A Message from the Principal

Catholic Schools’ Week

This week our diocese celebrates Catholic Schools’ Week. The theme for this year is ‘Renew With Hope’. In these rapidly changing and uncertain times hope helps us realise that God will be with us on the journey. During this week students & staff will reflect on their own relationship with God, with our school community, and with our families. Inspired by the teachings of Pope Francis, we are encouraged to help bring joyful hope to our future through a relationship with Jesus.

This Thursday, our school leaders and I will be attending mass in St Mary & St Joseph's Cathedral to celebrate Catholic Schools Week with representatives from all the schools within our diocese. 

Our Writing Journey Continued: The Big Talk and Big Write!

Students participate in a Big Talk and a Big Write weekly in Years 1-4 and fortnightly in Years 5-6. (Kinder students use a different procedure, so next week we will have a section on how Kinder students learn to write).

The Big Talk is a class session dedicated to oral language practice in front of an audience, similar to show and tell but with clear learning targets. The Big Write is a time in class when students produce a start-stop piece of independent writing to be proud of. It is a chance to show off all of the writing tips they have learned during the week.

Students will be encouraged to participate in Home Talk before their Big Talk and Big Write sessions to help clarify their thoughts and ideas. 

What is Home Talk?

Evidence has shown that completing oral discussions outside of the classroom, gives students a significant advantage in achieving their learning targets. Home talk is an opportunity for the students to discuss their thoughts, feelings and ideas with others outside of the classroom. We understand how busy life is, so we want to ensure you know how easy it is to complete. Home Talk is just as the title suggests…talking!

It might be 2 minutes or 20 minutes, but make sure it’s enjoyable and not stressful. Big Write is a celebration of their learning, not a test, so we want them excited to get started! Home Talk might be completed as a family at mealtime or on the way home/to school. It might be while waiting for a sibling to finish after school activities or as part of your nightly debrief before bed. But these tips might help you get started:

·    Encourage as many family members as possible to join in to get a variety of ideas discussed.

·       For multiple siblings, complete one topic at a time. (In most cases, different year levels will have different topics linked with classroom learning).

·       When giving your opinion, model the ‘because’ word to explain why you think that.

·       Show that it is OK to have different views or opinions.

·        Ask your child for their opinions after expressing yours.

·        Encourage the use of standard English with no slang or incorrect use of grammar.

·        If the text is for a formal audience, try role-playing using posh voices for fun.

·    Develop your child’s vocabulary through the use of wow words, but ensure they understand what you are saying. ‘It was a disaster. The papers were scattered everywhere. Scattered means they went everywhere in all different directions.’

 Some questions you might like to ask to break the ice might be:

·         What is your topic for Big Write this week?

·         What is the text type?

·         What are your thoughts or ideas?

·     Have you thought of any interesting openers you might like to use to start some of your sentences?

·         Do you have any wow words you are thinking of including?

·         What are your classroom goals?

·         How are you planning on achieving your goals? 

Next time you visit school please look at our new pinboard (outside of the Year 3/4 classroom) displaying samples of student writing. We are excited to celebrate our students achievements in writing. 

Have a wonderful week

Pauline Long

Principal