Aspire New – March Edition

Academic Catchup and Homework Club Starting Term 2

Later in this newsletter, you will find information regarding our new Academic Effort and Rigour system, which will be opened up to parents on Compass before the end of this term. This will give families access to fortnightly data from all teachers on how well their child is interacting with others, using classtime and completing their learning.

In support of this – during term 2, Elevation Secondary College is re-launching Homework Club and introducing an additional layer of support for students – Academic Catchup sessions.

Homework Club

Homework Club will run in the library for two afternoons a week and will be supported by teaching staff. Any student can attend Homework Club to complete homework, catchup on learning or complete some extra study.

Academic Catchup

Academic Catchup is different. Students who are significantly behind in their learning will be allocated to Academic Catchup classes. Students who have not completed classwork, homework or common assessment tasks, despite being given opportunities by classroom teachers to do so. Students allocated to Academic Catchup classes (which will run on two afternoons per week) will be expected to complete set work allocated by one or more of their classroom teachers, under the supervision of a classroom teacher. When a student is allocated to Academic Catchup – we are doing so as it is essential for their learning progress to do so.

Our expectation is that parents and guardians will support the school when their child is allocated to an academic catchup session.

The Academic Catchup session is not a detention, it is designed to give them time to complete essential learning that they have not yet completed in regular classtime, for homework, or in Homework Club.

For many students attending one or two academic catchup sessions will be enough to help them re-prioritize completion of work in class and homework.

Full details on both Homework Club and Academic Catchup will be sent via Compass next term.

Year 7 Camp

Through the ingenuity and persistence of our team, we have somehow managed to run three consecutive year 7 camps despite COVID’s best efforts to cancel them.

This year our students headed to Forest Edge in Gippsland, a new location. Our staff reported great participation from students in the activities and good levels of teamwork.

Thanks to Kim Calder for organizing and Matina Konstantinakos, Julia Rossi, Mark Favoloro, Casey Cesarin, Dean James, Josh Fielding, Liesl Albion and Yinmu Liu for attending. It’s important to note that teachers do not receive any extra pay or time for attending camp and many give up significant time away from their families and regular lives to ensure students have great experiences.

Student Learning Conferences

A last minute reminder that our Student Learning Conferences are running next Monday, the 4^th of April.

Families can book via Compass – Conferences section. We ask that each family attend a meeting with the Personal Development/Mentor Group teacher as a minimum and encourage you all to attend.

Berry Street – Trauma Informed Learning Curriculum Day

This coming Friday we will be undertaking the first of four days training in the Berry Street Trauma Informed Learning Program. This program has already been established within our school, however this training allows all teaching and non teaching staff access to the training, hopefully gaining more consistency of practice across our classrooms.

I have worked with Pete Hansen – Principal of Aitken Hill Primary School and Loren Peavey – Principal of Keelonith Primary School to establish a cluster of schools that will complete the training together over the two years. Our hope is that by working with two of our main local primary schools, we can develop better consistency of practice across all schools and better relationships and networks between our staff.

This is a significant investment in professional learning and a major focus for us in the current strategic plan.

Kim Calder our Year 7 Leading Teacher has done an amazing job of organizing the training and our first day this coming Friday.

Instrumental Music and Band

This term we have launched our Year 9 Band program – as an extension of our Instrumental Music Program. The band meets each Friday morning between 8:30 and 9:30 and have been rehearsing a number of songs. Students involved in our Instrumental Music program at year 7 and 8 who show a high level aptitude in their instrument may be asked to join the band later in the year.

If you have interest in your child learning an instrument or joining the band program, please call the office for details on how to sign up for lessons.

Term 2 Staff Changes

We have had a number of staffing changes recently and some more heading into term 2.

Emily Bonaccorsi-Hannan and Nijma Awl have joined our team of classroom aides earlier this term.

Melissa Harrison has joined the administration team this Term in her position as First Aide/Enrolments.

