2011 Annual School Report - Gordon West Public School

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SIGNIFICANT PROGRAMS AND INITIATIVES • participation in an overnight Year 4 visit to the Sydney Academy of Sport; • participation in a Year 5 & 6 excursion to Canberra and the Snowy Mountains; • participation and high level of achievement of senior students in the University of NSW Science and Computer competitions; • participation and high level of achievement in district, state and national competitions, including Australian Schools English and Mathematics competitions and the Maths Olympiad; • celebration of Book Week with author visits in July; • Year 4 venturing to Blackbutt Creek to learn about Aboriginal culture and history with an educational officer from the Aboriginal Heritage Office; • selected Year 6 students attended the 2011 Public Speaking Competition organised by the N.S.W Premier’s Office; • Year 3 travelled to Kurnell to learn about where Captain Cook landed in Australia; • Year 1 went on an excursion to Long Reef as part of Year 1’s HSIE unit on Shelter; • Kindergarten to Year 2 visited the Australian Museum; • a continuing high profile for the Student Representative Council (SRC) in fundraising for Stewart House, Cancer Council , and by fostering leadership and peer support; • full school participation in the celebration of Public Education Day; • Year 6 competed in the 2011 Children’s Book Council of Australia N.S.W branch on Screen Competition with 3 groups of Year 6 students nominated as shortlisted finalists; • presentation of a Performing Arts Showcase during Education Week where every child in the school was involved in this wonderful display of performing arts; • as part of the Creative and Performing Arts program, The Ceroc and Modern Jive Dance Company worked with children from Years 1-6; • continuation of the very successful school reunion celebration for children completing their year 12 in 2011 who attended Gordon West Public School; • implementation of our ever popular Easter Hat Parade, where a fabulous collection of hats, baskets, sandwich boards and masks were on display for the very large number of parents and grandparents in attendance; • continuation of our very successful Grandparent’s Day where many grandparents visited the school; • celebration of Harmony Day by children participating in a variety of activities and culminating in a whole school assembly; and • Year 6 participated in Murder under the Microscope an exciting online environment project. ABORIGINAL EDUCATION Aboriginal Education remains an integral part of the curriculum at Gordon West Public School. We aim to complement and reflect the elements of the Aboriginal Education and Training Policy including building increased knowledge and understanding of Aboriginal Australia. In 2011 K-6 students were provided with opportunities to develop deeper understandings of Aboriginal histories, cultures and languages through cross curriculum content including literature, Creative and Practical Arts and Human Society and its Environment. In support of the Aboriginal education outcomes included in the HSIE syllabus, Year 4 students attended an excursion to Blackbutts Reserve with an educational officer from the Aboriginal Heritage Office to learn about local Aboriginal culture and history including tools and the use of endemic plant for food and medicine. During weekly flag raising assemblies and other formal occasions staff and students were provided with opportunities to show respect for the Aboriginal community past and present through the Custodianship of Country Acknowledgement. MULTICULTURAL EDUCATION Multicultural Education is embraced in the school’s curriculum. Students whose first language is not English may require assistance in improving their English level. The English as a Second Language (ESL) program is aimed at developing students’ English language competence to a level where they can participate fully at school and complete the required learning outcomes. The program is delivered in various ways to meet the different needs of students at various stages of learning English. An ESL teacher conducts this program 2 days per week and collaborates with class teachers to cater for individual student requirements. Thirty three students were enrolled in the ESL program in 2011. DEBATING A hardworking debating team represented Gordon West Public School in 2011. The team consisted of 6 students from Stage 3. The competition was demanding. The team learnt a lot about debating and were presented with some challenging topics, having to work hard as a team to formulate their case for each debate. The children are to be commended on their ability to work collaboratively to discuss ideas, agree on what they consider to be strong, supportive ideas for their debate and their positive attitude and encouragement of fellow teammates. 16
TECHNOLOGY With the increase in classes at Gordon West in 2011 there was a need to increase the Computer timetable from two to three days. Mr Graeme Coates took up the extra one day position. Mr Coates has many years experience in this field and has brought with him a wealth of expertise which has enriched the ICT program. Kindergarten, Year 1 and Year 2 attend lessons each week whilst Years 3, 4, 5 and 6 continue to attend once a term for 5 weeks for a longer period of time. At Gordon West the ICT program is fully integrated into the school’s teaching and learning program. We believe ICT can have a positive outcome on student learning and understanding and that it can assist in student motivation and engagement. In 2011, students from Kindergarten from to Year 6 learnt, reviewed or extended their skills using the Microsoft Office package. Activities included word processing, spreadsheets and presentations using PowerPoint and writing booklets, posters and calendars using Microsoft Publisher. Several grades enjoyed designing multimedia projects using MovieMaker and