Foundation 2017 Orientation
Last Wednesday nearly a hundred parents attended a Foundation 2017 Information session. During this session parents learnt about the learning opportunities that their children will experience next year.
The orientation program culminated with the last school visit for our future Foundation students. These sessions have been most successful and the students are ready and eager for next year to start.
A Year of Learning at FPS
As well as providing learning opportunities for students, FPS places great importance on developing our staff’s professional knowledge and understandings.
This year has been one of significant professional growth amongst staff. The school has identified ‘Theories of Action’ to implement, with the aim of improving student outcomes.
This year’s staff professional development has included the development of our pedagogies that include a focus on making transparent to the students the Learning Intention of the lesson:
- Learning Intentions clearly state what we intend our students to know, understand and be able to do as a direct result of a learning and teaching sequence.
Alongside the Learning Intention, teachers will explore success criteria with the students, so that they understand what the achievement goal is for them individually and in general.
- Developing Learner Protocols including:
- Inquirers – students developing natural curiosity and actively enjoying learning.
- Thinkers – students exercising initiative, applying thinking skills critically and creatively, making reasoned ethical decisions.
- Risk Takers – students approaching unfamiliar situations with forethought and courage, having the independence to explore new roles.
- Reflective – students giving thoughtful consideration to their own learning and experience, being able to assess and understand their strengths and limitations in order to support their learning and personal development.
- Adopting Teacher Protocols: Applying these protocols across the school so that excellent practice is shared in precise and practical ways.
Next year we will continue to explore Theories of Action, including Challenging Learning Tasks and Inquiry Learning.