Welcome to 2026. It has been a pleasure welcoming students and families to the new school year. A special welcome to our incoming Year 7 students and families and others new to the College. 2026 promises to be a year that provides students meaningful learning opportunities, extra-curricular activities and many opportunities for students to make new friends, build confidence and reach goals. The start of the school year can be very busy, and families receive lots of important information about schedules, classroom expectations and upcoming events. We encourage you to regularly access Compass, ask questions and partner with us to support student success.

PROCEDURAL REMINDERS

Sometimes, students and families may forget the correct procedure for how we do things at North Geelong Secondary College. This section will be designated for little reminders about areas that pop up throughout the year.

Camps/Excursions - Please remember to click consent and pay by due dates for camps and excursions as there is a lot of administration that goes on behind the scenes to prepare for these events. If you miss the deadline, you will miss the event.

Student drop-off/pick-up - When dropping off students in the morning, please abide by the signs posted at the bus bay and staff car park. Cars are not to use the bus bay during morning and afternoon periods due to the buses requiring the space. Parents and carers are also not to use the staff carpark at any time.

Sickbay - Sickbay is to be used by students to report they are not feeling well, calls will then be made home to collect the students. Some students have been under the impression they can spend long periods of time in this area to see if they get better, this unfortunately is putting pressure on admin staff and is very difficult to manage.

Curriculum

The College continues to embed the GRO model as a framework for learning. This provides students with the opportunity to approach each new topic in a scaffolded manner. The three levels provide learning tasks at the following levels: G- Gain, allowing students to further develop their skills and knowledge, R-Reach, allowing students to consolidate skills and knowledge at the expected level and O-Optimise that extends and challenges students skills and knowledge. Students, guided by teachers, are given the opportunity to select and move between the levels to support their own learning growth.

Students in Year 7-10 have undertaken reading and numeracy testing during Week 2. This data supports teachers to plan learning and classroom activities to meet the needs of students. The testing is repeated in Term 4 to reflect and celebrate growth.

Students in Year 7 and 9 will sit NAPLAN during weeks 7 and 8 of this term. More information will be provided to students and parents via Compass.

Progress Reports

Progress reports will be completed every 4 weeks, and the first round will be completed at the end of Week 4. The four key areas are:

• Demonstrated preparation for learning
• Displays respect for learning
• Meets attendance requirements
• Participates in learning
• Progress in learning

This provides parents with regular feedback and allows staff to support students who require extra support. Student Support Group Meetings will be held as required.

Homework

With the new year, new teachers, new school and new subjects come many questions. One of which we, as parents, find ourselves asking “have you done your homework?”. In my household it is often “I finished it in class, or we didn’t get any”. The guidelines for successful outcomes in high school suggest the following calculator of time year level x 10mins per week per subject. This means a Year 7 student should be doing 70 minutes per subject a week. Homework is not about learning new content, it is about more than that and includes the following:

• Builds a study routine
• Reinforces what has been learned
• Helps recall the content for the next lesson
• Establishes a deeper understanding that enables more effective revision for exams
• Determines what has been missed or misunderstood to inform any questions for clarification in the next lesson
• Is so much healthier for the brain that technology   

Advice for parents of the child who “does not have any homework”

• Identify a time with your child that suits you both (after a break, before dinner etc) 
• Create a visible schedule (diary, fridge, kitchen table)
• Explain that it is about recalling the skills and knowledge to see what is known and what is needing further explanation
• If your child is a bit unsure, go through the list of subjects in the day with them, ask about what they talked about in that class, “What do you remember?”, “What did not make sense?”, “Can you show me the skills?”, “Can you show me your work?”, “Is there something that sparked your interest and you want to know more?”
• If they are a bit lost in the learning, encourage them to make a note in the diary to talk to the teacher and see how they go.

Homework can comprise any of the following:

• Revision of terms
• Practice of skills
• Pre reading
• Reading notes
• Reading the chapter
• Emailing questions for teacher
• Compiling questions for clarity

Mayoral Lunch

Due to being a part of the Japanese exchange in 2025, Mr Headlam was requested to speak at a large delegation of guests of the Mayor of Geelong Stretch Kontelj in the new Wurriki Nyal boardroom in Geelong. The meeting was entitled Friendship City Meeting and included discussions with the Mayor of Izumiotsu (Geelong’s sister city) which discussed the range of partnership opportunities between the two cities in agriculture and industry. Geelong certainly has so much going on and Izumiotsu is also doing great things. Mr Minamide highlighted a range of new initiatives including carpet that kills bacteria and medical rice. Mr Headlam was asked to highlight the initiatives across Geelong schools and within the programs schools have.

Japanese Delegation 

During the first week of school, we were very pleased to welcome a large delegation from the Mayoral office in Izumiotsu. Mayor Kenichi Minamide was brimming with enthusiasm for our school program, and our leadership were also very proud of our staff, students and school. The delegation included 6 other staff from his offices and Morita Yukari who looked after our students whilst we were on the Japanese exchange in 2025. Student members of the exchange in 2025 joined us for a tour of the school and engaged in some conversations (Japanese and English) and evidently really ensured a strong connection with the delegation. We will have senior students from Izumiotsu visit us briefly this term, whilst junior high school students will visit us in August. Our next exchange to Japan will be in 2027 and we are hoping it continues to build such positive and lifelong relationships with the students and the city.