Both Mrs. Vella and Ms. Gooch Andrew will be taking family leave for the rest of the year starting from term 2. We wish them all the best of luck and happiness at this exciting time.

Mr. Mike Muscat will be joining us from term 2 as an English and Humanities teacher.

Profession Development

At Elevation Secondary College, it’s not just students who are always learning. Teachers at our school are constantly reflecting on our practice, learning and looking to improve. As a College, we invest heavily in teachers’ collaboration and ongoing professional development (including, but also well beyond last week’s Curriculum Day). Every week, teachers are looking at how well students have learned, and what they need to do to get better. Each of us will share with you some of the professional learning we have been leading this term.

Curriculum Day – Joining forces with primary schools to improve student engagement and wellbeing

All staff from Aitken Hill Primary School, Keelonith Primary School and Elevation Secondary College gathered in our library to engage Berry Street Education Model training. This is a model of positive education – an approach that combines traditional teaching with research on improving happiness and wellbeing – to support students to flourish at school. Positive education has been employed by many schools across Victoria, from 150+ year old private schools in Geelong to our own brand new schools in Craigieburn and Greenvale. This was our first chance to join with two of our feeder primary schools to evaluate what we had achieved so far and identify next steps. We know how important consistent expectations and approaches are for our students as they transition from primary school yet we rarely have such an opportunity to learn together. We are so grateful to Leading Teacher Kimberly Calder for all of her efforts to make it a reality.

Teachers, principals and support staff engaged with the latest research about the impact adverse childhood experiences, such as COVID lockdowns, can affect students’ focus and self-regulation. We also discussed and practiced strategies to build calmer and positive classrooms. In the final session of the day (this was the first of four trainings we’ll do together over two years) there was an energetic buzz in the room where all three schools shared their plans to better support students.

Professional Learning Communities

Teachers meet in their faculty teams weekly to examine how students are learning in their classes and areas for improvement. For example, teachers in the Physical Education and Health faculty are applying their knowledge of the VCE to evaluate how well students are progressing in a range of question types that are asked in senior years. Having assessed students, their next step is to adjust their teaching plans to include more teaching and opportunities for practice in areas where students require the most growth.

Writing and Reviewing Individual Education Plans

Individual Education Plans (IEPs) are formed by a student, their teachers, family and support staff to set specific and personalised learning goals. During a college-wide workshop, we learned how to locate and use the information we have about our students (this includes everything from Learning Task grades and classroom engagement to medical diagnoses and parent feedback) to form EIPs. We then held Student Support Group (SSG) meetings to define learning goals and will finish the term by reviewing the IEPs and identifying the best strategies to support each student.

Term 1

In term one 2022, Elevation Secondary College created the Behavioural Expectations Monitor, a teacher recorded feedback platform to inform students and carers of the student’s progress against our core expectations  – Aim High, Work Hard, Be Good.

This does not replace reports, which are provided at the end of each Semester. The Monitor is intended to provide frequent and ongoing measures on how well students are aiming high, working hard and being good in each class. This allows for understanding and reflection on students’ progress throughout the term about the behaviours that lead to successful outcomes. 

Our behavioural expectations, combined, have been carefully chosen to reflect the well-rounded behaviours that students must display to put themselves in the best place for learning. 

Aim High

These classes are advanced and challenging, but they are not just accelerated curriculum. Our intention is to extend high ability learners and engage students in valuable and rigorous curriculum connections to academic disciplines that otherwise wouldn’t encounter until VCE or university. We are running expanded programs this year, acknowledging that it was challenging for students to get the full experience online in 2021.  Students apply via an online application form published on Compass. Students will be selected on a range of criteria including: passion for the field, academic performance and work habits. Students may wish to apply and are eligible for both.

Work Hard

Consistent hard work is the practice that leads to progress. Students who work hard allow the vision in “Aim High” to become a reality. Students who work hard are taking action for their own futures. The kinds of behaviours that demonstrate “Work Hard” might include; 

• Reworking learning tasks that do not meet the students’ expectations.
• Consistently completing all set work.
• Studying for Common Assessment Tasks (CATS – the projects/tests that are displayed on reports) 
• Reading and researching independently of school.

