Our teachers aim to develop confident and engaged learners and work to provide an environment which allows students to explore diverse areas of interest.
STEM is one such area. The school runs a stem group for interested students and they have the opportunity to be creative with the technology that they are using and being able to use their imagination with makey makeys and spheros.
Recently, this group used makey makeys to create a 3D controller to use with minecraft, they also designed a vehicle to use with the spheros to race around a racetrack.
Our school also participates in the Children’s University in partnership with the University of Newcastle. Students are able to join this program and experience a variety of learning opportunities beyond the classroom.
Our students have been encouraged to be curious about their world and use their passport to log 30 hours of learning outside of the classroom to qualify for graduation in the program.
Students have been able to take part in a variety of online learning activities, virtual excursions and visits to local learning destinations.
St Joseph’s has a dedicated Gifted Education Teacher who works with class teachers to identify students who are capable of being extended in their learning, these students have the opportunity to join the Diocesan Virtual Academy as well as being provided with rich learning tasks that target their areas of strength.
The Virtual Academy is an exciting and unique innovation from the Catholic Schools Office, which aims to meet the needs of highly and profoundly gifted students in Years 3 - 8.
The Virtual Academy is run online, and students are challenged by a curriculum based on a conceptual framework that focuses on building critical and creative thinking skills.
The Virtual Academy offers students the opportunity to work above their grade level and challenges them to think across disciplines to solve real-world problems.
St Joseph’s engages the whole child, preparing them not just for high school, trades, college and university, but for life.
The Principal of St Joseph's, Melissa Hunt says that our mission is to create engaged and confident learners through quality teaching centred on Jesus, who make a positive impact on society.
To find out more about St Joseph's Primary School, Wingham or to enrol your child visit wingham.catholic.edu.au.
Published in the Manning River Times
Photos by Callam Howard, Drama Teacher at St Clare's, Taree.