Our Curriculum

The English curriculum encompasses the teaching of reading, writing, spelling, grammar, speaking and listening.

At St Pius X, we recognise that the development of early literacy skills forms a solid foundation for success across all learning areas. We are committed to ensuring that from the moment children begin school, they engage in exceptional learning in the subject of Literacy.  In 2019, we invested in a Reception to Year Two whole-class Literacy Program named, InitiaLit. This is a research initiative of Macquarie University which is based on 30 years of research undertaken by members of the MultiLit Research Unit. Since the inclusion of the program, we are observing our students thrive with their reading, writing, spelling and communicating skills. We have a goal that no child leaves the Early Years not being able to read independently.

It is our belief that by the time children complete their Primary Years schooling at St Pius X they should have the literacy skills required to cope with every day life and a solid foundation upon which to be successful with their future studies.

Children will participate in activities that develop knowledge and skills to interpret and apply Mathematics confidently, in both school and real-life situations. They will develop fluency, understanding, problem solving and reasoning in Mathematics. The children will learn through a mixture of explicit instruction and engagement in mathematical investigations where they will need to apply their mathematical knowledge to solve real life problems.

We recognise that the development of foundational life skills in numeracy is crucial for later success. Our goal is that all children leave their primary school years with numeracy skills to cope with everyday life as an adult and the skills required to be successful with the Mathematics curriculum when they move into their Secondary schooling.

At St Pius X our three specialist subjects include:

• Italian
• Music
• Physical Education.

All children from Reception to Year Six attend these three lessons weekly and these
programs are delivered by teachers who specialise in the teaching of these subjects.

Specialist teachers plan their lessons using the Australian curriculum. More information about each of these subjects can be found on the Australian Curriculum website.

At St Pius X, teachers use the Australian Curriculum as a framework to develop teaching and learning programs in order to meet the needs of our students.

The Australian Curriculum is a three-dimensional curriculum which includes key learning areas, general capabilities and cross curriculum priorities. When combined, these three dimensions outline the necessary knowledge, understandings and skills that young people require in order to shape their world and contribute confidently to society.

The Australian Curriculum is broken down into 8 key learning areas which include:

• English
• Mathematics
• Science
• Health and Physical Education
• Humanities and Social Sciences (comprising of Geography, History, Civics and Citizenship & Economics and Business)
• The Arts (consisting of visual arts, music, dance, drama and media arts)
• Technologies (consisting of Design Technologies and Digital Technologies)
• Languages – Italian is the language offered at St Pius X school.

The Australian Curriculum also specifies seven General Capabilities and three Cross Curriculum Priorities which are embedded into the key learning areas.

The children are assessed against the achievement standards in each of the 8 Key learning areas in the Australian Curriculum.

To find out more about the Australian Curriculum go to the Australian Curriculum Website.