QuayNotes

Wednesday 10 February, 2021

Term 1, 2021 DATES TO REMEMBER


12 February

Yr.'s 5/6 Open Water Program

12 FebruaryYr.'s 3-6 Assembly 2:20pm
15 FebruaryYr.'s 3-6 Swimming Trials (Kardinia Pool)
15 & 16 FebruaryMeet & Greet 3:10-5:20pm
19 FebruaryYr.'s 5/6 Open Water Program (in lieu of 5 Feb)
19 FebruaryYr.'s F-2 Assembly 2:20pm
24 & 25 FebruaryWhole School Photos
24 - 25 FebruaryYr. 4 Camp Wyuna, 4A, 4B & 4C
25 - 26 FebruaryYr. 4 Camp Wyuna, 4D, 4E, 4F & 4G
26 FebruaryYr.'s 3-6 Assembly 2:20pm
1 - 5 MarchYr. 4 Swimming
1 March Whole School Photos, 4A, 4B & 4C
5 MarchYr.'s F-2 Assembly 2:20pm
8 MarchLABOUR DAY PUBLIC HOLIDAY
12 MarchYr.'s 3-6 Assembly 2:20pm
15 - 19 MarchYr. 3 Swimming
19 MarchYr.'s F-2 Assembly 2:20pm
26 MarchWhole School Assembly 2:20pm
1 AprilLast Day of Term 1
19 AprilFirst Day of Term 2


Principal's Report

Dear School Community Members,

It’s great to be back: Congratulations to everyone for a great start to the year. Students have settled into their new classrooms with lots of productive and positive outcomes being achieved. Thank you to our families for your support in having all students at school rested and prepared for the year. Staff have worked hard to ensure their programs and classrooms are engaging and rewarding for the students. 

All classes have been participating in our ‘Learning How to Learn’ program which aims to establish shared values, behaviours, expectations and routines. The program allows students to play a major role in setting classroom agreements, routines and expectations. The program also teaches students about what keeps them switched on as learners, and what sorts of things interfere with learning. It is a great program which also works hard at building relationships between students and teachers. I encourage you to take the time to discuss the activities your child has been engaged in at school over the past week.

I am incredibly excited about the opportunity to lead Torquay College as Acting Principal whilst Ms Jess is on family leave. I look forward to supporting each of our students, staff and families to maximise the outcomes for each of our kids. We have a wonderful staff that is committed to working together as a team.

We welcome a number of new and returning staff to Torquay College – Mr Jackson Davis (Foundation), Ms Julia Jahnecke (Yr. 1 and PE), Mr Daniel Conte (Yr. 5), Mrs Chelsey Young (Yr. 1 and Yr. 2), Mr George Ibrahim (Yr. 5) and Ms Natalia Garcia (Yr. 6). We look forward to their contribution to our community.

We also congratulate Ms Emily Burgess who has been appointed as our Assistant Principal – further details regarding the principal teams roles will be provide in our next QuayNotes.

Meet and Greet Parent/Teacher Discussions: Torquay College is committed to developing an effective ‘Home – School’ partnership to maximise the opportunities and outcomes for each student. With this in mind, we thank the many families who have booked their Meet and Greet Parent/Teacher Discussion. A reminder, bookings can be made via Sentral. These discussions are an opportunity for you to personally meet your child’s classroom teacher and provide any information that will support the learning of your child. The focus will be on parents/guardians providing teachers with information, your child's transition into their new class and any concerns. Teachers will invite you to begin the discussion with a brief summary of your child’s first two weeks at school for 2021. This may include sharing your child’s favourite aspect of school, how they are coping with the routines of school, initial successes and any area of their schooling that is presenting challenges. At this early time of the year, teachers will not be in a position to share academic progress.

Each discussion has been allocated a 10 minute timeslot.

