Teaching & Learning

To be together the Heart of God through...

Good Shepherd Vision for Learning

Explorations (Inquiry learning organisers)

At Good Shepherd we have organised our Inquiry learning under 5 main 'Explorations.' These Explorations are an avenue for curriculum areas to be purposefully connected and to provide children with connections to real-life and world events. DIfferent curriculum areas are connected within each Exploration and these are fluid depending on the age of the students and the purpose for the learning.

The 5 'Explorations' are Identity, Change, Systems, Sustainability and Creativity.

View the Year 6 Overview for Parents of Good Shepherd Primary School

Buddies

The Good Shepherd buddy system promotes the development of positive cross-age friendships with the pairing of senior primary school students with junior primary school students. The buddy system works to encourage older students to support and care for younger students as they transition to primary school, while older students develop a sense of being valued and responsible leaders to their younger peers.

The Good Shepherd buddy system contributes to all students experiencing a sense of belonging within a caring and friendly school community. It supports the learning of improved social skills, self-confidence, responsibility and empathy towards others, while fostering a more inclusive school environment.

STEM

The school has an established STEM program to develop knowledge, skills and understanding in STEM subjects and to apply that learning in real world contexts. For an hour each week students will have the opportunity to explore elements of Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM). Students experience hands-on practical activities that enable them to experiment, use new technologies, test ideas, and make and create innovative solutions to real, complex problems through the Design Process. Students are encouraged to apply their skills in new ways using collaboration, problem-solving and interdisciplinary thinking.

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Education

Good Shepherd School is proud of the diversity of our student population which is enriched by the students of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander descent. We respect Indigenous cultures as rich and living traditions.

The Aboriginal Contact Teachers work with staff to coordinate whole-school events marking NAIDOC Week and Sorry Day; as well as other cultural enrichment activities.

Sport

At Good Shepherd, teaching programs for Physical Education and Health are informed by the Australian Curriculum. The primary curriculum is organised in bands of development over the Primary Years. he school sources specialist teachers to provide expertise in specific areas of the curriculum. Currently these providers are:

  • Get Set Tennis – Nelson Parker
  • Swimming – Aquatots at Forde

Good Shepherd offers a range of opportunities for students to participate in sport Gala Days and Carnivals. These may include: Oz Tag, Tennis, Touch football and Netball carnivals.

The principle aim of these days is to encourage participation and enjoyment in playing sport based on an inclusive approach. For many students it may be a starting point. For students seeking a more competitive focus, the trials system via the School Sport Pathway is more suitable or weekend sporting competitions through local clubs.

Italian

Kinder/1/2

In Italian lessons, the children will be developing communication skills of Socialising, Informing, Creating, Translating and Reflecting. Students will use Italian for social interactions such as greetings, asking and answering simple questions, responding to instructions, singing songs, and taking turns in games and simple shared tasks. The topics planned for this term are greetings, self (my name is & how I feel) and numbers to 10.

Years 3/4

The children will explore the Italian language system, pronunciation, intonation, language features as well as the role of language in the culture. They will be developing communication skills of Socialising, Informing, Creating, Translating and Reflecting. Students will use Italian for social interactions such as greetings, asking and answering simple questions, responding to instructions, singing songs, and taking turns in games and simple shared tasks. The topics planned for this term are greetings, self (my name is, how I feel, age) and numbers to 10. Please ensure your child has the QUIZLET APP on their ipads.

Years 5/6

The children will explore the Italian language system, pronunciation, intonation, language features as well as the role of language in the culture. They will be developing communication skills of Socialising, Informing, Creating, Translating and Reflecting. Students will use Italian for social interactions such as greetings, asking and answering simple questions, responding to instructions, and taking turns in games and simple shared tasks. The topics planned for this term are greetings, self (my name is, how I feel, age) and numbers to 10. Please ensure your child has the QUIZLET APP on their ipads.

Library

The Library program is concerned with the areas of Literature appreciation, Information Literacy and Media Arts. 

 The Literature program is designed to assist the children in: 

  • discovering delight in books 
  • interpreting the literature they read 
  • develop their literary awareness 
  • developing an appreciation of literature 

The Information Literacy program is designed to develop the children’s knowledge of: 

  • the library orientation 
  • the organisation of resources in the library and 
  • to develop the children’s inquiry skills 
  • to ensure that research skills are taught functionally 

The Media Arts program is designed to develop the children's skills in:

  • design, produce, distribute and the analysis of media artworks.
  • use the established and emerging techniques and practices.
  • the three stages of production: pre production, production and post production.