Student Support

All students who attend St Thomas More are provided with differentiated learning opportunities. Sometimes students need some extra support and guidance in their learning and we offer a range of programs to cater for the diverse needs of our students.

Teacher Assistants

We have highly valued Teacher Assistants at St Thomas More Catholic Primary School: Rachel Hassell, Renae Cummins, Melissa Browner, Bianca Harding and Taryn Bradford, who assist our classroom teachers with instructional responsibilities. Our Teacher Assistants are an asset to our school as they provide assistance to students through one-on-one interactions, small groups or helping the students in their readiness for learning, ensuring they are prepared and focused for the lesson. They also work with students who have been diagnosed with learning difficulties, such as Autism, Dyslexia or ADHD to ensure strategies noted in Individualised Education Plans are implemented. Programs such as Sounds-Write, Letters and Sounds and MacqLit are run by our Teacher Assistants.

MacqLit

St Thomas More Catholic Primary School provides students who are struggling readers in Year 3 to Year 6 with an explicit, systematic reading intervention program called MacqLit. MacqLit is a research-based program, designed by Macquarie University, that teaches phonics explicitly and systematically, building vocabulary and developing comprehension strategies. The program is offered to students identified as falling in the bottom 25% of standardised reading tests or curriculum-based measures and who have particular difficulties in the area of word recognition. Our Assistant Principal and some Teacher Assistants have been trained to deliver the program and work with students in small groups on a daily basis.

School Chaplaincy Worker

St Thomas More employs a School Chaplaincy worker to work with our students and parents once a week on a Thursday. Ms Laurissa Knowles is a highly experienced councillor and teacher who offers pastoral care and wellness to our school community.