Be Good

Being “good” seems like the simplest learning behaviour to understand. However, it is also the one that students underestimate the most in terms of the impact on their outcomes and future choices, and those of others.

Students should view “being good” as the foundation of “Work Hard” and “Aim High”. For a student, this means;

• Focussing on learning.
• Not distracting others.
• Supporting a positive learning environment.
• Allowing the teacher to teach.

The Monitor

From the beginning of March, all teachers at ESC have been recording their observations in each subject of the above learning behaviours. This is happening every two weeks.

From the end of this term, Parents, Carers and Students will have access to this accumulated data, which will be represented under the “reporting” tab on the compass. Each subject will graph the students’ performance against the three learning behaviours, allowing for immediate and ongoing feedback on the basic behaviours that lead to success.

4 = ALWAYS displays this behaviour

3 = USUALLY displays this behaviour

2 = SOMETIMES displays this behaviour

1 = RARELY displays this behaviour

0 = NEVER displays this behaviour.

What Will I See?

The image below is from the Three completed cycles so far, as the year progresses the graphs made will be able to be tracked across time, and be checked at any time by students’ families.

Teachers will use this data in discussions with students to draw the link between progress and behaviour.  

FAQ:

Why are there Gaps?

Due to COVID, both Students and teachers have missed schooling. Where there is not enough evidence – there may be a gap.

Should I be worried about one bad result?

No. This monitor is about the overall trend of the students’ learning behavior. Not one two week period.

Who should I contact if I am concerned about results?

You should contact the classrooms teachers firstly.

Year 8 Assembly

Year 8 students have had their first assembly of the year and covered really important topics such as respect for peers, bullying, racism, Aspire points and information about uniform.

This assembly was largely led by student volunteers who did a fantastic job in leading the assembly for their peers. Students have also been working with their Mentor Group teachers on a variety of topics such as developing good sleep routines, Goal setting, Elevation Values and achieving Aspire points at school.

Year 8 Personal Development

Students have been working on their student learning conference reflections during class time for all their subjects. This enables students to reflect on their learning and set goals on how to improve their learning moving forward. Students are required to have this prepared in time for Student Learning Conferences to encourage discussion and reflection of learning that has taken place in the classroom and set meaningful goals moving forward. Student learning Conferences are taking place on the 4^th of April and information and bookings can be made through Compass.

Year 9 Electives

As well as attending their core subjects, our Year 9 cohort is getting to experience different subject options, as they have begun their elective classes this year. Students are studying subjects such as Visual Arts and Communications, Design Technology, Media Studies, Music and Politics, Power and Society. This is providing our students an opportunity to reflect on their interests and potential future pathway options. In the year level assembly earlier in the term, as well as hearing of the importance of International Women’s Day, students heard of the changes to VCE/VCAL pathways and how their studies impact their choices. More information on this will be given to students and families later this year. 

Harmony Day

Elevation Secondary College will be celebrating Harmony Day this Friday the 1^st April (as last Friday was a curriculum day). Students are encouraged to bring traditional cultural dress to change into at lunchtime and take their photo in the library.

Students are invited to come to the library on Friday 1^st April to have photos taken to celebrate Harmony Day, read the display in the library and enjoy the variety of cultures that ESC has.

Letters have been decorated by Ms Wright and the Tuesday Art Club for the Harmony Day display in the library. This display contains submissions from students who responded to prompts about culture and the importance of diversity in Personal Development sessions.

Showcase Evening

This week we had our Showcase Evening and were delighted to see students from Years 7, 8 and 9 assisting prospective families with their tours of the school and sharing their experience as a member of the school community. Hundreds of current Year 6 students and their families from surrounding schools attended this night and gave great feedback on how the Elevation student helpers assisted the tours and answered their questions.  

