Dear Parents and Carers,

This week I have been in Canberra from Wednesday to Friday at various Principal meetings. We have welcomed Mr Tim Cleary as Acting Principal in my absence. Mr Cleary is a highly experienced principal who is doing some relief work in our Archdiocese, and it is great to have him at St Patrick's for these few days. And, in case you are wondering like many St Pat's kids, he isn't related to the NRL Cleary's! It was quite fascinating that when being introduced to each class Tuesday afternoon, just how many of our students asked that question first! Mr Cleary let them know that he is not related, and his team is the Sea Eagles!

Yesterday we gathered as a system of leaders for Catholic Leaders Day. On the agenda was supporting positive behaviours for learning titled 'Classroom Mastery.' This thinking continues to expand the explicit and direct instruction pedagogy unfolding in our classrooms. 

Today the NSW principals gathered for a briefing with our NESA colleague Christine Keys. Christine is a Liaison Officer at NSW Education Standards Authority. She works with principals, schools and systems to ensure our continued understanding of and engagement with the NSW curriculum. We have recently been implementing the new K-2 English and Maths curricula and are currently implementing the new Year 3-6 curricula in the same subjects.

Next Monday I am at the Artificial Intelligence in Education conference in Melbourne for one day. 

• We will be learning more about how AI is transforming the way we teach and learn.
  
  * Hearing from experts in the field and exploring interactive sessions
  
  * Networking face-to-face with other educators.
  
  * Staying up to date with cutting-edge developments,
  
  * Learning how to integrate AI into teaching practice.
  
  * Gaining invaluable insights into the future of education.

I look forward to sharing some of the valuable learning on my return to school.