Kindergarten 5 minutes, 4 times per week. Reading
Year 1 10 minutes, 4 times per week. Reading and spelling
Year 2 20 minutes, 4 times per week. Reading, spelling, some research, and number skills
Year 3 & 4 Approximately 30 minutes 4 times per week. Revision, reading, comprehension, mathematics, spelling research relating to topics studied at school
Year 5 & 6 Approximately 40 minutes. 4 times per week. Revision, reading, mathematics, spelling, research/projects
Year 7 45 minutes to 1 hour. 4 times per week.
Year 8 1 hour to 1 ¼ hours. 4 times per week.
Year 9 1 ¼ hours to 1 ½ hours.
Year 10 1 ½ hours to 2 hours.
Year 11 Approximately 18 to 20 hours per week
Year 12 Building to approximately 24 to 28 hours per week for students striving to achieve their potential



REPORTS AND INTERVIEWS

Student School Progress Reports are issued three times per year:

1. Term 1 Progress Report.
To provide parents with a brief summary statement of each child's progress during the first six weeks of the school year. It is not designed as a detailed statement and is not based on an accumulation of marks and assessments compiled over an extended period. It is an indication of the trends and patterns of learning and teachers indicate on the report if they perceive the need for a parent/ teacher interview.

2. Mid-year Progress Report at the commencement of Term 3.
It is anticipated that all families will participate in parent teacher interviews following the receipt of this report.

3. Yearly Progress Report towards the end of Term 4.
Some parents may wish to participate in parent teacher interviews following the receipt of this report.

Other interviews between parents and teachers may be an changed throughout the year as required. These interviews are held at a mutually convenient time and can be arranged by contacting the class teacher.



SCHOOL SPORTS

The sports curriculum at l.C.S. plays an important part in the educational development of every student. This is reflected in the participation of the school in a number of sporting events.

Infants Sport
The infants classes have one morning or afternoon per week of sport. This is organised and supervised by the class teachers and usually consists of team games and exercises.

Swimming classes are also arranged and held at one of the local swimming pools.

Primary School Sport - Cordeaux
The school participates in the Primary Schools Sporting Association (PSSA) competitions in term three, which involves the primary school children travelling to play other schools and sporting grounds throughout the Illawarra area. Students are entered into Christian school carnivals for cross-country running, athletics and swimming. During the year students are involved in a variety of sporting activities at school on a Friday morning. These include: gymnastics, oz-tag, Kanga Cricket, post-ball, dodge-ball and tee-ball.

Primary School Sport - Tongarra
Primary students participate in one session of sport each week and two sessions of fitness. At the beginning of each year the sport program begins with a swimming program called “Sportswim”, which is run by the teachers and parents.

A variety of sports are played including cricket, kanga-cricket, softball, T-ball, netball, soccer, hockey and touch football. School carnivals for cross-country, athletics and swimming are held. From these carnivals students have the opportunity of being selected for the CSSA(Christian Schools Sports Association) zone and state (in the case of cross-country) carnivals. If successful at the zone carnivals students may then be selected to compete at the CSSA state carnival in swimming and athletics. If successful at the State CSSA carnivals students may be selected to compete at the CIS(Combined Independent Schools) carnivals. At the level of CIS parents are responsible for costs involved and transportation of students.


Secondary School Sport
The sporting year for Secondary School is a busy one.

During the winter months students participate in at-school sports such as netball, volleyball, soccer, touch football, rugby and softball. As part of the students' recreational sports program they are also involved in activities held at various sporting centres throughout the local area. These sports include squash, indoor cricket, aerobics, circuit training, tennis and badminton.

Various inter-school sports carnivals are held during the year in association with other Christian schools and students from l.C.S. train for and compete in swimming, athletics and cross-country running events.



EXCURSIONS

During the year, the school arranges excursions for classes and student groups. These are usually organised in conjunction with units or topics being studied in class. It is anticipated that students will participate in all excursions organised for their class group.

The cost of the excursions is covered by the annual school fees. The only exception to this may activities that are optional such as ICS sporting activities, gifted/talented camps etc.

Parents are encouraged to participate in excursions wherever possible.



MUSIC GROUPS

Cordeaux Campus
The school Primary Concert Band and Primary Choir is open to students in years 3 to 6. The Vocal Ensemble is open to all secondary students. Students perform at the school End of Year Concert, the Wollongong Eisteddfod and other school functions.

Tongarra Campus
The Tongarra Campus Choir has enjoyed great success at the Wollongong Eisteddfod and performed at special school functions such as the end of year concert and local Nursing Homes. Commencing in 2007, our students are working in performing arts groups covering percussion, vocals, songwriting and many other skills.

The Secondary Vocal Ensemble performs at school functions and in the community. Both groups have united to produce a CD. The High School Band (also open to upper primary students) performs at school functions and the end of year concert.

Students are also encouraged to perform individually or in small groups for school assemblies and family functions.



SPECIAL EDUCATION RESOURCES

Children with Learning Difficulties
To assist students with learning difficulties and disabilities a variety of strategies are provided. Initially, class teachers provide adjustments and as much personal assistance as they are able. To further assist students with more persistent difficulties, support teachers provide both 'in class' and 'small group' learning assistance. Students in small groups receive more detailed assessment of their skills, and special programs, which target their learning needs. In K-6, a home program is seen as a vital part of this intervention, and is provided for each student who participates in a small group.

For children who do not respond adequately to intervention provided by the class and support teachers, or who experience more severe disabilities, more detailed assessment may need to be made. This is normally provided by a consultant clinical psychologist, paediatrician, speech pathologist, or occupational therapist, at parents' own expense. Special programs are then developed based on the additional information provided in the assessment.

Communication between parents and school staff is critical, if the needs of these children are to be met. If teachers identify a child, who is experiencing difficulty in their academic learning, parents are invited to an interview. These discussions seek to develop effective home-school strategies, which may be used to assist the child.


Children with Special Abilities
The staff recognises that God has blessed all children with special abilities to be used in service for God. Initially, in infants and primary grades, the class teacher will provide activities which are designed to develop the God-given abilities of each class member.

For K-6 children, who are performing well in advance of their class level, in Maths, accelerated learning is provided through an ‘Ungraded’ format. This means that the children may work with a higher class for some lessons, in their area/s of giftedness.

In addition, for those children who are exceptionally capable, small groups are constructed to foster problem-solving and ‘higher-order’ thinking skills, in a variety of contexts.

Those secondary students who have special academic abilities, are able to extend these by the provision of divided class groups. Support and regular staff are used for this purpose.




MATHS GROUPS

Ungrading of Maths K 6:
In order to cater for different ability levels in mathematics, students may study maths one grade above or below their peers, according to their performance and overall ability.



TERM DATES

Term dates for 2008