Photostory whilst others explored programs such as Google Earth, Kidspiration and Kidpix. Students from Years 3 to 6 learnt how to manipulate photographs in a variety of ways using Photoshop. Year 6 entered a few competitions this year with the highlight being the “Picture Book” competition run by the CBCA. Three groups were chosen as finalists and together with Mrs Pickup, Miss Papic and several parents, attended the presentation at the Teachers’ Federation Auditorium in Surry Hills. Gordon West's The Bush Jumper came in 3rd, The Gobbling Tree 4th and Max 5th. The seniors participated in Google’s design competition ‘Doodle 4 Google’ where young people from across Australia were invited to design their own doodle based on this year’s theme ‘My Future Australia’. The best doodles were voted on by the public and one winner had the honour of having their doodle displayed on the Google Australia homepage for a day. Our students came up with some excellent designs. Year 6 also entered Murder Under the Microscope, an interactive environmental online competition developed by the Department of Education and were successful in correctly solving the ficticous eco crime. With an extra “lab” of computers available in the library this year, students also had the opportunity to extend their research skills using a variety of different search engines. PROGRESS ON 2011 TARGETS Target 1 Numeracy K-6 Space and Geometry – 2 and 3 Dimensional Space To increase student capacity to identify, describe and manipulate, using mathematical language, 2D and 3D space. Our achievements include: After the review of 2010 NAPLAN results, teachers at Gordon West identified a weakness in the area of Space and Geometry, 2D and 3D space for both Years 3 and 5. There was a decrease in the percentage of students in band 6 (Year 3) and band 8 (Year 5). Teachers began with the review of outcome statements to develop a shared vision and understanding of the skills of this curriculum area. A pre test was implemented which consisted of 2D and 3D space questions from past NA- PLAN papers (Years 2-6) and practical lessons (K-1). In stage groups, teachers analysed results and identified concepts requiring development. Two members of staff attended a DET inservice which provided schools with practical lesson plans and resources across the K-6 Space and Geometry continuum. Teachers collaboratively planned practical lessons with a focus on real life applications based on pre test data. Using ‘Teaching Space and Geometry K-6’ teachers designed explicit teaching and learning activities to improve students ability to identify, describe and manipulate using mathematical language in the areas of 2D and 3D space. A resource kit was compiled for use in the future. Late in Term 3, teachers conducted assessments including post testing (Years 2-6) and teacher observation (K-6). The results of these tests were compared with pre test data to ascertain the effectiveness of the intervention. The statistical data highlighted success of the intervention program. Through the collegial sharing of data, teachers reflected on the broad applications of this skill base across all key learning areas. They recognised the importance of consistent and frequent exposure in a variety of contexts to ensure students attain a thorough understanding of these often abstract concepts. Teachers commented that it was imperative to provide students with a variety of opportunities to touch, feel and manipulate shapes and objects in order to fully understand their properties. While appropriate resources took time to plan and organise, teachers remarked that the practical lessons were well received by students and encouraged positive mathematical language exchange. Target 2 Literacy K-6 Writing – Persuasive Text To improve student knowledge, skills and understandings of persuasive texts. Our achievements include: Following 2010 NAPLAN analysis with K-6 staff, Michelle Mawer, DET English consultant visited Gordon West PS in Term 1 to discuss purposes of persuasive text, elements of persuasion, language devices and grammatical elements to achieve success when working with this text type. Staff found the discussion on the dissection of NAPLAN marking guide particularly useful. Through modelling of persuasive written and spoken texts using previous BST and ELLA marking guides, teachers provided students with a range of interesting and challenging work samples to motivate and introduce them to what delineates an effective, sustained argument. Teachers collected examples of persuasive text used in advertisements and newspaper articles, critiqued peer work samples and gave students opportunities to evaluate or give judgments through explicit spoken and written learning activities. Staff were encouraged to attend various professional learning opportunities to improve their knowledge and skills in teaching persuasive text. In Terms 2 and 3, Gordon West K-6 staff were inserviced by experienced teachers who informed them about available resources including websites and publications. Successful teaching and learning strategies were also shared. In Term 3, 2 members of staff attended the Northern Sydney Regional debating inservice which highlighted the link between persuasive text and debating. 17
Page 1 and 2: NSW Department of Education & Train
Page 3 and 4: P&C MESSAGE The P&C had another ver
Page 5 and 6: STAFF INFORMATION It is a requireme
Page 7 and 8: Rugby Union Children in Years 3 and
Page 9 and 10: Year 3 NAPLAN - Spelling School SSG
Page 11 and 12: Year 5 NAPLAN - Reading School SSG
Page 13 and 14: Year 5 NAPLAN - Numeracy School SSG
Page 15: National Benchmarks The Commonwealt
Page 19: KEY EVALUATIONS It is a requirement
Page 23 and 24: To address this concern the office
Page 25 and 26: SCHOOL PLANNING 2012-2014 School Pr
Page 27 and 28: School Priority 3 - Quality Teachin

2011 Annual School Report - Gordon West Public School

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