Congratulations! I have been wonderfully impressed with how well the children have engaged in their learning this term and it was great to read through each child’s report in recent weeks that demonstrate just how hard they have all been working. Well done children.
Last Thursday and again on Monday night, we were fortunate enough to have an opportunity to farewell our graduating children at the Graduation Dinner and Mass. This was a lovely chance for the children to speak to our community about their journey here at Tenison Woods. There were lots of laughter and the occasional tear. As I said to the graduating children at the Dinner, the TWCS community is always open to you, come back and visit us soon! During our Mass, we announced the recipients of the Mary Mackillop Award and Tenison Woods Award. These two awards are given to a boy and girl from our graduating group who have demonstrated exceptional leadership during their time at TWCS. The two recipients are:
- Lucy Ung and Balsher Singh
This week we have also farewelled a number of children and staff who leave our community to take on new opportunities elsewhere. Kelly Stevens, Maria French, Nicole Puopolo and Naomi Ali will be leaving our teaching community in 2022. Kelly will be taking on a 12 month contract teaching Year 3 at Star of the Sea School. Nicole heads to St John Bosco as a permanent Reception teacher. Maria will be taking a break during 2022 to enjoy spending time with her grandchildren. Naomi will be continuing her work in the Department for Education. On behalf of the entire TWCS community, we wish them well for 2022.
During our End of Year Mass this week we were able to give thanks for the wonderful year we have had at Tenison Woods School. At the end of Mass there were a number of awards presented to children. The Inspiring Excellence awards are given to one child per year level who demonstrates a positive commitment to their learning. I congratulate:
- Harvey Bond
- Yasmin Sandhu
- Ella Bond
- Eva Watson
- Stella Ricci
- Matilda Shannon
- Archie Leigh
The Hindmarsh Shield recipient is selected from this list of children. This child is selected as the overall winner of the Inspiring Excellence award. It was with great pleasure that I presented this to Ella Bond. These awards are a fantastic recognition of children in our community who consistently demonstrate the Character Strength of Love of Learning and Perseverance towards each and every learning opportunity.
We have a some very exciting additions to our teaching and learning programs in 2022 that I would like to share with you. We have introduced two new positions within our teaching community. The first is a position of responsibility in Early Years Literacy. Claire Little will be working with the Leadership Team and staff to implement a Reception to Year 6 synthetic phonics teaching program that will be underpinned by Multi-Sensory Structured teaching practices that are designed to support children with dyslexia. Research has proven that this form of teaching ensures all children are catered for in their learning journey. To support this implementation, I have also appointed a Literacy Intervention specialist ESO. This role is designed to provide explicit, targeted intervention for those children who are requiring additional support in their literacy acquisition.
There will also be the addition of STEM to all classes Reception to Year 6 taught by Kim Martin. For those of you who have had your child experience a class with Kim, I am sure you understand the wonderful addition this is to our teaching program. As a part of Kim’s work with the Yr 6 children, we will also be establishing the Arch D Podcast series. During Semester 1, children will be learning the specifics of developing their own podcast and radio station. Keep an ear out for that!
The School Leadership Team for 2022
Ben Catalano – Principal and Inclusive Education
Rita Campbell – APRIM
Sarah Byrne – Leader of Learning and Inclusive Education
Courtney Quigley – Wellbeing Leader
Claire Little – Early Years Literacy Leader
Commencing in TERM 2, 2022, the Camp Australia Before School Care service will be available to all families. This means that from Term 2, 2022 School supervision will not commence until 8:20am, meaning all children arriving before this time will need to access Before School Care. More information will be available in the new year to support families in this change.
This week, all parent volunteers have received a reminder email from our Front Office staff regarding the completion of the Volunteer Responding to Abuse and Neglect online training. This needs to be completed by the end of the year with certificates forwarded to Diana Dente. Parents will not be able to volunteer without this certificate.
Some Key Dates for 2022
January 24 – The School Office will open
January 31 – First day of school for all children – Coffee Van for those wanting to stay around in the morning
February 3 – Meet the Teacher information evening (times to be confirmed)
February 11 – Parents and Friends Welcome Picnic on the oval
Finally, I wish to extend a sincere thank you to each of you in our community for the way in which you have welcomed me this term. I am extremely grateful for being a part of this fantastic community and I am excited about what is sure to be a year of flourishing for TWCS. Have a blessed Christmas with your family.
Stay safe and we will see you all in the New Year.
God Bless
Ben
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