Our Year 12 girls finished their final day at Lowther Hall with their annual tradition of throwing their hats from the Mansion balcony.

This week, we bid our final farewell to the class of 2014. We have recognised them at formal assemblies and watched them toss their hats off the Mansion balcony and at their Valedictory service yesterday afternoon they were given a lit candle as they left the Cultural Centre which they symbolically carried out into the world, ready to shine!

We know that feedback is one of the most effective strategies when it comes to teaching and learning. Not only is it important for teachers to give feedback to the girls about how they are progressing and what they need to do to improve, but it is essential that teachers also collect feedback from their students to assess their progress. This “cycle of feedback” is central to the way we operate in classrooms at Lowther Hall, and helps to ensure that each girl is being challenged at just the right level and that every girl is learning.

It is always exciting to return to school after a term break and in Term 4 this is especially the case with the energy that Spring brings. This week started with an inspiring day in which members of the teaching staff shared their reflections on learning they have each been doing over the year – action research regarding best practice classroom teaching, informed through peer observation, data collection and extensive reflection and reading. We are fortunate at Lowther Hall to have a committed team of professional teachers who lead the way in learning for our girls.