Religious Education

Religious Education is a core component of the curriculum at St Patrick’s. The Catholic Education Office Awakenings program is used as the core document of this curriculum area.

This program offers an invitation, a structured approach and an evaluative framework to teachers of Catholic Education. It takes into account the complex and ever increasing secular world that we live in. Most importantly, it prepares our students to contribute to this world by immersing them in the Christian tradition through experiences which are reflective, intellectual, spiritual and prayerful. It is hoped that this immersion will enable students to develop an awareness of justice, compassion and transformation of themselves and the world around them. Religious Education takes place through the formal curriculum and many other aspects of school life such as liturgy, prayer and our awards program.

All students enrolled at St Patrick's are required to participate in the Religious Education program.

ICT

We are preparing students for a world where knowledge and information can travel across the globe in an instant, where everyday transactions take place electronically and where computers and their peripherals are commonplace tools for learning. 

With this in mind, St. Patricks has invested considerably in the area of Information Technology.
The grade 5/6 students have acquired their own iPads and are taught to use this device in a responsible manner on a daily basis to support their learning.

Information Technology takes place throughout the curriculum and at all year levels.  All students have access to various  technological tools in their classroom settings.

iPads are readily available on a 1:2 ratio from Foundation to Grade 4

Literacy

The literacy program features a two hour block across the school  4 days of the week and incorporates explicit teaching practices as outlined in the Early Years Program. Students are involved in whole class, small group and independent learning tasks in Reading, Writing, Speaking and Listening.

Teachers implement explicit teaching strategies and expose students to a variety of text types to equip them with the skills and knowledge that they will need to operate in today's world and become successful lifelong learners.

Literacy skills are transferred and integrated into all other curriculum areas.

Trained classroom helpers are a vital part of our Literacy program, providing valuable support to our teachers and students.

Mathematics

St Patrick's provides a comprehensive numeracy program for all students every day.  During numeracy sessions students participate in whole class focus sessions, learn mental computation strategies, experience small group rotation activities and teacher lead sessions, complete individual tasks and there is a share time at the end of each numeracy class for discussion of what has been learnt in the session. 

Our numeracy program includes the use of modern technologies such as interactive Smartboards, iPads and calculators.  Students have access to numerous concrete materials to use that enhance their learning of mathematics while interacting in their numeracy sessions, ranging from dice to fraction kits and playing cards to various shape kits.

Sport

Physical Education is offered from Foundation to Six once a week. Within each class a range of fundamental motor skills are taught, along with exposure to many sports; football, basketball, soccer, netball, tee ball, la crosse, cricket, tennis, hockey, athletics.

Opportunities are also provided throughout the term for students to attend the Stawell Leisure Centre to make the most of their facilities. St Patrick’s supports the Heart Foundation by participating in Jump Rope for Heart in coordination with learning skipping skills within sport lessons. During each year all students are provided with water safety skills, with Grade 3-6 participating in the Swimming Carnival. There is an annual Athletics Sports Day throughout the year held at North Park.  Students are also given opportunities to compete at a zone level in athletics and cross country.