Year 7 Camp

On the 16^th of March, 80 Year 7 student departed on their first Personal Development camp to East Gippsland. Student spent three days enjoying the serenity of Forest Edge and participated in many team building activities. Students enjoyed rafting, water sliding, high ropes, low ropes, flying fox, scavenger hunting and many more activities that allowed for students to demonstrate leadership and resilience.

We are very proud of all students that attended our camp.

Library Books

Students who have borrowed library books are asked to return them before the end of term or speak to Ellen to arrange a holiday loan. Please remember to check emails for overdue and reservation pickup notifications.

School Tours

Our Showcase Evening may be over but we still have School Tours operating next Term. If you know any prospective parent or students who would may be interested in attend, tickets are still available. Bookings can still be made through the following link or on the home page of our school’s website: https://compasstix.com/e/fkibejijt8

Activities for the upcoming school holidays

Hume Youth Services are running a range of FREE activities to enjoy during the upcoming School Holidays from the 9 – 24 April 2022!

Activities Include:

• Youth Centre Open/Chill Out Days  
• Family Bike Workshops
• Mixed Sports Days 
• Job Readiness Training 
• Arts and Craft
• Launch of Connect & Thrive: A Plan for Young People in Hume 2022-2026

All programs have limited spots, and some require online registrations. For more information on what’s on and how to book, please CLICK HERE.

Feel free to contact Youth Services via phone: 9205 2556 or email: youth@hume.vic.gov.au for further information, support with an activity registration or for a printed copy of the program schedule.

Greenvale United SC

With the influx of Expression of Interests over the last few weeks, Greenvale United SC has decided to add a couple more teams to the mix.

Last Remaining Spots

We require specific positional players in a couple of junior teams as listed below.

U13 Goalkeeper (Born 2008 or 2009)

U16 Striker (Born 2006 or 2007)

U16 GIRLS Goalkeeper and Striker (Born 2006 or 2007) – GIRLS PLAY FREE THIS YEAR

Please contact GUSC @  mailto:football@greenvaleunited.com.au

Please fill out an Expression of Interest via the link to become a Panther today:

https://www.greenvaleunited.com.au/2021/09/13/player-pression-of-interest-2022/

The College is conscious of the need to provide an efficient process for families to be able to buy and sell their second- hand textbooks, uniforms and other student resources. Currently we have many secondhand uniforms listed for those who wish to purchase and a few textbooks also.

Local Bus Upgrades

Improvements are coming to bus networks in Craigieburn and Mickleham. Upgrades will start in April and include new bus stops and additional services to improve accessibility and frequency. Thanks to The Hon. Ros Spence MP for making this project possible.

Find out more details: http://hume.vic.gov.au/bus-improvements

Sustainable School Shop

We are delighted to be able to provide parents with the ability to buy and sell their second-hand items via the Sustainable Schools website: http://www.sustainableschoolshop.com.au

So far the results have been very good and we encourage families to take advantage of this method of buying and selling second-hand items.

Now is the time to list your second-hand textbooks and uniform as we have many families wanting to purchase items. Here is a how to guide to get you started:

Bushfire Risk

Elevation Secondary College is considered a Category 4 risk of grassfire area. Please read the following information carefully as to actions that will be taken on Code Red days.

Student Free Day

Curriculum Day – Friday 10th June

Queen’s Birthday – Monday 13th June

Assemblies/Awards

Year 9 – Tuesday 3rd May

Year 8 – Tuesday 24th May

Year 7 – Tuesday 31st May

Student Learning Conferences

Monday 4th April – Bookings via Compass

NAPLAN Testing

Tuesday 10th May – Thursday 19th May

Term Dates 2022

Term 1 – Monday 31st Jan – Friday 8^th April (students finish at 1.18pm)

Term 2 – Tuesday 26th April – Friday 24th June

Term 3 – Monday 11th July – Tuesday 13th September

Term 4 – Monday 3rd October – Tuesday 20th December