What a start to the year. 259 new year 7 students to John Paul College. Some with Siblings here already, some coming with others from their school, some coming alone. The cohort is as diverse as it is large.
It’s a challenging and exciting time, with students meeting new friends and dealing with the expectations of many different teachers and subject areas unlike Primary School.
It's also been a busy start to the year. Photos on day one and a couple days of induction to the College. Swimming sports already out of the way where it was a chance to contribute to their house and get involved. Activities Week wrapped up not long ago which gave everyone a chance to have some fun and meet and connect with students and staff alike outside of the classroom environment.
Now we’re already halfway through Term one. Some may still be trying to find their way a little which is not unusual. Keep at it. Keep putting yourself out there and trying to connect with different people in and out of your class.
Try the groups that run out of the Resource Centre at lunch time or look forward to getting involved in SIS sport from term two. There are so many opportunities to try things and meet people outside of the classroom environment. Assessment tasks are likely to be coming up for completion too as we approach parent teacher interviews in a couple of weeks. This is where organisation starts to play a key for our new students.
And parents, make sure you communicate with us. We value open communication and would love to hear what has been going well and of course, what concerns you may have if any. Your child’s pastoral teacher is going to be an important contact for you through the year and I hope many of you had the opportunity to meet them at the Information night a couple of weeks ago.
Looking forward to an exciting and successful year ahead with all our new students.