Dear Parents, Friends and Caregivers,

Welcome to the 2019 school year. I hope that you enjoyed the holiday break and had the opportunity to relax and spend time with family and friends. I am very happy to be continuing as Principal for 2019 and am looking forward to an exciting year ahead.
   
As we start the year, I'd like to welcome those new students and families that have joined our Tenison Woods Community. 

In Reception we welcome: Shiven, Harrison, Olivia, Imogen, Xavier, Isabella, Annika, Chase, Myles, Blair, Matthew, Gabriel, Eli, Zara, Joshua, Ella, Ibadat, Finn, Parker, Sehajpreet, Aristella, Charlie, Athan, Esme', Ethan, Emmersyn, Nate, Aseem and Harry. In Year 2 we welcome William, Year 3 Liam and Abby and Year 4 Xavier.

We look forward to getting to know you better throughout your time at Tenison Woods.

There were many smiling faces and a buzz of excitement as students returned to school last week, however the first few weeks of the new school year can often bring to the surface a mixture of emotions for both children and parents. It is important to acknowledge that these range of emotions are experienced differently by different people and that there are various ways we can manage these feelings. I include with this newsletter an article about 'Managing Student Anxiety' by Michael Grose, founder of Parenting Ideas as it includes some useful tips and strategies with regards to supporting children experiencing anxiety.

During the week prior to school commencing, all staff in Catholic Schools across South Australia gathered as one community to listen, learn and celebrate the work of Catholic Education in South Australia. It was amazing to be part of the 5500 strong gathering, listening and learning with Dr Neil McGoran, Director of Catholic Education, Fr Philip Marshall, Administrator Delegate of the Catholic Archdiocese of Adelaide,  Dr Kent Hoffman and motivational speaker, Robyn Moore to realise the importance of our roles in acknowledging everyone’s worth in order to live, learn and lead together to create a world that God desires.

Further to this event, we commenced engagement in a three year project with Corwin - Visible Learning Plus. Working with consultants from Corwin we will examine our impact on student learning and look at ways that we can continue to create innovation in our learning environments so that students can become the best learners they can be. An aspiration for all our learners is for them to know where they are with their learning, know where they are going and how they are going to get there. Of course, learning isn't restricted to classrooms and so as we begin the year I encourage you to consider how your child/ren might engage with extra-curricula learning that is offered at Tenison Woods Primary School such as by joining a school sporting team or participating in the various carnivals that take place throughout the year.

Thank you to those parents who were able to come along to our Meet the Teacher evening this week. At the gathering I introduced our 2019 teaching staff including our new music teacher, Mrs Samara Churchett. Mrs Churchett will be teaching music on Mondays to all classes and will also train those year 5 and 6 students who want to join the choir and perform as part of the Catholic Schools Music Festival in week 10 of term 3. 

I would like to thank our P&F committee for organising our welcome BBQ which is being held next Friday evening from 5.30-8.00pm and I encourage you to come along as this will be a great opportunity to get to know other families at the school.   

As we start the school year I remind families to refer to our Parent Handbook available on the school website for important information related to the school: http://www.twcs.catholic.edu.au/enrolment

I also ask that families keep an eye on the school calendar for all upcoming events throughout the year: http://www.twcs.catholic.edu.au/news-events/events

With warm regards,

John Low
Principal