Dates:              Monday, 15th February

                        Tuesday, 16th February

Times:              3.10pm – 5.20pm

Venue:             Classrooms, Torquay College

Staff Development: Each week our staff engage in forums that target building capacity and knowledge centred on our School Improvement Plan. This week our teachers participated in our annual ‘Student Transition Discussions’. The purpose of these discussions are:

1.     To provide all students with a seamless transition from one year level to the next.

2.     To allow teachers the opportunity to gain valuable information from previous teachers regarding a students’ academic, emotional and social progress, along with other essential information.

These discussions, combined with our Meet and Greet Parent/Teacher Discussions, provides our teachers with a comprehensive and intimate knowledge of each individual student.

School Council Vacancies: As of Tuesday, 9th February, we are calling for nominations to the Torquay College School Council. Although a formal body, the School Council is an enjoyable way of being involved in our school’s overall direction, vision and policy development. The constituting order of Torquay College confirms the composition of Council as being: 8 elected parents/carers and 5 Department of Education and Training employees including the Principal.

This year our retiring members include Nick Kearsey, Jennifer Appleton, Annie Redmond, Luke Vague, and Merrin Wake, along with staff members Josh Brown and Shara Ramsbottom. Members retire at the end of their term, however, they are welcome to nominate for membership again if eligible (e.g. have children here or still work at the school). Many thanks again to our retiring School Council members who have completed their two year term on Council.

We currently have the following vacancies to be filled:

- Four 2 year elected parent member positions.

- Three 2 year elected DET member positions.

We welcome your nomination – if you are interested in nominating, please see the information provided via Skoolbag and on our website. Whilst nomination forms are available from the school office, they are also available electronically on Skoolbag and the website.

School Uniform - SunSmart: In line with our SunSmart and Uniform policies, students are required to wear their Torquay College broad brimmed SunSmart hat from September 1st - April 30th at recess, lunchtime and any other outdoor activity. This requirement stands irrespective of the weather. NO HAT = NO PLAY!

At our assembly last Friday, I reminded all students of different aspects of our uniform policy. This included that “No cosmetics may not be worn during school hours, including nail polish.” We ask that our families support their child/ren by ensuring they are in correct uniform on a daily basis.

Assembly: We held our first assembly for the year last Friday, and it was wonderful to have all students and staff come together to celebrate and acknowledge the wonderful start to the year we have had. Due to Covid-19 restrictions, unfortunately we cannot have parents/guardians or visitors attend our assemblies. We are currently exploring different options to telecast our assembly to our families - more information to come.

Event Calendar: Although we have been back to school only two weeks, our school calendar is filling fast. On the first page of QuayNotes each week is our ‘Event Calendar’. This outlines the upcoming events, so please keep a close eye on what is happening at our school.

Once again, welcome to the 2021 school year!

Thank you for supporting our school and have a great week.

Christian Smith

Acting Principal

Staff Development - Student Transition Discussions

Student of the week

Year 1Year 2Year 3Year 4Year 5Year 6
1A - Leo K2A - Remy M

3A - Tom B

Millie L

4A - Mason H5A - Zoe B6G - Charlie S
1B - Reeva V

2B - Nash G

Madeleine M

3B - Reef B

Trinity M-C

4B - Poema L5B - Nate O-P
1C - Charlie M

2E - Emily T

Keoni P

3C - Tayah B

Maya B

4C - Phoebe M

5C - Max P

Niamh N


1D - Leo D

2F - Harry H

Macy R

3D - Matilda W

Ciara D

4D - Lennox O

5D - Meilla T

Oscar E


1E - Harrison B
3E - Louis B

4E - Lulu S

Nick B

5E - Raphael K
1F - Loki S

4G - Naples B



Torquay College

Torquay College provides quality education enabling students to reach their potential. Students will be supported in developing optimism, self-esteem and a strong sense of community attachment.

Values

By focusing on the three College values of respect, friendship and doing your best we aim to promote resilience in our students.

Torquay College promotes respect, friendship and doing your best.

We focus on these values through prominently displaying them at the College entrance and in classrooms, and using all three in our everyday language.