From the PDHPE classroom to history, science and beyond, teachers at Queenwood School are working to raise the bar in discipline-specific writing skills – and an instructional framework is paving the way.
One can never safely generalise and thankfully some girls are immune to the external pressures, but the effects of 'pinkification' are real for many girls (and probably the majority). This is a very recent phenomenon.
Digital technologies permeate almost every aspect of our lives. Abandoning them is neither realistic nor desirable, but the challenge for most people is determining how much is too much.
Visitors often comment on how calm and welcoming the school seems. This is due to many things: the fact that we don’t use a school bell; the skill of our teachers in combining a steady buzz of energy with a sense of order and purpose in the classroom; the quality of the facilities; the beautiful, natural surroundings; the obvious freedom and trust which is granted to the girls as they move independently around the school.
Parents want their children to achieve academic success and ‘intervention’ is often understood simply as extra attention which will accelerate learning. It is important, however, to understand what is properly meant by ‘intervention’ and what it will (or won’t) achieve.
We are assisted in many practical ways by the QPA, which organises social events, actively welcomes new families into our community, provides practical services like second-hand uniform sales, raises funds for equipment and programs, offers assistance for school events and provides us with a useful sounding board.
At Queenwood we are committed to tackling big ideas – even those we find deeply uncomfortable – and judging from the presence in the Balmoral Lecture audience of so many young people, including those of primary age, our parents are too.
We have developed a number of processes to assist girls in easing this cognitive and emotional load. The first thing to ensure is that girls have all the information they need to assist in making their choices.
The Build-Your-Own (BYO) Scholarship seeks to identify uniquely gifted and talented students who may otherwise go unrecognised.
One of the richest experiences that we can provide our students is the opportunity to experience a different culture, language, history and community through travel – both within Australia and especially internationally.
Art depends on skills which can be taught and does not demand talent as a prequisite.