TWCS Newsletter Term 4 Week 2 2021

Welcome to Term 4 and hopefully a bit more sunshine. This term has started with a real sense of connection and community. I have been filled with joy at number of parents, grandparents and children who have come up to me as I start my time at Tenison Woods, introducing themselves and asking the very simple question ‘how are you Mr Catalano?’ This simple question has meant a lot for me, it shows how connected, compassionate and socially aware the children are here at Tenison Woods. Thank you.

I start as Principal at Tenison Woods with great pride, excitement and a deep commitment to ensure each child and family experience what it means to be a part of a catholic community, driven to provide a truly excellent education. Most recently I have been Deputy Principal of St Martin de Porres School at Sheidow Park, where I was for the past 8 years. In that time I was responsible for leading a range of programs and initiatives including Positive Education, Inclusive Education, Apple Technologies and Early Years literacy to name a few.

My wife Kirsty and I have two beautiful boys who are in the early stages of their schooling. We enjoy getting out and exploring what this amazing State of ours has to offer in our camper. Most recently we went to Tanunda to explore the chocolate factory, nature play and splash zone (it was far colder than it should have been!) I enjoy being active, growing up playing any sport I could, in particular Baseball and Football, I have already kicked a few goals in the recess and lunch time soccer games.

Thank you for the wonderful welcome you have each given me as we start this term together, I am very excited to meet as many of you as possible and look forward to working with you as we continue to build a FLOURISHING community. It’s a bit of a cliché, but my door is always open, emails always checked and I am just a phone call away. I encourage you to reach out if you wish to chat.

COVID Update

I hope you all received the communication last week announcing that the yard will be open in the afternoons to allow adults in to collect the children at the end of the day. I ask that you follow the social distancing guidelines as well as QR checking in as you enter the school. It was lovely to see parents in the yard this week.

Twilight Sports Day

This week communication was sent to all families regarding some of the particulars for the Twilight Sports Day this term. More information will be sent to families outlining the program in more detail, however for now the details are:

• Friday 19^th November
• Children to arrive at 12:30pm – Sports Day officially begins at 1pm – finishing at 6pm.
• For those families unable to find care for the children in the morning, there will be general supervision provided from 8am. Information regarding bookings will be sent out soon.
• Adults will be able to attend the event, following COVID safe practices

Class Placements for 2022

As we start Term 4, staff are already working collaboratively on placing each child for 2022. We are in a wonderful position of being a part of a growing community. We take the placement of each child extremely seriously and ensure we take in information from a variety of sources to support the successful transition for your child. If there is additional information that you would like to have included in our decision making process, I ask that you communicate this with your child’s class teacher in writing by Friday 29^th October. Whilst requests will be included in our discussions, it is not possible for all requests to be met.

Light it Red for Dyslexia – National Dyslexia Awareness Month

Dyslexia is a way the brain processes language in the written form. Whilst some see it as a learning difficulty, I believe that it is a brain that does things a little bit differently. I have long been a strong advocate for practices and support networks that provide the support that children and their families need to better understand the dyslexic brain. Code Read Network is an organisation dedicated to ensure the necessary supports are available to all. Since 2015, Light it Red for Dyslexia has been a national initiative designed to bring awareness to dyslexia and challenges that can be faced when others don’t fully understand the learning process. I encourage you to take a moment to have a look at the Code Read Network website.

Go well

Ben

In All things Love 

Plenery Council 

What is a Plenary Council? 

A Plenary Council is the highest formal gathering of all local churches in a country. The last Plenary Council in Australia took place in 1937. 

Why are we having it? 

There are many reasons for having a Plenary Council: Pope Francis has invited the local Church to dialogue; the contemporary society of Australia has changed significantly; and the Royal Commission into Institutional Response to Child Sexual Abuse has been a significant and influential event that requires deep consideration and response. 

Who is representing the Adelaide Archdiocese? 

There are 278 members from across Australia participating in the two Assemblies of the fifth Plenary Council – in October 2021 and July 2022. 

Adelaide Archdiocese members: 

• Monica Conway 
• Ian Cameron 
• Kiara Ryan 
• Archbishop Patrick O’Regan 
• Madeline Forde 
• Julian Nguyen 
• Fr Philip Marshall 

Other local members include: 

• Emeritus Bishop Gregory O’Kelly SJ 
• John Lochowiak (Aboriginal Catholic Ministry) 
• Claire Victory (St Vincent de Paul Society). 

Expert adviser: 

• Fr James McEvoy 

From <https://thesoutherncross.org.au/news/2021/09/28/your-guide-to-the-plenary-council/>  

Pope Francis  

The Plenary Council “represents a singular ‘journeying together’ of God’s people in Australia along the paths of history towards a renewed encounter with the Risen Christ in the power of the Holy Spirit”. 

“As today as we take this bold and crucial step forward in our own response to the call for the Church’s transformation we can be inspired and encouraged by the energy, persistence, creativity and fidelity of Saint Paul and by the dream of Pope Francis whose words have helped inspire and shape the agenda which will guide us through the days ahead,” he said. Archbishop Timothy Costelloe SDB 

Diocesan Youth Assembly 

Peter Bierer, coordinator of the Catholic Office for Youth and Young Adults, said the Diocesan Youth Assembly would be held on the feast of Christ the King, November 21, at Nazareth College, Findon campus. 

