A MESSAGE FROM OUR HEAD OF LEAP:
Hello Emu Park Community!
A warm welcome to new and returning families as we commence the 2021 school year. I would like to introduce the Learning Engagement and Acceleration Program (LEAP) Team for 2021.
Emu Park State School prides itself in providing a multi-disciplinary team approach to support all students. The LEAP team consists of Head of LEAP, LEAP teachers and teacher-aides, Guidance Officer, Chaplain, Speech Language Pathologist and Occupational Therapist. LEAP team members work alongside classroom teachers in a collaborative role to support all students to access the curriculum and the social and physical learning environments in the school context.
Our LEAP teachers have an in depth understanding of the Educational Adjustment Program and an expert knowledge of disability specific areas, identifying individualised adjustments, and targeted differentiation strategies to support students to access the curriculum in classrooms alongside their same age peers.
In response to the increasing complex needs of all students, Emu Park State School has invested in a Speech Language Pathologist and an Occupational Therapist who will provide tailored support at our school one day each week. A warm welcome to Sharni Tyrrell and Susan Bass.
Emu Park State School has exciting acceleration and enrichment projects planned for 2021 including Robotics, Wood Work and Scientific Adventures. Our students will look forward to participating in our unique LEAP projects throughout the year.
At Emu Park State School, we believe open dialogue between a diverse range of professionals is the key to better supporting all students to achieve improved outcomes. This collegiality is prioritised in our Student Advancement Forum (SAF). SAF is a whole school approach to student management. The SAF committee consists of The Head of LEAP, Deputy Principal and Guidance Officer. The SAF committee meets weekly with teachers and specialised therapists to discuss the needs of individuals and groups of students, review medical and therapy reports and then make informed decisions about LEAP courses and projects. The school values the input from external therapists and medical professionals and considers implementation of recommended adjustments suitable within the school context. Teachers refer students to SAF via completion of a referral form in consultation with LEAP teachers and parents. All requests for GO or Chaplain support are processed through SAF.
The LEAP committee asks that all external requests for completion of reports, questionnaires and medical referral letters are forwarded to the SAF committee via email: leapadmin@emuparkss.com. Requests will be discussed at the upcoming SAF meeting and teachers notified if they have an action to complete. We ask parents to be mindful of providing enough time for the committee to discuss and action requests. Timelines for completing requests is approximately two weeks depending on a teacher's current workload.
The LEAP team looks forward to the exciting adventures that 2021 will bring.
Tiffany