Dear Parents/Carers,

Welcome to our Week 7 newsletter.

I would like to thank Mrs Holland for acting as Principal last week while I was attending the Catholic Leader's day and Principal's retreat in Bowral. At the leader's day we heard from Tom Rees, the Executive Director for School Leadership at the Ambition Institute on the topic of "School Leader Expertise: What is it and how do we develop it?" We also heard from Ingrid Sealey, a Director and Founder of Teach Well. Teach Well is the organisation that our education system has partnered with to coach our staff on the implementation of High Impact Teaching Practices in our schools. The retreat day provoked a great deal of thinking about the human person and that we are all made in the image and likeness of God, male and female. We were all asked to consider how people in our community approach one another and whether it is always with love and openness.

Naplan

This week, students in Years 3, 5, 7 and 9 have been participating in Naplan testing. Naplan is the National Assessment Program - Literacy and Numeracy. The Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority (ACARA) is responsible for the overall management of the Australian National Assessment Program, in collaboration with representatives from all states and territories and non-government school sectors. NAPLAN is an annual assessment for all students in Years 3, 5, 7 and 9. It tests the types of skills that are essential for every child to progress through school and life. The tests cover skills in reading, writing, spelling, grammar and punctuation, and numeracy. 

School Community Council

The School Community Council AGM and March meeting will be held this Tuesday night at 7pm. Please contact the school if you would like to be a part of this great group of people. 

Long Lunch

There is still time to purchase your Long Lunch tickets. Ticket sales close Saturday at midnight. This is a great event and one that you do not want to miss. 

Improvements

The K, 1 and 2 classrooms are currently receiving an upgrade to the heating and cooling system. The evaporative cooling system will be removed and replaced with reverse cycle heating and cooling. This should be up and running by the weekend. These classrooms have received considerable improvements over the past 12 months, making them optimal learning environments. 

Take care,

Grant Haigh

Principal