Junior School Newsletter Week 8 Term 1 2020

Everyone Belongs Week

During Week 8 at Hazel Glen College, the Junior School have been celebrating diversity and inclusiveness through ‘Everyone Belongs’ Week. The week has encompassed 3 important events; National Day of Action Against Bullying and Violence, World Down Syndrome Day and Harmony Day.

National Day of Action Against Bullying and Violence is Australia’s key anti-bullying event. It is a day where we take a stand together against bullying and violence. Throughout the week, the Student Representative Council have been selling wristbands to promote this event and to raise awareness about bullying. Students have also been having important conversations in their classrooms to discuss what to do if they are being bullied, or if they see someone being bullied. At Hazel Glen College, we say NO to bullying.

On World Down Syndrome Day, people all around the world celebrate the lives and achievements of those with Down Syndrome. This day creates a global voice in advocating for the rights, inclusion and wellbeing of people with Down syndrome. To recognise this special day, all of our Year 1 students wore odd socks on Wednesday in support of a fellow peer.

Harmony Day celebrates Australia’s Cultural Diversity. It is about inclusiveness, respect and belonging for all Australians, regardless of cultural or linguistic background, united by a set of core Australian values. Within the Junior School, we have been doing activities in the classroom to promote the acceptance of heritages, traditions and communities of all cultures. Our diversity at Hazel Glen College is what makes us so special.

‘Everyone Belongs’ Week has been a wonderful reminder to our community of the supportive and inclusive College we have at Hazel Glen. Let’s continue to celebrate our differences and always be kind.

CAMHS And Schools Early Action (CASEA) Program

Hazel Glen College is fortunate to be partnering with Austin Health to deliver an early intervention program that works to support children, families and the wider school community. The Austin CASEA program promotes young children’s social, emotional and behavioural development. The program is free and has been developed to help children understand and express emotions, and to be better at problem solving and getting along with others. The program has also been shown to have a beneficial impact on children’s academic learning. Parent and child support is provided through group programs which are run at the school.

Junior School Tours

School tours are a great way for prospective families to experience our vibrant school. Families will be guided by members of our Leadership Team and have a chance to meet our students. They will have an opportunity to see the learning that takes place in our classrooms and hear about the range of programs and opportunities we offer.

Parents interested in enrolling their child at HGC are encouraged to book a tour to see our College in action. Tours will operate fortnightly on Wednesday mornings. Bookings are essential and can be made at the Junior School office. 

Interim reports Term 1

Our  Interim reports will be issued on Friday 20th March on Compass and provide an update for parents about their child’s work habits in each subject so far. Please read this report in conjunction with the Learning Tasks that are displayed on Seesaw.

Unfortunately, the Parent Teacher Interviews for Term 1 have been cancelled due to the Coronavirus restriction and therefore parents with concerns or queries are encouraged to contact the subject teacher to discuss.

Vocabulary

All teachers across the College have been focusing on how we are explicitly teaching vocabulary in the classrooms and how it is an important part of literacy. The focus behind how we teach vocabulary is driven by Bastow learning and the Victorian Literacy Strategy. Our Instructional Leaders are currently providing professional learning focussing on vocabulary to our teachers.

Storytime at Junior School 

On Friday 13th March, we held our first Story Time session for our HGC Kinder children and their parents in the JS Art Room. Emma Nemer, our Foundation Instructional Leader enthusiastically read  “Aaaarrgghh Spider” by Lydia Monks to the Kinder children. Mat Thomson, our Year 2 Instructional Leader engaged the children and their parents in a spider craft activity. There was lots of chatter, smiles and concentration as parents and children cut, coloured and folded paper. After successfully creating spiders, teachers and families snacked on fruit and talked about reading at home.

By celebrating our love of reading, HGC Story Time sessions have been designed to create a relaxed and fun environment that supports children and their families to make positive connections to Hazel Glen College prior to commencing their first year of school. We are looking forward to hosting more Storytime sessions throughout the year, and hope to see you there. 

Student Agency

During Week 6 all teachers across the College attended professional learning workshop day which focussed on student agency. An expert in the area, Lee Watanabe Crockett worked with the teachers to explore the concept of Future-Focused Learning and how we can begin to incorporate student agency across all year levels, from Kinder to Year 12, to ensure that students have ownership of their learning. Future-Focused Learning is about exploring ways in which we can shift our practices to ensure student agency is a priority to enhance engagement and therefore positively impact outcomes. The 10 Future-Focused Learning areas include:

1.   Essential and Herding Questions
2.   Connection Through Context and Relevance
3.   Learning is Personalised
4.   Challenge of Higher-Order Tasks
5.   Information Fluency Research Component
6.   Process Oriented Using the Essential Fluencies
7.   Learning Intentions are Clear
8.   Assessment is Mindful
9.   Self and/or Peer Assessed

Rebecca Richards

Acting Junior School Principal 

Middle School Newsletter Term 1 Week 8

Student Leaders

I’m thrilled to announce that, in addition to our Middle School Captains and Vice Captains, we have 42 students who have been successful in obtaining student leadership positions. These positions include House Captains and Vice captains, Student Representative Council (SRC) members for each year level and captains for Sustainability, Performing Arts, Sports, Arts and Technology and Respectful relationships. Over 100 students formally applied for these positions and participated in a selection process. Congratulations to all of these students. We know you will be wonderful leaders and role models for all students.

