Hello, and welcome to the twenty third of my monthly Principal's blogs, and my third for 2022. This is no April Fools! In this post I discuss our recent events, school growth and strategic plan.
The Upper Hunter Show
On Friday March 18, all students at Richard Gill School performed a program of 4 vocal works at the Upper Hunter Show, at Muswellbrook Showground. Performing for an enthusiastic group of parents, carers, and community members, this was our second ever live performance opportunity as a school, the 1st in over 12 months due to the disruption of Covid. For the Kindergarten students, it was their very first public performance. The staff and I are very proud of our students. While it may look like an easy task to some, being able to remember words, stay in time and in key (mostly!) is no little feat for little ones, especially those 4-5-year-olds who have only been at big school for as little as 30 days. We look forward to seeing how they will progress in their performance skills and confidence as we share our love of music and singing with Muswellbrook and beyond.
You can watch the video’s of the performances here:
No more pie - https://youtu.be/kDA9EVN43XE
Oh come now my friends (School Song) - https://youtu.be/3Ub_QOsu8w4
One small voice - https://youtu.be/BQyizaDnM08
Wibbleton to Wobbleton - https://youtu.be/X8fhT7-v0bE
Clean Up Australia Day
It’s always a joy to take the children outside of the classroom and participate in a community event, which is what we did on Wednesday March 23 for a belated “Clean Up Australia Day” (delayed due to poor weather). The children really look forward to hands on activities such as these, and I’m sure our neighbouring residents appreciate the land to the rear of the school being free of litter; a “win win” for everyone.
ANZAC Day
On Monday April 25, students from Richard Gill School will be involved in the ANZAC Day March and mid-morning service held at Olympic Park in Muswellbrook. 2 students from our school will be selected to read a poem, and students will also sing our National Anthem and Royal Anthem, God Save the Queen, with other local schools. We thank the Muswellbrook RSL Sub-Branch for their ongoing commitment to organising this important event. If you are in the area, we look forward to seeing you there. We would also love for you to march with us. We will commence our march from Simpson Park. More details to come.
Strategic Plan
After going through numerous rounds of revision and stakeholder feedback, our Strategic Plan is nearly ready to be shared publicly. This important document frames our vision for the school in 2022-2026, with considerable care taken to ensure Richard’s vision and philosophies are honoured in our work in the years to come. Keep an eye out for this in the coming weeks.
NESA
The school has just submitted our application with the NSW Education Standards Authority (NESA) to deliver education to Year 3 in 2023. This is an annual process RGS goes through as we grow to be a K-6 school by 2026, and potentially a K-12 school beyond. It is a valuable process to refine our policies and procedures and ensure the school is operating to the best of our ability.
Donor appeal
As the end of financial year approaches, we hope some of our supporters may consider making a tax-deductible donation to Richard Gill School. As a new school in its very early stages, we have a strong vision for the types of activities and resources we would like to conduct in our school and the generosity of donors will assist us in seeing this vision come to life. Please contact the school at admin@rgs.nsw.edu.au if you might be in a position to make a donation to our school and students.
Individual Education Plans
A unique facet of Richard Gill School is our development of an Individual Education Plan (IEP) for all students. An IEP is a written statement that describes the adjustments, goals, and strategies to meet a student’s individual educational needs, so they can reach their full potential. We believe an IEP is essential as it helps plan and monitor a student’s unique learning needs. The end of term will see our first family-teacher IEP meetings to discuss learning and set goals for the coming year. We look forward to welcoming our families into the school during the final week for this important meeting.
Enrolment
In 2023, enrolment is open to Kindergarten, Year 1, Year 2 and Year 3 students. With numerous siblings joining Kindergarten next year, don’t delay, contact the school on 02 6543 1900 to secure your enrolment.
Enrolments for Richard Gill School are always open, and in 2022 are open to Kindergarten, Year 1, and Year 2. Our prospectus, enrolment form, parent info and fee information can be found here.
This will be my final post for Term 1. Wishing everyone a safe and enjoyable Easter break and we look forward to seeing everyone again in Term 2, which commences on Wednesday, April 27.
Yours in Music,
Chris English – Principal, Richard Gill School