Learning and Teaching (AP)

Literacy Resources Launch at McAuley Catholic College

At McAuley Catholic College, we recognise literacy's critical role in student success across all subjects. To support this, we have developed a suite of literacy resources for our Stage 4 students (Years 7 and 8). These resources focus on boosting vocabulary, reading fluency, phonological awareness, and writing skills.

This initiative reflects our whole-school commitment to developing strong reading and writing abilities as essential academic and vocational achievement foundations. Our teachers will also use the resource to support reading and writing within lessons across all Key Learning Areas, and we hope that parents will use the resource to help their children's written communication and reading comprehension. Students are encouraged to produce neat, well-organised work with correct spelling, grammar, and punctuation. We expect them to draft, edit, and seek feedback to improve their writing.

In Semester 2, all formal written assessments in Years 7 and 8 will have sentence-level punctuation as a part of the marking criteria to support a consistent approach to these punctuation expectations. We will be guiding students to work on the following areas:  

• Capital letters and full stops
• Simple punctuation such as commas, question marks, and exclamation marks
• Capital letters for proper nouns

We invite parents to download the resources (hard copies will be available at the Parent-Teacher-Student Conferences; if you cannot attend and would like a hard copy, please email the school). The Literacy Coach, Librarian, and Assistant Principal Learning and Teaching will also be available at the Conferences to answer any questions.

Together, we are building confident, capable communicators ready to succeed in every area of learning.

The Trial HSC exams will take place from Monday, August 4th, to Friday, August 15th. These exams play a vital role in preparing Year 12 students for their final HSC, offering a realistic experience of the exam conditions and an opportunity to identify areas for further improvement.

By now, our Year 12 students should be actively preparing, including organising comprehensive study notes, reviewing past assessments to pinpoint where their marks can be improved, and revisiting previous tasks with feedback. Completing past exam papers and seeking teacher input is a highly effective way to enhance exam readiness. Students must manage their study time effectively to ensure they are well-prepared for the Trial HSC and the final HSC exams.

We sincerely thank our Curriculum Coordinator, Mrs Lee, for her dedication to communicating detailed exam information to parents and students. Mrs Lee has also met with students to clearly outline exam expectations and the support available, including the extended library hours organised in collaboration with Mrs Gleeson and Mrs Nicholls. These provide students with additional study opportunities during this critical period.

NESA has released the HSC Study Guide, which is online now and packed with everything HSC students need to kick their exam goals! There’s also practical mental health and wellbeing advice from the experts at ReachOut – with tailored tips for parents and carers on supporting their children in the lead up to exams.

While the focused study is critical, we also encourage students to maintain a healthy balance by taking breaks, spending quality time with family, and engaging in activities that help them relax and recharge. This balance is key to sustaining motivation and well-being throughout the exam season.

7-11 Parent-Teacher-Student Conference (Interviews)

Remember that the conferences are scheduled for Tuesday, August 5th. If parents cannot secure an appointment but want to speak to their child's subject teacher, please contact the school for a phone conference.

Year 10 News – Future Pathways

Our Year 10 students preparing for the 2027 HSC at McAuley have been actively engaged in their future subject planning. Last term, many parents attended the Curriculum Evening, where they received valuable information about the subjects available to their children. Following this, students were allowed to select their preferred subjects by the end of Week 1 this term. The school is reviewing these selections and creating subject lines based on what can be offered and will publish the 2027 HSC lines before the Future Pathways meeting.  

Year 10 students and their parents are asked to save the date for Tuesday, 12th August, when meetings will be held to discuss study patterns and post-school pathways. These meetings will provide an excellent opportunity for parents, students, and senior staff members to collaborate on course choices and future options. Further details regarding these essential meetings will be given to families at the start of Week 3.