Dear Families,

This week, our classes were introduced to the new Goulburn Street Primary School – Our Expectations matrix. There are two versions: one for Early Childhood and another for our middle to upper primary classes.

The Our Expectations matrix is structured as “We” statements, linking to our school values across all settings. This document will be used in various ways at the individual, class, and whole-school levels. It will also serve as the foundation for our review and restructuring of our approach to behaviour management.

Please see document below.

Today, students from classes 2/3 James, 3/4 Brelis, 3/4 Coe/Johnston, 5/6 Clifford, and 5/6 Cook took part in our first-ever Community Circle Assembly. These assemblies will be an opportunity to share ideas and information, discuss issues and challenges, and prepare for upcoming school celebrations and events.

In today’s session, we introduced our focus areas for the remainder of Term 1:

1. Respect – We are kind and care about others.
2. Connection – We acknowledge and celebrate our diversity through cultural events (Harmony Day and NAIDOC Week).
3. Courage – We speak up and stand up for others (be an upstander).

We also had an important discussion about racism and showed students two video clips explaining what racism is and how it affects people. While this is a challenging topic, we emphasized that our school must be a safe and inclusive place for all. Understanding racism is essential so we can stand against it—both in our school and the wider community.

Here are the links to the clips:

• Let's Talk About Racism
• 'Racism. It Stops With Me': Australian Human Rights Commission launches campaign

Over the coming weeks, classes will continue working on these themes as we prepare for our Harmony Day Assembly.

As a school, we are committed to fostering a safe and supportive environment. We acknowledge that building understanding and educating our community is a key part of this process.

Have a great weekend!

Warm regards,
Michael