated in all areas and even improved in one element. A great result for Boorowa Central School and the External Validation team. Special thanks must be extended to Mrs Deb Valencic and Ms Laurelle Nosworthy for assisting me to complete this process and for being such great members of our team.

I will be providing a detailed report of the External Validation findings at the P&C meeting on 3 August 2021. You are all welcome to attend to find out more.

Yass Network Attendance Strategy

The four secondary principals from the Yass Network launched a Term 3 attendance strategy at their respective schools this week. Whilst each of the contexts is very different, our attendance data was very similar. To put it simply, there is plenty of room to improve. I have eluded to this in previous editions of this newsletter. Irregular attendance can have a lasting impact on a student's academic progress, social and emotional development and a sense of belonging to the school community.

Today, in our boys mentoring time I launched the TUFF Attendance Challenge. The challenge is a competition between mentor groups to see which group can achieve the highest whole day attendance by the end of the term. Each week, the attendance data for each student in each group will be entered into a spreadsheet that graphs their attendance trend for the term. Students will be able to see their attendance accurate to the day, reflect on their choices from the previous week and be recognised and awarded a merit each week for 90% or above attendance and improved attendance. Rewards were also negotiated for the mentor group with the highest whole day attendance rate, highest partial day attendance rate and most improved. These reward activities will occur in Week 6 and Week 10.

I will be launching the same challenge for the girl's mentor groups next week.

I am looking forward to a huge improvement in our secondary attendance data through healthy competition and the support of our mentor program. I will keep you updated on our progress through upcoming articles and on Facebook.

For further information regarding how you can best support your child(ren) to attend school every day, please see the information below.

Mr Graham Jones I Principal

Boorowa Central School