Homework*

=** St.Therese's School **= Middle/Senior Unit  2010   Dear Students and Parents, A good learning experience is built on a cooperative effort between parent, child, and teacher. Our expectations for conduct and standards for academic growth are high. With your participation in and out of the classroom we can look forward to a productive, creative, and fun year together! In the past many parents volunteered their time in the classroom, for example, hearing reading. We encourage this because it provides opportunity for more children to receive one-to-one attention. If you are interested in volunteering, please let your teacher know. This can be at a time that best suits you. The more specialized help students receive in class, the more they will learn. We are all very excited about this new year. We hope we can work together to make it one of growth, discovery, and significance for your child. You can help by giving us any information that will help us understand your child better. Some things we would be interested in include the following:  We would be interested in anything that could be affecting your child, although it is not necessary for you to reveal personal information. Anything you say will be kept in confidence. Again, welcome! Please feel free to contact your child’s teacher about your concerns. Our school phone number is 5443 3200. Please leave a message with Amanda or Ange, our school secretaries, and we will return your call at our earliest convenience.
 * Important experiences that may be affecting your child (death in the family, a best friend moving away, etc.)
 * Special medical needs
 * Study habits at home
 * TV habits
 * After-school activities and special interests
 * Feelings toward school
 * Conflicts among family members

This bulletin also contains some of the important details of our programs for the year.

**Unit Masses - **  These will be celebrated several times throughout the year. On these occasions you are most welcome to join us. Notification will be via the school newsletter.

**Homework **  – In the Middle/Senior Unit, homework is sent home each fortnight. The shared beliefs of all Middle/Senior Unit teachers regarding homework are that:
 * Homework should be a relevant reinforcement of classroom work.
 * It is important that the homework schedule has flexibility to fit in with the demands of family and school life.
 * Variety in homework activities is important.
 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 120%;">Homework will be sent home Fortnightly on Monday and returned by children on Thursday of the following week.

**<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 120%;">Reading ** <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 120%;"> - Over the middle school the emphasis changes from the process of reading aloud to independent silent reading although practice at reading aloud continues. It is expected that children bring readers home each night and return it to school each morning. Children should be reading for a minimum of 10 to 15 minutes each night. You are asked to sign your child's reading diary.

**<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 120%;">Sport ** <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 120%;"> – Your child’s teacher will let you know when your child’s sports days are. On sports days children are expected to wear the correct sports uniform. It is wonderful to see your children taking pride in wearing correct school uniform on non-sports day. Children from the Middle/Senior Unit will be taking part in the Bluearth Program on Tuesdays and Thursdays. Bluearth is a unique program that uses physical activity to encourage self-knowledge and self-acceptance. A gymnastic program at the Catholic Schools Gymnasium will run for six weeks later in the year. Cross-country events at school and interschool will be during second term.

**<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 120%;">Expressive Arts – ** <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 120%;">Music, L.O.T.E. and Art will be held on Wednesdays from 11:45am to 2:45am.

**<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 120%;">Computers ** <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 120%;"> - Children will have several formal sessions per week using the Unit C.O.W. computer laboratory to enhance and practise their computer skills in class.

You are welcome to call into our rooms at any time simply to view what goes on or to help out in any way you can. We look forward to fostering a healthy working relationship with you all.

Middle Unit Teachers

David, Trish, Brendan & Jo.