Year 5 Camp

166 very excited Year 5 students attended Camp Arrabri in Warburton from 10th – 13th March. They participated with enthusiasm in all of the activities on offer including archery, damper making, flying fox and team-building games. All students are to be commended for their positive attitude and resilience when trying new things. Many stepped out of their comfort zone and as a result, developed greater resilience and self-esteem. They returned from camp tired but happy, excited to share stories of their adventures with family.

Year 8 Whittlesea Tech School Excursions

During this 2-day excursion, students experienced the Whittlesea Tech School, which is a centre of technological innovation aimed at building the aspiration and confidence of students to engage in a future world of work. Students had access to the exciting range of technology on offer, including 3D printing, laser cutting, electronics, programming & coding and digital design. Over the 2 days, students worked in teams to complete a design challenge, further developing important 21st Century learning skills such as communication, collaboration, problem solving and creativity. In the design challenge, students created an arcade game that demonstrates a STEM principle for a younger audience. Students programmed custom games, designed unique controllers and built cabinets that create an engaging experience for primary aged students. 

Term One Interim Reports

Term One Interim Reports will be available via Compass from Friday 20th March. The Interim Report provides information on student work habits. They are designed to give an overview of a student’s attitude to learning, effort, positive behaviour and organisation. This report should be read in conjunction with your child’s Key Assessment Tasks located in Compass Learning Tasks. These tasks provide continuous feedback about your child’s progress. If you have any concerns about your child’s Interim Report, please contact the relevant classroom teacher.

Kim Donnelly

Acting Middle School Principal

Senior School Newsletter Week 8 Term 1 2020

Interim Reports – Term 1

Parents are advised that Interim reports will be issued on Friday 20 March and will provide an update for parents about their child’s work habits in each subject so far. Parents are advised to read this report in conjunction with the Learning Tasks that are displayed in Compass which measure the progress of students on Key Assessment Tasks and VCE SACs. 

Unfortunately, the Parent Teacher Interviews for Term 1 have been cancelled due to the Coronavirus restriction and therefore parents with concerns or queries are encouraged to contact the subject teacher to discuss.

Year 10 Fashion Excursion 

On Thursday 12 March, the Year 10 Fashion textiles class were fortunate enough to attend VAMFF Fashion Week, where they witnessed a live runway show that showcased the work of designers from Melbourne. Ms Lafazanis and Ms Newbold took 22 students along to help inspire a future generation of Fashion designers with real-world experience of the fashion industry.

Love Your Sister – Samuel Johnson

On Thursday 12 March, Samuel Johnson visited the College and spoke to students in Years 7, 8, 9 and 10 about his “Love your sister” charity and the experience that he had in setting the world unicycling record when he cycled around Australia, raising awareness and funds for his charity, that helps to fight cancer. Samuel was a great presenter and engaged the students with his meaningful and personal message. A big thank you to Kodee in Year 11 for her work in organising this event and for presenting Samuel with an engraved and handmade gift.

VCE Student Attendance.

In the current COVID-19 situation, we understand that for some students and families with medical conditions, a preventative measure may be to limit attendance at school. In this case, students should continue using their existing subject checklists to self-direct their home learning. Please note that teachers will be directing absent students to the existing curriculum plans and only switching to a full online delivery in the event of a school closure.

At the moment we have normal plans for lessons and SAC assessments over the next two weeks until the Easter holidays. In line with this, any student who does not attend a SAC or submit work for a SAT would need a medical certificate or statutory declaration to be able to resit and gain a score for this assessment.

We respectfully remind parents and students that family holidays should not be planned during term time as this impacts student learning, in addition, Year 12 students could miss scored assessments.

Key Dates

Friday 27 March: Last day of Term 1

Tuesday 14 April: Student free day

Wednesday 15 April: First day of Term 2

Monday 11 – Friday 15 May: Year 10 Work experience 

Tuesday 12 – Thursday 14 May: Year 9 NAPLAN

Monday 1 June – Friday 5 June: Year 10 Exams

Monday 1 June – Tuesday 9 June: Year 11 Exams

Wednesday 10 June: GAT exam (all Yr 12 students and Yr 11 students doing a Unit 3 /4 subject)

Wednesday 10 and Thursday 11 June: Year 9 exams

Neil Baillie

Senior School Principal

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