Compass - Parent Portal

From Term 4, St Mary’s Primary will be using a new school administration system called “Compass”. This new platform will be a portal for parents to submit absence explanations, provide permissions for excursions and school events and check important school messages. It will also be the only way of accessing your child’s academic report. 

The portal is accessible via the web and the Compass School Manager App (via the App store on your device). As this will become the school’s main platform to communicate with parents, unfortunately it is not an optional uptake for parents. All school communications including semester reports will be published through the Compass parent portal. 

The Front Office has emailed all parents their login credentials so that you may log into the Parent Portal either through the Compass App (Android & IOS) or through the desktop. Please keep an eye out for this important information. 

Instructions for finding our school through the desktop:

1. Go to
   Click here to Find your School https://www.compass.education/
2. Click on ‘Find your School’
3. Click on ‘Search your School’ and type in Moruya
4. Choose ’St Mary’s Primary School - Moruya’
5. Hit ‘Let’s Go’ and you will be asked to enter your username and password provided by the Front Office

Maths Pathway

We are very excited to inform you about some new changes that are taking place in the way we are teaching Maths in Stage 3. Beginning in Term 4, Years 5 and 6 will start trialling the program ‘Maths Pathway’.

We’re moving away from the traditional teaching and learning approach where each student learns the same topic at the same time. So, what will these changes look like? We’ll be building on their fundamentals as learners and how the students approach discovering and exploring new mathematical concepts. There are a few things that will happen differently in the classroom:

• Class-wide rich learning tasks that aim to get the students excited and engaged in problem solving using the maths skills they’ve developed, alongside their friends.
  
  
• Tailored mini-lessons for smaller groups of students. Teachers can hone in on specific mathematical topics with smaller groups of students who will benefit most from that lesson. 
  
  
• Each student will have their own maths program tailored to what they’re ready to work on next while working with their teacher to figure out how they can continue to develop their learning skills. That includes regular check-in tests and goal setting to figure out what each student wants to achieve next.
  
  
• One-on-one teacher and student lessons. When students are stuck on a particular piece of maths, teachers can see and reach out to students to help them out as needed.

I invite you to watch the introductory Maths Pathway video  to learn more about the program.

ICAS Assessments

Please be aware that recent changes have been made to the original ICAS test dates. The following dates are for the additional sitting window in October.

Writing - 5 Oct - 15 Oct 2021

Digital Technologies - 5 Oct - 26 Nov 2021

English - 5 Oct - 26 Nov 2021

Science - 5 Oct - 26 Nov 2021

Mathematics - 5 Oct - 26 Nov 2021

Earlier this term, information regarding the ICAS assessments was communicated through the newsletter and Skoolbag for parents of students in Years 2-6. The code to allow access to the ICAS Parent Portal is open and accessible to interested parents and carers who would like to register and pay for their child to complete an ICAS assessment. The following information will assist you in completing the registration. 

St Mary’s unique access code is: OZT217. The closing date for entry on the online payment system has been extended to 18 September, 2021. 

Public Speaking

Before we went into remote learning our hardworking Stage 2 and Stage 3 students had again produced a variety of high quality speeches and presented them to their class and teachers. Due to COVID 19 restrictions students were unable to compete at the next level of competition, The Southern Region Public Speaking Finals. Once school resumes, we look forward to receiving information regarding the Finals.

Congratulations to the following students who successfully made it onto the next level of competition.

Year 4 - Asher B & Xavier H

Year 5 - Scarlett P & Samira R

Year 6 - Michaela F & Charlie G

Please contact me if you have questions regarding the information provided in this update justin.bateman@cg.catholic.edu.au.

I hope you all find the time to have a peaceful and enjoyable school holiday period.

Justin Bateman
Coordinator