Dear Parents and Friends,

Term 2 has been an extremely busy one at Holy Cross. Our staff have been heavily engaged in ongoing professional learning with the English and Mathematics syllabi, reflecting on our school’s Vision and Mission, and, in recent weeks, gathering, analysing and preparing your child’s progress reports in preparation for Parent- Teacher Interviews taking place next week. Our P&F held the very popular pie drive fundraiser and organised a fantastic Disco night for our students last week! Some of our classes have attended excursions connected with their learning, many students have had the opportunity to access pathways across a range of sports and academic pursuits, and our students have been present at both grade and whole school masses to celebrate our faith on the two significant feast days of Mary Help Christians and Sacred Heart of Jesus. As we come towards the end of June, the month of the Sacred Heart, I share this prayer that you may also wish to share with your family:

Lord, you deserve all honour and praise, because your love is perfect and your heart
sublime.

My heart is filled to overflowing with gratitude for the many blessings and graces you have bestowed upon me and those whom I love.

Forever undeserving, may I always be attentive and never take for granted the gifts of mercy and love that flow so freely and generously from your scared heart.

Heart of Jesus, I adore you.
Heart of Jesus, I praise you.
Heart of Jesus, I thank you.
Heart of Jesus, I love you forever and always.

Amen

We keep our Year 3 students in our prayers over the next few days as they culminate their spiritual preparation to receive the Blessed Eucharist for the first time at their First Holy Communion on Sunday morning’s 10am mass. Our choir singers are invited to join Mr Bõdy in giving music ministry at this special Mass, to support their younger peers.

IMPORTANT DATES FOR TERM 3

A Term 3 printable Parent Planner will be shared at the end of next week.This is a handy two page parent calendar for your fridge or home noticeboard! Simply print and and have it handy for your day to day reference. Any updates and changes will be posted either via Compass, the website calendar or as reminders on our weekly Infographic posted on our school’s Facebook page. All dates can also be found on the Parent online Calendar accessed also on our school’s website. 

Please note the next PUPIL FREE DAYS :

TERM 2 PUPIL FREE DAY - FRIDAY 5th JULY. The last day of Term 2 for students will be Thursday 4th July.  Focus Area of Staff Professional Learning ~ Student Engagement, Vision and Mission

TERM 3 PUPIL FREE DAY - MONDAY 22 JULY. The first day of Term 3 for students will be Tuesday 23rd July. Focus Area of Staff Professional Learning ~ Mathematics Syllabus Implementation

TERM 3 PUPIL FREE DAY - FRIDAY 20 SEPTEMBER. Focus Area ~ Staff Spirituality Day 

2024 Student Semester Reports

Student reports will be available from 3:30pm, via COMPASS this Friday 28th June. 

The Semester 1 reporting period is a time to celebrate your child/ren's achievements and learning during the first half of the year. The reporting period is twofold: the report and the parent-teacher conference. The parent-teacher conference compliments the written report and is a valuable communication channel with teachers. 

How can I prepare for the parent-teacher conference?

• Take time to read your child's report carefully, especially the areas of achievement and areas for growth. 
• Make a note of any of the comments you are unsure about or would like to know a little more about. Perhaps there is a concept you are curious about.
• What else could I ask at the parent-teacher conference?
• What is one way I can really help my child next term?
• What advice can you give me about helping my child talk about their learning at home?
• What can I do to get more involved in my child's learning? 
• How can I help my child with....... in Maths, Reading, Spelling, Writing? 
• What can I do to help my child be more positive about his/her learning? 

DESCRIPTORS IN A-E REPORTS

Further to the information provided about reports earlier this term, this week includes an explanation of the grade scales used. For brevity, reports will have the word descriptor, however it is important to also understand the detailed description of each one, as this is what teachers refer to when analysing the range of learning work samples, observations and assessments in order to make decisions about student progress and achievements when completing reports. 

The bolded words or phrases in particular are helpful in seeing the difference between the levels.

Kindergarten written reports in Semester 1 and Semester 2 use a three-point grade scale to report student achievement using the following performance descriptors. :

Students in Year 1 - Year 6 will continue to receive semester reports twice a year with a five-point grade scale used to report student achievement using the following performance descriptors: 

PARENT TEACHER INTERVIEWS- BOOKINGS CLOSE FRIDAY 28th June 6pm

2024 ANNUAL IMPROVEMENT PLAN PROGRESS

Goal 1: Living Our Catholic Identity: In 2024, we will revise our school’s Vision and Mission. 

• We have engaged in two staff meeting sessions reflecting upon and having shared discussions about our school’s key values and beliefs, facilitated by Gary Quinn, one of the CEDoW Catholic Life, Education and Mission Team, and continuing on our Staff Day next Friday. As a result we have reflected on our core beliefs as Catholic Educators and what actions as a result are important in our school. We also reflected on what we would like a graduate of our school to have experienced, know and understand about themselves, their faith, learning and personal wellbeing. This work will continue throughout the term and form part of our staff development day on the last day of this term. 

Next term, Gary will join us to work with the students, parents and parish to revise and refine our school vision and mission. This work will also inform our school vision for learning.

Goal 3: Excellence in Teaching: In 2024, we will develop alignment between curriculum teaching, learning and assessment in English and Mathematics.

• Our K-2 teachers have trialled and commenced using an assessment tool which gathers information about student reading behaviours including decoding, comprehension and fluency skills  As a result, teachers are effectively observing and gathering data about reading progress, growth and achievement.  
• A second round of professional collaborative planning release is currently underway with our classroom teachers working with our Instructional Coach and leadership team, to program for Mathematics with a focus on a unit to be taught in Term 3. As a result, teachers are using the UBD cycle to design pre assessments, analysing what their students know, which then informs their planning and selection of teaching content and strategies for the unit being taught. 

Professional Learning

STAFF DEVELOPMENT DAY

Research tells us that the quality of the teacher is the greatest in-school influence on student achievement. Therefore high quality professional learning for teachers must be a priority to ensure improved teacher practice that leads to improved student growth. Recent professional learning undertaken or other professional commitments by our staff this fortnight includes:

Student Attendance Matters

You may have heard about a new school attendance campaign launched by the NSW government called Every Day Matters. This campaign aims to improve current student attendance levels to pre-COVID levels. Like NSW public schools, the Catholic Education Office Diocese of Wollongong, has a target of a 95 per cent attendance rate for students. This roughly equates to students being absent two days per term.

The importance of attending school for students’ academic success and sense of belonging is well documented in research. Missing just one day of school each fortnight adds up to four weeks of lost learning a year. Over a student’s school life, this equates to an entire year of missed learning.

The Every Day Matters campaign aims to drive behavioural change among parents and students to:

• reduce absenteeism close to weekends and/or public holidays;
• reduce family trips during term;
• reduce arbitrary days off due to convenience or pressure from students.

Whilst our school’s attendance rates are positive, we do have some students with higher rates of absence. Parents are encouraged to help students reach their attendance goals by:

• ensuring they attend school every day unless they are unwell
• booking holidays during breaks and 
• reaching out to your child’s teacher or to a member of the school leadership team for support, if required.

Every Blessing,

Milena Colussi
Principal