8 December 2016 - All Saints Greek Orthodox Grammar School · 12/8/2016 · The Secondary Campus...
Transcript of 8 December 2016 - All Saints Greek Orthodox Grammar School · 12/8/2016 · The Secondary Campus...
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As a young and vibrant school, All Saints Grammar appreciates and welcomes
community support to help improve facilities and resources for our students. We
are extremely grateful for your loyalty and ongoing support. Part of our vision is to
continuously improve the learning environments and experiences for our students,
so it is with great pleasure that I announce and cordially invite you all to our Gala
Dinner Fundraiser.We extend this invitation to our valued families, as we
understand the importance of being able to work for the betterment of our
students.
By participating in our fundraiser, ALL contributions will go directly towards the building of a new
Primary campus playground and the refurbishment of Secondary campus learning spaces. To be
part of this opportunity, I kindly request that you ‘save the date’, Friday October 21st. This event
promises to be an entertaining evening with dancing, bouzouki playing, a delicious three course
dinner and great company.
To support our cause, you may assist in some of the following ways:
Purchase a ticket to our Gala Dinner Fundraiser
Donate gift or items for the auction and raffle
Make a monetary donation
Sponsor our Gala Dinner Fundraiser event, we offer;
o Gold sponsorship $5000, includes a table of 10 and promotion of your
business on our marketing collateral
o Silver sponsorship $3000, includes a table of 5 and promotion of your
business on our marketing collateral
o Bronze sponsorship $1000, includes promotion of your business on our
marketing collateral
Bring your friends and family, this event should not to be missed! To purchase tickets, please visit
https://www.trybooking.com/227357. Thanking you for your support and presence.
NAPLAN Students in Years 3, 5, 7 and 9 have now received their individual results. Once again our students
performed very well and we are very proud of their achievements. The data received from these
assessments provides us with valuable information as to what skills our students have mastered,
and what skills may require further consolidation. As previously stated this is only one of the many
ways we assess our teaching and learning at All Saints Grammar, nevertheless we are obviously
extremely happy with these results. Our students and staff, together with the support of our
wonderful parents, work hard to achieve the highest of standards in all aspects of our students’
learning. Well done 3, 5, 7 & 9. The next newsletter will contain a summary of our school’s
performance.
DECEMBER
Thur 8 Dec Years 3 – 11 Speech Day,
Gymnasium 9am – 11am
Fri 9 Dec Term 4 concludes with K-
12 Thanksgiving Liturgy
JANUARY Mon 16 Jan Primary and Secondary
Campuses Open today, 9am
Fri 27 Jan Staff Professional Learning
Day
Mon 30 Jan Staff Professional Learning
Day
Tue 31 Jan Staff Professional Learning
Day
FEBRUARY
Wed 1 Feb School Commences for PK, 1-
12 with Ayiasmos Service,
8:30am, All Saints Church
Kindergarten commences at
9:30am with Ayiasmos Service
at 10am
Mon 6 Feb Years 3 – 12 Swimming
Carnival, Enfield Pool
Wed 8 Feb Stage 4 (Y7/8) Information
Evening, 5 – 6pm
Stage 6 (Y11/12) Information
Evening, 6.30 – 7:30pm
Tue 14 Feb K-2 Information Evening,
5-6pm
3-6 Information Evening,
6-7pm
Wed 15 Feb Stage 5 (Y9/10) Information
Evening, 5 – 6pm
Year 7 Camp, Great Aussie
Bush Camp (to Friday 17 Feb)
NB: Please check dates regularly as
changes may be necessary
As this year draws to an end, it serves us well to reflect on the
many wonderful opportunities our students, staff and community
have experienced over the course of the year.
This year we embarked on significant educational changes across the
school. Our staff worked tirelessly to ensure excellence in teaching
in all areas of the curriculum, as well as the well-being of our students.
All staff have been involved in meaningful professional learning
sessions. We launched our Bring Your Own Technology Program
(Year 3-12) to increase our students’ level of engagement and to
ultimately enhance their learning and achievements. We also
embarked on the journey towards student-centred pedagogy where students are taught
the skills to become leaders in their own learning. Our Learning Management System,
CANVAS, also launched this year, has assisted us in bringing our classroom
experiences into the 21st century as we focus our attention to the development of our
students’ skills and knowledge for a technology driven world. Critical thinking,
collaboration and creativity are some of the many skills our students are developing
in the classrooms across PK-12.
