School News

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Message from the Acting Principal

18.06.20

Dear Parents and Caregivers,

Term 3 Reception Students

This week we held our first Transition Day for our Term 3 intake of Reception students. Eight children joined us for their first taste of what 'big school' is really like. While these children were spending time in the Reception classes their parents spent time together with Rita Campbell and myself to learn about what school means for them as parents.  For most parents this was quite easy as they already have older children at school.  We are not really given 'lessons' on how to raise children or about how to prepare for school. For some families this was their youngest child, their 'baby', and that can be daunting too. For transition and for starting school there are usually tears … and sometimes the children cry too! It is an emotional time for families and we try to make it as simple and pain free as possible. We welcome our new families and thank them for choosing Tenison Woods Catholic Primary School for their children's primary education. We look forward to working with them over the next 7 years.

Advertising

You may have noticed the 'Advertisement' for our school if you have stopped at a red light on the corner of Sir Donald Bradman Drive and Marion Road. TWCS is a delightful school but it is hidden away and many people don't realise that this little gem is here. Along with the fliers that people have so generously placed into letterboxes in our local area, this advertising might raise our profile further. Thank you again to those who have supported us with the letter drop.

P&F Meeting

We held our first 'open' P&F Meeting this week since COVID19 hit. It was a great opportunity for me to meet, listen to and get to know a few more parents from our school, (even though we only had a small turn out). Please remember that all parents, through enrolling their children in our school, are automatically members of our Parents and Friends Committee. Some parents can attend meetings, others can help out on the barbeque, and some can cover books. No matter how often, you are able to help, we at TWCS value your support and your children gain a great deal from it.

Semester 1 Reports

Teachers are currently working on Student Reports to provide a summary of the achievements and effort of each child in their class. These reports are a follow up to the telephone conversations that teachers had with parents a couple of weeks ago. Remember that because of  COVID19 the learning has been a little different and this may have a slight impact on reports. While our teachers did an amazing job with the COVID19 upheaval and adapting to flexible learning, it is still not quite the same as face to face teaching. In addition some students were away from school for varying amounts of time from one week to six weeks, making it more difficult to gather the usual number of assessment tasks. It is always good to keep things in perspective. 

I have a desk top calendar titled "St Mary MacKillop Daily Thoughts". Each day I turn the page over to the new day and consider the thoughts that Mary MacKillop recorded back in the mid to late 1800s. On Monday of this week (15 June) her words (from 1867) were: 
"We must teach more by example than by word."
The more I reflect on this statement the more powerful it becomes for me. I think that in this statement, Mary was writing about values and how we treat others, rather than about Maths or Science or Literacy. Sometimes we can do too much talking and our words can just become meaningless. Being truly authentic or genuine in our actions says far more than any words we might share. This quote calls me to always treat people the way that Jesus would, or the way that I would like to be treated. As teachers, or as parents, it is really important that our children see us modelling appropriate behaviour and building positive relationships because they will often learn from, and copy what we do. I wonder how often you have seen your children do something and thought: "Oh my goodness, that is me all over". Remember that we are only human and we do make mistakes. So if your children see you exhibit behaviour that you wish they had not, then please be up front and tell them that you are sorry, you made a mistake and you should not have behaved that way. There is a great deal of learning for our children when they see how we, as adults, handle our mistakes. We, whether we are adults or children, must always strive to be better people and not keep making the same behavioural mistakes. We owe it to our children.

Fire Alarm

I was impressed with our staff and children this week on Wednesday afternoon, unfortunately we burnt some popcorn in the canteen. The children have obviously been well rehearsed because our impromptu fire drill went extremely well. The timing was not overly great, ten minutes before home time. The children were disappointed that we had to cancel the fire truck, as were the front office ladies. Esme' in Year 1 has written a procedure about how to make popcorn, which includes turning the fan on and opening the door just in case. We will pass her procedure onto our OSHC staff!

Pyjamas Day - Vinnies

Thank you for the way you helped your children "dress down" into their PJs for our Vinnies drive this week. It is these sorts of days that children remember most: when I went to school in my PJs, when I was this character for Book Week, or when we did this in the school concert. They don't necessarily remember when they learnt to add, or write, or paint. This is one reason why it is important that we have events or moments to celebrate. It provides us with great memories. An even better reason though on this occasion is that we were raising money for those who are less fortunate that ourselves. Thank you for your generosity and helping your child(ren) have some fun today.

Cheers
Peter Mercer
Principal