Kindergarten - Year 6
The school has a well-earned reputation for providing a caring environment with a committed staff whohave high levels of expertise.
Our curriculum is designed to develop cultural awareness and literacy in two languages for children from Kindergarten to Year 6.
The school provides an educational program based on, and taught in accordance with the NESA (former Board of Studies) syllabuses for Primary Education. The Key Learning Areas (KLAs) are English, Mathematics, Science and Technology, History, Geography, Creative Arts and Personal Development, Health and Physical Education.
Mathematics and English are taught through the English language while the other KLAs are taught in Italian with assistance in regard of content done through English and linked to the English term's programs. The school employs a particular methodology of teaching and maintains this system throughout its everyday functioning- "una faccia una lingua"which literally means "one face one language" This model allows students to recognise that each particular teacher will address them in one language at all times.
The development of bilingualism strengthens the intellectual, analytical and reflective capabilities of students. They gain an appreciation of language that helps deepen their understanding of cultural diversity and benefit from an exceptional social, historical and geographical knowledge of both Australia and Italy.
Equal immersion in both English and Italian enables students to graduate with two languages from a single integrated education. As a small school we offer students the opportunity to receive more personal attention during classes. Each child is taught and nurtured at their point of need, and this contributes to outstanding student achievements in literacy and numeracy in both Italian and English.
New students are not expected to have prior knowledge of Italian. The teachers are highly competent and skilled in the process of second language acquisition and are therefore able to assist the children through the different learning phases.
The Italian Bilingual School offers a microcosm where learning the Italian
language complements the development of skills in the English language.
Hence, the students, whose majority language is English, are given as many
opportunities to communicate in Italian as possible both through formal
learning and informal contexts.
The content of the curriculum, to be delivered in English and in Italian,
reflects both the Australian and Italian cultures, thus giving students a
bilingual and bicultural education. Encouraging students towards an
understanding and appreciation of the wealth of cultures which comprise the
Australian landscape, is an inherent aspect of the School's curriculum.
Through this model children will gain social, cultural, historical and
geographical knowledge of Australia and Italy. The Italian Bilingual School
empowers students through the added benefits of a broader education by
offering a curriculum that is consistently of the highest standard.
The teachers of the Italian Bilingual School are qualified, experienced
and highly skilled professionals with native proficiency in the target
language. In order to facilitate the development of the two languages and
to avoid confusion, each teacher speaks to the students either in English
or Italian, according to their area of specialisation. Students thus
associate a particular person with a specific language, thereby maintaining
the distinction between languages.
At the Italian Bilingual School care is taken to foster the development of
each individual child in the firm belief that, through nurture and
continual encouragement, children are able to achieve to their full
potential. Consistent with this philosophy, class sizes do not exceed 25
students. Moreover, parental involvement is viewed as an integral component
of a child's educational development and is therefore strongly encouraged.
In addition to the intellectual development of the students, the school
also places strong emphasis on physical well-being.
Students participate in a variety of activities and games aimed at
promoting physical fitness and personal development. These range from gross
motor activities to ball games, gymnastics and swimming lessons.
HOMEWORK
Homework forms an integral part of learning at the Italian Bilingual School; its role is to strengthen newly learnt skills and to foster good study habits which will become invaluable in later years.