We have also provided many opportunities for the parents to be involved in the life of
the school through our parent information evenings, events such as carnivals,
concerts, CAT night, Gala Dinner, Spring Fair and many more. 2016 has brought us
closer as a community. As a school, we have continued our involvement in community
programs as well as supporting numerous charities so that our students are provided
with meaningful and purposeful opportunities to serve others and, in doing so, make
the world a better place.
Continued over the page...
8 December 2016
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I would like to thank ASPA who worked tirelessly, behind the scenes, all year to coordinate events with huge success. The
money raised at the Gala Dinner, just over $70 000, and the Spring Fair, $14 000, will ultimately benefit our students.
Although the amount raised is significant, coming together as a community and building on our relationships was of far
greater significance. A strong partnership between parents, students and the school, is the fundamental key to any success.
We feel truly blessed to be surrounded by such a supportive and dedicated parent body.
2017 is going to be another big year at All Saints Grammar as we continue our focused transformation to provide our
students with a high standard learning environment. We will also be targeting the development of our student well-being
programs with the introduction of the Kidsmatter program to come into line with Mindmatters, which was introduced this
year at the Secondary Campus. This will ensure cohesion and continuity across the school.
Thank you to the students of All Saints Grammar who put a smile on my face each day. I am so very proud of your hard
work, determination, effort and enthusiasm for learning. Our students have excelled in so many ways. Their academic
results, sporting as well as artistic talents must be noted. Thank you for being the kind, compassionate kids that you are.
Thank you to the wonderful staff for providing our students with fantastic learning opportunities and ensuring their well-
being needs were being met with sensitivity and that they were offered the appropriate guidance and support. To Mr
Rodriguez and Mr Psomas, thank you for your patience, ongoing support and commitment to ensuring All Saints Grammar
continues to follow its strategic path.
Traditionally this time of year it is always with sadness that I inform the school community of staff changes. This year is
no different and at the end of this term we say farewell to Ms Lorraine Plant, Mr Michael Apokourastos, Mrs Irene
Petropoulos, Miss Meagan Aplin, Mrs Angeliki Caredes, Mr Tom Finney, Ms Lucy Jackson and for a short time Mrs Katie
Dunstan, who commences her maternity leave. We cannot wait to meet Dunstan Junior and offer our best wishes to both
you and Andrew on the upcoming birth of your beautiful child.
We thank these teachers for the significant contribution they have made during their time here and we wish them all the
best as they embark on the next professional journey.
I am pleased to announce that the following staff have been appointed for 2017, Mr Sam Pozoglou (7-12 Modern
Greek/HSIE), Dr Constantinos Mylonas (7-12 Mathematics), Ms Naomi McLean (PK-12 School Counsellor), Ms Antonia
Assaf (7-12 Science), Mrs Jessica Barton (K - 6) and Dr Aikaterini Kokkinaki (K-6 Modern Greek)
Thank you to the many children and families for your Christmas cards, gifts and good wishes and words of encouragement.
Your support has been truly appreciated.
Have a wonderful school break. I wish you all a safe and blessed Christmas and wonderful New Year filled with good
health and happiness.
Mrs E Lillis
General News
School Business Hours over the School Summer Holidays The Secondary Campus will be closed from 4.00pm Thursday 8 December 2016.
The Primary Campus will be closed on Friday 9 December 2016, but will be open between 9am and 3pm from Monday
12 December 2016 to Friday 16 December 2016.
Both campuses will re-open on Monday 16 January 2017, and will operational between 9am and 3pm during that week.
Please ensure that all payments due to the School are made on or before 16 December 2016 to ensure your payment is
credited in 2016. All advised forms of payment are of course acceptable; however, the School prefers payment by BPay.
Mr D Murughia
Business Manager
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BYOT 2017 Recently a Parent Information evening was held for those parents of students who will be in Year 3 and 7, 2017. Throughout
the session, parents were guided through the principles, policies and key elements of the BYOT program. If you were
unable to attend the session or would like an information pack, please contact either of the front offices (Primary or
Secondary).
Device Requirements All students from Year 3 - 12 are expected to bring their own device to school, every day from the first day of Term 1.
Some provisions are available, on both campuses, for students who may not have been able to purchase a device before that
date so that they are not disadvantaged in their learning.
All students in Year 3 (2017) are required to have an iPad. The full sized iPad (not iPad mini) is to have a keyboard,
protective case and a set of headphones set up and working. Every child is to ensure that their device is fully charged and
the required apps installed and activated.
All students in Year 7 (2017) are required to supply a laptop/notebook for their learning. They can choose any combination
of device brand/make/model and operating system, so long as it meets the BYOT device specifications and battery
requirements.