He said the feast day had been nominated by Pope Francis as the new date for the annual celebration of World Youth Day. 

“It’s an appropriate day to gather with young people and consult with them further about recommendations from the Diocesan Assembly and earlier discussions and consultations around the Plenary Council,” he said. 

“It will be a great day of celebration and consultation for young people aged over 16.” 

For more details on the Diocesan Pastoral Council and resources from the assembly, visit www.adelaidediocesanassembly.org. For information on the youth assembly, visit www.cathyouthadelaide.org.au. 

The staff at Tenison Woods have been involved in Visible Learning with Corwin for 3 years. This week, our amazing Corwin mentor, Lyn Coote flew over to mentor the leadership teams from TWCS and Kingwood for our final two sessions. Lyn has supported staff and Impact Coaches over the past 3 years and has been an integral part of our growth and progress as a school. Through her guidance, staff have become more confident using learning intentions, success criteria, timely and effective feedback and solo taxonomy in their classrooms.

The session held on Tuesday enabled our new principal Ben Catalano to hear about all of the impressive work behind the scenes that has gone into creating a school that lives and breathes Visible Learning. As Impact Coaches, Sarah and I were able to reflect on the school's progress and identify what has worked well and what have been the challenges. We were also able to establish goals moving forward and determine how we will maintain our excellent standard of teaching practise in the years to come.

The session held on Wednesday provided the opportunity for Sarah and I to continue strengthening our coaching skills. By providing quality coaching for the staff at TWCS, we ensure positive relationships are maintained, high expectations for all teaching staff are monitored and students are involved in their learning and progress. We pride ourselves in mentoring and upskilling staff and supporting them in being dynamic, reflective and passionate educators who strive to provide the best for all students.

Our staff meeting on Wednesday evening provided a rich opportunity for all teaching staff to share and celebrate their Visible Learning journey. Teachers who have been involved in the whole 3 years with Corwin, along with those who joined TWCS more recently all shared their experiences and vision for the future of our school. Sarah and I incorporated a number of effective protocols that Lyn has taught us along the way and we concluded by listing our agreed practises moving forward.

I would like to take this opportunity to thank Lyn and Sarah for welcoming me into your team for the final year of Visible Learning as an Impact Coach at TWCS. I have absolutely loved seeing how involved the students are in their learning and believe they will continue to flourish in the years to come. I have no doubt that the incredible work that has gone into establishing quality teaching practises will still be embedded and visible when I return to teaching in 2023 at TWCS.

Heather Docherty

Visible Learning Impact Coach

Our final term of Reception is off to a great start! We have very excitedly welcomed our pre-service teacher Miss Wu to our classroom for her 5 week teaching placement. We have been exploring subtraction in our Maths lessons. We have been learning how to subtract numbers using number sentences, number lines and worded problems. In our Digital Technologies lessons with Kim, we have been learning about positional language using Beebots. Using the story Rosie’s Walk, we coded the Beebots to move to each place Rosie went. Using the iPads on Seesaw, we created our own code. For most of us, this was brand new learning. Using our growth mindset and the Character Strength of Perseverance, we met the success criteria “I can create a code to show direction.” In Science we have been exploring “How Things Move.” Using a Venn Diagram and our Learner Qualities of Think and Connect, we sorted our toys into the categories, push, pull or push and pull. We are looking forward to continuing our learning this term before we make the big move to Year 1.

Jasleen – I like learning about the Beebots because they move.

Arshnoor – I liked the playdough game because it was so much fun.

Avleen – I liked using playdough for subtraction.

James – I have learnt that toy cars can push and pull.

Gabriel – I have learnt how to play the Beebot game.

Owen – I have learnt that when we subtract we use the minus sign.

Mehnoor – I learnt how to take away numbers.

Sophie – I have learnt that we can push and pull different things.

Aarohi – I love learning about how to subtract numbers.

Mabel – I have learnt how to push and pull.

Maggie – I have learnt how to take away.

Angela – I have learnt how to write a recount.

Archie – I have learnt how to subtract numbers.

Benjamin – I have learnt how things push and pull.

Charlotte – I have learnt how to take away.

Milania – I have learnt about how things move. They push and pull.

Seerat – I have learnt that Beebots go forwards and backwards.

Cartia – I have learnt how to take away.

Jasslyn – I have learnt that a toy car can be pushed.

Evie – I have learnt about subtraction.

William – I have learnt how to subtract.

Nicole Puopolo

Reception Gold Teacher

Hi TWCS Families, 

During the school holidays we held a Twilight Picnic on the school oval. We had a fantastic turn out and it was lovely to see the kids across multiple year levels playing and having a great time. We hope to hold another event similar to this during the summer holidays. 

The deadline to secure you ticket to the Quiz Night is fast approaching. Sales close Friday the 22nd October so don’t miss out! 

On the 10th November we will be holding another Pizza Lunch. Orders will only be accepted via Qkr! If your child has any diary’s requirements we ask you contact the P&F via email before the order cut off date. 

If you have anytime to help at upcoming events, or have any suggestions/feedback, please contact us via email or attend our next meeting (below). We would love to see some new faces.

Up coming events

• Next P&F meeting will be held on Wednesday, 10th November at 7pm
• Quiz Night 6th November 

Jess Rainsford 

P & F Chair