Important information for Day 1 of each new school year never seems to be as easy to find as we want. It was pondering this last week that led us to take the decision to present our ‘return to school’ information differently this year. In 2015 we sent out a “Welcome Back” pdf of a mere 18 pages, and looking at it earlier this week, I struggled to easily find what I would have wanted in it. This issue of Aspectus is devoted primarily to what families need to know on Day 1 (and subsequently, Week 1 and Month 1 also!)
General information needed by all or most families, irrespective of their child’s year, can be found using the “Around our School” tiles at the foot of the home page. To help prevent going back and forth to and from the homepage, once the first of these is clicked, say for “First Day Parents Coffee Morning”, the page it takes you to with that content will also have all the “Around our School” tile items listed on the left hand side of the page you are on (below the School section links). We hope this makes finding general information easier.
Information specific to a section of the School will be found via the link to that part of the School. Hence, to find arrangements for locker distribution for Middle School boys, click the “Boys Middle” link. The same applies for information specifically to do with a single year level; click the section of the School that contains that year level.
We hope this makes the first day of 2016 and for many families their first day at Tintern, a much simpler experience. I will be interested to hear from parents over coffee on the first day about how successful this initiative is.
As you will have been reminded in my recent letter to the community, we have begun this year as Tintern Grammar. We are very proud of our Parallel Learning, co-educational, campus with its wonderful cohort of young men and women. Our change of name and clarification of our identity and of the key elements of a Tintern education do not represent a departure from our fundamental philosophy, ethos, School Vision or Mission. We remain committed to the best possible holistic and academic education of Tintern girls and boys through strong programs delivered by excellent teachers in environments that optimise growth for both boys and girls at the different stages of their development. The growth and development through primary and secondary schooling is a partnership between school, students and parents and I look forward to us all doing our part to enable our young men and women to shape their world in 2016!
Having said that, as a staff we undertake ongoing review of our practice as educators and mentors to ensure we are enabling the growth and development of our students in the absolutely best ways possible. Over the course of the year I will communicate some of the very exciting developments for our staff and the effects they will have on the experience our students enjoy.
In the meantime, in the interest of honesty and transparency, can I seek parent support with one thing in particular? You have heard a number of times from me and also from Heads of Schools about our ‘reset’ on uniform for 2016. This year is a ‘new’ experience year in many ways and I want uniform to be one of those new experiences too. I recognise that not all the changes in uniform policy or expectation are popular with our community but there has been overwhelming support for improvement in our uniform. Senior Staff and I will be on our entry gates from Day 1 this year to greet new and existing families in the early days and weeks. We will also be examining the wearing of uniform by our students, as will all staff at School during the day.
In the event that students are not wearing their uniform as required, they will be asked to address this. This may only involve tucking a shirt in, but may involve a lengthened hem or a larger shirt. I seek your support in getting this done for your child in a timely fashion. I appreciate that parents getting students to wear correct uniform can be a battle difficult to fight and even harder to win and believe it or not, the same applies at School! However, if we are reasonable, consistent, good-humoured and unyielding about this together as parents and a staff body, we can draw our young community members along. I hope I can count on your help with this.
I look forward to seeing you in the coming weeks and hearing of holiday and other adventures! In the meantime, amongst other things, the “Principal’s Vlog” expresses my welcome back to you and your family and how much I am looking forward to 2016. I hope you all are too!
Factis non verbis
