St. Michael's Primary School ~ Term 3 - Week 3

IMPORTANT DATES - TERM 3

Principal's Message

Welcome to Week 3, 

When commencing a new term, it is a timely reminder to renew our school expectations at St Michael’s. Our community is based on the motto of Courage, Compassion and Community and is grounded on a solid behaviour management system known as Positive Behaviour in Schools. (PBiS).

PBiS is a school-wide positive behaviour support and is an evidence-based framework for preventing and responding to student behaviour. It aims to create a positive school climate, a culture of student competence and an open, responsive management system for all school community members. It is underpinned by the philosophy that human beings thrive in predictable spaces where expectations are clear, new skills are taught, and positive behaviours are richly reinforced. PBiS rests on the principle of progressive levels of individualisation to prevent and address challenging behaviour.

The implementation of PBiS ensures teachers and students have more time to focus on relationships and classroom instruction. Students and staff benefit from:

• increased respectful and positive behaviour
• increased time focused on instruction
• improved social-emotional wellbeing
• positive and respectful relationships among students and staff
• increased adoption of evidence-based instructional practices
• a predictable learning environment with improved perceptions of safety and increased attendance.

We are building on our school behaviour management system at school through the 3 B’s; 

• Be Safe
• Be a Leaner and 
• Be Responsible (which means to show respect) 

As such we are moving towards an intrinsic motivation approach. In this way, students become less dependent on their teachers to guide their behaviour and more focused on their individual internal desires through facing challenges and succeeding to learn how to utilise their gifts and talents to contribute as a student within our school community and later as a citizen within society. 

You will therefore notice that our PBiS methodology through the Class Dojo reward system will be changing to the following throughout the entire school. We are moving to a common and consistent tier process for equity between students and teachers.

• Tier One embraces a general, whole-school approach targeted at the majority of learning populations within a setting. It is effective for over 80% of students.
• Tier Two is targeted support aimed at 12-15% of learners who require more directed social support.
• Tier Three) is directed to 4-5% of students who require more intensive, personal and specialised support.

Common Language

Our staff will use common language within the school for coercion and transparency. We also encourage you to adopt this language at home as well, to support the school-home connection. In life we are all responsible for ourselves and our actions and as a result we are therefore responsible for the consequences to our choices. 

Green/Desirable Choices Choices that positively promote the 3 B’s 

Red/Undesirable Choices Choices that leave room for development and/or have gone against the 3B’s.

Traffic Light System

To reinforce our 3 B's within the school we will have a traffic light system to support students so that the school expectations are known visually, orally and practically. 

Green

Regular affirmations are the best way to support students in their ability to learn and grow through a positive mindset. Therefore a positive and desirable approach is always taken and in this way students are known to be in the green. 

Amber

When a student needs support for their choices they initially will receive a warning that reinstates and/or relates to the school expectation or class norms. This is known as amber - a period for reflection and choice. 

In amber, the student is able to induvally make a choice as to the next direction or step they would like to take. Improve their choices and behaviour and move back to the green or continue the undesired behaviour and move to the red. 

Red

In this space a student has made their final choice and has continued an undesired behaviour/s and therefore has moved to the red. At this point a student will receive a consequence for their undesirable behaviour. This will involve a conversation with the educator around the school expectation or class norm that has not been followed and a follow up consequence relative to the undesirable behaviour displayed.  

This system resets at the beginning of each session throughout the day. 

Class Dojo

Students will have the ability to gain points on Class Dojo for positively adhering to the 3B’s within the classroom and the entire school. You can follow your individual child/ren on the app through the week. This will reset and start fresh at the beginning of each school week. 

Charlene Robson

Principal

St. Michael’s Primary School is committed to child safety and the inclusion of all children.

100 Days of School

Every year we like to celebrate the foundation students' 100 days of school. This year it will fall on Friday 5th August. 

We ask for students to bring in 100 of something. This could be rice, pasta, cereal, paperclip etc. Students have the option to dress up. The theme is:  Dress like you are 100 years old. Throughout the day students will explore a range of activities that explore the number 100. The activities will be integrated into the curriculum. 

30 Years at St. Michael's!

Last week at St. Michael's we celebrated an amazing milestone...

Sue's 30th year as a Learning Support Officer at our school! Can you believe that?! What an amazing achievement!

Sue wears so many hats within our school; from Librarian, to Learning Support Officer, Garden specialist & her creative skills are our of this world! She is an absolute asset to our school! 

We thank Sue for her endless energy, positive attitude & commitment to our school. 

Community News

Wodonga Catholic Parish Bulletin 2022