Principal News
Annual Implementation Plan (AIP)
Our Priority for 2023 is “Calliope State School embraces Equity and Excellence for All.” We have three strategies to achieve this. Our third strategy is Expectations for All. Our third action is “Reorientate perception of student behaviour and engagement through internal and external communication of the Student Code of Conduct, PBL and the Student Learning and Wellbeing Framework.” Each week in the newsletter, the PBL (Positive Behaviour for Learning) team features information for our community.
Calliope State School Parent/Caregiver Survey
Thank you to everyone who responded to the Parent/Caregiver Survey. We had 176 responses to the survey. There was some great positive feedback on what the school is doing well with and what parents would like to see continue. We also had some awesome feedback on what we could be doing differently. I will be sharing this feedback with the executive of the P&C and then we will take trends back to the next P&C meeting. There were 157 respondents to the swimming consultation question. Of those 31 respondents chose Royal Life Saving as their preference for a Swimming Program at Calliope State School. 13 respondents preferred another external provider and 113 preferred Calliope State School’s PE Teacher and Coaches. Many comments were provided on the benefits of each program that we have run and how each program can be improved. When threads are pulled together, the preference is for all year levels to be swimming in the pool each year. Our school will now work on the Swimming Program for Term 4 this year based on this consultation.
Parent voice and student voice is valued at Calliope State School. Each term we will survey parents/caregivers to anonymously receive your feedback. Survey Monkey is used as a platform as we can gain quite a bit of insight into your opinions. It is anonymous and we can’t identify what each individual has written. We just get the list of comments.
Student Code of Conduct
Each week I will focus on an aspect of Calliope’s Student Code of Conduct. This week the focus is on our Multi-Tiered System of Support
Calliope State School uses the Positive Behaviour for Learning (PBL) multi-tiered systems of support as the foundation for our integrated approach to learning and behaviour. PBL is a preventative, differentiated model grounded in practical strategies, targeted planning and data-informed decision-making. Based on a problem-solving model, staff match increasingly intensive interventions to the identified needs of individual students.
Equity and Excellence
A compelling vision that is clear, shared, and represents what we stand for helps to define a system or a school community.
Every time you engage in parent teacher interviews, respond to the School Opinion Survey, help out in the classroom, pick up the phone, send an email, come in for a conversation,
attend an assembly, school event, or a P&C meeting, we learn more about what role you expect the school to play within the community. Thank you for all that you do to support the school.
2023 will be an exciting next step for education in Queensland. The department of education has conducted research, and engaged in consultation throughout 2022 in order to inform a new strategy that will guide our work from 2023.
The past couple of years have reminded us all, that the education of our children relies on a partnership between school and home and the whole local community. It has also highlighted the need for intentional strategies to ensure that every student has the opportunity to be the very best they can be, no matter where they live or what kind of learning challenges they may face.
The Education strategy, Equity and Excellence: Realising the potential of every student is the next evolution of our work. It builds on the successes of our past and leads us into the future by providing a clear vision for a progressive, high-performing education system.
The strategy identifies key priorities and priority measures for use in schools. It identifies 3 key focus areas and introduces system initiatives that will underpin teaching and learning in state schools across the state.
Equity and Excellence will be supported by investment in empowering teachers and school leaders, digital innovation, collaboration between schools and community and sustainable investment in schools for the future.
It will open up some new conversations, and support us to continue the great work that are doing already to support the learning and wellbeing of all our students.
Universal Design for Learning
One pedagogy that Calliope State School is focussing on is Universal Design for Learning (UDL). This pedagogy starts with the student and looks at their strengths and barriers. It allows for student choice is learning and demonstrating their learning. 6A have been busy creating settings to match the settings in the novel 'Don't Pat the Wombat'. The meticulous focus on detail was evident, as the created setting exactly match a part in the story. The student could also explain how the setting moved the plot along and how it allowed the reader to form a relationship and have a deeper understanding of the text.
Below are photos of student work completed in 6A where students had a choice in how they demonstrated their understanding. Notice one student chose to draw while others chose to create a three-dimensional artefact of their learning. Amazing work 6A.
Upcoming Events Calendar
Some reminders of upcoming events from the calendar include –
Week 4, Wednesday, 10 May – Mother’s Day Stall
Week 5, Monday, 15 May - Wear Purple for D&FV Awareness Month
Week 5, Monday, 15 May – Volunteer’s Morning Tea
Week 5, Thursday, 18 May – RotaKids Fun Activities @ first break
Week 5, Friday, 19 May – Walk Safely to School Day
(For more details on these events see information included in this newsletter)