Assistant Head of Gioia House

Welcome to all Gioia House families! We hope you had a delightful holiday break and enjoyed quality time with your loved ones. The new year has started wonderfully, with our Year 5 and Year 6 students settling in and showing great enthusiasm for the new school year.

5-8 Digital Communication Charter

This term, Gioia House Pastoral lessons will focus on Digital Citizenship skills and the various ways we communicate online. In the first lesson, students explored the benefits and drawbacks of online communication. They completed an online survey to identify the digital communication tools they use and any issues they have encountered. The Pastoral Lessons and Digital Communication Charter aim to help students develop safe, respectful, and responsible online habits. We will continue to encourage students to voice their opinions and actively participate in forming the Online Digital Charter. Once created, students will be encouraged to share the Charter with their parents at home.

Year 5 Action Girl and Connection session

On Thursday 13 February, Year 5 students participated in an Action Girl team-building session. This session aimed to introduce students to the concept of being a Gioia House Action Girl and provide opportunities to form new friendships, develop teamwork skills, and collaborate with others. Students engaged in a Lego-building listening exercise, emphasising the importance of clear communication and attentive listening. They also participated in a team Tower Cup challenge, where they built cup structures using only one hand and the provided materials. It was inspiring to see the different approaches each team took to find solutions, demonstrating excellent teamwork and success in building the cup towers. At the end of the session, students wrote special notes to their peers, highlighting the qualities they admired in each other. We reflected on the new connections made and identified ways to continue strengthening these friendships and reaching out to others daily.

Year 5 student reflections:

‘It was good to make some new friends today, I had lots of fun.’

‘It made me feel good to read the kind notes other students wrote about me’.

‘I had fun working with other students to build the cup tower.’

‘My friend and I actually built the same lego structure, we were so excited.’

TASS Pastoral Care entries

From Week 4, Years 5-12 parents will receive alerts in the Parent Lounge if their daughter receives a Pastoral Care entry for the following reasons:

All positive commendations
Non-completion of homework
Lack of preparation for class
Punctuality
Technology mis-use
Chewing gum
Uniform infringement
PDHPE Uniform (incorrect/no uniform).

Parents will be required to acknowledge each Pastoral Care entry on the Parent Lounge. The College values parental involvement and by informing families about minor infractions early on, we can work together to address and modify behaviors, promoting student growth and development. Furthermore, sharing positive commendations can signifcantly boost students self-esteem and motiviation, encouraging students to continue to strive for excellence.

Safer Internet Day

On 11 February, Gioia House students participated in National Safer Internet Day, raising awareness of online safety issues and working towards a safer internet. Students attended a live webinar hosted by the eSafety Commissioner, learning about online safety, reporting misuse, and maintaining privacy online. They reflected on scenarios and identified appropriate ways to handle them. This webinar complements the Pastoral Program’s focus on Digital Citizenship skills.