Amy Woodgate | Head of Junior and Middle Schools

“The greatness of a community is most accurately measured by the compassionate actions of its members.” – Coretta Scott King

In a time when we may be asking ourselves ‘is this the new normal?’ it is reassuring to be a part of the SCOTS PGC College community where our ‘normal’ has continued throughout this week…albeit looking a little different.

Our Preps are still amazed by finding grasshoppers camouflaged amongst the grass.  Our Year 8s are still enjoying playing ‘tiggy’ at lunchtime, as shown by their raucous laughter as they run past the window.  Our Year 1 students still love hearing the delightful Mem Fox story, ‘Koala Lou’ being read to them, and our Senior students are continuing to  be excited by their learning, whether that be in the classroom or connecting in a virtual learning environment.

In these challenging times, it can be easy to lose sight of how important these little things are and how much a laugh with friends, a message of support or simply marvelling at the wonders of nature can mean. The small kindnesses that we have seen from members of our College community during this period of uncertainty and change have not gone unnoticed.

SCOTS PGC is much more than just a school.  In a time when schools are being called upon to be the centre of our communities in many ways, the strength of the relationships we have at the College is now more important than ever. As we possibly transition into a Learning from Home program at the start of Term 2, ensuring that the connections our boys and girls have with their teachers and their peers remain strong is essential.  Equally as important as the teaching and learning component of our Learning from Home program is the wellbeing and pastoral care element.  Although this may be delivered in a different way to what would be the case in a face-to-face environment, ensuring that our College community has opportunities to come together, to share our experiences, to celebrate our successes and to support one another through these times is essential.

As is the case on campus each day, what makes SCOTS PGC a vibrant, inclusive and supportive community is the people.  It is these same people, whether it be our students, our academic staff, our administration and support staff or our families that will continue to embody our College values as we navigate the days and weeks come.

Thank you once again for your continued support of the College and I wish everyone a safe and healthy school break.