As outlined in our school Vision Statement, we at St. Mary’s, are committed to providing a quality education that enables every child to develop the knowledge, skills and values they require to make informed decisions as committed contributors to society. We are dedicated to providing an educational experience that allows all students to let their light shine as living witnesses to the Gospel values.

Our Religious Education curriculum is based on the Source of Life core documents. This is the curriculum mandated for all Catholic schools within the Diocese of Sandhurst. Our Religious Education programs aim to promote and facilitate student learning in the knowledge, practices and self-understandings of Catholic Christianity in particular, as well as other religious traditions.

 Our learning and teaching programs are guided by the Victorian Curriculum F-10, which sets out what every student should learn during their first eleven years of schooling. The Victorian Curriculum is the common set of knowledge and skills required by students for life-long learning, social development and active and informed citizenship. It incorporates the Australian Curriculum and is reflective of Victorian priorities and standards. At St. Mary’s, we use the Victorian Curriculum to plan learning and teaching programs, to assess student learning and to report on student learning.

St. Mary’s places a high value on literacy and numeracy. Much of the work we do in this space is directed by differentiation – providing targeted teaching that caters for the individual learning needs of our students. Implementation involves a range of whole class, small group and individual learning opportunities.

Learning and teaching experiences in literacy are focused on the three modes of Reading and Viewing, Writing, and Speaking and Listening. Programs and resources we use to support learning in this area include Reading Recovery, Fountas and Pinnell, and THRASS.

Learning and teaching experiences in numeracy are focused on the interrelated strands of Number, Algebra, Measurement, Space, Statistics and Probability. Programs and resources we use help students to develop the essential mathematical knowledge, skills, procedures and processes they need to engage in the real world.

At St. Mary’s, students in Prep to Year 6 engage weekly in specialist classes. These classes include Visual Arts, Performing Arts, Languages – Italian and Physical Education.

Other curriculum areas such as The Humanities, Science, Health and Technologies form part of our Inquiry Scope and Sequence. Learning and teaching experiences in these areas are directed by Kath Murdoch’s Inquiry Learning Model. In using this model, our students are engaged in learning that is relevant, challenging and enables meaningful connections to life. It helps develop inquiring learners, enhances problem solving skills and gives students autonomy over their own learning. 

 The Victorian Curriculum F-10 also includes four capabilities – Critical and Creative Thinking, Ethical, Intercultural, and Personal and Social. These are a set of distinct knowledge and skills that we teach explicitly in and through other learning areas.

The use of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) is prominent across our school and evident in all curriculum areas. Students are explicitly taught how to use technology effectively, safely and responsibly. 

 At St. Mary’s, a significant emphasis is also placed on the social and emotional development of students through our learning and teaching programs. We are a Respectful Relationships school, meaning we promote and model respect, positive attitudes and behaviours. Our students are taught how to build healthy relationships, resilience and confidence.

It is an expectation of our school, that Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander perspectives
are embedded in learning and teaching programs wherever possible. We have strong community links that support us with the work we do in this area.