Our school epitomises Australia as a multicultural country. Among the 356 students at Como Primary school, 126 families speak another language at home, comprising of 35 different languages.
As such many students arrive to be enrolled with very limited English skills. To cater for these children’s individual needs we have a designated English as an Additional Language or Dialect (EAL/D) teacher for the Year 1-6 students who withdraws these students from their mainstream class for between two to three hours each week. During this time the students focus on reading, writing, speaking and listening skills in very small groups within our EAL/D classroom. The K-P students also have access to an EAL/D teacher in their Early Childhood Centre.
These intense lessons allow the students to gain the skills and confidence with English that they need to progress in the mainstream classroom.
New students from overseas are always embraced enthusiastically by the student body thus allowing the new child to feel welcome and quickly gain a sense of belonging.
Harmony Day in March is a significant day of celebration at the school, allowing us to appreciate the many cultures that work together and add a special “flavour” to our school. Students proudly display aspects of their culture at this time.
For further information about the Australian Curriculum please visit www.australiancurriculum.edu.au