Further information on possible devices can be downloaded from the School’s Webpage:
http://www.allsaints.nsw.edu.au/news/publications
Whilst no student in Year 4 – 6 and 8 – 12 are expected to buy a new device, for those families looking to update their
devices, or to purchase a new one, CompNow are continuing to operate as our purchasing partner. The full range of devices
suggested in the 2017 BYOT Device Selection document, are available to be purchased through the parent portal on our
website. If purchasing a device, CompNow have the desired accessories and extra insurance available to ensure longevity
of the device you choose to buy. Further to this, they will deliver the device and accessories to the campus of your choice.
The purchasing portal is available to parents via the School’s Webpage, http://www.allsaints.nsw.edu.au/online-services/
If you are unsure of which device your child will require for 2017 or have further questions, please feel free to
email [email protected].
From the School Chaplain Very Reverend Father Apostolos Trifyllis
There is an essential truth to an inscription found on the walls of a Medieval Church somewhere in Europe:
You call me Almighty, but you fear me not.
You call me Merciful, but you honour me not.
You call me the Light, but you seek me not.
You call me the Way, but you walk me not.
You call me the Truth, but you believe me not.
You call me the Life, but you desire me not.
You call me Lovely, but you love me not.
You call me Master, but you serve me not.
If I condemn you, reprove me not.
Indeed we often hope that we will enter the Kingdom of God, without having first trod the road of His Will, which is
summarised in one single commandment: love one another. Christian love is a way of life; a way of life measured by our
readiness to recognise in the face of others, not simply our fellow human beings, but our brothers and sisters.
So this Christmas let us all come forth and love each other unconditionally, so as each of us to experience the words of
Saint John Chrysostom: "Whosoever is a devout lover of God, let him enjoy this beautiful bright Festival. And whosoever
is a grateful servant, let him rejoice and enter into the joy of his Lord". Let there be no excuses!
MERRY CHRISTMAS!
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Primary Campus News
Mr Psomas, Deputy Head of Primary
Wow…what an amazing year we have had in 2016. Trying to reflect on the year and all the wonderful things
WE have achieved, really makes me wonder how on earth we managed to fit everything in. It seems we are
constantly on the go and the journey we are on is in the express lane. I hope, that given it is the time of the
year where things generally do “get crazy” with the lead up to Christmas, that everybody does slow down a
little and make the connection to the significant event within our Greek Orthodox calendar, the birth of Jesus Christ.
It would be impossible to describe all the significant events students and staff have been a part of through the newsletter.
The one thing that can be said with confidence is that our kids truly are amazing. Their involvement, contribution, passion
and determination in all areas of schooling at All Saints Grammar makes us very proud.
To the Year 6 students of 2016, we have been blessed to have you as members of All Saints Grammar family. As you
embark on the next part of your education, Secondary School, we wish you the very best in all your future endeavours. We
are sure you will look back at your time in the Primary School with great fondness.
It is a timely opportunity to also thank Father Apostolos and Father Christos for their continued spiritual guidance. Mrs
Lillis, of course being the Head of the School looks after the interests of everyone at the school. But whenever her support
is required specifically at the Primary, it is always unwavering and for that we are immensely grateful. Of course it would
be remiss of me if I didn’t thank the
Coordinators of the Primary School and all
the staff who continue to support the
interests of each child in every school
context. It is with a great deal of sadness
but with immense gratitude that we
also farewell Mrs Angeliki Caredes
and Mr Tom Finney. They have been
wonderful colleagues and the best
advocates for the students under their
care. We also say farewell to Mrs Katie
Dunstan as she embarks on the
wonderful journey called
“motherhood”. We look forward to her
visiting our school with her baby in
2017.
Finally a big thank you is reserved for the
parents of our school community. You
entrust us with your most precious asset-
your children. We are privileged to have
your support to ensure the best possible
outcomes are attained for every child. I
would like to extend, on behalf of all the
staff at the Primary School, warm wishes
for a lovely Christmas and New Year. May
the time with your families be blessed with
special memories during the holiday
period. We look forward to seeing
everyone once again on Wednesday 1
February, 2017.
Mr T Psomas
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Secondary Campus News
Mr J. Rodriguez, Head of Secondary As 2016 comes to a close, and as we all look forward to a well-deserved break, it is important that we
reflect on the successes and the lessons learnt during this year.
Our school has embarked on a journey of strategic and focused transformation to provide our students with
a high standard learning environment that prepares them for the 21st Century world.
