Covid-19 Remote Learning Information
Thank You – A message from the School Advisory Board:
On behalf of the St Scholastica’s School Advisory Board, we would like to acknowledge and extend our heartfelt thanks and appreciation to our families, our children and our teachers for their outstanding efforts throughout the remote learning and teaching experience. The worldwide Covid-19 pandemic resulted in enormous change in every area of our lives. In this state of flux, our school and its staff, displayed resilience, agility and ability, to continue to provide a schooling experience that prioritized our children’s’ needs and our unique sense of community.
To the teaching and administration staff, thank you for all your efforts during these past eight weeks of remote schooling. We were so impressed with the way you embraced this significant shift in learning, in such a short period. Additionally, you as a staff, continued to ensure that our families all felt connected and supported throughout these unprecedented times. A special mention needs to go to our Principal, Jenny Rohan, who worked tirelessly to continue to lead our community throughout.
To all the parents, we thank you and appreciate your patience and understanding. Many of you had to juggle work commitments with assisting and/or overseeing the remote learning of your children. This is not an easy task and we would like to acknowledge your role in the experience.
Finally, to our wonderful children. Whilst we acknowledge that the remote experience contained many challenges, we do want to recognise the students’ resilience, dedication and open-mindedness to their new experience of education. They have been remarkable!
Next week, we extend a warm welcome back to all of our students and families for a traditional face-to-face teaching and learning experience and we do trust that you will all appreciate having our children in our corridors and classrooms again.
We wish every one of you a smooth, happy transition return to St. Scholastica’s.
Once again, thank you!
St. Scholastica’s is committed to providing the finest ongoing and uninterrupted education to our students and families during Remote Learning. The academic, physical and social emotional wellbeing needs of our community is of the utmost importance to our staff.
Every student is catered for and participates in daily live lessons with their classroom teacher in English and Maths. Students with additional learning needs communicate with their Learning Support Teacher and work on modified programs if required.
Every student connects with their teacher face to face everyday!
Weekly Learning Monday – Thursday
Junior Students Prep – Year 2
Students participate in a class Meet every morning. During these meets, teachers check in with their students sharing good news or learning from the previous day, mark attendance and say a prayer to begin the day.
Each student participates in a small group session targeted to their individual learning. Across the week the students participate in reading, writing and maths sessions.
Videos of learning concepts are also created in reading and writing once a week for the students to watch to further develop their understanding. These concepts are then followed up with independent tasks.
Middle and Senior Students Year 3 – Year 6
Students participate in online lessons with their teachers and peers everyday from 9am – 1:30pm. During these meets, the teacher explicitly teaches using Learning Intentions and Success Criteria in reading, writing and maths. The students remain online in order to ask teachers for support while they are working. During this time, the teachers run small teaching groups targeted to individual learning.
At this level, the students are also working on independent learning across other areas of the curriculum including Religion, InquiRE, STEM and Art. The Year 3 and 4 students are completing a partner project. This is supporting the students to remain connected to their peers. The Year 5 and 6 students are completing passion projects providing the students with the opportunity to explore something they are passionate about!
Flexible Friday
Students at St. Scholastica’s are provided with student voice and choice in their learning. This is especially important during Remote Learning. In addition to the core subjects of English and Maths that the students participate in daily, the students are encouraged to work on learning in other curriculum areas including InquiRE, SEL, STEM, Art and PE across the week.
Friday’s are a flexible working environment to provide the students with the opportunity to engage in less screen time and participate in more hands-on learning. Students can work on SEL, PE, Art or STEM. It also provided students with the opportunity to complete work from the week.
Each Friday the day starts with a whole school assembly run by our School and RE Captains. Parents, teachers and students connect in one space to celebrate our learning with each other. Student awards are presented and birthdays are celebrated!
Intervention Maths and English during Remote Learning
Our Maths and English intervention teachers provide small group targeted instruction online for the students who require it. We aim to teach, support and stay connected to our students as best we can during this
unprecedented time.
During remote learning we will continue to deliver theLiteracy Intervention program developed to improve the Reading and Writing skills of our students. The remote learning program online consists of a combination of face to face group and individual teaching sessions. In addition to the online lessons, learning tasks and activities will be provided to further enhance the teaching sessions.
We offer targeted small group Maths support for some students. This extra support enhances and further develops the students Mathematical skills with a specific focus on number. During remote learning, these groups will work online in live face to face teaching in multiple sessions across the week.
Digital Technology
Digital Technology is used daily to engage students, teach to the point of need and share learning.
Live Lessons
Small group English lessons
Look at some of our work
Testimonials from Parents, Students and Staff
To all the staff at St. Schol’s,
Thank you for all the wonderful work you are putting in with online learning. The new changes to the format have made homeschooling easier and more enjoyable for both Leroy and his parents. In particular, we love the live small group teaching sessions as it is like being in the classroom environment. Leroy definitely pays more attention this way.
Again, thank you for all your hard work. Stay safe and hopefully we will see you again once school returns.
Kind regards,
Maddy
We have recently begun our 2nd session of Remote learning. We are doing 3 live lessons every day: Reading, Writing and Numeracy. The students seem to prefer it as they get immediate feedback about their work. As they are ‘turning in’ their work at the end of each live lesson while the teacher and students are online, they are encouraged to complete their work during the lesson time. The students then have the opportunity to work on their own each afternoon and on Fridays. During this time, they complete other work such as Inquiry and STEM. What we are doing during remote learning has more of a classroom feel and we are more connected to our students.
Steven McNamara Classroom Teacher
Thank everybody sincerely for the effort and work that has been provided for Chiara. I am so pleased with the amount of work Chiara is doing and getting through. It has been brilliant. Our family cannot thank the staff enough.
Emilia
St.Scholastica’s has been really fun online and in person.
Patrick (Student)
The Teachers. Staff, Parents and Students should be congratulated for their outstanding commitment, positive mindset and dedication to engage in the very best of education and learning opportunities for all during such a challenging time. The staff commitment to the academic and social emotional needs of the students and support the families need is to be commended. Constant adaptations are being made to provide the best learning for all our students.
Kasey Easdown Deputy and Teaching and Learning Leader