Head of Campus
The beginning of Term One is always a busy time; there has been a real buzz in the air. Classrooms were full of enthusiastic students engaging with learning, the Electives program got off the ground, instrumental lessons and ensembles commenced and our beautiful grounds were full of students catching up with each other and making new connections during break times.
Students in Year 7 have settled in well, as have our new students in the upper year levels.
It was great seeing all the families who were able to attend the Parent Information Evenings. I hope you found these sessions useful, that you got to meet the teachers and coordinators and that you walked away feeling reassured.
Remote learning
Due to the unforeseen lockdown, Years 7-12 camps had to be cancelled. I would like to take this opportunity to thank the Year Level Coordinators and acknowledge the time and effort they have put in to organise these events. I know students and teachers alike were really looking forward to camp week; special time away from the classroom to promote a climate of trust and caring as well as making connections and getting to know their year level.
Our transition to remote learning happened quickly and smoothly. Information as we receive it will be relayed to you via Compass Newsfeed so please keep an eye out here. As always, if you have any questions or concerns relating to remote learning please feel free to contact me.
Parent representatives
After an overwhelming response, I am pleased to announce that Years 7 to 12 Parent Representatives have been established. Thank you to all those who kindly volunteered to be part of this really important role at Preshil; help new families settle into the School, establish connections by organising social events during the year for families in your year level (there’s even talk of cross year levels) and to contact parents if help is needed for various Preshil events. With a bit of luck and tightly crossed fingers, I am hoping that we can proceed with the Welcome Family Picnic on Friday 12 March.
The 2021 Parent Representatives:
- Year 7 - Tania Baxter, Troy Wass & Sophie Lyall
- Year 8 - Fiona Cowell & David Ford
- Year 9 - Voula Gabriel & Rachel Goldenberg
- Year 10 - Georgina Docherty, Danielle Czapnik, Fiona Clemens & Vanessa Byrnes
- Year 11 - Sally Marsland, Kevin Berry, Theofani Wilson-Brown & Nic Dowse
- Year 12 - Sarah Wise, Tracey Young & Melita Currie
Home group
Home Group is held every morning for students in Years 7-10. This is where the first of the daily attendance rolls are marked. During Home Group students can find out what is happening throughout the day/week and catch up with friends before going directly to their first class. Together with their Home Group teachers, students may also organise and run tabloid activities to help frame the day's learning.
These morning meetings start promptly at 8.50am and it is really important the students attend (even remotely). Ideally, all students should arrive at school by at least 8.45am to give themselves enough time to drop off bags and collect requirements for their first two morning classes before going to Home Group.
Home Group teachers and Year Level Coordinators will follow up frequent unexplained absences or lateness with students and families.
The 2021 Home Group teachers:
- Year 7A - Kate Ellis (Mon - Fri)
- Year 7B - Rob Grundy (Mon - Fri)
- Year 8A - Amy Byrne (Mon - Fri)
- Year 8B - Natalie Kunst (Mon - Fri)
- Year 9A - Emily Nancarrow (Mon - Thurs) & Kris Austin/Victor Toufas (alternating Fri)
- Year 9B - Julia Madden (Mon - Tue), Lewis Kingston (Wed - Thurs) & Kris Vestermark (Fri)
- Year 10A - Matt Barker (Mon - Fri)
- Year 10B - Ashleigh Greaves (Mon - Fri)
Elevate Education
Elevate Education is an external study skills partner that works with our Years 11 and 12 students, delivering high impact workshops on study skills, motivation, wellbeing and exam preparation. We are hoping to space out seminars across the school year, to further support students with the skills they need at the time they need them.
Our first session with Elevate Education and our Year 11 cohort was held on Monday 8 February. In the Student Elevation workshop the students learned about the psychology of belief and analysed its effect on their performance; they were led through a four-step goal setting process, helping them to identify unique and compelling reasons to drive them through their final years; a short-term planning process to help them break their goal/s into a series of achievable, short-term benchmarks.
We are also excited to announce that Preshil parents have exclusive access to Elevate Education’s Parent Webinar Series for Term 1 2021. By tuning into this series you will learn how to better support your child at home through reinforcing the skills they learn at school. The webinar is run live online from 6pm – 7pm where the presenter will share Elevate’s key research and skills and will conduct a live Q&A so you can ask them questions directly. Registration is essential and free.
Five-week reviews
Five-week reviews are an integral part of our enrolment process to ensure that all parties are satisfied with how a student is settling in, how they are progressing and whether our school environment is the right fit for them. Five-week reviews for new students enrolled into Preshil in 2021 will commence on Monday 1 March. The Year Level Coordinators will make contact with those families to organise a suitable date and time and inform you as to whether these meetings will take place face-to-face or via Zoom.
Progress reports
Years 7 - 12 progress reports will be published to families on Tuesday 9 March. You will be able to access these via Compass and will receive a notification when they are available for viewing. For those of you who are unfamiliar with Preshil’s progress reports at Blackhall Kalimna, these are completed by your child’s subject teachers and provide a snapshot of your child’s general academic progress and approach to learning.
Victor Toufas
Acting Head of Campus