We have endeavoured to develop a coherent approach to our operation. It was important for our school to
ensure that our actions would make sense to our school community. Coherence provided us with a strategic path that
underpins our actions. Through focussing our direction, we began the process of cultivating a collaborative culture amongst
our teachers, aimed at deepening our learning on effective ways of implementing quality teaching and learning practices
for all our students. Securing accountability at all levels could be best achieved by developing this coherent approach to
our work.
In doing this, Assessment For Learning, as our school’s pedagogical framework, was placed at the core of our school’s
focus for the year. Assessment For Learning is recognised as the most effective approach to enhance students’ achievement.
The five key strategies of this framework inform the development of our teaching programs, our classroom activities, the
design of assessment tasks, and our overall evaluation of the quality of our teaching and learning. We have embarked in an
Action Research Project to ensure that we evaluate our implementation and impact of this framework in our classroom
practice.
We have engaged our teachers in professional learning around the key roles of the teacher in this framework, namely:
Teachers as Assessors
Teachers as Pedagogy Experts
Teachers as Motivators
Teachers as Student Partners in learning
We have encouraged a self-evaluation process for our teachers so that they can identify areas for improvement and so that
we can support them in developing the necessary expertise to provide a high level of academic excellence for our students.
Just this week, we conducted a student survey where a randomly selected group of students were asked to provide feedback
about the evidence of the Assessment For Learning approach in the classroom. It is encouraging to see that 95% of the
respondents reported that the classroom experiences in the classroom provided them with significant opportunities for
growth and understanding of the intended learning.
Utilising our Assessment For Learning approach to our teaching practice, we embarked on a Bring Your Own Technology
program, where students are asked to bring their own device to school. Our investment in the appropriate infrastructure,
including our Learning Management System, Canvas, has enhanced the opportunities for engagement for all our students.
Not only are students able to have continuous communication with their teachers through this online platform, they are also
able to access resources and information to enable continuous learning at any time, anywhere. We have seen evidence of
increased student engagement, and also the flourishing of significant skills and knowledge enabled by the use of their
device.
We are proud of our progress, and we are proud of the way our community has embraced and supported our journey this
year. We have much more to learn and much more to improve on, but we move towards the New Year with optimism in
the knowledge that we are making a difference for the better in the life of our students.
I’ll conclude by expressing my gratitude to our dedicated team of teachers; their significant commitment and efforts is what
makes the difference in our endeavours. Thank you to our parents who support us in our attempts to make a difference for
the better. A special thank you to our ASPA members; those of you who have worked tirelessly, behind the scenes, often
unrecognised. You make such a difference to our school community. I thank you for your commitment and service.
I wish you all a very Blessed Christmas, a restful break, and a successful and prosperous New Year.
May God Bless you!
Mr J Rodriguez
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Curriculum Animation
On Friday 18th September, Mr Keiran Trippis, currently studying a Bachelor of Animation at JMC College, came to visit
the Year 7 English and Year 11 Visual Arts classes. In Year 7 English the students were studying visual texts with a
particular focus on comics. Keiran, who is currently working on completing his own comic, came to speak to the students
about the processes and techniques for creating a comic. He brought samples of his work, including sketches and his current
comic book to show the students. All students were enthralled by what he had to say to them and were very enthusiastic to
ask him questions. The Year 7’s thoroughly enjoyed and gained great insight from his presentation.
Keiran visited Mr Comninos’ Year 11 Visual Arts class next and took a different approach with them. He spoke to the
students about the artistic and computer techniques he used to create his hand drawn sketches and computerised animated
drawings. The students had many questions for him too. The Year 11 students were very interested in showing him their
own artwork and greatly valued his feedback. Keiran also gave the students advice and tips about how to look after
themselves during the stressful time of the HSC. The students were very inspired by Keiran, as they could relate to him
and see a future in their own artistic passions. His main message to them was ‘to follow their dreams’.
Mrs Maria Kouloulias
Cocurricular Year 10 Work Experience 2016
Year 10 have completed a successful week of work placements in a broad variety of industries including Pharmaceutical,
Engineering, Child Care, Education, Automotive, Research, Animation and Information Technology.
The feedback has been positive with students gaining valuable insights to career paths. We thank the employers, parents
and students for collaborating professionally to make this important part of the curriculum a success.
Emmanuel Haikalis and Margarita Piperias at Garden Island Naval Base dry dock
facility.
Margarita Piperias observing WWII sonar technology.
Maria Piperias
Careers Facilitator
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