OUR LEARNING

Learning

At St Bede’s we believe that people learn best when they are given learning opportunities at an appropriate level of challenge. Every child is supported to achieve their full potential through understanding explicitly what they are learning, what they need to do to be successful and what their next learning goal is. Our contemporary Learning and Teaching program is aligned to the Victorian Curriculum and ensures that it:

• Develops within students deep understandings about themselves and the world around them

• Builds learning relationships within and beyond the school community

• Encourages students to make a difference in their world by taking action that matters

• Cultivates active and informed global citizens with a focus on social justice

Our current grade structure is straight grades from Prep to Grade 2 and we plan to expand this to Grade 4 over next year.

EDUCATION IN FAITH

At St Bede’s, our Catholic faith permeates all that we do. We inclusively celebrate our faith through our daily interactions with each other. We explore with our students what our faith asks us to be in our everyday life – to be the face of Christ for those around us.

At St Bede’s we explore Religious Education through an Inquiry based approach. We encourage students to ask questions and share their wonderings to help make sense of their faith tradition in our world today. Students make connections between their life as a person of faith and their everyday experiences. They share in dialogue to deepen their understanding of what it means to be a follower of Christ in the Catholic Church Community or another faith tradition to which they belong.

Opportunities that are provided for our community to explore their faith

Religious Education Program Prep - Year Six designed using the Renewed RE Framework and linked to other subject inquiries
Regular class and whole school masses
Morning and afternoon prayer
Christian Meditation
Strong Parish connections
Commitment to social justice
A Mini Vinnies Group
Sacramental Program
Adult Faith Formation
Sacramental Programs - Sacraments are received in the following year levels:

Reconciliation: Year Three
Eucharist: Year Four
Confirmation: Year Six

Education in Faith

ENGLISH

The study of English is central to our learning at St Bede’s. We aim to instil a love of language in our students and ensure that they can use English to communicate, analyse, think critically and evaluate effectively. Our students learn to think in a creative and imaginative way, while expanding their ideas through the exploration of diverse texts. At St Bede’s, the study of English is a key element of all learning, which allows students to engage with their peers and the world around them.

MATHEMATICS

The study of Mathematics at St Bede’s provides students with the mathematical knowledge and skills to be life-long learners. Our students focus on increasingly sophisticated and refined mathematical proficiencies: developing their understanding, fluency, reasoning, modelling and problem-solving. These capabilities enable students to respond to familiar and unfamiliar situations and apply their number knowledge, statistical understanding and geometric thinking to real world situations.

STEM & DIGITAL TECHNOLOGIES

The Digital Technologies curriculum enables students to become confident and creative developers of digital solutions through the application of information systems and specific ways of thinking about problem solving. Students acquire a deep knowledge and understanding of digital systems, data and information and the processes associated with creating digital solutions so they can take up an active role in meeting current and future needs.

The students at St Bede’s participate in a one hour weekly specialist class in Digital Technologies, as well as the embedding of the curriculum into other learning areas. The school has a Digital Technologies lab and students have a range of hardware to use including laptop computers, 1:1 Chromebooks as well as iPads in Years Three - Six. Robotic coding equipment includes Spheros, Bluebots and Ozobots. The students also use Makey Makey kits which are invention kits that allow users to connect everyday objects to computer programs.

FRENCH

At St Bede’s we are all co-learners of French. French is taught daily in every classroom by the classroom teacher with the support of a French language assistant. Our focus is on oral language and our students understanding themselves as speakers of French. Our functional language program teaches the high frequency vocabulary we need to communicate and it uses gestures to support the students in remembering the vocabulary in order to develop and improve communication skills.

VISUAL ARTS

Visual Arts includes the fields of art, craft and design. In Visual Arts, students make and respond using Visual Arts knowledge, understanding and skills. They create visual artworks that communicate and express their ideas and understandings about themselves and the world around them. At St Bede’s, the Visual Arts lesson content is linked to the students’ classroom inquiry learning. Students participate in a weekly one hour Visual Arts lesson. They are involved in a range of art making activities, working in the different Visual Arts areas. The students are encouraged to be curious and engage in a journey of discovery, experimentation and problem-solving, utilising different visual arts techniques, tools, materials, practices and processes. The students explore how the Visual Arts are practised and valued in different contexts, societies and cultures, both past and present. Students are provided with opportunities to view, analyse, evaluate, interpret and discuss their own work and the work of other artists.

MUSIC

St Bedes Music Program aims to develop a love of music, to foster creativity and to enable students to feel a sense of pride from working together or performing either collaboratively or individually.

Our Music Room is a wonderful learning environment. There is ample space to respond to music through movement and dance, as well as to play a variety of instruments, including xylophones and djembe drums. Students participate in a one hour lesson every week which is linked to their inquiry learning. Music sessions draw upon singing, movement and instrumental playing to teach the elements of music.

Students in Years Three - Six have the opportunity to participate in the school choir, which rehearses once a week for an hour.. Students learn a variety of songs which they perform at school assemblies, school fetes, our Christmas Carols evening, School Showcases and local retirement villages. They participate in an annual Animato Festival shared with other primary schools in the local area. They also lead the singing for whole school liturgies.

PHYSICAL EDUCATION

At St Bede's, we run a comprehensive Physical Education, Sport and Outdoor Education program that aims to maximise student participation at all levels. We believe this program will foster a lifelong appreciation for movement, exercise and confidence in a range of sports and activities .

In the early years, Physical Education is based on the development of fundamental skills (running, dodging, catching and throwing, kicking and body movement and control) while building a positive association with games and spatial awareness.

As students move into the middle and senior year levels of the school, the variety of sports and activities available to them significantly increases. Students and/or teams who excel at this level are also given the opportunity to further test their abilities through district, regional, state and national competitions in School Sport Victoria (SSV) programs in cross country, swimming and athletics and other sports.

Each year every student is involved in a one week intensive swim program to assist with swimming skills, water safety and a meeting the 50 metre swimming requirement by the end of Year Six.

Students compete in interschool and intraschool activities in weekly and term based activities

Some of the sport and recreation programs offered at St Bede’s include:

Swimming
Athletics
Cross Country
Hooptime (Basketball)
Interschool sport
Soccer
Netball
Volleyball
Football
Gymnastics
Cricket
Tennis

EXTRA CURRICULAR

St Bede's offers a range of learning opportunities that fall outside the realm of the normal curriculum. An extracurricular activity is designed to enhance the students’ social, academic, physical, creative or intellectual learning. Some examples of what is offered at St Bede’s is below:

Student Wellbeing

Mindfulness

Transition Program

Anti-Bullying Initiatives

Healing Minds

eSmart

The Arts

Book week activities

French day

Art Show

Concert

Term Three Celebration of Learning

Choir

Tin Whistle & Ukulele Clubs

Instrumental Music Lessons

Leadership

School Captains

House Captains

Technology Leaders

Performing Arts Captains

French Leaders

Religious Education Leaders

Wellbeing Leaders

Social Justice Leaders

Mini Vinnies Leaders

Sustainability Leaders

Library Monitors

Spiritual

Confirmation Reflection Day

Sacramental Preparation

Mass Participation

Altar Service

Christian Meditation

Classroom Masses

Family Masses

Academic

French Program

Excursions/Incursions

Camps (Years 3/4 and 5/6)

Premier’s Reading Challenge

International Competitions and Assessments

STEM Mad Showcase

Sporting

Athletics

Cross Country

Hooptime (Basketball)

Swimming

Sailing

Interschool sport

Representative sport