There are a number of avenues of communication available to parents at St Elizabeth’s. These include the Student Diary and email, as well as face to face meetings and where appropriate, phone calls. Given the requirements of the role of the teacher between 8.15am and 3.20pm, as well as the considerable additional demands outside of school hours (meetings, planning, preparation, marking, reporting, etc), response to communication may not be immediate. Every effort will be made to respond to notes, emails and phone calls within 48 hours, if a response is required. If a meeting with the teacher is required, advance notice needs to be given so an appropriate meeting time can be arranged. If you have any questions or concerns, your child’s teacher should be your first point of contact. The teacher will have the best and most current information and understanding of your child in the school context.
One of the best ways to keep informed to what is happening at St Elizabeth’s is to read the newsletter each fortnight. Many people contribute to this newsletter and as a result, it should answer many questions you may have.
Student Diary
Please familiarise yourself with your child’s Student Diary. This diary serves many functions:
- One way to communicate between home and school.
- An overview of a great deal of information regarding the school.
- Advice on procedures and “WHAT TO DO WHEN YOU…”
- Uniforms.
- School expectations.
- Prayers and songs of importance for our school.
- A copy of the Computer Resources Acceptable Use Policy.
- Recommended exclusion periods for various medical conditions.
Newsletters
Our school Newsletter is sent via email each fortnight on a Tuesday afternoon and covers current happenings at the school.
Information Evenings
Early in the school year, a Parent Information Evening is held. Parents are strongly encouraged to attend these meetings as they ‘set the scene’ for the school year. They usually begin with a prayer or reflection, information about the teacher and then discussion about the expectations of students - including behaviour management in the classroom, homework, the curriculum and other class matters. On occasions, additional information evenings are offered on various topics (eg Maths, the Prep Year, Reporting). Parents are encouraged to attend.
Student Report Cards
Reporting is the process of communicating timely and accurate information about students’ demonstrations of learning outcomes. Its main purpose is to acknowledge and support student learning. Reporting may be formal or informal. Report Cards are issued at the end of each semester. These have been designed to meet government regulations in regard to reporting. As a written report cannot give a complete picture of the whole child, parents are also invited to take part in formal Parent - Teacher interviews which are offered towards the end of Term 1 and Term 3. This provides an opportunity to work hand in hand with the class teacher for the benefit of the child.
Parent Teacher Dialogues
Teachers schedule Parent Teacher Dialogues at the end of Term 1 and these are offered again in Term 3. This provides a good opportunity for teachers to discuss each child’s progress with their parents and for both parties to share any concerns they may have. Parents are welcome to discuss their child’s progress with the class teacher at any stage of the year. We recommend that you make an appointment to ensure teacher availability and that you brief the teacher of your queries before your meeting.